Chapter 4: Iron Crown
It took over an hour to break a wide enough gap in the ice to permit a single pony through. It didn’t help that the ice had dripped through the cracks in existing stone, melting until it was merged with the rock. The shade had protected the ice on all but the outer layer from melting.
But eventually they broke through, and Plowshare from the labor crew walked over to the makeshift supply area on the slope.
Ponies from his entire crew were arriving now, except for the guards who protected the stockpile.
They had brought anything from that stockpile that might be useful, mostly lanterns and lamp-oil, though there were ropes and picks and various other construction tools.
It wasn’t all that unusual for their army to have to build a bridge as they crossed Equestria, or maybe destroy one.
“I’ve got it,” Plowshare said, pulling down a greasy cloth soaked with gray dust, sweat dripping down his face. “That should be big enough for anypony.”
I should go get the scouts again, he thought, before realizing how unlikely Permafrost was to let him have the scouts. He would soon have to deal with that problem, but… he wasn’t afraid of a cave. He had a pony nearby who would be the perfect partner for this.
“Take ten minutes to recover,” he said, raising his voice so the others could hear. “Then return to digging. We need it wide enough for a supply cart to pass, fully loaded.”
“What if there’s nothing down there?” Silver Needle asked from the opening, lowering the cloth she’d had around her own mouth. They had all worked, even Quill had taken a turn.
They were all just as exhausted, and this time in the sun was not making things better. “Maybe we should be… finding another way.”
There had been a few locations with promise, though none as promising as this. “Hopefully I’ll be back by then,” Quill said, glancing down at the hole. Air still blew past him, though with the opening so wide it was more a breeze than a mad howling.
“Penumbra,” he said, not turning around. Somehow he knew she would be standing beside him, waiting for this moment. “I would like you to come with me.”
He was not wrong about her. “Into the Moon,” her voice said, almost a whisper. Trying not to be heard by all the others watching nearby. “This is… It could be interesting. But will it help us?”
Quill struggled into a climbing harness. His body creaked and protested at the abuse, but he forced it to move anyway. Once it was settled, Silver Needle secured the straps behind him. It would have to do.
“We can’t answer that question out here, come on.” Penumbra led the way ahead of him into the dark.
Quill crawled along behind her, past bits of broken ice and stone that had been cleared away just enough for them to pass. The wind whipped at his mane, ushering him down with darkness and the cool breeze. The light went from blinding sun to comfortable after a short time, though there was still further to climb.
The tunnel was about ten feet in all, before a cavern abruptly opened. It led down into the gloom, past the reach of the light.
Here the constant abrasion of the sand was gone, replaced with a constant whine of unseen wind.
“Stars above,” Penumbra whispered from beside him. He turned, and nearly fell over in shock at what she was doing. The bat was undressing. Her armor came off in a few quick shrugs, until she wore only the bladed belt.
She was beautiful, even more than he’d imagined. All this time without rest or bathing meant her scent practically assaulted him in the tight space.
You are going to bury that thought and strangle it, Quill. He tried, anyway. “You’re…”
“This is where we belong,” Penumbra answered, grinning slyly at him as she tucked her armor into an alcove. She knew what she was doing to him, and she did it anyway. “You know what armor will protect you from in a cave?”
“Monsters,” he answered. “With tusks, sharp teeth. Fangs.”
“No.” Her voice came from behind him now. “Caves are desolate places, long abandoned. There is so little food here that nothing large can grow. We are the largest predators here.”
“That sounds…” He didn’t object. There was no time to argue with his expert. If she said caves were safe, then she would probably know what she was talking about. “Okay. So now we see if this goes into the hollow core. Where we’ll… hide until the princess recovers her strength.”
He twisted his head around, emerging with a lantern. Lighting it was a struggle, but he managed to get the flint and striker together on the third try. It lit up, filling the cave in front of them with orange.
The deeper he looked, the wider the cave became.
It wasn’t like any cave Iron Quill had ever seen. The monastery had caves beside it in the hills, carved into the mausoleums of honored saints. That cave was built of smooth walls, dripping with moisture and broken by spectacular multicolored formations.
