a Sudden Train Ride to Hoofington

Chapters

delivery
Assignment
Meeting
Report
far flung epilogue

delivery

Sprintpoint didn't care for the unicorns, truth be told. Their sooth sayings never seemed to carry the weight of truth, and even their day to day spells all seemed ... well, magical. Invisible. His junior partner said he could smell the magic as it faded But Spark Impulse probably had a grandparent get mixed up with a 'corn, in ways best left to the imagination.

Entering the courtroom this early meant the princess wasn't officially attending court, but she was a room or two away and the 'corns that had compiled these reports in his bags assured him it was important enough to get an elite guard to pass him through. So he trotted up the steps, to the back entrance, and tipped a single ear to the unicorn with the blood-orange eyes. "Morning, Shadow Orange. The academy's librarian-mage gave me a sealed parchment and said her majesty was awaiting delivery."

The unicorn silently tipped his gray-dyed head to the left, and if Sprintpoint squinted just so, could make out the glow of magic. Probably levitating a quill on the other side of the wooden door. After about thirty seconds of awkward silence, the door swung open and a brilliant white mare twice his height strode into view. Her ephemeral mane filled the space between them with pastel colors all across the spectrum, and even with a horn more than three hooves long between them, her eyes melted Sprintpoint's heart anew.

As the unicorn elite were doing guard duty, and he was doing courier, he felt it was right to look away, specifically, to look down as he bowed deeply, hornless forehead parallel to the stone floor. "Your majesty," he straightened. "Swirling Stars informs me you have been awaiting this report from herself and one of your mages in the castle." He nuzzled open his pack and brought out the roll of parchment sealed by the librarian's mark in the wax. He let go as he felt it being tugged away from his face by an invisible hoof, and watched as the seal broke itself and the scroll unfurled in front of Celestia.

Sprintpoint wasn't told to expect, or not-expect that the princess would have a response for him, so he held his place for a few seconds. But without looking away from the papers, the princess nodded once, saying only "Thank you, officer Sprintpoint. I think that will be" But then on page three, her eyes seemed to bug out of her royal skull, and she fell silent. "Wait, a moment please." And she turned to page four, whereupon her eyes darkened, her gaze piercing the words before her.

Turning to her unicorn guard, she said "Shadow write to the mayor of Ponyville and let them know I'll be arriving post haste. I don't expect to be more than a few hours -- hopefully twenty minutes -- but while I'm there, I should make an official call of state too." Turning to Sprintpoint, she levitated the parchment out of her line of sight of him, asking quickly "Are you in rotation to carry me? I need to travel. To Ponyville as you just heard."

Honestly his turn in that rotation had just ended yesterday, but her Highness hadn't gone anywhere in the past week and he knew one of the next two ponies up had just recovered from a nasty virus. "I think so, yes. How much of your stuff is going? I can have three others hooked to a chariot in thirty minutes."

The princess nodded, and turned back to the ante chamber, speaking with a little less haste than a moment ago, said "And can one of you let the scribe know court is canceled? All apologies, yadda yadda." Her verbal additives lost to the sound of the door slamming shut.

Shadow Orange had been busy levitating a piece of parchment and a quill, no ink visible from where Spintpoint stood. As the paper rolled itself into a scroll, the unicorn's deeper voice rolled out "I can write to the scribe too if you want to concentrate on her majesty's transportation needs." At which point he inclined his horn towards the scroll which then burned in a green fire that left no visible smoke.

Anything to get away from the overbearing unicorn guards, Sprintpoint said to himself. Floating himself aloft he agreed, and flew up and through a window at a smart pace. When he got to the guardhouse Spark Impulse would probably be upset his partner had volunteered him for an eighth day of transport duty.

Assignment

Twilight paced about the library's main room again, seeing motes of dust fail to settle. Much like her stomach. But sadly even if the motes settled she'd just feel forced to dust them off, which would more than likely, not secure the motes to her feather duster, but stir them to float anew. Much like how her pacing was stirring the butterflies in her stomach.

There was a knock at the door but by its lack of volume she already knew who was there. The door creaked open a tiny bit, and Fluttershy's head poked in. "Twilight? Are you alright? Pinkie said you would be looking for me by the time I got here."

Of course she did. For an earth pony she seemed almost telepathic at times. "Technically I haven't seen her all morning but yes, Fluttershy. Come on in. Hopefully Pinkie will be along soon herself. Uh." Twilight's stomach tried to emulate Rainbow Dash's acrobatics demonstrations. "Are your animals OK? We might be asked to disappear for a while."

