> Lost to the Sands
>  by GigaBowser
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Phase 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Phase 1


In the vast, seemingly endless and nearly empty expanse of outer space, there is a single, small, green and blue planet. It sits among thousands of its cousins in the cosmos, standing out with its one unique characteristic; there is life upon it. On this small yet vibrant planet, which contains many continents and thousands of miles of inhabitable land, there is one nation named Equestria. Within the expansive and diverse population of this largest nation, there exists a single city perched on a mountaintop, known as Canterlot. The largest city in the nation, and the capital, it hosts a single, impressive castle.

In the center of this madness and mayhem, standing as a small, seemingly insignificant speck amongst the vast universe, is a single pony. Her name is Celestia; Princess of Equestria and immortal Goddess of the Sun.

From her place within the halls of Canterlot Castle, she controls not only the nation of Equestria, but much of the rest of the planet through sheer influence and leadership, as well as the very sun itself. Ponies everywhere look up to and revere her, as do many other denizens of the world. She is seen as a figure of guidance and a beacon of hope, a pony that one can look up to in times of trouble or despair.

She is the head of government for the nation, as well as for the city of Canterlot itself. And, being the most powerful nation and city in the whole world, is able to help other nations and peoples grow and prosper alongside. Through sheer hard work and determination, Celestia has helped guide Equestria, and the rest of the lands, out of the dark ages and into an era of prosperity and happiness. 

However on some days, especially days like today, only one thing seemed to ring true in Celestia's mind.

She was a very busy pony.

"Your Highness?"

Celestia looked up from the mountain of paperwork occupying the desk in her office and glanced to the doorway. A white unicorn stallion wearing glasses with thick frames and carrying a clipboard was glancing in at her. She smiled at the pony, who was one of her many assistants, and replied, "Yes?"

"The Minister of Education has requested your audience," he answered in a professional tone.

The Princess' radiant smile fell into a small frown. "She has? Why?"

"She said she had something fairly urgent to discuss with you about the upcoming school year and that she'd like to speak with you at your earliest convenience."

Celestia returned her gaze to the desk. Two tall stacks of paper sat upon it, surrounded by various other papers, each one filled to the brim with complex writing and diagrams. She had just sat down only moments ago, having finally found free time to look over the newly proposed budgets. It was only 1 o'clock in the afternoon, but her day had already been packed full of meetings with ministers and government workers.

Shaking her head and putting on a smile, she rose from her seat and walked towards the doorway. "Of course. I will see her now."

The stallion nodded and replied, "Very good. I shall escort you then, Your Highness."

It was a fairly short walk through the glorious hallways of Canterlot Castle to get to the wing housing the Ministry of Education. The Princess made this journey, accompanied by her escort. A small sigh escaped her lips as they walked. It had been an extremely busy day today, even from the very beginning, and this meeting was threatening to make it even longer and busier. Her schedule was usually packed enough as it was.

However, Celestia was a hard worker at heart. If somepony needed her help, she would always do her best to give them the assistance they desired. A pony in her position could easily delegate others to do her work for her, but that was not the kind of leader she wished to be. A part of her philosophy was to dive into any problem and try to fix it with her own hooves. She had always felt that doing so made her a more approachable and caring ruler, while also giving her the satisfaction of actually accomplishing her goals.

This did, however, make her very, very busy.

"Here we are, your highness." The two ponies stopped before a door marked with a distinctive green symbol on the front. They had passed through a door with a larger, identical symbol earlier, and said symbol could be seen all around. It was the mark of the Ministry of Education.

Celestia turned to the pony beside and gave him a warm smile. "Thank you, Pocketwatch."

The stallion gave a short bow to her before turning and walking away.

The Princess then raised her hoof and gave the door a push. She leaned her head inside and regarded the purple pony seated at the large desk occupying the room beyond. "You wished to see me, Shooting Star?"

The mare looked up from her work, startled. Her eyes widened when she saw who was standing in the doorway. "Oh! Your Highness! I wasn't expecting you to come all the way out to my office. I- I would've happily come to see you."

Celestia smiled and held up her hoof. "Ah, no need to worry. It was my pleasure." Shooting Star was new to her job, having been recently elected after her incumbent had retired. Most of the other ministry members and government workers were used to Celestia coming to them instead of vice versa. The Princess believed that it was important to leave her stuffy office and be out and about in the castle as often as she could.

"Now then," she spoke, stepping towards the mare's desk, "what was it you wanted to discuss?"

"Oh!" Shooting Star sifted through the papers on her desk before finding a stack held together with a heavy staple and presenting it to the Princess. "This was just dropped on my desk this morning. It is a thorough report written and researched by our ministry, and it outlines how students have fared in Equestrian schools for the year of 2010." She flipped forward a few pages. "Now, as you can see by these graphs…"

Celestia sat and patiently listened to Shooting Star as she expressed concerns about the average grades of Equestria's students, the amount of available teachers, and the budget being allocated to building new schools and repairing older ones. Celestia remained quiet for the most part, listening intently and offering short comments when she had something to contribute. 

The two conversed for a little over an hour. Shooting Star had lots to say about the state of Equestria's education system and had many ideas for how it could be improved. She definitely had some valid concerns and interesting ideas, and so Celestia gave her full attention as the mare spoke.

"…I realize that this might necessitate an adjustment of the federal budget, but the children are our future and we need to do everything we can to help them," Shooting Star said in conclusion.

Celestia nodded her head. "I understand your concerns, Shooting Star," she spoke, "Perhaps you can finalize a plan or draft up a new way to spend what current budget we allocate for you, and I'll do my best to integrate it. Although I will definitely see if it's at all possible to provide the Ministry of Education with more funding."

Shooting Star smiled. "Thank you, Your Highness. I promise that any money given to us will not be wasted."

The Princess chuckled. "I trust you, Shooting Star. Have a good day."

Ten minutes later and Celestia was back in her study, staring at the two large stacks of paper before her once again. The proposed budgets had not moved or magically worked on themselves while she'd been gone. She glanced up at the clock. Only an hour remained before dinner time. Hopefully, as long as nopony else interrupted her, she would be done with this in time to attend.

She levitated the first paper off of the stack on the right. These were two very different proposals about how Equestria was to use its funds in the upcoming year, and Celestia was supposed to choose between them. However, she was determined to find a middle ground between the two, using the pros and eliminating the cons of both. It was a lot more work, but she was willing to put in overtime if it would help her country prosper and flourish.

She sighed and put on a determined face. "Let's get to work then…"

Celestia toiled away for the entire hour, pouring over the two proposals. She carefully scrutinized and analyzed them, taking out a separate roll of parchment to create a pros and cons table. Her mind was focused and her determination was strong as she worked. She refused to pay attention to anything else in the world around her, focusing solely on the work before her so that she could get it done, and get it done well.

She probably would've lost track of time and continued working had her clock not chimed. Her task very nearly completed, she glanced at it and saw that it was dinnertime. Smiling in anticipation, Celestia neatly stacked the proposals back into their original piles and set aside all of her work for later. She was very close to finishing it, but it was time for dinner with Luna. The rest would have to wait.

Standing up from her desk, she trotted towards the door. Before she could open it, however, somepony on the other side knocked.




***




In the grand banquet hall there were two tables. One, occupying most of the room, was very long and seated up to 50 ponies at once. At each end of the table was an ornately decorated throne; one in yellows and one in deep blues. It was studded with gems and surrounded by intricately designed chairs, fitting in with the motif of the rest of the hall. The hall itself was decorated with paintings and murals along most of its walls, depicting various stunning scenes from Equestrian history, and beautifully designed pillars and statues sitting along the walls and corners.

The other table, however, was much smaller and simpler. At most it could probably fit four ponies, although it was never used for that many. In fact, it was currently occupied by a single pony.

Young Princess Luna sat at the table with a frown on her face. A large, mouth-watering meal of tomato bisque, a salad filled with delicious ingredients, steamed bread and a small cake for dessert sat before her. It was extremely tantalizing and it was driving her crazy, despite the fact that the bisque and bread were now ice-cold and the cake was getting dry.

The doors at the back of the room popped open and a dark blue unicorn stuck his head out. When he saw the Princess sitting at the table he muttered under his breath and stepped out, carrying behind him with his magic an exact replica of the meal currently on the table. The only difference being the visible wisps of steam. Working with expert speed and precision, the unicorn swiftly removed the cold meal from the table and replaced it with the fresh one in the span of only ten seconds. 

Luna sighed and stared at the hot, steaming dinner. That had been the fourth time the chefs had re-made the meal and replaced it. Nearly fifty minutes had gone by since Luna had sat down, and she was absolutely starving. 

However, no matter how loudly her stomach growled and no matter how much it ached, she refused to touch her dinner until Celestia arrived. Looking at the clock, though, Luna was just about ready to give up.

After a few more minutes of utter silence, the doors of the dining hall finally burst open. A very weary Celestia cantered in. "Hello, Luna," she spoke tiredly, "I'm so sorry to have missed dinner, but something suddenly came up." She turned her head towards the kitchen. "Pepper Spice?"

Hearing his name, the unicorn poked his head back out. "Yes, Your Highness?"

"To go, please."

"Of course, Your Highness."

Luna's face fell and her wings drooped. "You're not even going to stay?"

Celestia returned her gaze to Luna and gave her a sad smile. "I am sorry, dear sister, but I simply don't have the time. I'm due to finish my assessment of the budget and then I have to meet with the Ministry of Finance, and…" She trailed off. "This was the only free time I had, and I'm so sorry to have missed it."

Luna gave an empty sigh and turned her gaze to the floor. "What happened this time?" she asked, a hint of bitterness in her voice.

Her older sister let out an exasperated huff. "There was another Parasprite outbreak. They arrived with absolutely no warning in Dusty Hoof; that small village out in the middle of the dry plains. They ate all of the village's crops and, to make matters worse, their water tower. Dusty Hoof was already struggling financially as it was, so this is bad. I had to immediately come up with a plan of support for them. I worked as hard as I could, Luna, but it was a lot of work."

"I know…" Luna muttered, "I know you're busy. It's just…this is the third time this week that you've missed dinner." She turned her gaze up to her older sister and said, "This is the only time out of the whole day that we really get to talk and spend time with each other. This is supposed to be our time."

Celestia frowned. Luna was right; breakfast was spent with the entire royal family and some of Canterlot's highest elite, and both sisters' busy schedules kept them occupied for the rest of the day. An hour together at dinner was all they got.

"I was hoping we could talk about…" Luna continued, "Well, you know…about me. I thought you could give me more advice about modern Equestrian life. I still need some help, Celestia. I'm not yet fitting in, and I want to do my part and help out, but…"

The Princess shook her head sadly and extended one of her glorious wings, wrapping her younger sister in a warm hug. The smaller blue alicorn with her short, sky-blue mane nuzzled her big sister in the embrace. "I'm sorry, Luna. Really, I truly am. If there was something I could do, believe me, I'd do it. But the world's not perfect, and neither am I. I can try my best, but in the end, that's all I can do."

Luna just stared at the floor. 

Celestia nuzzled her affectionately. "Enjoy your dinner, Luna. It looks delicious. I promise we'll spend some quality time together soon."

Luna gave a small smile and nuzzled her sister back. "All right, Tia…"

Celestia gave her a small kiss on the forehead before standing up to leave. "I love you, Luna."

"I love you too…"

"Okay. I'll see you soon."  Celestia then turned to leave, looking forward to the hot meal she'd get to enjoy in her room. She frowned as she left, though. Luna was right to feel dejected; the two hadn't spent much time together in the past few months, and Celestia's attendance at dinner had been less than perfect. She shook her head, saying to herself, It's out of my hooves. I'm simply too busy.

Five minutes later and she was back in her office, facing down the two imposing budget proposals. Only a dozen or so pages remained in each stack, and an impressive set of diagrams and tables was evolving on a third set of papers between them. Despite the long, arduous process, Celestia was growing more and more confident that she'd successfully captured most of the pros and eliminated most of the cons. Her own proposal was going to be spectacular. 

Another long hour passed, during which Celestia was eventually able to say with finality that she was satisfied with her work on the budget. She had then personally delivered it to the Ministry of Finance, after which she'd set the sun. As darkness began to shroud the land and her sister, elsewhere, raised the moon, Celestia returned to her study and took a look at her schedule. 

Her expression fell slightly as she realized that she still had one more duty to perform today, after which it would be time for her to go to sleep. Fatigue was beginning to set in already, but it was nothing that Celestia couldn't handle. She'd been through many busy days in the past; it was simply part of the job.

Still, she put on a determined face. "Let's get this done…"




***




Finally, after a long day of work, Celestia lay her head down upon her pillow. Her golden shoes, necklace and crown were resting on her dresser nearby and her body was tucked warmly underneath blankets adorned with depictions of the sun.

"Ahh..." she breathed, grateful that she was finally able to relax. Her stamina was ultimately running out, and so laying cosily in her bed was absolutely heavenly. Celestia smiled as she got comfortable. The satisfaction of a day's work well done was washing over her, and the warm embrace of her covers was only adding to the pleasure. 

Her eyes opened slightly and she gazed out the window of her bedroom. The calming, silvery glow of her sister's moon was shining through. Seeing it made her frown as thoughts of today's dinner returned to her.

She let out a small sigh, feeling bad about what had happened. Though she tried to tell herself that it wasn't her fault and she had simply been too busy doing her duties, she couldn't help but have sympathy for her younger sister. Celestia understood quite clearly what she was feeling.

"I need to make it up to her…"

So, Celestia decided, right then and there, that she would find a way to set aside some time tomorrow just to spend with her sister. To make up for missing so many dinners, she would not only show up to tomorrow's dinner, but would also make sure she was able to enjoy quality time alone with her sister as well.

It wasn't going to be easy to completely revise her schedule. She would probably have to alter her agendas for multiple days in advance, moving around duties and meetings in order to accommodate time with her sister, but it would be worth it.

Giving a small smile, Celestia began to fall asleep.




***




"Your Highness, I'm not sure we're going to be able to move that."

"Well, we're going to have to, so make it happen, Time Piece."

Celestia was getting frustrated with her royal agenda-keeper. The mare was proving to be extremely hesitant and reluctant to change anything about her perfectly constructed schedule. 

"Your Highness…"

"Time Piece, this is very important to me. I wish to spend some time with my dear sister. I miss her and I can tell that she misses me. This is only one change I wish to make."

"But…"

"Make…this…happen."

Time Piece groaned and returned to flipping through The Princess' agenda. There was silence in the room for a few minutes as Time Piece gazed over the timetables, making a series of notes on a clipboard as she did. Celestia sat and waited patiently.

Eventually, Time Piece spoke up again. "Okay…Your Highness, I think I have a solution. If the mayor of Manehatten is willing to reschedule, then I'll be able to find you an hour and a half of free time at 2:30 in the afternoon. Is that acceptable?" 

Celestia responded with a glowing smile. "That is perfect, Time Piece. Thank you. And I'm sure that the mayor won't mind; she and I go way back."

"Very well, Your Highness. I shall inform you if anything changes."

"Excellent. Thank you, Time Piece. You are dismissed."

The pegasus pony nodded and immediately departed.

Celestia grinned in satisfaction. "Perfect…" she whispered to herself. This was sure to make up for yesterday, and perhaps even the past month. Today, they would be able to have two and a half hours together if dinner were included. Luna was sure to be quite pleased when she found out.

The Princess then lit up her horn and levitated her morning brief over to her. It was a single sheet of paper she received each and every morning that briefly outlined the status of the nation and brought her up to date on current events. She read over it, seeing that things were going fairly well today. The relief efforts for the parasprite-ravaged village were already making an impact, there were no major crimes or emergencies occurring anywhere, and Celestia's newly proposed budget was already being approved by many Ministry members.

Satisfied, she replaced the brief on her desk and was about to step out and make her way to the dining hall for breakfast when something caught her eye. Turning back, she saw a wisp of green flame phase through her window and make its way towards her. It stopped before her, spiralled for a few moments, and then formed into a neatly tied scroll, which she caught with her magic.

She smiled, holding the letter from Twilight Sparkle. "Ah, my faithful student, what a wonderful way to brighten my morning," she spoke. 

Not long ago, she had sent her personal student and protégé, Twilight Sparkle, to Ponyville, hoping she'd make some friends and learn about the magic of friendship. The young unicorn had been quite successful in both of these endeavours, and now routinely sent Celestia reports on what she'd learned.

Twilight's letters always brought a smile to The Princess' face. It was always so heart-warming to read about how much fun Twilight was having and seeing what she'd learned. Glancing at the clock, Celestia saw that she was still a few minutes early for breakfast and decided that she had enough time to read it. Using her magic, she removed the ribbon and unrolled the scroll.



Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned an important lesson about helping your friends. If a friend is asking you for help or assistance then it is your duty as their friend to help them out to the best of your ability. No matter what the issue, no matter what the solution, not helping out your friends is a quick way to lose them.

This past week, my friend Rainbow Dash had a problem that, honestly, I wasn't sure I’d be able to do anything about. I was almost positive that, despite my best efforts, I wasn't going to be any help. But that didn't mean I was going to ignore her and let her fend for herself. Even just being there for your friends is sometimes all the help they'll need.

Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.



Celestia looked up from the letter and smiled. "What an excellent lesson," she said, reflecting on her student's words. It was always a pleasure to Celestia to see just how much Twilight was learning and just how successfully she was making new friends. Each and every letter showed real progress, and Celestia could not have been prouder.

She returned her gaze to the scroll, seeing that something else was written near the bottom. She began to read it.



P.S.

On a less formal note, I would like to ask you something, Princess. Would you like to stop by the Ponyville Library some time? I've been doing a lot of academic studying lately. Maybe we could have an all-night study session, just like we used to? Any day of the week is fine for me.

Just let me know. I'll be here.



Celestia placed the letter down on her desk, a mix of heart-warming and sadness on her face. "Oh, Twilight…" she whispered, "You know I'd love to, but…" She punctuated her thought by looking at the clock again. Seeing that she was running out of free time, she quickly grabbed a quill and a fresh sheet of parchment from her desk and levitated them behind her as she stood and walked out the door. The alicorn moved through the halls heading towards breakfast in the dining hall, writing on the parchment as she did so.



My faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.

Once again, your report outlines an excellent lesson about friendship. You have done outstanding work yet again, and I couldn't be more proud of you.

As to your request, I'm afraid I must decline. I am simply far too busy, and have no free time whatsoever in the next seven days. I offer my apologies. I know that we haven't had a lot of time to spend together as of late, but it's simply out of my control. 

I look forward to hearing from you again, and I shall try my best to find some free time to come visit you soon.

Princess Celestia.



The Princess sighed wistfully. Ever since she had sent Twilight to Ponyville, the two had been seeing less and less of each other. Celestia's schedule had picked up, and the distance was simply too much of a factor. She definitely missed seeing her star pupil, and could tell that Twilight missed her as well.

As she reached the dining hall, she lit up her horn and engulfed the rolled up parchment in green flames, which flew down the hallway and out of sight. Putting on a bright, regal smile, Celestia pushed open the doors to the dining hall and entered, right on time. Everypony else was just getting to their seats. They all took a moment to bow to their Princess as she entered, and remained that way until Celestia commanded them to rise.

As she passed by Luna, who was seated at one end of the long, rectangular table, her sister gave her a warm smile. "Thank you so much!" the younger alicorn spoke as Celestia passed by, headed for her seat at the opposite end. 

The Princess smiled back at her sister and said, "My pleasure, Luna."




***




Somewhere within the castle walls, there was a large, highly presentable room with windows looking out across the city, shining floors and pristinely polished golden columns and highlights, and a large, round table. It was regarded as one of the most important places in the whole castle, and the level of security surrounding it reflected this. It was the room Princess Celestia used solely for meetings with foreign diplomats and leaders of other nations, and it was always kept in tip-top shape. Celestia was no fool, and realized the importance of making a good impression upon others in high power, and so the room was decorated lavishly and cleaned every single day.

The large griffon standing in this room had to admit that he was impressed. He stood tall, white feathers with red highlights on his chest and eyes, deep brown wings and a sunny-brown backside. He wore a heavy military jacket, covered with an almost ridiculous amount of medals and honours. Despite beginning to show signs of his age, the griffon stood proud, wearing a confident smile.

The large doors to the room slowly opened, the griffon turning to face them, and a royal guard dressed in gold armour stepped through. "Presenting Her Royal Highness of Equestria, Princess Celestia." The griffon grinned as, moments later, the tall, impressive form of Celestia herself walked through the door and into the room.

She was noticeably irritated and was almost glaring at the griffon. She approached him with a huff and stared down at him. The griffon did not falter or shrink back, gazing back up at the Princess bravely. "Ah, so good to see you, Your Highness," he spoke in a rough, but powerful voice, "So glad you could take this opportunity to speak with me."

Celestia stared at him in silence for a moment before she eventually gave a groan heavy with frustration. "This had better be important, Lord Razor Wing. I had to cancel something very important to make this last-minute meeting with you work."

As the two took their places around the table, Celestia drooped her wings and gazed downward. She whispered something quiet, under her breath, that the griffon did not hear.

"Sorry, Luna…"

"Princess Celestia, I assure you, this is most important," Lord Razor Wing said with a sly grin that irked the alicorn. 

Celestia stared disapprovingly at him. The two were seated two places away from each other around the large table in the grand meeting room. The only other occupants were Celestia's two personal guards standing at the ready near the door. Before them on the table was a map of the world that was kept in the room at all times.

The two stared at one another. Razor Wing had dropped his smirk and replaced it with a cold, calculating look. Despite this, however, he still somehow appeared smug and haughty. He held his sharp talons clasped together before him, resting his elbows on the table and seemingly revelling in the awkward silence. 

Celestia continued to stare at him, a hint of contempt eking into her expression. The griffon's utterly untimely, unannounced arrival had completely ruined her plans to spend time with Luna. Obviously, the Lord seated before her had absolutely no knowledge of this; it had clearly not been his intent to ruin such an important event. Regardless of these facts, Celestia felt a certain undeserved loathing for the creature that was seated near her.

"I have a very tight schedule, Lord Razor Wing," Celestia spoke, trying to maintain a level of neutral professionalism in her voice, "so if there are no objections from you, I propose we skip formalities and get down to the business of why you're here."

Razor Wing chuckled. "Of course, Your Highness." He then proceeded to gesture with his talon to the map that was before them; specifically to Equestria's extreme north. "Behold our two nations," he spoke with grandeur, as if reciting a carefully rehearsed speech, "The glorious nation of Equestria, and the proud Kingdom of the Griffons." 

Celestia followed his talon and let her gaze rest upon a jagged line that represented the border between the two nations.

"Though the focus of much fighting and many disagreements, not the least of which being the war between our two nations," Razor Wing continued, "it has nonetheless been shaped and moulded by peace between griffons and ponies."

Celestia looked back up at him, nearly cocking an eyebrow at his grandiose behaviour. "Yes, I'm well aware of the history," she spoke, "After the war ended, a quick border was drawn up between the two nations which was slowly changed and amended in the following years to serve both nations' interests."

Razor Wing flashed her a grin. "Ah, yes. That is precisely why I'm here, in fact." He then reached into a pocket on his outfit and retrieved a black permanent marker, which he uncapped. He then leaned over the table before him, bringing the marker down and tracing a thick line across the map.

Celestia blinked. She couldn't recall having given the griffon permission to deface their map, much less permanently alter it. Ultimately it was of no consequence as they had many more maps stored elsewhere, but she couldn't help feel a little taken aback.

The line he drew followed the existing border fairly closely, but there were a few locations where it deviated. Celestia stared at what he'd done in an absolute lack of comprehension. "What is this?"

"This," he spoke matter-of-factly, "was the state of our border before the war."

Celestia gazed back down at the line, a faint recognition dawning on her.

"As you can see, there are a few key differences," he continued to say, "There was the small griffon village of Kral that burned down and was rebuilt by ponies. We graciously awarded it to you. Conversely, yet likewise, we built a new settlement on pony land during the war which was awarded to us. Most deviations are due to agreements like this, with which both sides are happy with."

Celestia jumped slightly as Razor Wing suddenly slammed his talon onto the table, pointing one of his claws to a particular, relatively small deviation in the line. "But this, Your Majesty, is why I am here today." 

She gazed at where he was pointing. The other deviations she had recognized, but this one was unknown to her. It was so small, nearly unnoticeable. It was basically a long, thin triangle of land that was in Equestria now, but Razor Wing's drawing of the old border showed that it used to be Griffon territory. 

"This," Razor Wing proclaimed, "is the only remaining piece of land that had shifted during the war that has not yet been accounted for. Today, the glorious Griffon Kingdom seeks to rectify this."

Celestia did not look at him. She kept her gaze on the defaced map. "This?" she questioned, "It's very small. How much area does this location contain?"

"It is approximately 290 square miles."

Celestia pursed her lips. "That's hardly anything worth fighting over…You're sure your drawing of the original border is accurate?"

"I assure you, Your Highness. To my understanding, ponies captured a much larger portion of our land, and then we managed to reclaim most of it. The war ended before the border could be set exactly where it once was. however."

"I see…" Celestia paused. She leaned in, glancing closer at the map. "What's in this area exactly? I see that it's near the city of Anchorhoof."

Razor Wing reached into his pocket again and said, "I can answer that, Your Highness. In preparation for this meeting, we commissioned an aerial photograph be taken of the area. As you can see, it is untouched nature."

Celestia looked up and saw that Razor Wing was holding a photograph out towards her. She picked it up with her magic and gazed at it. A few marks had been made on it, showing the existing and original borders. As Razor Wing had said, the area was mostly filled with trees and grasslands. She closely studied the image.

"We are aware of how busy you are," Razor Wing was continuing, "and so we hope to make this as painless as possible for both parties. Since the area is relatively small, we believe that, should this land be handed over to us, it would be very simple and without much trouble."

Though she was listening to him, Celestia kept her eyes on the photograph.

"A delegation is currently staying at the Griffon Embassy in Canterlot, so if you could find the time fairly soon to-"

"There!"

Razor Wing blinked. "I…beg your pardon?"

Celestia placed the photograph on the table and leaned down, pointing to a particular spot on it with her horn. "Right there. There's a collection of houses."

Razor Wing leaned in and inspected the photograph for himself. "Ah yes…" he muttered after a minute, "So there is."

"This land is not uninhabited, and at the moment I am not aware of who its inhabitants are. Unless you can provide these answers, then we will get nothing accomplished today. If the Griffon Kingdom is serious about reclaiming this land, then I will send out a party to examine it and find out who lives there."

"Your Highness-"

"Until then, I'm afraid nothing more can be done. We cannot discuss the exchange of lands without knowing whether ponies or griffons live there."

Razor Wing's gaze hardened slightly, but his tone remained the same. "Princess Celestia, I assure you, the Griffon Kingdom is very serious about this. This is land that was once ours, and as we see no reason to award it to you, as we have done so graciously in the past, we desire to reclaim it.

"Now then, if you're concerned about its inhabitants, then you can worry no more. I'll simply contact the griffons in Anchorhoof and have them scout the land. If you so desire, they can be accompanied by pony officials."

Celestia stared at him, carefully considering what he had said to her. She stole a glance at the nearby clock on the wall. The time was ticking away, and if this meeting were carried into a full discussion of territory transfer, it would eat up hours of her time and could possibly spill into the next few days.

"Do we have your cooperation, Princess Celestia?"

Luna was waiting for her, probably wondering where her big sister was. Celestia had been called to see Razor Wing so suddenly that she hadn't even had time to alert Luna. An image of her little sister's heartbroken face assaulted her mind, pleading with her to tell this griffon to come back at a better time, and make sure to call ahead in the future.

But as her gaze returned to the hardened, imposing griffon, her mind quickly returned to a state of thinking diplomatically. Blowing off the Griffon Lord would be terrible for international relations and would reflect badly upon Equestria as a nation, not to mention herself as a leader. Though Razor Wing's visit was indeed unannounced, it would do the Princess better to prove her ability to problem-solve and keep a calm mind by entertaining his endeavours. 

Keeping relations between nations is extremely important, she told herself, especially with the Griffon Kingdom.

"Very well, Lord Razor Wing. If they are able to, I will see your delegation at once and we will discuss this matter."

Razor Wing grinned. "Excellent! I assure you, Princess, we will make this as quick and painless as possible. We are not here to make enemies, only to strengthen the bond between friends."

Celestia nodded. "And we cherish that bond, Your Lordship. Your friendship with us is very important, and we value it highly."

Razor Wing stood up, bowed, and took his leave, heading out to fetch his delegation. Celestia let out a small sigh and stared out the window at the afternoon sky.




***




The clock on the wall chimed eleven times.

Luna yawned, the rays of the late morning sun shining through the window of her study and bathing her in a pleasing warmth. She used her magic to close the book in front of her; an in-depth guide to modern politics. Her bookmark stuck out of the top, resting about a quarter of the way through the thick tome. Beside the book rested a sheet of parchment covered in notes and a great deal of question marks.

Luna groaned, her weary eyes and heavy frown a clear indication of how dismal she felt. She picked herself up and stretched her limbs and wings, having been sitting studying for quite a while at this point. A cloud of gloominess hung over her as she tidied up her workplace.

Three weeks ago, Celestia had suddenly cancelled an engagement to spend some quality time with her, and her mood had been dark ever since. She had tried many times to see if Celestia would be able to spend any time with her, but the answer had always been the same; her older sister was simply far too busy.

Her frustration was momentarily abated when she heard somepony knock on the door. When she trotted over and opened it, she found the smiling, if somewhat weary, face of her sister greeting her on the other side.

"Hello, Luna. How are you this fine morning?" she greeted in a pleasant voice.

"Sister! I was not expecting to see you."

Celestia glanced away. "Yes. I know we have not been seeing as much of each other as of late…"

Luna paused before saying, "I have not seen you for eleven days. All of my inquiries were met with the simple statement that you were otherwise occupied."

Celestia gave a sad smile, returning her gaze to the younger alicorn. "I'm sorry Luna, truly I am. As a ruler of Equestria, things tend to pop unexpectedly from time to time. One of the skills a Princess needs to have is the ability to think on the fly and to solve problems before they arise."

As the word "skills" was spoken, Luna frowned slightly.

"But," Celestia continued, her expression lighting up, "I have some good news. I've just discovered that I now have 40 minutes of free time. I cannot think of anything I would like to do more than to spend them with you, dear sister."

Luna's eyes widened. "Really…?" she said quietly, "A-are you sure? There's no griffons hiding in your study or anything?"

Celestia chuckled. "I'm quite sure, Luna."

The younger alicorn smiled warmly. "I…Thank you, Tia. I would really like that."

"I know we haven't been spending as much time together as you might have hoped, Luna. It's not something I'm happy about. If I could, I would spend every waking minute with you." Celestia gave Luna an understanding gaze. "But I'm here now, so let's not waste time. I thought we might take a nice, peaceful walk through the gardens."

"Okay! That sounds nice, Tia," Luna replied, nodding.

"I believe there were some things you wished to discuss with me?" Celestia said, turning away from the doorway and beckoning for her sister to follow her.

"Yeah! I've been reading all about modern life and politics, but it's a little overwhelming! I was hoping you could help me out."

Celestia nodded, still smiling brightly. "Of course, Luna. I'll do everything I can to assist you."

Beaming, Luna quickly trotted to her side and they both began to walk through the halls of the castle.




***




The warm midday sunlight was basking over the gardens of Canterlot Castle, bringing bright, vibrant colours to the many beautiful plants and flowers, as well as warming the two ponies walking along the garden's paths. Celestia's smile was wide as she let the wonderful, golden rays cascade over her. The air was crisp and clean, the aroma of the flowers was wonderful, and she was so happy to finally be spending time with her dear sister.

Luna also had a bright smile on her face as she trotted next to her big sister. The two had been having a relaxing walk for the last half hour, talking about many subjects. Luna had voiced some questions about how modern politics worked, and with Celestia's assistance she came to understand some of them a lot better. She had also requested of her sister some advice on how to fit in with ponies, having mostly remained in hiding from the public eye since her return. Again, some inspiring words from Celestia did wonders for Luna, and made her smile grow even more.

Time was beginning to run thin, and in ten minutes Celestia would have to depart. She couldn't help but cast anxious glances at the sun to keep updated on exactly what time it was.

"I don't know, Tia…It's difficult to see where to start. A few months ago, almost everypony thought I was a character in an old fairy tale. I know that adjusting to change takes time, but I'm not exactly sure how to do it right."

"I know it seems difficult, Luna," Celestia replied in a motherly tone, "but you can trust me when I say that in time, ponies everywhere will love you. That's a promise."

Luna gave a small smile. "I know, but…"

"You know, Nightmare Night is coming next month. You were the one who started that holiday in the first place. That may be a fun and enjoyable way to interact with ponies."

Luna paused and considered what Celestia had said. "Hmm…Maybe. Has the holiday remained the same over the years?"

Celestia shrugged. "More or less."

"It might work, but…To be completely honest, Tia? I'm nervous."

Stopping in the path, Celestia turned to Luna and gave her a comforting gaze. "Now Luna, there's nothing to be afraid about." She extended one of her immense wings and gave Luna a cozy embrace with it. "You're my sister, you're no longer Nightmare Moon, and if I'm not mistaken, you love this nation and want to do everything you can to help it. Ponies are going to love you, Luna. It will take time, yes, but with a little patience, they'll all come around."

"You really think so?" Luna asked quietly.

"I know so," Celestia replied, and it made Luna smile.

Continuing their trot through the gardens, the conversation continued. "You've been coming along quite nicely, Luna. You're serving Equestria well in the duties I've given you."

Luna grinned. "All I want to do, sis, is to do my part to make Equestria a better place."

"I'm so happy to hear that, Luna. Before long you'll be at my side, ruling this nation and guiding the ponies into a brighter future."

Luna chuckled. "Yeah. But first I have to get the hang of things. Government has gotten really complex in the last thousand years…"

Celestia gave a wistful sigh. "Indeed, it has…"

"I know it would be foolish to try to lead Equestria without a proper understanding of politics, and so I must continue to study. The world is a much more complicated place in 2010." Luna glanced up at the sky, a hopeful look upon her face. "With any luck, it should not take much longer."

Celestia gave her sister a quick, loving nuzzle. "Don't fret, Luna. You'll get the hang of things. I believe in you."

Luna continued to gaze up at the sky as they walked. There was silence for a moment before she said, "Tia? Do you ever…miss the old days? Back before everything happened?"

Celestia gazed at her, a muddled mix of emotions across her face. "I…I suppose I do, Luna. Things were definitely simpler back then."

"And we spent so much time together," Luna continued, a hint of sadness in her voice, "Back then, we'd have time to play games every day, yet we could still rule Equestria successfully. We'd play hide and seek in the castle, or toss a ball back and forth. We used to drive the guards crazy…"

A wave of nostalgia came over Celestia, and she chuckled. "Yes…We used to have so much fun…"

"Do you remember the lullaby?"

This made Celestia stop in her tracks and gaze at Luna. "The lullaby I sang to you when you were a little foal?"

