The Rise of Harmony

by SpaceKing

Chapter 1. The Alicorn Sisters

The Rise of Harmony
Author: SpaceKing
My Little Pony and all subsequent properties belong to Hasbro. I do not own any of these characters.

Chapter 1. THE ALICORN SISTERS

The night was calm. A peaceful breeze whistled through the long grass of the plains, accompanied by the faint creaking of wooden wheels on the dirt. An old carriage laboured down the road, packed to the brim with migrants and pulled by two strong colts. It was a peaceful scene, until an abrupt noise shattered the silence.

“Ugh, I’m so bored,” cried out a navy-coloured unicorn loudly. The carriage rattled as the colts pulling it glared back at the noisy cabin. The complaint echoed outwards from the carriage for a moment, fading slowly into the night air.

“Are we even moving at all, or is this just an elaborate attempt to make pony pancakes?” she angrily asked nopony in particular. She tugged on a heavy linen robe that she wore and fruitlessly wriggled about in the cramped confines of the cabin. The other passengers scowled at her pointless attempts to find comfort. A nearby unicorn with a white coat and pink mane moved a hoof to calm her.

“Luna, stop fidgeting. It’s not going to make the carriage move any faster,” she told her. Luna stopped her fidgeting but glared at the tall, lanky unicorn pressed against the ceiling.

“But I’m getting crushed Celestia! Don’t you care about your own sister?” she replied in an overly-dramatic fashion. She threw her hooves up in the air, hitting the top of the cabin with a loud thud. The cabin roof shook and struck Celestia’s head, causing a few splinters to rain down upon the passengers. The other ponies grumbled at the disturbance as they attempted to sleep through the night. Celestia brought a hoof to her face and shook her head.

“Of course I do, that’s why I’m telling you to stop. We’ll be there soon enough,” she told Luna, remaining still as best she could with two other ponies pressed up against her. Her cloak ruffled under the pressure, stretching out under the seats.

“That’s not soon enough,” Luna replied plainly, finding her face squashed against the door window. Celestia sighed at her sister’s impatience.

“Just look, we’re at least in Equestria now,” she said, gesturing outside to the boundless fields and forests visible from the window.

“Which means the city can’t be much further. Have some faith in me Luna, I’m your big sister after all.”

“Why does that make a difference?”

“Well, I’m older than you, so obviously I know more,” she replied. Luna returned Celestia’s smugness with a sneer

“So you knew when you picked this carriage that it had less room than mouses’ hole for us to squeeze into?” she asked.

“… No, I didn’t know that,” she said bluntly. Luna took up a smug look of her own as Celestia sighed.

“So if you can be wrong, then there’s no telling where we are.”

“Oh, there’s a way of telling,” Celestia replied, as a smile began to creep across the white pony’s face. Luna blinked in confusion.

“What, how?”

“Go have a look.” Celestia opened the hatch on the door and it swung open, spilling a very surprised Luna out of the cabin. She bit down on her sisters’ robe as she went though, pulling Celestia outside with her. The two of them tumbled outside and hit the crisp dirt of the road outside. Luna’s robe caught on the wheel as it came past and tore apart, ripping it from her person.

“Oh — nonono,” she muttered as she quickly stood up and snatched up her robe, hastily throwing it over her back. Celestia immediately noticed her distress and quickly stood up in front of her, hiding Luna from view of the carriage.

“Did anypony see?” Luna asked anxiously, fixing her robe and buckling it back up. Celestia looked around, keeping her obscured from their vision. The door flapped about in the breeze before a pony slammed it shut in an attempt to keep the cold night air out. Celestia breathed a sigh of relief and helped her sister with her clothes.

The two of them sat still for a moment. The sky was dark tonight; it was a new moon so there was no light to illuminate the darkness. A cool breeze whipped over the two, blowing away the dust the pair had kicked up in their scuffle.

“That could have been very bad,” Celestia stated, staring wistfully off into the distance. Luna glared at Celestia, and then punched her in the foreleg.

