Equestrian Origins: Hush now, Quiet now

by SoulzOfWriting

Prologue and Introduction

Equestrian Origins: Hush Now, Quiet Now
By: Nameless Writer; Edited by: Yomoma, Fatdog

Prologue & Introduction

Nearly every lullaby and nursery rhyme of today can be traced back to dark and sordid events in history; times where songs were created by someone and passed down through the generations to keep particularly important tales alive. The same goes for even this seemingly innocent lullaby, the one that is used to coax countless fillies and colts to sleep. Unbeknownst to most, this innocent melody was once performed by the greatest mass murderer in Equestrian history.

More than a thousand years ago the evil God of Chaos, Discord, once ruled the land. At the beginning of his reign the land and the sky would become misshapen and twisted by his magical energy. The ponies of Equestria only saw annoyance in this, but it was only ever done in a joking, light-hearted manner, and was something they could live with. Some say it even became enjoyable from time to time.

As his reign grew in length, Discord grew ever more powerful. Soon his simple bursts of chaos began to affect even themselves. Discord’s power became twisted and misshapen like the land and the skies, forming a mind of its own. What was once a minor annoyance slowly grew more grotesque and sickening. True madness was free to unfold and corrupt whatever lie near. It wasn’t long before it reached the inevitable conclusion and altered the minds and bodies of the Equestrians. The land became fragile and the plants were chilled to ice. Normally harmless events became potential fights for survival; the water turned poisonous, the wind burned and the foliage that remained seemed to turn hostile. Living through each random day and night became hazardous, and life itself was threatened by the unceasing terrors.

Knowing this the ponies of Equestria finally decided to rise and challenge Discord’s power. The strong forged off to face Discord and left the weaker behind in hopes that they could fend for themselves. However, each of these was met with failure. The earth and skies prove too chaotic for the two groups, and the reduced Unicorn magic of each could only do so much to protect them against such raw chaos. In a final surge of all their strength, the groups reunited to witness the end together.

The end was nigh and there is nothing they could do to stop it. Several cries rang out as the last bit of hope blew away. Somehow, miraculously, these cries answered the prayers that were lost long ago. The events that unfolded next would be remembered by all who saw them for the rest of their lives. As if driven by the sheer willpower of those in danger, the day and night drove to occupy the sky at the same time. In a flash of brilliance, the moon moved in front of the sun, an event that had never been thought possible. The eclipse, the first ever to be seen by mortal eyes, sat in the sky for many minutes. Many feared for their lives, their minds conjuring thought that the event must mark the end. It took several minutes for them to realize that nothing had happened; the ground didn’t rend apart and the skies remained intact. Everything did nothing and the silence seemed so peaceful.

The mixture of both sunlight and moonlight helped calm their ailing souls. Soon they were all looking to the skies with a smile. That’s when they returned; from the skies slowly descended two beings that had long before vanished. Several ponies were dumbfounded as they stared in awe, watching the benevolent beings float to the ground; both were surrounded by the mixed light and adorned gleaming golden jewelry with glowing crystals. In the instant their hooves touched the ground, a loud cheer broke the omnipresent silence; a cheer so magnificent that it multiplied as others joined in, basking in the new hope of life! Their radiant princesses had returned to them!

Many sounds filled the air around the princesses. Most were the cheers of followers and cries of parents induced by the joy and wonder surrounding their return. Of course it didn’t take long for somepony to ask the one question that may turn the herd against the two princesses; “Where did you go?” At first there was naught but silence, but soon the levees broke and a flood of questions burst out.

“Why did you leave us here with him?”

“How could you abandon us?”

The questions continued unceasingly even through scolding by those not asking, but even they were filled with doubts about their soon-to-be saviors. Even so, Celestia still knew how to speak to the subjects she hadn’t seen in years. Her soothing voice and calm demeanor alone were sufficient to assuage their qualms. After apologizing for their absence, the two sisters told the newly attentive subjects of the mystical Elements of Harmony. They spoke about their unprecedented power, and how they needed them to defeat Discord. Only they were aware of their locations, so they had to vanish to leave Discord in the dark.

