Corruption

by Kn16h7

Chapter 1 - A New Age

Long before the dawn of Equestria, the world was a barren and dark place. There was no night, and there was no day. The land flat and desolate, the air cold and still... The universe void of everything but a single, hunk, of rock.

But even that, was not the beginning…

Centuries before that boulder existed, and millennia before the endless expanse of emptiness that it floated in became infinite, there was nothing. The 4th dimension was a void. Up or Down, North or South, East or West, There was nothing in any direction. But height, length, width, and time are not the only dimensions.

Unlike the 4th dimension, the 5th was already infinite, and within it was a source of power greater than any other... Quintessence.

At first, the Quintessence was simply a vast pool of limitless power, radiating its' purity. But then something happened, something changed... Perhaps it came from an even higher dimension than the 5th or perhaps it was there all along, but nonetheless, the Quintessence was becoming corrupted.

Pure malice had begun to devour the essence, growing from its power. The Quintessence was near completely consumed but before the corruption could take complete control of absolute power, the purity suddenly began to take form. Shining its light through the darkness, much of the power that was taken by the malice was purified and absorbed by the new being of Virtue. But what wasn't purified was influenced by the light and began to take shape and form a consciousness.

And thus Virtus and Scelus, the first of the Satori, were born. For a thousand years, the two very embodiments of Light and Dark stared each other down in the realm of the divine. It was Scelus who made the first move, and on the longest day of the thousandth year, the dark one concentrated some of the Quintessence within itself into an orb of condensed dark matter. Within seconds it flew at Virtus, but suddenly a blinding light flashed from in front of the light one, and when the light was gone, so was the dark matter.

At the very moment of that flash of light, a shock-wave enveloped the mortal realm and the 4th dimension became an infinite expanse of universes, filled with barren planets and baby suns. This encounter marked the start of time, this day would be the thousand year mark for the rest of eternity. The stars and heavens synced with this pattern.

"And every one thousand years on the longest day, the realms will align and the way shall be opened." The young foal read aloud as he guided his hoof across the page. "Interesting... This sounds a lot like the legend of Princess Luna's corruption..." He closed the book, letting his hoof lay on the emblem for a short time before raising it up to his snout as his eyes closed and his mouth opened. "huuuuuuuuuuuuuoooouuuaaaaaaahaaa" the gray colt lowered his hoof and glanced back down at the book. 'Book of Theology - Vol. 1' was inscribed above the book's emblem, and 'History of the Divine' was printed below.

"Where have I seen these symbols before?" he muttered as he stared at the book's’ cover until another yawn caught him off guard. "Perhaps I should get some sleep, I don't want to miss Luna's speech..." he thought to himself forcing back another yawn as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "But first, it’s time for today's practice."

The foal looked over to the lamp on his nightstand, focusing on the chain-link pull switch. Closing his eyes, a small glint started to emit from the young stallions' forehead and illuminate the mark hidden under his mane-line. The chain began to quiver and jerk about slightly and it tugged at the switch mechanism but it wasn't enough. Disappointed but determined, the young pony's eyes tightened and the glow of the small light brightened ever so slightly. The chain's shaking changed from a twitch and became a subtle but fast vibration as the switch was slowly pulled down. His eyes clenched more and more, as the chain lowered bit by bit. "Just, a bit.. more..." the foal thought as a drop ran down his cheek.

*Click* the light gave out as the drop of sweat hit the floor, and the victorious young colt let out a sigh of relief. He threw himself back, stretching out before squirming into a comfortable position and drifting off into much-needed sleep.

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Emptiness.

That was all he could see for miles away in every direction, and that's all he had seen for god knows how long. As far as he can remember, that's all he has known. Sitting there, floating in the emptiness, he continued to think. He thought, and he thought. About what? Only he knows, but regardless, he thought quite a bit.

Then one day, something happened, His mind shifted greatly towards one, new, random subject. Something he never knew existed, yet he somehow thought of it, no, not only thought of it but thought only of it. He couldn't get it out of his head; it was like cancer in his thoughts. It was the Full Moon.

