I give a content sigh as I leave Luna's home and head into Ponyville. Sparing with Miles and the other Spartans was as vigorous as I expected, though I think I surprised a few of them. It's hard to tell with that lot, but I'm sure I'll be in for a surprise of my own tomorrow morning. But, all of that fighting and running around left me in a sweaty mess that I haven't felt in eons. So after a quick shower and a small breakfast at Luna's I began my day.

First order of business is meeting up with Pinkie Pie. If we're going to throw a party for the entire nation, there isn't another pony alive that can help... or, at least I don't think there is.

I make my way to her home and tell my guards to wait for me at the door. They salute and take their posts as I step into the bakery. Almost immediately I can tell there is something wrong. Most of the lights are off. There are a few on by the empty counter, but they threaten to blow out as they flicker on and off. There isn't a soul in sight and there's an eerie silence in the building. Did something happen in here? Am I not supposed to be inside? Surely they would have put some sort of warning on the door if there was construction happening.

I take a few cautious steps inside as I look around. Everything that I can see seems to be fine. No signs of forced entry, clean table tops, but there is a certain lack of sweetness in the air. It's almost as if they haven't baked anything in the past few days.

"Hello?" I call out. "Is anypony home?" Nopony responds. "The door was unlocked so I thought it was okay to enter. Should I leave? Is Pinkie Pie here?"

I stop when hear a floorboard creak from behind the counter. I don't see anypony over there, so I start to walk towards it. When I make it there I peer over slowly and look for somepony to be there, but it's empty.

"Hello Princess." I jump a little from the voice coming from behind. I spin around to see Pinkie sitting at one of the tables, slowly petting her pet alligator.

"Pinkie, you startled me-"

"Sorry Princess, but I need to talk to somepony else for a moment."

"Um... okay."

"So, it's that time now, isn't it?" Pinkie asks.

"Um... no?"

"Don't try to play dumb, I know what you're really doing here. You're trying to make a party so big that even I couldn't make it happen! Admit it!"

"All I'm trying to do is set a tone for Equestrian nationalism, to then further explain why people decide to war in the first place. You're the one who made it personal-"

"A party over all the land, how is that not a challenge!?"

"I'm not challenging you! Can we get back on track please? We only have... what, fifty chapters or so? I want to progress!"

"Don't play the victim card. You just want to show the world that there are parties too big for me! Well you know what? I'm going to do it! I'm going to throw the world’s most crazy, largest, slay-e-est kid friendly party this world, or any of the Equestrian -P multiverse worlds have ever seen! And I'm going to do it all by myself! And then I'm going straight to your house and I'm going to rub it right in your face while singing, 'I told you so, I told you so, I told you so!' And you're going to sit there and accept that I am the party god! And then you'll tell me all about fifth arc! And then we'll get burritos! So deal with it!"

"... you know you can't keep doing this, right? People are going to get mad."

"Pfft, please. I'm Pinkie Pie. I'm an adorable talking pink horse that defies the laws of relativity. All I have to do is some reference to the eighties and I'll be fine. Now, get on with it!"

"Princess, is everything okay?" My guard asks me. I blink a few times as I stand before the entrance to Sugarcube Corner. I take a look around before I feel a slight tinge of embarrassment wash over me.

"Yes, everything is fine. I just had a... strange thought occur," I tell her before I step inside.

The store is empty save for the two owners and Pinkie Pie. The three of them are busying themselves with leaning the store, though it appears to be clean already. I don't smell the usual sweetness of the store, telling me times are hitting them pretty hard right now. The owners notice me immediately and bow quickly, getting Pinkies attention.

"Princess!" she yells before bounding over the counter and charging up to me. I smile at her enthusiasm, glad to see a smiling face for a change.

"Hello Pinkie Pie! I hope I'm not bothering you right now but I'd like to have a word with you," I greet, nodding to the others in the room.

"Of course not Princess! I always have time to speak with you! Come into my office!" I smile and follow after her. She pronks her way back to the counter and jumps behind the register, popping back up to speak with me. "What's on your mind?"