Luna giggled bashfully. "Yeah…"

Celestia gave a bittersweet smile, "I'm not sure I do, Luna. It's been centuries since I've sung that song. If you gave me some time, I might remember some of it, but…"

"I loved that song so much. Especially when you sang it, sis."

Celestia paused. "You're right, Luna. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to go back to a time like that." She gave Luna another warm hug with her wing. "But you can't fight progress, and you can't turn back the clock. We just have to make the best of what the present offers to us."

Luna nodded. "I know…"

"And though we may not spend as much quality time together as we once did, you can always remember that I love you, and I'll always be there if you really need me."

"I love you too, Tia."

"All right," Celestia continued, glancing to the sky, "We should begin heading back. I'm afraid I must meet with Lord Razor Wing once again."

"Okay, sis," Luna said, trotting forward with Celestia at her side. "Is everything going well with the griffons?"

"For the most part, yes. I've gotten them to see that even such a small transfer of land is a huge deal, and that it would affect maaa-whoaa…" Celestia had to suddenly steady herself. A wave of dizziness had suddenly hit her, sending her off balance and nearly toppling her over. She planted her hooves firmly on the ground, trying to focus her vision.

"Tia?" Luna gasped, immediately concerned, "Are you okay?"

"Oh…" Celestia said, shaking her head, "Yes, I'm fine. I just got a bit dizzy for a moment there." She blinked her eyes and stared ahead, finding that her symptoms had disappeared and she once again felt normal.

"Are you sure?"

Celestia nodded. "Yes, I'm okay, Luna. I'm probably just worn out," she said, punctuating her remark with a light chuckle.

"Okay…" Luna said, a hint of uncertainty hanging in her voice.

They continued their canter forward, with Celestia picking up where she'd left off. "Anyway, they understand that it's a big deal and are working co-operatively with us to ensure that no ponies are displaced by anything we do. Griffons can be hard-headed sometimes, but they're still guhhh…."

Another, powerful wave of dizziness and disorientation overcame Celestia, sending her careening off to the side. She was barely able to shift her hooves and prevent herself from falling over.

"Tia?!" Luna was speaking loudly now, immense concern displayed across her face, "Tia, something's wrong. Tell me what's wrong!"

"I…" Celestia muttered, almost finding it difficult to speak, "I don't know…" Her eyes fell closed and her head drooped. For a moment, she fell forward in complete darkness before she snapped her eyes open and righted herself. The world around her was beginning to lose focus quickly. "I just feel…I…"

"Tia?! Tia, do you need help? Do you need a medic?"

Celestia's eyelids now felt extremely heavy, and kept trying to close of their own accord. Her head and body felt weighted, and it felt as if gravity were three times as strong. She was constantly replanting her hooves on the path, trying to steady herself and keep from toppling over. "I feel so…tired…" she muttered.

"Tia!!" Luna shouted, concern replaced with panic, "Tia, stay awake! Here, lean on me!" She rushed forward and tried to brace herself against the unsteady alicorn. "H-Help!! Somepony help! Something's wrong with Celestia!!"

The world around Celestia was growing dim, and she was losing the battle to keep her eyes open. A powerful feeling of exhaustion was overcoming her, numbing her muscles and making it difficult to stand or move. "I'm just…" She was quickly losing the stamina to fight to stay awake. "So…tired…" Her back legs buckled and she fell to her haunches.

"Tia!! Stay awake, Tia!"

Fatigue was clouding Celestia's mind. She barely felt the weight of the other alicorn beside her, trying to hold her up. The world continued to disappear from her view. Only faint shapes and dim light remained visible through eyes that were barley open. "Luna, I…" She could barely talk and could no longer move.

"Tia!!!"

Luna's frantic scream was barely heard. The entire world was drifting away. The last of Celestia's strength was finally sapped away, and she collapsed to the ground. Somepony screamed. Celestia gave one final attempt to keep her eyes open, but she couldn't see anything any more.

Powerful sleep overcame her.
> Phase 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 2

Celestia stirred.

She gave a quiet moan as her consciousness slowly returned. Her head felt heavy and her limbs were stiff. She tried to open her eyes, but even this task was proving difficult. Every muscle in her body was telling her to just give in and go back to sleep, and for a moment she nearly did.

However, Celestia pushed herself. Groaning, she cracked her eyes open slightly. She was greeted by the bright world around her, causing her to shut her eyes again from the irritation. Her location, though not extremely bright, was still an assault on her weary eyes. After giving them a moment, she slowly opened them up again. 

Her vision was blurry for a moment, but as she endured the stinging of the light, she slowly began to see more clearly. The first thing she saw was the ceiling. It was fairly ordinary, coloured slightly off-white, and contained nothing of note. Celestia realized she was laying flat on her back, staring straight up. 

Her head ached, and she tried to move one of her hoofs up to hold to her forehead. She was surprised by the difficulty she experienced when trying to move. Her muscles felt weak and she had little to no energy. 

"Ugghhhh…" she couldn't help but moan.

As the fuzziness of sleep ebbed away, she began to notice something odd about her field of vision. She couldn't quite place her hoof on exactly what it was, but something about her view of the plain, uninteresting ceiling wasn't quite right.

"Ohhh, by the sun…" she groaned, "What happened…?"

It didn't take long for memories to become clear to her. She remembered taking Luna out to walk in the gardens when she'd suddenly been hit with a wave of dizziness and fatigue. The last thing she could remember was collapsing. "Did I…faint?" she muttered.

Strength was beginning to return to her and she gave a grunt as she attempted to sit up. She planted her hooves beside her and pushed up, raising her head. There was a pronounced clink sound, and Celestia moved her head back down in surprise. Her horn had hit something.

"Ah…What?"

Celestia stared upward at the ceiling. She focused on the oddness of what she saw and the pieces began to fit together in her head. She raised a hoof up and lifted it above her head, pushing it upwards.

Thunk.

Her hoof, which she absently noticed was bare, pushed against the nearly invisible barrier above and around her. It looked like glass, but it didn't feel like glass. She tapped on it a few times. It felt solid, making thunk sounds with each tap. She raised her head up, slower this time so as not to bang her horn, and gazed towards the other end of where she was laying. From this angle, she could see reflections on the casing, and it completely surrounded her from head to tail.

She shifted her head around, as much as her awkward position would allow her, looking at her surroundings. Her enclosure appeared quite simple; a red, soft surface that she was laying on, a silver 'edge' that raised up on all four sides, and a curving, dome-shaped casing of the glass-like material.

She raised her other hoof up and began to push on the casing. It didn't budge an inch. She gritted her teeth and pushed as hard as she could, but could achieve no result. She then tried to light up her horn. Her flow of magic was sluggish at first, being the last part of her to fully wake up, but soon she had the entire casing wrapped in a golden glow. She poured her magic abilities through her horn, pushing against the casing and trying to move it. She tried to break it, shift it, bend it. She even tried to teleport it away. Still, nothing happened beyond being enveloped in her magic's aura.

Minor claustrophobia began to set in. Celestia tried to take deep breaths to calm herself and prevent panic. She cast her eyes all around the inside of her 'case', looking for a lever or button of some sort that would release her. She found nothing. Continuing to breathe deeply, keeping her anxiety under control, she glanced at the room around her. It was devoid of anything except for what appeared to be a grey door. Light was shining from behind her head, beyond her scope of view. There was likely a window back there.

Celestia gritted her teeth and gave one last strong, drawn-out push against the casing. Her efforts rewarded her with nothing, and so she began knocking on the casing. "Hello?" she called out, wondering if her voice could even be heard on the outside, "Is anypony out there?" Nothing happened, so she continued to bang her hoof on the casing, harder this time. "Hello?! Please let me out! Somepony please come and help me!"

Panic continued to approach, so Celestia began to knock harder. "Somepony?!" she shouted, beginning to lose control of her nerve, "Anypony?!" She continued to simply knock for a few minutes, slowly getting louder and louder. Still nothing happened.

Her hoof began to ache and so she stopped. She lay staring straight up at the ceiling, panting. I'm trapped. She focused on not hyperventilating. I'm locked inside this…this…thing. A fear clouded her mind; the likes of which she had rarely experienced before. She had never felt utterly trapped like this before, and having no idea of where she was or what was going on was only making everything worse.

Movement. She barely caught it in the corner of her eye. Quickly, she turned her head towards the doorway. To her immense relief, the door slid open, revealing behind it two unicorn ponies. They were both white with deep blue manes, and they were dressed in what Celestia found to be extremely odd clothing. It appeared to be some kind of vest or jacket, she wasn't sure which word to use, and it was coloured bright silver. It covered their chests and forelegs and ended at their flanks. The clothing was accentuated with blue trim, collars, cuffs and symbols. 

At the moment, Celestia didn't care what they were wearing. "Hello? Sirs? Can you let me out?" she called to them.

The unicorns were standing in the doorway, staring at her with their mouths hanging open. Their eyes were wide and they appeared to be shocked. Neither responded to her call, and continued to stand stock still at the room's entrance.

"Hello?"

The one on the right turned to his companion, though he kept one eye on the Princess, and spoke something. Though his lips moved, Celestia couldn't hear a single word he said, confirming her theory that whatever she was trapped in was soundproof. In light of this, she raised up one of her hooves and waved at them.

The two continued to speak to each other for a few moments, still maintaining their shocked expressions and their apparent unwillingness to move. 

Celestia shook her head slightly, growing even more baffled with every passing moment. What is going on here? she yelled inside of her head, Are they just going to stand there? Why won't they let me out?

The unicorns nearly jumped out of their skin when Celestia knocked her hoof against the casing. Their full attention back on the confined princess, one of them raised his hoof and pointed towards her. The other nodded hesitantly and began trotting towards her enclosure.

Celestia watched him as he approached, fixing him with a gentle gaze that expressed her desire for help. For whatever reason, Celestia could see that these two were stressed, possibly even nervous, and she didn't want to do anything that would scare them away.

When the pony outside reached the side of her 'prison', he reached up his forehooves and pressed them down onto something that Celestia couldn't see. He moved them around for a moment, and then there was a fairly loud beeping sound, which rang five times. Then there was a hissing sound, after which one side of the transparent casing began to lift up. Elation flooded over the Princess as her enclosure opened and finally granted her access to the outside world.

She gave a loud sigh, feeling her anxiety wash away. Relief was overwhelming her. She smiled brightly as she sat up, moving slowly as she realized that her joints were still very stiff after being in that position for so long. She gave her legs and wings a quick stretch.

"Ahh, thank you so much…" she said, turning towards the two unicorns. The one who had freed her had stepped back to his companion's side and they were both regarding her with that same, familiar shocked expression. Now that she was no longer concerned about being trapped, all the other strange things about her situation began to become more clear to her.

"Thank you ever so much for getting me out of there, kind sirs," she said, moving her forelegs to step down off of the low platform. She gave their outfits a closer look. The silver colour was very shiny and reflective, while the blue was akin to that of a summer sky. It closed around their necks in an odd way, with one flap falling over another and then fastened closed. It left a unique pattern down the front, almost like a simple zigzag.

She turned her head and gazed at the room around her. The same featureless walls greeted her, but she was met with an opaque window to her right, which was the light source she could see earlier. It was milky white, and she could not see through it.

She turned back and gazed at what she had been laying on. It was box-shaped, but curved at the top. The clear casing, which now hung open, covered the top of the red cushions she had been laying upon. The head, foot and bottom of it were adorned in bright gold, which sparkled in the light. A depiction of the sun rested in the center, appearing to be made out of marble and granite.

So many questions flooded her mind, and it was difficult to decide where to start. She returned her gaze to the two unicorns, still staring at her like they'd seen a ghost, and spoke in a gentle voice, "Might I enquire as to where I am?"

More staring. Celestia resisted the urge to deadpan.

"Sirs?" she said, leaning her head down closer to them.

"Uhhhh…"

This wasn't going anywhere. Celestia paused and put on her kindest, gentlest smile and gazed at them softly. "My little ponies, you have nothing to be nervous about. I have no reason to be angry towards either of you, and so I won't."

The one who had mumbled earlier was staring up at her, his eyes sparkling with wonder. Celestia continued to smile at him, attempting to ease whatever anxiety he was experiencing and hopefully draw out some kind of response.

"P-" he stuttered, "Princess…Celestia?"

She grinned and gave a nod. "Yes, my good sir."

"You're awake…"

Celestia regarded the two unicorns, who were behaving more strangely with each passing second. They were staring at her, casting unsure glances to one another. "Wh-what do we do?" whispered the one who had spoken earlier to his companion.

"I don't know," the other responded, "I di-Oh!" Suddenly his ears perked up and his eyes shot open in surprise. He gave the other a rough shove to the side. "Bow, you idiot!"

"Ah! Right!"

The two then rushed to get onto their knees, bowing low before Celestia. They kept their eyes closed and their horns pointed low as they showed their respects to her.

It made her smile and chuckle airily. "All right. You may rise, ponies."

They shakily got to their feet.

"You both seem tense…" she said.

"I- I-" one stuttered, "I'm sorry, Pri- Your Highness." He shuffled his hooves. "We're just a little, um…" He trailed off, glancing to his companion.

"Surprised," the other completed his sentence for him.

"Yes," he nodded, "Surprised to see you…You're really all right, Princess Celestia?"

Celestia furrowed her brow for a moment, but then nodded. "Yes, I am quite all right now, though I wish I knew what happened. How long was I out?"

The two stallions turned and looked at each other with a concerned glance.

"…Sirs?"

"I don't believe this," one of the unicorns muttered quietly, "What are we supposed to do? I can't-"

"Oh! I'll go…I'll go get her. I'll go tell her."

"She probably already knows."

"Well I'll go make sure."

Then, without another word or even a glance back at the Princess, one of the unicorns turned and ran out the door and through the hallway beyond. Celestia opened her mouth and raised her hoof in his direction, but before she knew it, he was gone, the door sliding shut behind him. She closed her mouth into a frown, her eyes taking on a somewhat determined look.

"Okay," she said, quickly stepping over to the remaining unicorn and towering over him, "I am trying to be as patient as I can, but I really need some answers now." The unicorn started and stepped back nervously, gulping. Celestia kept her gaze locked on him. "So I want you to tell me where I am."

"Um, uh…" he stammered, "You're in your chambers in the castle…um, Your Highness."

She arched an eyebrow. "The castle?"

The unicorn nodded.

"Canterlot Castle?"

He nodded again.

Celestia shook her head and stepped back. "But how can that be? I've never seen a room like this in the castle before…"

"Umm…Well, it was built for you while you slept…"

Celestia opened her mouth to retort, then paused. Her words died on her tongue as what the unicorn had said repeated in her head. She gazed down at him and tilted her head slightly. "…Built?"

The unicorn nodded once more.

A scenario entered the Princess' mind. An explanation for everything. It was wild and fantastic; so unbelievable that it couldn't be true. Celestia immediately shook it off and dismissed it, but it wouldn't leave her mind completely. It couldn't…No, completely ridiculous…

"What do you mean…'Built'?"

"Umm, well from what I learned…the ponies wanted to make sure you were safe," he replied, "You know…while you were asleep."

Fear started creeping into her mind. She leaned her head in closer to him. "Sir?" she spoke, quiet and to the point, "What day is it?"

A faint hint of colour seemed to drain from the unicorn's face as he gulped. He stared up at her silently for a few moments, as if building up the courage to respond. A quiet feeling of dread was creeping over Celestia, no matter what she told herself. The unicorn took a deep breath, and then spoke quietly.

"It's March the 25th…"

He paused.

"…2531."

Celestia's heart skipped a beat and the world seemed to slow for a moment. Her eyes widened and her jaw fell a bit. What?! She began subtly shaking her head and took a step back. What did he say? 

"…You've been asleep for more than 500 years."

"No." She shook her head more, fixing the unicorn with a look of incomprehension. "No, that's not possible. That's not true." Celestia's mind was mostly filled with scepticism; utter disbelief at what this unicorn had told her. An awkward chuckle rose up from her throat. "That's absolutely ridiculous. Don't be absurd."

The unicorn was glancing away, avoiding her gaze. "I-I-It's true, Your Majesty."

"Liar." Celestia's emotions took a sudden turn. Now, she found herself angry at this stallion. "I cannot believe you have such audacity to lie to me, your Princess."

The unicorn appeared like he'd been stabbed through the chest. "What? No! No, Your Highness! I wouldn't dream of lying to you!" He stepped towards her. "I…I never dreamed that I'd live to see this day. It's…such an incredible honour, Your Highness." He punctuated this statement with another low bow before her.

Celestia paled. Her breathing quickened as she stared at this pony bowing before her. Her mind was spinning, unsure of what to think or what to believe. He can't be telling the truth, she said to herself, 2531? How could I have fallen asleep for half a millennium? The very idea is fantastical…

The Princess scoffed, tossing her head back from the unicorn. "Complete rubbish…" she muttered, feeling completely sincere about her statement. She wasn't sure, then, why it felt like there were butterflies in her stomach.

"Your Highness," the unicorn spoke, not moving from his bow, "I know it is hard to believe, and I wish I could give you an explanation, but what I'm telling you is the truth. It is the 26th century."

Celestia turned back and looked down upon the bowing stallion, her heart beating at a furious pace. "You…can't be telling the truth…" she said, though with a lot less conviction, "It…It can't…"

Don't listen to him, she screamed inside of her head, It's a lie!!

Both ponies turned their heads as the sound of the door opening filled the room. The grey shape of the door split apart and slid open, and two ponies quickly entered. The first was the unicorn that had left not long ago, while the other…

"What is the meaning of this?! You know very well that-"

Celestia gasped. 

Standing in the doorway, staring at the Princess with her jaw hanging open, was a pony dressed from head to hoof in light, metal armour. Blue plating covered her limbs, torso and chest, and she wore a helmet over her head. The armour was all very intricately decorated, with silver trim and complex designs. It was all polished to a brilliant shine.

She stood tall; she was the same height as Celestia. Her grand wings were raised behind her through openings in the armour, spread out in their wondrous glory. Her deep blue coat was unmistakable, and her cutie mark, though slightly obscured by the armour, was clear to see. Her sparkling mane shimmered as it flowed out, past her long blue horn, and danced on an invisible wind.

Luna stood still, rooted to the spot. For a moment, she simply stared, moving her lips wordlessly. Celestia's movements were a mirror image. Standing before her was undoubtedly her little sister Luna, though this pony was much taller, much more majestic…

…and much older.

"T-Tia…?" came Luna's trembling voice, barely above a whisper.

Celestia couldn't respond. Her mind couldn't quite process what she was seeing before her.

"Is…Is this really happening…?" Luna blinked a few times, though she never took her gaze off of her sister.

"Luna…?" Celestia ventured, a part of her not completely convinced that this pony was the same little sister that she had seen a short time ago; petite and with simple, sky-blue curls of a mane.

Luna broke into a huge smile as tears welled up in her eyes. "Tia! You…You're awake!" she said gleefully, "You're awake!!" Luna closed her eyes for a moment and quickly lit up her horn. All of the armour she was wearing briefly glowed a in a brilliant blue aura before there was a muted flash and it all vanished. Not a second later, Luna dashed towards her sister, a grand smile on her face and tears streaming from her eyes.

She flung herself at Celestia, hugging her as tight as she could and burying her face into her sister's fur. "Tia!! I'm so happy to see you again!!" Luna was crying aloud, tears of joy falling from her eyes and wetting Celestia's coat. She couldn't say any more, and could only cry, overwhelmed with happiness, and hold her sister tight.

Celestia stared wordlessly at Luna. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know what to do. A thousand thoughts were going through her mind and it made her head spin. She couldn't accept it before. It was simply too unbelievable. Now, however, as she slowly brought her hooves up and wrapped them around the trembling body of her younger sister, a dark, hazing cloud began to overcome her.

"Luna…?" she spoke, her voice catching in her throat, "It's…It's true…isn't it?" She gazed down at the blue alicorn, who turned up and gazed at her with tear-filled eyes. "It's-"

"Yes, Tia," Luna said with a nod and a sad smile, "It's 2531."

Luna buried her face back into her sister's fur and continued to cry happily. The two other unicorns had departed respectfully. Celestia simply sat there, clutching Luna tightly. She felt sick. It felt like the world was spinning and her little sister was the only thing holding her to the ground. No…She couldn't say 'little' sister any more. Luna was still younger, but now…

She's all grown up…

Celestia rocked forward, staring straight ahead. Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt dizzy. Her mind was, on some level, still refusing to accept what was happening. She was trying to convince herself that this was a dream, or a prank. Something…Anything…

Luna sniffled and nuzzled Celestia. "I've missed you…so so much…" she said softly, "I thought you'd never wake up…" She tried to move out of the hug, but Celestia fell forward once the support of the other alicorn was gone. Luna carefully steadied her sister until they were both sitting facing each other.

"Luna…" Celestia breathed, her head spinning even from the simple fact that her sister was now at eye-level, "What happened?"

The other alicorn frowned. "I wish I knew," she replied sadly, "Believe me; everypony wishes they knew." She sighed. "You just fell asleep that day…and you haven't woken up until now."

"But…" Celestia could feel herself trembling. "How is that possible? How could I have slept for…for 500 years…?" She was gazing at her sister, but she wasn't really looking at her. Her mind was elsewhere, asking endless questions.

Luna gazed down at the floor. "I still remember that day clearly, Tia. We were out walking in the garden. We were talking, and we were having a wonderful time together. Then you started to get dizzy, and you were unsteady on your hooves. The next thing I knew, you'd collapsed on the ground out cold."

Celestia remembered those events clearly. She remembered them as if they'd happened yesterday. As far as it felt to her, it had been yesterday. This surreal experience was giving her a headache.

"I was so scared, Tia…" Luna continued, "I called for help. I got all the medics in the castle. I helped them carry you to the infirmary. They wanted me to wait outside, but I refused. I wasn't going to leave your side. They examined you, and they did so many tests. They scanned you all over, with machines and with unicorn magic. They brought in experts from all over the world, both ponies and others.

"In the end, the diagnosis was always the same. You were just…asleep. You were breathing normally, and there was nothing wrong with any part of your body. You were simply fast asleep, and nothing anypony did could wake you. They kept you under observation in the hospital as the days went by. You were in there for weeks…and then months…and I stayed by your side as much as I could."

Luna sniffled, an entirely new torrent of tears threatening to be unleashed. "I was scared…and I was so sad. I yelled at the doctors; told them to double check and triple check everything. I wanted them to make sure my big sister was okay. But you were okay…There was nothing they could do…You were just…sleeping…"

Celestia was still as stone as she absorbed this information. Her face hung in a frown and she was unable to think of much to say. The words that Luna spoke were so wild and fanciful that, any other time previously, Celestia would have called herself mad to believe them. But the raw emotions displayed on her sister's face were enough to convince her that what she was hearing was the truth.

"And so…you slept. It wasn't long before you'd been asleep for a whole year. We didn't want to keep you in the infirmary any longer, and so I had this chamber built for you." Luna gestured with her horn to the room around them. "I spared no expense for you, Tia. I had the walls reinforced and built to withstand attack, I had them magically enchanted to prevent unwanted entry, and I had guards posted year-round, all hours of the day."

Luna gestured to where Celestia had been sleeping. "I also had this built for you. I wanted to make sure you were comfortable and safe while you slept. I designed this bed for you, and had this magically-enhanced barrier placed over top. It allowed absolutely nothing through except fresh air. The window over there is built with the same material. When you moved around inside, it set off a trigger that let us know that you were finally awake!"

"I…" Celestia murmured, "Luna, I don't know what to say…I don't know how to handle this…"

Luna responded by leaning forward and nuzzling her affectionately. There was silence for a few moments, and then the gentle sound of Luna sobbing. She sniffled and said, "I missed you…And I was so worried. Everypony was telling me to move on, but I never gave up on you, sis. I knew you'd come back one day."

"Luna…" Celestia whispered, beginning to feel choked up herself.

"I've…I've been so lonely…without you, Tia. Every single night I would pray for you. I would wish for you to come back. It's been so hard, Tia. I…I…" Luna couldn't say any more. She wept painful tears onto Celestia's shoulder, who embraced her tightly, bringing her wings around to hold her even tighter. Luna's cries of overwhelming emotion echoed through the spacious chamber like an aria of bitter sorrow.

500 years… Tears began to fall from Celestia's eyes. 500 years without me…and the whole time, never knowing if I was going to be okay… Celestia's breathing became erratic as she struggled to keep herself under control as looming, overpowering sadness began to consume her.

"I'm sorry, Luna…" she whispered, "I'm so sorry. If- If I could've…If I were…Oh, Luna! I'm so sorry!"

The two ponies remained in their embrace for a while, crying softly and keeping each other close. No words were spoken; Luna simply allowed the torrent of emotions that she was experiencing to flow freely, while Celestia comforted her and tried to come to terms with what she had been told.

After the tears had stopped flowing, the two sisters gazed at one another. They were both smiling, though Celestia wasn't sure which emotion she was feeling.

"Come on," Luna said, lighting up her horn, "Let's get out of this depressing room. A blue aura spread from her horn, encompassing both ponies. It glowed brighter for a moment before there was a flash. A second later, the room was completely empty.




***




The two materialized from the teleportation spell in another room. At first glance, Celestia was immediately able to discern that these were Luna's bedchambers. There was a large, lavish bed off to the side, made up with blue covers with little moon symbols on them. There were many cushioned seats, and a few dressers and desks. There was a circular object on the roof emitting a bright, white light across the room, and one wall was almost completely covered with a large mirror.

To Celestia, it was strikingly simplistic. If it weren't for the large portrait of Luna hanging above the bed, she might have questioned if it really were the bedroom of a Princess.

Luna remained sitting across from her, fixing her with a bright smile. "Welcome home, Tia," she said, "We've all missed you."

Celestia took a deep breath and gazed at her younger sister. Seeing her grown up so much and so suddenly was still making her head spin. She had so many questions to ask, and wasn't sure where to begin.

"Luna…I can't believe this. How…How is this possible?"

Her sister frowned. "I don't know, Tia. Even decades, centuries after you fell asleep, I was still pushing for ponies to try to find an answer. As long as you weren't dead, I was convinced there had to be some way to wake you up."

"So…did you find a way? Is that why I'm awake now?"

Luna shook her head. "No. This all happened as suddenly as you'd fallen asleep in the first place. One minute I'm eating dinner, the next minute I'm being told to come to your chamber as fast as I can."

Celestia raised a hoof up to her head. "I just…fell asleep one day…and woke up half a millennium later…This is unbelievable."

Luna slowly nodded.

"I…Luna, I have so much to ask. Is- Is everything okay? I mean-"

Luna leaned forward and nuzzled her again. "Everything's going to be fine now that you're here, Tia."

"But…Is Equestria safe? I saw you enter wearing armour! Are we at war?"

Luna smiled. "Oh. This?" Once again, she lit up her horn. There was a muted flash, and suddenly Luna was once again clad in her armour. Celestia was now able to get a closer look at it. It was made up of gauntlets for her hooves, vambraces, a breastplate across her chest, and further plating covering her hindquarters. The helmet on her head was simple and did not obscure her face. It was certainly not a complete set of armour, as many areas of her body were still left exposed, most notably her cutie mark. The edges were all a brilliant silver, and wherever there was enough space, there was an engraving of her cutie mark.

"This is just standard royal attire now," Luna continued, "It's the same as the shoes, plate and crown we used to wear. It's just what I'm expected to wear in this day and age."

Celestia marvelled at the outfit. "You wear this every day…?" she muttered, "But…why?"

Luna sighed forlornly, using her horn to remove the gear once again. "I suppose it'd be best if I just told you what's been happening since you've been…gone."

"Yes…Yes, I suppose that would be best," Celestia replied, nodding slowly.

Standing up, Luna stepped over towards the room's door. "Stay here. I'll make sure we're not disturbed. Just a moment."

Luna stepped out of the room into a hallway beyond and shut the door behind her, leaving Celestia alone in the bedroom. Left alone with her thoughts, she began to feel cold and distraught. She started to shiver. This can't be happening. This can't truly be happening… 

She gazed at her surroundings. Even in this simple room, she could see evidence of time passed. Just what was this round thing on the roof giving off such a bright light? It was too bright and constant to be a lantern, or anything with fire in it, and it was definitely not magic-based. 

Though in the back of her mind she was still hoping and praying for this all to be a dream, it was becoming overwhelmingly evident that she truly was more than 500 years from when she once was.

The door opened and Luna returned. "I told them to pass on an announcement that I would be preoccupied until further notice," she said, returning to her spot before Celestia. She gasped. "Tia, you're shivering. Are you cold? Do you want a blanket?"

Celestia gazed up at Luna with troubled eyes. "No, I just…" she muttered, "I…"

"Oh, Tia…Here," Luna said, using her horn to retrieve a lush pillow from her bed, "Lay on this, Tia. Just relax."

The pillow made its way to Celestia's front, guided by Luna's magic, and she laid down on the ground, resting upon it. She sighed, trying to calm herself down. "I'm sorry Luna," she spoke, "This is just…so much for me to take in."

Luna nodded solemnly. "I understand, Tia. I'm quite shaken too."

Celestia sighed, resting comfortably on the soft pillow and feeling her shivers recede. "Okay, Luna. Go ahead, please. I'm anxious to hear."

"Okay," Luna said, sitting down. "There was panic as soon as you fell. Though at first only ponies residing in the castle knew what had happened, it wasn't long before word spread. One of their princesses had fallen ill, and wouldn't wake up. Workers in the government and the ministries were all fearful that you had gotten sick. Ponies everywhere were afraid that you were dying. A common sentiment was shared across all ponykind, one which I was not an exception to; we were all terrified of losing you.

"I visited you every single day. Whenever I had a chance, I was at your side. I knew that you probably couldn't hear me and didn't know that I was there, but I felt that I might be able to guide you back somehow. Mostly, I just wanted to make sure you knew that you weren't alone, and that I wasn't going to leave you. I told the doctors to inform me if there were any change, no matter how little. I would have left any prior engagement in a heartbeat to be at your side.

"But yes, for many weeks there was no change. You weren't getting frail or ill, but you showed no signs of positive change either. We weren't sure when you were going to wake up, so we simply enacted an acting government for the time being. You remember the one; we set it up to function in case we ever wanted to take a vacation together or something."

Luna turned her gaze downward and stared at the floor. "Eventually, however, we all had to face the fact that you weren't waking up. Equestria needed a leader, and I couldn't put off what needed to be done any longer. And so, I became Equestria's sole Princess, and accepted all of your responsibilities until such a time that you were once again awake.

"There was trouble immediately. Even before this, a great number of citizens began accusing me of being behind everything. Rumours spread that I was trying to usurp your throne, and that I had cast a spell on you, or poisoned you. There were a great many who thought I was still Nightmare Moon, and that I was simply disguising myself as Luna in order to achieve some nefarious goal."

She shook her head sadly. "When I became the sole Princess, there was anger and panic in many parts of the land. There were riots, wild tabloid headlines, ponies screaming at me and demanding that I let you wake up. Many didn't believe what they'd heard and thought you were dead. Some said I had…killed you.

"Those first few years were of Tartarus, Tia. In the first year of my reign alone, there were nine assassination attempts."

Celestia gasped in horror.

"Six brave night guards sacrificed their lives to save me."

"Luna, I…Say it isn't so."

Luna slowly nodded. "As time passed, more and more ponies grew comfortable and accepting of me as their leader, but there were always those who refused to believe. The repeated attempts on my life are what led to me wearing armour."

Celestia gaped. "That's why you wear armour?"

"Well," Luna shrugged, "At first, yes. Perhaps a century later, the attacks ceased altogether. But ponies had gotten so used to seeing me appear in public wearing the armour that it kind of, well, stuck. You could call it a 'trend', perhaps? I most certainly don't need it any more, but it would just be unusual at this point to see me out of it."

"Wow…I see…" Celestia muttered.

Luna sighed again. "But assassinations were not the only problem I faced. Far from it. Even from the very beginning, I had trouble. You have to understand, sis. I was just suddenly thrust into this position of power and responsibility. I…I definitely wasn't ready for it. But I had no choice…

"Quite frankly, I had no idea what I was doing. Everypony was looking to me for guidance, a-and I didn't know what to tell them." Luna began to grow troubled. "I…I tried my best, Tia, but…I'm just…I mean…" She trembled slightly. "I…"

"Luna…?"

"I can't do it without you, Celestia! I can't!!" Luna exclaimed suddenly, a few tears flying, "I tried to learn, I tried to adapt, but…I'm just not as good a leader as you are. I don't think about things the same way you do. I can't look ahead very well. Politics just confuse me, and they're always changing and evolving. It's hard enough sometimes not to let some power-hungry cabinet member try to run Equestria his way!"

"Luna…Calm down, i-it's okay…" Celestia was hit with a heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Immediately, her mind flashed back to when she had last been awake. I still need some help, Celestia, the voice of her sister rang in her head.

Luna sniffled and gazed at the ground, "I…I'm sorry, Tia. I did my best without you…"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well," Luna said, heaving a sigh, "I guess it's somewhat a matter of opinion. A great number of ponies say we're doing just fine, but that's not how I see it…"

Celestia subconsciously cast a worried glance at one of the windows letting in the evening light.

"Equestria's just…not what it used to be. I've been here this whole time, so I know. All the history books, and all the ponies I talked to all those years ago say that under your rule, Equestria had seen better times than ever before. But…

"I'm no leader…At least not without you I'm not…"

"Don't say that, Luna! Of course you are!"

Luna heaved an empty sigh. "When you were last awake, Equestria was leading the world in a great many things, right? We had the highest relative life expectancy, the lowest national debt. We provided the world with wondrous exports. We were the most charitable nation. We were the safest nation.

"I'm not saying all of that has gone to Tartarus, but we're not number one in any of those regards any more."

Celestia frowned. "Oh, Luna…We don't have to be number one…"

"Most ponies can't see it, but I can! The quality of Equestrian life has gone down since we lost you. There's more trouble, and I can't quite deal with it all. We're falling behind, Celestia… We're not the shining beacon of hope and happiness we once were…"

"Luna…"

"As the days pass, I notice more and more depressing headlines. Schools closing, jobless ponies, crime…I try to fix it, but I can never get it right…"

"Luna."

"Damn it! Why does it have to be so hard? I just-"

"Luna!!"

Luna gasped, a few tears streaking down the sides of her face. She turned to Celestia and gazed into her eyes. The older sister stared back compassionately.

"Luna, as long as Equestria still stands, as long as we're still prospering…as long as ponies are happy, you've done your duty. What's happened has happened. You did your best, and that's all anypony could ever ask of you." She offered a smile and said, "The mere fact that Equestria's not a burning wasteland is proof that you did enough." She then paused and added, jokingly, "It isn't, right?"

Luna laughed. "N-no, Tia. We haven't burned down."

"Good," Celestia said with a grin, "Everything's going to be fine, Luna."

"Yeah…Especially now that you're here."

Celestia leaned forward and embraced her sister tightly. "Don't worry, Luna. I don't know how or why this happened, but I'm here now. I'm going to do everything I can to help you." She nuzzled her sister's cheek. "It's going to be all right, Luna."