The big bright blue ball in the sky, he could almost see it. Wait... he could see it, and it was getting bigger! Then suddenly, Bam, next thing he knew, he had slammed face first into what no longer seemed like his imagination.

"Ugh" He stood up and started dusting himself off, but before he could finish he was interrupted by a concerned voice.

"Hello?"

He Jumped up in surprise and swung around to see a tall indigo pony staring at him with a confused look. She had a glossy star-like mane, large wings folded back against her body, and a single horn sticking out of her head. Her stance told him that she was ready for a fight, but the fear and concern in her eyes betrayed that.

"Who are you? It's not everyday somepony gets sent to the moon. I have been here for over 500 years, I would know..." The alicorn's voice reflected her emotion perfectly as she spoke. Fear grew on his face as he started to respond, but he was cut short by the strange pony. "... I... I'm sorry if I frightened you..."

He stared at her, all the fright missing from his expression, leaving only confusion. Once again, just as the silence set in, it was abruptly interrupted, this time by a new voice.

Princess? Princess Luna? ... Princess!

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*THUD* *THUD* *THUD*

"Princess Luna! Please wake up..." The voice sounded desperate, hurried, and a bit disappointed.

The blueish-purple alicorn rolled over, covering her head. "Ugh, Yes...? What is it?" Luna called out from under her hooves.

"Your highness, if you don't hurry you're going to be late for your own announcement." The pony spoke in a hurried fashion.

Just as soon as the words left the young pony's mouth, Luna jumped up, letting the white silk sheets fall to the floor in a long jumble. Within seconds the indigo alicorn was across the room. She trotted from desk to table to desk, throwing paper and quill alike into the air and letting them float to the marble floor. "No, no, NO! Where is it!? Ugh..."

The pony still outside the closed door was starting to get worried and confused, "Princess...?"

"Wait for me downstairs Cres’, I will be out shortly," Luna called out from the inside. Luna, still in search of something, threw a couple of books from a desk as she spoke. She kicked one of the books on her way across the room, sending more sheets of paper flying through the air.

"Yes, your Highness..." Crescent Wave paused for a moment in thought. As the blue unicorn spoke, the air stilled and silence set in. "... Princess...?"

"Yes...?" Luna asked after a moment, a bit worried.

"... Please hurry."

The princess let out a sigh of relief and the sound of papers and quills shuffling around returned soon after. "Yes, yes, of course, I'll only be a minute... Ah, Finally! Now... Where is that part about the Ursa Major..."

Crescent sighed and trotted away, headed for the stairs. As she started down the spiral flight of stairs, the young mare couldn't help but get excited, It was the day that the first Lunar Knights were to be appointed, a new era. The blue unicorn smiled as she trotted down the marble steps one by one. She stopped at an oval opening in the wall and started down the large hall on the other side. Crescent trotted down the right of the hall, passing a few oak wood doors and marble benches as she went. Soon she came upon two large statues, also made of marble although much cleaner and more polished than the rest of the marble throughout the castle. They were statues of Celestia and Luna in their armor from the Gryphon War, posing heroically. The statues marked the entrance to the garden, the large door in between them.

The unicorn stepped through the door and into the castle's indoor garden. There were four large 4th circle benches in the center, forming a full circle with four breaks for pathways. The pathways lead into huge expanses of flora, each bursting with the colors of the blooming flowers on them. The roof curved inward in the center, forming a dome, and a pattern was cut into it allowing sunlight into the room. The only other source of light was a large, decorative window on the opposite side of the room from the door.

Crescent trotted over to one of the benches and sat down with a sigh, her long silver mane flowing gently in the light breeze.

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---

Luna sat behind the stage curtains, several sheets of paper in front of her as she scanned the words on them. She sighed as she let them float to the floor before letting her magical grip on them fade. "Are you getting a bit of stage fright, little sister? You almost remind me of the old days." Celestia said with a chuckle as she walked up behind the trembling alicorn.

