Oppression
Princess Twilight Sparkle frees the ponies that were erased by the Equestrian Secret Service, fully aware of the hoof she had in their incarceration.
The role that the Equestrian Secret Service played throughout the course of the Conversion War was a harsh and passionate one. Stoic in the face of treachery these ponies of strong will and selfless dedication to princess and country would ruthlessly seek out and quash any form of dissent wherever it may fester within Equestria's populace.
Formed by the Equestrian royals after the betrayal of the Resistance, the ESS were the dagger to the Royal Guard’s sword; hidden and deadly.
For two terrible years the ESS scoured the landscape for traitors, breaking into homes and tearing apart families with impunity to preserve the natural order of Equestria. And while many praised them for their unwavering vigilance to the Equestrian ideal they were almost always met with fear and suspicion. Because whether it be friend or family, strangers or loved ones, all were equal in their eyes. Those that fell into their clutches vanished from society, never to be seen again.
Eventually the war came to a close, and with Twilight Sparkle's momentous surrender came the unceremonious dissolution of Equestrian Secret Service. Their reign, while short, would forever be a black mark on Equestrian history for generations to come.
One that Twilight hopes she can forgive herself for fervently supporting without question.
Twilight stared out of the window of the jeep she rode in as it sped across the vast Equestrian woodlands, watching with a worried expression on her face as rows upon rows of pine trees passed by her in a long continuous streak of green and brown. She was currently traveling with a detachment of the UN occupational force, specifically its humanitarian branch. They were on a mission to distribute aid across the country and to help those who have been affected by the war by providing temporary shelters, meals and medical assistance wherever needed.
It had only been a few weeks since the surrender, since the eye opening negotiations that changed everything.
The truth about Celestia's righteous crusade and the world she left behind had come to light, and the ponies of Equestria were in an uproar about everything. Consumed by regret, more suicides occurred all over Canterlot, with many being unable to bear the weight of their own guilt for the part they and their people played in supporting the war. Twilight had done her best to keep things under control now that everypony had snapped out of their zealotry, but there was still much that needed to be done.
First and foremost, repairing the trust between ponies and humans was absolutely paramount if her hopes of a peaceful coexistence were to come into fruition. And the most pressing matter related to that was to set free the ponies who had been supportive of that trust all along.
Twilight felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach.
So many wrongfully persecuted ponies had been removed as a result of her own deep seated grudge with Fluttershy and her betrayal.
Princess Celestia may have been the one who created the ESS, but alongside her fellow royals Twilight had been complicit in keeping them going, stoking the flames of their paranoia and urging complete subservience when engaging in their task.
And in that support came ignorance.
The ESS were a fully autonomous group, with next to no government oversight whatsoever and an unreasonable amount of funding. They did what was needed and generally kept to themselves, maintaining an air of secrecy that many deemed foolish to question. Princess Celestia was really the only one with a measure of authority outside of the chief director who ever actually worked with them directly, most everything else was on a need to know basis.
Even back then there were rumors swirling around about the terrible things that happened to those captured by the ESS.
Twilight, constantly overburdened with her position as princess, had originally brushed said rumors off without a second thought, believing them to be little more than hollow threats made to keep the peace, similar to the way a mother would tell stories of the boogeymare to get their children to behave, or blatant character assassination spoken from disgruntled protestors to turn the public's opinion against them.
To her horror, the rumors were true. Every last one of them.
She had only learned the truth recently. Sifting through Celestia's personal notes and secret records had revealed many things. Too many to process all at once, let alone openly disclose to the people at large.
As it had actually turned out, dissenters were not simply jailed as she had been previously led to believe.
No, throwing a pony in jail or the dungeons was not enough. They needed to repent for their lack of faith. Those that didn't warrant execution or imprisonment were all sent to remote labor camps where they were forced to work against their will. In a cruel twist of irony their efforts would continue to feed the Equestrian war machine, either harvesting materials or assembling war gear in support of the one thing they desperately wanted to avoid the most.
The fact that all this was hidden from the public made Twilight sick to her stomach. Had Equestria actually succeeded in winning the war, she shuddered to imagine what would happen to everypony still trapped in the camps. There was no way they could've been just released back into the general populace after being subjected to indentured servitude.
