The Lunar Revolution

"Drink", the voice dictated, "Slowly now, blue one". The echoing voice spoke as if it were addressing every being in the room at once, although Luna knew whatever it was, it was speaking directly to her. The cold feel of the water sliding across her toungue had almost made her throttle the jug from it's supplier and drink it all at once, however, she lacked the energy to do so. She even found struggle in the once semiconscious task of regulating her own breathing.

          Just when she took in her first breath of air once more, there it was. The scent of apple pie. She was now on the outside, somewhere on the outermost plains of Equestria. Had she any strength left in herself at that moment, she would have smiled. But there was nothing, she could not even muster the energy to hold her eyes ajar.

          All the indication she had was the voice. She found a strange sense of comfort in it, even if she had no idea whatsoever as to whom it might belong to. "You need your rest", it reminded her, still sounding as if addressing the invisible audience. However, such rhetorical declarations were of no importance to her by that time. After she had been supplied the meagre amount of hydration, her eyes once more slowly navigated to the back of her head, as she again passed into unconsciousness.

          "Is the armada prepared?", a stern and impatient Admiral Hoofsly asked as he stood on the deck of the massive aerial vessel that comprised the RCC Marauder, looking out on the peaceful grasslands of Germaney.

          "Yes sir," the engineer hastily replied, "We will be in position for a full aerial bombardment within the hour. If all goes as planned, of course."

         "See to it that it does", Hoofsly threatened, although he himself believed that at this point, there was very little that could have gone wrong.

         As the now frightened engineer scurried off back into the halls of the Marauder, Hoofsly remained looking out on the deck, almost feeling a sense of pity for the many Germanians that were about to be mercilessly slaughtered. In the end, he cared for none of them.

         The "Marauder" seemed an appropriate name now more than ever, as it sat much like an eagle does the moment before it strikes, haunched over, beak opened, ready to kill. Perched in it's post just a few miles above the atmosphere, it was just out of sight of the Germanians. Their death would be swift and deliberate, their occupation, absolute.

         Although some of his colleagues might see it otherwise, Hoofsly had always been a loose cannon, and the very aspect of him being given the task of the Germanian occupation surprised both him and his peers, although they were all quite confident that he would eventually make that one bad decision which would compromise the whole mission. It wouldn't be out of the ordinary for such a pony as Hoofsly.

         Despite an initial shock, he took the duty without the slightest sign of doubt or fear. A flaw of his, though, was that he had always put a rather exceedingly high amount of fate within the power of machinery, so he was told by Shining Armour, who had recently been given control over the entire Celestial military. Holding his vessel in such high esteem, he believed the Marauder, much like his own command over the crew, to be infallible.

          For all it was worth, his crew hated the admiral. "Let them hate me, so long as they fear me", he would reply whenever reminded of the obvious issue. Cadence, however, took a personal favour to the stallion. Some said that it was because the two were both superlatively overconfident in their power. Those people were not usually heard from again.

          He paced back and forth along the deck of the ship, in an effort to briskly pass the time along. The flatlands below yielded to them a sort of peacefulness, which could be seen reflecting even in the ponies of Germaney, for they were, most of the time, a relatively peaceful bunch of ponies, who never willingly waged war upon another nation unless having a rightful reason for doing so. They were not even aware of the Celestial armada which now stood prepared to bring forth genocide upon them.

          Far down below, in the city of Flankfurt, a very young colt, no older than a year at the most, was gently passing along a rather stout round ball he had received upon reaching his 1st birthday the month before. His sister simply played along and smiled, their mother and father watching happily as their children frolicked about in content, blissfully unaware to the fact that their lives would soon reach their brief ends.

          Hoofsly reached into the loosely stitched pocket at his side, and proceeded to pull out the voice log he had been recording his affairs aboard the Marauder with since given command of the vessel. Wetting his lips, he lifted the small device up towards his mouth, and began documenting.

          "Admiral's log, day 153. We're growing ever closer to finalising the invasion plans of Germaney. They have absolutely no idea of our approach or plans of occupation. Within the hour, our bombardment shall begin, and Solar rule shall be brought down upon them."

