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// Chapter 11: The Plan (Part I)// Story: Sunshine and Fire// by BornIn1142//------------------------------//

Chapter 10: The Plan (Part I)

"Are you to be my entourage?"

The two ponies looked at each other, and then back at Celestia. They were an earth pony and a pegasus, the former male and the latter female. Both of them were wearing sun-bleached cloaks that would have made them look more than a little conspicuous in any sane and rational universe.

"Are you 'Twinkle'?" asked the mare in a low monotone.

Celestia nodded, and produced a letter from her saddlebags. It was something she'd received from Twilight Sparkle – instructions on how to meet up to regroup, signed by Applejack herself. This was the designated place at the designated time, one small back-alley among hundreds of others in the town of Trottingham. The rebel ponies looked over the letter, then nodded to each other. They didn't see a tall and glorious princess standing before them, only an ordinary young mare with pretty pink curls, but there was something in their eyes – a certain wariness – that made Celestia suspect they had an inkling of who and what she was. She offered them a mild smile to put them at ease. She'd picked the form of an earth pony for the same reason.

"You're going to have to put this bag on your head if you want us to take you to our hideout," said the stallion, "I, uh, I hope that's all right." The mare glared at him, leading to a brief game of charades, with plenty of shrugging from both sides. "Well, it better be," added the stallion a little louder than necessary, "because it's not optional."

"Certainly," said Celestia, and bent her neck to allow them to cover up her head.

One of them took up a position ahead of Celestia, and one of them behind her. Were they escorts or guards – who could say? They themselves didn't know how it was appropriate to treat her. Eventually, after a few minutes of misdirection, they led her inside a building of some sort, and then underground. The air temperature dropped a few degrees as the floor slanted downwards.

Once they were deep enough, Celestia asked for permission to remove the blindfold. Even without being able to see, she could sense a hesitation in the ensuing silence. Nevertheless, they pulled the bag off. Both of them had their hoods pulled back now. The stallion was rather handsome, with a generic brown on brown color scheme. The mare was blackish-whiteish, suggesting she was either a zebra or a mixed breed.

As far as unlit underground tunnels went, the sights were quite interesting. The complex was obviously far-reaching – quite possibly linking together dozens upon dozens of different basements. Celestia made note of traps embedded in the walls, including mechanisms she guessed would cause the tunnels to collapse in case of intrusion. The place was a stunning testament to earth pony ingenuity and labor, all the more impressive for being built entirely in secret. After a few minutes of traversing empty tunnels, they reached deeper halls that were obviously built for habitation. Firelight seeped out from open doorways, and they started coming across other ponies, some of whom threw Celestia curious glances, while others passed her by in blissful ignorance.

"Might I perhaps ask where I could find my dear sister?" asked Celestia, all prim and proper. The earth pony guards were being so uptight that it was hard to keep the amusement out of her voice.

"Your sister," said the female guard, "That would be the Princess."

"That's right," said Celestia, as if she was talking to a little filly, "Princess Luna. I'm sure you've noticed her around."

The stallion cleared his throat. "I think I saw her in the canteen just a short while ago. I don't know if she's still there, but..."

"But it'll be a good place to start looking!" finished Celestia for him, "I would very much like to see my sister and make sure she's all right, so could you please point the way?" She looked around between the two. "Oh, and I suppose one of you should find Applejack and announce my arrival, isn't that so?"

The guards both looked shocked at the suggestion, and quickly held another wordless conference. Between a deep frown from the mare and more shrugging from the stallion, they seemed to reach some sort of agreement.

"I suppose one of us should," said the mare. Somehow, bizarrely, she made this innocuous comment sound like a threat.

Celestia watched her take a few steps back, then turn around and disappear into one of the nearby corridors. She took one last glance over her shoulder before rounding the corner. Celestia turned back towards the stallion. There was something very schoolcoltish in the way he looked away from her.

"The canteen?" suggested Celestia with a smile.

"Yes. Right."

The stallion seemed hesitant to put his back to her, so Celestia solved his dilemma for him by walking at his side. She didn't expect him to break the awkward silence.

"You're not exactly what I- we expected," he said.

"Oh indeed?"

The stallion didn't elaborate. His back was straight as a ruler, and his neck jutted upwards sharply. He looked as if he was trying to stand at attention and look casual doing so. It wasn't an attempt to impress.

