The Fall of Our Tyrants

Chapter 1: Beginnings

Beep-beep! Beep-beep! Beep-beep!

“Uhhhh,” I groaned, the alarm clock piercing through my ears, “Shut up. Shut up. Shut up.” Extending my hoof I tried clumsily to turn it off, or at best smash it to pieces.

First try, “Nope.”

Second try, “Nope.”

Third time’s a charm.

Thwack!

‘Success!’ I thought, arising from my semi-comfortable bed. Rubbing my eyes, I was greeted by a slither of sunlight through my tattered curtains. Looking down at the floor, at the clock and its sparkle batteries, I whispered to myself.

“Another beautiful day in Section Five. Hail Cadence and our glorious ruler Celestia!”I said in a dry, sarcastic tone.

Moving up from the bed, I trod on the batteries of my morning enemy.

“OW! Fuck! So this is your payback, huh?” I said shaking my hoof at the broken contraption. Crouching down, I placed the batteries back into the clock. Red numbers appeared on the scratched screen.

“Eight CR, huh? Damn, must be a record,” I grumbled, placing the clock back on the nightstand.

“See you tomorrow morning!” I said, waving my hoof at it, still half-asleep.

I walked over to my curtains and pulled them open. The sunlight shined bright in my eyes.

“AH!” I exclaimed covering my eyes. Not a good idea to look outside just after having woken up. After letting my eyes adjust to the light, I braved the window again.

I looked out at my home. Section Five. A sea of buildings provided the landscape. And towering above them was Cadance’s castle. A magnificent structure, built with dark purple stone. A striking contrast to the decrepit buildings that lay beneath it. Banners hung from some of the taller buildings which pictured Cadance staring at us, embezzled with slogans such as ‘No pony escapes my eye!’ and ‘I am always watching you. Never forget’.
My gaze turned towards the street. Ponies exited from their homes, off to another day of work. Wanted posters had hung on some of the houses, though I was still too tired to read them. It didn’t help that the posters were a bit distant from me.

I stepped away from the window. I made my way to my bathroom and I stared into the grimy mirror. I could see my frazzled light and dark blue mane and the bags that had formed under my eyes.

I yawned
“ Oh, my manes a mess!” I exclaimed. Pulling out my mane-brush, I brushed it straight, my mane now lying somewhat comfortable next to my horn. I ran the cold water tap, gathered some up in my hoof and splashed it in my face.

“Ah! Refreshing!” I said looking in the mirror, a slight smile on my face.

“Ok! I’m awake. Now it’s time to get changed”. I trotted to my wardrobe and opened it, revealing seven identically white uniforms as well as other miscellaneous clothing.

‘I wonder which colour to pick today?’ I thought jokingly. “This one goes with my mane,” I said pointing at the far left uniform. “But this one just screams Moonlight.” I said pointing to the far right one.

‘Ah hell. Let’s be spontaneous!’ I thought, grabbing the central uniform.

I pulled it over my body, covering my grey coat. I could feel the rough cloth against my skin, but after so many years of wearing it, I’d become desensitized to it. I stared at my reflection in the mirror.

“Pretty as a picture,” I said with a smile. I galloped downstairs, eager to tuck into my oats. Once I finished breakfast, I walked towards the front door and stepped outside into the streets of Section Five.

*** *** ***

I hated Section Five.

Sure, I put on a smile on the outside. But inside I detested this place. I hated the buildings. The way the people were treated. I even hated the sky. If something as innocent as the sky could be hated, then something truly is wrong. But I keep on smiling; because that’s the only way I can keep my sanity in check.

I walked down the street on my way to work. I had seen ponies grudgingly trotting to wherever they work, emotionless, like zombies. This is what the Sections did to you, if you let them have their way with you. Turned you into a husk of whatever you were before.

I turned my head to spot one of the families. A female unicorn with pale pink hair, brandishing a calculator for a cutie mark, along with a green earth pony, who bore a hammer on his rear. Two fillies walked slowly behind them, most likely on their way to school.

Seeing their cutie marks reminded me of mi-ohhhh wait, I didn’t have one. I’m a blank flank, though nowadays this is more of a blessing than a curse. You see, when a pony receives their cutie mark, they are taken away by the Authority for ‘examination’. This is where they check to see if your talent is beneficial to the Celestia regime. If it is, then you are free to go. However, if it is not, you are taken to ‘modification’. ‘Modification’, through technology unknown to me, forcibly removes their talent and cutie mark, and changes it to something deemed ‘beneficial’ to the regime. I hear the process is...painful. Both physically and mentally. To think, to have the one thing that makes you unique removed and you are forced to become someone you are not. The thought made me shudder.