          He would have continued his report, however, he was interrupted by the engineer who had left his presence just a few seconds ago, and was now returning.

          "Direct order from Princess Celestia, sir!" the cadet excitedly proclaimed, "we are to temporarily halt our plans."

         "What is the meaning of this!?!?" the admiral outraged.

         "Luna has escaped, ma'lord" the cadet whimpered, "We are to delay the plans until tomorrow."

          Hoofsly might have killed the cadet right just then, had it not been for the sense of shock that now violently gripped his mind.

          "Very well then," he relented, "I'll be in my cabin. Make the crew aware that I am not to be disturbed for the remainder of the evening."

          With that, the admiral angrily cantered off to the rear deck of the ship, superlatively displeased at the rather startling news. His eyes glowed red as he walked, likely a sign of his flusterence reaching a boil. Sickeningly enough, he was like a young child impatiently awaiting to receive a new toy when it came to war. Genocide especially. He took great delight in the art of slaughter, practicing it to the extent at which, to him, it became sheer routine.

         At that moment during his canter, the holopad strapped to the side of his leg began to ring its 3-tone dial which indicated a message was imminent. Not necessarily stressed by work at that moment, he brought his leg, which had on it now a varicose ulcer, upfront his face, and gave the command for the message to begin relaying. In a flash, the pale blue holographic image of Princess Cadence arose from the holopad, her face plagued by disappointment, which Hoofsly prayed was not directed at him.\par

         "Hoofsly!" she shouted, "Report!".

         "Your majesty," he replied shakingly, "It is with a heavy heart that I regretfully inform you that... That our invasion plans have been delayed. Orders of Celestia herself."

           Despite being a tyrant over his own crew, Hoofsly's spirit was nearly made transparent when confronted by his superiors, always trying ceaselessly to impress them. Cadence, especially, took a particular liking to the stallion. The same, of course, could be said in return for Hoofsly, although he was much too shy himself to ever admit it.

          "I'll have a word with her about that. In the meantime, make sure that all else remains so until the invasion. It's imperative that you do NOT screw this up. Do I make myself clear?"

          The piercing gaze of Cadence was enough to make even Hoofsly instilled with both fear and admiration.

         "Yes Madam." he ensured her, "All will be well for the occupation of Germaney, I can assure you."

         With a slight grunt that seemed to say 'We'll see', Cadence logged off the holopad, and her image disappeared just as quickly as it had arrived.

         It was as if the world was lifted from Hoofsly's shoulders. He was confident now that he could at last retire to his quarters free of disturbance and interruption. For the night at least. He loudly slammed the metal door shut behind him, so that all aboard the ship would be made aware that he was retiring for the night.

         Even the hard material of the mattress, which he often complained about, seemed inviting. He attempted to put his frustration aside for the time being, almost causing more frustration to arise in the effort to do so. Despite his violent nature, though, he found himself asleep in minutes, not to awake until the morning after, when the day he had hoped for for months was to finally arrive.

        The cold snow and frost raging violently atop the peak of Mount Kaefos blew across Luna's tussled fur coat, catching the many whispers of her mane and thrashing them about restlessly. Here was where she had been instructed to await her consul with King Talios of Griffoniik, king of the Griffon race and the United Principality of the Griffon Kingdoms, whose position at the time was faltering.

        She had decided that the first course of action should be to gather a list of allies, the likes of whom have had a long and untrustworthy history with Equestria, and who might aid in the overthrow of the Celestial regime. The Griffons were the first of these peoples, the great Griffon-Pony wars of the Twelfth Age leaving a scar between the two. One that Luna, of course, hoped to use to her own advantage.

       The princess was first made aware of the possibility that she might find help from the Griffons shortly after her unconscious body had been found and discovered by Chief Thunderhooves, high commander of the Buffalo tribes of the west (which, of course, provided an explanation for the scent of apple pie). He had explained to her how they had followed the sound of laughter into a narrow cave, where they had discovered her unconscious and deprived of water. Once she had recovered, she was told that the Griffon Kingdoms were on the verge of a civil war. Although she wasn't given the direct causes, it was made clear that it did indeed have relation to the reign of Celestia.

