Colours of Dusk

by AlphatheGriffin17

Tense Quiet

"Sister, why have you brought us here?"

Luna gave voice to the question that was on Twilight's mind, and Cadence's as well judging from her confused expression. The three of them, as well as Celestia, were standing atop one of the few remaining undamaged ramparts surrounding the Castle of the Royal Sisters. All of their friends and allies were inside, being taken through a brief drill of their weapons by Shining before the coming battle. The four princesses were the exception, with Celestia having requested to speak to her fellow Equestrian princesses in private shortly after they'd all arrived.

"Apologies, sister. Cadence. Twilight," Celestia said as she turned around, regarding each of them. "I realise there are final preparations to be made and not much time to make them. However, there is a matter I must discuss with the three of you, while we still have the chance. It concerns our battle to come."

"Fair enough, but is there a particular reason we couldn't talk about it in the same room as everyone else?" Cadence asked.

"There is. To put it bluntly, I do not want to risk damaging their morale at such a critical juncture." In response to their confused looks, Celestia sighed wearily. "The matter I wish to discuss concerns Fallen. More specifically, the Demon Beasts he has at his beck and call."

That got all of their attention. Cadence visibly stiffened at the mention of the Beasts, while Luna's ears perked, her expression one of intrigue. Twilight, for her part, paid rapt attention.

Celestia shifted her gaze to all three of them in turn before continuing. "In the wake of all that has transpired, and what is to come, the time for secrets has long passed. I regret keeping this knowledge to myself for as long as I have, for not trusting all of you to be able to handle it. But I cannot dwell on what-ifs. Fallen now wields the powers of six of the Demon Beasts. As Equestria's princesses, it is our responsibility to stop him. However, if we are to stand any chance of survival, let alone victory, then you three must know the nature of the power he now possesses. What the Beasts themselves are capable of."

None of them said anything. The only sound in the wake of the sun princess' words was that of a gust of wind howling through the Forest's trees around and below them. Celestia seemed to sense that they were waiting for her to continue, and proceeded.

"Each Beast, after its defeat, was entrusted to the care of a different people who would serve as that Beast's host-race. I will start with the one Beast all of us are already familiar with. The Scarlet Wolf, otherwise known as the Demon Beast of Wrath. Its current Host, of course, is the unicorn Ray Strike."

Her horn glowed, and on the patchwork stone floor between them a pattern of colours began to glow and take shape. Within moments, a flat image had appeared, hued almost entirely in red. Rough though it was, Twilight immediately recognized the visage of a vicious, blood-coloured wolf. With its solid white eyes, bent legs, pointed ears raised, and its lips parted in a permanent snarl, the image looked as though it were ready to leap off the floor and tear into their throats. Perhaps that was just her imagination, but the similar reactions from both Luna and Cadence told her that she wasn't the only one who thought so.

"The three of you already have an idea of what Wrath's true strength looks like. Even when not fully unleashed and with only half of its full power, Wrath was strong enough to kill the late Queen Chrysalis while utterly annihilating a vast swath of the Everfree Forest in the process. But to go further back…" Celestia looked up at the darkening sky forlornly. "In the times before I was born, when Wrath and the other Beasts roamed freely, it is said that whole cities and forests, entire mountains even, crumbled like sand before its ceaseless rage. I only ever once witnessed the Beast's full, terrible might in person, but even that one experience has haunted my nightmares ever since."

"In the Empire-" Cadence began, her voice suddenly dry and cracking. She took a moment to clear her throat. "Sorry. In the Empire, when he attacked us, Fallen… used Wrath to destroy the Crystal Heart. All it took was one blast, and the Heart just… shattered. Like it was made of glass."

"I vividly recall our struggle against it in the Forest as well," Luna took over, sparing Cadence from dwelling on that painfully recent memory. "It seemed as though whatever defence we tried to muster against it was simply insufficient, while our own attacks barely affected it. Sister, is there any way to negate Wrath's attacks? Any way at all?"

Celestia stood in silence for several moments before shaking her head. "Not to my knowledge, no. I wish I was exaggerating when I say that Wrath's strength is the very definition of overwhelming force. Its stamina is seemingly limitless, and I once witnessed the Beast effortlessly tear through a barrier cast by dozens of skilled unicorn battlemages simultaneously. Even the mightiest shield spell I could muster would not remain standing for long under Wrath's assault." She sighed. "Even if Fallen is not capable of bringing Wrath's full might to bear… the best way to survive an attack from Wrath is to either avoid it entirely, or to simply not be its target."

"Well that's helpful," Luna muttered.

"I am aware that it's not a very positive assessment," Celestia said. "It is worth noting, however, that this extreme level of destructive power is not pervasive among all of the Beasts. In fact, Wrath is truly unique in this respect."

