Equestrian Lore: Ancient Lands

        Once upon a time, there was an earth pony who lived in a small old town in a great desert. This stallion loved to raise crops to sell, in fact he was the best at what he did. It was even said he could reap a strong harvest even in the worst of droughts.

His orchard was the best and most beautiful in the land, and creatures of all different kinds traveled to buy from his orchard. He made huge profits for doing what he loved; watching all his saplings grow into beautiful trees.

One day, a mysterious cowled mare appeared on his doorstep, holding a vase of peculiar design ,she spoke to the farmer and said, “Oh deary, could you help grow this poor sapling into a large tree for me, please? I can't seem to grow it, but I'm sure somepony with your skills could grow it no time. I'll be back for it soon."[/url] The farmer laughed and accepted the strange request.

The next day, he went out to water his orchard. He left the little sapling for last, but gave it plenty of water. The following days brought him as a dismal surprise, as he saw his emerging seedlings wilt and rot. All of them - except for the little sapling. However, the real shock came when the sapling didn't die from the drought that the rest of his once proud orchard. It was almost like it wasn't affected by the heat...

He tested its endurance by not watering it for a week. The plant survived this maltreatment as well!

After a while, the mysterious mare came wobbling her way to him once more, and said I see even you couldn't make this plant grow. This is sure a mysterious plant  indeed! I'll just have to kill…

The terrified farmer cut her off and asked her for another two weeks to make the plant grow. He promised her that he would have a full grown tree when she returned again. The old lady looked at him, turned, and wobbled away without a word.

Time passed, and there were only three days till his deadline had expired. The farmer’s beautiful orchard lay fallow, his sales had dropped, and he was burning through his savings like a brown rot in an apple orchard. He was driving himself nuts after trying every logical method known to pony kind of making a plant grow.

As nothing else was working, he slit open a vein in his forehoof and poured blood onto the sapling. Amazingly, his drastic attempt worked, and the sapling grew in size with every drop. After a little while, the sapling became a tree. However, it wasn't any ordinary tree. This tree pulsed as though it were a living creature…

The farmer, full of shock and amazement continued this process. The more he gave his blood, the happier he felt, not even noticing for a second that his life was slowly draining away.

Soon after, the tree became very lush and as tall as the clock tower of the town, but the poor farmer was on the ground, completely drained of his blood. "I want to give this tree more blood…"

As the farmer lay in the puddle of his mingled tears and blood, a darkness came over his eyes, and a beautiful tree, one he had never laid eyes on before, appeared to him. It spoke to him saying You tried so hard making this tree grow for everypony to see its beauty, but now you're about to die leaving if to whither. I could make your dream come true if you give yourself to me. The greater your sacrifice, the more you'll be given.

The dying earth pony happily sacrificed his own body. In turn, he became one with the tree which had made him so happy, but became angry to find himself as ugly as ever, and his thirst for blood was strong. He drained all the inhabitants of the town and grew bigger still, enveloping every building in the town.

From that beginning, the phenomenon known as “Galacon” grows to this very day.

Though mansions and fortresses might block its way, nothing stops this force of nature. The devastation far exceeds the farmer’s town, and now affects an area the size of a great empire.

How long will it take to swallow the land of Equestria you ask? You don't want to be the unlucky pony to be alive when it comes for this land.

Galacon’s destructive progress cannot be halted, and should it approach your town, abandon all and flee…