//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: The Covenant // by Jphyper //------------------------------// June 1, 2543 Ponyville, Equestria Twilight Sparkle took a deep breath, enjoying the early morning air. She had awoken early today, and decided to step outside and watch Celestia’s beautiful sunrise. Slowly, the golden orb rose into the sky, the stars disappeared, and the world around her became brighter, warmer, and livelier. She heard clattering inside, the library, and knew Spike had awoken and started breakfast. As she trotted back inside, she thought she heard a strange whirring sound, but dismissed it. After all, stranger sound had been heard before and proven to be nothing. “What an excellent meal, Spike,” Twilight sighed, her belly full and content. “As always,” the little dragon boasted. Suddenly, the whirring sound returned, but this time it was much closer. In fact, it sounded like it was right outside! They rushed through the door and stopped. In front of them, floating above the ground was a strange object. It was a deep violet and shaped roughly like a bunch of bananas with the curved side facing up. Underneath, some round, pink, glowing deviced appeared to be keeping it aloft. Curious, the ponies of Ponyville gathered around nearby, watching and waiting for what it would do next. They didn’t have to wait long. A door opened up on the side of the craft, and several strange being s hopped out. Most of them were small, about the same height as a pony, but standing on two legs. Their backs were hunched, and they looked around nervously through their beady little eyes. However, there was another creature. This one was also bipedal, but it was much taller, even taller than Princess Celestia. It was clad in blue armor that, while well-polished, was not very ornate, nor did it have many distinguishing insignias on it. It breathed in the calm Equestrian air, and sighed. It then began to speak, revealing that its mouth was split into four mandibles. “Citizens of Equestria!” it began, “We are here to offer your kind a glorious opportunity. By joining our covenant, you will all be able to partake in the Great journey towards salvation! Instead of burning when the fires come, you will be carried away to become the gods of a new universe!” Applejack cantered over to Twilight and whispered, “What in tarnation is that guy talking about?” “I have no idea,” was Twlight’s hushed reply. “Even now, one of our prophets is discussing this offer with your own leader,” the creature continued. “But even if she does not agree to join, I am here to offer you, as individuals, a chance to join our cause. What say you?” “That’s crazy talk!” Rainbow Dash yelled. The rest of Ponyville’s citizens muttered in agreement. Twilight noticed that all her friends had gathered around her as well. The creature called out again, “I understand your hesitation. Many other beings that have joined our covenant were reluctant at first, but none have regretted that decision.” The creature paused, looking around at the crowd’s reactions. “I see you are still not convinced,” he continued. “Perhaps it would be best to wait for your leader’s decision.” Princess Celestia carefully observed the strange being before her. It was skinny and gray, its neck and limbs resembling worms. It floated around on a portable throne, clearly too old and weak to move around by himself. Around him, several stood guards at attention. These guards were bipedal, and were clad in ornate crimson armor, with intricate glowing yellow inlays. Some of these guards were armed with staffs, while others held long, two-bladed knives that seemed to be made of blue light. “No,” Celestia said. “Just think of the opportunity! You could have eternal life! Unlimited power! All would bow before you, worshipping your very existence,” the worm creature proclaimed. Celestia chuckled, and said, “I don’t mean to sound boastful, but I already have all that here.” A few of Celestia’s own guards allowed themselves a few light smirks before regaining their composure. “But what of your subjects?” the creature asked. “They could share in all this glory. You wouldn’t want to deprive them, would you?” “Why would they want any of that? They’re perfectly happy right here,” the princess countered. “Because otherwise, they will burn with the rest of the unfaithful when the Great Journey arrives,” he warned. Celestia tilted her head back, and her horn began to glow. Outside, a shimmering effect could be seen in the sky. The creature heard a report from his communication device. “My prophet, an energy shield has enveloped the planet! Nothing can get through!” The creature glared at the princess. “I am more than capable of protecting my people, mister prophet. I think our discussion is over,” she said. The prophet nodded to one of his guards. In one swift motion, the guard leaped at the princess, swung his blade, and sliced her horn clean off. The shimmering shield outside dissipated. The royal guards leaped into action, but were quickly slaughtered by the prophet’s own guards. As the princess gasped in horror at the events that had just transpired, the prophet leaned in close to her. “Now you see. We will have this world. You can share it with us, or we can take it from you. The choice is yours,” he whispered. She stood there a few moments, still in shock. Finally, she lowered her head and sighed, “Okay. You win. Equestria… will join your covenant.” Twilight Sparkle paced nervously in front of the library, waiting for word on the princess’s negotiations. It had been several hours since the tall creature had stopped speaking. During that time, several more craft had arrived in Ponyville, bringing more strange beings with them. Some of the newcomers looked like hybrids of dogs and birds, while others were simply giant apes. She let out an impatient sigh. Suddenly her assistant, Spike leaped to his feet, a familiar sensation in his gut. He belched loudly, and a scroll materialized out of the green flames that followed. Spike opened the scroll and read aloud. “ Let it be known on this day that, by the authority of Princess Celestia, the nation of Equestria shall be fully integrated into the mighty alliance known as the Covenant.” The meaning of the words took several moments to sink in. “Your leader has chosen wisely,” the tall creature announced. “Now, we need able-bodied individuals to serve in our glorious military, to fight our enemies for the glory of the Covenant.” The creature turned to the six friends gathered in front of the library. “These six look like good candidates. Load them into the Phantoms!” “You’ll have to catch me first!” Rainbow Dash challenged. She took to the sky, but didn’t get far. Several spikes shot through the air, piercing one of her wings and sending her tumbling to the ground. The spikes had come from a weapon held by one of the ape creatures, who growled in impatience. All through Ponyville, many other ponies were being rounded up. “Are we going to be okay?” Fluttershy asked as the six friends reluctantly climbed aboard one of the vehicles. “I don’t know,” was all Twilight Sparkle could say.