The Awesome Pony Rp: Under the Shadow of War (IC)

[Amistrinal]

Two Days Later
Summer Sun Celebration

...

Meanwhile, Gretel and Applejack walked through the yellow gate, with Gregory riding on the latter's back. Gretel had a very sad expression on her face. The thought of the side she once served as mercenary causing so much destruction and death, along with the death and destruction caused by this new cult going around, shook her to the core. It seems everyday this war gets worse and worse. Gretel held Applejack's hoof gently as they sat down while Gregory went to play and sighed sadly as she looked up at the stage where the regal sisters would give their speech.

...

Applejack looked around, smiling at the festivities around her. She turned to Gretel to say something, but stopped when she saw the expression on her face and heard the sigh. "Something got ya down, sugar?"

[The Flutterlands]

Summer Celebration

Spot and Razor Wing

Spot was still partly asleep at this hour. He listened to Celestia's speech with the interest of any other child his age, but still kept his slightly open eyes on the rising sun. He looked at Twilight when she spoke to her and nodded, looking forward to playing some games with her. "Okay, Mommy." he spoke softly with a small yawn, "Can we play with the duckies?"

Meanwhile, Razor Wing and Mimic were chatting together with Fancy and several other changelings. Razor Wing turned to see Princess Twilight and smiled weakly with a small bow. "Good morning, Princess Twilight." he spoke with mild cheerfulness. His smiled faultered with a sigh. "I'm actually troubled by all of this myself." continued, "How could something like this happen after so much work? There's no logic in all of this hatred after how close we've gotten. I've heard that this all began in the deserts of Applelossa. I worry greatly for the sand changelings. They live in mounds like termites in the outskirts and are very peaceful, though they prefer keeping to themselves, never going beyond their boarders except in great need. They wouldn't stand a chance against an onslaught like yesterday if those cultests go through their defenses. Nonetheless, I'm glad that a much kinder cult have came into existence recently. The Peacekeepers of done so much for those affected by this terrible war and the needy."

---

Gregory and Bounty

Gregory had fun playing games with with step-aunt Apple Bloom. Fortunately for him, he actually won a couple games and went with Apple Bloom carrying a small teddy bear he won at a duck matching game and some candy from a fishing game. Though, he had a bit glum look on his face, having lost a friend, a young changeling about his age, during the riot.

Bounty, meanwhile, was also having fun playing games. He didn't actually win much except for some candy at the fishing game, but he had his eyes on a stuffed tiger in the skeeball stand. He eventually got a good throw after a couple tries by the time Apple Bloom and the brown unicorn turned to her carrying the stuffed tiger. "Oh, hello, Apple Bloom." Bounty spoke cheerfully, "Yeah, I'm having fun. Won some candy and this stuffed tiger. Are you having fun Apple Bloom?"

---

Gretel

Gretel turned to Applejack and gave her a comforting smile. "I'm okay, Sweetie." she spoke calmly, "It's just that my thoughts have been on the past few days. I use to work for the Empire, remember? I was a mercenary. I don't think I could be doing what they have been doing lately though. I guess I'm glad that I got out their when I had the chance, especially for Gregory's sake. Still, the Equestrian side doesn't seem to be all perfect ether with all these riots and such. One of little Gregory's friends got killed yesterday during the riot. He's still a quite sad about it, the poor dear."

---

Manehatten, Chrysalis

The city of Manehatten, capital city of the Changeling Empire, was quite literally buzzing with activity. Changelings were gathering at one of the city's parks for a speech from Queen Chrysalis. Word of Cloudsdale's fall and the riots of Ponyville have reached the Empire's ears quite quickly and many were glad of the great victory against Equestria, but many were also outraged by the riots, seeing it as pure typical pony treachery no different than the ones hundreds of years ago.

It was around the same the time as the ponies of Equestria were gathering for Summer Sun Celebration and Chrysalis watched as her subjects gathered. Like the rest, she too have heard word of Cloudsdale's fall and the terrible riots in Ponyville and was outraged. Nonetheless, she intented to use these events to show her people just what kind of evil they've been fighting against for the past nine months.

As the sun slowly began to rise, Chrysalis descended onto a stage, beside her puppet mayor, and gazed upon her subjects with eyes of wrath. "Changelings of the Empire!" she called out with a voice of great authority intoma microphone, her words heard on all highjacked radios throughout the occupied lands of the Empire, "The past weekend have been most eventful! We have finally ransacked the pegasus city of Cloudsdale with a help of great ally. With this comes the beginning of the end of Equestria, the beginning of our claiming of the land that is rightfully ours. However, this victory have come with a cost! For ponykind have reacted in the most typical way of their kind, turning on the changelings they claimed to have welcomed into their fold and butchered a great number of them! Changeling men, women and children, who foolishly sided with Equestria, were slaughtered yesterday by the treachery of ponykind! Such treachery is not new, though, for this has been going on for centuries. This is only the fourth war being fought because of pony treachery that reaches as far back as the end of the Discordian Age. This is what we're fighting against: The treacherous degenerate ponies who we once welcomed into this land only turn on and betray us with slaughter, riots, persecution and inquisitions!"

Chrysalis snarled. "Know this, though, for the time is coming!" the changeling queen continued, "Our new ally, Phillip Blackwing, true king of the Griffin Kingdom, leads our forces and is mounting an assault upon the cruel city of Fillydelphia! He assures me that that the attack will be so massive and so brutal, ponykind will learn to tremble before us and ultimately end this cruel and terrible stalemate that have been lasting for nine months. With the fall of Fillydelphia, the end of the war will come very soon in our favor and these lands, from Canterlot to Seaddle, shall be ours once more with the treacherous and savage ponies as our slaves!"

"Now I, Empress Chrysalis of the Changeling Empire, call out to you all!" Chrysalis continued, "Colonies, hives and changelings throughout Equestria! Join us! Join the the rising Empire and rise against the oppressive pony race who have conquered over you! Join us or be called traitors to your own kind, like the traitorous Tribly and Razor Wing who wrote that disgusting pamphlet against us and began this war. They shall both suffer a fate worse than death. Join us and know that we will never abandon you nor will ever betray you. Join the Empire that shall never ever fall!"

Chrysalis's words ranged throughout the Empire as Celestia's sun rose, and were heard by many colonies and hives, both neutral and Alliance aligned. Many colonies and hives considered the newly declared Empress's offer and began to debate. Meanwhile, the changelings of Manehatten dispersed, returning to their activities and feeding off of the love of their pony slaves, living in segregated sections of the city.

---

Peacekeepers, Ponyville

Meanwhile, in a medium sized house in Ponyville, converted into a small church, a rather large group of beings, ponies, changelings, cows and donkies, did gather in a large room, well kept, yet quite plain. At a podium in the large room, stood a young gray bat pony stallion, with vibrant orange eyes, a purple mane, and the peace symbol as a cutie mark, named Peacekeeper. These beings together, with Peacekeeper as their leader, were a recently formed group of All-Maker worshipers called The Peacekeeping Church, also known as The Peacekeeper movement.

Peacekeeper and his followers were once followers of Visionary, with Peacekeeper even being once a tenth apostle, being quite naive and idealistic at the time. However, they became disillusioned upon hearing preaching of violence and hated from Visionary. Thus, never hearing the actual voice of the so-called 'All-Maker', nor actually taking part or witnessing the slaughter of changelings, Peacekeeper and his broup broke away, denouncing Visionary as a madpony and creating a cult of their own. They believe that all were created equal by the All-Maker, also called by Peacekeeper, 'The Great Architect of the Universe', and all are children of the All-Maker. Thus all are welcome into this cult, wither one be pony, zebra, griffin, cow, donkey, buffalo, changeling, yak or even minotaur.

Since the Peacekeeper cult's conception, they have been running many charities and food drives to help those affected by the war and the changelings affected by the lingering discrimination. Starting today, they have begun charties to help those affected by the riots and the Parliament Shooting. For the past months, the Peacekeeper Movement have been growing, even rivalling the Temple of Visionary.

Peacekeeper stood at the podium before his followers with a sad, yet comforting expression as he began his sermon. "Brothers and sisters, Children of The Grand Architect of the Universe, I hope many of you have had fun at the Summer Celebration this morning." the young bat-pony began, "We shall no doubt return after this service and continue our various charities."

Peacekeeper sighed sadly. "We all know how tragic this past weekend has been." he continued, "These past few days have been the most bloodiest in the last five months. With the lost of Cloudsdale, the riots of the misguided Visionary and his followers, and the shootings, the War and the burning bigotry have claimed countless lives of our fellow brothers and sisters. May we look upon these past days with sadness and glumness, but never anger or hatred, and instead pray for mercy and justice, as well as reflect on how they have shown flawness of us all."

"The all-maker commands us to love one another as he loves us." continued Peacekeeper, "To aid and help one another, especially the most weak and most vulnerable. This terrible so-called Fourth Pony-Changeling War, the riots and the shooting represents a failure in doing just that. We all, all of us, have gone astray, consumed by hatred, bigotry, fear and greed. Now we must return to the righteous path of love and mercy in the practicing of the six great virtues of harmony: kindness, loyalty, honesty, generosity, laughter and magic most pure. Brothers and sisters always follow these great virtues and apply them to all moments of our lives and remember the greatest commandment given to us by the All-Maker: 'Love one another, as I love you.'"

Peacekeeper continued preaching throughout the next hour. He continued on and on about loving and aiding one nother no matter what, as commanded by the All-Maker. He told two parables to the congregation. One was called 'The Prodigal Colt' and the other was called 'The Good Changeling', speaking sermons on each. He preached of the Heavenly Kingdom of Elysium, prepared by the All-Maker for all, as well as Tartarian fires in which almost all will have to be cleansed of sin in before entering the aforementioned paradise upon death. For nothing unclean can enter the heavenly kingdom of Elysium.

At the end, Peacekeeper and his congregation prayed together to the All-Maker. They prayed for an end to the terrible war, for successful charities and that the time of those being cleansed in the fires of Tartarus will be short and that all will be welcomed with open-arms by the All-Maker into his heavenly kingdom, especially the victims of recent attacks over the weekend. Once all was done, the Peacekeepers sang songs of praise to the All-Maker before departing for their charitable activites at the continuing Summer Celebration.

[Pherdistan]

Summer Celebration

Razor Wing

Meanwhile, Razor Wing and Mimic were chatting together with Fancy and several other changelings. Razor Wing turned to see Princess Twilight and smiled weakly with a small bow. "Good morning, Princess Twilight." he spoke with mild cheerfulness. His smiled faultered with a sigh. "I'm actually troubled by all of this myself." continued, "How could something like this happen after so much work? There's no logic in all of this hatred after how close we've gotten. I've heard that this all began in the deserts of Applelossa. I worry greatly for the sand changelings. They live in mounds like termites in the outskirts and are very peaceful, though they prefer keeping to themselves, never going beyond their boarders except in great need. They wouldn't stand a chance against an onslaught like yesterday if those cultests go through their defenses. Nonetheless, I'm glad that a much kinder cult have came into existence recently. The Peacekeepers of done so much for those affected by this terrible war and the needy."

Feeling that she had to say something, Fancy spoke up. "Hey, yeah, like, could you give me a commission or something, bro? You know, to arm- I mean, warn the sand changelings so they have a little extra time until we go in and save them all? We're doing that, right?" The attacks on Ponyville and Appleloosa had given Fancy a new lease on life. She'd promised herself that she would clean out her rifle and start practicing again, right after she was finished running all the overdue laps her drill sergeant has assigned her. To try and him over, Fancy tugged at his cape, did her best puppy-dog impression, and intoned that most dreaded of infantile phrases. "Pleeeeeeeeeease???"

[Frenequesta]

Summer Celebration

Spot and Razor Wing

Spot was still partly asleep at this hour. He listened to Celestia's speech with the interest of any other child his age, but still kept his slightly open eyes on the rising sun. He looked at Twilight when she spoke to her and nodded, looking forward to playing some games with her. "Okay, Mommy." he spoke softly with a small yawn, "Can we play with the duckies?"

Meanwhile, Razor Wing and Mimic were chatting together with Fancy and several other changelings. Razor Wing turned to see Princess Twilight and smiled weakly with a small bow. "Good morning, Princess Twilight." he spoke with mild cheerfulness. His smiled faultered with a sigh. "I'm actually troubled by all of this myself." continued, "How could something like this happen after so much work? There's no logic in all of this hatred after how close we've gotten. I've heard that this all began in the deserts of Applelossa. I worry greatly for the sand changelings. They live in mounds like termites in the outskirts and are very peaceful, though they prefer keeping to themselves, never going beyond their boarders except in great need. They wouldn't stand a chance against an onslaught like yesterday if those cultests go through their defenses. Nonetheless, I'm glad that a much kinder cult have came into existence recently. The Peacekeepers of done so much for those affected by this terrible war and the needy."

Twilight nodded about the Sand Changelings. They were somewhat better documented than the Snow Changelings, with one account even explicitly characterizing them as "of no Harm whatsoever, and perhaps good, having never taken Love from a Pony without Permission"--but even that was a long time ago, before the western towns like Appleloosa, Dodge Junction, or Salt Lick City were formally settled. Those cities might have known the mounds but never recognized them as changeling colonies. Perhaps their isolation was for the best at this rate.

She also nodded at the mention of the Peacekeepers. "I'm grateful that they're helping. I was going to meet with their leader but I had my own charity station to take care of, not to mention just trying to keep the peace in the aftermath of it all. We just have to keep working the best we can though. Maybe this new group has a solution for us."

With a farewell she then took Spot to the duckies. The booth had a stand manned by a youthful, thin, light blue unicorn stallion with a thin, wavy white mane, surrounded by various trinkets associated with certain numbers, plus some stuffed animals associated with higher numbers. The pool itself was a low, wide wooden bucket with a small fan at the bottom gently making waves to carry some fifty or so rubber ducks across the pond.

Twilight was tempted to employ a "x-ray vision" spell to figure out what number was on the bottom of every duck, and very nearly did after Spot failed to match them five times in a row. But the booth operator caught her cues, shaking his head with a sly smile. "Sorry, Princess, not here." Twilight dropped the spell with a blush.

The operator, of course, couldn't keep her from suggesting ducks to pick, and she had been keeping track. She gave the operator a few more bits and nudged to Spot. "Try the ones at the far top and far left."

Gregory and Bounty

Gregory had fun playing games with with step-aunt Apple Bloom. Fortunately for him, he actually won a couple games and went with Apple Bloom carrying a small teddy bear he won at a duck matching game and some candy from a fishing game. Though, he had a bit glum look on his face, having lost a friend, a young changeling about his age, during the riot.

Bounty, meanwhile, was also having fun playing games. He didn't actually win much except for some candy at the fishing game, but he had his eyes on a stuffed tiger in the skeeball stand. He eventually got a good throw after a couple tries by the time Apple Bloom and the brown unicorn turned to her carrying the stuffed tiger. "Oh, hello, Apple Bloom." Bounty spoke cheerfully, "Yeah, I'm having fun. Won some candy and this stuffed tiger. Are you having fun Apple Bloom?"

"I guess," said Apple Bloom. "But I can't just seem to win anything here. Looks like you got lucky though." She blushed a little. "Like to play a couple of games with me? You've got some big prizes and I'm sure you wouldn't mind helping me out with a few bits, would you? I'm... kind of short."

