Dawnbright

SECRET PRINCESS

Abandoned at birth and raised by a kind mage, Dawnbright came into the world of Deutoria with a thirst for adventure. From infancy she was known for teleporting out of her crib and exploring the halls of the Black Citadel, often barely avoiding the Night Guard by chance before being collected by her adopted mother, Star Burst. She grew up to be a friendly, but often in-trouble pony, and as such most other citizens of the Citadel avoided her for their own safety.

She studied magic when not delving into the secret corridors of the Citadel, as her hunger for knowledge developed. She wanted to know more about the world, and read of the Land of Equestria in a book banished centuries before by Sunslammer. She longed for the land she had never touched with her own hooves, to see the sky, to befriend other ponies, to love them as much as she loved Star Burst. She wanted to see the sun rise in the morning and disappear at night; she wanted to know what "stars" were and where they came from, she wanted more out of life than to be a bureaucrat or a laborer in the Citadel.

Her first friend was a pegasus named Comet Flare who was just adventurous enough to keep up with her and just cautious enough to pull her out of trouble. They played together as fillies, and as they got older, stayed close. Still, Dawnbright was eager to make more friends, and often failed at it. It wasn't until she was grown and met Teddy Lace, a pony working in food preparation, that she started to achieve her goals. After Teddy, Dawnbright was introduced to Stormyfly, a reclusive pest control pony who didn't trust her at first, but came to, and then Whirligig, an airheaded pegasus who proclaimed them all best friends immediately, and Vineyard, a colt who had been captured from somewhere none of them had ever been: The outside.

Vineyard reawakened Dawn's desires to see the world, and opened her eyes to the possibilities outside of the Citadel. She realized that what the ponies of Deutoria needed was not obedience and order, but fun and laughter and friends and the outside world. Confident in her discoveries, Dawnbright approached Sunslammer with her newfound knowledge, seeking an audience with the queen that was surprisingly granted. Sunslammer shot her down immediately, but strangely did not have her punished. Instead, she was sent home to Star Burst, who eventually, and reluctantly, explained to Dawnbright who her real mother was.

Dawnbright, horrified with the knowledge that she had come from Sunslammer,a cruel and cold queen, resolved to keep the knowledge to herself for good. Comet, sensing that something was wrong with his old friend, approached her to prod at her defences, and Dawn admitted what she had learned. Comet advised her to keep her lineage a secret from all others, but promised to still be her friend.

Things continued as normal; Dawnbright and her friends explored the Citadel, the dark forests and long, winding corridors contained within, looking for a path out of the labyrinth. They were intercepted by the Night Guard on one such outing, and corralled back to their homes without a chance to explain themselves. In the meantime, Sunslammer became harsher towards her subjects, reigning over them with an iron hoof. Food rations were shrunk, freetime disappeared and work hours lengthened, and ponies were forbidden from fraternizing with one another or going beyond the edges of their home districts. Stormyfly, an avid bug collector, was soon caught outside of her district while hunting a mantis, and brutally punished. Dawn and her friends met in secret to comfort her, and the group decided that something must be done about the queen. Dawnbright insisted that she would do something to stop Sunslammer, using magic or other means. Stormyfly urged Dawn not to continue down a foolish path, warning that Sunslammer would only become more vicious towards disobedient ponies. They argued, and Dawn revealed to her friends that she the queen's abandoned daughter, and that she was sure she could sway her mother's heart. Stormyfly was devastated, and repulsed, running out on Dawn. Whirligig went after her to comfort her, and Vineyard quietly excused himself, citing that he couldn't be near her at the moment. Teddy promised Dawn that everyone would come around eventually, and then headed back to her district as well.

Dawn, hurt and determined, headed for the throne room. She met Comet on the way in one of their secret spots, and asked him to keep an eye on things from the air; if anything happened to her, to let her friends know that she had tried her best. Comet was reluctant to let her go, but ultimately could not stop her. Dawnbright entered the dark throne room alone.