"Well, as I am sure you are aware of, the Grand Galloping Gala will be this upcoming weekend." I start out.

"Oh really, I wasn't aware," she says nonchalantly, inspecting her hoof lazily.

"Yes. But, with times being difficult all over the nation, we were trying to think of a way to... boost morale."

"Yeah?" she asks, leaning forward in excitement.

"So we were thinking of doing something... big. Something the likes of which have never been even attempted before." I tell her, watching her grow more and more excited.

"Yeah? She asks, on the verge of a mental explosion.

"Pinkie Pie, will you help us throw a party for the entire nation during the Grand Galloping Gala?" I ask, stepping back as a precaution. She takes in a massive breath of air and...

"Oh I don't know," she says quietly, casting her gaze downward.

"What?" I ask in disbelief.

"I mean, there's only a few days left to plan that big of a party. Not to mention I'd have to make plans set for each village, city, hamlet, and-"

FW-BOOM

The entire building shakes when she whips a massive tome from her mane and slams it on the counter, crushing the register beneath it. She throws the cover open to a random page and starts to search for a specific page. I see detailed plans for plans for towns and villages. Dance floors, games, tonnage estimates for streamers, some of the plans were ever in Burro! She stops on the page for Canterlot and slams her hooves on the page, leaning up to address me.

"How big we talking?" she asks, her tone reaching unsettling levels of seriousness.

"I beg your pardon?" I ask, caught completely off guard.

"Ever since I was a little filly with a fresh new Cutie Mark it has always been my dream to throw a party for all of the ponies of Equestria. I've cataloged every city, every town, and every village for this occasion. I know what to do and where to do it. I know what some would call too big and what others would call too small. All I need to know is what my budget is, and how big you need me to make it. Once you give me that, I'll take care of the rest. So, how big are we talking?" She narrows her eyes a bit as she stares me down. I have to take a moment to collect myself before I respond, standing a bit straighter in response to her tone.

"Big," I tell her, making her smirk back at me. "But it's not just a big party Pinkie. We need to make ponies love to be Equestrian. We need this to make them believe in this land more than ever."

"When I'm done with this, they won't want to believe there are any other nations out there!" Pinkie tells me, bouncing on her hooves in excitement.

"And you can do this for the entire nation by the Grand Galloping Gala?" I ask, giving her a knowing smirk. I have no personal doubts on her abilities. But I need to make sure she doesn't either.

"Does Rainbow Dash cosplay as Daring Do for Soarin?" Her question catches me off guard again. That's... something I didn't need to know.

"I wouldn't know-"

"The short answer is 'only for special occasions and surprisingly well.' And this is a very special occasion. I have to start sending letters and scheduling train rides. All you have to do is send me a letter confirming that the government will cover my expenses. After that, you just let your auntie Pinkie Pie take care of the rest!" She gives me an almost evil look as she says this. I stare back at her for a moment before simply letting it be a 'Pinkie thing', as Twilight would put it.

"Well, I'll be sure to send that later today. Let me know if you need anything else and please don't push yourself too much. We need your help, but we also want you to stay healthy," I tell her sincerely.

"Okie dokie artichokie!" she responds, giving a mock salute.

I give her and the Cakes my farewells and start to leave. If she's as prepared as she lets off, then we have nothing to worry about. Which is good, because I have too much on my as it is already. I need to hurry back to Canterlot to study now. I told Miles I would read up on Equestrian battle history. Most of this means reading up on old ballads from the era of the Three Tribes, but I need to learn their mentalities on the subject. There could be important information that could prove to be vital to our cause.

Just as I was about to enter my chariot I notice Miles walking nearby. He seems to be heading home, or at least in that direction.

"Hmm.... guards, wait here. I'm going to have a quick word with Miles." I tell them before teleporting next to Miles. He jumps a bit, but recovers quickly.

"Celly, did you need something?" He asks, stopping to talk.