This was a single shaft, getting slowly wider as it sloped gently down towards the moon’s heart. The ceiling went from barely cart-height to tall enough for a pony to fly without kicking the heads of ponies walking beneath, and still they walked. It was a good thing it was wide enough for a cart to roll even at the entrance, because there was much too much stone to carve here. Even with iron tools, this would take too much time.
“Have you ever seen a cave like this?” he asked. “I know you’re… trained for this. Or… maybe trained by this. Nopony knows.”
“Yes,” she answered, without anything snide this time. She sounded as awed as he felt. “Once. Aminon calls this a… lava tube. I expected more to be alive down here, though. The one I visited had water trickling inside it.”
They walked for long enough that he had to refill the oil in his lantern, prompting more familiar mockery from Penumbra. But he ignored it, got the faint lantern lit again, then resumed their trek. Eventually they reached the center of the moon.
The chamber rose above them so high that he couldn’t see the ceiling even aiming his lantern directly up, with uneven walls of melted rock and a slick, transparent surface of nearly-clear ice dripping down from one side. It was so large the cavern could easily have swallowed the Castle of the Two Sisters, and had plenty of room left for dessert.
How could such an incredibly massive space remain open without collapsing? There weren’t pillars to hold it up, just a huge, rough globe of nothing.
There were no other entrances, at least none large enough to easily see. The ground wasn’t flat, but continued to slope sideways just like the tunnel. Towards who knew what—the other side of the Moon, probably. We always knew it was small, it has to be to travel around the sky so quickly. We’re here.
For the first time since arriving, Quill let himself feel hope. Maybe they wouldn’t all die up here after all. Permafrost might’ve been right about one thing: he was wrong to doubt Nightmare Moon. She had chosen this location specifically, dumping them exactly where they needed to be.
“Big,” Penumbra said, voice awed. “I would think unsafe, this big. But there’s no rubble on the ground, look. No previous cave-ins. This cavern is stable.” She spread her wings in a submissive gesture, nodding to him. “I was wrong, Quill. Our princess really did pick the right pony for the job. You somehow… led us straight here.”
She says after we hiked across the entire bubble, digging into every opening we could find.
It was more than a little unfair, but maybe he could live with that. They might actually survive which seemed to be the important thing. “It won’t be easy,” he said. “Getting everypony down here, all our supplies.”
“Because their necks are made of iron and they swapped brains with moths,” she countered. “I know, I get that. But maybe that isn’t something to do on your own.” She wobbled, swaying briefly on her hooves. “Does the air feel thinner down here?”
She wasn’t wrong. He could feel a little light-headed himself, though not enough that it bothered him. He reached out, steadying her with a wing. “Golden Gate Monastery was high in the mountains,” he said. “The air was thinner than this. You’ll adapt, the others will too. I can teach them how to breathe if we have to.”
“Good enough.” She didn’t pull away from his touch, as he’d initially expected. Touch he’d given for no other reason than to help her remain standing, of course. “As fun as it was to watch you struggle, I think… maybe we don’t let you do all this yourself from here on. Since we… have a chance of living now, we should fly straight to the princess. We don’t have time to waste with Permafrost challenging your authority while everyone suffocates.”
He glanced up the path they’d come, long enough that he couldn’t even see the faint light of the entrance. Penumbra was right, as she had been about so much so far. “We can keep the army here,” he said again, taking one last glance at the huge cavern, before hefting the lantern and turning back for the surface.
“Until our revenge,” she added, without skipping a beat. “The Tyrant took so much from us. But we’ve proven we’re the ones meant to survive. We’ll return to Equestria, and its rightful ruler will be on the throne. All because of you.”
Quill could accept that praise, even if the flavor of it made him a little uneasy. It was hard to argue with a bat as pretty as Penumbra.
By the time Quill emerged from the rock, his work crew had done excellent work widening it almost enough to permit a cart. They were on the lowest section now, where it was almost all ice and not much stone.
Strangely, several of his strongest laborers were on their backs, panting with effort like a young initiate at his monastery whose blood had still not adjusted to the altitude.
“Good work, all,” he said, striding past them. There was one pony he needed to speak with before he went to the princess—well, two.
“Silver Needle,” he said, tapping her on the shoulder.
“Good news?” Her eyes lit up as he approached, alone. Penumbra would still be in the cave, putting her armor back on. She couldn’t return to the surface unclothed.
