3. Engineering Hope

The sun was not at completely at rest, but it was behind the solitary mountain that Canterlot clung onto, casting it's shadow over the city.  The soldiers that were there were survivors of defeat.  They were a mixture of cowards, luck and fortune.

There were a few wounded, but countless more were left on that field of battle in the mountain pass.  Their only hope right now is the mercy of the enemy...

They came up the road, at first a small trickle, but gradually larger.  The deserters did not have any weapons on them, as they were discarded on the battlefield.  They would become the trophies of the enemy's victory.  Weapons themselves are difficult to come by in this land, and for many, the value of a single pike was more that the actual life of a pony.

The early arrivals were disorganized.  They either came from separate units, or that they escaped earlier and hid, only to return when they realized there was nowhere else to go.  The cohesion however increased when the troops of the former right flank arrived with the reserves.  But they too were mauled, coated in dust and dirt and heads hung low.  There were no calling horns being played for their arrival and no cheering for the duty's they did.  They were just only survivors.  Nothing more.

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The gatehouse of Canterlot was a perfect arch, with no fault between the stones that it was practically impossible to deter the separate blocks of polished stone from each other.  The bottom was thicker than the crest, causing the frontal escarpment to not be vertical and making the center point of the base to be furthest point out, making the gatehouse to have the elegance of a hoof.

Yet this feat of engineering and art was not for a military design.  It was hardly defendable, the top of the wall not designed for the mounting of troops but for banners, and the gate was literally projected in front of it and not within where it could be protected by flanking fire.  Two stone towers which were built out of the more local grey stones had only been partially constructed, as well as being behind the actual gatehouse, only being useful if the enemy tried to avoid flank the gate itself.  The arc of the crest was higher than the bases of the towers, blocking any defensive fire that it could offer to support the front of the gate. There were also extensive gaps between the towers and the gatehouse, making an already difficult defense there practically impossible.

Yet, there were a few advantages from the geography around Canterlot.  In front of the gate, there was a swift stream that would delay an enemy advance, particularly on the cliff side, however, it could be possible to ford the stream if the enemy held close to the small body of water that pooled near the base of the waterfall, if the enemy was knowledgeable of that.  There was also a field before that stream where the armies encamped earlier, though now the majority had been moved behind the gatehouse.  The field was wide and open, and would give little cover to the enemy.  It was also possible to create small palisades in the field to impede the movement of the enemy causing them to be under ranged fire for longer periods of time.

The final main advantage was the two hills that bordered the field.  These two hills connected the plateue that Canterlot was on to the valley below and had to be scaled first before the enemy could attack Canterlot.  Also, the hills were in a narrow pass and could easily be fully covered by the surviving pike infantry and would force the enemy to charge head on without being able to flank.  In truth, it was the best denfendable location for Canterlot, though no fortifications existed there.

The defensive plans were then set.  The rements of the Grand Coalition Army would hold the two hills, in theory being a temporary wall.  Their responsibility was to hold back the enemy as long as possible, as it was likely that they would assault directly the next day.  They should only need to hold for only a day or two, to buy time for earthen walls to be built along the gatehouse and the towers, making the city reasonably defendable.  Also, the field would have palisades built during this period, in an aim to prevent the enemy from approching the fordable part of the stream and slowing them while being rained from above by arrows.  The army would then withdraw into Canterlot itself.

The plans ended there.  After that point, there was nothing that truthfully could be done except hold the towers and gates.  The defences had to hold or else all would be lost.

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She said nothing while she watched the ponies, scurrying about below illuminated only by the few torches in the deepening darkness.  She could hear the harshness of the commands, as the grass that formed the meadow below turned into brown heaps.

All she could think of was if the new dug holes would be enough to burry the dead soon to come.

She sensed someone staring at her and she looked back over her right shoulder, her eyes resting on another unicorn.

She remembered him.  He was a royal from the Saddle Lake Kingdom, a mature pony more used to the days of peace rather than war, yet his name escaped her memory at the present time.

"My lady, I apologize for interrupting your thoughts..." he began.

"No, it is completely fine," she interjected, somewhat thankful that he did.

"Ahem, well, a rumor has it that a pegasus ended up stopping that charge."

"And what's the import..."

"I believe that I saw that actually," one of her guards interrupted, "a golden speck flew from the center of that mass that occurred in the center of the enemy line."

Another guard piped up, "And the enemy only has griffins, so it had to be one of our's."

Soon a small commotion began with the members of the staff and the guards.  But she saw something in their eyes that had been missing for the past day -- hope and courage.  The two things that they needed the most.

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ThunderWhip lifted the earth laden bucket up from the base of the earthen wall.  He had lost count of the number of times that he had done this chore, lifting the buckets and dumping them onto the pile of earth.  For all the work that his team had done, the wall had rose about three feet in the three hours of work.

"One foot an hour..." he grumbled.

