Play this song first!

Twilight Sparkle has always been looking forward to her 21st birthday. It's the day that she's finally recognized as an adult mare, but also the day she's finally able to learn magic on the highest level. What should have been a great day though, turns out to be the most horrific day in her life. She finds a prophesy talking about the next great evil in Equestria, and it's HER! Now she's falling, slowly becoming the very evil she swore to fight against, and not even her closest friends can pick her up in time. In the end, she may even...

Apple Bloom is tired of being the last in her class to not have her Cutie Mark, but her friends Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo aren't going in the right direction to get their Cutie Marks, and she knows it. In order to get her Cutie Mark the right way, Apple Bloom begins to have thoughts of separating from her friends, and getting her Cutie Mark on her own. But her search for her Cutie Mark opens up to a major mystery in Equestria, and Apple Bloom will discover much more than just her special talent...

friends become enemies...

destinies are revealed...

light fades into the darkness...

and through it all, a hero is born...

This is the first main story in the series.

New cover art by my friend The Spectralist.

Link to the TV Tropes page!

"It's so nice to see you again!" said the thing that was not Celestia. "Oh yes, I know who you are, Twilight Sparkle. I had a taste of your magic the first time we met. Mortals forget things so easily, I find. Allow me to refresh your memory: you tried to kill me. But you failed, Twilight Sparkle. You only mostly killed me. And I guess that makes you one very unlucky little pony."

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!"

Twilight reads a book about literature and, analysing her world, decides that everything she does is planned by someone other than her.

She does not take it very well.

Rated Everyone for adult humour.

now with a reading

Pinkie Pie gets her friends to explain various aspects of Ponydom to the audience (aka a wall of Sugar Cube Corner's kitchen). A silly story poking fun at some of the fan-produced elements of MLP.

Twilight gets a distressing letter from Celestia and rushes to Canterlot.
What happened to the princess? What is Luna up to? Why do I sound like the narrator to a bad crime drama?
The first chapter is inspired by a drawing from JohnJoseco. The rest will be my own madness doing its part.

Twilight and Dash, upon discovering that the long awaited "Daring Doo 4" movie contains, eugh, Humans, decide to rent out A Nightmare Moon on Elm Street.

Of course all their friends are invited. There is absolutely no way any shenanigans could possibly ensue.

None.

Celestia leaves to deal with a foreign crisis, giving her sister a chance to rule alone and become more attached to the modern world. She calls on Twilight Sparkle to advise Luna, hoping her student will be able to draw Luna out of her shell. With two major threats to Equestria already defeated in the past year, it seems like the perfect time to let Luna gain some confidence and experience in the modern world. After all, what are the chances of a third disaster occurring?

Now comes with complimentary tropes.

This story is a sequel to Dusk and Dawn

The Dawn Militia and Nightmare Moon's armies continue to wage war across Equestria under the eternal night. The six bearers of the Elements of Harmony–Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Trixie–have been blessed with extraordinary powers, with which they lead the Dawn against the tyrant and her reluctant lieutenant, Eclipse.

But it's hardly easy. After all, what place does harmony have on the battlefield?

In which I, Twilight Sparkle, (the biggest idiot in Equestria), fail miserably, utterly, and conclusively in my valiant endeavor to keep my decidedly-more-than-Friendship feelings hidden from one Rainbow Dash (the sexiest fastest mare in Equestria).