The Glimmer Dilemma

by CartsBeforeHorses

Rating: teen
Tags: Adventure, Maud Pie, Violence, Princess Celestia, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Starlight Glimmer, Trixie, Science Fiction
Length: 23725

A war is close to breaking out, and the fate of Equestria hinges on Starlight Glimmer’s decisions.

<In the ground severed, to the sky together...>

A millennium ago, the Princesses and the self-declared Republic of Petra fought a war of succession in Equestria. The Petrans lost and retreated under the mountains, hidden from time itself. For years, the Petrans have waited to seize control of Equestria. Now Starlight Glimmer's time travels in Cloudsdale have shown them a winning strategy.

Maud Pie, who has Petran citizenship, brings Starlight and Trixie into the subterranean republic. As the situation teeters on the brink of war, Starlight discovers that she helped spark it. Now guilt-ridden, Starlight vows to preserve peace… hopefully without making anything worse!

Story takes place during season 8. Proofread by the amazing Typoglyphic. Creative consultants: The Parasprite and D48.

Published 2018-09-05 00:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2019-06-03 00:40:36 UTC

Chapter 2: Beneath The Mirror Lake

Twilight Sparkle: What a strange new world
I'm trying to make heads or tails of this strange new world
Sorting through the small details of this strange new world
What a strange new world.
The song ”Strange New World”

A snoozing Starlight Glimmer’s mind was ablaze with dozens of fleeting images.

Farmers reaped a weary crop from frigid pink fields. Diamonds rained across the sky. Old spires fell, greeted with cheers like the new year.

Two colors blended into indigo atop the sandy canvass. The fisher-minds cast out their thoughts and knew dolphin from shark. The dolphins were spared; the sharks were speared.

Only grey this time. Dark clouds choked out life, but also restored it. The masses converged on a single point of fury. Nothing withstood it.

These visions were both wonderful and horrible at the same time. Were they prophecy? Were they history? Starlight didn’t know, but she had the funny sense that she was somehow involved in those scenes…

Her head jerked awake, bouncing off the rubber inner-tube. It was just a dream. It wasn’t any more disturbing than some others that she’d had, so she shrugged it off.

The shimmering surface of the Last Prance Lake held Starlight’s inner-tube afloat. She stared at the ceiling where giant stalactites hung like icicles, flickering in the torch light. Starlight had been staring up all day, her first full day in Petra after resting at Maud’s Petran house the night before. Up was the one direction Starlight could look that made her feel like she was on a vacation. A vacation she wanted, instead of some political conflict she didn’t ask for.

The other ponies around made Starlight feel like she was in an alternate universe where ponykind had split up into two different species. Two contrasting scenes played out.

The first scene was on the shore, where a young adult mare with a sterling silver cutie mark stood, posing for a picture. Beside her was a burly stallion with a brown coat and a pickaxe cutie mark. Presumably her boyfriend. They smiled as a curly-haired pink mare with a corundum cutie mark took a picture with a high-tech camera: slim and metallic. The three were all giggling for seemingly no reason. Was something funny? Strangely, they weren’t speaking. Nopony around was.

The second scene was a few feet from the three friends. A forlorn, cyan-coated pony with a sailboat cutie mark was sprawled on a beach towel. He chugged down the last of his apple schnapps like water in the desert, taking obnoxiously loud gulps. He tossed the empty bottle into the lake. Its splash sprayed cold water onto Starlight and another mare in an inner tube.

“Watch it, you drunkard ass!” she shrieked, as if he’d punched her. Like Anthracite, she had Princess Luna’s anachronistic accent and annunciations, but without the thee’s and thou’s. Also, she shouted just like Luna.

The mare grabbed the bottle and threw it back at the sailboat-marked stallion, and it smashed into pieces on the shore. Starlight glimpsed the mare’s flank… sure enough. Her mark was a collage of planets and stars invisible to Petra. The trio of photo-taking ponies didn’t notice anything. The pickaxe mark pony stood by the shore while his girlfriend snapped a solo picture of him. It was like they had no long-term memories, so they were meticulously documenting every moment.

A stone minotaur golem shook the ground as it stepped between the drunk and the mare, ending the altercation. Starlight once again wondered how golems knew what actions to take. Could a golem act intelligently on its own? Or was it being controlled remotely by a distant cop?

The cutie mark divide fascinated Starlight. The jovial, fun-loving ponies all had cutie marks of rock-related professions. These must’ve been the ponies who created mining golems, sent them to work, and then sat around. Obviously they’d be happy, Starlight thought. The depressed and angry ponies had cutie marks which couldn’t be lived out underground.

Why didn’t these poor souls just leave Petra? Who was keeping them out… or in? Had the princesses cordoned off the mountain, or was it the Entrenchment Starlight had heard about? Either way, the divide was a horrendous chasm.

A loud whistle tooted. Immediately, the ponies exited the lake and shore, walking off towards a distant building carved in the rock. Ponies were lining up in front of it. Starlight wondered if the lake was closed. However, nopony asked Starlight to leave. Now she was alone in the lake.

“It’s 17:00, payday time! Aren’t you coming to get your weekly garnets?” a thirty-something aquamarine stallion with an airplane cutie mark shouted from the shore.

Starlight zapped herself over to him, leaving her inner tube behind.

“Woah! That’s rad. Never seen anypony teleport before,” he exclaimed, a grin on his face. His cutie mark was of an airplane. “Name’s High Flyer.”

Starlight smiled back. “I’m Starlight Glimmer. Forgive the personal question, but I’m a cutie mark expert. Have you ever actually flown an airplane?”

He gazed down, kicking the floor with his hoof. “No. It sucks. Don’t remind me of how bummed I always am.”

“Why don’t you go above ground?”

“I’m a Petran citizen. Equestria would deport me or interrogate me. So, the guards don’t usually let ponies leave unless they’re traders and smugglers, or reporters. Plus, the sandstorms are wicked brutal. Not all of us can teleport.”

“I couldn’t even teleport such a vast distance,” said Starlight. “You’d have to make a golem like Maud Pie’s to cross that desert.”

“Do you know Maud?”

“She’s my friend. How do you know her?”

“She’s helped ScryTech with lots of their gadgets, she’s prospected the last bit of pink diamonds to mine, and she’s a brilliant stand up comedienne.”

Starlight laughed. “Quite the renaissance mare! I haven’t seen her perform, but she’s not too talkative. I’m guessing anecdotes and humorous rants are off the table.”

“She only tells the most basic of jokes.”

“And she has the most mysterious of rocks in her possession, the only thing I’ve seen that makes her smile.”

“Oh, the Commander Stone?” High Flyer perked up. “She’s doing a demo of that later this week. We’ll all get to see what it can do.”

“She didn’t tell me,” Starlight sighed. “I guess that even ‘friends’ don’t get sneak peaks.”

High Flyer looked puzzled. “Why’d you say ‘friends’ like that?”

“Maud brought me to this politically-charged city when she knows that I don’t do politics on vacation. I kind of had a… bad past with politics. I try to be neutral now. Not everyone can be the same.”

“Props to that. Apolitical is a-okay.”

Starlight smiled. “Really? You respect my choice? Most ponies ask me how I could possibly be neutral in the face of whatever they say is a major problem.”

“I do respect your choice. I was neutral and very cynical for years, until the Sky Party came along. Anyways… It’s payday. Aren’t you getting those garnets?”

Starlight laughed. “I don’t work here. I’m an outsider, as if my horn didn’t give it away.”

High Flyer smiled. “One, you don’t need to work or live here to get garnets. Everypony in town gets free garnets every Friday… thanks to our mega-wealthy golem miners. Two, there’s unicorns and pegasi in Petra. Not many, but they exist. We’re a golem-based economy, and only earth pony magic can make golems.”

Starlight nodded. “I understand now. I do need spending money while I’m here.”

“Come on,” said High Flyer.

Starlight and High Flyer walked in the direction of the garnet-dispensary. The line was incredibly long, so they sat down at a nearby bench to wait for it to shorten.

“What do you spend your garnets on?” asked Starlight.

High Flyer shrugged. “Drugs, booze, gambling, prostitutes... I’ve swung ‘em all, sister! It’s all getting old, though, so I just dump the garnets in my bathtub now. Maybe if I ever leave Petra, I can buy a plane. I’ve done everything there is to do down here, said everything there is to say… most of us have, and most ponies have just stopped talking entirely. It’s super boring.”

She laughed. “Nopony in Last Prance except you has even said hello to me. I was starting to think that you’d all taken vows of silence like the Kirin.”

He shook his head no. “I think you mean ‘Qilin,’ but maybe that term is out of date. Anywho, Petrans are all telepathic, so there’s many things that you and I can’t hear. Even for us, though, speech is--”

Starlight put her hoof up. “Wait, wait, wait. You’re all telepathic? How?”

he thought to her.

Starlight chuckled. “I know how telepathy works. I meant, how do all Petrans have such a rare ability?”

High Flyer grinned. “Our ancestors were the alicorns’ siblings: birthed from the god and goddess Terrarch and Primehoof. We got earth pony DNA, they got pegasus and unicorn DNA; they got immortality, we got long mortal lifespans... but we all got innate telepathy. They were only female and couldn’t reproduce. Our ancestors were both sexes and had lots of kids. We wanted democracy and earth magic freedom. They wanted monarchy and for earth ponies to mostly be serfs and manual laborers. Naturually, war broke out. They won the Regal War, they’re in Canterlot; we lost the war, we’re banished under a mountain. It’s an armistice that’s in place to this day, with no treaty.”

Starlight blinked. “I didn’t know that Luna and Celestia had siblings. Are there any other superpowers that you inherited, besides telepathy?”

“Nope. Everything else we can do, a trained earth pony could do. Look at Maud; she’s not Petran.”

“She sounded just like you do, criticizing Petran life as no life at all.”

“Yep. Like I said, I’ve done everything.” He started rattling off, “I’ve been to all five states in the Petran Republic: Alabastra, Darklahoma, Last Prance, Rockistan, Volcansk, and every city within them. I’ve had sex with every mare in Petra who said yes. I’ve worked every job that I’m qualified for. I’ve read every book that I can. Seen every band, watched every play and movie. I even played dodgeball with dynamite once.”

“But... why?” Starlight asked, her head jolting.

He smiled. “Just because.”

High Flyer and Starlight arrived at the stone-carved garnet dispensary. A giant wooden sign read “Garnet Allotments” in red letters. At least, that’s what Starlight thought it said, it was written in bizarre text.

ꝽARNЭT A⅃OTMЭNTʃ

The line snaked around the block. Outside, Trixie Lulamoon stood, giving flyers to ponies in line. She was doing a few cantrips for attention, like basic levitation tricks.

Trixie beamed, gesturing to the ponies in line with an outstretched hoof. “Be sure not to miss Sunday’s magic show, starring a real unicorn… the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

She glanced over at Starlight and smiled.

“Starlight! Where’ve you been? I haven’t seen you since I ran off and started planning this show!”

Starlight chuckled. “And whose fault is that?”

Trixie gave Starlight and High Flyer each a flyer.

MAꝽIC ŞOW OF A LIFETIME
ÞЭ ꝽREAT & POWERFUL TRIXIE, A REAL UNICORN!

A picture of Trixie surrounded by magic dust and fireworks.

TЭЯIFIC TRICKʃ! HEART-ʃTOPPINꝽ ʃTUNTʃ! ALL AGЭʃ!
ADMIßION ONLY 200 GARNЭTʃ!
LAST PRANCE ARENA AT 16:00
ÞIʃ ʃUNDAY ʃUNDAY ʃUNDAY!

“I can’t read this very well. Is this on Sunday?” Starlight snarked. “Trixie, I’d like you to meet High Flyer.”

Trixie walked over and shook his hoof.

“I’ll totes go to your show. Something new is always cool.”

Trixie giggled. “It’s funny. You sound like Rarity, but you use slang like Rainbow Dash.”

“Who are they?” asked High Flyer.

Trixie blinked. “The Elements of Harmony, of course. Equestria’s sole line of defense against evil. Well, besides Trixie and Starlight, that is.”

She smiled in a self-congratulatory manner. Starlight blushed.

High Flyer laughed. “Oh, you mean those ponies. Equestria’s famous jewelry-armed hit squad. I knew of the group, but not their names. That ‘sole defense of Equestria’ part is very true. Petra’s defense relies on more powerful ponies than just a few, ever since the Regal War.”

Starlight knew very well about her friends’ absolute necessity to Equestria's past and future, and Equestria's massive reliance on them, but she didn’t care to bring it up.

“So does Petra do, like, all that friendship stuff that Equestria does?” asked Trixie.

High Flyer looked puzzled. “I dunno how to answer. Are you asking if Petrans have friendships? Of course. I'd like to think I'm making friends right now! I thought friendship was a common thing everywhere.”

Trixie shook her head. “Well yeah, but... Trixie means, do you make everything about friendship’s importance? Is Petra run based on friendship?”

The line inched along. Nopony else had seemed interested in the trio’s discussion thus far. Perhaps, like High Flyer, they’d seen and heard it all. He gazed seriously at Starlight and Trixie.

“You gotta promise you won't get mad at me.”

They both nodded.

He said in a serious but calm tone, “Petrans don’t make everything about friendship. In Equestria, it’s a cult. Making friends with everypony around doesn’t improve friendship; it dilutes wine with vinegar. I’d rather have just three good friends than thirteen okay friends. When you and your next-door neighbor call each other ‘friend,’ that’s weird. I’ve read loads of Equestrian books, and I’ve seen the word ‘friend’ a million times, but the word ‘acquaintance’ barely shows up. I've even heard that there's entire schools in Equestria just for friendship. Which might be why Equestria’s technology lags behind Petra’s.”

Trixie grinned deviously at Starlight. “Oh, Trixie agrees, friendship schools are lame.”

Slightly embarrassed, Starlight asked, “If you don’t have the national ethos of friendship, then don’t you all have a bunch of disagreements with each other?”

High Flyer smiled. “That’s the cool thing! Our country is a democracy with civil discourse and debate, not a monarchy with hate speech laws. To us, a bunch of opinions is better than unanimity. Disagreements are how voters are exposed to ideas which might change their minds. Our government only has validity if everyone takes part.

“The Alicorn Regime has no choice but to promote ‘friendship.’ To allow even a pinch of disagreement could threaten their rule. Ponies might get mad at the same old royal laws and decrees that they can’t change. The Regime has lasted a thousand years. They’re not stupid. The pimping of friendship is a facade.”

“Oooh, burn!” Trixie grinned with glee. “Trixie likes you, High Flyer. Starlight, you’ve got a good acquaintance here, best keep him.”

Starlight forced an uncertain smile. Friendship was a very nuanced and valuable area of study, she believed. Indeed, by embracing friendship, Starlight herself was saved from Tartarus where she would’ve otherwise ended up, and allowed to be a free pony. Princess Celestia was always bountifully merciful towards even the most wicked of wicked, so long as they were willing to repent. Would a dictator be so compassionate?