The earthen walls were going to be approximately  to be about fifteen feet high, too high to jump, therefore requiring the enemy to be forced to take siege equipment to assault the walls.

He could see several unicorns using their magic to carry large rocks that were being laid at the base of the dirt wall, hoping to create some type of foundation.  Other ponies were there as well, with makeshift wooden bludgeons, hammering the boulders into the dirt, hoping that would firm up the foundations of the wall.  Everything was being done in the hope that it would work.

As he dumped his bucket to the top of the earthwork, a cart rolled by.  It's wheels making a horrific groaning as it carried its overloaded pile of rocky dirt.  There was a small ramp for it go up on to empty its load, but the weight of the wagon made its wheels sink into the fresh dirt, bringing it to a halt.  The four earth ponies pulling it just unhitched themselves from it, and wondered off, uncaring.

"We're defeated already," he thought.  "There's little point of going on if nopony else is even trying..."

"Hey, you there!"

ThunderWhip looked at the direction of the calling.  It was a sodden earth pony, who would of looked respectable except for the fact that he was covered head to hoof in dirt grime.

"Yeah, you, the pegasus.  I think the Guards are looking for you."

ThunderWhip flew down to the pony.

"What?  Why?" he asked.

"I dunno.  I head them asking for a golden pegasus, and I wager that it's you."

He then remembered what he did on the battlefield today.  Was that actually today?  It feels as if weeks have past since then... but in truth, it was only five hours ago.

He looked down at himself.  He never though of himself as golden, and particularly not now, with his hooves dirtied from his chore.  But perhaps destiny had something in story for him.

"Thank you," he said to the earth pony, as he took to the air again.  True enough, there was a group of the Coalition Guards, with their distinctive brass armor.  One of them must of spotted him, reared up and was pointed at him.  Another shouted.

"You there!  Come here!"

ThunderWhip landed between them.

"I heard that you were looking for a golden pegasus."

"Yes.  The Minister of the Coalition is looking for one."

"Apparently he ended up halting the enemy's charge today," the other guard added.

"Was it you?"

ThunderWhip did not know what to say.  "All I did was fight, good gentlecolts...  Fight and live..."

"He must not be him then."

ThunderWhip couldn't recall really much what happened after he stole the sword, the griffins shortly made a beeline to him, yet he eluded them.  By the time he looked back at the ground the   He then flew back to Canterlot over the reserve regiments trying to find his own regiment.  He managed to find a small group of twenty or so other pegasi and flew back with them, but they were from a scattering of regiments.  A few were from his own, but he never knew them as they were the older veterans.  Conversation was basically non-existent between them as they kept pace with the infantry below.  On arrival, they were already some of the last to get to Canterlot, and the duties were already assigned for them.  And since then, he had been lifting buckets to build a wall and watch the morale of the troops droop further.

The guards had already turned their backs to him, searching around to find their golden pegasus.

He heard one mumble, "This must been somepony's imagination..."

"Yeah, but Lance swears that he saw one fly out of that circle..."

"Circle you say?" ThunderWhip interrupted.

"Yeah, do you know anything about it?"

"Well, you see, I'm a pegasus archer, but during the battle I ran out of arrows after downing a few griffins.  I tried to find another weapon for me to keep on, but all I could find were pikes..."

"Please hurry up.  We don't have all night..."

"I then challenged a group of enemy unicorns, as I wanted a sword."

"Were they the Crystal Unicorns?"

"I would assume so, they were all pale..."

"The Crystal Unicorns were in the center of the enemy army" the left guard commented to the right.

"Sir, I would like you to follow us."

ThunderWhip, already had his hoof on the hilt of the sword, ready to show it to them to prove his point, but they already decided.

"B-But of course."

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She watched the trail of flame dart across the sky, yet it quickly got swallowed up by the darkness.  She wished that she was just a filly and could make a wish, but those days of innocence were over.

She looked around herself, there was nopony else there.  It was a rare time indeed.  She looked down at herself.  She still had her perfectly white coat and slender body.  She also had her longer than normal horn, giving her that pinnacle of elegance.

Thinking back, she could remember a ponystale about of the radiance of beauty.

Radiance...

Radiance the Prince in Saddle Lake, now Radiance, Commander of the Saddle Lake Division.

But always, Radiance, my brother.

He was younger than her, by several years, but he was the expected heir of the Saddle Lake Kingdom.  He was always eager to learn as he was young, always willing to help out for the slightest trouble any one in his family had.  He was just so gentle and kind.  He grew up as very nice gentlecolt, always wanting for the protection and preservation of his family.

But now he is gone, with the Army of Everfree -- under the command of that earth pony, ArgentHeart.

Times have certianly changed.