Luna hugged back, holding her big sister close. "I love you, Tia. I missed you, and I'm so glad to have you back."

The smile on Celestia's face could not have been any larger. She was filled with a wonderful, golden feeling that warmed her heart. Though, from her perspective, it seemed like less than a day since she'd last seen her sister, the tears of anguish and the raw emotions she had seen were enough to let her know how long she'd been gone and just how dearly she'd been missed. The knowledge of her absence tore at her heartstrings, and so to hug Luna and to make her smile was bringing her a certain happiness that she'd seldom felt.

But at the back of her mind, a looming guilt sat festering. Luna's lament of not connecting with ponies and not understanding politics struck an all too familiar chord. Celestia couldn't help but be reminded of all the times, centuries ago, when she'd had to turn her sister down because she had been too busy. She'd turned her sister away when she'd wanted to learn about these very things.

"I love you, Tia…"

Her mind screamed at her. Did I…?

"I…I love you too, Luna."

"I missed you…"

Celestia chuckled lightly. "You've said that many times already, sis."

"I know…but I really missed you!"

The two alicorns remained in their warm embrace for a while, as if afraid to let go for fear of losing one another again. Luna's smile was grand as they hugged, simply enjoying the feeling of being together once again. Celestia got the feeling that Luna didn't want it to end, and was glad to know that Luna couldn't see the troubled expression on her face.

I should've spent more time with her… A heavy, guilty feeling was overcoming her. She only wanted to learn with me, and I…If only I had…

The two were interrupted by a loud gurgling sound.

Luna giggled. Celestia blushed lightly, moving back from the hug and holding a hoof to her stomach.

"I guess you're hungry, Tia."

"I would think so," Celestia said light-heartedly, "I haven't eaten since 2010."

Luna laughed. "Well, just sit tight, Tia. I'll get you something to eat," she said, standing up, "I'm guessing you don't want to trek down to the dining hall and feast on some huge, lavish meal."

Celestia nodded. "It's definitely been a whirlwind of events. I'd be satisfied with just a salad and a sandwich."

"No problem," Luna replied cheerily, "I'll just pop down to the kitchen. I won't be more than a couple of minutes."

"Okay, Luna. Thank you."

"It's my pleasure, Tia. Back in a flash." 

Luna then illuminated her horn again and disappeared in a bright burst of light. Celestia was left alone in the room with her thoughts. She sighed, shivering slightly. The sudden silence felt unusually eerie to her and made her feel restless. 

She couldn't get her mind to settle down. All she could think about was how she'd behaved those many years ago. When Luna had wanted to spend time with her, she had just casually said no, believing that she would eventually find some free time later. It had always been 'later', hadn't it? When later had eventually come around, where had she been? Asleep.

"I left her all alone…"

She stood up, feeling uncomfortable and upset. She took another glance at the room around her. As she slowly spun around, she noticed that there were two windows on the wall behind her, which she had not noticed before. She stepped over to one of them and gazed out of it. 

Outside was a garden surrounded by a tall hedge. It looked drastically different from the one she'd been walking through with Luna, but it was still very beautiful nonetheless. Except for the garden, the window did not offer much to view, but the sight of the colourful plants outside still managed to put her at ease. There were tall, strong-looking trees, a wide array of vibrant flowers, and a few wonderfully designed fountains. She even noticed that all of the statues once held in the garden were still there, off to the side along one of the hedges.

She glanced up and was met with the sight of the sun approaching the horizon. It was beginning to cast a yellowy-orange glow across the scene before her, the sight of which made her smile. She'd fallen asleep in the late afternoon, and it was late afternoon now. It was a strange, peculiar kind of quirk that somehow made her chuckle, as if the world were telling her that everything was still normal and right.

Sunset… She lit up her horn with bright, golden magic, reaching out through the skies and the heavens towards her bright, powerful orb in the sky. It was that time of the day when she would guide it past the horizon to make way for the moon.

She gasped loudly as her eyes shot open wide. A short, shrill cry of shock escaped her throat as she lost her grip on the windowsill, just barely landing her forehooves on the ground below her. She felt sick. She was going to vomit. A cold shiver enveloped her entire body, making her sweat and sway.

She screamed. She cried out in low, guttural pain. Her wounded shout echoed through the room, long and drawn out. She retched, collapsing to the ground on her side. Her chest heaved as she gasped and tried to regain her breath. Her hooves flew up to her horn, clutching tightly at the base.

There was a flash, and then Luna's voice spoke. "I'm back." This was followed by the sound of a metal platter clattering to the ground, spilling its contents everywhere. Luna gasped and rushed to Celestia's side. "Tia!! Tia, are you okay?! What's wrong?"

Celestia took deep breaths. She gasped and moaned, intense nausea flooding over her.

"Tia!! Speak to me!"

Finally, she began to catch her breath. She turned her head towards Luna, gazing at her frightened face through tears she had shed through her intense ordeal. 

"The sun!!"

She reached out her hooves towards her sister desperately.

"What happened to the sun?!"
> Phase 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 3

"You're okay, Tia. It's okay. Breathe. Just breathe. Relax and take deep breaths."

Celestia lay wrapped in her sister's hooves, heaving and shuddering. She tried to follow Luna's instructions, but she couldn't catch her breath. She couldn't calm herself down. All she could do was clutch at her sister and try to keep her close.

What she had felt when she had reached out to the sun was so awful and terrible that she couldn't get it out of her mind. She had severed the connection as hastily as she could, but the sensation remained with her, assaulting her mind and leaving no relief.

"Tia," Luna said, concern heavy in her voice, "Tia, you're going to pass out. Just relax."

"It…It was…" Celestia murmured, "It was so…sick!" She quivered in her sister's arms, a bitter coldness overcoming her. "It was so sick…it was…horrifying." She fought off the urge to vomit again, and then turned to gaze up at Luna. "It was…dying…"

Luna bit her lip and turned away, gazing off to the side with an expression of remorse. 

"What…" Celestia breathed, "What…?"

"I'm sorry, Tia," Luna spoke quietly, "I'm so sorry…"

"Why…Why is the sun so sick…?"

Luna shut her eyes. "When you first fell asleep, it was the evening. Everypony was so worried about you that nopony noticed that the sun hadn't set. It wasn't until after midnight that I forced myself to leave your side and try to move it."

A slight shiver came over her. "I didn't think it would be so difficult. I went up to the highest point of Canterlot Mountain and I reached out to the sun with my magic… It hurt, Tia. It hurt so bad. It was like I was grabbing onto a ball of concentrated fire and electricity. It felt like my horn was going to fall right off.

"Still, though, I pushed. I knew that above all, it was most important to keep the cycle of the sun and the moon going. I pushed as hard as I could, trying to get the sun below the horizon. It fought back against me, pushing against my magic like a stubborn foal. It refused to move, and it was lashing out at me. It hurt so much, and it was so hard…but I still pushed.

"Luckily, because the sun was so close to the horizon already, I was able to slowly push it down. It took me an hour and a half, but I got it done. The night was already half over when my moon rose, but I didn't care. I rushed back to your side as soon as I could."

Celestia was finally catching her breath. Her shivers subsided and her breathing returned to normal, though she could still not shake the painful, overwhelming sensation of sickness she felt. It was difficult to talk; she instead simply listened to Luna speak as she took deep, relaxing breaths.

"Little did I know, that was just the beginning. Soon, it was the following morning. With despair, I knew that I had to go try to raise the sun. I knew that if it were anything like raising the moon, this would be more difficult than setting it. So I had the chefs cook me a meal that would give me tons of energy, I abstained from using magic all night, and I brought along plenty of water with me as I headed to the mountain's peak once again.

"Tia, I've never experienced so much difficulty in my entire life. From its slumber beyond the eastern horizon, it shot back at me when I tried to reach out to it. It attacked me. It felt like fire and heat striking me and shooting down my horn. I was barely able to reach it at all.

"And I tried as hard as I could. I poured all of my magic into coaxing the sun out from the horizon and into the sky. I pulled and I pulled, straining myself and stretching my limits. I cried out to the heavens in both pain and determination…

"But I couldn't do it…The sun refused to heed my call and would not rise."

A cold chill came over Celestia as she nodded slowly. "The sun…It's very powerful and wild. I suppose…it is not unexpected that it wouldn't submit to anyone but myself." She shivered. "I had hoped to teach you one day…" she whispered.

"The sun remained below the horizon for eight days, during which there was constant night. This certainly did not help those who thought I was Nightmare Moon again. There was panic and riot, despite my best efforts to calm the public and show that I was trying.

"I didn't really know what to do, and you weren't there to guide me, but I tried anyway. I knew I had to raise the sun. I reached out to it and tried to keep a magical link with it as much as I could. I thought I could allow the sun to get used to my touch; to become familiar with me. Whenever I had the energy, I attempted to raise it. It was like trying to lift a concrete slab from the bottom of the ocean.

"But, I could feel progress being made. Eventually, the sun started to give just slightly. I couldn't make it visible, but I could feel it moving. And so I pushed myself, going dangerously beyond my limits. On the eighth day, the sun finally shone on Equestria once again. It had taken all of my strength, all of my energy, and all of my willpower…but I did it."

This brought a smile to Celestia's face, albeit a small one. "That's wonderful, Luna…That makes me so proud…"

"It still took me a while to get used to it. The sun was still stubbornly immobile at sunrise and sunset, and it always took so much magic from me to get it to move. For a month or two, day and night were all wrong, with the nights lasting much longer than they should've. There was one time when I lost track of time and ended up having the sun up during the night and the moon up during the day.

"Eventually, though, I was able to establish control over the sun. As time passed, it took less and less magical force from me to be able to move it. The day-night cycle slowly got better, and eventually things were normal again." She paused, and then added, "Though I always felt that I could never get it exactly right. Your sunrises and sunsets were always perfect."

"Luna…" Celestia breathed, still feeling weak, "You- The sun, it- it didn't accept you, it…"

Luna lowered her gaze. "I know. I didn't tame the sun I…I broke it in."

Celestia was silent.

"I- I had no choice, Tia. Without you, I had to raise the sun somehow. I- I- If I had any other choice I would've, but…but I had to force it. I had to force the sun to do my bidding, or- or…"

Celestia exhaled a long, calming breath. "So that is why the sun is sick…Without me…without its master…it's dying."

Luna hiccuped, more tears beginning to flow. "I- I'm sorry, Tia…I…I d- I'm…"

"Shhhh," Celestia soothed, "It's okay, Luna. I understand, now. You did what you had to. You did what was best for Equestria."

"But…Tia, I-"

Celestia sighed. "While this is not something I would have predicted, it's not implausible. The sun is more powerful and magical than the moon is. It's not as easy to tame."

"Tia…" Luna cried.

"Luna, aside from the shifted day-night cycle, were there any negative effects or repercussions upon the land resulting from this?"

"Um…n-no…"

Celestia shifted out of Luna's cradling grasp and sat up, leaning in to hug her. "Then everything is fine. It's going to be okay."

"But…Tia…Your sun…"

Celestia frowned. "It was definitely shocking and, yes, I am a little shaken. I've watched over the sun for eons, and so to see it like this brings pain to my heart." She paused and hugged Luna even tighter. "But I can't expect you to do the impossible, Luna. The mere fact that you were able to maintain the cycle for all these centuries is all I could ever ask for." She nuzzled her sister affectionately. "Thank you, Luna."

Luna sniffled. "I…I think I shortened the sun's-"

"Yes," Celestia said emotionlessly, "I believe the sun's life has been shortened by a few billion years…"

There was a harsh silence, as if the air had been sucked clean out of the room. Luna trembled slightly. "I…"

"But don't cry about that which you could not control," Celestia soothed, "I'm here now, so it's going to be all right. From what you've told me, you really pushed yourself just to raise my sun. I always knew I could trust you, Luna. I'm glad to know I was right."

"Tia…I…" Luna muttered, "You're right. What's happened has happened." She sighed. "It's just…so sad. I made it so sick…"

"No, Luna. It wasn't you that made the sun sick; it was the absence of me."

Luna hugged her sister tightly. "I'm sorry, Tia…"

Celestia returned the hug, nuzzling her sister. "Don't be, Luna. Who knows? Perhaps I can make it better somehow."

"You think?" Luna said hopefully, gazing into her sister's eyes.

"I'll certainly see what I can do."

Finally, Luna smiled. "I'm so glad to have you back. Everything's going to be all better now! Everything's going to be fixed!" She then stood up, glancing at the food that she had spilled onto the floor. "Um, sorry about that. I'll go get some more dinner, okay?"

Celestia nodded. "Okay, Luna. I'll set the sun while you do."

Luna softened slightly at this. "O-okay, Tia…Um…I'll be right back."

Celestia smiled as Luna teleported away. Alone in the room once again, she stood up and returned to the window. The sun remained in the sky, near the horizon, where it had been before. It looked no different than it had centuries ago, but as Celestia reached out her magic again, she could feel the damage clearly. 

She had to keep from losing her strength completely. The ethereal feeling of the sun coursed through her veins as if it were a part of her. In some ways, it was, and so the sun's illness became her own illness when she was connected like this. She had to fight to keep from retching and toppling over.

My poor baby…I'm so sorry…I never meant to leave you…

It took her a little longer than usual, but she set the sun. As night began to cover the land, she released her magical grip on the celestial body, much to her relief. She sat upon the ground, shivering slightly. The sun's condition was definitely not good. It was unwell and dying, and it was extremely clear to her. However, it did not seem fatally wounded or imminently terminal. It was not well off, but was not in seriously bad condition. It was definitely still well enough to do its job.

Celestia took a deep, calming breath. To her, it was like seeing a dear pet that you'd been separated from for a long time, which was now frail and sickly. It was a painful, depressing feeling and it made her heart feel heavy, but she calmed herself and constantly reminded herself that there was nothing either of them could've done to prevent this. They would just have to see what they could do now to help.

Luna returned with more food. Celestia welcomed her and gratefully accepted her meal. The two sat quietly in Luna's room for a while as Celestia sampled the sandwich and salad. Though it was simple fare, it tasted absolutely delicious, just as she had expected. Even now, the chefs in the castle spared no expense to ensure that everything they created was above expectations. The bread carried a rich flavour, and the greens, fruits and vegetables were tasty and fresh. She wasn't sure if the fact that her stomach had somehow been empty for more than 500 years had anything to do with it.

"Is it good?" Luna asked.

Celestia smiled and replied, "Yes, Luna. It's delicious. I see the Canterlot chefs have not lost their touch."

"Certainly not. There is still that special kind of devotion that resonates through those that serve within the castle walls."

"I'm glad to hear that."

There was a short lull in the conversation before Luna spoke again, "So you set the sun, I see."

Celestia nodded.

"Are…Are you okay? With…well-"

"I'm fine, Luna. Fretting over this won't accomplish anything, and so I have to just overcome this obstacle and move on."

"I suppose that's a good way of looking at things," Luna said solemnly.

"There is no use dwelling on the past. We must look to the future."

"Right." Luna nodded. After a pause, she said, "I have thought about it a lot over the years. I would sometimes get very frustrated with myself and wonder why I couldn't do it. You rose the sun and the moon while I was imprisoned, so there was always this little voice in my head chastising me for failing."

Celestia shook her head. "Unfortunately, the sun is more wild and volatile than your calm moon. But, not only that, I had the Elements of Harmony to assist me."

"Ah," Luna said, nodding, "That's right."

"I was able to use the Elements to gain control of the moon with ease, without causing any harm to it. Unfortunately, though, you were not able to do this. Not since the Elements have come to reside within Twilight and her friends would you have-" Celestia suddenly gasped loudly. "Twilight!!"

Luna said something in reply, but she did not hear it. Her magic's grip on the rest of her sandwich dissipated, letting it fall to the floor. She stared straight ahead, her mouth hanging in a huge frown, as a heavy, powerful despair overcame her. 

So much had been happening that it had slipped her mind completely. There had been so much to talk about, so much to learn, so many emotions to play out, that she hadn't even thought about it. Now, however, her mind was filled with images and memories of Twilight and her friends. She immediately found it hard to breathe as a terrible, crushing sadness began to overtake her. 

"They're…all…" she muttered, barely audible. She was vaguely aware of somepony hugging her and embracing her with their wings, but her mind was elsewhere. It was somewhere dark and horrible, somewhere that caused a harsh pain deep in her heart.

"They're all gone…"

And then the floodgates opened. Celestia leaned on Luna's shoulder and cried her eyes out. It hurt; it was painful. In her whole life, she'd only ever experienced pain and sadness like this once before. She'd never thought anything could ever come close to what she'd gone through when she'd banished her sister to the moon.

But now, shivering in her caring sister's embrace, a truth that was all too real rang in her mind. Everypony she'd known, everypony she'd been friends with, was now long dead. All but the exception of her sister were gone forever. The knowledge hit her hard, leaving a heavy, empty feeling in the pit of her stomach and an aching in her heart.

Celestia was an immortal alicorn, and had experienced the death of a loved one far more times than anypony else. Through her eternal life, she'd been forced to watch ponies be born, grow old, and then die, never to return. It was always painful, and it always left a hurting in her heart that refused to subside for at least a day, but she had seen so much that she had come to accept it as the natural order of things. It no longer affected her as heavily as it once had, earlier in her life.

However, this was different. This was so much more, and all too sudden. From her frame of reference, life had been normal only a day ago. Now, after a sleep that had been endless but had only felt like a single night, she had to face the fact that tens, maybe hundreds, of ponies she'd once known were all gone. 

Not only that, but Celestia had grown particularly attached to Twilight and her group of best friends. The bearers of the Elements of Harmony had connected with her on a much deeper level than most ponies she'd ever had the privilege of knowing before. There was something special about the letters they sent, or the things they would talk about on the rare occasions she would get to chat with directly. 

Twilight especially was a student that Celestia would never forget. Though she had personally tutored and guided many young unicorns throughout the years, none were as bright, as clever, as friendly and as special as Twilight Sparkle. This studious pony, the Element of Magic, was somepony that Celestia could unquestionably call one of her best friends.

…And suddenly, she was gone.

Celestia wept, crying out in anguish as Luna held her tight. Minutes went by. Five, ten, fifteen. Her tears never seemed to cease and her sadness never ebbed away. She was unable to control herself as she was consumed by this unbelievable, overwhelming sadness that refuse to offer any mercy.

Luna stayed quiet the entire time, simply holding Celestia in her hooves, wrapping her in her wings, and gently stroking her. The only sounds, aside from her sister's anguished weeping, was the slow, steady ticking of the clock on the wall.

Some time later, an eternity in Celestia's mind, her cries subsided slightly and she tried to catch her breath. "Wh…" she wheezed, "Luna? What about…Spike?"

Luna rubbed her back comfortingly. "Forty years ago…"

Celestia held her eyes shut and grimaced.

"I'm sorry, Celestia. I'm so sorry…"

"I…I…" Celestia shivered fiercely, tears still flowing from her eyes.

"Oh, Tia…" Luna said comfortingly, "Here. Hop onto my bed. Lay down and relax."

Celestia wordlessly complied, standing up and lifting herself up onto the soft, cozy bed, laying atop the single cover. Luna stepped over to the large mirror and, using her magic, she slid a section of it back, revealing an expansive closet behind. From within, she retrieved a blue blanket and then closed the door. Then she returned to Celestia, sitting down beside her on the floor and draping the blanket over top of her. It was warm and comforting under the blanket, and Celestia nestled herself into it.

"Th-thank you, Luna…" she muttered.

"Just relax…" Luna cooed.

She sighed and simply lay there for a while, softly crying her tears. Images of her old life back in 2010 played repeatedly in her head, reminding her of all the good times she'd had and showing her just how much she'd lost.

The minutes ticked by in relative silence. Luna made no attempt to speak; she merely sat quietly, just being there. Her presence was very calming and helpful to Celestia, as it reminded her that not all was lost.

"L-Luna…?" she said quietly after some time had passed.

"Yes?"

Celestia took a deep breath before asking, "Were they…happy?"

Luna offered a smile. "They were, Tia. They were all terribly saddened by what happened to you, but with enough time, they all went on to live happy, successful lives."

Finally, Celestia managed a small smile. "Tell me about them…Please?"

Luna nodded. "Of course, Tia," she began, "Well…

"News spread to them quickly about what had happened to you. It was merely the day after you'd fallen that they were in Canterlot and at your side. I believe Rarity even cancelled a fashion show just to make the trip. The guards did not want to let them into the infirmary, but I commanded that they be granted access. They were asking questions about what had happened, both to me and to the doctors, but mostly they were quite quiet. They gathered around your slumbering form, closing their eyes and wishing…praying for your wellbeing.

"They stayed at the infirmary for two weeks, staying at your side when I could not. Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie tried their best to keep my spirits up, though unfortunately, not much could be done about that. Applejack brought plenty of food for us all; she even gave some delicious treats to the doctors. I'd like to think maybe a little of her optimism rubbed off on all of us.

"But Twilight…" Luna paused and sighed, "Seeing you asleep like that, unable to be awoken, was definitely not easy for her to see. She didn't say very much while she was there, but there were a few times when she would speak to you. I believe she hoped that somehow, in some way…you could hear her."

Celestia frowned, new tears threatening to fall.

"Eventually, most of them could stay no longer. They all had other obligations to attend to and, since there was no change in your condition, they decided to depart. Twilight stayed behind much longer than any of the others. There were many days when it was just the three of us, alone and silent. I could tell that she missed you very much. She told me that she was frightened, and wasn't ashamed to admit it."

Celestia moaned quietly, a painful wail building in her throat and threatening to come out. She raised up a hoof to dry her tear-filled eyes, after which she saw Luna gaze at her with an understanding look.

"I'm sorry, Tia."

"N-No, no…This is fine. I want to hear what happened. I can't just ignore it."

Luna nodded. "Eventually, Twilight too found that she couldn't remain and returned to Ponyville. By this time, I had gotten the day-night cycle almost correct, and so life was beginning to return to normal. At least, as normal as it could get. Though not a single pony had forgotten about you, and your wellbeing was still on everypony's minds, the citizens of Equestria started to move forward again. Twilight and her friends were no exception. They all lived grand lives, Celestia. Each one of them passed away happily. 

"Applejack lived a long, simple life of farm work, but that is what truly made her happy. Though life was never incredibly exciting for the hard-working earth pony, there was always a smile on her face. Even in the roughest times, through the toughest harvests, she was always happy as she worked. Her brother Macintosh worked alongside her until the end of his working days. Her little sister Apple Bloom grew up to become a wonderfully skilled carpenter, and was always willing to pitch in around the farm. Applejack got married to a pear farmer and they had three foals, but she never gave up her dedication to Sweet Apple Acres.

"Fluttershy became a veterinarian, as you might have expected. She slowly but surely chipped away at her confidence issues. There was improvement every day. When she had grown up, she was still very quiet, but definitely more self-assured. She took over as full-time staff for the Ponyville veterinarian clinic. She actually saved Applejack's dog's life. The poor girl was really sick and nopony could figure out what was wrong with her. She was having trouble breathing and it looked like she wasn't going to make it, until Fluttershy stepped in. Winona made a full recovery. Fluttershy too got married eventually. Aside from her job, she lived a quiet, peaceful life, which is exactly what she wanted."

Celestia smiled sadly. "I'm so happy to hear that…It's wonderful that they were…happy."

"Pinkie Pie lived like you might imagine," Luna continued, "Wild and crazy. She never truly did grow up. She was bouncing off the walls and throwing parties until old age. For a while she continued living with Mr. and Mrs. Cake, helping in the bakery, but there was a time when she was on the road, performing on-stage alongside that unicorn magician, Trixie. I believe you remember her, don't you? She had it written in her contract to make sure she was never away from her best friends for too long, and always made sure to throw a party whenever she returned from abroad.

"Rainbow Dash joined the Wonderbolts Training Academy not long after we lost you. She then proceeded to set an academy record by becoming the youngest pony ever to join the Wonderbolts team. I believe that record still stands. She rose through the ranks quickly, utterly astounding everypony with her amazing feats and tricks. In just a few short years, she was a Wonderbolts captain. She went on tours, showing off her amazing skills to the world, but it didn't take her very long to realize that something was missing, and she wasn't as happy as she thought she'd be. She was missing her friends too much; being a captain meant she only saw them sparingly. And so, she resigned her position as captain and remained simply as a reserve team member for events. She got to live in Ponyville and spend a lot of time with her friends, but still got to achieve her dream of being a Wonderbolt, and that truly made her happy.

"Rarity continued to work as a fashion designer, making dresses and selling them. She tried her best to get noticed, but she still faced difficulty. No matter how hard she tried, she never made it big. Nopony seemed drawn to her designs. Sure, she made enough money from the shop to live quite a comfortable life, but she was always frustrated with her inability to attain fame. That is, until one day she sat down, took a look at her cutie mark, and thought hard about whether this was the right path for her. Making dresses thrilled her, but trying to become famous was frustrating her. It was at that point, I think, she realized that she didn't really need super stardom to be happy. She spent the rest of her life doing what she loved; creating. She never let her creative mind die; not when money was tight, not when she started a family…Nothing could stop her."

Celestia, tucked warmly beneath her blankets, smiled at Luna. "That's so wonderful to hear, Luna. I know that happiness can be very difficult to find sometimes. It's good to know that they all led such wonderful lives." Then, her smile disappeared. "And…And Twilight…?" she asked quietly.

Luna's eyes shifted away from her sister's. "Well…" she said, pausing.

"Luna," Celestia said simply, "Be honest with me. Please."

"I…" She sighed and said, "Okay, Tia. The truth is that…Twilight was very shaken by what had happened to you. I would be lying if I didn't say that she wasn't quite the same since that fateful day."

Celestia's face fell into a heavy frown and she laid her head on her front hooves.

"After she finally departed from Canterlot," Luna continued, "I made a request, through Spike, to her friends to stay in touch with me and tell me how she was faring. They told me that she was very depressed and spent a lot of time alone in the library. Spike told me he could hear her crying many nights, and her friends told me that no matter what they tried, they couldn't lift her spirits."

"Oh, Twilight…" Celestia bemoaned.

"I tried visiting her on a few occasions, though I wasn't much help. I was going through much the same that she was." Luna sighed. "Things were very bad for Twilight for a while. Everypony was very worried about her."

Celestia gasped lightly, trying to hold back tears.

"But then…One day, maybe a year and a half after you fell asleep, suddenly she was a different pony. She was up and about, going outside, and smiling more. She told us that she'd had an epiphany. She realized that sulking and sobbing was doing nothing to help bring you back, and so she decided that she was going to dedicate herself wholeheartedly to try to wake you up."

"Wh…R-Really?" Celestia murmured.

Luna nodded. "She spent the next few decades working as hard as she could to try to find some way to wake you up. She studied well over a thousand books, in a plethora of languages. She sought out advice, both medical and magical. She ran experiments in the field and in her basement. She even travelled abroad, seeking out experts in far-off lands. It became her mission in life to help you, Tia."

Celestia couldn't speak. She was overcome with a whirlwind of emotions. 

"As I'm sure you'll realize," Luna continued in a lower tone, "she didn't have very much success. She was met with many dead ends and failures, and at no point was she ever any closer to finding a way to bring you back…"

Luna paused again before saying, "But at least she was smiling."

"She…" Celestia breathed, "She was?"

"Yes. She cared very much for you, Tia, as I'm sure you already know full well. If there was a chance that what she was doing could help you, then doing it made her smile. The way she saw it, each failure was only a doorway to the next challenge."

"T…Twilight…"

Luna lowered her head. "She wasn't smiling all the time, however. She still carried with her a heavy sadness. Sometimes it got to her, and it took all of her friends, including myself, to calm her down and bring her back. She missed you very much, and as the years went by, she began to realize that her time was limited."

"Oh no…" Celestia shivered slightly.

"She did not let it deter her, of course. She continued searching for a solution until she could no more. But she told me that there was one thought that would not leave her mind, and it hurt her so much. It…was the thought of never getting to see you again. The very idea that she wouldn't live to be able to hear your voice again weighed heavily on her."

There was no holding it back now. Celestia was openly weeping, burying her face into her forehooves. So many painful emotions were surging through her, and it hurt her dearly to hear Luna's words. But she didn't ask her to stop; she needed to know what had happened.

"Tia?"

Celestia sniffled and murmured, "Hm…?"

"I was at her side during her final moments."

Looking up, Celestia muttered, "Y-You were…?"

Luna nodded. "Her senior years had been filled with heartache and a sense of failure. She wanted nothing more than to see you again, but could not. However…as she lay in her bed, her final minutes in this world…she was smiling. She was smiling once again. I asked her why, and she told me that she knew you would've been proud of her."

Celestia breathed quietly, listening intently to Luna.

"She told me, 'I did the best I could to help Princess Celestia. I tried my hardest to help her and make her well again. I know I did not succeed, but I know that as long as I tried my best, she would've been happy for me.' She asked me to lean in close and, when I did, she whispered to me, 'When you see her again…because I know she will come back…please, Luna…Tell her that I love her. Tell her that I missed her every day, but also tell her that the days we spent together were the happiest days of my life, and that I'll always cherish them.'

"She said, 'I'm the luckiest pony in the world, because Celestia was my friend. And Luna? One more thing…'"

Celestia looked to Luna with tear-soaked eyes. "Wh-what? What 'one more thing'?" Then, she gasped as she felt something across her back.

Luna hugged her warmly with one of her wings, holding her sister tight. "She told me to hug you for her, Tia."

Celestia stared wordlessly ahead, feeling the comforting embrace from the wing of a pony that she knew, yet was also from a wonderful pony she had once known; one who didn't even have wings. Somehow, it unquestionably felt to her that she was being hugged by Twilight Sparkle right now, and it brought to her both tears and a smile.

"I…" she murmured, "I love you too, Twilight…I'm so sorry this had to happen…I'm sorry I put you through this…"

"Shhh, Tia…" Luna soothed, "It wasn't your fault."

Celestia smiled as tears flowed down her cheeks, nuzzling herself into the warm comfort of Luna's blankets and Twilight's hug. A powerful bittersweet feeling was overcoming her. "Thank you, Luna…"

"Like I told you, Tia," she spoke, "while they may all be gone, they all left this world with smiles on their faces."

Celestia nodded. "And for that…I'm glad."

There was silence in the room for a few minutes as both ponies remained still, a few tears flowing across Celestia's sad smile.

"I'll truly miss her…" she said finally.

"I miss her every day," Luna said.

There was another brief pause before Celestia asked, "Wh-what about Spike?"

"Ah," Luna said, a smile brightening on her face, "Spike…Equestria's Proud Dragon." She chuckled, and then sighed. "Dragons have such an immense lifespan. When Twilight was in her final years, Spike was just becoming a teenager. She was 87 when his wings finally came in."

"Wow…"

"But he didn't mind at all. He told me that he was glad he was still able to physically be in the same room as Twilight right up until the end…though he eventually did need to duck through doorways.

"After Twilight passed away, he came to live with me in the castle. He had a room in the same wing as mine, which he used until he was too big. Afterwards, we allowed him to sleep in the garden.

"Eventually, however, he grew too large to move about the city of Canterlot, and so he flew off and made himself a home in a cave at the top of a mountain. When he turned 100 years old, he had grown to his full size; a little below average for his species, but still quite imposing. We still kept in touch, and he was well known to the populace, and so could come and go as he pleased, so long as there was room for him.

"When he was 350, it was time for him to take his 100-year sleep. I still remembered what happened in Ponyville when that other dragon had fallen asleep, sis. We talked it over and made sure to make arrangements so that his smoke breath would not disturb anypony at all."

Celestia smiled. "It's so difficult to imagine Spike as a fully grown dragon. I mean, I saw him get enlarged when Twilight's magic went out of control during her entrance exam, but…"

"He was a very impressive sight, Tia. I'll have to show you a photograph."

Celestia nodded. "I'd like that."

"It was just this century that he started growing old. He kept to his den most of the time and rarely came out. His letters to me became infrequent. In 2485 I visited him. He was frail and very sickly, but he smiled and told me that he had lived a good, long life, and to extend it any further would be greedy. He told me he had learned his lesson well about being greedy."

"And so he asked to simply be left alone in peace for his final few years. I complied, only stopping by once a year to check on him."

Celestia lowered her head and closed her eyes. "He was a good dragon," she spoke quietly, "and they were good ponies. They were seven of the greatest friends I've ever known in my entire life."

Luna gave her a quick squeeze with her wing. "Me too, Tia…Me too…"

"And I'll miss them all so much…"

"I think they all cherished the time they did get to spend with you, no matter if it was cut short."

"Th…Thank you, Luna…Thank you for telling me about them."

Luna smiled. "Of course, Tia."

Celestia too smiled. "I'm glad I still have you."

"I'm so happy to have you back."

"I…I'm so sorry for…for not spending enough time with you before. I-"

"Tia, don't-"

"No, Luna. You're my sister. You're more important than anything else in the whole world to me. It should have been my highest priority to be with you and…to make you happy."

Luna shook her head. "It doesn't matter now, Tia. For these past centuries, all I ever wanted was to have my big sister back." Tears welled in her eyes as she gazed, smiling at Celestia. "And…I got my wish."

"Luna…"

"I am the happiest pony in the world right now, Tia! Nothing else matters as long as I have you!"

Celestia closed her eyes, also shedding a few happy tears. "I love you, Luna…"

"I love you too, Tia…"

"I promise…As long as it's within my power…I will never leave you again."



***



The two spent the next few hours simply talking, catching up, and being with one another. They were not disturbed once, as per Luna's orders to the rest of the castle. Nopony yet knew that Celestia was awake save for Luna herself and the two guards who had released her. Luna felt that enough was happening already that revealing her recovery to the outside world could wait for now.

The moon began to travel through the sky, casting a thin, silvery glow across the castle and into the bedroom. As time passed, Luna began to yawn more and more frequently. She tried to stay awake as long as she could, but eventually it was time for her to sleep. 

Being Equestria's sole Princess had forced her to alter her sleep schedule so she was awake during the day instead of the night. It had been a long day already even before Celestia had awoken, and so Luna quickly found it difficult to keep her eyes open.

Celestia had asked where she could sleep for now, and Luna merely laughed and pointed her hoof at the large bed. Celestia had tried to refuse the generous offer, but Luna would have none of it. She had insisted that Celestia sleep in the bed while she would sleep on some cushions nearby on the floor.

"But Luna, you're exhausted," she had said, "You really should get a good night's sleep in your own bed."

"Nonsense, Celestia."

Eventually, she found that she couldn't refuse her sister's generosity, and had snuggled herself beneath the warm covers of Luna's bed. 

The moon was now high in the sky. The angle of the windows caught very little light from it, bathing the room in an enveloping darkness. Luna had fallen asleep hours ago, and her light breathing could be heard from the foot of the bed.

Celestia lay staring up at the ceiling, completely unable to fall asleep. She had just woken up from a sleep spanning five centuries, so naturally she wasn't very tired. However, being a Princess had required her to take sleep wherever she could get it, and could usually fall asleep easily enough if she willed herself to, no matter how little tired she was.