Starlight tried to speak but was cut off as a pony spoke behind her.

“What's this I hear, High Flyer? Are you corrupting these outsiders?”

A grinning, rose-colored earth mare approached. She wore a camera around her neck and a beach towel over her back, which obscured her cutie mark. Her face was gaunt and partially covered by her golden curls.

High Flyer chuckled. “No, Rose Gold. I'm just expanding their minds.”

High Flyer and Rose Gold bumped hooves. Were they friends? Maybe just acquaintances, Starlight thought. It was an uncommon word in Equestria, but not unheard of.

“You’re expanding their minds? Hah! At least you haven’t given them any of your drugs. You know ESM is safer, right?”

High Flyer’s face darkened. “I only use drugs ‘cause I’m insanely bored, and I don’t want to use psychic tricks to fool my own mind into being happy. ESM is basically a drug, so you’re hypocritical. After seventy years of this Petran drudgery, I’ll literally die of boredom. How are you still entertained by that camera and that piss pond? Are you a goldfish, or do you have autism?”

Starlight was surprised to hear High Flyer talk in such an irate tone. He’d been nothing but nice to herself and Trixie.

Rose Gold smiled. “I’m no autistic goldfish. I appreciate our society’s great wealth and National Opulence, and I don’t take a moment for granted. I don’t have any psychotic delusions about ruining the Opulence with a bloody Second Regal War. It would be a wholesale slaughter of the population of a primitive society that still has thatched roofs and steam trains. For what? We have nothing in common with Equestrians, besides that we’re all ponies.”

Trixie and Starlight blinked. Rose Gold looked at them with an arrogant smile, as if she had personally invented all of Petra’s technology and earned all its wealth.

“No offense to you, of course,” she said.

High Flyer snarled. “Maybe some of us wanna be part of that ‘primitive society’ because it’s our birthright promised land, and Equestrians are our blood brothers. We can cure their medieval darkness by dethroning their medieval monarchs… peacefully, with a treaty. We Sky Party voters see violence as a last resort, even though the Entrenchment Party frames us as psychotic warmongers. Especially now that the Sky Party and President Block are in power, you’re all desperate.”

Rose Gold shook her head. “If you hold a gun to a pony and ask him to do something, that’s violence. How will you convince the glacial alicorns? Will you ask nicely, ‘please step down, allow democracy, and unite Petra and Equestria?’ No, because that’s never worked with them. You want to make violent threats, or veiled threats based on our military supremacy. That will scare the alicorns, then they’ll crash the moon into this mountain because they’re too stubborn to understand wisdom, justice, and moderation. Terrarch help us. We must preserve the armistice of the Regal War.”

Starlight cut in, “Princess Celestia isn’t a thousand-foot-tall gorilla. The princesses treat us very kindly, though maybe you’d call that a veneer. I’ve met the princesses, and their minds can be changed. I’ve done it before. Maybe if an outsider like me tells Celestia how dire the situation in Petra is, she’ll reconsider. I plan to tell her the next time I see her; last night Maud mentioned some sort of talks.”

Trixie laughed, “It’s ironic, Starlight. You’re the strongest unicorn in the world, even more than Twilight in my opinion, and you’ve fought ‘The Mare’ before. If you negotiate with the prin--alicorns, it’s just like the Petrans doing it. There’s a veiled threat that you’ll do something about it yourself, ‘cause you’re such a loose cannon. Which is why I like you.”

Rose Gold smiled. “Powerful Equestrians are willing to stick up for us now, eh? Maybe you aren’t as brainwashed by the Regime as I thought. I am glad that you’re on our side, Starlight, or at least neutral, should the shooting ever start.”

“I’m neutral, I would never join on either side, should fighting start,” said Starlight. “I don’t do wars. Good vs. evil, maybe… but not when it’s grey vs. grey, as this war would be.”

“So, if Starlight succeeds, if the Sky Party succeeds, and we do bring a peaceful reunification, then what’s wrong with that, Rose Gold?” asked High Flyer.

She shook her head. “Even without violence, reunification would still be a disaster. Equestrians would immigrate into Petra for our Opulence, but they’d introduce new infectious diseases, and they’d destroy our unique culture. Petrans would emigrate to Equestria for its vast landscape and sky, but we’d introduce technology that the Equestrians aren’t ready for yet, we’d bring our diseases, and we’d destroy their unique culture. Ore and gem prices would drop if golems were allowed in Equestrian mines, and that would destroy our economy.

“The Entrenchment is the only political doctrine which acknowledges Petra’s democratic and technological exceptionalism. All nations, including Equestria, have the right to self-determination and a preservation of their cultures. They have the right to discover for themselves how to reach our level of development. We all mustn’t interfere.”

“I want the hell out of here! Unchain my soul!” High Flyer shouted. A couple of ponies in line turned their heads to glance at him, and then shrugged as they turned back. Was this normal to them? At this point, Trixie ducked out to go promote her show elsewhere, silently waving bye to Starlight.

High Flyer ranted, “What damn culture do we have? Our weirdo, ink-saving alphabet? Our outdated accents? The hundred different dishes we’ve made from apples because we’ve had nothing else to eat? Our drug culture where 35% of us are alcoholics, 10% addicted to heroin? Abortion rates at 25% because we’d rather kill babies than have them be born in this hellhole? Those things aren’t a culture. I won’t be your economic protectionist prisoner! I won’t stand here as your little cultural totem pole! Your mineral deposits are running out; you’re mining this mountain so much that it’ll collapse and kill us all!”

Rose Gold rolled her eyes. “The mountain collapsing hasn’t been geologically proven. We have a two-hundred year time frame for proven mineral reserves. But go on, you’re being very entertaining.”

High Flyer continued, “More and more fillies and colts are getting cutie marks that have nothing to do with your Opulence. We all can’t be like you, Rose Gold. The Sky Party is in power. The whole system’s gonna crash down, and your Entrenchment will turn to dust. Petrans will finally see the sky again. And you know what I wait for the most when that day comes, when we break through our stable door? You’ll finally get to see the sky, feel the breeze, and breathe in the fresh air. Then, you’ll have to either admit that you were wrong, or tell me that you’d rather live underground.”

“You know what I wait for most, High Flyer?” asked Rose Gold. “When you finally resolve your cognitive dissonance and learn to live life in the now. When you quit seeing your cutie mark as a torture device attached to your flank, as a magnet drawing you to the unattainable sky. When you see that happiness is all in the mind and doesn’t have to be chained to reality. In a moment it could happen, High Flyer. You could wake up and be happy. I wait for that moment.”

A few moments of silence ensued. By this point, Starlight and High Flyer had advanced in line to where they were next to go into the door.

High Flyer said, “So, Starlight and I are next to get our garnets now. I guess I’ll see you at some point later in the week?”

“Of course,” said Rose Gold. “I’m going on a business trip to Alabastra, but I’ll be back. I hope that you come up with some better talking points between now and then.”

“Oh, the case for our freedom is endless. Maybe next time we can talk about how our equine DNA literally requires us to live in open spaces.”

“I look forward to it, High Flyer.”

They bumped hooves, and Rose Gold walked off.

“Wow. I thought that Trixie and I argued a lot,” said Starlight. “You have a friend who all you do together is argue?”

High Flyer shrugged. “That and go to concerts together. Why not? She’s one of the few Entrenchment ponies who gives a damn enough to form a legit argument. The others just lie numb in the pool, use garbage consumer goods and parlor tricks to fool themselves into being ‘happy,’ and pull the Entrenchment voting lever like trained lab rats getting food. Science and reason mean diddly-squat to them. Rose Gold’s preservation of her mind in the face of all that, and her successful jewelry business as well? She’s a remarkable pony, and only a fool would deny it.”

“Terrarch dammit! Why don’t you two just go inside?” an angry old stallion shouted from behind them. The line was piling up behind them.

Starlight and High Flyer walked inside, where they found a vending box made of rock with a hoof-sized slot towards the bottom.

“You just swipe your hoof underneath and out pops your garnets,” High Flyer explained.

Starlight waved her hoof inside of the slot. A red light flashed across it. The machine whirred and clicked, and a burlap pouch plopped down. She floated it up and opened the drawstring. Inside were hundreds of pea-sized gems with a deep red hue.

“One thousand garnets exactly,” said High Flyer. “It used to be five hundred, but they raised it ‘cause inflation in Petra is so high, it’s higher than I am. Y’know, since the golems mine these things by the bucketload.”

Starlight asked, “How much are garnets worth in Equestrian bits?”

“Five PTG per EQB, but you’d have to go to Canterlot or Manehattan to find an appraiser and a trader willing to buy that much garnet,” said High Flyer. “It fluctuates based on the jewelry and abrasives market.”

Starlight rolled her eyes. “Let me guess, you’ve been a currency trader, too?”

High Flyer nodded, smiling.

On the other side of Last Prance, there stood a few blocks of nice-looking apartments carved into the cavern. There were also a rare few freestanding buildings, which had marble columns and gardens, and weren’t connected with the cave walls at all. Such homes were valuable because you couldn’t hear neighbors through the walls, High Flyer had said.

High Flyer and Starlight sat down at a nearby al fresco café called “The Splendor Block.” What a terrible pun, Starlight thought. Technically, nothing in Last Prance could be considered outdoor dining, but High Flyer and Starlight didn’t have to enter a sub-cave or building, so she considered the patio to be ‘outside.’ She had to admit, the lack of sunlight was getting to her. High Flyer was seventy years old, though his thirty-something looks were deceiving. How had he put up with it for so long?

The dining patio was unnaturally well lit, just like a sunny day. Green shrubbery ringed the premises. The smell of flowers filled Starlight’s nose. Small birds in golden cages tweeted birdsongs. And there was somehow, of all things, a pleasant breeze which was localized entirely on the patio.

“The Splendour Block serves up lots of treats from the outside,” said High Flyer. “This is a fancy place, about 100 garnets a plate.”

“I’m on vacation, and I just got free money, so I’m not too worried. I guess we’ll get great service because nopony else is here,” she gestured at the empty tables.

High Flyer nodded. “A lot of the regulars were Last Prance mining elites. They stopped coming here after the owner, Cinder Block, became president. I don’t care, because I wouldn’t sit next to those rich losers anyway.”

The waitress approached the table. She was a pegasus… the most gorgeous pegasus that Starlight had ever seen. Her body was cream-white and seemed to glow. Her slender legs, neck, and curvy barrel were the epitome of the feminine form. The feathers of her outstretched wings were fluffy like a pair of slippers, and they ended in yellow tips. But her mane stole the show. It was stylized in the pink, purple, and orange manner of a sunrise, with all the nuances and variations.

“My favorite customer,” she said in a smoky voice with a foreign accent, giving High Flyer a hoof bump.

She glanced at Starlight. “My name is Sunrise, and I’ll be your waitress today. Can I get you started with a Canyish wine to drink, or perhaps some rain water from the ether?”

“Water is fine to start,” said Starlight.

Sunrise grabbed a glass from her saddlebag and placed it on the table. She intently gazed at it for a second, and a tiny rain cloud appeared and filled up the glass.

Starlight’s jaw dropped. “Wait, how did you do that? And why is there a breeze in here? How did you get the patio bright without a bunch of lamps? That’s powerful magic.”

“Oh, do you not like it? My apologies.”

The breeze instantly stopped, and the patio dimmed.

Starlight shook her head. “Oh no, I do like it. I was just wondering why--and how--it was there.”

“My special talent permits me to change the weather conditions inside a hundred-foot radius surrounding me, with my thoughts alone. Sunny or cloudy, breezy or still, rain or snow. In the winter, I make a lot of snow for the children in deserts or underground who’ve never viewed it. In the droughted areas, I fly above and bring rain. I shall brighten up the darkest of places with my own special sunrise. Of all places, Petra needs it the most.”

Starlight smiled. “That’s really neat! You have a nice accent, too. Where are you from?”

“I’m from Saddle Arabia. I’m seen as a hero there, because I helped stop a drought. A few years ago, before he became president, I met Cinder Block while he was trying to smuggle Arabian oil barrels into Petra. He told me about Petra’s plight and hinted that I might apply for Permitted Outsider status, hence I felt that it was my mission from God to help. Anthracite’s bureau allowed me to stay here, because I persuaded him that my presence would enhance Petra.”

“Wait, the President of Petra used to be a smuggler?” asked Starlight.

“He ran a large smuggling enterprise,” said Sunrise. “Petra has many regulations for what may be traded. Quotas, tariffs, outright bans. The Entrenchment passed those laws because they didn’t want Petrans getting to know a taste of what the outside was like. Then they might all get uppity with thoughts of rejoining Equestria. Block was a smuggler, but he wasn’t an official, government-sanctioned smuggler. So he didn’t smuggle in ‘approved’ goods like apples, oak, or grains. He smuggled in exotic goods like honeydew, mahogany, sweet crude oil, books, even pornography.”

High Flyer said, “Everything she just said is true. Who’d have thought that Block would outsmart the Petran Smuggling Bureau to get his goods in here, and then outsmart the Entrenchment establishment to become president? Legit sunlight shining underground. If anypony can fix Petra’s plight and stand up to the Alicorn Regime, Cinder Block and the Sky Party can.”

Sunrise nodded in agreement. “I’ve traveled all around the world. I’ve seen regimes toppled. I’ve seen monarchies crumbling everywhere; kings and queens are going out of style. I’ve seen people rise and win their freedom. The case of Petra is the grandest display unfolding which I’ve seen in ages. The lines are falling in delightful ways! Yet, I’m just an observer. As a citizen of the world, I have no right to alter the politics of any country I visit. Anyway…”

She glanced at her watch. “...May I take your order?”

Starlight blinked. “Uh… surprise me. Wait, you already have. Both of you. With every word you’ve said!”

All three of them laughed.

Starlight Glimmer was ravenously hungry, but she slowed herself down to savor the delicious meal. It was a plate of neatly arranged spicy peppers cooled off with a whitish-blue sauce, intermixed with fava beans. It was served with a side of fluffy, slightly sweet honey-bread. The dish was called something that Starlight couldn’t even pronounce. It melted in her mouth. Meanwhile, High Flyer was eating a plate of falafel. Both had wine to drink; Starlight felt like she deserved a few glasses.

At dessert time, a group of ponies had sat down at a table near Starlight and High Flyer. He knew them from elsewhere and didn’t like them, calling them ‘total dunkasses.’ So High Flyer had requested that Starlight and himself speak via telepathy. Starlight was not a telepath, but since High Flyer was, she could still deliberately ‘think at’ him and he would receive it. It was weird for Starlight, being able to speak her mind in the presence of strangers.

She asked High Flyer,

He blinked.

