Prologue
“We knew the world would not be the same… Some ponies laughed, others cried… most were silent…”
The pony on the film screen said. The film screen was in a large classroom, filled with dozens of unicorns. In the front row was a lavender alicorn taking notes. It was none other than Princess Twilight Sparkle, the most recently crowned Princess of Equestria and recently titled Princess of Friendship.
**“... I am become Death… The Destroyer of Worlds… I suppose we all felt that one way or another…”* The pony concluded as a new sound overtook the theater, the sound of buildings colliding with something huge. Through the dust that obscured the screen a claw moved. Twilight noticed this and stopped taking notes to pay attention to what came next as the shadow slowly moved around to show the spines which had a roof come down on them. Then came time to show a shadow covered head which was then followed by a loud, mighty, and majestic roar.*
Twilight Sparkle awoke with a jolt, her fur stained with sweat, and gasping heavily. She looked around to see she was in her new bedroom, her new castle. She was safe.
“What was that?” Twilight wondered aloud, thinking back to her nightmare. She could only remember bits and pieces of it. She knew one thing, it felt real. Realer than any nightmare she had had in her life. Looking out her window to see the sun had already risen she decided to get up and start the day.
“Come on Spike, time to get up.” Twilight said as she levitated the young drake out of his bed.
“Come ooooon Twilight. Five more minutes?” Spike pleaded as Twilight just chuckled.
“Alright, but just five more. We need to get an early start today, Celestia called a meeting for today remember?” Twilight reminded him which caused Spike to shrug his shoulders and go back to sleep in his bed. Twilight rolled her eyes and smiled as she walked out to the balcony of her castle and just stared across the horizon as the town she was overlooking came into view of the sun. It was one of those towns that don’t appear like anything strange would happen. But if you lived in it long enough eventually a new arrival would realize something was off.
“Sister, did you… feel that?” Luna asked as she exited her bedroom chambers and met with Celestia in the hallway to the dining room.
“I did… Do you have any idea what it means?” The solar alicorn asked, only to receive a head shake of no in response.
“Neither do I.” Celestia said as she entered the dining room and took her usual seat.
“Something is coming Celestia, you and I both know that much.” Luna said, her voice low so as not to spook the servants.
“I know Luna and that’s what worries me. I have a feeling that whatever is coming, it will be unlike anything we have faced before.” The ivory coated alicorn said as her sister looked out a nearby window.
“Given what we have faced in the past…” Luna started as she gazed out at the landscape that was still scarred due to Twilight’s battle with Tirek.“It cannot be worse than what we have already faced.”
“Oh Luna… if only that were true my dear sister. But I fear not even Twilight may be able to stop this new threat.” Celestia said with a sad sigh. Celestia turned to pear over a delivery that had just been sat at the table by one of her servants. It was a simple brown box, which Celestia began to open, revealing several documents, a blank envelope and a letter addressed to her. It had apparently come all the way from Neighpon.
"Curious, what could it be? Chrysalis trying to get you to another one of those summer festivals?" Luna asked as she saw her sister's white coat go a shade whiter, if that was possible, as she looked inside the blank envelope after reading the letter.
"Luna... We well be changing the nature of the meeting today." Celestia said, her voice firm though her expression showed her true feelings and they were fear.
"Why is that? What's wrong?" Luna asked as Celestia got up, taking the package with her.
"You'll find out at the meeting." Celestia said as she left the dining hall in a hurry.
Princess Twilight Sparkle disembarked from the train, Spike in tow, as they headed for Canterlot Castle. Celestia had sent a message, informing Twilight to head to the castle as soon as possible. The trip was short, the duo having been flown there by Pegasus Guards via chariot, and in no time Twilight was sitting in a boardroom where Celestia and Luna waited for her as Spike toddled off to Pony Joe's for some donuts.
“What was so urgent Celestia?” Twilight asked as she sat down at the table.
“I’m sorry, but we’ll have to wait for Cadence as well. She should be here any moment.” The Princess of The Sun said as not more than a few seconds later, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza walked through the door.
“Alright, now that we’re all here we can begin.” Celestia said, using her magic to turn the lights off and to wheel a film projector into place. The projector displayed a slide, which caused Twilight’s, as well as Cadence’s and Luna’s to widen.
“This photograph, along with several documents of study on the subject shown, were sent to me by Dr. Hayate Serizawa from Neighpon.” Celestia said as the other princesses present tried to fathom what they were looking at.
At first glance it appeared that a very spikey island was breaching the water, but they knew it could not be that.
“Sister… What are we looking at exactly?” Luna asked, being very familiar with all native animal and sapient species of the known world and what was shown in the photograph did not come close to being anything she knew of.
“That’s just it, we don’t know. It was sighted off the coast of Neighpon by a boat full of Changeling sailors exactly two days ago and hasn’t been seen since.” Celestia said as she turned off the projector and brought the lights back up.
“Dr. Serizawa provided theories and potential animal species in his notes, but it’s all very vague.” Celestia said as she passed copies of the doctor’s notes around to everypony.
“ At this point we know only two things: the photograph has not been altered or falsified in any manner and whatever it is, it’s very large.” Celestia finished as she sat down on a nearby chair. All three alicorns looked at the notes and pictures still trying to comprehend the size of the beast. Twilight was the one who asked the one question that was on everypony’s mind at that moment.
“Is it… is it dangerous?”
