Through fire and fear, and darkness and shadow, when the end of the world came, it came swiftly to the peaceful land of Equestria. Now, almost ten years after this cataclysm, a lone mare and her daughter embark on an epic journey of survival across the wasted Equestrian landscape, trying to find hope and meaning in a world where harmony is nothing but a memory.

Inspired by Cormac McCarthy’s ‘The Road’.
Featured on EqD!

SF (canon species only; no humans) Ponies were magically and genetically engineered to be the perfect servitor race. They are powerful, adaptable, intelligent and completely under the control of their creators. A laboratory accident frees one such pony from her mental chains, but how can one mare save herself and the rest of her kind if she doesn't even know she's a slave?
This is not the Equestria you know and these are not your little ponies... not yet, anyway.

Tags: Adventure, Diamond Dogs, Gryphons, NO HUMANS (did I mention that already?)
Other tags: historical, mind control, Clarke's 3rd Law, excessive use of high energy physics, before they were famous.
Detailed review by PaulAsaran.
Cover art by endrome , used with permission.
Russian translation (partial -- 'unofficially' completed in the comments)
A Soot-Covered World, book 1.

No matter how strong the bonds of friendship are, the events of life and the call of dreams can still pull friends apart. Only Twilight remains in Ponyville, and she wonders if she'll ever be able to be happy without her friends living in the same city.

Featured on Equestria Daily April 30, 2012.

"Would you tell anypony if you knew the world was going to end, Twilight Sparkle?"

Since the earliest days, ponies have foolishly believed that the natural order of their world would never change. That there would always be magic for them to use. That the princesses would rule Equestria for all eternity. That nothing could change their happy and ordered lives.

They were wrong. An event, known as The Shift, caused the world's magic to weaken, and the days of Equestria's glory came to an end.

Now, many years after the cataclysm, the world is still broken. But there is hope. Some vestiges of magic still linger in the world...

30/12/2011: First chapters have been rewritten/heavily modified.

Dainty Dish: The official record holder of the highest sustained speed and altitude over a recognized flight course in Equestria. As well as the holder of the time to climb record for a given altitude. There is no pony in Equestria who can match her abilities.

However, one stallion from from a far off place is determined to catch her. And in a brash attempt to prove himself worthy of her affection, gives chase. Only to fail spectacularly even with months of preparation. So on Hearth's Warming Day he enlists the help of Rainbow Dash, Equestria's foremost expert on speed to help him learn all there is to know about the art of going fast.

Can the mighty Mikoyan Ivanovich Gustaav the Thirty-First catch his dark angel? Or will he be too much stallion for Rainbow Dash- for Equestria to handle?

"My name is Lyra Heartstrings, and you will not remember me. You won't even remember this conversation. Just like with everypony else I've ever met, everything I do or say will be forgotten. Every letter I've written will appear blank; every piece of evidence I've left behind will end up missing. I'm stuck here in Ponyville because of the same curse that has made me so forgettable. Still, that doesn't stop me from doing the one thing that I love: making music. If my melodies find their way into your heart, then there is still hope for me. If I can't prove that I exist, I can at least prove that my love for each and every one of you exists. Please, listen to my story, my symphony, for it is me."

Cover pic by Spotlight: askspotlight.tumblr.com