Prologue
Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there existed three races of ponies, each with their own special characteristics. There were the earth ponies, who had a deep connection with—what else—the Earth! They had special gifts for raising crops, connecting with animals, and had the raw strength to build do almost anything imaginable.
The pegasi were ponies with angel-like wings attached to their backs. This gift allowed them to soar through the Equestrian skies, and see the world in a whole new way. This connection with the sky also allowed them to interact with various types of weather such as clouds; thus, this race was the one in charge of Equestria's weather patterns.
Finally, the unicorns were graced with pointed horns on their heads that they could channel magic through. Each unicorn in one way or another had a special magic that only they could do. This made each unique, but each member of their race could also do a range of simple spells, such as levitating objects. The unicorns were responsible for the raising of the sun and the moon each and every day. Even though it was a very difficult spell to cast, the large amount of unicorns eased the pain and stress caused by the spell itself. Each of tribes kept harmony throughout the land by each playing their part in the operation of the world.
However, for a long time philosophers wondered if there were such ponies that had the abilities of all three of the pony races, who had untouchable power and could raise the sun and the moon with a single wave of their horn. No evidence of these rumored ponies surfaced as the years went on. These ponies were given the name “alicorns,” since the creatures presumably possessed larger unicorn horns, along with earth pony strength and the wings of a pegasus. While these tales were popular, the world of Equestria moved on from them and has prospered since the time of the tales formation. Cities and town were abundant. Advances in technology were made, and the stories were now no more than a fairy tale. What if I told you that these mysterious beings, these alicorns, were in truth real?
When the first ponies started to inhabit the planet, there were a select few of them who were special. They were indeed alicorns, who were the ones in charge of everything in the land. Each corner was ruled by an alicorn couple, but the main and the most important rulers were simply known as Sun and Moon. The names may be very basic, but that was what ponies called them, and that's what they really wanted to call them. This was because—well, you guessed it—these two creatures were responsible for the raising of the sun and moon.
Now, you are probably asking yourselves, “How can only two alicorns can raise the sun and the moon while it took the entire unicorn species to such a deed?” Well, it's a very simple, straightforward answer: that was their special, unique magic that only they could do. At this time, no other ponies knew how to move these celestial bodies. So, Sun and Moon were the only ones that do this job, and thus they kept the world in balance. There were special alicorns that only knew how to control the weather as well, and along with those who only knew how to connect with nature. Thus, these alicorns were responsible for the jobs that the three pony races took on later in time. But everything did not work out for the alicorns.
After the 100 years of the peaceful rule of the alicorns, the other pony races had had enough! They hated that they couldn't do what their alicorn kings and queens could do; the ponies felt inferior because they had no purpose in life except to provide raw labor and serve the alicorns, since the alicorns did everything else. The other creatures of the land, such as the dragons and griffins, insulted the pony races, since they were not needed to keep the world in balance. Thus, the three races decided to start a rebellion against their alicorn rulers. They formed armies in secret for many months, and on one night, they attacked! The armies stormed the castles of their rulers, and they were out for blood. The kings and queens of the castles used their power to send the other few alicorns in their kingdoms to Sun and Moon's castle in the sky where they would be safe from the rebels. Once this was done, the kings and queens gave themselves up the armies, and were killed by their adversaries.
At the Sun and the Moon’s castle, when the other alicorns heard about their kings and queens’ deaths, they mourned for their comrades. However, the room was quiet once Sun and Moon entered the room with their advisor Philomena the Phoenix flying over their heads. The sadness in the room turned to great joy once they saw the two baby alicorn fillies being hold by Sun's huge angel-like wings. The bigger one had a pure white coat and pink mane that flowed continuously. The smaller was a dark purple like her father, and had a short blue mane. The children then were announced to all as Celestia and Luna. The alicorns celebrated the birth of the new princesses and started to dance about, yet this cheery time was broken by the sound of an explosion on the bottom floor of the castle. Sun and Moon sighed, and they began to spoke. They told their subjects that in order for the alicorn race to live on, they all must leave this realm. The group was shocked and saddened by this statement because they all loved Equestria so much, and the thought of leaving just destroyed them inside. However, they all knew it was for the best. So, Sun gave her children to a loyal subject known as Harmony Seed so she could take care of and raise them until they were old enough to rule. She nodded to her queen as tears streamed down her face, and the two young babies cried once they were put in the tan mare's hooves. Seed, noticing this, started to hum a lullaby only alicorns knew. This calmed Celestia and Luna down, and they fell asleep. Moon and Sun put their horns together, which created a gleaming white light. While doing this Sun whispered something in Philomena's ear before the Phoenix flew to the group of 100 alicorns. Their eyes turned white as a magical field surrounded the group. In a flash, they disappeared.
