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in my universe/mlp overhaul/au, the pillars of old equestria are the first alicorns, and luna, celestia, and amore learned how to ascend from their teacher, starswirl the bearded. stygian headcanons coming up later, hehe !

check individual designs here: twitter.com/PONYKITSCH/status/…
and my pony art-only twitter: twitter.com/PONYKITSCH

Long ago, when Equestria was divided into tribes scattered around the continent, chaos reigned and ponies were at the mercy of beasts and monsters hunting them down. To develop the country into what it was today, ponykind needed to come together as a unified group in order to make a safe haven for all ponies. Stygian, a race of pony known as an umbrum, or shadow pony, had a dream of uniting ponykind together. From the crystal ponies to the far north to the bat pony colonies of the south, he dreamed of a world where everybody could live in harmony, together. As an umbrum, a race of unicorn-like ponies that live underground and are often regarded with suspicion and fear due to their natural affinity for darkness. With a strong kinship to the bat ponies of the surface, umbrum choose mostly to stay hidden away, safe among their own kind. Not stygian, however. He dreamed of the big, wide world above the surface, and against the wishes of his tribe, he ventured out into the unknown.

First, he made it to the budding crystal empire. Long before it was unified under the Crystal Empress Amore, the villages of crystal ponies were at war with each other. As Stygian arrived, he was met with hostility and fear, and almost immediately put in a holding cell. Being small, the village elders were not too worried about him causing a fuss, so he was put under the guard of one of the smallest crystal ponies, Rock Hoof. In an attempt to show he meant no ill intent, Stygian attempted to strike up a conversation with his captor. The two found themselves bonding quickly, but Rock Hoof refused to release Stygian without the elders' permission. However, on his second day in the village, Stygian sensed a deep rumbling in the earth and attempted to warn Rock Hoof of a nearby volcano explosion, which he could sense due to his natural umbrum affinity for underground channels. Not wishing to believe him, but left with no choice, Rock Hoof and Stygian rushed out into the village to warn to ponies. Not willing to trust an umbrum, the crystal ponies did not flee. Quickly running out of options, Stygian and Rock Hoof launched a plan to dig a channel around the village to redirect the lava flow. Toiling overnight, the two of them dug and dug but it wasn't enough. Until something strange happened. The power of the Crystal Heart, the mysterious gem that gave the crystal ponies their abilities, flooded through Rock Hoof, and he finished the channel just in time to save his village. A hero to his village and newly larger with the power of the crystal heart, Rock Hoof agreed to travel with his new scrawny friend as his personal guard as they explore Equestria.

The next place they reached was along the border of Equestria and the Dragon Lands, where the two discovered a fleet of pegasus legionaries fighting a flock of dragons. without thinking, Rock Hoof charged toward the fray and used his natural crystal pony abilities, amplified by the Crystal Heart, to manipulate the volcanic region around them in order to help corner the dragons into the pegasi's storm cloud, resulting in a clean escape from the legionnaires. Grateful for their help, the captain of the legion, Flash Magnus, welcomed them to the pegasus city of Cloudsdale, giving them each a feather from his own wings to allow them to stand on the clouds temporarily. They were given shelter and a hot meal, which the two travelers hadn't had since they left Rock Hoof's village, and told Flash Magnus of Stygian's plan to unite the pony tribes, and how they had joined the crystal ponies together in harmony. Flash Magnus was intrigued by the idea, and decided to join their cause and travel the land, pledging Cloudsdale to the unity.

The three headed out, next stumbling into the Hayseed Swamp. The air is so thick that Flash Magnus can't even fly through, but Stygian is determined to make contact with the earth ponies who have made their home there. As the trio delves deeper into the swamp, they find themselves stricken with some kind of illness, collapsing in a clearing. The last thing Stygian sees is a frightening bird mask approaching. When the three of them awaken, they find themselves in recovery beds in a small swamp cottage, being tended to by an earth pony local who explained they had caught Swamp Fever, which she knew how to treat, luckily. Introducing herself as the Mage Meadowbrook, she chided them for not being careful enough, and after hearing their tale, she decided that these boys needed someone competent on their side to keep them from falling ill or killing themselves -- and she wouldn't take no for an answer! Besides... maybe the fabled panacea, the Magenta Bloom, would be found outside the Hayseed Swamp.

