A fabled natural disaster known as "The Great Wave" that occurred deep in Equestria's ancient history is about to happen again. While the greater Equestrian public sleeps, not knowing of this, the Fount of Creation Research Institute has worked diligently to find a way to circumvent it. It has recruited many youths from across Equestria who have shown signs of attaining what the supernatural researchers call "primordial communion": the profound ability to speak directly to nature and, in many cases, to powerfully influence it.

Little do many of the researchers know that the most elite circle of scholars seeks to wield The Great Wave as a terrible weapon against Equestria's enemies, and that the completion of the leash they aim to build for it requires a ghastly and permanent enslavement of the most gifted foals.

Two of these youths have managed to escape, aided by staff from the Fount of Creation who care for the peace of the world and their freedom and wellbeing. Now they live as fugitives while the quiet soil beneath Equestrian hooves begins its process of awakening.

The Pinkie Sense has a side effect that occasionally manifests itself outwardly. One day, her friends are around to witness it for the first time.

Guided by the curator of the Royal Library in Canterlot, and forbidden knowledge stolen from the alicorns, a group of of non-unicorn ponies restore spring to a cold and famine-stricken Equestria. This is the lost account of their brave sacrifice, the intrigue surrounding its aftermath, the birth of a beloved city, and the beginning of a tradition whose original meaning has long been forgotten, as told by the dragon youth who was the curator's personal assistant.