Starlight shrugged.

Her thoughts fizzled, and High Flyer nodded in an understanding way.

Starlight regathered her façade, a difficult task with how much she’d had to drink, combined with telepathy’s intimate potential. Even after her reform, Starlight was still just as passionate about justice, fairness, and righteousness as ever. She also still felt so much shame for what she did, that some nights she drowned in regret. But no one wants to be friends with a firebrand or a sad sack. Sometimes Starlight felt like both.

She continued,

“Hmm,” Starlight mused.

Starlight laughed.

High Flyer smiled.

He paused for a moment, and his eyes started to glaze over with tears. Starlight leaned forward in concern. Was he okay?

<...That’s why, sometimes, I want to kill myself. I can’t fly down here, and I’ve exhausted every boring thing to keep my mind busy. Maybe if I die, I can soar through the air as a ghost or one of Terrarch’s angels...>

He gazed down, staring into his empty wine glass. Starlight nodded and felt like she had some personal experience to relate for once. She gave him a moment.

She said,

High Flyer’s jaw dropped.

She explained, <When I was angry at my enemies, I wanted to go back in time and stop the event that united them. To do that, I had to reach the sky city of Cloudsdale and, even harder, navigate through it and fight. I tried for months to solve this problem, using every spell I could find. Air walk, butterfly wings, magic carpets. None quite did the trick.

High Flyer’s eyes widened.

Starlight paused.

High Flyer grinned, his tears ceasing.

Starlight shrugged.

Now it was High Flyer who consoled Starlight.

Starlight asked. She wanted to believe that something good came of those timeline shifts.

High Flyer nodded.

He laughed out loud.

She snickered.

He pondered for a moment.

She smiled.

High Flyer insisted on picking up the bill, even though Starlight had just gotten free money. He was such a nice person. What a shame that he couldn’t live his dreams. If something did that to Starlight, wasting and limiting her potential, she’d never let it pass.

Starlight had rediscovered her uniqueness after her town collapsed and her revenge plot failed. After that, she felt that she’d been freed from her own self-imposed prison. She didn’t have to live for some messed-up ideology, or be bound by her past; she could live for who she was today..

High Flyer wasn’t living as who he was today. He was a prisoner of society, a prisoner of history, bound by the ancient armistice of the Regal War a thousand years ago. The war never ended with a peace treaty. It made Starlight furious just thinking about it, maybe because she was drunk at the moment, or maybe because this was the biggest injustice she’d ever seen.

Even still, Petra wasn't Starlight’s country. How could she interfere? Sunrise was right. Besides, Starlight hadn’t even talked to the Princesses yet. She suspected what they might say, though… the exact opposite of what High Flyer or Maud had to say.

Opposites were a recurring theme here. In Petra, Starlight felt as though she were viewing something like Equestria, but seen through the viridian surface of a mirror lake. The mirror duplicated Petra in Equestria’s image, but it reversed everything in its reflection. From the backwards alphabet to the inverted system of rule by the many ponies instead of the few princesses. In Petra, the sky was rock, emotions were playthings, and talk was expensive. Petra was like its own planet: a world where madness plays, a world where hope's enslaved.

Last Prance reminded Starlight of her own town, a place with all the life and joy sucked out of it. Except no evil magician had done this to them. A complicated geo-political situation, advanced technology, and a unique philosophy had all blended into one toxic mix.

Starlight did not view this as solely a friendship problem. Beneath their stone-cold surface, Petrans could be just as friendly as Equestrians. The Cutie Map hadn’t sent Starlight or her friends here, because it would take way more than six or seven ponies to solve the Petran crisis. In addition to friendship, sometimes it takes wading through history, culture, religion--even politics--to solve a problem. For once, Starlight was eagerly awaiting the negotiations. Their results could spark a new life for her new friend.

That, or the talks could fail, and it would start a catastrophic war.

Author's Note

It only took me four-and-a-half months, but I got a new chapter out. Hooray! I will be on a more normal upload schedule (I'm thinking once a month.) Chapter 3 is almost completed, because Chapter 2 had to be broken up. It reached 12,000 words at one point, and the extra 6,000 is the next chapter.

MY TARDINESS EXPOSED
I could write three thousand words worth of author's notes here if I wanted, because of how long this has taken me and how much I've thought about this, but I’ll try to do it in two thousand instead. This chapter took me so long because I wanted to write the Petran Republic as an entirely different nation, with significant differences from Equestria, without seeming too alien. Somewhere in the zone between the Crystal Empire (Equestria's Canada, basically Equestria) and the Changeling Hive (Totally alien). To do this, I drew on inspiration from real-life places as diverse as the United States, Norway, Russia, the Koreas, and Israel.

I also wanted to design a unique political system that is unlike anything in real life. Most political systems are based on right vs. left, but Petra's system is based on in vs. out. The Entrenchment is status quo, while the Sky Party is for radical change. Judging from the wide range of political topics addressed by Rose Gold and High Flyer, the differences clearly go beyond golems, which was pretty much the sole focus of Chapter One.

Canon explanation: That was how Maud framed it, because she's always loved designing golems, and it was how she discovered her love of rocks. As Maud never lived underground, she's blind to Petra's deep politics. She just wants the freedom to make her creations and be a liberated earth pony. She's a "single-issue voter," in that regard.

Real explanation: I had originally designed this story around the idea of golems, and that was to be the central conflict. As I wrote this chapter, I realized that the chasm between the alicorns and their Petran siblings would by necessity run far, far deeper. Part of why it took me so long to write this was that I realized the full implications of the world I had created. That's a little insight into my creative process...

NOTES AND TRIVIA

I skipped forward to the next day rather than showing what happened in between Chapter One and Chapter Two. It would've been really boring. Maud, Trixie, and Starlight got to Last Prance, were super tired, and just went straight to bed. The next morning, Trixie and Maud ran off to do their thing, leaving Starlight to go lounge around on the Lake.

As the irate mare in the lake demonstrates, Petrans inherited the ability to imitate the Royal Canterlot Voice. It's a combination of shouting as loud as you can with your voice, but also your telepathy, entirely overwhelming anyone who hears it.

For the next few chapters, I need Starlight to spend a good deal of time in Petra without the ability to just pop in and out if she wants. The show is very stingy and inconsistent on the details of how far a unicorn can teleport, especially Starlight. I'm setting the limit with crossing that giant desert.

I hope that, with High Flyer's comments, I put to bed the misconception that the Petrans are racist towards non-earth ponies. As seen with Mr. and Mrs. Cake, earth ponies can sometimes have unicorn and pegasi children. The Petrans love their children, too. Unicorns who can do spells, or pegasi that can create small weather anomalies like Sunrise can, would be highly valued in Petra. Anthracite indicates as much when he lets Trixie in.

Qilin is the original Chinese word for Kirin, dating back to the 5th century BC. In my story, that's probably the word which would've been in use before the Regal Wars.

More on the Petran Alphabet below.

I don't have one particular canon explanation, but perhaps the reason why Petra's technology is ahead of Equestria's is that necessity is the mother of invention, and living underground presents a lot of necessities. That, mixed with golems being legal, opens a new avenue for technological development. Or, maybe it's that elusive "earth pony ingenuity."

ESM stands for "emotional self-mastery," and it's a telepathic technique of projecting emotions onto your own mind, allowing you to feel however you want. Ponies like High Flyer view this as a phony delusion, and call it "emotional self-manipulation" instead. But for others, to paraphrase the Matrix, "I know this delicious steak isn't real, but ignorance is bliss."

"Hey man, we all can't be like you," is a line from a Paramore song called "Rose Colored Boy."

Without jumping into the pro-choice/pro-life debate, 25% is also the abortion rate in the United States. I pulled the figure out of my ass because it seemed high, but it turns out that's right about where it is in real life.

"In a moment, it could happen, you could wake up and be happy" is a line from the Collective Soul song, "In a Moment." I'm really into ~~stealing~~ incorporating song lyrics where I can, if it makes sense.

I had a friend who all I did together with him was have political discussions/debates, and watch movies or catch concerts. We were best friends for five years.

Yet another example of the show dropping the ball on explaining how magic works. A spell to reduce one's weight might not be canon, though you could argue it’s a subset of gravity spells. I haven't heard of any better explanation for how Starlight could just fly around like she's a pegasus. No other unicorn can do that for any extended period. Even Twilight failed to levitate herself a few times when she was falling, ditto for Rarity when she was falling. Are ponies really that heavy? I wish the show would take ten seconds to explain this. But it works out for me regardless, because I need Starlight to know the butterfly wing spell, which she only learned because she couldn’t initially use levitation to fly.

PЭTRAN ALPHABЭT
The Petran alphabet is partially based on Old Equish, which would've been used in Equestria 1,000 years ago. It's also partially designed on purpose to save paper and ink, both uncommon resources in Petra. This is accomplished by using fewer characters and inventing one letter to replace two. But the Petran alphabet is easy to learn, as it is identical to the modern Equestrian alphabet but with a few changes:

Э : Like e in end or met. E is still used for Me, Street, etc.
Ᵹ : Old font G.
ʃ : Old font S.
Þ : For Th
Ş : For Sh
⅃: Shorthand for two L's. I.E. Allotments. Otherwise standard L is used.
Я: Shorthand for two R's. I.E. Marriage. Same rule.
ß: Shorthand for two S's. You get the idea.
Ŧ: Shorthand for two T's.
&: Always used for the word "and."
Æ: Used in the British manner.

And now you know the Petran alphabet from A to backwards R!

Chapter 3: Tyrant Shards

Applejack (flashback): When the Crystal Empire returned, it brought King Sombra back with it. It didn't take long for him to force every one of his subjects to fight for him against Equestria. Even with Princess Celestia leadin' the charge, it still takes every last pony in Equestria doin' their part, workin' day and night, to keep up the fight.

Starlight’s eyelids and lips were jittering, and her mane was blowing so fast that it stung her face. Her body bounced whenever the minecart descended down hills, pushing the seatbelt into her chest. The rushing wind was louder and muddier than a garage band. She couldn’t even see a thing, it was so dark.

“You want a vacation, huh? This is how you take a vacation in Petra!” High Flyer shouted so loud that Starlight could hear him over the howling wind.

“Hasn’t this futuristic society ever heard of WINDSHIELDS!?” she shouted at the top of her lungs, and the wind carried her voice away. He didn’t answer. She used a voice amplification spell and said the same thing.

His voice entered her mind, contravening the noise.

<...I forgot about that. When you have a hundred different neat things you can do, it’s hard to keep track of them all.>

A white flash stung Starlight’s eyes. The minecart slowed as it came to a stop next to a criss-cross metal platform. Small firefly lanterns gave a little bit of light so they could see the exit.

The intercom announced, “We hope you enjoyed the Petran Amusements ride to Darklahoma. You can purchase pictures at the photo booth. Ensure you try our exhilarating rides to all five states!”

“This was an amusement ride!?” Starlight shouted.

“You didn’t read the signs before we paid for tickets?” asked High Flyer.

“The signs were written in dyslexia! And, you didn’t tell me.”

High Flyer chuckled. “The Petran Alphabet isn’t that hard to read. And, you didn’t ask. I mean, we could’ve taken the lame old magnet train, but it’s public transport so it’s loaded with bums.”

Starlight smiled. “High Flyer, you’re something else.”

They exited the ride tunnel, and Starlight hoped to see some light, but instead they came to a dimly-lit bridge after walking for a while. It connected to dozens of other bridges which branched out like tree limbs. She peered over the side. Nothing but darkness down forever.

“This is the Dark Passage,” said High Flyer. “It’s the trade route between Darklahoma and the other Petran states. But the natives have little use for bridges besides that.”

He gazed up at the ceiling. Starlight gazed up too, and was astounded. Hundreds of ponies with bat wings fluttered about, resting in little niches in the sides of the cavern. Some of them swooped down, catching moths in their mouths. A slight screeching came from them. Echolocation, Starlight figured. A small opening thousands of feet up gave a glimpse of light.

They walked further down the bridge, which for some reason lacked guardrails. Not that it worried Starlight any, given her unusual gift of magic flight.

High Flyer advised,

Starlight responded.

They turned a corner onto another bridge, which led into a hollow of the cave. A dim lamp post illuminated a street sign: “DARK HO⅃OW TUИЭL.” Now instead of a precipice, the road was surrounded by cave walls on either side; it was essentially a tunnel. They approached one of several wooden doors.

High Flyer said,

Starlight rolled her eyes at the pun.

Unlike the rest of Darklahoma, High Flyer’s home was well lit. An overhead firefly light warmed the room. Adding to the light was his scry-orb. The place smelled of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, and food. Eau de dorm room.

“You want something to eat? I make a mean shkalt.”

She nodded.

The ‘shkalt’ dish was a tangy mix of apples, noodles, and spices. Shkalt was like spaghetti, but sweeter. Most Petran dishes involved apples, Starlight realized. Probably because Appleloosa and other apple orchards were nearby.

“So you screwed up the timeline, now it’s time to watch the video!” said High Flyer.

Starlight gave a nervous nod.

He dimmed the overhead light and tapped the scry orb. A projector device displayed the image onto a flat wall: a static Petran flag. The flag’s background was gold, and in the center was a black circle with five diamonds inside. Were those for the five states of Petra, or did they represent Anthracite’s claim that Petra was like a five-diamond resort?

A voiceover said, “This wartime footage was captured during the time shifts of Rocktober, 1014. It may disturb some viewers. A Block Media production.”

“Block Media?” asked Starlight. “Is that related to President Block?”

High Flyer nodded. “Granite Block was a smuggler, an cool gig for sure. He made loads of money by filming his adventures and selling his story. When the time shifts happened, his film crew was ready to bounce into action, and they live broadcasted the news from the front.”

A curvy unicorn walked in front of the Petran flag. She wore a skin-tight jumpsuit which accentuated her figure more than her natural coat of fur could. With ponies, clothes could sometimes be more attractive than nakedness. High Flyer’s pupils dilated. Even Starlight found her somewhat pretty. The unicorn floated a news desk and a chair over, and sat down.

“Amber Manganese with breaking news today. Early this morning, a malevolent sorcerer altered our world’s timeline. According to public statements by the Petran Intelligence Agency, he is Sombra, the tyrant king of the Crystal Empire.”

High Flyer grinned and ribbed Starlight. “Nice goin’, Sombra!”

Manganese said, “Petra is somehow immune to this time shift; scientists suspect that chronite mineral deposits around our caves may be shielding us. A massive hostile military force has been detected in the Frozen North of Equestria, led by Sombra. The Petran Rapid Deployment Brigade has been immediately dispatched. Their mission: neutralize the hostiles and terminate Sombra. The PIA says that the Equestrians have been fighting Sombra for three years of their time, but their weapons are quite inferior to ours. Now to our in-the-air reporter, Darkened Way. What’s going on over there, Darkened?”

