A bearded stallion with an ashen coat sighed as he looked down at the green valley below, his eyes gleaming beneath his hood. Tall pillars of black smoke stood tall in the still air, casting long, dark shadows over villages and their inhabitants as the sun floated above the flaming horizon. The columns of ash stood on smouldering ruins, ruins that had been temples and shrines earlier today, but were now reduced to piles of rubble.
The sun hadn't moved for hours.
At first, he had feared that many had perished in the flames. But now it was doubtful that anypony had even been injured, for it was clear that the pony responsible for moving the sun was also behind the destruction.
She wouldn't harm her subjects. She loved each and every one of them.
But why was she doing this? She had always smiled when ponies had knelt before her. When they had sung in choirs, praising her name. When those in need had travelled to her and her sister's castle and prayed for her help.
But not anymore. Not after a silhouette had appeared on the face of the moon. Not after their castle had burned in the night.
He turned to look at the old temple behind him. It had been built on this plateau on the side of a mountain many years ago, amidst the trees, streams and waterfalls. A beautiful location for a beautiful building, made out of marble, an onion-shaped roof coated in gold glowing as the sun shone on it, masterfully made windows of stained glass painting the halls inside with bright colours as light passed through them.
He would not let this beauty be destroyed.
Usually at this time, during the dusk, pilgrims and priests gathered at the golden altar inside and prayed for Celestia to keep them safe during the dark night. But now it was empty, the entire building. When the others had seen the burning shrines, they had fled.
Only he had dared to remain. For he had questions that needed answers.
And now he would get them.
He turned around when he heard the flapping of wings and the rustling of grass as golden hooves landed on it.
It was her.
The stallion kneeled before her in respect. "This humble servant greets thee, Princess."
"Stand up," she said in an authoritative tone. "Never again shall anyone kneel before me."
He obeyed her without question and looked at her. She held her fair head high, her mane flowing like water even when wind was absent, her characteristic smile replaced with a scowl and her amethyst eyes burning like the midday sun. She wore no regalia. No crown, no pendant, nothing.
"Is there anypony inside?" she asked, looking at the temple behind the old pony.
"No, thy Royal Divinity."
"Do not call me that!" she shouted. "Never again!"
The stallion raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Of course. Thy will is my command."
Without a word, she trotted past him towards the temple.
"May I ask thee a question, thy Sacred Majesty?" he asked and walked after her.
"No!" she said without looking at him, her eyes focused on the temple. Her long horn glowed with intense light. "And do not call me that either! From now on, I am not divine, not holy, nor sacred!"
"Why?" he asked. "That is my only question. Why?"
She stopped and turned to look at him. "The Sun Goddess is dead, and I have slain her. I am now just a pony."
"Why?" he asked again.
She let out a frustrated sigh, the glow of her horn vanishing. "For too long have the priests hoarded wealth, for too long have false rumours and tales been spread in the name of faith! That will come to an end this day. I swore to topple every temple before bringing the night, and I am almost finished." She turned to look at the temple again and continued to trot towards it.
"For years thou let thy subjects worship thee," he said and followed. "Why now decide to end it all?"
"I am no god, and I now regret embracing the beliefs of others, letting them worship me. I am no greater than an earth pony tilling the soil, a pegasi defeating a monster or a unicorn healing the sick with magic. I am above no one."
"But dost thou not raise the sun each day? Dost thy spells not help those in need? Art thou not a legendary alicorn, who fulfilled the prophecy and defeated Discord the Terrible?"
"I am no god!" she shouted.
"But the ponies look up to thee. Thou givest them hope in desperate times, hope they need to survive."
She stopped again and glared at him. "Let them find some other god to worship, or better yet, stop worshipping altogether! They need to believe in themselves, not in some powerful but arbitrary being in the imaginary aether! Religion causes more harm than good, I tell thee, old priest. Ponies face pressure to believe in what their friends believe, the selfish can abuse the trust of the naive, and zealotry drives some to violence!"
"All those occur even without temples or gods, Princess."
"Not the Celestial Crusade! Thanks to it, Yakyakistan has closed its gates from us forever!"
"Is this not a crusade, this destruction of shrines? Art thou not zealous by forcing others to believe in what thou believest?"
"I believe in nothing, priest."
"Indeed, thou believest in nothing. But why force others to believe in nothing as well?"
She furrowed her brow. "I know why thou art trying to defend thy faith. Give up, priest, for no longer shalt thou abuse the trust of others, buy wine with alms or erect lavish temples in an age of poverty! All that ends now!"
He smiled. "Thou art foolish to believe that everypony is selfish and dishonest. Equestria was built upon harmony, tolerance and friendship, and those values have not been abandoned. I certainly haven't forgotten about them. Hast thou?"
She glared at him for a moment before bridling and turning around. She gallopped towards the temple, and the old stallion followed after her at a slower pace.
Before the gates of the building was a clearing with a granite statue in the middle. It was a depiction of Celestia standing on her hind legs, a flaming halo around her head and a warm smile on her face.
