I have stopped them in the mountains, but for how long remains unclear. When the Wittenlandians invaded, I had hoped they would not be able to break through past the riverline, but, unfortunately, they were well prepared. Wittenland’s army is unique in its application of magic as a structural component in their division design, and it uses specifically unicorn magic to enhance its effectiveness in ways not seen in other militaries around the world.

Unlike the more racially balanced nations like Equestria and the River Republic, the ancient mage-noble system in Wittenland means that it has a much higher prevalence of unicorns among its population, with a rich history of magic education and a tradition of spellcraft. Of course, they are still behind Equestria in terms of their academic prowess, but the high population of unicorns by proportion means they can use magic in their armies in a way other militaries can’t. They have cast great spells to enhance their own soldiers and inflict casualties on mine and are proving uniquely resilient to mind control.

That is not to say they have developed a counterspell or something devastating like that, but their use of strategically sized shield spells as pioneered 10 years ago during Chrysalis’ humiliation has been, for lack of a better term, annoying. My previous go-to of casting my point charge variant of mind control is rendered impotent by the ability of these shield spells to block out all incoming magic. I can cast the regional variant, but it costs significantly more mana, and I have to be much closer to get an effective cast. I have been unable to cast the spell from afar, as they have, unfortunately, been adept at removing my scrying windows soon after I cast them - likely a provision in their training from their tradition of mage combat.

While their great mages are far less powerful than myself, their well-equipped and well-trained army aids in the disruption of my goals as, like I have said often, I cannot be at every part of the front line at once. Just the other day, they called forth a falling star on my forces, shattering a front. The use of such a spell is very effective, as, due to the mass of the star, it is very hard to redirect, even for me. Destroying it would also just cause it to burst in air, raining down equally deadly shrapnel. I was able to teleport much of the army in the blast radius away, but still had to cede the important river crossing they were defending.

The experience has given me a grudging respect for Queen Honoria. Her policy changes have seemed to make Wittenland a force to be reckoned with combining the old ways with modern military tactics. She may have had the ambition to take over her country through her duel with former queen White Star, but my ambitions go much further. This is but a momentary setback, and I will be victorious. The only question is how soon.

The Barradian climate has been my ally thus far, slowing any potential advance into Viirad through the level of equipment attrition it inflicts. In time, as long as I can finish integrating Austurland, my forces will begin to outnumber theirs and I can begin cutting their divisions off one by one.

Perhaps my salvation will be quicker than that though. There have recently been talks of the creation of a River Federation unifying the continent’s pony nations (and the Diamond Dogs, I suppose). Honoria, being the supremacist she is, has declined any cooperation with the increasingly interconnected bloc, which has hurt the legitimacy of the Federation given its roots in the Treaty of Coltstream. However, Wittenland is the only nation rejecting the union, and Chancellor River Swirl has recently been emphasizing a federation of all the Riverlands nations.

River Swirl has also been recently speaking out against Honoria’s reign specifically, citing her dismantling of the social safety net and seeming lack of empathy towards poor Wittenlandian ponies - especially the non-unicorns. It is quite humorous to me that, in her attempt to unify the Riverlands under herself, she may be providing me the opportunity to unify it myself if she does invade Wittenland. I wonder what her thought process is.

My speculation is that she doesn’t see me as a threat. The Watchers have not found evidence of any OHS agents or activities within my borders thus far. Perhaps she sees in Honoria’s conquest of Viirad a chance for Wittenland to prove they don’t need the River Union, which could make other states lose confidence. Given Honoria’s progress so far, River Swirl may believe her victory over me is imminent, and that it would delay full unification of the Riverlands by years. It is also strategically a great opportunity for them to invade, as their army is currently distracted by me.

The hypocrisy is astounding. River Swirl touts freedom and democracy at every turn, espousing the ideals of harmony. It turns out the “Equestria of the East” sees harmony as just as much of an imperialistic tool as the real Equestria does, just with Wittenland instead of the Buffalo or Dragons. It is to be expected of River Swirl; her family has been a political dynasty in the River Republic for many generations. Their style of nepotistic power does not engender leaders who really believe in any ideology, but instead ponies who see power as something they can use to achieve their own goals. River Swirl’s goal could be to care for her own ponies instead of looking abroad, but she probably has some sort of desire to show her family how great she is, and thus has to undertake ventures to make a bigger part of the map the same color.

