Having no food, water, or getting any sleep for more than twenty four hours was beginning to make me feel like I was living back in the old days. There was a time long since passed that Luna and I were not pampered princesses whose every desire was served to us on a silver platter. A time when the only way to resolve a conflict was through war and bloodshed, long before harmony had found a place in the world, before the pony tribes had made peace with one another. It had been so long ago that earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns hadn't even existed.
More than five thousand years ago, the world and its inhabitants were tainted by evil desires. Deceit, chaos, and corruption reigned supreme while goodness, mercy, and love were unaffordable liabilities. Every single day was a battle to stay alive. Luna and I had not always been infinitely powerful beings of magic. To be tasked with caring for our celestial bodies made us prime targets for despots seeking infamy, not to mention seeking control of the heavens themselves.
Fate can be a truly cruel thing.
From the initial moments of life I can recall, we sisters only had each other to rely on. Running, hiding, never knowing where we would find rest, starving every day of our lives, not knowing whose life we'd have to take next. I don't think either of us could properly calculate the number of lives we were forced to take, though most were in the name of self defense...
Most
After centuries, we eventually came to be known as the "Immortal sisters". Once we'd thwarted the umpteenth assassination attempt the nickname kind of just stuck. Not only were we impossible to kill in combat, we seemed to be incapable of passing through age. We hadn't chosen the path of violence, it had been thrust upon us like our duty to bring about the day and night.
We had to stay alive. We were never given a choice on the matter, not with the responsibilities we'd been given. Without the two of us the world would eventually cease. To this day, I could not understand why those who sought to harm us could not comprehend this simple fact. I am as bound to my sun as Luna is to her moon, to what degree I could not say, but so strong are our bonds that none could replace us for an extended period of time, of that I am more than certain.
Unfortunately, even with all of that renown and power, we weren't able to establish any sort of alliances. The threat of betrayal was far too great a risk to take. We only had each other, and that was fine with the two of us.
Perhaps that's why we were the only ones to make it out of that world with our lives somewhat intact. My sister and I were the only remnants left from that barbaric age, barring some unknown ancient being that was hiding in the darkest recesses of the world. We'd searched long for any survivors, but to no avail.
After so many years of suffering, It felt like the horror would never come to an end, but amazingly enough the pony species was born and began to thrive. They were such an alien creature, not in their appearance, but in their behavior. Each race was so much more civil than what we had grown accustomed to at the time. Their compositions were very similar to ours, though none were blessed with both wings and a horn like my sister and I.
While they didn't start out perfectly harmonious like they'd eventually become, they were so much more peaceful than any species that'd preceded them. It was as if some divine being had finally given Luna and I a gift of respite. For some strange reason the ponies of Equestria decided to include us in their history, as if we were a bigger part of the birth of their nation. It was possibly because of our pasts and all the fame that came with them. The Immortal Sisters creating a nation would plant much needed fear in any fiends who might try to destroy said nation.
While the two of us continued to manipulate day and night, which was most beneficial for the fledgling nation, not to mention the rest of the world, our origins were not as they had described in their history books. At the behest of Starswirl the Bearded, leader of the unicorn tribe, fabrications were turned into fact. We were not part of the pony species, having existed millennia before it. We did not seek to create a nation, nor was it our idea to unite the races.
At first, the deceit troubled me, Luna even moreso than myself, however I quickly realized that it was better to be viewed as an infallible beacon of righteousness than what we really were at the time. Starswirl was a visionary and knew exactly what Equestria needed for it to prosper. Luna still didn't like the idea, but she'd always consented to my lead, and so, Equestria's history was written, the Immortal Sisters no longer ruthless warriors, but instead revered princesses of the most peaceful nation on the planet.
