Below the mountain upon which Zephyr Heights was built, a young pegasus mare was making her way out, trying to create some distance from the big city life. The orange colored mare was saddled with two very full saddlebags, and a pack draped over her back. She was excited to get out and get camping, as it was a great way for her to relax her mind, and forget about the struggles of life. Her white dipped hooves almost danced, such was her excitement, though with all the weight she could not actually dance. She didn’t mind though. It’d be a couple hours of hiking, to get to a grassy area where she could set up her tent and start a warm fire.

That was probably her favorite part. Starting the campfire. Something about watching it crackle as it burned soothed her greatly. She dreaded having to put the tent up, simply because it had to be done before getting the fire going. And she REALLY wanted to get the fire going. She did have treats in her bag just for roasting over the fire, but that was minor compared to the blaze itself.

She hiked and hiked, and finally, she reached grass. Now it was just a matter of finding a good spot. She’d likely stay out here for the next three days, as that’s what her supplies would allow, then she’d hike back. But for now, the fresh air, none of the bright, flashy screens of the city, and the beautiful, starry nights was something she yearned for. And maybe, just maybe, it’d give her that mental break from her job.

There was a spot right next to a hill, and she decided that would be perfect. Heading over to it, she shrugged off her saddlebags and pack, and stretched her wings for a moment, happy to be rid of the weight. Her yellow eyes glanced at the packs, and she started digging for her equipment.

She found the stakes, the rope, and the tent itself, and pulled them out. She could just use her hoof to put in the stakes. She’d done it many times before. She stretched the tent out on the ground and fed the rope through it, readying it for the stakes that she would soon place. Brushing some of red mane from her eyes, she set to work.

The first stake went in without issue. Same with the second and third, putting them in across from each other as best she could. She looked over at where her campfire would be, looking longingly at the spot as she wished it were there now. With a sigh, she lifted the final stake, and readied it.

She started pounding the stake into the ground with her hoof just like the others, but after a moment, it stopped. She stared for a moment, thinking she might not be putting in enough force, and tried to put more force into it. However, that didn’t seem to help at all. Confused, she pulled the stake back out, and pawed at the dirt with her hooves, hoping to dig up whatever was stopping her stake.

After a few moments of digging around, she found the culprit. A shard. Something hard. Likely some sort of piece from another camper or wanderer from a while back. She didn’t think much of it, and set it to the side.

She placed her stake again, and pounded it into the ground, this time it went in a lot more smoothly than it had before. Satisfied, she turned, ready to start making a campfire.

There wasn’t much to speak of in the way of wood, but she did find some, and brought it to her site. Carefully, she pawed at the dirt with a hoof, making a circular indent in the ground, and placed the firewood there.

One thing she did not like to do was trying to start the fire without a lighter. One of the nicer things about technology. She didn’t have to gruel and rub a stick on stones or any of that other nonsense. With a flick, she had a tiny flame. She’d packed some easily flammable material that would catch easy, and get the wood burning.

Now she could be content. With the fire started, and the sky starting to darken, she smiled. Finally away from all the problems she had on a daily basis, she would, and fully intended to, forget about all of her troubles and get to enjoying some nice campfire treats. However, as she was pulling out her goodies, the shard from earlier glinted in the light out of the corner of her eye, catching her attention. Curious, she turned her focus to it.

She couldn’t see what it was all that well, when she picked it up. It didn’t look like much. It was a dirty piece of metal, most likely bronze by the appearance. It almost appeared to have some etching or writing on it, which made her curious.

She decided that in order to get a better view, she had to clean it off. She wiped it off with a hoof, and as she did so, got an odd tingling sensation. She stopped at this, and stared at the object curiously. She briefly wondered to herself if this was something older, and wondered if it would make any money if she were to try and auction it to a collector. There were places she could do that online easily. Frowning, she rubbed the shard more, hoping to get a clearer picture of what exactly she was looking at.

The tingling sensation returned, but she ignored it, not thinking much of it. Until it grew more intense, then the shard started glowing. She decided she should stop, but she didn’t stop fast enough, as the glow became brighter almost instantaneously, and there was a blinding flash, suddenly making her gasp and yelp. She heard a weird popping noise as her eyes shut tight, and suddenly, she blacked out, feeling dizzy as she did so.

