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!"

This story is a side story to Memoirs of a Royal Guard and begins years in advance of it.

Sunny Day doesn't take much seriously. As long as she makes a little money, spends time with her friends, and ends her evening with a cute pony she tends to be happy. The universe, however, seems to have other ideas as Sunny pushes to graduate from the prestigious School for Gifted Unicorns, understand her powerful magic, and start her life as an adult pony.

Quill & Blade Universe

This story is a sequel to Memoirs of a Royal Guard

From the outside looking in, life has never been better for Silent Knight. He is the first pony in a long line of Royal Guard ancestry to earn a commission, he has a loving mare by his side, and he bears the kingdom’s highest honor for bravely risking it all to protect Princess Luna. The future shines bright with potential, but the shadows of the past lurk at every twist and turn that lies ahead.

Guilt, anger, and regret are constantly at war in the depths of Silent Knight’s mind. Despite his best efforts to enjoy the life he has, he finds himself trapped in the past, reliving the moment when his unit was ambushed and his ponies were killed. He refuses to show any weakness, instead hiding everything behind a tough face to protect himself and those he loves. But his true feelings—and what he plans to do with them—shackle everything he holds dear with chains forged in secret.

Secrets of a Royal Guard is a comedy series with romantic, dramatic, and adventure elements. It features an original character cast and their interactions with the princesses they protect. It is recommended that readers be familiar with Memoirs of a Royal Guard.

Quill & Blade Universe

A head full of romance is what many Canterlot ponies would call a frivolous waste of time. Everypony was meant to play by the rules of high society: keep your nose in the air, laugh at important ponies' jokes, and attend all of the right parties. Upper Crust and Jet Set had been diligent in raising their daughter Crystal Wishes to be a pony everypony would know, but she wanted more out of life than that. She hoped she would someday meet a handsome prince and fall in love, just like in the stories she wrote.

Crystal knew life wasn't as easy as a foal's tale, but that didn't stop her from dreaming. All of the wishes, hopes, and dreams inside her heart escaped into her precious notebook as she wrote about princesses in power and dashing knights. So long as nopony found out her secret, she could continue to play the part of a dutiful daughter while waiting for her own love story to begin.

This story is a sequel to Three of Hearts

Joining the Royal Guard seemed like the adventure of a lifetime to Azurite. She just never imagined that her career would heave her life down the path it did. After struggling with her job, the injury of her partner, and her relationship, she’s found herself in entirely new territory: love. She’ll soon discover that love is only one of the elements necessary to keep ponies together.

Three of Diamonds is a comedy-romance story that pokes fun at some of the common tropes found in the genre. It is a direct sequel to Three of Hearts. Readers will need to be familiar with that story.

ToD is also an interwoven side story of Secrets of a Royal Guard.

Quill & Blade Universe
Adorable cover art by Potates-Chan.

This story is a side story to Crystal's Wishes

On the surface, Velvet Step seems like a pretty straightforward mare. She is in the Canterlot Ballet, the dutiful daughter of Sunbeam and Pepper Ridge, and the very best of friends with Crystal Wishes, her fillyhood friend and current roommate.

However, Velvet has another side to her, one that not even Crystal knows about, and she is keen on keeping it that way.