The Truths We Deny

by volrathxp

Chapter 6

The Truths We Deny

Chapter 6

Celestia ran. She ran harder than she had ever run in her entire life, feeling fire in her veins as she galloped. The beasts were still pursuing her and Pix. The imp had tried his best but in the end his wings couldn't keep pace with the monstrous hounds, forcing Celestia to grab him with her magic.

She couldn't fathom how beasts from Tartarus had gotten into the Summer Lands. Furthermore, what had happened with Generous Soul? The stallion was crazed and seemingly evil. How had he been allowed to enter into such a divine place? Why had he told her it was because of her? None of it made any sense.

The beasts snarled and snapped loudly at her heels, prompting the alicorn to abandon her thoughts and focus on the present situation. She jumped into the air, beating her wings to gain flight. One of the monsters jumped and bit down, tearing one of her back hooves in the process. Celestia cried out in pain as the beast let go. She kept flying upwards until she could no longer hear the snarling creatures.

“Um... Princess? You're bleeding,” Pix said.

Celestia looked down at her back leg. The imp was right about one thing, she was indeed bleeding from where the creature had bit her. Just looking at the wound dropped her adrenaline and caused the pain to start. Celestia bit down hard to hold her concentration. She was still rather high up and if she lost control... she didn't want to think about what would happen. With a quick flick of her horn and a searing pain that shot through her entire body, she cauterized the wound. At the very least she wouldn't bleed out.

“I'm painfully aware, Pix. We need to find some place to set down,” she said. Her eyes scanned the horizon for some place to go.

In the distance, she spotted a hill overlooking a grand castle. She flapped her wings hard, setting down on the hill. As she touched ground, she nearly collapsed. She pushed up, holding herself on the weight of her three good legs. She grimaced. She needed to treat the wound on her leg before it got worse. She glanced down at the castle.

“Wow,” Pix said.

“Yes... the castle is impressive. It is also empty,” Celestia said. “It has not been occupied since... well, since my mother occupied it.”

“Your mother?” Pix asked.

“Indeed. This castle used to be a part of Equestria. When my mother died, some part of her magic separated it from the rest of the realm, forming the Summer Lands around it. It is only half of the true thing. The other half became a part of Tartarus,” Celestia said. She grimaced. “We must get inside. I need to tend to my leg, and if the crown is in the Summer Lands, I suspect it will be here.”

Celestia's eyes panned down to the castle below. The pristine columns that lined the castle's courtyard gleamed in the bright red sun. The castle itself abruptly ended in the middle, almost as if it had been sliced neatly in half. The other half, Celestia knew, was sitting in Tartarus. Celestia couldn't remember how long ago it had been that the castle had been her home. Serenity had been there too, she could remember.

Her wings spread and she took off, Pix in tow. The two made their way down to the castle's courtyard, landing on the hard stonework leading up to the entrance. Celestia looked back. There was no sign of the Tartaran beasts that had followed them. Likely they had gotten bored with the chase and went back to whatever it was they were doing in the first place.

Celestia grunted and turned back to the castle. She stumbled forward, limping along as she made her way towards the entrance. Pix flapped along in the air beside her, his beady red eyes wide as he took in the castle's splendor.

“Once we're inside, I will need to spend some time fixing my leg,” Celestia said. “Do not wander off. I myself have not been here for a long time, so I do not know if there are any dangers that could present themselves.”

“Don't wander, got it. Are you going to be alright?” Pix said.

“I shall be just fine, Pix. Thank you for the concern,” Celestia replied.

“Believe me, I'm more concerned about those beasts finding us than anything,” Pix said.

Celestia smiled. “Don't worry about that. The castle is quite secure.”

The two kept moving closer to the entrance. As they walked, Celestia kept trying to piece together what had happened in her head. She tried hard to remember Serenity, but kept coming up blank. Why couldn't she remember her? She was certain that she knew exactly what had happened to her sister, that Tirek had been responsible for her disappearance. Tirek himself had all but admitted to it. So why couldn't she shake the feeling that it was a lie?

Celestia grimaced as Pix and she made their way inside the castle's main doors. Her hooves clicked and clacked on the cold marble. Her eyes scanned the main hall. There was nobody around. Most of the doors leading to the rest of the castle were closed, with the exception of the door to the throne room.

“Pix,” Celestia said as she found a spot to rest along the hall. “I must stop. I need to heal my leg.”

“Alright,” the imp said, glancing furtively at the throne room doors. “I'll just sit down over here.”

