Marching Colors

Chapters

Chapter 1: Opening
Ending B
Chapter 2: Marching Colors
Ending A

Chapter 1: Opening

A young filly sat in class, watching the teacher walk around the room. “Now class, remember, Hearts and Hooves Day is coming up!” she sang, smiling at the students. “Make your drawings nice and neat so we can hang them on the wall~!”

The filly looked at her drawing. Her crayons were able to sketch out two couples, one with two mares, and another with two stallions. She smiled, beginning to draw hearts, among other things.

After a long time, she was done. She smiled at the picture, wondering how much the teacher would like it.

Soon, the teacher called for the class to show their drawings. They all rushed up, all eager to show off their drawings.

The teacher giggled. “One at a time class.” She then turned to the filly. “Ah, Merry? Why don’t you come up and show your picture?”

The filly looked up, smiling. She stepped up to the front of the class, ready to show her drawing. When the teacher nodded, Merry held up her drawing. Everyone was excited to see, but then looked confused. Merry smiled.

“Uh… Merry? Why’d you draw… that?”

Merry blinked. “Uh… what do you mean?” Merry asked, confused.

The teacher opened her mouth, but closed it. She then motioned for Merry to sit back at her seat. The filly reluctantly sat down, and the other students went.

Soon, class was over and the students began packing up. However, the teacher then called Merry over. The filly walked over, wondering what her teacher wanted.

The teacher sighed, holding up Merry’s drawing. “So uh… about this… drawing…”

Merry blinked. Why’d she put so much emphasis on the ‘drawing’ part? “Yes ma’am…?”

She smiled at Merry. “Merry, why don’t you draw something else? Like a mare and a stallion in love?”

“Because… I don’t want to?”

The teacher blinked. “Why not?”

Merry didn’t know how to respond. She just gave a small shrug. “Because I don’t want to draw that…?”

The teacher sighed, standing up. “Merry… I…” the teacher struggled to piece words together. “How do I explain this…”

“Explain what?” Merry asked.

After a long pause, the teacher turned to her. “A… A mare and another mare don’t belong together romantically. A stallion and stallion don’t belong together romantically.”

Merry blinked. “Why’s that?”

The teacher walked over. “You see, it’s evil if a mare loves a mare. Celestia will never forgive you.”

Merry stared at the older mare. “But… why…?”

“That’s just how it is.”

Merry pouted. “That’s unfair…”

The teacher placed a hoof on her shoulder. “It’s okay, Merry. Just try to draw something else next time?”

Merry felt a whimper escape her muzzle, but sad nothing and nodded. The teacher smiled, leading her out of the room. Merry waved goodbye, trotting away.

The teacher went back into the school. Her smile faded, and she looked at the other drawings hung on the wall. She then looked at Merry’s drawing, a hatful gaze filling her face. Without hesitation, she tore the picture up, throwing it in the trash.

Marching Colors

By MlpHero

Merry, now sixteen, trotted through the streets of Baltimare. She looked around, watching as ponies went on with their day. She began trotting faster, noticing the time. Slipping into her house, she walked into the kitchen. Her dad was cooking food, whilst her mom was reading from a newspaper.

“Hi mom, hi dad.”

Her mom smiled. “Hello Merry, how was school?”

Merry shrugged, heading up to her room. Stepping through the halls, she quickly maneuvered into her room. She threw her book bag onto her bed, sitting down at her desk.

Her mom knocked on the door. “Sweetie? Is everything alright?”

No response.

“Merry…? I’m coming in.”

The handle twisted and the door opened, allowing her mom to walk in. She looked over to Merry, who had her head on the desk.

“Merry?”

“Yes…?” she asked.

“Are you okay…?” she walked over. “You’re more quiet than usual…”

Merry sighed. “The other students were singing that stupid song…”

“Merry the mare married a mare?”

Merry groaned and slammed her head into the desk. Her mom walked over, rubbing her back. “It’s okay Merry…”

“Ugh…” Merry sat up, looking at her mom. “Why do they hate me…”

“I don’t know sweetie…” her mother hugged her tightly. Merry buried her muzzle into her mother’s shoulder. Her mother rubbed her head gently. “You know, today’s the day that the princesses debate comes to an end. If the princesses wins, gay rights are legalized.”

Merry nodded. “I know. I already voted.”

