It was a cold winter night. Princess Luna stood on the balcony, gazing at the starry sky with a pensive and melancholic air.
Months had passed since she had taken control of all of Equestria. It had happened so quickly, without warning.
She should have been happy to rule an entire kingdom; it had always been her dream to be admired and loved by her subjects, just as it had been for her beloved sister, Celestia. But it wasn't quite that way. She felt incomplete, as if a part of her had been lost forever, burned and reduced to ashes. Every day, she had to pretend like nothing was wrong, like she had no weight on her chest. She had to be impeccable in the eyes of her subjects. She was their princess, their role model. But every night, after every meeting, after making sure the ponies had no nightmares, she couldn't help but think of that day. That cursed day that marked the end and the beginning of everything:
It was a late summer morning. The day was scorching hot, nearly burning the skin. Luna was resting after her night duties when she heard a scream. It was her sister, Celestia. She had never heard her scream like that before. Luna immediately got up, donned her crown, and rushed in the direction of the screams coming from the tower.
"Celestia! What's happening?"
Celestia turned and looked at Luna with a mocking expression. Luna realized something was wrong with her. There was something different in her eyes.
"I see you've woken up. Did you sleep well, little sister? I hope you did because I don't think you'll be fluttering from dream to dream anymore."
"Celestia, what are you saying? You're not yourself. I understand what happened to Sombra was a tough blow, no one expected it. But it happened, and we did everything necessary to bring him back to his senses. Unfortunately, it didn't work. We couldn't do anything else, you couldn't have prevented it. He was broken, his curse was something impossible to control even for us."
Celestia laughed.
"Do you really believe that? I know only one broken pony, and it's right in front of my eyes. You've always been envious of the love Sombra had for me. You were so happy about his defeat, couldn't wait to take him away from me."
Luna looked at Celestia sadly.
"You don't know what you're saying. I never wanted this to happen. And we had no other choice! Do you want him to harm our kingdom? What would our subjects have done?"
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT THESE DAMNED PONIES!" Celestia said, using her royal voice.
Luna looked at her in surprise. "Celestia, please, come to your senses."
"I NEVER CARED ABOUT ANY OF THEM, AND NOT EVEN ABOUT YOU! I WOULD HAVE HAPPILY LET HIM KILL ALL OF YOU! YOU'RE JUST A WEAK, PATHETIC, A SHAME TO THIS DAMNED KINGDOM! I WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER OFF WITHOUT YOU AND YOUR WHINING. EVERY DAY YOU DO NOTHING BUT REMIND ME OF MY GREATEST REGRET! BUT FROM NOW ON, IT WON'T BE LIKE THAT ANYMORE! YOU WILL PAY DEARLY, LITTLE SISTER," concluded Celestia.
Luna couldn't believe what she had heard. How could she say those things? Did she really mean them? Was her love for Sombra stronger than her love for Luna? And her subjects, did she really not care about them at all? What had happened to her beloved sister?
"You don't know what you're saying! I couldn't bear to lose my sister! That monster was corrupting you with dark magic! Luckily, I managed to save you with the help of StarSwirl, and this is how you repay me? Do you really not care about me?" Luna concluded, in tears.
Celestia laughed maliciously.
"Fortunately, spells are also meant to be broken. Dear old StarSwirl is taking hits. And as for you, no. You mean nothing to me. I've never needed you."
Suddenly, Celestia was engulfed in flames. Luna tried to look, but the light was too intense, and she had to step back. After a while, Luna opened her eyes and saw a winged pony, as tall as Celestia. Her mane was made of fire, and her eyes resembled those of a dragon. She had nothing of her sister, except for her cutie mark.
"Do you like my new look, little sister? I'm more powerful than ever now. I'll destroy everything, burn everything, every house, every institution, every pony. Everything. But you'll be the first to be engulfed by my flames."
Luna managed to dodge a strike in time. She took flight and approached Daybreaker.