Fluttershy's mouth made an "O" of surprise, but before she said anything she ran inside and turned around quickly, revealing Applejack had approached silently, with Rarity in the distance, trotting carefully toward them.

Applejack spoke with clipped syllables. "Pinkie said some dangnabbit combo o' hers made her think you'd be asking for the Elements o' Harmony thing. I see she told Fluttershy about the same but you're obviously th' one t' ask. So Ah'm askin'."

Twilight nodded her head a little too quickly. "I got a letter about three hours ago from the princess. She's en route and riding quickly for Ponyville to find us. She didn't feel comfortable telling me by letter what she's going to ask of us. She didn't ask me to round you guys up either but I just sorta assumed I'd have time to find you later. Anyway yes Applejack." Twilight remembered to breathe. Speaking is easier when you take deep breaths once in awhile. "Have a seat. Rarity!" she trotted to the front door to give her friend a quick hug, and to repeat herself as she closed the door.

Rarity said "Yes, Pinkie Pie sent me too. I expect she'll be along pretty soon with Rainbow Dash." Looking at Twilight carefully, she squinted and added "Calm yourself, dear. You're up to the task; that's why the princess has contacted you. And for heaven's sake let me brush that mane into shape!"

Twilight held her head still as Rarity's brush ministered to her somewhat frazzled mane, although that did little to ease her nerves. About the time the brush started to float away, there was a loud knock at the door, which was revealed to be a panting, sweating pink earth pony who breathlessly explained her inability to find Rainbow Dash. "She's not in Ponyville proper but I saw the royal chariot not too far off so I thought." She stepped into the middle of the room and dropped gracelessly to her belly, laying her muzzle on one foreleg. "That a breather is good. Before the princess, you know?"

Pinkie's voice had faded in both volume and clarity, and her deep easy breathing revealed her current state of unconsciousness. "Ah wish Ah could unwind that easy." opined Applejack, who was scooting a couch around to make room for the extra ponies that Twilight was not expecting during this officially not-official royal visit. Twilight felt her stomach doing loop-de-loops.

Hyperventilating aside, about twenty minutes later there was a stately knock at her door. Twilight hadn't even heard the chariot touch down. Rushing to open it, she found only Mayor Mare, looking as stately as she ever does. "Oh! Twilight Sparkle, dear! I suppose you may already know but I've been told there's an official visit from the princess herself, and while she doesn't expect to stay long I know she likes to say hello to you when she's in town so I thought I'd warn you she was coming." Mayor Mare glanced past Twilight to see her friends gathered, and her stately smile slowly morphed into a knowing smile. "Yes I see she did write to you. She'll notice me but let her know I'll just be, hmm," the mayor looked behind her at the town street, spied a park bench and indicated it with a hoof. "I'll wait over there and watch for her to finish her visit with you, OK dearie?"

Twilight nodded, but could hear a wave of gasps coming from just out of sight, down the street a ways. Mayor Mare stopped long enough to wave widely before proceeding to her indicated park bench.

The purple unicorn stood transfixed as her teacher's chariot, already on the ground, eased with more speed than was completely seemly down the road until slightly past the mayor's bench and immediately in front of the front door to Twilight's home.

Again, with just a little more haste than seemed comely, the brilliant white alicorn stepped off her chariot towards her star pupil, only to stop at the halfway point. Looking behind to the path her entourage had just come from, she called loudly, "Rainbow Dash! Hello! Do you have a moment!" Her inflection didn't actually imply it was a question, although there was none of the worry or command in voice that her haste into town might have implied.

Cantering ahead of the princess came a bright blue mare, rainbow'd mane flying as she nearly plowed into Twilight getting inside in time to seat herself and look totally natural when Celestia asked permission to enter. Twilight's stomach wasn't doing loops anymore; too much lead. Now it was stuck firmly to her ribcage trying to fall to the floor. "Please come in princess. It seems we're all here although technically you didn't mention any of my friends."

Striding to the middle of the room, Celestia levitated the door shut, and cast a spell to teleport a necklace with a fine gold chain, ending in a deep purple ruby mounted in a mesh work of several different metals. "Saves you time that they're here. Twilight can you put this on?" The necklace levitated towards the unicorn, who reached out with levitation of her own and was rewarded by seeing the glow of Celestia's magic fade, as Twilight placed the necklace over her horn and down her neck. "OK so I don't know who's watching so I'll be vague and brief. There are strange creatures. Well or possibly just one right now, but they're entering Equestria at the southern edge of the Everfree forest near the coast. West of Hoofington but not at the coast yet. Whoever it is, they're sucking down a great deal of pony magic doing it so I want you to be my ambassadors. Except there's just so many ways this could go I want to avoid official involvement for a little while.