Her mother smiled, leading her out. “Come on, I put tea on.”

Merry smiled and followed her out.

~~~

Luna stared at the envelope, nervous to open it. Her sister was equally nervous. Celestia rubbed Luna’s shoulder. Luna looked over to her. “We don’t have to do this… we could just… shift the vote in our favor…”

Celestia shook her head. “You know we can’t. If our ponies want this, they want it…”

Luna felt her heart skip a few beats. This was hit or miss. And she prayed it was a hit. With a heavy sigh, Luna opened the envelope. She pulled out the paper, and her eyes widened.

The anti-LGBT ponies had won by a landslide.

~~~

Merry and her parents stood in the crowd, waiting for the results. The mayor was looking anxious. The crowd was split in two. On one side, the homophobic ponies, who were glaring daggers at the other side. The gay side.

Merry tapped her hooves anxiously. This would be the vote that decided if they were free. If she and the other LGBT ponies would be free.

And there weren’t just ponies either. Griffons, hippogriffs, yaks, zebras, probably a few changelings, small dragons. Practically every creature of every race was there.

Soon, a pegasus flew down to the mayor, delivering an envelope, before flying off. The crowd silenced. They were very rowdy, yelling and threatening each other. Now, it was so silent, that when the mayor opened the envelope, the tear was able to be heard.

He lifted the paper up, taking a breath.

The crowd leaned closer, waiting to hear the tallies.

The mayor hesitated, then spoke.

“LGBT, one hundred, forty votes out of five hundred votes…” he spoke. “Anti-LGB… three hundred and sixty votes…”

The LGBT crowd felt their hearts plummet. Even more so, when the mayor announced that,

“LGBT rights will not be legalized.”

The anti-LGBT crowd erupted into cheers. They’d won.

Merry felt her brain jam for a second. She couldn’t process what she’d heard. They’d worked so hard, but it was in vain. They’d lost the most important vote of their lives.

Author's Note

First, just so no ones confused. A. there’s one more chapter coming out either later today or tomorrow. B. the reason it’s LGB and not LGBTQIA is because, at the time this takes place, the last four terms weren’t… well invented (with the exception of Queer, but it’s more of an insult).

That’s all. I’ll see you all in chapter 2

Ending B

Merry ran over to the line, standing firm. They then heard an explosion from behind them. Merry turned to see a group of injured creaturess, who had been wounded by shrapnel. Merry didn’t have time to worry, as the guards then began to charge. Merry panicked, before getting an idea. She turned to a dragon. “Hey! Make a fire wall and hold them off!”

The dragon nodded and began breathing fire in the path. They watched as a few unlucky guards charged right through the fire, screaming and howling. Merry and a few other creatures used the time to quickly form a somewhat liable defense. Some of the yaks had heavy automatic crossbows on their backs, and allowed a few creatures to climb on and use the weapons. As soon as the fire dies down, they let out a hailstorm of crossbow bolts. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop a few luckier guards from getting past. They managed to pick off a few unsuspecting Marching Colors with their bayonets before being killed themselves. Thankfully, most of the bayonets only wounded them, allowing the makeshift medics to easily aid them.

Merry grabbed her spear and ran up to the line, watching as the guards seemed basically endless. She felt something pull her back. Fear. It wasn’t like any fear she’d ever felt before, like a fear of the dark. It was... a new fear.

Fear of death. A fear of war.

What the Marching Colors didn’t have in supplies, they had well dedicated soldiers. The royal guards on the other hand looked more fearful. It seemed no one wanted to attack. But, as stated, the Marching Colors didn’t have a lot of supplies. Including arrows. So when the automatic crossbows ran dry, they had to act quickly.