       Upon her entry into the Griffon kingdoms themselves, however, it was revealed that the violent political conflict which enveloped the country was a result of the monetary tribute and military limitations Equestria had placed upon them. Many felt that this shamed their people, while others felt that they simply didn't have the tools to do anything about it at present. Whatever the case, Luna hoped to rally both sides of these people so as to bring about the downfall of her sister.

       And so it was that the very second she was able to do so, Luna had requested a meeting with the present ruler, King Talios, do discuss further plans of actions. Such a thing would normally take months to be put through. Although, it was hastened rather quickly do the fact that Talios, being afraid of the loss of his own power, saw to it that any way in which the political violence could be stopped by a manner in which both sides of the conflict could agree to was of the highest priority.

       "Well..." the king said to her as he approached her position between the two columns on the outermost edge of his Pantheon, "Here we are. Let's try to make this quick"

       "Your majesty," she began, hesitant to address any other royalty equal to her own, "we share a mutual interest in seeing the ultimate downfall of my sister. I trust you are aware of the cause I am currently leading?"

       "I am indeed." the king replied diligently, as if proud of being so, "Being on the outside looking in, I can truly say that I believe your cause is a just one. One, if I were to be an Equestrian, would stand behind with pride. Though... I am not sure I would be able to do so at present. But, I suppose that is why we have met here. I was told you have a proposition of, 'mutual interest'?"

       "Yes." Luna carried on, excited that the king was at least willing to listen to her proposal, "You see, keeping the both of our interests in mind, what would you say if I offered to you an alliance, the two of us working aside on another to bring about the end of Celestia? Once that is complete, I will end the tribute and arms limitation placed on your kingdoms, and perhaps a future alliance might be possible. I believe that such a thing could unite your people, considering that all sides of the argument would be satisfied with the outcome."

       "That is..." the king paused once more, taking in all that was just said to him, and braced himself to make the decision upon the fate of thousands depended, "Quite a lot to take in. Maybe if things were as they once were, I would not hesitate to accept to these terms. But you simply must understand that as much as it shames all of us, we simply do not possess an army that such a monumental task would require. If I accept to these terms, it would put the future of my kind in cataclysmic danger. I am sorry."

       "I understand. Thank you, Talios, for giving me this time, at least. I suppose now I will be-"

       "Although," the king cut her off, smiling at his own quick whit, "If, however, you do receive assistance from the Empire of Tapiria, I will re-think my stance on the matter. I just hope my people do not meet civil war by then."

      Luna smiled back at the king, greatly relieved that she could seek alliance and friendship in the time at which they were most valuable to her.

      "We thank thee greatly, Talios. We shall seek diplomatic negotiations with them at once!" the delighted mare accepted, still smiling. Luna had quite possibly never been more content in the whole of her life than she had been at that very moment. The light of hope burns brighter in darkness, as the saying went. How had she not thought of that earlier? Such ingenious, such brilliance! With the military assistance of both the Griffons and the recently formed Tapirians, the overthrow of Celestia was in view! Of course, she mustn't become carried away so soon, before even speaking with the Tapirian emperor.

     "We suppose then, that you have much business you need to attend to. We shall take our leave of your palace then, as there is no further between us to discuss." She hurriedly spoke, afraid that at any second the king might alter his thoughts, "Thank you Talios, we wish you the greatest of luck!"

     And with that, Luna leapt between the two great pillars of the mountaintop pantheon, and out into the vast skies of the Northern Mountains, home of the griffons, and was wrapped in the envelope of the vast aerial landscape. The normally large structure of her body was made almost minuscule amongst the vast and epic size of the clouds which seemed to go on forever, yet the edges were always visible.

     She experienced no difficulty breathing, even as the size of the ever-extending mountain belt below her grew ever smaller as she herself arose further and further. The only aspect of the flight which shortened her breath was the sheer beauty of the mountain countryside of the north, the vast planes of grass the likes of which flourished unhindered in the deep caverns betwixt the mountains and extended far beyond her sight range.