The three of them looked up from Wrath's portrait, surprised. "Really?" Twilight asked. "So… the other Beasts aren't actually as bad as Wrath is?"

"Not quite, but in a manner of speaking," the princess answered. "You see, each of the seven Beasts has what you might call an affinity. A unique magical power which reflects their nature, and which goes well beyond what any conventional magic could hope to replicate. Wrath's power is exactly that: power. It is in Wrath's nature to rage and destroy, and so in terms of pure destructive might, its abilities far outstrip those of the other six Beasts. Depending on how you define the term, it would not be inaccurate to call Wrath the strongest of their number."

The three younger princesses exchanged looks with one another as they absorbed this. "Well… that's good news, right?" Cadence said, forcing a positive note into her voice. "We've already seen what Wrath can dish out. Knowing that none of the other Beasts are that bad is a good thing, isn't it?"

Even Cadence didn't sound convinced of the words that left her lips. Twilight almost winced as the realistic, pragmatic side of her answered.

"But that's only in terms of raw power," she said, frowning in thought. "Based on what we saw up north, I have to assume that what the rest of the Beasts lack in pure strength, they make up for in other ways."

"Unfortunately, Twilight is correct," Celestia nodded. "Make no mistake, all of the Beasts are extremely dangerous in their own rights. Wrath's capacity for wreaking untold devastation is simply the most straightforward of them all." She paused for a moment, a distant look forming in her eyes. "Wrath… was the first of the Beasts to fall, but not because it was the easiest to quell. In the past, out of all the Demon Beasts, Wrath was by far the most overtly hostile to mortal life. The other Beasts may have barely tolerated us, or disregarded us entirely, but Wrath vehemently despised anything that was its lesser. No race was safe from it, but due to our general proximity, ponies of all three sects were its preferred targets. Fear of the Beast's rage played a large part in what drove the ponies of old to come together in the Unification. That sense of unity, and our collective fury at Wrath's constant unprovoked attacks led us to finally retaliate against the Beast, capturing and sealing it away for good."

"An effort which ultimately cost thousands of ponies their lives. And many more down the line, their happiness," Luna added, to which Celestia nodded solemnly.

"Celestia, Princess Luna, please," Twilight pressed. "We don't have time to reminisce."

"Yes, of course. My apologies." Celestia shook herself out of her reveries. "Let us move on. There are still five other Beasts to address. For the sake of ease, I will cover them in alphabetical order." Her horn glowed again, and the image on the floor warped and swirled, gradually shifting in colour from red to green. When the colours stopped moving, the new image depicted a large toad. Twilight had never particularly thought of toads as ugly before, but the way this particular one was portrayed, colored sickly green and covered all over in stubby, bulbous warts, almost made her stomach turn. Her reaction was shared by Cadence, and even Luna to an extent. "The first Demon Beast is referred to as Envy, sometimes called the Pallid Green Toad. The earth ponies have been designated to serve as its hosts."

"I hope it's just your artistic liberties, sister, but this Beast is rather unpleasant to look at," Luna mumbled.

"It's not artistic liberty. I saw it briefly, at the Empire. It actually looks even worse in person," Cadence said with a frown.

"Quite so," Celestia agreed. "Envy is, in some respects, the direct opposite to Wrath. In terms of pure strength and physical ability, it was generally considered to be the weakest of the Demon Beasts. But that is not to say that it was not still a menace." She shifted the image again slightly, this time adding a number of small, familiarly-shaped figures near its feet. From their shape, it only took Twilight a moment to recognize that the smaller figures were supposed to be ponies, shown much smaller in comparison to Envy. To what degree the image was meant to scale, she wasn't sure, and she was afraid to ask. The ponies stood together in a group with various weapons raised in Envy's direction, while the toad's eyes in the image suddenly glowed a brighter shade of green than the rest of its body. Then the image changed again, with the ponies now in slightly-altered positions. Rather than pointing their weapons at the Beast, the ponies seemed to have turned on one another, using their weapons to fight amongst themselves.

"Envy's power is that of uncontrollable spite and jealousy," Celestia went on. "By merely being in close proximity to it, the Beast is able to incite the worst feelings in other creatures, and bring those feelings forcefully to the surface. It is not finely-tuned control, like what Lust can do, but rather emotional manipulation on a much broader scale. Normally calm-hearted warriors and tacticians who exposed themselves to Envy were driven to completely unreasonable behaviour out of sheer malice. Even the closest of friends and most steadfast of allies are turned into bitter enemies under its influence."

"So that's what happened…" Cadence muttered. "Shining's soldiers suddenly began attacking each other after that toad appeared. Nothing he said could get through to them."

"Is there any way to keep this from happening to us?" Luna asked. "We cannot afford to have to watch our backs around one another while also fighting Fallen."

