//------------------------------//
// The sun shall not set 
// Story: To save Twilight Sparkle 
// by TwiwnB 
//------------------------------//

As soon as Twilight had put her hoof on the Canterlot train platform, she got accosted by a guard:
“Princess Twilight Sparkle, princess Celestia has sent us to guide you.”

Despite his serious tone, Twilight smiled and started walking along with him. The streets of Canterlot were full of ponies enjoying the day, speaking, having fun and slaloming between the cohorts of guards. In fact, Twilight noticed there wasn’t a street without at least ten guards taking position or passing by.

“Is something the matter? Has a threat been made against the city?” Twilight asked.

“To be honest your higness, I had hoped you could tell us. Princess Celestia has ordered for the royal guard to be ready to evacuate the whole city. We try not to show it, but may be panicking a little here.”

Twilight looked around. Now that she had been told, she could indeed notice some marks of nervousness on the guards’ faces. One had his left eye twitching a bit. Another was grasping at his shield as if somepony was trying to take it away. She even saw one guard stumble. His officer, instead of getting upset just lent him a hoof and the squad continued on to some other part of the town.

Twilight looked up, but saw just a clear sky. All around her, she couldn’t hear anything else but joy and laughter. Even by Canterlot’s standard this was a magnificent day.

The guard took her to the royal castle and told her to go to the throne room where Celestia was awaiting her.

“Won’t you accompany me?” Twilight asked.

“I am sorry your majesty, but the entry to the palace is now forbidden to all but you and her higness.”

A few steps in she quickly looked back to watch the heavy doors close behind her and shut her from all the outside noise.

In normal days, the corridors of the Canterlot palace would have been filled with very busy very serious ponies, guards and maids taking care of every kinds of important matters. That day, however, it was all silent. She could still perceive some faint echoes of the outside world, but other than that the world of the palace was filled by the sound of her hooves on the tiled floor only.

It reminded her of her own castle. Huge, magnificent and lonely.

After much walking, she arrived in front of the throne room's door which was closed and hesitated. She knew she had come for some weird matter, but something else was now at stake and she didn’t know how to approach the situation.

Just in case, she decided to knock on the door.

“Knock knock”.

She didn’t get any response. 

She knocked again, this time trying a more elaborate code:

“Knock. Knock knock. Knock, knock, knock knock.”

She heard loud footsteps from the other side of the door and a yellow wave of magic took control of the door to half-open it. She saw the white face of a pony for a second and heard:
“Oh, it’s you…I didn't expect you to... well, I am ready, you may enter.”

The yellow aura disappeared and Twilight chose to simply thread her way through the opening. Once inside, she saw Celestia landing before her throne and turning back in her direction in a cacophony of metal pieces.

She was more radiant than ever. From the tip of her hooves to the top of her head she was covered in golden plates meticulously arranged. She looked taller than ever before, she looked larger than ever before, she looked fiercer than Twilight could have ever imagined. On her right was the Equestrian banner floating on a pole, just at its side was the solar banner flying proudly and on her left her trusted golden spear with which she had so often gone to war and vanquished her enemies. The intense light coming through every stained glasses on the walls was making her battle armor shimmer, bouncing off like some puny attacks incapable to find their way through and making her shine with an aura of pure invincibility.

“I have been expecting you.” Celestia told Twilight. “Spike told me you had learned everything I have done and were on your way here. Please do not hold a grudge against his loyalty toward me and Equestria. I understand your intention of defeating me and for what little my word may be worth to you anymore, I do not blame you.”

Twilight stayed there, stunned.

Half of her focus was lost in the contemplation of the golden armor and the more she looked at it, the more fine amazing details she found, fine embellishment, delicate gemstone inlaid with care both for the esthetic and the canalization of magic.
The other half was just trying to understand what had just happened. She could remember having heard certain words, but she couldn’t make much sense out of them. It didn’t help that her ears could still perceives the joyful sound of ponies living their happy lives outside the palace.

But Celestia was waiting, defiant. Twilight had to say something, so she very clearly articulated the words:
“Wait… what?”

“Your battle against me.” Celestia explained. “I have dreaded this day since the first second, but I fully understand your intention of vanquishing me. I do however consider it to be my right not to run away and to defend myself.”

