Revelations: Twilight to Darkness

by GhostofSandwich


Circadia

Drip. Drip. The sound of water landing on a surface nearby filled Celestia’s ears. It was surprisingly pleasant to hear, almost calming in a way. She allowed herself to continue laying back with her eyes closed, just listening to the slow, peaceful music that was water droplets.

She wasn’t dead, that much she was sure of. She had no idea what had happened, but she had somehow been teleported to wherever she was now, far away from the reach of Mystia. She couldn’t help but laugh at her luck, her cursed nature to survive everything.

“It’s a beautiful sound, isn’t it?” a sweet, gentle voice asked. Celestia nodded and opened her eyes to see she was in a deep forest. Droplets of water fell from the canopy above, moistening the cool soil. Dark oak wood trees littered the world around her, adding to the dark, yet somehow peaceful, nature of the forested area.

“Who are you?” Celestia asked, standing from her spot on the ground. Her back was soaked and dirty from the wet soil, but she could care less. The voice echoed in her mind as if it never quit speaking.

“It’s not a question of who I am, it’s a question of who I was,” the voice responded, sweet and gentle. “But to answer your question, I am one who existed long ago. When I lived, I went by the name of Circadia.”

“Circadia… I’ve never heard the name before. Who were you, Circadia?” Celestia asked. She slowly walked over to a tree and touched it with her hoof. She couldn’t help but notice that she couldn’t feel anything but inner peace. It was as if she couldn’t be angered or saddened even if she watched someone murder her own sister. It was a strange, but not at all protested feeling.

“My name was never important. What was important was what I did,” Circadia started. “It happened long before your time, back when every living thing worshiped the moon as their god.”

“You don’t mean…?” Celestia trailed off. As soon as it clicked in her head, she heard a twig snap behind her. Turning around, she found herself face to face with a mare that resonated the very example of beauty. Her coat was ice-white and her eyes a beautiful sapphire color. But the thing that stood out the most was her mane. She didn’t think it possible; bet she had the mane of her most beloved student, Twilight. The only difference was that was midnight blue with light blue and pink highlights.

“The world we lived in was a cruel one, but we were happy. Life was never easy, but we always had the bare essentials of what we needed. I was young back then, only about sixty-three-hundred-and-six moons, or seventeen years in your time. It was on my seventeenth birthday when I met him.

“I was naïve and believed that he would take me as his student, even though asking such a thing was considered heresy. I didn’t care; I asked. When I feared the worse, he did what I least expected: he accepted. He took me in and taught me the way of the moon, or magic as you call it now. We believed that the unicorns were the overlords in our world; they were the only ones capable of using the moon’s power in the form of magic.”

“Magic comes from within; even earth ponies are capable of their own type of magic,” Celestia corrected.

“In time, after the archaic way in which we lived ended, ponykind learned that. But it was different for us. He taught me the most powerful magic known to our kind at the time. We shared a love between one another.”

“Romantic love, or…?”

“The love that you share between your students. A love that can only be shared between two that bond on a spiritual level, ignoring the mortal functionalities such as the heart or the brain. You should know more than anypony; it’s a love that is similar in concept to the way a mother loves a daughter, but on a level incomprehensible to the mind.”

“I know the feeling,” Celestia admitted. Instantly, her mind flashed with images of Twilight and she felt herself reliving every happy moment the two shared together in just a matter of seconds

“You’re remembering her, aren’t you? Good.”

“What was that? What is this place?” Celestia asked, looking around. The trees had all become overgrown and seemingly darker than before, but her sense of tranquility had only increased.

“The dark void. Or rather, it’s my form of the void. You’re not the first to visit here. Matter a fact, a certain goddess that you know recently visited,” Circadia calmly pointed out.

“I don’t know any-“Celestia started before gasping. Her eyes went wide and she stepped closer to Circadia. “My sister was here? When? For how long?”

“Too many moons to count. I believe a millennium in your time. It was my understanding that you banished her to save her from herself, correct?”

“Yes, but how did she-“

“I adopted her into this realm right before you banished her. Together, I helped her rid herself of her jealousy and hate towards the ponies that dwelled in the day. I took her back to a time when the moon ruled over us all. Celestia, understand that she never suffered a moment in her time of banishment. I kept her here, safe from everything painful. The feelings you feel right now, the peaceful nirvana inside of you, that’s the only thing she felt for a thousand years.”

“I- I-“Celestia stammered, her eyes filling with tears. Ever since the moment she had banished Luna, she had felt only regret. She thought she had punished her with a thousand years of misery and pain, but she couldn’t have been further from the truth. Circadia had fixed Celestia’s wrong and given Luna the only thing she needed; a thousand years of rest from the world that continued to fail her.

“Before she left, I removed myself from her memories. She returned to you never knowing who I was, but remembering well the peace she felt. Even through everything, she never blamed you. She knew you did the right thing.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Celestia asked as she wiped away a tear.