So, they went with a half-baked offensive. The one upside was that the guards were worn out and had almost no soldiers left. They immediately surrendered, throwing down their weapons.

~~~

Merry and a few other creatures watched as the guards squirmed, trying to break from their restraints. A griffon stepped up, grabbing one of them by the throat. “Okay, talk. Why are attacking us?”

The guard groaned. “It’s… not… our f-fault…” he wheezed out.

Another guard looked over. “He is telling the truth.”

The griffon let go, looking over. “What do you mean?”

The guard sighed. “Well, you see, we don’t really have a choice when it comes to who we attack.” He nodded at one of the younger soldiers. “He’s seventeen, he shouldn’t be here. But they just threw us right at you. Didn’t even give us a strategy or anything.”

A pony stepped up. “Well… if you didn’t fire at our crowds at Appleloosa—”

“Wait, Appleloosa?” the guard interrupted. “We didn’t fire first, we heard you guys did.”

There was a pause. Neither side expected this. The guard let out a sigh. “Listen, the point is, this is really by choice.”

The pony looked at the guard. “So, who ordered it?”

“The sisters!” a pony from the back of the crowd shouted. “They’re the only ones with authority to do it!”

“Not really…” the guard stated. “In all honesty, it’s more up to the Minister of Defense. And, by law, this is kind of a rebellion…”

The group exchanged glances. Merry could practically feel the tension. She could probably cut it with a knife.

“Hm… can you take us to Canterlot?” the pony asked.

The guard looked up. “What?! Are you crazy?! What are you gonna do?! Sit down for tea and cookies?!”

The pony smiled. “Exactly.”

The guard sighed, not seeing any other options. “Fine. I’ll try to put in a good word or something.”

The pony chuckled, turning to the others. “Get the wagons ready. We’re leaving first thing tomorrow.”

The group nodded and ran out of the tent.

~~~

Merry sat on one of the wagons, watching the scenery go by. It was nerve racking. She didn’t know what to expect. What if they immediately opened fire? What would they do if they’d defeated the Marching Colors? Would she die?

These thoughts echoed around her mind, like noise in a cave. Merry laid against a hay bale.

After a few hours, they rode up towards the front gates. The city streets were lit up by the hanging lamps. The citizens looked at the convoy, confused. They weren’t sure how to react or what to do. The convoy rode past, heading towards the castle. However, it wasn’t long until they heard a boom, followed by a loud crash and the leading wagon flying off the road.

The leading wagons began yelling ‘cannon!’ as another explosion rang out. The cannonball ripped through another wagon, sending the wagon and occupants flying off the road.

Merry grabbed her crossbow and tried to remain calm. Then, the bolts began flying. Automatic crossbows rained hail fire onto the wagons.

“Get down!” one of the ponies yelled.

Merry and some of the others ducked down. One colt looked terrified. Merry tried to reach for him, but a crossbow bolt got to him first.

Merry wasn’t sure what it was. Maybe it was the arrow hitting him. Maybe the blood splatter. Or maybe his scared but lifeless eyes. A dead pony’s eyes.

The wagon quickly came to an abrupt stop. The braking wasn’t clean, however. The wagon flipped onto its side, sending the occupants out. Merry felt her body ragdoll against the dirt path and land in on the soft grass. And for a while, she stayed like that. Just lying there. She was thankful to even survive the crash, let alone not break anything.

Merry looked up, watching as a mare ran towards her.

“Hey! You okay?!” she asked, leaning down.

Merry reached a hoof out, trying to grab the mares hoof. Before she could, the mare let out a scream, then collapsed, an arrow sticking out of her back. Merry held back a gag, trying not to throw up. The smell of blood entered her nostrils. She groaned, but kept crawling. She then noticed one of the wagons had a flag. The rainbow flag they were flying earlier. She crawled over to it, grabbing it firmly in her hooves. The flag was battered and torn, and was covered in dust. Merry held the flag up, and marched towards the gate.

She watched as her fellow creatures charged towards the castle. She felt her breathing slow. She walked towards the gate, pushing it open. The soldiers charged forward, most climbing the walls and throwing the guards off. Merry watched as the guards fell to the ground, most seeming to break their necks. Merry then noticed a flag in the center of the garden. She stumbled towards the flagpole, using the flag in her hoof as a support. As she approached, a pony raised up from behind the pole, firing a crossbow bolt into her chest.

She let out a yell, dropping to her knees. The guard stood, ready to shoot her again when another pony ran in front of her, taking the bolt for her, but also tackling and pinning the guard. Merry Gaines her strength, marching over. The guard tried pushing the dead pony off of him, but couldn’t. Merry stood over him, raising the flag, then driving it down through his chest and into the ground. She stood tall, watching as the others cut down the Equestrian flag. The rainbow flag waved in the wind, signaling victory.

~~~

Present Day Equestria…

Luna stared at the statue. One that depicted several Marching Colors raising a Pride flag in Equestria’s courtyard. She sighed wishfully, wondering why she didn’t do anything sooner. If anything, she should’ve been out there, fighting with them. But she wasn’t. And it hurt.

