The Fall of Our Tyrants

Prologue

Once upon a time in the magical land of Equestria, two benevolent sisters ruled over their pony subjects: Princess Celestia; the bringer of the Sun and Princess Luna; the ruler of the night. Under their leadership, ponies would be taught compassion, trust, forgiveness and most importantly; friendship. With these teachings in hand, Equestria was peaceful, prosperous and tranquil. The sisters did not rule with an iron fist, but instead considered themselves equal to their pony subjects, and thus treated everypony with equal respect. They were fair, and allowed their ponies to say, believe, and choose, what they wanted.
As time passed, a small organization, known only as the Ponies for Independence Party (PIPs), wanted an Equestria without rulers or leaders, where the public would make the decisions. They did not believe that the Princesses had the right to rule over them. The Princesses however, whilst slightly concerned behind the teachings of the party, disregarded them as a threat to their rule and allowed the group to continue with their preaching.

Eventually, and unfortunately for the Sisters, the PIPs increased exponentially in size. As more ponies joined under the PIPs banner, including high ranking officials within the Equestrian military, the Sisters decided that they must take action against this rising opposition. This involved the banning of public speeches made by members of the party, the rejection of propositions for protests, and taking down posters encouraging ponies to join the PIPs.

This only made things worse for the Sisters, as by doing this, they merely provided fuel for the burning fire of the PIPs. and gave more ponies a reason to join them.
Months passed, and the PIPs had raised an army that rivalled even the Equestrian Military, allowing them to issue an ultimatum to the Sisters: resignation or war. The Sisters knew that they could not abandon their beloved subjects, but they did not want a war on their hooves. The choice however was made for them, as the PIPs declared war.

And so began a bloody new chapter in the Equestrian history books.

Death and destruction filled the years that followed. To help with the war effort, Celestia focused more on the areas of science, technology and the arcane. This did not end the war quickly, it made it worse. As new technology was introduced, the destructive power of newly-developed weapons became quickly apparent. Worse still, the PIPs would scavenge these weapons off the bodies of the Equestrian military, turning the war into a stalemate. As a last resort, the Sisters reached out to the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony to end the war.The Bearers had not intervened in the war yet through trying to protect themselves and their families. However, once the Sisters had asked for their help, they felt it necessary to finally act. Utilising the Elements, the Bearers attempted to make the PIPs peaceful towards the Princesses. It worked, the PIPs no longer felt the usual hatred towards the sisters, but by then it had been too late. The war had taken its toll on both Equestria and its inhabitants. Cities such as Hoofington and Manehatten lay in absolute destitution or were completely obliterated. Bodies littered the battlefields of the once peaceful lands. The once beautiful landscape had now become a rotting corpse.

It is the subject of speculation for the motives of what proceeded after the war, whether the war had psychologically damaged Celestia, or whether it had encouraged a part of her buried deep within to come forth and take control of the once kind Princess. Regardless, Celestia ushered in brutal new changes to Equestria.

These changes divided the land surrounding Canterlot into five distinct sections, each controlled by somepony specifically chosen for the task. Section Five was controlled by Princess Cadence. Her husband, the newly promoted General Shining Armor, ruled over Section Four. The mysterious Parliament ruled Section Three. Princess Luna, Section Two. And finally,Celestia, the self proclaimed Queen of Equestria, controlled Section One.

This had not been the only new change to occur. A mysterious new force known as the Authority began to rise. They were the police force of Equestria, under Celestia’s orders. They showed no positive emotions, and were fuelled by everything that would come under the term ‘evil’. Anyone who showed rebellious attitudes or other actions considered ‘not acceptable’ by the new regime would swiftly receive a visit from the Authority, and would be taken to ‘rehabilitation’. Their dreaded black armour caused fear in the hearts of whoever saw it, wondering whether it would be them that would be taken next.

This is the world we live in. This is the world we die in. No hope. No freedom.

But there are some out there who fight back. Who oppose this tyranny. Whose cries fall on the deaf ears of the common pony to join them. And while their reasons vary, from revenge to morals, one thing remains certain; they still have hope. And although there are ponies out there that still have hope and joy buried within them, these lucky few, the ones who shout ‘No more!’, have allowed that hope to flourish and guide them. And it’s those who choose to show this hope, to show this fire and to show their fight, that are the faint glimmer of a light in this sea of darkness.

However, one question arises: is it worth it? These ponies have been fighting against these tyrants for years, to no avail. To no improvement of their lives.

Maybe it’s time to hang up the reins.

Maybe it’s time to give up.

Or maybe it’s time for a spark, for even the smallest spark can bring on the biggest change. And maybe, just maybe, this spark will have the power shine the darkness away. To become a beacon of hope for all ponies to follow.

Or maybe, it’s just a dream. A sick, twisted dream to keep the pain of clutching onto that last piece of hope, rather than letting it go.

Still, the statement stands. The statement that has become commonplace in pony society. That everypony thinks when they wake up in the morning, look out the window and gaze upon their Section:
This is the world we live in. This is the world we die in. No hope. No freedom.

Maybe it is time for a change.