“To ease your pain and suffering. I’m afraid that I must admit that the void is my creation. I originally meant it as a place to punish… him,” she whispered, cringing at the thought of her mentor. “After he burned all of Equestria, I was all alone. The day he thought I had died, I was seeing my lover. When the town was attacked, I escaped, but my mate was not as lucky. I took cover and could only watch as he razed all of Equestria in fury.

“I created the void to make him see the error of his ways. It was a magic that I had taught myself. I fear I must confess that it’s a very taboo magic, one that most likely doesn’t exist in your day and age. You should know that there is more than one void. One exists in each of us; it takes a powerful magic user to open it. As of now, three voids are open. One is collapsing on itself; that is his void. The second is the one you’re currently standing in. The third… It’s the one that is traversed by the pony who will finally put an end to my magic,” Circadia explained.

“Mystia said the dark void is a terrible place. This doesn’t seem bad at all,” Celestia pointed out.

“The voids aren’t bad place at all. Do you know what the void really is?”

“I must admit ignorance,” Celestia replied.

“The void is a beautiful place where all our happy thoughts reside. It’s the place where we come to in times of peace. It’s our inner beauty, the place where all that is good resides. Tell me, have you felt a single bit of pain since you’ve been here?”

“No, I’ve felt happier than I have in years,” Celestia admitted.

“Tell me, what do you see? What does the void tell you?”

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked.

“The void manifests differently for everypony that enters. For me, I see… well, I’m afraid you wouldn’t comprehend. Your sister saw the castle where the two of you resided as well as the woods deep around it. So, what do you see?”

“We’re in deep woods. It’s raining from what I can tell. It’s dark, yet so peaceful,” Celestia observed.

“Does it hold any meaning to you?”

“No, nothing.” Celestia waited for Circadia to say something, but she only shook her head. Celestia slowly walked around and examined everything she could, hoping to find what it was she was supposed to find.

The dripping slowly continued as she walked around hopelessly, trying her hardest to remember what the place was. She kept thinking she had it, but never seemed to put her hoof on what it was. Finally, after a few minutes of wondering around aimlessly, she walked over to Circadia and admitted she didn’t know what it was at all.

“I doesn’t surprise me that you can’t remember, Celestia. Immortals remember so little compared to those that have a death to know of. It’s hard to make memories when you know there is little reason to cherish them; death never grows closer. Time is an infinite stream of which there is no end.”

“I don’t believe I understand,” Celestia admitted with a confused expression of her face.

“Celestia, the life you and Luna live isn’t as you thought it was. Neither of you are immortal; you’re long lived. But that doesn’t mean you won’t be around until the end of time.”

“I still don’t follow, Circadia,” Celestia responded. Circadia sighed and stepped aside. Almost in an instant, the dripping began to hasten as if the rainfall above had grown heavier. Celestia stood and watched everything around her, waiting to see what would happen. A few minutes passed without anything happened. Right as Celestia was going to give up and demand to know what was supposed to happen, she saw it.

She saw herself running through the trees, her main soaked and coat ruined. All accessories that she normally adorned, such as her crown and jewelry, were absent. Even stranger, she couldn’t recall that point in time. No matter how hard she tried to put her hoof on it, she couldn’t remember it.

“Sometimes the happiest time in somepony’s life is when the suffering comes to an end. You are by no means a happy being; you constantly beg for death. So why would it be that your void is remember the happiest moment of your life?”

“I don’t follow…” Celestia repeated, still unsure as to what she was witnessing. Circadia didn’t continue. Instead, she just nodded to Celestia and had her keep watching. She watched as her other self darted through trees, stopping in the clearing that the two stood in.

“Luna, I’m here!” the other Celestia yelled. “You promise me that you’d come back to me if I came here. Please, don’t let me be alone anymore!” she cried. The other Celestia collapsed to the ground and began to cry harder than she ever had.

“I never-“ Celestia started.

“This wasn’t during Luna’s banishment. This was long ago; far longer than you can remember. Just watch; seeing it will explain everything about who you are. You’ll finally understand your curse and blessing,” Circadia explained.

“Shh, my dear sister,” Luna said, emerging from the sky. “I’m here now. You don’t have to be alone anymore,” she consoled, nearing the dream Celestia. Instantly, Celestia jumped up to try and hug her younger sister. But as she did, she simply passed through.

“It’s been so long. Please, let me be with you again,” dream Celestia pleaded.

“You will. Just lie down and relax. You feel it, don’t you? The peace inside?” Luna softly said.

“I feel only pain, dear sister,” dream Celestia responded.

