Princess Celestia: Sorceress Supreme

by spideremblembrony

Breaking Point

The morning had come slow to Celestia, which she very much appreciated. She had slept deeply the previous night, with nothing to disturb her. However, her body was still aching from yesterday’s chore. She could barely move without pain slithering through her. All she wanted to do was lay in her barrel of hay and rest for the day. Even as the sunlight came through the small window of her room, she closed her eyes and desperately attempted to fall back into slumber. However, as the moments went on, she found it harder and harder to relax. Then a knock came at the door.

It is probably them. Wanting me to plow the field again, Celestia moaned to herself. She chose to ignore it, hoping they would go away if she pretended she wasn’t awake. The door started to open and outside it stood Starswirl.

“It is time to work,” Starswirl stated. Celestia sighed as the unicorn entered the room. All she wanted to do was stay inside and rest. However, these ponies saw fit to put her to work once more.

They really expect this from me?! Am I to be a slave here?! To work for nothing and eat nothing but scraps?! Celestia’s mind filled with anger. She continued to lie in her bed, motionlessly. She grumbled under her breath, but Starswirl didn’t seem to hear.

“If you do not wish to work, you cannot stay here,” Starswirl warned with a hint of concern.

That was thing that bothered Celestia the most. She didn’t want to stay here. If she had her way, she would have left the first day. But she wanted to see Luna again. To be accepted as she once was. With that thought in her mind, she picked herself up. Her body ached as she moved to her feet. Her mind continued to dread on the work that had yet to be done.

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After a long breakfast, consisting of the same porridge and milk, Celestia found herself back at the field. The plow was right where she had left it. Nothing had moved it. It was as if it had been waiting for her. All she thought about when she saw it was how much trouble the plow had given her. It was heavy and strong. It took everything she had to drag it across the field.

However, as much as Celestia wanted to just walk out of the temple, she fastened the reigns around her body and started to pull the stationary object once more. With all her might, she pulled the plow across the field in a slow struggle. Sweat poured from her body as she fought against the heat. It was a long process, taking up most of the day away. The long day was filled with her grunts as she thrust her body forward, tugging with all her might. The only other sound that was made in the enormous field was the sound of the dirt as it was parted by the metal digger. The task was much more difficult than yesterday. Large rocks that lie beneath the earth force Celestia to dig them out and remove them from her path, replacing the hole with excess dirt. Unfortunately for her, magic didn’t work on these rocks or the dirt around it. With her bear hooves, Celestia was forced to move the rocks to continue on her path.

As she dug at the ground, Celestia growled in anger as dirt coated her once white hooves. She would dig until she could remove the rocks from their earthly prison. The rocks were a blessing compared to the plow, but they were still quite heavy. And without the aid of her magic, it became a strenuous task. Moving the rocks out of the field, as were the Ancient One’s instructions was backbreaking. Celestia felt it almost literal as well as figurative.

Sometime during that day, Celestia felt a sharp pain up her spine, causing her to collapse to the ground. She cried out in pain as she lied in the dirt, cursing to the Lords Above. Tears rained from her eyes as the irrefutable pain ravaged her. A few moments later, a pink unicorn came out to the field and performed some sort of spell on her. The spell seemed to mend Celestia’s back causing the ache to cease. The pink unicorn wrapped a brace around Celestia’s back to protect it, but then sent her back into the field. Celestia never thanked the unicorn. She had seen her around, but she didn’t think anything of her. At least, until now.

With her back protected, Celestia continued to plow. She found herself grunting and shouting in irritation the entire day, as if somepony was listening. But there was no pony. There was only her and the plow. She caught herself talking to the plow as if it was a living creature. She shouted at it, calling it cruel names.

“You heavy piece of junk! You think you could cooperate with me more?! I’m just trying to do my job!” She shouted back to the inanimate object. She found herself doing this more than once, disregarding it as mere stress and exhaustion.

The days would roll by in a pattern that consisted of only four things; Breakfast, plow, dinner, sleep. When she would plow, she would gradually find herself getting slower, more exhausted and making less progress with each passing day. However, after the longest week of her life, she finally finished her duty. The field was plowed.

