Celestia burst with light and fire, pushing Nefertari back. "I hope you enjoyed that, dog. It was your last."
The heat was intense enough to make Silver back away from the bars as he watched the two with worried eyes. Would one of them become seriously hurt? Would they just sink the boat?
Nefer smiled despite the singes of her fur touching along her ears and sides. "Shall we?" She vanished in a burst of speed.
Celestia threw her head and Nefer snapped back into existence, held around the neck with a bright golden band. "No, let's not." She threw the leader of the Anubians to the ground, but she vanished before striking the wood and appeared a few feet away, dancing from foot to foot.
The time for words had past. Nefertari said nothing, just focused on Celestia intently. With a slow breath, she raised a hand and wriggled her claws in what seemed to be an invocation of sorts. The air between her and Celestia became murky with the impression of other presences. The spirits she had spoken to, perhaps, or at least Silver guessed.
Celestia waved a hoof at them, banishing most with a brilliant flare of light and fire. "You are not the first. You will not be the last. Lay down an--"
Her talk was distraction enough. With a sudden tug at the air, Nefertari drew a great and terrible darkness from the space before Celestia that engulfed the ruler of the day instantly, plunging the entire battle into night. Though Celestia was able to burst her way free like a hot iron on paper, it was just as long as required to allow Nefertari to dash forward. Just as Celestia tore free, a furry paw smashed into her snout in a frightful punch, knocking her back.
The darkness clung and tore at Celestia's legs and flank as she struggled to keep Nefertari at bay. Despite her promise, she suffered new wounds. They seemed to infuriate her more than actually hurt her. With a roar that sounded like a raging fire, Celestia exploded in a wave of licking flames, destroying the shadow beast clinging to her.
Nefertari smiled. "That hurt him, how cruel. They say you have some measure of warrior's spirit in you after all. Perhaps you'll share? Your husband would love to see it."
Silver's ears pinned back. He didn't much like the idea of Celestia having that, or being part 'warrior'. How would that even work out in the end?
Celestia took a heavy step forward, but the second step was light, not even touching the wooden floor. She seemed to almost dance forward with the speed of a ray of the sun, and slammed into Nefertari. She cudgeled the jackal around the shoulders and face with lashing hooves and sent her tumbling to the ground. "Silence!"
Nefer rolled with the impact and came up behind Celestia. Her claws swung out to dig into Celestia's voluminous tail, but it vanished along with the rest of her. Celestia appeared with a bright flash behind Nefer and planted her hooves into the jackal's back, sending her towards the bars. Nefertari blinked out of being along the way and appeared back where she began the fight, breathing hard and bloodied, but still appearing ready to battle. She flashed a smile at Celestia, but said nothing that time.
A guard stepped up beside Silver as they began to crash and collide in brief but violent clashes. "Should we intervene?" He sounded frightened.
Silver couldn't blame him. "They both wanted this. Unless Celestia calls for us, we should be patient. I'm watching them, you don't have to stay." The excuse was enough. The guard saluted and withdrew, leaving Silver alone with the two warring females.
"I see it!" exclaimed Nefer just before Celestia crushed her to the ground with the sound of breaking ribs. She spat out blood and went limp under Celestis's heaving form. "I... I see it..."
Celestia scowled at Nefertari. "You give up then? Have you seen reason?"
Nefertari made a subtle gesture and her claws sheathed in a very feline fashion. She reached for Celestia with that disarmed paw and stroked over her chest. "I yield." Celestia smiled in satisfaction, but that turned to shock as the paw pushed into her, violating her form and plunging into her as she had once explored Silver's chest. "We will see what little remains..."
Silver snarled and moved for the cell door, only to find it had locked when it was closed. He started to play the magic of teleporting when Celestia let out a piercing scream that dissolved his focus. She wailed and trembled under Nefertari's exploring of her chest, finding her heart and doing whatever she did with Silver. "So small, so shriveled. How long has it been neglected?"
Silver felt his flank tingle, breaking his shock with inspiration. She was in her own dream, as he was, seeing something from the past, perhaps thousands of years old. Silver willed himself into the dream world and Celestia's dream was directly in front of him. The door leading to hers was warped and shuddering violently. He barely put a hoof on it before he was drawn in.
A woman stood in pitch darkness. Words appeared in a strange text before her, not in English, but she knew it. She spoke strange words, but, she knew them. In the weave of the dreamworld, it mattered little.
Where do you wish to be?