"There is, fortunately, though not a foolproof one" Celestia said. "As I said, Envy's power is based on proximity. Or at least, that is how I know it to function. As I understand it, the Beast was subdued by entrapping it and using the sealing spell from a greater distance. It required considerable resources, and it was not a battle without losses, but there were significantly fewer casualties than with Wrath."

"That's it?" Twilight asked dubiously. "Just keep our distance? You said it uses emotional manipulation. I've read about magic like that. Isn't there some way to subvert it or cancel it out if it happens to one of us?"

"Were it only that simple." Celestia shook her head. "Remember, Twilight, that the magic used by the Beasts is on a level beyond what even our alicorn magic can replicate. Ponies who came under Envy's influence could only be cured by outright removing them from its presence, usually by rendering them unconscious beforehoof. Fallen's limited access to the Beast's power might make it possible for one of us to break Envy's spell, if it becomes necessary, but it's impossible to know that for certain."

"So the only way to avoid being caught by Envy and compelled to fight each other is to not be nearby when it goes off?" Cadence frowned. "That tactic won't be very useful when we're in the middle of a fight."

"Yes, I know," Celestia sighed. "But that is the only way I know of to avoid Envy's influence. We will simply have to keep a very close eye on Fallen, and fall back if we feel he is about to call upon Envy's magic."

It was obvious that none of them were comfortable with that answer, but neither could any of them offer any other ideas. Twilight wracked her brain for an alternative, but if the Beast's power was as absolute as Celestia claimed, then the only other way would be to try and undo the spell after it took hold of one of them, which was a bad plan for obvious reasons. After several moments of silence, Celestia began changing the image on the floor again. This time, it settled on a figure that was more familiar. Though Twilight initially struggled to figure out what the black, bloated shape was supposed to be, she quickly recognized the form of a tusked boar that she'd seen Fallen conjure. Evidently, she wasn't the only one.

"The Beast we saw Fallen conjure in the north," Luna said in recognition. "The one that nullified the Elements' power."

Celestia nodded. "Correct, sister. This Beast is known as the Void Boar, or more commonly, the Demon Beast of Gluttony. Its Host-race is the buffalo."

Twilight's eyes were firmly set upon the boar's picture. Even as she registered Celestia's words, her mind was racing with theories. She thought back to what she'd seen Gluttony do, completely cancelling and draining the Elements' power; to its name - Gluttony - and what that word meant; to even its colour, black; and quickly came to the most logical conclusion.

"I think I already know what Gluttony's power is," she said aloud, garnering the other three's attention. "It can absorb magic, can't it?"

Briefly, very briefly, Twilight thought she saw Celestia smile, but it was gone just as quickly. "Yes, Twilight, that is right. Though more generally, it is not quite limited to just magic. Gluttony is the embodiment of consumption and excess. It can devour anything, and it is never satisfied, no matter what or how much it gorges upon. Soil, stone, trees, water. Even energy, be it magical, living, or what-have-you. Gluttony draws all of these things into itself, absorbing and channelling them to further fuel its endless hunger." She frowned. "Or, in Fallen's case, his mad conquest."

"So if we're not careful, any spells we throw at Fallen can just be eaten by this thing?" Cadence asked incredulously. "I think I'm starting to see how Discord was defeated…"

"Indeed." Celestia had flinched at the mention of Discord, but quickly recovered. "Gluttony will no doubt be one of the more troublesome Beasts to contend with. Any magical assault Fallen can see coming is likely to be absorbed and used to bolster his own reserves of energy."

"Then we shall have to catch him unawares," Luna asserted. "It is a good thing we intend to face him together. So long as we position ourselves well, he cannot keep an eye on all four of us at once. Should he attempt to utilise this boar's power, then Tia and I will engage him in melee until the two of you have a chance to strike."

Cadence and Twilight nodded, both of them grateful for Luna's practical and straightforward mindset. Celestia nodded in agreement as well, and continued.

"The next Beast, as well, will likely prove quite troublesome. For wholly different reasons," she said, the picture swirling once again. This time, the pool of black brightened to nearly the opposite end of the spectrum, being replaced with a single, long streak of golden yellow. The streak formed a spiral around itself until the image finally came to rest, now depicting a coiled snake of some sort - a python, maybe, or possibly a boa, Twilight idly thought - with bright yellow scales that even seemed to somehow gleam in the setting sunlight. "This is the Golden Serpent, better known as the Beast of Greed, assigned to the pegasi to serve as its hosts."

"I struggle to imagine what a creature named Greed might be capable of that puts it on par with the other Beasts," Luna said thoughtfully. "Does it perhaps inspire feelings of avarice in other creatures, similar to Envy?"

"If that were the case, it would not be nearly so problematic for us," Celestia replied, managing a weak smile for her sister. "No, Greed embodies the concept of absolute possession, that anything and everything belongs to it, to do with as it pleases. It has the unnatural ability to turn this cognition into reality. Anything Greed comes into contact with - any matter whatsoever, be it living or inanimate, solid or liquid - can be changed and shaped into whatever it so wills. Its power is that of perfect, unlimited transmutation."