Luna turned her head, making eye contact. "I... Are you sure we are ready for this Sis?" She said, unsure of what was about to happen. "We only have the 6 suits of armor, and even then we only have 5 ponies able to fill them."

Celestia sat next to her sister and smiled. "Luna, we are as ready as we will ever be. We only need the six suits of armor anyway." She turned her gaze forward and stared off into the distance. As her smile faded, she began to speak again "And sometimes, the ponies you least expect are the ones that will be there when you need them most... Anyway," Celestia's smile returned as she turned back to her sister, "I'm sure it's just stage fright."

Luna looked back up at her sister, then back to the floor. "... You're right. I'm letting my nerves get to my head..." She sighed as she looked back up at nothing in particular. "I can't let myself get worked up, this day marks the start of a new Equestria and it's my job to lead the way getting there." Luna stood up at the end of her sentence, reassured and her nerves calmed, she looked back to her white alicorn sister that was smiling brightly back at her. "Thanks, Sis, What would I do without you?"

"Probably fall into a pit of depression and get taken over by a creature of darkness and despair," Celestia said with another soft chuckle as she joined her sister on her hooves. "Now go do your job, and introduce the new era that you brought on." Her grin grew even larger.

"Alright, here goes."

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There were ponies crowding everywhere waiting for the big announcement, everyone wanted to hear what the princess had to say, as it had been a long while since either sister had spoken publicly. One pony turns his head and looks off towards the road to the market. Curiously, he slowly trotted away from the crowd speeding up into a gallop as he drew further from the other ponies. The gray earth pony ran far down the road, disappearing into the darkness.

"It's her! The princess!" One pony called out, stating the obvious entrance of the indigo pony, followed by five large ponies with varying dark shaded coats, and assorted manes. As Luna made her way to the stand in the center of the stage, the unicorn, two pegasi, and two earth ponies all lined up behind her and turned to face the crowd before sitting on their haunches.

Everyone exchanged whispers among themselves in the audience as the alicorn prepared her speech. "Ahem," the princess cleared her throat, and in turn, everyone quieted down to listen. "As you all know," She started, looking from pony to pony "For the last few hundred years, we have lived in an age of agony and despair." The understanding shown in the crowd's faces, the speaker looked down for a moment before she continued.

"... Times have been hard, and as time goes on the pain and burden only grows." Her voice lowered as she continued, the burden of the past 10 centuries bursting forth in her words. "Ever since the elements fell dormant, we have had to face many struggles, and defend ourselves from many predators." She paused, flipping a page with her magic, and continued, picking up her tone. "We have faced the Hydra's, The Wolven, and even a few dragons.. and yet things seem to keep getting worse. Equestria is no longer a utopia, and just like the creatures of the Everfree have adapted to this change, so must we."

The whispers returned as the alicorn paused once more, looking down at the stand. "What about the elements of harmony? It has been a thousand years since the days of legend, they should have come back by now!" One pony calls out sparking commotion in the crowd, the whispers getting louder.

"We cannot depend on the elements to return and save us!" Her magically-increased tone silencing the ponies so that the alicorn could continue with a normal volume. "If we are to survive in this new harsh reality, we will have to fight back on our own. It was not the elements that saved us during the Griffin War, It was the sacrifice of the many ponies who died to keep their families safe. " The pony from before stepped back, lowering his head.

"When the Element Bearers lost their power, and we were faced down by a race that felt they could take advantage of our loss, six brave ponies stood up and fought for Equestria. Six ponies, who had never held a weapon, who had never known any other power other than friendship, took up arms and held the front lines for a month on their own. They lost their elements, but they never cared, because they still had each other, and they were not about to let anyone take that from them."

"Their act inspired the ponies of that time, and others took up arms and joined by their side one by one to protect their friends and family, and soon, We had a power far greater than the elements of harmony. We had each other. And together, we fought to keep Equestria safe from the Griffins and succeeded." The princess turned another page.