"Did you think I would breathe fire and wear spiky armor and try to steal your foals?" asked Celestia, but regretted it an instant later. The jest seemed in poor taste, considering that many ponies indeed lost their children to Equestria's armies.

"I'm not sure," said the stallion, "I'm honestly not sure."

"Have you ever seen the Queen?"

"N-no. Never. I've just heard the stories."

"She's just a pony, you know. Underneath it all, despite all the power, she's just a pony. Don't ever forget that."

"That's what Applejack keeps telling us."

They walked the rest of the way without saying anything. When they finally reached the entrance to the canteen, Celestia breathed in sharply and raised a hoof to her mouth.

"Oh dear, I completely forgot," she said.

"What? What is it?"

"I just realized that I really should have a talk with Spike! Would you be so kind as to fetch him?"

"The dragon?"

"Yes, please. If he's available. I'll just see if Luna is here in the meanwhile, hmm?"

The stallion looked as if he might say something, but Celestia turned around and stepped inside without waiting for a reply. She didn't turn to see to ascertain whether he was leaving or not.

The canteen was low and wide – Celestia couldn't have stood up to her full height under the ceiling – and was lit by half a dozen low-burning oil lamps hanging above a series of long tables. The chamber was sparsely populated considering its size, and the ponies that were there mostly seemed to be conversing and generally killing time rather than eating. A few of them watched Celestia canter inside, but most of them were crowded around one of the side-tables and had their attention focused on a pegasus standing on top of a bench and gesticulating wildly. This pegasus happened to be Rainbow Dash. Celestia barely recognized her without her glorious mane.

"So there I was, playing chicken with a dragon," she declared, sweeping her forehoof from one side to the other, "Outmatched in every possible sense of the word, I'd set myself on a course for my own destruction! I'd been in some tough spots in my life, but this? This one was a real doozy! I knew that my survival depended on just one thing – firing off a sonic rainboom in the dragon's face at just the right moment..."

Fluttershy was also there, Celestia belatedly realized, sitting in the shadows behind Dash. She barely seemed to be paying attention to the latter's tale, choosing instead to take slow sips from a steaming cup and brood. Even seated, she looked incredibly fragile, like a flower made of ice, like she would break up at the slightest touch.

Celestia passed through an archway separating the canteen from a kitchen area where a single earth pony was bustling at an oven. Luna was also there: a large, deep blue shape in the darkness, crammed into a chair at a smaller round table. She seemed to consume the light around her – or perhaps glow more darkness. She was close enough to observe the crowd in the other room, but distant enough to give them an excuse to ignore her.

"This fudge is delicious!" Luna announced to the cook, just as Celestia was stepping in, "I shall have another!" Her eyes widened when she noticed Celestia. "Sister...?"

Before Celestia could do anything, Luna had stood upright, rushed up to her and nuzzled her face against Celestia's neck. It wasn't exactly royal decorum, and must have looked a tad awkward considering their usual size difference was currently reversed, but neither of them particularly cared at that moment.

"It is so good to see you again, sister!" said Luna.

Celestia gave her sister a kiss on the cheek. "Likewise, Luna."

"Your disguise is rather impressive! If only I had thought to disguise myself like you did..."

The sudden turn to self-admonishment wasn't lost on Celestia. "I'm glad that you're safe and sound. I never doubted that you'd acquit yourself well in this hostile environment."

Luna scoffed a little as she pulled back, but didn't say anything else. It was something Celestia had seen a thousand times before: Luna biting back self-criticism and burying it deep within. She was still bright and cheerful, so Celestia was loathe to push the matter with questions, but it was her duty to work through these things.

"Is something the matter?" she asked.

"I'm afraid I've acquitted myself a little too well," explained Luna levelly, a lop-sided, apologetic smile on her face. "My hot-headedness may have cost us an important strategic advantage. But never mind that for now. We can go over all the particulars of what we've been up to later on."

The pair of them took a seat at the table, where Luna sidled up close to Celestia and offered her the plate of sweet fudge that the cook had deposited there. Celestia wasn't hungry, but accepted the plate to please her sister.

"Trottingham's a lovely town, isn't it?" asked Celestia, taking a spoonful of fudge to her mouth. She wished she more often practiced eating like an earth pony.

