Radish made his way through one of the many quiet side hallways of the palace’s middle floors. These corridors never saw much use, either from visitors, palace staff, or the princesses themselves. The air hangs heavy and silent in sections of the palace like these, and even a guard could feel like an intruder in such a space. The silence was broken by another guard poking his head through a side door and flagging Radish down.
“Hey, Root, Shining Armor wants to see you in his office.”
“His office is a thousand miles north.”
“You know what I mean. Just go.”
Radish entered Barrel Roller’s office. Shining Armor was sitting at her desk, poring over piles of disparate documents. Barrel Roller and Saguaro Shade stood on either side of him, looking over the papers as well.
“Root, come in. Have a seat.”
“Ah, Prince Armor. You’re still here. In Canterlot.”
“I’m gonna be here for a while, Root. What do you know about the CAA?”
“Which one? There’s the Canterlot Accordion Association, the Carriage Assistance Act, the Cartographers and Astrologers Alliance…”
“I like you, Root, because you keep me on my toes. The Campaign for Alicorn Authenticity.”
“They’re a new political group formed to challenge Twilight Sparkle’s ascendancy to alicornship and her title of princess. They claim her completion of Starswirl’s last spell was a hoax, and that her wings are fake.”
“Do you know why they believe all that?”
“The reasons they give in their self-published literature are varied, constantly changing, and often… difficult to comprehend. They seem to have started with their conclusion, and are scrabbling backwards for ways to justify it.”
“You’ve read their literature?”
“They leave it in public bathrooms, sir.”
“Have you discussed them with Twilight?”
“We talked about the intruders at the coronation. This was before I knew that there were more out there, or that they had a name.”
“How many of them do you think there are?”
“They claim numbers in the thousands across Equestria and beyond. It’s likely those numbers are wildly overstated. There are probably fewer than a hundred in Canterlot, with smaller chapters elsewhere.”
“I agree. But they could be growing. They’re growing louder, at least.”
“Sir?”
“They’ve applied for a permit to hold a public demonstration in Canter Square. Princess Celestia has approved it.”
“I see.”
“But that doesn’t mean we can’t put on a show of our own.”
“A show? Another play, Prince Armor?”
“A show of numbers. Guards from both this palace and the Crystal Empire will be standing by during the protest. So will be the Wonderbolts. That should give the CAA something to think about.”
Radish felt his stomach clench. He looked at Barrel Roller and Saguaro Shade, who seemed to be gauging his reaction as he gauged theirs.
“Sir, isn’t that the purview of the City Watch?” asked Radish. “The Royal Guard can only operate outside the palace when there’s a direct, real, and present threat. As for the Wonderbolts, I don’t think they do this kind of thing, either.”
“I’m glad you know regs so well these days. The City Watch will be the front line, of course. The rest will just be there in case they try something. The CAA is a direct, real and present threat, Root. They tried to rip Twilight’s wings off.”
“I know, sir.”
Radish’s mind reeled, grasping for ideas.
Well, it’s worth a shot.
“Beg pardon, Prince Armor. But doesn’t this require the attention of AG1? They handle problems relating to social disunity.”
“You think I’m going to put Twilight anywhere near this? I don’t even want her to know about the protest. In fact, I’m going to have to order you not to tell her. We’re working on something to keep Ponyville occupied the day of. A bake-off.”
You absolute piece of-
“Yes, Prince Armor. A bake-off will keep them distracted, for sure. I bet someone will comically fall onto a cake.”
“And there’s one more thing. There’s a reason I’m talking to you about all this. We think most of the CAA come from the more bohemian quarters of Canterlot. The artists, musicians, baristas. You get the idea. Midtown folk, basically.”
Radish kept silent.
“Your girlfriend is an artist from Midtown, isn’t she?”
Barrel Roller looked at the floor. Saguaro Shade looked at Shining Armor.
“I don’t believe I’ve ever mentioned that to you, sir,” Radish said slowly.
“Has she ever expressed any doubts about Twilight?”
“No, sir.”
“I want to show you something.”