The footage switched to an athletic batpony mare with dark fur and blue eyes, wearing a bomber jacket. Not as attractive, but her muscles were toned. She was hovering a hundred feet above a very large train in the desert.

“Amber, I’m reporting by a train headed from Appleloosa to the frozen north.”

A map of Equestria appeared in the bottom-right corner of the video feed to show the towns. The Crystal Empire was highlighted in red. Also, a small black band of yellow letters was scrolling across the bottom of the screen. “...PЭTRAN NAŞON AŦACKED BY TIME TЭЯORIʃT KING ʃOMBRA OF ÞE CRYʃTAL ЭMPIRE... FURY WI⅃ RAIN UPON ÞЭM, ʃUPREME _ЭNЭRAL CÆʃIUM PROMIʃЭʃ…” and so on. All the weird and backwards-facing letters made Starlight’s brain hurt trying to read it; it was scrolling too fast.

Darkened Way continued, “On its journey north, the Petran brigade stopped at Appleloosa. There was some confusion and fear from the Appleloosans at first, until Supreme General Cesium explained who he and the Petran Army were, and proclaimed that they’d come to crush Sombra. At that point, the war-weary population in Appleloosa reacted to our troops’ glorious arrival as if they were angels!”

The video feed cut to a group of a hundred or so Petran soldiers, dressed in sand-colored uniforms, marching down Appleloosa’s dirt main street. They were followed by imposing minotaur golems. The soldiers’ coats were all dyed brown, like the Royal Guards’ white coats. Though the footage was shot from a distance, the awe was glaringly apparent. Appleloosan pony and buffalo soldiers, once slated to go to the front, were stripping down and tossing their fuzzy hats and snow camo uniforms at the Petrans’ hooves like roses. Women cheered ecstatically at their new heroes, and children were pouring out of the schoolhouse to get a glimpse, their teachers running after them.

“This is our war now!” a Petran voice shouted. Applause broke out.

Back to Darkened Way. “The town’s Sheriff and de-facto mayor, Silverstar, loaned the Petran Brigade this train to transport soldiers and golem equipment to the Crystal Empire, which will shave days off our trip to confront Sombra. Here’s a glimpse of the newly-outfitted Petran brigade.”

The camera zoomed in on the hundreds of cars of the moving train to reveal its contents. Thousands of Petran soldiers stood in boxcars wearing fuzzy grey hats and white camo jackets that the Appleloosan soldiers had donated. They also held bizarre weapons which Starlight had never seen: advanced versions of hunting rifles. The flatbeds and many of the other boxcars held chiseled stone and giant cylinders, presumably golem parts for later assembly. There were also hundreds of fully-assembled battleaxe minotaur golems, now wearing the larger buffalo-sized uniforms. About a dozen very large missiles passed by as well.

The time skipped in the video.

Darkened Way said, “I’m at the foothills of Canterlot with the train. Supreme General Cesium has just returned from a conference with General Spitfire and Princess Celestia. He’s attempting to secure pegasi air support for the mission. President Diamondshower was absent from negotiations, as he is cloistered in his bunker for security. We await news on the potential alliance.”

A pale-blue stallion, Cesium, wore a shiny helmet with five stars. He stood beside the train, using his ‘Petran voice’ to address his soldiers.

“This princess is the most incompetent commander-in-chief I’ve ever seen! She’s so horrid that even her own General, Spitfire, left the room in disgust. Our world only changed this morning, but here, this war has lasted for years. Tens of thousands of Equestrians have died, making no progress! This is what happens when you run a society based on lovey dovey, feminized nonsense. Weakness! Princess Celestia pleaded that I wouldn’t unleash Petra’s fury on the Crystal Army, for many of the crystal soldiers are innocents forced into this war, and many are children. Well, Petra was forced into this war, too… this morning, in fact! And Petran children are terrified that Sombra will devour them!

“Celestia could’ve won this war years ago with better rules of engagement, but she’s chosen to protect the enemies’ lives over those of her own people. So we will be the saviors of the Equestrians, for they are our brethren. We will destroy Sombra and save the crystal ponies from his tyranny. Without war, this cannot be done. Ponies shall die, including mares and children, and that’s a tragedy. But what’s an even bigger tragedy is this long stalemate. Ponies cheer our brigade in every town, they throw us flowers, they want this to end, and they know what it’ll take! Alas, they couldn’t have elections to choose a leader who agrees. Onward to victory!”

The troops cheered. The time skipped again.

Way said, “Amber, I’m here at the northern Equestrian territory, the Permafrost Tundra, which the Crystal Army has controlled for years. The Petran brigade has arrived, and now both sides have gathered to fight. Combat should start any minute.”

The camera zoomed onto the battlefield. Roughly a thousand Petran ground soldiers and their golems stood on the south end of the flat Frozen Tundra, supported by a few dozen hovering bat ponies. Tens of thousands of Crystal Ponies were packed like sardines into the north end. They were covered only in light armor, and were unarmed. There were children among them.

Starlight’s heart jumped in her chest. Surely to Primehoof, Petra didn’t kill…

A mass of mental voices, a thousand thinking in unison. But Starlight heard it through her ears, not in her head.

“Cameras can record telepathy and convert it to sound?” Starlight asked incredulously.

“No, they added that back in post,” said High Flyer.

A giant, thick cloud of smoke with menacing eyes floated above the Crystal Army.

Sombra’s dark voice boomed across the plains. “I’m more frightening… fight the Petrans, or you’ll see what I do if you don’t…”

Except for a few cowering soldiers, the Crystal Army was terrified into charging towards the Petrans. All at once, with no weapons… This must be Sombra’s strategy, Starlight thought: a pony wave. Just trample everypony to death with sheer numbers.

General Cesium shouted, “Attack!”

The stuttering noise of ten thousand gunshots erupted. Wave after wave of the Crystal Army fell like bowling pins. So much red on the screen that it made Starlight queasy. Then, the golems came in. Stone and iron minotaurs charged into the oncoming Crystal ponies, trampling them while swinging their axes, flinging heads and body parts everywhere. Bat-pony snipers peppered the Crystal soldiers and their commanding officers. Golems with wheels and spiked, rolling cylinders on the front flattened crystal ponies into the snow and turned the ground pink behind them. A steamroller, but with spikes instead of steam.

The bloodbath was over in just ten minutes. Half of Sombra’s army remained, but en mass they removed their armor and dropped to the ground in surrender. Cesium ordered his forces to stop firing.

“I will torture your families if you don’t fight!” Sombra shouted at his terrified army.

They didn’t care. Most of their families had probably just been slaughtered. With the sounds of combat gone, there was mass sobbing, agonized screams, and pleas to higher powers.

Farmers reaped a weary crop from frigid pink fields, Starlight thought.

Soon Darkened Way said, “Amber, this is the most horrific scene I have ever witnessed. Not since the Regal Wars has Equestria seen such bloodshed. Both Crystal and Petran medics are now tending to Sombra’s wounded soldiers. Cesium has confirmed to me that just five Petrans were killed, two by friendly fire and three by trampling. Two golems were also destroyed. The Crystal Army, by contrast, has suffered countless thousands of dead and wounded.”

Amber gave commentary from her news desk, “Like General Cesium said, it’s a damn shame, but in this anchor’s opinion, it had to be done. Sombra has reportedly destroyed all railroads and bridges leading to the Crystal City. With the intimidating mountain range separating our troops from Sombra, our most potent enemy will be not him, but the elements and the rugged terrain. Our final assault could be delayed by days or we--”

“Hang on, Amber, I’m seeing a giant force of Equestrian pegasi approaching the battlefield from the south!”

Another time skip. The surrendered Crystal Ponies stood in a giant circle, with minotaur golems and Petran guards on the circumference. A thousand pegasi hovered overhead.

The camera zoomed in on General Spitfire and Supreme General Cesium, who stood side-by-side.

He announced, “General Spitfire and I have reached an agreement. Her brigade of the Equestrian Air Force will be joining Petra for a final assault on the Crystal City.”

She announced, not as loud, “I don’t care what Princess Celestia says about restraint and compassion. Sombra is an existential threat to Equestria, and he’ll soon kill us all with the way this war has been going. I don’t care if I’m court martialed; I’d rather be judged by twelve than carried by six!”

Spitfire’s Air Force brigade and the Petran troops cheered this announcement. Starlight could see why Spitfire would disobey orders. She was always patriotic, but she had an aggressive streak that Princess Celestia did not. Even Starlight wondered whether she, herself, would or wouldn’t aid such a brutal assault. Would it be worth it just to stop the years of war, like ripping a bandage off? It would be an impossible decision.

Another time skip. The pegasi were carrying the Petrans and their guns across the mountain. Darkened Way and her camera crew followed behind. The Crystal City was coming into view. Pegasi and Petrans ringed the perimeter.

Way said, “No pegasi or Petrans are landing in the Crystal City directly. Rather, they are surrounding it for a seige. Back to Amber for analysis.”

Amber said, “Per the PIA’s analysis, the Crystal City is full of booby traps both non-magical and magical, and brainwashed Crystal Ponies hiding behind every corner with kitchen knives and sharpened sticks. A few of them have primitive but deadly wolf-hunting rifles. In the central city tower, Sombra resides along with his most loyal bureaucrats and supporters… those who truly believe in his cause and weren’t just forced into it. It is unknown how the PIA obtained such specific information in so short a time. However, there’s speculation that the Equestrian Intelligence Agency, led by Chancellor Neighsay, is now sharing intel with the PIA.”

A picture of Chancellor Neighsay appeared on screen. Starlight found it interesting that, in this timeline, he was the head of the EIA rather than the EEA. Perhaps he replaced others who were assassinated. But this info sharing totally seemed like something he would do, she thought. He would lay down his life to protect Equestria from foreign powers, and in his main-timeline job, he frequently defied Celestia’s values of tolerance, compassion, and restraint.

“An anonymous source within the EIA has leaked to Block Media that the inter-agency cooperation is real. If true, then it would appear as though Princess Celestia is losing the confidence of her own people, military, and government agencies because of how she’s ruined this war.”

Back to Darkened Way. “This won’t be a one-sided battle like the Frozen Tundra was, that’s for sure,” she said. “There is no flat field to mow down Crystal hostiles from a distance. Golems can’t fit into doors of crystal buildings. The booby traps could prove challenging. If even a few of our boys are caught in them, then their guns will be taken and used against us.”

The camera zoomed in on the Crystal Palace, black and ugly in this timeline. It was a three-sided crime against architecture, standing ten times taller than any other buildings in town. Spidery tendrils of crystal climbed up the side like kudzu. At the top, tall spires of swirling, black crystal topped the structure like a sick crown.

Way said, “Behind me is the Crystal Palace, where Sombra lives in luxury, attended to by hundreds of slaves. His subjects live in abject misery and poverty. Wait. We’re getting another massive telepathic message--”

Sombra’s cloud hovered over the city and he boomed, “I will follow those who leave and haunt them!”

No response from the brigade. The footage sped up into fast motion as many thousands of ponies evacuated the city. Sombra’s bluff failed, and he did nothing to them except shoot a bunch of red magic beams at the evacuees in frustration. Ironically, King Sombra was so obsessed with punishing his slaves that he didn’t even direct any of his magic towards the Petrans. Day turned to evening, and then the five-hour mark arrived.

“Earthquake!” General Cesium ordered.

The Petran soldiers’ hooves vibrated on the ground so furiously that the entire earth shook. It started as a slight rumbling, but grew in strength. A cacophony of cracking earth and shattering crystal structures filled the air. Many of the buildings broke into a million pieces, spewing fragments everywhere.

Diamonds rained across the sky, Starlight thought.

King Sombra, now in pony form, stood at the top of his skyscraper at the center of the city. That didn’t crumble just yet, but all of his black crystals on the ground shattered.

They’re destroying his land and his crystals: his source of magic energy, Starlight observed. He’ll soon be no more powerful than a billy goat.

Sombra did not turn into smoke and attempt to escape. He now couldn’t.

Finally, a missile launcher golem fired a rocket straight at the Crystal Palace. Sombra screamed like a filly as the spire that he was standing atop collapsed.

The Crystal evacuees had tears in their eyes. But soon, they started clapping and cheering. Their coats turned from darkened back to shimmering. Starlight wondered for a minute why they weren’t upset about losing their homes, but Sombra had turned most of the Crystal City into a shanty town anyway.

Old spires fell, greeted with cheers like the new year, Starlight thought.

Starlight felt horrible seeing all of the dead, but it was also wonderful seeing the Crystal ponies freed after so many years. For once during this video, she felt a faint glimmer of hope, even happiness.

The time skipped again.

Amber Manganese sat behind her desk, and pictures of Queen Chrysalis and General Cesium were side-by-side on the screen.

“The timeline has shifted once again, and it appears that Sombra was not responsible for either shift, as his empire does not exist here. Rather, a swarm of Changelings led by Queen Chrysalis took over Equestria some time ago. Right at the moment of the shift, General Cesium and his Rapid Deployment Brigade all magically re-appeared inside of Petra. President Diamondshower had many compliments for Cesium, but a reprimand as well.”

A balding stallion in a suit stood behind a press conference podium. He said, “Supreme General Cesium and our glorious army have valiantly defended not only Petra, but also our estranged brothers and sisters in Equestria. We do not know what magical force is responsible for the shifting timelines, or when it will stop, but we will defeat every threat that each new warlord brings.”

“Mr. President!” “President Diamondshower!” “Mr. President!” the reporters all shouted. He nodded at one of them.

“Mr. President, there are rumors that, before the timeline shifted again, General Cesium was discussing with General Spitfire and Chancellor Neighsay the possibility of a military coup against Princess Celestia, due to her perceived incompetence. Cesium reportedly had the support of them both. Can you comment?”

Diamondshower said, “General Cesium and I have discussed this. He is a passionate, patriotic Petran. Sometimes he’s a bit hot-headed, but he would never defy Presidential orders. The Petran Armed Forces shall not initiate military action against Equestria. In fact, we will cooperate and fight side-by-side with them as each new villain arises, as Cesium himself did yesterday. Attacking Equestria would make us the aggressor nation, and it would destroy our moral high ground.

“Any reunion of Petra and Equestria must occur on civil, peaceful terms agreeable to both nations. We also must take into account the political opinions of those Petrans who, for various reasons, do not want a reunification at all. Particularly bat-ponies who desire permanence, or those in the Entrenchment political coalition who believe that a reunion would severely disrupt the economy and damage Petran industry and culture.”

“Typical old Entrenchment propaganda,” High Flyer scoffed as he paused the video.

“Take it easy,” said Starlight, motioning with her hoof for him to calm down.

“You’re right,” said High Flyer. “Shall we continue with the Chrysalis timeline?”

Starlight shook her head, still misty eyed from the Crystal Empire war. “Give me a minute.”