Luna cocked an eyebrow. "I could not disagree more, sister. I find an ugly, dreary, thoroughly unpleasant place. Unsafe too, as a matter of fact. That dome seems as if it could break up and collapse at any moment!"

"All of that is true, yes, but I still much prefer it to Everfree City. Oppression weighs ponies down like iron shackles in that place."

"I suppose conditions are abysmal all around," muttered Luna.

"Have you, Twilight and Spike gotten settled in nicely here?"

"You could say that." Luna turned her head to look at the ponies in the canteen. "The atmosphere is understandably awkward, you understand. They look at Twilight Sparkle and Spike and see one of their greatest, most dangerous enemies and a mindless, remorseless killing machine. To hear respected figures like Rarity and Rainbow Dash tell tales of how heroically they fought against one of the Secret Police must be rather jarring. I think they are coming around to recognizing Twilight's value, and not just for her magical abilities. But while we are on the subject, I believe you should go and talk to Twilight soon. She has need of your guidance."

"Oh? And where is she?"

"I told her to get some rest, so that's what she'll be doing if she knows what's good for her. She should be in the barracks, in Applejack's bed."

Celestia bent forward and arched an eyebrow. Luna made an adorable frowny-face that made Celestia want to pinch her cheeks. "You know very well what I mean!"

While Celestia laughed, Luna tried to look dignified. "This is a good crew here, I believe," she went on, "The Apple Underground has acquitted itself as well against Daymare Sun over the years as could be expected, and I see a lot of potential in Twilight's friends. I'm sure that with her guidance, they will be able to live up to heroic standard set by their counterparts. They will be a formidable group once we complete the set."

"Oh, I don't doubt that they will be formidable," said Celestia, stroking her chin.

"Now that you're here, we can hold a proper war council and come up with a plan. I have some ideas I want to put forward myself..."

"You know, you neglected to mention what the Apple Underground thinks of you."

"It's the strangest thing, sister!" said Luna, genuinely incredulous, "I thought my appearance would frighten them, but it is not so. Instead they seem curious – fascinated even! Some of them seem hopeful about my presence, and I've done my best to bolster their spirits and assure them that I will lend my power to their cause. I did not think to expect this. It's not so strange, after all, that they would feel an affinity for shadows, right? All their lives, shadows have provided them with safety and relief. Darkness has been their home. Isn't that bizarre?"

"I don't think that's bizarre at all," said Celestia tenderly.

"A while ago, I found out that this world's Luna was killed trying to fight back against Daymare Sun." Celestia had heard the same thing. It was a slightly shameful relief to know that she didn't have to break this news to Luna herself. "I thought this made me – her – a miserable failure. I'm still not sure that's wrong, really. It wasn't easy to hear that everything that other Luna ever was had been almost forgotten, but that might not be entirely correct. There's quite a few ponies here that have heard her name in bedside stories and vague myths. Those that have heard of her have been telling the rest since I arrived here. I had been nearly forgotten as well, and... truth be told, I don't even know why I'm telling you this. It's just good to know that she's not completely gone yet."

"Princess Luna led the original rebellion against Queen Celestia," said Celestia, "She was, in a way, the inspiration for all those that followed her, including the Apple Underground. They are right to look up to you."

They sat in a happy silence for a few moments, until Luna's expression started curdling. "Oh yes. I had nearly forgotten. Have you seen any sign of Brainy Bright?"

Celestia put down her spoon and took a thoughtful lick of her plate. Luna was right – the fudge was quite good. "No, I haven't," she said.

"Hmh. Neither have Twilight or I. That's not too surprising, really. He could be anywhere within the hemisphere for all we know."

"We'll come across him eventually, no doubt."

"Hopefully sooner rather than later! I will say this: we should not necessarily wait until we've defeated Daymare Sun to make contact with our Equestria. I am getting somewhat concerned with how things are going back home. All this time, you've been such a..." Luna briefly averted her eyes and then raised them again to meet Celestia's. "such a strong leader, and now you are lost to them." If Celestia hadn't known better, she would have had the vague impression that Luna was somehow reproachful. "There will be panic. If not right away, then once the short-term ecological problems become apparent. Equestria needs you, Celestia. You must not dally with your return."