He placed a CAA flier on the desk. Next to it, he placed a postcard from Light Fantastic’s shop. Aside from various anti-Twilight slogans, the flier had an angular drawing of Twilight, with a red slashed circle over her wings. The postcard had a generic unicorn, but the style and pose were exactly the same as on the flier. Radish felt his skin crawl and his heart drop.
“These look pretty similar, don’t they? Is Light Fantastic contributing art to the CAA?”
Radish’s mind raced. He cleared his throat.
“Sir, this style of drawing is what’s known as ‘stirrupism’. It was a trend among young artists a few years ago. Most artists in Canterlot can draw like this. This image could have come from one of hundreds of ponies.”
Shining Armor looked back to Barrel Roller and Saguaro Shade. They both shrugged.
Go ahead and look it up. I listen to my girlfriend when she talks about her work.
“Have either of you ever encountered a member of the CAA?”
“Not that I’m aware.”
“Have you ever heard anyone in Light’s circles voice doubts about Twilight?”
“No, sir.”
“Do you, yourself, have any doubts about Twilight being an alicorn?”
“No, sir.”
Don’t say it. Don’t say it. DON’T SAY IT.
“I’ve felt her wings, sir.”
Of course I had to say it.
“You’ve felt my sister’s wings?”
“She loves to show them off. She practically shoved them in my face.”
Don’t say it. Don’t say it. DO NOT SAY IT.
“They’re very soft, sir.”
Radish stared hard into Shining Armor’s eyes, still as a statue. Barrel Roller and Saguaro Shade looked at each other.
“Well, fine. Good. Perfect. By the way, you’ve spent time with Rarity, haven't you?”
“Yes. Mostly on missions.”
“What do you think of her?”
“She has the full confidence of Princess Celestia, both as the Element of Generosity and as a dressmaker.”
“But what’s your read on her? What do your instincts as a guard tell you about her?”
Don’t do it, Radish. Don’t you dare. Oh, go ahead.
“Sir, if I may. I understand that she can be very charming. Even to a married stallion. But some mares are simply being friendly when they might give the impression of being… flirtatious. And you have a wonderful wife, sir.”
Of course I had to.
Shining Armor’s eyes went wide. Barrel Roller covered her face with a wing. Saguaro Shade looked at the ceiling.
“Root, what are you- never mind. I ask because she sent a message requesting your assistance, out-of-palace. She’d like a guard escort while she does some shopping in the wholesale district.”
“Sir?”
“The Royal Guard is always happy to help one of Equestria’s heroes, Root. Keep her safe, and don’t talk about the CAA or the protest. You’ll meet her at Rye Stubble’s at eight.”
“Yes, Prince Armor.”
Radish stood up to leave. As he opened the door, he looked back at Shining Armor.
“By the way, your highness- when its members speak the organization’s initials, they say ‘C-double-A’, not ‘C-A-A’.”
“And how do you know that?”
“I overheard it in a bathroom stall. In the Crystal Empire.”
Radish left the office. He walked into the locker room and leaned over a sink, staring at himself in the mirror. Saguaro Shade walked in.
“Why do you have to needle him like that?” he asked.
“Sir, permission to speak freely?”
“That’s not a real thing. But speak your piece on this.”
“He doesn’t work here anymore! He doesn't even live here anymore! He’s the prince of an entirely different kingdom, where his wife is, and he spends more time here than there! And, for Celestia’s sake, sir, he questions my loyalty to Twilight? He interrogates me about my girlfriend? He wants to bring armies against a protest of dozens? And he’s making me shop with Rarity!?”
Saguaro Shade laughed. “Wait ‘til you get Pinkie Pie duty. You’ll be begging for Rarity.”
“Sir, the CAA barely exists, and he’s going to start a street war over them.”
“Have you considered it from his perspective?”
“How’s that?”
“Think about it. He was useless during the Nightmare Moon crisis. His little sister solved it, instead. As I recall, you were further on the way to fixing it than he was.”
“I was just looking for books.”
“Then, Discord. All of us useless against that kind of power. Kid sister and her buddy squad saved the day, again.”
“They’re bonded to legendary magic weapons. Only they could handle it.”
