War Equestriaby pennyponyChaptersEarth PoniesUnicornsMoonshinePegasiEarth Ponies"No!" Applebloom shouted, "You can't take mah brother away!". She grabbed onto his tail in an attempt to pull him back. A hoof on her shoulder and a stern voice. "Applebloom." Her sister looked down at her, clearly distressed but trying to get through it. "You know why he has to go," she sighed. Of course she knew why he had to go - it was mandatory for all capable colts of a certain age to go join the army. They needed more soldiers, as the war was intensifying and the Earth Ponies were readying for a battle. The Pegasian armies were threatening to attack the Earthen villages, and the main priority was to keep the civilians safe. "Ah know," Applebloom began angrily, "Ah just don't understand!" By now she was sobbing. A deep red hoof ruffled her hair gently. She looked up to see her brother wearing a sad smile. "It's okay." he assured her. And without another word she turned and headed down the long road from Sweet Apple Acres - a road he was used to walking everyday. Applebloom collapsed onto the soft grassy plain affront their house and began to sob. It wasn't like her to cry, but her family meant so much to her. They were all she had left in this bleak world, and now they were going too. Upon looking up from her sorrow, she saw her sister walking out into the apple orchards. "Applejack," she shouted weakly, almost choking on her words, "where're yah going?" "Now Big Macintosh is gone, ah'm gonna be working the fields double time," she replied. "That's why you gotta look after Granny Smith, alright? Now get yourself inside, it's gonna rain." Granny Smith was faring surprisingly well during these dark times. She didn't like to talk about it, but she had been through a war before. Applebloom knew her Granny had been through a lot. The house was strangely quiet since the war started, and even more so now that Big Macintosh had left. "Granny Smith," Applebloom began. "Yes, my darling sugarcube?" Granny replied with a smile. "How long do you think the war will be for?" Granny Smith turned back towards the fire and sighed. "Ah'm afraid I can't answer that yet sugarcube," she said, "In fact, ah don't think any pony can." "Miss Pie, is it possible that you are entirely incapable of being serious?" The referred to, a Pinkamena Diane, laughed this off. "Of course I can be serious, silly," she giggled, "but life is so much more fun when you look on the bright side of life!" Pinkamena, who instead referred to herself as Pinkie, must have been the most positive pony in Equestria - no matter what was happening, she would find the bright side. And if she couldn't find it, she'd make it. The pony at the desk slammed her hooves down on the desk, interrupting Pinkie's fit of giggles and giving her a fright. "Look Miss Pie," she began loudly, "There is no bright side to war. And until you understand that we have no interest in employing you.". Pinkie, a little shocked at the outburst, stood completely still for a moment before letting out a sigh. She felt her normally crazy hair start to deflate around her cheeks, as it always did when she could find not one happy thing to think about. Equestria - as it was today, in the midst of war - reminded Pinkie of the rock farm where she grew up. It was dark, desolate, and most of all lonely. Pinkie Pie had never had a best friend, and she had liked to think that everyone in Ponyville was her friend. But the war had torn people apart... Once best friends had to avoid each other in the street because of their races. Pinkie couldn't hold parties anymore because ponies were afraid to leave their own homes. Pinkie hadn't talked to anyone besides the Cake family for a long time. Pinkie was grateful for Mr and Mrs Cake - they had taken her in when she first came to Ponyville. She had been lonely and scared, but they had offered her a place to stay, given her a job, and welcomed her to their family. She thought of the two young Cake twins, Poundcake and Pumpkincake, as her little brother and sister. Since Mr Cake had to go and fight, Pinkie had decided that she would have to become the family's main source of income, but her attempts so far had gone less than well. But now, Pinkie Pie had to change. The Cakes needed her, and it was her responsibility to help them out, whether it meant changing herself or not. Unicorns"We need more powerful spells, Miss Twilight!" "I'm working on it!" Twilight Sparkle rushed about in the enormous library, trying to find a book, any book, that she may have missed while scouring the shelves for spells. The ones she had taught the forces so far just weren't strong enough, and she didn't want to be responsible for anymore ponies dying from Pegasus attacks. She had prepared for the Earth Pony soldiers, but the Pegasi were almost unaffected by her spells, and no-one had anticipated that they would attack so early. When her search returned nothing, she reached