**********Canterlot**********
Sunset Shimmer, Gilda, and Trixie, snuck into the city without any problems. Even in the middle of the day, the guard couldn’t identify them through their disguises.They made their way to the castle, careful to avoid arousing suspicion. Throughout the entire trip, Sunset’s mind was an angry maelstrom of emotion. What should she say? Should she turn around? What if Sasuke’s right? What if she’s not ready for this? A soft nudge from the side pulled her from her anxiety. Gilda flashed a confident smile.
“Don’t worry so much,” she said. “You’re not the same little filly you were before. You’re powerful enough to stand up to her.”
“And you will have the Great and Powerful Trixie watching your back,” Trixie added.
“Thanks,” the trio stopped as they approached the castle gates. Sunset took a deep breath. “I guess it’s now or never.”
Magic swirled around the girls as they returned to their human forms.
“Intruders! Alert the princesses!”
The royal guard jumped into action, firing spells and erecting barriers. Several guards launched themselves at the girls with swords. Suddenly, they all dropped to the ground.
“Such weak minds,” Trixie commented as they entered the castle.
“You can’t take them all,” Gilda complained. “Leave some for me!”
“Fine then,” Trixie rolled her eyes. “You take the ones inside the castle, and I’ll take the ones outside.”
“Nice try, but I get the ones outside,” Gilda folded her arms.
“Whatever,” Trixie huffed. “Just don’t screw this up.”
Gilda grinned as widely as she could. Trixie dropped guards left and right as the girls made their way to the throne room. They writhed on the ground as they were caught in Trixie’s illusions.
“What are you doing to them anyway,” Sunset asked, trying to focus her mind.
“Some get their worst fears, some get lack of oxygen,” Trixie shrugged. “Although most of them are just getting punched in the neck by Gilda.”
“Damn straight,” Gilda cheered. Every few seconds Gilda’s body would shimmer for a second, indicating she was moving faster than they could see. Every time she shimmered, a handful of guards dropped like flies.
“On second thought,” Trixie said, “How about you take the outside once we reach the throne room, Gilda? More space to move around and reinforcements are bound to come from the surrounding area.”
“Deal,” Gilda’s wings ruffled with excitement.
After making steady progress through the castle and leaving a trail of bodies in their wake, the girls reached the doors to the throne room. The enormous doors featured a golden sun with a silver moon inside of it. Sunset froze.
Gilda put a hand on her back. “Don’t worry. You got this.”
“But Sasuke said I’m not ready,” Sunset argued, losing her nerve.
“Sasuke says a lot of things,” Trixie said. “But he can’t see into your mind. This is your decision. If you think you’re ready, we’re behind you all the way.”
Sunset took a deep breath and reached deep to find her determination. She gave a nod to the two girls beside her and pushed on the doors. They opened and she stepped forward, into the throne room. Once inside, they closed behind her. She looked forward a strong look on her face and her eyes met the eyes of the one pony she wanted to talk most in the world, Princess Celestia.
“Hello Sunset Shimmer,” Celestia said warmly. “I’m so happy to see you again.”
Sunset felt a rage boiling inside her that gave her confidence. “Are you? Really?”
“Of course I am,” Celestia replied. “Why would you think that I’m not?”
“Maybe because you left me for dead,” Sunset spat.
“I would never-”
“They why didn’t you come for me!!” Sunset screamed.
“Sunset,” Celestia said sadly. “I wanted to but-”
“But WHAT!!” Sunset’s eyes were streaming. “What was so important that you couldn’t leave for even a few moments to chase after me?”
“Sunset you know that I can’t-”
“I don’t want to hear it!” Sunset shouted. “Do you know how long I waited outside that portal, hoping against hope that you’d at least send a guard or something?”
“Sunset Shimmer, you know how much you mean to-”
“I THOUGHT I did,” Sunset wiped away her tears. “But I guess I was wrong! I spent six years trapped in another world while you just up and forgot about me! But eventually someone did come. Someone who sees potential in the student you just threw away.”
“That form… no, Sunset, not you too,” Celestia whispered.
“Yes! Sasuke came to another world to find me, he brought my family to me, and he even gave me power from his own blood,” Sunset laughed. “He knows more than you! He can teach me more than you ever could!”