"Here's the official story. You're going on vacation. To the beach. Alright? I hope you'll all agree?" Here she stopped to look around at the stunned faces surrounding her. "Twilight that necklace is capable of receiving a sizable amount of mass via a teleport spell. Take Spike so you can write a letter to say that the Elements of Harmony are called for ... I'll trust your judgment on that ... and I can teleport them to just in front of that new jewelry of yours."

"Yes, princess." Twilight heard herself say somewhat numbly.

"I've never been to Hoofington. Do you have a map? Of how far from Hoofington it is, I mean. Though I'd kinda like a map of Hoofington too since I hope since we're supposed to look like we're on vacation we can sight see a bit. Does the train even go straight there?" Pinkie Pie was bouncing in her seat, into which she had moved sometime between Mayor Mare knocking, and now. Twilight couldn't guess when, but Pinkie was clearly excited at this prospect for travel.

Rainbow Dash squinted, lowered her nose a bit to ask "I hate to be crass, but is there any pay in it for us? I mean that could take, what, weeks to accidentally present ourselves as ambassadors from Equestria to ... we don't even know what?"

A bag appeared in front of Celestia, jingling as it plopped onto to the floor. "I'll pay a suitable per-Diem, and if you can rein in your tourist appetites you should come out well ahead. In addition of course to the undying gratitude of the history books, once I'm sure it's safe to write all of this down." Rainbow Dash grinned widely, rubbing her chin with a fetlock joint. "No, Dash, I won't recommend Soarin go out with you as payment. Do you know how many Dukes in my kingdom have asked I lean on you to date them? I haven't even let you know, and I won't let Soarin know either." Rainbow Dash sighed deeply, a sly grin still visible on her face.

Meeting

"I really think I'm enjoying our group vacation." Fluttershy said hopefully, pulling moss out of her mane for the tenth time this morning.

From behind her, Rarity looked up at the sky through her opaque, saddle mounted parasol. "Would that be because of the oppressive heat, dear heart, or the complete lack of roads?" Rarity finished by wiping the sweat from her brow, also for the tenth time today.

From above the group, having less trouble dodging the low hanging, moss covered branches, came Rainbow Dash's retort. "C'mon guys! It's just like something straight out of a Daring Do novel. We'll wri-" but was interrupted by the dense jungle. Dash spent a moment spitting out the cobweb she had nearly inhaled before returning to her prior concept. "We'll write our adventures down and publish it! We can call it Daring Do and the Strange Invaders."

Twilight Sparkle tried to push her fears and confusion aside for her brash friend. Summoning a little enthusiasm, Twilight said "You can't really do that because the author pony is considered to own the name Daring Do; besides -" Twilight saw Dash drop to the ground, only to jump back up beyond and behind the next low hanging limb. "Daring Do always trekked alone, but we've got a whole party with us today."

To her right, Pinkie exclaimed "And I love parties! Even if they're under false pretenses!"

A groan escaped Applejack, who was at the front, kicking at vegetation with one end and slashing with her machete at the other end. "Yer not s'posed to 'member that, Pinkie. Not ou' loud." Her enunciation constrained by the large tool in her mouth.

Rainbow Dash, her form shrouded by the foliage said, "If you ponies want to turn tail I'll gladly adventure my way aloGAH!" Suddenly Dash was visible again as she fell pell-mell onto Applejack's back, frantically brushing what appeared to be a nest of baby spiders off her face. Sputtering for the second time in as many minutes she turned to the earth pony pinned beneath her to ask "Hay do you have another of those?" eyeing the machete.

"Nuh-uh." was all Applejack managed before standing again, brushing aside Rainbow Dash who was still pawing frantically at her coat.

Free of her own freeloaders, Dash said "It's gonna take a long time to reach the beach at this rate. Any suggestions for speeding us up?"

Twilight saw Applejack cut a branch down and, now slack-jawed, drop the machete. "Don't think we'll need to go all the way to the coast to find what we're lookin' for, girls." She sidled out of sight through the path she had made, and the others scurried to look.

