Exodus, Book 1

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue

Chapter 1

Night had just fallen over western Equestria. The sun had set over the far sea, and all the ponies had turned in for the night, so there was not a soul about. Not a soul, that is, except for a couple small alicorns flying over the water toward the land. The two alicorns were sisters, and had been flying over the ocean for a long time, desperately searching for somewhere to rest.

The larger of these two alicorns had a pure white body with a long pink mane. Her eyes, which were half-closed as she struggled to keep awake, were bright purple. Her name was Celestia.

The smaller alicorns body, on the other hand, was deep blue. Her mane was only a shade lighter than her coat, and her eyes were teal. Her name was Luna. She was flying so close to her sister that their wings often brushed together.

"Celestia," said Luna sleepily, "have we reached land? I can't fly anymore."

"Hang on, Luna," Celestia answered anxiously. "We're almost there, just don't fall."

As Equestria loomed up in front of them, Celestia and Luna glided in. It was costing them what little strength they had left just keeping their wings out. They finally managed to touch down on the beach. When they landed, Luna's legs gave out and she collapsed on the beach. Celestia would have loved to join her sister, but she knew they could not stay here. It was too exposed. She walked up to Luna and gently nudged her.

"Come on, Luna," she said. "We need to find shelter."

"No, Celestia," said Luna unhappily. "Please, just let me rest here."

Celestia sighed. She bent down and gently scooped Luna onto her back. She could see some trees ahead, and slowly made her way toward them. The added weight of her sister nearly caused her to fall. As she walked, Luna opened one eye.

"Celestia? Where are we?"

"I don't know, Luna. We'll figure it out in the morning. First we need to find shelter and get some sleep."

"Do you think... We'll ever be able to go home?"

"We'll see." Luna's question sent a stab of pain through Celestia's heart, for she knew that they could never go home. Her ancestral land had been taken over by a great evil, and as far as she knew, she and her sister were the only survivors. Her friends, her family, they were all...

No, Celestia berated herself. No crying. You need to be brave, for Luna's sake.

After what seemed like an eternity, Celestia reached the trees, and soon found a small glade where they could sleep. Celestia knew it was foolish for both of them to sleep at the same time with no protection, but as she placed Luna in the grass and lay down herself, she knew she could no more fend off sleep than she could fight if they were attacked. As sleep overtook her, Luna's question kept drifting through her mind.

Where were they?

* * * * *

By the time Celestia awoke, it was already mid morning. The first thing she noticed was that Luna was no where to be seen. For a moment, she panicked. Then she heard the distinct sound of her sister humming off to her right. After a quick search she found Luna munching happily on some berries that she had plucked off a berry bush.

"Look, Celestia!" Luna exclaimed when she noticed her big sister. "I found us some food!"

"Luna!" cried Celestia. "Don't eat those! You don't even know if they're edible!"

"But they're just raspberries, Celestia," Luna picked another off the bush and showed her. Celestia still didn't like the idea of eating wild berries in a land they knew nothing about, but she knew that if she didn't eat something soon, she wouldn't even have the strength to move or protect her sister. She began to eat as well.

Suddenly, they heard a voice cry out nearby, "Who's there? I swear, if it's you colts stealing my berries again-" The bushes rustled nearby, and out of them stepped a stallion. His coat was a bright blue, as were his eyes. His mane was short and black. He looked extremely annoyed. When he saw the two fillies however, staring at him looking very scared and confused, his expression softened.

"Oh, excuse me, girls," he said with a smile. "I thought some of the young'uns from Las Pegasus had come to raid my berry orchard again."

"Do these berries belong to you," asked Celestia. "We're sorry, but we were just so hungry-"

"That's quite alright," said the stallion, raising his hoof. "Let no pony say that Blueberry won't offer to share his wares with two fillies in need. That's me, by the way," he added gesturing to his flank, which bore a blueberry cutie mark. "Just where are you kids from, anyway?"

Celestia swallowed, not sure how much she should tell, or if Blueberry would even believe that they came from overseas. Before she could say anything, however, Luna spoke first.

"We are from far away!" she said. "We had to leave home because it was under attack!"

"Under attack?" asked Blueberry, his brow furrowing. "Under attack by whom? Has another war started in the North?"

"We came from across the ocean!" Luna exclaimed.

"Luna!" said Celestia sharply.

Blueberry looked from one sister to the other and cleared his throat. "Alright," he said, "it makes no difference to me where you're from, but if you're in trouble, I'd like to help however I can."

"Thank you," Celestia said gratefully. "What we really need is somewhere to stay while we figure out what to do next."

"Say no more," Blueberry said. "You an stay with me and the wife for as long as you like. Now follow me to the house, you both look like you could use a proper meal and a bath." He turned and headed back the way he came. After a brief moment of hesitation, Celestia and Luna followed.

Chapter 2

Celestia, Luna, and Blueberry had walked for several minutes before Celestia plucked up the courage to speak again.

"Umm, Mr. Blueberry?" she asked.

"Just Blueberry is fine kid, I don't think too much of titles," Blueberry said pleasantly.

"Okay, Blueberry. What exactly is this land called?"

"This is Equestria. It's a nice enough place, I suppose, but since I've never lived anywhere else, I've really got nothing to compare it to."

"Are there monsters?" asked Luna anxiously.

"Not if you know where to go. If you stay close to the coast without going too far north or south you should be alright. Nothing plagues us around here except the odd timberwolf. Say, I just realized that I never got your names."

"Oh, right. I'm sorry," Celestia said quickly. "My name is Celestia, and this is Luna, my little sister."

"Nice to meet you!" Luna piped up.

"Nice to meet you, too," laughed Blueberry. "It's nice to see unicorns again, haven't seen one of them in a good long time."

He thinks we're unicorns, Celestia thought. She noticed that she and Luna were so covered in dirt and grime from their recent excursions that their wings were hardly visible since they had both instinctively kept them tucked in.

By this time they had arrived at Blueberry's house. It was a quaint little wooden farmhouse, painted red, surrounded by berry bushes of all kinds. Tending to some shrubs sitting against the front of the house was a mare. She had a tan coat with a dark brown mane. Her eyes were blue, like Blueberry's, and she hummed to herself as she watered the plants. On her flank was a cutie mark in the shape of a nut.

"Chestnut, darling," called Blueberry, "we have guests!"

Chestnut turned and, when she saw the two filthy fillies, gasped, dropping her watering can to the ground.

"Good heavens!" she cried. "Wherever did you find them, Blue? Oh come inside, dears, I must get you cleaned up!" Before Celestia or Luna could speak, Chestnut whisked them into the house and steered them straight toward the tub. What followed was the most intense scrubbing Celestia had ever experienced. Luna fidgeted and complained at first, but a sharp glare from her big sister quieted her down

As Chestnut finished cleaning the girls manes and went on to their bodies she exclaimed, "My, what large wings you have! I don't think I've ever-" then she stopped speaking. She also stopped scrubbing. Celestia saw her eyes move from her large wings to her horn, and then back again.

"I, I've never seen anything like it!" exclaimed Chestnut. "Blueberry, come here, quickly!"

"What is it, Chestnut?" asked Blueberry, trotting in. "You're not have trouble, are-" he then caught sight of their wings too.

"Well, I'll be darned! I can't believe I didn't notice before! How in the world is it possible?"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier!" cried Celestia desperately, worried for a moment that they were going to be kicked out.

"There's nothing to apologize for," said Blueberry. "I'm not so foolish as to think I've seen everything in the world, but we'll talk more after you've been fed."

Celestia and Luna finished their bath, and when they walked out into the kitchen they saw that Blueberry had whipped them up a batch of blueberry pancakes. Celestia was starving, and she and Luna ate more than they had ever eaten in their life, more than Celestia believed polite, but the pancakes were so good that she set aside manners, just this once.

When they had both eaten their fill, Celestia sent Luna out to play in the front yard and then sat down at the table with Blueberry and Chestnut.

"Now," Blueberry said gently, "why don't you tell us your story?" Celestia nodded and took a deep breath.

"My sister and I are alicorns," she began. "It is a race of magical beings from an island far to the west of here. My father was the king there, and he ruled a happy and prosperous kingdom. Our kingdom was not large, or exceptionally rich, but it nevertheless made enemies. In the south of the island there was a large mountain, and living in the mountain were gargoyles."