I carried on trotting. I was coming on to the more dangerous sections of my street. I kept my head down, not wanting to accidently give a ‘look’ to any of the Authority members, or any of the ponies walking around for that matter. I walked past a tall grey post with a speaker on top.

“Anypony caught coercing with members of the Phoenix will be rehabilitated immediately. If you see anypony doing so, report them to your nearest Authority member immediately for a reward. Hail Celestia!” it blurted out in a tinny voice.

“Reward,huh? Yeah, right.” I muttered under my breath, rolling my eyes. Any smart pony would know that that was just propaganda, but then any smart pony would know not to make a comment like that. I wasn’t a smart pony, but I was smart enough to know to follow the latter.

Oh! I should also explain one other thing! How could I forget? The Phoenix. They’re rebel fighters within our section, fighting against Cadance for control. They’re terrorists. Well, that’s what we had to call them. Otherwise, better prepare some tea and scones for a visit from the Authority. The Phoenix hasn’t been successful in their conquest, being little more than a mosquito bite on Cadance’s ass. They try though which is more than what other ponies can say.

I looked at the walls of some of the buildings I was walking past. Many had been emblazoned with green spray paint in the shape of a phoenix. Others involved vulgar language directed at Cadance, but it was hard to see what it was as it had been mostly cleaned off.

Suddenly, shouts erupted from one of the houses that I was approaching. Looking up with caution, I saw Authority members pulling ponies out by their manes, some wearing red uniforms with a phoenix on the rear. The homeowners were thrown into a wagon and were taken to who-knows-where. The Phoenix members however were forced to lie down.

One of the Authority members pulled out a small pistol and slowly trotted down the line. One-by-one , she shot the ponies in the head. There were no screams. Just bangs. Blood and brain matter trickled down the sidewalk and into the adjacent drains. The bodies were removed and a cleaner pony went to work on the sidewalk. Nopony said anything. Nopony even looked up. It wasn’t surprising, just another daily occurrence. And it made me sick. But I was just as bad as those ponies. I couldn’t do anything. I was just one mare. And with that thought, I looked down at the ground again and carried on trotting.

*** *** ***

I logged into my computer. I worked in one of the office buildings that towered over the rest of Section Five. I had a decent view of it from my desk. The sun was still high in the sky, showering the buildings with a blinding ray of light.

A piece of paper had been placed on my desk, detailing a time and location. I shook my head and chucked it in the bin. No doubt it had been from Stone Throw. That stallion had wanted a piece of my flank since the first time I walked in. I had told him already that he wasn’t really my type. Nor any stallion really. But still, he insisted.

“No. You want me; you just don’t know it yet.” I had remembered him saying when I first turned him down. I thought it was a joke at first. Now it made me giggle, even if it was creepy.

My work was boring. I didn’t know what I was doing. I just typed words into the computer. But somehow this benefitted the regime, so who was I to argue? I was bored so I pressed a buzzer near my computer. Slowly sipping some water and staring out at the window, I waited. And waited. Finally, a familiar voice broke my daydream.

“What’s the problem, Moonlight? Have you tried turning it on and off again?”
I turned to face the pale yellow stallion, his brown mane sitting comfortably on top of his head. He bore a screwdriver for a cutie mark.

“No problem. Was bored so I thought you’d give me some company, Spark Plug.” I said with an expanding smile.

Spark Plug was the one of the office’s computer repairpony. And my closest friend. I’d known him since I was just a filly. He was a lot smarter than me.

He sighed, shook his head and then smiled.

“You know I could get in trouble for this. And I’m sure there are ponies in need of genuine help with their computers.”

“Ah, there are other repairponies for their problems.” I said with a wave of my hoof.
Spark Plug trotted over and sat down. He looked in the wastebin and pulled out the piece of paper I had thrown in there moments ago.

“’10 LR. On the corner by Mane Square and Sweet Lane. And bring that fine flank of yours.’ Let me guess, Stone Throw?”

“Who else?” I replied, still casually drinking the water.

“You know, you should report him or something if he’s getting on your nerves.”

“Ah. It amuses me how much he tries. Plus, nobody would listen to me if I did report him. So I’ll leave him be.”

Spark Plug looked at me and shrugged. He rolled the piece of paper back up and placed it back in the bin.

“So how are things going?” He asked, with a slightly worried look on his face.