[Amistrinal]

Summer Celebration
Gretel

Gretel turned to Applejack and gave her a comforting smile. "I'm okay, Sweetie." she spoke calmly, "It's just that my thoughts have been on the past few days. I use to work for the Empire, remember? I was a mercenary. I don't think I could be doing what they have been doing lately though. I guess I'm glad that I got out their when I had the chance, especially for Gregory's sake. Still, the Equestrian side doesn't seem to be all perfect ether with all these riots and such. One of little Gregory's friends got killed yesterday during the riot. He's still a quite sad about it, the poor dear."

Applejack frowned, and nodded. "I'm glad that you got out too. The riots make me worry though. I can't remember anything like this happening when I was just a filly, and it scares me a little that Gregory and Apple bloom are growing up with this. I just don't want either of them getting hurt from it."

She turned her head and saw the two of them talking. "Well, at least it seems like they're happy right now."

[Fascist Russian Empire]

Ponyville,
The Prophet Visionary

It was the middle of the afternoon, on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration; ponies throughout Ponyville were still busy with frivolities and merrymaking. Outside the town, Visionary and his rebel army prepared to march on Ponyville and liberate it from the tyrannical grasp of Twilight Sparkle and her lackeys. Hundreds of ponies and buffalo assumed positions, ready to fight back against the corrupt and decadent government which had allowed the changeling menace to spread death and destruction throughout all of Equestria. After nine months of the Princesses giving increasingly large political and economic protections to the monsters, opening the gates to allow endless quantities of them into Equestrian settlements, and the corresponding massacres throughout every city and town perpetrated by the changeling demons who the Princesses had invited in, the ponies and buffalo of Equestria's frontier had had enough. The sacking of Cloudsdale, and the government's attempts to punish Visionary's followers in Ponyville for fighting back against the abominations, was the final straw; the government had demonstrated itself to be supportive towards the enemy, giving them endless concessions and allowing them to commit increasingly devastating atrocities throughout Equestria. For a great many ponies, it was abundantly clear; it was time to force Celestia and the other traitor Princesses off the throne, once and for all, and make them face justice for their support of the enemy.

Under the leadership of Iron Rose, the Commander-in-Chief of Visionary's forces, the rebels split their army in two, getting into position to launch a pincer attack on Ponyville. As the rebels moved into position and set up artillery to bombard the enemy, one of the pegasus rebels hastily went into the town, informing the Temple of Vision's followers in the town about the impending attack. The ToV's militia ponies in Ponyville quickly set about gathering their weapons to join the Prophet in waging war against Twilight Sparkle and her soldiers; with the Summer Sun Celebration festivities going on, ponies didn't really think anything odd about them rushing about town. Many of Visionary's followers, most of whom had taken part in the recent massacre of abominations, took up whatever arms they could and prepared to fight the town guard.

After a brief period of preparing, the rebel forces were ready for the assault on Ponyville. Without hesitation, Iron Rose gave the order for artillery to be fired on the guard stations throughout the town; thus began the Battle of Ponyville, the first shots of the war being fired. Panic quickly spread throughout the town, with its residents fleeing in every direction as explosions rained down throughout the streets of Ponyville. After barraging the town's guard posts with mortars and artillery batteries, the rebel forces advanced upon Ponyville in a pincer movement, charging from east and west simultaneously, firing without hesitation on the guards, while Visionary's partisans within the town itself ambushed the guards throughout the town as they scrambled to defend Ponyville from the attackers. The guard force had been on higher alert than normal, both on account of the Summer Sun Celebration and the ToV's recent riot, but they simply didn't have the numbers nor the supplies to be prepared for a full-scale rebellion; nopony was expecting Visionary to march on Ponyville with an entire army behind him.

Havoc ensued throughout the streets of the growing town, with battles taking place around every corner. Ponyville's guard force was under attack from every direction, both from Visionary's main forces and the Temple of Vision's partisans within the town itself; surprised, out-maneuvered, and under increasing pressure from all sides, it didn't take long for their lines to break, the guards being routed throughout Ponyville. The rebels showed no mercy to them, firing on the enemy as they fled throughout Ponyville, taking no prisoners; to them, anyone fighting to defend the rule of the tyrant Princesses who allowed so much devastation to sweep across the country was part of the enemy, and they showed no quarter to their enemies. By the time two hours had passed, the last vestiges of battle had concluded, Twilight Sparkle's forces being decisively eliminated by the rebels, very few guards surviving the ordeal. Ponyville itself suffered great damage during the battle; damaged or completely destroyed buildings could be seen on almost every street, from the barrages of artillery, and the gunfire of the battle left broken windows everywhere. The streets were full of casualties; wounded or dead guards, civilians, and rebels on every street.

Commander Iron Rose wasn't satisfied with simply defeating the enemy; today was a day for sending a loud, clear message to all of Equestria that changelings and changeling sympathizers will no longer be tolerated. With the guards out of the way, the rebel soldiers repeated Visionary's riot all over again, beginning yet another massacre of abominations throughout the town; this time, however, there was no Twilight Sparkle in town to stop them. Changelings were hunted down and killed all throughout Ponyville, the ToV's magicians helping to shed their disguises. Most of them lived in a traditional changeling mound, a disgraceful sight, an affront to any true Equestria, near the traitor Twilight Sparkle's castle, more proof that the mare is nothing more than a puppet of their kind; it was bombarded with one mortar strike after another, explosions pounding down on their den of inequity. It didn't take long for the rebels to bust their way in, at which point the massacre reached its peak. Equipped with military-grade equipment from Appaloosa, and being more numerous than ever, Visionary's followers were able to exterminate hundreds of the foul demons, striking relentlessly with righteous fury; the town's changeling population was devastated, the survivors either fleeing Ponyville or hiding with some changeling sympathizer or another. Visionary himself killed many changelings with Dawnbreaker, the Prophet's magical artifact making him more than a match for the abominations. The wounded guards throughout town who had survived the initial battle were rounded up and given mock trials in the town square, where they were then hanged to death on charges of crimes against ponykind in full view of all the town's residents; it all succeeded in sending a clear message, one that was no doubt going to resonate with everyone in Equestria, for better or for worse.

As the enemy survivors were being tried and hanged for their transgressions against the ponies of Equestria, and as the flags of the traitorous Celestial government were being burned and replaced with the rebel flag, Iron Rose announced the details of Ponyville's rebel occupation in the town square, everypony in town being gathered to listen to her speak.

"Listen up, and listen up good, everypony; today, the negligent and criminal reign of the changeling-puppet Twilight Sparkle in Ponyville is over. She has aligned herself with the enemy for long enough; she has labeled herself an enemy of Equestria, and so we are treating her and her followers as such. She thought she could force us to stand idly by and watch as her disgusting changeling friends massacred every civilized creature in our country; as you can all clearly see today, she was gravely mistaken. We, the ponies of the Equestrian frontier, the disciples of the Temple of Vision, and the buffalo of the Buffalo Nation throw our gauntlet at the hooves of tyranny, and we say it's time for an end to the rule of the traitor Princesses and an end to their despicable integration policy! We are the true sons and daughters of Equestria, and we're here to drive the changeling menace out of our nation once and for all; Celestia and the other traitors in our government might be too afraid to stand up to them, but we aren't, damn it! Ponyville will remain under our occupation until the changeling-puppets have been purged from our government, and Equestria is reunified under the rule of a true Equestrian." Iron Rose began, being met by cheers of approval from the rebels and the members of the Temple of Vision, while the changeling-sympathizers mostly just listened in stunned silence.

"For months now, the Princesses, or rather, the Princesses' changeling puppeteers, have enacted tyrannical policy after tyrannical policy aimed at providing favoritism towards changelings and giving them the privileges to go wherever they want and get complete protection from the government. That ends immediately in our territory; changelings are hereby forbidden from entering Appaloosa, Dodge, Ponyville, or the territories of the Buffalo Nation, and any future lands we liberate, under penalty of death. Anyone caught harboring a changeling will be put on trial for high-treason, and will be hanged to death. The good pegasi up in Cloudsdale made the mistake of letting the abominations live in their city; it didn't turn out well for them, believe it or not. We won't make the same mistakes our traitor government did; we can see the obvious fact that the changeling race is fundamentally evil, and, as such, we will kill them all before they can do any more damage to our society. All of our territories will be governed by the Prophet Visionary, our great leader; he shall be at the forefront of a provisional military government until the Celestial snakes have been purged, at which point an election will be held to pick a new monarch to oversee Equestria." Iron Rose continued, getting the same mix of approval and stunned silence from the crowds.

"Like any wartime government, we need funds; as such, we shall be levying a monthly income tax across our territories. Members of our army will be tax-exempt, as reward for their efforts in the fight to save Equestria. Regular citizens will pay a tax of twenty percent of their income. Members of the Temple of Vision will only pay ten percent, as the Temple is already contributing and has already contributed a great deal towards protecting our country from the changeling menace. Members of any organization of changeling-sympathizers will pay a tax of forty five percent; after all, they're the ones who allowed the changelings to perpetrate many massacres during the ridiculous period of so-called integration, it's only fair for them to pay substantially more than everypony else to help fix the problems they caused. This will include all members of that pathetic little cult of hippies in this town; Peacekeepers, is what they call themselves. Those vermin have made no secret that they all harbor sympathies to the enemy; they've allowed themselves to become puppets of the enemy, and now they will pay for it with gold, or blood if they refuse to pay their dues to society." Iron Rose continued.

"On a related note, all advocation of support for the enemy shall be considered an act of high-treason, punishable by public execution. This includes the heresy preached by the apostate Peacekeeper and his followers; frankly, I'd like to have every last one of them hanged right here and now, but, at the request of Visionary, we are extending a one-time pardon to Peacekeeper and his fellow heretics. They may avoid execution only on the condition that they cease all attempts to spread sympathies for the enemy, and pay taxes to our government; this offer will not be extended a second time. Also, on a note related to taxes, financing the enemy shall also be considered an act of high-treason, punishable by death. Finally, if you are interested in joining our righteous cause and taking up arms to free Equestria from the changeling menace, come speak to Visionary or I at the Great Temple in the town square. The era of changeling appeasement is over, everypony; the era of retaliation has begun." Iron Rose concluded, half the town happy to see an end to Twilight Sparkle's regime and the other half furious about it.

With Ponyville under their control, the rebels were quick to set about repairing some of the damage from the battle, especially the damaged guard stations, and set about fortifying the town to make it a long-term bastion of the rebellion. The rebels began digging trenches around the town, barricading and reinforcing buildings of strategic and tactical value, and other such actions. Twilight Sparkle's castle in the middle of town was plundered and ransacked, everything of value being looted to fuel the rebel cause, the building itself being militarized and turned into the local rebel HQ; with Twilight herself and her friends off in Canterlot with Celestia, nopony was there to stop them. Some of the rebels wanted to simply destroy it to send an even clearer message to the traitorous changeling-sympathizers, but Visionary and Iron Rose both agreed that it would be far more useful for them to convert it into a rebel fortress; besides, blowing it up would cost a lot of resources that they couldn't afford to waste. With the occupation speech out of the way, Visionary, the apostles, and Chief Thunderhooves met in the castle to discuss plans for the future.

"I still can't believe you're allowing that worthless apostate to get away with spreading his traitorous filth in our town. They're criminals, vermin; their kind are the ones responsible for allowing the changeling swine into our country in the first place. We ought to butcher every last one of them for their crimes against ponykind; they're a security threat, we ought to take them out now before they stab us in the back just like their changeling friends will." Iron Rose said to Visionary, clearly unhappy about the Peacekeepers getting off with such a lenient punishment.

"I know you never knew him, but Peacekeeper used to be a good pony. Then, one day, he just...changed. He was corrupted by the changeling demons, just like the Princesses were. He did good deeds once upon a time; I believe they're worth allowing him one chance to renounce his heresy and begin acting like a civilized pony again. If he refuses, and continues spreading evil throughout our land, then you're welcome to make him face justice for his actions." Visionary responded.

"Changelings don't change; neither do changeling sympathizers. Their kind are nothing but demons, beyond redemption; they'll stop at nothing to destroy Equestria, and you know it. We already know they're all in cahoots with the enemy; we ought to kill them now before they bring in an army of abominations to destroy our town. It's filthy demon-lovers like them that have allowed mass-murder to take place all throughout our country; we need to make them suffer for it, damn it." Healing Hooves declared. The mare was, without a doubt, the most fanatically anti-changeling member of the Temple of Vision; she barely survived the changeling attack on Ponyville, the scars all over her body testifying to that fact, and she had grown an even deeper hatred of them with every passing day.

"We can't just kill half the ponies in town! Yes, I know they're immoral, yes, I know they supported Twilight Sparkle's despicable plot to destroy Equestria and repopulate it with changelings; regardless, we can't just kill every last one of them! We need taxes to support our army, we need workers for our economy; if we just go ahead and kill a few thousand ponies, it'll deprive us of vast quantities of labor, resources, and tax revenues. We'll continue to exterminate the changelings wherever we find them; the other Peacekeepers, however, we ought to give a second chance. Maybe they'll realize the error of their ways and discover the truth about the changeling race. If they continue preaching their treacherous and heretical sentiments, then we'll execute Peacekeeper and the other ringleaders of their little cult; for now, we'll give them one and only one chance to stop what they're doing and become productive members of society." Visionary responded.

"The Prophet is right; it would be illogical to kill thousands of perfectly good taxpayers. It would deprive us of much needed funds, and also hurt our image throughout Equestria; we're here to exterminate the monsters invading our country, not blindly massacre our subjects. We do, however, need to implement strict and effective means of rooting out changeling sympathies in our territory. I can already predict that many enemy sympathizers will continue preaching their lunacy in spite of our prohibition against it; we need ways to find out who those ponies are, and have them arrested. With your permission, my Prophet, I will gather some of the other unicorns members of the Temple, and I will start an Inquisition force to hunt down and execute anypony who harbors changelings or attempts to spread support for the enemy. I know a lot of spells, including scrying spells; I can get a few other magic users, and spy on the Peacekeepers and any other group we suspect might be supporting the enemy. We'll be able to find anypony violating our laws, and we'll punish them for it, I assure you." Deep Insight spoke up.

"You have my approval, Deep Insight; I trust you will be an effective instrument for purging our society of those who attempt to spread evil sentiments. Go with my blessing; more importantly, go with the blessing of the All-Maker." Visionary responded. With a nod, Deep Insight left the room to gather some of the other magicians in the ToV and start an Inquisition to find and eliminate changeling-sympathizing preachers.

"Speaking of rooting out the enemy, there's something I wish to do, my Prophet. It's important to have as many ponies as possible on the battlefield, fighting the armies of the changeling puppets, but we also need to dedicate resources to finding and destroying changeling hives which might be hidden in our territory. With your blessing, I will found an order of changeling hunters, and set about tracking down and exterminating changelings in our land while Deep Insight goes after their pony puppets. I'm happy to be on the front lines, fighting the tyrant Celestia and her army, but it's the abominations who murdered my family; my honor demands I avenge them, and kill as many of the abominations as possible. I've already heard rumors from some of the buffalo about hives of changelings hiding out southwest of Appaloosa; maybe they're true, maybe they aren't. If they're right, and we do have entire hives of the abominations hiding out near the frontier, we need a dedicated order of changeling hunters to hunt them down and wipe them out. It would be my utmost honor to be the one to oversee such an order." Broken Promise said. He had a special hatred towards the abominations, after having his wife and children all be murdered by them, matched only by Healing Hooves, his good friend; he'd wanted vengeance against their kind ever since. Before Visionary could respond, Healing Hooves spoke up, expressing her approval.