"Gargoyles?" asked Blueberry. "You mean those things you read about in storybooks that are stone statues during the day but come alive at night?"

"Yes, exactly," Celestia said. "My father had thought that if we just left them alone they wouldn't bother us, but he was wrong. One night a great horde of them descended on our capital city and-" Celestia stopped, as she felt a lump forming in her throat and tears in her eyes.

"It's okay dear," said Chestnut, putting her hoof on Celestia's. "You don't need to say anymore."

Celestia shook her head, regained her composure and continued. "As the gargoyles were attacking, my father told me to take Luna and fly away. He told us to not come back no matter what. So we flew as far and as fast as we could. Gargoyles were chasing us. It was midnight. Just as they were about to catch us I summoned all my magic and-" Celestia paused, wondering if they would believe her. "I raised the sun." she finished in a small voice. She waited, but Blueberry and Chestnut didn't speak, so she continued.

"The gargoyles stopped chasing us after that, but my sister and I kept flying. We flew away from our island, all day as fast as we could. By nightfall we had arrived here." She finished and looked at the two ponies, wondering what they would say. Blueberry's face showed no emotion. Chestnut had tears in her eyes. Finally, Blueberry spoke.

"That's quite the story," he said. "It almost defies belief, but it also doesn't change anything. I don't really know for certain who you are or what your capable of, but I do know that you're in trouble. My wife and I will still do whatever we can to help you. What do you plan on doing?"

"I don't know," Celestia said. "Do you know if there are any alicorns in this land?"

"Not as far as I know," said Blueberry, "but I'm hardly the person to ask. You'd want to talk to somepony who's been all over Equestria, somepony who knows everything about this land and its magic."

"You want to talk to the unicorns," said Chestnut. "They'll help you."

"Where can I find the unicorns?" asked Celestia.

"That might be difficult," said Blueberry uneasily. "There aren't a whole lot left since-"

Blueberry was cut off as Luna dashed into the room, looking quite excited.

"Celestia!" she cried. "Come outside, you've got to see this!"

"Huh?" Celestia was confused, but hurried out the door after her sister. Once they were outside, Luna pointed up at the sky to the east. Celestia, squinting in the midday sun, at first saw nothing. Then she could make out the shape of something flying through the sky. At first she thought it was a dragon, but then she noticed that it had a lion's paw, an eagle's talon, and a goat's hoof. In fact, she found this creature to be composed of several different creatures.

Blueberry walked up beside her. His face wore an expression of fear.

"Celestia," he said. "Take your sister and get in the house. Now."

"Hurry!" cried Chestnut. "Don't let him see you!" Celestia was filled with a sense of foreboding. She rushed forward, picked Luna up, and dashed back into the house, with Blueberry and Chestnut on her heels. Once inside, Blueberry shut the door and turned to Celestia and Luna.

"Okay," he said. "We should be safe."

"What was that thing?" asked Celestia. "Why were you so scared of it?"

"That was Discord," said Chestnut. "He rules this land."

"Rules is a loose term," said Blueberry bitterly. "More like, everypony's too scared of him to stop him from doing whatever he wants, and what he wants is to simply cause chaos wherever he goes. He doesn't usually stray from the cities, however, that's where he has his most fun. I wonder where he's going?"

"Probably to Ponyville," said Chestnut. "He's probably on his way to another World Leader's Summit..."

Author's Note

My first chapter was me testing the waters of this site, now I can really get going. Next chapter, I will introduce the rest of the characters in this story, mainly the major players in the world politics of Equestria. I haven't done fanfiction since I was seventeen, so bear with me. I'll try not to make too many mistakes.

Chapter 3

Nopony knew why Discord had chosen to make Ponyville his capital. Aside from its geographical position (it was almost in the middle of Equestria), it was a pretty small and unassuming place. It had no large buildings, like Manehatten. It was not an economic powerhouse, like Las Pegasus. It was not even rich in natural resources, like Appaloosa. By all accounts it was just a small, peaceful country town, but Discord had still insisted on building his castle there.

Explosion Spire, he called it. It was like no castle ever built before. It had a circular base, but quickly blossomed into a dozen different towers, each one spiraling off in a random direction, each one painted an outrageous color. One was shocking pink, another neon orange, and so forth. It also had a nasty habit of glowing in the dark, so those ponies who had been living near it were forced to move just so they could get some sleep.

At this moment, the most powerful kings and tyrants from all over Equestria were arriving for another World Leaders Summit. These summits were typically only called during a national emergency, so it was never a good idea to miss one.

Discord was always the first to arrive. He had been flying over Ponyville, lazily doing the backstroke though the sky, when he angled into a steep dive and barreled through one of the windows of the towers. He made a beeline straight for the large room at the castle's base, which already been arranged with a large table and several chairs. He sat himself in one of the chairs and stretched.

"Chamberlain!" he called. A trembling pony stepped forward. She was dressed in a vibrant clown costume, and her face was painted white with a big red smile.

"Y-yes, my liege?" she said.

"You may bring in the others. Alphabetically, of course, but if you don't know the alphabet, don't worry about it. Neither do I." The clown pony chamberlain bowed and turned, opening up the castle's huge double doors.

"Announcing," she said, "his royal highness, Lord of the Crystal Empire, King Sombra." A male unicorn stepped in. He had a grey coat and a black mane. His eyes were blood red. A long, red mantle was draped over his body, obscuring his cutie mark, if he even had one. He gazed around the room with a look of distaste, and took a seat without saying a word. The chamberlain cleared her throat and continued.

"Announcing, his Lordship, Thrall, King of the Changelings." A Changeling entered. He was huge and bloated, with a black coat and green mane. His eyes were black and glittering. Since there seemed to be no chair big enough to hold him, Discord conjured up a large couch with a snap of his fingers. After he had seated himself, he gestured beside him, and a small changeling filly entered and sat down on his right.

"My daughter, Princess Chrysalis," Thrall rumbled, in a voice that seemed to come from deep inside him. "I brought her with me because I am currently teaching her the affairs of state, for she is my successor." Chrysalis said nothing, her eyes looking determinedly at the floor. Discord nodded at the chamberlain, who continued.

"Announcing, Head of State of the Pegasus Republic, General Thunderbolt." A pegasus walked in. His coat was smoky grey, and his mane bright yellow. On his flank was a cutie mark shaped like a lightning bolt. He was dressed in cold, grey steel armor befitting his rank. He sat down without acknowledging any of the others, even as Lord Thrall glowered at him. Once he was seated, Sombra turned to Discord.

"So what is this all about?" he asked, in a voice even lower and deeper than Thrall's. "You'd better have a very good reason for calling us here on such short notice."

"Me?" asked Discord, looking surprised. "I thought this was Thrall's party!"

"Why would I call a meeting in your capital?" growled Thrall.

"Well, I just figured that you were so desperate to get out of that forsaken wasteland you call a kingdom that-" Discord's explanation was cut off by Thunderbolt.

"If Discord did not call this summit," he said, "then who did?"

"I did," a voice said. They all turned to the source of the voice. Standing in the doorway was a unicorn. He was very old, with a grey body and a long white mane. He also had a white beard that cascaded almost to the floor. He wore a long pointed hat as well as a long blue cloak, both of which were decorated with moons and constellations, and rimmed with small bells which jingled as he walked.

"Representing the Free Unicorns of Equestria," he said with a smile, "Starswirl the Bearded."

Author's Note

The next chapter will be dealing with these characters as well, particularly how they relate to each other, and the general state of affairs in Equestria.

Chapter 4

For half a moment, no pony spoke. Then Sombra found his voice.

"There are no 'Free Unicorns' in Equestria!" he roared. He then turned angrily to Discord. "You were supposed to see to that!"

"Well, I did," said Discord, putting his hands up. "I may have missed a few here and there, but what did you expect? Just because I'm the spirit of chaos and disharmony doesn't mean I'm perfect."

"I have established a safe haven up in the mountains for all unicorns to live in peace," Starswirl continued. "All I ask is that we be recognized as an independent territory to ensure nopony attempts to disrupt that peace." he looked around. "Any takers?"

"I vote yes," said Thunderbolt.

"Me too!" said Discord.

"This is not a democracy!" snarled Sombra. "I will allow no other unicorns a voice in this land!"

"Nor will I," added Thrall. "There are already too many petty kingdoms scattered around. We don't need any more."

