Once upon a time in the mighty kingdom of Equestria there were two regal sisters who ruled the stars. The older sister because of her age and wisdom ruled the planets, while the younger sister maintained security and free passage of the space wormholes between planets. Together they unified the different polities and brought peace and order to all. Eventually though the younger sister became resentful of her older sister’s popularity amongst the masses and her authority over all Equestrians. Believing they took for granted her role in keeping the empire organized and safe. Then one day the younger sister with her Nox Aeterna fleet forbid space travel and grounded interstellar trade to a halt, resulting in several worlds starving without much needed supplies and fell into chaos. When the older sister begged for the younger sister to stop, the younger sister declared that she would be the sole ruler of the Equestrian Kingdom and declared herself, Nightmare Moon. Equestria fell into a bitter civil war which only ended when the elder sister used the power of HARMONY to defeat Nightmare Moon and banish her and her followers to the darkest territories known to Equestria. The victory was pyrrhic though, as Nightmare Moon declared the Lunar Republic while the elder sister dissolved the Equestrian Kingdom and formed the Solar Empire. The return of Nightmare Moon to bring chaos and disorder would…
“What a ridiculous book” Twilight Sparkle scoffed, shutting the book in her hands with a look of disdain. “Is this what passed for education almost a thousand years ago?”
“It’s what passes for education in and on Ponyville, and everywhere else in the Everfree Sector.” The green, spiky, haired adjutant shrugged as he continued to pack Twilight’s belongings into several large boxes.
“It is so simple and practically reads like a fairy tale, Spike! The Princess used ‘harmony’ to banish Nightmare Moon? Please! I’m sure I can find a section in this book that has ‘undeniable proof’ that Equestrians did evolve from ponies like the old myths say. Maybe I should start a history reeducation program? I’m sure everyone will love it.” Twilight stopped her rant as she realized that Spike had stopped listening to her and was humming to himself as he continued to pack. “Auuugh. Sometimes I wish the Subordinate Houses had sent me an assistant from any other house then House Drake.”
As a member of the House Sparkle, one of the lesser to middling Great Houses, when she was accepted into the Bureucracy of Light (the body of government that ran the Solar Empire) she was assigned a bond-serf from one of the Subordinate Houses. Members of the Grand Houses were expected to go onto to fame and fortune as generals, admirals, and administrators of the Divine Will of Celestia. Members of the Subordinate Houses were expected to assist those of the Grand Houses and ride on their coattails throughout their lives. While Spike was several years younger than her, lazy, and sometimes rude she had long ago learned that Spike cared for her deeply.
‘What are we even doing in the Everfree Sector?’ Twilight couldn’t help but ask herself for the one thousand and one times since last seeing Celestia. The thought of Celestia alone brought a light to her eyes and inner warmth Twilight could only ever describe as love and awe. Literally her eyes grew brighter with the color of flame at the memory. She could still faintly remember the presence of Celestia as she walked into her mistresses’ throne room. The floor was made of polished obsidian and glass, the walls and ceiling were swirling fires of harnessed solar flares. In the middle of it all on a throne of gold and ivory sat Celestia herself! Perfect in body she only wore a simple gown of the color of the rising sun on Equestria. Her multicolored hair seemed to move on its own. Lastly, her eyes were bright orbs of the purest white light.
Twilight had been so happy and eager to be summoned to the presence of the Princess. Twilight had only seen her mentor on a few occasions following her graduation from Celestia’s apprenticeship and the beginning of her training in the Solar Naval Academy. She was just a few weeks away from graduation where she would be given command of a Radiance-class frigate or maybe even a Unity-class light cruiser due to her status as a pupil of Celestia. Bowing down to Celestia she only directly looked upon the face of the Solar Empire’s ruler when she spoke. Their conversation had begun with an exchange of simple pleasantries (that Celestia was still concerned with her being at all sent thrills through her heart), but had gradually shifted toward the state of the Solar Empire.
“My student, what is it that you know of Nightmare Moon?” Celestia had asked, leaning on one arm as if talking about the number one threat to the Solar Empire was nothing to worry about.
“N-nightmare Moon, your Majesty?” Twilight had replied, startled by the suddenness of the question.
“Yes, Nightmare Moon.”
“Oh, uh.” Twilight gulped and silently berate herself for being so flustered in front of Celestia. “She is known as the Mare on the Moon.” Twilight felt like she could have jumped into one of the solar flares that made up the throne room for bringing up that silly childhood nickname. She was surprised by Celestia’s amused laughter.
“Oh, yes. Do you know why she is called the Mare on the Moon?”
“Ummm, it is because she was banished to the Dark Territories and set up her capital on a moon?” Twilight cringed. The truth was while she had extensively studied the battles that had ripped the Equestrian Kingdom apart as part of her education the reasoning behind the civil war was never really explained by any of her professors or even in any book she read. Given that any interaction with the Lunar Republic was forbidden, Nightmare Moon was an enigma that existed in an abyss of mystery and ignorance.