Her lack of knowledge did not absolve her of blame nor guilt, and she was fully prepared to suffer for her crimes. All she wanted to do was redeem her home and its people in the eyes of the world. To heal the self inflicted wound upon themselves and to grow as a civilization like they should've centuries ago. Whatever hate, anger and resentment her subjects harbored for her after all this, she will bear it without question. If that is the price she must pay for Equestria to flourish, then so be it.
Equus had become a barren lifeless rock floating in the middle of space, half frozen, half arid, fully unsustainable, because she blindly followed through with Celestia’s schemes.
She will not lose Earth.
"Miss Sparkle," the driver of the Jeep called out, snapping her out of her funk. "We'll reached the designated location in about ten minutes. However, I'm being told that there's a bit of a problem at the point of interest."
"...What kind of problem?" Twilight turned in her seat, raising an brow in bemusement.
The Smokey mountains, home to the Hooffields and McColts family clans, was an isolated part of the deep Equestrian backwoods known as the Great Green Expanse that, by a stroke of fortune, had mostly remained untouched in spite of logging operations and collateral damage caused during the final year of the war. These dense backwoods were rough and untamed, crawling with all manner of wild and fantastical critters that would bite your face off soon as they look at you. Stretching for miles all around, one could easily get lost here and never find their way out without help.
It was the perfect location to build a labor camp.
According to the unsealed files of the ESS, this particular location was known as Camp Canary. In spite of its innocuous name, Camp Canary was a major labor camp that specialized in mining coal. It was responsible for over fifty three percent of all coal collected that would go on to fuel the factories across Equestria.
It was here where dissidents were sent to work.
Isolated from the world, Camp Canary had miraculously avoided destruction during the human invasion. More disconcertingly, it hadn’t been abandoned yet, although that was perhaps for the better. Perhaps the prisoners were still okay?
As the jeep rolled up to the camp, Twilight came across a scene that looked straight out of a spaghetti western.
The camp itself was built like a fort, with its high pine walls, guard towers and searchlights. It was clearly designed to keep ponies in and potential intruders out. Stationed atop the front walls was who Twilight assumed to be the warden and his guards, all disavowed members of the ESS. They appeared to be in a panicked frenzy, shakily pointing their firearms down at the occupational force below who also had their weapons drawn.
The atmosphere was tense, and one wrong move could potentially result in a couple individuals being aired out like swiss cheese.
Quick on her hooves, Twilight got out of the jeep and cantered over to the man in charge of her outing, seeking to defuse the situation before anyone could get hurt.
“Lieutenant Newman,” Twilight addressed the tall dark skinned man, who instinctively saluted back in response.
“Ah, how nice of you to finally show up, Miss Sparkle.” Replied Newman, a stern look on his face. “I assumed you’ve already been told about the issue?”
“The warden and his men have the camp on lockdown and are holding the prisoners hostage,” Twilight sighed. "How bad is it?"
"It's a delicate situation," Newman sniffed. "We've already determined the number of threats within the camp. My scouts have also confirmed that the prisoners are okay but they've been rounded up and into the mines. The entire cave wall is rigged with dynamite and one of the guards there is more than ready to slam their dirty little hooves on the plunger if we try anything funny."
"What precautions have you taken so far?" Twilight inquired.
"We've currently have Thalmann generators set up around the perimeter to prevent any unicorns in there from getting any bright ideas," replied Newman. "I've got some of my best men trained on these bastards and we're prepared to neutralize them on my mark. With a single word, I can have this all cleaned up nice and tidy for you, ambassador."
"I'd prefer to do this with as little bloodshed as possible, lieutenant, but if it comes down to it I'll give you the signal," said Twilight. "Give me fifteen minutes. I'm going to try and defuse the situation."
"As you will, ma'am," Newman nodded. "But at the first sign of trouble, I'm taking these nutjobs outs."
''Noted," Twilight nodded back. Taking a deep breath, she cantered towards the campsite, keeping her eye on then sweating warden above her. "Warden!" she shouted. "I've come to parley!"
