A Brief History of Equestria

by K9Thefirst1

Celestine Unrest

Celestine Unrest

As touched on in earlier chapters, Sullamander, the penultimate Commander of the Celestine Junta, was a less-than-effective and even less liked ruler. This can be explained in part by her rise to power.

In 65BW, Sergeant Sullamander’s best friend Mareinus became Commander, and broke the promises she had made to several allies in her rise to power by appointing Sullamander as her Second, this over the objections of not only all five of her Chiefs-of-Staff, but the other generals of the Junta and to the dismay of many of the common soldiers. This being due to Sullamander being something of a pariah to the Junta because of a horribly botched mission that she had led in the summer of 70 BW. The exact details are scarce; however, the consensus of scholars and historians is that it involved turning back a large raiding party of Diamond Dogs, a threat so common that it was considered routine amongst the Junta. Evidently, the entire mission was fraught with mistakes. If it could go wrong, it did, resulting in a high casualty percentage in regards to the fighting ability of their foe.

The reason why Mareinus would choose the incompetent Sullamander as her Second, friendship or no, has eluded scholars for centuries. In recent decades, the theory has been brought forward that the two mares were much more than simple friends. The scant evidence brought forward to support the ascertain is how Mareinus never took advantage of the hundreds of stallions under her command while allegedly producing hundreds of pederast sonnets in private (though considering how not even a sentence of her supposed writings have been uncovered, it is generally believed that this was part of the Anti-Sullamander propaganda produced after the Lake Trot Crisis), along with Sullamander’s well known and confirmed disdain for all stallions in general; Hurricane especially, well-known for his flirtatious prowess. However, this is shaky evidence at best, and is most likely the result of poorly researched and less-than-wholesome scholarship. But whatever the reason, when Mareinus died suddenly and mysteriously in 59 BW, the law dictated that Sullamander was to take command, and all pegasi in the Junta was to follow her orders for better or worse. And Sullamander held everypony in the skies to that, at the point of a sword if need be.

As a Stratocracy, the pegasi of the Junta were more than familiar with the idea of staying with the leader no matter what. However, most of the commanders before Sullamander were well known for their bravery, leadership and strategic skills before rising to that post, and so had the loyalty of the troops without the need for conscious effort. Without this critical element, the Junta faced the risk of factionalism and rebellion for perhaps the first time in its three millennia of existence.

As the years went on, Sullamander cracked down on ancient traditions in the Junta that she found detestable. The majority of the pegasi that were the most affected by these reforms were the stallions, especially when she began tampering with the methods of promotion for said stallions. No longer would a stallion receive a bonus or recognition for fathering any foal, but strictly if the foal was a filly. As most of the mares of the Junta did not have much stake in having stallions talented in the art of war progress to the point of sharing their experiences to younger troops, this reform passed with a minimum of complaint. Later on, this was changed to the father being docked wages or even rations if the foal was born a colt, in effect punishing him for something he had no control over. At this point, more voices among the rank and file were raised in protest, but again the reform passed largely in ambivalence. One additional reform Sullamander introduced was to forbid the stallion from having even the slightest amount of interaction with his foals. This proved especially unpopular even among the mares of the Junta, as it robbed them of even the option of letting their foals even seeing their father, even if it would be as a newborn.

Even though most female officers in the Junta that took advantage of the Comfort Stallions were ambivalent about the importance of the father interacting with her foals, it was widely known that more than a few mares became fond of certain studs, and liked to ‘play house’ on occasion. By taking away the option of even this simple pleasure, Sullamander did more than further reduce the stallions of the Junta to the status of Second-Class citizens, she began to make enemies with most, if not all, of the mares of the Junta. As open rebellion was unthinkable in the Junta, there were none of the rallies or talk of civil war that would be common in the Hyracotherium Republic or Kingdom of Unicorns in a similar situation. However, the common soldier and a good number of the officers of the Junta began to become lax in their discipline, and showed less than total respect when the subject of the Commander came up.

All this came to a head in 35 BW, when Sullamander attempted to prevent officers in high command from having relations (with stallions in particular) both on and off duty. The reasoning she gave for this particular law being thus:

“How can a mare concentrate on doing what is for the best of the Junta if a disgusting, boorish, sex-crazed male is humping her leg all the time? If the officers of the Junta cannot keep their minds on the true threats to the Junta, then it is my privilege as Commander of the Junta to see that they do.”