“She received the name, because…people wanted to keep their distance from her. So they equated her with living on the loneliest and coldest place in the Equestrian night sky.” There was hint of sadness in Celestia’s tone of voice that Twilight had never heard before. “Tell me what you know of First Admiral Starry Skies?”
“She is the commander of naval operations for the Everfree Sector Fleet. Her flagship is the HMS Ponyville, named after the first colonized planet in the Everfree Sector. I attended a few lectures she taught at the Solar Naval Academy on Equestria and the space station Canterlot. I am sure you know a lot more about the First Admiral then I do, your Majesty.” Twilight was once again mentally whip lashed by the sudden change of topic. First Admirals were the highest rank within the Solar Imperial Navy and were close confidants of the Princess. They had the military authority to overrule even civilian governments in the sectors they were stationed in. The current roster of First Admirals was getting on in their years and the Solar Naval Academy was abuzz with rumors about who would replace them.
“You would be correct, Twilight Sparkle. I do know very much about First Admiral Starry Skies.” Celestia said with a smile, her hand stretched toward Twilight in acknowledgement of Twilight’s words. “I know that she died in her sleep last night.”
“I’m so sorry to hear, your Majesty.” Twilight replied, bowing lower to the floor in sincerity.
“She was an able commander and did her best to secure peace in the Everfree Sector. I can think of no better commander then First Admiral Twilight Sparkle to take over her reigns.”
“Me? R-replace F-first Admiral S-starry Skies?” Twilight croaked, her body trembled on her hands and knees.
“Yes. You.” Celestia replied sweetly, leaning forward from her throne “Do I detect a hint of a…lack of faith in your Princess’ decisions? The Summer Sun Celebration will be happening on Equestria in just over a week from now. Our loyal subjects in the Everfree Sector need an organized leader to make sure their celebrations are in line with those on Equestria.”
“No! Oh no, your Majesty! Thank you! I won’t disappoint you! I promise! Everything will go off perfectly.”
“That is reassuring to hear Twilight Sparkle. Now come closer I have a parting gift for you…”
“FIRST ADMIRAL SPARKLE WE HAVE EXITED THE CANTERLOT-EVERFREE TRAVEL GATE. WE SHOULD BE ARRIVING WITHIN SIGHT OF THE HMS PONYVILLE WITHIN THE HOUR. PRAISE THE PRINCESS.” The voice on the intercom jolted Twilight Sparkle from her memories. Looking around her quarters she hadn’t even realized Spike’s exit with her belongings.
“I really must learn to not let myself be distracted by my thoughts…” she shook her head, Shining Armor had told her just as much nearly a week ago. The reaction from her parents and relatives at the news of her…promotion had been…distant. On one hand it was amazing that she would be the youngest First Admiral ever in the history of the Solar Empire. That she was a First Admiral in itself should have been cause for celebration. Yet, on the other hand the fact that she was being sent to a backwater like the Everfree Sector conjured up fears that she had done something to displease the Princess.
Her parents had prodded her with every question imaginable about her conduct over the last few months, trying to figure out if she had done something wrong. Had she said something seditious? Had she read something important not meant for her eyes? Had she been ‘involved’ with another woman? As the eldest Sparkle of the next generation she was expected to take over as Matriarch of House Sparkle-eventually. The only one who had really uplifted her thoughts about becoming First Admiral had been Shining Armor. He had been the last person she had seen before leaving for the Everfree Sector aboard a space cutter.
“What is the date?” Twilight mumbled to herself, then walked out of her cabin toward the passenger viewing room. Travel between different sectors and even different solar systems or planets was a tricky business when it came to space and time. Interstellar travel involved a ship making use of carefully plotted positioning and routes. Normally this involved ships traveling along gravity wells which normally ended and began with automated gate stations that updated a ship’s computer to Equestrian standard time. In rare cases ships made use of wormholes that while shorter and safer tended to appear and disappear randomly. Twilight was surprised that they had managed to make such good time to the Everfree Sector; normally space travel took weeks or even months.
“EQUESTRIAN STANDARD TIME UPDATE!” an electronic voice popped over the ship wide intercom. That meant the ship’s computer had been updated with the time and date. “THE TIME IS 1230HOURS. THE DATE IS ONE STANDARD EQUESTRIAN CYCLE BEFORE THE SUMMER SUN CELEBRATION. PRAISE THE PRINCESS.”
“One standard Equestrian cycle! Oh, sure. That’s PLENTY OF TIME to organize AN ENTIRE SECTOR in celebrating THE PRINCESS!” Twilight hyperventilated.
“You sure have your work cut out for you.” Spike walked around Twilight and into the passenger viewing room.
“Hold it.” Twilight reached out with one hand and grabbed the collar of his white and gold tunic. “You mean WE have a lot of work cut out for US. Get out your stylus. It is time to make a check list.”
“Hey, I just had this ironed.” Spike whined and tore out of Twilight’s grip. After having smoothed out the shoulders of his tunic and stared an evil eye at Twilight he brought up his digital stylus hooked on his waist. “Way ahead of you, Starry Skies already had a checklist of things to do for the Summer Sun Celebration.”