It didn't sound particularly impressive at first, but the more Twilight thought about it, the more her eyes widened at the implications. In the past, she had struggled with even basic transmutation spells. Simply turning an apple into an orange had been beyond her for the longest time. As useful as turning lead into silver would have been for her day-to-day expenses, it was an extremely advanced and complicated branch of magic that she simply didn't have the time to devote to mastering.

But perfect transmutation? The ability to freely and effortlessly turn a static rock into something completely and fundamentally different, like a jug of water or a melon or a living, breathing mouse, and then back again? That sort of thing only existed in works of fiction… except, apparently, it didn't. And it sounded like Greed was capable of doing it on a mass scale as well.

"You're right, Auntie, that is an issue." Cadence ran a nervous hoof through her mane, and Twilight dimly noticed her forehead had a slight sheen of sweat. "How are we going to get around that one? Does that mean we can't risk touching Fallen at all?"

"I… am unsure," Celestia admitted after a moment of hesitation. "Once again, we must be thankful that Fallen cannot channel the Beasts' full powers, else I fear engaging him in any form of melee combat while he wields Greed's abilities would be an impossible prospect."

"It may still be impossible, if he is able to call out this power quickly enough while we are within striking distance," Luna muttered. "This is the opposite problem from Gluttony. Physical attacks could well be rendered moot by this serpent."

"Then… we'll just have to get around it the opposite way we plan to get around Gluttony," Twilight proposed, trying to keep her own voice from wavering. "If he starts transmuting matter, we'll need to pull away and try to catch him off guard with magic."

"Sounds simple, in theory," Cadence muttered. "In practice though…"

Privately, Twilight agreed, but she resolved not to say that out loud. Their odds of victory were already looking slimmer and slimmer by the moment, she didn't want to dampen their spirits any further. Very abruptly, she felt grateful for Celestia's foresight in having this discussion away from all the others. The last thing she wanted was them worrying about her more than they already would be.

"Unfortunately, there are still two more Beasts at Fallen's command," Celestia went on, her horn glowing again. This time the colours whirled and darkened to a shade of deep royal blue, soon settling on an image of a great male mountain lion, depicted mid-roar. Its mane, Twilight idly noticed, was a lighter shade of blue than the rest of its body, and seemed to glow against the stone as if on fire.

"Seeing as Fallen is not in possession of Lust, and you have already been apprised of the great moth's powers, we will skip to the next. This is the Beast of Pride," she said, "colloquially known by the griffins of old as the Cerulean Lion Lord. Its Hosts, naturally, are the griffins themselves."

"Pride…" Twilight hummed to herself in thought as she tried to infer from its name and appearance alone what its power might be, but she found herself coming up short. There were simply too many possibilities, especially with the Beasts' powers seemingly becoming more and more ridiculous with each passing minute.

"I will explain, worry not," Celestia allayed, sensing her vexation. "Pride's nature is delusion. The delusion of oneself, of course, namely in one's own self-importance. But also the delusion of others, to convince them to believe in the reality about yourself that you would have them perceive. That is what Pride represents. Its power is the creation and control of mighty illusions, tricking others into seeing and believing that which is not real."

Cadence took a sharp breath in understanding. "That explains it. I saw Fallen use this one too, briefly. But all it did was roar, and then vanish. Afterwards, Shining tried to go after Fallen, but then his guards started attacking him instead. I'd thought maybe he'd controlled their minds somehow, but…"

"In a way, you could say he did. What are illusions if not a way to indirectly manipulate the mind?" Luna scowled. "Tia, how powerful are these illusions, truly?"

"Extremely," Celestia answered simply. "I never witnessed any of Pride's attacks or its downfall myself, but I understand that it was an extremely difficult and costly undertaking, surpassed only by Wrath. All I know about it though is what I've learned via the Order over the many centuries. Supposedly, the illusions Pride casts are so powerful as to be completely indistinguishable from reality. Colour, sound, scents, even sensations such as heat and movement, all are flawlessly replicated to match whatever reality Pride wishes you to perceive."

Unbidden, Twilight's mind flashed back to the King's Vault, and the illusion of her worst fears that she and Trixie had been trapped in while attempting to explore it. Her home completely destroyed, the scent of smoke and the heat of the flames on her fur. Fallen Soul hunting them down, stalking them around every corner, his blade biting into their flesh. It had all felt so real, even though Twilight had known it to be a mental projection. And yet that was still only the work of ponies. Were Pride's illusions meant to be even stronger still? Would she even be able to tell if she were stuck inside of one? She shuddered at the thought.

