The Eclipse Civil War

Back in Canterlot, Princess Celestia was sitting in her throne room, examining the reports she received yesterday afternoon from Silver Point and from all other cities. Such reports contained clear and detailed numbers about their military supplies and civil protection readiness, as well the number of times the local authorities in the city fought with the rebelling population. Unsurprisingly, in a few reports and from she overheard, the supporters of the moon called those that are for the current crown holder of Equestria the 'sun-lovers' or 'solars'. In response, the 'sun-lovers' called the supporters of the moon 'republicans', 'rebels' or more newly 'lunatics'. Celestia would not call them any less than 'republicans' or 'rebels'. Firstly, because whatever may seem the case, she will always show some degree of respect towards her enemies, particularly for those that are misguided. She would fight them, that is for sure, but she would fight them cleanly. However, she wasn't afraid to taint the light with darkness if there is no other option to ensure the survival of Equestria and her ponykind. Secondly, whatever her name was, for Celestia, she was still her little 'Luna'. And this war was sometimes tearing her apart more than the war tearing Equestria itself. She knew all of what happened now was just the calm before the storm, but she also knew that Luna would not want to go too far with killing her population because from the looks of it, she was trying to wage a propaganda war. Celestia knew this, and she knew that this was a very effective way to win a civil war. The classic 'population overthrows government' scenery she was looking for though, will not be easily won over. Not if she had something to say about it.

Resuming her continuous study of the reports, there were no major problems that could be seen from any city. The other trinity member cities, Ponyville and Cloudsdale were fortified up to 90%,  Manehattan was ready to defend itself as well. The local authorities there are particularly strong and trained for urban warfare and riot control. In Fillydelphia, nothing happened. No riots, no contact with the rebels, nothing out of the ordinary. Their report reminded that Fillydelphia population allegiance to the Empire is at 150%. It was the only city to report in such manner. While the Trinity cities had sworn allegiance to Canterlot, Fillydelphia did not, and yet it is one of the most loyal cities in across the nation.  Hoofington, Stalliongrad and Trottingham, which formed the Mountain Defense Line, reported few incidents that were taken down fast. And from Appleloosa, it seemed there was little to no trouble going on. The sherrif was doing his job well, it seems. Also, the patrols reported no activity from the rebels. She was particularly worried for Appleloosa because of its rather far distance from the capital and supplying is hard because the only contact it has with anything in Equestria other than the horribly long roads is the railway station. That is why she sent stronger patrols there. The farther it was, the greater the risk for an attack.

Having read through all the reports, she grouped them and she was about to give them to her secretary, who would then give them to Social Policy, the prime minister. Unfortunately, ever since the war, he lost much of his power over military business. But he would have to cope with it. Celestia knew many more  things than Social Policy regarding wars, and she knew a lot about the rebel leader as well. She simply had too many advantages over him. And as she gave the papers from the secretary, the royal high messenger burst loudly the throne room. Despite everypony in the room bursting, Celestia remained unshaken.

"Your majesty!" The messenger desperately galloped, bowed and then spoke.

"Your Majesty. My deepest apologies for bursting in such manner, but i have an urgent telegram from Fillydelphia." He said panting.

"Very well, hand the telegram to me, please." Celestia spoke in her calm composure.

The messenger then proceeded in handling the message and then left the throne room. The telegram had the form of a black letter, with the Fillydelphia coat of arms being the seal of the letter. This meant trouble. All the time. Ignoring the fact that all black letters are kept confidential and generally brought bad news, the black letters are a serious rarity across all of Equestria. She carefully removed the seal with her magic and then she began reading.

Dear Princess Celestia,

A few hours ago, at the approximate hour of 23:21 during nighttime, we received a report from our observers dispatched throughout the deserted lands of Western Equestria. The report received from our observes reveals an already finished separatist movement inside the small city of Appleloosa. The point of the movement is suspected to be a conquering operation. Unfortunately, in this moment, the city of Appleloosa has been conquered by the separatist nation New Lunar Republic. Due to the lack of higher clearance, Fillydelphia did not sent a counter attack. Appleloosa is first city in Equestria to fall under separatist control. However, with your request, a national-scale search can covertly be conducted to ensure such surprise attacks are no longer happening.