“Then, the wedding. Think about what a blow to him that was. His fiancée, kidnapped and replaced by the enemy, an enemy which he was almost brainwashed into marrying. His role as our protector- targeted and subverted. Celestia in a cocoon. Canterlot seconds away from annihilation. And once again, his kid sister saves the day.”
“Twilight was key that day, but he and Cadance really saved it.”
“What else? Oh, yeah. Sombra. Horn rendered useless. Kid sister, kid brother, and wife saved the day.”
“Well, I heard he threw her, at least.”
“Twilight’s coronation. Brought his army to make sure nothing would go wrong. But penny-ante infiltrators nearly got to her. Stopped only by an apple crate and some ferrets. And don’t think we all don’t know that was you.”
“Oh. I was just trying to help.”
“We know. But now consider the state he’s in. He hasn’t had a win in a long, long time.”
“Sir, what’s a win now? Muscling over a group of artists and baristas? He knows Twilight wouldn’t want that.”
“Root, I’m actually worried about the CAA. We can fight changelings, bugbears, and rogue dragons. But we can’t fight ideas. And wrong ideas spread the fastest and do the worst damage. This thing is going to rip Canterlot apart before it’s done. And Twilight will suffer the most.”
“We go hard on them, we only make them look sympathetic. Those three in prison? Most of the fliers are about them being martyrs to the cause.”
“It’s a new type of enemy, Root. That means we don’t have a guidebook.”
“We have experts on wrong ideas. AG1. If they can reform Discord, they can reason with the CAA.”
“So, shopping with Rarity looking better now?”
“…huh. I could talk to her about all this. Then she can talk to Twilight.”
“Now, didn’t Prince Armor just specifically order you not to do that?”
“I am neither a subject nor an employee of Prince Armor. Celestia’s the one who signs my checks. I obey other royals as a courtesy, but today I’m feeling mighty discourteous.”
“I could give you the same order, though.”
“Are you giving that order, sir?”
“No, I’m feeling mighty discourteous today, too.”
Radish opened the door to Cat’s Howl. Light was at the counter, reading a comic. She looked up and smiled.
“Hey, tiger.”
“Fan, can I ask you something?”
“Yeah?”
“Are you with the CAA?”
“Rad?”
He held up a CAA flier next to a display rack of her merchandise. “Shining Armor found this. After a great deal of strain, he was able to put two and two together.”
She looked at them. “Huh.”
“‘Huh’?”
“Babe, you know I do commissions. Someone wanted a drawing of Twilight. I guess they used it for their flier.”
“Who was it?”
“I don’t share my customers’ private information, Rad.”
“You don’t set rules about what they can use your art for?”
“Oh yeah, art is all about imposing rules.”
“Fanny, this is serious. Shining is on a rampage. I kept him off your back this time, but I can’t cover for you forever.”
“What are you saying? This is all legal. This is Equestria! Ponies are allowed to cast doubt on their leaders.”
“Honey… do you doubt Twilight?”
“What if I did? Would you arrest me? Banish me? Spank me?”
“Fanny, please answer me.”
“I love the Purple Squirt.”
“Do you believe she’s a princess?”
“Is she?”
“Of course!”
“What is she the princess of?”
“Well, I don’t know. Nothing, right now.”
“Doesn’t a princess need to be in charge of something? Some place? A thing in the sky?”
“I don’t know. All alicorns are princesses. Twilight’s an alicorn now. So, she has to be a princess.”
“So, just because she changed her body, she gets to have all the political power in the world with no responsibility?"
"No one's more responsible than Twilight!"
“She nearly wiped out a city block over a guy she barely knew.”
“That’s unfair.”
“What is Shining Armor going to do to the C-double-A?”
Radish stepped back in surprise. “What did you say?”
“What is Shining going to do?”
“Nothing, if I can set them right.”
“You mean, shut them up? Or shut them down?”
“They’re wrong, Fan. Literally, demonstrably, totally, wrong.”
“Don’t ponies have a right to be wrong?”
“What good does being wrong do? Shouldn’t every pony be as right as possible?”