When the Chiefs-of-Staff saw Sullamander’s draft of her new law, they were (according to the Historian-General Fire Brand) ‘gob-smacked and dumbfounded.’ The five mares tried to persuade Sullamander to abandon the bill, saying that it would ‘not go over well with the officers or the soldiers.’ When Sullamander refused to stand down, General Thistle Whistle is said to have given Sullamander a scathing dressing down on her attempts to control the private lives of the Junta’s soldiers and officers, and accused her of consciously weakening the populace’s ability to produce more soldiers. In response, Sullamander shouted that, as Commander, she could do “whatever [she] wanted with the soldiers’ private lives,” and proceeded to run Thistle Whistle through with her sword. Sullamander then gave the four remaining generals to bring Thistle Whistle’s replacement up to speed, and to reconsider her new orders. She then gave the ultimatum that if the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff did not agree unanimously to enact and enforce her orders in one day, they would all be killed for insubordination and replaced with pegasi who would.

This episode would prove to be the first true break of trust that everypony had in Sullamander’s capacity to act and control her power as Commander. The four remaining Chiefs-of-Staff, knowing of the uproar Sullamander’s newest orders would provoke (out of fear of what else of their private lives she would target next if nothing else), the generals were at least hesitant about coming back in line. What might have happened has been the subject of scholarly debate and alternate history fiction for centuries. However, the idea that they might agree with Sullamander’s demands was rendered moot by the pony that was in line to replace Thistle Whistle: General Wind Whistler. Given the similarity of their names, it is often assumed that the two ponies were related. However, this is not the case, merely an accident of fate.

Wind Whistler was an exemplary soldier throughout her entire career. Having made top scores in the Celestine Military Academy (ultimately graduating with Honors as well as the Valedictorian), Wind Whistler holds the honor of being the only student in the centuries-long history of the school to have never received so much as a single Disciplinary Point (said points were given out by the faculty and staff for even the slightest misconduct carried out by a student) in her time there. That alone would have placed her on the fast track to the upper echelon of the Junta’s High Command. But when coupled with her cunning tactical and strategic thinking skills, she was able to win even heavily lop-sided battles against Diamond Dog raiders without so much as a single fatality among the troops under her command. These factors combined into making Wind Whistler a very popular and respected general among the populace and soldiers of the Junta. These factors also gave her a more aloof outlook to most situations, allowing her to consider actions that wouldn’t come to other soldiers. In other words, she was the last pony Sullamander should have allowed onto her Chiefs-of-Staff.

Within thirty minutes of the ultimatum being given, Wind Whistler was in the room and informed of the situation. According to General Fire Brand, who at the time was just the Staff Reporter, Wind Whistler took one look at the other generals and proceed to tell them that they were ‘incompetent,’ and explained why that was so by giving them all a lecture on the spot on the more obscure parts of the Celestine Junta’s constitution concerning the powers of the Commander, and what was to be done with a commander that abused her powers.

The next morning Sullamander walked back into the meeting room, expecting to find a sufficiently cowed Staff and a return to business as usual. However, what she got was anything but, with the new Chief-of-Staff taking the lead when asked if the Staff would now cooperate, as Fire Brand’s minutes show:

Gen W: No.

Comm S: Ah yes at last. Wait, did-did you just say no?

Gen W: Affirmative. We will not allow you to begin to dictate who your troops and officers will or will not sleep with in their private time whether it is on or off duty, as such matters are not within your power to dictate. Not only are your orders illegal, but also highly illogical.

Comm S: Now you listen here girl, you are treading on very misty clouds right now. Do you know who I am? I am your superior officer, and to disobey my whim would be madness.

Gen W: On the contrary Sullamander, the orders that you consider ‘reforms’ are what would be considered as madness. At least in the colloquial definition of the word. Clinically I find nothing unsound of mind in them, unless one considers a hyper-inflated ego and overestimation of one’s influence on others’ decisions a variety of mental illness. In which case yes: you are quite mad indeed.

Comm S: *a long series of inarticulate sputters followed by a number of abortive attempts at threats concerning Gen W and her insubordination*

Gen W: On the contrary Sullamander, it is you who are out of order in her conduct. Quite grievously at that. So grievously that unless you back down I will be forced to kill you.

Comm S: So it has come to open treason then!