“Good news,” he repeated. “The best news. As soon as the crew is finished here, prepare to make the trip down. Requisition every laborer you can to start transporting supplies. I want you to grab the highest section of cave you can near the ice-fall, and stake out twice as much room as you think we’ll need.”
“You, uh…” Her eyes widened. “You want us to move everything? All the way out here?”
“We have to,” he said. “Go to the camp followers. I have a feeling we might be needing more strong hooves, so you can go ahead and hire… as many as you need. Don’t let bits stop you, just get it done.”
“As you order, Quill,” she said, obviously confused. “How will you convince the others?”
“If Quill was the only voice to convince the army, they would all be doomed,” Penumbra said, emerging from the cavern entrance and shaking the worst of the dust from her armor as she went. She moved past Quill, taking off in a rush and scattering more gray dust. Flying north.
They wouldn’t have that far to fly to reach the princess. There was mercy in that.
“Nightmare Moon will have to convince them,” he said. “But you will have a head start, Silver. Make me proud.”
“Have you…” Sylvan Shade hadn’t been working, despite being an earth pony. Apparently he was more interested in the rock-samples they’d extracted. But now that he saw Quill was about to take off, he hurried over. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but have you thought about how we’ll close this again?”
“I…” He shook his head. “I have no idea.”
“Well, good thing you have me,” Sylvan said, looking prouder than ever. “I know exactly how we’ll do it. All this ice… we’ll quarry more, enough to clog the entrance several feet thick. We can use unicorn magic to seal it behind us, once we’re finished.”
“That is…” Quill grinned. “Brilliant, Sylvan. Silver, make sure Sylvan Shade has the help he needs to have that plan ready.”
He didn’t wait for her objections, just took off into the air. The flight to where Nightmare Moon rested did not give him very long to think.
What was worse, the Princess of the Moon had obviously been suffering tremendously, even with so much time still left. From the way her head drooped, nodding slightly forward as they flew closer, Quill guessed she might be on the edge of sleep already.
Please don’t let it be too late!
They landed at the base of the hill, and half a dozen other Voidseekers appeared from the shadowy gloom of nearby craters, their eyes suspiciously on Quill. Penumbra walked off to join her companions, while Quill continued up the hill.
“Princess,” he said, as he got close to the top. Just not close enough that he might startle her. Besides, he understood that exhaustion perfectly. He had only had a few hours rest since they arrived, none of it very helpful.
“You.” She didn’t turn away, though her body did tense a little. “The one I appointed as my commander. I have heard the camp is hard at work. You thought it would be… useful… to use precious air digging bulwarks on the surface of a sterile rock?”
Quill didn’t know what that meant—how could they use air? But instead of letting the stress of it overwhelm him, he just surged on. “I didn’t command them, Permafrost did. He thinks he should be the commander. But I thought I should be trying to solve the problem you gave me, not fighting him for control.”
Nightmare Moon nodded; expression blank. Was that approval? Anger, building to burn him away to a crisp? Considering how long they all might have before her magic ran out, he wasn’t afraid either way.
“We will see,” Nightmare Moon said. “What have you done with this time? So… so much of it gone. I feel the strength leaving me. Even here, I am not invincible. I hope you have not squandered my trust. If you have… I have enough strength to enjoy your suffering. Before the end comes.”
Iron Quill swallowed, unable to meet her eyes. This was the part of being Lord Commander that had always made it much too dangerous for him. The pony Nightmare Moon trusted most was also the one likely to suffer her anger if some failure struck.
“I spoke with a… scholar. The wisest I could find in the army, and he informed me that many believed the Moon to be hollow. I devoted myself to locating an entrance to—”
Nightmare Moon silenced him with one hoof on the stone. She snapped it down, and a little crater spread from where she touched, throwing dust and cracking rock beneath it. “You’ve wasted what little time my survivors had on a primitive myth?”
Iron Quill closed his eyes, bracing for the blast of magic that would kill him in agony. He’d done something wrong, though he had no idea what. The result was… inevitable after that.
But after a few more seconds, he opened his eyes to see Nightmare Moon’s head hanging low, her horn flickering and the spell nearly going out. She wasn’t going to torture him after all. “You truly are doomed then. I will have to take my revenge after… an eon alone in this abyss.”