“I’m fine. Well, as fine as you can be during these times. Mom and Dad are also doing okay. You?”
He placed his hoof on his forehead. His face turned slightly grim. Brushing back his mane with his hoof, he sighed.

“Sky Blue and her family were taken for rehabilitation today”
Rehabilitation. That word caused fear in the hearts of any who heard it. It was just a fancy word for execution.

I frowned, and placed a hoof on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry. I know she was a good friend”

﹡Spark Plug lifted his head, tears forming like crystals in his eyes.

“Thanks,” He said with a small smile, and he wiped his eyes “But what’s happened has happened. I shouldn’t let it get to me”.

I was concerned about how quick he was to get over it, but it’s happened so many times before that the concern rapidly disappeared. As I said, this was daily life. Not everypony is around forever. Especially in these times.

I stood back up and walked over to the window. My work area wasn’t that far up, so I could easily make out the streets below. Authority members stormed a house on one side of the street. I couldn’t hear the screams, but I knew they were there. On the other side, Phoenix members had been blindfolded and stood against a washed out blue wall. An Authority member wielded a weapon that fired at an amazing rate. The shots were muffled by the windows. The wall wasn’t blue any more. The bodies slumped against it like dolls.
I looked down at the mess that was happening below me.
“It’s getting worse, isn’t it?” I asked, placing my forehoof against the window.

Spark Plug walked up behind me.

“Huh. I don’t remember a time where it was better for it to get worse. This looks like the same as it was ten years ago” he replied.

I slumped down on the floor.

“This is all the Phoenix’s fault. The Authority was at least tolerable before the Phoenix’s rise. And we were safer, knowing it was less likely we were going to receive a visit. But now, they’ve agitated them, and the Authority are more hostile than ever! How many houses have they stormed? How many ponies have they killed?! How many foals and fillies?!”
In a fit of anger, I bucked the wastebin, it’s contents spilling over the floor.
I fell to the floor again. I placed my face in my hooves and sighed.

“I’m fed up of waking up at night, expecting to hear my door crashing down and to be taken off to my doom. Or worrying that I won’t see you, Mom or Dad the next day because you were taken for rehabilitation.”

I started shaking, on the verge of breaking down. I could only keep smiling for so long. I had placed all my fears and hate within the depths of my mind, and now the dam holding them back was about to break.

I felt a hoof on my shoulder. I looked up. Spark Plug was smiling down at me. I hugged him and I began to calm down. The dam slowly rebuilt itself.

He whispered in my ear.
“We’ll always be around, Moonlight. Me, your mom, your dad. We’re not going anywhere anytime soon.”

I let go of him.

“Thanks. You’ve always been a good friend, Sparkie” I said with a smile, some tears trickling down my cheeks.

“I told you not to call me that anymore” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Ah. You love it,” I said, giggling slightly, “Well I think our session is over for today. I’ll let you get back to work”

“Yeah. Looks like you’ve got some work to catch up on too” he said in a sarcastic tone, looking at the logon screen on my computer.
I smiled innocently. We hoof-bumped and I watched him leave.
Spark Plug. He was always a good friend and a good shoulder to cry on. He was always there for me. And I was always there for him. Friendship. One of the few things that got you by in this world.
I sat down and stared blankly at the screen, resisting the temptation to press that button again.

*** *** ***

Night had befallen Section Five. The streets were quiet, save for the odd shouts or buzz of a street light.

I was on my way to see my parents. This was a daily routine for me. Not only to see them, but to make sure they were safe. The moon shone bright in the sky, cascading white light onto the streets. I had always thought the night beautiful. The way the stars dotted the sky like tiny spotlights on a field of black. The way the wind blew cool against my face and mane. It was bliss. My moment of escape from this place.

I knocked on the door of the small house. The door cautiously opened halfway. A purple mare with a dark blue mane poked her head out of the side of the door, her horn standing proud on the top of it. She had wrinkles under her eyes, from both age and exhaustion.

“Hi, Mom!” I said with glee.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

“Oh Moonlight! It’s you!”

She pulled me in for a hug. I could tell she had been worried as I felt her chest rapidly rise up and down, slowing down as we finally released. She welcomed me in and I entered the living room. It was well-lit, the red of the walls making me feel warm.

“Your father has just finished the dinner.” she said, walking me to the wooden table.

“Wait? You’re letting Dad cook? You remember what happened last time? I was sure that he had intentionally tried to poison me”.
Mom stifled a giggle.