“Shouldn’t every pony get to think and say what they want?”
“Shouldn’t an artist fight for truth instead of promote lies?”
Light Fantastic bristled and scowled. She leaned over her counter.
“Now, you listen, Radish Root. All my friends said it would never work out between me and a guard. They think you’re all just a bunch of muscle-headed, Celestia-heinie-kissing, tin-plated wind-up toys. I defended you to them, because I saw more in you. And then you come into my store, questioning what, my loyalty to Equestria? Loyalty to Equestria isn’t about believing what its leaders want. It’s about holding them accountable to the ideals they claim it was founded on! And plopping a new princess down on us every year wasn’t what anypony had in mind.”
Radish leaned in.
“This conflict only exists because a group of idiots got a wrong idea in their heads and are too stubborn to let it go. Out on the plains, if you have a wrong idea about dragons, you either correct yourself real quick, or get eaten up. But you want to coddle wrong ideas. You want to nurse lies until they’re big and strong- lies that can eat up Canterlot worse than any dragon could. I will fight this lie harder than anything I’ve ever fought before. And if that’s a problem for you, you’re not the mare I thought you were.”
Light stuck her face right into his.
“The only thing you’ve ever fought for was Celestia’s hindquarters. The only truth you care about is what’s in your Guard rulebook. The only thing you’ll ever protect Twilight from is reality. You’re not the stallion I thought you were.”
“I should have stayed with Sky.”
“You should have stayed on the farm! Get out!”
Radish turned around and walked out the door. Light put her hoof to her chest, feeling her heart beat out of control. She looked down at the flier.
“I should have charged more for this.”
No!
I can't say nice on this chapter...
Things are getting spicy. I love it.
jfc can this poor guy ever catch a break
raddish's love life is a mess and i hope he gets a break after all this
Big topic to tackle. Will be interesting to see if you can write a good pay of.
Yep, there it is ladies and gentlemen. The moment we've all rather sadly been waiting for. Really hoping Root gets out on top at some point or this stories going on my shitlist.
Big oof, but kinda expected honestly. Having two very different value sets can be just a *little* bit of a strain on a relationship.
I wouldn't count it a complete failure just yet. Everyone fights with their romantic partner at some point. It's just a toss-up on if they can properly reconcile.
Looking forward to seeing how things go!
Well, the pause was nice while it lasted, but the Radefecation has recommenced.
Knew it was too good to last. Can't say I saw it going out like this, though. I can't say I anticipated her being a full-out conspiracy theorist. Odd choice.
There goes that relationship, at least it leaves him open for celestia though
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I'm kind of blaming Shining on this, he riled up Radish on this which in turn lead to the argument between Light and Rad
Shining should work out his issues of 'uselessness' with a therapist, not muscling troops and guards around
Toes?
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Horses have toes, kind of.
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This came out of nowhere. Why did Light throw her lot in with such them? They're exactly the kind of radical group that becomes a terrorist organization to 'spread their message' when 'lesser methods' fail. Besides, if Light had doubts, why didn't she ask Twilight if her wings were real when they met? What exactly does she think she's accomplishing here? Twilight didn't even choose to become an Alicorn, and she certainly didn't choose to become a princess. It was Celestia's decision that Twilight being an Alicorn made her a princess.
This feels like it was done just to punch Root again. Speaking of, how are any of Shining's failings Root's problem, exactly? His failings that Root picked up the slack for since becoming a guard are on him. He's the one who keeps insisting that guards use guard tactics, which don't work, and then Root salvages the situation with ranger tactics. Shining Armor's pride as a guard led to his failings, and then he'd proceed to undermine Root because he couldn't put his pride aside.
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Actually it's been hinted at bit like cracks, light has always been kind of stinging on Raddish for the whole celestia cutiemark with small jabs here and there along with not really respecting his position of work or yknow the danger with it? It just seems like this was gonna get bigger one way or another.
Okay, a lot to unpack here.