“Sunset Shimmer,” Celestia’s voice was stern. “I implore you, please come back to me. Sasuke doesn’t care about you, he’s only using you.” Her tone turned pleading. “The things he has to offer… I know the power seems limitless and intoxicating but it comes a very steep price. Trust me, you don’t want to pay it.”
“You just want to stifle me,” Sunset yelled. “You never wanted me to grow, did you? You were afraid I’d surpass you. Well guess what? I’ve already become more powerful than you! Sasuke taught me the true nature of magic. I have powers you can’t even fathom! And he does care about me. We’re… very close.”
“No,” Celestia stood up. “Do not do this, Sunset. This path will only lead to pain.”
“I’ve had enough of you,” Sunset Shimmer said, her eyes glowing red with a fully developed sharingan. “I’ll prove to you how much stronger I’ve become!”
Sunset launched herself at an incredible speed. Kunai appeared in her hands and she attacked the princess. Golden swords parried her blows. Sunset dodged the the swords as more and more came from nowhere. She let the kunai go and formed hand seals. Dodging the latest slash, she unleashed a torrent of flames on Celestia. The princess took to the air and hovered above the flames. With a spell, the fire swirled around her and shot at Sunset Shimmer.
Sunset used her own wings to dodge the flames and swords. Celestia was sure she had the girl pinned down, when one of her swords slashed at her.
“What?” Celestia stammered as she dodged it. The sword continued to chase her around the room until she forced more of her magic through it. She turned to Sunset. “What did you do?”
Sunset grinned. “Are you surprised? It’s simple telekinesis. I told you already: I’m stronger than you.”
Two more of Celestia’s swords broke from her control and attacked the princess. They bounced off a forcefield she quickly created and she forced them back under her control. Celestia stood in place, stone faced. The swords multiplied and attacked Sunset Shimmer all at once. Sunset bounced around the room, narrowly dodging each blow. Each hit got closer and closer until every sword swing drew blood. Celestia teleported behind Sunset and kicked her into a wall. Halting her attack, Celestia spoke. “Sunset Shimmer, do you see now? You aren’t strong enough to defeat me. Please stop this and think about what you’re doing.”
Sunset shakily stood up and scowled at the princess. “I’m not done yet. Not by a long shot.” Calling forth the entirety of her magic, Sunset Shimmer cast the on one spell she knew would be enough to defeat Celestia. The one spell she developed after Sasuke taught her the true power locked away from ponykind; her very own unique spell. “Queen’s Law.” Behind Sunset Shimmer, an ornate stone slab with a golden trim took shape. A crown bearing a gem shaped like Sunset’s cutie mark formed on her head. “Edict: Only the queen may teleport.” Sunset’s words etched themselves into the stone.
“No, Sunset, what have you done,” Celestia whispered.
“I’ve levelled the playing field,” Sunset smirked. “Edict: Swords are forbidden.” Again, Sunset’s words were carved into the tablet. Celestia’s swords vanished from existence. Sunset launched into another attack against the solar princess. Celestia found herself being pushed back as Sunset used her telekinesis to attack from all angles. “You shouldn’t have abandoned me!” Sunset screamed. “DO YOU SEE WHAT I CAN DO!?!” Celestia, feeling completely overwhelmed, created a forcefield. Sunset jumped above the golden ball and forced herself down as hard as she could, shattering it. Celestia’s body created a crater in the marble floor, crushed from the impact.
Celestia looked up at her former student to see a crazed, confused, hurt look in her eyes. She shed a tear, lamenting how she had failed this child. “Please, see reason, my Sunset,” she pleaded softly. “Sasuke does not care about anyone but himself. He will use you up and toss you aside.” Celestia looked directly into Sunset’s eyes. “And it will hurt more than anything else in the world.”
“You don’t know anything about him,” Sunset spat. Her hand buzzed with electricity. She reached down to finish the alicorn but was blinded by a bright light. When her vision returned, her hand was being held back by another! When Sunset recognized what she was looking at, she froze. Celestia had taken human form and was covered in a white dress that flowed around them both like fire. Sunset looked into her former teacher’s eyes and the color drained from her face. Celestia’s eyes took on a three tomoe sharingan pattern and then swirled into a new pattern Sunset had never seen before but recognized instinctively.
