The world of Equestria is very different when you don't have nigh-omnipotent gods and goddesses running about. Without Celestia's guiding light, the Earth Ponies, Pegasi, and Unicorns would probably have never guessed at their gifts. Discord, being the embodiment of Chaos, would work through nature and change, meaning no controlling the weather. Without Luna, the world would be a much darker, scarier place. Oh, and by the way: these aren't your regular little ponies. There will be bipedal ponies with hands, blood and death, and some romance in this story, so if any of those turn you away, well, there's the door.

Not gone? Then...let's begin, shall we?

(Image is courtesy of he4rtofcourage on deviantart. Here, have a link, and tell them how awesome they are. Have fun.)
http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=&section=&q=Twilight+Sparkle+Mage#/d4fsqot

A pony can choose to do many things in his or her life before he or she dies: he could be a farmer, bringing in produce and commerce to the kingdom, or she could be a rebel, fighting to further her cause. Death visits everypony, however: the farmer hopes to leave his farm in capable hooves before he passes, and the rebel hopes to have finished the fight for whatever cause she was fighting for before her time comes.

Sometimes, death likes to come calling early: the farmer taken before his prime provides no additional produce; and the rebel becomes a martyr, causing others to fight in her place.

Sometimes, rather than kill a pony, it is better to leave him or her broken.

When a bewitchment goes awry, how will the mane 5 of the past defeat Nightmare Moon when the 6th element has learned Celestia's true colours? This is the story of how one pony's memories can show the true story of things that have happened, and how the power of the truth will win out in the end.

During her entrance exam, Twilight's powers goes far out of control, leaving Celestia a shell of herself and Equestria in ruins. Now Nightmare Moon is free, but even she can't stop the Tyrant Filly. She flees through time and space, finding herself in an Equestria familiar to us but odd to her. Can the Mane Six help her stop a Twilight out of control?

Fanfiction.net link here!
Weekly featured fic in Authors Helping Authors group

TV Tropes Page, with sincere thanks to DrTempo.

Cover art from here.

When Nightmare Moon was defeated Luna thought that part of her was gone for ever. But, it wasn't, all these years it has been growing, gaining strength in order to take revenge upon Celestia, The Elements of Harmony, Equestria and most importantly, Luna.

This is my first piece of writing. I am sort of just going with the flow here, I haven't exactly planned it out but hey, why not? I've gone over the stuff several times and I think its okay.
Feedback would be greatly appreciated.

A strange epidemic has struck Equestria. It causes Pegasi to rip off their wings and throw themselves to their deaths. It causes Unicorns to lose their magic and eat their own horns, and it causes Earth ponies to tear out their manes and tails and exhibit dementia like symptoms. It leads to death in all three species.

Mass suicides break out in Cloudsdale. Celestia heads to Cloudsdale only to return with the same symptoms. Luna then gets a letter from Twilight saying that the Earth ponies of Ponyville have started tearing out their manes and tails. A second letter comes from the new Unicorn colony that many of the Unicorns are losing their magic. Things go from bad to worse when Celestia loses her own magic leaving Luna to raise ans set the sun as well as the moon.

Luna brings Twilight, Zecora, Regalia the Griffin medic, Ramoth the dragon healer, and Zaphod the Minotaur doctor together in Canterlot to try to solve this mystery.

(Author's notes: Prions are real and all the medical stuff in this piece is all real too. A Prion is a protien that attacks the brain by destroying the neurons and causing strange behavior much like what we see in Dementia and in Alzheimer's. Feel free to give criticism and ask questions if you don't understand something. I'll be very happy to answer your questions to the best of my ability. A lot of research went into this. Enjoy! (No worries, no gore))

Absurdity meets the modern brony.

This is mainly just a interest test, I'm curios as to how bronies would react to absurdest pieces.

One day, Fluttershy wakes up only to find herself in a changed world. Ponyville and Equestria are not how she remembers them: airships cross the sky, steam-powered machinery drives the economy and the rule of Celestia is no more. In this strange alternate world, Fluttershy reunites with her dear friends and learns of the event that changed history itself. Worse, the timid pegasus seems to have arrived just in time to witness the rapidly approaching climax of a civil war that has been raging for three hundred years...

Thrust into power after her miracle of raising the sun, Celestia deals with the luxuries and responsibilities of being a ruler. After she loses control of her power, resulting in a national tragedy, she begins to wonder just what it means to be a leader with no pony and nothing to answer to.

(Yay, not a story about immortality!)

Princess Luna must go on a diplomatic mission to the isolated city of Marem, and is tasked with choosing a suitable traveling partner to accompany her on the way. She does not choose the talented and magically-inclined Twilight Sparkle, nor the quick and loyal Rainbow Dash, nor even the strong and talented Applejack. Instead, she surprises everypony by taking Pinkie Pie with her and leaving without a word. Not even Celestia can guess the reasoning behind her sister's choice.

For whatever reason, Princess Luna and Pinkie Pie set off to find and negotiate an agreement with the mysterious community of unicorns located beyond the borders of Equestria. What they find there will impact not only Equestria's stance on foreign policy, but the very lives of the two ponies at the center of it all.