Over time, Equestria grew into the most successful nation in the world. Under Twilight's leadership, its influence spread even further across the globe. All was going perfectly according to plan until this whole debacle came about. But if our days of peace really were finally over, mine and Luna's rest far behind us, then I was grateful we'd gotten the peaceful time together we had.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Everything okay, Tia?" Luna came to a stop next to me, landing softly and folding her wings at her sides. I wasn't sure where she'd been, but I did have a theory. Originally we were going to take turns sleeping, Luna being wary about an ambush by Twilight. Instead, after she'd returned to reality from contacting Cadance in the dream realm, we spoke until morning.
"Just..." I chuckled, unable to hold it in. "you were patrolling the area for threats, weren't you, Lulu?" She turned beet red as she nervously turned away, her wings fidgeting rapidly.
"I... well... that is to say-" My laughs grew in proportion to her embarrassment.
"It's quite alright, Sister. I was just thinking about similar things," I reassured her, bringing her cheeks back to their natural dark complexion. In our past lives, Luna had been adamant about being alert at all times. Every night she'd go on several patrols around our camp while setting up traps and alarms for defensive purposes. It appeared as if her old habits were slowly beginning to come back to the surface.
"Do you... do you remember, Celestia?" her countenance fell. "Those days, I mean." It was the past. We didn't need to talk about such things, but from the way she asked her question, it seemed as if she might be holding something in and that never ended well.
"I don't think I could ever forget if I tried," my mirth was gone, replaced by numb indifference. I must have looked particularly affected because my sister winced at the sudden change in my mood. "Forgive me, Luna," I forced an awkward smile for her sake. "Why do you ask such things, Sister?" I think I already knew what she would answer. With the obstructions gone from our relationship we were closer than we'd ever been. With our reforged bond came a sense of understanding in the form of shared thoughts and emotions. Not intricate by any means, more like the supernatural connection shared between identical twins.
"I feel... great change coming," she looked past me, like she was gazing into the future. To this day I still wondered if she was capable of such a feat. "Can you not sense the impending shift as well, Sister?" Her words were vague at best and yet I had no issue decoding them.
"I fear it's already begun, Luna." Every time fate decided to alter the world in one way or another its inhabitants were forced into an age of either tranquility or suffering. More than one thousand years of what could be perceived as relative peace may finally be coming to an end. It was a sobering thought.
"Is there nothing we can do, Sister?" her question caught me off guard. Luna had excelled when we fought to survive in ancient times. She'd always leaned more toward physical options than diplomatic solutions, and that's what had made the old world go round.
"Would it be such a bad thing?" I asked, trying to delve deeper into my sister's nature. Her jaw fell, the look of shock as emphatic as when I'd protected my student from her wrath.
"Yes, Tia! Of course it would be." Well, it was good to know she didn't yearn to go back to such bloody times.
"I jest, Sister," I lifted a hoof to clarify in an attempt to calm her. "I was merely referring to your efficiency and ability if said circumstances ever came to pass again. If you so desired you could easily take control of the world itself, were it to revert to such a state." Luna's expressions changed so fast I could barely keep up. First her surprise was quickly replaced by flattery and pink cheeks. Right after that she lowered her head in shame or possibly guilt.
"You honor me, Sister... but that is not what I desire." Even when she had become Nightmare Moon I questioned whether or not she truly wanted control of Equestria. Luna was never one to lust for leadership. She was much more content when... when she...
When is she most content? Why do I not know?
"What is it that you wish for, Lulu?" She didn't want control. Surely she wanted something more than what she had. It couldn't be as simple as-
"Your safety and happiness, Tia," she smiled, though she didn't lift her head. All the times she'd patrolled while half asleep suddenly came to mind. I recalled her taking extra shifts on watch, her excuse that the night was her territory and it'd be easier for her to remain awake. I remembered her standing over my injured body, wielding a spear at the would be assassins who'd caught me unawares.
"Oh, Lulu." I walked over to her, hugging her close with my foreleg. She gently hugged back. "You've protected me for so long."
Now it's my turn.
I drew away, a renewed vigor lifting my spirit as I offered her a grateful smile. "It's time I start acting like the big sister."
"Are you ready to face her, Tia?" she looked up at me, hopeful. I ignited my horn, my energy glowing gold along with the soothing chime of my unique magical signature.