But now, she was fully awake, eyes wide and hooves clutching the blankets. She rolled over onto her left. She'd tried closing her eyes and laying her head down to sleep, but as soon as she had, a coursing fear overcame her. She rolled over onto her right. Her mind was running wild and she couldn't bring herself to even close her eyes. Insomnia had a firm grip on her and refused to let go. She rolled over once more.

"Mnnn…" came a light groan from the ground next to her, "Tia…? Is that you…?"

"Luna…?" Celestia murmured, "Did I wake you?"

Luna yawned and nodded, barely visible in the thick darkness. "What's wrong…?"

Celestia clutched the covers close to her and frowned. "I…I…" she muttered, "I can't. I can't go to sleep…I…"

She jumped lightly as she felt Luna nuzzling her. "Why?" her sister asked.

"Is it not clear?" Celestia asked, "The last time I fell asleep…I didn't wake up for 500 years."

There was a pause. "Oh wow, Tia, you're right. I hadn't even thought of that."

"I…I can't let myself fall asleep…The same thing might happen."

Another nuzzle. "But we don't know that, Tia."

"I couldn't…take the chance." Celestia trembled. "I can't leave you…alone again…"

"Aww, Tia…" Luna cooed.

"I mean, it just came out of nowhere last time, didn't it? A-and, I…I…"

"Shhh…"

"Luna, I can't risk it. I can't put you through that again…"

"Tia!" Luna half-shouted, "Relax…"

Celestia took a deep breath and paused for a moment. "I can't…" she muttered.

Luna lifted her hoof and placed it on Celestia's chest, making soft caressing motions. "Tia, please don't panic," she said in a calming voice, "You can't go the whole rest of your life without sleeping…"

Celestia said nothing at this. She just continued to tremble.

"And…when it happened last time, it was like you fainted, right? It made you dizzy and you couldn't stand up."

"R-right…"

"So it was different than just falling asleep."

"I…Maybe, but…"

"So please, Tia…Just relax…Try to sleep…"

The two sat in silence for a few minutes. Luna continued to pat her hoof gently on her sister's chest, occasionally nuzzling her. Celestia carried on trying to calm herself down, attempting to summon up the courage to close her eyes.

She continued shivering.

She moaned and clutched at the covers more. "Luna…" 

Then, Celestia stopped moving and making noise. The room was filled with a golden, melodious humming. Instantly she stopped trembling, turning her gaze through the darkness at the silhouette of her sister. Luna hummed a light, calming tune, swaying her head softly with the melody.

"Wh…" Celestia breathed, "What is that…?"

Luna paused and gazed at Celestia. Her smile was barely visible in the light. "It's your lullaby, Tia."

Recognition flooded Celestia's mind. The tune began to play in her head, becoming clearer and clearer with each second. "The lullaby…" she muttered, "You…still remember it…"

"Of course I remember it, Tia. I'll never forget your lullaby." She hummed a few more notes, and then said, "It's something I'll always cherish. That tune shall remain with me always."

Celestia smiled. Wonderful, happy memories of days long past came to her, slowly washing away her negative thoughts. "I used to sing that to you…" she said quietly, "I remember you would come into my room, hop onto my bed and nudge me awake. You would tell me that you were frightened, or that you simply couldn't sleep. So I would invite you to snuggle under the covers next to me…and I would sing to you…"

"I remember those days too, Tia…"

"Sometimes, when you'd had a really rough day, I would sing to you while you slept in your bed…and I would stay with you until you finally fell asleep." Her smile brightened as a particular image entered her mind. "You were so cute back then."

Luna chuckled. "I suppose I was…"

"The cutest, most adorable little foal…I remember that I couldn't stand to see you cry…"

The conversation paused for a moment, and after a while Luna began humming again. Celestia joined in with her, closing her eyes and humming the melody.

"You would sing this whenever I couldn't sleep," Luna said softly as Celestia continued to hum, "So maybe this time…it can help you get to sleep."

"Perhaps…" She sighed happily, the cheerful memories brought up were warming her heart and helping her relax. 

"So, what would you say?" Luna said, moving to stand up beside the bed, "You would tell me to get under the covers…"

Celestia snuggled herself under the blankets, feeling their warm embrace atop her.

"You told me to get comfy, relax…"

Luna's words were making Celestia's memories even clearer. She could almost see her younger self inviting the little foal that was once Luna into her bed.

"And…"

Celestia, guided by heartwarming nostalgia, opened her mouth to sing…

She blinked. Nothing. No words were sung. The song was not beginning. "I…" Her mouth fell into a frown and her happiness began to ebb away. "I…" It was replaced by a dawning, saddening realization that quickly overcame her.

"I can't remember the words…"

Luna leaned in and nuzzled her once more. "It's okay, Tia."

"N-No…I…I can't remember any of it…"

"I don't remember the words either, Tia…"

Celestia shut her eyes. "But I should! I've sung it so many times! I-It was so important to you…It was so important to us…"

"Shhh, Tia…"

"I can't remember…It's…" Celestia hiccupped, trying to hold back more tears. "I-I think there was something about watching you, and staying by you…but I can't remember…"

"Tia, it doesn't matter. Just hum the tune. It still carries the essence of the song. It will help you relax."

Celestia took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and then lay back calmly with her eyes closed. She once again began to hum the lullaby, with Luna joining in. Heeding her sister's advice, she did not focus on the forgotten words and simply allowed herself to be carried away by the melody. Images and memories of much happier times came to her, making her smile and begin to feel calm.

The dark room was filled with the harmonious humming of the two sisters, casting a quiet, almost mysterious melody throughout. It wasn't long before one of the singing voices was replaced with the soft breathing of a gentle slumber.



***



Celestia groaned in her sleep, slowly waking up to the partially brightened room. A moment later, her eyes shot open and she gasped. "Luna!" she shouted, flailing about under the constricting covers and trying to get up. She only succeeded in further entangling herself. "Luna??"

"I'm right here, Tia," Luna's voice floated over from the desk. Celestia turned her head to see Luna sitting there, smiling.

"What year is it?!" Celestia wasted no time in asking.

Her exclamation made Luna giggle, but she then gazed at her with an understanding smile. "Don't panic, Tia. It's still 2531. You've only been asleep for the night."

Celestia let out a sigh of incredible relief. "Thank goodness…" she muttered, before focusing her attention on untying the gordian knot she'd somehow created with herself and the blankets.

"You're just in time for sunrise," Luna said to her once she had extracted herself from the bed.

"Yes," Celestia replied, "I haven't been late yet." After centuries of rising and setting the sun, Celestia had developed an internal alarm clock that never allowed her to sleep through sunrise. It had never failed her.

After she had risen the sun, during which she tried her hardest not to cringe from the sickly feel of the celestial body, Luna walked over to her bearing a large grin.

"Today is a big day, sis!" she said excitedly, "I think it's about time we let the rest of the world know you're back!"

Hearing this made Celestia smile brightly. "I suppose you're right."

"Look what I got!" Luna said before using her magic to retrieve a collection of items from one side of the room. Celestia gazed at what was floating over to her, wrapped in Luna's blue magical aura.

"Is that…my…?" Celestia gazed at the two sets of horseshoes, the two crests, and the two shining crowns. Half were in brilliant blues and blacks, while the other half were a shining gold.

Luna nodded, grinning. "Yup! Mine are some newer ones that are on display in the castle as part of a collection of historical artefacts, but yours…These are the same ones, Tia." She used her magic to separate the golden regalia and hover it towards Celestia. "I've kept them safe, and made sure they were always clean and tended to. They have been under my care for all these years, just for such an occasion as this."

"Wow…" Celestia murmured, using her own magic to take the items from her sister. She had seen them so recently. To her, it felt like she had worn them yesterday. Yet, as she gazed closer, she could see small but unavoidable blemishes and damage from the passage of time. These familiar garments that she had worn nearly every day of her recent life carried with them a strange air of antiquity.

As she gazed at them, she saw Luna putting on her own set of garments, identical to hers except in colour and the image on the front of the crest. "I thought you didn't wear these any more…"

Luna smiled. "Tia, this is a wonderful, special occasion! I shall welcome your return by wearing what was worn back then!"

Celestia put on her own gear. An even bigger sense of familiarity washed over her. She had hardly ever gone without wearing these, except to sleep. To put them back on now was very comforting.

"So," she spoke to Luna, "what are you planning for today?"

Luna didn't answer. She was gazing at her and smiling warmly.

"Luna?"

"Oh! Sorry, Tia. I just…Seeing you wearing those, it…it brings back such wonderful memories."

Celestia gazed downwards at herself. "Does it?"

"Yeah…It's been a couple of centuries since I wore these. Times have…really changed." There was a moment of silence before Luna continued. "Right. Today. We're just going to start with everypony in the castle. They've all been hounding me with questions, wondering what I'm doing up here and asking if I'm all right. I'm going to call them all to the Grand Hall, where you and I will enter and let them all know that you're here."

"Okay…"

"Then, I'll have a press conference scheduled later today. I'll make sure everypony in Canterlot is there, as well as members of the press, news cameras, and anypony else who can help spread the word."

Celestia nodded. "That sounds like a good plan."

Luna was beaming. "I'm so excited, Tia! Aren't you?"

"A little, yes."

"They're all going to be so happy to see you!"

"I cannot wait to see their smiling faces."

Soon after, Luna left to go call upon everypony working in the castle. Celestia waited patiently in the bedroom for around ten minutes until Luna eventually poked her head back in through the door. Luna had led her down a few short hallways until they had come to an impressive door. She'd been told that this opened to the Grand Hall, near the thrones. Celestia had been particularly delighted to hear that Luna had ensured there had always been two thrones through all these years.

Presently, Luna had stepped through the doors first and was speaking to the gathered ponies.

"Stallions…Mares…Today, something wonderful has happened. Something I have prayed for every night. A wonderful wish has finally come true, and I could not be happier." Celestia took her cue and began to step through the doorway. "Everypony," Luna continued, "please join me in welcoming back my dear sister, Princess Celestia!"

There was a series of loud gasps and shocked faces, which all soon morphed into grand smiles. The room was filled with cries of "Princess!" "You're awake!" "You're okay!" There was a happy, uproarious clamour as the widely grinning ponies gazed at her with wonder in their eyes. Celestia stepped forward, ahead of Luna, and looked across the room with a warm smile. They all began bowing down respectfully to her. 

There was a wonderful, warming feeling in her heart. Simply seeing their smiling faces and the joy she brought them by her mere appearance was enough to erase all of her stress and make her feel just wonderful. "My little ponies," she spoke, "I am so happy to see you all."

Unable to sit still for very long, the bowing ponies stood upright and crowded around her, though keeping at a respectable distance. A cacophonous array of questions found their way to her.

"Are you all right?"

"Princess, what happened?"

"Do you remember anything?"

"Are you here to stay?"

"Are you really Princess Celestia?"

She simply smiled and gazed at the overzealous ponies surrounding her. She noticed that most of them wore the same, simple silver outfit, though some had minor differences in colour or design. Truth be told, it was a little unusual to her. Not a single pony in the room was wearing armour; not even the personal guards. Some wore crests with Luna's cutie mark, while others did not. Some outfits were accented in blues, while others had yellows, pinks, greens, or no accent at all. 

Luna attempted to corral the rowdy ponies and recapture their attention. Celestia hardly focused on her sister. She was lost in the sea of smiling, happy faces that surrounded her. She could see in their eyes just how long she'd been gone and how much she'd been missed. She could see the wonder in some of their eyes, as if they'd given up on ever seeing her in pony. She almost felt like a character in a fairy tale coming true in real life.

Luna began talking about what had been happening since Celestia had woken up, and what their plans were for the press conference later, but all Celestia could think about was how happy she was to make these ponies smile like this.



***



A few more hours flew by. The castle workers hounded Celestia with an onslaught of questions and welcomes, but she hardly minded. Then, Luna had set plans for the press conference in motion. Her sister had made it clear to everypony that Celestia's wellbeing was to be kept secret until the "big reveal". Luna had always had a flair for the dramatic, and it made Celestia chuckle.

The castle was a flurry of activity around the two princesses. The clock ticked on, and the press conference drew closer and closer. Eventually, noon passed into the afternoon, and the two were sitting in a hallway waiting patiently. Outside the door nearby was the Castle's main balcony that overlooked all of Canterlot, and presumably tons of intrigued ponies.

"This is so exciting, Tia!" Luna said, practically bouncing with enthusiasm, "I can't wait to see their smiling faces! It's going to be so wonderful!"

"Yes," Celestia responded, "I can hardly wait either. It was so wonderful to see how happy I made all the ponies working in the castle."

"You've been missed so dearly, Tia. There's not a pony out there who wouldn't love to finally see you for real."

Celestia glanced at the clock. "When is it starting?"

"We have five minutes."

She smiled and sat up tall. "This really is a wonderful occasion, Luna."

"It is!"

"Though it was not by my doing, I have done the ponies of this world a great disservice by being away for such a long time."

"Aww, it's okay, Tia. You're here now."

"I truly wish I could explain to them what happened…"

"They won't care, Tia! They'll just be happy to have you back again! Just like I am."

Celestia turned and nuzzled her sister affectionately. "This really has been a terrible, unbelievable turn of events…but we just need to move past it. We need to look to the future."

"Exactly!" Luna replied, beaming.

Celestia took a few steps forward and sighed happily. "I am truly sorry for everything I may have put you through, my dear Equestria, but I'm glad my sister was there for you, and she was more than capable."

Luna giggled. "Thanks, Tia…"

Celestia looked up at the clock again. "It's almost time."

"Are you ready, sis?"

She nodded. "I am ready. Let's get this started. I cannot wait any longer to see the wonderful citizens of this-"

Celestia lurched forward. She gasped as the floor rushed up to meet her, barely stopping herself from faceplanting. "Ah…"

"Tia?!"

She blinked. A heavy dizzy sensation was clouding over her, blurring her vision and making her head spin. Strength began sapping away from her limbs. "Ah! I…"

"Tia, what's happening??"

Celestia pitched to the side, staggering on her hooves and trying to stay upright as this dizzy, weakening sensation overpowered her. Her eyes widened as she came to realize just how hauntingly familiar it felt.

"Tia!!!"

"Luna…It…" she murmured, hardly able to speak. Already, the strength in her limbs was gone, leaving her collapsed on the floor. She was barely aware of Luna rushing to her side.

"Tia!! Is it…? Is…?!"

"N…No…!" Celestia whispered, fighting as hard as she could to regain her footing. Fighting to keep her eyes open.

Fighting to stay awake.

"It's happening again!!" Luna shouted frantically. "Please, no!!! No, Tia!! Stay awake!!!"

"Lu…na…" Celestia could barely see more than blurred blobs, and there was no strength left in any of her muscles. She lay collapsed on the cold floor, limp as a rag doll. "I…"

"Tia, don't leave me again!! You can't!! I…I…"

Celestia barely felt herself being hugged. She barely felt the tears on her shoulder.

"I just got you back…" Luna whimpered.

Celestia opened her mouth and attempted to speak once more, but nothing escaped from her throat beyond a desperate gasp of air. She was aware of nothing more as her head fell to the floor and the world disappeared from her.

> Phase 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 4

When Celestia awoke, she shot her eyes open and gasped for air. "Luna!!" She flailed a bit, whipping her head around to try to see where she was. For a moment, her vision was hazy, leaving her utterly disoriented and in a cold sweat.

Her chest heaved as she panted. Her mind was in a panic, dreading what she feared she would find around her. She clenched her eyes shut, desperately trying to clear the blurriness she was experiencing upon waking up. She hoped. She prayed. She desperately pleaded that she would find herself in the same hallway, Luna at her side.

Opening her eyes finally, she found herself staring upwards at a broad display of plain white. A painfully familiar ceiling. It felt like her heart had imploded in her chest. "No…" She turned her head to the left to find a featureless white wall. "No, no, no…" As she turned, she was aware of a nearly transparent barrier surrounding her on top and on the sides.

"No, no, no, no, no!!!" Her voice raised to a frantic squeal. All of the collectedness and dignity of being a Princess vanished as she failed around and clutched at nothing, utterly panicking. Her breath came in short, sharp gasps, leaving her deprived of air. 

"NO!!!"

As she moved her head around frantically, she noticed more hauntingly familiar things. She saw a red cushion beneath her, and she also saw that she was no longer wearing her golden accessories. She noticed light filtering in from behind her, and something to the right that resembled a doorway.

Celestia began to cry. "Please…No…"

Trembling, she reached back her hooves to begin banging on the casing when something caught her eye. Below, at about the point of her midsection, there was something attached to the transparent barrier. It appeared to be a square shape made of metal. In the center there was a large red button, and surrounding this were embossed letters saying "Push here, Tia".

She paused, staring at it for a moment. In her mind's frantic state, it took her a few moments to process what she saw, but after a minute she reached over to it with her hoof and pressed on the button.

Immediately, there was a hissing sound and the outer casing began to lift up. Celestia wasn't patient enough to let it slide open on its own. She forcibly pushed at it with her hooves, struggling desperately to free herself and get standing on the ground. Her efforts ended with her collapsed, groaning on the floor, having tumbled off of the platform.

"Ow…"

She lay there in pain for a moment before shifting to move into a sitting position. Like before, her joints ached and felt stiff, and her magic felt sluggish. The feeling of déjà vu was hitting her more and more, bringing with it a sense of dread and despair.

Please don't let it…Please don't… She sat shivering on the floor, staring down. Maybe…maybe it didn't…Maybe I…It could be tomorrow… A few tears fell to the floor. Just please…Not again…

She sat, silently panicking, for a few minutes, as if afraid to move. Then, her attention was drawn to the room's entryway, where a light had illuminated. She gazed at the door; it was even more of a simplistic grey rectangle than it had been last time. It appeared smooth and seamless, like a patch on the otherwise white wall. The only other item of note was a small interface next to the door. It was flat and reflective, but appeared to contain many buttons and a screen. Above the screen was where the green light was currently illuminating from.

A moment later, there was a beep, making Celestia jump. The grey doorway split apart across a diagonal line, bisecting through its middle. The two halves slid upwards and downwards into the wall smoothly and with nothing more than a minute swish sound. The doorway beyond was revealed.

Two unicorns entered. Celestia briefly marvelled at what they were wearing. They both seemed to be wearing a slim, tight-fitting silver jumpsuit that covered everything except their head and tail. It had no collars, making it look as if the ponies simply had a second colour of fur. The only marking on the outfit was a simple insignia of her sister's cutie mark adorning their chests. Interestingly enough, Celestia could still see the ponies' cutie marks. She wasn't sure if the outfits simply had a depiction included on them, or if the area around their flanks was see-through.

Both ponies had some sort of device on their forehooves. It was cylindrical and looked like it was made of metal, and it had a screen as well as a few large buttons of varying colours. On the ponies' necks, at the point where the jumpsuit ended, was a similar-looking device. It had a round light that was not currently illuminated, and it curved up the side of their head and around one of their ears.

In contrast to what she had seen before, these ponies were actually armed. They both carried with them what looked like a small bayonet. 

This information only barely registered with the dishevelled princess. She gazed at the two imploringly as they rushed into the room. 

"Ah, Your Highness!" one of them spoke in a professional, yet slightly excited tone, "Wow! What a surprise!"

The two of them began to bow, but Celestia held up her hoof and exclaimed, "Wait!" She stared at them, a haunted look in her face, with tears streaming down. Her mane was a mess and she was trembling. Her normally perfect appearance was utterly ruined, but she didn't care at all.

"What year is it?!"

The two stallions shared a glance, and then lowered their heads sombrely. Celestia's heart hammered in her chest as she anxiously awaited their response.

"Your Highness," one of them spoke quietly, "it is the year 3233."

Smack. Pain. 

"Princess! Are you all right?"

Celestia was vaguely aware that she was laying on her side with her head resting on the floor. She stared ahead blankly, her mouth hanging open. Somepony was trying to help her up, but she neither noticed nor cared.

Seven hundred years. The number kept repeating in her head, almost pounding at her. Seven hundred years! It mercilessly assaulted her, leaving her crying and shivering on the ground. 

I've been gone for seven hundred years!!

"Your Highness! Are you okay?" one of the unicorns was saying to her as he helped her into a sitting position. She felt dizzy and short of breath.

She tried in vain to calm herself down. All she could do was take deep breaths. A million thoughts were running through her mind, easily giving her a headache. She felt like she couldn't even handle what the stallion had told her. She couldn't process it. She hiccuped as she cried.

"Your Highness?"

"I…" Celestia breathed, holding a hoof to her chest, "I…" She took more deep breaths, trying to slow her frantic heart. She looked to the unicorns, who were both gazing at her with genuine care in their eyes. She could see that they were very worried about her wellbeing.

So she held up her hoof to them and barely managed to say, "I'm not injured," before she rose her head to the heavens and cried out in anguish. 

The two unicorns lowered their heads and waited respectfully in silence. Celestia cried her heart out, filling the room with her painful wails. Her head hurt as so many terrible thoughts flooded it. Everything she had just gone through when she had been gone for 500 years was going to happen again…only worse this time.

She couldn't bear to think about it. It caused her so much grief to think of the populace of Equestria or her dear sister, and to think of the heartache she'd caused them. It was all simply too much.

She cried for a long while, her tears seeming endless. Celestia had never cried this much in her entire life; it was shockingly new and all too painful. It was too much. She wanted the pain to end.

Please… she silently pleaded, Just…tell me it's not so…

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, her tears subsided and she managed to calm herself down. She sat staring blankly at the ground, breathing slowly and evenly, shivering slightly. She wanted to cry some more, but had at long last run out of tears.

"Your highness?"

Celestia gazed up at the unicorn who had spoken through red, puffy eyes. She found she could say nothing in response; she merely stared.

"We understand how difficult this is for you," he said respectfully, "We've been instructed to provide you with anything you might need. Food? Water? We can have a doctor come here immediately if you require any medical attention."

The room was silent for a few moments as Celestia simply gazed at him. She felt as if she was unable to function any longer, as if this painful revelation had completely destroyed her. She felt as if she wasn't sure she could push through this time.

"Luna…" she whispered.

"What's that?"

"I need…Luna…"

The unicorn nodded. "Sure. Understood." He then turned to his partner and nodded again.

The other unicorn reached up his hoof, bringing the device on his forehoof into his field of vision. He leaned forward and, to Celestia's mild surprise, used his muzzle to tap the screen. It immediately flared to life, casting a faint glow on the unicorn's face. He then twisted his hoof slightly and used his muzzle to push a blue button on the side.

Upon doing this, the green light on the device on the side of his head illuminated. He replaced his hoof on the ground and stared straight ahead. "All staff," he spoke clearly, "Important! Code TA-1! I repeat, code TA-1. Requesting Her Highness' location right away."

Celestia gazed at him curiously. He was not saying anything now, simply staring straight ahead. The green light on the side of his head remained illuminated, but the stallion himself was doing nothing. "What…" she muttered, still finding it difficult to speak.

"Ah, it's a communication device," the other stallion said to her, "It uses magic to transfer his message to anyone else with one of those. Then, he'll hear their messages in his ear."

Celestia continued to gaze at him, understanding a little bit now. The unicorn must be receiving messages, or at least waiting for them. Even this relatively simple technology made her head feel a little dizzy. It was all a stubborn reminder that she was far in the future.

"Okay. Got it," he said finally. With another press of the blue button, the light dimmed and he returned his eyes to Celestia. "The Princess is sleeping right now. However, our instructions are to bring you to her room in this case. So, whenever you're ready, we can depart."

"There's no rush," the other unicorn said in a gentle tone.

Celestia nodded as she processed this information. "O-okay…" she murmured as she slowly began to get to her hooves. The stallion hovered near her, intending to catch her if she fell. Luckily, this wasn't needed.

Standing, she shut her eyes and sighed heavily, trying to stop herself from trembling. Her head hurt, her eyes hurt from crying, and her heart hurt. Everything hurt. For a moment she simply stood there, trying to endure the rush of thoughts in her mind and to work up the strength to move forward.

Eventually, she began to walk towards the door slowly. "Take me there…" she stated.

The two unicorns were immediately at her side. "'Course, Your Highness. Just follow us."

"Thank you…Thank you both…"

"It's no prob, Your Highness."

She turned to him and said, "Pardon?"

"No prob."

Celestia stared at him.

"No problem," the stallion on her other side clarified.

"Oh…" Celestia muttered, "Oh, right. Of course."

The trio walked slowly, the unicorns matching Celestia's pace, as they made their way through a few grey hallways and similar, sliding doors. Celestia could see clear signs of security in the path they followed. The doors were heavy-set, and often they had to stop to let one of the unicorns punch something into a terminal or do something unusual that Celestia didn't understand to get the door to open.

Soon, however, they entered a door and found themselves in a much different-looking hallway. It was more brightly coloured and was furnished and decorated. Though it was vastly different than anything she'd seen in the castle of her time, she could see the faintly recognizable themes that had been in place ever since Canterlot Castle had first been built. She saw mixes of warm and dark colours, mostly yellows and blues, and could pick out depictions of the sun and the moon.

This hallway was also populated. Many ponies in similar outfits to the two stallions accompanying her were walking the halls. They all stopped in shock once she had exited the doors, falling quickly into respectful bows. Their outfits deviated somewhat from the stallions'; some of them had different devices, and some were unarmed. The only consistent characteristic was that each outfit was predominantly silver.

However, Celestia barely paid attention to any of this. As soon as the door had opened and she'd seen what lay beyond in the hallway, she felt herself invigorated with a jolt of energy. She bolted forward with much greater speed than she'd managed moments ago, no longer feeling weary or weak. The two surprised unicorns dashed to keep up with her as she ran towards the enormous window.

The massive window took up one entire side of the hallway, and stretched from end to end, about 60 meters in length. Celestia's eyes sparkled as she rushed up to it, planting her forehooves against it and gazing out at what lay beyond it.

The castle had clearly been redesigned in the time she'd been gone. From her position at the large window, she could see parts of the castle stretching out before her on both sides, like two arms reaching out. Between these, and directly below this window, was a large public square filled with ponies, and beyond this was the city of Canterlot.

This window gave Celestia a full view of the entire city, and she marvelled at what she saw. The city had grown as much as it could from its precarious position at the top of a mountain. Most of the buildings she saw were made of metal instead of stone and wood, but they still somehow gave off a natural look that was not too dissimilar from her own Canterlot. Beyond them, however, Celestia saw more rooftops that seemed to be located over the edge of the cliff. She stared at them, confused, before her eyes were drawn further.

Whoever had designed this castle had put a lot of thought into the location of this window. For beyond the city of Canterlot, she was treated with an impressive view of Equestria beyond. She could see big cities in the distance, filling the horizon with more skyscrapers than they'd had in her time. She saw more smaller cities where there had been none before, and she saw more roads and train tracks snaking across the land, as well as an unusual raised concrete track of some sort.

Recognizing Manehatten and Phillydelphia in the distance, Celestia quickly discerned which direction she was looking in, and quickly scanned the plains of Equestria. She found Ponyville rather quickly, and the sight made her gasp in wonder.

The city had grown immensely, stretching out almost three times as far as it had before. She could see tons of new houses that spread out around the central district, which was now full of a multitude of large buildings. Nothing reached the level of 'skyscraper', but it was clear that the small town had developed into a city while she'd been gone. 

Squinting and looking closely, she was barely able to make out something in the center of the town, hidden behind these buildings. It was tiny and brown, but it was unmistakable. The tree housing the Golden Oaks Library had seen better days, but it was still standing.

"These windows have a habit of impressing guests," one of the unicorns said, making her jump slightly as she had not heard him approach. She turned and looked at him, her jaw still hanging open slightly. "Check out Equestria, Your Highness. It's always been there waitin' for you."

"Wow…" Celestia breathed, returning her gaze to the window. She realized that the last time she had been awake, 700 years ago, she had never taken a chance to look outside of the castle with the exception of a brief glance at the Castle Gardens. This view of Equestria that clearly showed the passage of time, yet was still very familiar, brought her an immense feeling of comfort. 

"It's amazing…" she said quietly as she simply took in the view of Equestria as a whole. The window only offered her a view of one cardinal direction, but she could tell it had been chosen so as to show off as much of Equestria as possible. Despite how hopeless and miserable she had felt not moments ago, the view made her smile.

As she gazed, she couldn't help but think that something didn't look quite right. She wasn't even sure if "not right" was the correct term to use. Something about what she saw was setting off a tiny reaction in her mind, but she couldn't pinpoint what it was. 

"Centuries later, and Canterlot Castle still stands," the stallion remarked.

Celestia's view returned to that of Canterlot itself. "How are there buildings there…?" she muttered, not so much asking the stallion as voicing the question out loud.

"Oh, over the edge?" the unicorn responded, "They're attached to the side of the mountain." He chuckled and said, "If you look at them from the side, it looks like a chimney. It comes out the side of the mountain and goes up. You havta go underground to get inside."

"The Princess loves to come here and just sit and watch," the other stallion said, "We thought about buildin' a throne for her here, but none of the designers could come up with somethin' that would fit in this hallway and still look as amazin' as they thought a throne for the Princess should look like." He chuckled.

The stallion's remark had reminded Celestia of what she had been doing before getting distracted. She willed herself to leave the beautiful window behind and continue walking the halls towards Luna's room. Though, her eyes remained drawn towards the amazing view until it could no longer be seen.

The three walked through a few more wonderfully decorated hallways on their way through the castle. Celestia began to notice signs of technology skilfully blended in with the stunning architecture. She saw what seemed to be security cameras hidden behind the artistic pillars and structures. Most of the doors had similar terminals to the ones she'd seen before, but they were installed in such a way that they flowed smoothly from metal technology to attractive framework. Lights and displays were similarly worked into the design seamlessly.

As they walked, Celestia slowly became aware of a dim, continuous humming sound. It was at that point she truly noticed just how prevalent technology was. Every room had at least three electronic devices in it, and that was not including the devices ponies wore on their bodies. It was so much different than in 2010, when computers were just barely starting to be developed.

She also noticed that the ceilings were lined with light-emitting objects similar to the one she had previously seen in Luna's room. They were much brighter and put out a more constant light. Celestia was about to ask her escorts what they were when they rounded one final corner and came to a distinctive door.

While certainly not as garish and expressive as Luna's bedchamber door had been in 2010, it still bore the personality of her sister. It was blue, matching her coat, and was bordered in a pattern that was similar to the black parts of her cutie mark. There was a nameplate on the door that appeared to be made out of silver. Written on it was, Her Royal Highness of Equestria: Princess Luna.

"We'll be right out here if you need us," one of the stallions said after they had unlocked the door. They both retreated to behind the door they had just previously entered. Celestia faced the door to her sister's room, all of her negative emotions returning to her in a torrent. She gulped and steeled herself, raising a hoof and pushing the door open, as she'd been told it was okay to do.

She entered the room slowly and quietly, first letting her eyes roam around the interior. It was not terribly different than it had been when she'd seen it last. It was still stylishly simple and functional, with desks and tables around, white and blue walls, and a large painting of Luna on one wall. The ceiling was lined with the same light-emitting objects, though they were turned off, but the large mirror was gone, replaced with another sliding grey door. What was missing, however, were the stacks and piles of paperwork. Instead, the desks had a few small electronic devices of some sort, and there were two terminals with keyboards and large screens. Celestia quickly came to the realization that paper must be outdated. She shivered slightly.

The bed still had the same distinctive blue covers on it, but it appeared shorter, and the frame also seemed to be made of metal as opposed to wood. It also had a canopy resting atop it; similar to their beds from 2010, but dissimilar to the previous one she'd seen. On this bed, snuggled beneath many covers, was a large pony with an ethereal blue mane flowing out. The covers rose and fell as her sister slept soundly, almost completely hidden from view.

Celestia carefully trotted over and sat down beside her sister. She gazed at her face, half-hidden beneath blankets and buried in the pillow. Luna looked mostly the same as she had 700 years ago. There seemed to be a few more sparkling points in her mane, but it was barely noticeable, especially as she was asleep.

What Celestia clearly noticed, however, were the blemishes and marks on Luna's face. There were dark rings under her eyes, and minute lines around her mouth and cheeks. It gave her an appearance that bordered between wise and worn. 

A few tears fell to the floor as Celestia stared, frowning. She tried to make herself gently wake Luna up, but her sister looked so tired. It seemed like she'd had a rough day and needed this rest more than anything.

She sighed, her ears drooping. She shook her head. No, she told herself, I have to wake her up now… She sighed again, a heavy feeling in her stomach. There's no telling…how much time I have…

Celestia carefully lifted off some of the covers and gave Luna a gentle nudge. "Luna?" She rocked her gently, trying to rouse her. "Luna, wake up…"

Luna groaned and clenched her eyes tight, as if trying to hold onto the sleep that was slipping away from her. "Mnnnn…" She inched her eyes open slightly, and then yawned. She blinked her eyes blearily, appearing quite exhausted as she tried to wake herself up.

"Luna?" Celestia said gently, leaning down closer, "It…It's me…"

Luna rustled beneath the covers and brought a bare hoof up to rub her eyes. She lifted her head slowly and gazed up through half-lidded eyes. "…Tia…?"

Celestia gave her a sad smile and nodded.

Luna said nothing more. She merely hoisted herself up into a sitting position and leaned forward to give her sister a tight hug. Celestia hugged back, holding her sister close and weeping softly. They remained like this for quite a few minutes. No words were spoken; the two simply embraced each other in poignant silence.

Celestia couldn't stop herself from shedding tears. Though it truly felt like she'd only been gone a single night, she knew the truth and it truly saddened her. She knew what had happened, and she knew the pain it had caused. Her mind was troubled and she had a lot of questions that could not be answered, but for now all that mattered was that she was here, holding her sister tightly.

After a while, the two moved back and gazed at each other.

"Luna…" Celestia started, "I…"

"It was longer this time," Luna stated simply.

Celestia opened her mouth to respond, but found she had nothing to say. Instead, she simply nodded.

Luna gave an empty sigh and looked down. "None of this makes sense, Tia…"

"I…This is just…This is awful."

Luna put on a small smile and looked up at Tia. "I'm really happy to see you again, Tia. Believe me, I am. I'm just…really tired."

Celestia gazed at her younger sister. She looked truly worn out. Her mane was a mess, and it sparkled dimly. Her eyes seemed bloodshot and she couldn't seem to open them fully. She slumped forward and appeared somewhat frail and weak.

Before Celestia could ask about her appearance, Luna continued. "The same thing happened, right Tia? You just woke up inside your co- inside that room?"

Celestia nodded.

Luna shook her head in frustration. "Something is happening to you…but nopony can figure it out. Technology and science keep moving ahead, and whenever something new becomes available to us, I focus it on you. I try to use new advancements to find a way to wake you…To cure you…but nothing."

"Luna, I…I don't know what to say. I don't know how to deal with this…"

"Once 500 years had passed, I expected to see you wake up again. I waited and waited…but you never stirred. I…" Luna had to stop, suddenly overcome with tears.