"Very well," said Starswirl, bowing. "We will simply have to live in spite of you rather than with you." he turned to leave, then stopped. "Oh, wait. There was something else." Starswirl walked up to the table where the other leaders were sitting. His manner became grave.

"I must inform you," he said, "that the Alicorn Empire has been destroyed." For the second time, total silence followed his words. Then Thrall burst out laughing, a great booming laugh that seemed to shake the whole castle. Discord began idly picking at his big tooth, while Thunderbolt and Sombra just looked confused.

"The Alicorn Empire?" asked Thunderbolt. "I've never heard of it. Is it in Equestria somewhere?"

"Oh no," chuckled Thrall. "If they were here, there would be no Crystal Empire, no Pegasus Republic, and certainly no Free Unicorns. You'd all be living under their rule, whether you wanted to or not."

"Alicorns," explained Starswirl, "are an equine race, like us. They can grow to be very tall, almost the size of Thrall. They have horns longer than any unicorn, and wings larger than any pegasus. Their empire existed across the sea to the west, on an island where they've lived for a long time, longer than even Discord can remember, I think."

"They were also once known as dragon slayers, which should give you an idea of their magic power," said Thrall. "Hence my laughter. Why, wizard, should we believe that such a race of powerful beings was destroyed?"

"You do not need to believe me," replied Starswirl. "That's the funny thing about the truth. It's true whether you believe it or not. I'm merely giving you a fair warning." His brow dropped, and he looked grim. "With the destruction of the Alicorn Empire, there is a very real possibility that refugees from the shattered kingdom are going to come here. If and when that happens, the balance of power in this land could undergo a momentous shift. You may need to prepare for war."

"If these alicorns really exist," asked Sombra, "Why have they never contacted us before?"

"An excellent question," answered Starswirl. "You can ask them yourself when they arrive."

"Wings and horns, you say?" asked Discord. "Huh, that would explain the little flying unicorn I passed on my way here."

"Wait a minute," said Sombra, "you've seen these things?"

"Well, as I was flying up the west coast, spying on all the little farm ponies, I saw a little filly playing with butterflies outside a farmhouse. She fly after them with her cute little wings, and then grab them with magic from her cute little horn. I think she must have noticed me, however, because she eventually ran inside, so I continued here."

"They've begun arriving already?" asked Starswirl. "This isn't good. If you will all excuse me, I have things I must attend to." Without another word Starswirl the Bearded turned, and with a swish of his cloak, vanished. Sombra turned to Discord.

"You should have killed him!" he said angrily. "The only reason I have not swept all the North under my dominion is because you promised there would be no unicorns to oppose me!"

"I have wiped out at least 80% of all the unicorns in Equestria," Discord replied. "When was the last time you saw a government do something 80% correctly? You should be thanking me for my thoroughness!"

"Perform another sweep of your lands!" Sombra ordered angrily. "Then go wipe out those unicorns in the mountains, or I shall come over and do it myself!"

"You will do no such thing," growled Thunderbolt. "The mountains are not your territory, and if you even think about expanding, I will have no choice but to bring the full might of the Seraphim Guard down on you!" Sombra looked livid, but turned and trotted out the door without arguing.

Thrall walked up to Discord. "Between you and me," he said. "Sombra has been getting more arrogant and more paranoid as time goes by. Perhaps a change of leadership is in order?"

"Already working on it, pal," said Discord. "You didn't think I was planning on letting him hog all those lovely crystal ponies forever, did you?"

"I'm glad to hear it," answered Thrall, "and in exchange for my cooperation, I'm sure you'd be willing to send a substantial number of those ponies my way?"

"Sure thing," grinned Discord. "We would just need to get Thunderbutt out of the way."

"Leave that to me. You just focus on Sombra, and that alicorn you saw. Any alicorns that arrive here should be dealt with immediately, before they have a chance to get settled." Discord nodded, then turned and flew out a window, smashing through the glass. Thrall turned, gave General Thunderbolt an insincere smile, and walked out with his daughter following close behind him. Thunderbolt waited a moment, making sure everyone else was gone, then whispered, "Did you get all that?"

"I did," With a swish, Starswirl materialized out of thin air. "If alicorns are arriving here already, we need to get to them before Discord does. They could be the opportunity we've been waiting for to free Equestria for good. Send your fastest pegasi up and down the west coast, looking for any new arrivals from the sea."

"Alright," said Thunderbolt, "but what will you be doing?"

"I need to follow Discord," answered Starswirl. "If he catches that alicorn he mentioned, I'll need to find a way to free them. An alicorn in Discord's control would spell doom for us all." Starswirl turned and cantered out the door. Thunderbolt followed, and then unfurled his wings and sped off for Cloudsdale.

Author's Note

Chapter 4, everybody! It's really fun playing these characters off each other. In chapter 5, we will rejoin Celestia and Luna on Blueberry's farm for their first encounter with the nasty denizens of this land.

Chapter 5

Back at Blueberry's farm, Celestia and Luna had just had lunch and were getting ready to leave. Blueberry and Chestnut were giving them directions and advice, and had also packed them supplies in a saddle bag they gave to Celestia.

"Avoiding Discord needs to be your first priority," said Blueberry. "Since he flies everywhere, stick to the wooded areas when you can, and always check the skies if you need to go out in the open."

"But you should also beware of timberwolves," said Chestnut anxiously. "Oh, Blue, you really should go with them-"

"It's alright," said Celestia, "we should be okay if we know where to go. So how do I find the unicorns?"

"Well," said Blueberry, walking over to a desk and pulling out a map, "unicorns can only be found in the few enclaves they've established throughout Equestria. Of course, these enclaves have to be well hidden so Discord can't find them, but fortunately those of us in the country know the location of a few of them. Just head east through the White Tail Woods, cross the river where it turns northward, and then turn south when you reach the edge of the Everfree Forest. Here, take this map with you. That will take you straight to an enclave in Ghastly Gorge."

"Ghastly Gorge?!" cried Chestnut. "Blueberry, you can't be serious! That place is dangerous, and it's so close to Ponyville! They should go south, to the desert enclave near Appaloosa."

"Ghastly Gorge is the closest one available," Blueberry said patiently. "The unicorns will be on the lookout, and from there they can go see Starswirl."

"Who's Starswirl?" asked Celestia.

"Starwirl, or Starswirl the Bearded, is the most powerful unicorn in Equestria," said Blueberry. "Back when Discord was hunting down unicorns left and right, Starswirl would gather groups of them together and hide them with his magic. If anyone has information regarding your family, he does."

"Why was Discord hunting unicorns?" asked Celestia.

"It was a favor for someone else," said Chestnut bitterly. "If Discord runs into any magical being, they're never seen again."

"We'd better get going then," said Celestia. "I really want to find out if Mother and Father are still alive. Come on, Luna!" Celestia turned, and with Luna right behind her, opened the front door and walked outside.

Right into Discord.

Celestia stopped in her tracks, looking up at the bizarre creature in surprise. Luna bumped into Celestia's flank. Discord stared down at the two fillies momentarily, smiling eagerly.

"Look at you!" he exclaimed. "Wings and horns! Who'd you need to bribe to get those?" Blueberry and Chestnut looked out at the sound of Discord's voice, and turned pale when they saw him.

"Discord!" cried Chestnut. "W-what are you doing here?"

"A little bird whispered in my ear that there were new ponies in Equestria," said Discord. "I simply couldn't let this go! As Supreme Being of this land it is my duty, and my pleasure, to show these little fillies around their new home. It's the least I can do for these poor, confused kids, all alone in a strange country." The nasty smile that accompanied these words made Celestia and Luna shrink back. Blueberry stepped forward. His legs were shaking, but he looked Discord right in the eye.

"Now see here," he said, his voice steady. "These girls haven't done anything to you. They're completely harmless. You don't need to waste your time with them. Why don't you go find something your own size to play with?"

"Well, I would," replied Discord. "but there happens to be nothing my size left in all Equestria, except dragons, of course. I got bored with dragons ages ago, there's only so much fun you can have with a creature who's only response to everything you do is to roar and breathe fire." He turned back to Celestia. "Let's go kids!" he said cheerfully. "Time's a-wastin' and there's so much chaos to enjoy!"

Discord reached out to grab Celestia and Luna. Blueberry, after a moments hesitation, leaped forward and rammed himself into Discord as hard as he could. Discord, taken by surprise, stumbled backward. Chestnut rushed forward to help. Blueberry turned to Celestia and Luna.