"I am," I steeled myself. She was my most faithful student, my very best friend.
This is not going to go wrong. I will not fail. I will make her see reason. To Tartarus with death, fate, and anything else that tries to get in my way.
Luna smiled brightly.
"Take care, Sister. I know you can do it," she gently hit me on the shoulder with a hoof. The simple gesture brought a smile to my face.
"Thank you, Luna." With her faith as my catalyst for confidence I teleported directly to Canterlot.
I was forced back into reality before I reached my intended destination. The daunting black barrier was just as Flurry had described it to us. If even teleportation was not a possibility, then the only way to bypass it would be destruction like she'd surmised, though that came at great risk. It was all too easy to trap a barrier spell to have negative consequences when destroyed or even attacked. Barriers could even be enchanted to cause adverse effects when simply touched.
Whereas Flurry could literally throw herself into an active volcano if she so wished, I had to be much more cautious with my well-being. If Twilight didn't want a soul entering Canterlot, she'd have made sure it was next to impossible for any to do so.
Speaking of my student, where is she?
It was the exact time she'd appointed and she was never the type to miss scheduled appointments.
Would she have really used our meeting as a smokescreen to accomplish some other nefarious plot? In the past? No, of course not. Now? Definitely. I'd have to experiment with the barrier if any of this was going to be beneficial to our cause.
I dipped into my sun's endless power reservoir, casting a small orb of light. It shined with all the strength of the original it had been drawn from. If the sunlight couldn't make it through the barrier I was convinced there was nothing that could. I gently willed it toward the shield before surrounding myself with a powerful barrier just in case something went wrong.
I separated the mini sun from my pool of magic so that if the barrier could harm the caster I would not be affected. I also had to limit the extent of the orbs heat or risk igniting the entire planet. It may be small, but it was still my sun. I forced the spell into contact with the barrier, but nothing happened. Neither my small sun failed nor the onyx wall itself would give any leeway.
There was no give to Twilight's spell, it's power equivalent to the amount I had employed. I could empower my mini sun to burn through the barrier, but that could prove to be disastrous, both for myself and the planet. Instead, I withdrew the ball, sending it back home to the source in the sky. I lowered my own barrier, deciding to take a risk.
As I cautiously pressed a hoof against the wall again nothing happened.
This isn't what I expected at all.
I sat on my rump dejectedly, running through all the possibilities of what the purposes and defenses of the wall could be. I took a deep contemplative breath.
Well, I've been alive for more than five thousand years. If a single barrier is enough to end me, I probably deserve such an unenviable fate.
I shot a small spark of sunlight into the barrier, enough energy to annoy a manticore but not even damage it. I looked back and forth nervously, waiting for catastrophe to strike for several minutes. Nothing happened.
THWOOM
The sound that came from within Canterlot's walls was loud enough to shake me to my core. I looked around in a panic, hoping I'd find something to clue me in on what I'd done wrong. The barrier began to undulate and liquefy, not losing its shape by any means, but becoming more malleable. I must have put up at least ten different barriers around myself as a precaution... or perhaps I was just afraid.
At first, a bulge and then a pillar grew out of the side of Twilight's barrier. I took a defensive stance, ready to protect myself from any threats that might come. The pillar continued to grow more and more until it was extending miles away from Canterlot. I noticed another pillar coming from the direction Canterlot's pillar was extending toward. There was only one place that way, one place that might have some significance.
"PONYVILLE!" I took to the skies, soaring into the air to confirm my suspicions. Ponyville had been contained, the same spell surrounding it as Canterlot, and those barriers were moving towards one another as if they were going to meld into one. Floating slowly next to the progressing magic that came from Ponyville was the dark purple alicorn I'd come here to see. I flapped my wings hard, darting her way before my own doubts or reservations could sway my decision.
"You actually came? I thought you'd run back to Cadance with your tail between your legs," Twilight laughed, watching the black tendril progress with a fascinated glee as I flew up to her.
"What is this, Twilight?" I pointed a hoof at the still progressing mass. She laughed maniacally at my inquiry.