Author's Note

Back with another chapter. This time I'll keep the author's notes brief.

For some reason, Fimfic wouldn't let me post the Petran Flag in the body of the story, but
you can get to it by clicking here. The five diamonds represent the Petran states, huddled together in darkness, who hope to eventually emerge into the light of the yellow sun. Like Japan, Petra has a wartime flag which they've saved for their final battle against the alicorns. In that depiction, the darkness is gone and it's just five diamonds sitting on a yellow field.

I made some creative decisions and judgment calls that not everybody might agree with. These are mainly due to time constraints in this chapter. Sombra is just one of the baddies that the Petrans faced off against, and the story of how they did so, while interesting, is only a short story within the larger Glimmer Dilemma story.

Sombra is definitely a pushover, to be defeated in a day or two. I could've gone into this in more detail, and perhaps Sombra could have a few more magical tricks up his sleeve. Perhaps he successfully banishes part of the Petran army like how he banished the Crystal Empire. But the Petrans have been preparing for war for a thousand years, and unlike Sombra they've had both scientists and magicians working hard on weaponry. So I honestly think that I gave a single unicorn, Sombra, about as good of a chance as he could stand against a modern army.

This story is about how awesome earth ponies can be once they learn to use their full power, and I'm not about to give Sombra any more power than he already had.

The fate of the crystal ponies is strongly tied to the Crystal Heart artifact, but it's not mentioned once in this chapter. That's because Block Media doesn't know it exists, but we can assume that after Sombra's death, it was safely recovered and placed on its rightful pedestal.

So! Given the alternate timeline we saw of the changelings, where they'd taken over all of Equestria except a few pockets of resistance, how do you think the Petrans will fare? The changelings can fly and use limited magic, and can deceive ponies into thinking that they're allies. I won't spoil it, but needless to say the tactics that the Petran Army used against Sombra won't work this time...

Chapter 4: Syndicate

Starlight Glimmer (speaking to Queen Chrysalis): I know what it's like to lead by fear and intimidation! And I know what it's like to want everypony to do what you say! But I was wrong. A real leader doesn't force her subjects to deny who they are! She celebrates what makes them unique and listens when one of them finds a better way!

After a brief and brazen commercial break for various smuggled products, Amber Manganese addressed the Block Media viewers again. A coffee cup sat on her desk, and her hair looked frazzled. She’d clearly been without sleep for quite some time. Either no other anchors were there to relieve her, or she was that committed to her job.

“Good evening, Petra. It’s now twenty-four hours into this new timeline. Supreme General Cesium is taking his time to make a plan and activate his forces. Unlike with Sombra, the Petran armed forces will likely sneak attack Queen Chrysalis and her Changeling swarm. So far, it seems Chrysalis is blind to Petra’s presence.

“The military has put restrictions on Block Media and other news outlets. Our reporters are not allowed to venture any further than a few miles beyond Petra’s northern borders. If any ponies were to travel beyond that, it could reveal Petra’s existence to the Changelings. Now that it’s evening, our bat pony reporter, Darkened Way, is permitted to bring us this exclusive.”

The footage cut to Darkened Way, who flew a few miles above the ground. It was much higher than where she’d been hovering during the King Sombra timeline. At this height, she wouldn’t be visible from the ground. At least, Starlight guessed it, based on her own spying experience.

“Amber, the coming assault is like the blowing sand here in the Southwest Basin… you can feel it in the air. I’m above one of the few lakes in this area of Equestria: Shining Lake.”

Darkened pointed, and the camera zoomed in on a lake about two miles in diameter. True to its name, the evening sun rays reflected off the surface and cast a glare onto the camera eye. The camera then panned to a massive facility on the northwest shore of the lake, about a square mile in size. It was a compound made of dozens of buildings. Their sandstone walls were covered in Changeling goop like gross graffiti. The barbed wire fence surrounding the buildings, though, was normal. Starlight recalled that the changeling hive had been just a black towering thing with swiss cheese holes… but clean. Was the goop the Changelings’ way of marking Equestria’s territory as their own?

The compound stood about twenty feet away from the fences at all sides. Plenty of room for the guards to take out any suicidal intruder who managed to get over the fence. Changeling drones buzzed around the area. Or rather, little black dots that Starlight could only guess were drones.

Starlight blinked. She turned to High Flyer as he paused the video. “Is this… the Arid Sector? You aren’t even allowed to take pictures of that. It’s top secret. Nopony even knows what’s inside.”

High Flyer nodded. “Well, it’s nothing cool like aliens or hovercraft. It’s the place where Equestria’s threats aren’t killed, they’re merely ‘rendered inoperable.’ Never really did its job in these timelines. So much for Equestria’s most classified base. It might redeem itself yet...”

He resumed the video.

Darkened said, “The Military Records Department has instructed our crew to fly at this height above this location. While other news organizations like PNC or The Eon aren’t willing to risk their reporters in a potential warzone, Block Media brings you this exclusive!”

Amber Manganese smiled. “Your bravery is second only to our boys on the ground. I don’t know how you keep your stamina.”

Her horn flashed white, and her coffee cup magically refilled. Now that was a spell Starlight wanted to learn!

Darkened said, “The Military Records Department didn’t exist until yesterday. Since our coverage of Sombra, the Petran military has become very interested in wartime footage.”

“Why’s that?” asked Amber.

“So that we never forget those we lose. So that someday, we can show the truth to war crimes tribunals or conspiracy theorists."

By this point, the sun was barely lucid, and though the full moon was coming out, it was still hard to see the Arid Sector compound.

“Darkened,” said Manganese. “We can’t see back here. Could you fly closer to the base, if possible?”

Darkened looked away, blushing. “Sorry. I don’t really notice the darkness, or the distance… being a bat pony, you know, I can see everything at night.”

Manganese smiled. “We all have our gifts; it’s nothing to be ashamed of. If only the changelings knew that their gift is to thrive on love, to never be hungry or thirsty. They have a limitless energy source, but by enslaving ponies, they’re making it nonrenewable. They shall run dry and perish unless we save Equestria, by saving the changelings from their wicked, backward ideology and the queen who preaches it.”

This news channel has no problem with editorializing, Starlight thought, though she did agree fully with everything Manganese had just said. In this timeline, Petra was the only hope that Equestria had, for better or worse. It’s hard for a journalist to be fully objective when their entire way of life is threatened.

As Darkened Way and the camerapony descended, several loud bangs and flashes of light erupted.

“Amber, I’m hearing massive explosions near the complex!”

“Please, stay safe!” Amber exhorted her.

Starlight leaned into the screen to catch the strained footage. It was kind of like watching a hoofball game from the cheap seats. A tall, concrete guard tower was in flames, with changelings fleeing by wing. Some of them were on fire, chittering and chirping. The explosions continued near all the other guard towers. Roller golems emerged from the sand, crashing into the fences with a clanky metal sound, and Petran fighters poured through the gaps. Roughly two hundred Petrans made it through, with more on the way.

Dozens of aerial changelings charged up their horns, dive-bombing the Petrans as they ran through the busted fence towards the compound doors. Several of the Petrans fell to the ground, screaming as changeling fangs tore apart their flesh. Bat pony snipers and changelings were dogfighting, some whizzing just a few yards past the camera.

The battle raged on as Changeling reinforcements arrived, but they couldn’t stem the tide of the Petran minotaur golems who’d just arrived. Their rock hard bodies were impossible for fangs to penetrate. The behemoths swung their axes everywhere, flinging changeling body parts all over the place. The battlefield was covered in green, teal, and black guts and flesh, mixed in with a few unfortunate Petran bodies. The reflection of the moon cast a blue glow on it all.

Two colors blended into indigo atop the sandy canvass, Starlight recalled from her vision.

The battle had lulled, and the Petrans recharged their golems with earth energy.

Manganese said, “We’ve won on the outside, but the remaining changelings are holed up in the massive buildings. Now, some helmet cam footage from the fighter known only as ‘Soldier A.”

The footage shifted again. In a hallway, soldiers and changelings were shooting at each other. The view was pitch black, only lit by the flash of guns and by the Petrans’ helmet-mounted flashlights. Several doors were on either side of the hallway, and changelings emerged from each one, ready to pounce. Hooves and a rifle came into view at the bottom of the screen. The scope came up, and loud bangs erupted.

“I love this part. It’s like a video game!” High Flyer exclaimed.

Soldier A was a great shot. Changelings poured through a door on the left, leading to a room with ponies trapped in cocoons. He blasted one changeling after the other, right in the head. Then, two Petran soldiers emerged from a door next to him.

“This room is clear, comrade!” one of them shouted towards Soldier A.

he thought at them.

No response.

Soldier A shot both of them, and as they fell to the ground, a green flash revealed that they’d been changelings. Though they’d mimicked the Petran uniforms right down to the dogtags, and they’d simulated the appearance (but not the functionality) of guns, their lack of telepathy gave them away.

Another Petran passed by Soldier A.

Dolomov smiled at the camera.

As Soldier A proceeded down the long hallway, the situation repeated. Petrans were shooting “Petrans” left and right. Though a third of the bodies on the floor were real Petrans, two thirds were changelings.

Starlight grinned. “I can’t believe it...they’re out hive-minding the changelings!”

“You can handle any circumstance when you use your mind,” High Flyer replied. “Old Petran saying.”

The fisher-minds cast out their thoughts and knew dolphin from shark, Starlight recalled.

Unlike the battle against Sombra, Starlight felt no queasiness here. She almost felt bad about not feeling bad at this time, but she figured that something in this recording would get to her later. She realized that she was likely biased. The crystal ponies resembled ponies, but changelings, at least in appearance, were alien.

Soldier A reached a heavily-guarded area. A giant door stood in front of him, labeled “CHEMICAL LAB.” He stood on the sidelines, providing cover fire while his comrades decimated the changeling forces.

He entered the chemical lab after the coast was clear. The lab had long rows of tables. Vials, beakers, bunsen burners, decanters, and all sorts of chemistry equipment sat upon the tables. It all smelled like sulfur--at least Starlight guessed. Posters of the periodic table of elements and complex molecules covered the walls. The opposite corner of the room had diagrams of rockets and machinery. Clearly, some serious science was being done here.

The scientists weren’t locked in protoplasmic changeling cocoons like most of the prisoners that Soldier A had filmed in the hallway. Instead, they were tied up in the corners with rope. They cheered as the Petrans untied them.

“You’re the closest to angels I’ve ever seen!” a chemist said.

“What is that funny contraption on your head, and what’s the one in your hooves?” asked a physicist to Soldier A. “Who are you?”

“A deadly firearm and a video camera. I am Soldier A, sent from the Republic of Petra to destroy the Changeling Hive and record our victory!”

“Petra? Arid Sector scientists have been preparing for Petra’s return for decades, fearing your invasion. Ironically, you’re our rescuers. But why did you wait so long to come?”

“Chrysalis cast a time spell. We’ve only just entered this timeline. At first we thought it was King Sombra who caused it, but it wasn’t.”

The physicist blinked. “Queen Chrysalis doesn’t have the magic to change the timeline. The A.S. was studying her magic very closely before her drones captured us.”

“Then who did it?” Soldier A asked.

Though Soldier A asked the question in a neutral tone, the physicist had been conditioned for his whole career to fear Petra.

He took a step back, and started sweating. “I don’t know. Please forgive me. We were going to use a new weapon we developed against against the changelings, but Princess Celestia forbid its use once she realized how devastating it would be. We’re so sorry that we didn’t use it, that we inconvenienced Petra. We never meant for you to have to clean up our mess. Don’t hurt us!”

“We won’t. We’re not the monsters you think we are. We just want to see the sky again. We’re your long-lost brothers, not your enemies. We only hate the alicorns… and so should you, because look how they abandoned you.”

“Huh,” he replied.

Later, Soldier A took a smoke break--in the hallway outside at the chemists’ insistence--and by the time he finished his cigarette, the gunshots in the compound had died down. Soon, the lab door swung open, and in walked General Cesium himself. To walk into the base so soon, he must’ve been confident that Petra had already won the battle. But why was he here? To give another one of his speeches? But of course.

“Ponies of science,” he addressed them. “I’ve learned that you invented a weapon, but Princess Celestia wouldn’t let you deploy against the changelings. It’s one that could’ve turned the tide against Chrysalis... that is, if Celestia had an IQ above room temperature. But she opposed this weapon for ‘ethical concerns.’ Apparently, a few ponies here in this room shared her sentiment, when you discovered the weapon’s effects were even deadlier than you thought.”

He took a step forward, his eyes narrowing. “But why? Princess Celestia and Luna were killed by the changelings soon after you invented the weapon. You now answer to no one, except the love you have for your fellow countrymen. Why continue to follow alicorn orders? Why put the ‘ethical concerns’ of a foreign power above your own survival? It’s the same insane self-sacrifice that we saw in another timeline. King Sombra was waging war against Equestria, a country twice the size and population of the Crystal Empire. It should’ve been an easy win for you, but your leaders crippled you and tossed unarmed and untrained bodies into the fray.

“Petra will not allow your inaction to endanger our country. You failed to contain this parasite infestation, Equestria has fallen, and the Republic of Petra is your new government. You shall work with Petran scientists to deploy your weapon onto the battlefield and correct the alicorns’ mistake of inaction. We have no time to lose!”

About half of the scientists stepped forward to walk towards Cesium, many of them smiling. But about half stayed sitting in the back of the lab.

Cesium looked at them and scowled. “Oh, did I make it sound like you had a choice?”

General Cesium stood atop the complex, victorious, addressing his troops.

“We lost many good ponies in the Arid Sector, but this battle was just the beginning of our war. We will avenge our fallen heroes. We will free our imprisoned Equestrian brethren, who will fight beside us. Our might and arms will persevere… Queen Chrysalis and her drones will feel the brunt of our golems and the pierce of our KA-97’s!”

“In the ground severed, to the sky together!” the soldiers responded in unison, holding their rifles high.

“That’s Petra’s national motto,” said High Flyer.

Equestria’s motto is ‘Forever united, forever friends,’ Starlight observed. It implies that Equestria is perfect as is, but Petra’s motto implies a temporary state of affairs... the nation is just a launching pad to something else. Interesting…

Darkened Way said, “Amber, during the lull in the fighting, I’ve been recording from near Appleloosa. It was one of the last towns to be captured by the changelings, just a week ago.”

A green and black painted train traveled down the railroad tracks which ran through Appleloosa, now a burnt-out husk of its former self. Only charred skeletal structure remained standing, while blackened timber, smashed glass, and broken saloon bottles littered the floor. It smelled of ash and booze… a stench which Starlight’s vivid imagination conjured up.

Changelings flew into the town, weaving through wreckage to find the few remaining ponies, buffalo, and sheep, who were all cowering wherever they could hide. Two by two the changelings carried them to the train, a hellish ark. The Changelings belched up green goo to smother their captives, then tossed them in, stuffing the boxcars to bursting.