The next place the four visited was a distant, eastern village of kirins. The kirins were under the tyrannical rule of the Empress Sable Spirit, and the four travelers happened to run into a kirin by the name of Mistmane who was returning to her village, and had no clue how her dear friend could become such a despot. With her new friends, she led the charge to find the Everlasting Flower and confront Sable Spirit, freeing the kirins and reversing the curse Sable had put on herself, taking away Mistmane's beauty in the process. Driven by this act, Mistman joined the group on their travels in order to help people with her magic.

Next, the five ponies ventured into the Southern Equestrian desert, where they come across Somnambula, a pegasus who is trying to bring hope and food to the people who are being plagued by a Sphynx who takes all of the villagers' food. She takes in the travellers, and hears their story, but she can't leave her village to go with them. The Sphynx has just captured the Pharoah's son, Prince Hisan, and she can't leave her people abandoned. However, the group encouraged Somnambula to rescue him and face the Sphynx, though she must do it alone. The group waits anxiously outside the Sphynx's lair until Somnambula succeeds in a battle of wits and banishes the Sphynx, freeing the Prince. Inspired by the group, Somnambula decides to join them after all, and vows to spread hope with them and unite ponykind.

The final member of the pillars is Star Swirl the Bearded, who actually seeks out this mysterious group of ponies. When he finds them, he insists it's only to record their deeds for the future, but through their travels, he finds himself growing fond of these ponies... his... friends? Over time, the six of them travel around Equestria, and one by one, they ascend to alicornhood and become the first rulers of Equestria, succeeding in Stygian's goal to unite ponykind. However... Stygian himself never managed to ascend to alicornhood, and his role as the pony who gathered these so-called Pillars of Equestria was diminished. He grew distant from his friends, and while they went on missions and adventures all around Equestria, Stygian remained behind, doing the boring work of running Equestria from the newly established capital of Canterlot. Eventually, he succumbed to the darkness inside of him and became the Pony of Shadows, finally reaching his alicorn status and plunging the world into darkness. The only way to stop him was for all four of the Pillars to use their combined power to trap him in Limbo, thus trapping themselves as well.

Equestria was left to the Pillars' three prodigies, the Princesses Celestia, Luna, and Amore, who ruled in the Pillars' stead.

Description
in my universe/mlp overhaul/au, the pillars of old equestria are the first alicorns, and luna, celestia, and amore learned how to ascend from their teacher, starswirl the bearded. stygian headcanons coming up later, hehe !

check individual designs here: twitter.com/PONYKITSCH/status/…
and my pony art-only twitter: twitter.com/PONYKITSCH

Long ago, when Equestria was divided into tribes scattered around the continent, chaos reigned and ponies were at the mercy of beasts and monsters hunting them down. To develop the country into what it was today, ponykind needed to come together as a unified group in order to make a safe haven for all ponies. Stygian, a race of pony known as an umbrum, or shadow pony, had a dream of uniting ponykind together. From the crystal ponies to the far north to the bat pony colonies of the south, he dreamed of a world where everybody could live in harmony, together. As an umbrum, a race of unicorn-like ponies that live underground and are often regarded with suspicion and fear due to their natural affinity for darkness. With a strong kinship to the bat ponies of the surface, umbrum choose mostly to stay hidden away, safe among their own kind. Not stygian, however. He dreamed of the big, wide world above the surface, and against the wishes of his tribe, he ventured out into the unknown.

First, he made it to the budding crystal empire. Long before it was unified under the Crystal Empress Amore, the villages of crystal ponies were at war with each other. As Stygian arrived, he was met with hostility and fear, and almost immediately put in a holding cell. Being small, the village elders were not too worried about him causing a fuss, so he was put under the guard of one of the smallest crystal ponies, Rock Hoof. In an attempt to show he meant no ill intent, Stygian attempted to strike up a conversation with his captor. The two found themselves bonding quickly, but Rock Hoof refused to release Stygian without the elders' permission. However, on his second day in the village, Stygian sensed a deep rumbling in the earth and attempted to warn Rock Hoof of a nearby volcano explosion, which he could sense due to his natural umbrum affinity for underground channels. Not wishing to believe him, but left with no choice, Rock Hoof and Stygian rushed out into the village to warn to ponies. Not willing to trust an umbrum, the crystal ponies did not flee. Quickly running out of options, Stygian and Rock Hoof launched a plan to dig a channel around the village to redirect the lava flow. Toiling overnight, the two of them dug and dug but it wasn't enough. Until something strange happened. The power of the Crystal Heart, the mysterious gem that gave the crystal ponies their abilities, flooded through Rock Hoof, and he finished the channel just in time to save his village. A hero to his village and newly larger with the power of the crystal heart, Rock Hoof agreed to travel with his new scrawny friend as his personal guard as they explore Equestria.

