War for Equestria-Prelude 1

by CeresBane

The First Equestrian War

For generations the new kingdom of Equestria knew peace. It knew absolute utopia as ponies of every kind lived lives with a smile on their face. They laughed and played, protected by the watchful motherly eyes of what we all assumed was the eternal queen mother. In her reign she had done so much, like teach the mortal ponies the magic of harmony giving eventual birth for the religion. Even revealing how with purity of the soul, the magic would give one everlasting life. She built more cities and more forests and ice lakes and mountains, shaping and nurturing the land to, at the time, some unknown purpose.

You were there witnessing me and my sister's foalhood. Creations of the sun and of the moon, taking heir essence as their seed and our mother giving shape to us in her own image. I remember days of when you and I would sit side by side watching the horizon to the east, watching the sun rise at my calling. It was so hard and you were there to help me feel at ease as I fumbled with the cosmos like the foal I was.

"I remember Celestia. They were the best days of my life. However..." Ceres gave her an even look. You are delaying the truth. He didn't need to say it to be understood. Celestia felt a cold sweat tingle down her spine and she grimace with discomfort. But with effort she resolved to obey.

Equestria was having a crisis, after millennia of peace and tranquillity, change was dawning on the horizon. The snow that had blanketed the world in a protective cocoon had began to melt and the waters began to form the rivers and lakes that we know. We were literally witnessing before our eyes, the essence of life escaping us. But this changed revealed onto us a new beauty, full of flowers and greenery. The early days of the Equestria we knew today, the land saturated with the magic of harmony. As these things were developing, me and my sister had grown, perfectly attuned to our respective celestial bodies as we thus far had merely dutied ourselves with the night and day.

Mother had been raising us with the promises of a someday, of a time when she would end her rule and let the ruling of Equestria fall onto one of them. She spoke of how their foalhood would define their suited role and destiny in life, and a mark upon everypony there after will symbolise this revelation. Luna was the first of all the ponies, to get her cutie mark and her magic made her out to be a prodigy. Mother was so proud. And I merely brought the sun into the sky. With you I kept a quiet vigil over the land while Luna went off to play with our people. I oft wonder that if I had not met you... Nay I hold no regrets loving you Ceres. I'm sorry I'm being a foal.

In any case, Luna was the clear favourite. So when that fateful day when mother left and you to follow her I knew what her decision would be. On the eve of her journey she came to me and gave me the crown, the crown once worn by the unicorn king and every other ruler there after. She reasoned that because of Luna's young age, she was not yet ready to rule the land. As such I would be her steward and rule in her stead until such a time came when she came of age. I couldn't believe it. I had long since resigned to the idea that I would not wear this crown. I knew that this was my mother giving unto me an opportunity.

And so, with you and the queen mother gone. I resolved to rule Equestria, to solidify my mark on pony history as the greatest ruler to ever live. Luna would be denied the throne by the people while I demonstrated that I was the most fit to rule. I had hoped that my mother would return to this land and either officially claim it to be truth or retake the throne back onto herself. I wanted anything but Luna to wear the crown.

... I, I guess to this day I still feel that.

"In hindsight I guess I should have sensed your concern. If only I had stayed, just as I had requested... " Just what were you thinking your highness? You knew you were doing this to her. But the questions were pointless. She was gone now. Ceres could only assume that this was some part of her grand scheme, something that was just too grand and elaborate for mortal minds to fathom the greater good it would cause. "Carry on."

An age of conquest came onto Equestria, within a century I had expanded Equestria's borders to tenfold it's size. Many a pony praised my name as they reaped the benefits of this boon. The country's wealth tripled each year and mastery of crafts had taken leaps and bounds. In the eyes of the ponies, I was the sole ruler of the land and I was the one chosen to succeed the queen mother. Which technically wasn't a lie.

"You're still holding back. Celestia..." Ceres's eyes narrowed. "Speak."

Celestia's mouth tried to speak but no words would come out. What he would think of her after he knew the truth. The ugliness of her soul, the cruelty and death. He would name her monster. She simply wouldn't be able to bare it if he hated her. The one pony that she valued above herself. Oh how she had forgotten this love in her heart... how he missed his presence in such countless millennia.

Celestia tried as she might but she cried, like her whole world was about to crumble. Ceres began to walk towards the future queen and open his mouth. But no words left him.

"That's enough Ceres." A voice rang out in the room. Down the aisle by the grand entrance of the church stood Luna.

"Sister... how?"

"I see a thousand years of living such an eventful life has dulled your memory. Canterlot is not the only place with a church of harmony.Though technically this is the temple, and this room is the preacher's chapel." By look on Celestia's face, that wasn't what she wanted to know, Luna switched her mindset to answer her sister inquiry.

"After the encounter with Ceres, I opt to pray and dwell on my thoughts." Luna's tone seemed so certain and confident. It seemed so unlike her. Her stride like that of a true regal being, an undeniable presence and prominence like that of a full moon. This was not the filly that was released from the shell of nightmare moon.

"I remember everything." This was Luna, the daughter of the Queen mother.