As she marched herself into the dining hall the night she finished her long task, her mind anticipated the plain soup that would await her. However, upon her arrival, her soup was accompanied by a large loaf of bread and a tall glass of milk. The soup was much more inviting than her previous bowls. The soup had traces of celery, potatoes, peas, carrots, onions, and a sauce she wasn’t familiar with. However, as she took in a breath, her nostrils were treated to a pleasant aroma. And when her tongue touched it, her taste buds were delighted by the combination of flavors that was mixed together in perfect harmony. It was a meal that she had missed since her days at the castle.

Her mind wandered to thoughts of home. Canterlot Castle seemed so far away now. She wondered how the other ponies were getting along without her. She wondered how her mother must feel without her. She shook her head in sorrow, feeling that her mother had already forgotten her. She wouldn’t have been surprised if that was the truth. She thought back to the day of her banishment, looking upon the faces of the ponies who scowled at her. She figured not a single pony in the castle even cared she was gone. Cared what she was going through. She pushed the thoughts aside as best she could and instead focused solely on her meal.

The bread was soft and warm, just like the day when Starswirl found her. She would find herself pealing apart her bread, simply to dip it into her soup, allowing the sauce to soak into the bread, creating a unique, yet surprisingly wondrous flavor. The milk was cold and fresh.

After two bowls of soup and another loaf of bread, Celestia made her way back to her room. She found the same stack of hay that lay there the nights before, only this time it was accompanied by a large sheet. Celestia’s mind leaped with joy as she placed her hooves on the blanket. They were not nearly as nice as the ones that waited for her back at the castle, but it was warm and very soft. She enwrapped herself within the blanket, keeping warm as the night loomed on. Her eyes shut themselves almost naturally and a smile slid onto her face.

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Celestia awoke the next day with her body aching, as usual. The plowing had done a number on her. Her legs were in pain and her back wasn’t much better off. The brace had done wonders for her back to be sure, but it didn’t lessen the pain she felt. She curiously wondered how bad her back would be if the pink unicorn, she now knew to be Pureheart, hadn’t stepped in.

Despite being in pain, she had something to smile about. She was finished plowing the field. However, the Ancient One had mentioned to her that her job was not yet done. ‘More work tomorrow,’ he had said.

What more work could he possibly want me to do? Celestia thought to herself. Her mind thought of all the things she could do within the castle walls, but none of them came close to the harshness of the plow. She smiled as she thought anything by comparison would be a breeze.

She removed herself from her room and found the Ancient One in the main chamber. He sat in meditation as she silently entered the room. However, no matter how silent she was, the Ancient One noticed her. “Plant the seeds.”

His voice caught Celestia off guard for a second, as if she wasn’t sure what to say. Finally, when she had processed what was said, she replied. “Really? Plant seeds?”

“Good soil helps seeds grow. Seeds that grow produce food. Food feeds the ponies.” The Ancient One then levitated a large brown bag and placed it in front of Celestia. “Plant the seeds.” With that, the Ancient One continued his mediation, without even looking at Celestia.

Celestia could only stare at the bag in front of her, hoping that it would just disappear. She didn’t want to do anything more. She just wanted Luna. She knew it was stupid to wish for it to magically disappear before her, but that didn’t stop her from dreaming. And as she thought, no matter how hard she tried, it sat there, waiting for her. Her horn started to glow as she attempted to move the bag, however, like everything else, her magic proved useless. She growled in frustration, stomping her hoof. “This is not fair!” she shouted.

However, instead of a response, the Ancient One simply continued with his meditation, disregarding everything around him.

Celestia grew outraged as the Ancient One continued to ignore her. He didn’t look at her and certainly didn’t acknowledge her. The only time he even noticed that she was there was when there was work to be done or when there was something the Ancient One wanted her to do. What kind of pony would treat another like this?! I am just as important as he is! Am I to be ignored as if I don’t exist unless I can do something for him?! Like a slave or servant?!

She bit down on the bag with her teeth and began to drag it across the floor. The bag was heavier than she thought. Not as heavy as the plow, but still pretty heavy for seeds. As she started to make it out the door when all of the sudden she heard a loud ripping sound.