“As a matter of fact, I have certain contingency plans in place. Besides that, my government isn't composed of children, you know. I'm sure Cadence, Shining Armor and Fancy Pants have matters firmly in hand for now. They have Twilight's friends to help maintain harmony, don't they?"

"That is true. Still, we mustn't forget about Brainy Bright! We have no way home but for him. Gah, I can't wait to get my hooves on him!"

"I didn't realize you felt that way, Luna..."

"Please do not turn this into a joke!" said Luna loudly, "He attacked you! He disrespected you! That coward! There is no punishment great enough!" Her anger disappeared in halting glimpses of expression, leaving behind only uncertain solemnity. She sighed, and went on speaking with uncharacteristic delicacy. "Please tell me how you feel about all this, sister. Are you... upset?"

Celestia hesitated. "I'm... disappointed in Brainy Bright's actions, yes, of course. He threw away so much for this one chance to get rid of me. I don't understand why someone so brilliant and well-regarded would... take such a negative view of me." There was a strained note in her voice that Celestia didn't appreciate. She didn't want to be thinking about this. "It doesn't matter," she said with a shake of her head, trying to smile, "It's irrelevant. We have bigger concerns, don't we?"

"Yes, well..." Luna bit her lip. "I didn't just mean Brainy Bright, I meant..." She made a weak sweeping gesture. "...everything. Fighting such a distortion of oneself must be a harrowing ordeal in itself. Part of you is still within Daymare Sun, guiding her. Everything about this world is a demonstration of sorts of your own potential for destruction, is that not so? By all rights, this should be an enemy more intimate than any you've faced before. I am not certain that I could stand to confront what I once was in person – and I know you're stronger than I am, and dealing with it much better than I would be, but... What I'm trying to say is that it would be understandable for you to be upset. I hope you know that I want to be here for you, to help you figure things out about Daymare Sun and what brought about her change."

For a moment, Celestia entertained the notion of telling Luna of her suspicions, but looking at her staring back with such obvious worry in her eyes quickly caused her to discard that idea. Where she should have been feeling grateful and touched, she instead felt a curious sense of detachment that she couldn't quite explain. Celestia was the comforter; she found that she did not wish to be comforted herself. In fact, she wished Luna had never even thought to raise this issue, if for no other reason than because she didn't want Luna to have cause to doubt her. She did not need to make sense of all the emotions roiling in her chest since finding out who she was up against to view the matter of her opposite number with perfect clarity.

"You don't have to tell me that, sister," said Celestia with utmost grace and deliberation, "I've never doubted that I can rely on you in this battle. When we work together, there's nothing we can't accomplish and no one that can stand against us. I know you'll help me fix everything and undo the evil that my twin has wrought."

Luna released a quiet breath. She looked as if she hadn't quite gotten what she'd wanted from Celestia, but all the same, she couldn't keep from blooming into a slight self-satisfied smile from the praise. "Yes. Yes, of course! I'll do anything within my power to help you!"

Celestia smiled and nodded. There was, of course, an unspoken implication in Luna's words. Nothing Luna had done in the time since her release from the moon had in any way made up for her actions as Nightmare Moon, at least in her own eyes. She'd taken on minor duties in the governance of the realm, started charities, traveled the world, saved and improved lives, but none of it was enough. Going up against Daymare Sun was a perfect chance to redeem herself for her actions as Nightmare Moon. There was something a little troubling about that mindset... Celestia knew her sister would have done good with or without a guilty conscience, but did Luna?

Both of them turned to their side at once, glimpsing movement from the corner of their eyes. The earth pony guard that had accompanied Celestia had appeared on the doorway, Spike in tow. They began moving through the canteen towards them.

"I'll have that talk with Twilight now," said Celestia, "but I'd prefer some privacy. Why don't you distract my little bodyguard for a moment?"

"If you wish."

The rebel and Spike approached their table. The earth pony had a vaguely nonplussed expression, but Celestia's gaze was invariably drawn to Spike. There was nothing particularly haggard about his appearance, but it was hard to overlook the faded black scorch-mark still adorning the scales on his belly. Celestia returned his wave.

"You found your sister," said the earth pony, "That's good. I've brought the dragon, but now we should really-"

"You there!" barked Luna, "Caramel, is it?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have a marefriend?"