"So Fallen has the power to create false realities as well…" Luna was saying, breaking Twilight out of her abstraction. "Well, I at least have some skill in seeing through illusions. Hopefully my experience traversing dreams will enable me to see the flaws in any fabricated mindscape, if I am caught within one."

"I fear Pride's illusions will far surpass any dream a mortal mind could conceive, Luna," Celestia responded, almost automatically, before wincing. She caught Luna's frown and added, "But it is still something to hope for, at least."

"Is there any way to guard against it?" Twilight dared to ask, though she already feared the answer.

"Again, Twilight, not that I know of," Celestia said forlornly. "I don't even know if there's some trigger or way to tell when an illusion has been cast, beyond the presence of Pride itself. The Order was more well-versed in the exact capabilities of each of the Beasts… I wish I had taken more time to learn such details myself, rather than leaving it entirely to them."

"There is nothing for it now," Luna sternly interjected. "We must focus on what we do know, and what we can do."

"Of course…" Celestia sighed for what seemed like the umpteenth time. "Well, let us move on to the final Beast then."

"After everything up to this point, I can't imagine this one possibly being any worse than what we are already forced to contend with," Luna groused.

"Aunt Luna," Cadence uttered helplessly. "I think you just jinxed it."

"What?" Luna baulked. "Absurd. Even I know that is a mere superstition."

Celestia coughed loudly, getting their attention. "Unfortunately, Luna, our niece may be right. The final Demon Beast is perhaps the least dangerous of them all in an overt sense, but that makes it no less troublesome for us." Once again, her horn glowed. Once again, the image on the floor shifted and swirled, with the deep vibrant blue shifting to a dull, dark, lifeless hue of orange. When the colours stopped moving, in place of a lion, there now was the image of a burly cave bear reminiscent of an Ursa Major, curled up and apparently sleeping.

"This," Celestia said, "is the Beast of Sloth. Otherwise called the Drowsing Ursa, or the Slumbering Grizzly. It was entrusted to the dragons for safekeeping."

"No offence to dragons, especially the ones we know. But considering how strong these Beasts all are and how temperamental their race is known to be, I'm honestly surprised they were entrusted with one at all," Cadence put out.

"I confess, we did not intend to, originally," Celestia explained. "However the dragons at the time, under the rule of the Great Dragon Rumble, offered considerable aid toward our efforts at imprisoning the various Beasts. It's safe to say that we may never have ultimately succeeded if not for them. In the end, they deserved to share in the responsibility of keeping the world safe from the threat the Beasts posed, but given their temperamental natures as you stated, they were left with the least volatile of the seven."

"You've mentioned twice now that this 'Sloth' is the least menacing of the Beasts, and yet it is still expected to pose a problem for us? Explain," Luna said.

"Gladly." Celestia answered. "Sloth's nature is that of lethargy and apathy incarnate. It was the final Beast to be sealed away, and in truth the main reason we felt the need to do so was out of the fear that it may eventually choose to retaliate against us for our actions against its kin, or try to free them from their own prisons. But even though Sloth was never known to outright attack any settlements, it was still problematic in a completely different way. You see, its power allows it to manifest its own apathy as a very real, tangible transformation." She tilted her head. "Or intangible transformation, in this case."

"Intangible? What does that…" Cadence's eyes widened. "No… that's how he did it…"

Celestia nodded grimly. "On top of inspiring extreme weariness and indifference in those who spend too much time close to it, Sloth is able to turn itself, and presumably anyone who wields its power, completely or selectively intangible, untouchable by both physical and magical assaults. It does so instinctively in response to impending harm. This ability effectively made it completely invulnerable and impossible to move… which in turn made it quite an annoyance on the occasions when it decided to sleep for years on end atop a main trade route or within a populated area."

Luna actually took a step back as she regarded the image of Sloth with a new degree of wariness. "That… is, indeed, going to be a problem."

Twilight was struggling to comprehend the ramifications of this last Beastly power. Her mind whirled at the words used, the pressure mounting on her shoulders. 'Intangible'? 'Invulnerable'? On top of everything else Fallen currently had at his disposal, he had a completely untouchable, impenetrable defence as well? The odds had seemed stacked against them before, but this… How were they supposed to beat this?

As though she were unaware of the increasing amount of stress her student was under, Celestia spoke again. "And that is the last of them. The Demon Beasts. Now you understand, this is the might that Fallen now wields."

"I understand all right. I almost wish I didn't," Cadence said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Celestia cast her gaze over the three of them, and her expression became something strange. A cross between hope and sorrow. "I am aware of the dread you might be feeling now. I felt it too, when I first learned the true depth of the Beast's powers, when I observed it for myself. But Luna, Cadence, Twilight, take heed. Hope is not lost. Now that you know what the Beasts themselves are capable of, there is one final secret to Fallen's abilities that I must share with you."

"Another one? What remains there to discuss?" Luna asked incredulously.