Don’t tell me! she thought to herself. As she looked down, she saw her fears were confirmed. The bag had ripped open causing seeds to fall out. They scattered to the floor around where the bag had ripped. The mount taunted her. A slight chuckle was heard from the hallway. Celestia looked up to see Dusk. His mouth painted a cruel smile on his face. Celestia couldn’t tell if Dusk had ripped the bag himself or not, but he was taking pleasure in it. Celestia attempted to force the seeds back in the bag with her magic, but like the bag itself, they were impervious to her spell. Celestia growled in irritation as she started to scoop up the seeds back into the bag. She picked up the bag with her front hooves, making sure the hole wasn’t facing the ground. As she left, Dusk made a quick comment.

“Don’t screw this up, princess!”

Celestia grumbled in irritation as she made her way out of the temple. She hated Dusk. He was always cruel to her for what seemed to be no reason. She wanted to ask him, but she had her doubts that he would even tell her. Celestia shook her head, attempting to rid her mind of Dusk. As Celestia got to the field, the sun started to glow across the field. She felt accomplished looking upon it. It had taken her a week of hard work, but she managed to plow this entire field. She thought that she simply did it for her sister, but she also thought to do it out of spite. Spite for the Ancient One, who probably didn’t think she could do it.

As Celestia thought about her new task by comparison, it seemed that she would have an easy day ahead of her. She placed the bag on the ground and picked up a hoof full of seeds. So, I guess I just put them out there. Celestia wasn’t sure how to plant seeds, but it seemed like an easy enough task. She started to throw out the seeds in random directions, hoping it would be enough.

As she tossed them, she quickly forgot about them and moved on to the next part of the field. Whenever she ran out of seeds, she would make her way back to the bag of seeds at the edge of the field. As she made her way back, she heard a cawing sound above her. She looked up to see a gathering of crows, circling over her. Crows? On top of this ice mountain?

She rubbed her eyes hoping that the birds were mere illusions. Tricks being played on her eyes. But sure enough, the birds were still there. How or why these birds get passed the winds and snow when she could not was a mystery to her. This place makes no sense! Celestia growled under her breath. She picked up another batch of seeds and made her way to another part of the field.

As she trotted, her mind began to wonder. She couldn’t fathom why everything she was doing was connected to Luna. If anything at all. She simply saw it as pointless work. Washing walls? Plowing a field? Planting seeds? It all seemed like the work of servants, not princesses. Still, jobs that she thought would be easy or trivial had taken everything she had to accomplish. She found herself thinking if it was this difficult on the ponies back at home. If it was, why have they not said so? Celestia asked herself, searching herself for an answer. Do ponies really have to do these takes? And are they really THIS difficult?

The simplicity of the task caused her to think about Luna. She hadn’t really thought about what she would do when she saw her. She knew she would give her the biggest hug she possibly could, tell her about how much she missed her, how sorry she was that she ruined the Star Light Festival, how she was casted out of her kingdom by her cruel mother. A thought then crossed her mind, something she hadn’t thought of until now. If she did find Luna, where would they go? Where would they live? They were both banished from Canterlot. How would they survive? Food was difficult to come by, especially since nopony believed she was a princess. Would Luna even recognize her? The thought had come up, but she pushed it aside. That fear would never come to pass… Would it?

Her mind was so perplexed by her questions; she hadn’t noticed her hooves were bare. She turned around back to the bag of seeds, preparing herself for another load. However, when her eyes came upon the bag, a flock of crows had begun to peck at the seed bag, devouring the seeds. They continued their attack on the helpless seeds with relentless hunger.

“Hey!” Celestia shouted. The crows turned their heads towards the alicorn, as if drawn to her voice. “Get away from those!” Celestia and the crows stared down one another, their eyes meeting. There were moments of silence and motionlessness, as they silently glared at one another. Celestia’s peering gaze met with the crows various blinks.

The crows focused their attention back to the seeds, not even giving Celestia a second glance. The crows attacked the seeds relentlessly, ignoring everything else around them. Celestia darted to the crows, causing them to finally scatter when she arrived. Celestia pounded the ground in irritation, giving a bellowing grunt. She gathered up seeds in her hooves and made her way to the field. However, the moment Celestia was at a distance, the crows continued their feast. And again, Celestia would chase them away, only to find that most of the seeds she had had been taken away by the ebony birds.