“No!” He probably should’ve shut his mouth and walked away, but Iron Quill was too exhausted to care. He hadn’t fought the army and the Moon both to curl up and die now. “Princess, we found it. There was an airtight cave, leading down for what feels like forever. We reached the center, just like Sylvan Shade said. It’s more than large enough for the entire camp, and many more besides. We can travel there, and rest while your strength recovers.”
Nightmare Moon finally turned. The glow from her horn stabilized, and she seemed to see Quill for the second time. Her slitted eyes passed through him to his soul, as only an Alicorn could. That dark power was judging him… and this time, it didn’t find him wanting.
“That is… a miracle,” she said. “Your primitive, misinformed… but of course, you can’t be blamed. How little of their knowledge is still taught anymore? They destroyed so much themselves, and the Tyrant erased the rest. No matter. Incorrect conclusions, but useful results.”
She rose to her hooves, and the whole moon seemed to tremble under her. “We will travel there at once. It will take some strength to compress this atmosphere down into the cave you’ve discovered, but we cannot afford to relinquish any of the oxygen we brought. Stars only know where we will obtain more.
“But of all the mountains standing before us, this was the closest. We may only climb them one at a time. We will climb forever, until we reach the revenge that is due to me for this betrayal, and liberation for Equestria from the Tyrant’s hooves.”
She no longer looked like she was about to collapse from anger. Now she seemed resolved, and utterly confident. The Nightmare Moon that had inspired him, as well as so many others. The one who would set Equestria free.
“There’s…” He hesitated, not wanting to take away whatever respect he’d apparently earned with her. But given the alternative was even more of her anger, or worse… “Your army doesn’t treat me like their Lord Commander,” he said. “If I ordered them to move into the cave, they would not follow.”
The Alicorn turned on him, her expression twisting into a sneer. “I wouldn’t expect them to. You’re high officer by name alone. If we were about to return to battle, you would lead us to the greatest defeat yet. But we aren’t in battle. You may even have been the perfect pony for your position. But for now… I will make the orders. Walk beside me, and stop standing like a coward. If you wish to command, you will learn to meet ponies in the eye. With me.”
He obeyed, hurrying up until he was only a wing’s breadth from the princess, on her right hoof. An honored position. When they reached the bottom of the hill, the surviving Voidseekers joined them on either side. Protecting him as well as the princess. There were only six of them left. Where did the others go?
A chill passed through him, and somehow he knew he would never see those ponies again. Maybe three days hadn’t been a measurement of Nightmare Moon all along, but on their lives.
“Loyal army!” Nightmare Moon bellowed, her voice echoing through the bubble with the magical magnification of her best spell. “The time has come to travel below the ground. My chosen Lord Commander, Iron Quill, has prepared a place for us. It is my order that every pony healthy enough to walk follow us, bringing every weapon and supply of any value. Those too injured to walk from the battle should be left in this camp. My magic will see to them. But for you, we must retreat.”
Quill’s eyes widened as he realized what she was doing. But he didn’t question the princess. Nopony could do that. If air is something that can run out, then maybe it makes sense. Not only that, but what about food? Quill knew almost exactly how many months of grain they had prepared for the siege. When it ran out…
Don’t think about months. We’ll be long gone before that.
They passed through each camp, pausing just long enough for Nightmare Moon to repeat her orders to the ponies there. Soon he could see a frenzy of activity as defenses came down, tents were stowed, and cargo wagons were packed. It would take hours to break down a camp, but they might just have those hours now.
When they reached Permafrost’s camp, he could see the resentment on his face, the anger. Yet the insubordination was gone—he could argue and hiss at Quill, even threaten him. But not with Nightmare Moon beside him.
That pony is going to be a thorn in my side as long as I’m wearing a crown. I wish the bucking fool would’ve had this office instead. But then again, Permafrost wouldn’t have understood the meaning of Nightmare’s command. They probably would’ve waited for an attack until the moment their magic ran out, and they all died.
When they reached the entrance to the cave, Quill was pleased to see one of his own cargo wagons rolling through, with Silver Needle directing the next one. She dropped into a deep bow as Nightmare Moon approached. The princess didn’t so much as speak her name, just walking past with an approving look on her face, into the icy entrance.
To his surprise, she did stop on the other side. Sylvan Shade stood there, along with a crew of laborers, cutting down a huge chunk of ice until it was about the size of the opening.