"Luna…"

"I was so heartbroken, Tia…I mean…It took you 500 years last time, so I figured it would take 500 years this time. It made sense…but this thing doesn't make sense, does it? It…"

"Luna, please…" Celestia hugged her sister with her wing, feeling her shivering beneath the feathered appendage. "I'm here…"

"For how long?"

A heavy silence filled the room. Celestia stared ahead, moving her lips and trying to find something to say. Nothing escaped from her throat. Luna's question carried with it the overwhelming fear that had been consuming her ever since she'd awoken in this era. Was this going to keep happening? Was she going to be out for longer each time?

"I…"

She felt Luna nuzzling her, but her touch felt cold. Celestia felt like she couldn't move, a heavy, painful feeling in her heart. Things were happening so fast and everything was out of her control. In just a couple short days, she found herself in the fourth millennium with no explanation, and no way to fix things or take control. 

"Luna…I…"

Luna shushed her. Celestia looked down at her, perplexed, but Luna just looked up with a sad smile. She found herself gazing into her younger sister's eyes. She could see the raw pain and sorrow behind them, even ignoring the tears falling from them. But she could also see a small spark of something else. Was it hope? Perhaps just a desire to cherish the moment. Celestia closed her eyes and nuzzled against her sister's head softly, simply remaining silently in her presence, holding her warmly with her wing.

The two ponies remained like this for nearly a half hour. There were the occasional sniffles and hiccups of quiet crying, but for the most part the room was completely silent. 

Finally, the two broke apart from their embrace and sat facing one another. 

"I missed you, Tia," Luna said with a smile.

"I'm-"

"Don't," Luna interrupted, "Don't…say you're sorry. Please. It's not your fault, Tia."

Celestia was silent.

"It's just really wonderful to see you again."

"It's…good to see you too, Luna," Celestia stumbled over her words. It felt insincere to say that, as she had seen Luna just recently. Though she knew the truth of how long she'd been gone, it didn't feel like she'd been gone. It gave her confusing, mixed feelings.

"How are you?" Celestia asked.

Luna let out a breathy groan. "I've…been better," she said almost nonchalantly.

Celestia glanced out the window, looking at the late afternoon sun. "Why are you asleep so early…?"

"I was just exhausted, Tia. I needed some rest…" Luna closed her eyes and rubbed them with her hoof again.

"Long day?"

"Umm…" Luna muttered, "Yeah…A few long days actually…"

Celestia tilted her head. "Luna, are you all right?"

For a split second, Celestia saw a shift in Luna's facial expression. For a brief moment, she could see terrible things in her sister's eyes, but a second later she was giving her a tired smile. "Yeah…" Luna said, "I'm fine, Tia."

Celestia paused. She gazed intently at her sister.

"Technology's moving forward. It makes my life easier, but at the same time it can make my life a whole lot harder. Remember when our chariot broke and we couldn't do anything until it was fixed? Well, imagine that, but happening almost once a week." She chuckled dryly. "Technology is a double-edged sword, Tia…"

"Luna?"

The blue alicorn faced her sister. "Yeah?"

"700 years ago, you were telling me about Twilight Sparkle and I asked you not to lie to me…and you didn't." Celestia paused, frowning. "So why are you lying to me now?"

There was silence between the two for a moment as Luna tried her best to appear as if she didn't understand the question. Her façade didn't fool Celestia in the least. She started to quiver, her frown growing larger and larger. Then, suddenly, she burst out crying and flung herself into Celestia's embrace.

"Oh, Tia!" she wailed, "I'm sorry!!"

"Luna…!"

"I'm sorry Tia! I'm doing my best! I'm trying my hardest, but I'm just so useless!!"

"Luna, what are you talking about…?"

"It's so hard, Tia! It's just so hard…I haven't gotten a good night's sleep in years! Sometimes I'm awake for almost 100 hours! It just comes and comes and it never stops! No matter how hard…No matter what I do…No…G'yahhh!!!"

Luna heaved as Celestia held her and tried to console her. Her anguished cries filled the room. They were cries of defeat, cries of surrender. Celestia stared ahead, a cold, powerful fear overtaking her.

"Luna?" she said quietly, "Tell me. Please."

Luna sniffled and cried for a few more minutes before she calmed down enough to speak clearly. "I…I'm trying, Tia, but it's not going well. We…we've fallen so far behind in the world. Did you see the view from the window?"

"I did…"

"Didn't it look weird to you?"

Celestia's train of thought derailed. "'Weird'? How do you mean?"

"If that window had been looking out at any other nation, you would see a lot more buildings, a lot more sophistication and advancement. You'd see small establishments that hover in the air. You'd see thin little rails that light up at night as they carry the static tram between cities. You…you probably wouldn't be looking out of just a window either. Probably one of those fancy things with the touch-interface on it."

Luna's words were confusing Celestia immensely, but she could understand the main point that Luna was trying to get across.

"We don't have any of that yet, Tia. And…we didn't make any of these screens or doors you saw around the castle. No, other nations invented those."

"So…" Celestia said, "what you're saying is…"

"Technology's moving too slow, Tia." Another poignant pause. "We don't have the budget or the resources or…anything to…do anything. We're scrounging off the scraps all the other nations leave behind."

Luna gave another empty sigh. "Equestria is not the proud nation you once knew, Tia," she said as she moved back to stare at Celestia with her tear-filled eyes. "I've failed, Tia. I've failed you, and I've failed everypony."

"Luna, don't say that," Celestia said consolingly, "You haven't failed anypony."

"Yes I have!" Luna shouted, "I try and I try, day after day, year after year! Something comes up! They look to me for answers! I try to give them answers, but it always ends up wrong! Every single time!"

Luna had gotten up out of bed and was now pacing about the room. "The world is moving by at such a frantic pace! Oh, all the happy little creatures everywhere else, they're all so happy! Meanwhile, Equestria is just struggling to keep up! All the little ponies, they stare at me…They look at me with these heartbroken, hopeless faces, and I just don't know what to do!"

"Luna…"

"The banks are in debt! The royals and the government and pretty much anypony important in Canterlot, they're all fighting. They're all ripping apart this great nation without even realizing what they're doing! Everypony makes a big damn mess out of everything, and then what do they do? They ask me to fix it! Well, I shouldn't have to, but I try anyway, because I love this country. Yeah! Of course I do!"

"Luna, please…"

"But no!!" Luna exclaimed, flailing her hooves around as she paced, "No, Equestria just goes further and further down the hole to Tartarus! The other nations laugh at us! We're so far behind! It's been 1200 years since you left Tia, and we've barely taken a step forward! What do we have? Automated doors?! Ooooh!

"And hey, maybe the reason our nation is floundering so much is because everypony is leaving!! Yeah, that's right! Every year, the number of pony emigrants increases a little bit. More and more ponies are packing up and fleeing this mess. In places like Zebrica, Cervinidas and The Griffon Kingdoms, it is now unusual if you walk down the street and don't see any ponies. That's the screwed up world we live in now!!

"But still I try! I work every day and, whenever I have a chance, I read books, I study, I talk to others in the government. I try to get better. But you know what, Tia? I'm never going to be as good as you. Never! It's not going to happen. Leadership is in your blood! It's what you were born to do. If you told everypony in this nation to march off to a volcano and hurl themselves in, they would all do it with huge smiles on their faces.

"I dunno how much longer we're gonna last without you, but I'm gonna keep trying and keep failing!" Luna raised her hooves into the air and began to screech at the top of her lungs. "What else am I gonna do?! Huh?! What else is there?! WHAT?!!"

"LUNA!!"

Luna gasped as she felt Celestia's hooves fall on her shoulders. She refocused her vision and found herself staring at her sister's tear-stricken face. There were two splats as tears fell that she hadn't even known she was shedding. Celestia gazed at her and spoke softly in a quivering voice.

"You're scaring me."

The two sat still as statues for a few tense moments. Seconds and minutes ticked by as both ponies let their tears fall as they stared at one another.

Finally, Luna's emotional dam broke and she collapsed forward into an embrace with Celestia, crying remorsefully. "I'm…I'm sorry, Tia…I- I didn't mean to scare you, I just…"

Celestia said nothing, merely holding her sister tight and gently rocking her.

"I just…I-I just…I don't know what to do sometimes…" Luna bemoaned, "Say what you want, but the truth is that I'm fighting a battle and I'm losing, Tia. I tried my best…but it's not quite there. It's not enough. Not without you."

"Luna, don't worry…"

Luna let out a particularly loud wail, clutching tightly to her sister. She shivered and pitched in Celestia's embrace as her overwhelming emotions made it difficult to breathe.

"I…" she muttered, "I can't do this anymore, Tia."

Celestia froze. "Wh-what?"

"I give up."

She hoisted Luna up so that they were looking into each other's eyes. "What do you mean, Luna?"

Luna's eyes seemed unfocused. They looked blank and dead. "I can't do it, Tia…I can't take it anymore."

"Luna, no! Don't talk like that!"

"It just hurts too much, Tia…"

"Luna! Don't give up! You can't give up!"

Luna shook her head lethargically, appearing like a heavy ragdoll in Celestia's grip. "You…You don't know what it's like. You haven't been here…for all these long, long years. Sleepless nights, long days. The pain, the sorrow, the failure. The faaaailure…"

"Luna."

"I've endured this failure for…way too long."

"Luna!"

"I give up."

"Luna, come on!"

She sniffled. "I'm sorry, Tia."

"There's nothing to be sorry for!"

"Hold me close, Tia. This'll be…the last time."

Celestia's eyes shot open and her heart froze.

"Sorry I won't be here next time you wake up."

Celestia gripped Luna's shoulders tightly and gave her a fairly rough shake. "Luna, snap out of it! Don't say those things!! You…You don't really mean that, Luna. You've just had a rough day."

"I…"

"No, Luna! I won't let you give up! Even if, perish the thought, everything goes to Tartarus and the world burns…I'll still be happy as long as I can see you. If you're still here, then I'll still be able to smile, no matter what happens."

"Tia…"

Celestia stared at Luna with a fiery ferocity. "You can't give up on these ponies, Luna! Even if everything's not perfect, the mere fact that you're trying your best is helping them out substantially! You can't quit! You can't give up! Equestria needs you!" She paused. "…I need you."

"But Tia," Luna responded weakly, "I need you."

Celestia opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. She sat there uselessly for a few moments before she simply gave Luna another hug. She held her little sister consolingly, rubbing her back and nuzzling her. Luna wept softly on her shoulder as she did.

"I'm sorry, Luna. I truly am. If I had to give up everything I had, my wings, my horn, my sight, my title…I would give it all up if it meant I could stay here with you."

"Tiaaa…" Luna cried, sounding almost like a young foal, "I neeed yoouu…"

"Ohh, Luna…" Celestia's heart was aching painfully. Seeing her sister like this was one of the most horrible things she'd ever experienced.

"I…I can't…"

"You can, Luna."

"I can't go on."

Celestia stared, wide-eyed and panting.

"I can't go on living like this. I-"

Smack!

Luna squeaked in surprise, bringing a hoof up to her cheek. She stared up at Celestia in shock as the elder sister returned her hoof to the ground. She stared at Luna fiercely, a passionate fire dancing in her eyes, a huge frown on her face.

"Luna…" she breathed, "Never…Never, ever…say that…ever…again…"

Luna couldn't respond. 

"I never want to hear you say that ever again, Luna. Never say those words. Don't you dare…"

"I…Tia…"

Celestia pulled Luna into yet another hug. "I can't bear to hear them, Luna. I…I just can't. I love you too much for that."

Luna moaned softly in her sister's embrace, nuzzling herself into Celestia's arms like a baby animal snuggling into its mother's warm fur.

"Please, Luna…Please…"

After another moment of heavy, emotional silence, Luna muttered a few words. "I'm…just so tired Tia…"

"I know, Luna…" Celestia replied in a motherly tone. She paused, however, and then continued, "Well, I suppose that's a lie. I don't know exactly what you're going through…but I can definitely imagine it, Luna. I understand what you're feeling, and I truly feel for you, Luna. Your pain is my pain. When I see you crying, it makes me cry. When you're hurting, I hurt twice as much."

Luna didn't reply or move. She felt limp and heavy in Celestia's grasp.

"You're exhausted, Luna," she said soothingly, "I woke you up. You need to get some sleep."

"Okay, Tia…" Luna mumbled.

Celestia lit up her horn with her golden, magical aura, and wrapped Luna in the ethereal glow. She levitated her sister gently through the air and guided her back to her bed, and then placed the covers over her. 

"Goodnight Luna," Celestia said as she made her way to the bedside and lay down upon the cold, hard floor. "I'll be right here when you wake up."

But Luna didn't respond. She was already snoring softly.




***




Celestia rested at Luna's side on the floor through the evening, and then slept through the night. One of the guards that had escorted her earlier came to deliver her some dinner, but aside from that the two were not disturbed. 

She awoke the next morning ten minutes before sunrise, thanks again to her internal alarm clock. As she was stretching, yawning and generally waking up, the room was suddenly filled with a jarring, cacophonous ringing. Celestia splayed her ears back in shock, darting her head around the room to identify the source. She found it within seconds and quickly silenced it with her magic. The culprit appeared to be an actual alarm clock, though it looked like a smooth grey cube of some sort.

Celestia quietly stepped over to Luna and checked on her. She mumbled softly, but remained asleep. Celestia gave a sigh of relief, knowing that Luna needed this rest more than anything

So, she let her sister continue to sleep while she raised the sun herself. As she reached out to it with her magic, she was almost floored by what she felt from it. The sun was getting sicker, and it almost didn't move to her whims at all. It nearly made her dry heave, but she shook it off. She couldn't think about that now.

A short while later, Luna began to stir. Celestia was at her side, gently guiding her awake with a warm smile.

"Mnnnn," Luna groaned, rubbing her eyes, "Tia…?"

"Good morning, Luna" Celestia said sweetly, "Have a good sleep?"

Luna cracked open her eyes and gazed up. Then, she did something that lifted Celestia's heart and helped chase away her negative thoughts; she smiled.

"G'morning, Tia!" she said, sounding leagues more positive than she had last night. "Didja raise the sun…?"

Celestia nodded and said, "I did, Luna. I let you sleep in."

Luna stretched out her neck and hooves, moaning in bliss. "Ahhh, I really needed that…" she said as she began to get out of bed, "Thanks sis!"

"Don't mention it, Luna. It was my pleasure."

Celestia quickly found herself in a warm hug.

"Thanks, Tia. Thanks…for everything."

"You're welcome, Luna. I'm…I'm here for you…"

Thus, the two ponies' day began. Celestia, still slightly shaken from the previous night, spent most of it following Luna around, either confused or amazed. 

The day started off in quite an interesting way with breakfast. After asking Celestia what she wanted, Luna stepped over to one of the many devices that all looked basically the same in her eyes. She gasped and stared, however, when Luna input something into the interface and, with a small, artificial-looking flash, a sandwich and packet of hay appeared out of nowhere. Though sceptical, she had tried it anyway at Luna's urging. It tasted just as good as any other food.

A "Replication Device" Luna had called it.

This was followed by getting dressed. Celestia was surprised to see Luna putting on a silver jumpsuit, similar to everypony else. Hers, however, was much flashier, had more emblems depicting the moon or her cutie mark, and didn't seem as tight-fitting.

"You don't wear the armour any more?" Celestia had asked.

"Oh, no. That died out centuries ago."

"So, what's the purpose of this?"

"I don't even know any more, Tia," Luna had replied with a laugh, "It's fashion. It just happens."

Celestia had briefly wondered, with a little concern, if Luna had a jumpsuit for in store for her, but Luna had surprised her by once again bringing out her golden accessories. Still the same ones, kept safe for centuries.

Then, the day began move forward. Luna accessed the terminal on her desk, letting Celestia glance over her shoulder with wonder-filled eyes. Colourful images and multitudes of text flashed across the screen too fast for her to comprehend, but Luna didn't seem to have any problem. Her horn was lit up, surrounding the interface with a magical glow as she pushed buttons and input commands like an expert.

"Okay…" Luna had said, "So this is today's…"

"Today's schedule?" Celestia had picked up, "That doesn't look like very much! Seems like an easy day."

There was a noticeable pause, and Celestia had caught a very slight jolt of movement from her sister, before Luna had said, "This is page one of five, Tia…"

"Oh…"

Luna had walked out the door with a smile on her face, beckoning for Celestia to follow and be at her side for the entire day. Celestia, however, couldn't help but be concerned. Try as she might, she couldn't get rid of the frown she was wearing as she followed Luna around.

There had been a meeting with the Ministry of Science and Technology, allowing Celestia to see more of the castle and to interact with ponies working in the government. She had gotten to see more examples of advanced technology and had been introduced to the ways and trends of this far-off, future year.

However, Celestia couldn't help but be focused on Luna. She found herself gazing at her sister and thinking about her. She had been with her sister long enough to see the small, subtle hints that gave away what was really going on inside her head, despite the positive attitude she showed. Celestia often caught her frowning, or staring off at nothing. Sometimes Luna needed to have somepony repeat something to her, as if she weren't paying attention.

This was coupled with plenty of smiles and enthusiasm, however. She had spent most of the day with a grin on her face as they attended a few meetings with ministers and cabinet members. As noon drew closer, the two headed back to her room to have some lunch and let Luna work on some paperwork, though there was no paper involved.

All of the ponies they had met that day were certainly amazed to see Celestia. They all stopped in their tracks, unashamedly gasping in disbelief, and bowing reverently to her. It did make her smile to see that ponies still remembered and respected her, and it warmed her heart to know that she was making this day very special for them. It was a little odd to think of herself as a 'rare, once-in-a-lifetime event' but it somehow made her giggle.

Presently, Celestia sat before one of the smaller terminals in Luna's room. The young Princess had brought up some visual entertainment on it for her to enjoy while she worked on the larger terminal. Celestia wasn't paying attention, however. She could only gaze concernedly at her sister.

When she woke up… she thought to herself, she seemed so much better. She was smiling and upbeat…Maybe she just needed a good sleep? Celestia shuffled her position, watching as Luna leaned on her hoof and stared unmoving at the terminal's screen. Is she really going to be okay…?

Celestia had to force herself to think realistically. Though the two of them hoped dearly that nothing more would happen and she would be able to remain awake, they realized that there was a good chance it would happen again. Neither knew when it would strike, and how long Celestia had to stay awake. That was why they hadn't put together any grandiose ceremony to welcome her back this time.

"Tia?"

Celestia perked up her head, realizing she had been staring blankly ahead. "Huh? What?"

"Are you okay?" Luna asked, looking at her with concern.

Am I okay? Am I okay?! I've been worried sick about you! You were going to give up last night! You wanted to end it all!! I've never seen that from you, Luna! I'm terrified! I need to know if you're okay! I need to know if you're going to be able to get through this!!

"I'm fine, Luna…"

"Are you sure? You've been looking kind of…" Luna paused, "…off today."

Celestia sighed. "It's just…" she started, trying to form her words.

"It's what?"

"I've just…never seen you as upset as you were last night. It really scared me."

Luna frowned. "Don't worry, Tia…I'm fine."

"You sure?"

There was a half-second pause. To any other pony who didn't know Luna as well, they would have seen nothing out of the ordinary and would have accepted Luna's testaments as fact. However, Celestia knew Luna. She could pick out the subtle twitches or shifts in her eyes that told her something was wrong. "…I'm fine."

Celestia frowned.

"Really, Tia. I'm sorry if I scared you last night. I didn't mean to. I was just really, really upset, but…I'm fine now."

She sighed. "Just remember that I'm here for you, Luna…and you can talk to me about anything."

Luna shifted slightly. It was then that Celestia realized what she'd just said. I'm here for you. Her heart sank.

The day continued. Though Luna tried to impress Celestia by showing off all the amazing things the future had to hold, or by telling her of all the amazing things the world had done in her absence, she couldn't help but feel distracted throughout. She constantly found herself gazing at Luna, her mind running amok as she wondered if her sister were truly all right.

She was scared. She was more afraid than she'd ever been in her entire life. Just last night, her sister had been on the brink of hopelessness and was contemplating suicide. Throughout her whole life, even when she had been at her worst, Luna had never threatened to kill herself. It shook Celestia to the core; she couldn't stop fearing for the safety and wellbeing of her sister.

Luna had repeatedly said that she was feeling better, and was even smiling and seemed more upbeat, but would she truly be okay? Would her happiness last, or would she fall down as deep as she had before? Perhaps deeper? Would Luna be okay if and when Celestia fell asleep again? Would that push her over the edge?

The anxiety Celestia was feeling was overwhelming, and she didn't know how to handle it. All she could do was stare worriedly at Luna as her little sister trudged through her long, difficult day. Celestia pitched in wherever she could, but being chronologically displaced was putting her at quite a disadvantage.

The day flowed into the evening, and Luna was still running about meeting with ponies and trying to sort things out. A pony had come to her talking about unusual weather phenomena, asking for more funding. She met with a group that were discussing the negative impacts of some sort of technological advance that Celestia simply could not follow. There were some court proceedings Luna had to preside over, and they seemed to take longer than they used to back in Celestia's time.

Night came, Luna set the sun, and she was still hard at work. She sat hunched at her terminal, constantly yawning and groaning. Celestia had been looking over her shoulder as she worked, but what she saw on the screen made her head spin. It appeared like alien technology to her, so she resigned herself to sitting near the bed. 

She'd been keeping quiet, so as not to disturb her sister's work. While Luna was no doubt thankful for the ability to work in peace, the silence had the unfortunate effect of letting Celestia's thoughts run more freely. She spent the entire time reliving what they had gone through last night. She could not get the horrifying image of Luna, completely alone and distraught, giving up and ending everything.

Her heart ached as she thought about not being there once again. She spent a lot of time wishing and praying that she would not fall asleep again. A feeling of helplessness was constricting her.

Celestia tried and failed to remember a time before when she had been this anxious. She didn't know what to do, what to say, what to think, what to feel. This was all so fantastical and unbelievable, and it was so difficult and painful.

Neither of them knew what to expect next, but if Celestia's 'condition' continued to behave as it had before, then she would not be around when the morning came. She shuddered to think what would happen when she was gone again. She tried to think of something to say or do that would make everything okay, even if she had to disappear again.

Disappear.

She paused as she realized she had used that particular word in her thoughts. She wasn't sure why, but it made her shiver as if a cold breeze had slipped through the room.

"Ughh…"

Celestia glanced in the direction of the noise, and saw Luna holding a hoof to her forehead. Her energy was clearly depleted, as could be seen by her mane hanging heavy and lifeless around her shoulders and body. It almost looked like a black cloak clinging ominously to her body.

"Luna?"

Her exhausted sister slowly turned to face her. "Hmm?"

"Please…Get some sleep."

Luna sighed. "I can't, Tia. I-"

"It's 3:30AM."

The blue alicorn blinked, turning her gaze up to the digital display on the wall that showed the time. "Oh whoa…"

"Come on, Luna," Celestia said, standing up and moving to the bedside, "You need some sleep."

Luna was about to argue, but she was cut off by her own loud yawn. "Mmmmnnn…" she groaned.

"Come," Celestia said simply, pulling back the covers with a tug of her magic. 

Luna wordlessly complied and trotted over to the bed, climbing into it and getting beneath the blankets. Celestia pulled them up to cover her, tucking her in with a smile on her face.

"Ughh," Luna moaned, eyes closed as she lay on her pillow, "There's not enough hours in a day, Tia…"

"Shhh," Tia soothed, "Don't worry so much, Luna. If you overwork yourself, then you won't be able to do anypony any good."

Luna gave an empty sigh, frowning and gazing up at the roof.

Celestia sat in silence for a few moments at her bedside, patient and unmoving. Finally, Luna spoke.

"Tia…?" she said quietly, "I'm…not fine."

Celestia said nothing, letting her sister speak.

"I just felt so bad about getting so upset when you were here. This is supposed to be a special time for us. Because of…whatever this damn thing is that's happening to you, we hardly get to see each other. It's a rare opportunity that we spend time together, and I wasted it by being all depressed."

Celestia nuzzled her. "It's okay, Luna. I understand what you're going through."

"I wanted to be happy today…for your sake. But it was a lot harder than I thought it'd be…"

"I just want to make sure you're okay, Luna," Celestia frowned. "I want to make sure you're safe."

Luna sighed again. "I…I want to say I'm okay, but…" Her lip quivered slightly, but she held back any tears. "I just don't know any more…"

There was a long pause with neither mare saying anything. Then, Celestia used her horn to shut off the lighting in the room, as well as the terminals. She'd seen Luna do it before, so it wasn't a challenge. The bedroom became bathed in darkness, with only the silvery light of the moon flowing in from the windows.

Celestia began to hum. Just as Luna had for her more than 700 years ago, she now began to hum a certain, familiar lullaby. She watched as Luna turned to her, surprise on her face.

"That's the…"

Celestia merely continued to hum, flowing through the melody smoothly and serenely. As she did, she saw Luna shift her head on the pillow so she was staring straight up at the roof. She clutched the blankets with her hooves, drawing them up so that the edge rested just below her chin. She lay there silently, but Celestia could see so much in her eyes. She saw wonder and nostalgia, but she also saw unease and uncertainty. Her mouth continued to hang in a small frown.

Now, as she saw her sister laying before her like this, she was reminded of a certain little blue foal. A tiny, young alicorn, laying in bed just like this, afraid or unable to go to sleep. The way she frowned, the way she clutched at the blankets with her little hooves, it was just the same.

Tia?

Yes, Luna?

I'm…scared…

Why, there art nothing to be afraid of. Thou art quite safe with me.

B-but…

Images from a time long passed, from a time when she had been just a young, innocent thing with no duties or responsibilities; they all came back to her clearer than ever before. Once again, she found herself singing to her little sister to help her get some sleep.

It all became so much more familiar.

"Hush little sister,

Lay down to sleep.

You're safe with me now,

There's no need to weep."

She watched as Luna's eyes sparkled in the moonlight. She could see a faint recognition in her growing more and more familiar as she sung.

Celestia smiled warmly and sung the words again. They were the only ones that she could remember, but they still meant something special to the both of them, and it brought a warm feeling to her heart.

Luna's eyes grew heavy as Celestia sung and hummed. It wasn't very long before they were closed and Luna was resting peacefully beneath the covers.

Celestia leaned in and gently kissed her on the forehead. 

"I love you, Luna…" she whispered.
> Phase 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 5

Celestia awoke to the sound of hooves clopping on the floor.

"Now?? They're there now?!"

She wearily opened her eyes, yawning and stretching from her position on the floor next to the bed. She gazed with tired eyes in the direction of the sounds she was hearing.

"But…" Luna's voice was confused and frantic, "But why are- What? What do you mean?"

Celestia slowly got to her hooves, keeping her eyes on Luna. She had made to ask her sister what all the noise was about, but then she noticed the device on the side of her head had its light illuminated. She recalled that this meant Luna was conversing with somepony else.

"But why now?" Luna's face was utterly perplexed, "It's so sudden. You're sure they said 'immediately'?" Luna was pacing back and forth across the length of the room as she spoke. Celestia merely watched in silence, filled with a genuine sense of worry.

"And no reason was given? You're sure?" There was a pause as Luna listened to the response, which Celestia could not hear. "They just showed up and- Yeah…" Luna glanced up to the roof with a brief look of anxiety. Then she gave a curt sigh and said "All right. I'll be there shortly!"

Luna then used her magic to press a button on the device on her forehoof, causing the light to dim. She then proceeded to curse quite loudly.

Celestia's eyes shot open wide in surprise. "Oh my, Luna," she commented, "Such language!"

Luna started and turned to Celestia. "Oh! Tia, I didn't see you wake up!"

"What's going on?" Celestia asked worriedly, glancing at the windows behind Luna, "It's not even time for the sun to rise yet."

Luna huffed in frustration. "I don't know…" she muttered, "Some foreign dignitaries from another country have just shown up - completely unannounced - and are requesting to see me immediately." She moaned quietly. "I dunno what they want, why they're here, what's gonna happen…"

"Oh dear…" Celestia replied.

"Yeah, I've got no choice," Luna said, pacing over to her closet, opening it, and taking out her silver jumpsuit, "I've just gotta go. Immediately. It's gonna completely ruin my schedule probably, but I can't say no."

"Luna," Celestia said, rising to her hooves and trotting over to her little sister. Luna gazed at her, and Celestia found herself looking into her eyes. She saw in them much the same as she'd seen before; stress, weariness, sadness. One such as Luna could always wear a mask, but the eyes were a window into one's true soul.

"Luna, I'm scared…" Celestia said, uncensored and plain. She gazed imploringly at her sister, emotions from the previous day returning in full force.

"Scared, Tia?" Luna replied.

Celestia nodded. "I'm scared for you. I'm worried, Luna. I'm really worried."

Luna smiled, but Celestia could clearly see how forced it was. "Don't worry about me, Tia. I'm fi-" She cut herself off, frowning slightly. Instead, she said, "Just, don't worry, Tia. Try to smile."

"Smile?"

Luna's lips turned upwards again. It looked a little more genuine this time. "Yeah, Tia. Smile. I always notice that I don't smile very often these days, so any reason to smile is a good one. We should be smiling now. This is our time together."

Celestia sat there, contemplating Luna's words. She tried to smile, but honestly found that she couldn't. There were too many conflicting emotions swirling around inside of her. She was worried, she was tired and upset. Above all, though, she was very concerned about what the future held. Thinking about what would happen if, and most likely when, she fell asleep again was giving her so much stress and intense anxiety.

"Don't worry, Tia," Luna said as she stepped around Celestia, continuing to prepare for her appointment.

Celestia didn't follow her, not even with her gaze. She sat still, her thoughts swirling. This is our time together. Luna's words repeated endlessly in her head. This was their time together; a short, rare occurrence where the two could be with one another. Yet, she could not find any happiness or joy in these times. This was a period filled with stress and hopelessness for the both of them.

Is this all we have now…? she thought, Short meetings of emotional pain?

"Okay," Luna said, her rush evident in her voice, "I gotta go now. I'll be back as soon as I can. I have no idea how long I'll be, but I'll try not to keep you waiting."

Celestia absent-mindedly turned around to face her. "O-Okay…" she mumbled.

Luna gave her another smile. "I love you, Tia!"

"Luna?" Celestia gazed at her sister, worry all over her face, "Are you going to be okay?"

Luna was silent for a moment. "I will," she finally replied.

"Are you sure?"

Luna closed her eyes. "I'll be back soon, Tia." A moment later and Luna was gone.

Celestia sat still in the silent room, the dim light of the setting moon being completely engulfed by the artificial light of the odd thing on the roof. For a few moments, Celestia merely sat alone with her thoughts. So many of them assaulted her mind, further driving up her anxiety and pain.

We should be smiling now.

Celestia's frown was heavy.

I'm fi- Just don't worry…

"Luna…"

Tia…? I'm…not fine.

Celestia was on her hooves, moving quickly towards the door leading out to the hallways. She stepped up to the control console, wracking her memory frantically to remember what Luna had done to open it. She used her hooves to press a few buttons, which resulted in a loud, jarring beep and a red light illuminating. Cursing, Celestia tried again with a different set of buttons. This time, a green light illuminated and the door slid open. She quickly exited through it.

After moving through another door, she came upon two unicorn guards, who gasped and quickly bowed upon her appearance. Wasting no time, she quickly asked them, "Which way did Luna go?"

One guard stood up. "Um…She went to a meeting in the-"

"Take me to her."

"Right," the guard said with a nod, "Sure, Your Highness."

The silver-clad unicorn began leading Celestia down a few hallways at a brisk pace. Determination and worry were clashing in her mind. She shouldn't have just stayed behind like that. Her sister needed her right now, as much as possible. There was no telling at this point what the future would bring, which truly terrified her, but also pushed her forward.

The two made their way through a number of electronic doors, allowing Celestia to see more of the castle. She wasn't very focused on it, instead focusing on getting to Luna, but the architecture did manage to capture her eye at some points. One room in particular was dominated from above by a huge, wall-to-wall screen displaying a depiction of the night sky. It almost made her stop and stare in wonder.

As they entered yet another door, Celestia caught a brief glimpse of her sister's mystical tail. Gasping, she took off at a quick pace down the hallway, leaving the guard behind. This hallway in particular was very beautifully designed. It was filled with columns that appeared to be made of marble, many windows to the beautiful courtyard outside, and a minimal amount of technology.

Celestia rounded the corner and called out, "Luna!"

She saw her sister approaching a large, grandiose door. This door in particular stood out because it was a normal door, with two frames opening to allow entry through the middle, and not electronic. It was open slightly, and she briefly saw a brown tail disappear through it.

She ignored this and began trotting towards her sister, who was looking quite surprised. "Luna," she said as she approached, "I should be here."

"What?" Luna replied, "What do you mean?"

"I should be by your side, staying together with you while-"

Luna gasped. Celestia stuck her hoof out just in time to catch herself from falling. She stood awkwardly for a moment gasping, eyes wide and breath coming short. No…Please… Already her vision was getting blurred.

"Tia…?"

Her eyelids felt heavy and her limbs grew weak. "No…" she muttered softly. As her strength quickly gave out and she collapsed onto her side on the floor, she heard the clopping of Luna's hooves as she approached. Celestia's head was spinning and her eyes were blurred and tired.

As she painstakingly forced open her eyes, she saw Luna gazing down at her. There was a sad smile on her face.

"Lu…na…" Celestia gasped. She tried to move her hoof, tried to reach out to her sister, but her body did not respond.

"I'll miss you, Tia…" Luna said sadly, "Please come back to me soon…"

No, no, no! No more! Celestia struggled with all of her might to keep herself awake. She fought and fought, screaming internally against this powerful, unknown force. Not! Again! STAY AWAKE!

Luna closed her eyes as two tears ran down her cheeks and fell to the floor. "It was wonderful to see you again."

Darkness overcame Celestia and she was hit with heavy disorientation, but she pushed against it, wrenching her eyes open once more. "Luna…" It was a struggle merely to talk. "Stay…"

Her head fell to the floor, darkness and silence consuming her.



***



Celestia awoke with a loud gasp. 

She heaved heavy breaths for a few moments. Once her vision adjusted, she quickly whipped her head around to all sides. Her surroundings consisted of white walls, a single, strange door, and a translucent barrier.

Her heart quickly sank into the pit of her stomach and a heavy dark cloud of despair overcame her. "Noo!!" she cried out in anguish, bringing her hooves up to cover her eyes as she began to weep. Her body shivered as tears rolled down her cheeks and landed on all too familiar red cushions. Her mind was in tatters within seconds, leaving her a hopeless, disgraceful crying mess.

She moaned and wailed for a good long while within her prison. She didn't have the strength or even the willpower to face whatever lay on the outside. How many years had passed now? How much further was she from her own time? How long had she left Luna alone this time? It was all too difficult to handle, and it left her in shambles.

"No…" she murmured, "Not again…" She put her hooves down and lay uselessly in the enclosure, not finding the strength to do much more than cry. So many tears had stained her beautiful face, and her heart ached much more than it ever had before. It was a new level of pain, a new level of sorrow; one that Celestia could not withstand.