"He brings up an important point, you know; killing the demons' puppets is important, but it's even more important to exterminate the demons themselves. If we focus all of our resources on fighting the Celestial traitors and their armies, the demons will attack us from behind, in their typical demonic ways, and ruin everything. We need to strike relentlessly at them, rooting them out and exterminating them wherever we find them, to ensure the security of our settlements. It's the abominable changeling demons who are our real enemies; they must die first and foremost. With your blessing, I will join Broken Promise in embarking on such a valiant quest; I'd be beyond honored to use my skills to help destroy their evil race once and for all." Healing Hooves said. Again, before Visionary could say anything, Iron Rose said something.

"We need all the resources and all the soldiers we can get on the front lines, fighting the traitor Princesses and their supporters; I am remiss to part with even one soldier. However, securing our flanks from the changelings is too important to ignore, my Prophet; Broken Promise and Healing Hooves are right. I recommend devoting a portion of our soldiers, supplies, and weapons to specifically fighting the changelings; I'll make do with what's left. I'm certain we'll be getting hundreds, if not thousands, of volunteers from the big cities flocking to our banner soon enough; many good ponies, who realize the corruption of the Celestial government and the evils of the changelings, will join us. We're going to be able to spare some of our resources to hunting down the changelings, I'm sure of it." Iron Rose commented.

"Very well, so it shall be. Broken Promise, Healing Hooves, I, with the power vested in me by the All-Maker, ordain you two the first Knights of Foresight; go with the All-Maker's blessing, and embark on your quest to find and eliminate the abominations wherever they may be hiding. Recruit whoever you need to help make it possible, and take whatever supplies you need. I suggest talking to Deep Insight, and getting some of his magician friends to come with you; their magic is extraordinarily useful for finding the abominations. Go, investigate these rumors of abominations near Appaloosa; if they're true, find them and kill every last one of them, as is commanded by the All-Maker." Visionary said. Broken Promise and Healing Hooves bowed, and departed to begin gathering ponies and buffalo to join their order and assist in their righteous quest to purge Equestria of changelings.

"As for the rest of you, we need to get a government set up to administrate our territories. Lost Fortune, you've got more experience with money than anypony else here; I'm appointing you to serve as treasurer for our government. I task you with collecting taxes, managing the budget, finding any treasures or artifacts which might prove useful for our cause, and the like." Visionary continued.

"Really? Well, it's not the most exciting job in the world, but I guess it needs to be done. Alright, fine, I'll get on it right away." The pegasus mare responded, going off to recruit some bureaucrats and set up an economic administration for the rebellion's territories.

"Helping Hoof, I want you to set up a new aid camp to provide medical attention and shelter to our wounded soldiers, and to any civilians, changeling-sympathizers excluded. A lot of damage was done today; we need somepony helping deal with the aftermath." Visionary continued.

"I'll get on it right away, my Prophet. I'm always happy to help out." Helping Hooves said, leaving to get to work setting up an aid center to provide both medical care for the wounded and shelter for those whose homes were damaged or destroyed during the battle.

"Thunderhooves, my Chief, I ask that you and the warriors of our tribe serve as a temporary guard force in the streets of Ponyville; there's going to be unrest here, I can already predict it. If the changeling-sympathizers start agitating here, the tribe's help will be invaluable for keeping order." Visionary continued.

"We will, of course, be glad to assist, High-Priest. Our forces stand ready to fight any uprising by enemy sympathizers." Chief Thunderhooves agreed, heading off to lead his tribesmen in their effort to keep order in the town.

"As for the rest of you, Braeburn, Green-Hoof, Golden Quill, and Orange Peel, I want you all to assist me in expanding our evangelical mission here in Ponyville. We need to get more people to see and embrace the All-Maker's truth; it's the best way to start undoing Twilight Sparkle's efforts to corrupt the minds of the townsfolk, and get the changeling-sympathizers to start realizing the inherent falsehoods of their vile ideology. With the holy artifacts provided to us by the All-Maker, we should have a much easier time than before convincing more creatures to see the theological truths we have to provide." Visionary finished, the rest of his apostles joining him in setting up a propaganda ministry of sorts, beginning large-scale missionary work in Ponyville. It was essential, after all, to sway as many ponies as possible to their way of thinking, in order to safeguard the progress they had made.

Fillydelphia,
Lord Philip Blackwing

Everything was prepared, everyone was in position. Lord Philip's army stood in the outskirts of Fillydelphia, reinforced with both more munitions and more expendable front-line soldiers, the changeling navy swiftly approaching the city to help out during the battle. It will well after dark, the night of the Summer Sun Celebration, when Philip and his troops arrived in Fillydelphia's outskirts. Their artillery was readied, and their troops were in position; everything was ready for a grand assault on the pony metropolis. The sledge was wrought that would smash to naught all who would dare stand between the King of the Griffins and his prize, the city of Fillydelphia. It didn't matter who he was commanding, it didn't matter who he was fighting; he stood prepared to win glory in the name of House Blackwing, and the Griffin Kingdom. He stood prepared to win splendor and vast riches for himself and his family. He stood prepared to follow in the footsteps of his many ancestors, leaving a military legacy that would last until the end of time; that was what mattered, more than anything.

"It is time. Let the massacre begin." Lord Philip, donning the traditional black griffin armor and wearing his crown upon his head, looking the part of a glorious and mighty griffin king, ordered his changeling subordinates, who, without delay, initiated the battle. Artillery rained from the sky down upon Fillydelphia, indiscriminately targeting both military installations and major civilian centers, as changeling troops advanced upon the city from all sides, both from the ground and sky, butchering everyone in their sight. The Equestrian forces in Fillydelphia were quick to organize a response, with pony soldiers rushing to defensive positions to fight the enemy; it was of little hindrance to Philip's forces, who were more than prepared to deal with whatever resistance the ponies might have to offer. The ponies were far more prepared than they were back in Cloudsdale, but better by comparison doesn't mean good; it was nighttime, and most ponies were sleeping, and the Equestrians were most likely anticipating an attack on Canterlot, where the pony Princesses were hanging out, rather than Fillydelphia. The Equestrian military forces in Fillydelphia did everything they could to fight back the dreaded enemy, but, as was typical for ponykind, they simply didn't have the martial prowess to stop them.

Ships from Manehattan quickly began to arrive in the waters surrounding Fillydelphia, bombarding the city with cannons and artillery, wreaking more havoc upon the ponies and their woefully sub-par military. Many ponies began getting on boats and attempting to flee the city through the sea; the changeling naval forces blew their refugee boats out of the water without mercy, spraying the wrecks with machine gun fire to guarantee a complete lack of survivors. The thousands of changeling soldiers surrounding Fillydelphia provided the same treatment to any ponies who tried to run or fly away from the city, gunning down anypony they saw attempting to flee. Under strict orders from Lord Philip, the changelings killed everypony on sight, the streets of the metropolis city being piled with body after body as the merciless and ruthless griffin advanced alongside his forces.

Philip himself, alongside his family, fought alongside their changeling subordinates on the front lines. Lord Philip was a firm believer in leading by example, after all; he was among the mightiest warriors the Griffin Kingdom had to offer, and his courage on the battlefield served as an inspiration for those he commanded. Many ponies died by his blade, soldiers and bystanders alike. He fought with a fierceness, a fearlessness, and a boldness which few mortal creatures could match, as any true griffin should. Groups of ponies panicked and fled throughout the wide streets of the vast city as the changelings and their Blackwing commanders continued their advance, fires breaking out all throughout Fillydelphia as artillery continued raining from the sky. The pony soldiers put up a pathetic resistance the whole way, being quickly overwhelmed everywhere they tried to fight the great changeling army.

Chaos swept throughout Fillydelphia for hours, every corner of the metropolitan city being filled with bloodshed and havoc. After a sustained period of major pressure from every flank, the pony garrison in the city started routing, their formations shattering as soldiers, overwhelmed with fear from Lord Philip's brutal tactics, fled for their lives, being met only with further mercilessness from the enemy. Before long, the ponies had nowhere left to run, the changelings encroaching from every side; squads of soldiers made final stands throughout the streets of the great city, only to be swiftly butchered by the changelings and the Blackwings. The city itself crumbled as its defenders were gradually eliminated, massive skyscrapers and great pony monuments burning down to nothing or being blown to rubble by enemy artillery. It was a sight that nopony was likely to forget any time soon.

"Long is the arm of Blackwing, and swift is the blade!" Lord Philip declared as yet another pony soldier met their end to his rapier. He and his kinsmen were in an alley, the massive battles slowly subsiding around them as the Equestrian forces were gradually wiped out. Philip had just finished chasing down several pony troops as they attempted to flee, each meeting a swift end as Philip's blade met their flesh. Philip's armor was covered with dents, his rapier stained with the blood of the fallen, a testament to his valor in the battle. It was a shame, really, that ponies made for such easy prey; his triumph would be even more glorious if he actually had a worth enemy to face against. Unbeknown to Philip, such a foe would be appearing momentarily.

Turrak Storm-Hammer

The great black minotaur had just arrived in Fillydelphia earlier that day, his wooden caravel docking at a pier on the outskirts of town; already, he found himself fascinated by everything about it. There were buildings reaching into the clouds, and every street was flooded with ponies; there were probably hundreds of thousands of inhabitants in the city's streets. Not only that, but the weather was perfect, the temperature mild, a vast contrast to the minotaur homeland. It was a city the likes of which Turrak could never have imagined; just the sheer scale of it alone was unfathomable. Most minotaur settlements didn't have any more than a few dozen inhabitants, let alone a few hundred thousand; to make things even more unbelievable, some of the local ponies told the minotaur that there were several more cities, just like Fillydelphia, in their country! It was vastly different from the countries Turrak had visited before; not even the zebras had cities built to such a scale.

Still, as impressive as their building abilities were, the ponies themselves...well, they lived a lifestyle which greatly clashed with the warrior-culture of the minotaur race. Minotaurs were hard-living warriors, surviving even in the harshest of harsh environments; the ponies, however, seemed to live a soft, frivolous lifestyle, with warriors being few and far between. They had an army of sorts, which they called their Royal Guard, but their society could hardly be considered one which was prepared for battle. The ponies typically made a living with some of the easiest tasks imaginable; ponies were paid to take packages and deliver them from place to place, ponies were paid to simply grow flowers for other ponies, ponies were paid to carry around plates of food at dining institutions, there were ponies with their entire lives dedicated to some of the most simple tasks possible. It was ridiculous; in minotaur society, people did things for themselves, instead of paying others to do it for them. That was to say nothing of how the ponies governed themselves; every settlement would pick several ponies, based on nothing but popular demand rather than merit, and these ponies would get paid vast sums of cash to congregate in a place called Parliament and vote on how to resolve issues.

The pony government was nonsensical, as far as Turrak was concerned; the Code of Zamtagar was a much simpler, much more effective way to run a society. The strongest minotaur ruled with absolute authority, and had the final say on everything, with no room for policy disputes; it ensured the strength and stability of the minotaur strongholds. The ponies, however, had such a divisive, ineffective way to govern their country; a large group of ponies put into power solely because of charisma, rather than merit, all having a say in what laws to implement, with decisions being made entirely based on number of votes, if a decision could even be reached at all. It was utterly ridiculous; why the local ponies implemented such a truly absurd government was beyond him, especially considering the fact that their country was at war. War calls for swift, decisive action by a strong leader, not months of debates and consideration by a group of pansies, though the ponies didn't really seem to grasp that fact. Turrak imagined that the vast numbers of the ponies was the only reason they hadn't been wiped out yet by their enemies.

Speaking of their enemies, Turrak learned about a race of insects, shape-shifters, known as changelings, which lived in and around Equestria; supposedly, there was an entire empire of them which was invading the pony nation, and occupied a massive city, even larger than Fillydelphia, to the north. Apparently, they'd recently pillaged a floating city made of clouds; from what he had learned about the ponies thus far, he imagined it probably wasn't a particularly difficult task. Their race was divided into many societies, known as hives; it reminded Turrak a lot of how the minotaur realm was divided into numerous small strongholds. First and foremost among the changeling leaders was a queen known as Chrysalis, an iron-fisted conqueror, ruler of the insect empire; she sounded much more impressive to Turrak than the pony leaders did. Turrak contemplated ways he could profit off of the war between the shape-shifters and the ponies; becoming a smith for their armies didn't really sound feasible, since traditional arms and armor seemed unpopular in Equestria, but he could still sign up as a mercenary for one side or another. Minotaurs were very strong, and very hard to come by, after all; he'd no doubt be able to make a lot of money as a soldier of fortune.

The minotaur retired for the night in a pony tavern, selling drinks, a bar as they called it; the alcohol they served was pretty terrible, far weaker than the drinks the yaks made up in YakYakistan. Turrak was interrupted, however, when loud explosions and gunfire started echoing through the vast city; he left the building and saw what he could only imagine were the changelings he'd heard so much about, attacking the city from every direction. The pony army got together and tried to fight back, but, well, they didn't do a very good job at defending; it's to be expected from a soft-living, decadent society, where the art of war is neglected in favor of luxuries and frivolities. Turrak, always ready for a good fight, decided to get in on the action; already in his armor, he took out his war-hammer and started fighting the insect invaders. They were somewhat surprisingly weak and fragile; he smashed bug after bug, the minotaur being stronger, faster, and more durable than anything the changelings could throw at him. Turrak had lived by the sword his entire life; as was to be expected from a true warrior, he was more than a match for a few pitiful little insects.

Eventually, he fought his way into a dark alleyway, crushing several more of the insects as he did. Suddenly, he heard a voice at the other end of the alley, and he looked to see several members of a race which he had not seen before; a mix of a lion and a bird, by the looks of it. He'd heard a few rumors about their race from the ponies; griffins, they were called, if he remembered correctly. A rather fancy looking griffin warrior wearing a crown and a suit of battle-worn armor boasted about his skills with a blade as he cut down several pony soldiers. He seemed like he could potentially be a worthwhile adversary, something which seemed to be in short supply at that moment; Turrak was quick to challenge him.

"You call yourself a warrior?! Ha! You're pathetic! Even my great-grandmother could've killed a few pansy little ponies!" Turrak's voice rang out.

"And who are you, pray tell, to dare challenge the King of the Griffins like this?!" The black griffin replied, stamping his talons against the ground. The minotaur warrior then revealed himself, stepping out of the shadows and into the sights of the enemy, his giant war-hammer dripping with insect blood.

"They call me Storm-Hammer, because my hammer strikes down with the force of a thunderstorm! I've been lookin' for a worthy opponent all night, so come on, you little four-legged bird; come and face a warrior of true mettle!" The minotaur shouted, charging up to the griffin and swinging his hammer down at him. He flew to the side, narrowly avoiding Turrak's strike, the concrete ground cracking as the hammer struck it. The minotaur swung his hammer again, the griffin ducking out of the way, the impact knocking a hole in the brick wall of the alley. The griffin took an opportunity while Turrak was pulling his hammer out of the wall, and lunged at the large minotaur, jamming his rapier in its shoulder. The griffin's kinsmen, meanwhile, just watched the spectacle in front of them; after all, Turrak had challenged their leader to a duel, and it would be an act of dishonor in griffin culture to intervene.