“I’m here now, Celestia. You need only close your eyes and remember the good times. Let the worries of the world leave you; there’s no need to serve it anymore. For once in your life, live for yourself. Let happiness take over for the pain. The world no longer needs us,” Luna consoled. Dream Celestia sniffed and looked up to her sister. Making eye contact, Luna smiled and began to fade away. However, Celestia didn’t cry; she only smiled.

She closed her eyes and laid her head down on her forehooves. Slowly, her breathing began to steady. In just two minutes, her breathing had slowed to a crawl. By the third minute, Celestia was smiling happily; she took a final breath.

The real Celestia looked with confusion at the scene. Seeing Celestia’s confusion, Circadia stepped closer and stood right next to her. The dripping returned to its original state, but Celestia’s body didn’t move.

“This is the day you died. The world had become self-sufficient for the first time since you and your sister arrived in the world. It no longer needed you, so you were called back to the place where you may know peace. I know this is a lot to take in, but you need to know who you are.”

“I… I just watched myself die. How can that be? I’m still alive, aren’t I?”

“Yes, you’re alive. That’s your curse. The world will call you when it needs stabilizing. I fear that I’m the one to blame for this. It all began a bit after the fire had destroyed Equestria. I found a cave where I gave birth. If you don’t know, that is where I gave birth to a beautiful daughter that single-hoofedly restored Equestria and brought upon a new age,” Circadia explained. Celestia had heard all this before from the stallion that took over Twilight’s body, so she wasn’t too surprised.

“I name her Twilight,” Circadia finished. Celestia’s blinked twice and cleared her ears. She wanted to believe she had heard her wrong, but she knew she hadn’t. Circadia, noticing Celestia’s disturbance, nodded in confirmation. “Yes, my daughter’s name was Twilight. She brought the world back life and brought happiness to a hurt world. But that’s not the whole story.

“The truth of the matter is that I didn’t give birth to one daughter. No, I was blessed with three children. The first I named Twilight, the second and third I named Celestia and Luna.” Celestia wanted to stop the story, but she knew in her heart that Circadia wasn’t lying. “However, the cave I gave birth in... there was something there, a magical entity. It visited me in my dreams that night and told me of the fate Twilight had to lead. But my other two daughters, they were destined to die before the age of five.

“I didn’t want to believe it. But sure enough, by the time the two were five years old, they began to grow sick. They were both gone before I even knew what had happened. Twilight grew up alone, never knowing she even had sisters. I never told her; I couldn’t. Neither did I tell her when I was visited by the same being that inhabited the cave. He told me that he could restore my daughters to health and give them a life. The downside was that they would become servants to Equestria. They would always know sadness and pain through their lives, but I didn’t care.

“I took the deal. Three days later, I was visited by my two daughter; they were fully grown. Neither remembered who I was; they didn’t remember anything. The deal meant that they would live for extreme amounts of time, at least until Equestria no longer needed them. But what I wasn’t told was of another part of the deal, one I didn’t know of until after my death.

“Twilight, my daughter, received the same curse. No, she wasn’t granted a longer life, nor did she have the unfortunate downside of living through pain. What she did receive is a variation of you and your sister’s resurrection curse; she would come back to the world when the end of Equestria was nigh. She would be the one to put an end to the curse I laid on my old mentor and indeed myself.

“Thousands upon thousands of years passed. Twilight’s daughter had children and her children had children. My bloodline lasted throughout all of Equestria’s history, always represented in either one mare or stallion. You and your sister died only once, but you returned when Equestria needed you. The one called Discord was causing chaos; you two were called back.

“I’m afraid your curse will never end, Celestia. But Twilight’s is coming to an end; she has the power to destroy the voids I created and put an end to the greatest evil that ever threatened Equestria. She had already destroyed his void by allowing him to leave it. She can only destroy mine by killing him and any of those that entered it. On the day of her death, I will be set free from eternal life; I can finally be with my daughter again,” Circadia solemnly explained.

“So, are you saying that Twilight will win?”

“There are no guarantees. The curse only said that she’s return when the void threatened the world and it would end if she beat it. She’s a strong mare and even stronger now that she had the grace of being taught by her sister. Now, as much as I like seeing you and I wish I could spend a thousand years with my third daughter, it’s not meant to be. I’ll be sending you back; you, Luna, and Twilight need to win,” Circadia softly said with a smile. It was a smile for Celestia, not for her.

“One question; what is his name? I feel only you know.”

“His name isn’t important. But I suppose I can humor you,” Circadia said as she started charging her magic. Celestia felt herself become engulfed in a ball of energy and became aware that the world was fading. “His name is Nox.”

Circadia sighed as Celestia disappeared. She realized she’d never see any of her daughters again. She had caused everything that happened to her children. Because of her, Celestia and Luna would always know pain. But she took solace in knowing that she had given them the chance to grow together; Celestia had raised Twilight. Their time together wasn’t eternal, but it was good.

Circadia smiled. The curse would end soon; she knew her daughters would find a way to win.