     The magnificent ocean of green rippled with the wind below her, so much that she could nearly swear that the sound of the rustling was still audible, despite the incredulous amount of distance in between her and the surface of the Earth. The seemingly painted canvas of the surface nearly glistened in the many rays of sunlight dancing about. All of it, such beauty. A shame, she thought, that this land was made hidden to the ponies of Equestria.

     After flying for just over an hour, Luna landed herself atop one of the many cliffside hovels found all throughout the mountains. Isolated and far away from the chaos the rest of the world endured, Luna rested upon the soft frailly swaying grass, and stared out onto the beautiful sunset. It was time one more to raise the moon, and bring about night to the world.

     King Talios sat majestically, as rulers usually do, upon his golden throne, the fires of the hearth behind him still burning passionately. The essence of Luna, of the night, still lingered in the air, as he sit in deep thought, plagued by the choice that he must soon make. The choice which itself would send a tremor through the hearts of all Griffons.

     With the option proposed, he considered, perhaps the griffons may one day regain their former pride, free to recruit and spend as they wished, despite the wishes of Celestia. The con to this, however, was that he would endanger the future of the Griffon Kingdoms rested in the balance if all he hoped for was not, in the end, successful. All that he had worked so hard to build could wind up being in vain.

     The fire crackled even louder now behind him, the flames marching towards the ceiling which towered forever above them. He sat upright, straightening his posture, then reached out towards the nightstand sitting just next to his bed, and grasped the wine chalice, shaking it gently as he raised it toward his mouth.

     Shortly after placing the chalice back to its original place, the wife of Talios, Queen Eitilte, entered the Pantheon from the right, taking graceful yet heavy strides toward her worried husband.

     "I ask you, my dear," Talios went on, "What is but one griffon to do at a time such as this?"

     Eitilte stood motionless, pondering on the question, worried that if she were to say the wrong reply, her husband's will might fail.

     "Instead ask yourself," she replied as philosophically as she could, "What can a free griffon do?"

     "Celestia!" Cadence shouted in rage, "Why has the invasion been halted?!?"

     The Royal Halls of Canterlot gave the aura as if they were rattling with every word of the enraged Cadence.

     "Luna presents much more of a threat than the whole of the Germanian army, Cadence." Celestia reasoned, "The entire war with Germaney would be put to waste should Luna gather an army capable of challenging us."

     "I can ensure you that NO army upon the face of this Earth is capable of challenging ours!" Cadence boasted vigorously, "I have made sure of that myself!"

     To this, Celestia merely stared back at the younger princess with a look of disapproval, overtly disappointed with her overconfidence.

     "I have known Luna far longer than you can imagine, Cadence." Celestia raised her voice, "And if there is one thing I have learned, it is that Luna is not  a pony who is to be underestimated."

     "Be that as it may, there is no reason that Hoofsly cannot be given command of the armada." Cadence retorted, "I believe him to be more than capable of the task."

     "Hoofsly? That pony is an untrustworthy one. He is un-predictable and reckless." Celestia drew a smile at what she was about to say, "Perhaps that is why you take a favour to him. He and you are very much alike."

     Cadence made the face of a child who had not gotten what they wished and complained for, and instead threw a tantrum. Realising argument was pointless, the younger alicorn gently trotted out of the room, still attempting to give off a royally graceful air, yet simply making herself look ridiculous in the process.

      For all her power and authority, Cadence had not never learned how to follow. Celestia looked upon Cadence more or less of a younger sibling. Not, however, in the way she viewed Luna. With Cadence, Celestia resembled more of a sister whom unwillingly took responsibility for her younger sibling.

     After Cadence had long since left the halls, Celestia beckoned her personal courier to begin relaying a message to the impatient admiral Hoofsly aboard the Marauder.

     "Admiral Hoofsly, under direct royal command, you have my permission to begin the invasion at your earliest convenience."  Celestia, realising that those initial few words were enough, shut down the relay device and placed it back unto the pedestal to her left.