“You’re going to freeze it closed?” Her expression looked doubtful. “I don’t believe…” She shook her head. “Well, I suppose it could work. Roughly a single atmosphere, depending on the volume within. We must work with what we are given.” She walked on, horn casting a brilliant green glow to illuminate the cavern. Quill could hear several carts rolling along ahead, their wooden wheels grinding against stone.
“What do you think?” Quill asked, when they finally reached the center of the Moon. Tiny lantern-lights glowed in one corner; in the place he’d told Silver Needle to build their camp. They would probably have the best place of all, thanks to that advice. “Is the Moon large enough to…”
“Your questions are ignorant and absurd,” Nightmare Moon said harshly. “But irrelevant. I have no doubt you will understand plenty in time. This was only the first of many terrible trials ahead of us.” She walked to one side, where she would be out of the flow of traffic.
“Inform the soldiers on the surface they have two hours to reach us here. And… good work, Lord Commander. I believe I will have further need of you.”
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Ah, so Nightmare knows something of the nature of her moon, quite a bit indeed. I wonder at the provenance of this knowledge.
9645905
Probably that they are in a magma chamber?
Wouldn't it make more sense to bring the injured with them and use them for food? If resources are scarce, you use everything you can.
Though I suppose with a vacuum they won't go off...
9645920
Ah yes, freeze dried pony. Delicious
9645920
Doing as suggested by you would be trading lesser asset to greater one, and besides and as you said if things truly devolve to that the resource will remain there freeze dried. Logic says no, in addition to any moral arguments.
She might know what oxygen is, but she doesn't know how they'll get more. Unless Sylvan is a damn fine scholar, I imagine he won't have a better idea either.
Only thing to do is to hope for Serendipity, I suppose.
9645165
I really like the interpretation you have here, as it seems like something that would fit cannon Celestia a bit better than the (implied) tyranny that's been referenced several times. It would be interesting if we got a bit of her viewpoint at some point through the story, as a way to see the truth behind this. Aside from that, I quite liked your head cannon, it was an interesting read.
9645019
You have to remember who these ponies are though. We've got an army of serfs and peasants, lead by a former monk and a glory hound. Given the fact the it doesn't look like he can usually help much in the field, why would he garner respect?
9645138
Perhaps that could be the event that leads to reform in the country, going off of what Ro has been saying, the crisis might make her become more involved in governance and work to break down some of that stratification?
9645920
Eating them would be useful in the short term, but the real use in their bodies would be to chop and grind them up to use as fertilizer and create soil that is not absolute shit to grow crops in. But ye freeze drying won't go off.
9645992
9646015
Just a quick reminder, he's suggesting eating the injured, not just the dead.
I feel like pointing out that there's a pretty big difference there. Even putting all of the moral implications aside, that kind of thing would utterly destroy morale.
Abandoning the injured to suffocation on the surface? Her troops won't be so happy about that once somebody figures it out.
Mighty fine story, and this may be the first Starscribe story I can actually finish reading. An antagonist Celestia, whether truly tyrannical or simply misunderstood by the Lunar rebels, I am certainly not against. As long as holier-than-thou Homo sapiens aren't in the mix.
9645176
It's not just a pretty ideal; it is what happened in canon up to S01E01. So the only variable is: Exactly how alt-univ is Celestia and Equestria?
Seeing as how earth ponies are just fine in canon Equestria, but revolted in Starscribe Equestria, yes something went wrong but it is not due to trappings of royalty. Democracy or communism are not sacrosanct pathways to utopia either. The idea of monarchy is not inherently flawed when your monarch is immortal, and has the mandate of heaven for real.
9646008
Monks are usually the repositories of literature and knowledge, and would respect scientists. Iron Quill is a general-turned-monk, and so should have twice the respect for what science (or alchemy) can bring to the battlefield.
pbs.twimg.com/media/CMNN9KtWIAAgmOh.jpg
9646004
Well, like the Earth, much of the Moon's crust is composed of silicates. Assuming they have the energy to spare in the short term while they wait for plants to grow, the unicorns can probably separate the silicon and oxygen with their magic. Or they can do something similar with the carbon dioxide they exhale. Once they get some decent crops growing, oxygen will be effectively a non-issue, as long as the cave remains airtight.