"Today, we face a new threat. Something far greater than the Griffins, or the dragons. The forest grows restless, and an Ursa Minor has been spotted roaming near the border. We can only presume that the Ursa Major and other creatures like it are awakening. This is no ordinary threat, We need ponies who are not only willing to die to protect those they love but ponies who will stop at nothing to get back the Equestria we once had."

"Ponies who can take on any task, however small or large. Ponies who can live through anything. We need ponies who can do the impossible... " Luna looked back and nodded, and before long the five warrior-like ponies stood up and trotted a few pony lengths forward in response.

"Today, five brave ponies are answering that call. I present to you the newest branch of Equestrian Military, The Lunar Knights!" Luna raised her hoof up to point to the warriors - clad in mystic looking armor - as she introduced the first 5 of The Lunar Knights. "Their armor taps into the dormant magic within each of them and enhances their speed, strength, and a number of other abilities. With their help, we will bring to Equestria a new age! A renewed era of peace!"

The crowd burst into a cheer at the sound of the word, but only to be stopped by another voice. "Ah ha ha ha ha! You speak of peace? You present 5 ponies and expect to be able to handle the Ursa Major?" A gray coated earth pony stepped forward to lay claim to the voice, a mysterious air about him. "You won't even be able to stop the pests of the forest from slowly destroying you with such a pitiful excuse for an army, let alone the children of The Nightmare."

Luna, shocked by the strange pony's words, pulled her thoughts together and flew over to the gray stallion. "State your name." Luna's words were cold and short.

"You know, it's impolite to ask somepony for their name without first giving yours". The stranger replied with a smile on his face.

The alicorn, angered by the stranger's childish response, pressed the question harder. "State your name!"

The Gray earth pony’s smile fell into a frown, "What, you don't remember me, Luna? But we spent all that time together before you left me alone to die." His words so sincere put the princess into shock. All of the anger, all of the rage left her and was replaced with an empty stare, her ears drooping down as she took a step back. "Ah, so you do remember." The strange pony's grin never returned.

His voice suddenly very cold, he spoke back up. "The Everfree forest is the least of your worries Luna, you know of what you fight for, but not of whom you fight to get it. We will see if your Lunar Knights are up to the task without their sixth. It was good to see you again Luna, it had been far too long." He started to slowly trot away before letting out one more sentence. "I'd stay and chat, but I'm sure you have somewhere to be..."

Suddenly there was a loud explosion coming from outside the chamber. The congregation of ponies started panicking, huddling together for protection. The five Lunar Knights all snapped attention towards the sound, spotting through the windows a cloud of smoke pouring out from the castle's garden. The pegasi flew off towards the explosion with the other three galloping close behind.

Crescent worked her way through the crowd of terrified ponies and found Luna, who still wore an empty stare. "Princess! Princess Luna!!" Luna didn't respond but simply continued to stare off into the distance. "Your Highness! You have to snap out of it! These ponies are counting on you!" The blue pony insisted.

"It was him..." Luna whispered, still staring at nothing. The alicorn stayed silent for a moment, then suddenly her eyes filled with emotion and she shook her head. "Right, right..." The princess said as she got up, "You're right. Get these ponies home, I'll go find Celestia and inform her of the situation."

Author's Note:

This work and the characters within that do not belong to Hasbro are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Comments

[Kn16h7]

7753959 Thank you for the interest!

I may decide to release another chapter without a proofreader because of the fact that not enough of either the world or the story are explained in the first chapter to allow for a potential proofreader to make a decision.

[Kn16h7]

7754574 Dont worry about it, I'll find some people eventually I'm sure.

I'm extremely new to the site as I mostly just used deviant art until now, but that sounds like a good idea, thanks.

[Kn16h7]

7759067 The group system seems really similar to deviantart's, so I was able to track them down pretty quickly after you mentioned them. But thanks for the offer!