Fleet Admiral Rainbow Dash marched through the halls of the Royal Castle in Canterlot. She had recently stepped out of a top secret meeting with Equestria’s top military officials in Cloudsdale and immediately took to the skies toward Canterlot, refusing to even wait around for the Pegasus chariot and escort that was mandatory for all senior officers. She knew she could make much better time on her own, and the flight between Cloudsdale and Canterlot now barely caused her to break a sweat. Plus, she needed all the time she could get for what she was about to try and convince Princess Celestia into.
Dash pushed her way through the massive doors leading to the Princess’ throne room, briefly nodding to the two Pegasus guards on watch. Princess Celestia was in the middle of reading some reports when she paused and glanced up at the sudden interruption. ‘I’m so going to get sent to the moon for this is she doesn’t bite…’ Rainbow Dash steeled herself as she approached the regal princess down the elaborate hall.
“Rainbow Dash… Is something wrong?”
“Your Highness” Rainbow Dash began, “I’ve come here to ask your special permission for something.” Rainbow Dash passed a few conspiratorial glances about the room; at the two guards bracing along both sides of the Princess’ throne and the assistant who was helping her sort through the reports. She couldn’t allow anypony whose presence was not an absolute necessity to stay.
“Yes?” Princess Celestia seemed to urge her on in her benevolent, yet, impatient way.
“Something that requires your urgent attention. Your private attention.” She hadn’t noticed that she slightly pressed one of her hooves forward at the emphasis of the last few words.
Princess Celestia pondered at the proposition before sending the unicorn mare and the two Pegasus guards out with a nod of her head. “Thank you.” Rainbow Dash bowed her head as she snuck a few more glances and held her tongue for a few seconds that seemed like eternity. Dash worried for a bit that the Princess might throw her out of the castle for wasting her time. “I need your express permission to active the Black Wings program.”
Princess Celestia looked genuinely stunned for the first time Dash had seen her in a long time. She couldn’t blame her, with what she was asking. What this meant. “Has the Lunar Contingency already been declared? Is it really that bad, Admiral?” ‘Uh-oh,’ Dash thought, ‘She’s referring to me by rank. At least I have her attention now.’
“Declared? No. Bad? Yes. The griffon forces are advancing on all fronts and our military can’t hold them back any longer. They’re pressed for food, supplies, and morale. Pegasus recon flights, those that make it back, confirm our greatest fears. General Sergei and his “befriended” unicorn scientists are developing new weapons at an unprecedented rate. Their forces already outnumber ours ten-to-one. That’s ten armed and experienced griffons for every pony sitting right at our border. We’re practically losing Pegasi over our own airspace. I give it a month before they get bold and launch a full-scale invasion. Equestria will not survive an invasion of that magnitude, Your Highness. We need to hit them now and with everything we’ve got. That’s why I need you to give my program the ‘Go’. My griffons have been training for years for this. I know they’re the best we could ever ask for and I know they can end this war. All I need from you is the order. We can prevent a Lunar Contingency scenario before the enemy even gets an opportunity to start one.”
The Princess mulled over the option with a hoof. “Rainbow Dash, I respect your opinion, I do, but-“
“But, you don’t want to go against the Royal Council. My apologies, Your Highness, but when did you become such a tool?” ‘Woah, there… This is getting out-of-hoof.’ Rainbow thought but her body protested; her mouth continuing to spew the feelings she had been keeping bottled up ever since this war had begun. “You never used to let the Council dictate your actions before! You never let them run this country before this war! Now, on the time when Equestria needs their old Princess back, you have to run and hide in the shadow of your former rule from the royal pains of that so-called ‘Council’! You’ve been letting a bunch of bureaucrats run this war since we started fighting it and look where it’s gotten us! We are on the verge of destruction and you’re content to just sit there and read papers all day! I thought I was meeting with the true Ruler of Equestria whom I serve and not the pretty icon of Prince Blueblood! Even Twilight-“ But, Dash was cut off from her rant by a stomp of Celestia’s hoof. “That’s quite enough, Admiral.” Princess Celestia stared down at Dash with a stern glare as Rainbow Dash lowered her head in shame. ‘Horseapples… I let my stupid mouth go free yet again… Score one for hot-bloodedness; score none for Equestria.’
“I understand how you feel, Rainbow Dash. You are the Element of Loyalty, after all. It must be hardest for you of all ponies to sit where you are and watch the world you once knew and loved fall apart around you and not even be able to go in and pick up the pieces. I’ve been seeing the same thing, too. Going against the strict orders of the Council is not the way to save Equestria, Rainbow Dash. Things are run a little bit differently now then from before. The Black Wings project is not to be activated until the Lunar Contingency is declared.”
“But, they will serve a hay of a lot more good as a preventive force than a reactive one! We could save so many more ponies! The griffons will be glassing this land before we can even get all the teams deployed! We need to send them out before that happens!”
“My answer is ‘No’, Rainbow Dash, and as your Princess I expect you to follow that. It’s already bad enough, that we may be losing this war; but, we don’t need to add fighting each other to the list of problems.”
“Losing, Your Highness?” Rainbow Dash attempted one more plea toward her Princess, but it was clear there would be no budging this time. With one last defeated sigh, Dash turned and began trotting back toward the door. “We’ve already lost.”
As Rainbow Dash took off and began flying back to Cloudsdale, images of a glassed Equestria began flashing across her mind. Images of her hometown of Ponyville and all her friends, all burned and turned to glass. She shook the thoughts from her head. ‘Not this time…’ Dash thought as she performed a sharp bank and changed course. ‘Not ever again… I refuse to allow Sergei even one more victory on his belt. I represent the Element of Loyalty. I could buck those councilors into the next Summer Sun Celebration… But, could I ever think of betraying the trust of Princess Celestia? What about my friends though? What about Ponyville? What about Cloudsdale? It was this attitude of complacency and servitude that got him killed. He was- No! I won’t just stand by and watch anymore. I may not be able to betray the trust of the Princesses, but could I still call myself the Element of Loyalty if I betrayed myself?’ With that, Rainbow Dash sped off to her new destination out in the desert outskirts of the Griffon Kingdom; and she flew faster than she ever had before.
Cloudsdale, Equestria
Equestrian Offices of War and Security
“We face grave repercussions here, Admiral…. If word gets out about what you’ve been up to; about the training you’ve been administering, the resources you’ve been squandering…. You could put this entire office in jeopardy.”
“We’re at war here. We face an enemy like none we’ve seen before. I’ve been preparing for 7 years to put an end to this once and for all. Too many young lives have been lost already, too many families destroyed. How many letters have you had to send home, General Cornelius? I know I’ve sent more than I’d ever like…. They’re ready. I’m taking the Black Wings project public; full deployment within 72 hours. The Griffons under General Sergei are beating down our front door. Equestria doesn’t have much time left.”
“The Equestrian public isn’t ready for this yet. Do you really expect them to place their lives and the fate of their nation into the hands of the very enemy we’ve been fighting for so long? Even if it does work, the Royal Council will never let you hear the end of it; we haven’t even enacted the Lunar Contingency yet… You can kiss your career goodbye to a backlight administration job in Cloudsdale.”
“I don’t care about careers or titles, General Sirrus. I care about this nation, about this war… And I hate losing.”
“You’re making a great mistake, Dash…. One that will cost you dearly.”
“I’ve already paid so much…..”