Gen W: Actually no. It is you who are committing treason. Quite openly and flagrantly at that.

Comm S: …What. By whose authority?

Gen W: By the authority of the Articles of Command, which you swore to uphold when you rose to the position of Commander. *brings Full Copy of Articles from under table, places on table*

[Editor’s note: It should be noted that a Full Copy of the Articles of Command {effectively the Constitution of the Junta} consisted of one-thousand six-hundred and twenty-six sheets of twenty-inch by eight-inch parchment, and often weighed a good forty pounds when fully bound, which is likely the version Wind Whistler used. This version of the Articles was commonly called the “Doom Thunderer,” as the simple act of opening it and turning to the appropriate sections of the articles often echoed in the room.]

Gen W: Article XCV, Section 6, Sub-Section B, third paragraph. *quotes* Should the Commander prove to be malicious in her command of the Junta, by warfare sabotage, misuse of treasury funds for uses other than the maintenance of the Junta’s army and/or infrastructure and/or the city of Celestine, or over extending the personal powers of the Commander into dictating the personal affairs of individual officers, soldiers and/or citizens of the Celestine Junta, then the Commander is to be considered unfit to command and be branded a traitor to these Articles of Command and the Celestine Junta. *ends quote*

Comm S: What.

Gen W: And as the Articles clearly describe Sullamander, your orders that officers should not seek out relations with the stallion of their choosing, regardless of if it is on or off duty, is a clear invasion of power into the lives of the officers, soldiers and citizens of the Junta, and thus you are a traitor. Plus, since in the long run a lack of relations means a smaller population and thus a smaller fighting force, you are in effect weakening the Junta, and thus you are committing Warfare Sabotage, thus making you a Double Traitor.

Comm S: What?

Gen W: And in Article CCC, Section 9, Sub-Section ZZ, first paragraph, in the event of the Commander turning Double Traitor, the appropriate action is to, and I quote… *quotes* Give the guilty party the option of standing down and addressing the grievance in question as described in Article XCV, Section 6, Sub-Section B, third paragraph. The guilty party is to be given no less than ten seconds (or a count of ten by the head of the grievance-airing council) and no more than thirty seconds to comply. If the guilty party does not comply then she is to be run through the stomach with an Ndima spearhead and left to bleed out. The body is to then be beheaded, disemboweled, and then strung up and placed on display in the main plaza for a time in-between four to six days, after which it is to be cast from Celestine to the earth below to be fed upon by the carrion beasts and birds. After the Double Traitor is dispatched, the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff are to rule in the interim until a new commander who is not among the Chiefs-of-Staff can be appointed. Should the former commander have a Second, the Second is barred from consideration. * ends quote*

Comm S: What!

Gen W: Now, this *produces an Ndima blade from under the table* is an Ndima blade, as you can see it is well designed for its purpose of stabbing ponies. Bleeding out, I would like to remind you, is a slow process when the source of the bleeding is in the abdomen, often lasting at least four hours and I am told to be very painful. Now, as I am certain you had no idea that this eventuality was covered in the Articles, I will give you the full allotted time of thirty seconds to comply with our demands that you drop this matter and refrain from further invasions of privacy in the future. Your thirty seconds start… Now.

Comm S: …Guards! Seize them! Kill them all!

*the two guards that hold watch at the door look into the room, then at each other, and then slowly back away and even more slowly close the door*

Gen W: You still have five seconds by the way.

In the face of being executed on the spot, Sullamander naturally backed down and accepted the Staff’s demands. However, this would be the start of Sullamander’s long-standing hatred for Wind Whistler, and highlight Sullamander’s tenuous grasp of true power in the Junta, who only tolerated her rule by habit and fear. After the confrontation, Sullamander’s promotion reforms, while not repealed, became ignored by the pegasi in charge of them, rendering them repealed de facto if not de jure.

To prevent another usurpation of power from her own officers, Sullamander took a direct approach to the Academy itself, turning it into her own personal indoctrinization machine, churning out fanatically zealous officers loyal only to her. However, even this plot was not without its hiccups, as Pansy’s disregard of Sullamander’s orders during the Wyvrn attack in favor of her father proved.

Growing paranoid at the rising popularity that General Wind Whistler and then-gladiator Hurricane were gathering in spite (or perhaps more accurately because of) Sullamander’s actions, the Commander sought out any avenue to improve her own rocky public relations. With the ever dropping temperatures slowly freezing available water sources, she ultimately settled on taking Lake Trot for the Junta.