Now it wasn’t possible to deny anymore. She may not have been able to say why, but Twilight understood she would have to fight Celestia just as her sister had a thousand years ago. Of course she didn’t want to fight but, at the same time, she felt the fear taking over her. She wasn’t nearly powerful enough to withstand Celestia’s assaults. And it wasn’t her wish to hurt or to be hurt.

She made a step back and tried to gather some magical energy, just in case, in vain. She was unable to focus. Celestia, on the contrary, was looking confident and at the peak of her incommensurable power. Twilight tried to find out what she could have done that was so wrong that Celestia would want to attack and failed. Or maybe it was just Celestia who had gone mad.

That prospect alone finished to absolutely terrify Twilight.

Celestia raised her spear and slowly moved her hooves for what would clearly be an assault jump.

Then Celestia flinched. She tried to find her balance again, groaned, violently clenched her teeth and suddenly, before Twilight could even react, threw her spear that made a big hole in the tiles of the throne room not even two feet away.

Then Celestia just let herself fall on the floor, keeping only her head and shoulders straight but slightly down out of exhaustion.

“I am sorry.” Celestia said. “I just can’t bring myself to harm you. The idea itself is hurting more than any blow you could deal onto me.”

Useless to say, Twilight still didn’t have a clue to the point she couldn’t even feel much relief of the turn of events.

“Not quite a great battle to go down in history. I failed but I imagine it’s better this way. Now do what you have come here to do and let’s finish this once and for all.”

This was just too much. The empty corridors, the empty room, the threats, the call for battle, it was all just way too much for Twilight who exploded:
“What in Equestria are you talking about?” She shouted. “I came to ask a few questions, not to do… I don’t even know what you think I am supposed to do and I don’t even want to imagine it! And why would you even think I would want to fight with you? Could anypony, just one pony tell me what is going on without being cryptic about it?!”

Celestia didn’t respond. She just looked at Twilight in silence with eyes lost in themselves. Her lips did move at some point, but no sound came out of her mouth. 

And so, both alicorns faced each other in the throne room under the light of the stained glasses.

“I’m sorry princess Celestia, I shouldn’t have yelled like that. It’s just, I don’t understand what is happening. I come here for answers and you act all weird. We tried to ask Zecora for answers and she acted very weird too and it would seem that even I have been acting weird lately.”

“So…” Celestia finally replied. “You haven’t come to vanquish me.”

“No. I would never do something like that.” Twilight explained, happy to see Celestia slowly going back to her former self. “What even gave you that idea?”

For the first time since Twilight’s arrival, Celestia gave a hint of a smile.

“This is quite embarrassing then…” She let out. “I may have misinterpreted Spike’s letter just a teeny tiny bit I fear.” Celestia got up and took away her helmet with a sigh of relief. “Please excuse my early behavior.”

She then swept away a bit of sweat out of her forehead and added:
“And please excuse me if I take my armor off while we speak, but it’s actually even heavier than it looks.”

Twilight laughed and helped Celestia get rid of the huge plates of gold to the best of her ability but didn’t forget to ask her questions:
“So, why did you think I had come to fight with you?”

“It was the most logical conclusion.” Celestia explained. “After all, the seal has been broken and now you know about it.”

“No, I don’t know.” Twilight replied. “I mean, I know that something was sealed inside me and Zecora told me to come talk about it with you, but I have no idea what it is or what it has to do with you.”

Celestia offered a gentle smile that caressed Twilight’s fur and warmed her heart.

“So this is how it is. Then maybe…” She muttered. 

She then turned to Twilight who had tripped over due to the unexpected weight of one of the shoulder pads. 

“Tell me Twilight, do you have trust in me?” She asked.

Surprised, Twilight tried to think about it, but quickly decided that this wasn’t a matter that needed reflection:
“Of course I trust you.”

“Then please listen carefuly.” Celestia told her. “I know you must have experienced some very weird events lately and you may not be aware of it, but it’s only going to get worst with time. If nothing is done, your very existence can be put in jeopardy. This I want and can prevent. It would only take one spell to restore the seal and everything would be exactly as before. But I won’t do it if you do not allow me to. So if you trust me, I beg of you to not ask any more questions and give me the permission to save you while there is still time.”

