"One day, I swear to you, I will stand in the ashes of the Elements of Harmony themselves and proclaim a new world." -Starswirl the Bearded.

This is the story of Princess Celestia: her origin, the battles she fought, her betrayals, her adventures, the friends she made along the way, her one great love, and her ultimate destiny.

Now on Equestria Daily!

[Thanks to _Medicshy for his faithful editing and input. And to Heliostorm as of chapter 13.]

[Cover image by tamponandtwilaloop on deviantart, used by permission.]

Warning: updates irregularly lately.

Seriously, a lot.

(Now with a Spanish translation by the generous SPANIARD KIWI!)

To Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia, it is a simple surprise visit to Canterlot. To the ponies of the Equestrian Civil Service, it is twenty-four hours of chaos, politics, weaponized dessert, politics, underhooved manipulation of media, politics, and things batrachian and tentacular. Who said bureaucracy isn't exciting?

NEW PRINCESS ATTACKS GRIFFONSTAN IMPORTS

The Equestria Daily can exclusively report that newly crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle became embroiled in an argument with the Griffonstani trade minister about the inferior quality of griffon quills, alleging that "they just don't hold ink as well as pegasus quills". Import markets tumbled overnight, threatening the solvency of numerous Equestrian quill merchants. Princess Sparkle could not be reached for comment.

(When you're done, bookplayer has a fun "Let's Read" commentary version!)
(Also, GhostOfHeraclitus wrote a prequel from the perspective of Dr. Spinning Top!)
(Also also, now available in Spanish thanks to Spaniard-Kiwi!)

Equestria is barely three years old, and already danger threatens the fragile peace forged between the pony tribes. Monsters stream out of the Forest Ever Free on a daily basis, and now a prophetic dream foretells of even greater chaos that will befall the land.

It's up to Star Swirl the Bearded and his team of manly, heroic, eminently bearded (and strangely familiar!) stallions to brave the dark and murky Forest Ever Free in search of their one hope for salvation. Along the way, they'll learn more about the history of the land they've claimed as their own, not to mention each other. But as their unintended friendships grow, the forest will try its best to drive them apart.

Can they withstand the epic trials before them? Can they save Equestria? Will Star Swirl be known forevermore as the creator of Equestria's first beard-restoring spell? Journey a thousand years into the past and discover Equestria's epicest, beardiest history lesson ever!

Story tagged Dark for increasingly epic violence. Cover art by M. D. Quill! Accepted by The Royal Guard!

(A collab by JaketheGinger and Luminary)
Equestria isn't what it should be.

Celestia is a figure of distant mythology. Progress has replaced harmony as society's watchword. Progress born of spell, steam and gears. A dark corruption eats away at Canterlot and stretches out its influence.

In the shadow of the dying capital are scattered points of light. The selfless pink toymaker, caring for nothing but a smile. A unicorn noblemare feeding the ghettos. An airship captain who gave up wealth and status to stamp out injustice. They, amongst others, are thrown together by danger and flight, and find themselves gambling on a desperate bid to restore Equestria.

(Welcome to EqD ponies! Thanks for the feature!)

When Twilight Sparkle slipped beneath the covers last night, everything had been fine. She had friends whom she loved, a teacher she adored, and a bright future ahead of her. But when she woke up, her blankets and quilts had been replaced by hospital gowns and padded restraints.

Everything is wrong and nothing makes sense; even her friends have changed. The doctors keep telling her that she is sick, that none of it was real and that it was all in her head. Yet she remembers a life far beyond the hospital walls. She couldn't have made it all up on her own. They must be lying… right?

Ask Asylum Twilight - Still updating regularly!
Equestria Daily
TVTropes
Asylum Fan Group
The Tartarus Project
Russian Translation
The Asylum 20,000 View Spectacular Stage Show!

Art:
Asylum Cover by conicer
Twilight and Twilight Smiles by dreamingnoctis
Mirror Twilight and Plague Doctor by Jaestring / BloodGoldWings
Twilight Smiles and Doctor AJ by conicer
Nurse Ratchet and Silas and What's in the mirror? by Archonix
Doctor AJ Sketch by Archonix | Colored and vectored version by ReFro82
Twilight's Asylum by Khan the Cake Lover
Smilight by HappySwitch
Twilight Waking Up by Dombrus
Fan Art by toxicdemon10
Asylum Twilight by Madness-With-Reason
Asylum Fluttershy and Asylum Ch 26 by Downburst-Backspace
Twilight and her Twin by v747
Birdgirl by sirValter

Readings and Videos:
Asylum Animated Trailer Video by formuladash
Reading by Gammarobot (SugarCubeRadio): All Chapters Here
Reading by Ender Brony: All Chapters Here
Reading by VisualPony: All Chapters Here
Reading by MelancholyIguana: All Chapters Here
Fan Trailer by Kaidan: Asylum FanFic Trailer Cuckoo's Nest

Sanctuary by Kaidan
Broadhoof Files: Dr. Humors by TypewriterError
Broadhoof Files: Corporal Phalanx Spear (Ret.) by Phalanx Spear
A Hearth's Warming Tragedy by Seven Fates

A special thanks to Breath of Plagues, Rex Ivan,
ChudoJogurt, Cynewulf, Death the Kid, Selbi, PrinceDolph, Blahman2816, Queue, and Gage!

Axan Zenith - Dr. Dreamer
Dratini4 - Way Finder
psychicscubadiver - Bright Mind
Velkaden - Dream Chaser
Reese - Silver Glow
Viola Heartstrings - Clover
Archonix - Spinney Whiteacre

Today, there are only four alicorns - but it was not always so. The alicorns once covered the world, protecting the light, and battling the dark. Their city, Olympus, was a shining bastion of all things good and just.

This is not a story of then. Those times are long gone.

This is the story of Phobos, the third son of Bellic the Black, the fourth son of Serena the White, and the 12th seer of the alicorns - a stallion without the serenity to accept the things he could not change, the courage to change the things he could, or the wisdom to know the difference - born just a few short decades before the rise of Discord, the fall of Luna, the disappearance of the Imperium Vitreus, and the destruction of all his kind - and it is a story he wrote himself.

He was never much good with titles.

Celestia wants Twilight and her friends to loosen up a little bit around her. Luna just wants to try the hard cider. During a surprise visit to Sweet Apple Acres at the tail end of cider season, Princess Luna has just a bit too much to drink, and when she makes a rather inappropriate joke, Twilight comes to the very uncomfortable realization that she has never seen Celestia excuse herself to use the restroom.

[Featured on EQD 21/4/2014] [Now on TVTropes]

When Luna gifts Twilight the town of Ponyville and its surrounding countryside as her demesne she's initially confused. Then, after double checking her dictionary, more than a little concerned.

All her friends are, legally, her possessions. The town that took her in is her plaything, if she so wishes. She has been given responsibility.

Can Twilight's vision for a modern renaissance outrun the harsh realities of the shadowy figures pulling strings behind the scenes, nobles jockeying for her attention, and an irritatingly metaphorical love triangle?

Special thanks to the insatiable Blue_Paladin42, the incorrigible Maskedferret, the intuitive Southpaw and the indestructible newbiedoodle for all their hard work, past, present and future.