However, with tension slowly rising over slowly dwindling food and water sources amongst the tribes, the only remaining major body of drinkable water would no doubt set off the powder keg, something that Wind Whistler knew all too well, and told the other Chiefs-of-Staff as much. But while twenty years earlier she had been able to convince the other four generals to stand against Sullamander, in this situation she was unable to sway all of them. Gone were the older generals she served with, being by death or retirement. In there place was a new generation. Generals Haymaker and Bridle Chomper were wholly convinced of the Junta’s racial superiority to the Unicorns and Earth Ponies, and that owning all of Lake Trot was within the Junta’s right. On the other hoof, Downdraft and Torrent were convinced, but were hesitant to speak up against Sullamander. A fierce debate arose in the meeting room that almost turned violent. When Sullamander gave her orders to the Staff to prepare for war, Wind Whistler kept quiet. After the meeting, Wind Whistler took generals Downdraft and Torrent, the only other generals on the Staff to disagree with their orders, to her home for a small meal before heading out. Or so she told Pansy. But as the then-filly tells in her memoir, the actual topic was treason.

‘Mother sent me out to prepare refreshments for the generals and herself. She told me that it was a social call and that I need not involve myself. However, as mother never invited anypony for any reason, I had a hunch that something else was ahoof.

‘Therefore, after I left the snacks and wine, I hid behind the doors rather than go off to my room as mother had told me. After forty minutes or so of idle chat and partaking of wine, which mother drank not so much as a drop of, mother began to speak of the upcoming invasion to the surface to take Lake Trot for the Junta. It has been many years since then, but the gist of the conversation went about with generals Downdraft and Torrent, by now more than tipsy but less than drunk, expressing incredulity at Commander Sullamander’s disregard for the balance of power in the valley, calling her things like ‘warmonger’ and ‘tyrant’ and ‘power mad.’ Mother then suggested something I had never before dreamed of hearing from her lips: When their armies gathered on the surface, the three of them were to instead attack generals Haymaker and Bridle Chomper’s armies rather than the Earth Ponies and Unicorns stationed at the lake as was planned. Treason! Civil War! I had never heard mother so much as entertain the thought of open contrarian actions to the Rank of Commander, let alone open conflict of arms.

‘At first Torrent expressed similar thoughts, but Downdraft agreed with mother whole-heartedly, and Torrent was quickly persuaded to their line of thoughts. Mother’s plan became clear: By getting her fellow generals drunk, she would lower their inhibitions and get them to agree with her mad plans. I always knew mother to be a Xanatothian manipulator, but never before had I seen her skills play out in person.’

On the eve of battle, Wind Whistler, Downdraft and Torrent all met together with the staff of their armies: the generals, majors, colonels and captains that served under them. Wind Whistler spoke for her fellow Chiefs-of-Staff, describing what Sullamander wanted to do, and what it would mean for the Junta politically and militarily.

‘As you know, while we can certainly, after many many casualties, take the Lake, the real question is if we can hold it, as the Hyracotherium Republic and Kingdom of Unicorns will not sit still with this. You are all smart enough to see beyond simple dogma that the Academy pushes on the students these days, beyond the indoctrination we put on the grunts to see this strategic truth: While the Junta might be able to take out either the Republic or the Kingdom one-on-one, it is a very long shot if we take on both at once. Sullamander runs the risk of destroying what power we hold on the surface, cutting us off from our only source of food and water. Stallions and Mares, I have been in conference with Generals Downdraft and Torrent, and we are in agreement: Sullamander cannot be allowed to command the Junta any longer. However, she has too much influence over the younger officers and Generals Haymaker and Bridle Chomper will not hear reason.

‘Therefore, the only way to remove Sullamander from power is to do the unthinkable. I will understand if you are not comfortable with the ultimate logical conclusion, and what it means for you, your troops, and the Junta. If you cannot in good conscious join the Generals and me in usurping Sullamander, I understand, and Downdraft, Torrent and I have discussed this, and if you promise not to interfere or expose our plans, we will allow you, and any troops under you of a similar mind, to sit this out. You will not have it held against you, and you will all be allowed back into service when this is over, no questions asked. What is your decision?’