Moon and Sun flew outside their castle, ready to face the army. They, like the others, surrendered themselves to the army. After this, the three tribes gathered the captured alicorns in a volcano, where they were lowered slowly into the lava. Tears streamed down Sun and Moon’s faces their face as they were lowered. There last words before leaving this world were this:
"Please stay safe. May no harm come to our race. We..love....you..."
In seconds, the god-like alicorns were gone, burned. No trace of them was left. The three tribes celebrated for weeks on end, celebrating their victory over them. Since there was no government now, the ponies elected members of their kind to be in a council known as the Tri-Council of Peace. They elected new kings and queens to rule over the cities to be built. The council as decreed that from this point on that, their past 100 years of history had never happened, and that it should be treated as old mare’s tales. Thus the three tribes took on the roles in which they have now, and the alicorns became nothing more than myth. The question now is, where did the group of alicorns go?
Ch.1 Beautiful Beginnings
Ch.1 Beautiful Beginnings
After Sun and Moon had cast their transportation spell, the skies above the castle flashed bright yellow for only a moment. None of the armies took notice to this, as their attention was on the two beings facing them. However, there was something big happening in the air.
Above the skies of Equestria laid a realm only known as the "Celestial Kingdom." Nopony knows who was responsible for constructing this humongous space; despite this, they do know that it existed as a place where ponies could go if any dangerous threats arose, which was precisely why Sun and Moon sent the alicorns there.
The unconscious group of about one hundred laid on the soft cloud ground. The first one to come to was Philomena, who, after awakening, was in awe of the majestic lands: mountains, fields, rivers, forests, deserts—everything in nature that was in Equestria was here, but better. There were completely clear skies, fields with plentiful crops, and an abundance of animals made of clouds, created by the realm's magic.
"Wow! This...place...is the holy land! I must wake up the others!" Philomena exclaimed. The bird squawked loudly. "Wake up, everyone!"
One by one, the group awakened from their sleep, and once the ponies opened their eyes, they were as amazed as Philomena. All except Harmony Seed took to the air and flew around with smiles on their faces. They all began to relish in everything the land had to offer.
Philomena flew down to the remaining tan alicorn. She used her wings to open the blankets that were wrapped around the sleeping princesses. They were sound asleep, smiles on their faces.
"Oh, I'm so glad they’re all right. Harmony Seed, you must carry out Sun and Moon's final request," Philomena whispered.
The mare nodded to the phoenix, who nodded back. The colorful bird then flew into the air to the other alicorns were and gathered them all in the center of the kingdom where there was no sight of nature. Once they all landed, it started to glow a bright gold. The group was shocked by this, and was about to panic when Philomena said to them, "Everyone, do not be afraid. This is a realm where no harm can come to us. Now, watch as our new home is built right before our eyes!"
The group watched as homes, shops, a square, and finally a huge palace were created of crystals and clouds. The city was very uniform in its design. It was in the shape of the sun with the Palace at its center and the square around it, and the rest of the building were spread out around the square evenly. There were enough homes for every alicorn, plus hundreds more! The group was in awe in how quickly their new home was being built! Some of them bowed to pray to the creator of this place, and thank him. The younger children started to run around the newly formed park in the center of the kingdom.
Philomena and Harmony Seed walked into the gigantic castle. It was definitely a sight to behold! The walls were a pure white crystal with tapestries of yellow and dark purple hanging from the ceiling. In the foyer, there was a huge spiral staircase that went up to the sixth floor of the palace. The floor had a mural of the yin-yang with the sun and the moon as the dots. The final thing of note were the suits of armor that were lined up at every corridor.
"This is where these little ones are meant to be. Is that not obvious, Philomena?" Harmony Seed commented.
"Indeed. These two have the gift. Celestia, Luna, you shall rule and take care of the alicorn species just as your parents always wanted you too. Now, we must put these two to bed."
Harmony nodded, and she started to walk to the stairs when suddenly she heard a rustling. She turned to see that one of the suits that was next to the stairs was gone. The pony then turned back to face the stairs to see the suit right in front of her! Harmony Seed let out a loud scream, and the suit stuck out his hoof.
"Please, madam! Don't be frightened! I am Hawkwood, one of the royal guards created to protect the princesses and the entire Celestial Kingdom," said Hawkwood. The suit then walked a bit closer to see the two alicorn children sleeping peacefully. He let out a huge sigh of relief. "May I show you their rooms madam?" he asked.
Harmony Seed didn't respond for a minute, apprehensive about giving over the fillies to something she just met. Philomena landed on her head and gave her a reassuring nod. After a deep breath, she levitated the children over to the guard, who used his magic to levitate them. The children were still sleeping even though they were being held by the guards grey magic.