"Yeah... buh... what?!"

Celestia, now upright again, bent down to the floor, pushed her snout underneath Spike and lifted him up, then let him roll down onto her back. Half a second later, she was already casually cantering away. Spike had dug his claws into her mane in response to the sudden drop, but she barely felt him. Somewhere behind him, Caramel was nervously explaining that he wasn't in the market for a marefriend.

"Ahem, welcome to the Apple Underground, Your Majesty," said Spike once he'd gotten the chance to brace himself. She found his light-hearted formality much more amenable than the real thing.

"Why, thank you, Spike. Let's go and find Twilight now, all right?"

Rainbow Dash's display in the canteen seemed to have taken a bizarre turn from self-aggrandizement to economic theory. She seemed to be talking about the rights of the working class. Celestia made a brief mental note of the oddity of this when she walked past, but paid it not further heed. She also noted that Fluttershy had taken off in the meanwhile.

After Spike had given her directions as to which corridor to head down, he settled down on her back and began telling a story. Spike talked, and Celestia listened. He talked of the dried-up and lonesome Dragon Swamp and meeting the fellow dragon that inhabited it, of Rainbow Dash and Agent Striker, and of the battle. He forwarded the explanation Twilight had given him of what had happened while he was unconscious, and described the awkwardness that took hold in the group after they left the swamp. He continued on with their search for the frontier town where Fluttershy made her home, with Luna and her cloud, with the griffon guest and the long path to getting Fluttershy to agree to come along. Celestia often asked for clarification or elaboration, sifting through the story, picking up errant facts and new bits of information to fit in with what she already knew. One could never be sure which seemingly innocuous detail could end up becoming relevant; being aware as much as possible was an essential part of problem-solving. Celestia was a big believer in the doctrine of "knowledge is power."

As Spike's narrative came to a close, Celestia first slowed down, then came to a halt and craned her neck to the side to look Spike in the face. She didn't want to give him the impression that he didn't have her full and undivided attention.

"I'm truly sorry to have put you in that position, Spike. You're far too young to have come so close to dying. It was a mistake to let you go out on your own."

Spike didn't completely succeed at putting on a brave face. "Yeah, well, it couldn't be helped, could it? We had to be there to save Rainbow Dash, and you had to be elsewhere to deal with other stuff."

"Mmm. Are you feeling all right now?"

"I think so." His hand unconsciously drew to his chest. "I'm not in any pain or anything, though I do get out of breath a little easier. I just wish I could have done more and protected everyone. I asked Twilight if she could figure out that growth spell and use it on me, but she just looked at me as if I was crazy!"

"Perhaps she doesn't want to put you in harm's way like that."

"Whatever," said Spike with a sigh, "But it should be my choice, right? Those other dragons haven't got a choice, but I do. I want to help, but... I can't. Not really. I can only send some letters and provide moral support."

"You don't necessarily have to fight to contribute," suggested Celestia mildly.

"I know, I know! I guess I'm not the only one feeling useless right now. Everypony's trying to figure out how we could track down Pinkie Pie right now. We're done for if we can't find her, but we still don't even know if she even exists!"

"I might have an idea or two on how to resolve things. For what it's worth, Spike, I'm sure you'll have a role to play in all this." She winked, leading to a sheepish smile of gratitude.

They reached the barracks in a couple of minutes. Celestia was noticing that, despite the skill of the labor that had created this headquarters, it was not particularly well-planned place. The barracks seemed to be a fairly haphazard collection of dormitories and bedrooms, with living areas interspersed in the halls, and the way there was long and winding. Some of that was no doubt necessitated by the secrecy of its construction, but this hidden village underground was not such a perfect place to live, in the end. Some of the bedrooms didn't have doorframes, much of the furniture was generations old, and hygiene and sanitation were probably luxuries. Celestia looked at the faces of ponies she came across, and wondered how many of them lived there because they didn't have a choice – because they were outlaws in the outside world, or because their previous lives had been destroyed by a whim of fate. She wondered how many of them truly preferred this sort of freedom.

Celestia caught a glimpse of Rarity in a common room, hunched over a young unicorn colt with a white coat and a blonde mane and talking to him in hushed tones. There was something vaguely familiar about the colt, but Celestia paid it no further mind. They were almost at Applejack's personal bedroom, which she'd been lending to Twilight to use.