When the pegasus awoke, she definitely was not at a campsite. She picked herself up and blinked a few times, thinking her eyes were playing tricks on her, but when they focused more, she could see that around her were what appeared to be ruins of some sort. Further looking around, she could see old, deteriorated banners, crumbled walls, and she noticed that underneath her was not soft grass, but cold, hard stone. “What the…” she questioned, looking around. Several cobwebs lined the place in several spots, and there were hallways with suits of armor, unlike anything she had seen before. “What is this place? Am I dreaming?” She poked herself. “Definitely not dreaming… but what…? I’ve never seen any place like this. Is somepony around?” She called, confused. The ruins echoed her voice, but she didn’t seem to get a response. She let out a sigh. “How in the world? Was I foalnapped? I’m not even a foal! Who would be messing with me?”

“How did you get here?” a male voice asked, echoing in the dilapidated halls.

The mare jumped upon hearing the voice, not having seen anyone around. “W-what???” she questioned, becoming terrified. “Who’s there!? What do you want with me?!?”

After a few moments light seemed to bleed away from where it streamed in from the sun outside and collected into a vaguely pony shaped form… a pony with bat-like wings and cat-like eyes flickered into existence, wearing dark violet armor. A golden shackle glinted about his left foreleg. If one looked, it was possible to look through him. “My name is Shadow Sentry… I guard these ruins and guide lost ponies out of the forest.”

“EEP!” the mare shrieked, backpedaling. “A ghost?! They’re real?!?”

“Yes.” Shadow replied. “I lost my life many, many, many countless moons ago. I failed at my duty in life, so I hope to fulfill it in death. To protect others. Are you lost..?”

Upon seeing no hostility, she steeled herself, though still very wary. “I-I don’t know. I just… I was camping and… now I’m here… and… why am I talking to a ghost?” she stammered.

“I’m not sure.” Shadow Sentry admitted. “I saw the flash of light, but unfortunately with no body, I’m not capable of properly sensing a lot of the magical environment around me. Despite ponies being quite magical creatures in life, in death our magical abilities are quite limited. I was hoping you might know more about what that was.”

“Magic?” the mare questioned. “That’s something I’ve never experienced… I was just… I found this… thing…” she looked around, wondering if it was nearby. She found it near where she awoke, and picked it up. “It’s… not glowing any more.”

The spectral bat pony approached and leaned in for a closer look. “It looks old, even by my standards… I’d suggest perhaps something from the early pre-Equestrian days… But it definitely appears to be pony made. That inscription looks like Old Ponish.”

“Old ponish…?” The mare questioned, having almost forgotten that her company was but a spirit. “Pre-Equestrian days? What do you mean?”

At this, Shadow Sentry gave the mare a confused look. “Well… The Kingdom of Equestria has stood for around two thousand years now… you currently stand in its former castle, known as the Castle of the Two Sisters… the site of my failure to Princess Luna.”

“Princess… Luna?” the mare said, now even more confused. “What about Queen Haven?”

“I am afraid I know not of any Queen by that name.” Shadow admitted, his ears folding back. “It is possible that whatever this artifact is may have transported you far from home. I don’t leave these woods often, so I’m very out of touch with the rest of the world.”

“Transported me? How could that happen?” the mare almost demanded. “Where even is this castle?”

“Near the heart of the Everfree Forest, south of Ponyville.” Shadow replied. “I can guide you there, if you wish. It would be dangerous to wander these woods alone and with no sense of direction.”

“I… don’t recognize any of those names.” The mare deadpanned. “Am I even on the same continent?”

“I wouldn’t know.” Shadow admitted. “I was born and raised, lived, and perished in Equestria, it’s all I’ve ever known.”

“I guess… getting out of here… would be a good idea.” She finally said with a sigh. “No offense, but finding somepony alive might help. Somepony who knows wherever the heck here is.”

“The living generally prefer the company of the living. I am not offended.” Shadow said before moving towards one of the halls leading off from the room they were in. “Follow me, I will show you the way.”

“I can’t believe I’m following a ghost.” the mare muttered. “This has to be a dream.”

“It’s no dream.” he replied as he looked back. “What’s your name? I’ve given you mine.”