What Twilight found was a circle of blackened ground. No vegetation but no smell of ash or smoke, either. Perhaps three hundred hooves across, in the center there stood a three story house not unlike many thatched roof buildings seen in Ponyville. But this one was using latticed steel everywhere there was supposed to be a weight bearing wooden post, and the roof was shingled with very shiny plates that might possibly be steel except Twilight had never seen steel polished until it was white, as this roof was. It was not a mirror-finish; she couldn't see the trees, or clouds above them reflected in the roof the way a mirror finish would have allowed for.

Twilight called out with trepidation, and as much volume as she could muster. "Uhm ... Hello? Anypony here?"

The front door flew open, and a unicorn stallion the color of faded jungle moss staggered out, nearly tripping over the steps. His horn started glowing and by the taste of its magic Twilight would need a good shield spell in about three seconds. But then he squinted, and the magic faded away. Still holding her shield spell in her mind, Twilight strode forward a few paces, and called again. "Good morning, sir. My name is -"

The stallion bellowed out "Are you from around here, or not?" His horn started glowing again, but Twilight could sense this was a finding-spell. Still holding her shield in check she watched as his tangled and disheveled forelock, an unfortunate shade of deep yellow, was whipped about by his sudden head motion, his spell having directed him to the top of some trees about ninety degrees around the circle. Behind his ears, his tangled, disheveled mane was a bright blue. This time his offensive spell lashed out without warning or preamble. Something screeched in pain as the top of the tree erupted into flames. Turning to face his handiwork he shouted, magically augmenting his voice further. "I said stay home! Burning tarnation, how many of your doors do I have to close!"

Fluttershy was tapping rapidly on Twilight's shoulder. Turning to her friend, she saw a look of utmost terror on Fluttershy's face as she pointed with a hoof at the unicorn's side. It took a moment before Twilight saw what was so unnerving. Wings. The tall unicorn stallion had wings.

It appeared that a drunken and angry alicorn had taken up residence in the southern reaches of the Everfree Forest and was slowly burning it down.

Twilight cleared her throat, and was going to try again to introduce herself, but was cut off by Rainbow Dash, floating fifteen hooves above her. "That's real impressive. Do you need help chasing these things or should we just set fire to the whole forest?"

The alicorn looked blankly at Rainbow Dash. Not squinting, not magicking, Twilight thought it looked more like a thousand yard stare. After most of a minute of awkward silence, the stallion finally spoke. No longer using his angry voice but sounding like a lost colt, he said "How are you staying up there? Those wings don't look big enough to hold you."

"They're the same size relative to me that your wings are to you. Can you fly?" Dash accused the stallion.

He shook his head. Shaking his blue mane a time or two, he managed to unfurl his wings, holding them somewhat awkwardly out from his sides. They moved arrhythmically, out of sync from each other, and then stopped. He turned to look at his left wing, and watched it carefully fold itself back against his side. He then repeated the process for the other wing that was still held stiffly parallel to the ground until he folded it, watching every joint bend into place.

Twilight saw him swish his tail. It had that same unfortunate yellow and bright blue laid side by side, but much more faded than his mane. Rarity leaned over and whispered "I don't think he owns a brush or a comb. Might not even know how to bathe."

Gently pushing her friend away, Twilight Sparkle tried again to introduce herself "My name is Twili-"

She was interrupted when the alicorn noticed his house, and blurted out "Do you know how this got here?" the sound half-way between his angry- and his lost- voice.

Fluttershy tried to compliment him on his house, but Twilight guessed she hadn't spoken loud enough to be heard. Giving up on introductions for the time, Twilight asked him "Was it here when you got here?" She didn't really think it had been, but as the blank expression turned towards her, he shook his head, indicating a 'no'. "Then, I think you magicked it into place."

Perhaps something had damaged the alicorn's memory. As the pony turned to examine his house, she noted his cutie mark. It was a burning crescent shape, perhaps a moon, or just a shadow, and a twisting line attached to one point, and had two lines in the middle of it. It looked like nothing so much as a farming tool made out of a new moon, set on fire.

Finishing his circle, he smiled, and said sarcastically "Where I came from there is no magic. I'm not sure I believe it's here, either." At which point his horn glowed, and his door slammed shut and every window was illuminated. Two record players could be heard to begin an under-powered warbling of whatever tune was sitting on their turntable. Hearing the noise he looked over his shoulder, and examined his house. Shrugging, he turned back to Twilight Sparkle and his house de-energized.

By this time Fluttershy was crouching behind Twilight, peeking out between her and Rarity's mane to watch the bizarre procession. "Well, then. Good sir, as an advanced magic student, and pupil of princess Celestia herself, let me assure you that the land of Equestria, where you're standing, has magic. In fact, I'll say again that I think you accidentally spelled your house into place."

