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// PROLOGUE 
// Story: A Thousand Voices 
// by SpartanD014 
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PROLOGUE


There are times of peace, and there are times of war. This is true for any civilization among the stars, no matter their planet of origin. Whether brought about by anger, or jealousy, or religion, war is an inevitability. Some are worse than others, some contain unspeakable violence. But they all end the same. While the individuals who sat safe in their homes, occasionally hearing small bits of news about the war, will cheer patriotically when their side emerges victorious, those directly involved are required to face circumstances they were not trained for. Toiling emotions of grief and loss, bouts of rage and sadness, things that they knew they would have to face, but did it anyway, for the greater good. Because they knew that what they were doing was right, not only for them, but for those they fought for. The sacrifice, the pain, it all had to be worth something… Right?

Princess Celestia, ruler of the nation of Equestria and symbol of the sun, had learned the hard way that it was not always worth it… For even though she had saved her subjects, Celestia personally believed that the banishing of her sister, by her own hoof, no less, was one of the worst things she had ever been forced to do. 

As the princess walked down one of the wide corridors of Canterlot castle, she occasionally caught glimpses of the moon hanging in the sky through windows in the walls. The pale light shone through the windows, illuminating the otherwise dark hallway and lighting Celestia’s path through it. The light reflected off of the marble floors, allowing Celestia a view of her reflection as she walked. Her usually flowing mane had begun to slow down, a result of her growing fatigue. But she continued down the long hallway, and finally she came to a large set of doors.  

The princess pushed the doors open with a small burst of magic, and stepped out onto her destination, a small balcony at the back of the mountain that Canterlot called home. She looked up to the moon, observing the pattern of craters that had been etched into it on that fateful night, almost a thousand years ago. The night where her sisters jealousy had gotten the best of her. The night where she had transformed. The ponies called it the “mare in the moon”, and it tied in to the pony’s tale about Nightmare Moon, the evil beast that roams the land, eating little foals. Of course, Celestia knew that that was not true at all. However, there was nopony alive today who knew the truth. Nopony left who remembered Celestia’s crime.

It would not be long now. The Summer Sun Celebration was coming soon, and Celestia knew that it fell upon the day she had banished her sister. For a thousand years, Princess Celestia had put on a happy face during every one of the celebrations to please her subjects, to assure them that nothing was wrong. All was peaceful in Equestria, as it should be. But within, the day tormented her. To her, it was nothing more than a constant reminder of the atrocity that she had committed. But now, it was all coming to an end. A tear fell down Celestia’s pale white cheek as the reality of the situation truly hit her. She would see her sister again. It would not be pleasant at first, but Celestia had been planning for this day for hundreds of years. It was all falling into place. 

As the princess stared up at the pale white orb, a green wisp of dragonflame snuck up on her, exploding outward once it reached her, and depositing a letter onto the stone floor. Celestia jumped in surprise at the noise, but regained her composure once she realized it was simply a letter from her student, Twilight Sparkle. She unclasped the letter and opened it, beginning to read.

My dearest teacher,
My continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are brink of disaster! For you see, the mythical Mare in the Moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she’s about to return to Equestria, and bring with her eternal night! Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true. I await your quick response. 

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle. 

Celestia chuckled to herself as she rolled the letter back up, then summoned a piece of parchment of her own from her bedroom at the other side of the palace, and wrote her quick reply. She should have known that Twilight Sparkle was going to figure it out. That young mare was the smartest unicorn Celestia had ever known. And yet, it was not enough. She needed friends, Celestia had decided long ago. And what better a time to gain them than on the “brink of disaster”? The princess sealed her reply, then, with a light of her horn, sent it on its way. Celestia looked back up at the moon, smiling solemnly. 

“I’ll see you soon, sister,” she whispered. “I’ll see you soon…” 

As she stared at the moon, a yawn escaped the solar princess. The princess had a big day coming up, so sleep seemed like a good idea. Yawning once more, Celestia turned and exited the balcony, entering back into the wide moonlit hallway, and began to the long trek back to her bed chambers. 

However, had she stayed out for just a moment longer, she would have seen what appeared to be a moving star. It streaked across the sky at incredible speeds, then began to angle down and enter the atmosphere. To any stargazers at this time, it would have appeared nothing more than a simple shooting star, prepared by Princess Celestia herself. Little did they know that the inhabitants of the shooting star had far more malevolent intentions.  Intentions which would change the future of Equestria forever. Intentions which could only be stopped by someone else…