"Whoever you are, leave my sister alone! Celestia, fight back! I know you can do it!" Daybreaker continued to cast spells against Luna.
"Look at you, do you really think Celestia is still here? She finally realized that she was wasting her precious time by staying by your side. She'll never come back! Give up! AHAHAHAHAH!"
Luna tried to dodge the attacks and think of a solution. She couldn't allow Equestria to be destroyed. She knew a powerful spell that would surely stop her, but there would be consequences. Equestria would be saved, but her beloved sister would never return. Was she really ready for this?
"Please! Don't make me do it! CELESTIA!" Luna cried in tears. Daybreaker laughed maliciously.
"Do what? Tickle me? Is that all your power can do?"
Daybreaker started to charge her horn with magic, and Luna did the same. She tried to be strong, closed her eyes, and a powerful beam of blue and silver light struck Daybreaker directly. Daybreaker tried to resist but couldn't.
Luna fell to the ground, powerless. She looked up and saw the sun shining intensely, with a golden seal at its center. Luna felt a tear roll down her face. Equestria was safe, but she had lost her sister forever.
"Princess? Princess?"
Luna turned around. It was Starlight Glimmer, her student. They looked very similar.
"Starlight, I appreciate your visit, but I wouldn't want you to be too tired to stand tomorrow morning because of me."
"I'll take the risk then," Luna laughed and wrapped Starlight in her wing.
"The sky is really beautiful. How do you create this masterpiece every night?"
"Well, I haven't done anything special. It's the same as always."
"You're wrong. Every night, the sky and the stars tell a different story. Thank you for everything you do for us."
"It's you who do a lot for me. I haven't done anything."
"You're too modest. By the way, how is Princess Celestia? Have you heard from her?"
Luna appeared sure. "Yes, she told me she's discovering new things and misses all of us. She can't wait to come back and talk about her discoveries."
"Is there a date?"
"No, unfortunately not. But she said it might take years."
“Oh my, I’m sorry. Do you miss her?”
“Very much. It’s hard without her. But I’m happy because I know she is too.”
Starlight smiled gently.
“And as for Canterlot Castle… do we know anything? Is it still unusable?”
“It will take a bit longer…” Luna replied uncertainly. “But fortunately, we have this other solution,” she said, indicating the entire building.
“So, you and Celestia grew up here?”
“Yes. This place is full of memories of our childhood and adolescence. It’s just as we left it…”
“It must have been a good time,” Starlight said, yawning.
“Yes. But now it’s better if you go home. My guards will accompany you.”
“It’s not necessary.”
“Yes, it is. It’s not safe to be out alone at night.”
“Alright. Thank you, Princess.”
Luna embraced Starlight and then called her guards, who accompanied her.
The following day was a busy one. Since Celestia was absent, Luna had taken on her responsibilities. She did her best to ensure the happiness of her subjects. Fortunately, all the ponies believed Celestia’s story about embarking on a journey to a distant and ancient region of Equestria and returning in a few years.
During the conflict with Daybreaker, the castle had been partially destroyed, and now it was uninhabitable. The ponies had not realized that Daybreaker was actually Celestia, so they thought Luna had defeated a new threat.
For now…
But Luna knew that these lies wouldn’t last forever. Every day, after fulfilling all of Celestia’s duties, she conducted research to find a solution. She had to find a way to bring her beloved sister back. Everyone needed her. She couldn’t continue to lie. They didn’t deserve it. However, she hadn’t found anything yet. She had even discussed it with StarSwirl, and he was also doing research to help her.
StarSwirl and the guards were the only ones who knew the truth.
In reality, it wasn’t entirely true.
A young pony very close to Celestia sensed that the story wasn’t true. So, she decided to investigate to discover what had really happened that morning.
Sunset Shimmer looked around cautiously. She had managed to enter Canterlot Castle without being noticed by the guards. She had used her magic to create a distraction and then made her way to the tower where the battle between Luna and Celestia had taken place.
