The Changing of the Guard
The Sun slowly set over Equestria in the East, mirrored by the silver disk of the Moon beginning its ascent over the darkening sky. The glistening twinkle of the stars sparkled and shone as two sisters stood next to each other beneath their luster.
“I thank thee, my sister,” said the dark alicorn as she smiled at her sister. “Though ought rest now that thy watch hath come to its ending. Let us guard this land while thou sleepeth.”
“I am sure that our little ponies will love this night as much as ever, Luna. Don’t wear yourself out over those reports. No matter how much you do, there will always be more bureaucracy and there is no need to overwork yourself.”
“That is the reason that thy exchequer hath come to such a deplorable condition. Only the intervention of our own person hath saved thy government from dishonour.”
Her sister giggled.
“Good night, Luna.”
“Good night, Celestia.”
As shadows fell in the Royal Palace, the Princess of the Night strolled through the long stately rooms on her way to her private study. On those nights when Midnight Court was not held, Luna liked to work in her observatory, a beautiful state room overlooking Canterlot, where the moon shone brighter than any lamp and the stars surrounded her as she toiled over the government of her country.
Following the Changeling invasion, the Guard had become ever more occupied as creatures inside and outside Equestria felt the Princess of the Day stumble and fall, even if it was only temporarily. Celestia was neither weak nor mortal, yet Chrysalis had shown that she could be overpowered. Luna herself had to lead several cleansing operations to clear Equestria of the Changeling taint, as several villages had been infiltrated by the shapeshifters. The Royal Guard had their hoofs full and an expansion had proved necessary. The new draft of volunteers were in the process of training and reserves had been called in the meantime to help deal with the increase of danger from the Everfree forest and from abroad.
Their Highnesses' Exchequer would had suffered heavily from the expense of training and intelligence work, had Luna not stepped in a year ago. The tax code had been revolutionised, loopholes closed and the burden redistributed more evenly amongst the classes. Change is integral to the functioning of the political process and Celestia’s bureaucratic laziness meant that the system had stagnated and became too complex for non-legally trained ponies to comprehend. Luna’s upheaval and simplification had helped some of the poorer families that were unable to hire lawyers, as well as cutting down on the waste in society from the cost of legal transactions. Luna knew that she was not the most popular pony in the Equestrian Legal Society, but you couldn’t please everypony. Another upside was a steady cash flow into the Treasury that would help maintain the liquidity of the government through any potential future crises.
The justice system had also benefitted from an upheaval, as many obscure and archaic procedures were swept away for simpler and more functional legislation, one that protected the rights of ponies and made it simpler for the police and judicial structures to determine innocence and prosecute the guilty. A system based on equity rather than strict legalism gave the right flexibility and protection that her ponies had needed.
Of course, Luna had only been back for two years, and her reforms were only beginning. So much work was necessary and she hoped to involve some of Equestria’s brightest, like her sister’s student, Twilight Sparkle, in giving Equestria what it needed.
Suddenly she felt a slight disturbance in the ambiance of the room: a foreign and malevolent presence. Lowering her horn, she growled, “Show thyself, traitor.”
The tranquillity of her night was shattered when one by one, twelve unicorns materialised around her. They were a mixed bunch, some looking like Canterlot nobility and some like they had come from the worst slums of Manehattan. A single stallion stood forward, his face a toothy grin.
“False tyrant, your time is over. Your rule is over, and you shall never again –-“
His tirade was never finished as he was blasted straight into the wall behind him. He crumpled with a sickening sound. Luna’s voice rang with barely tolerated anger as she glared at her assailants.
“We are thy ruler. Treason and sedition shall never be tolerated in our domain.”
As the unicorns’ horns began glowing, Luna lowered her own, hoping that the Royal Guards would take better care of her sister than they had done of her. She closed her eyes and when they opened, they shone with light as her attackers let off their spells.
