Featured on Equestria Daily! [Link]
In the wake of a great tragedy, Celestia opens up, and, for the first time, tells her own story. For the first time, she tells what happened with Discord and King Sombra. And, for the first time, she tells what it's like to have to give up everything she's ever had, everything she's ever wanted, everything she's ever dreamed of--all of it, for the good of Equestria.
Please note: this is an "AU-ish" fic--that is, it sticks to canon in most respects, except when it doesn't. 
Unfortunately, not planning on continuing this story arc [Blog Post]. I hope you enjoy it nevertheless!
Rated Teen for mild language.
Thanks to Eruantalon, CCC_037, and Rainb0w_Dashie for proofreading.
Awesome art by Alanymph. Go check 'em out!
Original cover art, also by Alanymph.
Interesting beginning. Will be following this one closely.
7158128
Excellent! I hope you enjoy--this one's my baby
Oh dear...I'm afraid I see where this is going. *prepares for incoming feels*
7161777
Hehe...
This's even better now than when I was editing it. Keep up the good work! And yes, you've chosen great places to break the chapters!
7163112
Aw, thanks so much! I'm glad you're liking it (again)!
All caught up, so now I can finally comment again.
For some time, I've been hunting for a story that offers such a comprehensive and compassionate look into both Equestrian history and Celestia's psyche. While it's hardly a topic that is ignored persay, stories with as much thoroughness AND heart as yours admittedly slip through the cracks sometimes.
Your interpretations for the sisters' rise to power are very well considered, and at the same time they seem to fly just underneath what the fandom cliches would dictate. And, I appreciate your ability to be able to tell them through Celly's flashbacks instead of extensive exposition.
I earnestly hope this story gets more love as it progresses, because it really deserves it.
7169835
Aww, thanks so much! I appreciate it. I hope so too!
Great story, definitely getting a fave.
7175697
Excellent! I'm glad you enjoy it :)
Headcanon accepted.
7190201
Hehe, glad you liked it! There's more coming, slowly...
Dayum that was powerful. I can count the stories I've read in which Celestia has a believable breakdown on one hand.
Actually I don't remember any other. One finger is enough. And it's pointing at you. Good job, seriously. One can tell you put a lot of thought into bringing this story's world together.
7255719
Oh my gosh--thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind words.
For what it's worth, I first conceived this story around 2012, right before the S2 finale, so it's been stewing for a while--meaning, yes, maybe a little too much thought has gone into this
This is shaping up to be a favorite, I can already tell. Seems well written so far, and if the quality continues then I'd say the story deserves much more attention than it has gotten thus far.
7262077
Thank you kindly! Yeah, I'm quite fond of it--though I am a little biased
Celestia is about to have some major trauma come her way..
Oh dear...This will be incredibly sad if what I think happened actually did happen..
That was adorable there at the end. Really loving this story, it's becoming a favorite quickly
7262290
Wow, it makes me really happy you're enjoying this so much!!
Did it?
I really liked this. Around about "The Long Road" I realized your writing style reminded me somewhat of Robert Jordan, one of my favourite authors. Very much looking forward to the continuation of this story. Also I love it when people name their chapters well, it adds such a sense of... artisanship, I guess, to the story.
7263575
Thank you very much! I'm not actually familiar with Jordan, but I am/was a huge Sanderson fanboy, for what it's worth. That's high praise!
Cliffhanger, you're terrible!
How can Celestia still be deluding herself to think Sombra won when Cadance, with the help of a little dragon, blew him to bits?
That's like saying Palpatine won because Vader's love for Luke won out and he tossed Palpatine down a giant elevator shaft.
Luna, you as whack as all the dumbass beeyatches who keep goin' back to their abusive boyfriends thinkin' theys gonna change! Ah seen it lots down here in South Philly!
You've got me hooked, I'm on this wagon until the very end my friend!
7264584
In Celestia's mind, Sombra won because he achieved his goals--regardless of the fact that he was eventually defeated.
The analogy might work better if you said, "The Emperor won, because Starkiller base (eventually) destroyed the Republic entirely." Not a perfect match, but a little closer.
Also, it doesn't help that Celestia's in a dark place right now.
EDIT: More correctly--
"Palpatine won because he turned a Skywalker to the dark side, and inspired an apprentice to destroy the Republic--though both happened in a slightly different way than he intended."
7266407 The Starkiller base didn't destroy the Republic... unless the Republic only consisted of those few planets blown up rather than the hundreds or thousands it was originally composed of.
Not to mention, RULING the galaxy was Palpatine's goal, not blowing it up. Palpatine wasn't engaging in mass-genocide for jollies, you know. He had plenty of time in the interim between prequels and "A New Hope" to send his clone army to just exterminate people on dozens of planets. I believe even he'd find the Imperial fragments delusional and fanatical to the extreme.
In any case, I guess Hitler won because he managed to get rid of Jews in Germany? Come on, it's pretty absurd to look at it that way. If your side is wiped out and your enemies are occupying your former capital, YOU LOST. Sombra, being pretty much a monolithic regime nopony likes, has utterly lost forever since there aren't even any straggling forces in hiding clinging to his goals, as there were of Nazis after WWII.
If Celestia is severely depressed, she can interpret Cadance as some backward victory in a completely surreal viewpoint, but it doesn't hold up to rational analysis and she needs to be slapped upside the head a few times to clear her mind!