First and foremost, the tension in Radish and Light's relationship was, from a narrative perspective, inevitable. Given the nature of Radish's cutie mark, as well as the general trajectory of this story, their relationship was never going to last. I personally thought she'd end up moving away somewhere, and they'd pursue a long-distance relationship that would ultimately fail. But an explosive breakup like this is probably the better way to go about it (from a storytelling standpoint, at least).
With regard to the nature of what Radish and Light were fighting over, however...it's worth underlining that they were having two completely different conversations there at the end. Light is correct about people having the right to be wrong, and to be able to think and say what they want (though she doesn't mention reasonable limits, such as sending threatening letters), but she doesn't seem to realize that she's making a legal argument. Having "the right" to do something, in common parlance, means that you can't/won't be legally sanctioned by the government for doing so (though there's also merit to there being civil protections as well, which need to be carefully balanced against the rights of the people pressing civil claims).
Radish, however, is talking about ethics rather than legalities. While I strongly suspect that he agrees that no one should go to jail for believing in and propagating untruths, he's pointing out that those untruths have no virtue. To put it another way, he's saying that just because you have the legal right to do something doesn't mean that it's a good idea, let alone something that you can or should take pride in (beyond fighting for it to remain legal). The entire point of allowing bad ideas to remain legal is so they can be challenged in the public discourse in order for people to realize that they're bad.
Unfortunately, as is so often the case, most of this gets intuited rather than truly examined, and the discussion gets warped as the people involved fail to properly realized precisely what's being talked about.
On a related note, I'm cognizant of the fact that Light wasn't casting doubt about Twilight's being an alicorn, but rather that she seems to have several points of dissatisfaction relating to the alicorns in general, and Twilight in particular. Everything from "her not having an area of royal responsibility" to "she almost misused her powers recently" to "why does being an alicorn automatically grant political authority" came up, but never an issue of doubting that her wings were real.
Most notably, at least to me, was her apparent displeasure with "plopping a new princess down on us every year." This suggests that she, and quite possibly others in the C-double-A, are disturbed by how Equestria has recently gone from having one alicorn to four. My guess is that this is part of a more general awareness (albeit once again intuited rather than consciously recognized) that Equestria is changing. Repeated attacks from powerful enemies and massive upheavals to the structure of Equestria's royalty has everyone realizing that things are, for the first time in a thousand years, being altered in a very real way, and probably permanently. So there's going to be some anxiety about that, which is manifesting in this (frankly ridiculous) campaign that Twilight isn't a real alicorn.
Since this story hews so closely to the source material, we can be fairly well sure that the C-double-A dies down and goes away, but the fears that prompted it are something that the fic might address as the story continues. Particularly since they seem to have just cost Radish his girlfriend.
EDIT: Also, Shining Armor...yeah, fuck that guy.
Bah, people unable to understand other people might have different priorities and duties. If they cannot settle this then one or both are idiots and it was never meant to be.
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One thing that got Radish riled up is that she called the organization C-Double-A... something that primarily its members are known to do.
And her claims of "loving the purple squirt" rather clash with the fact that some of the organization even try to "pull Twilight's wings off" and engage in similar behavior, which is likely to hurt her physically or emotionally.
Well, Shining being an ass as usual.
And Radish & Light have their first serious fight. Over an issue a little too heavy for the show to really examine too closely.
Okay, I have to ask.... Is this gonna turn into the same sort of protagonist-kicking storyline as Deadman Wonderland? I get the need for conflict and resolution, but it feels like this story is turning into "Every time something good happens to Radish, something else takes it away a little later." Even his previous victories get soured by later events. Celestia's tantrum and public humiliation of Root, for example, very neatly undid his commendations and the favor of a kiss, tainting those memories. Certainly it was apologized for later - privately. Damage still done, though.
I guess I just worry that this is gonna devolve into another angsty tortureporn storyline. Radish has been publicly humiliated by the Princess he is most dedicated to, feels bad about being the only casualty of the Changling Invasion, constantly gets kicked around by Shining, overlooked for accolades, ridiculed for his attempts to do his job, toyed with by three different alicorns, and has now been cruelly screwed with twice by potential love interests. His "siblings," the bat-ponies, are gone. His squad promoted over him and transferred to another country. His promotion and a certificate of ownership over a slice of the moon are about the only positives in his life now. Sure, AG1 are casually friends, but it's not like they can even really spend time together outside of missions - Ponyville and Canterlot being significant travel distance away from one another doesn't help with how little time a Guard has off.