“Why did you have to do that, sister? You keep telling me never to reveal ourselves, to always stay hidden in these robes so no one will find out, but then you do something like this. “

“I know, I know, and I’m sorry. That was stupid of me,” Celestia said with a grimace, turning to her sister. The secret the two of them bore underneath their robes were a pair of wings. This, in addition their horns, revealed the truth. The pair of them were Alicorns; winged unicorns and creatures of rarest legend. Both of them knew this, and they knew the risk they faced. “There are a lot of people out there that could exploit us out there if they knew. We’re not like regular ponies and no matter how hard we try to fit in, it always ends up the same way,“ Celestia said. Luna watched her sister, feeling her regret. “I don’t even know if there are any others like us out there, we might be the only two in the whole world. I couldn’t bare it if anypony tried to take you away. I just put you in that danger, little sister. I’m so sorry.” Celestia was dead silent as Luna just stared at her back. Luna slowly crept over to Celestia and peered around to see her face.

“Sis, it’s okay. None of them saw, and even if they did, Equestria is going to be a land of friendship. That’s why we came here in the first place, remember?” Luna attempted to comfort her sister, nuzzling her side with her head. Celestia felt Luna beside her and turned to face her.

“Yes. It’s a place where we might finally find rest.” Celestia smiled and nuzzled her sister as well.

“‘Where we don’t have to worry about being exploited or used’, you told me. And you’re right, I just know you are. You’d never put us in danger, and I know you only try to do what’s best for us. Tia’, you’re the best sister ever, and nothing could ever change that.” Luna said, hugging Celestia firmly.

“Thanks Luna. I don’t know what she’d do without you,” she said, hugging her sister back.

“You’re probably right and we are almost there. Just a little longer on the carriage and…” Luna stopped mid-sentence and the two of them suddenly looked up to see the carriage had gone on without them, probably glad to be rid of the noisy burden. The two paused while that fact set in, before quickly leaping to their hooves and taking off after the carriage.

“Stop!” they yelled. “We fell off. Stop!” Just as the pair caught up with the vehicle it came to an abrupt stop, causing the two to collide face-first with the cabin. They collapsed on the ground in a daze. The ponies in the carriage gladly left the crowded confines of the cabin and headed off down the road.

“Oh, what happened?” Luna exclaimed, attempting to find her footing. Celestia went cross-eyed for a moment but shook her head and returned to normal. The pair looked past the carriage to see where the passengers had gone, only to be awestruck by the magnificent sight before them.

A morning sun peaked atop a huge mountain before them, illuminating the capitol city of Equestria; the first true settlement in this new land. A path led up the side of the mountain up to the city, bathed in the shadow of the foundations for the great city walls that would forever protect the citizens within. Even in its current state, it was magnificent to behold. The pegasi had already begun working the jewels they had found here into their architecture, causing parts of the entire city to shine in the morning sun. The earth ponies had begun sowing the lands surrounding the town, using the rich soil to begin delicious crops of every kind. Royal flags rustled in the wind and overlooked crowds of migrant ponies of all kinds moving into the city. They were all excited to finally have such a wonderful home to call their own.

“Well… you were right Celestia,” Luna finally managed to say, getting the words past her enormous grin. Celestia was smiling even wider than her, so she just nodded in response. The two of them let out a collective cry of ecstatic glee before galloping off towards the city.

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The city was simply spectacular. It was nothing like the sparse, cold settlements outside of Equestria. Ponies of all races had left behind the petty feuds that plagued them for so long before and gathered under together under the shared goal of unity and friendship. It was only when they joined together that they could produce something as amazing such as the city that Celestia and Luna now found themselves in, even in its unfinished state. The cloaks obscured their identities, so they were able to enter the town freely under the guise of unicorns by lowering their hoods.

“This is… its just- how can such a place even…” Luna was at a loss for words and barely able to contain herself. It was all she could do not to immediately run off and explore this new town. Celestia was just as overjoyed to see a place that was so full to the brim with friendship and compassion. All the hate and distrust they’d learned to withstand in the cold wastes of the outside world just didn’t exist here.

“We’ve been trying to just survive for so long, to keep ourselves safe,” Celestia said, gazing around the city. “Maybe we can finally relax and have a place to call home. Wouldn’t that be nice?” she asked Luna, watching her excitable sister bounce on the spot lightly.