"Please, be careful with them. Our livelihood rests on their shoulders." Philomena said.
The guard replied, "Do not worry. I swear that nothing will harm these fillies. Now, let my associates show you around. Thrustforth, Guardamus, wake up! We have guests!"
Suddenly, two more statues, one silver and one bronze, started shake as they glowed a bright white. The two rushed to the sides of the visitors.
"Hello, esteemed guests! Let us show you around!" the two said in unison.
So, the two suits showed the two around. They saw all the rooms the castle had to offer, like the library, kitchen, dining room. bedrooms, and most importantly, the throne room with two thrones that were presumably for the two alicorn fillies once they were older. After the tour, Philomena flew outside and let out a loud squawk, telling the alicorns to report to the castle. The Phoenix led a meeting to set up the interim government until Celestia and Luna could rule. The group ended up selecting three adults to manage the kingdom: Rain Shadow, Melody Meadow, and Comet Harp. These ponies were elected because they each represented a job alicorns did in Equestria: weather control, command of nature, and movement of the stars and planets. The sun and moon raised and lowered themselves in this realm, though, so Harp just controlled the stars in the sky.
During the next twenty-one years, the kingdom was established. The alicorns lived out their lives in peace completely unaware of the activities of Equestria below. The twenty-second year was the first official year of Celestia and Luna's rule. The two sisters were pronounced rulers in an ancient ceremony where they were blessed with moving manes like their parents, symbolizing their right to the throne. The sisters then took over the duties of raising the sun and moon; thus, the Celestial Kingdom prospered under the sisters' rule. Celestia took the title as Queen since she was the eldest, and Luna took the title of "The Night Mare".
However, in the eighty-fifth year, a great loss occurred. Harmony Seed, the pony who took care of the royal sisters, passed on. A grand funeral was held on the top of the hill in the middle of the Forest of Lights. The group mourned for the loss, but unknown to most of the alicorns, the night before she died, she requested something of the ruling sisters.
"Please...take care of my child. I want...what is best for her. Keep her safe, just as your parents...did for...you."
Celestia and Luna kept that request. They took in Harmony Seed's daughter as their own child. Since she was only one year old at the time of her mother's death, the filly did not remember her mother at all. The child's name was Cadence. The alicorn was a light pink, with streaks of hot pink, purple, and cream in her mane. She had a necklace that her mother had gave her at birth, and she wore it proudly.
Celestia grew very attached to Cadence. The queen taught her everything she needed to know. Thus, the girl became very much like Celestia: a kind and loving mare who always would be there for others before herself. But perhaps Celestia became too attached to the child. Her sister Luna noticed this as Cadence grew older. The young alicorn was a very curious. She asked many important questions, some of which included:
"Why are all the ponies in our kingdom are alicorns?"
"Why does nothing bad ever happen here?"
"Where is this Equestria that our books always mention?"
"Are there ponies with just a horn, just wings, or have none of those two things?"
Naturally, Celestia avoided answering these questions, and told Cadence, "The time will come when you will learn these things, but you're not ready yet. Be patient."
Now, you may be wondering what happened in Equestria while this kingdom was growing in secret. Well, allow me to enlighten you: time in the Celestial Kingdom was ten times slower than it was in the main world of Equestria. So while it was year 85 in their realm, in Equestria it was the 850th year. The alicorns were unaware of what occurred below, but this didn't stop some from wondering what had happening down there...
It was now the one hundredth year since the alicorns had arrived in the Celestial Kingdom. It had been 100 years of peace, and to celebrate this the sisters hosted a festival known as the "Festival of Pure Lights." This was because they planned to have magical fireworks at the end of the festival, and lanterns of all different colors of light filled up the streets. The two sisters were checking to make sure everything was prepared for the festivities. Luna was helping with the decorating, while Celestia was planning the events. The alicorn was sitting on her throne looking over a checklist.
"Ah, everything is looking so splendid. Wouldn't you agree, Cadence?" she said.
However, she turned her head to see that the pink alicorn was gone. Celestia sighed, and then used her magic to ring a bell. Suddenly, Philomena came rushing in the room, and landed before Celestia.
"Yes, your highness?" the bird asked.
"Cadence is missing again. Would you mind finding her and please bring her back here as soon as possible?"
"Of course, Queen Celestia."
"Good. Oh, Philomena, please bring her to Luna. My sister could use the help with the decorating the city, I'm sure. "
The bird rushed out of the castle, and started heading out of the city. Celestia used her magic to levitate a small painting that was hanging on the wall to the left of her. It was of Cadence as a young filly playing with her friends in the town square.
Cadence, Celestia thought, I hope you aren't where I think you are.