I feel rather silly, I hadn't actually realized that there was a new chapter when I was commenting at first :P
Aside from that, would it be wrong of me to ship "Iron Quill" and Penumbra this early?
As for more substance: Even though Nightmare Moon is leading a peasant revolt, she doesn't seem like a good leader. It sounds as if she's maintained an aloof attitude from the majority of her army, if her attitude towards their intelligence is any indicator. Given the stated penchant for holding her elite forces back and letting the majority of her army battle it out, it sounds as if she doesn't value their lives very much either. Here's to hoping that she mellows out over the years...
Is it too early to ship it? Because I'm definitely shipping it.
Good point.
Oh crap, the air is going bad.
That is the next big problem.
He's doomed, continually.
9646260
You do if you’re a commander with any degree of competency. Civilians on the battlefield are the absolute last thing a commander wants to have to deal with when in a war. Not only will morale drop should they be caught in any crossfire, but it also puts troops out of action should any merely scream due to the inmate instincts to protect them.
9646236
For oxygen, my first thought was getting it from electrolyzing water from melted ice. But then I remembered that hydrogen is also a byproduct, and failure to account for that will surely lead to the swift creation of a new surface feature on the Moon that future Equus astronomers will dub "The Nightmare Rebellion Memorial Crater".
9646227
I'm really enjoying these discussions, so I'd like to point out a few things. Firstly, I'm going to address your points on the monks. While in our world, they played a significant part in the development of science, you have to consider how Equestria differs.
The three primary differences would be the relatively new nature of the church, given that it's implied that Celestia and Luna have not ruled for very long so far, so they likely don't have the stockpiles of knowledge and network to work with. Secondly, there's no indication that the Church has any opposition to science, though we haven't learned much about its specifics yet. Thirdly, and most importantly, would be the existence of magic, at least from my point of view. I'd argue that you see this effect most prominently in the show, where you've had a thousand years of development and the military hasn't moved past the use of spears. Why would anyone bother with science when they can just use magic to achieve the desired effect? Want to cool your home? Ask a Pegasus or unicorn. Want to change up your crops? There's a spell for that. Given that Earth ponies seem to be mostly focused on farming and other labor jobs, it's unlikely that they would have much success in the sciences, given their lack of representation, wealth, or overall education. From what I've read so far, I'd assume that "scientists" at this point in Equestria would be wealthy individuals that want to try something new. They'd likely be ridiculed for going against the established norms of magic, because when it comes down to it, they're unlikely to discover something that magic can't do, especially at this point. While science might oneday surpass magic, it's unlikely that it will ever progress that far due to the utility of magic in the short term.
Also, I'd disagree on your most recent connection to Plato, where you cited the first episode. This is 1000 years before that, a whole lot can change in that kind of time span.
9646227
They might have revolted in canon? All we saw was the final battle between Luna and Celestia where she transformed. I guess this fic's revolt had her as Nightmare Moon during the fighting, so it does have to be alt universe though. Or did it? It seems like it did but it's not required. Even reformed Luna loves bats.
Anyway, a revolt 1000 years ago doesn't say anything about conditions in present times. You'd literally never know.
9645905
Enough to know to snatch a volume of air before she was flung to the Moon.
Thankfully, enough ice can get the whole cycle going.
Ice plus pegasi divided by unicorn alchemist equals air. Given earth ponies and careful light redirection, you have plants and air scrubbers.
It may be colder than windigo teats out there, and tanstaafl applies, but definitely doable.
I just noticed something. Nightmare Moon has advanced knowledge of science and possibly technology. Knowledge that she is doling out in bits and pieces and even condescendingly.
Knowing that the point of this fic is to establish an advanced society on the moon, this is good, but by the same token, doesn't Celestia also have this knowledge and could use it to protect herself and Equestria from the advanced technology the moon will be forced to create in order to survive and thrive on the moon?
Fics where one side gains this kind of unfair advantages tend to go dark very fast.
Well, I think I recall you saying somewhere that after the first four chapters the posting rate would slow down, but I think this was a good foundational quartet.
Also, I didn't find again where you said that when looking just now, but I did find a blog post that seems to answer my earlier question, so that's good!
Thanks for writing. :)
9647474
I'd like to suggest an alternative explanation. She may just be more familiar with it due to it falling within her domain. Perhaps she's even visited before? I, for one, am eager to find out!