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The wild part isn't that she'd side against the notion that being an Alicorn automatically means being a part of the government.
It seems beyond expectations that this would be a middle class issue, as much as one could consider being a successful artist in essentially the capital of art consumption to be "middle class" in an agrarian/industrializing society.
I would be surprised if it's not a result of some noble machinations, and she eventually realizes her entire group was just the butt of some political ploy, apologizes, and the real wedge in salvaging their relationship was the fact that she went for the throat immediately.
11469000
Adding onto your point about ethical vs. legal arguments: freedom of speech/press/whatever DOES NOT EQUAL freedom from consequences. Ideas spread. Ideas inspire actions. And any action in large quantities has the potential to break stuff. It's like that old saying: "When elephants fight, it's the grass that suffers." Replace "elephants" with "emotionally driven mobs" and "grass" with "literally everyone else" and you start to see the problem.
Honestly, I was betting that if anything would break them up, it’d be death. Still, maybe they can patch things up? After all, even the best couples sometimes fight.
And you are an expert on what they were thinking back then? One so learned that she knows better than the princess who literally lived it and who quite literally built the foundations for modern Equestria with her own hooves?
Yeah, I knew this was coming. Light Fantastic always struck me as being in the relationship so she could say she was in a relationship with the guy who had a lewd Celestia as a cutie mark. I never got much in the way of chemistry between them... IMO Radish has been tricking himself in an attempt to get away from the pain of potentially never having his love returned.
Light appears to have the more moderate position of whether becoming an Alicorn should really net you the highest position of power by default. A natural extension of her already stated positions in the past, and given what she's seen of Twilight recently I don't think its too unreasonable of a question for her to ask.
Unfortunately, her saying the org's name right got Radish looking at her as if she's one of the extremists that want to pop Twilight's wings off cause they are clearly fake, no matter how much ketchup pours out afterwards.
Not willing to make any bets on whether this is the end of Radish and Light as a couple, but my gut is leaning towards them working this out somehow.
How many chapters long will this story be?
Damn... she really wasn't better than this, huh? :(
Side note, I think this a very interesting way the author is putting this: Radish has met someone who is too reverant/respectful, and now he's met someone who holds much too little respect/reverance. I really hoped she was good, too... I just want him to be happy.
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First, Light is an “artist.” She is always going to favor the ideal of freely expressing one’s ideas, whether through an artistic medium or vocally.
Second, I think Light has less issue with Twilight being an alicorn and far more with her being a “Princess.” The former grants you the abilities of all three pony tribes, but the latter grants you royal authority over an entire nation and its people.
In truth, I don’t agree with the CAA’s more illegal and aggressive elements, but I do think Light had a fair point. Being an alicorn automatically makes you a princess? Why? How does that qualify you to run a country? WE know everything will be alright because we watched all nine seasons of the show, but ponies like Light don’t know anything about that (except maybe Pinkie). Does Light like Twilight as a pony? Sure. But does she like her as a Princess? Obviously, she has her doubts. And after seeing Twilight nearly go Nightmare over a stallion, she probably thinks her doubts about Twilight are justified. And if other ponies also feel that way, why shouldn’t they be allowed to speak and make their voices heard?
This, however, is where my opinion splits away from hers. She is so concerned about spreading ponies’ views that she isn’t focusing on what some ponies might do with those views. Has she already forgotten about the ponies who wants to rip Twilight’s wings off? Light is a pegasus, doesn’t she know how much that would hurt? Having met Twilight, she should be able to separate fact from fiction and enlighten her peers, but she isn’t.
I am intrigued because this looks like it will touch upon one of my biggest issues with Alicorn headcanons in the Fandom.
How being an alicorn somehow grants someone automatic authority to rule.