for her last resort - Celestia's Official Tome of Most Powerful Spells. She had avoided it before now, because the spells were complicated and time-consuming to teach, but everything they had tried so far had failed. "Tell them I've found something, boys," she shouted to her assistants who waited outside the door. They replied with a quick "yes, ma'am," before taking off. Twilight sighed. She was sure that there was some easier way to end the war, but nopony, not even her, could see it. "SWEETIE BELLE!" Rarity's voiced echoed throughout the house as she saw her sister Sweetie Belle trying to sneak tentatively through the back door of their home. Sweetie Belle gulped. She knew she was in serious trouble. "Where in Celestia's name have you been?!" Rarity screamed. "You know it's dangerous to go outside alone... You saw the warnings this afternoon didn't you? "I'm sorry Rarity, I just.." Sweetie Belle began, before being interrupted by her now very angry sister. "What would you have done if the authorities saw you? Or maybe even the soldiers? What if, Celstia forbid, some enemy pony was out there?" Rarity sighed, seemingly beginning to calm down. "Now is the time to explain, Sweetie Belle," she said sternly. Sweetie Belle had about five seconds to think of an excuse. She couldn't tell her sister the real story - because, in truth, what she had done was against the law. You see, Sweetie Belle's best friend was a Pegasus pony named Scootaloo. They had been friends since long before the war began, and they intended to stay that way long after the war ended. But after the fighting began to intensify, especially between the Pegasi and the Unicorns, a new law was passed that stated that no underage pony was to covert with a pony of another species. Exceptions were made in cases such as those of brothers and sisters, but otherwise it was completely forbidden. So, if Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo wanted to do anything together, they had to meet in secret. Sweetie Belle was awful at making up excuses on the spot, but she had to try. "Well you see Rarity," Sweetie began nervously, "I was at, um... One of Twilight Sparkle's classes!" Rarity gave a suspicious look before letting her continue. "Yes! Miss Sparkle is teaching us spells in case we have to defend ourselves! That's where I was..." Rarity thought about the answer for a while, and Sweetie prepared for the worst - her sister may have been girly and delicate, but she was no dumb pony. Luckily, the filly was a very good liar, or so she'd been told. "Alright then," Rarity sighed, "but if that was all you were doing, you may as well have just told me darling. You gave your dear sister quite a scare..." She left the room, and Sweetie Belle could finally let out a sigh of relief. MoonshineMoon, worn thin to the width of a quill, And in the dawn clouds flying How good to go, with light and still Giving her light, though dying. She lay upon the floor of the Eastern Tower. She was wounded, and weak, and in no state to leave this position. She figured she would be this way for a while. She was certain nopony would dare venture this way. Her place of refuge lay, almost ironically, in the centre of the battlefield. It had been torture, laying there weak and helpless, and listening to the agonising sounds of war as they folded in around her. Just as the moon now began to disappear, her condition began to deteriorate. It faded behind the morning clouds, just as her hopes did with every second that passed. She blinked as the foggy dawn light seeped into her sleeping place - her eyes were made for the night, and she blinked them again as they began to become accustomed to the odd ambience. It was only then that she realised what the dawn meant. Her eyes widened as the realisation began to sink in. She looked to the window, and she knew. If the sun was rising... So was Celestia. Celestia was alive. The great Celestia, who had abandoned her subjects at their time of need, still rose the sun for them. Still made them face the day. Still sat in safety as they prepared for a day of fighting and feuds. A flood of anger rushed through her veins, but it receeded as she was too weak to let it flow. She let out a sigh as she let her muscles relax against the cold stone floor. The cool dawn air drifted between the debris and the smoke around her, and the remnants of the last battle hung in the air. She began to feel the last of her power seep from her and join the cloud of conflicting entities in the air. It was time to let go. Princess Luna closed her eyes and drifted into her own eternal night. PegasiFluttershy looked down at her tags once again. Those familiar, harshly stamped in letters portrayed her name, rank, species and origin. She didn't know what she expected to find each time she looked, as there wasn't anything much that could possibly please her right now. She was a timid and peaceful pony - hardly cut out for the front