"I want to go..." She trailed off and her memory wandered briefly over a painful origin. She was not wanted where she came from. She was to be killed where she came from. "I want... to be loved. I want to be useful!"
What will you bring with you?
She brought her brown fingers to her neck, trailing over it. "I want the necklace my mother had. She was always so proud of it. I would take care of it, forever." Suddenly she had the necklace. It was huge on her, and heavy, and gold. It was Celestia's necklace.
I can give you a whole new life. I can even bring back your sister, who died just as you were born. Twins, denied one another. Do you wish this?
She smiled brightly. "You can do that? Please! Please do that!"
The human that Celestia once was ceased to be, and was reborn as Celestia, the foal, alongside Luna, her twin that fate had denied her on Earth. Her human nature was never known, and even she didn't remember it.
Silver was thrown from the dream to the wooden floor. His head throbbed with intense pain as the wail of Celestia shook the boat. Her form reshaped, becoming humanlike, with rippling muscles and round breasts. Wide hips and sleek legs. She looked ready to crush things, and her first target was Nefertari. She never stopped howling as she grabbed the jackal and lifted her into the air and hurled her bodily into the wall. She began to scream in a foreign tongue as she punched and kicked and flailed. Nefertari laughed through it, but that laughter grew weaker with the pummeling.
When all was said and done, neither had much breath left, and they collapsed.
Silver managed to fight his way to his hooves when the wailing stopped. Despite the headache he blinked beside the two and pulled Celestia off Nefertari. He checked both for their injuries, but neither seemed to be dying, just tired and bloodied. Celestia was in that 'war' form. She was as much human as pony goddess. She was an amazon of women, tall, powerful, shapely, and completely tired in body and soul.
Silver blinked out of the cell with Celestia and set her down carefully before locking the door leading out. "Your ponies don't need to see you like this." She was a human? After all that? She was another victim of The Text? The Text. He clopped a hoof with frustration and wondered just how old that entity was. Were they all pawns in its games?
"Silver?" Celestia looked up at him and slowly forced her way upright. "What am I?" She reached out with a hand and cringed. "Silver..."
Silver moved in and hugged Celestia gently. "It's OK." He squeezed her gently with his legs. "You're OK. Nothing's wrong."
She huffed. "You're darling, Silver, but that is obviously a lie. Something is very wrong..." She sat up fully and pulled Silver to sit beside her. "Why am I a human? Mostly?" She reached for her left hoof and felt over where it ran into the human contours, then felt up for her long horn. Her mane and tail still flowed with the power of the sun. "This isn't natural."
Silver reached out a hoof to her face, her dark flesh not what he expected. "You... I'm not sure how much I should say. I saw a lot, enough to make a lot of guesses. What I know... I'm not sure I should share. It's all in the past, thousands of years. You are Celestia, and you are a good pony."
She quirked a smile at his words. "It is normally I that says that to you, Silver. Was what you saw that terrible? Tell me the truth of it. I'm no foal that I can't stand the light of truth, and I'd rather that, in the end. What did you see, and what does it mean to you?"
Silver lowered the hoof to run along her necklace slowly. "I'm very glad you didn't trade this away. It means more to you than even you know."
Celestia raised an ear at Silver. "You don't say? Enough hints, my prince. Speak." She crossed her arms at him. "Stop trying to spare me. I want to know the whole story, all of it."
Silver nodded slowly. "Fine, I'll do that, but we should make sure she doesn't die while we do it." He pointed at Nefertari. "I didn't see any obvious... injuries, besides, uh, you beat her down pretty good, but I don't think it's lethal, but I'm not a doctor. How do you feel?"
Celestia flexed a hand before standing up, tall and imposing. "Sore, but fine. I'll meet you at our room, as soon as you've summoned help. You owe me a story, and I don't plan to let you go without giving it. On this matter I will not budge." She vanished in a flash of light and left him with the blooded jackal.
Silver unlocked the door and opened it, revealing several guards standing there nervously. None of them looked like they weren't trying to eavesdrop. It was likely just as well he didn't go into much details. "See to her injuries and have her examined. I think she'll be more reasonable now that she's gotten her fight."
One of the guards glanced about nervously before leaning forward. "Did... Did the Princess win?" Silver nodded and they all looked relieved. "We're on the job, Prince Silver Stars."
Silver left them to secure the room and see to Nefertari's significant pounding while he ascended towards the deck, trying to put off returning to his room, but there was no true delaying it. Better that he face the uncomfortable truth then, so he changed course and headed towards Celestia, and likely his confused servants. They'd all need explaining before the day was done.