"That's warden Manacle to you, traitor princess!" Manacles shouted back disdainfully, spitting and missing at Twilight. "Don't think I don't know about what you've done! You've sold out Equestria to the monkeys! And now you've come for us!"
Twilight sighed, rubbing at the bridge of her nose. "Yes, it's true. Equestria surrendered... three weeks ago. The war is over. You should've reported back in by now, warden Manacle. The ESS have been dissolved and-"
"I don't answer to you!" He spat as several of his men grumbled in agreement. "Princess Celestia is the one and only princess I'll ever acknowledge! You're just her failed apprentice! A deceitful purple little shit that grabbed power the moment it was convenient for her! The people should've had you lynched the moment you decided to show your true colors!"
Twilight felt a bout of anger flare up from within but kept her cool. It was one thing to be accused of cowardice for surrendering, it was another to be accused of opportunism in maintaining the country. She needed to defuse the situation fast before warden Manacle's colorful accusations get to her and promptly receives a lasbolt to the face.
"Listen to me, Manacle," Twilight spoke through gritted teeth. "Equestria is under UN occupation whether you like it or not. They're here to help repair the damages caused during the invasion and you're not helping anypony by holding hostages and spouting backwards rhetoric!"
"I was given a task by the venerable Princess Celestia herself, and I will see that task through to the very end!" Manacle petulantly screamed back. "These dissidents, these abominable collections of traitors and conspirators have to be punished for their crimes against Equestria! They are the reason we lost! They are the reason a fraud like you is in control of our glorious country! They are the reason the ESS exists!"
"They're innocent!" Twilight retorted. "They always have been! They've suffered enough, let them go and I will see to it that you and your misguided ilk are met with a measure of leniency!"
"Never!" Manacle decried. "Never! These godless heathens deserve to be tormented! And I will see to it personally that they pay for their crime with their blood!" He turns his attention to the humans threatening to gun him down. "You monkeys have not won! You will never win! Equestria! Now and forever!"
"Equestria! Now and forever!" his guards parroted enthusiastically.
Twilight rolled her eyes, she couldn't believe she used to be that gullible. "What do you expect to achieve with these theatrics, Manacle? If you know about what happened in Canterlot then you know how this pitiful attempt at a last stand is going to end. With you dead and buried in the middle of nowhere. Is that how you envisioned your glorious career to end? Did you expect to negotiate with me? To have me unseated and jailed or executed for my perceived crimes against Equestria simply because you threaten to bury a few prisoners?"
Manacle's fervent mask slipped slightly at the display of cold logic. "Uh-I... I, you see..." He stammered, suddenly feeling the full weight of the situation at hand bear down on him. He started breaking out into a sweat and the men around shared his uneasiness. "Y-you're just t-trying to scare me!"
Twilight smirked victoriously, "and it's working, isn't it?"
"I,er... I..." Manacle tried fire back but felt his words trapped in his throat.
"Stand down, Manacles!" Twilight pressed. "Stand down and free the prisoners or I will be forced to put you down along with the rest of your insignificant rabble!" She could see Manacles shrink from her words, losing his will to resist. "Either way, you're outnumbered, out gunned and outmatched! If you think you're getting out of this alive after this stunt then you're dumber than I thought!"
Sweating profusely, Manacles felt his bravado evaporate and with his head hung low in shame he ordered all his men to stand down. Shocked by his response, they threw their weapons down and begrudgingly surrendered to Twilight, but not before being startled by a loud crack across the air, followed by the blood curdling scream that came from behind them.
Jumping into action, Twilight quickly flew over the walls and landed in the center of the camp where she found the source of the noise.
One of Manacle's guards, Pencil Pusher, had attempted to set off the explosives in spite of their leader's surrender and had gotten one of her forelegs blown off by a carefully aimed lasbolt as a result. She screamed in agony upon the ground but was still determined to punish the dissenters if it was the last thing she'll do. Mustering up the strength to go on, she began crawling towards the plunger, dragging a trail of blood across the ground as she did so.