As the story goes, nopony answered for what must have been the longest and most awkward silence anypony in there had ever experienced. But suddenly, tradition holds, Private Pansy surprised her mother by showing up and announcing her intention to fight by her side. After that, a captain stepped forward to serve. Then a general, then a major, and before long the whole room was full of staff coming forward, ready to fight against Sullamander. As the story goes, the voluntary affirmations soon turned into a mantra, the staff all chanting Wind Whistler’s name, all affirming their loyalty to the one pony who would dare stand up to Sullamander.

And so in the dead of winter, 16 BW, the armies of the Celestine Junta (the First Army under General Haymaker, the Fifth Army under General Bridle Chomper, the Third Army under General Downdraft, and the Fourth Army under General Torrent), gathered on the shore of Lake Trot under the control of the Junta. The only general and army missing were the forces of the Second Army under General Wind Whistler. The four generals debated on their course of action, but ultimately decided to carry on with the plan and leave Wind Whistler to the wrath of Sullamander. At dawn, the generals gave the order to attack, with the First and Third Armies assigned to attack the forces of the Hyracotherium Republic, and the Fifth and Fourth to attack the Kingdom of Unicorns.

However, Haymaker and Bridle Chomper soon found themselves flanked. Even as they fought their enemies before them, their troops took attacks from the rear as well, but instead of a surprise attack from either the Republic or the Kingdom, it was in fact the Fourth and Third Armies attacking their fellow Pegasi. As the four armies of the Junta converged, communication broke down and so did the ranks from Armies down to Legions, and from Legions down to Battalions, and from there on down to platoons, unable to get in contact with anypony higher up the chain and all following their last orders and try to continue the ultimate plan. Outside the two brawls, the forces of the Republic and Kingdom lost sight of who was fighting who. Those in command of the Kingdom of Unicorns’ forces, seeing their chance to gain more territory and larger access to Lake Trot’s water, pushed the offensive on not only the Fifth Army, but on the army of the Hyarcotherium Republic. Likewise, seeing that the Unicorns were attacking as well, the Republic’s own army stationed at Lake Trot attacked in kind.

In the Sky, the Second Army, under the command of General Wind Whistler (along with elite elements of the Third and Fourth), had diverted themselves from Lake Trot after leaving sight of Celestine, holding position over the Royal Palace of the Kingdom of Unicorns. Knowing that, with the city’s own defenses and the no doubt fanatical loyalty the Home Guard had for Sullamander, Wind Whistler would need more than her single army to take the city, she would need help. Around three in the morning, Wind Whistler managed to infiltrate the Palace and break into Star-Swirl the Bearded’s room. If anypony in the Kingdom could be trusted to help her, and not take advantage, it would be the old stallion.

According to tradition, when he heard of what was happening, Star-Swirl was heartbroken. However, he promised that he would organize what few ponies he could trust in the Kingdom and the Republic to help her from the ground.

Six armies fighting amongst each other for control over a single lake, while above a seventh fought defenders to grab control of a city, all while the rest of the Manehattan River Valley risked being totally consumed by war where only one tribe would survive. The Lake Trot Crisis had begun.

While the three Tribes pounded away at each other below, in the skies Celestine was embroiled in a civil war. General Wind Whistler led the invasion from the front of the central column, the other two thirds of her army were to flank the city and divert attention from the defenders, her daughter Private Pansy ordered to stay by her side. Twenty minutes into the battle, large bursts of magical bombardment began to pound into the city at roughly one shot every five seconds. Confusion filled the forces of both the Second Army and the Home Guard. However, Wind Whistler calculated the trajectory of the magical artillery and realized that it could only come from within the territory of the Kingdom of Unicorns. In the four hours he had, Star-Swirl had managed to gather enough unicorns loyal to him to assist him in a large combat magic spell, and was using it to help demolish the defenses of Celestine.

Not knowing how long Star-Swirl could keep up the assault (accounts vary, but given the calculations historians have made, it could not have been more than two days, a third of the time the Crisis lasted), Wind Whistler and her forces pressed onward, fighting street by street against their fellow pegasi. Without even being ordered to, units of the Second Army explained the situation to their counterparts on the other side, often yelling over the sounds of battle. The pegasi on the other side often ignored them, continuing to fight until thoroughly defeated. But sometimes, when they realized who was in command, and what they wanted to accomplished, units would quickly defect and begin fighting their fellow comrades in the Home Guard. These recruits not doubt helped replenish casualties on her own side, and were always welcome; however, if Wind Whistler was to succeed, she was going to need much larger numbers than what a few handfuls of pegasi could supply. Which was why Wind Whistler’s legion was attacking the Entertainment Quadrant of the city, homing in on the Coltiseum, where hundreds of gladiators, and her lover the charismatic ex-Captain Hurricane, were waiting for liberation.