Celestia nodded before turning her attention to her leg. Her cauterization spell had stemmed the blood flow, but the injury was still quite bad. The beast had managed to cut through the muscle deep right to the bone. It was no wonder that she hadn't been able to walk on it. A golden glow wrapped itself around her leg as her magic began to take hold. Skin and muscle began to knit itself back together. Celestia concentrated hard, sending as much magic as she could through her horn to power the healing spell.

When she was finished, her leg looked as good as new. Better than new, actually, she thought. Celestia flexed the appendage a few times, feeling reasonably sure that it had been healed. She looked up to let Pix know that she was finished.

Pix was gone.

Celestia grimaced. “Pix? Where are you?” she called out as she stood. She scanned the hall for any sign of the imp, but there was nothing. The only difference was that one of the side hall doors had been opened.

“I told him to stay put,” Celestia said to herself. “Looks like I'm going to have to find him.”

****************************************

Elsewhere, six mares and a draconequus convened together. Each group had found a memory of Celestia's and had returned to share their findings.

“Alright, so we've established a basic timeline,” Twilight Sparkle said. “At some point, Celestia lived with her mother and Luna, welcoming a young unicorn named Serenity into their family. Celestia was affectionate towards Discordant Noise, but it seemed that Discordant and Serenity were together. Celestia was also jealous of Serenity's magical talent.”

“That still doesn't tell us where the Princess went to,” Rainbow Dash said.

“I agree with Rainbow. We're no closer to finding the Princess,” Rarity said.

Twilight smiled. “Actually, we're on the right track. You see, I'm convinced now that Celestia is trying to find Serenity. There's only a few places that she could go to do so, however. Tartarus, the Summer Lands, or the Realm of the Final Rest. The problem lies in getting to those places.”

“I believe that I may be able to be of some assistance in that regards,” Discord said. “As a being of chaos magic, I should be able to breach the walls of either of those realms.”

“You'd do that?” Fluttershy said.

“Of course, dear Fluttershy. Celestia and I may have had our differences in the past, but that is as they say... water under the bridge,” Discord said as he transformed into a bridge with eyes. A tiny river the color of Celestia's coat ran underneath it.

“There will be no need for that,” Twilight said.

“What?!” the other mares said.

“But, if Discord can find Celestia, then this can all be over,” Applejack said.

“Discord must stay here,” Twilight said. “We are not finished with Celestia's memories, and I have a feeling that Discord's presence will be required for the next ones. If we are following the timeline appropriately, then we should be arriving at one crucial memory.”

“Which memory is that?” Discord said, transforming back into his normal form.

“Celestia and Luna taking over for their mother. The ascendancy of Serenity. Your transformation into Discord. You said it yourself, there's a reason why you did what you did, but you don't remember it,” Twilight said. “Don't you want to find out the truth?”

Discord put a claw up to his chin for a moment. “You do have a very good point. But how does this help us find Celestia?”

“Because at the end of the road, there will be no secrets. Harmony will bring her to us,” Twilight said. “We'll finally know why she left, and in doing so, we'll be able to talk to her.”

“Are you sure about this?” Discord said.

“I am,” Twilight said. She pointed down the path. “I think if we head this way, we'll find what we're looking for. I've been going over the evidence, and it's the only likely conclusion to this.”

The others followed Twilight's hoof. Shapes began to form down the path, turning into the castle they'd seen before. In the center of the throne room, an older Celestia and Luna stood before two thrones. Serenity stood nearby with Discordant Noise. Celestia had a grim look on her face.

“Sisters. The event we have come to fear has come to pass. Mother is... is gone. We do not have long here,” she said. “Mother made a decree before she... she went. This castle is to house the creation of two realms. One will serve as a place for just and righteous when they pass on from life. The other, for the wicked and evil. This castle will cease to exist in Equestria as we know it. The process has already begun.”

“What will happen to us, dear sister?” Luna said.

“We must rejoin the world of Equestria. Mother was right. The ponies need our guidance,” Celestia said. “They need our help.”

“But, what about these two new realms? Who shall be the arbiter that decides what realm one ends up in?” Luna said. “Are we to undertake this in addition to our duties to the Sun and Moon?”

Celestia smiled, turning her attention to Serenity. “No, dear sister. I believe that this task is meant for another to carry upon. Serenity?”

Serenity looked up at her sister. “Yes, sister?”

Celestia strode down in front of the unicorn. She smiled softly. “Serenity, you have been a faithful sister of ours. I am sure Mother would be proud of you, for today you are to become more than just our sister. You are to become a Princess in your own right.”