"Something which may very well mean the difference between our impending victory or defeat," Celestia answered plainly. She looked up wistfully at her slowly-setting sun as it gradually descended over the surrounding trees. "We have Discord to thank for it."

The three younger princesses were surprised at hearing his name from Celestia's mouth, exchanging confused glances with one another. "Discord?" Twilight asked. "What's that supposed to mean? Discord, he's…"

She still didn't want to say it. Even now it didn't feel quite real, knowing that the Lord of Chaos was no longer with them. When Celestia looked back down and met her gaze, she saw the beginnings of tears building in her teacher's eyes.

"Yes Twilight, I know. But his efforts weren't for nothing. Just before he-" she stopped for a moment as her voice broke. She took a deep breath to compose herself before continuing. "...before Discord gave his life, he caught sight of me from afar. And in the moments he had remaining to him, he imparted one final piece of intelligence regarding Fallen's abilities, which I can only assume he managed to glean during their battle."

"And that is?" Luna pressed.

"'He can only use one at a time'," Celestia intoned, her voice wavering slightly. "That is the message Discord wrote for me in the clouds, before he met his end. Given the circumstances, I must assume that he was referring to the Demon Beasts which Fallen currently controls."

'He can only use one at a time'. Those eight small words were enough to set Twilight's mind into overdrive. Her eyes widened, as did Luna's and Cadence's. The latter suddenly brought a hoof to her mouth in thought.

"That… makes sense," she said in wonder. "When Fallen used the Beasts in the Empire, he… he brought them out one after the other, but still only used one of their powers at a time. I'd thought he was just showing them off, trying to intimidate us, but…"

"It's not much," Twilight said slowly, though her brain was now a cavalcade of potential strategies in the wake of this revelation, as she recontextualized everything she'd just learned of Fallen's new powers. "At least it doesn't seem like it, in the grand scheme of things. But… It's a weakness. One that we can try to exploit. We just have to be smart."

"Indeed." Celestia managed a faint smile. "It will still be an uphill battle, but in the end, Discord's sacrifice was not in vain."

"This is wondrous news!" Luna bellowed, her voice carrying into the surrounding forest and causing Twilight to briefly fear that the others still inside would hear her. The look of gloom that had been on the Night Princess' face had been replaced by one of hope… only to be replaced again by a look of anger as she rounded on her elder. "Sister, why on Equus did you not lead with that?! You made it sound as though Fallen would be completely untouchable, with all of the Beasts' powers at his command at once!"

"I… apologise, Lu-Lu," Celestia managed, a tiny grin now tugging at her lips even beneath her sister's glare. "I simply wanted to make sure to give you all proper context of what Fallen is now capable of, before telling you of what Discord had learned."

"Auntie…" Cadence sighed and shook her head. "Sometimes, you really can be just the worst, you know that?"

Twilight said nothing as her three elder princesses exchanged light banter with one another, the pervasive dread of the prior conversation already dwindling away as glimmers of optimism took its place. Part of her wanted to join in, to smile with them. But she couldn't. The weight of everything still felt like it was pressing down on her, trying to suffocate her. They had a small chance against Fallen now, maybe. But it still felt like a very thin thread, one that could snap at any moment if she dared to put too much faith in it.

Have faith.

Those two little words came to her mind, the familiar voice accompanying them succeeding in calming her nerves just slightly. Two little words that should have been a meaningless platitude. And yet, when spoken by the stallion closest to her heart, they'd always managed to set her mind at ease whenever she began to over-fixate on future problems.

She looked over again, and saw Celestia staring at her. She stonily met her teacher's eyes. Did she know what was going through her mind, Twilight wondered. Could she see it, with that timeless gaze of hers?

What felt like several minutes of silence passed between the four princesses. It was tense, but… oddly comfortable, in a way Twilight couldn't really describe. Ultimately, though, it had to come to an end.

"We must begin preparing," Celestia said. Her eyes lingered on Twilight for a moment longer before she turned to look at her sister and niece. "Luna, would you scout the skies near Ponyville? We need to be aware as soon as Fallen approaches."

"Of course," Luna nodded, her wings already extending as she moved toward the edge of the rampart. "The moment I see him, I will teleport back."

"Thank you. Cadence." Celestia paused as Luna took off, the wind buffeting her mane. "You should return to the others. See if you can help Shining in his efforts… or if you can help put some of their minds at ease."

"I was planning on it." Her sister-in-law hesitated, glancing between the two of them. "...what about the two of you?"

Celestia looked back at Twilight again, her expression now unreadable. "We have a task of our own we must attend to. Just the two of us."

She didn't have to explain. Twilight knew where they would be going. So did Cadence. But neither did she have to explain why she wanted it to be just her and Twilight. Again, they all knew.

This talk was a long time coming.

"...I see. Alright then." Cadence exchanged one last look with Celestia, and one more gentle embrace with Twilight, before making her way back into the castle proper.