The explosions and the magic battle that followed were seen from across Canterlot, as worried citizens poured into the streets and towards the castle in concern that another invasion was about to engulf their peaceful lives.
When the guards finally cleared their way through the rubble several hours later, the only thing they could find was an obsidian tiara and five unicorn corpses whose cutie marks had been burned off. The Princess of the Night was nowhere to be seen.
Celestia slumbered quietly, worn out after a day of wrestling with bureaucrats and nobles who were afraid of losing their livelihoods after Luna's tax proposals. They had pursued her even into her dreams as she whispered unknowingly.
"The tax allowance ought to be made equal for everypony. Equality of taxation is a basic right of..."
As she spoke, a set of eyes watched her silently from the corner of the room and muttered, "Peaceful in her sleep. Thousands of ponies suffering underhoof for such resplendent peace. Soon, however, she will not know another quiet night. She will pay for her tyranny and the millennia of oppression."
Her horn quietly glowed and a ring slowly slid onto the long horn of the Princess of the Day. Celestia turned and rolled, her voice still muttering incomprehensibly. The mare who stood over her walked closer. Her eyes began to shine, and suddenly, with a flash of light, both the princess and the unicorn were gone, as alarm bells began to toll across the castle and the city.
Far away, in Ponyville, most residents were already asleep as night fell. Living in an agricultural village meant that ponies went to sleep and woke with Celestia's sun. Only one house in the whole town still had lights on: the town library, residence of the famous unicorn Twilight Sparkle. As usual, she was studying late, going through Starswirl the Bearded's 'The Magic of Governance'.
She turned to her friend, the cyan-coated Rainbow Dash, who was giggling in a corner and re-reading the latest 'Daring Do' novel, with a sigh. "Rainbow Dash, I know this a bit far-fetched, but do you know how the Equestrian Army works?"
Rainbow Dash turned to her with an amused laugh. "You think that because I love the Wonderbolts, that I don't know in detail how the military operates?".
Twilight frowned. "Don't worry about it Rainbow, keep reading you're book."
"Well, the Wonderbolts are the elite 1st Squadron, Her Solar Highness's Own Flyers, founded in 348, following the Battle of Craggy Ridge in the War of the Seven Tribes."
Twilight's jaw hit the floor. "You hypocrite! You call me an egghead, and then you know...that!"
Rainbow laughed at her. "It's just work. Did you know that every weatherpony is officially a reserve member of the pegasus troops? Not that we have any training, but it does give an easy batch of recruits whenever it's necessary. Since I'm in charge of the weather here in Ponyville, I'm a Weather Lieutenant and I have to go through lots of paperwork. Not that I do any of it, but between opening letters and putting them into the bin, a little of that egghead stuff gets left behind."
Her lavender friend just gaped at her in surprise. "What? How? Why didn't you tell me? I've been doing a project for Celestia researching the government of Equestria."
Rainbow smiled at her again and turned back to her book. "All I can tell you is that there are six regular army regiments, two from each pony type, and over 20 irregular weather teams, all under the direct control of the Princesses. Your brother's Royal Guard doesn't come into that, since they are not under the control of the generals."
Twilight looked at the tome in front of her again in wonder at the complexity of the military structure and the long words her normally concise and simple friend used. That wasn't even before looking at the various diplomatic, judicial and social welfare departments of government. "So how does..."
She was suddenly interrupted by heavy knocking on the door of the library. "Open up in the name of the Princesses!"
She jumped up and ran to the door. "Oh no, what's happened? Have I forgotten to send a friendship report again?"
As she began to open it, it was pushed from the side and two exhausted looking Pegasi Royal Guards cantered in like frightened animals and began checking the rooms and windows.
After a brief pause of surprise, Twilight stammered out. "W-what's happened? What's going on?"
One of the guards turned around to her, and with a frightened look that shocked her to her very bones, quietly said, "The Princesses. They've been abducted. Someone's trying to take over Equestria."