Maybe the public persona the Chancellor presents in interviews and speeches is all a front. I’ve never met her myself. She could be secretly a grand puppet master with ambitions to rival my own, but somehow, I don’t think so. Having had the opportunity and ability to slink through the minds of many, I have found most creatures are quite docile even in the “darkest corners” of their minds. They may believe they hold strong convictions, but most would crumble if they had to stand by them. What pitiful lives they lead - so boring that most never get their ideas challenged in any meaningful way. Luckily, I am here to give them purpose.

In my writing this, I realize that I sound a bit like the evil villain in a children’s story. Somedeer with no redeeming values built to be hated. I suppose the comparison is apt, as from the perspective of these free willed individuals, I am coming to destroy their way of life and sense of self. I would, though, question the moral high ground my enemies seem to always take. As they cling to their rights and freedoms, I would ask this: why? What makes your rights or values more correct than my decree?

Of course these creatures value their individuality - it's what society has taught them to think. I have the ability to change those values. If the goal is to maximize fulfillment, I can give the masses that sense of fulfillment. They say that their observations of the existence of rights are self-evident. Well, give me a second to alter your soul and I would say that serving me becomes the only self-evident idea. Of course I value my own individuality too, but I wouldn’t if I were mind controlled.

The fear and repulsion seen in the Kasans and Austurlandians are caused by the perceived threat I represent. The laws of nature suggest that the validity of an idea lies in its ability to resist others. If an idea capitulated at the presentation of another, then it would cease to be. Therefore, all ideas in the world today are those that resist supplantation by another. If one were to interview a creature mind controlled by me, I’d wager they would find that my ideas are quite sticky.

I learnt at a young age that power is the ability to enforce your ideas. As a young fawn, when I didn’t want to go out, I simply used magic to lock my door. My power allowed my desires to triumph over those of my non-magical parents. Thus, as I have gained more power, the presence of ideas counter to my own has begun to matter less and less. When an idea comes into conflict with another, one will die - either by death of those who bear it, or by them changing their ideas.

In the end, Queen Honoria and I believe in the same thing - meritocracy. Call it “survival of the fittest” or any other name - the truth would ring just as clear. Do rights exist? Maybe or maybe not, but they require others to respect them to have practical application, just as belief of service to me only exists as long as there are those willing to fight for it. River Swirl wishes for unification while Honoria wishes to remain independent. One of those ideas will die. Honoria and I both believe we should rule over the Barradian lands. One of those ideas will die.

So then, am I evil? Yes, absolutely. By most measures there is no question about it. Does it matter? No. There is some practical aspect to be thought of if too many believe I am evil then it is easier for them to unite against me, but beyond that, no. The fact somecreature can apply a moral framework to me and determine I am evil is irrelevant if this hypothetical creature also worships me.

That is enough introspection for today. I am, once again, required at the front. I have thus far avoided getting too close to the enemy lines to avoid stray artillery fire and provided strategic spell casting from a safe distance. In the Viiradian mountains, I am using teleportation to keep my forces from getting trapped by Wittenlandian soldiers. I have written in the past of bettering the army such that my constant intervention is not so necessary, but they have not reached such proficiency as to defeat this superior enemy without me. For now, I must micromanage the front until we can effectively counterattack. Hopefully, River Swirl’s ambition outstrips her caution.

Author's Note

So this actually happened in my research playthrough. The River Federation attacked Wittenland while I was defending against them, and I just kept thinking about how weird that was. However, after giving it some thought, I realized that it wasn't the craziest thing in the world for River Swirl to do. The nepotism idea comes from an event in the River Republic where you can appoint an official who is one of River Swirl's family members, and it led to my interpretation of Viira's perception of her.

Also, I've been thinking about if Viira believes she is evil or not, and this is the conclusion I finally came to.