~~~

Cries for our help, a quiet whimper

Unknown ponies calling for us

Sent to Tartarus, to find for Elysium

To serve in the dark as Marching Colors.

—Marching Colors

Chapter 2: Marching Colors

Breaking News

Ponies all across Equestria have erupted into riots across. The many ponies have grabbed weapons and have raised rainbow colored flags in towns across Equestria. They call themselves the Marching Colors.

~~~

Merry sat around a bonfire with the other members of the Marching Colors. She’d been with them for a week or so. Her spear sat a few feet away from her, covered in mud. She felt sweat pour down her face. She’d never seen any of the “combat” yet. But that was what nervoused her. She’d never been in a fight. Not ones on the magnitude the newspaper described, at least.

She looked over to a few other ponies, most of them dressed in rainbow clothes. She managed a smile. Despite how far they’d marched, seeing the ponies and other creatures show off their sexuality made her smile. Although, it felt weird. Seeing ponies, griffons, changelings, hippogriffs, smaller dragons, yaks, zebras, all in the same place no less? It was… strange to her. The other races were nothing like she’d heard.

She looked around, wondering why they hadn’t moved yet. A few of the ponies and griffons ran past. “The royal guards are getting close!” one of them called out.

The resting creatures immediately stood, grabbing their weapons. Merry ran up as well, grabbing her spear, as well as a few small wooden shivs she’d made. They stood behind a few sandbags, most of them unorganized. They stood there, waiting. Waiting for when the crossbow bolts would start flying.

But they didn’t. The bolts never came, nor did an offensive charge by the Royal Guards. Soon, the ponies began to get nervous. Most of them had already been in combat and weren’t keen on getting back in. Merry looked around, watching the dark tree lines carefully. They were on the outskirts of a town. If anything, they would’ve seen the guards coming.

One of the ponies looked up at the pegasus who said the guards were coming. “Are you sure you saw the guards?” they called out.

The pegasus looked down, lowering his crossbow. “Yeah! I—”

The pegasus then let out a yell and fell to the ground, screaming in agony. The other Marching Colors began panicking and turned right back to the tree line, some firing their brown crossbows at the trees. Some of the other creatures had run towards the pegasus, hoping to aid them. Merry looked at the pegasus, then at the small line of creatures on the ‘frontline’, wondering who she should help.

Help The Pegasus?

Stay At The Line?

Ending A

Merry ran towards the pegasus, dropping her weapon and grabbing a first aid kit from a nearby rock. As she got close, however, a griffon yelled out. “Shrapnel bomb! Get ba—”

The tipped arrow exploded, sending shrapnel into the group. Merry was thrown back, a piece of shrapnel pinning her to the ground. She let out a scream of agony, trying to yank herself free. But it was too late. Mixed in with her screams of pain were also roars of battle as the Royal Guards charged at them, bayonets fixed on their crossbows. Merry watched as they practically broke through the line, slaughtering most of the Marching Colors at the line. Merry panicked, noticing a discarded crossbow near her.
Then, one guard noticed her, and charged. Merry felt the shrapnel ripping through her hoof, but she was determined to grab the crossbow.

But she didn’t even feel the wooden grip of the weapon before she heard the tearing of fabric and the sickening, squishy noises of flesh. The sharp pain in her chest sealed her fate. She was able to get a look at the guard, who seemed more fearful of her, despite the fierce look in his eyes, and he seemed to be muttering something. He then ripped the bayonet out and stepped past her, firing at the other creatures.

Merry felt her vision fade, her body feeling less connected to her conscience. Finally, she let the darkness consume her, the sounds of battle, the pain of war, and the feeling of oppression drifting away.

Perhaps, it’s for the better. Maybe, death is better than suffering the horrific memories of war. I haven’t much time. The guards will be here soon. You, reader, must understand that, in the darkest of hours, it doesn’t matter who you fight for. Only, that you know what you’re fighting for. Maybe your country? A loved one, perhaps? Maybe, you’ll die trying to legalize something bigger than you. Maybe you’ll die to save your race from being massacred. Maybe you’ll die legalizing our rights. Maybe, you’ll die a hero.

—Unknown Creature of the Marching Colors