The Era of Equis

by timeblitz

Chapter 1

Rain pounded on the cold stone roads of Canterlot. Rebel forces marched up and down the streets. A single filly ran down one of the back roads. She was muddy and tears streamed down her face. Her small bat wings fluttered at her side, not yet ready to lift her off the ground. Her messy light blue mane streamed out behind her and her dark gray coat was ruffled. No cutie mark could be spotted on her flank. The feature that stood out the most were her bright yellow slits for eyes that seemed to glow into the night. She was quietly sobbing, hoping to find shelter. She had just seen her best friend slaughtered. Shot in the neck. In fact she was more like a big sister than a friend. But it didn't matter now.

Up ahead a bright light came into view. The small filly stumbled in her desperate attempt to hide. She fell onto the cold stone earning herself scrapes and several bruises. Two ponies rounded the corner each wearing the rebel insignia. At the sight of the small filly laying on the ground the two ponies ran straight up to her. The bright orange unicorn knelt down by the filly and hoisted her onto his back. He looked over to his companion, a light purple pegasus and said "This one may be eligible. She has the signs of Luna." His partner nodded and the two took off towards the rebel base.

The small filly lay limp in the middle of a hard cold cell. Moonlight streamed in through metal bars and a bucket of lukewarm water sat in the corner. As the small pony opened her eyes she grimaced at the pain in her head. She felt the back of her head only to find a small bump. She gazed wearily around her surroundings and wasn't surprised to see the prison she was enclosed in. She wobbled over to the bucket and took a sip to help sooth her sore throat. A loud creaking noise sounded out through the enclosure as the big wooden door opened. The small filly jumped back as a face appeared in it's frame. It was one of a stallion. An earth pony by the looks of it. He had a murky green coat and an amber colored mane.

"I thought I heard something." he said nodding to the filly. "Anyways you need to come with me." Knowing better then to resist the filly reluctantly followed the pony through the door. He looked over to her and when he saw she was in pain picked her up off the ground and dropped her onto his back. He then proceeded to walk down the stone halls. Only after about ten minutes of navigating the labyrinth of cells did he stop.

In front of the two stood a large wooden door with intricate designs swirling about. The earth pony knocked on the door and after hearing a loud "Enter" proceeded. He walked into a large room with unicorns seated all around a slightly raised podium. The earth pony stepped up onto the middle then set the small filly down in the center. He then exited the room closing the door behind him. After the door was firmly back in place the unicorns turned their attention back to the filly. A small yellow female stepped forward and her horn started to glow. A refreshing light absorbed the filly and vanished a second later. All the bruises disappeared within a few seconds. The filly relaxed just a bit at this gesture.

"Now young one," the yellow unicorn said "what is your name?"

"N-Nightshade." The uncertain filly stuttered."Why do you need to know?"

"No reason." The yellow mare nodded to a unicorn across from her. "Now Nightshade, we're going to conduct a little experiment. No reason to panic. Okay?"

Nightshade remained silent afraid of what might happen to her if she refused. The yellow mare once again nodded and everypony took up their positions. A loud humming noise could be heard as the unicorns lit up their horns with magic. The magic flew out of every horn upwards until they all met in the center above the filly. They formed a bright ball of magic that slowly expanded. It grew until it was about the size of a full grown mare.The filly looked up at the blinding magic, squinting in it's light. It blast down onto the filly with flashing rainbow colors. Nightshade let out a scream of pain as the magic struck her. The pure power flung her onto her stomach. She sank down even lower as the brilliant light attacked her. She felt like a thousand swords were all piercing her and a sicking feeling came to her. As if this wasn't enough a sharp pain smacked her head as a glowing point came out. A horn was forming onto her forehead absorbing the magic. While the pain in her body started to fade the splitting headache grew. Her vision blurred and everything went black.