“We could even find our cutie marks now. We didn’t have the time to discover them when we were travelling.” Luna lifted up the back of her robe to reveal a blank flank. On a young filly it was expected, but for a mare of her age it was quite unheard of. Celestias’ flank was just as bare as hers.

“We can do anything we want now, Luna. So long as we stay here and keep together.” Celestia stood up and started trotting slowly towards a large fountain near the entrance. “We won’t have to worry about anything trying to use or hurt us ever again.” She turned around to face her sister. “Don’t you think so, Luna…?” her voice petered out as she saw her sister had vanished. She quickly looked around, distress quickly welling up inside her.

“Hey sis, over here,” Luna said, waving to Celestia from a storefront. She was pressing her face up against the glass, peering in on all the items inside. “You’ve got to see all the stuff they have in here!” she said. Celestia trotted over to the storefront and saw it held all manner of little statues and bric-a-brac on sale. The larger and more expensive items were sitting inside the actual store for sale. Celestia could see all sorts of art pieces from the old lands inside. Ponies seemed to be buying art and amenities for their new homes.

“Wow, these are very pretty. I wonder if they–“ Celestia turned to face Luna, but the alicorn was off once again. Luna was already speeding towards the city market, skipping along happily. Celestia groaned and took off after her, heading into the dense crowd present in the market. It was a struggle to even keep up with her with the crowds growing denser the closer they drew to the market. Celestia couldn’t even move very fast for fear of catching her robe on something. It was a large bazaar for goods that’d been hoarded by each of the pony tribes, but were now shared freely among friends. A particular fruit store drew Luna’s attention, boasting an array of food some of which she’d never even seen before. Ripe and delicious pears, giant bushels of grapes, bags of juicy corn, and even the shining red allure of-

“Apples!” Luna called out after seeing an assortment of some of the most delicious apples she’d ever laid eyes on. She was already salivating with anticipation by the time Celestia even caught up with her.

“Yes Luna, fruit. But did you really have to take off like that just for some apples?” Celestia said, catching her breath. Luna didn’t seem to be listening though. She was busy staring at the largest, most delicious looking apple of all. It practically shined in the sunlight. Celestia noticed her sister staring down the fruit.

“It does look nice, but we don’t have any money Luna. We’ll eat some fruit later; right now we’ve got to–” But Celestia’s words were lost on her sister. Luna immediately snatched up the giant apple and swallowed it whole. She immediately regretted doing so because the apple then became lodged in her throat. She reared back and gagged like mad, frantically bumping around the store as she attempted to cough it back up. A few other ponies were knocked aside in her wild movements, surprising a lot of them. Celestia gasped and quickly moved to the aid of her sister.

“Luna! Hold still or you’ll choke!” she shrieked, swiftly grabbing her sister around the midsection and squeezing her tightly. The apple shot right out of her gullet and flew across the store, splattering into the face of the storeowner. The pony kicked his hind legs back in shock and dropped straight to the floor, falling from his chair as he did so. The other customers gaped at the incident, and then stared at the two sisters. Celestia and Luna looked on at the mess they’d caused in the store.

“Ugh, maybe you’re right Tia’,” Luna replied, finding her breath again. Celestia shot her a fearsome glare. She didn’t have time to lecture her though. The fruit store owner was already on his hooves and staring down the pair. The two sisters smiled weakly. Celestia stepped forward and raised a hoof to the colt.

“Uh, look my good sir. My sister was just very hungry and wasn’t thinking straight. Right Luna?” she asked her sister, bumping her with her flank. Luna faked a smile and nodded furiously.

“Eight bits,” the colt said bluntly. He held out a hoof, awaiting payment.

“Oh, well you see we don’t actually have any money,” Celestia said, smiling weakly. Luna had already started to trot backwards slowly towards the door. Celestia looked back at her and bit her lip. Luna looked up at her and raised a hoof in front of her mouth to make sure only she could hear.

“Meet me by the entrance fountain,” she told Celestia, and then took off. Celestia spun around in surprise as Luna ran off again. Celestia then turned her head to see the shopkeeper growing ever more furious. She groaned in anticipation for what she had to do next.