She came face to face with Sunslammer, and tried again to persuade the dark queen to lessen her grip on the ponies of Deutoria. Sunslammer was having none of it. They fought, clashing with their magic, and Dawn found herself no match for Sunslammer's Alicorn powers. She found herself slipping, losing ground, and would have surely perished if the doors hadn't opened just then and distracted Sunslammer. Her friends pushed in, beating back Poison Apple, one of the Night Guard leaders. Comet Flare tumbled in after them, battling with Sleipnir, another leader. Sunslammer returned her focus to defeating Dawnbright, but Teddy, Vineyard, and Whirligig rushed to her aide, lending her their support against the queen. Still, they were on the edge of defeat--until Stormyfly rushed in and joined them. When she explained her feelings to Dawnbright, her magic thrummed with enough force to knock the queen off center, and suddenly the lesser ponies had the upper hand.

Still, Sunslammer refused to admit defeat, and called Sleipnir and Poison Apple to her side. She absorbed their power from them, leaving both woozy and defenseless, and lifted into the air, letting loose enough magical energy to shake the Citadel. Stone fell from the walls and ceilings, creating chaos; Dawnbright's friends scattered, except for Stormy, who stuck to Dawn's side as she navigated the falling rocks. As she was running, something grabbed her from above: Comet Flare, who flew with her after the maddened queen, and dropped her onto Sunslammer's back.

Sunslammer, enraged, began blasting herself with magical energy to try to throw Dawn off. Exhausted and injured, she began to fall towards the floor, but Dawn grabbed onto her and, using her own magic, managed to lower her at least somewhat gently to the black marble. Sunslammer, wounded, lifted her head and asked Dawnbright "why she would do such a thing." Dawn told Sunslammer that she held no animosity towards her, only concern. She asked why her mother had abandoned her as a baby. Sunslammer explained that she had feared what would happen to any child of hers, and filly she raised, and so she had left her child with the safest bet: her old friend and rival, Star Burst. She had watched her daughter grow up from afar, from her high perch in the throne room, always longing for her but never able to reach her. Dawnbright, again, pleaded with Sunslammer to release the ponies of the Citadel into the world, and Sunslammer insisted that it was not safe. Dawn told her that it would never be safe, but that sometimes you had to trust in ponies to make their own choices.

Poison Apple and Sleipnir, coming to their senses, charged at the gathered pony friends, but Sunslammer called them off, citing that she was too tired to fight any more. Unsure, her Night Guard leaders asked what they should do instead. Sunslammer told them to get Star Burst.

Star Burst soon arrived, and coolly chided Sunslammer while she healed her and worked on her damaged body. Teddy Lace asked how the two had known each other, and Star Burst explained that they had been close, before Sunslammer became an Alicorn. Sunslammer said that she had missed Star Burst, who scoffed and told her not to let those be her last words.

Vineyard, who had stood back, asked timidly if this meant the ponies of the Citadel would be allowed to leave it, now that it was partially destroyed anyway. Sunslammer was still against the idea, but Dawnbright spoke over her and assured him that arrangements would be made.

Two weeks passed. Things were not at all back to usual; the citadel was being deconstructed, torn to pieces for parts to build the new town of Plethora. For the first time in centuries, Deutoria saw ponies touch hoof on its land, and the barren landscape began to breathe again. The magic released from the citadel had caused a revival to spread in the area, growing sprouts and flowers everywhere. Sunslammer still resided in her throne room, where Dawnbright went to visit her. Her mother was still reluctant to face her, or to let her ponies out into the world, but she had made no move to stop the exodus from the citadel. She and Dawn talked, and Sunslammer told her that she was still not a good leader, nor a good pony. She then appointed Dawnbright princess, and gave her her own wings, passing the torch to her daughter. Dawnbright encouraged Sunslammer to come out into the world sometime, and told her that they could go flying together.

So the sun set on the citadel, the Night Guard, and the dark queen. The land flourished once more, and Dawnbright set out on her first adventure in her new world, with her friends by her side.