In a clearer comparative case, would we really consider a rapist victorious if a child resulting from that rape shoots him in the head? The rapist's goal is not merely to rape BUT TO GET AWAY WITH IT and keep doing it over and over. Ending up dead is a failure.
In any case, I don't know how Celestia and Luna fell for him so easily... but then, I suppose keeping a mental protection spell active at all times doesn't enter common thought. And yet, they knew of Discord and his mind-bending powers already and had defeated him... one would expect them to be better prepared for a magical tactic they'd already experienced so dramatically.
Bah, ponies know nothing of magical warfare!
7264560
Hehe--at least I update regularly :)
7264622
And I'm glad you liked it! There'll be short, dark side-fic coming here shortly, ideally, and then I'll start part 2. Will probably take me a while--but I'll be taking the train to work, so I'll have a couple hours time each day to write
7268263 Sounds good!
7266767
First off, you're free to interpret the story however you choose--i.e., "Celestia's being an idiot" is perfectly valid, if it's the explanation you find most compelling--but here's what I was shooting for:
Celestia has... low self-esteem? Is that the word? She has a hard time celebrating her victories, for every victory comes with a cost of blood and suffering, which she finds herself fixating on. She also tends to internalize her failures; to paraphrase a Fluttershy quote, "I've made a bad decision, so I'm a bad alicorn." Thus, her failure to save the crystal ponies, or to save Luna, weighs hard on her interpretation of events.
Perhaps a more apt comparison, at least for Celestia's viewpoint, might be V for Vendetta: the titular V dies, but, after he dies, England is freed of the fascist regime, which was his goal--thus, V won, even if he didn't survive to see it. This is how Celestia interprets the event (he got what he wanted, at the cost of his life)--though, as Posie does point out, it's not necessarily a good interpretation.
Several things here:
1) Sombra really does care for his people--but in a backwards, self-defeating way ("I need to oppress them to keep them safe!"). Celestia picked up on this, but misinterpreted it as goodness on his part.
2) Sombra is very good at manipulation, and preyed on Luna's existing desires/insecurities (i.e., her desire for love, and for a family).
3) Luna is an optimist, is very passionate about most everything she does, and is trusting by nature. Thus, she was especially receptive to Sombra's manipulations, and held very hard on to her beliefs that he could change. (Though, these qualities backfire when she is wronged, leading to... well, you'll see
). Plus, he was genuinely good to her--though for all the wrong reasons.
4) Celestia, the cautious pessimist, never really trusted Sombra--but believed that he could be brought around, eventually. At least for a little while.
5) (if this is what you're referring to) the Nightmare Trap was a complete surprise to Celestia, as it was to Twilight; it hadn't even crossed her mind to defend herself against such magic.
Does that help any?
(even if you're not asking for answers, making me define what makes Celestia tick a little more clearly is a good exercise for me as the author)
7268308 This will take me some time to respond to... as I have to address so many point.
Oh my gosh, they're texting.
That is so adorable.
7287926
...oh, holy cow--they are, aren't they? Didn't even think about that!!
Great story so far, and surprisingly under-appreciated.
7264600 I hope you aren't serious. From what I have read, Sombra put up a facade. He even said it himself, he convinced Luna that he was a good king in a bad situation. He tricked her.
7266767
You do realize that you are comparing Discord (a drconequis and literal deity, of a sort) to the unicorn ruler of the Crystal Empire? Sombra was powerful, but without the Crystal Heart to act as a magical reserve, would he have even been able to stand hoof-to-hoof with Celestia in a fight, even one that involved the manipulation of the mind via magic? Although it is an oversight on their part, they cannot be reasonably expected to plan for everything. They have flaws. Additionally, it was pretty clear that they were surprised by the power that he wielded.
7292728 Yes, they do have flaws....
A shame they can't be like me. *Alondro ascends into a transcendent being*
7293741 *watches him go* I hope you brought a parachute and a sweater.
7292567
oo, good catch! I'll go fix that now.
7293753 ALONDRO NEEDS NO SWEATER FOR HE IS PURE ENERGY!!
Well, well, well. First let me congratulate you on spinning this tale. It is very well executed - for example: some conversations with Sombra just "felt like him". You really did well on the whole arc - and I am waiting for a conclusion on this story - it ends and not everything is resolved.
There are things that I would have done differently (Sombra bragging on at the end felt out-of-character), but since it is not mine story, it does not matter. The important thing is that you keep writing, and that I appreciate your story.
Now you may put this small little green thumb-trophy to the rest of thine collection.
Oh man! The feels!!! Way to make me show some liquid pride! Keep it up!
7311079
7309391
Thank you for your very kind words! Unfortunately, I won't be continuing this one. Blog Post. Sorry to disappoint--but, if I may, I think my other fics are also pretty good
Opening with a Shakespeare quote is never a bad sign.
So Twi remained a unicorn in this one? Alright. This looks to be quite epic if the description and everything else I've read of your works is delivered. I do love a good backstory, especially when it's an adventure-centric Celly and Luna backstory.
7158128 Hi Norris.
7354369 To be fair, The Twelfth Night was a comedy.
7356253 I'm aware of that.
Let's see...I snickered at the Ice character's name since I'm Ice. Other than that, nice chapter. The headcanon here is interesting.
7357930
Thanks! I'm glad you're liking it so far