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!"

The supernatural: Ghosts, zombies, werewolves, spirits... vampires...

Twilight Sparkle always thought that the supernatural was just a bunch of superstitious nonsense, just some scary stories to tell around a campfire. She couldn't have been more wrong.

After an occult ritual gone horribly right, Twilight finds herself among the ranks of these so called 'myths', whether she likes it or not. Due to the same force that changed her, dark shadows have begun to spread across Equestria, bringing to life these ancient fairy tales. And Twilight might just be the only one that can stop them...

For better or for worse, Twilight has been changed. Will she embrace this dark gift and become the hero Equestria needs, or will she eventually succumb to temptation and become the very thing she fights?

As Twilight Sparkle awoke one morning from uneasy dreams, she found she had been turned into a changeling.

How has she become a changeling? How will she adapt? How will her friends respond? And what new terrors will her metamorphosis bring?

Cover image by the fantastic Carnifex... or Siansaar... I can't tell which. You can find more wonderful works here: http://siansaar.deviantart.com/

EDIT: Featured... nearing 1000 Favorites... multiple pages of comments (swoons)

Thanks for everything guys. I never expected this thing to get so popular. I need to rework the second chapter, but it looks like there's going to be a blue moon every Friday for a while yet. Thanks again for your support and please keep reading and reviewing!

EDIT2: I've updated the character list again, a little preview of the second story arc...

EDIT 3: Just doing a quick character update to account for changes made to the next Arc...

This story is a sequel to Petriculture

It's been several months since Pinkie Pie made a stunning admission about her past that permanently changed her relationship with her friends, particularly Twilight Sparkle, but life seems to have settled back to normal (well, normal by Pinkie Pie's standards, at least). However, when an old nemesis returns and ensnares Twilight in her influence, it's up to Pinkie to make things right.

This is the second story in The Petriculture Cycle. There is a TV Tropes Page for the entire Cycle here.

Cover image by Page Turner; "Princess Twilight" vector by Nianara.

Twilight is invited to Canterlot to compete with some of the greatest magicians in the world for the Moonstone Cup, a prestigious award for the most powerful and skillful magicians, unicorn and otherwise. Can she win? What sort of competition will she face?

Awesome cover image was taken from NoOneBahtim

Canterlot... For centuries, Canterlot was the shining gem of Equestria, the pinnacle of pony society. Now, it’s a reminder, a bleak and monolithic warning to the world. 

Changed by the chemical and technological poisons that plague the mountain, an abomination of nature, I wander the greatest disaster Equestria has ever seen. 

... I will escape eventually, and when I do, I hope my friends still see me as Twilight Sparkle, and not the monster that hides among the ruins. 

This story is a sequel to Hard Reset

After the events of Hard Reset Twilight's life and mental well being are slowly returning to normal. Her recovery is cut short, though, when a letter arrives informing her that the time loop spell she cast is causing severe damage to space and time itself. In over her head, Twilight tries to summon anypony who will know how to fix it. The pony she gets is the last one she ever thought she would meet... and nothing like she expected him to be.

Available in Spanish thanks to dgs1993
Series TV Tropes page

Twilight isn't having a very good day. An experimental spell blew up in her face, an army of changelings is attacking Canterlot, and she just died. Yet somehow, it looks like it's going to keep going downhill from here.

Given the chance to correct what's gone wrong, Twilight swears she's going to fix all this even if it kills her. Which it will. Frequently.

Cover art by Pixel Prism
Spanish Translation
Series TV Tropes page

Twilight becomes alicorn of the stars. This is sort of a problem, because Luna kind of already was alicorn of the stars. Oops!

TV Tropes

We all know the story of how the Princess’ young student and five friends defeated Nightmare Moon and brought Princess Luna back to our lands. But what if the tale were false? What if the young Twilight Sparkle on the event of her entrance exam had not been rescued by Princess Celestia, but instead lost her mind among the power of her youthful surge and had to be sent away, far away before she could destroy all of Canterlot with her newfound power. Now the feral unicorn prowling the Everfree Forest only vaguely remembers her past, slipping away from constant terrifying attempts to capture her.

And she is beginning to remember what true power felt like.

Editors include: Peter, Justin, Featherprop, Mitch H, and Bad Horse
Featured on Equestria Daily
Reviewed by Chris on One Man's Pony Ramblings and by Paul Asaran on his review blog
Now with a TV Tropes page

Physical books are available on Lulu.com
Monster in the Twilight (Paperback) 272 pages
Monster in the Twilight (Hardback)