The camera cut to Manganese, who said, “The PIA has read the Equestrian intelligence from Arid Sector. They’ve determined that this rail line is vital to the ‘Love Economy,’ an emotional slave trade across occupied Equestria. The exact details of this economy are unclear, but here’s what we do know.”

Another map of Equestria appeared, marked with occupied cities of Equestria, all highlighted in green. The main hive was also labelled, and it was in Canterlot. That wasn’t where it was in the main timeline, but perhaps it was symbolic. Queen Chrysalis had failed to capture Canterlot during the wedding of Shining Armor to Princess Cadance. Now that she had Canterlot, maybe relocating her capitol there was a move to stroke her ego, a symbol of her triumph.

Manganese continued, “The so-called Love Economy is neither loving nor an economy. It’s a war crime syndicate. Whenever the Changelings capture a new town, they imprison the residents in cocoons of green goo. They’re sardine-packed into trains and sent to the main hive to be processed. The prisoners are then to be turned into love slaves for the Changelings to feed off of.

“After processing, the pony love-slaves are shipped by train once more, distributed out to the new colonies in the main cities of Equestria. Each city gets slaves according to their need, a form of central planning typical of insects.”

Darkened Way asked, “Not all those ponies--or buffalo or sheep--have love to give, do they?”

Manganese shook her head. “The ponies who are lacking in love: the homeless, clinically depressed, and lonely elderlies are deemed useless. Warning: the following footage is not suitable for anyone under the age… anyone with a weak… for anyone who...”

Here eyes were misty. “For anyone.”

The camera cut to Galloping Gorge. Changelings flew giant wheelbarrows full of entrapped Equestrians over and dumped them in. Their bodies cracked and shook as their bones broke from impact. Countless ponies, buffalo, sheep, cows, and other sentient creatures filled the gorge to the brim. Changelings with flamethrowers sprayed napalm across the bodies, and black smoke billowed up. Starlight’s throat clenched. She felt like she’d throw up. At least she couldn’t smell the acrid smoke. This was something so medieval, it hadn’t been seen in the world for countless generations.

Her constitution returned after the (thankfully brief) clip was finished.

Amber added, “What’s more troubling… the Arid Sector scientists have said it’s possible that the ponies in these cocoons are entirely conscious the whole time, as no sedative exists in changeling proteins.”

“Dammit!” Starlight shouted. She slammed her hoof into the floor so hard that it left a bruise on her hoof and a dent in the floor. High Flyer patted her on the back.

“You’re doing great,” he said. “It was hell even for me to watch this, and I’ve been alive for many decades and seen all sorts of death and violence. I can’t imagine what it’s like for you. I can stop it if you want?”

“No,” she said. “I need to see what I did.”

His sudden telepathy caught her off guard. He leaned towards her, his face stone cold.

He clarified, “Princess Celestia’s genius idea of ‘national defense’ was to have her fave student go into a random village, pray that she’d find five other ponies with exactly the right personality types, and have them wield long-lost artifacts that shoot rainbows at things. True, that precise scenario didn’t happen because of you. But Celestia is such a doofus that she didn’t even have a backup plan.

“After the sonic rainboom was a bust, Celestia had years to find an understudy, another student after Twilight didn’t get her cutie mark in time. But she didn’t. Celestia’s a real Einstone, huh? It’s her job to protect Equestria, not yours. Is Equestria truly full of friendship, or are the amulets of harmony just compensating for something? There should’ve been loads more ponies with pure enough hearts to wield them. How could there not be? But Celestia said no to it all.

“Even with no amulets, you’ve got some badass unicorns; they were some of Celestia’s fiercest soldiers during the Regal Wars. Where were the unicorns to cast the same time spell that you did, or shoot magic laser beams? The pegasi could’ve made a tornado to blow bad guys away. And of course Celestia doesn’t allow golems, so she’s passing up a game changer. Celestia’s one backup plan against the changelings, which you’ll see here in a bit, she didn’t even want to use. Just like when she was fighting Sombra, Celestia puts the welfare of the enemy above her own people. She denies her subjects the use of their talents to defend Equestria. She doesn’t listen to ponies who propose winning strategies.”

He took a long breath.

“...And another thing, Celestia aside. In our timeline, King Sombra and Queen Chrysalis were stopped before they became a problem. Do you believe in free will? In these alternate timelines, these two became major problems… but where were the crystal ponies and changelings with consciences? No revolts or uprisings? No coup attempts by other thugs in the monarchs’ cadres with different agendas? They were even more wicked and vile than you ever knew. They observe no law. If you believe in free will, then they could’ve felt guilt and stopped at any point. Or just seen that, pragmatically, they could’ve stayed in power a lot longer by playing nice.

“Was everything that went wrong entirely your fault? Does the burglar take no blame for stealing your stuff, even when your door is unlocked? Starlight Glimmer, tell me that it wasn’t all your fault.”

Starlight blinked. She’d never thought about it that way. True, she had more respect for the Princesses than High Flyer did, but Princess Celestia did kind of drop the ball after Twilight didn’t get her cutie mark during that exam. While a lot had to go right for the six element bearers to meet each other, a lot had to go wrong for Equestria to be overtaken after they didn’t. A needle can pop a balloon, but it can’t pop a watermelon. Starlight was responsible for being the needle, but Equestria had only itself to blame for being a balloon. Sombra and Chrysalis had responsibility for being who they were, as well.

Over the next hour, a compilation of footage showed the Petrans striking the changelings all across Southern Equestria. They blew up bridges near Appleloosa, Las Pegasus, Dodge Junction, Marizona, and Birminghay. Steamroller golems ruthlessly smashed through various hives the changelings had constructed. Soldiers went door to door rescuing ponies. The Equestrians broke down in tears, hugging their mysterious heroes. The Petrans showed the earth ponies how to charge up golems, the pegasi carried the Petrans off to towns further east and west, and the high-level unicorns cast enchantments on weapons and armor.

A male voiceover said, “Block Media would like to thank our competitors for sharing the footage from their reporters, as we have shared ours. This event is so widespread that it’s difficult for a single news team to report. Rest assured that our network will retain its objective coverage, while showing all relevant footage of these events.”

“That’s President Block’s voice,” said High Flyer.

Starlight noted, “Trying to assure his viewers that he’s not joining some larger media syndicate.”

“It’s important,” said High Flyer with a serious tone. “In Equestria, every big news outlet has only positive things to say about the alicorns. In Petra, only Block Media and a few independent newspapers are truly critical of the Entrenchment policies.”

“Almost everypony in Equestria loves the princesses,” said Starlight. “There isn’t really a market segment for anti-Celestia news. As for the Entrenchment, most ponies don’t like change, whether Equestrians or Petrans.”

High Flyer added, “You’re right about change, but after over a thousand years, most people would want something different. That’s what happens in Petran elections; we have different political parties. But who wants to risk falling afoul of the hate speech laws in Equestria? I could say, ‘Equestria is too gentle. We need to take a scorched earth approach to this war,’ and I’d be arrested for inciting hatred.”

Starlight chuckled. “Those laws aren’t usually enforced. I was never arrested for hate speech, and I said that everypony’s uniqueness should be stripped from them against their will. In fact, I wasn’t even arrested for messing with the timelines.”

“That’s because you’re too powerful to arrest. You can travel through time, teleport, fly, create butterfly wings, remove cutie marks, and probably do all sorts of other cool things I don’t even know about.”

Starlight gave a tepid smile. “Hmm… I can turn invisible, turn objects into other objects, combine raw ingredients to bake a cake in seconds, clone myself, run incredibly fast, telekinetically move objects weighing over a thousand pounds, create protective shields, trap ponies in crystal, walk on clouds, make ponies speak against their will, use mind control, turn adults into children, banish people from locations… I’m probably missing a few.”

High Flyer’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “Those powers are really dope! You prove my point, though. The princesses have no way to respond to something tougher than them--this broadcast is proof. They prolly just left you alone ‘cause they were afraid of you.”

“Twilight kept me by her side because the only way to control me was to change my attitude towards friendship. It worked. I truly regret what I did to my village. And now I’m the guidance counselor at a friendship scho—wait, I think you forgot to pause the video.”

High Flyer shrugged. “It was just more war footage. Now here’s where it gets interesting.”

As the war had progressed, the Petrans’ tactics had changed. Thousands of golems marched across the deserts and grasslands, laying siege to changeling-controlled cities. Some golems were made of stone from Petra, but many were recently constructed in Equestria: from bricks of destroyed homes, or cobblestone from ruined streets. The Petran soldiers and their Equestrian allies mostly stood back behind the lines, recharging depleted golems as they came along, as the pegasi provided air support. The Petran war machine was truly frightening when it got going—and only two days had passed in this timeline.

However, Petrans were still needed on the front lines to telepathically discern who were actually ponies, and who were changelings. The golems weren’t smart enough to know the difference, so they only attacked specific targets the Petrans designated. Telling changelings and ponies apart was a very difficult task, as the changelings had changed their tactics. They were almost all mimicking civilians now… yet another serious war crime, not that Chrysalis cared.

“Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!” they pleaded.

The Petrans couldn’t telepathically “ping” tens of thousands of ponies. Even if they could, most Equestrians had no idea how to respond to telepathic messages, nor any idea of whom to respond to.

The Petrans’ initial victories in certain cities faded into stalemates in others, even losses in the cities of Pullsa and Husted. No one knew who was who. The Changeling collective had now adapted to Petra. What had worked at the Arid Sector—a surprise attack and close-quarters combat—didn’t work on the large battlefields and cities. Not anymore, at least.

Amber Manganese and Darkened Way were getting some much-needed sleep. In their place, Block Media brought in a military analyst, a veteran named Attack Formation. She was a wore a tan uniform with several medals on it, gleaming in the Block Studio spotlight, and chomped on an unlit cigar. She had a burly, butch look, and was one of the few females that Starlight had seen in Petra’s military.

She said, “Petran military losses have started mounting. Early reports indicate that at least a thousand Petrans have died, and two thousand of our Equestrian allies, compared to ten thousand dead changelings. Several changelings have defected to Petra, shedding their blackened forms to become who they truly are. From EIA, PIA and changeling defector sources, a siege on Canterlot would quite literally be an uphill battle. Hundreds of thousands of changelings have retreated there, destroying railroads and bridges behind them.

“Without pegasi weather control, severe snowy weather and frostbite temperatures have beset Canterlot. There’s a shortage of winter clothing. It was never mass-produced in this timeline. Pushing further north and climbing the mountain is estimated to cost over fifty thousand Petran lives, and twice that many Equestrians. Even then, at least a hundred thousand golems would need to be built to maintain supply lines, protect the liberated territory in the south, destroy obstacles, and assist in the fighting. This siege would take at least a year.

“An aerial bombardment campaign is out of the question; Canterlot houses thousands of pony love slaves, and slave laborers. It’s Equestria’s oldest city and a historically protected area. The city has important significance to both Petrans and Equestrians. While military plans are confidential, President Diamondshower has prepared an announcement, directed at Queen Chrysalis.”

Diamondshower took to his podium. His eyes were baggy and bloodshot, but he spoke in a stern voice.

“Queen Chrysalis, your reign of terror over this continent is about to come to an end. If you value the lives of your subjects at all, you shall surrender immediately and unconditionally. Otherwise, you face imminent destruction. You have one hour.”

An hour passed, with Attack Formation offering several speculative theories on the ‘imminent destruction’ that Diamondshower had promised. Starlight thought that perhaps it was the Arid Sector weapon. Though it shouldn’t come as a surprise to Chrysalis… she’d captured the base, after all, and presumably the weapon schematics. It was possible, though, that the Petran and Equestrian scientists had put their heads together to come up with something even better. Would Chrysalis call Diamondshower’s bluff? Was he bluffing at all?

Exactly one hour later, Starlight got a horrifying answer.

Amber Manganese was back at her desk. “We are reporting that the town of Ponyville has been struck by a new weapon… this is incredible.”

The footage cut to Ponyville. Thankfully it was far enough away to where Starlight couldn’t make out any ponies she knew. The changelings, though, were clearly identifiable. They were in their true forms, black, and writhing on the streets of the city. Chittering and groans rose up from them. Their limbs twitched as they died in agony. Changelings in pony form were not immune; they were struck by this mysterious illness, involuntarily reverted to changeling form, and died like the rest.

The dolphins were spared, the sharks were speared, Starlight recalled from her vision.

Amber said, “It’s said to be a pesticide which shuts down a changeling’s morphogenic nervous system. The pesticide hijacks the changelings’ ability to shapeshift and uses it against them, making the morphogenic nerves go haywire. The Arid Sector first developed it to non-lethally stun changelings, but it was deadlier than intended. Princess Celestia forbade the chemical’s use, calling it ‘potential genocide.’ Chemical weapons are banned under international treaties, but Petra is not a signatory.

“The new weapon, which Petran scientists improved upon, now has a lethality rate of 99% within 100 meters of the deployment site. The canisters are lightweight and can be easily transported by wing. President Diamondshower has threatened Queen Chrysalis once more. Her top generals and officers must surrender to Petran custody, and all changeling war criminals must be arrested to stand trial, or else Canterlot itself will be gassed.”

Starlight’s jaw dropped. She turned to High Flyer, who had already paused the video in anticipation.

“You used chemical weapons against the changelings? Didn’t you know that all you had to do was to convince them of the value of friendship?”

High Flyer rolled his eyes. “Didn’t you hear Amber Manganese’s love monologue earlier? How did we turn the defectors good? Petrans know the right way for a changeling to live, but you can only convince somebody of something if they’re willing to listen. Sometimes you have to show somebody the wrath of God for them to listen to you.”

“I guess… before she convinced me, Twilight Sparkle showed me an alternate timeline where all of Equestria had been destroyed. That’s what it took for me. I’m saying this should’ve been a propaganda war, not a genocide.”

“One town does not a genocide make. And propaganda… how would we have done that? Dropping leaflets in a language they can’t read? Pirate broadcasts on scry-orbs they don’t have? Telepathic signals to their telepathically deaf brains? C’mon, Starlight, you’re smarter than this. We had to send them a little message in a language every creature understands… death.”

Petran soldiers ascended the road into Canterlot, unopposed by the terrified changelings. They cowered in fear as the troops passed them by, as if they’d be shot. But no violence had broken out since Ponyville was gassed.

“A cease-fire is in order, and the Changelings have no choice but to obey it,” said Darkened Way, who was recording close-up footage of the Petrans claiming Canterlot. Or perhaps reclaiming Canterlot, depending on one’s view of history. Queen Chrysalis and her generals were arrested, escorted out of the royal palace by scores of armed Petrans.