"I... will not... go out... quietly!" Pencil Pusher raised a shaking hoof over the plunger and slammed it straight down. "For Equestria! For Princess Celestia!"
Thankfully, there was no boom. Twilight had rushed the crazed guard with the desperate speed of a repentant mare at the last second, grappling her in place before her all her efforts would go up in smoke. The guard screamed and thrashed in her hold, desperately trying and failing to reach for the plunger.
"Let me go, you tyrant!" she screamed in defiance, writhing in pain.
"Cease this foolishness," Twilight muttered lowly.
"No. No! This is not our destiny!" She bellowed furiously. "We were supposed to win the war! We were supposed to save humanity! This isn't right! None of this is right! Somepony, wake me from this nightmare! Ple-e-ease!" She began breaking down into loud sobs, thrashing about in Twilight's shockingly powerful hold as she started screaming madly. "How could this have happened?! What have we done to deserve this?! I prayed enough! I know I did! Princess Celestia! Please! If you can hear the voice of your faithful servant, strike down this tyrannical mare and restore the proper order! Please! I beg of you!?"
All the while, Twilight looked on the mare with pity and remorse. Celestia's reign had done far more internal damage than she had initially realized if ponies like these were leftover from her rule. The sheer level of fanaticism frightened her because it reminded her of her own blind loyalty. Dragging the mare away, Twilight began dreading meeting the captured dissidents.
After defusing the hostage situation, the UN humanitarian team set out and began logging their findings on Camp Canary. Their initial survey of the camp was... disheartening to say the least.
The camp's conditions, save for the officers' quarters, were deplorable.
The housing for the prisoners comprised of several large decrepit building.
In spite of their size they were cramped due to the number of ponies crammed into a single space, dirty and poorly maintained, leaving little in the way of basic comfort. There was a several holes that marred the roove's surface and almost no form of heating, meaning the prisoners likely suffered the long frigid nights of the Equestrian wilderness in huddled masses for warmth.
Furnishing was basically nonexistent, with sacks full of hay being substituted for crude bedding (or an alternate source of food judging by how flat they were), simple footlockers for storing clothing and whatever meager trinkets the prisoners had on their person at the time, and bookshelves that was filled with texts approved by the Church of Harmony.
Rats wouldn't be caught dead living there.
The outdoor latrine was also never cleaned out regularly, making for a horrid smell that could rival most chemical weapons. As for everything else? There was nothing else. The camp was bare as bare can be, with only simple living quarters and an outhouse making up the entirety of prisoner lodgings.
There were ghettoes back during the day that were more inviting than this.
The prisoners themselves were treated no different. After they were freed from the mines, of which there were several hundred pouring out from the many entrances, the doctors began performing routine check ups on each and every one of them and found themselves worried by their examinations.
The prisoners were all malnourished and suffered from a variety of ailments as a result of being crammed together in tight unclean spaces or being overworked in the mines without proper protective equipment. As a result, they were all lanky and emaciated, covered from head to toe in black coal dust that clung to their fur like a second skin. They could barely breath due to black lung, let alone trot or swing a pickaxe. A few were even missing limbs to which they confessed having them amputated because of medical reasons or because of a workplace incident.
Statements collected from the group revealed they were only fed a thin watery gruel of plain oats and local vegetables twice a day. Some days they were only given one if Warden Manacle felt they weren't meeting the quota of the day or if he had satisfied himself in determining their perceived faithlessness. They were to be given only the barest minimum of nutrition required to function on a day to day basis, anything more would've been deemed a luxury.
Normally, the average person or pony could survive on such a meal, provided they didn't exert themselves to burn more calories than necessary. But working back breaking sixteen hour shifts in the coal mine with little breaks in between had all but guaranteed broken spirits and failing bodies.
The sight of it all made Twilight retch and she could barely bring herself to look at any of them in the eye. Fathers, mothers, the elderly and older teens all stared at her with blank lifeless eyes that were weighed down by heavy dark bags. These were her people, ponies she had promised to serve and protect, and she had them locked up without so much as a second thought.
She had them all locked up because she couldn't be bothered to think on her own.