“We’ll pay you back someday. I promise!” Celestia called out to the store owner as she ran for it. She could barely hear his angry shouting over the noise of the crowd. She made it back to the fountain near the entrance gates and found Luna balancing on the side of it happily. The entrance gates could be seen just past the fountain, and migrants were still coming in from outside. A few buildings were being constructed nearby; a couple of storefronts and some unused houses. Celestia walked over to the fountain and collapsed in a big tired mess over the side.

“This is exactly why we need to keep together,” Celestia told her sister. Luna hopped down from the fountain and stood next to her exhausted sister.

“Hey, everything worked out alright, didn’t it sis? Besides, this place is amazing! How can you just sit there so aloof?” she asked her sister. Luna looked around at all the buildings and ponies walking by. Celestia pulled herself off the fountain and glared at Luna.

“Luna, this place is huge, and I don’t want us apart if one of us runs into trouble.” Celestia looked at her sister sternly. Luna frowned and sat down, gearing up for a lecture. “You always cause mayhem by running off. I don’t want you to get on the bad side of anypony here. This is a place of understanding, but everyone has their limits.”

“Gheez, you’re so paranoid sis. There’s no one here who’d hurt us, except maybe that shopkeeper.” She giggled at the last bit. Celestia was less amused, remembering the angry shouts heard when she escaped.

“Just think before you act. What if your cloak broke in that crowd? What then? Stay with me, don’t do anything rash, just stay safe.” Celestia started to ramble a bit and stared off into the distance. Luna gazed at her suspiciously.

“Celestia, you’re always pretty cautious, but I’ve never seen you this bad. What’s wrong?” she asked her sister. Celestia turned to her to speak but then bit her lip.

“It’s… it’s just a feeling. Do you remember when a bad storm was coming you could kind of feel something ominous coming?“ Celestia asked Luna. She shrugged in response and Celestia simply sighed. “It’s probably nothing, but you can never be too careful, right?” Celestia smiled and turned back to her sister. Luna smirked cheekily.

“Oh, you can be too careful alright. Remember when you thought I’d run through poison joke and kept me confined to a bed for a whole week?” Luna chuckled at the memory while Celestia frowned.

“I’d never seen hiccups before, how was I supposed to know that was normal?” Celestia questioned her smug little sister. Luna stuck a goofy grin and shrugged, causing Celestia to crack a smile. “In fact, how can we be sure you don’t have something now? To bed for a month I say!” she announced, sticking one hoof out forward and patting her sister on the head with the other.

“Make me.” Luna stuck her tongue out at Celestia and knocked her hooves away from her own head. The two started pushing each other and squeezing their faces, attempting to make each other look sick. Luna only had to look at a comically sized grin on her sister to start cracking up in laughter, which set Celestia off as well. They drew a couple of stares with their shenanigans but only for the moment. After a bit the two stopped chuckling and sat happily, gazing up at the castle on the mountain.

“Don’t worry Celestia,” she put a hoof on her sisters’ shoulder and stuck the other one out to the morning sky. “We’re safe here in Equestria. It’s nothing but clear skies from now on.”

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The two sisters spent the rest of the day exploring the city, together this time. After a few hours of sightseeing they sat down on a bench in one of the more secluded sections of the city. It was a small district with only housing foundations, so there wasn’t any reason to come down this way unless you were part of construction. Everyone seemed to be on break right now so the pair had some peace and quiet for the moment. The impressive castle stood close by, sparkling brightly as various unicorns fixed jewels into its structure. They seemed intent on making their castle as impressive as possible.

“Celestia, do you think any important ponies are here yet?” Luna asked her sister. Celestia turned to her.

“What do you mean?” she replied.

“Well, any of the more renowned ponies, like the rulers. I heard the daughter of the unicorn king was one of the founders of this place, along with a couple of other leaders. So all the royalty should be around here, shouldn’t they? That’s a royal castle after all, isn’t it?” she asked Celestia, stepping up from the bench and walking a few steps. She gazed up at the castle, trying to see if she could spot anyone through the windows.

“I should think so. Everypony wants to live in Equestria now, and they wouldn’t be building all of this if there wasn’t some kind of government in place. The earth ponies are obviously handling the farming, and the pegasi manage the weather, just as they did outside Equestria.” Celestia glanced up at the castle for a moment. “I’m guessing the castle is unicorn handiwork. I doubt Princess Platinum would live in a place without one of their magnificent palaces to accommodate her. A lot of unicorns would’ve come over when the king joined his daughter, not to mention the rulers for the other two races.” Celestia replied.