     Now was the time in which she must lower the sun to give way to the night. Despite being at constant conflict, the two sisters, in the form of an unspoken agreement, had carried on with the standard process of transfer between night and day. Looking out through the coloured glass window of Canterlot, the already brightly lit skyline seemed to glow ever the more intensely.

     Majestic shades of purple danced alongside luscious dashes of orange, the light of her magnificently raised sun gliding through in perfect harmony and concordance with all else. The ever emotionless face of Celestia grew tired as the final outline of the sun itself slipped below the dark green edge of the horizon. All seemed well in the sky, for unlike the world it was suspended above, it was at peace.

    Somehow, whether it be through a sort of divine force or simple guesswork, she knew that Luna was gazing up at the same sun in that moment, the same tidal wave of emotions washinng over her as well. Love became anger, and anger became hatred, although Luna's hatred was far more subtle, like how a fox might hate a wolf. It was not the will nor desire of the fox to hate the wolf, it was simply an emotion which had grown of the constant conflict between the two, and that the hate simply came to become an undeniable instinct.

     "So..." Hoofsly admonished as he and his first mate walked abreast toward the command deck of the Marauder, "The invasion may now commence?"

     "Yes sir. Orders from Celestia came just this morning." The cadet battered out the words nervously. Despite being the Admiral's firs mate, he was still scared to death of Hoofsly, "We are to begin when ready"

     "Good, good." The joyous admiral went on, "You know, I almost feel sorry for all who are about to die. Almost."

     'A letter adressed to the ruler of Equestria and goddess of the sun, Princess Celestia: Upon this document, I write out the unanimous and un-disputed declaration of independence, proclaiming that the Island of Tapiria, and all those that closely neighbour it, are the sovereign territories composing and belonging to the People and the Senate of the Tapirian Empire.

     Your history, princess, has been a long and interminable one, consisting of a great ordeal of debtors and trespasses upon the ponies of these fair islands. It is for these reasons, coupled with a vast list of others, that I, Emperor Titus Equius I, on behalf of the ponies of Tapiria, do solemnly proclaim our independence, as the united Empire of Tapiria.'

     Equius stared down at his document and found himself in fascination that the few words he had just written, which, until delivered were pointless, would have such a massive impact on the future of the world.

    "My lord," his pro-consul warned him, "do you fully realise the whole concept of the turn of events which you have just set in place?"

    The emperor paused for a moment. Until now, he genuinely hadn't thought of the consequences that would now befall them. Nor did he ever stop to think about what it would mean if their freedom was once again taken.

    "Oh, my dear friend," Equius thought on the subject, "I can see before me, all the horrors of war and that we must endure in order to maintain this declaration. The barking of dogs, the blood curling screams of dying ponies left and right. I can see crops burned, and I can see families destroyed. The shouts of cannon fire now ring in my ears, and the massive armadas can be seen flying overhead. I see the children screaming in our streets and a whole culture of ponies under invasion from the forces of tyranny and injustice. But above it all, at the very end of the terror and bloodshed, I can see that the end justifies the means."

     Far to the North, along his family's hay farm, the young Germanian boy danced about alongside his just slightly older sister through the amber waves of grain which blew with the ripple of the wind.

     "Hey Mum!" He called out to his mother who was sitting astride her husband on the front porch of their barn house, "When are we gonna go to see uncle Esellbuck again?"

    The mother simply smiled at her child's innocence, and how he was completely oblivious to the fact that they were probably never going to see Esellbuck again.

    "I don't know, deary." was all she could say, "Maybe when Hearth's Warming comes about."

    Fact of the matter was that Esellbuck had no intentions of ever returning to Germaney again, not after all that he had done. Upon returning, he would have been branded a traitor for speaking out against their Equestrian allies to the East. The alliance was un-breakable. It was not yet fathomable to think that Equestria would even consider breaking it.

    "Wha'eva you say." the boy absent-mindedly agreed, "Whas for dinna? I'm starved, I am. It betta not be peach cobbla again."

    "Very well." the admiral decided

    Hoofsly, finally, with all the satisfaction in the world, gave the order.

    "Wipe this pathetic nation from the face of the Earth!"