The train to Hippogriffia traveled on tracks alongside the cliffs that dropped off directly into the sea below. Only a few ponies were onboard, it had been a year since Hippogriffia had fallen on hard times, and the coastal city had difficulty attracting visitors. Among the passengers on the train was Bluejacket Seabreeze. He was fairly normal looking as earth ponies go, with a white pearly white coat, tussled brown mane, and a cutie mark that resembled an ace of spades. He sighed and read over the letter in his hoof once more. His parents in Hippogriffia had asked him to visit, so here he was, taking the train to the city.

Except, that was not to be. In a second's notice, the train flew off the tracks, plummeting down the cliffside to the sea below. The passengers onboard spun around screamed as the train cars disconnected and scattered. Some unfortunate ponies were trapped in the train cars that smashed into wooden bits against the jagged rocks below. The rest of the train, engine included, plunged into the water.

Bluejacket woke up submerged in the water. He desperately swam his way upward, brushing past loose luggage sinking to the depths below. With a gasp, the stallion burst from the water. In a daze he looked around, the train engine floated next to him, flames billowing from its burst seams as it began to sink. The rest of the area was unclear, for it was a foggy night, with the moon rising to its peak above. So, not knowing which way to go, Bluejacket followed his intuition and swam in the direction of the moon.

Several minutes passed as Bluejacket began to get tired from the paddling. But, in the distance he saw something. A silhouette came into view, it was a... lighthouse?

The stone tower jutted out from the sea like a singular tooth, its elegant masonry reminiscent of old constructions from the era of the two sisters. Most notably was its light, which bellowed out in the middle and pulsed with a pink glow.

Bluejacket was at a loss for words, and he was already a pony of few words. His hooves clutched the stone bricks at the base of the tower, and he climbed onto a stone staircase that curved around. It was completely silent except for the ocean lapping at the tower's base. Bluejacket slowly clopped up the staircase, and found himself facing a large door, engraved with a gold depiction of five ponies and an alicorn defeating some kind of hairy creature.

With no other choice, Bluejacket let out a large sigh and pushed the door open. It opened surprisingly effortlessly, revealing a pitch-black interior. He put a single hoof forward, causing a tinkering sound to echo throughout the lighthouse. Magical lights turned on, exposing a large bronze bust of an alicorn. Bluejacket recognized her, it was Twilight Sparkle. Underneath the depiction of the Princess hung a faded blue banner that read, "NO RESTRICTIONS, NO RESTRAINTS, FRIENDSHIP FOR ALL." Meanwhile, a tinny version of the royal fanfare played from unseen speakers.

Bluejacket's eyebrows raised; the Princess didn't do anything small did she? He proceeded the only way forward, down the stairs deeper into the lighthouse. The stairs ended at a small chamber that only contained a single lever. Bluejacket looked around for anything else, but there was nothing; so, he shrugged to himself and pulled the lever.

He jumped as the door clamped shut behind him. He put his hooves on the singular window as the room, no pod,
began to descend. Ten fathoms, twenty fathoms, thirty fathoms, and so on. Overhead, a small chute opened, magically projecting an image onto the window.

"You may know me as Twilight Sparkle," the familiar voice of the Princess stated as her face was projected, "And I am here to ask you a question. Is every creature not entitled to friendship?"

The image changed to show cartoon unicorns looking down upon an earth pony and pegasus, "'No' says the classist upper wealth, that is not how things are."

The image changed again to show pony mages staring down at a dejected looking griffon, "'No' says the 'experts', it goes against the natural order."

The image changed to show a mob of ponies angrily shouting at a dragon, "'No' says the specie purists, such things are not to be shared."

"But they were wrong," the image switched back to Twilight's face, "Instead, I chose to gift those less fortunate, I chose to do the impossible, I chose... Seaquestria."

The image flickered off, the pod ascending over an undersea hill to overlook a magnificent city built in and around a large abyss. Hundreds if not thousands of bubble-like buildings climbed out from a central dome-shaped palace that hung like a chandelier. More cubical pony-built structures lined the sides of the abyss like lichen, each magnificently lit with glowing signs that shined with magic. Branches of floating buildings spread out across the abyss, interconnecting with the main city floating above.

"In this city, a creature is not bound by biology," Twilight's voice continued, "A creature does not have to worry about being looked down upon, because every creature is equal. Magic helped bring me and my friends together, and I hope, with a little help from Seaquestria, that you can create a lasting friendship as well."

As she finished, the pod weaved through the floating buildings of the city, swerving through schools of fish, eventually slowing to a stop in a large clam-shaped structure. The pod shuddered to a stop and began to ascend.

Next Chapter: Chapter 2- Welcome to Seaquestria Estimated time remaining: 26 Minutes