After some time, the humanitarian team had packed up their equipment and were preparing to depart for their facilities back west with the prisoners in tow, both the freed dissenters and the apprehended ESS members. They had underestimated the actual number of personnel that they were going to transport and had called in for more dropships to help with their task.
Until then, all they could do was wait and get everyone situated for what comes next.
"Atten-shun!" Lieutenant Newman bellowed, addressing the group gathered before him. "Aerial transport will be here in approximately one hour! When they arrive, I want you all to form up in single file lines until my men and I call you to be brought aboard! You will all then be moved to the UN regional medical complex where you will receive treatment for your ailments and a place to stay at until we can have you processed and determine whether or not you are fit to go back to your homes! If you do not have a home to return to as a result of wartime action, you will be sent to any one of our many temporary housing blocs until the reconstruction of Equestria's infrastructure is complete!" He then turned to the ESS members. "As for the rest of you sorry lot, you are at ambassador Sparkle's mercy. So play nice, or else."
"I'd rather be dead!" One of the members shouted indignantly, and promptly received a lasbolt near his hoof in response. Startled, he fell over backwards and collapsed onto his haunches, staring up fearfully at smoking barrel of Newman's laser pistol.
"Mouth off again in front of me and you'll end up a gelding, maggot," Newman sneered. With a flourish, he twirled his pistol back into his holster in a single smooth motion before gesturing over to Twilight to stand beside him. "Now, before I conclude our little meeting, the ambassador would like to have a word with everyone." He nodded to her respectfully and took a step backward. "You have the floor, ma'am."
"Thank you, lieutenant," replied Twilight as she swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. She didn't want to turn forward, not when the the sea of deadened eyes glaring at her threatened to cripple her resolve. Steeling herself, she faced the crowd of dispirited ponies in front of her and spoke with a voice that was equal parts resolute and fearful.
"Everypony! Years ago, Equestrian royalty had made the terrible mistake of choosing to wage war against a species that we alone thought deserved to be converted as a means of saving them from their own destructive nature! In that choice, we had convinced our people to hate the humans, to rob them of their very existence under the pretense of holier than thou hogwash! We were wrong in believing that! I was wrong to believe that, as was I to foolishly believe Celestia and her manipulative reasoning!
When our fair nation descended into fascism, into totalitarian oppression, you tried to warn your leaders, your friends, neighbors, brothers and sisters of the rotting plague that had infected Equestria! Instead of listening, we had vilified you all for speaking the truth in times of madness!
The Resistance, understanding the futility of convincing conceited individuals, such as myself, of our wrongdoings had taken it upon themselves to correct the mistakes that threatened to eradicate the human race and blacken Equestria's very soul! Scorned by the betrayal of my people, of my best friends, I had taken it upon myself to remain vigilant in the face of so called dissent!
The Equestrian Secret Service was the very monster born of my ignorance and abhorrence for all things viewed treacherous! Formed under Celestia, Luna, Cadence and I offered our unquestioned support in stamping out the weeds of resistance that sprouted across this once beautiful garden! With ruthless fanaticism, the ESS tore you from your homes and from your friends and families to be punished for speaking out against the crown! Only now do I realize the horrific atrocities I have perpetuated in blind devotion to the fraudulent Equestrian ideal!
You, the truest ponies of Equestria, were robbed of everything in my mad quest for order! So weak was I as a leader that I let my own hatred and fears take control of me and I took it out upon those who walked the same path as Fluttershy! She who should be upheld as a paragon of all things harmonious!
I cannot give back all that I have taken from you all, nor do I think that I am worthy of your forgiveness! But know that I am sorry! Deep down in my heart of hearts I truly regret being the cause of everything that has brought you pain and misery! I don't know if I'll ever be able to make up for all the things I've done, or if I'll even be able to begin to forgive myself, but with the weight of Equestria placed upon my back I swear to undo all the crimes that have been wrought in the veil of genocide!
I promise to ensure that Equestria will be made whole once more!"
Twilight stopped to breath. The speech had taken a lot more out of her than she had expected, but it needed to be said. She can only hope that the reception to it didn't end with a rock or rocks thrown to the head, no matter how much she thinks she deserves it.
