Twilight Sparkle, known to Equestria as the personal student and favorite companion of the princess, as well as a national hero, trudged to the gaudy throne room.
The nation was in a state of chaos; the Lunar Rebellion was attempting to overthrow the throne. Luna, now leading the rebellion, had forsaken her title as princess upon her return from the moon, disgusted by the absolute monarchy and furious with her sister for having locked her away for a thousand years. She had tried to adjust to the modern way of life, but had been horrified by the political corruption that went on behind closed doors.
The elements of harmony had taken sides, ending up on opposite sides of the war. Applejack and Pinkie had chosen the rebellion. Twilight begged them to make the right choice, not to go against the empire, but there was no changing their minds. Upon seeing her friends so divided, Rainbow Dash had disappeared.
As such, Twilight had recently taken on some of the responsibility of attempting to calm the tensions. She, along with Rarity, had become public figures, giving speeches weekly and sometimes daily, representing Celestia. These speeches were desperate attempts to talk the rebels down and yet, the war raged on.
Twilight had just returned to from one such speech to report to Celestia. The royal guards saluted as she passed through the ornate throne room doors and into the gilded room. Since the rebellion had escalated, court was no longer held more than once a week, if it was held at all. The security was considerably tightened, the stone face guards lining the walls. Princess Celestia sat regally on her throne with her war time advisors bustling around her and debating with her every word. When Twilight entered, Celestia was in a heated debate with a stallion bearing a cutie mark of two scrolls. Twilight recognized him as a diplomatic advisor. He seemed to be trying to talk Celestia in to attempting a peace treaty. Celestia argued vehemently. "I will not make peace with such radical dissenters. Their influence will ruin this country. I've already tightened security in all government buildings to protect my citizens. I will mobilize troops if they do not back down. I will not stand for this loss of my pow- peace." The advisor backed down, realizing his words were not going to change her mind and only served to make her angry. He stumbled over himself to apologize, stuttering and throwing himself at her hooves.
As she saw Twilight approach the throne, Celestia shooed her advisors away, clearing the throne room for all but the guards.
The monarch smiled gently, the dark circles under eyes becoming slightly more pronounced. "It's good to see you, Twilight. How did the public address go?"
Twilight stopped at the foot of the throne, bowing her head towards the powerful monarch. "I think it went well Princess." Now that she was up close, however, Twilight could see just how tired, and long Celestia's face had grown. It seemed her once majestic white coat was slowly going grey and faint signs of illness lingered in her face. In light of that, Twilight decided maybe it was best she stay silent about the rebel the guards had dragged away earlier that day
Celestia nodded, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, attempting to relieve her stress. "Good. You know, handling this rebellion is very taxing."
Twilight looked down, something weighing heavily on her mind. "Yes, I understand. Faust knows where Dash is, and I'm very worried about Pinkie Pie and Applejack. I still can't believe they joined the rebellion." She couldn't help but worry that she had made the wrong choice not joining her friends on the other side. She sighed, "And poor Fluttershy hasn't left her cottage since the rebellion started."
Twilight thought back to the princess' argument with her advisor, fearing that they were heading towards war. She did not want to go to war against her friends and blamed herself for Luna's return. 'Maybe Luna was right,' she thought. "Princess, I believe we are on the path to war, and I don't think that is what you want. Is there not a way to come to an agreement?"
Celestia narrowed her eyes, "As I told my advisors, I will tell you. There shall be no sanctuary for these rebels. Attempting to ruin the country and harm the citizens is not to be pardoned."
Twilight winced, knowing that when the war came, if the rebels lost, Applejack and Pinkie were likely to face execution. 'Maybe I should join them. At least we'll go down together and I'd have died fighting for the rights of the people,' Twilight's thoughts were conflicting, and she was left feeling that she was on the wrong side of the war.
Celestia could tell Twilight was doubting the side she has chosen. She knew she needed Twilight to keep the support of the citizens. People adored Twilight and listened to practically everything the savior of Equestria said. Celestia knew she could only seem fair for so long if it came time to go to war. She needed every bit of power she had. For centuries, Celestia had slowly been restricting the ponies' rights and money, giving the majority of the country's wealth to herself. Her subjects had lived in ignorant bliss until Luna came back and shattered the illusion. Twilight's influence on the people was a loss that she could not afford.
Scowling, Celestia's golden aura of magic lit her horn and surrounded Twilight's horn. Twilight let out a pained gasp, “Wha- what are you doing?” The throbbing pain radiating from her horn and deeper into her mind was crippling. She let out a pained whine, lighting her horn in an attempt to fight off Celestia's advances. She managed a few faint sparks, before Celestia suppressed her magic with a simple thought. Celestia wrapped her magic around Twilight's mind, taking control of her body and locking away her will, despite her mind's desperate struggles to break free. Twilight screamed in agony, suddenly freezing and falling silent, her eyes glowing with the gold that matched the Celestia's aura.
Celestia spoke in a cold voice, far from the warm motherly tone she typically used with her subjects. "Listen well, Twilight Sparkle, I am Princess Celestia, Sol Invictus, Monarch of the Equestrian Empire. If there was ever a side to choose, it is mine. Your so-called friends are no longer to even be acknowledged. They are nothing more than scum. Any being who dares to go against me will pay the ultimate price. You are my pawn, and you will do everything in your power to convince the people that I am right. Understand?"
Twilight nodded, no longer of her own free will. "Yes, your majesty," she responded, her voice empty of emotion and her normal intelligent tone was lacking.
Celestia looked on coldly, the facade of the kind and fair ruler having been dropped with no need to maintain public appearance. "Good," she murmured, compassion no longer a part of her. "Now, bow to your queen, my little puppet." Twilight dropped in to a deep bow, prostrating herself at the base of the throne before the princess, unable to fight the iron grip Celestia had on her mind.
"I'm sorry, my little puppet, but I have to do this."