//------------------------------//
// The Lost Years 
// Story: Anno Equestria: A Brief History of the Pony Nation 
// by Insert Pen Name 
//------------------------------//


Anno Equestria
A Brief History of the Pony Nation
A FiM fic by (Insert Pen Name)

The Lost Years
AE666-673


The Early Equestrian Period lasted for over 600 years, during which Equestria grew from a displaced herd of refugees into the largest and wealthiest nation in the known world. Unfortunately, this golden age was not to last. Starting in AE666, Equestria entered into a bizarre seven-year period of unmitigated disaster. Many titles have been attributed to this event throughout the centuries: the Time of Chaos, the Reign of Discord, the Days of Disharmony, and several variations thereof. To most historians, however, this troubled period is known simply as the Lost Years.

During the Lost Years, pony civilization all but collapsed. Untold numbers succumbed to madness, and those that retained their sanity struggled to survive. No contemporary records survive from the Lost Years; our only accounts come from the recollections of those who experienced them firsthoof. By all accounts, it was not a time for the faint of heart, or the sound of mind.

For the longest time, the exact cause and nature of the Lost Years was a complete mystery. Whatever chain of events had led to the disasters that befell Equestria, nopony seemed to have made any attempt to record these events, assuming they could even be reliably recorded at all. That said, we now know that the Lost Years were in fact the work of the malevolent and unpredictable spirit known as Discord*. Why Discord chose to strike when he did or what he sought to gain from his subjugation of Equestria is unknown, if there was indeed any method to his madness (unlikely, all things considered). What is clear is that if recent events are any indication, the Lost Years must have been a troublesome time indeed.

It is worth noting that despite the chaos, Equestrian society did not descend entirely into anarchy. However, most socio-political constructs were quickly abandoned. Parliament and the Triumvirate ceased to be, as did any official body of law and order. Ultimately, it was family ties that became the new cornerstone for Pony society. In a time when trust was in short supply, a tightly-knit family group could mean all the difference between a secure existence and a life of fear. Families that lacked the numbers or resources to survive alone banded together into larger clans, usually run by a matriarch. The noble families survived easily under this system, and to this day, many of the larger families of Equestria, noble and otherwise, are a continuing byproduct of the Lost Years.

Despite the success of the clans, life remained hard, and ponykind as a whole languished under the harsh conditions that Discord imposed on the land. Then, in AE673, two very unexpected heroines arose, and altered the course of Pony history forever...

It is quite literally impossible to write an objective historical account of the Princesses. It simply cannot be done. Virtually every written source is either heavily biased, or blatantly apocryphal. Contemporary sources from the period border on propaganda (doubtless undesired by the Princesses themselves), while modern accounts are often obscenely mythological. It is a peculiar irony, therefore, that the most reliable references are the words of the Princesses themselves. While the Princesses have deliberately avoided giving any detailed account of their lives and their exploits, Princess Celestia has permitted the publishing of select excerpts from her personal journals. From these, and from some of the less fanciful (and therefore probably more accurate) tales of the era, we may glean some insight into the story of the Princesses.

Princess Celestia was born, by her own account, on the Summer Solstice of AE650. Princess Luna was born on Hearth’s Warming Eve, AE656. Their place of birth is unknown, and their parentage is a matter of sharp debate. Nothing is known of their childhood, which was in any event cut abruptly short; Celestia was sixteen when Discord appeared, Luna was only ten. What is known is that both sisters went into hiding together when the chaos began, fearing that Discord would single them out for their alicorn nature (whether they were alicorns at birth is unclear). For the next several years, the fugitive sisters roamed Equestria in disguise, lamenting the state of their fellow ponies, until they finally made an earth-shattering discovery.

It is unclear how the two sisters learned of the Elements of Harmony, let alone recovered them (though to imply that they were discovered through sheer serendipity is, in this historian’s opinion, laughable). Stories range from dreamlike visions to conversations with a flaming shrub. Whatever the case, Celestia and Luna eventually came to face Discord on a broad plateau atop the Canterhorn, armed with the Elements of Harmony. Some accounts say that the sisters discovered (or received) the Elements at the peak of the mountain, and that they encountered Discord on the way back down. Details of the battle (if indeed there was one) are lost, but in the end, the magic of Harmony was unleashed, Discord was reduced to stone, and Celestia and Luna descended the Canterhorn in triumph.

The events on the mountain had not gone unnoticed, and by the time the two sisters reached the valley floor, a large crowd had gathered to investigate. By all accounts, including Celestia’s own, their appearance before the gathered onlookers was truly historic. Upon being told that Discord was gone, and that Equestria was freed, the crowd erupted into cheers.

And then sank to their knees.

*Discord's inclusion in this volume is due solely to last-minute edits. His recent escape and subsequent re-imprisonment at the hooves of the current Element Bearers will not be included in this document.