In a world where she sees from a distorted perspective, all Twilight Sparkle can do is cling to the one pony she knows will never let her down: her teacher, the princess... no matter which princess her addled brain tells her that is. Twilight's used to rewriting letters, but when she's the one being rewritten, she finds the sensation to be altogether different.

Many thanks must go to my awesome editors, Varanus, Ebon Mane, shortskirtsandexplosions, Seattle_Lite, and Nick Nack.

Featured on Equestria Daily and The Pony Fiction Vault.
Check out/contribute to this story's TVTropes page!

Reader, in ancient days, the old lords of the world numbered in thousands. Then hundreds. Then even less.
Now, they are found only in tapestries and fanciful ballads.
The creatures are all vanished. All but one.

Rumors say there are more of him, somewhere far away. A young and supposedly gifted mage called Star Swirl, and Heartstrings, a gentle spinster, have joined him on a journey to find the rest.

Featured in The Royal Guard's Fic Spotlight #5
TV Tropes page (that could use more love)

Cheer up, Twilight. It's not every day somepony changes species. In fact, no pony has ever changed species. It's something new and you like discovering new things. Granted, Equestrians don't like new things, especially things that fundamentally alter their government. So maybe there is reason not to be happy after all.

Play this song first!

Twilight Sparkle has always been looking forward to her 21st birthday. It's the day that she's finally recognized as an adult mare, but also the day she's finally able to learn magic on the highest level. What should have been a great day though, turns out to be the most horrific day in her life. She finds a prophesy talking about the next great evil in Equestria, and it's HER! Now she's falling, slowly becoming the very evil she swore to fight against, and not even her closest friends can pick her up in time. In the end, she may even...

Apple Bloom is tired of being the last in her class to not have her Cutie Mark, but her friends Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo aren't going in the right direction to get their Cutie Marks, and she knows it. In order to get her Cutie Mark the right way, Apple Bloom begins to have thoughts of separating from her friends, and getting her Cutie Mark on her own. But her search for her Cutie Mark opens up to a major mystery in Equestria, and Apple Bloom will discover much more than just her special talent...

friends become enemies...

destinies are revealed...

light fades into the darkness...

and through it all, a hero is born...

This is the first main story in the series.

New cover art by my friend The Spectralist.

Link to the TV Tropes page!

[Please read the author's notes after the expansion before reading. Thank you]

Welcome to the new Equestria, Twilight Sparkle. See your friends at each other's throats? You have to choose between them now, to stop the heartache of war with decisive victory. For the nation lies bleeding, its harmony shattered into a million pieces. Black and white and right and wrong have blurred together.

You must choose wisely, or all shall die.

~Image by JohnJoseco~ If anyone can find a fitting, unique image for this story, please do not hesitate to link in the comments.

[Author's Note]

The following stories should be read in order to get a good grasp on references to previous works.

- Sunset (Mandatory)*
- My Little Muffin (Optional)
- Clash of the Heavenly Titans (Optional)*
- Blood is Thicker / The Reluctant Reunion of the Redoubtable Rabble-Rouser (Strongly Recommended)

All can be found on my Deviant Art account: http://ciroton.deviantart.com/
Those with * can be found here on FIMFiction.

A terrible new day rises when a tragedy, foreseen only by Celestia but preventable by none, occurs right in the middle of Canterlot, turning Twilight Sparkle's world upside-down. Now, all of Equestria is looking to her to hold the broken nation together, all while she tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered life.

Coverart used with permission from: metalpandora

Old coverart may be found here.

A/N: Yes, the title was based of the Dragonforce song of the same name, you may stop postulating about it now.

It is the middle of the night when two bored princesses visit Twilight and her 'What If' machine. Join the three ponies and Spike as the view more:
Tales
of
Interest!

Deep in the earth, a shadow grows in strength. The Gates of Tartarus are breaking. The fires of revenge are burning.

A lone prince, a traitor to his kingdom, is waiting. He is waiting for power, waiting for the dawn of his new day. Yet the moment his victory is all but ensured, when Twilight Sparkle herself lies helpless before him, the prince starts to forget the line: the difference between who he was, and who he is now.

Can a traitor ever be anything more?

Princess Celestia writes a report to her teacher on what she has learned about mortality.

On EQD Sept. 7, 2012.
Hungarian translation by Shidotoku
Spanish translation by SPANIARD KIWI

A different take on alicorn ascension. Sixteen years after arriving in Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle is excited to have invented a brand-new kind of spell, but it will come with consequences she cannot possibly anticipate. Meanwhile, threats in shadows around the world conspire to overthrow the Solar Throne. With her world turned upside down, she will have to come to terms with the role that fate has dealt her while straining to keep Celestia in power.

Now with a TVTropes page! Please show it some love! Also check out the official side stories, Designing Intrigue, and Love and Barriers! (With even more in my stories page!)

(Please Note: This story was started before any season three information was available. All episodes in season three and later are non-canon for this story, which also means there's no Crystal Empire in this one. In addition, the promotional map released close to the beginning of season three was also not available and is not compatible with this story. While the OC tag is active because there are OCs in the story, they're really just supporting characters. The focus is on Twilight.)

Also be sure to check out the Rites of Ascension Expanded Universe Group! We're working to develop the resources needed for other authors to try their hand at writing stories set in the Rites Universe!

The Book Two cover art was created by the amazing Silfoe! The original cover art can still be found at Violet Squiggle's deviantArt page.

Author's Notes, including proofreader's credits, can be found here!

"This is 100% Approved by Twilight's Library!"