"Not necessarily. I was just about to leave for Canterlot and I saw you walking by. Do you think you have time to speak with me awhile longer? I can teleport you where you need afterwards." He thinks about it for a second before nodding to me. I smile from that and guide him to my chariot.

"How're you feeling?" he asks as we gently take off. He sits back against the rear of the chariot, holding onto the side tightly. I settle down and let my fore hooves dangle off the edge, eyeing the sky above me as we climb towards the clouds above.

"Optimistic. Though I did just speak with Pinkie Pie, so that might have something to do with it." He hums in response, understanding the feeling. "I don't know. Part of me feels as if we're wasting our time with all of this preparation and plotting. Between you, me, Luna, and the Elements; what chance do the griffins really have?"

"Don't let that kind of mentality fool you. There is never any harm in being prepared. And..." I look back to him and wait for him to continue, but after a few silent moments I get the feeling that he won't.

"I know what you're afraid of, Miles." He looks over to me, a mixture of stress, fear, and anger contorting his expression. "You're afraid that one of us will die."

"Any attack they make will target each of us simultaneously. They have to. Otherwise they'd lose any advantage they might have made. You can raise the sun, Luna can use Soul Fire, and I have Icy Void. But none of that matters if we don't hear the shot. I've seen it before Celestia. I don't want to go through that again."

"You won't Miles," I tell him quickly, turning to face him. "We are not alone in this. We have many friends and allies that will watch over us and protect us-"

"Then why do you feel as if we're wasting our time?" he demands.

"... because I don't want to see anypony get hurt." I turn back to look down at the passing landscape below. At this height we can see large distant cities, small farming communities dotting all around, and even clumps of villages. "If what you are preparing for comes true, then many of the ponies I have sworn to protect will lose their lives. No matter how much I fight I can never seem to keep them safe. So, part of me is thinking of different ways to keep them safe. That I should be the one to do all of the fighting. That I should be the one to bear all of the pain. But then I start to look at the numbers. There will be fighting, and I don't know how much of it I will be able to take. I don't know how many lives I can end before I can no longer look at myself. I don't want to kill so many misguided ponies, but I know I'll have to if it comes to this. If I'm going to perform my duties and protect this land, then I will have to do what is necessary. I just don't know what kind of pony I will be afterwards. So, then I try to think of ways to avoid fighting all together... but..."

"I get it." I look back to him, noting the resolve in his demeanor. "We are Spartans. We forfeit our humanity so others may prosper. It is our burden to carry that pain so others won't have to. That is the credence of my people, of all Spartans. Taking a life for something you don't believe in... it's hard. Some would even say it's impossible. But, then there are times you fight for something... bigger than yourself. I wasn't there for them in the past. I wasn't there to protect my friends when they needed me the most. But not this time. I'll be ready when they come back, and I won't just disappear. I'm going to fight, even if it's to the bitter end."

A silence falls between the two of us. I knew that the Spartans took what they did seriously, but hearing Miles tell me that he'd die for a war that doesn't need to happen... it puts a new perspective on things. Ponies say they'll fight to the death, but I've never been convinced of it before now. As much as I admire his resolve, I can't help but fear for him as well. He is the father of my nephew, my only direct nephew. He is the husband of my sister. He is my brother. He's... he's not somepony I'm willing to just toss aside. He's not somepony I want wasted for something so... meaningless.

I don't want to imagine a life where we have to go on without him. I don't want Tempestive to grow up without his father. I've been through that; I know that pain. I know it too well. And what about Luna? She had a near mental breakdown when I forced them to separate. What would she do if she had to bury him? What would she do to those responsible?

"Let us hope that it never comes to that," I tell him, casting my gaze back to the sky. I can't tell him how I feel about this. He's too stubborn. Too set in his ways. He's a warrior. And if there's going to be a fight, he's going to be in it. There's nothing anypony can do about that. But somepony needs to be there to watch his back, and I want to be that pony. I need to be that pony. He wants avenge his people, and I want to protect my family. So I'm going to fight, even if it's to the bitter end. Because they are worth it.

Brony on!