9646521 9646530
If we study the history of monasticism, I'd say that scholarly pursuits are inevitable regardless of species and historical quirks. Learning is almost requisite to being a monk in the coenobitic tradition (which is what's depicted here). You need to be able to not only read and write in order to worship properly, you have to read and write beyond just conversational level in order to approach the wisdom in the collected teachings of your deity... especially since in this universe, Celestia and Luna really do harbor esoterica outside the ken of the mortal masses. Such as "She said 'vacuum'... what does the Sun Most High mean by 'vacuum'?" "I don't know but we better find out before our rival neighbor monastery does." Education is for the hierarchical (check), the communal (check), and the rich (all check, given what is revealed in the chapter about monasteries).
I agree that the system may not be solidly entrenched yet, given the time frame. But I don't see any reason for a monk having visceral disdain for scholars, unless there's a difference in scholastic philosophy, which I didn't see in the chapter. I can understand the assassin mare, being a zealot and a warrior, being disdainful for the scholar. And when I speak of "science", in Equestrian terms I mean both science and magic, sometimes combined.
As for "We can't say anything because there's a space of 1000 years in between"... Yes it's all speculation, but the arc of history swings that way because the trifecta of pony breeds fits The Republic pretty neatly. It could not have taken Celestia very long before she decided she's going the nudge pony civilization in that direction over time, even if it was a subconscious decision.
And I'm not saying Plato's The Republic is all sunshine and roses for Celestia. If we wish to speculate in a darker direction (as Starscribe loves to do), we can say Celestia had chosen an exclusionist policy over the past millennium, as in "I'm gonna devote my power to these 3 pony breeds, everybody else stay out." It's reflected in the language (now changing under Twilight), the culture (now changing under Twilight), and the isolationist foreign policy (now changing under Twilight). The 3 pony breeds currently enjoy utopic prosperity, but all non-ponies or other-ponies have been fending for themselves outside Equestria, for better or for worse (often worse). It's often jarring that the Princess of the Sun (and moon) doesn't get as much adoration and respect in the world as we think she deserves, but we can see why if we look from an outsider's perspective.
I don't blame her; Celestia has her reasons. Most obviously is the trauma of the internecine war. Celestia probably feels she doesn't have the requisite qualifications to fix the world; she's got enough on her plate trying to fix the pony culture she feels she broke.
One problem down, an uncountable number to go. Still, at least they'll be alive long enough to backstab one another, and with the Nightmare no longer devoting everything she has to that atmospheric bubble, hopefully she'll be able to set Permafrost straight. Or kill him. Same difference from her perspective; right now a pony who can't think beyond military concerns only has value as a source of genetic diversity.
Looking forward to more.
They need air, water, food, and heat. They have ice, which means water. They're in a lava tube, which implies a source of heat. They have months worth of food, and simply eating it will give them fertilizer. Combine that with surface soil and apply earth pony magic, provided they have seeds to work with, food should not be difficult to acquire. The only real problem I see is air, and crops will solve that in the long run. In the short term, it's possible they might need to extract it from the water, but that produces a highly flammable result.
They could really use a good source of nitrogen.
Better late than never.
Anyway, back to work! Clock is ticking.
I've got a feeling there will be an event later involving this plug getting blown out.
She is talking about teleporting them down together with the remaining air, right? Right? Right?
Good chapter!
I can't wait to see what happens next.
Also, interesting comment section here.
9646371
They could always get rid of the hydrogen out of the cave/tube or tie it up chemically into something else (ammonia, plastics, etc).
You spoiled us with the rapid updates now I feel neglected.
9655741
You don't have to wait too much longer, an update is coming in tomorrow/today (depending on your time zone).
9647474
Fics like that often make no sense.
Somehow, the Lunar Republic always seems to struggle with basic things to live (usually water) in a really bad way, but at the same time has enough time and resources on their hooves to create super-advanced technology that makes groundbound ponies look like cavemen. Especially regarding military hardware, that is just silly. There are no enemies on the moon. There could be but those stories love portraying the Lunars as a peaceful utopia (minus struggling with things like oxygen and water). Why would a society that has no enemies take the time to build super-weapons?