She remembers that day when the Coalition was created, not far from the spot were she was standing currently.  It was over the collapse of the Free States that existed at the edge of the central range.  In theory it used to be under the protection of a western kingdom, however they failed in the duties that they were responsible for doing causing the Free Pony States to be forced to fend for themselves.  Eventually demands were made on the Free Pony States which they revolted and compiled their militias.  The revolt was expected to be crushed quickly and decisively, though that was when this mysterious ArgentHeart appeared.  Perhaps it was just a trick of fate, yet this earth pony commander decisively defeated the western army.  The question then arose whom would be the protector of the Free Pony States.  Tensions heightened between Everfree and the Saddle Lake Kingdom who both bordered the territory.  When the Free Pony States' armed force merged with the forces from Everfree, Saddle Lake was on the verge of declaring war.  However, an meeting was arranged to hopefully settle the conflict bloodlessly.  Interestingly, after two days of intence negotiations, it would be BerylDusk, the leader of Everfree itself who would change his iron stance that the Free States have already joined the nation of Everfree and suggest the creation of the Coalition.  His arguement was that we all need to protect all ponies, and unity was the only way to do so.

It would be there that everything changed.  Ultimately, it was a method that was to break down the borders of the kingdoms to let the assist each other when in need and to secure the longitivity of the Free States.  The Council created by the leaders of the regions in Everfree, Saddle Lake, Northern Hayseed, and represenitives of the young Free Pony Towns, elected a single leader to be the Minister of the Coalition.

And that was me, CelestialSky, the Princess of Saddle Lake.

Now, First Minister of the Canterlot Coalition.

But scarcely three months passed and then there was this war.

There was then a knock on the door, and the guards entered.  Their brass armor was still polished, giving their shine in the room, and behind them was a palomino pegasus still wearing his saddlebag, with a quiver and an unstrung recurve bow hung on the outside.

"Not exactly golden," she thought, "but close enough."

The guards bowed their heads, but the pegasus did not.

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ThunderWhip saw the guards bow in front of him, yet he didn't know what to do himself.  He remembered that in training an entire hour was dictated by the Drill Captain's harsh voice:  "Pegasi don't bow!  We never wish to get closer to the ground!  We bow to Nopony!"  Yet a salute felt ridiculous in this situation.  True, the Minister of the Coalition was in theory the peak of command, it truthfully did not have much power in comparison to the leaders of the kingdoms.

Yet perhaps it could be the shock of beauty?

He shook that thought out of his head.  He was here to do his duty, not time to drift off...

In her delicate voice, she dismissed the guards who exited the door, both giving ThunderWhip a glance as they passed with their polished brass armor.

With their exit, she then rested her violet eyes on him with her finely shaped face.  Her body was still facing the window that she was looking out of when they entered.

"So are you the pegasus that saved the Army?"

Once again, ThunderWhip was stunned by her sight.  It was one of the few things that he was not taught to have a defense against...  He coughed in his throat.

"Yes, madam.  I never realize that I did though... Until the guards started talking..."

He noticed that he was stuttering just slightly.  He once again cursed at himself in his thoughts.

"I see.  So what did you do?"

He reached back with his right hoof, and pulled at the hilt of the sword hidden under his saddle bag, and drew it out fully.  He tried to make it as impressive looking as possible.  ThunderWhip really didn't understand why.

"I procured this after I challenged a group of unicorns to a duel."

He felt like boasting about this achievement, how he swindled the sword from them.  Though, it was more in the situation of chance rather than actual talent...

"And that caused them to stop?" she looked at him with curiosity.

ThunderWhip's heart seemed to beat a little faster.  "Well, a whole crowd formed around me." He paused, then with a little grin, "You should of seen their faces after I knocked over the first one."  "Yes, it was a bit of a lie," he thought, "but still true as I did knock out one of them with the stone..."

"Impressive."

"Yep!  And that's how I got this trophy."  He held up the sword for dramatic effect.

"So what is your name?"

ThunderWhip deflated slightly at that question.

"Err, ThunderWhip, pegasus of the Fourth Pegasi Archers in the Canterlot Coalition Pegasi Division."

It would then be right then when he gave a brief salute.

He had never felt as embarrassed before in his life.  Only soldier's discipline kept him from falling apart right then and there.

She just gave him a slight smile then looked out the window again.

"I have a proposition for you.  You can probably can tell, the morale of this army is extremely low if not nonexistent at this point."  A frown began to appear on her face.  "You see, I need to engineer hope, just like the gatehouse is of stone.  Yet this just might be even more important than that actual gatehouse..."

She then looked at ThunderWhip, her eyes a slightly deeper color of purple now.

"I need you create hope, to raise the morale of the ponies.  Perhaps your story will do that."

She then looks down at the ground, "The only thing that is keeping what remnants together right now is the geography, as the enemy most likely is now blocking the only exit from Canterlot in the valley below..."

ThunderWhip then spoke up.  "Madam, I will do what you wish.  I'll try my best to save the men from the defeat in their hearts.  My duty is for victory and I serve under your grace."

And he gave a bow as it seemed to be the most natural thing to do in this situation.

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