"Run!" he shouted. "Head east! And remember everything we told you!" he then struck out with his back legs, striking Discord in the midsection. It seemed Discord was not used to being attacked, for he just stood there staring at Blueberry in shock. Luna jumped on Celestia's back, and the two dashed for the berry bushes. Celestia ran as fast as she could, running straight through the woods. She never looked back to see if Discord was following, but deep down she prayed that Blueberry and Chestnut would be alright. After all, Blueberry had said that magical ponies who ran into Discord were never seen again. Would he also spirit away two earth ponies if he crossed them? Celestia closed her eyes, blocked out those thoughts, and kept running.

They ran for what seemed like hours, Celestia was cramping in her side, and her breath came in short gasps. Finally, however, she saw the trees end ahead, and managed to put on an extra burst of speed. If they got to the river, they could hide near it and see if Discord was close. When Celestia broke past the last of the trees, however, she got an enormous shock.

They were back at the berry farm. Celestia turned around in disbelief and saw the trees she had just run past had been large berry bushes, but she couldn't understand how they had gotten turned around. She was certain she had been running in a straight lint the entire time. What happened?

Discord was sitting on the front step, and when he saw them, he waved. "So, you've come crawling back to me, eh?" he said. "I'm not surprised. Those woods can be dangerous, it's easy for a filly to get lost."

"What's going on, Celestia?" asked Luna. "How are we back here?"

"Now that's a good question, kid," said Discord. "You see, I am in control of these lands. That means everything that happens only happens because I let it happen. And everything I want to happen happens. Which means, if I don't want two little fillies getting away from me while I deal with a rebellion, the forest will gently steer those fillies back to me."

At the words deal with a rebellion, Celestia's blood ran cold. "What did you do with Blueberry and Chestnut?!" she cried.

"If you mean those two ponies who so rudely assaulted me, I have put them in their proper place." Discord snapped his fingers, and a pie materialized out of nowhere. He held it under Celestia's nose. "Hungry?" he asked sweetly.

Celestia looked down at the pie. The blueberry-flavored pie.

"You turned Blueberry into a pie?!" Celestia shrieked.

Discord looked affronted. "On the contrary," he said, "that would be unoriginal and tacky. Blueberry's just the filling, his dear wife is the delectable, flaky crust. I was going to spend my day giving you the grand tour of Equestria, but since you seem to be so busy, I might as well just have my lunch." He held the pie up to his mouth.

"Stop, stop!" cried Luna. "Celestia, don't let him!" Celestia had a split second to make a decision. She didn't know if Discord would actually eat Blueberry and Chestnut, or if they were even the pie in the first place. But she did know that she couldn't let anyone die on her account.

"Okay, we'll go with you!" she said. "Just please turn Blueberry and Chestnut back!"

"Why certainly," Discord said. He cast the pie aside and snapped his fingers. In a moment, the pie was gone, and Blueberry and Chestnut were lying on the ground, both unconscious. Discord reached out and scooped up the two fillies in each hand.

"Right then," he said, holding them up to his face and smiling. "Let's go. I've got a friend I'd like you to meet. A pony who often helps me out when I have a problem on my hands. And if he seems a little nuts to you, it's because he is!" Laughing loudly, Discord took off and flew south, heading for the desert. Celestia looked at her sister and gulped. What was going to happen to them now?

Author's Note

Sorry this one took so long, but I been a little busy of late. In Chapter 6, you will learn what actually happened to all the unicorns Discord caught. See you then!

Chapter 6

Celestia did not know how long they flew over Equestria. She watched with growing apprehension as the forests and rolling hills gave way to a desert that seemed to stretch on forever before her eyes. In Discord's left hand, Luna shivered as she threw scared looks in Celestia's direction. Celestia wanted to say something comforting, but she too was fearing what Discord had in store for them. He talked almost constantly as he flew.

"To your left you'll see beautiful, sunny Las Pegasus," he was saying. "It's a wonderful place I am told. I took a vacation there for a weekend last year. I woke up in Baltimare with seven bits and a carton of chocolate milk." He seemed to find this incredibly funny, but then, Discord seemed to find most things funny. After nearly every sentence he would burst out laughing, and Celestia was beginning to think that he wasn't in his right mind. If that was true, then she and her sister were in more danger than she originally thought. So as the desert stretched on, Celestia was desperately searching for an opportunity for herself and Luna to escape from this creature.

Unfortunately, before Celestia could try anything, Discord suddenly went into a controlled dive and began skimming the desert floor. In the distance a large rock formation rose up. He came to a stop at the rocks so suddenly that it nearly turned Celestia's stomach. Though she was quite capable when it came to flying, Discord's patterns were so irregular that it made her nauseous. The rocks he had stopped at were three huge obelisks. Aside from there peculiar placement in the middle of a desert, there seemed to be nothing strange about them at all.

Discord snapped his fingers, using his tail as an extra hand, and a wooden door appeared on the side of one of the rocks. He opened it, and took the princesses inside. It was pitch black after the door had closed behind them, but with another snap of Discord's tail, flaming torches appeared on the walls. There was nothing inside the room except a staircase heading downwards. Discord immediately headed for it.

As he walked down the stairs, Discord continued talking. "This is my secret lair," he said proudly. "No pony knows that it exists, unless they are brought here like you both were. It's necessary to have something like this, you see, if you are hiding something, like I am." He paused, looking at Celestia expectantly. When she said nothing, he said, a little impatiently, "Well, go on! Ask me what I'm hiding!"

"What are you hiding?" Celestia asked uneasily. By now they had reached the bottom of the stairs, and a doorway opened up into a large room.

"I am hiding," said Discord happily, stepping into the room and holding up the two alicorns so they could see, "these."

In the dim light of the cave's torches, Celestia and Luna could make out shapes in the darkness, as their eyes adjusted, they realized that the shapes were unicorns.

Hundreds of them.

Young and old, male and female, unicorns of every shape, size and color were crowded into big steel cages scattered throughout the chamber.Some of them were sleeping, but most were awake and looking around nervously. All of them looked half-starved. It was like a massive dungeon.

Luna, who was openly trembling now, put her hooves to her face. Celestia was fighting panic as she sought some way- any way- to escape this horrible place, but she could find none. The only door she could she was the one they had walked through. Since they were underground, there were no windows to fly through. Judging by the looks on the faces of some of these unicorns, they had given up trying to escape long ago.

They were trapped. Trapped like rats.

As if sensing their thoughts, Discord said, "Now, don't try to get away. I may not look it, but I am always aware when one of my precious unicorns attempts an escape, so I'm always present to thwart it. Heh heh. Thwart. I love that word."

"Discord!" a voice suddenly rose up out of the darkness. "Is that you?" A pony stepped forward. He was an earth pony with a grey coat and dark grey mane. He was extremely old, but his yellow eyes still held a spark of life in them. His cutie mark was a big pink brain.

"Tinkie, old friend!" said Discord jovially. He held the girls down so they were level with the pony. "Girls, this is Tinkertoy. He's the friend I told you about. Tinkertoy, these are-" Discord suddenly paused. He stared blankly ahead for a moment, then said, "Huh. I never did get their names." He looked down at Celestia. "Well? You've got names, don't you?"

"C-Celestia," the scared princess stammered, "and my sister, Luna." Tinkertoy stared at the two fillies. His eyes quickly moved from their wings, to their horns, and back again. He then looked up at Discord.

"Are these ponies your creation?" he asked.

"Nope!" answered Discord. "That is what is so exciting! Apparently, they're from another land, and they're highly magical." He put special emphasis on the word magical and winked.

Tinkertoy's expression immediately changed. He gave a wide smile and said, "Well, then, let's bring them straight to the artifacts!" He turned and headed for the center of the room with Discord close behind him.

As they walked, Celestia plucked up the courage to ask the question that had been at the forefront of her mind since they entered the chamber. "Discord?" she asked. "Why do you have all these unicorns in here?"

"Well, you see, kid," explained Discord as they walked, "I had an agreement with an associate of mine. One of those You-Scratch-My-Back arrangements. King Sombra was his name. He said that if I eliminated all the unicorns of Equestria, he'd give me a present! Unfortunately, he'd assumed that I knew by the word eliminate, he had meant kill. But killing is not very fun, especially when the things you're killing have so many other uses. For instance, did you know that magical power can be a very valuable commodity? It's true! You can do anything with magic. I would know, I happen to be an expert on the subject. So, while I tricked Sombra into believing I was destroying all of them, I decided that instead of killing the unicorns, I could bring them here, to help me with my experiment."