"This is it," said Spike, hopping off Celestia's back to stand next to the closed door, "Twilight's been asleep for a while now, so it should be okay to wake her up."

Celestia stepped into the bedroom in her true form. She found Twilight still in bed, sleeping the sleep of the righteous. A pang of nostalgia went through her when she saw Twilight lying there in the darkness, looking so small, so defenseless, so much like a young filly. Twilight's mouth was open and her mane frazzled. It almost seemed a cruelty to wake her up, to drag her out of peaceful dreams into a harsh and troubled reality. Before Celestia could even finish the thought, however, a shudder seemed to pass through Twilight's body and her expression tightened into a frown. Celestia hurried closer and gently touched her shoulder as she sat down on the edge of the bed. Twilight awoke with a start, momentarily confused.

"Who's there?" she mumbled.

"It's me, little one."

Celestia did not need a spell to create a source of light like a unicorn would have – Celestia was light. It only took a thought for Twilight to see her as clearly as if it was the brightest day. As Celestia didn't need aid to see in the dark, the bright aura did not pass beyond her form to illuminate the room itself. Twilight wasn't even blinded; her eyes adjusted instantly.

"Princess Celestia!" gasped Twilight, "You're here!"

"Indeed. I only arrived a short while ago."

"Um, well, welcome!" Twilight scrambled up to sit on her haunches, rubbing the bleariness from her eyes. "I'm very, very glad to see you. We've been waiting for you to have a little conference and figure out what we're going to do next..."

"I know. Luna and Spike filled me in."

"Oh, did you find what you were looking for in that library? That prophecy?"

"Actually, I did not. I found nothing conclusive at all, only hints and clues and breadcrumbs." One of those breadcrumbs, admittedly, could yet prove very valuable.

"Ah... That's a pity."

"How did your journey go? Your letter mentioned running into some difficulties."

"'Difficulties?' Did I really write that?" She chuckled humorlessly. "Well, yes, we had some of those."

"Tell me what happened."

Twilight took a deep breath and broke into a story of her own. Although she was hesitant at first, it wasn't long before the words were streaming out of her. Celestia let her unload, without interruption, even though she already knew what happened. Twilight needed to get it off her chest. Her story was a little different from Spike's. Although usually so analytical, she now talked less of events but more of reactions, worries and emotions. The biggest worry on her mind was uncertainty – uncertainty about whether she should have acted differently, uncertainty about Rainbow Dash, and uncertainty about the path they were meant to take. When she was finally done, her voice was close to breaking.

"I'm just so glad you're here now," said Twilight, smiling vaguely, "It's all getting to be a bit much for me, all the decisions..."

"Oh, Twilight," said Celestia, wrapping her forehooves around her and pulling her close, "I'm so sorry you had to go through this. This must all be a terrible burden on you, but you don't have to keep worrying about it any longer. Rainbow Dash was right to take that pony's life."

Twilight tensed up and pulled back, looking at Celestia. Her big purple eyes were quivering in wonder and confusion. "Oh," she said. Poor, poor Twilight. She was ill-equipped to handle a dilemma like this. Celestia might have hoped that she'd never have to lift this veil of innocence from Twilight, but this was a situation that required a realistic perspective.

"I'm not going to tell you that these are somehow extraordinary circumstances that warrant extraordinary measures. Nothing about this place is intrinsically different from where we come from. Our Equestria has been violent and chaotic in the past and could easily become violent and chaotic again. It's taken a great deal of effort on my part to ensure the peace and stability of modernity that we all enjoy. What kind of ruler would I be if I lacked the will to do whatever it took to defend my people? The truth is that anypony that wishes to lead or to champion others should possess a certain... flexibility. I'm sure that someone as scientifically-minded as you, Twilight, can appreciate what I'm saying. It's very important not to fall into rigid patterns of thinking, and a stubborn insistence on a simplistic division of right and wrong is one of the greatest of such fallacies. Twilight, you don't think I've never killed anyone, do you?"

Twilight flinched as if slapped, even though Celestia's tone had been far from harsh. "I know you've fought in wars," she said quietly.

