There is a secret in Equestria. A secret the newly crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle doesn’t dare to believe. Like puppeteers pulling on marionettes, they have influenced Equestria for better and worse since the fall of Discord. So far they have been benevolent, but their potential for evil is vast. What’s worse, she doesn’t know their name. She doesn’t know their mission. All she knows for certain is one thing.

That they all seem to be zebra.

On a dark night filled with even darker magics, an insane cult attempts to give Nightmare Moon a body and life of her own, utterly separate from Princess Luna. But, when the spell is interrupted by Celestia, something unexpected is created.

Now, a little black alicorn filly named Nyx finds herself living under the care of Twilight Sparkle, only to be haunted by memories and emotions from her past. Is she Nightmare Moon reborn or is she simply a doppelganger with a soul and mind of her own? Can Twilight Sparkle protect Nyx from those who refuse to see past her dragon eyes and black coat?

Or, will Nyx be forced to inherit the sins that may not even be hers and become the greatest evil Equestria has ever known?

This story is a sequel to Off The Edge Of The Map

When Twilight is sent with Luna on a diplomatic mission to Draconia, they quickly find themselves somewhere that doesn't appear on any map, and Luna is lost in more than one way...

Thanks to RBDash47 of Pony Fiction Archive for formatting it for submission.
Title image by Valcron

Tremendous thanks to Illya Leonov and Scribbler for the Audiobook version.
Now with a Spanssh translation by SPANIARD KIWI: https://www.deviantart.com/spaniard-kiwi/art/Apoteosis-2-3-857110089

Luna struggles with the edges of sanity and feelings of depression after her time of lunar isolation.

One by one, Twilight and her friends must come to terms with the consequences of being the Elements of Harmony.

These stories take place in the intervening time between Season One and Season Two,
with the exception of Ditzy Doo: Muffins, which takes place early in Season One.

The series continues in the sequel, Secrets and Lies.

Pony Psychology has a TV Tropes Page.

Twilight Sparkle is called away to tend to Luna when she falls ill. As Luna grows sicker and Twilight more determined to help the younger princess, she begins to uncover dark secrets about the elements, the alicorns, and her own past.

Finding herself with wings and unusually powerful magic, Twilight Sparkle proceeds to have breakdown after breakdown, until with the help of her friends, she confronts Celestia and Luna about it... And learns that she's a far more important little pony than she ever imagined - for all the wrong reasons.

Awesome painting by Drezzer can be found here!

20 megapixel version is here (10MB JPEG, 210dpi strangely, 24"x20")!

Thanks, man!

The spirit of madness learned his lesson after those pesky ponies re-sealed him in his stone tomb. This time around there would be no princess Celestia, no elements of harmony, and most important of all, no magic of friendship. His plan was to tear the kingdom apart at the seams, and this time, his scheme was perfect. An infinite jest that was to be the jewel in his chaotic crown. Equestria would be torn asunder and his sweet insanity would rule the land once again until the end of time.

We all know the story. Discord was released, had his day of fun, but was eventually defeated by the Elements of Harmony. But what if things didn't go exactly to plan, and Discord didn't sit there and take the final hit? Instead of the God of Chaos being encased in stone, the Mane Six find themselves far from home on an adventure that will change them all. With villains around every corner, and allies in the most unlikely places, how will they defeat Discord?