“She did? Wait, how did you get ahold of this check list?” Twilight snatched the stylus from Spike’s hands and began to read it over. Silently she was impressed at the level of organization Starry Skies formerly had.
“My stylus downloaded the Everfree Sector’s gate data package a few minutes before the ship’s computer did. Apparently someone with the initials ‘PP’ sent it over in a private message.”
“Strange…” Twilight commented. Her eyes continued to scan over the checklist, slowly she was beginning to become more confident about being able to complete preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. If it was possible she might even snoop around and decipher if the reason she had been sent here had originated from something Starry Skies had done.
“Oh, wow! Come over here Twilight! You have got to see our new home.” Spike pointed out port viewing window. A few feet of hyper structured glass and reinforced shielding separated Spike from the cold, lifeless space outside. Twilight sighed and joined him at the viewing window and was surprised by the gasp that escaped her lips.
“That is the HMS Ponyville?”
The Ponyville was a behemoth. From bow to stern, port to starboard the Ponyville was studded with row after row of lance batteries of various shapes and sizes. Though those were not the only visible armaments the Ponyville had and Twilight was sure she had many more. Her bow had a dozen torpedo launchers, and her stern stabilizer wings had more lance batteries and even anti-strike craft guns. Stretching almost three miles long she not only dominated the space around her with sheer size and size of her weapons, but also the face that she looked like she belonged in one of the memorials honoring Princess Celestia. The Ponyville was covered in Gothic structure and iconography, just above what should have been the command bridge was a massive golden statue of Celestia herself! Wings spread as if to embrace all the stars in the sky under her rule.
“She…it is…that thing…is a…antique!” Twilight gasped again. Her belief that she was being sent to the Everfree Sector as a punishment was reinforced even more.
“What do you mean? The Ponyville is badflank!”
“Spike! Haven’t you learned anything about the evolution of warship development from my studies at the Solar Naval Academy?”
“Uh…I kind of tune out everything your professors’ say while waiting for class to end…”
“Spike! That thing has to be at least a thousand years old! Modern ship designs are far more streamlined and maneuverable then that! They also don’t have cannons up the wazoo, modern armaments are more powerful and less energy costly. The engine reactors on it must take up half the ship!”
“Aw, come on Twilight. It is still your ship. I don’t think the crew will get along with you well if they hear you bad mouthing their ship. Besides it is not like we are going to see much action fighting Nightmare Moon or whatever out here in the middle of nowhere.”
“Ugh. Fine, fine. I just have to look on the bright side of things. First things first, we dock and I get this checklist over with. Maybe if I pull off the Summer Sun Celebration without a hitch and make sure this behemoth is running smoothly the Princess will call me back to Equestria.”
They sat out the rest of the flight. Twilight pointed out the other objects in space around the HMS Ponyville even as the massive ship loomed closer. The great, green ball just past their destination was the actual planet, Ponyville. They were both surprised by the surprising lack of orbital traffic around the planet. Equestria’s upper atmosphere was ringed with cargo freighters, military craft, and space stations owned by the government or private corporations. That Ponyville only seemed to have one space station and a handful of orbital lance batteries sent mixed messages to Twilight, was the planet so peaceful that it didn’t need extra security or was it that the planet was in such a backwater the Solar Imperial Fleet didn’t care to waste time and energy?
“Did you see that?” Spike asked, his face pressed against the glass of the viewing window as the space cutter made way to dock in one of the Ponyville’s many docking hangers.
“See what?” Twilight had already been satisfied with the view and now that they were about to land she prepared herself mentally for the welcoming ceremony. She disliked all the attention, but she as a First Admiral she doubted she could slip away from the pomp and flare of her new position.
“Uhhh. It was nothing.” Spike assured her before he followed her out of the viewing lounge. Before making her way to the landing ramp she quickly double checked with the pilots that her luggage would arrive at her new quarters and thanked them for their service. Twilight had already turned and left before she could have seen the two pilots break out into an argument about who the pretty, all-powerful First Admiral liked more. Twilight stepped down the landing ramp and braced for the-
-completely empty hanger. That wasn’t completely true. There were a few dock hands that worked on various tasks. A few looked like they were repairing a broken wall panel. A couple more were headed toward the space cutter’s cargo area to unload and load luggage and supplies. At the bottom of the ramp there was even a bored looking taxi cart driver. Twilight had almost tallied the number of people in the room to two dozen when a pink blur in the corner of her eye caught her attention.
“There! Did you see that?” Spike pointed toward the open door that connected the hanger to the rest of the ship. Twilight tried to focus on the pink blur, but when she tried it seemed to leap out of her field of vision and out of sight.
“Who or what was that?”
“I donno. When we were landing I thought I saw this pink something racing back and forth in the hanger like it was excited or on fire or something.” Spike cringed behind Twilight.
“Ooookay. Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter now. We have a schedule to keep! What is the first thing to do on the check list?” Twilight asked, giving Spike a glare after having pulled him off her dress uniform.
“Let’s see.” Spike hummed as he brought up his stylus and scanned over its contents. “Item One: Meet with Chief Engineer Applejack.”