In this telegram you have received the following: the informative letter regarding the situation of Appleloosa and a full copy of the report that was made based on what the we received from the observers. The actions Fillydelphia took as a response to this movement are disclosed in the copy of the report. We await confirmation.

Have a nice day,

Golden Sword.

'Golden Sword is too specific and formal for his own good.' Celestia thought bitterly.

She then opened the copy of the report to check one thing. The thing she searched was found, but it totally contradicted what she received from the report from Appleloosa. The report from Fillydelphia mentions clearly that the population greeted the separatist movement. This meant only one thing: she was lied to. Reading that specific portion of the report just to make sure she read correctly, Celestias face dropped any single hope of a smile in exchange for ultimate pokerface. She couldn't afford any reaction due to the ponies in the room. She just lost Appleloosa. And she is aware what this meant. This meant that they could now run secret operations around all of Equestria. She could turn the nation upside down in a matter of days! That is, if the separatists had the chance and the supplies. And they won't.

She requested two pieces of paper, one for the Golden Tiger, the other for the rest of Equestria. She would write to the Golden Sword after she finished the letter to all of the city halls that have a railway station. She wrote the letter in the clearest way possible. It was an a simple, clear and concise order: to stop and reject all trains that come from Appleloosa or leave for Appleloosa without royal order from the highest in command: Celestia herself. She also ordered that anything, supplies, ponies or even simple letters going or leaving to or from Appleloosa will be boycotted and sent back. She then took another piece of paper that was destined to go towards the military high command. It was clear and concise order: all patrols that were destined to go to Appleloosa will cease the act immediately. The separatists will use every opportunity they have into their advantage. They could scavenge the military equipment or worse: take prisoners of war. She made sure that there were no opportunities for them to use. The only thing she could not stop was the self-sustainability of Appleloosa because of its apple acres. And if Celestia knew Luna well, they she didn't waste over one thousand years wondering and thinking on her sins. No, she didn't. She also knew that if Equestria finds out the their 'freedom fighters' arrived from the 'heavens of the stars' to save them, that will cause the real problem with her subjects. It would persuade them to fight. And Celestia will not have one bit of this. Not on her watch.

'If the you want to play with my cities, i dare you to. But i will not let your plague spread to my subjects, Luna. You won yourself a city at the end of the world. Good luck supplying it and making good use of it when nothing will even get out of the city. While you still have the time, that is.' Celestia thought as she finished the letters for the city halls and military high command.

The war began. And Celestia will be the first to inflict the real casualties. She could feel it.

***

He woke up in a foggy vision and a weakened body. The heat was barely bearable for him, and he lived for so long in such heat. Maybe from all that running and fatigue. His head was throbbing in pain, as if a million boulders hit his head at the same time. He could not make much of his surroundings, either. He did not see the sky nor the ever expanding desert sand. Was he inside somewhere? His memory was as foggy as his vision. Nothing much of his memory could be recalled. He knew his name, his age and anything else to check if he had amnesia or not. But he did not remember much of the recent events. All that he remembered was making sure there were no rebels just yesterday afternoon. And by nighttime, while sleeping, he heard marching. Deciding to neglect his duty, he abandoned the city as soon as possible, hidden from view of course. And when he was long gone, he heard the sounds of battle and screams from afar. But that was all he remembered.

He tried to get up, he had to tell the princess about this. But before he knew it, a group of two large and furry figures entered his chamber. One of them began to speak.

"No. You are hurt. You will remain here until your wounds recover. Relax. You are safe here, sherrif Silver Star."

The sherrifs vision needn't to get clearer, he realized the two were buffalo, but before he knew it, his body failed to comply with his efforts to wake up and fell into a deep sleep once more.

***

Back in the New Lunar Republic, Salzar was managing the backyard of his embassy accordingly. With no knowledge on why he woke up with the hardest brain-ache he ever had in decades, he continued to organize that part embassy since Nightmare Moon was not open for visits. And frankly, he did not want to see her Her Majesty at the moment either. Little did he know what was lurking in the void skies... Until now. Flashing lights appeared from the stellar sky of the moon. And they flashed widely and clearly. From every single part of the sky he could see. His heart just dropped into his stomach and his breathing accelerated rapidly. He hoped in despair that such lights were from simple pulsars, yet his mind knew better. No, he clearly knew what this was. It was the his impending doom... No.

The Republics impending Doom...