Everypony cheered the arrival of the soldiers. They forced the changelings to remove all ponies from their imprisoned cocoons. Families reunited in the streets, their eyes filled with tears of joy. Several of the more good-natured changelings begged for forgiveness. Would they receive it? A changeling couldn’t survive unless he or she received love, and since it could no longer be stolen, it had to be given freely. There would be many starving changelings unless Equestrians and Petrans had compassion for them and their situation.

Elsewhere, changelings were forced to dig proper graves to bury the victims of their emotional genocide. Many of the changelings themselves looked shocked at the giant pits of bodies. Apparently, knowledge of the genocide wasn’t widespread, even among changelings.

Grief-stricken ponies shouted at them, “Look what you did! Never forget this!”

“We didn’t know…” the changelings sobbed, hauling bodies out of the mass graves to put in individual plots.

President Diamondshower once again stood to give a speech, speaking from Canterlot this time. His podium bore an emblem with a different variation of the Petran flag, this one with no black circle on it. A few changelings in their true forms, their beautiful forms of voluntary love and compassion, stood behind him. King Thorax was one of them. The transformation from evil to purity had begun, for some changelings at least.

Diamondshower said, “With the defeat of Queen Chrysalis, we now face an enormous challenge. Equestria and the Petran Republic must chart a course together, whatever that may be. Ponykind has been fractured in two for a thousand years, but re-integration is only possible with the consent and knowledge of both peoples. Equestria must re-establish some form of government in the absence of the alicorn princesses. Whether the new government unites with Petra is another matter, but our presence is known and we will no longer live in secret. We will not deny the bond of kinship which exists between our peoples.

“But we now have a third factor. The changelings have no legitimate government or power structure, either. They too are family, long removed… descended from a different line, Terrarch’s sister, the goddess Duplicity. We must ensure that all changeling war criminals face trial, but we must establish a legal framework under which to try them to begin with. We must consider what ponykind’s relation with the changelings shall b”

“it will be a long road--

“--many ethical considerations--”

“(The idea of the Light...

Darkness, distortion, and stuttering interrupted the president’s speech, until the screen faded. Another timeline shift, apparently. The Petrans reappeared inside of Petra healed of all wounds, the dead resurrected, as if it all was just a dream.

Once more, Starlight broke down in tears.

“I never knew that… so much suffering happened…” she sobbed, barely containing herself. “Why did it have to be? It could’ve been solved so easily!”

“At least the story had a happy ending,” said High Flyer. “I’m not sure what would’ve happened if that timeline continued, but the suffering came to an end.”

“And it’s thanks to Petra, which is the strangest part,” said Starlight, now with more composure. “The heroes are the ones who hate Equestria’s government? Ruthless violence, not friendship, saved the day? I won’t lie, I’m very confused.”

“Peace, not conflict, is a warrior’s goal,” said High Flyer. “His job is to never have to do his job. He, his comrades, and their machinery are a deterrent, a display of such power that an enemy would think twice before attacking. But when the time comes, the warrior takes his gun and his courage, racing towards the battlefield. He knows that pitying the enemy is treason to his own people. That was Celestia’s mistake. She didn’t see that heroism is the opposite of unearned mercy. Maybe you’re so confused ‘cause you finally see some of Celestia’s failings, and you’re uncomfortable.”

“I’m sure she had a reason, but I’m really not seeing it,” said Starlight. “Millions would’ve died if the war kept going without chemical weapons being used, versus a few thousand being killed in a very painful way in Ponyville as a demonstration. Honestly--and it makes me feel horrible to say this--I almost find myself agreeing with Petra’s decision. Almost.”

“I’m just guessing, but maybe this is one reason Maud brought you to Petra,” said High Flyer. “Without seeing this, you’d have lived your whole life not knowing what happened, not ever getting any closure for the horrible timelines that happened… again, not entirely your fault.”

“True, and at least now I know. How many more videos are there? I don’t know how much more of this I can take,” Starlight pleaded.

High Flyer smiled. “We’re through the worst of it. The next timeline actually isn’t violent at all. It’s kind of humorous, to be honest. The one after it is more like a novel, less like a bloodbath. Then we’re done.”

He resumed the video.

Amber Manganese sat at her desk. “Good evening, fillies and gentlecolts. We here at Block Media aren’t entirely sure what’s happening in this new timeline. Everything outside of Petra appears to be nonsense. Cotton candy clouds, chocolate rivers, floating windmills: insanity. Scientists have speculated that, rather than a new Equestrian timeline, we’ve instead been transported to another dimens—”

A white flash erupted in Manganese’s chair. She disappeared.

“Hello, Petra. So nice of you to finally join my chaos world!”

Discord had taken her place.

Author's Note

Prepare for some shenanigans in the next chapter. Mostly light-hearted. Two timelines in one chapter, so chapter six will return to the “real” story.

I’ve added “violence” and “dark” tags to this story. If you’ve read this far, then you likely know these tags are already applicable. Honestly they should’ve been there to start with, but I discover a lot while I’m in the process of writing.

I had no idea how dark the Sombra and Chrysalis timelines would be—and would have to be in order to be consistent with the show—until I started writing them and thinking about it more in depth.

Trivia:

Changelings can’t receive telepathic signals because that part of their brain is geared towards recognizing pheromones of other changelings.

Petra disappeared from the alternate timelines as soon as the Sonic Rainboom failed to happen. They did not re-appear in those timelines until Twilight Sparkle arrived there. This explains the Arid Sector scientist’s reaction, “Why did you wait so long,” and Discord saying, “So nice of you to finally join us.”

The different version of the Petran flag contains no black circle; it’s just five diamonds, with black outlines, sitting in a field of yellow. It’s the flag that Petrans will fly when they’ve emerged from the dark underground.

The spell that Amber Manganese uses to refill her coffee cup is a modified teleportation spell. It teleports some of the coffee from a nearby coffee pot into her cup.

The potential Canterlot invasion analysis is similar to the analysis which the US prepared regarding Japan in WWII. It was estimated that, to conquer the Japanese mainland, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers would lose their lives. We all know why that didn’t happen.

Discussion questions:

How much responsibility does Starlight Glimmer bear for what happened in the alternate timelines?

Was Petra right to use chemical weapons in Ponyville?

Assuming the timeline went on indefinitely, could Petra have won the war against Chrysalis with friendship or propaganda alone, as Starlight would’ve wanted?

In this timeline, the changelings are far more numerous than they were in the main timeline. Would they have integrated into Equestria, or be given their own homeland?

Is there any way for Petra to defeat Discord, who is nearly omnipotent?

Chapter 1: The Forgotten Outlaws

Maud Pie: With the right stone, you could rule all of Equestria if you wanted to.
Starlight: ...You're messing with me.
Maud Pie: Am I?
S7E4: Rock Solid Friendship

A harmless trip to the southeast, that’s all it was supposed to be. Maud had invited Trixie and Starlight along with her. While they both expected the trip to largely revolve around rocks, Maud assured them that it would be an exciting adventure for everyone. Starlight was game; she needed a vacation. Trixie was eager to spend time with her closest friend, and to get to know her former employer a little better—there’s no time for chit-chat on a rock farm.

The three had visited Appleloosa the day before. Now they were walking south towards a notable landmark that Maud had mentioned. As Maud led them along, the apple orchards gave way to vast, flat stretches of desert with a few cacti and bushes dotting the arid landscape. A couple vultures soared above, looking for a carcass.

“Appleloosa was interesting, I guess,” said Starlight to Trixie. “I didn’t expect for it to be so…exaggerated.”

Trixie grinned. “I forgot, you like your towns simple and boring,” she quipped.

Starlight rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t that… and thanks for reminding me. No, by exaggerated, I mean that everypony was wearing giant cowboy hats and speaking with forced accents like they were putting on a play or something. They even had a banner up that said, ‘Welcome to Historic Appleloosa.’ The town’s been around for three years.”

Maud said, “It was quaint.”

Trixie said, “Take it from an expert in marketing, Starlight. ‘Historic’ just sounds good on towns. Just like ‘old-fashioned’ sounds good on food, and ‘Great and Powerful’ sounds good on Trixie!”

Starlight gazed up at the blinding sun. It was assaulting her eyes with daggers of light. Sweat was getting in Starlight eyes, her mane, her mouth, everywhere.. Trixie at least had a wide-brimmed hat, though she too was drenched. And Maud… was still wearing her frock as usual. Even then, she didn’t appear to be sweating or exhausted. Earth pony endurance, perhaps.

Trixie said, “As a showmare, Trixie appreciated Appleloosa’s high noon gunfight reenactment. It was brilliantly choreographed, and even for a fearless pony like me it was terrifying. It felt like an actual gunfight.”

“That’s because Maud didn’t tell us that it was staged,” Starlight said.

Maud shrugged. “It’s no fun if you know it’s fake.”

Starlight smiled. “Got any more surprises for us, Maud?”

“Yes.”

She pointed. With their eyes, they followed her hoof to the far side of a butte. It was red, hundreds of feet tall, and flat-topped: a decapitated mountain. Almost anything would look tiny by comparison. Almost.

Next to it, a giant, pony-shaped rock construct towered high over the desert. The rock pony stood thirty feet tall, casting a long shadow. Its body, limbs, and joints were all blocks of chiseled sandstone, piled atop one another. The bulk of its mass was its barrel and back, the hooves a close second. The maneless head was flat and big enough for multiple ponies to stand atop it. As they approached, they could appreciate the construct’s great size.

“Is that an ancient statue?” asked Trixie.

“Is it a mirage?” asked Starlight.

Maud shook her head. “It’s a golem.”

Starlight blinked a few times. "Aren't golems illegal?"

“Yes,” Maud said. “I built it. If you want to ride it—”

“Let’s do it! Finally we don’t have to walk anymore,” Trixie said, breathing a sigh of relief.

Starlight hesitated as Maud and Trixie looked at her.

“Lighten up, Starlight. Plenty of cool things are illegal,” said Trixie, ribbing Starlight with her hoof.

Starlight contemplated this. She’d done plenty of illegal things in her life and hadn’t spent even a single day in jail. Besides, it was Maud who was risking legal trouble, not her. This was a vacation. She told herself that she shouldn’t worry about what could go wrong, but instead focus on having fun.

“Sure. Where are we going?” she asked.

“The town of Last Prance,” Maud replied.

Trixie’s eyebrows raised. “I’ve done shows all around Equestria, and I’ve never heard of Last Prance.

“It’s been a secret for 1,000 years,” said Maud.

She climbed the golem’s front left hoof, up to the leg, and up the neck. She ascended so rapidly, that it was like watching a spider climb a wall. Not just any spider, but one of Fluttershy’s trained spider acrobats.

Maud now stood atop the head, and beckoned for Starlight and Trixie to come up.

“Let’s both float on, okay?” Starlight suggested. She doused herself in blue-hued magical energy, levitating up slowly through the scorching air.

“Wait, take me with you!” Trixie implored, reaching up to Starlight with her hoof.

Starlight rolled her eyes. “Do it yourself. I’m not made of mana.”

Trixie’s horn sputtered as she only lifted a few feet off the ground and fell down again.

“I’m too heavy! I must’ve drank too many fruit smoothies back in Appleloosa,” she whined.

“Then teleport up there like I taught you!” Starlight yelled, now about ten feet in the air. She grinned. “For somepony who’s great and powerful, you sure don’t act like it!”

Trixie wouldn’t take that lying down. She concentrated, clearing all from her mind except the flat top of the golem’s head.

Concentrating… concentrating… keeping the image in mind… just clearing out everything else… I wonder what Snips and Snails are up to right now… dammit!… clearing everything again… focusing on the top… alright… here goes…

Poof! Trixie appeared right where she wanted, next to her friends. She grinned from ear to ear.

“I did it!” she shouted.

“That’s wonderful, Trixie, but Maud and I have been up here for five minutes waiting,” said Starlight.

“It was boring,” said Maud.

Trixie lowered her head, gazing at the rock.

“We’re messing with you, Trixie. I just got here,” Starlight laughed.

Maud chuckled.

Trixie frowned. “That wasn’t a very nice trick to play! I’ll get both of you back with a prank.”

“Just make sure the prank doesn’t involve teleportation,” Starlight quipped.

“Let’s cool off,” said Maud.

Maud pushed a hoof-sized stone button. With a whoosh, a dark tinted glass dome enveloped the golem’s head, covering it like a snowglobe. The sunlight dimmed in the shade. Starlight’s eyes unwinced, and she felt quick relief from the muscular strain of narrowing her eyes for hours.

“Smoky quartz is my seventeenth-most favorite mineral. It dims everything, except my passion for geology,” said Maud in a quite dispassionate way.

Maud gave another button a tap with her hoof, and the golem started walking forward. It moved at quite a fast pace, each hoofstep covering about ten feet. The ground thudded beneath. Vultures scattered and snakes slithered away from the massive vibrations.

“So you really built this giant golem by yourself?” asked Starlight.

“Yes. My special talent, knowledge of rock, lets me make them.”

Starlight and Trixie gazed at Maud’s flank, but could not see her cutie mark. Her cobalt blue frock was covering it up. She briefly flashed it… it was a diamond-shaped, greyish green rock. Or maybe gemstone, they couldn’t tell.

“The world doesn’t get to see my cutie mark. Why should they? They refuse to see my creations,” Maud scoffed, frowning just a bit. It was the first time Starlight had seen an expression of emotion from her on this whole trip.

Trixie mused, “If this golem were smaller, it could be a form of mass transit in cities. Just put seats on top of its back; it could carry dozens of ponies at once. It’d be like a little mini-train. Can you do wheels instead of legs?”

Maud nodded.

“A good business idea, but you’d have to legalize golems first,” said Starlight.

Trixie adopted a devilish grin. “Trixie was thinking we could paint it, disguise it, and make it look like it’s not a golem. Or, you know what? We could make golems to harvest apple trees, or wheatfields. They’d be really efficient, and out in the country where nopony would see...”

Maud responded, “Your entrepreneurial eye is only matched by your rock-breaking skill, Trixie. But I’m not looking for business ventures now. That comes later.”

Starlight smiled. “I’m not really into doing politics on my vacation. Maybe afterwards, Twilight and I could talk to Princess Celestia about making golems legal. That way ponies everywhere could realize their benefit.”

“Good luck,” said Maud sarcastically.

Trixie laughed. “Starlight Glimmer, you’re really, really, really idealistic. You think that nopony has ever gone to Celestia and asked her to legalize golems? She’s been princess for over a thousand years, so if one pony asked her every ten years, that’s one hundred times she’s said no. What makes you different?”

“I’m a student of friendship,” said Starlight.

“So all of those other ponies who asked her were, what? Unfriendly dirtbags? Every one of them?” Trixie pushed the point, “That were all worse at logic and persuasion than you and Twilight, who would never argue with the Princess?”