"Experiment?" asked Celestia.

"Yes, my experiment concerning the present Sombra gave me in return for my cooperation. Well, it was more like the present I requested, but anyways-" Discord stopped talking as they got to the center of the room. There were some steps leading up to a circular dais. On that dais was a table, and on that table were six gems. Each gem had a different color, those colors being red, pink, green, blue, orange, and purple, but the colors looked grey and faded, as though they had been lit by an internal source which had gone out long ago. The purple gem also appeared to be slightly bigger than the others.

"These," said Discord, patting them affectionately, "are simply known as The Elements. They are gems that hold inside them massive amounts of magical energy, if you know how to tap into it. That's where all the unicorns come in. Tinkertoy here has been researching The Elements, looking for the type of magic necessary to unlock their power, but he has had no luck. So, we've just been trying unicorns at random. That's why I needed so many."

"They're known as the Elements of Harmony, Discord," said Tinkertoy flatly. Discord stuck out is tongue.

"I hate that word," he said sourly. "I'll sort out those elements when we get them working. They'll be the Elements of Chaos! Now that's a name I can get behind! Very marketable!"

While Discord continued rambling, Tinkertoy turned to Celestia. "No hope of escape or rescue for either of you," he sneered. "Discord has set up magical barriers to keep ponies in. If you want to leave, you're going to have to cooperate."

"If we do," asked Celestia, "will you let us go?"

"Of course," said Tinkertoy with a completely unconvincing smile.

"And the unicorns too," piped up Luna. "You have to let them go."

"When I am finished with my work," answered Tinkertoy, still smiling. "Now, you, the white one, step forward."

Celestia walked up to the gems. They stared blankly back at her.

"Have you ever used magic before?" Tinkertoy asked.

"A little," answered Celestia nervously.

"Stare at the elements," instructed Tinkertoy. "Let them take over your entire mind. Think of nothing but them." Celestia looked at the elements and tried to concentrate, but the days events, as well as the uncertainty of the future, played on her mind. For a full minute she just stood staring as Tinkertoy and Discord watched.

"Now focus," said Tinkertoy. "You must draw the magic from within you, and let it flow." The irony of being taught magic use from an earth pony was not lost on Celestia, but she did as instructed, focusing her mind. For a long while she stood there, trying to gather up magic, but finding nothing. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead as she gritted her teeth and strained to make something- anything- come forth, but nothing happened.

After a few minutes Discord turned to Tinkertoy and said, "Nothing's happening."

"Are you sure these creatures are magical?" asked Tinkertoy, annoyed.

"Yes!" said Discord. "I got it from a very unreliable source that I have no reason to trust. So of course I'm sure."

"Well, I can't stay here all day, I've got work to do," Tinkertoy said. He put his hoof to his chin and thought. "Maybe we could try something to force the magic out. Something a little unorthodox." He suddenly reached down and plucked Luna off the ground. Wrapping his front leg around her neck, he turned to Celestia.

Looking the startled alicorn in the eye, he calmly said, "Create the magic I want or I will kill the little dark one."

Author's Note

Will Celestia be able to bring forth the magic she needs? Or will she and Luna be lost forever in this dungeon? Stay tuned!

Chapter 7

"Celestia, help!" cried Luna, struggling in Tinkertoy's grip. Celestia looked from Tinkertoy to Discord, who merely shrugged.

"But I can't!" Celestia said desperately. "I don't know how, I'm not old enough to make magic come at will!"

"Then I have no use for either of you," growled Tinkertoy. "Do not expect to find sympathy here, child. I am an old pony. I don't care to spend what precious time i have left teaching fillies to do magic." He tightened his grip around Luna's neck, causing her to gasp. "You have ten seconds."

"Ooh, a countdown!" exclaimed Discord excitedly. "I love countdowns! I'll use my fingers." he held both his hands up.

"Tinkertoy began counting. "Ten... Nine..." with each second, Discord curled one of his fingers. Celestia looked back at the Elements and frantically tried to force magic out, but still nothing happened.

"Eight... Seven... Six," Tinkertoy continued, throwing side glances at Discord, who continued to count on his fingers. Celestia was beginning to panic. She was losing what little focus she had, being unable to take her mind off of Tinkertoy's threat, but if she didn't do something soon, Luna would-

"Five.. Four.. Three," said Tinkertoy. "I've run out of fingers," said Discord, looking disappointed at his clenched fists. He continued counting on his tail. Luna squirmed as Tinkertoy's grip tightened further.

"Two... One... Zero!" Tinkertoy finished. "I am out of patience!" Luna began to choke, clutching at Tinkertoy's arm. Discord made a face and idly picked at his teeth.

"No, no," begged Celestia, tears running down her cheeks. "Please don't!" Luna's struggles slowly lessened as her eyes began to close.

"NOOOOO!!" screamed Celestia. There was a flash of yellow light from Celestia's horn. A beam of energy shot from her horn to the Elements, and then back again. The Elements all glowed, and the air became thick with magical energy. Celestia's mind was foggy. Her horn was glowing again, and a long beam of light shot upwards. It hit the roof, and blew a hole straight through it. What happened next, Celestia could not see, because the light from her horn was blinding her. Her head felt like it was splitting open. The last thing she saw before her vision became pure light was Tinkertoy dropping her sister in surprise.

* * * * *

Discord watched in satisfaction as magic poured from Celestia's horn. "See, Tinkertoy?" he said. "I told you these girls were magical!"

"Discord, you fool!" cried Tinkertoy, casting Luna aside. "She cannot take so much power! Magic is leaking from her horn! Where is it all coming from?!" Indeed, large amounts of magic were seeping from the tip of Celestia's horn, and as they collided with the walls and floor, they went off with a great bang, and destroyed whatever they touched. Soon the outpouring of magic reached the unicorn prisoners in their cages. When the magic came into contact with the cages, the bars melted like candle wax. Curiously, however, the unicorns themselves were not harmed by it. Freed unicorns began running as fast as they could toward the exit.

"My test subjects are escaping!" shouted Tinkertoy angrily, but Discord made no move to stop them. Instead, he was looking up to where the beam of magic Celestia had fired had broken through the roof. It had shot up so high that it had created a hole in the rock formation protecting the laboratory, a hole that was slowly widening.

"Say, Tinky," said Discord slowly. "Maybe I'm crazy, but wasn't the sun setting a few minutes ago?"

"Of course it was," answered Tinkertoy impatiently, walking over to where Discord was standing. "It's 8:30 in the evening, what are you-" His words caught in his throat, however, as he looked up at the hole in the roof, for there, sitting as high in the sky as if it had been noon, was the sun. Somehow, it had been moved, and as Tinkertoy squinted up at it, he could make out a small thread of magic moving from the sun down to Celestia's horn.

"Impossible," Tinkertoy breathed, but he could not deny what he was seeing with his own eyes. This white alicorn standing in front of him had inconceivably managed to pull the sun out of its path in the sky. Tinkertoy's mind swam with the possibilities, but before he could make any kind of decision, he noticed that the magical leakage from Celestia's horn had ceased. Now, the magic had taken a spherical shape at the tip of her horn and was expanding rapidly. Celestia's eyes glowed pure white, and she didn't seem conscious of what she was doing.

"Discord, look out!" exclaimed Tinkertoy, backing away, but it was too late. The magic overtook him and the draconequus, as well as the remaining imprisoned unicorns. Just as before, the magic did not harm them, but the cages were all melted away, and the roof of the underground cavern was pushed upwards and outwards. The rock formation was caught in the magic and utterly destroyed. As the magic dispersed, there was nothing left of Discord's secret base but a gigantic hole in the ground.

* * * * *

Far away to the north, Starswirl was walking down the coast, his eyes on the sea. Tracking Discord had proved more difficult than usual, and the chaotic spirit had managed to evade Starswirl's magic. All he knew was that Discord had been close to the sea, and headed south. So Starswirl decided to search the coast and wait.

As he looked out at the setting sun, it began to move. At first Starswirl thought it to be his eyes playing tricks on him, but as he continued to watch in amazement, the sun rose higher and higher into the sky until it stopped at its noon peak. He could think of only one reason for this celestial miracle.

