In ancient times, during the Age of Discord, there were odd creatures roaming around because of Discord's magic. The creatures ranged from the hydra and chimera to beings unheard of before. Manticores with three heads, a being recorded to have the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face similar to that of female apes. Little is known of these creatures other than their appearances, for nopony dared to approach the areas they were located. These creatures were unlike anything seen before, or after Discord’s reign. For after the two Princesses defeated Discord and all the chaotic magic dispersed, the habitats of these creatures soon withered away. Due to this drastic change many of the creatures became extinct, yet some of their descendants still exist today, such as the hydras, the chimeras, and the manticores.
However, even after the rapid change of environment, scholars found a strange creature unlike the other Discordian creatures. This being was only seen as a silhouette. Witnesses that claim to have seen this being associate it with shadows and call it "Discord's Shadow", because its height and appendages are similar to that of Discord. Others say they heard an alluring music that “pulled” them towards the shadow. Other than that, the only information that certain is that accounts of this shadow have dated back to the middle of the Age of Discord, as well as the most recent account, being 3 years ago during the Great Manehattan Fire that lasted two days and burned down a third of the city. Research showed that there is a 5:2 ratio in sightings that occurred during major historic disasters to normal sightings.
Research into this "shadow", have led into complete dead ends. There was no pattern to the sightings, no footprints, no DNA samples, nothing left behind to track it. Due to the recent failed attempts to find out more about this shadow, scholars have recently deemed this being a myth, claiming the many sightings to be a "trick of the eye". Others stated the creature to have never even existed, and that it all came from post-Discordian Age paranoia.
*BOOF*
"What?!" Exclaimed the baby purple dragon while closing the book. "Is that it?!"
"What’s wrong, Spike?"
The baby dragon turned to face the lavender unicorn laying on the nearby chair. "Twilight, is that all the information there is on that weird 'shadow' thing?"
"Which one?" Asked Twilight. Spike then lifted the book and showed it to Twilight, “The Official Book of Equestrian Mythology Volume 9: The Unsolved Cases” she read aloud, "Oh! The bipedal one...hmmm." She adorably tapped her chin in thought. "Well, I think it talked about it once in that book about old filly tales." Spike quickly hopped up and climbed the tall ladders that allowed easy access to the hundreds of books that adorned the walls of the Canterlot Castle Library.
"I found it!" announced Spike pulling the blue book sliding down the ladder. He then began flipping through the book and stopped on one page. "The Mare in the Moon? Huh, creepy," he continued to flip through it until the end, "Twilight! It’s not in here!"
"Calm down Spike," Twilight said as she levitated Spike to her. "Here, I'll help you look for it."
As Twilight began looking through the books of the library, a scroll arrived through Spike in a dark blue flame.
"Huh, that's odd, I wonder what Celestia could have sent us a letter for…" Twilight cleared her throat and began reading out loud:
My Dearest Most Faithful Student Twilight,
I have sent this letter to you to tell you that Celestia is a troll there is an upcoming test a week from now. The test will be on Celestia's huge fat plot The Beginning of Equestria.
Sincerely,
Princess Trollestia Celestia
"Well then, I had better get started." Twilight stated, as she picked some books from the shelves, then sat down on the closest chair and began reading.
"Twilight, but what about lunch break?" Spike complained.
"Sorry Spike, but I have to get ready for that test. You can go on to Pony Joe's without me."
"Fine." He let out with a sigh and started walking towards the door only to trip on an old brown book with gold bindings and a gold unicorn on the cover. "Twilight, you forgot one," he said, lifting the book above him. Twilight then grabbed the book with her magic and brought it closer to her.
"Hmm, I haven't seen this book in the library before."
"Well that's something."
"What is?"
"A book you haven't read before," Spike exclaimed as he laughed at his own joke.
"Oh, ha ha. Very funny Spike," she said before opening the book. "OooOOoo…"
"What is it?" Asked Spike, having recovered from his laughter.
"This book talks about the founding and the first years of the Rule of Princess...es? Plural? Huh, must be a writing error."
"Neat."
"Very, I think I'll read this later, after these other books." Twilight then placed the book to the side.
"Not going to read it now Twilight?"
"Nah, I'll look at a few other books first."
"Well, ok, I guess, I'll be going to Pony Joe's now."
"Ok."
Spike proceeded to the door, turned, and began walking to Pony Joe's place for a good old snack. Twilight continued to read her books intently.
Unbeknownst to Twilight, outside the library window there was a bi-pedaled figure adorned in a black cloak reaching its feet watching that very conversation.
"Good, good, now to move on to the final phase." said the figure as it slid into the darkness. "I guess it’s time to go and get her from the moon."