“Errr… Sky… Set. Skyset.” she said, unsurely at first.

“Pretty name for a young pegasus. I like it.” he said as he turned a corner. The ended up in a long hall with a set of stairs leading up at one end and a door to the other.

“But… aren’t you a pegasus?” She questioned. “Kinda weird looking for a pegasus, now that I bring that up, but still.”

“No.” He replied. “I’m a chiro pony. Although many call us bat ponies.” he replied, looking curiously to the mare. “...my kind aren’t familiar to you?”

“Cheeriyo pony?” the mare questioned. “Nope. Never heard of a pony named after cereal.”

“You uh… added a few sounds in there.” he noted. He walked up to and phased through the large door. He poked his head back through after a moment. “You might have to push this a bit.” he noted before disappearing through it again.

The mare sighed and walked up to the door, doing exactly that. It creaked loudly, and she winced as her ears splayed against her head. “So I don’t get it.” she called after a moment. “Why was this place abandoned and left to get like this?”

“It’s a long story…” Shadow Sentry said, looking back as he continued to walk towards a bridge over a chasm. “Long ago, Princess Luna had a bit of a… she did something terrible… it turned her into a monster. Her older sister was forced to engage her in battle. Things are better now… but I suspect that between this being a somewhat remote and dangerous region and the heartache this castle likely brings Princess Celestia, she likely didn’t want to stay here anymore. They’d had a new castle in the works before the fight and they now both reside there.”

“Huh.” Skyset said. “Talk about a family feud…”

“That was the night I lost my life. A part of the castle had collapsed atop me.” Shadow admitted. “I was Princess Luna’s guard… I should’ve seen the warning signs. I should’ve talked to her… stopped her… something. I realize there’s likely little I could’ve done, but there is always that part of me that wonders how things could have been different.”

“What a way to go…” the mare winced. “Musta hurt.”

“Broke probably every bone in my body. I lived for maybe a couple of hours afterwards.” he said. “But… let’s not dwell on that.” he noted as he reached the bridge. “You might want to fly over, I’m not one for rickety bridges myself. Not that it really matters for me.” he noted, walking across. The bridge didn’t react in the slightest to his presence, as if he were weightless.

“Err… I… can’t fly.” the mare said weakly. “Wait, nopony can fly! Why would you even suggest that?!” She demanded.

“I… beg your pardon?” he asked in confusion. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to offend. I hadn’t realized you were disabled.” he said sheepishly.

“D-disabled?!?” the mare questioned. “The unicorns and earth ponies stole our magic! We haven’t been able to fly for literally years! Everypony knows only the royal family has the power of flight.”

“When a winged pony can’t fly, that’s generally considered a disability. Usually a tragedy.” Shadow Sentry admitted. “It would be like a unicorn who couldn’t cast spells… I daresay, perhaps worse. I assure you Earth Ponies and Unicorns have done no such thing.”

Skyset blinked. “W-well of course they did! They have magic and we don’t! Where else would it have gone!?”

“If that is what you believe, you will get quite the shock when we arrive in Ponyville.” Shadow Sentry replied simply.

“Is that where we’re going?” she questioned once she was across the bridge. “Tell me! What’s so special about this place?”

“It’s the nearest major settlement, and the home of Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Shadow replied. “You’ll see the pegasi who live there certainly have their magic.”

“What?!?” Skyset exclaimed. “But how?!? Have they been hiding out?”

“It isn’t exactly hidden, it’s on a major train route.” Shadow suggested. “For a fellow pony, you seem awfully unfamiliar with Equestria… are you perhaps from another land?”

“I’ll have you know I’m from the pegasus capital! Zephyr Heights!” she harrumphed.

“Pegasus capital…” Shadow muttered. “Largest cloud city in Equestria is Cloudsdale, but even then they’re a part of Equestria.”

“Just what are you on about?!?” The mare said, even more confused now. “Cloud city?!?”

“A city built in the sky, by pegasi. Home to the Cloudsdale weather factory. I’m not that up on recent events, but I’m definitely familiar with that.” Shadow said simply.

“It sounds like utter nonsense.” the mare sighed. “Are you sure you didn’t suffer any brain damage when that building crushed you?”