Alicorns.

Shadows passed before Starswirl's eyes. He looked up, and saw a great host of pegasi flying southwards. Judging from their armour, they were all members of General Thunderbolts elite force, the Seraphim Guard. Thinderbolt himself broke off from the main group and flew down to Starswirl, flanked by two of his guards.

"I assume you've noticed what just happened?" said Starswirl.

"This is bad," Thunderbolt answered severely. "The sun's activity seems to be linked to a disturbance on the Changeling border. My scouts say that something is drawing power from the sun, so I'm sending my guard to keep the peace and stop things from getting out of hand."

"It's alicorns, I'm sure of it!" said Starswirl. "Discord has changed night and day around before, but this is different. This is affecting the sun directly. Head over there and secure the area. I'll be along shortly."

"Right," Thunderbolt answered, and took off, heading south. Starswirl watched him fly off and then vanished. He had a feeling that the state of affairs in Equestria was about to go through a momentous shift. Whether that shift was good or bad remained to be seen.

Author's Note

Whew! Sorry this took so long, but I've been very busy. I promise it won't take as long to get the next chapter out, however. We're approaching the end of Book 1, as Celestia and Luna will come to learn of their place in Equestria.

Chapter 8

Celestia was tired. As the piercing white light faded with the magic from her horn, she slowly began to stagger forward. She took no notice of the unicorns running around her, and made no attempt to determine where Discord and Tinkertoy had gotten to. All she saw was her sister lying on the floor, not moving. Celestia prayed she was all right.

As Celestia approached, Luna's eyes fluttered open. She looked at her sister and asked weakly, "Celestia? What happened? Why is it so noisy? "

"Don't worry about it, Luna," Celestia answered, breathing heavily. "I'm going to get us out of here."

Luna nodded, then she looked at Celestia's flank and gave a small gasp. "Sister!" she cried, "You have a cutie mark!" Celestia looked down, and saw that where her flank had once been bare, was now emblazoned with a large, orange sun.

"Huh," said Celestia, "how about that..." her vision darkened. She stumbled forward, and wrapped her hooves protectively around Luna as they both lost consciousness.

* * * * * *

Tinkertoy looked around. His entire laboratory was gone. In fact, the entire structure was gone. There was nothing left but a giant, gaping hole in the ground. All his unicorn test subjects were currently rushing out of the hole through a mixture of levitation and teleportation, with the older unicorns aiding the younger ones. Discord was nearby, brushing himself off and looking surprisingly unfazed by what was happening. The young white alicorn's magic had fizzled out, and the sun was rapidly returning to its original setting position. In the fading light, Tinkertoy could make out the shapes of pegasi flying through the sky, heading straight for him. The old pony knew he and Discord needed to act fast. He ran and collected the Elements of Harmony in his hooves.

"Discord!" he called. "Get us out of here!"

"What about all our unicorns?" asked Discord. "Sombra's not going to be happy about this."

"It doesn't matter," answered Tinkertoy. "The pegasi are coming, and we need to be gone before they get here and stop us! Now teleport us away!" Discord walked forward, put his hand on Tinkertoy, and snapped his fingers. With a pop, they both vanished.

* * * * * *

When Thunderbolt arrived on the scene, most of the unicorns had climbed out of the large hole in the earth. Those that were not fleeing north were staring into the hole anxiously. There was nothing down there but two small ponies lying unconscious in the middle of the floor. Thunderbolt sent his men to round up any unicorns that were fleeing.

"It's too dangerous for them around here," he said to Whirlwind, his second-in-command. Whirlwind was a mare with a light blue coat, light grey mane, and blue eyes. Her cutie mark was a tornado, symbolizing her ability to conjure them up in an instant. "Make sure all the unicorns make it to a safe area. I'll see to those fillies in the pit. How much time do we have?"

"Judging from what I'm seeing to the south, we have no time," answered Whirlwind grimly. Thunderbolt turned. Rising up out of the south was what looked at first like a big cloud of dark smoke, but Thunderbolt knew all to well what it really was.

"Double time it, pegasi!" he shouted. "Changelings are coming!" All around him, the Seraphim Guard sprang into action. Most of the unicorns did not need any urging to get away, but the young, weak, and elderly were scooped up by the Guard and flown away. As they worked, Thunderbolt leaped into the hole. The two fillies there were both unconscious and unresponsive, so he placed them on his back and flew back to Whirlwind. Most of the unicorns were nearly out of sight, but the Changeling swarm had come so close that it was looming over him. He passed the fillies to Whirlwind.

"Get them out of here," he said.

"What are you going to do?" asked Whirlwind.

"I'm going to have to stall them," said Thunderbolt. "Now hurry, go!" Whirlwind wasn't one to disobey a direct order, so she took to the skies, flying after the other pegasi. Thunderbolt turned, staring at the huge horde that was flying straight at him.

"Starswirl," he said quietly, "now would be a good time for you to show up,"

"You rang?" a familiar voice ask. There was the sound of jingling bells, and Starswirl the Bearded stepped up beside the pegasus general. "You didn't think I was going to stand by and let you save all those unicorns by yourself, did you? I am the leader of the Free Unicorns, after all." Starswirl closed his eyes and concentrated. Magic bolts shot out of his horn and into the sky. With a deafening bang, the magic bolts exploded like fireworks, right in front of the Changelings. The swarm stopped, those in front shrieking in surprise and pain as they were blinded by the light and heat. The Changelings not immediately affected by the fireworks were startled by the cries of their comrades, and many of them began flying backwards, trying to get away from whatever was assaulting their front lines. After the initial explosions, the magic bolts flew forward, straight into the midst of the horde. Then they went off again. The Changelings panic increased tenfold as many of them fell to the ground, burned to a crisp by the heat. The great mass of Changelings was beginning to disperse.

Starswirl turned to Thunderbolt. "Come on Thunder," he said. "The Changelings are broken, but they're not shattered. They'll soon rally, so we'd better get moving."

"I found two of your alicorns," said Thunderbolt. "Just a couple of fillies, but I sent them off with Whirlwind. Where do you want me to bring them?"

"Have Whirlwind take them to my base in the mountains," answered Starswirl. "She knows where that is, right?"

"I can show her," said Thunderbolt. "I'll need to go there myself. We will need to talk about our next moves. What happened today could potentially lead to war unless we cool things off."

"I agree, but we got the alicorns, so that is a reason to be thankful."

Author's Note

One or two chapters to go, and we'll be at the end of Book 1! I think things have gone pretty smoothly, all things considered.

Chapter 9

When Celestia awoke, she was lying in a strange bed. The bed was large and comfy, situated against a wall in a small room. Beside her, a window was open, letting in the morning sunlight and a cool breeze. Celestia closed her eyes and tried to think. What had happened? She had been a prisoner of Discord, who had brought her and Luna to his lair in the desert-

Luna!

Celestia sat up, instantly wide awake. She had to find her sister. She turned to bolt out of bed, and stopped with a sigh of relief. Luna was lying asleep beside her. She looked so peaceful that Celestia didn't have the heart to wake her. Quietly, she slid out of bed and looked around. The room she was in was well lit and pleasant-looking. She walked over to the window and looked outside. It was a beautiful day with hardly a cloud in the sky. Celestia realized by looking down that she and Luna were in the tower of a large castle built into the side of a mountain. Below her, a small city bustling with ponies stretched along the side of the mountain range. Wherever they were, Celestia felt they were safe.

The princess walked to the door and slowly creaked it open. There was a short hallway leading to a winding staircase. Right beside the door stood a tall tan unicorn stallion dressed in armor. Celestia was nervous at first, but the stallion turned to her and smiled.

"Finally awake, eh?" he said. "Good. I've been ordered to take you to see Starswirl as soon as you are ready."

Something stirred in Celestia's memory. "Starswirl?" she asked. "Starswirl the Bearded? He's here?"

"Yes, and he's very anxious to meet you. So whenever your ready, I'll take you to him."

"I'm ready," said Celestia. She threw a backwards glance into her room, where Luna was still sleeping. "Let's go now."

