It was when the sun had begun to dip, a time the ponies called two pm, that Veretus had gone to Celestia's court. The herds of ponies streaming out, many with disappointed and confused faces, walked a wide circle around him.
Celestia was sitting there on her throne talking to a pony with a grey coat and white mane. She looked up and smiled at the sound of Veretus's boots clanking against the marble floor. It was strange to him, as Celestia had always frowned in his presence.
"I am just finishing up here Veretus, then you can show me your surprise." She spoke before turning back to the pony beside her.
"But your majesty! I must still request that you reconsider! Not only are your schedule changes too sudden, your subjects still have many more problems needing to be solved!" The grey pony exclaimed, and Veretus shook his head. Such insult to a monarch's decision would have had the pony dismissed from his position in his kingdom, but Celestia and Luna truly were too kind.
"I have promised to show our visiting dignitary throughout the city Status Quo. You would not want me to revoke my promise, do you? It would set a bad example for Equestria, so much so that they might declare war." The grey pony turned a few shades whiter at Celestia's words.
"N-No your majesty... My apologies..."
Celestia nodded as she stepped down from the throne and walked by Veretus. The pony named Status Quo stook there nervously. Perhaps Celestia wasn't too kind after all...
"Perhaps you were right, I do coddle my ponies too much if me ending court early rattles them like this..." Celestia spoke up during their walk through the castle, Veretus shook his head at her ridiculous statement.
"Perhaps? You and Luna are much too kind to your subjects, while I reigned, it was only if something threatened the safety of the kingdom as a whole that it would be brought to me. I had soldiers and advisors for domestic issues, which seems to be the majority of your petitions."
"You must have had a lot of free time..." Celestia wistfully sighed as her imagination took her away.
"I'm afraid not," Veretus spoke sadly. "My days were always spent preparing for the next coming disaster. First, it was finding the perpetrator of the regicide, making peace with other kingdoms, then preparing for war with a greater diety. Up until my final ascension, I had none of this free time..."
"Final Ascension?" celestia asked, Intregued.
"When I could no longer stay on Alvaris for fear of destroying it by my mere presence... In other words, my ascension to Overgod after I destroyed my brother..." Veretus smiled in sad fondness.
"You are joking... right?" When Celestia received no silly smile or hint of mirth from Veretus she frowned. "How can one possess such power that unleashing a tiny bit of it would destroy the world?"
"Faith, the power you so dismissed as an evil brainwashing technique. Tell me, Celestia, have you heard the phrase, Consciousness begets Reality?"
"Consensus reality, yes I've heard of it, but not everypony can believe the same-" Celestia shook her head before looking at him incredulously. "No... you can be saying..."
"Every creature, from the tiniest insect that could think, to the most egotistical creature in Alvaris, believed that I was the strongest god. And so it became that I was the strongest god..."
"Faith seems to sound more and more evil the more you describe it..." Celestia said as she covered her shocked expression with a hoof.
"Because you don't understand it as I do. Faith is much more than just believing in something beyond you..." He turned to her as he stepped onto a balcony on the side of the castle opposite of the mountain, and spread his wings in preparation for flight. "It is also about belief in the self. Now come, my favorite activity is soon at hand."
As he took flight with a flap of his six wings, she followed. The difference in wingbeats was immensely obvious, while Celestia flew with slow, graceful flaps which barely made any noise, Veretus' six wings were powerful, and each flap of them propelled him forward with a mighty 'fwoomf'. Soon, they had alighted upon a stray cloud over the city proper.
"So what is it you wanted to show me?" Celestia asked impatiently.
"This." He waved a hand to signify all of Canterlot, Celestia rolled her eyes at him.
"Yes, I live here, I know what Canterlot looks like."
"But you have never looked at it Celestia. Right there." Veretus pointed down towards an earth pony filly who was leaving a candy shop. "Bright light, every day after school she goes to this candy shop with ten bits from her mother, buys three items which comes up to seven bits, and saves the rest."
"Are you peering into the personal lives of ponies?" Celestia asked with an eyebrow raised.
"No Celestia, I can hear everything they say from up here. One day they talked. Regardless, over there is Berry Glow. She claims to make the best pies on her block." Veretus chuckled, and Celestia looked at this deity a little bit worried that he knew these details of their lives.
"Then we have-"
"Enough." Celestia cut him off. "Is this some attempt at regaining your childhood? The time when you had no cares and worries about being king or growing up?"
If ever Celestia had seen a creature's face go from joy to impassiveness faster than she just did, she didn't remember it.
"It is not... It is envy... These ponies get something that I never did, so I watch them, and be happy for their peaceful life."
"But- your parents?"
"Killed, along with my whole village at six months."
"Who raised you? Surely you participated in some normal activities throughout your long life?" Veretus looked at her through the corner of his vision.
"I was raised inside a monastery serving a false god... A false religion... all created to keep my past self trapped inside the Abyssal Sea... I had no childhood Celestia, from before I could walk I was educated in how to serve faithfully... Unthinkingly... Lethally."