Celestia decided to take the bag with her as she tossed the seeds. She would drag the bag as far as she needed to and then gather seeds to be tossed in any and all directions. The day dragged on with Celestia and the crows fighting for control of the field. The crows made many attempts on the seeds. One such scheme was to pierce the bottom of the bag, without Celestia’s knowledge, and feed of the spoils. Celestia noticed only when the bag gradually became lighter as she trotted. The bag was nearly emptied and she had yet to reach a halfway distance.

After being forced back to sanctuary and being forced back out with a new bag of seeds, Celestia’s patience with the crows was wearing rather thin. The birds circled all above her, mocking her with their squawks and caws. Stupid birds, she thought to herself. [How can any pony expect to do any work with those pests around? Finally, her patience had reached its peak. She stomped into the main hall where the Ancient One lay. She had ranted about how the crows were causing her problems and demanded to know how was she supposed to deal with the creatures.

The Ancient One didn’t even so much as look at her. He gave a sly smile and simply replied “The problem is between you and the birds.”

Celestia was then forced outside by Dusk, without even another word from the Ancient One. When her eyes met back to the field, the crows waited for their free meal. Every second she thought about what the Ancient One had said, the more frustrated it made her. That isn’t advice. That’s a dismissal!

Celestia cringed at the thought of being simply dismissed by any pony. And the day didn’t become any less stressful for the alicorn. The crows were relentless in their operation to obtain their meal and Celestia was forced to abandon her work in order to quell them. It had taken her a long part of the day, but finally she managed to work up a sound generating spell that would cause an echoing boom. That was enough to frighten the birds away. She often used this spell to frighten a pony in the middle of their concentration. It had always gotten her a laugh in the past and even now it was useful.

With that spell at her side, she finally finished her planting of the seeds. As she dragged herself to sanctuary, she noticed the Ancient One standing on the steps. He looked like he was waiting for her. Celestia lowered her head with her face scowling towards the old pony.

The Ancient One simply glanced at her. “Make rain.”

Celestia shot the Ancient One a look of extreme prejudice. “Now, you want me to make it rain?!”

The Ancient One turned his head towards the field. “Rain helps seeds grow. Seeds that grow produce food. Food-“

“Feeds the ponies! I know!” Celestia interrupted. She looked up to the sky and saw the shapes of dark clouds above her. They were scattered, waiting to be gathered by a Pegasus pony or Celestia in this case. Celestia focused her magic on the clouds, hoping to move them. She didn’t know why she was trying. Her magic, thus far, proved useless almost everywhere else. And sure enough, her magic proved useless here. She turned to the Ancient One with a glare of anger. “This place is stupid!”

The Ancient One gave no indication of hurt, sorrow, anger, or pain. He simply stared at Celestia, much to her annoyance. It was as if he didn’t care about what was said, only what was done. Celestia cursed under her breath as she spread her wings and took to the sky. The clouds proved to be just as irksome as the crows. They would rush in the opposite direction of Celestia, forcing her to chase them down. Even when she caught them and gathered them into one spot, she would have some that would float off, forcing her to abandon the others to catch her mischievous foe, only to have another fly off. This cycle repeated itself for about an hour until Celestia finally thought to drag the large patch of clouds gathered to the smaller separate clouds, rather than abandon it to pick up a single cloud.

The clouds put up quite a fight, but after what seemed like several long hours, as the day turned into dusk, the clouds had been gathered. Celestia made her way to the side of the clouds and bucked them with her hind legs. A crackle of thunder was unleashed as the cloud lit up with lightning. A moment later, the clouds unleashed its precipitation on the field.

Celestia made her way to the steps of the temple, where the Ancient One had been waiting. Through the course of the day, Celestia had noticed the Ancient One was still there. He sat as she moved the clouds. He watched as she repeatedly failed again, and again. She wondered what was going through his mind as he stood in silence. Perhaps, he was mental scorning her. But his face gave no such indication. Celestia disregarded him. And as the rain fell from the sky, she made her way passed him.