A pregnant silence filled the air, which was soon broken by the clattering of old horseshoes upon the dirt.
An elderly stallion hobbled forth from the back of the crowd, faint whispers from his peers revealed his name to be Rail Splitter. His filthy soot covered appearance was exasperated by the presence of rickety bones poking up from under the skin and various scars on top. He was missing a foreleg and was forced to limp around with a support cane built from an old shovel. The stallion's face was twisted into a perpetual scowl like a gnarled root of a tree and his yellow misshapen teeth would be enough to make any dentist faint at the mere sight of it.
Slowly he approached ambassador Twilight and gave her a lengthy once over, unsettling the mare with how deliberate he was with his examination. Newman and his men kept their hands on their weapon in case anything were to happen, but a silent gesture from Twilight made them ease up on the situation.
"...So," Rail Splitter began, licking his cracked lips. His voice was squeaky yet gravelly, like the sound of glass rubbing up on glass. "You're sorry," he crowed. "You're sorry and you promise to make up for all the idiotic shit you've pulled as an obsessed madmane!" he mocked in a high sing song voice. "You're sorry for having thrown every single one of us fine folk into the gutter while our home burned to the ground because of your incompetence!"
Rail Splitter quickly raises his good hoof and delivers an anger filled hook across Twilight's jaw, causing her to stagger back and spit blood. Twilight doesn't resist and quickly regains her posture as Rail continued his rant.
"Well I don't want your damn apologies!" He shouts, being joined by the crowd behind him who shared his sentiment. "I don't want your hollow promises!"
"Yeah!" The crowd jeered.
"What I want...!" Rail Splitter begins but abruptly stops. He begins to choke up, anger mixing in with pent up sorrow. "What I want is my home back! What I want is to do my damn job and then come home after a long day to relax with my friends and family! All I wanted to do was live and you took that from me!?"
"Yeah!"
"I broke my back for Equestria! I loved this country! I did everything I could to see it grow and flourish as it should! But then, all of a sudden, I'm the bad guy for thinking this damn war was a bad idea from the start!"
"He's right!"
"I'm the bad guy for upholding the values that had been hammered into me since birth! I'm the bad guy for wanting to preserve peace in the name of friendship and harmony that you claim to champion, little missy!" He prodded Twilight's chest. "You want to be sorry? You want to make things right? Then just do it! I don't wanna hear your sanctimonious speeches or empty promises! I'm through with being lectured by ponies who think they know better than me or my friends!"
"You tell her, Rail Splitter!"
"Be the leader Equestria needs, and the people will follow! Be that leader and maybe, just maybe, things will turn out alright in the end!" Rail Splitter concluded with an uproarious, if weak and cough laden, applause from the ponies behind him. All the while the ESS members looked on the scene with quiet disdain, watching as all their hard work become undone by a traitorous upstart.
Rail Splitter walked away after that and many followed with him. The crowd dispersed soon after, leaving everyone to their own devices as they waited for the transport ships to show up.
Twilight, strangely, had felt a lot better now than when she was in the car ride here, even if she had to set her jaw back into place after taking that hit. She had said her peace and taken the response to it with her chin up, quite literally.
Though it had been crass, Rail Splitter's tirade and the jeering of the crowds was something she needed to hear for herself. He was right, of course. Beating herself up over things that should be left in the past wasn't going to heal Equestrian or repair the divide between human and ponies. She had to take charge and be the leader Equestria needed from the very beginning. Not as princess or as an infallible Goddess, but as a flawed and perseverant individual.
But just as she turned to rejoin the humanitarian team, Manacle couldn't help but get in one last jab at her.
"This isn't over, you know" He spat.
Twilight chuckled humorless in response. "I'm pretty sure it is for you."
"There will be others," Manacle scowled. "You may have everypony else fooled, but don't think you've won just yet. Others will follow in my footstep. The war is not over. It will never be over until every single godless human on this blasted rock is wiped out. Celestia wills it!"
