Moonlit mountain was widely regarded as one of, if not the most famous landmark in the land. Towering over all the land for miles, it was located squarely in the center of the land and was regarded just as impressive as it was dangerous. Only very few beings, even those that could fly, approached the mountain, since even for the strongest climber or the best of flyer, reaching its top was a dangerous and difficult undertaking. And so the top of Moonlit mountain was a lonely, desolate place - which made it the perfect meeting spot for the group of ponies that had decided to gather there that evening.

Two figures stood across from each other, both of them wearing hoods, they had drawn deeply into their faces, and long fuzzy dark mantles, partially to protect them from the cold, partially to hide their identities.

They were waiting for something as indicated by their nervous pawing on the ground and constantly glancing around, yet it was unclear what they were waiting for.

The question was answered a moment later, as another pony arrived, carried by powerful flaps of his wings. The moment the pony saw the other two waiting figures, it glided down from the skies and landed softly next to them.

The other two waited patiently for the newcomer to take their place in the circle, then one of the others stepped forward. As they did, they reached for his hood and pulled it down, revealing a horn, jutting out from their forehead, followed by a long well kempt green mane and a beard of the same color.

The stallion as he now clearly was identifiable as, looked between the other two, then asked in a calm voice “No one followed you here?”

The pony who had been standing beside him shook their head, while the newcomer said “No, I’m sure of it. Just to be safe i took a detour. Even if someone was following me at the beginning, they would have lost me by now.” He paused for a moment, as he cocked his head in thought. “But at the moment they are too busy to notice us anyway.”

“So they are” the unicorn said with a nod, before slowly a dark expression slid over his face. “Unfortunately they won’t be for much longer.”

“What do you mean?” the one beside the stallion, who was still wearing their hood asked, causing the unicorn to turn to him.

“I mean, Smart Cookie, that the negotiations are nearly over and it doesn’t look good.”

Smart Cookie hood shook slightly as he took a deep, steadying breath, then he said in a near whisper “You mean…”

“There will be no peace,” the unicorn nodded sadly, causing Smart Cookie to stomp a hoof in frustration.

“These idiots!”

“You need to calm down Cookie” the pegasus member of the group said quickly. “Right now it is important…”

“What is important, Pansy?” Cookie fumed and whirled around to face the pegasus. “Didn’t you listen? It’s over, we lost!”

“No, it isn’t over. Not yet at least,” the unicorn interjected, before Pansy could answer, earning him a confused look from the still enraged Smart Cookie.

“What do you mean, Clover?” he asked as he tilted his head in irritation. “You just said it yourself: The negotiations are over. Soon the war will...”

“It won’t continue.”

Before Cookie could ask what he meant, Clover the clever sat down and used his magic to pull a map from of his bag.

“The windigos are fresh in everybody's mind, Cookie. They fear that they might return when they continue their fighting, so they won’t.”

“But they can’t live along each other either.” Pansy continued “They will need to find a solution, fast, but no matter what it will be, it’s clear that it won’t be in our favor.” He moved closer to Clover. “Personally I think they will try something like this” he said and pointed at the map.

“And so do I” Clover nodded. “And that’s why we decided that it is time” he finished and gave Cookie a meaningful look.

For a moment Smart Cookie seemed to be confused as to what he meant, but then his eyes widened in realization. “You mean…” he began, but paused as the implications sank in. He thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. “But are they ready for it? Are we?”

“They will have to be,” Pansy answered in a firm yet saddened voice. “And so do we.”

“It’s sooner than we had planned,” Clover said as he stood back up to face Cookie, “but i know we will prevail. We did everything we could to prepare for this. If there’s a time to do it then it is now. All that is missing is your agreement.”

Unsure of what to do, Cookie looked between his two friends. It was true that the plan was not without its dangers, but he knew that together they could overcome everything. After all, they already did so once, and he knew, as he looked into the eyes of his friends, that they would again.

And so, encouraged by the trust he had in his friends, he did the only thing he could - he nodded his approval.

Author's Note

The who knows how oftens try to finally get this story going, but this time with a little twist. This time i will regard this as a weekly challenge kind of thing. This means i will post at least one chapter each week. Let's see how long this story will last this time