"Luna…I…" Her voice caught in her throat, "I'm so sorry…I wish that-"

Suddenly, the room around her began to quake extremely violently, causing her to cry out in surprise. Her enclosure shifted back and forth. She held out her hooves to try to steady herself and looked around frantically. 

The whole room was shaking ferociously, and the mayhem was accompanied by a loud, prevailing rumbling sound. There were occasional louder bursts of sound that reminded Celestia of thunder. The room shuddered and small amounts of dust and debris tumbled to the ground.

Only a few seconds after the chaos began, the room suddenly became a lot darker. It was still dimly-lit, but a heavy shroud of darkness had been cast all around her. Gasping, Celestia directed her view straight up. There had been some of those light-emitting objects on the roof, but they had gone dark now.

Eyes wide and her previous despair forgotten, Celestia scrambled in the confines her tight position. She quickly scanned the inside of her enclosure through the poor light and found the same button that she had used previously to free herself. Wasting no time, she reached forward and pressed it.

She waited for a few seconds, but nothing happened. As the room continued to quake around her, she mashed it a few more times. Still, there was no response. Her panic began to grow. "What?" She continued to hammer at the button. "Come on! Come on!" Her efforts rewarded her with nothing.

Celestia's panic spiked. She whipped her head around, looking for a solution. She pressed her hooves against the clear barrier and pushed as hard as she could. It did not yield to her efforts. Flashbacks of her first time waking up in this chamber returned to her, and along with it came that feeling of being helplessly trapped.

Only this time, it was a lot worse.

"Help!" she cried out, though she knew it was probably useless, "Help! Get me out of here!!"

The loud, thunderous booms continued, rocking the foundation each time one was heard. More debris tumbled from the walls and roof, some of it falling against her enclosure. She winced from each impact, but nothing managed to pierce the defences that surrounded her. Her breath increased to a feverish pace and her heart pounded relentlessly in her chest. Something truly rare was happening to her right now; she was fearing for her life.

Something happened that quickly caught her attention. For a brief moment, the light in the room had increased. It had lasted less than a second and then it was gone again. Celestia had seen it. The objects on the roof had started giving off a small amount of light before growing dark again.

She stared up at the ceiling, still as a stone except for her rapidly rising and falling chest. She held her tongue and stayed silent, staring up at where the light had come from, no matter how brief it may have been.

"Gyah!!" Celestia cried out as a particularly loud thunderous noise hit, accompanied by a violent quaking of the room. She felt the pedestal that her enclosure rested upon shift precariously. She could feel that it was weakening and would not be able to hold her up much longer if this mayhem continued.

This situation continued for an agonizingly long time to Celestia. The castle continued to rumble as if being subjected to a perpetual earthquake, and the thunderous booms continued, although they slowly began to decrease in frequency. Her mind was leaping to all sorts of horrible conclusions and her anxiety continued to rise, but there was nothing she could do. She was trapped in her enclosure in the dim darkness, unable to escape. Pieces of the roof crumbled and fell all around her, as did parts of the walls. For the most part, the structure of the building held strong, but wounds continued to appear.

Time passed and things were still the same. Presently, Celestia was staring up at the roof again. The room was shaking, her enclosure was wobbling, and awful sounds were crying out all around her, but she kept her gaze focused intently. She was much calmer now, breathing slowly and evenly. She tried not to blink as she kept her gaze fixated on the same, single spot.

The lights flickered on again. Quick as a flash, Celestia shot out her hoof and rammed it into the release button. Half a second later, the lights died out again. However, Celestia was rewarded with the sound of hissing and the transparent barrier clicking upward slightly. She smiled and sighed in relief. "Thank goodness…"

She had been watching the lights occasionally flicker on and off. She still didn't fully comprehend what they were or how they worked, but over time in her past experiences, she had come to understand that they ran on some sort of power. And, likewise, most devices in this futuristic world ran on the same power source, whatever it may be. It was easy for her to make the conclusion that in the brief moment that the lights had power, so would her enclosure.

Her elation ebbed away, however, when she noticed that the barrier had barely opened. There was only a sliver of freedom to the outside world, certainly not enough to get through. Celestia placed her hooves firmly on the barrier and pushed as hard as she could. The barrier barely moved, and snapped back into its previous position once she stopped pushing. It was stuck in a partially-opened state.

Celestia groaned in frustration, taking a deep breath and pushing with her hooves again. The barrier slowly lifted up, but she was being met with stiff resistance. As the opening widened, she turned her head onto its side and thrusted her horn under the edge of the barrier. She then began pushing up with it as well, using it as a sort of lever. She even lit up her horn with magic, encasing the whole barrier in a golden glow and trying to force it up into its proper open position.

The room was still shaking and things were still falling all around her. She groaned in stress as she exerted an incredible amount of strength on this barrier. Sweat poured from her hooves and face as she gritted her teeth and continued to push. She managed to raise it enough so that her hoof would fit through, but she was still far from where she needed to be.

Celestia grunted loudly, pushing hard and channelling as much magic as she could into lifting this thing off, but the resistance she was pushing against was strong. It was like trying to force a door to open the wrong way. She lifted it slightly higher. She could taste freedom. With each further inch she raised it, the more the resistance increased, but she continued pushing anyway. She cried out loud, feeling a burst of strength, and poured all of her energy into her hooves.

Finally, there was a loud crunching sound and the barrier gave way completely, sliding open. The sudden drop in resistance took Celestia by surprise and sent her tumbling to the side and collapsing to the floor. 

She groaned. She was in pain. She had exerted so much strength trying to get the barrier to open that she was worn out, and the ground she had fallen onto was covered with rough debris. She slowly and carefully got to her hooves. Looking down, she saw tiny droplets of blood falling from beneath her.

Suddenly, the room was rocked with a powerful force, sending her right back onto the floor. The accompanying sound was like an explosion directly in her ears, making her wince in pain. Now that she was out of the enclosure, everything was much louder. She heard things crumbling and the room was instantly filled with a cloud of dust. She covered her head with her hooves and grimaced, waiting for the chaos to end.

Finally, she shakily got to her hooves once again, coughing profusely. She ignored all the pain and weakness she was feeling and quickly made her way over to the door.

The walls above the door had been badly damaged by the last 'quake'. Chunks of it had collapsed away, leaving large holes, though not large enough for her to fit through. The area surrounding the door was covered with a pile of ruined metal.

Her attention, however, was drawn to the door itself. The entire doorway, both the metal panels that made up the door and the doorframe itself, had been bent and warped as the walls around it had collapsed. It was slightly curved to the side now, and the metal was bent and ruptured. The two panels had split apart slightly, and sparks were coming from the doorframe. The access panel near the door had gone black long ago.

She pushed on the access panel anyway, and then pushed against the door. As expected, neither responded. She had escaped from one prison only to find herself in another, which made her groan loudly in frustration. 

Chaos was continuing to occur around her, leading her to come to the conclusion that this was most likely not a natural disaster like an earthquake. Something more terrifying was happening. Though Celestia was growing more and more frightened, she was likewise growing more determined.

Without so much as a second thought, she lowered her head and jammed her horn directly into the opening between the two door panels, once again using it as a lever. It hurt quite a lot, but Celestia grit her teeth and pushed through the pain, slowly trying to force her horn and the door panel upwards. 

She grunted and pushed as hard as she could. For a moment, nothing happened and the door remained shut in its damaged state. But, as the debris continued to fall around her, the metal slowly began to shift. A heap of sparks flew from the side, some landing on Celestia's torso, causing a painful stinging sensation. 

Her strength was rewarded as she pushed up, sliding the panel back and even causing it to buckle even more. Sweat poured from her as she shut her eyes tight and forced her horn up as hard as she could. Slowly but surely, she began to tear a hole through the ruined doorway. 

Finally, she stopped pushing, falling back and panting profusely. Thankfully, the damaged door remained open, and there was now an opening for her to get through. It was fairly small; she would have to squeeze through. It would be a tight fit. Celestia took a deep breath, stood back up, and prayed she would not get stuck. 

She carefully put her forehooves through the opening and gently eased her head and torso through. She hissed in pain, but did not stop. Slowly, she wedged her hindquarters through, followed by her back legs.

Once on the other side, she let out the breath she'd been holding in. Turning her head back, she looked at the crimson stains on her normally radiant coat. The sharp edges of the warped metal had ripped apart at her body as she'd forced her way through. Tiny rivers of blood were coursing through her fur.

She only focused on it for a moment before she began galloping down the hallway before her. Similar signs of destruction and decay could be seen everywhere. She couldn't believe this was happening. This was a crisis! She came upon a few other doors, but luckily these ones were still functioning. Though all of the lights on the ceiling had gone dark from a lack of power, the doors still managed to open somehow. The access panels beside them glowed faintly, and the doors opened much more slowly than they had done the last time she had seen them. Perhaps they were running off of some sort of backup power.

Celestia paid no mind to this. She didn't have the time. As she ran through the inner labyrinths of the castle, she came across nopony else. The hallways, which were being slowly ruined piece by piece, were completely devoid of life.

She idly noticed that the layout of the castle had once again changed. She made many turns and entered many doorways, but never came across that large, impressive window that looked out across Equestria. In fact, it was ages before she came upon a window at all. It didn't offer much of a view, however. All she could see from it were gardens.

Finally, she rounded a corner and found herself in the middle of a long, wide hallway with a red carpet leading down it. Through a large doorway at the end, which was being kept open, she could see a huge gathering of ponies. There were perhaps 40 or 50 of them, all of them running around frantically.

One of these ponies was notably taller and sported a very distinct mane.

Celestia took off down the hallway at a furious pace, her hooves barely touching the ground as she ran. The ignored the pain in her sides and the stiffness in her joints as she galloped down the hallway as quickly as she could. A few of the ponies saw her approaching and turned to look at her in surprise.

"Luna!!" she exclaimed as she burst through the doorway. 

The deep blue Princess of the Night, who had been in the middle of delivering an order in a powerful, commanding voice, turned and stared at her. Every head in the room followed her gaze, and Celestia quickly found herself in the spotlight. The room fell completely silent, save for the continuing rumbles.

"Celestia…" Luna spoke softly, gazing at her with soft eyes.

She had been frantically rushing a moment before, but now she found herself stopping and gazing at Luna. Here before her stood her sister, another thousand years or so displaced. Whatever insanity was occurring, she was clearly prepared for it. She was once again wearing armour, though it was much sleeker and smoother than what she'd seen before. Along the plating, she saw many glowing lights and screens. What stuck out to her the most about Luna's appearance was the device extending just beside and in front of one of her eyes. Next to it, a square image of a computer's screen was somehow floating in midair, like a semi-translucent ghostly image.

Everypony's thoughts were interrupted as an incredibly loud explosive sound rung out and the castle was rocked by a massive tremor, sending many ponies, including Celestia, to the floor.

Luna immediately shifted back into her focus. "Alpha!" she barked, "West Flank! Magic and Materials! Go!"

"Yes!" a group of stallions shouted back, quickly giving a salute with their hooves before departing from the room through one of the doors.

Luna shifted her gaze to the side slightly so that she was staring at a pillar off to the side. Celestia was confused for a moment before she noticed that the floating screen before her eye had changed to display something different. When Luna's head shifted again, the image changed accordingly.

"Status!" Luna exclaimed, staring at the little screen intently, "Phi! Sigma! Theta! Report!!"

Celestia shakily got to her hooves. Blood was still dripping from her wounds, and her strength was being sapped away slowly. There was little energy in her reserves, but she pushed through the pain. "Luna!" she shouted, quickly making her way to her sister's side, "Luna, what's happening?"

Luna whipped her head around to face Celestia, who shrank back slightly, eyes widened in surprise. Luna's gaze was fierce; her expression was fiery. There was a heavy, determined scowl on her face, like that of a drill sergeant's. She was stone-faced and unemotional, and Celestia could almost see the fire dancing in her eyes.

"You just woke up?" she asked, quick and to the point.

Celestia's mind faltered for a moment. She blinked and said, "Ah…Yes, Luna. I-"

"You're injured. Anything serious?"

"No…The door was stuck, so I had to force my way through."

Luna shifted her gaze slightly again, causing the floating screen to change. "Foxtrot Med," she spoke clearly, "Command Center." She then returned her gaze to Celestia. "The medical team will take care of you."

Celestia couldn't get over the fire she saw in her sister's eyes. She needed more answers. "But, Luna-" she began. She was interrupted once again by a loud, powerful tremor. 

Luna steadied herself on the unstable floor, gritting her teeth in anger. "Alpha!!!" she shouted, looking off to the side again, "Respond immediately."

"Luna, please!" Celestia pleaded, "Tell me what's going on! What's happening?!"

"Regroup with Gamma! Phi to the east wall!" Luna continued giving orders, ignoring Celestia.

"Luna!!" Celestia cried, taking a step towards her sister.

Luna turned and gave her a cold gaze, devoid of any positive emotion. Celestia gasped slightly. Such an expression was not one she had ever seen before on her sister's face. The words that Luna spoke next only made everything worse.

"It's war, Tia. We're at war."

All of the blood drained from Celestia's body. She stood stock still, shock plastered across her face. Luna had stepped away to attend to something else, but Celestia's eyes remained locked where she had stood. She stared ahead blankly, a harsh coldness overcoming her.

"War…?" she mumbled like a frightened foal.

"Princess!" a stallion's voice cut across the room, "Enemy's flanking us on the west! Defences are failing!"

"What of Lambda and Omicron?"

"They're being slaughtered!"

"Chi! Reinforce! Go, go, go!"

Celestia felt her gaze slowly turning towards her sister. She stared in blank shock as Luna, clad in fully-equipped and fully weaponized battle gear, gave orders to, what seemed to be, the Royal Equestrian Army. The rumbling and horrible sounds from outside were clear to her now; it was the sound of artillery and weapons. The castle was under attack, and the situation was critical.

"Where is Foxtrot?!" Luna exclaimed. 

Celestia stared, feeling entirely like she was in a dream. This all seemed too horrible to be real. It didn't feel real. The last war Celestia had been involved in was the War of Chaos. That had been held well before the year 1000. Unless she had missed some war while she'd been asleep, this would be the first Equestrian war in at least 4000 years.

She had lived for so long with Equestria at peace that she had truly thought war was a thing of the past.

"Celestia!"

The dazed princess blinked in surprise, finding her sister suddenly close to her and staring intently at her.

"Luna, I-"

"It's not safe here, Celestia." Luna spoke, her voice loud and clear, "You need to-"

Suddenly, the western wall of the room exploded inward, showering a torrent of cement and metal into the room, accompanied by an ear-splitting explosion. Ponies screamed and were flung to the ground. Celestia quickly found herself flattened on the floor with somepony on top of her, straddling her and protecting her with their body. Dust filled the room and cries of pain could be heard. Celestia grit her teeth and held her breath, trying to stay calm, but already panicking.

"Urgh…" she heard Luna grunt once the chaos had ended, "Damage report??"

A few ponies were coughing profusely. "Princess," one spoke up through the cacophony, "Direct hit to the main stronghold. Alef magic team holding steady, but the wall is destroyed."

Luna groaned some more. "Get Echo Med up here. Now. Find status of Foxtrot. If they're out of commission for whatever reason, call Sierra as well."

Celestia felt the pony protecting her slowly stand up. They groaned in pain as they did. Celestia slowly looked up, her face much like that of a frightened foal's, and looked at the pony above her.

Luna looked down at her. "Are you all right, Celestia?" She was still so stone-faced and hardened. Celestia found it incredibly shocking to see Luna looking not unlike a grizzled war veteran.

It was terrifying in so many ways.

"Luna…" she said in a quivering voice as her sister helped her to her feet, "Is it true? War?"

Luna nodded. "Yes, Celestia. Equestria is at war. A brutal war. This attack today came completely out of nowhere. We're sustaining heavy casualties and are just barely holding them back."

Celestia shivered uncontrollably. A horrifying chill was coursing through her body, making it difficult for her to stand or breathe. "Who, Luna?" she muttered, just barely loud enough to be heard over the chaos, "Who are you at war with…?"

Another loud explosion rocked the room, knocking both ponies off balance. They barely managed to keep their footing.

"Status!" Luna shouted, tearing her attention away from Celestia suddenly.

"Enemy weapon!" a voice called out from across the room, "Threat unknown!"

Luna took a step forward, fierce determination on her face. Celestia couldn't get over how different her sister looked than she had seen before. She could not ignore the fire she saw in Luna's eyes.

"On-screen!" Luna shouted.

Suddenly, before Celestia's astonished eyes, a huge, transparent square lit up near the front of the room. It looked like the projector screen in a movie theatre, only it was see-through and seemingly floating in the air. It was a blank, off-white for a moment, before it briefly filled with static and then showed an image. 

Celestia's breath was taken away from her. It was a view of what she assumed to be the city center of Canterlot. The city was completely devastated; buildings were destroyed, multiple fires were burning strong, the ground was filled with scorch marks. There were many ponies littering the area. Only half of them were alive. Celestia shivered as she beheld the bloodshed.

Then, she saw those on the other side of the battle. There were many in the air surrounding Canterlot mountain. They wielded weapons with glowing lights and sharp attachments. Many were using them to fire brightly coloured beams that delivered destruction upon contact. In terms of living combatants, they greatly outnumbered the ponies. Celestia watched in utter horror as the majestic, winged creatures landed. Half eagle, half lion, and covered in sleek, effective armour.

In the span of ten seconds, five ponies fell as the griffons stabbed them mercilessly.

"There!" one of the stallions in the room shouted, pointing his hoof up at the top-right corner of the screen. Celestia forced herself to tear her eyes away from the carnage to look at what was being indicated. In the distance, still fairly far away, four griffons were all working together to carry a large, formidable object. It was cylindrical in shape, appeared to be made of very reflective metal, and was glowing red from the inside.

"Hold them back!" Luna barked, "Delta! Zeta! Go!"

As the ponies around her continued to busily move about, Celestia sat in the middle of it all, shivering violently. She clutched herself tightly with her forehooves, trying desperately to keep from hyperventilating. It was an uphill battle as her abject horror was slowly overcoming her.

"Princess!" she vaguely heard somepony state in a light, airy voice, "Sierra Med."

"Tend to her wounds. Now!" she heard her sister speak.

Somepony was touching her, applying something to her, and wrapping her in something. She barely noticed. She stared directly ahead as tears streamed from her eyes, clutching herself tightly and rocking slowly. Her breath was coming in quick, short bursts. Her mind was running rampant, struggling to comprehend the insanity that was occurring around her.

War. Terror. Bloodshed. Massacre.

The same horrible words repeated themselves mercilessly in her head. In her brief, limited glimpse of the chaos outside, she had seen so many dead ponies. It was terrifying. It was sickening.

And she had seen the griffons. They were attacking so ruthlessly, swinging and stabbing with the blade of their weapon, and causing destruction and carnage with the shots they fired. They were all completely outfitted for war, and there were so many of them. What had happened? Why were the griffons attacking?

"Go for go," she heard the airy voice beside her state, "You've sustained lacerations along your torso and underbelly and have lost a minor amount of blood. You possibly have a bruised rib. Nothing serious, all treated."

Celestia wasn't listening. Slowly, she tilted her head until she was gazing at her sister. Or, at least, the pony that sort of looked like her sister. This stiff, hardened, commanding pony with bruises from the past and fire in her soul was nothing like the little sister she knew. This was so terribly unlike her that it was frightening. The only time Luna had ever behaved like this was when she had been tainted by the Nightmare. During the War of Chaos, Luna had been terrified.

Luna saw her staring and took a step towards them. She addressed the medical pony beside her. "Go for go?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

"No serious injuries?"

"No, Your Highness."

Celestia gazed up at Luna, still shivering. "L-Luna…"

"Celestia…" Luna spoke evenly.

"Wh-Why…?" Celestia squealed, "What happened…?"

For a moment, the fire in Luna's eyes softened slightly. She frowned and gazed down at her sister. "I wish I knew. I truly do."

"How….How could…"

Luna shook her head. "These damn griffons want to wipe us out."

"B-But…"

"Tensions had been growing for years, and then one day it all snapped and went to Tartarus."

A tear rolled down Celestia's face. She could feel a heavy darkness in her heart slowly tearing away at her. "Luna…"

The blue alicorn averted her gaze. "Sierra."

"Princess?"

"Take Omicron and return my sister to her holding chamber. Place her in secure mode."

The pony nodded. "At once, Your Highness." She then stood up and disappeared into the crowd.

Celestia gasped, not quite believing what she'd just heard. "Luna!" she cried out.

Her sister was already halfway into turning away, but stopped and returned her gaze to face her. "Yes?"

"Wh…What do you mean 'Back to the holding chamber'? You don't mean…"

"Celestia," Luna spoke plainly, gazing at her with ferocious, blazing eyes, "It is not safe here. You must be protected from harm. That capsule is the safest place for anypony to be. It is 100% impenetrable."

Celestia couldn't believe her ears. She stared at Luna incredulously for a moment. "You cannot be serious, Luna! You can't expect me to abandon you!"

"Celestia…"

"No, Luna! It's out of the question!" A moment of silence passed between the two, after which Celestia took a deep breath. "It's true…" she spoke quietly, "This is quite…shocking. It's horrifying. I was not prepared for what I have seen today." She shivered for a moment. "But sitting here crying about it isn't going to help anypony. If you're here to fight today, Luna…" She paused and locked eyes with her sister, staring at her determinedly, "Then I will fight with you."

"That is not possible, Celestia," Luna stated firmly.

"But-"

"Think clearly for a moment," Luna spoke a little louder, stepping forward and leaning her head down very close to Celestia's, "While I have no doubt that you would be an exceptional help to us on the battlefield, the fact is that you are suffering from some kind of sickness. You're going to be in incredible danger should the next sleeping spell hit you while you're engaged in warfare. You would most likely be killed."

Celestia stood still with her jaw hanging open, unable to find the words with which to respond.

For a moment, Luna's eyes softened. "And…I can't allow that to happen."

The medical pony returned, along with a group of at least ten heavily armoured soldiers. They stood on either side of Celestia, looking up to Luna and saluting her.

"Go to your chamber, Celestia," Luna ordered, "You will be safe there."

So many tears were welling up in Celestia's eyes. So many painful thoughts were going through her mind. So much was happening so quickly, it was too difficult to comprehend. "But…" she said in a rasping voice, "Luna…"

Yet another powerful explosion shook the room. Luna steadied herself as she put on a determined face. "I don't have time to argue with you, Celestia. You will stay protected there until the war is over." 

Celestia was shivering profusely, tears staining her faces and falling to the floor.

Luna began to light up her horn, closing her eyes and looking down slightly. She then spoke softly. "Celestia?" She looked up at her and paused for a moment.

Then, she smiled.

"It was wonderful to see you again. I love you."

The next thing Celestia knew, she was being blinded by a bright, white flash emanating from Luna's horn. After blinking and clearing her vision, she steadied herself and looked around, finding that she was back in the room she had awoken in. Furthermore, the medical pony and the group of armoured soldiers had travelled there with her. Already, some of the soldiers were moving towards her enclosure.

Celestia gasped. "No…" She turned around and stared at the ruined door that led out of the room. "No! I won't let her!" She began to gallop towards it. "I won't abandon her!!"

"Princess!" the voice of the medical pony shot through the room, causing Celestia to stop and turn around. The pony was staring at her without a trace of emotion on her face. "Princess Celestia, we have our orders from Princess Luna. We will follow them, whether you co-operate or not."

Celestia's heart fell as a heavy cloud began to loom over her. "But…"

"She's right, y'know," one of the stallions said as he worked at the enclosure's interface, "If you go out there and fight, you're dead. It doesn't matter how good a fighter you might be; once you fall asleep, they'll slaughter you."

"But…"

"This machine," the medical pony continued, "has been designed to withstand anything and everything. Its purpose is to keep you safe. Protocols have been installed for crises such as this one."

Celestia began to shake again, unbearable emotions overtaking her. "B-but…"

"Please, Your Highness," the medic spoke, a small hint of compassion eking into her voice, "Think about your sister."

She did think of her sister. While she had no doubt in her mind that she wanted nothing more than to support her sister and her country as much as she could, she began to imagine what would happen if she were indeed killed. The mental image of Luna's crying, heartbroken form weeping atop her unmoving body was clear in her mind. Even more tears began to fall.

"So please, Princess. It's for the best."

Celestia gulped, took a deep breath, and then slowly nodded. She turned around and began trotting towards the painfully familiar enclosure that she had woken up in three times now. As she now stood, looking at it from the outside, she began to notice something eerie about it.

It looked very similar to a coffin.

"Door's fixed," one of the stallion soldiers proclaimed. 

"All systems check out," another stated.

Celestia noticed that the interface on the enclosure's side was once again glowing, despite the lights on the ceiling still remaining dark. She was about to question why when she noticed one of the soldiers, who was a unicorn, sitting off to the side, his horn encased in a steady, white glow. He was clearly supplying power to the device.

One of the soldiers pushed a button on the interface with his hoof and the top of the enclosure slid upwards and open. It stood now, eerily inviting her in. She took a hesitant step towards it.

"Miss?" she said, turning to face the medical pony, "Miss Sierra, was it?"

"Oh. No, my name is Butterfly. Sierra is my division's name."

"Butterfly then," Celestia spoke softly, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice, "Isn't there…anything I can do before I put myself to sleep? Anything at all I can do to help?"

Butterfly paused for a moment. "Princess, if I may," she replied, "I think letting your sister see you again was the best thing you could have done."

The mare's words flowed through her mind, doing a little to help ease it. 

"This was has been brutal. I think seeing her little sister again might have been the boost she needed to get through this."

"How long has Equestria been fighting this war?" Celestia asked.

"Not too long. Perhaps a year or so. There had been skirmishes and political instability before, but full-out war was only declared recently."

"Who declared war?"

"The Griffon Kingdom."

Celestia let out a silent sigh of relief.

"They want our land, and they want power. But more than that, they want us conquered, dominated…perhaps enslaved."

The castle rumbled powerfully. Celestia cast an anxious glance at the opaque window to her left. "I worry about her…I worry about all of you."

"Don't worry, Princess. We're in a bad spot right now, we have faith that we'll win."

"It tears me apart that I have to hide myself away like this…"

"It's the best course of action, Princess."

"I know…" Celestia gave a sad smile. "I have a request, Butterfly."

"Of course, Your Highness."

Celestia shut her eyes, letting a single tear fall. She began to slowly trot towards her resting place. "Tell my sister…" she spoke, "Tell Luna that I love her. Tell her that I will always love her, and that I will miss her dearly." She stopped once she reached the bed, opened her eyes and turned back. "But also tell her that I can't wait to see her again," she concluded with a brave smile.

Butterfly mirrored her smile. "As you command, Your Highness." Butterfly then saluted. The soldiers in the room followed suit.

Celestia felt pride swelling within her. Heaving a sigh, she turned and began to climb into the enclosure. "I have faith in you ponies…All the ponies of Equestria." She lay down on the cushions and got herself comfortable. "Please take care of my sister." 

"We will," Butterfly replied.

"Oh. Before I go," Celestia said, turning to the medical pony, "Tell me…What year is it?"

Butterfly paused. "It's 4502, Your Highness."

Celestia merely closed her eyes and shivered slightly. "Th-Thank you…"

One of the soldiers then pushed a button on the enclosure's interface, causing the translucent barrier to begin closing. As it did, he spoke to Celestia. "We're putting you in 'Secure Mode', Your Highness. It's an added level of defense. Don't worry, you'll be fine. It'll just be a little dark."

And with that remark, the casing slid shut, cutting off Celestia from all outside noise. She took a few deep breaths to try to calm the claustrophobia she could feel setting in. She tried to ignore the incessant anxiety she felt about this war that was going on and how abysmal Equestria was currently faring.

She let out her breath slowly and closed her eyes. There's nothing more I can do. If I fight, I will die.

The stallion outside finished inputting a series of button commands and stepped back. Celestia gasped slightly as a second barrier began closing on top of the translucent one. This one appeared to be made of some sort of dark metal.

It'll just be a little dark.

Celestia's eyes went wide as the heavy casing continued to close around her. The light being let in continually grew smaller and smaller. 'A little dark'? You didn't say it would be pitch black!!

Then, Celestia was alone with the rapid thumping of her heart. The second casing had completely sealed her in, leaving her in complete pitch darkness. She couldn't see a thing, not even her hoof in front of her face when she lifted it up. 

She channelled magic through her horn and illuminated it, but the close quarters made the light emitting from it too intense, causing her to wince in surprise. She toned down the level of her spell, casting a dimmer light. She could now clearly see the thick, black metal completely encasing her. It felt like it was closing in on her.

Celestia's breathing was deep and heavy. She wasn't sure if she preferred being able to see or not.

Sound from the outside world was almost completely cut off as well. All she could hear were vague, muffled booms every now and again. The loudest and most constant sound was that of her heavy breathing. The rumbling and vibrations could still be felt quite clearly, however. There wasn't a moment's peace from the shaking of the castle. 

Everything about her tiny, cramped environment was incredibly uncomfortable and unnerving. No matter how hard she tried, Celestia could not curb her anxiety or slow her rapidly beating heart.

And so she lay, alone with her thoughts. Time maddeningly slipped by with nothing for her to do but lay and wait. Horrible thoughts of the brutal war assaulted her mind. She kept seeing images of her sister lying dead on the battlefield, killed in a bloodbath.

She saw a gruesome slideshow of slain ponies, dead ponies, tortured ponies. She saw the fields of Equestria get painted red. She saw Canterlot Castle crumble to the ground.

So many tears rolled down her cheeks. "Wh…Why…?" she cried softly.

Celestia stayed in that dark and terrifying enclosure for the longest time. She had no idea how long she was in there. It could've been a half hour or more than a day. All she knew was that it felt like eternity to her. 

She spent much of the time simply crying and holding herself tightly. She wasn't able to put on a brave face anymore. Celestia was utterly terrified, and could no longer hide it nor deny it. Things had gone from bad to worse to catastrophic, and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it. Her emotions were completely consuming her, slowly turning her into a pathetic, shivering wreck.

She could only hope and pray that whatever awaited her the next time she awoken would be better. She made a silent wish that she would be able to see her sister again. Things looked bad, but she had faith in Luna. She would prevail. She had to.

A seemingly infinitely long period of time passed, but soon, mercifully, her eyes began to drift shut and she fell into a deep sleep.



***



Celestia awoke. She quickly realized that she was soaking wet.

Gasping loudly, she shot upwards. She sat breathing heavily, her eyes wide open as the sudden shock of bitter cold hit her entire body. Her heart was threatening to beat itself out of her chest. She couldn't see what was going on. Her wet mane was obscuring her vision. Panic! Panic!

She hastily brought up her hooves to try to brush away at her slick, clingy mane. She could hear a constant droning sound, and it was very cold. Water was cascading all over her body. It briefly registered in her mind that she should have hit her head when she'd sat up.

Finally, she managed to pull the heavy strands of her mane away from her eyes. She was still breathing in harsh, ragged gasps as she stared forward with wide eyes, a flurry of panicky emotions assaulting her.

She saw a rock wall. Celestia blinked. She currently sat about a yard away from the rugged stone wall of what seemed to be a cliff. It completely filled her field vision. She panted for a moment, trying to catch her breath.

It was raining. Raindrops cascaded around her in a heavy torrent, soaking the distressed Princess to the bone. There was no other way to put it; it was pouring. The sound of the rain was surprisingly loud, threatening to drown out her thoughts. It obscured her vision slightly, coming down in such a high concentration. Celestia couldn't remember the last time she had seen rain this heavy.

She shook her head, trying to get some of the water off of her and out of her mane, but it was a futile effort. The relentless downpour kept her perpetually soaked. She was also very cold. The rain was freezing, and the water was chilling her terribly. She shivered profusely.

"Wha…?" she whispered into the cold air, leaning forward slightly. She immediately yelped in pain and drew her hoof back in surprise. She looked down at it, seeing a trail of blood course down her leg, staining her white fur. Looking forward slightly, she saw what had caused it.

She realized that she was still sitting in the same enclosure. Only now, the transparent casing had shattered like glass. She had cut her leg on one of the sharp edges that remained. Looking around slightly more, she saw that her cushions were soaked and filthy, and that the entire apparatus looked to be in a state of decay. It sat on muddied dirt and was covered in scuffs, blemishes, dents and even plant life.

"Wh…What…?" Her brain was struggling to process all of this, but already her heart was beating even faster than before. She slowly and carefully turned herself around, watching for more sharp edges. The relentless torrent of rain continued to assault her, soaking her and chilling her.

As she turned, the rock wall fell away and more of the landscape she was in was revealed to her. What sat before her underneath copious amounts of heavy, dark storm clouds made Celestia's jaw drop in horror. She couldn't even gasp. She couldn't breathe.

She could only stare at the horrifying, dying wasteland that stretched out endlessly before her, devoid of life. The endless black clouds rolled over dead, deserted earth and sickly, rotting husks that were once trees. The ground was brown or possibly even grey, and nothing broke up the land besides a few hills and rocks.

It was empty. As far as her eyes could see, the land was empty…

…and dead.
> Phase 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 6

Princess Celestia stood on the muddy ground, the torrential rain plummeting from the dark clouds overhead and assaulting her with bitter cold. She stood next to the ruined, decaying capsule where she had been sleeping for an assumedly long time. As she stared out across the dead, barren land that lay before her, she was completely silent.

No tears fell, but she could not stop quivering. It was taking all of her strength to simply remain standing. Her jaw hung open slightly as she stood, barely able to move, think, or even function. It felt as if a part of her had died.

And, indeed, it seemed that a part of her had died. Though there were absolutely no recognizable landmarks across this endless, empty wasteland, somehow she knew. In some strange way, she could tell beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was gazing at Equestria.

What remained of Equestria.

The rain continued to hammer down upon her, soaking her coat and mane, but she didn't move or speak. She felt frozen in time, unable to take a step forward. She could not have ever prepared for something like this. Even after imagining the worst scenarios in her head, the level of death and destruction she saw before her was staggering. She couldn't process it.

She stood like this for a fairly significant amount of time until finally she began to cry. She utterly broke down, collapsed into the mud, and wailed to the heavens. It hurt terribly. It was a mental anguish above any she could have ever imagined. It tore away at her, fuelling her sadness and hopelessness and threatening her sanity.

Equestria was gone. It was destroyed and ruined. There was no life for as far as she could see. This was it. This was the end. It was the end of her glorious nation and the end of the wonderful little ponies she adored so much.

Her sister. Luna! Celestia's cries increased twofold as she thought of her sister. She probably lost. She probably fell. Luna must be dead, left to rot on the accursed battlefield that had caused this. 

Celestia wheezed, struggling to breathe. She wrapped her hooves around herself, clutching tightly at nothing. She began to twitch. Subtly at first, until it grew into violent spasms. 

She gasped and panted. She couldn't breathe! She was suffocating! Celestia rolled around, waving her hooves frantically and digging at the muddy ground. Her chest heaved violently as she struggled, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open. Her body was refusing to work properly.