Celestia waited until she was gone, then turned on her golden heel, gesturing over her shoulder for Twilight to follow her. And follow her she did, their hoofsteps echoing through the quiet evening air.

---

Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia walked in silence away from the Castle of the Royal Sisters. All of their friends and allies were inside, being taken through a very brief drill of their weapons by Shining before the coming battle. The exception was Luna, who was scouting the skies near Ponyville for any sign of Fallen Soul's approach. The moment she saw him, she would teleport back to inform them.

But they had something else to focus on. They were approaching a set of stairs, leading down into the canyon around the plateau the Castle was built on. The jagged cliffs around them seemed to grow the further down they walked.

Twilight tried to keep her gaze straight ahead, but kept glancing at her former teacher. They hadn't spoken a word to each other since they left. They both knew what had to be said. The question was when they would.

They stopped when they reached the bottom of the stairs. When Twilight looked at Celestia, her eyes were closed. Regret was all over her face.

"Twilight," she said softly. "I'm sorry for all that you've had to endure. For what I've put you through."

Twilight didn't respond. Not at first. She knew Celestia was sorry. But right now, that wasn't enough. She'd heard Luna's perspective on the matter but even she had said there were things only Celestia could tell her. That time had come.

"Celestia… why didn't you tell me?" she asked. "Why did you never ask me if I wanted to be a princess?"

The princess sighed. "That question has a rather complex answer, Twilight. May I ask for your patience while I explain?"

Twilight nodded. While she still held some resentment towards Celestia, the worst of her anger had gone for now. A part of her still cared for her mentor and wanted to make some kind of reparations. If that was possible.

Celestia was quiet for a long moment before she spoke again.

"I'm old, Twilight. Very old. I've learned many lessons over the millennia I've ruled Equestria. A harsh one is that, wish though I might, I cannot be there for all of my subjects. I tried once and… paid a steep price. It is a careful balance to maintain. Too much aid and there comes an unhealthy reliance. Too little and needless suffering occurs. It took me many years to find that balance and even then, I sometimes make mistakes. Even so, I try to apply it where possible in my rulership. Including with you." She held Twilight in her gaze. "From the moment I saw you, I knew you had the potential to be something remarkable. I believed that helping you become a princess was the best way to realise the potential I saw in you. In guiding you along the path to become a princess, I thought it would be for the best if you learned certain lessons and earned achievements largely on your own, with only a little guidance from me. I see now that the way in which I did this… was wrong."

"But why me?" she asked. "Why should I be a princess? You've managed Equestria for so long, what would you need me for?"

Celestia gazed upward. "Because in most of the time I've ruled, Twilight, I have been alone. I made mistakes that cost me a sister, an entire group of ponies their home and many, many others besides. Even when my sister was returned to me, I began to feel that Equestria had been entrusted in the hooves of just one for far too long. In you and your friends, Twilight, I saw something different. A better form of friendship and harmony, with ponies from various walks of life having an opportunity to have their say in the ruling of the land, not to mention forming stronger bonds beyond ponies. Try as I might, I cannot help but feel that I've failed to represent the ideals we hold dear. I hoped that you might do a better job where I have lacked."

Twilight stared in astonishment. "You… you really believed I would make a better ruler than you?"

"With more time and guidance, yes," she said. "But in this vision, I overlooked the most important thing: you, Twilight. You're right. I did what I thought would be best for you. I believed that in my role as your teacher. You said you loved me like a mother. I confess that, though it wasn't my initial intention, I've come to feel the same for you, as the daughter I never had. Perhaps that love blinded me, made me want to keep you by my side in some way. I'm sorry that I didn't take you into my proper confidence, Twilight. If being a princess is not what you wish, then I vow to do all that I can to undo what has been done. I can't promise anything, but you have my word on that."

Of all the answers she could have given, Twilight had never expected this. The idea that not only did Celestia make her a princess, but that she envisioned not only Twilight, but also her friends ruling as she did, was staggering. In a way, she appreciated that Celestia had such faith in her abilities. It didn't make everything better in the way she'd gone about it, but even so, it helped a little.

Her final words made her think, look back at her wings. A few hours ago, she would have been happy to get rid of them. Everything they represented made her stomach feel awful. In all honesty, she was still full of dread about what was to be expected from her as a princess. Even though it was rather slim, at least she had some semblance of a choice now.

"Let's get through this first," said Twilight. "When this is all over, I'll be able to properly think and make a decision about what I want. For now, let's put an end to Fallen's plans. Too many have been hurt or killed already."

Celestia nodded. "I quite agree. Thank you, Twilight. Now, let's see if this amounts to anything."

They resumed their course towards where the Tree was located. Twilight felt a sense of trepidation growing. She was about to witness the place where the Elements of Harmony had come from. The objects that had brought her and her friends together, solidifying bonds she wouldn't want to break for anything.