Desperate to solidify her rule, Celestia ordered the royal guard to go forth and conquer new lands. Everything she said was true, the kingdom indeed gain an economic boom as our lands expanded. But the war required much of the profits to fuel itself. The earth ponies were taxed heavily to feed the army. And the unicorns lived a life of decadence as they merely sat there bathing in the money and commanding of these great armies to the great forefront, to pillage and burn so that their wealth would grow.

Droves of ponies died and the pegusii and unicorn population drastically fell. As were the few alicorn born from them. The death toll had gotten so bad the mainstay of the Equestria military had to be remade. For the first time Earth ponies were forcefully enlisted to join the campaigns, taxes increased and the ponies to maintain the kingdom had lessened. From that alone, one could tell that disaster was looming. A kingdom wide famine was inevitable.

Foreseeing this outcome I, even as a filly, knew that this was coming. And so I fled the new city of Canterlot and rallied the ponies into rebellion, founding the Lunar republic in the old capital within the Everfree. My forces worked to live self-sufficiently, toiling our small crop of land to make food for ourselves to feed a slowly increasing army. I however could not foresee this in person and so I lived in the Canterlot castle, ruling from afar. I was biding my time for the inevitable coup.

It was only when Commander Hurricane ascended to commander general of the royal equestrian military, did the problems start. On a single fateful day, the secret micro-nation that was the Lunar republic was discovered. Private Pansy of the Equestrian army had recounted the events through a secret letter, delivered to me by my best friend Clover the clever. The news shocked and appalled me.

Smart cookie, an earth pony who acted as the chosen leader of the community of the republicans, attempted for peaceful talks and trade treaties. However these were out rightly rejected like so many kingdoms before it. After all, why barter for trade when you could simply take the place and all it can offer. To be concise, the resulting battle was a slaughter and the Lunar ponies scattered across Equestria. Now without a nation to call their own, they quickly formed a rebellion instead.

That day was the soon-to-be Solar empire's declaration of war.

Years later princess Platinum had taken over as the leader of the unicorns, but opt to refrain from the title of queen out of respect for the land's ruler, princess Celestia. She was the mind behind the war, the genius tactician that commanded the forces of commander Hurricane's forces, hunting down denizens of the Lunar republic. She even found the laws that made it illegal to speak my name and that Equestria be renamed the Solar empire in defiance to the supposed republic. It seems the echoes of that time still show as to this day few ponies refer to me as Luna and instead call me by my war title "Nightmare moon" out of habit.

In this whole period. I was a prisoner of my own home, under suspicion of plotting a coup. Until this very moment Celestia has never confirmed it. But yes I confess now that I did intend to take the throne intending to stick to mother's grand plan, that Celestia has deviated from. But under these conditions of house arrest, I was isolated from my people, kept without visitors or letters.

However, general Smart cookie had eventually hatched a rescue plot to free me from my prison. Private Pansy had somehow managed to join the guard that kept me under guard and plotted to aid my escape. However, from the orders of princess Platinum, or rather the recommendation of the unicorn princess, I was to be executed that night as a sign of, "killing the head of the rebellion." Celestia was ignorant of this order I later learned, and she knew too late to amend things.

Private Pansy was one of the most gentle ponies you would know, however being born as a pegasus she was fated to be enlisted into the military. She hated every minute of it, of the battling and killing and endless spilling of blood. And then she met Smart cookie and began to hope. To see a peace beyond what truly was Tartarus in Equestria. It kept her pure and innocent and good inside, however she was a soldier and killing was in the occupation. She would do it unfeeling and endlessly feel regret and sadness afterwards. However, when she was given the honour of redeeming her "treachery" as princess Platinum put it, if she killed me, she would be pardoned of her crimes. Although Pansy didn't know it, princess Platinum was merely trying to make a scapegoat out of her. To put the blame on Pansy, so that the republic may die, the rebellion may die and the unicorns continue to prosper in their blood soaked money.

That night, princess Platinum was killed. Private Pansy had lost all faith in her people, she had often talked about convincing his fellow royal guards to joining the cause and saving Equestria from themselves. But nay, no pony would listen, they were too far fallen. Everypony of the empire had to die. Private Pansy hated killing, but she had such a great talent for it. A room of twenty guards were decimated in her rage with Princess Platinum being the first pony to go.

They escaped and the news spread like wild fire. All over Equestria ponies began to pick sides choosing between the death of the princess as a tragedy or a miracle. The unicorns rallied to the empire, adding their personal wealth and forces to the military to avenge the death of their princess. While many pegusii joined in the rally of the earth ponies, instigated by Chancellor Puddinghead. Later to be known by many other government officials as Puddinghead the mad, speaking of how the tyrannical taxation and starvation of ponies had to end. How the death of the princess is the symbol for change, the expression of the demand of change.

Celestia had an army of ponies rallying for her head and there were other ponies rallying to kill her sister. Neither of us had any power to stop the war, the ponies were riled and looking for blood. The mindset that sparked that war was that one of them had to die, and they had ponies willing to do it. And so with my reluctance, the war began unhindered with the desire for peace.

Comments

[CeresBane]

There you have it. The reason the two princesses have nephews and nieces like prince Blueblood and Cadence has now been revealed. It is not because the alicorns themselves had children, but because the queen mother's parents were once mortal ponies.