line, albeit as a nurse. What she would have given to stay at home... She could have looked after the children, grown food for soldiers, she even would have even made resources if it meant not having to come here to this awful place. What still stood of Canterlot was not much more than a couple of hardy buildings and the ruins of the castle. Suprisingly, one tower of the castle still stood tall despite all the chaos that had unfolded around it. But if anypony had managed to escape there, they wouldn't have vistors anytime soon - no pony would dare enter the wasteland around it. The pegasi back home had called it 'No Colts Land'. But now she, Fluttershy,was heading straight towards it to fight against the two other races of pony for what of the land was left. She felt a tear roll down her cheek. The other ponies had tried to toughen her up, but their efforts were futile and she still didn' feel anywhere near ready to face the war. The War for Equestria. "Fluttershy?" a voice above her said. She looked up to see General Rainbow Dash towering over her. Rainbow Dash was tough and likeable - she had made her way up the ranks and was now a well known name in the army. She was an icon of Pegasian superiority, on all the recruitment posters. Lots of the young fillies wanted to be like her. She was the elite, and she knew it. She wasn't, however, a fan of Fluttershy. "What are you crying for?" She exclaimed. "We're going to be heroes. Equestria will belong to us!" Fluttershy looked at the floor. She didn't want to be a hero. She just wanted peace. "Well if you're going to be a coward, don't think i'm going to pick you to accompany my regiment." Rainbow Dash smirked. She thought of the war as a game, and keeping her new high-flying superior place depended on her winning. Rainbow Dash had always been popular - as a filly she was always top of her class at flying school. As she got older she became an extremely desirable object, as well as a role model for the new flyers in Cloudsdale. She definitely would have been the new Captain of the Wonderbolts... If there hadn't been a war of course. Never mind - she would put her amazing flying skills to work as the most awesome, super cool general the Pegasi Army had ever seen.
Earth Ponies"No!" Applebloom shouted, "You can't take mah brother away!". She grabbed onto his tail in an attempt to pull him back. A hoof on her shoulder and a stern voice. "Applebloom." Her sister looked down at her, clearly distressed but trying to get through it. "You know why he has to go," she sighed. Of course she knew why he had to go - it was mandatory for all capable colts of a certain age to go join the army. They needed more soldiers, as the war was intensifying and the Earth Ponies were readying for a battle. The Pegasian armies were threatening to attack the Earthen villages, and the main priority was to keep the civilians safe. "Ah know," Applebloom began angrily, "Ah just don't understand!" By now she was sobbing. A deep red hoof ruffled her hair gently. She looked up to see her brother wearing a sad smile. "It's okay." he assured her. And without another word she turned and headed down the long road from Sweet Apple Acres - a road he was used to walking everyday. Applebloom collapsed onto the soft grassy plain affront their house and began to sob. It wasn't like her to cry, but her family meant so much to her. They were all she had left in this bleak world, and now they were going too. Upon looking up from her sorrow, she saw her sister walking out into the apple orchards. "Applejack," she shouted weakly, almost choking on her words, "where're yah going?" "Now Big Macintosh is gone, ah'm gonna be working the fields double time," she replied. "That's why you gotta look after Granny Smith, alright? Now get yourself inside, it's gonna rain." Granny Smith was faring surprisingly well during these dark times. She didn't like to talk about it, but she had been through a war before. Applebloom knew her Granny had been through a lot. The house was strangely quiet since the war started, and even more so now that Big Macintosh had left. "Granny Smith," Applebloom began. "Yes, my darling sugarcube?" Granny replied with a smile. "How long do you think the war will be for?" Granny Smith turned back towards the fire and sighed. "Ah'm afraid I can't answer that yet sugarcube," she said, "In fact, ah don't think any pony can." "Miss Pie, is it possible that you are entirely incapable of being serious?" The referred to, a Pinkamena Diane, laughed this off. "Of course I can be serious, silly," she giggled, "but life is so much more fun when you look on the bright side of life!" Pinkamena, who instead referred to herself as Pinkie, must have been the most positive pony in Equestria - no matter what was happening, she would find the bright side. And if she couldn't find it, she'd make it. The pony at the desk slammed her hooves down on the desk, interrupting Pinkie's fit of giggles