Chapter One
In the corner of the Starswirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Library sits a dusty book with a picture of an alicorn on the cover. The alicorn is all black with dark blue hair and above him sits the title of the book The Rise and Fall of Nox. It is with this book that our story begins.
"Hey Twilight, I found a spell that allows you to go back in time!" shouts Pinkie Pie from across the room. Twilight ran over to see if this would maybe avert the disaster from the incoming day. As soon as Twilight leaves to the past, Spike makes a huge discovery, except it didn't seem that big at the time. "Hey Pinkie," he shouted to her. "Have you ever heard of an alicorn named Nox?"
"No," Pinkie shouted back happily. "But I'm sure Twilight has. You should ask her." Spike looked back down at the book and tried to remember if they had it back at the Ponyville Library. Finding that he had no memory of it, he pocketed the book as a gift to Twilight. Had he shown it to her on that Tuesday, disaster might have been averted.
That next morning when Twilight got up she saw a shiny new package on her bed stand. Wondering what it was she undid the ribbon and saw the dusty book, except now it looked brand new. "Spike, would you please get up here." She yelled downstairs. The sound of hurried footsteps running up the stairs greeted her, and so she asked her second question. "Where did you get this book, Spike?"
"Oh that? I picked it up from the Starswirl the Bearded wing while you were in the past. Do you like it?"
"Do you mean to tell me that you stole a book from a library?"
"Yes"
"SPIKE!"
"But you don't have it in your library, and I thought it was a book you never read before! So I just"
"Don't give me an I Just excuse young man!"
"I am not a man, I am a dragon. And I am certainly not your son! Goodbye!" And with that Spike ran crying out the door slamming it behind him. Twilight, also crying looked down at the book on the ground. " I didn't mean to make him run away, he just did! It's not my fault! Is it?" The book just sat there. Twilight stared at it some more before she finally realized what the nagging feeling was. "Wow, I have never read you before. And I got all over poor Spikes case about stealing from a library." Poor Spike, at the time, was being served hot chocolate in Rarity's house, while Rarity listened sympathetically to Spike's story.
Twilight looked down at the book at her feet. The picture of Nox seemed to flash at her. "Well," she said. "There is no history book that I have not read, and this is no exception!" With that Twilight sat down and began to read.
"Chapter One, the Rise Of Nox, as well as other forgotten or lost alicorns," Twilight sat up looking confused. "Other Alicorns? I thought there were only three?" Turning back to the book Twilight realized the picture of Nox really was flashing at her. "What the…" In a huge flash of light a massive stallion was standing in front of her.
"Starswirl the Bearded! How, what, but, How are you here?!" Twilight screamed at the legendary unicorn in front of her. "I thought you were dead!"
"This is not actually I, reader, but a replica of me created by bending light magic. But that is not important! What is important is that you get rid of this book before something happens!"
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked. "What could possibly happen if I don't throw a way this book?"
Starswirl looked down at her. "You are as stubborn as I was. This book contains a part of Nox's essence. It was said that if a pony who was descended from Hydram opened this book, Nox would finally be able to wake from his sleep and pursue his goals."
"Hydram? Who is Hydram?" Twilight started to flip through the book when she saw it. Right smack dab in the middle of the book, covering the entire page, was a picture of an alicorn who seemed to be made up of water. She felt a chill through her body as she realized that she knew who this stallion was. "But that is impossible," she told Starswirl. "This picture was hanging in my parents den back in Canterlot! When I asked them about it they said it was just an old mare's tale. But if he was actually real, and I'm actually descended from him, does that mean Celestia is my great, I don't know how many greats aunt?"