At sundown of the second day the magical bombardment stopped, but the defenders of Celestine were in such disarray that it was no longer needed. This was also the time when General Wind Whistler, Private Pansy and the troops directly under her command broke into the Coltiseum and freed the gladiators with a single command: Take the Commander’s Barracks. It would be slow going however, with none of the units of the Second Army seeing the Barracks until midnight of the sixth day of the Celestine Civil War.

After the attack started, Sullamander took refuge in the Commander’s Bunker, organizing the defense from there. Accounts from the bunker over the next seven days depict a Sullamander rapidly losing her mind to anger and paranoia that only got worse as the days went on. It would not be until early the third day that Generals Haymaker and Bridle Chomper would learn of the situation above, though given the confusion on the surface if would not be until nightfall that the two generals, and what few units they could spare on the surface, could return to Celestine to bolster the defending forces. But by then Sullamander was, as one account describes:

‘…Like a mad dog, frothing at the mouth and lashing out at everypony for incompetence and treachery. Not even General Haymaker could escape her wrath when she and General Bridle Chomper returned to aid us, calling the two a collection of names I dare not repeat for fear of attracting the Spirits’ attentions.’

Sullamander proceeded to devolve in her facilities, ordering attacks on quarters of the city that were either untouched by Wind Whistler’s forces, or so far behind enemy lines that it would be more tactically sound to attack elsewhere. On the morning of the fifth day, Sullamander walked up to the defenders of the Barracks, which were made up of recent graduates and underclassmares of the Celestine Military Academy. Some of whom did not even have their cutie marks, and all of whom were ready and willing to lay down their lives, not for the Junta, but for Sullamander. There she gave out Lightening Crosses (the highest honor the Junta could give the soldiers) and returned to the Commander’s Bunker, where she ordered that the whole Home Guard was to converge on the Coltiseum and kill Hurricane, even though she would have known already that Hurricane (and the rest of the gladiators) were free and attacking the Home Guard. The order was given to General Bridle Chomper to carry out. However, seeing the degrading condition of the Commander, Bridle Chomper quietly ignored the order and focused her forces on other aspects of the battle.

Two days later, as General Wind Whistler’s forces began their attack on the Commander’s Barracks above, Sullamander gathered her aids and the remaining Chiefs-of-Staff into the War Room for an update. According to accounts, General Haymaker tried three times to explain the hopelessness of the situation, but Sullamander ignored her, asking Bridle Chomper how the execution of Hurricane went. When she told Sullamander that she had not carried out her order, Sullamander ordered everypony out of the room except for her Chiefs-of-Staff. Once the door had closed, it is said that Sullamander went into a long tirade, accusing them of being in league with Wind Whistler, of being incompetent, and a host of other things before stripping them of their ranks and putting them both to the sword, reportedly saying the old proverb of “if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.”

After this episode the historical record grows fuzzy, blending fact and fiction together. Some accounts continue the bloodshed by saying that Sullamander proceeded to kill everypony else in the bunker, others say that an aid had caught Sullamander’s eye during the attack and that after killing Haymaker and Bridle Chomper she dragged the poor mare into a closet and raped her repeatedly. However it is believed that this account is either more propaganda, or more less-than-wholesome research.

An hour after the deaths of her last generals, Sullamander and the remnants of her government now had to face the forces of Wind Whistler when they breached the Barracks and worked their way down into the bunker. Alongside Wind Whistler were Hurricane and Pansy, the small family felling every soldier that stood in their way, contemporary accounts describing Wind Whistler and Hurricane as a beautiful ‘dance of death’ that was unstoppable, with their daughter maintaining watch on their blind spots.