and giving her a fright. "Look Miss Pie," she began loudly, "There is no bright side to war. And until you understand that we have no interest in employing you.". Pinkie, a little shocked at the outburst, stood completely still for a moment before letting out a sigh. She felt her normally crazy hair start to deflate around her cheeks, as it always did when she could find not one happy thing to think about. Equestria - as it was today, in the midst of war - reminded Pinkie of the rock farm where she grew up. It was dark, desolate, and most of all lonely. Pinkie Pie had never had a best friend, and she had liked to think that everyone in Ponyville was her friend. But the war had torn people apart... Once best friends had to avoid each other in the street because of their races. Pinkie couldn't hold parties anymore because ponies were afraid to leave their own homes. Pinkie hadn't talked to anyone besides the Cake family for a long time. Pinkie was grateful for Mr and Mrs Cake - they had taken her in when she first came to Ponyville. She had been lonely and scared, but they had offered her a place to stay, given her a job, and welcomed her to their family. She thought of the two young Cake twins, Poundcake and Pumpkincake, as her little brother and sister. Since Mr Cake had to go and fight, Pinkie had decided that she would have to become the family's main source of income, but her attempts so far had gone less than well. But now, Pinkie Pie had to change. The Cakes needed her, and it was her responsibility to help them out, whether it meant changing herself or not.
Unicorns"We need more powerful spells, Miss Twilight!" "I'm working on it!" Twilight Sparkle rushed about in the enormous library, trying to find a book, any book, that she may have missed while scouring the shelves for spells. The ones she had taught the forces so far just weren't strong enough, and she didn't want to be responsible for anymore ponies dying from Pegasus attacks. She had prepared for the Earth Pony soldiers, but the Pegasi were almost unaffected by her spells, and no-one had anticipated that they would attack so early. When her search returned nothing, she reached for her last resort - Celestia's Official Tome of Most Powerful Spells. She had avoided it before now, because the spells were complicated and time-consuming to teach, but everything they had tried so far had failed. "Tell them I've found something, boys," she shouted to her assistants who waited outside the door. They replied with a quick "yes, ma'am," before taking off. Twilight sighed. She was sure that there was some easier way to end the war, but nopony, not even her, could see it. "SWEETIE BELLE!" Rarity's voiced echoed throughout the house as she saw her sister Sweetie Belle trying to sneak tentatively through the back door of their home. Sweetie Belle gulped. She knew she was in serious trouble. "Where in Celestia's name have you been?!" Rarity screamed. "You know it's dangerous to go outside alone... You saw the warnings this afternoon didn't you? "I'm sorry Rarity, I just.." Sweetie Belle began, before being interrupted by her now very angry sister. "What would you have done if the authorities saw you? Or maybe even the soldiers? What if, Celstia forbid, some enemy pony was out there?" Rarity sighed, seemingly beginning to calm down. "Now is the time to explain, Sweetie Belle," she said sternly. Sweetie Belle had about five seconds to think of an excuse. She couldn't tell her sister the real story - because, in truth, what she had done was against the law. You see, Sweetie Belle's best friend was a Pegasus pony named Scootaloo. They had been friends since long before the war began, and they intended to stay that way long after the war ended. But after the fighting began to intensify, especially between the Pegasi and the Unicorns, a new law was passed that stated that no underage pony was to covert with a pony of another species. Exceptions were made in cases such as those of brothers and sisters, but otherwise it was completely forbidden. So, if Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo wanted to do anything together, they had to meet in secret. Sweetie Belle was awful at making up excuses on the spot, but she had to try. "Well you see Rarity," Sweetie began nervously, "I was at, um... One of Twilight Sparkle's classes!" Rarity gave a suspicious look before letting her continue. "Yes! Miss Sparkle is teaching us spells in case we have to defend ourselves! That's where I was..." Rarity thought about the answer for a while, and Sweetie prepared for the worst - her sister may have been girly and delicate, but she was no dumb pony. Luckily, the filly was a very good liar, or so she'd been told. "Alright then," Rarity sighed, "but if that was all you were doing, you may as well have just told me darling. You gave your dear sister quite a scare..." She left the room, and Sweetie Belle could finally let out a sigh of relief.