"I don't know!" She looked like an insane mare, but I attributed it more to her unnatural curiosity rather than a lack of mental clarity. "I didn't expect this to happen either! What's it doing? There wasn't anything like this in the book. Isn't it exciting?" It was like we were back in my classroom and she was discovering how to use a new spell. It was so nostalgic I almost missed what she'd said.
"What book, Twilight?" Her delight drained from her face like a glass being emptied of it's contents. She settled on a scowl, my question going unanswered. "Twiligh-"
"I told you I was working on a spell. This is it," she tilted her head at the moving cord of mana. "You might want to get out of the way," she said, glancing behind me. I turned to find the pillar from Canterlot coming up behind me, a few meters away. I flew above it, looking down as the two pillars of magic fused with each other, becoming one.
The spell solidified, back to the consistency it had when it was only around Canterlot. Twilight clapped her hooves in satisfaction, her frantic joy returning with a vengeance.
"Twilight... please, talk to me," I flew next to her, only inches away. Her eyes flitted left and right, seemingly scanning the sky for something. Seconds later she placed her attention back on me.
"What do you want to know?" She wasn't smiling anymore, but there was no open aggression on her face either.
"What are you doing? What is the purpose of all of this?" I waved a hoof at Canterlot and Ponyville. "Why are you treating me like-" that was personal and I knew the answer already. I was here to help her, to help Equestria, not for my own selfish reasons.
"I'm saving the world." Her statement was simple and concise, yet it baffled me. How had our relationship become the polar opposite of mine and my sister's?
"From what?" I shook my head, trying my hardest to understand.
"Everything! Sadness, pain... death," she was suddenly much angrier.
"How?"
There isn't magic strong enough to accomplish such a feat, there never has been.
She was either incorrect or being deceived.
"I found a spell," she grew quiet, contemplative. "Ancient magic," she said after a moment. She was sitting on the fence between honesty and deceit. I'd been a politician and her mentor for too long to not see through her sleight of hoof.
"What does it do?" Instead of openly opposing her I gave her an opportunity to explain her perspective.
"It creates a new world... by using the old," she averted her eyes. She knew as well as I that was too vague an explanation.
"Using the old?" She had to know how that would sound to anypony that heard it. Was she so desperate to save others from the travails she'd suffered through that she was willing to condemn the rest of the world? "And what of those trapped within the cities and towns?" I had no clue what happened to them. She still refused to look at me.
"Every great change requires sacrifice, Celestia," she sighed, making it sound as if she may be a bit more remorseful than she was letting on. Or perhaps I was just perceiving things the way I wanted them to be.
"And you're the one who gets to make that decision? For us all?" I tried to remain gentle but this was getting out of hoof. She was wrong, utterly wrong and yet she couldn't or wouldn't admit it.
"I am the ruler of Equestria," she lifted her head to glare daggers at me, her determination suddenly untouchable. "I have the right and the obligation to do whatever I can for my subjects. I will not just sit idly by and watch them suffer when I can help them," she pointed a hoof at me. "Not like you."
"By trapping them in their homes and forcing them to be a part of some cruel experiment? By destroying their world?"
"SO THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE A BETTER ONE!" Her breaths came in ragged huffs, her horn sparkling to life. It was glowing magenta, much safer than the shade of darkness. "So that true harmony can rule where we have failed," she calmed several octaves, but I still energized my own horn as a precaution.
"I don't want to fight you, Twilight. I just want to understand." I cast a gold barrier around myself, showing her that was all I intended to do with my mana. She took a deep breath in and exhaled it, calming herself down as the glow of her horn slowly faded.
"You can't."
Is she... sad?
That was not what I expected.
"WHY?" I pleaded. She looked away, thinking deeply once again. She was quiet for an uncomfortably long time. I began to fidget even as my wings continued to beat to keep me airborne. Just as I was about to say something, she did so first.
"What... are you, Celestia?" Her question was filled with both curiosity and... fear?
Is she afraid of me?