They neared a cave, obscured by thick vines of ivy. She could feel something in the ground. Something humming with magical power that sent tingles across her whole body. A dim light glimmered through the gaps in the vines. She and Celestia looked at one another, sharing a moment of excitement. The revealing of a great secret before Celestia dispelled the vines.

The sight was truly amazing. It was indeed a tree, but unlike any she had ever seen. It was like a star had fallen from the sky and taken root in the ground. Radiant beams of light shimmered in a trunk made from deep-blue crystal. The branches sprouted from it like the points of that star, with dangling vines and glowing orbs that grew from them. They ended in six-sided, empty slots. Like something had been removed from them.

Celestia levitated the box that contained the Elements, opening it for Twilight.

"Do we really have to give them up?" she asked.

"I understand your reluctance, Twilight. It was quite something when Luna and I first found them." She looked fondly at the necklaces and crown. "We had never seen such items before and were quite amazed that they gave us the power to defeat Discord."

"Good thing that they did," said Twilight. "How did you find out about the Tree?"

"Starswirl, though not in the most direct manner. He could be like that sometimes. Only offering the vaguest of hints and help with things, leaving bread crumbs for us to find the…" Celestia trailed off, looking thoughtful. "Now that I say it out loud, I realise how much of an impact he had on my own style of teaching and ruling."

Twilight giggled. "I guess so. Wait…" She looked back at the Tree. "If Magic goes in the centre and the other Elements go at the ends of the branches, what about Unity? There's nowhere for its jewels to go."

"Unity wasn't found at the Tree like the others. It was shattered and broken, gathered by Foresight in his final years before his death. At the time, he wasn't believed and was thought to have developed an unnatural fixation on something that didn't exist." Celestia's eyes lingered on the silver necklace. "We had no way of knowing, other than the word of his visions."

"But it must have come from the Tree," reasoned Twilight. "If not, where did it come from?"

Celestia shook her head. "I'm afraid I can't answer that. Only Foresight truly believed in its existence and he was far from coherent on the matter towards the end. For now, let's focus on what we can do."

She removed the Elements, bar Unity and sent them towards the Tree. The moment they touched, the six-sided slots changed to fit their new shapes. The centre opened to admit the Element of Magic, closing around it.

The Elements flashed and the glow of the Tree became brighter. Twilight held her breath, waiting for what would come next. Even Celestia watched with keen interest.

Seconds passed. Then a minute. Two minutes. The Tree maintained its glow and so did the Elements, but otherwise there was nothing.

"Maybe… maybe it's a delayed reaction," suggested Twilight. "We have to wait a little longer or maybe we missed something with Unity. See if the Tree will take it."

Silently, Celestia took it out and moved it to the Tree. The jewels remained in their silver housing. The Tree didn't react to their presence, nor did the jewels of Unity. No new slots opened up or telltale glow appeared elsewhere. Nothing.

"It would seem the place of Unity isn't with the Tree," said Celestia.

Twilight frowned. "But how can that be? The other Elements need Unity to focus their power and refine the magic. Why wouldn't the Tree itself need it?"

"As much as we do know about the Elements, there is much we don't. The Tree even more so," said Celestia. "For now, we will rely on the original plan for Fallen and the Beasts. We should return to the others and continue our preparations for battle."

That formed a pit in Twilight's stomach. She had really hoped the solution would present itself in some way at the Tree or with the Elements. Some powerful magic that could end it all, without any more risk or danger to her friends. The fact they had to face that danger again…

"Princess?" she blurted out. "I'm… I'm scared."

Celestia gazed at her for a moment, in apparent surprise. Then that familiar, comforting smile returned.

"In all honesty, Twilight, so am I. But perhaps…" She opened one of her wings. "Perhaps we can be scared together."

If Twilight had been told years ago that Celestia experienced fear, she would have scoffed at such a notion. But now, seeing it was not only believable but also… oddly comforting.

Despite all that had happened between them, all those feelings she still had, Twilight found herself approaching Celestia and accepting her hug.

It didn't make everything better. But it was a good start.

Comments

[Auto-Buscus]

The Tree of Harmony… I wonder where Unity is supposed to go if not there.

Glad Twilight and Celestia have finally talked things over. It was so heartwarming to see them say they saw each other as mother/daughter figures.

And it looks as though Fallen’s victory isn’t as guaranteed as he’d previously thought. Now the princesses know about it. Thank you Discord…

[Theresa]

The only problem with Celestia idea is that it's temporary because twilight friends aren't alicorns and will die unlike twilight who will be forced to keep going on alone. The problem just ends repeating. Celestia should have done what she could to make sure her sister was appreciated instead shoving off on twilight.

[AlphatheGriffin17]

11476620
Yeah immortality is a problem, isn’t it?