“With the power of these gems, we can overthrow Discord and reclaim our land!” Princess Luna declared excitedly, interrupting Celestia’s explanation.

With the Elements, both sisters removed every sign of Discord's power from Equestria. Each paved their own path to the heart of their land, removing the thick madness as they went along. Of course Discord let them; he always welcomed the fun of a challenge. Some say he smiled and laughed as he watched, his land being taken from him. “What better form of Chaos is there besides war?" he would chuckle day by day. He sat and waited with agonizing anticipation for his opponents, eager for the imminent fight. Never before had he experienced the joys of war. It had also been such a long time since his two beloved friends had come for a visit, and he could hardly wait.

So, unhindered by Discord, the Alicorn duo was able to swiftly eradicate the madness that plagued the lands. It wasn’t long before they were merely days from reaching the heart of their great kingdom. Equestria was nearly completely purged of the chaos, yet there still remained small pockets of madness, having gone unseen and untouched by the princesses. They were too small to survive on their own, and would soon wither and die; yet they still thrived enough to leave behind a powerful legacy. As they slowly faded away, the pools created fierce monstrosities that terrorized ponies all throughout Equestria.

The pools were unstable to begin with; no one could tell you what havoc they could cause if left alone. So they isolated the areas when they were found, trusting that the princess would return to them after Discord was dealt with. ‘As long as we stay away from them then no harm should come’ was the common belief. These hopes were soon violently and disastrously dashed. The pools were spawning monsters! Larger ones, with lots of life, spawned various types of dragons; smaller ones could only manage Hydrae and packs of Manticores. The very weakest, those who were left standing on their last leg, were able to manage to scrap together whatever they could to give birth to small nuisances like the Parasprites and Cockatrices.

All had, over the course of the Coup d’état, inflicted great havoc upon the land and its residents.
The Great Spawns toppled forests and attacked settlements, while the lessers created famines and turned wanderers to stone. This, though frightening it may sound, was not trouble, for they were all easily contained by the Alicorn princess after the defeat of Discord; most were pushed into the depths of the Everfree Forest where they would bring less danger to ponykind.

Although this cannot be said about the very last spawn. This spawn was born from the most belittled pool of madness. Its parent was so weak that it couldn’t even form a gigantic number of small creatures like Parasprites or cockatrices. But it was big enough, just the right size to create a single pony: a single, normal-looking, beautiful mare who was still basking in the years of early youth.

Normal. This mare was astoundingly normal, at least considering her origin. Her coat was a dark crimson, an uncommon but known color; her mane turned more heads than it raised questions, glamorous silver with streaks of ominous black weaving through her untidy locks. Out of everything, what provoked the most conversation was her voice. Some had said that it had an allure of honey that brought music to the ears of whoever had the “joy” of hearing it.

But the mare’s purpose in life was to create havoc, put the land in disarray, and leave true madness in her wake. She accomplished this mission, unfortunately, yet only to a single place. This place has since been pushed out of existence through time, lies and the gradual warping of tales. A place once called Gorgetown, a small, quiet settlement still in the early stages of development somewhere along the area known as Ghastly Gorge. Not many know what actually happened to the place. The story that is commonly told today is that the town and its residence were swallowed by the forest and never seen again.

In that time, 200 years after Discord’s fall, many had begun to travel the land. Groups of stallions and mares came together under one overseer and would form new colonies and settlements on their own. Soon after the capital was established many of the overseers would leave the homes they made to return with royalty by their sides.

The tale of Gorgetown is one that left an everlasting impact on those involved. It is a story that needs to be told in its entirety in order to be fully understood and appreciated, a tale of true madness and despair that could change Equestria forever if ever truly known; just as Discord wanted.
 

Comments

[Zasyri]

Hmm, you have my interest so far. Please continue!

[SneakyKGB]

Walter...

[SoulzOfWriting]

863705 He's gonna suffer sneaky and you're gonna love it! >:D

[SweetieSings]

Moar