The minotaur let out a pained shout, dropping his hammer; he grabbed the griffin and hurled him across the alley into a brick wall, the creature feeling pain course throughout his body as his back landed on solid brick. It wasn't enough to stop him, though; the griffin proceeded to lunge once more at Turrak, sinking his talons into his poorly protected neck, the minotaur providing a shriek as it slammed its fists into the griffin's armored chest. The griffin was knocked to the ground, where he grabbed his fallen blade and used his wings to swiftly get back up as Turrak retrieved his hammer. The griffin, using his natural mobility as a winged creature, flew around Turrak, hacking at it with his rapier, the minotaur trying and failing to hit the swift griffin. After several attempts, Turrak was able to successfully hit the griffin with his hammer, sending it flying into the ground, his black armor cracking. The griffin was completely winded, almost crippling pain filling him; with the last of his energy, he hurled his sword up at the minotaur, cutting the side of its face and hitting one of its horns. The minotaur proceeded to sling his hammer into a holster on his back with a pained groan, then spoke to the injured griffin.

"Ha, that was one of the best fights I've had in years! You fight pretty well, for one of your kind, anyway. Most opponents I go up against are too crippled with fear to actually put up a real fight, or they're so weak and pathetic they die within a few seconds!" Turrak said as he helped the griffin up.

"I tell ya what; you're one of the best warriors I've seen so far, in this country of pansies. Not many creatures can stand up to a minotaur like myself, especially up close and personal. How about I join your little crew here?" The minotaur asked.

"Really?...After challenging me, and fighting me...now you want to join my side?" The griffin replied, very confused by the minotaur's statement, pausing a bit in between statements as his injuries made it a bit difficult to talk.

"Yeah, sure! I mean, why not, right? We minotaurs respect strength, and we love bloodshed and pillaging; you seem like you've got all three going on right now. So, I'll fight on your side, get in on the action, and I'll take a cut of the loot; sounds like a fair deal to me." Turrak answered.

"Very well, I suppose...I am Lord Philip Blackwing, King of the Griffins...It's a...pleasure to make your acquaintance." The winded and still confused griffin responded, retrieving his blade and sheathing it.

"I'm Turrak Storm-Hammer, a warrior from the minotaur lands. You're the King of the Griffins, eh? Sounds like an impressive title. What're you doing here in this pony city?" Turrak asked.

"I'm serving as the commander of the changeling army, for the time being...My kingdom is currently under the control of a cursed, illegitimate king, presuming to sit upon my rightful throne...I'm helping these changelings ransack and pillage the pony country, and I'm taking a rather substantial cut of the loot for myself, to finance an army to retake my land with." Philip answered, gradually regaining his energy.

"You had your land taken from you, too? Sounds like myself; I used to be the chief of a great minotaur stronghold, in our homeland, until everything was taken away by a bunch of filthy bandits who killed my family and pillaged my home." Turrak replied, relating a bit to Philip's cause.

"Well, we're glad to have you on our side now, mister Storm-Hammer." Philip responded. Before they could say anything more, a changeling came up and interrupted the two of them.

"Eh, Lord Philip, we've captured the city; the last of the enemy troops have fallen. Do you two...need a doctor, over here?" The changeling said, noticing the pair's injuries.

"Yes, summon a pair of medics as quickly as can be arranged...in the meantime, start putting the ponies to work as slaves, cleaning up this mess, and begin looting anything of value." Philip said, a couple of changeling field-medics quickly showing up and providing treatment to Philip and Turrak's wounds. They would get to work ransacking the remains of the ruined city soon enough; for now, though, they had injuries to deal with.

[The Flutterlands]

Razor Wing

Razor Wing smiled as Twilight left before turning to Fancy. He raised an eyebrow, knowing exactly what his sister was going to say and mulled it over. The idea sounded dangerous, but then again, danger was part of her job.. "To be honest, Sis, I think you should. Visionary could pose as a grave threat to them." he spoke after a short moment that seemed like forever, "Go to the along the Macintosh Mountains and close to the San Palomino Desert. Bring a group of soldiers with you, take pegasus form and stay away from ToV territory as your life depends on it. Understand?"

---

Spot

Spot was extremely disappointed when he failed five times. He looked up at the blue stallion in confusion when he spoke to Twilight. However, when his mother nudged to try again he smiled. The young colt tried the duckies at the far left corner and gasped and giggled upon getting several matching pairs. "I did it, Mommy!" he exclaimed with a hop, "I did it! I did it!"

---

Gregory, Bounty and Zelenka (Zing)

Bounty smile faulterd slightly. He felt bad for his girlfriend not doing well with the games. "Well, these games do seem to be pretty tricky, but I think there's actually a trick to it." he replied cheerfully, his smile returning, "That being said I only won a couple games, but, sure, I'd love to join you. I still got a whole bag of bits to spend and we can share it together. How does that sound, Gregory?"

Gregory smiled weakly, hugging his teddy bear. "Sounds like fun, Bounty." he squeaked happily, "Are we gonna play more games Apple Bloom?"

Bounty smiled and walked to one of the other booths with Apple Bloom and Gregory. At the booth, Bounty smiled upon seeing Zing, who in accordance to Olive Oil's promise, was giving a make-over to look more filly-like. Her mane was comed and tied into a pony-tale and she wore one of Olive Oil's dresses, which thanks to Rarity's sowing, fitted her quite well. Zing, by Olive Oil's suggestion, also changed her name to Zelenka, which she liked very much indeed. From a distance, Zelenka would just like any other filly in the park, except for being zebra.

Bounty smiled and greeted her. "Hello, Zing, I mean, Zelenka. How are you doing?" he asked, blushing at his forgetfulness, "Having fun playing games?"

Zelenka turnes to the three children and smiled broadly with a nod. "I'm sure am, Bounty." she spoke softly, her eyes glancing at the prize on her back, before looking back at Bounty and Apple Bloom, "I won a big bunny rabbit. Hi, Apple Bloom. H-how are you doing?"

---

Gretel

Gretel nodded glumly and gently nuzzled Applejack. Her expression was sad and fearful. "I-i'm scared, honey. I'm scared for Gregory and Applejack." she spoke softly, lovingly pecking her lover on the cheek, "With these riots and this war, I'm scared we might lose them."

Gretel then turned to look at the two children speaking with Bounty and giggled. "Yeah, they do look happy together." she spoke, her tone and expression cheering up, "Wanna go play some games together, hun?"

---

Peacekeepers, Ponyville

Hate, destruction, carnage and death. These seemed to be themes of the past few days and now they continue on into today. None of ponies and changelings were prepared for another attack by rebels so soon after the last one and thus the death toll was massive. Men, women and children, pony and changeling alike, were slaughtered mindlessly by the cold-blooded revolt, leaving many terribly injured and dying from painful fatal wounds. The remaining Changelings scattered, some leaving Ponyville for the north, others hiding, many hiding among the homes of the Peacekeepers. These changelings were in large numbers, hiding in the basements of their caretakers. Other changelings, unfortunately, became buried under the rubble of their destroyed mound that took so long to build.

The Peacekeepers, a wide variety of beings including ponies, cows, donkies and even a few griffons who remained in Ponyville during the Summer Sun Celebration, were the first to respond. At Peackeeper's command, they gathered what changelings they could into their homes, in defiance or the ToV, while others began to aid the gravely injured and fix the damage. They didn't care about evangelization or preaching the gospel of the All-Maker. All they cared about helping those in this most desperate time of need, even if it meant working along side the followers of Visionary who so savagely sought to destroy them. A handful of these Peacekeepers were nurses and doctors, so they far greater experience in helping than most of the rebels.

Meanwhile, the other Peacekeepers gathered in their church along with their leader to discuss what to do next. "This is terrible!" cried out a mare named Loving Heart, "This is treason that Visionary brought upon us and inexcusable. Peacekeeper, we must fight back. We must show these ToV crazies that we will not bow to their wishes and demands." Loving Heart grabbed a rifle and began to storm towards the exit.

However, Peacekeeper stopped her as camly as he could in his anxious state of being. He was not prepared. "No, my sister." he replied, "Violence is not an answer violence. We may fight in self-defense, but never our right attack unprovoked."

"Unprovoked?!" cried Loving Heart, along with several other Peacekeepers mumbling in agreement, "They invaded us, destroyed our town slaughtered hundreds! How are we not provoked?! What must we do if not fight back?!"

"Calm your self." replied Peacekeeper in an uneasy tone, "We must stand strong and persevere in the name of peace and love as commanded by the All-Maker. That is what we must do. We must not be like the madpony Visionary who follows his imposter and brings such death and destruction. Already we have members out and about helping the victims of this terrible catastrophe and Silver Shield and Spike are already escaped to warn the Princesses. In the meantime, we must gather what changelings we can and get them out of this town. We must create an exodus."

The Peacekeepers glanced at each other before looking back at their leader. "Where can we go?" one of them asked, "We must protect our brothers and sisters at all cost. Where can we take them where they can be safe?"

Peacekeeper smiled firmly. "We shall take them to the Crystal Empire." he spoke confidentially, "Ever since the start of this war, the Crystal Empire has become very pro-changeling and became a haven for refugees. Cadence willing, our changeling brothers and sisters will be protected there. The Crystal Empire is very strong with the All-Maker's love."

The peacekeepers all nodded in agreement and Peacekeeper smiled. "Then it's settled. We shall leave for the Crystal Empire immortality." he said, "I understand that there are those of us who wish to remain here to spread the word and help those who are in need in Ponyville, including any remaining changelings, despite Visionary's tyranny. Remember to always follow the six virtues of Harmony and never give into hatred. That is good. May the Grand Architect of the Universe bless us and guard us safely in his love."

With that the Peacekeepers departed and scattered, secretly spreading the word. The changelings were gathered in disguise and one by one were escorted out of the town by armed peackeeper guards for protection. The escape was successful and the large Exodus made it's way north to the Crystal Empire, wither by Train or by hoof. The remaining Peacekeepers stayed behind, helping the injured victims of the attack while secretly preaching their gospel, even at the risk of martyrdom.

Most of the ponies in Ponyville were conflicted in deciding allegiance. Many supported the changelings and the Peacekeepers. Others, angered by the changeling attacks throughout Equestria, began to support Visionary. In the end, though, things looked bleak for Equestria. With Fourth-Pony Changeling War and the beginning of the Equestrian Civil War, it seemed like the days of Equestria as ponykind knew it, was coming to an end.

[Pherdistan]

Razor Wing

Razor Wing smiled as Twilight left before turning to Fancy. He raised an eyebrow, knowing exactly what his sister was going to say and mulled it over. The idea sounded dangerous, but then again, danger was part of her job.. "To be honest, Sis, I think you should. Visionary could pose as a grave threat to them." he spoke after a short moment that seemed like forever, "Go to the along the Macintosh Mountains and close to the San Palomino Desert. Bring a group of soldiers with you, take pegasus form and stay away from ToV territory as your life depends on it. Understand?"

Flying Fancy

"Aw, come on, br-" Wait, had Razor just agreed with her. Fancy was so stunned by the revelation that everything else her brother said flew right past her, but she said "Uh, yeah, sure," before, with much more enthusiasm, stating "I'm gonna start right now!" and flying off the stage as fast as her wings would let her.

Back at the barracks, she checked in and immediately went to prepare her weapons of the trade. The first was her assault rifle, which she disassembled, cleaned, polished, and then reassembled. She made sure her magic was in working order, took on a few forms in the mirror to see what appealed most, and then marched confidently into the sergeant's office.

"Your brother WHAT?"

"Yeah, he put me in command of a bunch of ponies, top secret mission stuff."

"Yeah, and Celestia's married."

"No, really, this time!"

"Uh-huh."

The conversation continued for several minutes, until the sergeant finally relented.

"Oh, alright, fine, I'll assign Delta Squad to you, temporarily. But if your brother comes around and you're wrong..." They'd done the same routine a thousand times before, and by this time the sergeant's voice had little conviction to it.

"Trust me, it'll be AWESOME!!!" answered Fancy, skipping away with an almost childish glee.

---

"WAKE UP! WAKE UP! WAKE UP!" Fancy shouted, clapping her hooves together for emphasis. It was nearly dawn, and she'd decided to leave early so that they could get the message to the sand changelings in time for at least a day's worth of preparations. Delta Squad wearily assembled itself. Like her, they were mostly newer troops, untested and fidgety, in all a total of 6.

"Okay, so, everypony listen up. We're gonna follow this compass thing, and this map thing, until we get to the sand changelings' place. We'll tell them to be ready for an attack, tell them help is coming, and then maybe get back. Any questions?" While it seemed like all of Delta's members had something on their minds, they decided in the end to keep shut about. Satisfied, Fancy motioned for them to head out to the landing zone, get prepped, and take off.

Up in the air, Fancy had opted to use a cloud to help get them to the sand changelings, with each of them taking turns pushing the cloud across the sky, with the air currents aiding in the effort. She had by then transformed, into a petite blue pegasus with and orange fruit cutie mark. The trip was quite the bore, with little of interest the further they went, giving way eventually to vast, flat desert. With any luck, they would reach the sand changelings by midday and, for all her élan, Fancy had decided on a route that took a generous detour around Appleloosa, then cut through some of the Buffalo reservation to get to the sand changeling mounds.

[Amistrinal]

Gretel

Gretel nodded glumly and gently nuzzled Applejack. Her expression was sad and fearful. "I-i'm scared, honey. I'm scared for Gregory and Applejack." she spoke softly, lovingly pecking her lover on the cheek, "With these riots and this war, I'm scared we might lose them."

Gretel then turned to look at the two children speaking with Bounty and giggled. "Yeah, they do look happy together." she spoke, her tone and expression cheering up, "Wanna go play some games together, hun?"

Applejack nodded. "Definitely. So, what do ya reckon we should start with? I think there's a skeeball stand somewhere, and I'm pretty sure a saw one of those 'knock the bottles over' games. Unless you saw something more to your fancy. Your pick, sugar."

[Frenequesta]

Spot

Spot was extremely disappointed when he failed five times. He looked up at the blue stallion in confusion when he spoke to Twilight. However, when his mother nudged to try again he smiled. The young colt tried the duckies at the far left corner and gasped and giggled upon getting several matching pairs. "I did it, Mommy!" he exclaimed with a hop, "I did it! I did it!"

Twilight shared in his excitement. And by all appearances, so did the operator. "Lucky you, sport!" he grinned, and gave him a big, fluffy elephant. He then quickly shifted into a low, sharp voice in Twilight's ear. "I know what you're doing, Princess. Show some Friendship and get away from my stand!"

Twilight blinked. She thought Spot would be satisfied with a huge prize, and the operator still had plenty to go around. Perhaps her intelligence showed a little too much. She then smiled to Spot. "Would you like to do something else, Spot?..."

Gregory, Bounty and Zelenka (Zing)

Bounty smile faultered slightly. He felt bad for his girlfriend not doing well with the games. "Well, these games do seem to be pretty tricky, but I think there's actually a trick to it." he replied cheerfully, his smile returning, "That being said I only won a couple games, but, sure, I'd love to join you. I still got a whole bag of bits to spend and we can share it together. How does that sound, Gregory?"

Gregory smiled weakly, hugging his teddy bear. "Sounds like fun, Bounty." he squeaked happily, "Are we gonna play more games Apple Bloom?"