The princess stopped before it and looked at it quietly. At its expression, at its pose.
She clenched her teeth, letting her horn glow brightly. The statue melted, turning into glowing, featureless slag. The face of the statue twisted from something beautiful into something unsettling and ugly.
The old stallion stood near her and watched the statue melt. He glanced at the princess' face.
A solitary tear shimmered on her cheek.
"All this," he said quietly, "thou art doing all this because thou art ashamed, art thou not?"
Celestia's scowl vanished, her eyes widened and her mouth opened slightly.
"Princess--"
She let tears flow freely and galloped inside the temple, shattering the gates with a mighty blast of magic. The old stallion calmly walked after her, entering through the smoking gateway.
Celestia stood in the middle of a tall hall, frozen before a golden altar, looking at a large stained glass window behind it. The flaming aura of her horn disspated just as it was about to release a powerful bolt of burning magic.
Rays of the setting sun pierced the glass and painted her white coat with lively colours. On the window was an image of not only Celestia, but her sister as well, depicted as equals, their bodies forming a circle around the sun and the moon.
It was the old emblem of Equestria, almost completely forgotten by most. Celestia had replaced the old emblem with a one that only showed her, with her wings spread wide and the sun shining above her head, a thick layer of shining golden regalia covering her body.
The stallion walked to the princess. He saw her staring at the window, her mouth hanging open, tears still flowing from her eyes and dripping on the carpet below.
His question was now answered.
"Now I understand. Thy sister grew jealous and betrayed thee, and thou accusedest thyself afterwards. Thou wantedest to tear down the old, arrogant Celestia, eradicate every memory of her. But thou letest thy feelings take over and causedest much destruction. Princess, just because thou experiencedest a nightmare does not mean thou needst to destroy the dreams of others."
She blinked a few times and let her head hang low. "I know," she mumbled. "But 'twas all my fault. I embraced the love, adoration and worship of others while abandoning the love and adoration of my dear sister, letting her wither in my shadow. I was a fool."
She turned to look at him.
"A fool can't be a god, can she?"
He sighed. "Perhaps. But even the strongest can be shaken by such terrible events. Maybe even gods."
She remained silent as she turned to look at the window again.
"But what now?" she mumbled after a while. "Will I let all believe that this was a holy punishment of a wrathful god, or a tantrum of a fool?"
"Let them believe what they want to believe. If they want to treat thee like a goddess, let them."
She sighed and closed her eyes, letting the light of the sun warm her face. "Fine, priest. I will let them, but I will no longer be a fool who believes she is more than just a pony. And I will not let anyone demonize or ignore my sister--"
"Let them."
She opened her eyes and looked at him with a creased forehead. He looked back with stern eyes.
"Let them believe what they want to believe," he said. "Thou knowest the truth, and that's all that matters. Eventually they will forget about her and let her name fade to history. But thou wilt remember. Always."
She looked at him silently, her eyes sparkling. A smile appeared on her face, a smile that said "I know what's going on".
"Thou art wise, 'priest'. Just as wise as a certain friend of mine. Tell me thy name."
The stallion's horn, hidden beneath his hood, glowed and pulled back the cowl, revealing a wrinkly face and a pair of golden eyes.
"I am Star Swirl, mentor of Clover the Clever. At thy service, princess."
He knelt before Celestia, and she let him do so. She smiled and said "I like thy new beard style, friend."
He stood up and smiled as well.
"Star Swirl, my dear friend, what is the name of this place?" she asked and looked around herself.
"This is the temple of Canterlot, thy majesty. An old sacred grove, the location where the unicorns first saw the fertile valleys of Equestria. This temple is one of the first buildings erected by ponydom, hence the old emblem."
"From now on," she declared, "this temple will be my castle. Let the old one gather dust and remain forgotten."
He smiled. "I thank thee, Celestia. May this building amaze the future generations and remain as a relic of these times."
"More than a relic, friend. This place will become the capital of a new Equestria, a bustling city, a crown jewel of a harmonious land."
"Very well," he said with a raised eyebrow. It was strange to build a capital on the side of a mountain, but also... fitting.
Celestia closed her eyes again, her horn glowing. The sun lowered behind the window, and soon the hall was shrouded in darkness. In darkness that was banished away by the moon as it rose from the opposite horizon and shed pale light through the broken gateway.
"First of all, somepony will need to repair the gate," Star Swirl said.
Celestia chuckled and walked outside. She stopped near the pool of slag, the remnants of the statue, and looked at the moon, her eyes glittering in its grey light. She looked at the shadow of her sister on its surface.
"I'm sorry, sister," she whispered. "But I have learned my lesson. May we meet again after a thousand years, so I can give thee the love I had given to myself. I should've given it to thee, sister."
She sighed.
"I should've given it to thee."
Star Swirl looked at her and smiled. Equestria had a bright future ahead of it. He was sure of it, now more than ever.