“I don’t have a brain to be damaged, now do I?” he asked, not looking back as he continued. “Though I am wondering about you. Perhaps whatever brought you here has had some side effects. You’ll definitely want to consult Princess Twilight about it.”

“I… you…” the mare blinked, then stopped. “Fine. I hope she knows something. I’ve never heard of her, though. What makes you think she’ll even see me? Do you know how hard getting an audience with royalty is?”

“Princess Twilight is an incredibly friendly mare. She visits the Ponyville Market in the mornings, and will often mingle with the locals. She’s also quite studious, given the sheer number of times she’s visited the Castle of The Two Sisters just to read what the library has to offer. Between that and her special talent in magic… if anyone’s able to determine what happened to you, it will likely be her.” the ghostly bat pony replied confidently.

“I hope you’re right.” the mare said, following the stallion hesitantly.

“...and that’s why mayonnaise and peanut butter weren’t meant to go together.” Pinkie Pie explained.

“Pinkie anypony could’ve told you that’s a weird idea.” Starlight Glimmer replied matter-of-factly.

“Really? So I didn’t need to make and try sandwiches with different types of mayonnaise and peanut butter looking for the worst combination?” Pinkie questioned, sounding disappointed.

“I... you what? No. Why would you… oh nevermind.” Starlight groaned.

“It’s the only way to-knoww… ooohoohohhoooo!” Pinkie suddenly started jittering.

“Uh… Pinkie Pie, what are you doing?” Starlight asked, turning to look at the vibrating earth pony. “Are you… okay? Maybe a little too okay?”

“N-no! I mean… yes! I… it’s a doozy!” Pinkie said excitedly, calming down for a moment.

“A… what now?” Starlight asked.

“Doozy! Pinkie Sense! Something big…!” Pinkie proclaimed. “I haven’t had one of those in a while…”

“Please tell me we’re not about to be assaulted by more interdimensional magic draining aliens or something…” Starlight pleaded. She knew better than to question Pinkie Pie and her weirdness.

“No, no, that’s a catastrophe. Totally different!” Pinkie said dismissively. She tilted her head. “Hm… I should go check on the cakes! Maybe something’s happened over there!”

“Alright…” Starlight said as Pinkie galloped out of the room. She prepared to shelve the last of the stack of books Twilight had asked her to organize when suddenly she felt something. Her senses screamed at her and she nearly dropped the book she was holding as her brain scrambled to try and make any sense of it.

What was this feeling? Why was it familiar?

Then, it hit Starlight like a sack of bricks. “Time Magic.” she breathed. She’d hoped to never feel that again. Not after the things she’d seen. After what she’d almost caused. Not after her punishment from Chronus for abusing it. She left the stack unshelved as she bolted from the room. “Gotta find Twilight… gotta find Twilight…”

A purple dragon found himself spinning as Starlight Glimmer raced past him, causing him to drop his mop. “Starlight? Hey! Where’s the fire!?” he demanded.

Starlight skidded to a halt outside Twilight Sparkle’s personal study before shoving the door open.

The purple alicorn let out a surprised scream as the book she was holding fell out of her magical grasp. “S-Starlight! E-ever hear of knocking?”

Starlight glanced between the book and Twilight for a few seconds. Ignoring the blushing alicorn and her questionable taste in adult novels she shook her head. “You didn’t feel that?”

“...feel… what? The only thing I feel right now is a little bit like my personal time is being violated.” Twilight said, quickly closing the book and stashing it in a drawer. “What’s gotten into you?”

“Time magic.” Starlight said sharply. “Somepony used it! I can feel it… Or did feel it…”

Twilight raised an eyebrow at that. She’d felt nothing. “Starlight, maybe you’re just imagining things… I know you had some bad nights after our… incident…”

“I am not imagining things, and those were not just nightmares!” Starlight said pleadingly.

“The scroll is gone, Starlight. We both saw it vanish into the portal. The only other time magic anypony might know is pretty limited. Even I can only go back for about four and half minutes, and even then only about a week. I’m sure whatever it is is fine.” Twilight said dismissively. “You’re too stressed.”

“Too… stressed… the scroll was gone because Chronus took it!” Starlight said flatly. “To make sure I could never use it again… or anypony for that matter. Look… Twilight, I know what I’m feeling… you believe me, don’t you?”