Bounty smiled and walked to one of the other booths with Apple Bloom and Gregory. At the booth, Bounty smiled upon seeing Zing, who in accordance to Olive Oil's promise, was giving a make-over to look more filly-like. Her mane was combed and tied into a pony-tale and she wore one of Olive Oil's dresses, which thanks to Rarity's sowing, fitted her quite well. Zing, by Olive Oil's suggestion, also changed her name to Zelenka, which she liked very much indeed. From a distance, Zelenka would just like any other filly in the park, except for being zebra.

Bounty smiled and greeted her. "Hello, Zing, I mean, Zelenka. How are you doing?" he asked, blushing at his forgetfulness, "Having fun playing games?"

Zelenka turned to the three children and smiled broadly with a nod. "I'm sure am, Bounty." she spoke softly, her eyes glancing at the prize on her back, before looking back at Bounty and Apple Bloom, "I won a big bunny rabbit. Hi, Apple Bloom. H-how are you doing?"

Apple Bloom nodded to Gregory and blushed to Bounty. "You're so generous, Bounty. Let's go!"

At the stand, Apple Bloom blinked. Zing--or Zelenka's--makeover, was, well, a makeover. "What's going on here?" She kept her smile and curiosity, but was still deeply confused.

Summer Sunrise Festival Grounds, Canterlot, Central Equestria

...If he was to be on a side, the Zebra thought, then he would most certainly wish to be on the side that had hope...

The Resistance Stand

As the morning turned into afternoon, Cherry Ranger and Constellation's stand saw some success, with some twenty curious ponies actually stopping by to pick up a pamphlet. But there was little talk. Both Cherry and Constellation relished the chance to find someone enthusiastic enough to have a conversation, or even just ask questions, so they could convince her more to join, but it seemed like the enthusiasm was deflated. Only one had said "sign me up," and even then, his voice was monotone, betraying more depression than hope. But he at least had some hope, and they accepted his signature and contact information.

After a thirty minute spell without a passerby coming by, Cherry finally thought that giving up on initiating the conversation first was a little premature. "Con, we got to step it up. Make them feel welcome this time."

Constellation nodded. She spotted a zebra walking to the stand, and slowing down. He seemed quite curious, and deep in thought. "Hello there, mister. That's a nice hood you got on there. What brings you here?"

Ponyville,
The Prophet Visionary

It was the middle of the afternoon, on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration; ponies throughout Ponyville were still busy with frivolities and merrymaking....

"...The era of changeling appeasement is over, everypony; the era of retaliation has begun." Iron Rose concluded, half the town happy to see an end to Twilight Sparkle's regime and the other half furious about it....

A stout but nervous stallion and a small but firm dragon were hiding behind a bush just at the outskirts of Ponyville. Given their position and alliance, they were lucky not to be caught yet. The dragon was on the crouched stallion's mane, his eyes just barely visible from the darkness of the bush and a green spike protruding out of the hole and blending in a little with the leaves. He spied a crowd surrounding one mare in the town square standing by a platform with nooses hanging several ponies high, giving a speech and receiving great cheers.

"Hear anything, Spike?" Silver Shield whispered.

"Uh... I think she said something about puppets and purging... and a new monarch," Spike whispered back. Dragons have good hearing, but even this distance was a little far for him. He and Silver needed as much information as they could get. But any closer and they would jeopardize themselves. They had already seen the deaths of Crestewitz, Thorny Flowers, and Pansy Grove, among other Guards, by the gallows; they did not want to share the same fate.

The two remained as silent as they could be, but Silver let out a small sigh. Maybe he shouldn't have delegated too much to Crestewitz and take a less active role in the battle. But Crestewitz, despite ranking a little lower, had more hard battle experience, more attuned to short-term tactics and coordination, while Silver was more big-picture. And yet even this situation was a good bit worse than camp training. Who commanded at the front might not have made much of a difference. At bottom, perhaps, he felt a personal need to inform Twilight about the coup, as was the base desire to preserve himself, reinforced by his position.

A few moments passed as Spike continued listening. "Alright, she said something about the army being tax exempt, 45% on changeling sympathizers... the Peacekeepers as hippies. And that the era of retaliation has begun. That's all I could make out."

"I think that's all we really need to know," said Silver. "We've got to get to Canterlot as soon as possible."

Spike nodded and the two started to retreat out of the bushes, rustling the leaves softly.

That caught the attention of a pegasus Temple soldier with an automatic pistol making the rounds for any last stragglers, to clear out for the trenches. Spike tugged at Silver to get him to stop, and hoped that his green spike would just be seen as a leaf. The soldier looked for a second, and then retreated back. After a few steps, Spike was a little too optimistic. "Okay, ready," he whispered, and the soft rustle began again. The soldier turned his head toward the bush again as he walked away. A little blue streak from Silver's Guard helmet peeked out of the bush, and there was no other choice. "Run!"

Silver bolted out of the bush and away from the town. Almost immediately Spike let out a massive streak of fire to the bush and the soldier, burning the bush and temporarily deterring the soldier a little. The pegasus flew up and aimed the pistol at the running stallion, and Spike, in a flash of foresight, was still breathing his fire, melting several of the bullets that descended on them. Fortunately this soldier was not a particularly good shot, and Silver kept on running. Eventually the solider ran out of bullets, and he had no replacements--except perhaps for two other pegasi coming up from behind him.

Spike was panting heavily after his fire. "Silver!" he coughed. "You gotta do something! Two others out!"

"I'll try," Silver said, and, almost immediately as the gunfire began again, put up the strongest shield spell he knew, covering him and Spike almost to the ground. That was especially useful as the two wing soldiers got closer to his sides. The bullets ricocheted off the shield, and, in a twist, from a technique Twilight taught him, spun it to drive the bullets away before they hit too hard on the shield. But he was slowing down in speed. Then, he saw the forest in front of him, and, in a willpower of adrenaline, dashed into it, breaking the shield.

The two wing soldiers hit on two trees, putting them into concussions. The original soldier, who was a little back and far up and therefore could not perfectly see Silver's path, stopped for a survey, and tried to wake up his companions. He was a little tired too, and a bit far away from Ponyville. Unfortunately for him, he could not see Silver or Spike from the forest thicket.

After five minutes of slowing down the pace, Silver and Spike finally decided to take a rest. Silver sat down near a thick oak and Spike hopped down from his back. Spike tried to breathe fire again. Only a few flames came out. "Well, I'm all out. I can't even send a letter to Princess Celestia on this..." He trailed off, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Silver's eyes perked down. "Uh... did you?"

"Uh... n-yes? I mean, no. No." He drooped down.

"Well hopefully the Ponyville Express got a wire in," said Silver. He sighed. If there was any wire, it would probably be Temple propaganda, branding the coup as the work of holy principled liberators against heathen expedient tyranny. "Why didn't you?"

"I... I guess no one told me to."

"And we had to get the place bunkered down. It's okay. You should've done it, but it's okay," said Silver with an small empathetic, but firm, smile.

---

Several hours later, as the fair prepared for the Grand Sunset, Spike and Silver reached the grounds. He found Princess Twilight Sparkle, her children, King Razor Wing, and Queen Mimic walking together to go to the platform. Twilight was surprised to see them. "Silver Shield? Spike? What happened?"

"It's gone, Princess," said Silver, breathing a slow pant. "We're locked out--if we don't want to be hanged."

[Skylus]

OOC-Hi, I was just accepted, so...I guess a lot of time skips are needed?

War.....War never changes.

Wars had been fought for centuries in the land of Equestria. Every time, the good side had won. But, for this war, it was too close to tell.

This war was once again between the Changelings and everyone else. There was a name for this war, but we need not go into details at this time.

Now, a newcomer has entered the fray, a young colt by the name of Derek Forester. Currently 18 years of age, this unicorn is a blacksmith by day, town guard by night. And on this night in particular, his real life, shall begin.

Forester Estate, Outskirts of Ponyville
1:00 A.M.

He had had that dream again. What it was, he couldn't remember, because every time the dream happened, he seemed to forget it the next morning. Some details would remain in the forefront of his mind, however.
A flash of golden light, the sound of two horns/weapons clashing together, and a voice.
What the voice said each time the dream happened, again, he did not know.
Derek rose from his cot and stretched, his roan coat rippling as he did so.
He then crossed the room to glance at his reflection in an antique mirror that was opposite his cot.
He had inherited his dame's blue eyes, golden mane, and tail; his sire's black hooves, nose and roan coat, but he had one feature that was purely by accident- a ragged scar that ran from below his left eye down to the right side of his lower neck.
The colt moved his head from side to side to make sure he was presentable, glanced down to his flank, which sported a pattern of hair that looked like a beat up sword, and then signed heavily.
I'd better make sure Calude is okay.
His younger sibling, whose real name was Caludeus, was eight years younger than him, and the disappearance of their sire, Fleetfoot, and dame, whose name was Fernla, had shaken him hard.

A few weeks earlier, Derek had worked up the courage to venture into his parent's room, which was exactly how they had left it some months before. The colt had found a letter, penned by his sire, Fleetfoot, that explained why him and his wife had left so suddenly.
Derek had hid the letter from Calude, but he had found it anyway.
Now, the young colt was depressed and sad.
Derek knew he had to do something, and he had heard that there was something going on down in Ponyville. If this didn't cheer up Calude, he didn't know what would, save seeing their parents again.
And Derek somehow knew that they didn't want to be found, no matter how much Fleetfoot and Fernla missed their colts.

Caludeus's Room; 1:20 A.M.
A gentle knock at his door awoke the young colt, who had once again been dreaming of his parents.
"....Come in..."
The oak door slowly opened and his older brother entered the room.

Derek crossed the room to merely stare out over the surrounding countryside, then turned to face Calude.
"Hey. I've been thinking about something...and I want your opinion."
Caludeus sat up and stretched, threw the covers of his cot back and then nodded towards Derek.
"...So...there's this...sort of festival down in Ponyville...It's going on now...I can't really sleep, and I know that you can't either...so...do you want to go?"
Calude nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes!"
As the smaller roan coated colt left his cot and began to run around the room and pack things into a beat up knapsack, a smile slowly began to appear on Derek's face.
...Maybe this'll all be over soon...
Then the smile began to fade slightly.
I hope.

OOC- Just a reminder that Flutter accepted my character a few hours ago, I will try to catch up as soon as possible. If this means back to back posts...then...well. We'll see.

[The Flutterlands]

Sand Changeling Territory

The lands of the San Palomino Desert, close to the Macintosh Mountains is among the hottest in the world. Certainly not fit for the likes of Equestrian Changelings or the average pony. With only one's eyes, one could say that the San Palomino Desert was an utter wasteland, devoid of all sentient life.

However, all was not what it seemed. Deep within the the tall towering mounds that littered the desert and deep beneath the sand lived a great and ancient civilization that little to know contact for centuries, except for occasion. As Fancy and her team travelled through the desert, little did they know that they were being watched.

Then, in an instant as they got closer to the mounds, several changeling-like creatures, golden-brown with emerald green eyes and pincher like jaws burst out of the sand with weapons The flew towards Fancy's group and menacingly surrounded them. "Halt! Who goes there?" the leader barked in the common tongue, showing how the war have turned the usually peaceful sand changelings hostile, "Why you come? This war your's, not ours. We take no sides. Never had."

---

Gretel

Gretel smiled as she walked with Apple Jack, lovingly holding her hoof. "The 'knock the bottles over' game sounds like fun." she spoke cheerfully, as she walked over to a stand. She looked at the bottles ready to be knocked over and grinned as she paid for a game. Gretel took another look at the bottles and stared at them calculatingly before giving a good throw.

"Congratulations, madam." spoke the green stallion at the booth, giving her a great big stuffed tiger.

Gretel smiled and gave the tiger to Apple Jack. "Nice throw, huh Sweetie?" she spoke with a wryly grin as she gave Apple Jack a great big hug.

---

Spot

Spot smiled as he hugged the stuffed elephant. However, he frowned somewhat and tilted his head when he watched the operator speak to Twilight. He gulped a little, wondering if he did something wrong. Nonetheless, he followed his mother away from the booth and looked around. He grinned upon seeing some rides. "Can I go on the merry-go-round, Mommy?" he asked sweetly, "Can I Mommy, can I?"

---

Gregory, Bounty, Zelenka

Zelenka blushed deeply and gulped nervously a little. "W-well, for quite some time I've just been feeling weird." she spoke softly, "I-i just don't think I'm really a colt, but really a filly, despite having colt parts. I-it's... hard to explain."

Bounty smiled comfortingly. "What Zelenka is saying is that she's transgender." he spoke calmly, "I don't quite understand it fully myself but I am reading about it."

---

Sunset Celebration

King Razor Wing and Queen Mimic blinked upon Silver Shield and Spike's unexpected arrival. He became very concerned about the way they talked and what they talked of. "Locked out? Hanged?" he asked, in an urgent voice, "What are you talking about? Has something happened to PonyVille? Did Chrysalis make an attack or something? Speak up!"

[Skylus]

Derek

It had been sometime since he and his brother had set out towards Ponyville. They hadn't seen much traffic, either.
"Where is everyone?"
Caludeus trotted past Derek and spun around to begin trotting backwards in front of Derek.
"Can you turn around, please?"
"Why?"
"You might trip or something."
Caludeus sighed and listened to Derek.

Sometime later, they came within the city.
"Look at it. Isn't it huge?"
Derek nodded as he followed his brother down the embankment.
"So...where's the fair?"
Derek pointed his horn in the direction of moving objects and lots of lights.
"I think it's pretty obvious. Come on."

[Frenequesta]

Spot

Spot smiled as he hugged the stuffed elephant. However, he frowned somewhat and tilted his head when he watched the operator speak to Twilight. He gulped a little, wondering if he did something wrong. Nonetheless, he followed his mother away from the booth and looked around. He grinned upon seeing some rides. "Can I go on the merry-go-round, Mommy?" he asked sweetly, "Can I Mommy, can I?"

Twilight nodded when she saw the carousel. The line was long but Spot looked more than willing to wait. "Sure, Spot. Come along," she smiled, and led him to the line. After fifteen minutes of standing they strapped themselves to a bench, ready to be twirled to a joyful fairground organ tune....

Gregory, Bounty, Zelenka

Zelenka blushed deeply and gulped nervously a little. "W-well, for quite some time I've just been feeling weird." she spoke softly, "I-i just don't think I'm really a colt, but really a filly, despite having colt parts. I-it's... hard to explain."

Bounty smiled comfortingly. "What Zelenka is saying is that she's transgender." he spoke calmly, "I don't quite understand it fully myself but I am reading about it."

Apple Bloom scratched her head in even more confusion. She had heard of stallions who liked to dress up as mares, but she had always thought that it was just for fun. Who was Zing seemed to take this seriously. It was a lot more than that to her. She gave it some thought. It was strange, certainly stranger than when Applejack started her relationship with Gretel. But she certainly got used to that and came to understand it. And this was certainly even more interesting. "Hmm. Well, it looks like you're really happy about figuring out who you are," said Apple Bloom with a friendly smile. Like Bounty, she didn't quite understand it. But it was something she wanted to find out something more about.

At least later. She still wanted some fun with Bounty and Gregory. Over the hour they played several rounds of games, this time with some luck--Apple Bloom won a giant pencil at the whack-a-mole stand and a water gun at a balloon pop booth. Then they shared a big plate of funnel cake--at least as big as rationing would allow. Through all of this she smiled and laughed with Gregory in sisterly love and with Bounty in romantic infatuation.

