When an odd meteor pierced through Canterlot and tumbled into the heart of Ponyville, Princess Twilight Sparkle rushed to aid her subjects. However, something about that meteor changed her. Not soon after, Twilight began to turn the once peaceful land of Equestria into a chaotic battlefield. The war that followed her corruption was long, brutal, and unrelenting. That was many years ago. Nowadays, Craterhold is a vile place, filled with ponies living on the merest of scraps. What's worse, Queen Twilight Sparkle has let Equestria fall into disarray. The Changelings? The yaks? Exterminated. Griffons? Dragons? Hiding. Everyone else either learned to keep their mouths shut and eyes down, or were sent to work as part of the Twilight Guard. With the queen's entourage of warriors, the chaotic outer cities, and the Everfree forest claiming anything in their wake and leaving nothing behind, Gradient Swirl finds it hard to find the bright side in all of this. That is, until she hears about an uprising, a far off group known as the Republic of the Butterfly, and a rumor concerning the Elements of Harmony...