11469090 To be fair, that's not a headcanon; the show itself makes it very clear that alicorns are automatically considered to be royalty, simply by virtue of their being alicorns. (The exception here is Cozy Glow, though that largely seems to be that during her brief period of alicornhood, everyone had more pressing things to worry about than her political status.)
Reading this fic is a bit like playing Darkest Dungeon. Radish can't go five steps without being physicially, mentally or emotionally kicked to the curb. In line with that, I honestly think he is due for a major mental break.
Reading the other comments, I think it would be cathartic for most readers as well. If he does break, there's always the slim chance it's a virtuous one. A moment of valor shines brightest against the backdrop of dispair.
I hope at some point he can get a big win and keep it. This ‘one step forward two steps back’ is getting slightly stale.
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And somehow no one consider that Shining Armor and Celestia have less accomplishements in this story combined than Radish alone. And Radish have less failings that either of them. How people think that it is Radish here who's punchbag?
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My own thought immediately was "antivaxers".
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Thing is, it doesn't. In the show Cadence was alicorn for many years and started ruling only after undergoing training and was "elected" by citizens. Twilight started ruling after most of her life under Celestia's tutelage, some practice and accomplishements that got her many followers including from other nations. Except one day when all other princesses were disposed. And Luna had experience of almost hundred years of ruling before NMM.
I have a friend whose partner came out as an antivaccer. Seemingly out of nowhere. This gave me similar vibes. Spreading demonstrable untruths isn't just factually wrong, It's morally wrong. It's dishonest.
I'm firmly on Radish's side on this one. Shinings instinct to meet this with a show of force, was clearly wrong as Radish points out. But his cut instinct is correct. Someone's freedom to have an idea doesn't mean that'll ideas are worthy. Some are dangerous. Some provide fertile ground for other much more insidious ideas. They must be fought, because "Freedom of Speech" is not the same as saying a Lie is Equal to a Truth, not that their conspiracy is Equal to my reality. It's a fallacy by people who can't defend their ideas on their own merit, so dismiss criticism of their ideas as persecution.
It's not repression for someone to call you a moron, or to prevent you spreading slander; especially slander that encourages others to bring harm .
And you *can* judge someone for the ideas they hold. Light doesn't think Twilight should be granted authority to rule. Fine. (She needs to ignore the Facts because the world of MLP is not reality. There is no real world comparison to someone psychicaly bonded to Raw Compassion, Empathy and Cooperation, who has Redeemed the closest thing to a Devil equestria has, and has saved the world no less than 3 times. If someone redeemed Lucifer, saved the world twice, including once from a mad deity, and he second time from a demon that are the power of those 3 said deitys, and was bonded to a living incarnation of friendship, the *Least* Id do is vote for them.)
Saying "Someone shouldn't be granted authority due to being an Alicorn" is all well and good, but this specific Alicorn is obviously qualified and you'd have to be a moron to dispute it. She seems to think it's being an Alicorn that makes one worthy of rule. Demonstrably however, it is being worthy of rule that leads to ascension . It's not some quasi-religious veneration of a caste. Every Alicorn *is* worthy of rule. There is no data to suggest otherwise. The AAC are worried about a *hypothetical* situation in which an alicorn unworthy of rule would ascend. But they can't actually attack Twilights competence or her record.
But even leaving all this aside, the reality is.... It's not a quaint little philosophy. Light can think this all she wants. But she's also directly supporting a group that means Twilight Harm . Radish is therefore allowed to judge her on that basis alone.
If a friend of mine joined a group dedicated to hurting my other friends, I'm not going to care a fit about their philosophy or politics. Even if She doesn't mean Twilight personal illwill, she's willing to be a member of a group that does. and I would be sceptical of claims that they didn't In fact mean my friend ill.
In my eyes, that reflects poorly on her character. Her morals. Either she doesn't care about Twilight, or she does, just not enough to keep her distance from a group that means her harm. Both imply a distinct lack of morals for which Radish is forced to reevaluate his relationship over.
I'm prepared to accept a lot of different viewpoints but "Membership of a Political Movement that means my Personal Friends Harm" is a bell of a Dealbreaker.