However, the reunited family unit was suddenly broken. According to former aid, now General, Fire Brand, Sullamander attacked from a side hallway, aiming to kill either Pansy or Hurricane. Instead she stabbed Wind Whistler, with an Ndima, when she placed herself between Sullamander and her daughter. While the rest of the soldiers with the three fought off the mad Commander, Wind Whistler quickly bled out with her lover and their daughter by her side. In her final moments, Wind Whistler said her goodbyes and named Hurricane as her Second. After a moment of silence, father and daughter both picked up their weapons and went searching for Sullamander. They eventually followed her up to a balcony before she could escape. Most of the final battle are lost to us because General Fire Brand missed most of it, and neither Commander Hurricane nor Private Pansy would recount the fight for the rest of their lives. However, the final blows are described below.

‘…And when I ran through the door, there was Hurricane, his helmet and armor dented and cracked by so much abuse, and his face beaten so badly that one eye was swollen shut. Sullamander was not much better, with her left eye missing (if the gore flowing from the socket was anything to go by), her head and jaw were each tilted at an unnatural angle, and a network of slashes going up and down her forelimbs, her one eye gleaming evilly with madness, laughing all the while and going on about finally getting her chance to kill Hurricane. She unsheathed her sword and was about to do the deed when a dagger tumbled from out of nowhere and embedded itself in Sullamander’s right kidney. Sullamander seemed to not feel the pain, as her only reaction was to start and turn around. We all did, and we saw Private Pansy. Her wings were bloodied and mangled, and she was limping on her hind-left leg, and in her mouth was another dagger, ready to be thrown. Without missing a beat the private lobbed the second dagger, which embedded itself in Sullamander’s neck above the collar bone. Other than the spout of blood from the wound, the second dagger didn’t seem to do anything to Sullamander. If anything it just made her angrier, as she adjusted her mouth’s grip on her sword and charged at Pansy.

‘Time seemed to slow down: Sullamander was charging at Pansy, the ancient mare loaded with unnatural injuries that by all rights should have killed her. And Pansy herself, while without weapons and injured and unable to get away, still looked at the oncoming death, brave as any mare of the Junta ought to be. Then a sword blade burst from Sullamander’s chest, and time seemed to restart. Hurricane had picked up his sword and run Sullamander through.

“You have taken the Love of my life.” He said, “You shall not take my daughter.”

'For what felt like hours, Sullamander hobbled, staring at the blade in her chest in rage. For a moment I was afraid she would continue to attack, when at long last Sullamander fell over and died.’

At long last, Commander Sullamander was no more, and as Wind Whistler’s second, Hurricane was to be Commander with her death. However, all was not well in the Junta. After seven days and nights of street to street fighting, much of Celestine was in ruins, and while with the internal hostilities over with the rebuilding could begin, the civil war still left a bitterness in the ranks. Some of it was due to some soldiers felt that Wind Whistler and her soldiers were traitors, the fact that they up rose against a pony like Sullamander was irrelevant, thus making Hurricane unfit to rule by association. Furthermore, Lake Trot had frozen over, rendering the entire war, and the lives lost, meaningless. And the climate continued to chill. The simmering anger would linger for the rest of the Junta’s existence, and towards the end it became so prevalent that Commander Hurricane dared not leave the Junta, just in case there was an uprising that required him to put down.

So it was not only a ploy for a new home and fresh start, but also a plan of desperation to have something for the pegasi of the Celestine Junta to focus on other than him and the memory of the Celestine Civil War that caused Hurricane to send scouts, and his daughter, to find a new land.

Comments

[K9Thefirst1]

WOO! Longest chapter yet baby! I gotta say after I wrote the build up and break out of the Lake Trot Crisis I just had to get up and move around because I was pumped!

Now, by the end of the day, I want to see the Crowning Moment of Awesome page for this story’s TVTropes article opened up, with Wind Whistler’s Legal-tastic awesomesauce as the first entry. I’d do it, but as I’m the author I would think that would be in poor taste.

Now then. Did Sullamander really rape an aid? Was she really in Lesbians with the previous Commander? Was Mareinus obsessed with “The Love that dare not speak Its name?” I reported, you decide. That said, I find the idea of Twilight and/or whoever was responsible for writing this chapter being so squicked out by those bits of history that she/they try to suppress it hilarious.

I tried to get more of the historical dictator Sulla into Sullamander, but considering how her story ends… I wound up making her Downfall!Hitler. On one hand, I have invoked Godwin’s Law, and I feel ashamed for that. On the other hand, I now have an excuse to make a Ponyfied Hitler’s Rant video, which is all kinds of awesome… If only I could get the raw video and a good video editing program. And competence at using it.