"Sure," the stallion answered, "and don't worry about your sister. Another guard will be along shortly." He turned and walked down the staircase with Celestia right behind him. They were about halfway down when they went through a doorway that led to a bridge connecting their tower to another, larger tower beside it. They crossed the bridge, and entered the second tower. Inside was a vast library filled with all sorts of books. In the center of the room stood a unicorn in a long blue cloak and pointed hat. Celestia assumed, judging from the unicorn's copious facial hair, that he was Starswirl the Bearded. Beside him stood a grey coated and yellow maned pegasus. The pegasus watched them come in, and then turned and whispered to Starswirl. Starswirl turned around, and smiled warmly as Celestia walked up.

"Welcome," he said. "You've been asleep for quite a while. I was worried that you weren't going to wake up."

"My sister's still sleeping upstairs," said Celestia anxiously. "Is she going to be alright?"

"Oh yes," said Starswirl. "She woke up a few hours after we brought you here, and she has hardly left your side once for the two days you've been recovering."

"Two days? That's how long I've been asleep?"

"That's right, but it's not surprising. A filly your age, moving the sun the way you did.." Starswirl whistled. "You have quite the reserves of magic inside you." Celestia knew she should feel flattered at Starswirl's praise, but she was too full of questions.

"Starswirl," she said. "I've been looking for you because-" Starswirl raised his hoof.

"I know," he said solemnly. "Four days ago your homeland was destroyed by a horde of gargoyles. Since that time you and your sister are the only ones to have escaped here, to Equestria. You've been looking for me in the hopes that I would have information on the fate of your family and the Alicorn Empire in general."

"How do you know all that?" asked Celestia.

"How else? Shortly after your run-in with Discord, when we had brought you here to rest, I received a letter from a unicorn enclave in Ghastly Gorge regarding two frantic ponies who had arrived saying that Discord had foalnapped two young fillies. The ponies' names were Blueberry and Chestnut. I had my friend Thunderbolt here-" the pegasus off to the side nodded- "fly over and transport them to my city so they could see you were safe."

"Blueberry and Chestnut are here?" asked Celestia, looking relieved. "So they're all right?"

"Aside from being worried sick about you, they're fine," answered Starswirl. His smile slowly disappeared, and he looked grim. "Now, about your family..." Starswirl ascended a set of steps behind him, and Celestia followed. He walked over to a table, upon which sat a crystal ball.

"I've known about the Alicorn Empire for a long time," said Starswirl. As he spoke he raised his hoof and began rubbing the crystal ball. "They are among the most powerful creatures on earth. While I know little about their history, I have been keeping tabs on them for many years with this sphere, which enables me to see them at all times. Ever since the gargoyle attack however-" He stopped rubbing the crystal ball, and for a moment it glowed with blue light. Then the light vanished and was replaced with what looked like dark grey mist, swirling around inside the ball. Starswirl stared at it sadly, then looked up at Celestia.

"A great fog has fallen over your homeland," he explained. "I have no idea what it means, but I suspect some form of magic is blocking me from seeing the Alicorns. I have no way of knowing what happened."

"Is there nothing you can do?" cried Celestia desperately. Starswirl had been her only hope.

"I can keep you and your sister safe here," said Starswirl. "If the worst has happened, and you two are all that remain of the Alicorns, then it is imperative that you remain with me. I alone can protect you from those who would wish you harm. Also, there is always the possibility that the gargoyles will come here looking for you. I can hide you here, and train you."

"Train us?"

"Of course. You have a great destiny ahead of you. What you did that day in Discord's hideout, well, that's a level of magical potential never before seen in Equestria. We need you."

Celestia was confused. "What do you need me for?"

"This city you are currently in is a sanctuary from the chaos and tyranny that grips Equestria. You have already seen the climate of fear that Discord keeps his subjects in. Things are no better in the Crystal Empire to the north, or the Changeling Kingdom to the south. Only among us, the unicorns and the pegasi, is any kind of freedom and order maintained. But with you, we can change all that."

Celestia was beginning to see where this was all going, and she didn't like it one bit. "Now wait a minute," she said. "You aren't seriously telling me that I have to free all these ponies, do you? I'm just a filly!"

"But you're so much more than that!" interjected Starswirl. "With your latent magical abillty, I can train you to be more powerful than anypony in Equestria. You can bring peace and happiness back to this land!"

"All I want is to get my little sister home again! We were never meant to come here, and we just want to go home. I was hoping you would aid us, but if the price for your help is to conquer this land, then I'll find my own way!" Celestia then turned on her heel and walked back out the door, heading for her room.

"Tact was never one of your strong traits," Thunderbolt said, shaking his head at Starswirl once Celestia had left.

"Don't worry," Starswirl answered. "Give her some time to think, and she will change her mind." Thunderbolt walked out the door and wondered, not for the first time, whether Starswirl's age was beginning to affect his judgement. Starswirl watched Thunderbolt leave, and then sighed, returning to his books.

Author's Note

So, the season 4 premiere pretty much killed my head canon on the elements of harmony, but don't worry! I won't let this affect my story.

Chapter 10

Celestia walked slowly up the stairs back to her room, feeling both ashamed and angry. She knew she shouldn't have said what she did, but considering what she and Luna had been through in the past few days... Celestia sighed, and felt tears stinging her eyes. She wished she could just take Luna home now, but even after talking with Starswirl, she had no idea what she would find when she got there. Would anypony be left? Would her parents be alive? Or was Celestia just clinging to vain hopes?

As the princess walked through the door to her room, the first thing she noticed was that Luna was awake.

"Celestia!" cried Luna rushing forward and throwing her hooves around her sister's neck. "I thought you were never going to wake up! Why did you sleep so long?"

"I was just resting, Luna," Celestia answered, not knowing what else to say. Luna scampered around and stared at Celestia's flank. "Your cutie mark is so pretty!" she exclaimed. Celestia started. In all the excitement, she had almost forgotten it. She looked at it as well. It was large, as far as cutie marks go, a bright orange sun.

"A cutie mark of the sun," Celestia mused. "So is that my special talent? Just raising the sun?"

"JUST raising the sun?" a familiar voice said. "Don't sell yourself short, kid." Celestia whirled around. There, standing in the doorway, looking tired but happy, were Blueberry and Chestnut. Luna gave an exclamation of joy and rushed into Chestnut's hooves, who promptly started crying.

"Oh, you poor dears! After all you've been through and getting spirited away by that villain Discord, we were so worried about you! Blueberry and I rushed all over Equestria trying to find somepony to help us, thank heavens you're all right!"

"Easy there, darling," said Blueberry, patting his wife on the back. "Everyone's safe, and it looks like they haven't suffered any lasting damage. Have you?" he added, looking concernedly at Celestia.

"We're fine," said Celestia, smiling sadly. "Has Starswirl told you everything that happened?"

"Everything he knows, anyway," Blueberry answered. "Real smart pony, that Starswirl. I'm sure you'll be safe here with him protecting you."

"Thanks, but..." Celestia paused, not sure to tell her friends about Starswirl's offer. She decided to skip it. "We can't stay here. Starswirl wasn't able to answer my questions about whether it's safe to go home, so I need to find somepony who does."

"We understand, dear," said Chestnut, who was still holding Luna. "But if you need anything, Don't hesitate to ask. Starswirl has sent word to the unicorn enclaves about your exploits, so you'll be sure to find a helping hoof wherever you go."

Celestia smiled gratefully at the two earth ponies who had done so much for her and Luna, even to the point of risking their own lives...

...And who she was planning on abandoning to Discord's chaotic tyranny the second she discovered if it was safe to leave. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. After everything that happened, was she really going to just leave, condemning not just Blueberry and Chestnut, but everypony she had met, from the unicorns who were protecting her even now, to the pegasi who had flown her to safety when she was hurt? Leave them to live in constant fear of Discord for the rest of their lives? That had been her exact thought not twenty minutes ago. Thoroughly ashamed of herself, she turned to Chestnut.

"Please excuse me," she said. "I need to go talk to Starswirl again."

"I don't know if he's still here," said Chestnut. "Another meeting of World Leaders has been called in Ponyville. He may have left for it already. Of course, he might still be at the main gates, giving instructions-" Celestia ran to the window and flew outside, hoping to catch Starswirl before he left. After a few minutes of scanning, she spotted what she hoped was the main gates a little ways down the mountain, near a train station. She headed straight for it, and sure enough, she spotted Starswirl's trademark cloak and hat, speaking with some important-looking unicorns. She landed a bit awkwardly in her haste, stumbling. Starswirl turned in surprise, and sent the unicorns off to do their jobs.