“Honey, be nice. Sure his food isn’t...the best. But he’s learning.”

“I suppose. Let’s just hope this time it’s a step up from whatever thing was on our plates last time.”

After waiting what felt like an eternity, Dad finally rolled in with the “food”. He had a dark-blue coat with a faded green mane.

“SOUP’S ON EVERYPONY!” he shouted.
I face-hoofed.

Dad was eccentric. But I idolised him and with every reason. He was the toughest stallion I had known. He fought during the war as a soldier in Celestia’s army. ‘Sword Dancer’ he was known as by his comrades. ‘Idiot’ by the higher ups. During the war, Celestia’s science team had created the first guns to be seen in Equestria. Every soldier was outfitted with them. Except for Dad.

‘Only fillies use guns’ he would say. Dad was brave, though some would say foolish. Instead of using guns, he would run at the enemy, sword in mouth, dodging out of the way of bullets. He would slice through anypony in his way. ‘A master at work’ his comrades would say. Once I was five, he taught me everything he knew: parrying, where on the body to stab, what end to stab with. Anything to do with swords, he taught me.

I did say eccentric, right? I mean who in their right mind would teach their filly how to fight? With a sword?
I still have his sword, buried somewhere in my house gathering dust.

“Umbra, shush! You’ll wake the neighbours!”

My dad’s face went slightly red.

“Oops. Sorry honey.”

It was hard to believe that after everything that’s happened in the world, Mom’s still worried about waking the neighbours. Such a normal thing to worry about. It made me smile.

Dad passed me a plate. I looked down at the mush, hoping it wouldn’t move. Actually it might be better if it moved. At least it would be off my plate. I moved the green gunk around with my fork, gagging slightly at the way it moved.

“Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh” I thought as I lifted the fork to my mouth, placing it in.

“Ohmygoshohmygoshoh...oh? Oh my gosh. OH MY GOSH!”

The mush was...nice. Really nice. Impossibly nice! My taste buds danced in joy as I swallowed the glorious food. I immediately scoffed it all down.

My dad leaned back with a smile.

“I knew I’d get it right eventually” he said casually.

This was weird. Unprecedented. But who was I to complain? I let out some gas, and held my plate up. With a cheesy grin, I looked at my Dad.

“Seconds?”

After dinner, I walked around my parent’s house. It wasn’t small, but it wasn’t big. Paintings and photo’s adorned the yellow walls of the main corridor. The photos were mostly of Dad in the army. Sword in mouth. Helmet too big.

There was a picture of me as a foal. I’m glad Spark Plug hasn’t seen this. That would be pretty embarrassing.

I walked past the basement. I stopped. My ears perked up.

“Was that... a whisper?” I thought. I was about to open the door when suddenly Mom appeared out of nowhere like a ghost.

“AH!” I screamed, jumping back, almost knocking a vase over.

My Mom smiled at me and giggled.

“Aw, you were always such a scaredy-pony Moonlight. Now come on, your Dad’s made dessert”
My mind was wracked with joy. Dessert. Hopefully, it was as good as dinner. But I was still curious about what I thought I heard.

“Mom, I... I think I heard a whisper in the basement. You want me to check it out?”
Mom looked at me confused, and then giggled.

“Whisper, honey? Ha, most likely the wind. I’ve been meaning to get Dad to fix that hole,” she said looking at the basement door. She faced me again.

“Like I said, scaredy-pony” and she patted my mane.

“I’m not a scaredy-pony!” I thought.

I looked back at the basement door. It was quiet now. I shrugged.

“Guess it was the wind” I whispered to myself, and I followed behind Mom.

*** *** ***

“One out of two, Dad. Not bad” I thought, feeling slightly queasy from dessert. I’d left my parents and made my way back home. The moon still sat in the sky, though it’s light was smudged out by the clouds.
“Looks like it’s going to rain” I muttered to myself. I picked up my pace, not wanting to get stuck in the downpour.

I crashed through the door, narrowly avoiding the droplets of water that slowly started falling. I yawned; my eye’s slightly stinging from tiredness.
I crawled up the stairs, towards the comfort of my bed. Reaching my destination, I flopped on the soft mattress. The moonlight was now non-existent as I looked out my window. The rain was picking up as the window became speckled with drops. I yawned for a final time.

“Goodnight, Section Five, you worthless piece of shit” I grumbled as I pulled the duvet over my body, ready to get lost in dreams of what life could be like.

The rain splashed against the window sill, heavier than it was before. I closed my eyes and let the darkness take me away, to peace.