//------------------------------// // Prologue: Planetfall // Story: Xenoblade Equestria // by sailing101 //------------------------------// The stars above Equestria shined brightly in Luna's sky that night. All across the land, countless ponies, donkeys, zebras, and gryphons rested peacefully under the moon's gentle light. At the same time, while fewer in number, there were those engaged in various nighttime activities, such as one lavender alicorn in Ponyville, who was intently studying the stars form the tallest tower of her castle. Twilight Sparkle gazed into the eyepiece of her magically enhanced telescope, scanning the heavens for any sign of the anomaly that had attracted her attention these past few days. Pulling back, she levitated a quill and parchment over to jot down a few notes. The object that appeared in the sky four days ago appears to be approaching Equis. Curiously it's current position remains behind what my calculations predict. It is as if the object is slowing down as it moves closer to our planet in complete disregard for Neightownian Physics. However, tonight is when the object will be a it's closest to Equis. according to Princess Luna.... “Twilight, are you still awake?” a sleepy voice called out. Twilight looked over to see her number one assistant, Spike, looking in through the door. “Oh! Spike, you have to come see this!” Twilight replied, “I've almost got a clear view tonight!” “I don't really see what the big deal is,” Spike sighed, “It's just some funny star right?” “Stars don't just appear silly,” Twilight corrected, “This object is like nothing anypony's ever seen. It's highly reflective, more so than any meteor on record, and the lack of a tail means it's not a comet. In fact, it seems to be mostly metallic in composition.” “Do you think it could be some sort of spaceship?” Spike asked. “A few days ago I would of called such an idea ridiculous,” Twilight admitted, “but after observing it's movement these past few nights, I'm not so sure anymore. It would certainly explain how it's been slowing down.” “Well that's cool. Do you think any aliens might be coming for a visit?” Spike pondered, “I mean, it's not like they've done much to hide themselves, it would make a rather clumsy start if it was some sort of invasion.” He began pacing as he spoke, continuing with his train of thought. “Of course maybe that's just what they want us to think and they'll be all 'we come in peace' and then suck everypony's brains out when they least expect it.” Spike's eyes grew wide. “Or maybe their weapons are just so strong that they don't need to bother with stealth! Or maybe-” “Spike!” Twilight exclaimed, interrupting the young dragon's paranoia driven rant, “Calm down, the likelihood of an invasion of any sort is absurd. By my calculations, the object is only a little larger than Canterlot. It's much too small to hold a force large enough to take over the world, if it even is a spaceship.” Just then, a streak of light lit up the sky. “Oh, Hey! Look, a shooting star!” said Spke. His fears forgotten, he ran over to the rail to get a better view of the sky, but the fallen star had already disappeared. Twilight followed spike over to the edge of the tower. “Did you make a wish?” she asked with a smile. As she watched the sky, another streak flashed in the night, followed by two more. “It's a meteor shower!” Twilight realized. Together, Twilight and spike stood at the top of the tower watching the night sky. Soon countless streaks of light filled the heavens. The two friends stood in awe of this private show as the stars continued to fall. As time went on, ponies all around Ponyville, and even all across Equestria awakened to see the meteor shower and appreciate it's beauty. However... “Hey Twilight, is it just me, or is that star growing bigger?” “Hm?” twilight hummed, before shaking herself back to reality, “What did you say spike?” “I said one of the stars is growing.” He pointed to the star in question.” Twilight dashed back to her telescope to get a better view of the star in question. Sure enough, she was able to identify it as the very object she had been keeping track of. But more than that, Twilight was able to get her first detailed look at exactly what the object truly was. “Mother of Equestria!” Twilight gasped. There could be no denying what it was she was looking at now. She felt faint, her legs began to tremble, and it was without much warning that Twilight fell over in a daze. “Twilight!” Spike cried out. He rushed to her side. “Are you all right?” Twilight was shaking, the shock of what she saw slowly fading. “I think so, spike.” she said, “I just never honestly thought...” “Twilight?” Spike asked, worry creeping into his voice, “Thought what?” Minutes passed, and soon, what Twilight had seen became clearly visible in the night sky. It was a massive vessel, comparable to the gondola of an airship in shape. As it entered the planet's atmosphere, a corona of flames wreathed around the titanic ship, lighting up the night as bright as day. Those who were watching could be forgiven for wondering how such a massive vehicle could fly. However, as time passed, something else became apparent. It could not. Slowly, piece by piece, the massive ship began to break apart under the strain of it's fall. Wreckage from the vessel spread out, falling over all of Equestria, forcing many to take shelter. Shield spells went up over cities and towns, sparing the residents from the worst of the fallout. Soon, the centerpiece of the ship, a flattened sphere-like construction was all that was left. Those still watching looked on in despair, as it was headed directly for Canterlot mountain. Great jets of flame erupted from either side of the structure as if it were trying to control it's decent, but to no avail. It's course firmly set, there was nothing to be done but wait for impact. With an almighty crash that shook all of Equestria, the pod impacted the base of Canterlot mountain There was a bright flash of light, then... Silence. A cloud of dust and smoke hung over the crash site. As it slowly dissipated, the newest addition to the landscape was made visible. The pod sat at a sharp angle in a nest of gigantic blue crystals that seemed to grow out of the mountain itself. Amazingly, both it and the mountain seemed mostly intact. All of Equestria shared a collective sigh of relief upon seeing that the capitol stood unharmed. At the same time, there was an underlying air of tension left in the wake of the calamity. What was that mysterious craft, and why did it break apart? What mysterious beings could have created such a thing, and for what purpose? Were there any survivors of the crash, and would they be friendly, or hostile? What was clear, was that Equestria as it had been known was irreversibly changed that night. As dawn's first light began to creep over the horizon, Ponykind awakened to a new addition to their world, one that would play a part in shaping the future, for better or worse. Only time could tell.