“I know more than you can possibly imagine,” Celestia said with grim determination. A golden skeletal Susanoo formed around her and grabbed Sunset Shimmer. “You have no understanding of the forces with which you tamper. It is my duty as your teacher to show you. Weight of the Crown.”
***
Trixie and Gilda stood guard outside of the throne room. They had long since dispatched all of the royal guards and now waited for Sunset shimmer to finish inside with Princess Celestia. They could feel the power being thrown around and felt tempted to go help but understood that it was personal.
“Are you sure we shouldn’t at least check on her,” Trixie asked.
“She’ll be fine,” Gilda reassured. “Besides, if it was really bad we’d feel it.” Immediately after those words came out of Gilda’s mouth, Sunset’s power skyrocketed. “But we’ll be here just in case.”
“It is admirable that you would go so far for a friend,” Luna emerged from the shadows in her nightmare human form. “To even think of challenging myself or my sister would take true courage.” Her power swirled around the room and the defeated guards vanished. “You killed none of my guards, so I shall spare your lives. But this brazen attack on our castle ends now.”
Gilda tensed then relaxed her body. Her sharingan activated and she entered the Morning Peacock stance. “Gate 6: open! Trixie, don’t you dare hold anything back!”
“You either,” Trixie snapped. One of her eyes took on the sharingan pattern while the other turned red with a number one instead of a pupil.
“I shall respect your strength and respond in kind,” Luna said. Black tendrils jumped from the shadows and grabbed Trixie. Gilda was able to dodged them and went straight for Luna. Luna narrowly dodged Gilda’s first kick and as Gilda launched a barrage of attacks, Luna stayed just out of her reach.
While Gilda was keeping Luna busy, Trixie attempted to free herself. “Saws,” she commanded. The saws appeared and hacked away at the shadow tendrils. “Finally,” she complained as she broke free. “Crossbows!” Six crossbows formed and fired a volley of arrows at Luna. She effortlessly dodged them at the same time that she avoided Gilda’s blows.
“I commend your efforts thus far,” Luna said without missing a beat. “But if you cannot land even a single blow, what hope do you have of defeating me? End this foolishness now and surrender.”
“Never!” Gilda shouted, doubling her efforts. It made little difference; Luna was untouchable.
Even with Trixie’s support, Luna was just too fast. Trixie couldn’t hit her with a projectile and every time she tried to slow Luna down with an illusion or hold her mind with genjutsu, Luna laughed. “My mind is much stronger and more experienced than yours, hatchling,” she teased. “Save these games for another.”
Both Trixie and Gilda were getting frustrated. Luna was leading them on a chase through the castle and there was nothing either of them could do to stop her. By chance, Trixie happened to look out a window.
“Gilda, stop,” she cried.
Gilda jumped back to her friend. “What’s wrong?”
Trixie pointed to the moon, high in the night sky. “How long have we been fighting?”
“It couldn’t have been that long,” Gilda stammered.
“Sunset!” both girls cried out. They turned to go back to the throne room but Luna stood in their way.
“We are not yet finished,” she said firmly.
Trixie and Gilda dashed in opposite directions, trying to trip Luna up. Both girls experienced a barrage of heavy blows knocking them to the ground. Trixie passed out. As Gilda barely clung to consciousness, Luna stood over her, triumphantly.
“How?” was the only word Gilda could get out.
“It seems neither of you realized,” Luna said. “From the beginning, you were already trapped in my DayDream.”
Those were the last words Gilda heard as everything went black.
***
When Sunset recovered from the blinding light, she looked around. She had been teleported somewhere she didn’t recognize. All around her was an endless expanse of crystal tombstones each with a different name. As she tried to stand, she found that it was incredibly difficult. It took everything she had just to get to her feet and she couldn’t move freely.
“Having trouble?”
Sunset slowly turned to see Celestia standing on her toes, on top of one of the tombstones. It looked as if she was unaffected by whatever force was working against Sunset.
“What is this place?” Sunset asked, trying to buy time to build her strength.
“This is my unique spell: Weight of the Crown,” Celestia explained. “Every one of these graves marks a life for which I am or was responsible. Each adds to the weight one is forced to bear while here. This is the true weight of rule.”
Sunset wasn’t ready to fight yet; she needed Celestia to keep talking. “How do you have Sasuke’s power? I thought only Luna had it.”