Twilight always knew the princess had had to hold many secrets and she had always accepted it. She had already discovered some of them, like her love story with a Sombra from an alternate universe, or the fate of Sunset Shimmer. Celestia’s secrets had always been kept secret for the benefits of Equestria or to protect the ponies.

Had it been one of those secrets, about a door she was forbidden to open, or a path she was forbidden to take, Twilight would have abided. And even there, as she knew the secret was about herself, she was considering just following her heart and believing in Celestia as she had always done.

And yet her curiosity was devouring her. She thought that, logically speaking, she had, as a princess, to collect all the data before taking a decision, but that was just a pretext. She was just curious, curious out of all measures. 

She simply had to know, no matter what. That was who she had always been, always curious, always putting her nose in matters that didn’t concern her, sometimes to the point of blinding her to what she should have truly been aware of. And there was no way she would be able to forgive herself for giving up on that opportunity of knowing what seemed to be such a weird secret.

That and, to be honest, she couldn’t see how bad of a secret it could be.

“I trust you completely.” Twilight told Celestia. “And I will agree with your request. But please, can’t you first tell me more about that secret? What could be so important that you would need my approval to save me?”

“I truly wish you wouldn’t ask me about it.” Celestia replied.

But now, Twilight had another reason to press the issue. Between Celestia’s words, Twilight noticed the accents of distress, of fear, sadness and, most of all, guilt. She had already seen the effects of the weight of that very same guilt on Celestia’s sister and she knew from that experience that the darkest of secrets are better shared with a trusty friend. She hoped she could be that friend and free Celestia from a part, as small as it may be, of the weight on her shoulders.

Celestia didn’t agree immediately. After Twilight’s argument, she just kept looking at her without a word or even a blink to betray her inner emotions. But as it was clear Twilight’s determination wouldn’t waver, she sighed and walked away, followed by Twilight who she brought through a bunch of corridors to a balcony overlooking Canterlot and, beyond the walls, all of Equestria below.

Only then did Celestia start her explanations:
“There is another soul inside of you. A soul that I had sealed long ago so that it wouldn’t be able to grow and threaten you. But now the seal has been broken and the soul is trying to take control of your body.”

“I don’t understand…” Twilight said.

“A pony cannot have two souls.” Celestia replied. “Only our alicorn magic can create such a situation, but even so, one soul will always consume the other entirely. That is the natural order of things and that is why I had sealed the other soul.”

Twilight took some time to make sense of those information. She looked at herself, but she didn’t feel like there was somepony else inside of her. She did however felt the warmth of the sun rays falling down on her and that was exquisite.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t?” Celestia asked.

“What?” Twilight asked back.

“Peace.” Celestia replied. “That is all I have ever wanted, to see Equestria at peace and all of its inhabitants protected and safe. From my very first thought I never had any other goal in mind and I dedicated myself fully to that end.”

Celestia stopped to look away and turned to Twilight. A gust of wind made her mane flow and capture the sun’s brightness in many sparkles each shinier than the other.

“For a thousand of years I made every necessary sacrifice, endured all torments and never found any rest until I was certain my subjects were safe. But for a thousand years I knew that wouldn’t be sufficient. Nightmare Moon would come back from her lunar prison and I foresaw that there was a risk I couldn’t oppose her. I couldn’t let my dear ponies know, but with every day passing I worried more to the point where it became unbearable. I knew I had to find another to help me protect Equestria against its enemies be it from outside or even worse inside. I had hoped destiny would provide me with an ally but as the years passed, so did my hope. And every night I could hear the voice inside my head telling me it was all my fault. There was one chance I would fail and even if it was just one chance, I had to do something: anything. I realized that if destiny wasn’t going to provide help on its own, then I had to create somepony myself. Somepony perfect. Somepony powerful enough to stand at my side when Equestria would be in peril…”

“Is that the soul you sealed inside of me?” Twilight asked.

“No.” Celestia replied.

“Then who or what is that soul?” Twilight asked again, a bit frustrated to have guessed wrong.

Then she heard the answer from Celestia’s mouth and the words she had uttered were full of attention and care, but as they entered through one of Twilight’s ear, they seemed to escape through the other the next second. They simply didn’t make sense.

So Twilight asked again:
“I’m sorry but, could you repeat again who the soul is?”

Celestia nodded and repeated:
“Her parents named her Twilight Sparkle.”