Her vision grew blurry and the rain continued to soak her. Everything was coursing and flowing. She could feel it fading away. This was the end, wasn't it? Everything had ended in loss and failure. What was left?

Her spasms caused her to flop forcefully onto her stomach, making her gasp and take in a long, deep breath. She let it out slowly, then continued to inhale deeply as she tried to catch her lost breath. She lay there for a while, covered in filthy mud and utterly dishevelled. She was an absolute wreck, but was finally catching her breath. Her out-of-control mind mercifully began to slow down.

"Oh heavens…Oh heavens…Oh heavens…" She continually muttered the same words as she panted, catching her breath and calming down. Her panic and outright insanity began to ebb away and were replaced by depression and despair. While this was certainly not an improvement, it was definitely less volatile and threatening.

Finally, as her breathing returned to normal, she slowly got to her hooves. Catching glimpses of herself as she did, Celestia saw that she had completely sullied herself in mud, masking her coat in a layer of brown sludge. She barely cared, returning her gaze to the land that lay beyond.

"What…What…" Celestia couldn't even form proper words. She was frozen, mesmerized by the horrific sight. 

"What happened…?"

She tried to make sense of what she was seeing, but the truth was plainly evident to her. This was Equestria, and everything was gone. Everything was destroyed. There was not a sign of life as far as she could see in any direction.

Celestia could feel another panic attack creeping up on her, so she looked away from the frightening vista and took some deep breaths. She focused her mind and tried to think logically about the situation. She tried to remind herself that there was still a lot of unknowns. Was all of Equestria like this? Were ponies still surviving somewhere? Was Luna okay? She knew the answer to none of these, and so tried to focus on the hope she could feel that some of these questions might have positive answers.

"Okay…" she muttered, "What do I know?" She paused and collected her thoughts. "I woke up here…In the middle of nowhere; outside and in the rain. The capsule is broken, but I'm not hurt." She stood up and began to pace as she talked to herself, "This is definitely not any kind of protected resting place, so how have I not been discovered or attacked or anything?" She paused and turned around. "How did nopony find the-"

Celestia gasped. She was staring back towards the rocky wall where the capsule had been located, only it was no longer there. There was not a trace of it. Everything about the area looked exactly the same, except the capsule was somehow missing. "What??"

She took a few steps towards the location where the capsule had once been. As she got closer, she felt herself passing through something in the air. It was difficult to detect through the heavy rainfall, but she could barely feel it. She recognized it as magic. It was fairly strong magic, but she could still feel it bend and conform to her movements.

After a few more steps, the capsule suddenly re-appeared, exactly where it had once been. Opening her eyes wide in surprise, Celestia stopped. Keeping her gaze fixed on the capsule, she began to step backwards. Again, she felt herself moving through magic, and a few steps later the capsule again disappeared from view.

"Ah…" she murmured, "Some sort of perception spell…" Though she was not entirely sure exactly what kind of spell it was, she could clearly see its intentions. Somepony had cast magic around the capsule to make it undetectable from far away, almost like an invisibility spell. Stepping forward into the magic once again, she could feel it pushing against her ever so slightly. Being an alicorn, she was immune to a lot of the detrimental effects of spells, so whatever this pushing force was didn't affect her. However, she could guess that it was meant to somehow turn away anything that managed to accidentally get close enough to the capsule for it to become visible.

To her, it was simple, feeble magic, yet it had evidently kept her safe and unharmed for however long she'd been asleep, even as the casing had cracked and the capsule had faded into disarray.

She gave a shuddering sigh. "That's good…" she muttered, trying to seek out any silver lining she could, "I guess…" 

The capsule, assumedly damaged beyond repair, was of no use to her anymore. She turned herself around and once again faced the expansive, imposing vista that lay beyond beneath the storm clouds. Frightening thoughts stirred within her, but she held them down, telling herself once again that there were still many unknowns. "I need answers…" she spoke to herself, "and I won't find any here…" So, with nothing much to lose, she chose a direction at random and began to walk.



***



Time passed with what felt like a couple of hours. Celestia trudged forward through the barren wasteland, the rain never letting up its assault. She was absolutely soaked and freezing cold. For a while, she had cast a barrier spell above her to keep the rain away, but it had put too much of a drain on her and so she had stopped.

She found nothing but long-dead trees and small rocks as she moved forward. Nothing was discovered and there was nothing interesting or outstanding to be seen. It was a seemingly infinite expanse of absolutely nothing. In fact, she was currently trekking towards the largest object she had seen from where her capsule had been; a big rock that had been near the horizon. It was perhaps only about five times as large as she was, but it stood out as the biggest object for miles and miles around.

As she pushed forward, trying to ignore the rain and the cold, her mind was hard at work. Though she tried to suppress them, many questions were assaulting her. Just what in the world had happened to her dear Equestria? What could cause this much devastation? Even ignoring the War of Chaos, no weapon used in warfare had ever had the capability to cause such a catastrophic effect. Was this the result of some new, horrific weapon?

Were all the ponies truly gone, or had they simply fled somewhere else? If they had evacuated, then why had she awoken here? Had they been forced out perhaps? What of Luna? Though Celestia dearly tried to hold on to the hope that her sister was still alive and well, she could not ignore the knowledge that if her sister were truly well, then Luna would waste no effort to find her and make sure she was safe.

A few tears filled her eyes as she walked, combining with raindrops to utterly distort her vision. She paused and brought her hoof up to clear the liquids away. She couldn't hold back a loud moan borne of frustration and despair. She could feel more tears coming and knew she was on the verge of another breakdown.

She sniffled and set her hoof on the ground. "No," she told herself, "Stop crying. That won't help anything. Just keep moving. Keep looking for somepony. There has to be some life around here somewhere, so keep looking. Even if you have to walk for a thousand miles."

Heartened by her little pep talk, she set off at a faster pace than before, still heading towards the big rock. 

Another hour or so passed and she finally began to approach the massive boulder. By this point, she was exhausted. When she'd started her journey across the wasteland, she would occasionally use her wings to fly and travel faster. Now, however, she could barely walk. 

She came to a stop a few yards away from the rock and sat down on the wet ground. She panted, her wings and head drooping. Turning her head back in the direction she had come, she could no longer pick out the location of her capsule. She had traversed nearly three miles and had found nothing. Looking out at what she could see beyond the big rock, she only saw more of the same.

There was simply nothing.

She shivered, feeling the hopeless despair well up inside her again. This time, she found little strength to fight it off. It took only a few seconds before she was crying, her breath coming in heaving gasps as her emotions overcame her. 

She couldn't fight it any more. Her heart hurt. Everything in Equestria was gone and destroyed as far as she could see. There was nothing left for her here. There was nopony around to find her, to reassure her…to rescue her. Truly, she had never felt this alone in her entire life, nor had she felt so hopeless. It was like a blackness seeping through her arteries and choking the life from her. Every moment she could feel more of her strength and willpower depleting.

"Why…?" she whispered into the empty air, "Why did this have to happen…?" She sorrowfully hung her head, staring at the ground as droplets fell to it, both from the sky and from her eyes.

She whipped her head to the left suddenly. Her eyes shot open wide as she stared in that direction, unmoving. Nothing more than the falling rain met her eyes.

"Hello?" she called out. Celestia could have sworn she'd seen something move. The area was misty and cloaked with rain and her eyes were clouded from her tears, but she was sure she'd seen something. "Is anypony out there?!"

She waited in silence for a couple minutes. Her eyes scanned the area carefully, looking for any sign of movement or life, but she found nothing. The land was just as bleak and dead as it had been when she'd walked through it. Celestia sighed and frowned. Her mind must have been playing tricks on her, feeding off of her hopes and desires. If she wasn't careful, she'd be catching glimpses of phantom ponies wherever she looked. She turned back to face the direction of the rock.

Celestia cried out in shock as she was thrown to the ground, her head connecting painfully with the muddy dirt. The thing that had tackled her held her midsection down with four powerful limbs and fairly large size. She scrambled on the ground for a moment, unable to see or understand what was happening, before something slammed into her neck, causing her to cry out again in a raspy voice.

Her neck was held down painfully to the ground, cutting off her air supply and limiting her vision. She tried to lash out with her hooves and throw off her attackers, but she found herself effectively pinned. "Ah…!" she yelped as she felt her hooves being grabbed and held.

Gritting her teeth, she tried to find strength, but her reserves had already been depleted. Only a moment ago she'd not had the strength to stand. She struggled valiantly for a few chaotic moments, but remained held to the ground.

Something grabbed her horn. Something had wrapped around and was gripping her horn tightly. Something else was planted against her head and was pushing it down forcefully. Her eyes shot open wide and she cried out again. Then, her attacker began to pull upwards on her horn with incredible force while still pushing down on her head. Pain rippled through her horn for a few brief moments.

Then, with a loud, sharp crack, she felt part of her horn snap off. 

The air was filled with her shrill cry of intense pain. She screamed in pure agony, tears streaming from her eyes. Pain rippled through the base of her horn and her forehead, overloading her mind and making her thrash around in torture. Tears streamed from her eyes as she gritted her teeth and tried to endure the immense pain.

She vaguely felt herself being hoisted into a sitting position, her hooves all bound together, but she found it hard to focus on anything. It felt like there was a thick metal spike embedded directly into her forehead. Her head ached and pounded excruciatingly. She could feel thick trails of blood running down her face.

"Dasxk ronowod!" a loud, commanding voice rang out.

Celestia splayed her ears back and tried to inch open her eyes. Her head was spinning from the incredible pain. The throbbing was so intense that she was hardly able to focus on the fact that her horn had just been broken off. Her mind was a dizzying whirlwind of pain and outright panic.

Her vision was blurred from the intense pain, and the rain did not help matters much. Panting through gritted teeth, she looked in the direction the voice had come from and saw a fuzzy grey and brown shape standing near her. It was as large as she was, possibly slightly larger. 

Pain still coursed through her entire body, originating from the agonizing wound atop her head. She could tell she was losing blood, and strength along with it. It felt like somepony was hammering that metal spike deeper and deeper into her head. 

She blinked her eyes a few times and tried to clear her vision.

"Heh heh heh…" the figure laughed proudly.

Finally, her sight cleared enough to see who was standing in front of her. It was a brown and grey griffon, staring at her and grinning victoriously. He stood tall, his wings proudly on display, covered in thick, yet sleek, silver armour. The feathers on his face were grey, and there was a sharp, distinctive pattern around his eyes. Her vision trailed to one of his talons, which was lifted off the ground. Clutched in his palm was the top part of her horn.

"Shelestia," he spoke slowly, "od'casx xurod nah jao wovi'tod."

The words coming from his beak were unfamiliar to her. Celestia was fluent in every single language that was spoken worldwide during her time, so this had to be something new. It didn't even sound the least bit similar to any language she knew.

"Ti xuk qi cudwo lohjkosbuk," he said with a growl in his voice.

Celestia panted, her vision going blurry again. She was losing an incredible amount of strength, feeling like she might pass out. She fought to stay awake. Pain was consuming her, numbing her brain and her muscles. "Ah…" she panted, "Wh…What…What do you…?"

"HIXO!!"

Celestia winced from his outburst, the loud shout causing more pain in her head. Again, her eyes trailed to his talon, where her horn was being held. The reality of the situation finally hit her with full force. He broke off my horn!! Panic began to build. Dear heavens, no!! My horn!! She tried to observe it as best she could, trying to see how much had been broken off. It was difficult to tell through the rain and the angle at which he held it.

Please, please, please, no… She tilted her head slightly, trying to get a better view of it. It…doesn't look like half…

"Citnaw!" the griffon with her horn shouted.

"Zu?" a deep voice from behind her replied.

"Cujik idj dusx Xuijo doxmod idjohom Wonadjfa'c! Hahahaha!"

The other griffons joined in his laughter. Celestia guessed that there were perhaps seven of them in total. Another one came into her field of vision. This one was a dark red colour, almost black, with grey highlights. He was carrying a thick, heavy-looking chain leash and collar. Immediately she tried to struggle and back away, but she then felt powerful talons latch onto her shoulders, holding her still. The claws dug into her skin and drew blood.

The griffons attached the collar around her neck, not being gentle in any way. Celestia gave up on struggling, quickly coming to the conclusion that it was pointless. She merely stared at the griffons defiantly, especially the one that was holding her horn. She winced as the collar dug painfully into her neck, and then again as the griffon holding the chain gave it a sharp tug.

"Bemm," spoke the griffon with her horn, who seemed to be the leader of the group. Then, without much warning, the group of griffons unfurled their wings and gave powerful flaps, propelling them into the air where they hovered. The chain on Celestia's collar was dragged upwards at a painful angle, causing her to cry out.

The griffons were all hovering in the air at the chain's full length, staring down at her menacingly. "Bemmod jao ZO'QK!" the lead griffon shouted, glaring at her. For a moment, she merely looked up at them with a weak, confused look. It took her a moment to realize what they wanted. Her hooves had been tied up and her horn had been broken off, but they had left her wings untouched. Summoning up the last reserves of her strength, she unfurled her wings and beat them downwards, lifting herself into the air. 

This seemed to satisfy the griffons as they began to fly forward. Celestia gasped as she was pulled along by the collar, beating her wings frantically to keep pace with them. For a moment she faltered, struggling to keep aloft properly like a foal learning to fly, but eventually she was able to keep flight even though her hooves were bound and she was being dragged along by the collar she wore.

Thus, the group fell silent as they began to fly over the ruined wasteland. Okay…Celestia said to herself, They want to take me somewhere. They want to fly me somewhere. That's fine…I guess…

Once again, her eyes drifted to the lead griffon's dangling talon, where her broken horn still remained. A shiver passed through her body. This is bad…This is really bad… 

A unicorn's horn is the strongest, hardest part of their body. By extension, this is especially true for alicorns. It took incredible, almost unheard of force to break one off. The fact that this griffon had accomplished this was definitely worrisome.

A creeping fear was growing fast, making her shiver uncontrollably and her heart beat frantically. My horn… she silently wailed. Terrible, despairing thoughts rushed through her mind. If she couldn't use magic any more…

That's it. It's all done. Everything.

She tried to calm herself down and to tell herself that she would just have to be patient and wait. She couldn't feel the stump of her horn with her hooves and she had no reflective surfaces to see herself in. For the moment, there was no way to know for sure. Either he had broken off less than half of its length and it would eventually grow back, or he had taken more than half and she would never be able to use magic again.

Celestia gulped.

Ten minutes passed, and then twenty. The endless landscape rolled by and the clouds continued to pour rain unceasingly. Celestia was panting furiously, her entire body aching. She couldn't tell, but it felt like the blood had finally stopped flowing from her horn. However, she had lost a lot of it, and with it she had lost much strength and stamina. She had been feeling especially weak even before she had been attacked, so she was presently running on fumes.

It took every ounce of strength she had to simply beat her wings and keep pace with her griffon captors. Many times she had faltered or fallen behind, only to be squawked at and roughly shoved or prodded by the griffons flying behind her. Her tongue lolled out as she panted desperately for air. She needed food and water. She needed to rest. She couldn't keep going like this.

Finally, something appeared on the horizon. Celestia had been too worn out to notice it at first, but as it continued to grow and grow in size as they drew closer, she became aware of it.

It was a large mountain. It was incredibly tall, reaching up to poke through the layer of storm clouds. It was thin and cone-shaped, and had a craggy outward appearance. There was no plant life on it, giving it a reddish-brown colour. It was the tallest and most distinct landmark for as far as the eye could see, without contest.

Celestia gasped, staring in shock at the approaching mountain. Things had changed, time, war and catastrophe had taken their tolls, but the familiarity of the approaching monolith was unmistakable.

It was Canterlot Mountain.

Celestia suddenly felt the remainder of her strength simply die within her. Her wings fell limply to her sides and she began to fall from the sky. Her griffon captors began shouting angrily at her, not one of them showing even a hint of concern. She barely noticed them. She simply fell, feeling as if she couldn't go on any longer.

She reached the end of her leash and felt the collar tug upwards sharply on her neck, snapping her out of her funk with a strangled gasp. She flailed with her hooves and her wings frantically as her windpipe was throttled by the collar, completely cutting off her air supply. Finally, after a moment of struggling, she was able to flap her wings return to a hovering state.

She panted heavily, trying to regain her lost breath. As she did, she continued to stare at the mountain in the distance. That was Canterlot. That used to be Canterlot. Which meant that she was presently flying over what used to be Equestria. Her fears were true. Everything was gone.

Her limbs slumped and she slowly started drifting downwards again. "Xo!" one of the griffons shouted, giving her collar a tight tug, "Xuckod jao vi'caowod!" She gritted her teeth and pumped her wings faster, ascending until she was once again at the griffons' altitude. Not a second after she had done so, the group began flying towards the mountain again.

Celestia panted heavily. Her wings were crying out in pain. She had absolutely no strength left, and these griffons were pushing her really hard. They spared no consideration for her lack of energy and forced her to continue flying at a relatively fast pace. Sweat was pouring from her, and her lungs were burning. Her heart was beating frantically as she pushed herself well beyond her limits just to barely keep up.

Her emotions weren't helping her situation. She was currently flying towards what seemed to be a completely destroyed and ruined version of what she had once called home. Even if she were filled with tons of energy, she doubted she'd have the willpower to fly at all in her current situation. 

"Juwod jao tom Bëdaw, tujj nah bemmod," the lead griffon spoke. One of the griffons to her side nodded and then suddenly took off ahead of them at a much faster pace. Celestia watched him shrink into the distance as he flew towards an area near the top of the mountain.

Her wings were in incredible pain, her body was shutting down on her, and her mind was in shatters from everything that was going on. Still, the griffons pushed her forward with no chance for rest.

Finally, after 15 more minutes of flying, the group reached a rocky plateau on the mountain and landed. Celestia had fallen behind twice during the journey, pleading with her captors to let her rest. She had spoken in Equestrian and Griffic, but of course, none of them could understand her. When she'd had to fly upwards towards the top of the mountain, she was sure she would pass out before she reached their destination.

Now, however, she was lying collapsed on the rocky surface, heaving painful, haggard breaths. Her chest was burning and her wings felt like they were going to fall off. Mercifully, the griffons didn't seem to be telling her to stand up or move any more. At least, not yet.

As she lay there in incredible pain, trying desperately to catch her breath, her mind was still going wild. So many painful emotions were assaulting her as she struggled to take in everything that had been happening. Her horn was broken, Equestria was destroyed, the only life she had encountered were these hostile Griffons.

And no sign of Luna.

After a few minutes had passed, during which the Griffons had been waiting and occasionally conversing, the lead griffon stepped over to her. "Uivj'koxod," he commanded, tugging on her leash. Though she had recovered partially and gotten her breath back, she was still completely worn out and exhausted. After another forceful tug, she shakily got to her hooves which, thankfully, had been unbound.

For the first time, she observed her surroundings. They were standing on a remarkably flat plateau of rock, appearing almost as if someone had taken a knife through the side of the mountain. At the far end of the plateau there seemed to be a large, natural cave. Two armed griffons stood guarding its entrance. As she was led across the plateau on wobbly hooves by her captors, she couldn't help but think there was something about this featureless plateau that caught her eye.

Moments before they reached the cave, the realization dawned on her. This was Canterlot's town square. The town had been built on a flat plateau, with the castle resting nearby on the mountainside. This was that same plateau. A cold, dead expression passed over her face as she looked out and saw that it was all gone. Not a trace of the once-majestic Canterlot remained.

"Melo! Zokq udmoctod!" the lead griffon shouted, tugging at her leash. Celestia winced in pain and trotted after him as they entered the cave. Her entire body shivered and trembled. She had never felt so depleted of energy in her entire life. Simply walking behind the griffons was an incredible task.

At least she was finally out of the rain.

She walked for a while through the dark cave that was lit by torches attached to the wall. The cave had a natural appearance, but was very wide-open and spacious, and was fairly flat and linear. Celestia didn't quite know what to make of it. They continued walking through the cave, Celestia just barely managing to keep up, until they entered a small opening.

On the other side she found herself in a moderately-sized room. She gazed at it in wonder. It was lit by more torches than the previous location had been, casting an ample glow that filled the room. It was actually furnished and constructed, with a tiled floor, a few decorative columns, and what appeared to be a raised platform with a large chair. A second opening led away from the room to the left. It was fairly simple, but it was quite honestly the first sign of civilization she'd seen in this age.

"Ajk toh Bëdaw bemmk?" one of the griffons asked the leader.

"Oh naht jevehk bemmod," the leader replied.

With that, the griffons all took a seat on the floor and fell silent. Celestia remained unsteadily standing for a moment before finally giving in and falling to her haunches. The griffons eyed her cautiously but didn't say anything.

She leaned forward on her forehooves, barely expending enough strength to remain in a sitting position. She stared venomously at the lead griffon, who was still clutching her horn. 

"What…" she muttered, "What is-"

"HIXO!!" the griffon snapped at her. She winced and drew back.

For a while they waited in silence. Celestia could barely hear the sounds of the rain drifting in from the mouth of the cave. She was still soaking wet, and sat shivering on the floor. She had noticed that the griffons were already dry, thanks to their feathers. Even griffons in her time had possessed water-resistant feathers. At the moment, she envied them.

With nothing else to focus on, her mind was once again fixating on the abject hopelessness of the situation she found herself in. This is it… her mind told her, This is where it ends. This is where I die. She closed her eyes and hung her head. If I don't die now, what's going to be left when I wake up again? Equestria is destroyed, ponies are nowhere to be seen, Luna isn't here, and I might have just lost my magic forever.

A tear fell to the floor. Please…This can't…

Celestia's ears perked up. She could hear voices. She turned her head towards the opening on the left, as did the griffons. Someone was coming through that opening.

"Zu, Oiho Muzojkäk! Asx j'sx'nëho tah!" she could hear them saying.

"Oj näho rojjoh, dasxk moado qoak lohj'sx'nodtod."

"Dukïhcasx dasxk, Oiho Muzojkäk!"

"Jao lohqoaxod moado J'bofjaj. Vïhjkad Shelestia? Buim qiw cuirod."

"Asx budd oj uisx dasxk'w cuirod, uroh nah vudtod jao!"

A moment later, two forms entered the room, followed by two griffon guards who remained at the doorway. One was the griffon who had left their group earlier and gone ahead.

The other easily caught Celestia's eye. He was a few heads taller than all of the other griffons. He had brilliant blue colouring on his feathers, and the fur on his hindquarters was a sort of golden-red that seemed to change colours in the flickering of the torches. 

He was dressed in much less-constricting armour that almost seemed to be entirely aesthetic. He was also dressed in something red and blue that could best be described as a cape. He wore a small, silver object on his head that appeared to be a crown.

He gazed around the room with a fierce look in his eye. He radiated an aura of power, and Celestia couldn't help but feel a little intimidated by him. He stood proudly with his chest thrust out and his head held high.

"Nuj ajk tuj?" he said before his eyes caught sight of Celestia. He then broke out into a smug grin. "Ha! Oj ajk nuxh! Ti xujk Shelestia wovidtod! Uijwoqoasxdoko Uhroak!" The large griffon crossed the room and approached her. She gasped as he used one of his talons to roughly grip her chin and move her head around. "Jao rhusx axh xehd. Wik."

Celestia tried to draw back, away from his talon, but his grip was strong. "Ngh…" she groaned, "Let go!"

The large griffon laughed, and the rest of the griffons in the room joined in with him. "Ohrühmcasx tahdo..." he muttered.

"Wh…" Celestia was still panting and slumped forward from her utter lack of energy, "What…do you want from me…? I…I mean you…no harm."

The large griffon smirked. "Hah! What possibul harm could you do to us?" he said to her in an extremely thick accent.

Celestia gasped, her eyes wide. "You…You can speak-"

"You are lucky I still speak old language," he said, "Ekwestrian language is dead and forgotten. No longer spoken. I believe I am only remaining speaker."

Celestia stared for a moment, processing this information. Her hope and fear were clashing with one another. This was finally a silver lining. Something slightly positive in a sea of negativity. Here was someone who could finally provide some answers. And yet, this griffon seemed to be in a position of power and control, and he seemed to find her predicament laughable. Not only that but they had also broken off her horn.

She had to choose her words carefully. "Who are you…?" she spoke evenly.

The griffon held his head high once again. "You have rare honour of speaking with King Talimir, supreme ruler of Grand Griffon Kingdoms!"

"What…What is the meaning of this? Why have I been attacked?"

Talimir laughed heartily again. "Oh poor little pony Princess. Vere they too rough with your dainty hooves?" He smirked. "You are prize to us! You are valuable relic from ancient past, hidden away for so long. My comrades find you in Eqwestrian Deadlands and they make sure you not get away."

Celestia cast a cautious glance at the griffons surrounding her. "Prize…?"

Talimir nodded. "Pony alicorn who control sun. We must make sure you are ours."

"But…"

"You were out walking in Griffon territory. Therefore, you are now ours."

Celestia gasped lightly. Griffon territory? This was Equestria! Or at least, it used to be. "You…You can't…" Celestia said, trying to sound defiant, but falling short.

"I can do what I want. I am ruler of most powerful nation in world. I control everything!"

Shock was written across her face as she listened to his words. 

Talimir grinned smugly again. "Ve have been looking for sun alicorn for centuries. At long last, you are ours! Hiding in Ekwestrian Deadlands like pathetic pony you are!"

Deadlands. The name filled her mind. "What happened here?" she spoke, putting a little more strength into her voice. "Tell me what happened to Equestria."

Once again, Talimir laughed. "Vhat it look like happened? Ha!" He turned around and began to approach the large chair, which Celestia quickly realized was a small throne. He sat lounging upon it and looked at Celestia with an arrogant grin.

"Vere you around for var?"

Celestia assumed he was referring to the war that she had seen the last time she had been awake and nodded slowly.

Talimir sighed, as if remembering a fond anecdote from his past. "Ponies vere formidable opponents. This ve do not lie about. They vere almost strong enough to be an even match for us. Of course, the glorious Griffon army cannot be defeated."

Talimir's smile disappeared. "But ponies have v'one irritating trait. They are stubborn like mules. Vhile ve slowly but surely overcame them, they never back down or surrender. They keep pushing back and fighting for survival. Feh! Is disgusting…"

Then, his smile returned, but along with it came a vicious glint in his eyes. "Var last for 10 years. Advantage we had, yes, but var still caused griffon casualties. Decision vas made that victory must be attained." He paused, and then continued in a menacing voice, "…At any cost."

A shiver passed through Celestia's body.

"Griffon scientists vorking hard," Talimir continued, "Calling in greatest minds in kingdom, and even in vorld. It vas top priority to create grand, powerful veapon vith vhich to utterly destroy ponies…And ve made it."

A haunting, sinister tone began to seep into his voice as he glared grinning at Celestia. "New, special type of bomb. Ukemremro. Massive explosion; extremely distructive. Order vas given for all Griffons to retreat from pony capital. Ponies think they have von, and then…

"Boom."

Celestia's heart stopped beating. Her expression was frozen in a shocked, horrified look. Her front legs began to tremble, threatening to send her tumbling to the floor. She found it hard to breathe.

Talimir threw back his head and laughed jubilantly, as if he found the entire situation funny. "Pony capital and about five miles of pony land in all directions vaporized! Hahahaha!"

Celestia felt ice cold. She couldn't breathe. "Y…you…"

"That vas end of var. Griffons vin. Ve take pony land even though is dead, empty vasteland now."

Her breathing was quick and heavy. "H…How…How could you…?"

Talimir merely shrugged. "Vas not me. Vas many years ago."

Celestia was trembling, staring unblinking at the large griffon.

"Let's see…" Talimir said, scratching his chin, "If ve are using your old, Ekwestrian calendar…Uhh…Is around 5770 now?"

"Y…you…" Celestia murmured.

"Our victory has long passed and ve are still in ruling. Ve still maintain control. The glorious Griffon Kingdoms spread far and vide."

"YOU BASTARDS!!" Celestia suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs, feeling a burst of fiery energy deep inside of her. "You monsters!! You killed them!! You killed them all!!"

Talimir's eyes widened slightly from the sudden outburst, but he did not flinch.

"You're murderers!!" Celestia screamed, tears flying wildly from her eyes, "And for what?! Some land?? Control?? Was that worth this beautiful land and all those lives?! Damn you! Damn you!!"

Talimir had lost his smug grin and was staring emotionlessly at the furious alicorn.

"How…how many lives lost? Canterlot's population was 800,000 when I left…That probably grew…At least a million. And all those soldiers, all those fighting that stupid war…Thousands more lives…" She was staring at the floor, a haunted look upon her face.

"Genocide…" she muttered. "You've committed genocide!!" she continued, her voice raising to a loud scream. "How?! How could it have come to genocide?!"

Talimir was silent for a moment. "Vas var, Princess," he said simply, "Two sides fighting to the death, ve both did vhatever ve could to vin. Ponies vere given plenty of opportunities to surrender peacefully, but our offers vere not taken."

Celestia had been reduced to a pathetic, shivering mess, her emotions having fired her up to a fevered pitch, only to leave her drained. "Y…you…"

"Now," Talimir continued, putting the grandeur back into his voice, "griffons rule this vorld as dominant species! Vorld revolves around Griffon Kingdoms! Even so many years later, ve are still reaping the revards of our glorious victory!"

"But at what cost?!" Celestia shouted, "Are there any ponies left?!"

Talimir waved his talon idly. "Sure, sure. Ponies live in small reserve to the south ve set aside for them. Is tiny little controlled nation. They have government, but they answer to us.

Celestia could feel a weight being lifted off of her. There was still much weighing down on her, but she felt a small amount of relief from knowing that ponies hadn't been driven to extinction.

She continued to stare at the ground in abject shock. She could not get the gruesome image of more than a million ponies being obliterated by the griffons' bomb. Sure, many more ponies than that died every time she fell asleep, but these ponies were murdered. Many of them had been innocent civilians!

And still, one important question remained unanswered.

"And Luna?" Celestia spoke up, gazing up at Talimir, "What became of Luna?" She tried to put on a brave face, but inside she was absolutely terrified of what the answer might be.

"Luna…" Talimir spoke, "Pony alicorn who control moon, and leader of Ekwestrian army during var…" He folded his claws together and held them before his face. "Yes, unfortunately she survive bomb…"

Celestia's ears perked up.

"But," Talimir cut in before Celestia could let any more elation show, "Luna is gone now. No-one has seen her in decades, perhaps centuries."

She could almost feel the colour draining from her face.

"She try to handle end of var, she try to handle recovery…Then v'one day, poof! Luna disappear! Never heard from again."

Celestia was trembling once again. She could feel more tears rising, but she did her best to keep them at bay. She mustn't cry in front of this horrible monster.

She just tried to tell herself that Luna was missing…not dead.

"Oiho Muzojkük?" one of the griffon guards spoke up, addressing the King, "Tao Uijnahbidwod howod ammoh desx xohur j'sxnoh. Nah jecckod dasxk laoc cüdwoh."

"Ah," Tailimir replied, "Wikoh fidb'k. Nah jecckod qihïsb."

All of the griffons in the room then stood up, Celestia's captors closing in around her and Talimir striding towards where he had come in from earlier.

"Vell, Shelestia," he said with an idle wave of his talon, "I think is enough storytime. Now ve should be getting back to capital of Griffon Kingdoms. Von't you be coming?"

One of the griffons prodded her roughly, nearly sending her to the ground. She tried to shake the image of her dead sister out of her mind, but it was incredibly difficult. She had been pushed to her emotional limit. She couldn't handle any more.

"J'koxod!" the griffon shouted.

Celestia tried to make herself push back, struggle, or protest in some way. But she couldn't. She wasn't even able to stifle a short whine of sorrow that escaped her lips. The griffon prodded her again. Seconds later, she hit the ground hard, making her head spin.

She forced herself to get up, but in her mind she was asking herself 'Why?' What was left to fight for? What could possibly be gained by fighting back?

"Jao rhusxko tod büvaw, dasxk nuxh?"

"Zu…"

The griffons were closing around her, grabbing her, lifting her up. Fight, Celestia! Fight! She merely lay limp and let them do as they pleased.



***


Celestia was laying on the cold stone floor of a jail cell. Her head was laying on its side, staring blankly out into space. All of the life felt drained from her, yet she couldn't fall asleep. She was just still, feeling almost dead.

The griffons had transported her in a griffon-drawn air-carriage of some sort, and they had travelled for quite some time. Celestia hadn't bothered to look out the windows or pay attention to her surroundings. The only thing she'd managed to notice is that eventually, as they travelled, the rain stopped.

She had been vaguely aware of some sort of stone building as the cart landed and entered indoors. The next thing she'd known, she was being thrown recklessly into the jail cell and hearing the slam of the door, the griffons laughing as they departed.

She was left utterly alone with her thoughts. To her knowledge, no-one else was in any of the other cells. It was just her, isolated from the world in a dark, confined corner.

"Luna…"

Nothing else mattered to her right now; she just needed to know if her sister was okay. She felt incredibly selfish and terrible for having such thoughts, but she couldn't deny them. The desire to know of her sister's wellbeing was eating away at her. It was tearing her apart.

Tears fell to the floor. She hadn't even noticed that she'd started crying.

So this was what Equestria had come to. No. She couldn't even call it Equestria any more. It was gone, the Griffons had taken over, and the ponies had been thrown out. A "reserve" Talimir had called it. The connotations alone from that word led her to believe that the ponies were living awful, pitiful lives under tyrannical rule.

The ponies had been dragged into war. War had led to the deaths of many. The loss had led to destruction and despair.

And there was nothing she could do about it. Worse, she hadn't been there when it had all happened. She had been silently snoozing away while the world around her crumbled. Everything was so far out of her control. It was utterly agonizing.

She laid her head on the floor and wept, shivering in the cold, stone prison cell. She heard sounds around her, but she didn't care. She stared blankly ahead at a slightly skewed view of the floor before her and the bars of the cage. The sun's deep amber rays didn't reach anywhere near her through the small window.

She sighed, feeling empty and defeated. This was a sensation she had never experienced before in her life. She felt absolutely no drive to continue. She had no will to move, no will to fight, no will to live.

It was all over. She had lost.

She lay there for a long while, not moving an inch, and barely breathing. She heard footsteps and water dripping, but nothing made her stir. She merely watched as the glow of the sun slowly faded and drew back from the window. The light disappeared only to be replaced with the cool blackness of the night.

Suddenly, Celestia bolted upright. She gasped, energy returning to her. The sun!! She had forgotten all about the sun. She had been so wrapped up in all of the wild things going on that she hadn't even given a thought to the sun.

It had set. The sun had set! She stared out of her cell at the small window in the stone wall nearby. It was difficult to see, but she was sure of what she saw.

She saw moonlight.

The moon had risen.
> Phase 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 7


"Heehee hahaha heehee!"

"Luna!"

"Heehee! You can't catch me, Tia!"

"Oh yes I can! Hahaha!"



~The phoenix flies high…



"Wook at the butterfwy, Tia!"