She looked at him in horror, these were the subjects he loved? She felt guilty at ever considering him to be evil, it was his subjects that took advantage of him. She lit her horn, taking his arm in her magical grasp as she began walking towards the edge of the cloud. He looked curiously at her.
"Come on." With those words, he finally followed as she lifted off from the cloud and alighted in front of the candy shop.
"Celestia, whatever plan you have, I do not think-"
"Be quiet and just follow me." She said, interrupting him as she opened the door, the small bell tinkled as the Stallion at the counter opened his mouth.
"Welcome, feel f- P-Princess Celestia! What can I do for your Majesty... today..." His words slowed as he took in the figure of Veretus who followed in after her.
"If you could prepare some treats please, an assortment if you could." She smiled and gently asked, ignoring the inquisitive eyebrow raise Veretus was giving her.
"Uh... right away Princess!" He finally recovered, grabbing several candy bars and some scoops of candy and putting them in clear bags made out of a material Veretus had never seen. When all was done, He put them all in an opaque bag on the counter.
"And how much would this be?" Celestia asked as she levitated the bag by two loops at the opening.
"Oh, uh... Nothing your majesty, I couldn't-"
"Nonsense, please, I am purchasing these from you." She interrupted him gently.
"twe- twenty-seven bits..." He finally said. With a pop of their teleportation, three stacks of bits were suddenly on the counter. She smiled as she exited, the bag of candy floating behind her. Veretus followed, he had to admit, he was intrigued by what she was planning.
Celestia didn't fly away, instead, she walked. Veretus felt that Celestia didn't truly understand the danger she was putting her ponies in with this jaunt through the city. At any time a threat could try and get rid of him. His paranoia seemed to be off today however, as they had reached a secluded fountain. The water seemed to have dried long ago, and the figure was of a pony he had never seen.
She sat down at the base, patting the grass beside her while smiling at him. He sat beside her, very lightly leaning against the base. She said nothing as she levitated one of the candies she had bought to him. He took it with an eyebrow raised. He had watched Bright Light open these candies before, so he very gently peeled the coating off. He guessed it was to protect it from dust or something.
He took a bite, it was chocolate, of course, some nuts, and some sort of sweet half solid. Celestia was eating her own with a smile and eyes closed. He still didn't get what they were doing. She could have just ordered some sweets to be delivered to the castle if she wanted some. Despite her eyes being closed, she levitated more candy to him when he had finally finished his.
Throughout the hour, he had tried more types of sweets than he had ever had in his immortal life, Some were pure chocolate, some had nuts, liquid sugar, some were very hard, some were soft, half weren't even chocolate. During the entire thing, Celestia would talk about when she remembered first having the treat, or when it first was invented.
"While the hour was pleasant, I don't exactly know why you wanted to do this." He finally said when the bag was empty.
"Luna and I used to do this all the time as fillies, not here, and not these candies specifically, but we always had a secluded spot the other foals didn't know, where we'd just eat pie or something, and speak about our lives..." She smiled as she looked at him. "Now I shared my experience growing up with you, I know it may not have been nostalgic as it was for me, or as meaningful, but..."
"Thank you, Celestia. You shared something personal, and I can recognize the significance of this gesture." He gave a gentle smile, he never remembered using facial expressions this much back in Alvaris.
"Tell me Veretus... I understand you seem to idolize your subjects... but why?" He closed his eyes at her question, his memories of why were long, and he was searching for the most significant one.
"The human, Princess Lurauna..." He whispered.
"Do you mind talking about her?" Celestia asked tentatively.
"Of course not. She is the only one I would ever call a true paragon." He looked upwards in sad fondness. "When the Demons first Invaded Alvaris, she lost her father in the third defense."
"Third defense? I thought you had came to their aid?"
"An immortal's sense of time is much different than a mortal's, it was two years before I finally had enough of my brother's inaction, and had left to fight alongside the mortals by myself. After her father's death, as the only heir, she took to the throne reluctantly, for she hated being a royal. Her first action wasn't to train more troops or create a militia. Instead, she reached out to the other races, the elves, longtime enemies of the humans, the Dwarves, who the humans had largely stayed separated from, the orcs, who would raid human settlements for supplies, even the neutral halflings. She had even sent word to the dragons."
"And they banded together to defeat the demons?" Celestia asked, leaning towards him with interest.
"Eventually, but while all but the dragons had agreed to meet, during the meeting, each wanted to lead their combined army, convinced that their race alone held the traits necessary to command. So she challenged each one to a contest of their strengths. The Elves claimed they were Geniuses, having invented the most impressive magics, so she challenged them to light up a room with magic the quickest. While they had used a spell to cover every inch of the room in daylight, taking only a few minutes to invent a spell and cast it, Lurauna had merely lit the hearth with a fire spell, taking less than a minute to completely illuminate the room."