Moreover, there's an argument to be made that Equestria could have superior magic by the time they meet again. The old Unicorn nobility stayed there. What do ancient spellcaster families value outside of genetics? Magic. Even moreso in a setting where Nightmare Moon was supported by a peasant uprising, the sorcerous Unicorn lines would have an incentive to cling to their magical birthrights. Moreso moreso if they need it to defend their homeland. With so many pony soldiers gone, Equestria is weakened, and unlike their cousins on the moon, they are surrounded by potential enemies.
That ship quickly went from 'I wonder if' to being obvious fast....maybe too obvious
Hmmmmm, especially with this being Starscribe I'm not ruling out there being a couple small structures covered in gold foil and Mylar somewhere on the moon
I'm not saying that IS the case, I'm just not ruling it out yet!
9645920
Even if not for food, they could (should, really) use them for fertilizer to grow crops. It sucks, but much like in Frostpunk, The City Must Survive. Their goal here is singular: survive as a civilization, not as an army. To that end, every method and means that is necessary SHOULD be taken. There's only room for sympathy in a thriving nation/city, and this isn't one. It isn't even a village yet.TO be fair, the discipline as an army might contribute to their survival, but in the wrong hands it will surely lead to their destruction. They don't have enough information. By the time they learn EXACTLY how BAD their situation is, it might be too late to prevent their deaths.
Every time you drop a casual reminder what tech-base they're working with, I just grin
Penumbra is a batshit crazy cultist and I adore her a little as well. The way she's been kind of detached from the prospect of survival and sort of, humoring him while expecting to die in service to her goddess... Nothing wrong with you Iron Quill. Mind on the job, though, you're still on the moon :P
You're gonna need a proper carbon cycle in a hurry if you do that, Sylvan. Did your experiments with suffocating mice in glass flasks progress that far?
Man, this has been a heck of a week for Moonie, hasn't it? One minute she's fighting her sister, the next she's on the moon and has to do this monotonous feat of endurance to maybe keep them all alive, with no distractions so she can either be consumed by the task or ruminate on her failures, depending on how much attention the spell requires.
I really feel sorry for Moonie here. This one passage is so efficient in showcasing:
Kudos
I'm straight up crying. This is the most palatable and the most powerful angsty Nightmare Moon I've ever seen.
Uhhhh... It's not that big? A few cubic kilometers of atmosphere will not fit all that well, unless you use a pressure vessel. Man, building a secret moonbase for your apocalyptic cult is hard! Who knew?
I love the way there's this back and forth between, on the one hand, having magical solutions to a variety of problems, but also the scientific knowledge of the characters is poor enough that they don't always know enough to diagnose their problems far enough in advance to not have hair-raising adventures.
Holy shit. I was wondering how she could be so precise, but I don't know you as a writer, so I was just suspending disbelief and putting up with it. Nice! This is so spooky. It really is The Martian starring Nightmare Moon and her cult.
Man, she has been sitting their murdering her closest most beloved followers to buy time for this pony she had no particular faith in. I want to give her all the hugs from a safe distance way way over there.
Aaaaand Nightmare Moon continues to be best pony manager. Seriously, don't you wish your boss were like Nightmare Moon?
9657984 On the other hand (hoof), in the short term the Equestrians may be so busy fighting for survival that they don't have time for research. Then, after their problems are solved, they'll end up in medieval stasis. They have no real need to develop, and no real inspiration to push them forward. Things will develop slowly, and randomly.
Compare the Lunar Kingdom. It's a frontier society where they will have to innovate to survive. Add to that Nightmare Moon's desire for vengeance, and the fact that she clearly has scientific knowledge of an earlier, higher tech civillisation, and how many generations will it take for her to develop a progressive, wr-like culture. This moon has ice in the crater shadows, so they have water, and air for nitrogen. They need a source of carbon, but it's possible there may be carbonates they can harvest, or carbonaceous chlondrite meteors wihin reach. Let's just hope some of the produce and grain is fresh enough to plant.
I expected General Ripper, sorry Permafrost, to get a short, terminal education about the chain of command, as Nighhtmare Moon beat hom to death with a chain for wasting resources and ignoring her decisions.
9648486
Just hook Permafrost up to an extraction device and you can take care of two of those simultaneously (Heat and air).
Hopefully the injured are not going to be left out when all the air is squeezed in.