“So if all the rulers are together, then who’s in charge?” she asked. Celestia thought for a moment but couldn’t come up with an answer. She hadn’t actually heard anything about who was ruling Equestria, only who ruled the individual pony races. They would have to pick a new ruler to govern over all of Equestria now; an absolute leader.

“Hear ye’, hear ye’!” A sudden and booming voice broke Celestia’s trail of thought. “The election of the new ruler for all Equestria is to be held soon. All citizens are invited to attend to proceedings.” A garishly-dressed announcer pony led by a small procession of guards was making rounds through the city, calling for everyone to attend the election. They were heading down a road perpendicular to the street the alicorn sisters were on, but he was loud enough to hear from a few districts away. He was announcing loudly and proudly, frightening the living daylights out of whoever stood next to him as a result, including his guard escort. They looked about ready to pummel the noisy colt.

“I think that answers your question Luna,” Celestia said. She stood up and watched the announcer and guards leave. The two of them looked up at the castle and could already see ponies heading up the steps into the main hall.

“Oh, we should go!” Luna told Celestia, who began to think it over.

“We’re trying to lay low, but I suppose this is a big event. Whoever those ponies decide on will hold the fate of Equestria in their hooves. But there’ll be a large crowd. Even these cloaks might not hide us.” Celestia looked hesitant, weighing the pros and cons of going. Her sister was nowhere near as picky though.

“It’s a historic event, sis. That means this is big news that will be remembered for a long time. This is exactly the sort of thing you love to watch. C’mon, let’s get going before the place fills up.” She smiled and started trotting off towards the entrance to the castle. Celestia snapped out of her thoughts and followed after Luna.

“Alright we can go, but I want you to stay close,” she told Luna. Her little sister smiled and they headed up towards the stairs to the castle hall.

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By the time the two of them made it inside, there was already a crowd forming in the long, castle hall. The place was constructed from sublime marble and stone, giving a smooth and elegant look to the architecture. The walls were decorated in large banners with emblems from all three races, symbolising their unity in this new land. One large curtain hung behind the throne, taking up most of the back wall. A long red carpet led up from the entrance, along the hall and up the stairs to the very foot of the throne, where the new ruler of Equestria would sit. The crowd was forming either side of the carpet, loudly chattering amongst themselves about who it would be. Celestia instantly felt cautious about the large crowd, but Luna managed to find a splot behind a pillar where they could sit unnoticed. No pony seemed too concerned about the pair in cloaks anyway; all eyes were facing forwards, towards the end of the hall where a large throne sat. An earth pony dressed in royal garments emerged from behind the curtain at the end of the hall and stood before the crowd. She first cleared her throat, and then spoke to the crowd,

“Citizens of Equestria, tonight we decide on a matter most important to the founding of our great nation. Equestria was founded on the principles of universal goodwill between ponies of all shapes and sizes, a bond that was created when the first six came upon this land and together vanquished the icy grip of hatred that has plagued the hearts and minds of so many, bringing forth the dawn of a new age of eternal friendship.” She spoke loudly, ensuring all ponies within the hall could hear. Celestia listened intently while Luna was amazed at how many ponies had shown up.

“In that spirit of friendship, three friends have volunteered their names for this honour. They are three of the original founders, ponies who have already ruled their own and believe themselves capable of ruling us now. Fillies and gentlecolts, I have the immense pride and privilege of introducing to you, Princess Platinum!” A white unicorn with a regal purple robe emerged from behind the curtain. She bore a beautiful silver crown with all the finest jewels and her cape shone with the light of a thousand diamonds.

“Commander Hurricane!” A pegasus pony burst out from the top of the curtains, dressed in honorific armour of the Pegasus clan. Shining metallic armour strong enough to withstand even the hardest blow adorned her. She landed down next to Platinum and nodded to her.

“And finally, Chancellor Pudding-Head!” An excitable earth pony with congressional robes and a large pudding hat bounced out from behind the curtain. She wasted no time and immediately hugged her two friends, then waved out to the crowd.