The Ancient One finally turned to her as she passed by. “Do not overwater. Watch the field.”

“Whatever,” Celestia replied, completely ignoring him. She had had enough of him. She was tired, she was upset, and she was ready for a long, filling meal. Dusk had been insulting her and mocking her the entire day, the crows were annoying, the clouds were almost as aggravating and the Ancient One looked right through her. She returned to the temple without saying another word.

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As the sun started to shine through the small window of Celestia’s room. The day had started to begin, but there was nothing Celestia wanted to do. The day prior had proven stressful for her and she wasn’t looking forward to another one. Even as the sun started to engulf her room, she completely dismissed it. She simply continued to lay her head down to rest.

After a moment, the door flung open violently, causing Celestia to jump to her feet. Before her stood Dusk, and he looked less than happy. His horned glowed as the blanket from Celestia’s bed was sent soaring across the room. Dusk then grabbed Celestia by her wing and began to drag her out of her room. Celestia struggled and grunted as attempted to escape Dusk’s grip. “Let me go!” Celestia screamed.

Dusk simply ignored her plights and continued to force her into the hallway. Celestia struggled even harder, her horn started to glow as she attempted to use her magic to free her, but even that was useless. She tried to flap her wing with all her might, but Dusk’s grip prevented her from even moving it an inch. She screamed loudly, hoping for somepony to come running, but nopony seemed to notice.

She continued to struggle and scream as Dusk finally brought her to the courtyard. At the staircase, she was thrown into the pile of mud that had formed around it. Her face was coated in filth as her head sharply turned towards Dusk. “What is the meaning of this?!” Celestia snapped as mud dripped from her face.

Dusk gestured towards the field in front of them. “Why don’t you ask him?”

Celestia turned around to see the Ancient One and Starswirl before her. She glared at them the rain continued to spill onto them, soaking them in its wake. “What is going on here?!”

“Look around,” the Ancient One finally snapped. Celestia rolled her eyes and did as she was told. Her face then painted one of shock and disbelief. The field, the one she had worked so hard to plow, had become a field of puddles and small lakes with seeds scattered all around them. The soil had been completely replaced with mud. Everything she had done the week prior, destroyed in one night.

“You failed to stop storm,” the Ancient One stated. “Seeds drown. Ponies starve. Your fault.”

Those words cut like a knife into Celestia’s heart. But instead of feeling sad, she felt angry. She didn’t believe it was her fault. She worked hard. She did everything for them. How could it be her fault if she did everything in her power? She did her best, wasn’t that enough? “I wasn’t reminded that I was supposed to-!”

“You are not expected to be reminded of your responsibilities.” The Ancient One stood straight up to Celestia, even being a few inches shorter than the alicorn, he gave an intimidating presence. “You are expected to uphold them.”

“But I didn’t know! This was my first time!” Celestia started.

“The ponies would have starved to death and you would have offered nothing as compensation?”

Celestia would have retorted, but she wasn’t sure what to say. What could she have said? She knew what it was like to starve. She knew what it was like to be so hungry you’re desperate. Desperate enough to dig through garbage just to survive. If she had been in that position, and all she was offered was an apology, she would have been outraged. She lowered her head and remained silent.

The Ancient One moved around her and towards the temple. “You clean field. You start over.”

Starswirl and Dusk joined the Ancient One as the rain continued to fall. Celestia was left in the field of mud, alone. She stared up to the sky as the rain pummeled her face, slowly removing the mud from it. With thoughts of failure rising in the pit of her stomach, she spread her wings and began to work.

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The day did not start out pleasant. And it did not prove any less miserable as it dragged on. The first struggle came from the separation of the clouds. Celestia was forced to gather pieces of the cloud to disperse them. With as much cloud coverage as there was, she spent a good hour or so removing them from the sky. All the while, her body was coated in water and mud, making her cold and shivering. After clearing the sky and drying herself off, she found herself back at the field, clearing out all the mud to dig into the soil below it and scoop out as much water as she could. The bucket, like everything else, was impervious to her magic, forcing her to drag it around with her teeth.