Also, for her evil and insanity, Sullamander did do one good thing in life: She killed Thistle Whistle. Because she's named after a G3.5 pony that resisted Laurenization. Speaking of Reused ponies, I'm sure most of you know Wind Whistler from G1, so her intellegence is unsurprising. Well, I added a little spin of my own: Robert E. Lee, highly respected general of the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, and he went to West Point as a young man. West Point has a similar point system, and no one has ever graduated from West Point without getting pointed for something. Except for Lee. Now, I'm not saying this version of Wind Whistler is based on Lee. Just that one thing, so I doubt that counts as an Expy.

Also, if you want to know what a Ndima looks like, go here and scroll down to Ngbandi Spear.

One last thing: As you can tell, with the Bios out of the way, I can now move on with the 'plot' as it were. And since I'm pseudo-dramatizing the Hearth's Warming story.....

google.com/url?source=imgres&ct=img&q=http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/22723538.jpg&sa=X&ei=iiY9UMqHMYmg8QTo6YHgCg&ved=0CAQQ8wc&usg=AFQjCNFcjstaX0Z68m3FrQlT4r1NYZOd4w

[Dynamic Dragon]

Would you consider Sullamander to be a Complete Monster?

Also, I found a grammar error. "Without even being ordered two, units of the Second Army explained the situation to their counterparts on the other side, often yelling over the sounds of battle." It should be "without even being ordered to".

Anyway, I love this story! Here's hoping you keep up the good work.

[K9Thefirst1]

1199577

Hmmm... Not sure. Psycho Lesbian? Sure. General Failure? Of course! Complete Monster? ...Well, I wouldn't, but that's because I'm the author and I know ahead of time that someone much much worse is coming on down the line.

Fixed!

Glad to hear it! Now for the hard part: I need to figure out how to discuss troop formations and movments for the Lake Trot Crisis!

[Terrace]

Less-than-wholesome scholarship strikes me as Twilight-speak for "get your minds out of the gutter!"

Your bias is showing, Twilight...

Wind Whistler used White Mutiny! It's super effective!

[SuperPinkBrony12]

Sullamander is the ponyfied Hitler except for the fact that she doesn't take her own life and instead gets run through by Hurricane.

I wonder if either Princess Platinum or Clover the Clever were aware of Star Swirl's assitance of the Celestine Civil War during the Lake Trot Crisis?

[iowaforever]

This kind of crazy makes Puddinghead seem docile

[Dynamic Dragon]

1199148

BTW, about your TvTropes thing? Request granted.

[RK_Striker_JK_5]

1201221 Yeah. Puddinghead wanted to party, for the most part. Sullamander is... nuts in a bad way.

[K9Thefirst1]

1309689

Star Swill might not be (remind me not to try his cider), but I never said Star-Swirl wasn't. All I said was that we don't know his exact birth date, nor his birth location, nor the identity of his parents. Considering how far back we're talking, this is hardly unusual. Even as recently as maybe a hundred years ago we have people who we aren't sure about those facts.

Equally naturally would be folk lore filling in the gaps with fantastical explanations. Given how powerful Twilight is as an otherwise normal, mortal pony, there's no reason to suspect Star-Swirl is any different.

[spacepony]

I want MOAR!
This is a great story, I just always thought the pegasi used swords straped to their whooves, holding it in your mouth seems very inefective

[Red Qilin]

Two words: Holy ****.

[FreedomFiend]

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! SKULLS FOR THE SKULL THRONE! LET THE RIVERS AND STREETS RUN RED!

1333212
onepiecehq.com/images/gallery/Zoro3.png

1199148
Give me a script and I will do it. Or at least, a general idea of what you want said. I probably wouldn't be able to come up with anything creative given that I'm not really what one might call a "Brony."

[BlueColton]

I definitely go the "Downfall" vibe after reading this. It just goes to show that history knows what it's talking about. When too much power is giving to a select few or the one, then chaos is surely not far behind. I loved how Whistler used the Articles of Command to put Sullamander in her place. The Junta is a society that reveals around a strict code that not even the commander can overrule. It's very much like the Spartans and how everyone was subject to the "law."

[Carnation83]

Wind Whistler is my top favorite pony out of all the generations!

Also, I declare this story 120% canon!