"You need to work on your landings," Starswirl said with a smile as he helped Celestia to her feet.

"I needed to find you," Celestia said breathlessly. "I needed to say-" she paused, not sure of how to phrase it. "I'm sorry for what I said. I know I must have sounded awfully ungrateful after all you've done for me and my sister."

"Not at all," Starswirl said reassuringly. "It was unfair of me to lay such a burden at your feet so soon. I should have taken your feelings into consideration."

"I've changed my mind," said Celestia. "I would be eternally grateful if you and the unicorns of Canterlot would take me and Luna in, and of course I will do everything in my power to help you against Discord."

"There will be time for all that later," said Starswirl gently. "For now, rest. I have business in Ponyville, and when I return we will speak about your future. Until then, farewell, Princess Celestia." Starswirl turned and walked out the gate, getting on the train which immediately began rolling down the mountain. As Celestia watched the train leave, she heard a flutter of wings and Luna appeared next to her.

"Celestia?" Luna asked. "What happening? Are we staying here?"

The alicorn princess looked down at her younger sibling. "Yes, Luna," she answered. "We may be staying here for quite a while."

* * * * *

Several hours earlier...

Far away from Canterlot, on the east coast of Equestria, was the bustling city of Manehatten. One of the largest and grandest cities ever built by earth ponies, it was a hub of economic activity so essential to Equestrian life that even Discord had felt obliged to leave it be, for the most part. That did not stop him from having a base there, however.

To be specific, it was a large warehouse located on the waterfront. It was sparsely decorated, both inside and out, containing only necessary items for living in relative comfort. It was here that Discord and Tinkertoy had retreated with the Elements of Harmony. As Tinkertoy placed them in a small compartment hidden in the wall. Discord strode around briskly, humming to himself.

"Not a bad couple of fillies," he said. "A little moody, and of course prone to highly damaging solar explosions, but you have to take the bad with the good, don't you?" he looked over at Tinkertoy. "I think I should remove them from the damaging atmosphere of unicorn society, don't you think? Maybe bring them here, to inhale some of that lovely city smog?"

"Forget about them," said Tinkertoy. "For now at least. They have given me much to think about. Did you see the amount of power the white one controlled? I've never seen anything like it, even from you."

"So she moved the sun, big deal," said Discord, shrugging. "I can do that."

"You can only create chaos. You can make the sun and moon behave erratically, but you cannot establish the type of control exhibited by that alicorn, and remember that she's still a child! Imagine the power she will wield when she's an adult."

"You don't seriously think she will ever be a match for me, do you?" asked Discord incredulously.

"I think that if we play our cards right, those alicorns can remove our territorial rivals for us, and all we will need to do is sit back and watch. Now listen carefully, I have a job for you..."

"YOU have a job for ME? I swear Tinkertoy, sometimes I think you forget who wears the pants in our relationship."

"If you do as I say, someday you will have all of Equestria under your hoof. Not just earth ponies, but unicorns, pegasi, changelings, crystal ponies, everything! Nowhere will be free from your anarchy. Now, I want you to leave Equestria."

"Leave? But everypony will miss me! Who will puncture the dull monotony of their existence with wonderful displays of chaos?"

"It is a short term loss, for a long term gain. I need you to do what nopony has ever done before. I need you to find the homeland of these alicorns. Then, I need you to learn everything you can about them, so you can report it all to me."

"And while I'm doing this, what will you be doing?"

"I will be carefully setting up agents among all our enemies. With their help, I will make the political climate ripe for the ultimate chess game, and one by one I will knock our foes off their pedestals, so that you might take their place as rulers of all Equestria!" Tinkertoy turned to Discord. "I will watch over things her while you are gone. Just trust me."

"I am the all-powerful Spirit of Chaos. Anything I don't like, I dispose of. So of course I have no need of trust ." With a smile, Discord rose up into the air. "But a little change of scenery will do me good, I think. Farewell, Tinkie, ol' buddy! I'll send you a postcard from Alicornia!" Laughing loudly at his horrible joke, he turned and flew out the window, heading west. Once he was gone, Tinkertoy turned back to the compartment containing the Elements of Harmony.

"Oh, my dear Discord," he said softly, "if you knew what I had planned for you and all powerful magical creatures, your laughter would catch in your throat and turn to choking." With a chuckle, he shut the compartment, and locked it securely, placing the key on a chain around his neck. "Now, to see to the other pawns in my plan."

Author's Note

This is the last chapter of Book 1. There will be an epilogue, of course, to set things up for Book 2. I hope I am leaving you all suitably interested!

Epilogue

Nopony could remember the last time two meetings between the world powers had been called so quickly in succession, but it was happening right now. In Ponyville, Thrall, Starswirl, and Thunderbolt were already present and waiting for Sombra and Discord to arrive. Thunderbolt looked wary, Starswirl slightly amused. Thrall looked furious, but his bad mood was nothing compared to Sombra's when he entered the meeting room.

"Where is he?!!" Sombra snarled as he trotted in. "Where is that miserable pile of wretched pony droppings?! I want Discord in here now so I can rip his buck tooth right out of his stupid head!"

"While we're waiting for Discord to arrive," rumbled Thrall, throwing a look of pure loathing in Starswirl's direction, "perhaps our unicorn friend would be willing to tell us how he intends to explain away what transpired in Changeling territory earlier this week? I lost several dozen of my swarm to your fireworks, wizard."

"Your Changelings left their territory," spoke up Thunderbolt. "They attacked us, and we were merely defending ourselves." Thrall snorted and looked away, but Sombra was not going to be cut off so easily.

"Enough!" he roared. "Shut up, both of you! I demand we first discuss how to punish Discord's treachery! Now WHERE IS HE?!"

"Discord cannot be here today," said a voice. It was Tinkertoy. He walked in calmly and took his seat. "I am here on his behalf."

"No you don't!" shouted Sombra. "Discord doesn't get off that easy! Is he going to hide from me? Is he a coward?" As Sombra became more agitated, magic began to leak out his horn. As it hit the ground, large, dark crystals shot up, towering over the seated ponies.

"Calm yourself, Sombra," said Tinkertoy. "Discord did as you requested. He rounded up the unicorns and took them where they could not be a threat to you. If you wish to be angry with somepony, I suggest you be angry with those who moved the unicorns back, namely Starswirl, Thunderbolt, and their alicorn allies."

"Starswirl wouldn't have been able to save them if you had killed them like I wanted," growled Sombra. "Now unicorns are running all over Equestria again! If you don't round them up, then give me back the Elements of Harmony!"

"Sorry, but I require them for the time being," answered Tinkertoy. "If you wish to take them back by force, then by all means, attempt an invasion. It will be a welcome distraction from the daily drudgery of life to crush you and your Crystal Empire, won't it Thrall?" Sombra looked over at Thrall, and could see the hunger in his eyes at the thought of feasting on the crystal territory.

"So," Sombra said quietly, "that's it then? Starswirl and Thunderbolt protecting the unicorns, and Tinkertoy and Thrall looking for an excuse to take my kingdom from me?" He slowly backed out the door. "You'll all be sorry," Sombra hissed. "From this day forward, the Crystal Empires borders are closed! Nopony will be allowed in or out!" With those last words, Sombra turned and left, slamming the door behind him. After he was gone, the crystals he had created collapsed into dust.

"We pushed him to hard," said Tinkertoy sadly. "I had really hoped he would have been rash enough to attack."

"A pity," agreed Thrall. He turned to Starswirl. "I have had quite enough of this. We are getting nowhere." Thrall turned and strode out the door, muttering to himself. Tinkertoy, with a final smug glance thrown in Starswirl's direction, followed.

After they had left, Starswirl turned to Thunderbolt. "Well," he said, "that certainly could have gone worse."

"Could have gone a lot better, too," said Thunderbolt. "Sombra's getting unstable. I worry for the citizens of the Crystal Empire."

"So do I. I'm going to head back to Canterlot and start Celestia and Luna's training."

"Training?"

"That's right. They'll need to be trained if they're going to rule over Equestria one day."

"Oh, of cour- wait rule over Equestria?!" Thunderbolt stared in shock as Starswirl turned and walked out. "Starswirl, have you lost your mind? Starswirl, get back here!"

To Be Continued In Book 2

Author's Note

And that's my story! Book 1 anyway. I hope you all enjoyed, and don't worry, I'll be working on Book 2 as soon as possible.