Twilight sighed. “I believe you think something’s wrong… but if something were, wouldn’t other ponies be on it by now?”

“If you didn’t sense it, what makes you think other ponies are going to be looking? What if something bad is about to happen?” Starlight asked.

Twilight stood from behind her desk and walked past Starlight to the door. “I’m going to get some tea, feel free to join me. After that, why don’t you go join Fluttershy and help her out for a while? It might do you some good to get some fresh air.”

“Chronus. Did you sense it?” asked a hooded figure.

“Yes, Tempus.” the small glowing golden ball of light replied.

“Should we…”

“Do not interfere.” Chronus said simply. “...these events were meant to be.”

“She’s from quite a ways into the future… that knowledge would be dangerous to the ponies for the present if… I… I mean… if Twilight were to learn too much…”

“The traveler knows little of her own past. What knowledge Twilight could gain may be inconsequential. However… the knowledge of the traveler may prove useful one day. I see no reason to interfere. This is harmless.”

“Should we not help her?” Tempus questioned.

“No.” Chronus replied. “She will help herself. If anything prevents her from returning when the time is right, we will intervene then. Not a moment sooner, and not under any other circumstances.”

“I see… Starlight appears concerned.” Tempus noted.

“Let Starlight Glimmer be concerned.” Chronus replied. “I am happy to see her respecting things rather than desecrating them and using them as some foal’s toy to her own petty revenge.”

“A bit… harsh… don’t you think?” Tempus questioned.

“You saw the destruction she caused. I think it’s a perfectly apt way to put it. Still, she has learned from her mistakes. That is what is important in the end.” Chronus said simply. “In the meantime, I want you in 1302 HE. We have an unwanted time traveler who’s about to interfere in her own past. Send her back to her own time or kill her, one of the two. Preferably the former rather than the latter.”

Tempus felt the time stream flow through her and frowned. “I see her… and for personal wealth… she would doom many families to poverty with what she plans… I will go at once.”

The trees gave way to grassy fields as the spectral stallion stopped and sat on his haunches. “Go there, and seek Princess Twilight.” he said, looking to the pegasus mare. He pointed a hoof towards the edge of Ponyville. If one looked closely, the clouds were being arranged by colorful dots in the sky.

“Huh. Seems a bit primitive.” Skyset said, looking on. “That big sparkly tree thing?”

“That is her castle, yes.” Shadow said, gesturing with a wing. He was grateful that light meant nothing to his eyes. He could only imagine what it’d be like looking at it with actual bat pony eyes.

“A-alright.” The mare said. “Uh… thanks.” she said, then started forward. She turned to properly make eye contact, only to see him vanish before her very eyes. “Right. Ghost.” She let out a sigh and set for the town proper.

Author's Note

Since it isn't well explained in the story itself, as this story wasn't originally intended for public release, I wanted to give some insight on some lore elements for this universe.

First thing is Shadow Sentry, the spirit seen at the beginning. It's noted that he has a shackle on his hoof. When a spirit has a shackle, it represents a ghost's tether to the world. They can be iron or gold, generally, and mean different things. Iron represents something holding the spirit back from moving on to the afterlife. Gold is rarer, and represents that the spirit is staying behind for some noble cause.

Secondly, Chronus. Who is she?
Chronus is the spirit of time who oversees time and ensures it goes the correct path. Her objective is to avoid timelines in which the universe ends. She has no true form, but often manifests herself as a breezie with a white coat, with a golden mane and tail, and golden eyes. Her eyes are notably featureless.

And finally, who is Tempus?
Tempus, otherwise known as Tempus Sparkle, or sometimes even "Twilidox", is a version of Twilight Sparkle from another timeline. After erasing her own timeline, she continues to exist as Chronus' assistant. The magenta star of her cutie mark is instead gold, along with the magenta stripe in her mane and tail. Her eyes are also a golden color instead of their traditional purple color. Additionaly, her cutie mark also features a white lemniscate in the middle of the large star.

I co-write a lot of stories with my husband, who is responsible for a lot of the lore in them. I do hope that in the future we'll be able to share a lot more of what we've written together, which would also explain a lot of the lore of this universe. But for now, since this is so far the only story of this universe being made public at this time, I thought providing some insight was warranted.