In the Age of Ancients,
The world was unformed, shrouded by fog
A land of grey crags, archtrees, and everlasting dragons

But then there was Fire
And with Fire came Disparity. Heat and cold, life and death, and of course...Light and Dark.

Then, from the Dark, They came
And found the Souls of Lords within the flame.

Neighto, the first of the dead
The Witch of Izalith, and her daughters of chaos
Gwyn, the Lady of Sunlight, and her faithful knights
And the furtive pony, so easily forgotten

With the Strength of Lords, they challenged the dragons.

Gwyn's mighty bolts peeled apart their stone scales
The witches weaved great firestorms
Neighto unleashed a miasma of death and disease

And Seath the Scaleless betrayed his own, and the dragons were no more
Thus began the Age of Fire

But soon, the flames will fade, and only Dark will remain

Even now, there are only embers, and ponies sees not light, but only endless nights
And amongst the living are seen, carriers of the accursed Darksign.

Scarlet Shine, apprentice sorcerer at the Vinhaym Dragon School, knows little of this. As fluctuating as the very nature of the academy is, it's relatively safe behind its walls -at least, safer than outside, where the Hollows roam and all manner of beasts prey on the weak in the growing dark. There an aspiring unicorn can learn magic and advance research into the arcane, proudly wearing the cloak and tunic that marks them as sorcerers of the Dragon School. Her worries are confined to her studies, until it appears: the symbol of the curse.

The Darksign.