That couldn't be right, but she was obviously afraid of something.
"I am an alicorn, one of the first. Possibly even the very first," I replied. It was a simple enough question to answer.
"So what does that make me?" I didn't know where she was going with this line of questioning, but decided to humor her.
"An... alicorn?" I didn't know why I asked more than answered.
"Then why are we so different?" she looked me in the eye, her gaze saying something her words did not. In the traditional sense: age, experience, personality. There were a number of things that differentiated us, but that wasn't what she'd meant. "Why are Luna and Cadance so different? Or you and Flurry?"
"I'm not su-"
"How are you still alive, Celestia?" her words had hidden meaning behind them, but I couldn't discern what it might be. She'd become such an enigma to me, It truly troubled my heart.
"I'm... immortal? I will live unt-" She shook her head.
"I know that. We all are. You and Luna. Cadance and Flurry. And Me," she frowned. "But we're not invincible.”
Of course not, none of us are.
"I think what you did the other day confirms that to be true for me as well, Twilight." I agreed, but she shook her head again, more annoyed this time.
"That's not what I mean. I-" The expression that came to her face was similar to the first time she'd broken one of the rules in my castle. The first time she'd thought she let me down. "Celestia, that spell I used in Canterlot... it should have killed you."
"W-WHAT!?" my mind could only process that single word.
Killed?
I thought she might have tried. In the back of my mind, I feared that she had, but hearing her confirm my speculations crushed me.
"I-I'm sorry!" I must have looked truly devastated because she raised her forehooves in an attempt to console me, but not going so far as to touch me. She sighed before dropping her forelegs. "I had to know, I... I had to know." I wasn't sure what I found more concerning, the fact that my own student had really tried to take my life or that I hadn't actually died. Even more puzzling was the notion that she was regretful of said action. This was all becoming too much for me to endure.
"Did you... did you think I would die, that the spell would end my life?" In that moment, that question mattered to me more than anything else. Her answer would mark the difference between an irreparable fracture and a deep wound that could heal given proper time and care. She offered a crooked smile from the bottom of her heart.
"No, I didn't." I exhaled the breath I'd been holding. What a relief. She seemed to notice something in the distance behind me, her expression becoming irritated. After a few moments of her eyes going this way and that she refocused on me. "Celestia... you and Luna aren't... you'll never be able to relate to anypony else. Were you two even born?" I knew it wasn't meant as a jab, but it still hurt like one.
"I..." To be completely honest, I couldn't remember, but Equestria's history books were thorough on the subject of my birth regardless.
Why would she doubt her own ancestors?
"Please don't treat me like a foal, Celestia," she raised a hoof to stop me. "I think we're both beyond that by now." She was getting good at seeing through my masks, almost to the point of them being useless.
"I don't remember." I had no excuse, but I think I was justified in forgetting things that far in my past. "But, Equestria's history books are quite cle-"
"We both know those were beyond ridiculous when it comes to you and Luna," she chuckled dryly. "What has it really been two, three thousand years?" She was sharper than ever.
"At least five..." Her eyes widened at the truth. "that I can remember." If we were on the ground I'm sure her legs would have buckled.
"I-inconceivable," she bristled, moving away from me slightly. "How could you possibly think you could ever relate?" The question seemed to be directed at the both of us. It hurt. I wanted to empathize, so badly I wanted to feel her pain.
I want to be there for her.
But she was correct. We were from different realities. Her around one hundred years of life in a relatively peaceful Equestria were a drop in the bucket compared to my life. Even her losses... if I were to express to her all the pain and suffering I'd experienced, I'd caused, she'd go mad. Any mortal would and she was a single step above that existence. But what was wrong with trying? I wanted to help. I wanted to save her.
"Maybe you're right, Twilight. Maybe... I can't." I moved toward her, but she refused to let me get too close. "But I am trying, doesn't that count for anything?”
Even if I am just some heavenly being that could never see things like her or anypony else could, doesn't it matter that I'm at least making an attempt?
"Of course it does, Celestia," her head slumped.
