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// On the History and Geography of the Crystal Empire (To be Edited) 
// Story: The Sparkle Essays 
// by food food food 
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On the History and Geography of the Crystal Empire


An Overview of the Newly Rediscovered Territory by Twilight Sparkle


In the year 1003 After Long Night, or more modernly known as year 3 After New Moon, during the night of the Spring Equinox, a brilliant flash of light illuminated the Arctic North beyond the Crystal Mountains.  Outshining even the brightest star, the strange burst of magically-produced light was observed throughout the Frozen North.  Though few ponies lived in such areas to witness the event, this strange anomaly would come to affect the very foundations of both Equestria and the world as a whole.

The event that has come to be known as the Northern Flash, was no mere magical anomaly or strange curiosity.  It signified the return of a place long held in stasis, a forgotten city that once ruled an empire that spanned leagues beyond counting.  The Crystal Empire has returned, more than a millennium after it has been lost.

During the Pre-Classical Era, the Crystal Empire held dominance over the northern parts of the world, from the Crystal Mountains and the Northern Reach to present-day Moosecow and most of the Hooviet Union.  These lands were controlled by the Crystal Emperors from their Palace in the Crystal City.  The Empire flourished for many years before its capital mysteriously disappeared over one thousand years ago.

Less than one dozen ponies in all of Equestria were aware that a place once called the Crystal Empire existed in the Frozen North of this world in an age long forgotten.  No text or book is known to mention it, and even works dating back to the Classical or Pre-Classical Eras rarely imply the existence of such a place.  It is thought that most of the texts detailing Pre-Classical Era history were destroyed in the many cataclysms since then.

Smart Cookie’s ‘Journal of the Great Migration’ revealed that, “to survive, [the Earth Ponies] left most of the scrolls behind and used the rest for kindling when the nights grew cold,” offering evidence to the loss of written history during the Great Migration.  It is also recorded that Discord’s Reign of Chaos and the Razing of the Everfree also led to a loss of many historical texts.  During the War of Long Night, the forces of the New Lunar Republic frequently burned the libraries of occupied and besieged cities and towns in a concentrated effort to demoralize and ‘reeducate’ the citizens of areas under NLR control.

The loss of historical texts is the most-cited hypothesis historians give to explain the little information known of times dating before the Classical Era, also known as the ‘Dark Ages’, though it does not explain how ponies such as Star-Swirl the Bearded have remained well known, despite living in the Pre-Classical Era.  Theories of an effort to remove the Crystal Empire from historical knowledge are therefore not completely unfounded.

In the months and years to come, more of the Crystal Empire’s origins, history, and culture will be revealed to us through the findings gleaned from local inhabitants, the Imperial Library, and even texts from the Palace of the Royal Pony Sisters.  As it is, the Crystal Empire that exists today is not a true empire at all.  Of the vast and powerful nation that once ruled the ancient North, only the Crystal City remains.  This is only called the Crystal Empire for traditional reasons.

The Empire reappeared only two miles east of Fort Snowshield, a small Royal Guard outpost linked by train to the Trans-Equestrian Railroad on a direct route from Ponyville.  The Fort was established in 984 ALN by Sergeant Snowblind of the Hoofguard and Lieutenant Stalwart Shield of the Hornguard.  Snowshield was built to garrison only a maximum of one hundred ponies to both secure the Northern Reach and condition members of the Royal Guard and the Wonderbolts for sub-zero climates.

When it first appeared during the Spring Equinox, the Crystal Empire was completely surrounded in a magical shield about 10 kilometers in diameter and 5 kilometers in height.  The central point of this shield was is located at the Crystal Palace in the center of the city, and can only function as long as a continuous stream of magic is sustained.  The shield itself produces an atmoisolation effect that is able to contain its own atmography and sustained moderate climate.  This shield has also been observed to carry barrier and ward effects, isolating the Crystal City from any outside magical effects, especially that of necromancy and battle magic.  Though shields similar to this have been created within Equestria, the shield is far older and more powerful than any modern spells in Equestria.

Within the shield, protected from the harsh polar climate around it, the Crystal Empire maintains a temperate climate that needs no weather control to maintain.  The various plant life within the shield flourishes under the ideal conditions, though almost all of the species recorded so far are not native to the Northern Reach.  Around the Crystal City lies a small amount of farmland reaching from the outskirts of the city to the shield itself.  This farmland produces such native crops as crystal berries and crystal corn, the subject of many years of exposure to the magic exclusive to the Crystal Empire.

At the center of the Crystal Empire is the Crystal City itself.  Famously, the city’s pattern resembles that of a snowflake, which is also the sigil of the Crystal Empire.  The architecture and municipal planning of the city exemplifies the Crystal Ponies’ values of order and structure.  Radiating from the center of the city are twelve primary roads dividing the city into six districts.  Each district is both bordered by a primary road and bisected by another, with secondary roads joining at exact angles to produce a ‘point’ in the six-pointed star that forms the Crystal City’s basic layout.

While each district is well defined by the ‘snowflake’ layout, there is not much specialization among different sections of the city.  Every district carries a sizable portion of shops and vendors as well as housing for the city’s inhabitants.  It is a general observation that the buildings closest to the center of the city are older than those farther away, and that most of the markets are located along the edges of the six districts.  Almost every building is constructed out of crystalline materials native to the Northern Reach, and the brilliant shine given off by the city arranged in the shape of an immense star gave it the Pre-Classical name, ‘the Star of the North’.
At the center of the city, where all districts and roads meet, stands one of the largest structures ever built by ponykind.  The Crystal Palace is a towering monolithic spire over 350 meters in height, making it a contender for one of the tallest ground-based buildings in the world.  This structure is balanced upon four archways to form a square-shaped enclosure underneath the tower that forms the center of the Palace Plaza that the castle stands upon.  Each leg of the palace holds a doorway to a flight of stairs leading up to the Hall of Emperors, which connects to the oldest and most important chambers in the castle.  The Crystal Throne is located in one of the rooms along the Hall of Emperors, and has been in use since the first Crystal Queen founded the Empire thousands of years ago.

Due to the inherent magical qualities of the Crystal Empire, many secrets of the Palace still remain unknown.  Hidden passageways leading from the Crystal Throne to the very top of the Imperial Keep have been discovered, and most of the palace’s upper floors remain empty save for curious artifacts left by forgotten Emperors.

Below the palace, located in the exact center of the Crystal Empire, is the resting place for an immensely powerful object known only as the Crystal Heart. This object was recovered shortly after the rediscovery of the city and played a critical role in the defeat of King Sombra shortly after.  Not much is known about this artifact save for its apparent role in the upkeep of the magical shield protecting the city.

Because of this complete lack of knowledge about the Crystal Empire, it is the duty of historians and archeologists today to research and renew our understanding of the ancient world.