Her day dragged on with her patience slowly withering to nothing. The mud was coating her hooves and was incredibly difficult to walk on. She would slip and fall constantly attempting to gain hoofing. Eventually, she fell into the mud, the bucket in her mouth dumping its contents in her face. She spat, violently, out the mud that dipped into her mouth. Her fortitude finally finished.

As if to read that she had reached her limit, Starswirl appeared before her. She glared up at him. “Look,” she stared weakly. “I don’t know why you think this is funny, because it’s not!” Celestia made her way to her hooves and stepped towards Starswirl. “You say I’m finding my sister, but all I seem to be doing is doing your gardening for you!”

Celestia lowered her head, her eyes filled with tears. “Just please, tell me.” She gave Starswirl sincere, sad eyes as tears came down her face. “When do I get to see my sister?”

“This had not been about your sister. It never has been,” Starswirl revealed.

Celestia stood, baffled. Her mind echoed with questions at what Starswirl had revealed. Her heart felt a throbbing pain as if she just had a stake through it.

How could this not be about Luna?! The only reason I followed him was because of Luna! I scrubbed floors, I climbed that perilous mountain, I’ve even put up with Dusk for Lord’s sake! And now, they tell me that none of that mattered?!

“Listen to me!” Celestia shouted, tears bursting from her eyes. “I need my sister! Tell me where she is!

Starswirl simply took a deep breath. “I cannot.”

Celestia grew shocked and angry. But her anger was quickly replaced by depression. A depression that sapped her will to argue. She simply lowered her head and slowly trotted forward. “Then there’s nothing for me here.”

Celestia made her way passed Starswirl and towards the gate that separated her from the cold mountain, secretly hoping the cold would consume her. Her depression grew as she slowly realized, the only chance she had of finding her sister, had all been a lie.

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Starswirl watched in sadness as Celestia started to walk away. It pained him to reveal the truth to her, but she needed to know. He was about to go to her and stop her.

And as if sensing his thought, the Ancient One spoke, “Let her go.”

Starswirl turned towards the Ancient One and bowed his head in respect. “But master, she will not survive.”

“That is her choice,” The Ancient One replied. He turned to the gate as the last image of Celestia, disappeared behind the wooden doors that closed on her. “In the end, only she can find her way back.”

Starswirl knew the truth behind the Ancient One’s words, but that did not help his heart ache any less. As he watched Celestia exit sanctuary, he came to cruel conclusion. This was the third time he failed his queen.

Comments

[Captain Lunar]

Since saying this was great is getting old, it is BTW, but I feel I'm getting predictable. So here's something about ANOTHER strange doctor

[spideremblembrony]

3555540 I have never seen Dr. Who. Is it any good? I've heard good things about it and was wondering should I look into it.

[Captain Lunar]

3562246 Imagine a series that can tell any kind of story you can think of. From the distant future to the far past, to the farthest reaches of the universe itself, all of time and space to explore. Now imagine a main character who is always fresh and interesting due to the fact they can easily recast him, should the actor want to leave or for story reasons, due to said character being able to transform into a new body if his current one gets too damaged or just old with the side effect of getting a new personality as well.

Yeah, there's a reason Doctor Who has been running for 50 years.

[spideremblembrony]

3563527 Wow... That actually sound really really interesting.

I mean it. I think that sounds rather cool. Looks like I've got 50 years of catching up to do. Any suggestions on what you liked and what you didn't?

[Captain Lunar]

3563768 Here's my favorite Doctor who I'd suggest to anyone

Also as for other good Doctors, my second favorite the 11th(Because he's so much like the 2nd)

My third favorite the 5th Doctor

And we can't forget the 4th Doctor.

I didn't care for the 3rd or 7th Doctors much. The 6th, 9th, and 10th, were pretty good, but not exactly favorite material for me. The 8th Doctor is actually pretty high on my favorites list, but as he only appeared live action for the TV movie and a prelude to the 50th anniversary then I can't really suggest him unless you like audiodramas and comics as those are the areas where he really shines.

[spideremblembrony]

3564014 Sweet! I'll definitely look into it! I'm pretty excited to start watching

[Captain Lunar]

3564053 Good to know! Always happy to introduce this great series to someone. Also here is perhaps THE most epic introduction to a new Doctor ever