MoonshineMoon, worn thin to the width of a quill, And in the dawn clouds flying How good to go, with light and still Giving her light, though dying. She lay upon the floor of the Eastern Tower. She was wounded, and weak, and in no state to leave this position. She figured she would be this way for a while. She was certain nopony would dare venture this way. Her place of refuge lay, almost ironically, in the centre of the battlefield. It had been torture, laying there weak and helpless, and listening to the agonising sounds of war as they folded in around her. Just as the moon now began to disappear, her condition began to deteriorate. It faded behind the morning clouds, just as her hopes did with every second that passed. She blinked as the foggy dawn light seeped into her sleeping place - her eyes were made for the night, and she blinked them again as they began to become accustomed to the odd ambience. It was only then that she realised what the dawn meant. Her eyes widened as the realisation began to sink in. She looked to the window, and she knew. If the sun was rising... So was Celestia. Celestia was alive. The great Celestia, who had abandoned her subjects at their time of need, still rose the sun for them. Still made them face the day. Still sat in safety as they prepared for a day of fighting and feuds. A flood of anger rushed through her veins, but it receeded as she was too weak to let it flow. She let out a sigh as she let her muscles relax against the cold stone floor. The cool dawn air drifted between the debris and the smoke around her, and the remnants of the last battle hung in the air. She began to feel the last of her power seep from her and join the cloud of conflicting entities in the air. It was time to let go. Princess Luna closed her eyes and drifted into her own eternal night.
PegasiFluttershy looked down at her tags once again. Those familiar, harshly stamped in letters portrayed her name, rank, species and origin. She didn't know what she expected to find each time she looked, as there wasn't anything much that could possibly please her right now. She was a timid and peaceful pony - hardly cut out for the front line, albeit as a nurse. What she would have given to stay at home... She could have looked after the children, grown food for soldiers, she even would have even made resources if it meant not having to come here to this awful place. What still stood of Canterlot was not much more than a couple of hardy buildings and the ruins of the castle. Suprisingly, one tower of the castle still stood tall despite all the chaos that had unfolded around it. But if anypony had managed to escape there, they wouldn't have vistors anytime soon - no pony would dare enter the wasteland around it. The pegasi back home had called it 'No Colts Land'. But now she, Fluttershy,was heading straight towards it to fight against the two other races of pony for what of the land was left. She felt a tear roll down her cheek. The other ponies had tried to toughen her up, but their efforts were futile and she still didn' feel anywhere near ready to face the war. The War for Equestria. "Fluttershy?" a voice above her said. She looked up to see General Rainbow Dash towering over her. Rainbow Dash was tough and likeable - she had made her way up the ranks and was now a well known name in the army. She was an icon of Pegasian superiority, on all the recruitment posters. Lots of the young fillies wanted to be like her. She was the elite, and she knew it. She wasn't, however, a fan of Fluttershy. "What are you crying for?" She exclaimed. "We're going to be heroes. Equestria will belong to us!" Fluttershy looked at the floor. She didn't want to be a hero. She just wanted peace. "Well if you're going to be a coward, don't think i'm going to pick you to accompany my regiment." Rainbow Dash smirked. She thought of the war as a game, and keeping her new high-flying superior place depended on her winning. Rainbow Dash had always been popular - as a filly she was always top of her class at flying school. As she got older she became an extremely desirable object, as well as a role model for the new flyers in Cloudsdale. She definitely would have been the new Captain of the Wonderbolts... If there hadn't been a war of course. Never mind - she would put her amazing flying skills to work as the most awesome, super cool general the Pegasi Army had ever seen.