Starlight pondered that for a second. “...I’m sure the Princess has a good reason for banning golems. As I recall from history, killer golems were a dangerous force during Equestria’s Dark Days. They have potential for abuse.”

“Your horn has potential for abuse,” Trixie joked.

“Listen, you both are preaching to the choir,” said Starlight. “I’m entirely for personal freedom, after I realized first-hoof how terrible it is when freedom is taken away from ponies. All I’m asking is, please try to give Princess Celestia the benefit of the doubt and quit making her out to be a tyrant.”

“Down with Celestia,” Maud said in her usual emotionless way.

Trixie sighed. “This is why you never talk politics with friends. The three of us are in an argument when we actually agree, mostly.”

“It didn’t feel like an argument to me—hey, is the wind blowing?” asked Starlight, gazing through the dome. Tumbleweeds were bouncing across the ground, and the wind was kicking the dust around. Nopony had even noticed.

“Roll down the dome, Maud!” Trixie ordered.

Maud retracted the dome. There was a slight, cooling breeze passing over them as the golem walked.

Starlight smiled. “You know what it’s the perfect time for, Trixie?”

“Breakfast?”

“Lunchtime,” Maud said. She removed a picnic blanket from her saddlebag, and spread it over the rock. The three ate a lunch of dandelion sandwiches that Maud had picked up from a deli in Appleloosa. A bit more lion than dandy, Starlight thought. What it needed was mayonnaise, possibly mustard. Then again, this was something that Maud had packed.

They soon reached a massive canyon cutting right through their path. Even at its narrowest, it was about a thousand feet wide. The golem stopped in its tracks.

“The Southern Divide,” said Starlight, who’d been studying the atlas on the train ride. “There’s a train bridge a few hundred miles away…”

“No,” said Maud.

She pressed another of the many buttons on the golem’s head. It backed up about two hundred feet, got a running start, and leaped across the canyon. Trixie and Starlight, both terrified, gazed down into the canyon as they passed over. A small river cut through it, and the sides were red sandstone. Very gorgeous. With a giant thud, the golem landed on the other side of the canyon. It caused their bodies to bump ten feet into the air. They all landed safely back on the golem.

“Don’t ever do that again without warning us!” Trixie demanded.

Maud lowered her head. “Sorry. I’ve made this trip a dozen times. I forgot how scary the first time is. Anyway...”

There were two hoof-shaped indents on the golem’s head. Maud placed her hooves into them. Her muscles bulged, and she gritted her teeth. A whirring sound accompanied this process. It lasted about five minutes.

“It’s recharged,” she said.

Even camels need water, Starlight thought. The golem resumed its walk across the desert.

“You’ve been on this trip dozens of times, huh?” asked Starlight. “Why have you been coming here so often?”

“Partly for political reasons, but mostly for research. The rocks and gems within the Macintosh Hills are unique in all of Equestria, and it’s easier to mine them with golems. Of particular noteworthiness are the pink diamonds, which are only known to occur in the southernmost regions of the planet…”

Starlight and Trixie decided they’d take a nap. Maud’s rambling about rocks put them right to sleep.

Several hours passed, and the sun began to set over the western horizon.

Maud prodded Starlight and Trixie with her hoof.

“Uh… dancing penguins, we’ll sell a million tickets…” Trixie muttered. She opened her eyes, for once not having to squint.

“We’re right at the foot of the mountains. Are we at Last Prance? I don’t see a town,” Starlight observed.

“Just wait,” said Maud. She pressed one final button and the golem bent down on its knees. Then, she slid down the side, now only about ten feet from the ground. Trixie and Starlight followed.

“Well, there’s plenty of parking here, at least,” said Trixie.

Amidst the red sandstone and rock of the Macintosh Hills--more properly termed mountains--there was a small door-shaped indent which Maud pointed to. It was almost invisible to the naked eye; if Trixie and Starlight didn’t know what they were looking for, they wouldn’t have found it.

“I guess they don’t like company,” said Starlight.

“You’re my guests,” said Maud.

“Ah, then we’ll be treated like royalty!” Trixie proclaimed.

“You’re well known in this town, then?” asked Starlight.

“Very,” said Maud.

They approached the concealed entrance. It stood about ten feet tall and five feet wide. Maud tapped it with her hooves.

Tap-tap-tappity-tap-tappity-tap-tap-tap. It was some sort of code. The stone door slid down with the grinding sound of rock on rock.

An earth pony with a pitch-black coat and a silver mane emerged. He was wearing sunglasses and a cowl with a silver and black checkered pattern matching his coloring. A scimitar hung from his side. Behind him stood two golem sentries which looked like minotaurs, both holding steel battleaxes.

This place is a fortress, thought Starlight. She didn’t want to end up on their bad side.

“You’ve crossed into the Republic of Petra. State your name and business, outsiders,” he said gruffly.

“Maud Pie. You know me, Anthracite. These are my guests.”

Anthracite smiled. “I know who you are, Maud. They just tell me to ask the question every time. You never know if somepony is a changeling.”

Starlight sheepishly said, “Uh, most of the changelings are good now--or at least, non-evil. Some of them even work for Equestria. I played no small part in that.”

“Exactly,” said Anthracite. He leered at Starlight. “None of the Alicorns’ agents are allowed on Petran soil.”

“Starlight Glimmer is no agent of the princess. She actually stood up to Celestia and cast a spell to prevent her from turning into Daybreaker,” said Trixie, recalling the story that Starlight had told her. Well, Trixie’s version at least.

“And you are?” the stallion demanded.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie! I specialize in stage magic, amazement, bewilderment, and screams of delighted fans,” she boasted.

“Hmm, I’ve heard the name,” he said. “We have magic shows in Last Prance. It’s only two earth ponies who do it, though. We’re kinda tired of their act week after week, year after year… most of their shows have an audience of ten or less. Maybe you can entertain us, especially since you’re an actual unicorn. There aren’t many non-earth Petrans.”

“So are we in?” asked Starlight Glimmer.

“Maud Pie is. This Trixie gal is. You? I’m not sure. You seem like a wildcard, a spoiler. What is it that you do?”

“I’m a student of friendship, and a guidance counsellor at Princess Twilight Sparkle’s school.”

“Hmmm…” he narrowed his eyes. “I mean, what are you doing here? Not snooping on Sparkle’s behalf, I hope… and believe me, we have ways of detecting spooks.”

“She’s agreed to help the Republic in its talks with the Alicorns,” said Maud. “She knows the right ponies. Perhaps she can pull some strings and Celestia will ease the golem ban.”

Starlight said, “I’ll say what I can to my contacts. The more I see of your town, the better case I can make to Equestrian royalty that you aren’t just some warlords-in-waiting.”

Anthracite nodded. “I’m a living lie detector, and you seem to legitimately believe that. Alright, you’re allowed in… but don’t think that your magic will protect you if you’re found to be an agent of the Alicorn Regime.”

Alicorn Regime? Is that what they call Celestia and Luna? Starlight thought.

Anthracite gestured with his hoof through the door. Starlight, Trixie, and Maud followed him, heading down a wide tunnel. The golems lumbered in behind them, eerily staring at Starlight and Trixie with blank stone faces.

Can they see? Can they think? Maud’s camel-like golem only needed a few buttons pressed, but it did the walking on its own…

Before Starlight could think about it further, they arrived in the antechamber. It was a massive cavern, lit by torches flickering in the blackness and giving off a smoky odor. The cavern had five tunnels that branched off in different directions. The whirring and clanking of mining drills and the rock-pounding of golem automatons echoed from somewhere deep within the tunnels. The group came to a standstill.

“Awaken,” Anthracite ordered.

Trixie and Starlight were blinded as a beam of white light erupted from the cavern center. Anthracite and Maud had already closed their eyes in anticipation. After wincing, Starlight’s eyes adjusted and she could see the lightsource. A pumpkin-sized crystal ball stood on a pedestal, its glow annihilating the darkness. It wasn’t as searing as it had first been; it dimmed until it was fine to look at.

Anthracite pointed at the crystal ball, gesturing for Starlight. She walked right up to it. It was gorgeous. Silvery threads swam in a dance through a milky white ocean. Thin cloudy forms floated across the globe like an overcast planet. Starlight was mesmerized. She’d seen all sorts of magic, but nothing like this. Maybe it was an artifact from the Unknown Before, maybe it was a device carefully crafted by a mechanical tinkerer, maybe it was enchanted by a sorcerer more powerful than Starlight herself. Whatever it was, she thought, it was surely one of a kind!

“It’s called a scry-orb and we have them everywhere,” said Anthracite. “Ponies use them to communicate, entertain, and do business. And you two will use it to record your presence and your agreement to follow our laws.”

The scry-orb gave a slight hum.

“Touch it.”

Starlight tepidly placed her hoof onto the orb, anxious for what might happen, and careful that she not tip it over and break such a work of art. Ripples flowed across its surface. It emitted words in a strange, monotone voice.

Welcome.

The ‘voice’ was not audible, Starlight realized. It was being directly channeled into her mind.

Outsider will provide a name, sex, kind, and age.

“Starlight Glimmer, female, unicorn, and don’t you know it’s rude to ask a mare’s age?” she said sarcastically.

Verbal responses are not accepted. Mental response only.

Wait, like this? she thought.

Mental response detected. Outsider will provide a name, sex, kind, and age.

Starlight did so.

Starlight Glimmer will provide a magical imprint.

What is a magical imprint?

A magical imprint is a magical signature which is unique to each unicorn. This allows a spell to be traced back to a unicorn in the event of a crime or mishap. Is further information required?

No, that’s fine.

Starlight hadn’t even known about magical imprints. Or scry-orbs for that matter. So how did the Petrans? They seemed really advanced for an isolated group who lived behind an impenetrable barrier, and who hadn’t seen the outside in many years. Maybe they had some great natural resources fueling them, Starlight thought... no, that was stupid. Otherwise the Diamond Dogs would be a shining beacon of progress.

Starlight Glimmer will provide a magical imprint.

In all of Starlight’s musings about societal development, she’d almost forgotten! She had no idea how to provide a magical imprint. So she just put the teensiest bit of magical telekinetic pressure on the globe. A little poke.

Magical imprint accepted. Starlight Glimmer will understand our laws.

Good lord. What, do I need to get a law degree or--

In the span of about five seconds, the scy-orb shoved a vast litany of laws, rules, regulations, mandates, orders, and legalese into her head. Her mind was stretched like a rubber band. She felt like she had just spent nineteen hours cramming for the bar exam. Cramming, because it would all fall out of her head quickly. Ten seconds later and she only recalled vague fragments… the prime command was for her to cause no trouble, and to never speak of what she saw in Petra.

I understand as well as I can, I suppose.

Welcome to the Federal Republic of Petra. We hope that you find your relief from the Alicorn Regime’s tyranny to be enjoyable.

Way to overstate a political dispute, Starlight thought to herself.

She walked back to her friends and said, “The scry-orb was… strange. I’ve messed with ponies’ minds before--nothing that I’m proud of. I didn’t know what it was like to have something probing thoughts of my own.”

Trixie said, “Trixie isn’t worried. She confronts the unknown with valor!”

Trixie walked up to the scry-orb and was done with it quickly.

“Easy,” she said, walking back with a smile on her face. “Just like the standard paperwork that all of my assistants sign.”

“All right, you’re done,” said Anthracite. He handed Trixie and Starlight blindfolds. “Put them on. The exact path to Last Prance is only known by a few. Take the wrong path and a sentry lies in wait to decapitate you on the spot.”

The unicorns put on their blindfolds, and Anthracite spun them around several times. Starlight felt queasy. He and Maud took them by the hoof and guided them through some tunnels. They walked for a good ten minutes, taking twists and turns through paths which branched off into more paths. They were entirely disoriented by the time that they reached their destination.

“Welcome to Last Prance, the capital of Petra,” said Anthracite as he removed their blindfolds.

They stood in a large cavern, a bit chilly. The ceiling was one hundred feet tall, well lit with lanterns and torches so even the stalactites were visible. Various shops and carved-out buildings ringed the cavern perimeter. At various sides of the cavern, golem minotaur sentries stood guard, battleaxes strapped to their backs. A giant cyan lake sat in the center, measuring fifty feet in diameter. Bubbling warm springs pushed froth up from the bottom. Dozens of ponies sat in the lake, some floating in inner tubes. At the lakeside, ponies lounged around on towels and sat at wooden tables. A golem resembling a tray in appearance walked along on spindly stalactite legs, carrying drinks and food out to ponies. Apple salads. Appletinis. Tantalizingly sweet apple pies straight out of the oven.

Maud was right, Starlight thought. This place wasn’t a den of rogues. It resembled a resort. But something was off… like fool’s gold.

“Is today a holiday in Petra? Why is almost everypony sitting in the lake?” asked Starlight.

“It’s no holiday,” said Anthracite, smiling. “This is how it always is. We’ve lived this way since a thousand years ago, when our ancestors lost the Regal War and made their home here. Our Republic is prosperous enough to provide a life of luxury to its citizens.”

“A life of stagnancy,” Maud countered. “Don’t try your Entrenchment talking points on my friends, Anthracite. We grew up in Equestria. This place is a fake paradise.”

“Don’t be a downer, Maud,” said Trixie. “I’d like to just lounge around all the time, too; it sounds like the greatest… well, maybe not. Nopony would appreciate Trixie’s greatness and powerfulness if she didn’t perform!”

Starlight said, “I need vacations; I need one now… but to sit around all the time? I’d eventually want to be off studying magic, helping ponies live a better life everywhere in Equestria.”

“You couldn’t, underground,” said Maud.

Anthracite looked at Maud. “Equestria belongs to Petra, you and I both agree. We are its government-in-exile. Would that we ruled it all, would that our people be free to do whatever they wanted on the outside. But we are few in number, and they are large. The Entrenchment is the only way to provide security, to make us unattackable. It’s lasted us a thousand years.”

Starlight said, “Things in this world tend to get shaken up around the thousand year mark. Nightmare Moon’s imprisonment. King Sombra’s banishment. A millennium is about as long as the status quo ever holds. ‘Tyranny’ is a strong word, and I don’t think it applies to the Princesses. The issue with golems aside, your society still deserves access to the outside world. It’s a shame, and I get the sense that something’s about to change.”

Anthracite nodded. "Yeah, the Entrenchment is becoming unpopular. Most of us want peace, but increasingly, some voters want to attack Equestria so we can emerge from underground. Bad idea. The Alicorns and their armies would make quick work of us."

Maud said, “Diplomacy first, but we’ll be free no matter what the Princesses do. My discovery will change everything.”

She reached into her saddlebag for an item, holding it out for Anthracite, Trixie, and Starlight to see. It was a diamond-shaped rock, greenish-black, about the size of a pony’s head. It looked exactly like Maud’s cutie mark, and it had a glossy finish.

Maud smiled wide.