"Those who walk the same path you do are doomed for failure," Twilight retorted, leveling a soul piercing glare at the stubborn stallion. "I'll see to it personally that the remnants of Celestia's lingering will are stamped out along with the rest of your zealous ilk. Harmony as my witness, her legacy will be undone by my hooves if it is the last thing I do," she threatened in a chilling whisper that shook Manacle right down to his very core. "And there is nothing that you can do to stop it."
She turned around and trotted away, smirking with the knowledge that her theatrics have left the warden thoroughly unnerved.
The dropships arrived far sooner than was estimated, at least ten minute earlier, and the evacuations were already underway. The ESS members were loaded in first in a separate prison ship while the others were steadily being boarded on massive cargo vessels that were meant for hauling heavy equipment.
Twilight had left the evacuation up to Newman and his men while she had gone to perform a last minute sweep of the premises in order to collect anything she might deem valuable in stoking sympathy for the prisoners.
Papers, pictures or the odd trinket were of interest for her. She had prepared a campaign dedicated to making sure everypony who were wrongfully imprisoned were set free and given aid for all they've endured. As she wandered she noticed a mother and her son standing by the far end of the camp. They stood before what she assumed was a makeshift grave judging by the mound of dirt and simple wooden marker. The mother had placed a small bundle of wildflowers upon the grave and whispered some quiet words beneath her breath.
"Um, excuse me," Twilight spoke, snapping the pair out of their mourning. "The transports have arrived. It's time to leave for the medical complex."
"O-oh, of course," the mother replied, turning to her son. "Come along, Mozer."
They all began walking towards the lines that formed in front of the cargo vessels when Twilight decided to strike up some small talk.
"...Did you know them well?" She asked, referring to the deceased.
The mother looked wistful. "Not as much as I would've liked to. He was a strong stallion. Stout of heart, pure of soul and adamant of will. He saved my boy from dying in the mines by choosing to take over his shift. He did that for all of us when we were too weak to mine for coal. He pushed himself everyday for a year until his heart couldn't handle the strain any longer. The guards were going to leave his body to rot in the mines so everypony else decided to give him a proper grave. He deserved that much in the end, at the very least."
They fell silent as she finished speaking and parted ways with one another shortly after.
Twilight's resolve to see this through to the end had been strengthened as a result of experiencing the horror of her actions first hand. She can only hope to hold onto that resolve for as long as she can throughout the rest of her journey. After all, Camp Canary was only one of several work camps that had been set up to fuel the Equestrian war machine. She will dismantle them all and free her people even if it kills her.
As she joined up with Newman and the humanitarian team, she couldn't help but mull over the dead stallion that had gave his life in order for others to live to see this day. She quickly looked over her shoulder and memorized the name carved onto the wooden marker.
Parabola
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⣿⣿⠀⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⡀⣼⡿⠟⠀⠙⣛⣬⠱⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⠀⠹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠿⠋⢀⠄⠁⣠⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⡆⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⠀⣀⠙⣛⣛⣻⠛⠋⣉⣢⣤⣾⠃⣰⡄⠸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⠘⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣤⢹⣷⣶⣶⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡄⠸⣷⠀⢻⣿⣿⡿⠟⠛⠡⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⠄⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⠄⠻⠇⢈⠁⠀⠀⠲⠠⠞⠿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣷⠈⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣶⣶⢤⠀⠀⢲⣿⣿⣿⣷⣤⡉⣻⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⠈⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣳⡀⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⠐⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣯⡈⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣾⡇⡆⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⣀⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⡀⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠃⢃⡿⠿⠛⡋⣀⣾⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣀⠹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠿⠋⢁⣠⣿⡦⠐⠀⢈⡙⢿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠋⢀⣿⣿⣿⣿⠟⢃⣤⣤⡀⠻⣿⣇⣠⣴⡿⠄⠹⣧⡸⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠃⢠⣾⣿⣿⡿⢋⣤⣿⣿⣿⣿⣄⠈⢿⡿⠋⣠⣤⣀⠈⣡⣿
⣿⣿⣿⠅⣀⣈⠁⣰⣿⣿⡿⠋⣤⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣵⣂⣽⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣄⠘⢿⣿⣿⠟⠋⣠⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣤⣬⣅⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
Captain Parabola, I salute you. An honest stallion and true Equestrian until the end.
