Natural Light: A SolarPunk Story

by The Hat Man

From "A Brief Rebuke of Anti-Stability"

The following is an excerpt from “A Brief Rebuke of Anti-Stability,” a counter-revolutionary tract aimed at the Shiner movement published by the unicorn Lord Brandiwine of Hayfordshire, vineyard owner and philosopher:

...And so we see that, at its heart, these so-called “Shiners” have at least some scrap of validity to their argument. To be sure, nopony, be they mare or stallion, should be subject to the sort of harsh conditions of torment and abject starvation seen in the case of the cotton plantation uprisings from Western Mustangia.

Not that I in any way condone the shedding of blood. The fieldponies should have taken their grievances to the Crown, and, we can be sure, Her Majesty’s noble hoof would have granted them succor. They had only to be patient and trust in Her mercy and surely they would have been delivered.

Yet I rebuke those who propose that the system of Three Stables should be destroyed entirely. Let us consider the case of the revolting fieldponies responsible for the carnage in Mustangia:

Why, rather than resort to violence and give in to revolutionary persuasion, did the labourers not simply take their labour elsewhere? For though earth ponies be of the Third Stable, they are peasants, not slaves. And even a peasant may travel, once he has given notice to his lord, of course. If the plantation masters or their pegasi overseers were overly harsh in their management, why did these fieldworkers not seek employment elsewhere?

The answer lies in the very nature of the earth pony. Had the workers simply saved their money, rather than squandering it, they might have been able to afford to relocate. Likewise, had they the foresight to stall the planning of their often obscenely large families, they would not have so many mouths in need of feeding.

Yet such forethought is not common for the earth pony labourer who sees little else besides the dirt at his hooves or the food on his plate. Such is his nature, as outlined in the most sacred Doctrine of Stability so integral to the founding of our society.

The Sun and Moon gifted to the world, their favorite child, stewards to tend to her, and to each was given their natural place. Earth ponies, with their brute strength and natural affinity for geomantic arts, are here to work the land and carry out labour, thus forming the Third Stable. The pegasi, with their wings and gift for weather, are the stewards of wind, rain, the seasons, and so forth, and thus are of the Second Stable. Yet unicorns, with our magic, need not sully our hooves in the dirt nor exert our muscles to lift things; we of the First Stable were granted the capability to wield magic directly, to control the aether around us and manifest it into nearly any form we choose. While it is true that not every unicorn will be a great mage, that essential quality remains within us.

This notion of a hypothetical “classless” society is thus refuted by Nature itself! For surely no unicorn was destined to dig in the dirt, nor was any earth pony given the ability to wield sorcery. Only unicorns were gifted the horns to do so, and likewise the minds to comprehend magic and, in turn, all other academic pursuits. With few exceptions, earth ponies and pegasi simply lack the intellect to take on such complex matters.

And despite the lies of the revolutionaries, the earth ponies should indeed be grateful! For tilling a field is a simple thing: to consider the weight of all society, to devote oneself to study, to lead society as the First Stable does… why, it is a weighty undertaking, and the Unicorn’s Burden is ours to bear, and ours alone.

Thus burdened, it is only right that we who take on the task of leadership be rewarded in kind.

And as to this new technology, this “solaether,” let all of the First Stable beware of its dangers and ward the peasantry from its Siren Song. It may at first seem miraculous, with its ability to store the light of the sun as energy and then direct that energy as electricity or artificial magic or some other form, but it is a wicked temptation to the misguided earth pony who sees only the potential to ease him from his labours, and not the dire consequences.

The Sun granted us its avatar, Celestia, and so it is that sunlight is Hers, and Hers alone. It is through Her beneficence that it is granted to us, but She has only given us leave to bask in its warmth or let it nourish the plants. To steal it and subvert it is an attack on her and theft from the Earth itself! And even if that were not the case, the earth ponies who wield it to save themselves from labor or weaponize it against their betters only do harm to themselves!

Think! For if the boundaries of class were to disappear, the burdens bore by unicorns would fall on their shoulders. Society would flounder if guided by lesser minds. And the fields themselves would go untended even as our Sun, continually drained, went cold.

Patience, I say! Patience and humility are the best friends of the noble earth pony peasant. By serving and living a life of virtue, the earth pony will find contentment. And in the next life, should he be pure of heart, he may find himself ascended to that of the next Stable.
-Lord Brandiwine of Hayfordshire

A month after the publication of this tract, Lord Brandiwine was dead.

Despite his apparent distaste for cruelty, Brandiwine was not above using it to control his own workers. When a fieldhoof was found to have stolen a single bunch of grapes from his vineyard, Brandiwine had the pony whipped within an inch of his life while the others were made to watch. He was then dismissed despite his pleas for forgiveness and that his family would starve without him.

The fieldhoof died the next day, apparently of his injuries, though after a word from the local Guards, the cause of death was listed as “infection,” and thus Brandiwine was not to blame and not charged with any crime.

A week later, the Imperial Guard visited Brandiwine’s vineyard. His unicorn and pegasi overseers were found locked in the cellar. Brandiwine himself was found buried up to his neck in the southern field, apparently dead from exposure. His assailants had erected a crude garden fence around him along with a sign that indicated they had planted an “aristocrat tree” and then written “a type of weed” under that in parentheses.

The fieldponies were gone, the labor camps hastily abandoned, and local villages nearby all claimed to know nothing about all the laborer's cottages that were suddenly empty.

Brandiwine’s chalet was ransacked. His fields were stripped bare of grapes. An investigation indicated solaether-powered mechanical harvesters had been used to strip the entire field overnight.

A legionnaire spotted a strange pattern that had been dug into one of the fields. Seen from above, it was clearly the image of the sun with a smiling face.

Comments

[Geeknerd]

Wow. Someone knows their medieval philosophy

[Zobeid]

The Sun granted us its avatar, Celestia, and so it is that sunlight is Hers, and Hers alone.

…and…

And the fields themselves would go untended even as our Sun, continually drained, went cold.

And then I thought, just wait until they discover geothermal power.

[NicLove]

Why there while be always Princess as long as their is stell Alicorns (Dune Start War)

12:20-22:40

EDIT:
What is the Earth-Pony Magic/Power ?