Stinks for Radish, but I can't blame him at all. I'd do the same.
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It's a serial.
As long as it needs to be.
I feel radish could’ve shut her down defending her by saying they’re promoting a type of slander akin to claiming someone who fought in a war and is factually and provabley a veteran is not one and just committing stolen valor. If that happened to someone you would want to defend them from the lies undermining everything they’ve worked for, even if it is a person is entitled to being wrong and stupid.
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I think the thing that a lot of people miss about Equestria is that, while it doesn't exactly fit the mold of a traditional theocracy, it is definitely a theocracy. Part of the problem of the "alicorn problem" is that the closest things Equestria has to gods are Discord and the Tree of Harmony. Neither Discord, who has no real origin story except that he's the spirit of chaos, nor the Tree of Harmony, which was created by the Pillars, are traditional gods, but they do physically represent what are essentially fundamental forces to Equestrians.
That makes the question about whether Light is wrong very hard to reason about. It's pretty clear to us that the symbology behind the Element of Magic being a crown and Twilight's cutie mark on the Tree of Harmony means that to some extent the Tree of Harmony expected/destined Twilight to rule Equestria, but all of this is fundamentally esoterica to the common pony. Twilight doesn't even know what the Tree of Harmony is when she sees it, which means that the common pony would have absolutely no expectation to be able to piece together the theology to understand what's going on in the background.
Celestia is at fault for a lot of this simply because it seems like she keeps this knowledge as esoterica, probably to avoid being treated as a literal god with sycophantic worshipers. Instead, the ponies are supposed to follow the Tenets of Harmony, with only the knowledge that they somehow protected ponykind from the wendigos. We on the outside know that for the ponies, friendship literally is magic, and widespread disunity totally cripples not only pony society, but every single advantage they have over the world.
Light isn't really wrong, but she absolutely was deprived of the tools she could use to be right. She's right to criticize that Equestria's government is a total madhouse, because absolutely nothing is explained to the populace other than "this pony, who was formerly my own student, has done something impressive in the field of magic and now she's a princess" which outwardly seems like blatant favoritism. If presidents were elected based on the amount of published papers they have in nuclear physics, we would have rightly called bullshit, so I don't see how it's a mark against Light that she's skeptical of the process.
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Lmao I was going to comment but everyone's saying what I've already been thinking
I feel like this could've been avoided with a simple discussion between Light and Radish, but it seems they were more concerned with yelling at each other. It seems Light's main concern is that even though Twilight is an alicorn now, it still doesn't make her a princess, especially since she was about to go AWOL over being rejected once. Radish was more focused on what the extremists of CAA are, but that doesn't address Light's valid concerns over someone that immature suddenly primed to having huge political power. "She's an alicorn now, therefore princess" doesn't really address the concern, and it is a reasonable one. CAA may've tried to attack Sparkle, but Sparkle was about to go nuclear on a bunch of innocents literally the chapter before.
Yikes. I've got to empathize with Fan though- royalty in the FIM universe seems really wishy washy.
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Just kick back, relax, and enjoy the show. Here. 🍿
Radish could say, "But Friendship is not about discrediting others' achievements,"
I got really excited when it seemed that Radish was finally growing a spine against Shining, but it seems to be going back to the status quo of Shining and/or Celestia tearing apart Radish's life with next to no consequences and the story moving on as if it was another day at the office. This story has a lot of potential, but if this continues, this will be the fourth time this has happened in the fic and, if I'm being honest, I'll probably stop reading if this ends like the last two arcs.
I'm not trying to be an ass, I promise. I love the world you built and Radish's general character, but the constant abuse he's taking from Celestia & Shining with seemingly no end in sight is too much to take. Plus, Now that his relationship with Light is falling apart partly due to Shining's actions, it looks it's just going to get worse. Especially if this arc gets handwaved away like the last two.
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Cheers brother 🍿
...Well...shit. I see that the Nuclear Drama Bomb went off with Root and Light. It's so sad what Extreme Idealism can do to relationships. Especially when they aren't willing to compromise.
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That’s my problem with this story too, there is no consequences for Shining Armor or Celestia.