"Magic EVERYWHERE!" shouted Pinkie, seemingly teleporting a bundle of confetti into her hooves so she could throw it into the air.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle," Twilight finally said, and was moderately sure it had been heard. "And these are my friends," Twilight pointed out each pony as she said their name. She had to surprise Fluttershy by jumping aside quickly, thus exposing the brilliant pink and yellow pegasus for her introduction, but Twilight stepped quickly back into her prior spot to help shield her shy friend.

The stallion squinted at the last pony introduced, Applejack, and then he sighed. He tried to say something but then stopped, and closing his eyes he sighed again. On the third try, he said "Call me Crescent War-snath."

Nearly bouncing with excitement, Pinkie Pie said "Forgive me for being nosy, but what in Equestria does your cutie mark MEAN?"

He turned his head carefully, and examined his flank. Turning back to examine Pinkie Pie with his thousand yard stare, Applejack added "She means, what's yer one special talent. What're you really good at?"

Turning to face the farmer, he squinted, tried to speak, and failed. Again, he closed his eyes, seemingly oblivious to the sound of a burning limb as thick around Twilight's neck, finally burned through from the fire spell a moment before, and now crashing into the underbrush somewhere behind him. Its flames were doused by the fall but it charred everything it touched and the embers were still crackling. As he was almost whispering, Twilight found herself needing to lean much closer, to hear him over the sound of the local brush fire. "My skill set is no longer needed. Not at home where I came from, and not here in a land with more magic that it can shake a heuristic at." Eyes open now, he raised his head and looked around him, as if some other ponies might be just outside the circle, eavesdropping.

Speaking with his angry voice, as he had when he first staggered outside, he challenged the surrounding forest. "My mark is to be the one who modifies the argument. I cut down those I choose, and I redirect them to another place. I am the farm implement thrown into the machinations of the fight." Everyone dropped to the ground as he whipped his horn to his left and released a powerful explosion spell. "AND TARNATION TAKE YOU ALL. I LIVE HERE NOW." But his words were lost in the deep bass rumble of the explosion, which set the ground to shaking despite detonating fifty hooves above the ground.

Crescent seemed drained again, satisfied that his inner demons were not extraverting themselves right at the moment. Twilight still hadn't seen anything for him to cast a spell at. She was considering his words, when Pinkie said them out loud. "You modify the argument?"

Crescent dully turned his head towards Pinkie. "Modify?"

Applejack, standing again, said "Yeah. You said you modify the argument."

Crescent chuckled before asking "You mean I can start, or stop a fight? That's certainly unique, isn't it." Chuckling to himself, he repeated "modify the argument" under his breath before saying aloud "Would you all like to come in for some coffee?"

Before any of her friends said anything, Twilight answered with "Oh I'm afraid we sort of have a tight itinerary to keep on our vacation. But maybe we can stop by for a little longer tomorrow?" She tried to sound sheepish, but was afraid she might just sound nervous. Mostly because this whole string of events left her feeling very nervous.

Crescent turned and walked up the three steps to his front door. "I'll be here. At least I would expect so." Still staring at his closed door, Twilight guessed he was squinting again as he spoke. "Did any of you see how I opened this, before?"

Rarity graciously levitated the latch downward, pulling the curved handle outward. "Like that, I believe. Tomorrow, then?"

Crescent began to walk through the open door, and also waved a forehoof over a shoulder, meaning to wave goodbye but his wings came unfolded and he cursed when he banged them into the rather solid doorframe. Again folding his wings one at a time, he disappeared as the search party turned and began the trip back to their hotel room in Hoofington.

Report

Twilight Sparkle burst into the room, shouting "Spike? Spike!" Seeing he was carrying a load of laundry to the rather sparse bed to fold them, she said, still a little too loud for the distances involved, "Spike there you are! Take a letter, please."

Spike dutifully put the basket down, and waved hello to Pinkie, who was sharing this room with Twilight. "So, how'd your big day of adventuring go? Somepony said there were puffs of smoke throughout the day, like maybe a forest fire was smoldering or something."

Quill in hand, Spike looked at his employer slash roommate, and Twilight barely noticed he had asked questions, so hopped up on adrenaline was she. "OK this will need a bit of editing I can barely think straight. Hmm.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I believe we have found the party you described, and it's a single male adult alicorn. He says he is from a place that has no magic but has evidenced the use of magic, not least of which was to create a thatched roof cottage using steel beams.