"Yes child, as was she mine. This is why you have incredible magical abilities, like I, and why the princess was so willing for you to join her academy. She was silently watching you, and your family, since you were born. You see it was stated in a prophecy that one day a purple unicorn with incredible magic abilities would rise up and defeat Nox. When the princess saw this prophecy she immediately burned it in a hope to not start a public fear. You see, Nox is the alicorn of darkness and death. His full name, Nox Necro, means exactly that, dark death. For years he ruled the Underworld, the place where dead ponies go, in peace but then when his sister, Lumis Bioland, got married to Universia, a gave birth to Luna and Celestia, he got angry. He and his sister had made a pact in which to never have kids, and since she disobeyed that, he took revenge. All the disasters of the world, Discord, the Changlings, etc. etc., have all been created from him. And I fear now that you have opened this book, and once he has fully awoken, he will let loose his full wrath on Equestria, maybe even obliterating it forever."
Twilight looked up at this stallion with a newfound respect. She looked out the window and saw the restful sleeping community of Ponyville. She realized that she could have just sealed all the ponies in Equestria's fate. And that that fate wasn't very good at all. "But sir, she said, if a group of ponies using the Elements of Harmony attacked Nox, could they put him back into submission."
"Possibly, but you would need an even greater power than that, descendent of Hydram. You would need the power of Lumis and Universia combined to defeat Nox. And the only way to contact them is through the portal of Photrollo, the Portal to the sun. This portal is located in the undersea palace of the great Hydram, off the coast of Manehatten. How you will reach it alive, I do not know, but you would need the help of Princess Luna. Oh and while your down there, say hi to dad for me." And with that Starswirl vanished in a cloud of smoke.
"Wait if his dad is my ancestor, does that mean I am related to the Great Starswirl the Bearded," Twilight exclaimed out loud in a state of shock. "Wait till I tell the Princess! Isn't this great Spike?" Twilight suddenly remembered what had happened earlier that day. "Oh Spike, I'm so sorry. Well I'll make it up to him! He can have as much ice cream as wants!" And with that Twilight marched out the door to find Spike.
"Spike what were you doing at Rarity's? And where did you get that huge bowl of ice cream?"
"Uhhhhh"
"Never mind that I have something really exciting to tell you!" Twilight quickly related the past events of that morning. "And so I need you to look after the library while I'm gone with the girls on this quest! Could you do that for me?" Twilight looked at him with such a huge dose of puppy eyes that Spike had to give in. "Sure Twilight, I'll watch the library for you."
"That's great! Girls are you coming along." By now the word of Twilights freak out over Spike about a library book had become the laughing stock of the town and the Mane Six were all at Rarity's house listening to Spike recount his tale.
"Duh!"
"Of Course!"
"Certainly."
"Okee Dokee Lokee!"
"Oh my goodness, I'm not so sure Twilight." Fluttershy mumbled. "The last adventure I went on with you, I just slowed you guys down." Everybody looked at her like she was crazy, since it had been Fluttershy who had convinced the dragon to leave Equestria. Finally Rainbowdash spoke up. "Well we might need you to calm some wild sea horses, Fluttershy." "Wild Sea Horses? But I thought they were ledged! Oh my goodness, Oh my goodness, Oh my goodness! Of course I'll come!"
"Great, everybody meat back here in one hour so we can make the Friendship Express to Canterlot." And with that the girls dispersed. Spike was left on the front porch groaning, having eaten too much ice cream and candy. Twilight looked down at him in disgust than picked him up with her magic and carried him home. Soon all the ponies were assembled at the loading platform of the Friendship Express waving goodbye to all of Ponyville. There was a surprisingly good turnout to wave them off considering they could have possibly just ended all of Equestria.
"And to think Twilight. We owe all of this to you having to stop time to save us from a disaster," laughed Applejack. "Well, actually, I think we owe this to Spike who could have just killed the world by stealing that library book."
Soon they boarded and were off to go meet Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Little did they know that their journey might be harder than they expected, even just getting to Canterlot. Because as soon as they were off, the picture of Nox ripped off from the book and sank into the ground. That picture was the last physical remaing part of Nox, and it was beginning its journey home. The 24-hour clock had started ticking.