"You know this because you've read it in books, but you don't truly acknowledge to yourself what it means. I've sent armies off to do battle with the stroke of a quill and the sound of a trumpet. I've forgotten more combat magics than any unicorn has ever learned. And yes, I've fought myself." She touched her forehooves to Twilight's cheeks and forced Twilight to look in her eyes. "I've taken lives with these very hooves."

Twilight stared back at her, doe-eyed and mesmerized. "That's different," she whispered.

"In some ways, perhaps. In any case, it's been centuries since I've had to take measures like that. I've quite successfully phased out the concept of war, but make no mistake – it was integral in teaching Equestria's neighbors that ponies are not prey."

"You- you don't have to tell me this, Princess. I know that this is how things have to be. I may not like it, but I accept it."

"You might have to put forward more than just tolerance, Twilight. I'll do what I can do avoid it, but you may well find yourself in other life-or-death situations, where your survival, the survival of others and the success of our entire mission may depend on you making the right choice. Do you understand, Twilight? There may come a moment where all non-lethal avenues are exhausted and you yourself will have to kill as well."

There was, of course, one more theoretical scenario that these high stakes opened up. The fact that Celestia refused to acknowledge or consider this possibility, despite a nagging fear at the back of her mind, was a persistent reminder that her conviction was not absolute. That was not such a bad thing though. Celestia felt strengthened by the knowledge that there were lines that she would not cross, that her conviction remained tempered by morality...

There was a pause before Twilight answered her, as if she was mentally replaying Celestia's words to make sure she'd heard right.

"I- I don't think- I couldn't. I'm not a soldier, Princess, I'm just-" She stumbled over her words, unsure of what to call herself.

"You're my student," said Celestia gently, "so pay attention and learn. No pony is made for killing. Any pony can do it when the need is great enough. All it takes is an adjustment of mindset. Should you come face to face with other agents of the Secret Police, it would be better not to think of them as ponies at all. That will make it easier."

"They're not... ponies?"

"No, Twilight. They are weapons of the enemy; they are obstacles in the path to justice and freedom. Like their dragon slaves, they are nothing but tools. This Equestria is rotten to the core, and the Secret Police gnaws at that rot. I grieve for their ruined, stolen lives – I do – but there there won't be a place for them in the new world we shall create."

"What about Daylight Sparkle?"

"What about her? She is ultimately just another cog in a machine that has no other purpose but to ruin. Don't let her name bother you. Don't waste your time thinking about her. The time for pardons, forgiveness and re-education will come, but not yet. Right now, we must focus on victory. Don't ever think I don't consider this only the very last option, but it's important to explore all possibilities. This is a fight we cannot afford to lose."

Twilight's gaze slowly drifted away from Celestia's face and onto the empty darkness around them. Although she still looked conflicted, there was now a trace of academic puzzlement in her features, the likes of which Celestia had often seen while Twilight was considering some great theoretical problems set before her. Celestia could tell that she'd gotten Twilight thinking. Twilight may have had a tendency to over-complicate, but Celestia was certain she'd reach the correct conclusion in the end.

Notes:

- This is only the first half of the chapter I intended to publish here. You might notice how there's no, um, plan yet? It really pains me to take this step - for several reasons, but mostly because I look at this chapter and see something incomplete - but I just couldn't, in good conscience, sit on a perfectly workable chunk of the story while people were waiting for an update that was already long overdue. Luckily, the chapter was always composed of two sections, and I wanted to finish Celestia's arrival in Trottingham before moving on to the war council. I'm unsure whether I should combine the two parts once both are out; it seems like that could confuse people, and just generally make me look foolish. I hope you appreciate that I was willing to do this for you guys! ...Okay, I know that's a pretty lame excuse for being slow as fuck.

- Splitting this in two does give me the opportunity to ask this: What do you think Celestia's suspicions are? What do you think the plan will be?

- This chapter features some of the most emotionally complex dialogue in the story so far. I feel like I'm in way over my head, not getting across half of what I'm hoping to get across and with the appropriate subtlety - but that's all right, really. Getting this practice is I write fan fiction.

- Something amazing happened a few weeks ago: one of you guys created a TV Tropes article for "Sunshine and Fire." I'm rather flattered and grateful for that. If there's any more tropers reading this, feel free to add to it.

To be continued in Part II.