Sunset Celebration

King Razor Wing and Queen Mimic blinked upon Silver Shield and Spike's unexpected arrival. He became very concerned about the way they talked and what they talked of. "Locked out? Hanged?" he asked, in an urgent voice, "What are you talking about? Has something happened to PonyVille? Did Chrysalis make an attack or something? Speak up!"

Silver perked up weakly. "Oh, I guess the news didn't reach you..." he coughed. Several more passers-by--including Applejack, Gretel, and Cherry Ranger, gathered around him, fearfully eager to hear his report. "It's the Temple of Vision. They're a lot more powerful than we thought. I lost all of my Guards to battle and execution. We were lucky to escape. The changeling mound outside the castle has been completely leveled. And they want to overthrow the entire Equestrian government--right up to the Princesses, right up to Celestia herself. We just can't go back, your highness--we have to fight them."

The crowd started to gasp and coldly panic. They had hoped the Summer Sun Celebration would be a break in the string of tragedies and Empire resurgences. This new development was even worse--now two entities aimed to undo Equestria.

"So does that mean we'll have to stay here for a while?" asked Twilight.

"We'll have to," said Silver. "I don't think we can quite retake Ponyville right now. Like I said, they want to crack our necks. We need a real plan." The crowd continued to stir in a muffled fear, nervous about the fate of Equestria.

Twilight then felt a hoof tap her back. She saw Cherry Ranger, a fairly familiar figure by now, with a genuinely concerned but stern face, not quite a smile, but not quite a frown. "Princess," she said, her natural warmth muffled by both new feelings and deep-buried sentiments. "Before you figure out your plan, I've got a book to recommend to you."

Twilight fully turned around to face her in interest. "Oh?"

"Yes, it's called Looking Into the Light by Brambleleaf. Read Chapter Four especially. I've lost two friends to cults like these in my life and I sure don't hope I lose a country too. It'll open your eyes." And with that Cherry Ranger turned and left.

Twilight wondered what she meant by all that. It sounded like she was pointing to some secret on the nature of these groups too complicated to explain at the moment. She then looked to the platform, wondering if the Grand Sunset would go on as usual.

[Pherdistan]

Sand Changeling Territory

The lands of the San Palomino Desert, close to the Macintosh Mountains is among the hottest in the world. Certainly not fit for the likes of Equestrian Changelings or the average pony. With only one's eyes, one could say that the San Palomino Desert was an utter wasteland, devoid of all sentient life.

However, all was not what it seemed. Deep within the the tall towering mounds that littered the desert and deep beneath the sand lived a great and ancient civilization that little to know contact for centuries, except for occasion. As Fancy and her team travelled through the desert, little did they know that they were being watched.

Then, in an instant as they got closer to the mounds, several changeling-like creatures, golden-brown with emerald green eyes and pincher like jaws burst out of the sand with weapons The flew towards Fancy's group and menacingly surrounded them. "Halt! Who goes there?" the leader barked in the common tongue, showing how the war have turned the usually peaceful sand changelings hostile, "Why you come? This war your's, not ours. We take no sides. Never had."

Fancy

"Huh," said the Princess, pondering the frosty greeting from the head sand changeling. She gave him a look up and down,admiring how the sun shone off the rich, gold-colored skin, although she saw some similarities in the eyes, with the mouth being completely odd and alien. Standing up on the cloud, she cleared her throat, then spoke.

"Um, hi everypony! Yeah, we get that, we haven't bothered you before about this, have we? But some loonies are causing trouble and we thought we'd warn you: They... lynched... killed a bunch of us out in Ponyville and around Appleloosa, and we think they might come this way. Just so we're clear here," she continued, changing form completely so that her slick black body reflected in the noontime sun, "They hate you, and me, and all the other changelings. They didn't have any qualms about killing us, down to the last pony, and I doubt they'll do the same for you." Shocked at how dark her small speech had turned, she finished, "We came here solely to warn you to be on your guard. We'll leave now, unless you would be willing to give us some food and water. If with your permission, of course." Fancy pointed to the blazing sun, and used a patch of cloud to brush her brow clean of sweat. She did her best to curtsy, and was imitated clumsily by the rest of her escort. Remembering her brothers warnings, she reluctantly turned back into a pegasus, a new one with a fushia mane and tail, orange fur, and purple eyes, but decided that she didn't need a cutie mark.

Having finished, she sat back, doing her best to keep her back straight and act casually while the sand changeling leader pondered her request.

[Alaskan Democratic Federative Republic]

Somewhere else...
The sun shone high in the sky, though it struggled to pierce through the dense thicket of the Everfree forest. It was peaceful in the wild natural environment, just enough light crept through the canopy to make it a very beautiful place to be. It was summer, soft grass grew on every patch of soil that wasn't occupied by plant life. During the day, the dreaded forest that ponies feared was actually somewhat of a Eden. This is the reason that it continued to attract DarkFly to it's shade, he loved it. Despite the obvious danger of wild life and plant he found regular pony life far too artificial. The sun was controlled, the weather was controlled, even wild life was kept at bay. Every so often in his travels around Equestria, he felt the need to return to his home. It was a bastion for him, he enjoyed walking through the footpaths that animals had carved out.

Standing, next to a small stream and watching the water trickle down it's moss covered rocky path. Smiling softly as he took in the sights, the break in the leaves above allowed a bright sunlight through. The small pitter patter of the stream on the rocks, the light rustle of the wind as it moved through the forest. With a relaxed sigh, DarkFly scanned his gaze around for a moment. He decided to move on, he needed to be proactive. He was a bit of a novice potion maker, he could make curatives and remedies that were fairly uncommon in these parts. It was his way of making a few bits, not that he cared much or had much need for such things but in the modern world it seemed that you'd be foolish not to have some money to kick around with.

He flies along the streams edge as he knew that the herb he needed grew near water, though it was annoyingly scarce. Another frustrating point to this journey was that he was approaching a very dense area of the forest, tree's closely knit together with plenty of smaller plants like thistles and thorny vines grew and wrapped around the trees. Now for another pony this would merely be a little painful and a bit of a struggle, but for DarkFly it would take a lot of effort to get through this mess, plus his wings would get pretty messy if he tries flying.He could ask something to move the plants but he did not like to force nature to his will if he didn't really have to, this wasn't a matter of respect to the plants as it did not harm them, he was just stubborn about needing help.

He flies through the dense thicket, moving through the plants with a struggle. Every so often he felt his wings catch on something and had to push forward with a thrust of movement, which often ending in a painful scratch. Still he pressed forward, having more strength than you'd want to trifle with. However it was just as he saw a clearing that he felt more get caught, looking back he saw that he was pretty entwined. Gritting himself, he surged forward and felt the vines pulled back. Pushing more and more, he felt his body was at it's limit, letting out a cry of pain and anger as he gave one final pushed and erupted into the clearing. He was covered in thorns, much to the irony of his name. He however hadn't noticed that this rather intimidating display had be viewed by someone else who was present in this clearing.

[Frenequesta]

...He flies through the dense thicket, moving through the plants with a struggle. Every so often he felt his wings catch on something and had to push forward with a thrust of movement, which often ending in a painful scratch. Still he pressed forward, having more strength than you'd want to trifle with. However it was just as he saw a clearing that he felt more get caught, looking back he saw that he was pretty entwined. Gritting himself, he surged forward and felt the vines pulled back. Pushing more and more, he felt his body was at it's limit, letting out a cry of pain and anger as he gave one final pushed and erupted into the clearing. He was covered in thorns, much to the irony of his name. He however hadn't noticed that this rather intimidating display had be viewed by someone else who was present in this clearing.

Zecora was walking by, carrying some geranium leaves and mandrake roots in two baskets at her sides, when her ears caught the rustling in the bushes. She soon spied the dark pegasus covered in thorns and trotted over to him. It was a predicament she had to help many travelers with before, though she had not yet seen this one.

"The woods can be a prickly place,
with all those thorns about your face."

She brushed off the bramble with her hoof, revealing all of the scratches the pegasus had suffered.

"I'd recommend some aloe mix,
unless your body's fine with pricks."

[The Flutterlands]

Summer Sunset Celebration

The patrons of the Summer Sunset Celebration, ponies and changelings alike, including Twilight's children, all gasped at the horrific news of death and destruction upon their home. King Razor Wing, Queen Mimic and and Princesss Celestia and Luna all had grave faces and looks of distrought. "How could this have happened?" cried the changeling king, angry and horrified to lose his colony twice in less than a year, "How could these terrorists have been able to wreck such havoc? We must think of a plan to take back our home."

Celestia and Luna gave glum looks with the feeling of powerlessness in the short-term. However, they quickly hid their feelings so not to increase panic. "We will do whatever it takes to help you come up with a plan, Princess Twilight." spoke Celestia firmly, "I vow that these murderous rebels will be brought to justice."

Luna, Razor Wing and Mimic all nodded in agreement. "In the meantime, we must relocate our Ponyvillians to new homes in Canterlot." he spoke, keeping back tears over the lost of so much of his people, "We have a lot of work to do. ...May the Spirits help us. For now, let's try our best to remain calm and carry this evening out.."

Meanwhile, the children gathered around Twilight, giving her very concerned looks mixed with dread and uncertainty as well as sadness. "Where are we gonna go now, Mommy?" asked Spot, sitting on the purple unicorn's back, "We're not gonna go home are we?"

Gretel watched the other ponies talk about this terrible event and gave Apple Jack a concerned look. "Oh I'm so thankful that none of us remained in Ponyville, Surgar." she said fearfully, "We are we gonna go now that we can't return to the warms? ...Also what do you think of your cousin, Braeburn being among those awful lunatics?"

---

Sand Changelings

The sand changelings blinked and glared at each other upon hearing Fancy's words. The guards began screeching to one another in discussion in their own distanct changeling tongue. It was clear from their tone that they were preparing something like this, but they didn't expect it on this scale. After a moment, the lead changeling looked at Fancy. "What you speak is truth. You come with us." he spoke in broken common tongue, "Chief decides wither you stay or leave, but we provide you with water."

The lead changeling gave out another sceech and the sun changelings guards began to escort Fancy and her squad through the desert. Eventually, they arrived at one of the towering sun changeling mounds, and once deep inside Fancy would find the place to a complex and crowded city-like community with dozens of structures carved into the walls of the mounds; stores, homes and facilities alike. The architecture could have only been done with the pincher-like mouths of the Sand Changelings themselves. By seeing sun changeling attire (the guards had war-paint), decore and the way they commune with one another, Fancy could tell that the sand changelings are quite similar to the Buffalos near Applelossa, only perhaps more sophisticated and advanced.

Eventually, Fancy and her team were brought to a palace-like structure and inside, sitting on what might as well be throne, sat an old sand changeling. The old ruler had attire of an indian cheif. He gave Fancy and her squad looks, as if he were already told of their arrival. "We present to you, Chief Lightning Blitz." spoke the Changeling guard from earlier loudly as he bowed in respect.

Lightning Blitz raised a holely hoof before nodding and looking backmat Fancy. "The Sand Changeling Tribes have been neutral in many a war between Pony and the Black Changelings." the chief spoke in a gravelly voice, "We fight to defend ourselves, not to go attacking others. Your war has placed us on our guard against both fronts and we never allow outsiders amongs our mists in such times. That being said, because you have came to warn rather than recruit, we grant you place to stay for night asblong as you follow our laws..."

[Pherdistan]

Sand Changelings

The sand changelings blinked and glared at each other upon hearing Fancy's words. The guards began screeching to one another in discussion in their own distanct changeling tongue. It was clear from their tone that they were preparing something like this, but they didn't expect it on this scale. After a moment, the lead changeling looked at Fancy. "What you speak is truth. You come with us." he spoke in broken common tongue, "Chief decides wither you stay or leave, but we provide you with water."

"Whew! Thanks, guys, really appreciate it!" Fancy was beaming. Boy, would she show Razor! Not even 20 and already a diplomatic savant.

The lead changeling gave out another sceech and the sun changelings guards began to escort Fancy and her squad through the desert. Eventually, they arrived at one of the towering sun changeling mounds, and once deep inside Fancy would find the place to a complex and crowded city-like community with dozens of structures carved into the walls of the mounds; stores, homes and facilities alike. The architecture could have only been done with the pincher-like mouths of the Sand Changelings themselves. By seeing sun changeling attire (the guards had war-paint), decore and the way they commune with one another, Fancy could tell that the sand changelings are quite similar to the Buffalos near Applelossa, only perhaps more sophisticated and advanced.

Eventually, Fancy and her team were brought to a palace-like structure and inside, sitting on what might as well be throne, sat an old sand changeling. The old ruler had attire of an indian cheif. He gave Fancy and her squad looks, as if he were already told of their arrival. "We present to you, Chief Lightning Blitz." spoke the Changeling guard from earlier loudly as he bowed in respect.

"Um, pleasure, your, uh, chiefiness," Fancy gave another bow to the old changeling.

Lightning Blitz raised a holely hoof before nodding and looking backmat Fancy. "The Sand Changeling Tribes have been neutral in many a war between Pony and the Black Changelings." the chief spoke in a gravelly voice, "We fight to defend ourselves, not to go attacking others. Your war has placed us on our guard against both fronts and we never allow outsiders amongs our mists in such times. That being said, because you have came to warn rather than recruit, we grant you place to stay for night asblong as you follow our laws..."

"Oh, many thanks, your chiefiness! We'll be sure to follow them!" Fancy then made a half-turn, thought better of it, turned around and bowed to the Sand Chief, and then turned around fully and had a few brohoofs with her squad. Ooh, she'd really upstaged Brother now!

[Frenequesta]

Summer Sunset Celebration

The patrons of the Summer Sunset Celebration, ponies and changelings alike, including Twilight's children, all gasped at the horrific news of death and destruction upon their home. King Razor Wing, Queen Mimic and and Princesss Celestia and Luna all had grave faces and looks of distrought. "How could this have happened?" cried the changeling king, angry and horrified to lose his colony twice in less than a year, "How could these terrorists have been able to wreck such havoc? We must think of a plan to take back our home."

Celestia and Luna gave glum looks with the feeling of powerlessness in the short-term. However, they quickly hid their feelings so not to increase panic. "We will do whatever it takes to help you come up with a plan, Princess Twilight." spoke Celestia firmly, "I vow that these murderous rebels will be brought to justice."

Twilight nodded to Celestia. "I'll need everyone I can to figure out how to deal with this cult once and for all. We can't let this get in the way of the war." This group was truly irrational, she thought. What were they going to do if they did overthrow the Princesses and Parliament, coordinate the military operations from nearly scratch, institute a radical and likely very unpopular new regime, and get overrun by the new might of the Empire? Couldn't they have waited until after Equestria had won the war?

Meanwhile, the children gathered around Twilight, giving her very concerned looks mixed with dread and uncertainty as well as sadness. "Where are we gonna go now, Mommy?" asked Spot, sitting on the purple unicorn's back, "We're not gonna go home are we?"
...

Twilight felt Spot tug worriedly at her mane. "Well..."

"We can just go back to our old place," said Spike.

Twilight nodded and sighed. "I guess that's where we'll have to go. It's going to be really dirty, though... probably should have checked on it at least last year...."

---

Slightly Later

After the Grand Sunset the crowds began to disperse from the Park. Twilight led her children, Silver Shield, and Spike to a white tower with a golden dome--the house where she lived before her study of the magic of friendship began. The place was not quite so decrepit as Twilight feared--a few cracks here and there and some cobwebs and a lot of dust, but other than that, still livable. Some of the outside actually looked like they had been repaired--probably as part of a general reconstruction after the Gala attack.