"Then please! Tell me how to fix this. Tell me how to help you." As her head lifted and I gazed into her violet eyes, I knew the chasm that had formed between us could not be filled nor crossed by me.
"If you really want to help me, stay out of my way. I can save them... I will save them." There was no fury in her. No aggression, no pain, it was simply the way that it had to be, at least as far as she was concerned. Her eyes began scanning the skies once again.
"Twilight, I-"
"These... FLIES!" she roared as her horn shimmered a dark black. A magenta twinkle in her eye sent a thin line of energy tracing behind me. A millisecond later a blast of black energy shot from her horn into the sky narrowly missing my head. "Got you..." she grinned in victory, her eyes suddenly sharp. I turned to see a pegasus in the sky, frozen in place by Twilight's spell. "Come here, NOW!" Twilight's command sent chills through me, her voice drenched with venom. How she could shift her demeanor, her attitude, from second to second confounded me. The pegasus was before us almost instantly, panic coming off of her in droves. Her gold eyes pleaded with me to do something before switching their attention to Twilight. I was much too confused to do anything at all, much less help the poor pegasus.
"What is-" I tried to speak, but Twilight made it abundantly clear I was no longer a part of the conversation.
"Ah! You're that pegasus from Manehatten, aren't you? One of my sister's scouts." Twilight's giddiness made the situation that much more uncomfortable. Nothing good could come of this development. "Even after I was merciful enough to let you go unscathed. Tsk tsk tsk." The pegasus said nothing, did nothing. I don't know what held her in place, but it was neither Twilight's telekinesis nor her own wings.
"I-"
"QUIET!" Twilight's pleasantness was overtaken by her royal authority. Her command was so powerful I suddenly couldn't find my own voice. "Can Cadance hear me?" The pegasus nodded, her breaths coming in quick, erratic bursts. "Tell my niece to sit down. If I feel a strange tingle in my wings I'll assume that she's coming here and I'll send this idiotic pegasus directly into the sun."
"Twi-" She glared at me, shutting me down once again. I obediently kept my mouth shut, though it wasn't by choice.
"What is your name?" she asked the terrified pegasus.
"V-Violent Tempest." The blue pegasus was so young.
She shouldn't be here. What were you thinking Cadance?
"Violent? What a lovely, if an overly aggressive, name." It was impossible to tell if she was toying with the mare or being genuine. "Violent, if my beloved mentor moves a muscle or channels her magic to do anything, you will fly directly into the sun, is that clear?" She placed a threatening hoof on the poor girl's shoulder. The pegasus nodded harder than I thought her head could move. "Good girl. You are free to do as you wish once I leave this place. Now then," Twilight had complete control of the situation, her cocky smirk dripping with pleasure. "Cadance... Cadance, Cadance, Cadance. If you wanted my attention you could've just asked for it. Instead, you send this," her delight turned sour. "GNAT to grate on my nerves? To SPY on me?" she was suddenly cold, calculating. "Spying on another nation can be construed as a declaration of war, Sister. I'd be well within Equestrian law to take the life of this mare." The pegasus looked like she may start crying at any moment, but held herself together. Sweat poured from her and her body trembled, but she refused to give Twilight the satisfaction. Before I even spoke this time, the dark purple alicorn lifted a hoof, the only way she'd acknowledge my presence. "However, I am feeling generous yet again. It's your lucky day, Violent," she lowered her hoof, completely in princess mode. "Stay in your empire, Cadance. Keep your scouts out of my land. Any I catch from this point on will not make it back home." She looked at me. "Provide sanctuary for Celestia and Luna, keep them out of my kingdom. If you do these things we will not have any problems. If you do not," she turned away from us. "I cannot ensure the safety of your subjects, your empire, you... or your daughter." She unfurled her wings. "Don't follow me," she glared at me.
It was the last thing she said before she slowly flew off. All I could do was watch her go, once again at a disadvantage. No. Not this time. This time I could see the path to the light. Twilight had messed up. Twice. I had hope. We could fight.