"The dwarves refused to accept any challenge from her after seeing the elves' defeat, and instead proposed their own. They would both present a resource their kingdom had that would be invaluable in the war. The other races would judge which would be more useful. The dwarven king claimed their mines of adamantium would protect the entire army from the demon's attacks. Lurauna, having spent her entire life with the peasantry of her city, spent an entire hour naming each and every person she could think of, and how they could help. The dwarven king admitted she had won before any of the other races even voted, admiring her passion for her people."
"And finally, the orcs, as they already spent their lives as an army, their leader know an army ran on its stomach, so he challenged her people to a three-hour competition to gather enough food for a hundred people. The orcs lived off the land and were confident they couldn't lose if they banded together. They each had a team of thirty to hunt and forage. While the orcs chose their strongest hunters, Lurauna chose farmers and butchers. At the end of three hours, the orcs had brought back monsters that took several orcs to defeat and other assorted game, Laurana had brought back thirty carts worth of food, donated by friends and family of those she chose. The orc leader disliked her disregard of the spirit of the challenge, but reluctantly admired the human's willingness to work together."
"What of the Halflings? What challenge did they put forth?" Celestia asked excitedly, enthralled in the story.
"Nothing, they already witnessed every value they themselves held dear in her challenges. They saw her simple solution in the challenge with the elves, her love of friends and family in the dwarf's, and their willingness to share in the orc's. They held friends and family in the highest regard, and immediately promised to fight off the Demons under her lead." He frowned as the memories came back.
"But even after uniting, their first battle was still almost lost..."
"What?!" Celestia shouted, getting up and stomping her hoof against the pavement. "After all that, proving to the other races that she truly cared, they banded together and still weren't powerful enough?!"
"Of course not, The demons were the army of the immortals, each has an innate knowledge of battle from birth, and once killed, they would reform back in the abyss, ready to take to the front lines once more, summoned by a higher-ranked demon." She sat down dejected after his explanation.
"Then how could they win..?" She sorrowfully said.
"Because I had faith in them," Veretus said, and she looked at him.
"So what? because you believed in them they got stronger?" Celestia snarked.
"No, Celestia, because I helped them fight, they grew stronger. That battle was the birth of the gods..."
"But how did you help them?" She asked, beginning to get irate.
"I had descended during the battle, already they were losing. The godlings had fought ferociously against the three demon generals, and with the entire army's faith behind them, they barely held their own. Lurauna was at the forefront, her hair scarlet with demonic ichor, she wielded plain armor and a normal sword, but she held her own just as much as the other godlings... My descent was punctuated by the clearing of the cloudy skies for miles around, my golden armor gleaming in the sun as my twin blades bisected one of the generals in a single cut."
"So with your help, she led the army to defeat the demons, and then imprisoned you as one?" Celestia asked, still remembering his imprisonment in the Abyss.
"No, throughout the campaign, She and I had... grown close. She always saw the best in anyone, even in my brother, which she convinced me to talk with him, listen to his side on why he refused to help the mortals after we had sent the demons back into the Abyss. I had my armor melted down by the dwarves and forged into her regalia and weapon. And upon the final battle, all twelve Demonlords, each with a strength to equal the godlings, had sought to stop us. Upon the closing of the battle, I had beaten all of them inside of the gate they had used to assault Alvaris, all of the godlings were injured or dying, so I was the only one holding them back... And then, against Lurauna's wishes, the other leaders gave the order to close the gate."
He closed his eyes, speaking the memories only made them more clear and painful. He felt something soft press against his side, it was Celestia, her eyes threatened tears. She had embraced him, her head near his.
"I'm sorry..." Was all she could choke out.
"And I said-"
"Not for what I've done, but for what I can imagine you went through afterward... You loved her, didn't you? You gave up your armor to keep her safe, and then you had to spend her entire life Imprisoned, unable to see or speak with her... Nopony deserves that fate... Even Tirek, a foe we imprisoned, was allowed letters to and from his brother..."
"I- Even after everything... She abandoned her kingdom, everybody she knew... My brother had locked our Celestial Kingdom from entry... But every lock has a key, and she went through the Trial of Empathy to unlock it... to plead with my brother to get me back... He didn't kill her, he couldn't, the Celestial Kingdom makes it impossible to die there... instead he imprisoned her, kept her locked up as she continually starved to death, until eventually, she barely recognized me..." The words choked out... He never remembered being so angry as when he had finally been convinced to return to his Kingdom, and she still wanted him to reconcile with his brother...
"So you love every creature because she did... It's your way of remembering her."
"I suppose part of it is..." He said after a while.
"It's not just a part, Veretus, you spent two years until you finally came to their aid, the Godking I see in front of me wouldn't waste two minutes if all of what you've told me is true." She said firmly.
"Fine... I will concede this argu-" He was interrupted by the fact that either this world had just had tens of thousands of infants be born at the same time, or tens of thousands of creatures had just entered the world. He didn't realize that he was standing up, looking towards the north, nor did he realize that Celestia had done the same...