It was a hot and heavy day in Ponyville, the sort of day when every movement or action felt like it took a superhuman effort. It was these days that favored the unicorns as they used some simple chill spells to cool the air around them, ridding themselves of the oppressive heat. The other races, the pegasi and the earthers, were left in their torture, to do all else that needed doing. The Apple family were baking as they bucked the tree’s with the little sister Applebloom ferrying cool, refreshing water to the orchard, bringing back empty buckets to repeat the process again.
It is on this day that we find Twilight Sparkle, with magic weaved around the library in her successful attempt to keep herself, and the books, cool. Using her telekinesis to lift a book, she did not need the same amount of water that the Apple’s did, instead contenting herself with a mere glassful, taking occasional sips of the refreshing liquid. The book was unimportant, some small report about the methods used in order to make Canterlot stand tall on the tallest mountain. As for Spike, he was being a kind, generous soul, his draconic nature gave him a large resistance to the sun’s sweltering rays, allowing him to help out around the town, mainly making sure that the elderly did not die from the heat.
While Spike might run into some grand adventure, valiantly carting a old mare to hospital, this is not Spike’s story, and neither is it Twilight’s. No, this is the story of a force that we can not have met yet, so for now we’ll just keep our eyes trained on Twilight’s pert buttocks. It must be said that there is nearly no one that knows what goes on in Twilight’s head, the thought processes of this powerful purple pony remain a mystery to all but two ponies, Princess Celestia and the aforementioned Spike. But right now, I can give you a glimpse, a small shaving of what occupies that beautiful brain of hers. Earlier, before I even started speaking, Twilight discovered another book, a small brown tome that looked perfectly mysterious and yet so boringly ordinary at the same time.
This paradox of a book was focused on what was on all accounts a rumour, a fairytale that was spoke of once and never again, the tale of the Black-birds. According to the book, which I read in preparation, these Black-birds are a guild of spies, assassins and generally very nasty individuals. They could get dirt on anyone, murder without leaving a trace and commit crimes of such atrocious morality that no person of moral standing would even whisper their name, for fear of being linked to the crime, a superstitious lot they were. Nevertheless, while the Black-birds may have been consigned to mere rumour, those rumours were printed and have now reached the effective eye-holes of Twilight Sparkle.
Now, before we move onto the events of the future, I shall give a recounting of the past, a past that is may be slightly unfamiliar to you, but one that I know like the back of my hand. While you know the world of one of the many multiverses, the world where Chrysalis is defeated and tossed from Canterlot, we are currently residing in a different one, where everything thing is the same, Discord was stoned again, Sombra was defeated and there are many more general disasters that have occurred, Cerberus escaping Tartarus for example. All is the same, except for one event, a singular instance that has changed many things. I refer to the Canterlot Wedding, where Crysalis originally meant to invade all of Equestria, she instead settled down, taking the role of Cadence on completely, after all of her changelings died while fighting in the Everfree forest, their old home.
While Twilight did still call her out, she was unable to find the real Cadence and so the wedding went as planned. This caused an escalation of stress for poor Twilight, leading to her challenging Mi Amore to a duel. It was devastating, leading to a major refurbishment of the castle, a refurbishment that was long overdue anyway, giving Luna her own designed half of the castle. The sheer destruction caused by the duel led to Twilight’s element status being revoked, and while she was allowed to keep the library, she was no longer the Element of Magic. That honour now belonged to Trixie Lulamoon, the new leader of the Elements of Harmony.
A few friendship lessons later, they did manage to stop Twilight attempting suicide and prevented her depression. But, like I said that is all in the past now, I shall now begin the telling of the present and indeed the future. For you see, it is on this hottest of days that Twilight has arranged a little meeting, a meeting with someone she believes might have a link to the Black-birds. As your humble guide, I can reveal that this person is not someone that you would know. Indeed as we watch Twilight begin to leave the Library, I can assure you that the person she is meeting has no link whatsoever to the Black-birds. She will return in a few hours, I assure you. As for why we’re not following her, it is as I said earlier, this is not the story of Twilight, Spike, Lulamoon or even fat-flanked Celestia herself. This is a story of the force that at the time, you could not have known, but that you now know.
This is the tale of the Black-birds, the rumoured group that live in the shadows. The rumours are wrong, they are not spies or assassin’s, not even thieves. They are a group of info-brokers that sell and trade information throughout the planet, manipulating and tricking anyone they can. As for why, that is simple, for fun. To watch from on high as plans are enacted and people play to their tune. As for how I know all of this, well I think you can guess by now, from the placement of this sentence and what I have already revealed of how much I know. I am the leader of the Black-birds, you’ll have to wait for my name.