I don't know why the whole Negotiation-verse fascinates me so, but these chapters add so much to it. Thank you.
What this reminded me of.
Salute to Rail Splitter for telling Twilight what she needed to hear this whole time
!!!
Oh and of course... R.I.P to Parabola... may you find ever lasting peace in the Elysian Fields...
.
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i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/975/872/022.jpg
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i.imgur.com/OlLa7LE.png
Personally I would've liked something like the raw, messy killings like those in the flashback sequence of "Shutter Island" or the raw emotion of "Band of Brothers," but this was still good. That's just my opinion.
Did Twilight ever found out that Applejack sold out many innocent ponies during the war?
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I don't think so. Might be worth exploring.
Whose parabola? Is that just a made up OC or a side character in one of the episodes?
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Check out chapter 2: extinction
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Ohhhhh you simply mentioning the chapter caused me to remember who it is. Damn… good on Parabola, kept a good heart remained unbroken all the way to the end.
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Yes, that was an actual episode
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In this version, Twilight does not know. Applejack takes the secret to her grave thoroughly convinced she was still in the right (either truly believing it or lying to herself as a coping mechanism) and suffers for it.
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The 2021 troll face would have been a bit better than this... thing.
If things are that bad in one camp, I dread how bad things are in others?... Or how zealous the "wardens" are in them?...
And R.I.P to Parabola. You were more patriotic and true to actual ideals of Equestria than the ruler worshipping crazies that replaced the likes of you.
will there be a chapter about Celestia's execution and or the radical guards getting court martialed for war crimes?
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I guess idealist ponies like Rail Splitter and Parabola were the exception.
Most of the "heathens" sent to the camps were more like Davenport: just normal citizens who just couldn't cope with the war demands, were caught doing something which would have been considered inocuous before Equestria radicalized ...
...or simply were sold by their own neighbours for money or to get in the good graces of the government, like Applejack's victims.
That was ugly, but satisfying at the same time. She needed to hear that after ignoring it for so long.
It's a shame about Parabola, Twilight probably never found out that that's the name of the one who came so close to doing something that could've prevented Spike's depression. And his only reward for that was a grave for the little sacrifice that was left to give.
Man, there are times when I wish I could like something more than once.
At least Parabola got some closure. Any idea what happened to 'Captain' Sure Shot and Sgt. Fling (aka the mare who sunk the non-pony ships and the stallion who egged her on)? Also, I know it's a bit late, but would they be the equivalent of the Marines (who use Army-based ranks and titles) or were they supposed to be Seamare/Captain and Petty Officer (the Navy equivalents)? My headcanon is that they either got killed in various UN naval raids across the Indian Ocean or slaughtered in the futile defense of the coast.
Something I just thought of recently, but I wonder how Equestria managed to avoid inadvertently summoning the Windigos during the war with how much hate there was? This is kind of an inevitability when writing stories like this set in this universe, but it would be interesting to explore nonetheless.
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Well, now we know.
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I'm guessing the Windigos are basically creations of negative magic in Equus, and Earth's lack of magic meant there was nothing to give the darker emotions life. That's part of why Celestia was so adamant on wiping out the humans and rebuilding the earth; Twilight realizes that much when she finally puts two and two together in the original Negotiations fic. No dark magic users, no predators (except for humans, who generally don't eat sapients).
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She said no predators, but there's a fuckton of animals on earth that could easily kill a pony.
Wasn't the entire area anti magiced at that point?
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Maybe they got left behind on Equis?
Or maybe they did get summoned and ended up attacking both sides during the war? It's not like the humans were generally any less hateful. Certainly them attacking just the ponies would be a strong point for them being in the wrong but it could have been spun that they were summoned by the evil of the humans.
Perfect callback.
Essentially Equestria's Gulag.
Wow so basically the ess, is the equestrian version of the imperial remnents wow
Still lying to herself on some level, I see.
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I think she meant no sapient predators. Griffons, dragons, etc. Just dumb animals, and dumber than the animals they're used to at that.
This is the best chapter so far.
¡Poor Parabola!
It would be nice to see some revenge for parabola against the other sailor ponies who wronged him