Celestia sighed. “In my long life I have felt very very lonely. There have been only a few in my entire life with whom I could relate and talk. In my multiple millenias, I have only ever had one lover. Sasuke and I connected in a way I might never with anyone again. One night, we came to each other and cemented our bond. In the old tradition, I bled for him and he for me. Our powers were exchanged and we were linked for life. But I did not know at the time, this power, his power, comes from loss.”
“What do you mean?” Sunset asked.
“When I lost my lover to his madness, my power grew,” Celestia lamented. “When I lost my sister to her madness, my power grew. When I lose a friend to age, my power grows.” Celestia looked directly into Sunset’s eyes. “When I lost the mare I loved like a daughter, my power grew. That is the price of power.”
“Lies!” Sunset screamed. She tried to jump at Celestia but couldn’t fight the force holding her down. “Why doesn’t this place affect you?”
“It does,” was all Celestia said. She moved liike lightning and kicked Sunset across the field. Sunset Shimmer crashed through tombstones until the impact was enough to stop her momentum. Sunset couldn’t find the energy to stand so she stayed still, exhausted. “I feel the weight of every creature under my rule, every life I have taken, every loss my decisions cause. Every day I deal with this burden. It is much to ask of any pony.” She leaned down and lovingly brushed Sunset’s hair. “I had meant to train you so that one day you would be ready to bear this burden with me. It’s not too late, Sunset. Please come back. I’ll be better; I’ll pay more attention to you, we can do things together, it’ll be like it was.”
Sunset Shimmer called all of the strength in her body and spat in Celestia’s face. “It can never be like it was.”
“That…. is disappointing,” Celestia was solemn. She used her mangekyou to render Sunset Shimmer unconscious. Her tears fell from her face to the young mare beneath her.
**********
I prepared for a fight as I teleported into Celestia’s room. I was at full strength, ready for anything. Or so I thought.
“I knew you would come,” Celestia’s haggard voice came from her desk. A single candle illuminated the room. As I saw her face, I bit back a gasp. Her eyes were puffy and red and her head hung low. She stood from her desk and slowly climbed into her bed. “Did you know I’m not infertile,” she asked, facing away.
“But I thought-”
“When medicine advanced enough, I went through several tests,” Celestia’s voice was tired, defeated. “I can bear foals.” She sighed. “But only if they can survive the magical bombardment of my womb.” She laughed darkly. “My body would kill any child I tried to bring into this world.”
I stayed silent and waited for her to continue.
“So I took on students,” Celestia rasped. Clearing her throat with a cough, she continued. “But as hard as I tried, none of them could fill the void in my heart. That is, until a certain unicorn came to my school.” Celestia’s voice grew lighter for a moment. “Sunset Shimmer and Starlight Shimmer were both very dear to me. They came to my school after having lost their parents. I took them in. I taught them, guided them, loved them. They were exceptional fillies and I was so excited to see them grow.” Her tone grew dark again. “And then Sunset started down a dark path. She wanted so much more than she was ready for. ‘Power corrupts’, you told me. And she has so much. If only I had seen it sooner….” Celestia's voice caught in her throat. “I was going to adopt them. I still have the papers.” A sob escaped the solar alicorn before she cleared her throat again. “But I didn’t. Sunset ran away and Starlight left. I had no one.”
“Cel-”
“Don’t,” Celestia commanded. “I don’t want to hear it. You’ve hurt me in a way I can never forgive.” She floated me a key with her magic. “But I will not see the mare I cared for like a daughter rot in my own dungeon. So go, free them.” Celestia rose from her bed and looked at me with pure hatred in her eyes. “But the next time we meet, I will kill you.” Her magic burned her neck and she grunted in pain. I felt the connection to the flying thunder god mark disappear. She slumped down and her breathing evened out.
***
Navigating the dungeons was easy. There were no guards and the paths were very straight forward. I found my girls in three different cells, all locked in cells and chains made of voidrock. They were all sleeping pretty peacefully. I internally sighed with relief that they were unharmed. I used the key Celestia gave me to unlock their cells and chains. One by one, I sent them through Kamui’s dimension to our wagon. I let them sleep for now. When they woke up, I was going to let them know exactly how I felt about their little stunt.