"That article wasn't just speaking metaphorically when it said you left your ivory tower," said Silver Shield to Twilight.

"Actually, it's travertine," said Spike. "It only dates from 965, after Equestria had banned importing ivory from most animal sources."

Twilight was a little annoyed by Spike's nitpicking, but she smiled. "I'll have to admit that Spike knows the house better than I." As she led them inside, she looked around. Most of the furniture was still intact, and the books were still mostly in the same place and in the same order. It almost seemed incredible that the tower survived the Gala attack largely undisturbed.

She then nodded to the children. "There should be enough chairs and sofas for you to find a place to sleep. I think we should start getting ready for bed soon after a long day, don't you?"

Meanwhile, Spike found a ripped teddy bear and a squashed package on the floor of the main library. "Hey, there's Moondancer's present..."

[Skylus]

Derek

Derek and his younger brother, Caludeus, had slowly realized that that actual feastival wasn;t in Ponyville, but in Canterlot.

"...Haven't been there before...say, want to go hiking?"

Caludeus nodded and began trotting in the direction of Canterlot.

*************************************************************************************

Canterlot

The first thing Derek saw was the lights.

They were everywhere.

But there was this heavy feeling in the air...as if something bad would happen soon.

I'd better be prepared, just in case...

The unicorn readied Demonslayer, his white horn, and the magic infused horn began to glow slightly.

If anyone tries anything, they'll meet this.

[Amistrinal]

Summer Sunset Celebration

The patrons of the Summer Sunset Celebration, ponies and changelings alike, including Twilight's children, all gasped at the horrific news of death and destruction upon their home. King Razor Wing, Queen Mimic and and Princesss Celestia and Luna all had grave faces and looks of distrought. "How could this have happened?" cried the changeling king, angry and horrified to lose his colony twice in less than a year, "How could these terrorists have been able to wreck such havoc? We must think of a plan to take back our home."

Celestia and Luna gave glum looks with the feeling of powerlessness in the short-term. However, they quickly hid their feelings so not to increase panic. "We will do whatever it takes to help you come up with a plan, Princess Twilight." spoke Celestia firmly, "I vow that these murderous rebels will be brought to justice."

Luna, Razor Wing and Mimic all nodded in agreement. "In the meantime, we must relocate our Ponyvillians to new homes in Canterlot." he spoke, keeping back tears over the lost of so much of his people, "We have a lot of work to do. ...May the Spirits help us. For now, let's try our best to remain calm and carry this evening out.."

Meanwhile, the children gathered around Twilight, giving her very concerned looks mixed with dread and uncertainty as well as sadness. "Where are we gonna go now, Mommy?" asked Spot, sitting on the purple unicorn's back, "We're not gonna go home are we?"

Gretel watched the other ponies talk about this terrible event and gave Apple Jack a concerned look. "Oh I'm so thankful that none of us remained in Ponyville, Surgar." she said fearfully, "We are we gonna go now that we can't return to the warms? ...Also what do you think of your cousin, Braeburn being among those awful lunatics?"

Applejack placed her head in her hooves and sighed. "I don't know what we're gonna do, Gretel. We certainly can't go back to Sweet Apple Acres right now, not with that band of nutjobs occupying Ponyville. Speaking of whom..."

She tapped her forehead with one hoof. "Braeburn. I cannot believe him right now. He never talked to me about it personally, I only ended up hearing about it from the other apples, but I never figured that he was actually on their side! I thought that maybe he was forced into it, or he was trying to change their minds or something, but this is just goin' too far! Honestly, Braeburn... what was he thinking?"

[The Flutterlands]

Sand Changelings

Chief Lightning Blitz nodded. "You are very welcome. Though know you must leave the next morning in secret after being given food and water." he spoke before looking to his servants, "You two, please escort our guess to their rooms and make them comfortable, please."

The servants nodded and began to escort Fancy and the others. Meanwhile, Lightning's advisor watched as they left and looked at the cheif. "Are you sure it's wise to allow them to stay here?" he asked, speaking in the tongue of the Sand Changelings, "They are at war. We don't want to send their enemies the wrong message."

"Of course, which is why we're making them leave in the morning. Not to mention we would have done the same if they were imperals." Lightning Blitz replied in the same tongue, "And we must warn them not to tell anyone outside this desert of their stay."

"Agreed." the advisor nodded, "Now what do you think of Visionary and his ilk? They almost make Chrysalis's claim legitimate about ponykind."

"Chrysalis is just as irrational as Visionary in rhetoric." replied Lightning sharply, "That being said, I do believe that Visionary's actions will send a clear message to both allied and neutral changeling territory. ...Chrysalis's army grows even as we speak and with Visionary in the picture, I'm afraid Equestria's days are numbered if things don't turn around. We must pray to the our Spirits that things do turn around. Ether way we must meet with the other tribes and unite our forces in immediate preparations against the coming assault that we've been so kindly warned about."

---

Canterlot

Celestia nodded at her former pupal's words. She was right. This was getting out of hand. "Indeed Princess Twilight." she spoke, "I will gather troops to think of a plan that will end this. Though I pray that we can think of something quickly before our changeling allies get the wrong idea."

Razor Wing nodded as well. The damage caused by the cultists could potentially fracture the already fragile alliance between pony and changeling that took so long to build. "I shall do my part to help fight against these terrorists as well with my own troops." he spoke gravely, "We must not allow Visionary's action to make our allies and neutrals believe that Chrysalis is right about ponykind and join her cause. Though this might just be the case for some unfortunately..."

Later...

The children followed Twilight and Spike to her tower. They were all still distraught and scares of this whole affair. Olive Oil stayed close to Pitch Black, holding hooves with him. "P-pitchy." she spoke softly, "I-i'm scared... I'm actually very scared now."

"We're all scared." Bounty spoke up, watching Pitch Black comfort the changeling girl, "These cultist guys are a menace, but Mom and the Princesses are gonna fix this. I don't think the cult guys are as strong as Chrysalis's armies."

The children all nodded, but none of their fears were lifted. They continued following their step-mother till they arrived at her tower. Each one of the children looked up and smiled weakly upon seeing how tall the tower was. However, none of them were exactly thrilled about staying in a strange home.

Each walked inside and looked around, seeing how dreary the place kind of looked compared to the castle. Spot whimpered a little and looked up at Twilight. "What's gonna happen to Shelly and Frisky, Mommy?" he asked with wide eyes on his face, "A-and... c-could I sleep with you, t-tonight?"

"Who's Moondancer?" asked Bounty, walking towards Spike and looking at the teddy bear he found.

---

Gretel and Gregory

"And I don't know what got your cousin into this. Really it all looks nasty no matter how you look into it." Gretel replied with a shrug, "Guess we're gonna have to find an inn or a tavern. Got to be some cheap places in Canterlot to look into."

Meanwhile, little Gregory, utterly startled by what was going on, had a very frightened look on his face and he glanced at Applebloom. "What are we gonna do, Applebloom?" he asked worriedly, "I-i'm scared. W-what if the scary ponies come for us?"

[Fascist Russian Empire]

The Visionary Rebellion,
Ponyville

Visionary found himself in a great city, far larger than his hometown of Appaloosa; he could see mountains, off on the horizon. He was surrounded by multiple ponies he recognized as being soldiers of the Temple, in addition to hundreds of strangers, although his apostles were noticeably absent with the exception of Iron Rose. Gunfire could be distinctly heard in the distance, and Visionary could see skirmishes between groups of militia-ponies and city guards taking place in his peripheral vision. Flags of Salt-Lick City could be seen flying throughout the city, many of which were burning or torn. Rebel flags could be seen, carried by ponies, throughout the streets around him, and dead ponies could be seen scattered across the ground.

Then, Visionary woke up; he had had another vision from the All-Maker. He had never been to Salt-Lick City, but he knew he had been commanded to travel there; his visions were always short, but outlined a clear mission. The city wasn't as ideologically fanatical as Appaloosa and Dodge, but it was still frontier territory, and the ponies there largely harbored the same resentment and disdain towards the abominations that the rest of the frontier did. His objective was clear, and simple; go to Salt-Lick City, and secure it in the name of the All-Maker. It was a prosperous city, and it would be full of ponies sympathetic to the rebel cause; it was a perfect target for the rebellion to seize. Visionary trusted the All-Maker's judgment, and prepared himself for a journey to the great Salt-Lick City. It would be the crown jewel of the rebel movement, the largest rebel hub in Equestria.

The prophet got up, out of bed, and headed off to speak with his right-hoof mare. He navigated the crystal halls of the great castle of Ponyville, formerly Twilight Sparkle's castle (now renamed the Fortress of Vigilance, by the Temple of Vision), to find Iron Rose, planning to depart for Salt-Lick City as soon as possible. He was interrupted, however, by Deep Insight and Broken Promise, while he was searching for the mare.

"My Prophet, good, I've found you. I have important news to report." Deep Insight said.

"You have my full attention." Visionary replied.

"It's the Peacekeepers. I have been made aware of a plot by them to smuggle an army of abominations up north, into the Crystal Empire. Similarly, our inquisition force has discovered multiple members of their organization harboring abominations in their homes." Deep Insight reported.

On some level, Visionary wasn't surprised. He had hoped the heretics would see that what they were doing was despicable and morally apprehensible, but, evidently, his decision to give them a chance at redemption was completely foolish; he let them live, and they repaid his outburst of tolerance and generosity by sending abominations up north to cause havoc in the Crystal Empire. He came to the realization that Healing Hooves was right, all along; he should have simply killed every last one of them to begin with, for the sake of protecting Equestria.

"How have you acquired this information?" Visionary asked.

"Magic can do all kinds of things. My associates and I have been using scrying spells to listen in on conversations by the Peacekeepers; it's amazing what you can learn by listening to ponies who have no idea they're being watched." Deep Insight answered.

"This is what happens when you allow those who sympathize with demons to live in your community. We can't stop at simply eradicating the abominations; we need to kill them and all who sympathize with them. It's the only way to ensure the everlasting security of our nation. They'll keep providing support to the enemy and sabotaging our efforts to purify Equestria unless we destroy them." Broken Promise commented.

"You're right; I should have listened to Healing Hooves. It's time to strike back at these renegades; we'll demonstrate the All-Maker's justice to them." Visionary replied.

"What do you want us to do?" Deep Insight asked.

"Wipe them out. All of them. Broken Promise, get together all the ponies you've recruited into the Knights of Foresight, and as many buffalo warriors as the Chief can spare; head to the degenerates' headquarters, their church. Burn their den of inequity down to the ground, and kill everyone inside; leave no survivors. Deep Insight, take your inquisitors and go to the houses of the ponies we know are harboring abominations; kill the abominations wherever you find them, and have the ponies who harbored them publicly burned alive. After that, we'll start hunting down and rooting out the remnants of their organization until every last one of them is dead. We will send a clear message to the whole of Equestria that anypony who fraternizes with abominations is signing their own death warrant." Visionary commanded.

"It will be done." Deep Insight and Broken Promise simultaneously replied, before heading off to prepare their respective organizations for operations against the changeling-sympathizers.

Visionary took no pleasure in ordering the deaths of large numbers of ponies, but it had to be done; the Peacekeeper heretics had proven they were allies of the enemy, and they needed to be dealt with as such. Their kind were the ones who opened the gates to allow the enemy to attack Equestrian cities from the inside, to begin with. Visionary could see that their deaths were an essential ingredient for destroying the changeling menace; as long as so much as one changeling sympathizer still lived, Equestria was in extraordinary peril. Taxes be damned; Visionary wasn't going to risk the lives of innocent ponies for the sake of demon-sympathizers who would see Equestria burn because they can't see past their blind fantasies of a world where ponies and abominations live in peace. Visionary wasn't fighting the Equestrian government for money, he was fighting because it was the will of the All-Maker.

While Deep Insight and Broken Promise got ready to start the process of exterminating the Peacekeepers, Visionary went to the new barracks which had been set up in the Fortress of Vigilance, where he found Iron Rose.

"Commander, we need to talk." Visionary told her.

"I'm listening." Iron Rose replied.

"I need you to gather a small force of a few dozen soldiers; we must liberate Salt-Lick City, by the command of the All-Maker." Visionary explained.

"The All-Maker himself told us to take Salt-Lick City? Well then, I suppose we'd better get to work on the double. I'll gather the best ponies I have available, and get them outfitted to move out; we should be ready to leave in a couple hours. It shouldn't be particularly difficult for us to gather a much larger force once we're in the city; we should have hundreds of thousands of supporters in the area." Iron Rose replied.

"Good; I'll meet you back at the Great Temple." Visionary said.

"What are you going to be doing in the meantime?" Iron Rose asked.

"I'm going to get together with the Knights of Foresight, and pay a visit to the Peacekeepers; those changeling-sympathizers chose to betray the opportunity I gave them to peacefully live in Ponyville. They decided to smuggle abominations into the Crystal Empire, and, consequently, help Chrysalis conquer Equestria. So, we're going to wipe out every last one of them in retaliation, and, in the future, I will never extend another offer of amnesty towards enemy sympathizers; from now own, we're going to kill them all outright as soon as we find them." Visionary answered.

"See? I told you those savages couldn't be trusted! We could have protected the Crystal Empire if we had exterminated those vile traitors in the first place." Iron Rose said.

"You're right, I let myself be blinded by idealistic fantasies, just like the abomination-sympathizers; it won't happen again." Visionary said.

"On the bright side, the Peacekeepers' little stunt should help win us support in the Crystal Empire. The abominations bring death wherever they go; when they inevitably repay the Peacekeepers' hospitality by going on killing sprees throughout the Empire, it will help win over more ponies in the north to our cause. Everypony wants peace, tolerance, and diversity...right up until their fantasies blow up in their faces, and they watch entire families be massacred by the demons they were oh-so happy to invite into their communities." Iron Rose said.

"Indeed. Well, I won't hold you up any longer; it's important that we finish our preparations to take Salt-Lick City as soon as possible." Visionary said, eliciting a nod from Iron Hoof, before preparing to join Broken Promise in attacking the Peacekeepers' shrine of heresy.

---

Visionary was standing outside the church of the Peacekeepers, alongside Broken Promise and dozens of pony soldiers and buffalo warriors. He was wearing a full suit of jade-plated armor from the Temple of Healing, and wielded Dawnbreaker in his hooves. The sword's red glow had turned yellow, an indication of the fact that the Peacekeepers were fraternizing with abominations. Voices and movement could be heard from within the building.

"It's time to make these degenerates suffer the All-Maker's wrath; they will face His justice for their crimes against Equestria. Let's burn this den of inequity down to the ground." Visionary ordered.

Several rebel soldiers started hurling Molotov cocktails through the windows of the building; almost immediately, panicked screams could be heard from within. A hail of gunfire was then shot into the building through the now broken windows, with multiple soldiers firing automatic weapons at the traitors. The Peacekeepers who hadn't been killed by the fire or the bullets started flocking out of the building as it went up in smoke, where they were hacked to pieces by Visionary and the tomahawk-wielding buffalo who surrounded the building. A few of them found weapons and made attempts to fight back, but, between being caught off-guard and being disoriented by the smoke and flames that filled their headquarters, they weren't in a position to fight particularly effectively.