“My lords and ladies, these three believe themselves capable of ruling you. But which one of them should? This is our question to you tonight, and we eagerly await your response.” The mare said to the crowd, who immediately began to discuss amongst themselves about who should rule. Celestia began to wonder as well.

“Well, Platinum knows her fathers’ ways as king, but Hurricane is strong and unwavering. Pudding-Head…” She suddenly stopped and considered Pudding-Head for the moment, struggling to come up with something to adequately describe the chancellor.

“She’s… unconventional? You know, think outside the box?” Luna proposed. Celestia nodded firmly in agreement.

“That’s for sure,” Celestia replied, looking up at the three. “Any of them would do a fine job on their own. Why, together they would…” Celestia stopped speaking as her mind considered another option. Luna looked towards her sister, who had fallen quiet.

“What’s the matter?” She inquired.

“They should all rule!” she excitedly told Luna, who was taken aback by her sudden energy.

“Any one of them would do a fine job, so imagine if they all shared the position? They already have so much amity between them, and together they could hold no races’ concerns over another. It’s the perfect unity.” She seemed very proud of her idea, and Luna agreed as well.

“That’s a good point sis.” Luna looked towards the crowd near them, discussing the leadership position wildly. “And I think I have a way of telling them.” She smiled and snuck close to a nearby pony. Luna whispered the idea into the mare’s ears, who considered it as well. As Luna snuck back, she began telling it to everypony near her. “Now we just wait for it to spread,” she said, grinning happily. Celestia shared the feeling.

“Nicely done, let’s hope it works,” Celestia said, gazing out over the crowd and watching the idea spread. It wasn’t long before the thought reached the front of the crowd and then up to the three candidates. From what Celestia could see, they seemed to like the idea as well. The royal mare stamped her hooves on the ground to get the attention of the crowd.

“My good citizens, you have given us a most splendid idea. Rather than choose one of these three good friends to rule, maybe we should have all three rule together in harmony?” The pony inquired of the crowd, who seemed to agree unanimously. Luna watched her sister quietly glow with pride as everyone agreed on her idea.

“I can’t believe it. I never thought an idea of mine could affect something like this.” She spoke giddily, elated that the crowd agreed with her.

“It’s a smart idea Tia’. You’re always so energetic when it comes to helping everypony,” Luna commented. Celestia hid her delight with the shy wave of a hoof. “I bet if you keep coming up with things like that, nopony would even care about us being so different.” Luna said, nudging her. Celestia turned to her with a sullen look.

“I’m not so sure, sister. But recognition doesn’t matter to me. Just as long as everypony else is happy, I’m content.” She said. Luna looked a little confused but merely shrugged in response.

“Whatever makes you happy sis. I suppose I don’t have to get it,” Luna sighed. It was around now that the crowd had finally decided on the idea of united rulership. The crowd was quieted down and made silent.

“It seems this idea strikes a chord with all of you, and I can see why. Very well then, let us waste no more time. If everypony is in agreement, I now name you,” the three leaders on stage all bowed their heads, “the rulers of-“

A resounding clap echoed throughout the halls of the castle, interrupting the ceremony. Those atop the steps looked around for the source of the noise as another clap rang out over the crowd. It took everypony a few minutes to locate the source. Above the entrance to the hall, an extraordinarily bizarre abomination sat atop the doorway, clapping two mismatched hands together. It grinned, bearing one odd jagged fang in its smile.

“Bravo, bravo! I do believe congratulations are in order. You’ve finally decided who was going to be running the show here, and here I was just starting to get bored.” The royal mare atop the steps pointed a hoof up towards the being.

“Just who are you? How dare you interrupt this ceremony,” the announcer said. The creature smiled wider and snapped two of the claws on its bird arm, disappearing from atop the door in a flash of light. It reappeared before the mare in mid-air and shook the outstretched hoof with a lion’s paw, pulling her from the stage to fall into the crowd. The creature then landed upon the steps on a horse’s hoof and dragon’s foot, a red snake tail flicking its way behind him.

“Oh yes, how rude of me, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Discord, and I just know we’re all going to be the best of friends… guahahaha-GUAHAHAHA!”