Princess Celestia: Goddess of the Sun, ruler of Equestria, beloved Princess of ponies. She is loved by all, and loves all in return. A calm and wise ruler, she sits on the throne in Canterlot, maintaining peace and harmony throughout the land.

What most don't know is that her past is much darker: She was once a commander of legions, a warrior and scientist of unmatched skill. Thousands of monsters and abominations fell to her forces, slain in the name of an old leader, one entombed within his own throne. Free of her old form, free of the powers of Chaos, she was cast into a new realm, in a new form, with a new lease on life.

She is the God Emperor, Eternal Ruler of Equestria and Lord of the Imperium of Man.

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Comments contain spoilers. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

It has been several months since the disappearance of Twilight Sparkle..

One night, after watching her sister raise the Moon and set the heavens alight, Princess Celestia begins to bed down for the night, only to be interrupted by portal forming in her room. From out of the portal comes none other than Twilight Sparkle, garbed in strange armor.

Princess Celestia, along with Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor, are overjoyed by the Element of Magic's return, but are justifiably curious as to where she had been and what she had been doing. And so, Twilight begins her tale. A tale of survival against impossible odds. A tale of a people fighting for the most basic right of all sentient beings. The right to exist.

Daring Do seeks a favor from her sister in Ponyville. Due to buried grudges, things quickly get out of hoof. She soon finds herself on her most perilous mission yet... with her biggest fan in the world. In the midst of truth and lies, loyalty and treachery, love and hate, one thing is clear ― some family situations are stranger than fiction.

The story extends in Through the Looking-glass and What Pinkie Found There and The Daughter Doo: Honorary Cutie Mark Crusader.

Many thanks to Honey Mead and statoose for their watchful and helpful pre-reading.

Ckat_Myla and statoose (CatNStat) have started an excellent reading of TSD.

After Rainbow Dash loses a wing in an accident Twilight finds herself to be the only pony capable of restoring it. But can she reconcile the month long treatment with her suppressed feelings for the pegasus?

I wanted to change a lot in this story before submitting it here, but then it took longer than expected and I had other things to take care of. So, after only the most basic revisions, here it is in all its imperfect glory. And in chapter form, too.

Cover image by me.

Skipsy also made a comic for it.

Have you ever had a dream that just seemed so real, that it was impossible to say for certain that it was even a dream at all? A dream that, despite all of its impossibilities, seemed to re-write your entire perception of reality, re-writing your sense of what—and indeed, who—you are? Accepting change is hard enough as it is. But when you're a somebody who wakes up as a somepony, how do you cope with the impact such a drastic change has on your mind and body? With changes like these, it must surely just be a lucid dream—albeit a suspiciously accurate one—just brimming with potential and ripe for exploration. So you might as well suck it up and make the most of these distressingly…unusual circumstances, and seize this psychological adventure before you wake up and the dream ends.
After all, this couldn't possibly be real, so the dream must come to an end eventually…right?

Have Spike take the C.M.C.'s on a tour of Canterlot so that they don't interrupt Braeburn's ceremony? It was such a simple solution, but even the best laid plans can go awry. Now, Luna and Applejack must contend with some unfinished business from the princess's past as Twilight deals with the fears and concerns of two little fillies... and two little dragons.

Twilight Sparkle. A name known to everypony in all of Equestria. She's saved Equestria multiple times now, and with her and her friends being the Elements of Harmony, as well as being Princess Celestia's "Most Faithful Student", she enjoys a great life.
But what was before that? Follow her on her journey through foalhood, and her times as Celestia's Student.

This is my first fic, so constructive criticism is appreciated very much.
A huge thank you to WhatTheMoo and Knight Of Cerebus for proofreading this fic.
And a huge thank you to TwinTailsInc for allowing me to use his artwork