The traitors were massacred by the dozens; the rebels mercilessly killed everyone coming out of the burning church, be they ponies, griffins, cows, goats, abominations, or any other race. Filled with righteous indignation, they gunned down or hacked apart every last Peacekeeper they could find, taking no prisoners. Their church quickly started crumbling from the flames; within a few minutes, it completely collapsed, leaving nothing but a pile of smoldering ruins filled with charred bodies.

"Where is the apostate, Peacekeeper?" Visionary asked Broken Promise, scanning over the piles of dead bodies.

"Nowhere to be seen. He, evidently, wasn't here." Broken Promise answered.

"Damn it! I should have killed him when I had the chance. He's probably up in the Crystal Empire by now, or on his way, preparing to help Chrysalis annex the entire region. I can't believe I was foolish enough to think these worthless degenerates had even the slightest capability of living like civilized ponies and refraining from bringing invading armies into Equestrian territory. At least we'll be rid of them, here in Ponyville." Visionary exclaimed.

"Well, not much we can do about now. Come on; I think Deep Insight and the other inquisitors have finished rounding up some of the ponies guilty of harboring abominations. Their executions should be starting soon." Broken Promise said. Visionary just nodded and went with Broken Promise to the town center.

---

Sure enough, Broken Promise was right. Deep Insight and several other unicorn inquisitors, all dressed in red robes, stood in a circle around a group of prisoners. The seven Peacekeepers who had been discovered harboring changelings were all tied to wooden stakes with piles of kindling underneath them. Large crowds of hundreds of ponies were gathered to watch the spectacle.

"You have been found guilty of the heinous crime of harboring enemies of the state. By harboring abominations, you have knowingly and willfully endangered all of Ponyville, putting the lives of innocent ponies at risk. Your actions, carried out with the sole, despicable intent of aiding the enemy in their efforts to conquer and enslave Equestria, must be punished accordingly. Therefore, by the decree of the Prophet, Visionary, you are all sentenced to death by burning. Let this be a lesson to all who would dare fraternize with abominations; we will find you, and we will kill you. By the authority of the All-Maker, we will exact justice upon all who would bring demons and abominations into our sacred lands." Deep Insight decreed.

With his decree made, Deep Insight magically lit a torch and ignited fires underneath each prisoner. The traitors started screaming as the flames slowly began to engulf them, many of the ponies in the crowds cheering as they slowly burned alive. The fires gradually went up the wooden stakes, and started spreading onto the prisoners at an increasingly rapid pace, smoke beginning to rise over them.

"Death to the abominations, and death to all who sympathize with them!" began being chanted over and over by groups of ToV members and rebel soldiers, while the prisoners burned.

The changeling-sympathizers in the crowds remained silent; the realization started sinking in, more than ever, that the Temple was serious when it proclaimed it would stop at nothing to eradicate the changeling menace. With the Peacekeepers' headquarters demolished, dozens of their members massacred, and multiple ponies caught and executed for harboring abominations, many of the changeling-sympathizers started realizing that it was a bad idea to give support to the enemy in territory controlled by the rebels. Some changeling-sympathizers would leave town, and some would join Chrysalis and her puppets in their quest to destroy ponykind and turn Equestria into a massive changeling empire. Few, however, would be bold enough to continue engaging in pro-changeling insurrection after seeing the fates befallen by the Peacekeepers.

After several minutes of burning, the last of the prisoners were dead, their charred remains being left in the town center for the sake of reminding everypony of what happens to those who harbor the enemy. The message was clearly established to everypony in town; the rebels wouldn't hesitate to kill anypony who aided their enemies.

With the executions complete, Visionary headed back to the Great Temple, where he found Iron Rose.

"Ah, good, you're here. I trust everything has been prepared?" Visionary asked her.

"Indeed; I've got forty five soldiers ready to escort us to Salt-Lick City." Iron Rose replied.

"Well, then, let's get going; the sooner we capture Salt-Lick, the better. The upcoming days will be full of trials and tribulations, but I have faith that the All-Maker's blessing will give us the power to overcome any obstacle." Visionary said.

The two then departed with their squad of soldiers, moving westwards towards Salt-Lick City. The capture of Salt-Lick was most assuredly going to be a more complicated task than taking over Appaloosa and Dodge, but it was still a city full of ponies who sympathized with the anti-changeling cause; there would be no shortage of volunteers for the rebel army. Once SLC was brought into the fold, the rebels would be stronger than ever, and would be in a position to greatly bolster their military.

[Frenequesta]

Later...

The children followed Twilight and Spike to her tower. They were all still distraught and scares of this whole affair. Olive Oil stayed close to Pitch Black, holding hooves with him. "P-pitchy." she spoke softly, "I-i'm scared... I'm actually very scared now."

"We're all scared." Bounty spoke up, watching Pitch Black comfort the changeling girl, "These cultist guys are a menace, but Mom and the Princesses are gonna fix this. I don't think the cult guys are as strong as Chrysalis's armies."

The children all nodded, but none of their fears were lifted. They continued following their step-mother till they arrived at her tower. Each one of the children looked up and smiled weakly upon seeing how tall the tower was. However, none of them were exactly thrilled about staying in a strange home.

Each walked inside and looked around, seeing how dreary the place kind of looked compared to the castle. Spot whimpered a little and looked up at Twilight. "What's gonna happen to Shelly and Frisky, Mommy?" he asked with wide eyes on his face, "A-and... c-could I sleep with you, t-tonight?"

Twilight turned to Silver Shield and Spike with a disappointed look. She didn't have to ask, but she did. "Do you know what's happened to the pets?"

Spike scratched his ear. "Well... we, uh..."

"I'm sorry, your highness, I don't know. We didn't have a chance to rescue them. They'd be lucky if they scampered out, much, much more the turtle," said Silver. He looked down at Spot. "Perhaps Twilight will get you another turtle, Spot."

Twilight nodded sadly. "Perhaps. But you can't just replace one good pet with another." She then turned to Spot. "Sure, Spot, you can sleep with me tonight."

She led Spot to her old bedroom up another flight of stairs and inspected the bed. The sheets smelled a little funny so she decided to change them. She found a still oddly-smelling but considerably less so bed sheet, quilt, and pillow and threw them over the bed. She then settled down under the covers, opening them up a little so Spot could be by her side. It was actually a very comfortable bed, quite springy and soft, and she smiled. Her old bed was a welcome tonic to her stress.

Gretel and Gregory

"And I don't know what got your cousin into this. Really it all looks nasty no matter how you look into it." Gretel replied with a shrug, "Guess we're gonna have to find an inn or a tavern. Got to be some cheap places in Canterlot to look into."

Meanwhile, little Gregory, utterly startled by what was going on, had a very frightened look on his face and he glanced at Applebloom. "What are we gonna do, Applebloom?" he asked worriedly, "I-i'm scared. W-what if the scary ponies come for us?"

Apple Bloom, while certainly disturbed by the developments, was optimistic as usual. "Ah, Greg, no worries. We're in the safest place in the principality. If my cousin was coming after us he'd already have us brainwashed. We just gotta keep on going no matter what." She then drooped her head a little. "I sure hope Granny and Big Mac are alright."

---

Salt Lick City

Waterforge Brace was poring over a new redevelopment scheme on the South Side, taking notes to its inefficiencies and undue burdens. He was just about to put his red rubber-stamp "NO" on the stack of one hundred pages when a gray earth pony stallion with a short, light violet mane came in. "Mayor Brace?" The stallion flashed an official-looking identification. "Grapevine, Royal Equestrian Justice Bureau. Drop what you're doing, we have critical things to talk about." The bearded, well-built unicorn at the desk blinked for a moment, then dropped the stamp and followed the gray stallion out of the office.

Waterforge had became something of a local hero in Salt Lick City after the Gala Attacks. He had used his engineering acumen to secure a net keeping a boulder in place, preventing thousands of Chrysalis' soldiers from slaughtering many of Equestria's business, social, and political elites. His return home was greeted with cheers in the streets and confetti in his mane. He at first shied away at calls to run for Mayor, but with some encouragement from his friends, family, and a memory of recent difficulties in getting variances and special exceptions for his and other businesses, he announced his candidacy. He started late, but with promises of real, workable policy reforms, an exploitation of his role in protecting Equestria from the Empire, and a glowing endorsement from the Blue Party candidate and her subsequent withdrawal from the race, he defeated the Agrarian Party incumbent and the Rose and Cornucopian party challengers. After guiding the city through an unsuccessful Empire attack just a week into his post, he set to work on his agenda. Progress had been slow with Council inertia and topic reschedules, but he had successfully loosened a few zoning rules and streamlined some of the inconsistencies in the zoning board's procedures. He had tried to go slow on the changeling integration, simply complying with the bare minimum set by Parliament and expressing no desire to go beyond, and even occasionally publicly criticizing the haste of some of the more progressive deputies. Things had been mostly quiet until the weekend.

They eventually came to a soundproofed and insulated room in the basement of a nearby office building. The two sat down at the simple, wooden table and stools across from each other. Another Justice Bureau official, the Chief of Police, and the district prefectors were already in the room, sitting quietly on the other ends Grapevine took out a small device and scanned it around the room, its green light flashing every two seconds, indicating everything was normal and safe. He then turned to the other official, who nodded back. "All clear." He then put down a forty-four-page document, dense with text and headed with the front page "PROGRESS OF THE TEMPLE OF VISION--SENSITIVE/CLASSIFIED--FOR USE TO Dessert Valley Area Leaders and Select Safety Officials" in front of Waterforge. "Mr. Mayor, Chief Sting, Prefectors," Grapevine began, "As you are more than aware, the Temple of Vision has been rising in power and militancy, with Ponyville taken during the Summer Sun Celebration. Our operatives there have since been monitoring their activities closely, getting conversation from Visionary's closest circle. Just today we got a wire from the town indicating with near-certain probability that the Temple intends to take your city next."

Fear never came to Waterforge easily; he was used to dangerous situations--from his early career as a laborer during the Salt Lick City building boom to the last attempted Empire invasion. But he still froze up a little, knowing that the threat was more than plausible. "I am frankly surprised they have not tried sooner. We had a recent poll putting support of the Temple at 10%, up from 5% a month ago. One of my own Councillors had just converted."

"The Temple has had a significant presence there for the past several months. The temple there is among their largest. But we're still somewhat surprised in some way; we estimated adherence at 4% and general support at 6%, but those numbers were never confirmed because of some problems with the local government and Princess Twilight in data collection. In hindsight, we underestimated the support on one hoof and their ability to wage violence on the other. In any case, our reports also indicate that about fifty of its members, including Visionary himself, have already started the trek westward. From our analysis of their movements in the past week, they have a very high chance of reaching the city tomorrow. That means that protection of this city requires immediate action. We have Royal Guard support from Los Pegasus on their way now and should be here soon, but we need you and Chief Sting to coordinate and cooperate with them to prepare for the attack," Grapevine paused to let Waterforge, Sting, and the prefectors take it in, and recheck the area for eavesdroppers. Turning up nothing, he continued. "The Temple has evaded firearms background checks through the black market, and has acquired many military-grade weapons, which you'll find on page thirty-seven, so you'll have an idea what we're going up against...."
---
Sure enough, Waterforge and Sting met with the commander of the troops from Los Pegasus, planning out the outposts and general strategy. Within a couple of hours, Waterforge called an emergency town meeting, ringing the city hall bell in a high frequency, and reporters from the Salt Lick Chronicle and the Dessert Valley Buzz, as well as the general public, flocked to the city hall to hear him speak.

Waterforge walked up to the lectern to see the meeting hall filled to standing room only. He cleared his throat and began:

"Fillies and Gentlecolts, in the last couple of hours I have received reliable, confirmed information from the Royal Equestrian Justice Bureau about a great and impending danger to our city. The Temple of Vision, who just yesterday overtook Ponyville, seeks to overtake our own. As I speak a platoon of theirs is making its way up to the Dessert Valley, set on swelling its numbers to a full army."

Many in the crowd started to gasp and chatter among themselves, sensing almost certain doom. But Waterforge soon calmed them down.

"I assure you, there is no need to resign ourselves to submission. We are a strong people. We are a stubborn people. We are a people that love our liberty and will defend it against those who oppose it. Our city was built defending against dragons, against basilisks, and against tatzelwurms. We have maintained our city in the face of drought, of blizzard, and of earthquake. And we have survived through recession, through riot, and through changeling invasion. We can defend against this. We can maintain against this. And we will survive against this.

"Our strategy is manifold, and is one in which all must take part to be effective. First, we have Royal Guard troops with us now who are setting up outposts and watchposts around and inside the city. They will be our first and primary means of defense in case the encounter does get violent. Second, our police will back up the Guard. It also invites all who have passed the background checks and basic firearms training to join with them, side by side, and round-the-clock in defense of the city. You may apply at your nearest police precinct, and will receive some basic tactical training for better coordination. Third, we urge that any person who has reason to believe that a Temple member is privy on the coming attack or otherwise knows of any person who seeks to undermine our defense efforts to report the person to the police or the Guard. You will receive up to 100,000 bits for your tips and no less than 25,000. Finally, and as corollary to that, we announce that we intend to prosecute all crimes, so long as we are on high alert, to the fullest extent of the law. There will be no plea bargaining. We will not be afraid to push for the death penalty for the most serious of crimes.

"Citizens of Salt Lick City, we may believe what we want. But there are limits to acting on those beliefs, no matter how strongly we may hold it. We live in a society where we can, however uneasily, accommodate all of those beliefs peacefully. Above all, we must protect our lives and our peace. Those are more important than any ideology, since they are necessary for those ideologies in the first place. When I was in that cave, I was cooped up with many people who I couldn't stand. But I didn't care when I bolted the net. We were all in the same place, and we all wanted but a single thing. We, the people of Salt Lick City, are now in a similar cave. This time, there are many more holes to block and many more nets to bolt. We need to use all of our talents to defend Salt Lick City once again, for it is not just our city that is at stake. It is not just the Dessert Valley that is at stake. It is not just the West that is at stake. All of Equestria is at stake with this aggression, and its defense starts at home.

"Again, I urge all who can to do their part in keeping our city safe and free. We will have to work all night, and we have to keep vigilant through the early morning hours if we wish Salt Lick City to remain the place that we love. Thank you very much."

After a few questions from the reporters the preparation began in earnest. Citizens flocked to their precincts to apply to the militia. Yet the turnout was not quite as large as Waterforge hoped--only 60% of those on the background check rolls had applied when the enrollment closed a few hours later. In addition, there was only one tip given to the authorities on possible resistance against the defense, and although this was confirmed, neither the police nor the Justice Bureau could trace his motivation to sympathy with the Temple. As the moon finally rose, Waterforge wondered whether he should put up an all-and-out posse comitatus. The heavy burden of a whole city rose up a sort of fear that he never had before, and he was ready to call for it when the time came.

---

Wednesday, June 23, Parliament Hall

There was not a corner of Parliament Hall that wasn't bustling for the big meeting today. Every party had a plan, and some had several. All agreed on a ratcheting up of the Royal Guard budget, but the similarities ended there. Cherry Ranger was poring through all of these as the deputies came in, trying to figure out how to reconcile all of them.

The last deputy to come into the Main Floor was Trilby, wheeled in by an orderly from Canterlot Hospital. He was in his usual blue unicorn form, except for the injured leg, which revealed his natural black changeling shell and a holey hoof. Many members became quiet when they saw him come in. He looked around and waved with a weak smile. It almost seemed as if he was a stranger now, if only a sixth of his true self had to show now.

The hall quieted down, awaiting Princess Luna's call to start the meeting.