His name is Crescent War-snath, and his special talent is, and I quote, to modify the argument. While I think he's probably well meaning his memory appears damaged and I do not believe that using the artifacts we have discussed are the correct response to his condition. Enrollment in the academy of magic is probably more fitting as his powerful magic will be a danger to those around him until he's less awkward with his horn."

Spike went over the letter a few times with Twilight while Pinkie downed a sarsaparilla and laid down. Finally happy that what was written conveyed the proper tone she was trying for, Spike coughed green fire on the letter.

Twenty minutes later, the reply came. And thirty seconds after the letter materialized, so did the Elements of Harmony, Twilight's ruby necklace spreading warmth to her chest as it's energies dissipated. "Quick Spike open that blasted letter what went wrong?!?"

"My faithful student Twilight," Spike began.

"Thank you for investigating this so thoroughly. The alicorn, despite his potential shortcomings, sounds like a useful ally and I would love to meet him here at the castle.

"Also, the invaders were much more to the west than I was originally led to believe. Please try to get Crescent War-snath to accompany you to Canterlot. Don't travel via Ponyville it's under siege at the moment.

"Signed, Princess Celestia."

Twilight facehoofed, then groaned in frustration, and finally started beating the side of her head against the wall. "Why can't anything be simple around here? Just one problem at a time?"

From the second bed, came Pinkie's voice as she rolled over to face her roommate. "Twilight! I was nearly asleep! Sheesh; have a sarsaparilla and go to bed. I'm sure you'll feel better in the." Here she yawned, and rolled away again.

"Sure, Pinkie. Sarsaparilla. See you in the morning. If we're not all dead." Twilight cast an ice spell on the bottle before opening it. She started to leave to tell her friends but felt Spike's hand on her shoulder.

He had a pleading look as he shook his head. "If they're burning with curiosity they'll come find you. If not you'll just ruin their night's sleep. We'll get this solved Twilight. We always have before, right?"

far flung epilogue

In the prologue of the Annals of the Time of Two Leaders, my five-times-great grandmother penned these words:

There was a spring, many years before today, that aliens came to Equestria in space-traveling ships, and tried to collapse all pony society. They were not humans, however. I have through very careful research learned something of humankind, and here is something the reader must understand, if they are to research it themselves.

There are no humans in Equestria. There never will be. Not because the world was closed, nor because no human dared defile the pony's lands. Not even that the alicorn race kept some magical barrier in place against intrusion. There simply were no humans in Equestria. And there never would be.

If a human were to pierce that veil, he might find it more a semipermeable membrane than a solid obscurity. Twice ponies had crossed into America, walked on two feet alone and wondered at their five tiny hooves on each forelimb. The "great and powerful" Trixie had absorbed her acerbic and humorless wit in the streets of Man-hattin' but no one there knew the street performer knew real magic, once.

If a human were to cross that membrane, he'd find he was something native. A pony, most likely though sometimes the land declared them a gryphon. No pony alive had put this spell in place. The land simply declared your nature, and put hair or feathers on you, to reveal to other Equestrians who you really were.

Except for some times. If you were resourceful enough, and determined enough, and even a little bit lucky, you could choose your form. Choose wings, and a heavy winter coat suitable for the upper reaches of the atmosphere's impenetrable cold. Choose a horn, to wield at whim the very magic that accepted your ponyhood on entry.

Choosing both at once was harder, but it was not truly unheard of. Instead, it was simply very expensive; paid out of your soul, your future, and probably your past as well.

Thus it was, that Daniel Hanssom, programmer and database analyst, became the alicorn Crescent War-snath. Without his assistance the war against the invaders would have gone very poorly indeed. But that spring was without invaders by summer, and only a very few already weakened ponies died during the siege of Ponyville.

If you are reading this, gentle pony (or strong human), then we have all lived past the ordeal that followed. I write this tome that some day it will be read by those curious about the plains known as Everfree, though there be no forest. I write my memories knowing only too well how strong magic can corrupt, obscure, and also pardon or eradicate what was once clear to all.

I know not as of this writing, whether to suggest you seek the blessings of the princess Celestia, or the prince Crescent. Only time can tell that tale, and I am well into my upper years already. I must write now, what has transpired, while my eyes and my quill permit. Perhaps my successor will, as I have, stand in the gap between these hard headed beings of almost pure magic. May the Creator have mercy on her soon to be tortured soul.

the historian of Celestia's library and the sooth-sayer of Crescent's grand-court,

Swirling Stars, eighteen-times grand daughter to Star Swirl the Bearded