The next place they reached was along the border of Equestria and the Dragon Lands, where the two discovered a fleet of pegasus legionaries fighting a flock of dragons. without thinking, Rock Hoof charged toward the fray and used his natural crystal pony abilities, amplified by the Crystal Heart, to manipulate the volcanic region around them in order to help corner the dragons into the pegasi's storm cloud, resulting in a clean escape from the legionnaires. Grateful for their help, the captain of the legion, Flash Magnus, welcomed them to the pegasus city of Cloudsdale, giving them each a feather from his own wings to allow them to stand on the clouds temporarily. They were given shelter and a hot meal, which the two travelers hadn't had since they left Rock Hoof's village, and told Flash Magnus of Stygian's plan to unite the pony tribes, and how they had joined the crystal ponies together in harmony. Flash Magnus was intrigued by the idea, and decided to join their cause and travel the land, pledging Cloudsdale to the unity.

The three headed out, next stumbling into the Hayseed Swamp. The air is so thick that Flash Magnus can't even fly through, but Stygian is determined to make contact with the earth ponies who have made their home there. As the trio delves deeper into the swamp, they find themselves stricken with some kind of illness, collapsing in a clearing. The last thing Stygian sees is a frightening bird mask approaching. When the three of them awaken, they find themselves in recovery beds in a small swamp cottage, being tended to by an earth pony local who explained they had caught Swamp Fever, which she knew how to treat, luckily. Introducing herself as the Mage Meadowbrook, she chided them for not being careful enough, and after hearing their tale, she decided that these boys needed someone competent on their side to keep them from falling ill or killing themselves -- and she wouldn't take no for an answer! Besides... maybe the fabled panacea, the Magenta Bloom, would be found outside the Hayseed Swamp.

The next place the four visited was a distant, eastern village of kirins. The kirins were under the tyrannical rule of the Empress Sable Spirit, and the four travelers happened to run into a kirin by the name of Mistmane who was returning to her village, and had no clue how her dear friend could become such a despot. With her new friends, she led the charge to find the Everlasting Flower and confront Sable Spirit, freeing the kirins and reversing the curse Sable had put on herself, taking away Mistmane's beauty in the process. Driven by this act, Mistman joined the group on their travels in order to help people with her magic.

Next, the five ponies ventured into the Southern Equestrian desert, where they come across Somnambula, a pegasus who is trying to bring hope and food to the people who are being plagued by a Sphynx who takes all of the villagers' food. She takes in the travellers, and hears their story, but she can't leave her village to go with them. The Sphynx has just captured the Pharoah's son, Prince Hisan, and she can't leave her people abandoned. However, the group encouraged Somnambula to rescue him and face the Sphynx, though she must do it alone. The group waits anxiously outside the Sphynx's lair until Somnambula succeeds in a battle of wits and banishes the Sphynx, freeing the Prince. Inspired by the group, Somnambula decides to join them after all, and vows to spread hope with them and unite ponykind.

The final member of the pillars is Star Swirl the Bearded, who actually seeks out this mysterious group of ponies. When he finds them, he insists it's only to record their deeds for the future, but through their travels, he finds himself growing fond of these ponies... his... friends? Over time, the six of them travel around Equestria, and one by one, they ascend to alicornhood and become the first rulers of Equestria, succeeding in Stygian's goal to unite ponykind. However... Stygian himself never managed to ascend to alicornhood, and his role as the pony who gathered these so-called Pillars of Equestria was diminished. He grew distant from his friends, and while they went on missions and adventures all around Equestria, Stygian remained behind, doing the boring work of running Equestria from the newly established capital of Canterlot. Eventually, he succumbed to the darkness inside of him and became the Pony of Shadows, finally reaching his alicorn status and plunging the world into darkness. The only way to stop him was for all four of the Pillars to use their combined power to trap him in Limbo, thus trapping themselves as well.

Equestria was left to the Pillars' three prodigies, the Princesses Celestia, Luna, and Amore, who ruled in the Pillars' stead.