Sunset Shimmer had always had a strong bond with Celestia. She had been Celestia’s favorite student, and she had taught her everything she knew about magic and life. Sunset Shimmer admired Celestia for her wisdom, kindness, and charisma. Celestia had been like a mother to her.
When Sunset Shimmer learned that Celestia had gone on a long journey, she was surprised and saddened. She couldn’t understand why Celestia had left everything without an explanation. It didn’t seem like her. Sunset Shimmer had tried to contact her, but she hadn’t received any response. She had asked Luna if she knew anything, but Luna had only said that Celestia was fine and would return soon.
Sunset Shimmer didn’t trust those words. Luna seemed strange and melancholic.
She suspected that Luna was hiding something.
Sunset Shimmer arrived at the tower after overcoming various magical obstacles and traps. The tower was tall and imposing but damaged and blackened by fire. Sunset Shimmer entered the tower cautiously, ready to face any danger.
The tower was dark and silent. Sunset Shimmer used her magic to create a small flame at the tip of her horn to light her way. She climbed the stairs until she reached the top of the tower.
Once there, she felt a strange sensation. It was as if the air was charged with energy, and her ears were buzzing. Sunset Shimmer looked around, trying to understand what was happening.
She didn’t see any signs of a battle.
Only a large window that showed the red and fiery sun. Sunset Shimmer approached the window, drawn to the light.
Suddenly, she heard a voice calling her. “Sunset… Sunset…”
Sunset Shimmer stopped in surprise. Who was speaking to her? Where was that voice coming from?
“Who are you?” Sunset Shimmer asked, looking around.
“I was sure you would come. From a perceptive and brilliant pony like you, I would never have expected otherwise,” the voice replied.
“Is that you, Celestia?”
“Yes, my dear. I imagine you have many questions.”
“Yes! I knew Luna was lying! You would never have left without a word, especially without informing me. But where are you? Why can I hear you? What happened that morning?”
“She told you this? I wish it were so. My beloved sister attacked me. She had always been jealous of the admiration I received from my beloved subjects. So she decided to imprison me in the sun. I tried to stop her, but… you know me, Sunset. I could never harm her. So I gave up. I didn’t want to make things worse.”
Sunset was speechless upon hearing what had happened.
“How could she do this to you? What a liar! She doesn’t care about us, only about herself! You were wrong; you shouldn’t have given up! You should have fought!”
Celestia smiled maliciously.
“I’m not that kind of pony. As powerful as I am, I could never harm my own blood. Unfortunately, I’m too weak to escape. I need your help, Sunset Shimmer.”
“Of course, how can I help you?”
“You and I are more alike than you can imagine. That’s why you’re here. You’ve always done great things with magic. And it’s time to move on to the next goal.”
“Strange, you didn’t think that way the last time. You told me that I had too much thirst for power and that I should focus on other things, or it would consume me,” Sunset replied suspiciously.
“I was wrong. I feared something might happen to you, but that’s not the case. You are much more powerful than anyone else. Your magical level is almost as high as mine.”
Sunset was happy. Finally, her mentor had realized that she was like her, if not even better.
“Connect with the power within you. Let it dominate you like the burning fire. Watch its splendor illuminate your mind, like a rising sun.”
Sunset closed her eyes and began to concentrate.
“I know you can do it.”
Sunset opened her eyes. They were red. A bright red beam came from her horn and struck the sun.
She had succeeded. But as soon as she realized that it wasn’t Celestia, she panicked.
“What? Who are you? Where’s Celestia?” Daybreaker laughed maliciously.
“Hello, little flame. I’m right here in front of you. Or rather, I am the stronger part of Celestia. It was quite easy to deceive you. Now you’ll want to excuse me, but I can’t risk anyone noticing that I’m no longer trapped.”
“What do you intend to do?”
Daybreaker charged her horn with magic and trapped Sunset in the sun.
This way, Luna would never have noticed that she had escaped.
“You’ll pay for this dearly, little sister. You can’t even imagine what awaits you.”