“Wait... me? A Princess?” Serenity said, her eyes wide. “But... why?”

“The Summer Lands, Tartarus. These realms will require a Princess to steward them. To judge fairly the souls of those who pass on. This is a task I believe that you can take on,” Celestia said.

“I... I'm honored, sister,” Serenity said. She looked at Discordant. “But... will I still be able to see Discordant?”

Celestia's expression turned grim. “I am afraid not. “Acting as Princess of the Final Rest, as arbiter of the souls of the afterlife, will be a very taxing and time-consuming affair. You would have to give up all physical attachments.”

“That isn't fair,” Discordant said angrily. “Why should she have to do this? Why can't you handle this responsibility? If this is about what happened between us...”

“I'm afraid this has nothing to do with that,” Celestia said. “What I am asking is a large responsibility. Ultimately it is Serenity's choice. If she decides otherwise, we shall have to find somepony else to handle the role.”

“I... I'll do it,” Serenity said, interrupting. “I will shoulder this responsibility.”

“Serenity?” Discordant said. “Do you realize what you're saying?”

Serenity smiled and turned to her love. “I do. Celestia is right. This is important. Mother would have wanted me to do this. She took me in, made me part of her own family.”

“But... what about us? What about what we have?” Discordant said, anger rising in his voice.

“Cordie, you know how I feel about you,” Serenity said, placing a hoof on the other pony's shoulder. “But I cannot ignore my responsibilities. Just like you cannot ignore your music. I have to do this.”

“A wise decision, sister,” Celestia said. “Discordant, you must leave this place now. Once the castle has finished transitioning, if you are still inside you will never be able to go back to Equestria.”

“What if I want to stay here? What if I want to stay with her?” Discordant challenged.

“If you stay here, you will die. You will not see Serenity because you will force her to judge your soul for eternity,” Celestia said. “The magic in this place will rip you apart at the seams. Only those of alicorn status can remain.”

Discordant's eyes widened. He looked over at Serenity, who nodded solemnly. In frustrated anger he turned and walked towards the front door. He looked back one last time and then he was gone. Serenity glanced down, a tear forming in her eye.

“I'm sorry about this, little sister,” Celestia said, her eyes looking downward. “I do wish there was another way.”

“It... it doesn't matter,” Serenity said, sniffling. “I am ready to take on this role.”

“Excellent, now let us begin,” Celestia said. Her horn began to glow brilliantly, and light engulfed the memory, ending it.

“Celestia split you apart,” Twilight said softly.

Discord glanced away. “It would seem that is accurate. Serenity was tricked into accepting her position. Celestia and Luna were more than capable of handling the role of arbiters of souls themselves. Celestia even did so for years after banishing Luna all by herself. There was no reason for Serenity to do what she did.”

“But... why?” Fluttershy said. “Why would she... trick her own sister?”

“Because she still loved him,” Twilight said, her eyes widened. “She loved him enough that she did the only thing she could think of to keep him, even if it meant dooming her sister to an eternity of loneliness.”

***********************************

“Pix?” Celestia called out as she made her way down the old stone hallway. Her hooves made clacking sounds on the stone. She winced slightly with each step. Despite being healed, her leg still needed time to adjust to the magic holding it together.

“Pix?” she called out again. No response. Celestia frowned. She had told the imp to not wander off, and yet he hadn't listened.

As she made her way deeper into the castle, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. Several times she saw shadows out of the corner of her eye, but saw nothing when she turned to confront them. She hadn't remembered her mother's castle being like this before. Just what had happened to the Summer Lands since the last time she'd been there? Furthermore, when was the last time she'd been there? She couldn't clearly remember.

She stopped at the end of the hallway. The hall opened up into a grand audience hall. Two long tables lined each side of the room. At the far end a grand throne sat upon a set of stairs. A figure sat on the throne, shrouded in darkness. Standing in front of the throne was... Pix?

“Pix?” Celestia said as she rushed towards the end of the hall. She reached the imp's side in no time. He appeared to be in a daze of sorts, staring up towards the throne.

“Celestia,” a voice said.

Celestia's eyes drifted up towards the throne. Seated on it was a dark alicorn mare. Her eyes glowed brightly as she regarded the Princess of the Sun. Resting upon her brow was the crown of the Final Rest. The crown that belonged to her sister. Celestia's eyes widened as she realized who was sitting before her.

“Serenity...?”

Author's Note:

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Comments

[Iron Sky]

[Cylestea]

what a twist!