"Aww! It's so pretty!"

"Heeheeheehahaha! It tickles!"

"Mama says the butterfly is the most delicate creature in this world…but it's also the most beautiful."

"Oooh…"

"Mama says that strength and power aren't everything. She says you have to be kind and gentle, like the butterfly, Luna."

"I wanna be a butterfwy!"

"Heeheehee…"



~The fox wildly dances…



"Umm…T-Tia…?"

"Mnnn…What, Luna? It's the middle of the night. You should be asleep."

"Umm…I- I wanted to show you something…"

"Show me what?"

"I-It's something…I made."

"…Oh…Oh, wow…Oh goodness, Luna…"

"Do…Do you like it?"

"It's incredible! You did all of this?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"Wh…What do you call them?"

"Um…Stars."



~The otters swim sweetly…



"Luna…?"

"…What?"

"I'm…I'm sorry I yelled at you…"

"…"

"I didn't mean to get so mad, Luna. It was all my fault anyway. So…I'm sorry. Really, I am."

"Mnn…"

"Aww, Luna…Please don't cry."

"Tia…"

"I love you, Luna. I love you so much."

"I…I love you too, Tia…"

"And I'll always love you. You're the best sister anypony could ever ask for."



~The tigress, she prances…



"Luna, I know you're proud of your stars, but I need to sleep. I have a lot to do tomorrow."

"Umm, no, Tia. I, uh…"

"What? What is it?"

"…I had a bad dream."

"……Oh."

"Can I…Can I sleep with you, please?"

"Well…I suppose so. C'mere."

"…"

"…"

"Tia?"

"Hm?"

"I miss mom…"

"Me too…"



~I will stay with you…



"I love you."



***



Celestia slowly opened her eyes. A bright yellow glow was shining through the bars of her cell, directly into her eyes, making her wince in irritation. She rolled over, yawned, and slowly rose to a sitting position. 

Fading memories of happy, nostalgic dreams were slowly replaced with the harsh reality that she currently found herself in. Her stomach was painfully empty, she was freezing cold, her stump of a horn was still throbbing, and she had little energy. Not only that, but she was certainly not blind to the near-hopeless scenario that was occurring.

But she smiled slightly. They had been wonderful dreams. Fleeting memories and hazy recollections they may have been, but they had managed to warm her broken heart. Luna had been so adorable when she was a foal.

Her stomach growled loudly and she winced. Gritting her teeth, she tried to dig into her energy reserves, only to find there was nothing there. She wanted nothing more than to simply collapse back on the cold stone floor and never get up again.

Slowly, she turned her head to the small window outside of her cell. On the other side, the sun was slowly rising into the sky. It was difficult to tell, due to the angle, but Celestia could see. The night had passed and it was morning once again.

She sighed, mixed feelings coursing through her. This certainly gave her true, real hope that Luna was alive somewhere, still controlling the sun and the moon. However, she wouldn't lie to herself. She knew that she still didn't know this for sure, and she wouldn't know for sure until she actually saw her sister with her own two eyes. So much tragedy had befallen her that she was now incredibly cautious when it came to any optimism.

Either way, it might not matter. She was currently stuck in a jail cell, deprived of her magic, and with the clock ticking towards her next sleep spell.

Her stomach growled loudly again. She moaned and clutched at it with a hoof. Her stomach was utterly empty and the hunger pains she felt were excruciating. She needed food. She needed energy and strength. She needed something to keep her alive.

"Xa'oo, Fedoo..."

Celestia's ears perked up and she turned to look behind her. Sitting on the opposite side of her cell, a few paces away from the bars, was a griffon with blue feathers, light armour that was not made of metal, and a simple spear weapon. He was pointing his talon out.

"What…?" Celestia mumbled.

"Oj wark corodjmakkoc hosxk," he replied, "Ojjod jao oj." He further indicated with his talon, pointing at something inside of the cell.

Celestia followed the direction of his outstretched claw with her eyes. She gasped as she discovered a small tray of food had been left next to her, which she had completely failed to notice. It was a simple meal of stale-looking bread and some sort of mush, but it was definitely food. 

She glanced back at the griffon outside. He simply nodded to her. A small smile graced her lips. "Thank you…" she said quietly.

Celestia wasted no further time in ravenously devouring the food. It was stale and awful, but it was the most delicious thing she had ever eaten in her life. It felt so wonderful to have food in her stomach once again. She smiled brightly as she chewed the mushy stuff, which seemed to be made of potatoes. Even mere moments after swallowing, she could feel some of her strength returning to her.

Before she knew it, her plate had been cleaned. Her belly was only about half-full, but it was definitely better than nothing. She sighed in contentment, licking her lips. She felt leagues better. That meal had been exactly the boost she'd needed.

Celestia glanced around her cell, looking for anything more, but found nothing but bare stone. She frowned and held a hoof to her throat.

"Excuse me?" she said, turning back to the griffon outside. The griffon gave her and inquiring glance. "I need water," Celestia said.

The griffon stared at her, a look of incomprehension on his face.

Celestia groaned slightly, remembering the language barrier. "Water," she spoke slowly and clearly, "Um…Glug glug glug? Drink?" She felt incredibly foolish speaking like this, but she couldn't think of many other ways to communicate what she needed.

"Asx noajj dasxk, nuj jao neccod…" the griffon muttered, shaking his head.

Celestia furrowed her brow. She then lifted up her forehooves, waving them through the air and trying to simulate waves. "Water?"

The griffon raised an eyebrow.

She brought her hoof up to her mouth, pretending she was holding a jug of water, and pantomimed the act of drinking it. "Gluh gluh gluh…" she vocalized.

"Nuj musx'jk ti todd…?" the griffon murmured. Celestia could tell by the tone in his voice that he thought she had lost her mind.

Celestia sighed in frustration. She stuck out her tongue and held her mouth open, making an overly-ragged panting noise. She pointed her hoof to her open mouth, gazing up at the griffon imploringly.

"Ah!" the griffon suddenly perked up, "Nujjoh! Jao neccod nujjoh." He then stood up, turned, and walked away. Celestia sat and waited patiently. For five minutes, there was no sign of him. Then, however, he returned, carrying a clear container filled to the brim with water, as well as a small clay cup. Celestia's expression brightened as he returned.

The guard placed the cup on the floor, filled it with water, and then carefully pushed it through the bars and into Celestia's reach. Out of habit, she tried to reach out and grab it with her magic. She was rewarded with a splitting pain down the middle of her forehead.

"Ah…" she groaned, rubbing her head with her hoof. She then leaned down and grabbed the cup with her mouth. She was so used to using magic to grab everything that she wasn't confident in using her hooves at all, so she settled on using her mouth.

The cold, refreshing liquid flowed down her throat, quenching her thirst and satisfying her wonderfully. She sighed in bliss as she finished consuming the entire contents of the relatively small cup. She craved more, but even this small drink had done wonders for her.

"Moxh?" the guard said, and Celestia glanced over at him. He was holding up the container and giving her an enquiring look.

"Ah!" Celestia nodded and smiled, pushing the cup back through the bars with her hoof. The griffon picked it up, refilled it, and then returned it to her. She drank this cup as well delighting in the cool, refreshing drink.

"Wik zokqk?" the guard asked her.

Celestia was unsure of what he had said, and so simply said "Thank you. Thank you very much." She smiled as she did so and then gave a small bow of her head afterwards. Bowing to say thanks was most definitely not a part of Griffon culture, but it was all she could think of to get her point across.

The griffon nodded and returned to his earlier position at the edge of her cell. It seemed that he was stationed there to guard and keep an eye on her.

She stared at him for a moment. His feathers were soft-looking and smooth, and his eyes were bright and very expressive. He hadn't once frowned or shown malice yet. In all honesty, he had been the nicest griffon she had met so far, though that was hardly a difficult contest to win.

The guard gave her a cursory glance, then looked away. He almost seemed to be bored.

Celestia opened her mouth to speak to him, to ask him a question, then promptly shut it, remembering that the two couldn't understand one another. She frowned in frustration, turning away. It was still so strange and unusual to her to hear a foreign language. She had spent most of her life being able to understand what any creature on the planet was saying, no matter in what language it was being spoken. It was a difficult notion to grasp that an entirely new language had grown and evolved.

It only further cemented in her mind that she had been gone for a very long time.

She frowned heavily, a painful feeling creeping through her stomach. Her depression and negative feelings were beginning to resurface again. Her mind was quick to remind her that she was injured, imprisoned and had quite possibly lost the ability to perform magic. She could not get over the anxiety she felt about her broken horn. She had felt it with her hoof, and could feel that approximately half had been broken off. However, without a mirror or some kind of reflective surface, she couldn't tell for sure if more or less than half had been snapped off, and what fate that would spell out for her.

She was also thinking of the current state of the world around her. Apparently, they had left Equestria and were now somewhere else, possibly in the location the Griffon Kingdoms had been during her time. She hadn't seen any of it; she had been near-comatose on the way here. However, the image of Equestria, bombed and utterly destroyed, would not leave her head. It was one of the most painful things she had ever seen in her life.

And through all of this, where was Luna?

"Jadt jao nahbcasx Shelestia?"

Celestia's ears perked up and she turned back around to face the griffon. He had adjusted his position so he was sitting facing the bars of her cell, and was gazing at her with a explorative gaze.

"What?" Celestia said, tilting her head to show her confusion. She had heard him say 'Shelestia', which she had picked up on as being the way they pronounced her name. Beyond that, however, she comprehended nothing of what he had said.

The griffon raised his talon and pointed directly at her. "Shelestia?"

Celestia blinked. "Ah…Yes," she replied, bringing her hooves up to point at herself, "I am Celestia." She also nodded.

The griffon raised his eyebrows. "SEH-lestia?"

Celestia smiled and nodded some more. "Yes, yes. Celestia," she said, continuing to point at herself. Then, she pointed her hoof out at him. "And you?"

The griffon paused for a moment before pointing at himself and giving a questioning gaze. "Masx?" he said, "Asx rad Nikolaw."

Celestia held her hoof and pointed at him. "Nikolaw?"

The griffon nodded and pointed at himself again. "Nikolaw."

Celestia actually found herself smiling. She marvelled at this simple fact. She was communicating with this griffon who didn't speak her language, and the two were already learning things about one another. He was not acting hostile or arrogant in any way. She could see a calmness and peacefulness in his eyes, something she had not seen in any of the other griffons.

"Asx budd dasxk wicuirod, tujj oj nahb'casx jao..." Nikolaw muttered, "Jao xurod nahb'casx nox kid..."

Once again, Celestia had no idea what he was saying to her. She gave him a slight frown and tilted her head again.

"Xurod jao jedjk desx oknuj?" he asked her.

Celestia shook her head. "I don't understand," she spoke simply, if futilely, "I don't speak your tongue."

Nikolaw paused for a moment, considering the situation. Then, his face brightened up, and Celestia could almost see the lantern appearing above his head. He turned away from her, digging through a small shoulder pack that she hadn't noticed before laying nearby. After a few moments, he pulled out a small pad of paper and a simple pencil.

Celestia gazed at him curiously as he began to write on the paper. For a few minutes, the room was filled only with the sounds of his pencil scribbling on the page. Finally, he ripped the page off and presented it to her, holding his talon through the bars. "Xaoh."

She stared at the paper in his claws, and then gazed at him. "For me?" she said, pointing to herself. Nikolaw nodded and let the paper fall to the ground. Celestia grabbed it with her hoof and studied it.

It was a fairly simple drawing of the two of them, Celestia and Nikolaw, with the griffon's talon stretched out towards her, palm up. Above his talon, there was a square with a cross inside it, which Celestia recognized as the universal symbol for first aid or care. She marvelled at the fact that it was still in use to this day. Next to this symbol was a question mark.

She gazed at the image in confusion for a moment, but then her eyes lit up and she gasped. "Oh!" She realized now what he had done. The drawing depicted him giving her the cross; giving her aid. Nikolaw was asking if she needed anything else. He was using pictographs to bypass the language barrier and communicate with her.

"Jaox'jk ti?"

Celestia glanced up and saw that he was holding his talon through the bars again. This time, he was holding the pencil in it and was presenting it to her.

"Hm?"

Celestia watched as he gave the pencil a light toss, letting it land directly in front of her. "Lohnodtod jao oj," he said to her.

She stared for a moment. The gears of her brain were still a little rusty from her lack of energy, but comprehension soon came to her. She flipped the paper over, laid it on the ground, and picked up the pencil with her mouth.

Celestia had been using her magic to write for ages. She couldn't remember the last time she had written using her mouth. She hoped she wasn't too out of practice. Working slowly and meticulously, she drew a basic representation of herself, and then drew a big checkmark next to it. 

She hoofed the paper back through the bars, and Nikolaw picked it up and looked at it. He smiled and said, "Tuj aj'k wik."

Nikolaw then tore off a new piece of paper and began drawing on it. Again, Celestia waited patiently as he worked before she was presented with another drawing. There was an arrow pointed to another depiction of her, an image of the sun with an arrow directing it upwards, and another question mark. She interpreted this as him asking if she could really move the sun.

Celestia shrugged and pointed to her broken horn. "Ah, hasxkaw…" Nikolaw murmured.

He gave her the pencil again, and Celestia drew the sun and the moon with circular arrows depicting their orbits. She drew a pony's horn in the middle and surrounded it with magic lines and a question mark. 

She frowned as she looked at her drawing. It was more difficult than it seemed to get one's ideas out without using any words. She hoped he could figure out that she was asking how the sun and moon moved now.

Hoofing the paper and pencil and paper back, Celestia frowned as Nikolaw gazed at what she had written and then merely shrugged. When she slumped forward dismally he frowned and began drawing again. 

Soon she was greeted with another picture. It was a simple drawing of a blue alicorn with a wonderful mane. There was an arrow pointing away from Luna directly at a question mark. 'Luna disappeared,' Celestia interpreted. Next to this, however was a series of three dots and then another picture of the sun and moon moving.

Celestia blinked as she studied this drawing. 'When Luna disappeared…the sun and moon still moved.'

"No-one knows where she is…" she muttered.

She looked back up to Nikolaw, who was giving her a sympathetic smile. "Luna," he spoke, and then held his talon up to his neck horizontally, tapping it lightly, before shaking his head 'no'.

He doesn't think she's dead.

Celestia felt a warm, fuzzy feeling overcoming her. She gave Nikolaw a bright smile and could feel layers upon layers of stress simply melting away. Just who was this griffon and why was he being so kind to her? He was already doing so much to calm her down and keep her comfortable.

He was actually being friendly.

She indicated her head towards the stack of papers, requesting another one. Once Nikolaw had given her some, she got to work drawing once again. She drew a depiction of both of them, giving them both smiles. To further emphasize her point, she drew happy faces above the both of them. She then drew an arrow towards Nikolaw and inserted a question mark.

It wasn't much, but hopefully he could understand what she was asking. Just why he was being so nice?

Nikolaw retrieved the paper and studied it. He then flipped it over and quickly drew something on the reverse side. Celestia took it back and saw that he had drawn her frowning, and then an arrow pointing to another drawing of her, but happy.

Celestia smiled warmly again, gazing back up at him. He was giving her a simple, contented smile in return. 

The two simply sat looking at one another for a few minutes. More and more, Celestia could see something different about him that she didn't see in any of the other griffons out there. She could see compassion and kindness, and there was no fire burning behind his eyes. There wasn't an inferno of hatred and contempt hiding somewhere inside of him.

He was definitely different than the rest of them.

Celestia requested another piece of paper and drew a simple picture of three plain earth ponies, along with a question mark.

Nikolaw looked at the paper, and then began to draw something on the reverse. This time, he spent quite a long time sketching. Celestia waited patiently as the minutes ticked by, but Nikolaw continued to trace the pencil across the page. Time passed and her curiosity continued to grow.

Finally, he returned the paper to her. Celestia's eyes widened at what she saw before her.

Nikolaw had drawn a political map of the area. She recognized the shape of the coastline easily. The map was mostly occupied by a large shape. In a wide, unmarked area in the eastern region of this shape was a drawing of a mountain. Using its relative location, Celestia recognized it as Canterlot mountain.

To the northwest of Canterlot Mountain, Nikolaw had drawn a star shape. Next to it, and with an arrow pointed to it, was a small drawing of the two of them, indicating that they were currently there.

Then, Celestia's eyes travelled south to the extreme southern end of the continent. There, Nikolaw had outlined a small, thin shape hugging the coastline. He had drawn a few pictures of ponies there, indicating that that was where they now lived.

Celestia stared in disbelief at the map. She used the coastlines and general shape of the landmass to pick out where Equestria's borders had once been. This small 'reserve' that they were now living on was not only outside of where Equestria had been previously, but it was more than ten times as small. It was absolutely minuscule. 

She continued staring, unable to tear her eyes away. This simple drawing told volumes of stories to her. The ponies were being pushed away, shunned away, and locked up behind claustrophobic borders. An area of that size was far too small to sustain the entire pony population. This meant one of two things; either the population had drastically diminished, or they were living in incredibly impoverished conditions due to overcrowding. Both possibilities made her shudder.

"Celestia?" Nikolaw spoke to her in a calm voice. She tore her eyes away from the map and gazed, frowning, at the griffon. There was genuine distress across his face, and she could see that he was concerned about her.

Does he…care for me?

Celestia grimaced and indicated the map. "Not good!" she exclaimed, using her forehooves to mime that it was too small. Nikolaw simply continued to frown. 

She grabbed the pencil and once again began to draw. She drew a small group of ponies and traced the approximate shape of the borders Nikolaw had drawn next to that, she drew a depiction of two appendages with closed fingers. One had the thumb sticking out and pointed upwards, while one was pointed downward. It was a gesture she had known griffons to use when expressing positive or negative feelings, and she hoped it was still in use today.

Nikolaw retrieved the paper and looked it over. He grimaced sourly, making Celestia mirror his expression. The griffon merely glanced at her and shook his head 'no'.

Her heart sank. Gloom surrounded her and encompassed her, sending her emotions spiralling down into a dark pit of despair. She half-collapsed to the ground, resting her head lamely on the cold, hard floor. She stared ahead blankly as all of her negative emotions began to gang up on her again.

My ponies… Her heart ached for them. My poor, poor ponies… She wanted nothing more than to help them. She needed to be with them. I'm so sorry… She would give anything to help them. Anything.

How could this have happened…? How could I have let this happen? Why? Heavens, why?? She shivered, a heavy torrent of tears threatening to spill loose. I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…

"Celestia…"

The first tears broke past the threshold. She shivered and clutched at nothing as she thought of all the poor, suffering ponies. The image of the state of their land was sickening, and the memory of what had become of Equestria was horrifying.

I'm sorry…I'm sorry…I'm sorry… She repeated these words over and over inside of her head, as if trying to plead for her life against some wrathful, omniscient being. I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…

"Celestia!"

The princess gasped and opened her eyes, not even having realized they'd been closed. She glanced up in the direction of Nikolaw's voice. He appeared very concerned; worry was written all across his face. He was holding another piece of paper, presenting it to her through the bars.

Celestia took in a few breaths before sitting up. She gazed at him softly for a moment, and then reached out and took the paper. It was the same thing she had just drawn for him. However, instead of a group of common ponies standing between the 'thumbs up' and 'thumbs down', there was only a drawing of her.

'Are you okay?' it said to her.

As she held the paper in her hooves, she turned her head up and looked at the griffon. She made to shake her head 'no' in response, but found herself pausing and glancing away. She took a few moments and thought about her answer. Every part of her logical mind told her that the answer was 'no', but still there was something stopping her.

She sat unmoving for a while. Nikolaw merely waited patiently. Finally, she looked up at him again and shrugged.

Her mind was a flurry of thoughts. Nikolaw's simple question had given her a lot to think about. She found herself considering different perspectives and looking at things in a different light. She couldn't explain it, but that one, simple question had stopped her from utterly breaking down once again.

Simply by asking if she was okay.

A few moments later, Celestia had the pencil once again. She drew a huge question mark pointing towards herself being led into the jail cell by griffon guards. She also drew a depiction of Talimir. She actually found herself smiling slightly as she doodled him, as she had taken a few creative liberties in portraying the tyrannical ruler.

She hoofed back her drawing asking why she was being locked up. Nikolaw glanced at it and then gave his answer. He shrugged.

Celestia furrowed her brow and frowned in frustration. Her mind was coming up with all sorts of horrible things that Talimir might have planned for her, but none of them made any sense. All the king had said was that she belonged to them now, as if she were some sort of prize.

Was this really his grand scheme? To hold onto her like some sort of glamorous trophy? If that were the case, she probably wouldn't be locked up in jail like this.

Nikolaw frowned as he scratched his head, giving a confused and concerned expression. "Asx vhuwo masx, nuhim..." he muttered.

Celestia suddenly shivered profusely from a noticeable drop in temperature. A frigid breeze was flowing in from somewhere. Nikolaw ruffled his feathers, but otherwise seemed unfazed by the cold. He did, however, notice her suffering. It only made him frown further.

Nikolaw held up his pencil and made to make another drawing, no doubt to ask if she wanted a blanket, but Celestia interrupted him. She requested the pencil and some more paper, to which he obliged.

Celestia worked quickly, drawing her request as clearly as she could. A basic image of herself, and the open door of her jail cell.

She quickly hoofed it back to him. He picked it up, frowned and then glanced away. He scratched the back of his neck and rapped his claws against his leg. After a moment, he glanced back at her again. 

She gazed directly into his eyes. Still, she could see that calmness and compassion in them. His eyes showed a sea of tranquility, entirely unique from all the griffons she had met previously. He was simply gazing at her with an unsure look on his face.

"Ah…" he muttered, "Celestia…Asx-"

There was the sound of a door being slammed against the stone wall. Nikolaw started and quickly scrambled to gather up all the pieces of paper they had been using to communicate. 

"Xoo, Zidwo!" a commanding voice shouted, "Nuj moadjk ti, nuj ti kijk!"

"Ah!" Nikolaw stammered, "Bemmudtudk! Oj kik mah coat, asx nuh-"

"Ti rajk qoxd madikod qij fük!" the other voice shouted angrily.

"Rozuxodt!" Nikolaw replied promptly, getting to his feet, "Oj kik idj coat! Asx nuh urwocod'bk!" He only gave Celestia a quick, apologetic glance, before he dashed out of her sight as fast as he could. 

As his paw-steps faded into the distance, she heard a second set slowly approaching her. Moments later, a second griffon came into view. This one was clad in much heavier armour that covered most of his body. He wore a heavy-set helmet with a protective grating that covered his eyes. There were blades resting in sheaths attached to both of his thighs. Through the armour, Celestia could see that he had dark red feathers with black highlights.

The griffon was staring directly at her, a frown on his face and his brow furrowed. Unlike Nikolaw, this griffon was much like all of the others; there was a burning hatred resting behind his eyes, burning like a wild fire. His scowl was poisonous and almost frightening.

"Vasbod fukxokaj'sx fedoo fhadqojad…" he muttered venomously. There was hatred dripping from his words, even though she could not understand them.

She gazed back at him, unsure of how to present herself. Should she be proud and defiant? Should she assert herself and demand to be let free? Perhaps she should simply remain calm and indifferent? The only thing she knew for sure was not to show fear, and so she did not.

"Nohkcej bhoukih. Asx xevvo, tujj jao j'kohrod…"

Celestia made a decision. She rose to her hooves and stepped forward, bringing herself right up against the bars of her cell. The griffon raised an eyebrow as Celestia stared through the bars directly at him, unflinching and not blinking.

"Nuj qim koivoc..? Xecod jao jasx qihïsb..."

Celestia didn't respond. She merely continued to gaze deep into his eyes. She stared at the fire inside of them, unafraid. She stood her ground, her jaw set firmly, as she stared into the hate-filled eyes of the griffon guard.

The griffon stared back at her, perplexed but also unflinching. He never looked away from her, gazing at her with his own eyes.

He jumped back slightly when Celestia's hoof slipped through the bars and rested just a few inched before him. He stared down at her hoof in confusion. "Nuj musx'jk ti?" he muttered. 

Celestia simply held her hoof out to him and continued to gaze at him. However, she now stared at him with compassion-filled eyes. They were understanding, and almost seemed apologetic. She wore a kind, gentle expression on her face as she looked at him, trying to silently communicate with him in some way.

She tried to wordlessly express forgiveness, and she tried to find some way to extend her friendship to these hate-filled creatures.

Celestia cried out as the griffon swatted at her hoof, his claws nicking her skin and drawing blood. She quickly withdrew it back into her cell.

"R'coarod jao ad axhom büvaw, ne jao xadwoxöhod, tij kïsb thosb!" he exclaimed, glaring violently at her.

Celestia sat and stared at him, her eyebrows arched in concern.

"R'coarod jao tehk idt lohhekkod ..." he muttered before turning and promptly departing. Celestia sat completely still as she listened to his pawsteps fade into the distance, and then the slam of a loud door.

There was silence in the cell block as she was left completely alone.



***



Celestia remained in the jail cell for many hours. The passage of time was difficult to discern, but she guessed that at least seven hours had passed. In that time, no griffons entered the cell block at all. The entire time, she was by herself, shivering on the cold stone floor. There was no bed, there were no blankets; there was hardly anything in this cell.

She spend a lot of her time waiting and listening. Occasional sounds drifted in through the small window nearby. She heard low rumblings like some sort of machine passing by. She heard occasional conversations in that new, foreign tongue, most of which seemed to be heated. She also heard the wind blowing quite often, which caused her to remember that the heart of the Griffon Kingdom was located at the top of a series of very tall mountains.

But for the most part, she heard nothing. There were neither the sounds of peace nor war. Of course, Celestia knew not how close the prison was to the heart of the city, or indeed to any civilization, but it still struck her as intriguing. 

She often found herself looking out the window forlornly. It was a strange, upsetting feeling to be without her magic and, thus, unable to reach out to the sun. It felt like she was cut off from her child, unable to tend to it or care for it. The sun still seemed to be moving across the sky just fine. If it was by somepony else's horn, she still did not know.

Finally, as the sun was approaching the horizon, but not yet setting, she heard the door opening. It did not slam this time, instead being closed with a light touch. A few moments later, Nikolaw appeared outside of her cell.

Her face brightened when she saw it was him. It brightened even more when she saw what he was carrying. Draped over his back were a set of clean, warm-looking blankets.

"Xaoh," he said, taking a seat, facing her, and passing the blankets through the bars to her. She smiled as she took them and wrapped them around herself. She beamed in pleasure as she snuggled herself into their warm embrace. She sighed as the coldness and the shivers began to fade away and were replaced with a soothing warmness.

"Rojjoh?" Nikolaw asked her, tilting his head as if he were asking for her approval.

Celestia nodded, making a confident assumption of what he was asking, "Yes. Thank you, Nikolaw. These are perfect."

The griffon seemed to accept this response as he nodded in satisfaction. The two sat quietly for a moment, simply smiling contentedly. A few moments later, Nikolaw's smile melted away to be replaced with a small grimace. He glanced away for a moment before he reached into his pack and once again withdrew his pad of papers and pencil.

Nikolaw scribbled for a while as Celestia waited patiently. She was worried by the scowl she had seen on his face. Was something wrong? Did he know something about what was to happen to her?

"Asx vudt xohuij, ïroh tuj, nüxhodt asx roa toh uhroak nuh..." he murmured as he sketched. Finally, he placed his pencil down, tore off the sheet of paper, and handed it to her through the bars. "Axho xehd..." he stated as Celestia took the paper and glanced over it.

She furrowed her brow. Nikolaw had drawn what appeared to be a very impressive and gaudy-looking chair with a crown atop it. A throne? It seemed to represent King Talimir's throne. Next to it, he had drawn an assortment of things. There were trophies, jewellery, portraits of some kind. It looked like treasure. One object in particular had an arrow pointing towards it.

Celestia gasped and held a hoof up to her mouth. Her eyes shot open wide as she stared at the drawing. Nikolaw had drawn a glass case in the shape of a cube. Inside of it was a pedestal with much decorative flare. And resting atop the pedestal…

"My horn…!"

According to what Nikolaw had drawn, Talimir had placed her horn up on display next to his throne like some sort of token of pride. A shiver passed through her entire body. That was just absolutely disgusting.

"Horn…" Nikolaw murmured. Celestia was so focused on the vile treatment of her severed horn that she almost didn't notice what he had said. She turned to him as he repeated the Equestrian word once again. "Horn?" he said, pointing at the stump of what used to be her horn. 

Celestia blinked, sluggishly trying to shift gears in her brain to focus on this new, less revolting topic. "Uhm…Yes," she said with a nod. She raised her hoof up and pointed at her stump. "Horn."

Nikolaw furrowed his brow. He seemed to be studying the strange word. He again pointed at her stump and said "Xehd."

Celestia arched an eyebrow. "Xehd?" she repeated. I almost sounded like the word shed. "Horn, Xehd?"

Nikolaw nodded slowly. "Xehd, Horn…"

There was a pause, and then both smiled. Celestia chuckled. Nikolaw also chuckled. Her smile grew wider as she realized that she had just laughed. She was in the pit of despair in quite possibly the most hopeless situation one could imagine…and she had just laughed.

"Heh heh," she giggled, "I guess this is my xehd!"

Nikolaw chuckled and replied, "Axh horn ajk oad nodaw worhesxod."

The two continued laughing for a few moments. Celestia simply revelled in the absurdity of what was happening. A jail cell was not the first place she expected to be when learning a new language.

"Celestia?" Nikolaw asked, recapturing her attention. "Horn…?" he vocalized before holding his talons up above his head and making wave-like motions. Celestia saw that he was mimicking a horn's aura. He then pointed one of his claws out the window, directly at the sun's rays.

"Ah…" Celestia replied, quite sure she understood what he was asking. She nodded and said, "Yes. My horn moves the sun." She made a few movements with her head to try to further illustrate her point.

"Sun…" Nikolaw repeated, his eyes glancing upwards as he absorbed the word. After a moment he smiled. "Tao nuhmo sun..."

Celestia smiled. It seemed he liked the word. "What do you call it?" she asked, pointing her hoof at him.

Nikolaw pointed his talon out the window again. "Sun," he said, paused, and then said, "Jeddo."

Celestia couldn't stifle a chuckle. These new, foreign words sounded so unusual to her. She couldn't help it. "Heh heh…Celestia, Goddess of the Jeddo."

"Nen..." Nikolaw murmured, gazing at Celestia with an expression of reverence. He grabbed another sheet of paper and quickly sketched something. He held it up for Celestia to see and pointed at it. "Jao...Celestia…Jeddoduivwud'w?"

Celestia was caught off guard by the unusually long word, but looked at what he had drawn for her. It was a picture of the sunrise. She gave a soft warm smile and nodded. "I…I make the sunrise," she said, pointing the stump of her horn at the drawing on the last word.

Nikolaw paused. "Sun…rise…" he murmured.

Celestia grinned. "It's a lot simpler than Jed…Jeddodah…"

This made Nikolaw burst out laughing. "Hah! Tuj ajk cijkaw! Sunrise ajk joxh laoc oadvusxoh ucj Jeddoduivwud'w!"

Outside the prison's walls, the sun began to set. Celestia almost didn't notice the warm, orange rays leaking in through the window. She was enjoying herself too much interacting with Nikolaw. The two conversed through more sketches and taught each other more words in each others' languages. Celestia found herself laughing particularly hard when she found out that their word for 'pony' was 'fedoo'.

Nikolaw was asking her many questions, and she was happily providing answers. He asked about her life and her abilities, and he asked about the past. He was very interested in what life was like before the war. Celestia was carefully avoiding disclosing the details of her unexplained sleeping spells to him. She wasn't quite sure why, but she felt it was not a good idea to disclose that information; not even to him.

Celestia used drawings to tell Nikolaw all about Ponyville and Canterlot from the long-passed year of 2010. She could see the sparkles in his eyes when he looked at the sketches she had made of the two cities. She tried her best to display what government had been like back then, though this was sometimes difficult to convey without words.

She showed him much of what regular, everyday pony life had been like. She showed him all the happiness and prosperity that had spread through the land. Though it threatened to bring a tear to her eye, she drew a picture of Twilight and her group of best friends. The drawing made Nikolaw smile warmly.

She even educated him on what the Griffon Kingdoms had been like during the 21st century. He was fascinated by how similar the monarchy of today was to the monarchy back then. Celestia drew him a very detailed drawing of the proud griffons flying across their mountainous state, and she smiled when his eyes lit up.

Night fell. The cell block was somehow illuminated by a flickering light source, but Celestia couldn't see where it was coming from. Nikolaw didn't seem to be in any hurry to leave at the moment.

The two had been conversing, if one could call it that, about everyday griffon life. However, Celestia felt her eyes being drawn towards the window. The deep darkness of twilight was slowly waning away thanks to the glow of the moon. The cool aura of the night spread over the land and flowed into her dreary cell.

Nikolaw followed her gaze. They sat staring out the window for a few minutes. "Moon…?" he said softly.

Celestia nodded, confirming his correct usage of the word.

"Idt…" he continued, "Luna…horn…moon?"

She closed her eyes and let out a quiet sigh as painful emotions began to build in her. "Yes…Luna made the moon rise."

"Moon rise…"

Thoughts of her little sister filled her head, bringing along even more painful emotions. She sat quietly for a moment, then retrieved another piece of paper. She sketched another drawing, taking time and care while doing so. When she was done, she hoofed it over to Nikolaw.

It was a drawing of herself and her sister hugging. She tried her best to express all of the emotions she felt while drawing it. It was an image that represented happiness and all of her desires, and it also represented the pain and loneliness she was feeling at this moment.

Nikolaw's expression softened noticeably when he saw the picture. "Celestia…idt Luna…" he murmured as he gazed.

Celestia sniffled, trying to hold back tears. "Luna…My little Luna…I miss her so much…" she said, knowing that Nikolaw couldn't fully understand her.

The griffon took the pencil and quickly drew something on the paper. He handed it back to her through the bars.

He had drawn a heart above the pair. Celestia couldn't hold back a choked gasp of raw emotion. As tears formed in her eyes, she nodded. "Yes…I love her. I love Luna…"

Nikolaw was silent for a moment. "Love…"

Celestia turned to look at him.

"Caoro… " He extended one of his claws and drew an imaginary heart in the air. "Love…"

Celestia retrieved the pencil and another piece of paper from him. She drew a basic representation of her sister. Then she drew a depiction of herself inside of her jail cell, reaching out to Luna desperately through the bars.

As she hoofed it back to Nikolaw, she said, "I love Luna…I miss Luna…" The griffon took the paper and she spoke in a very quiet voice, "Please…"

Nikolaw gazed at the drawing, a softened expression on his face. He was silent for a few minutes as he stared at it with a small frown. "Celestia…" he said finally in a very subdued tone.

A tear rolled down Celestia's cheek, but she continued to gaze imploringly at the griffon on the other side of the cold metal bars.

There was a loud clicking sound from somewhere outside the cell block. Nikolaw whipped his head towards the entrance. There was the sound of someone calling something out, followed by another click.

Nikolaw frowned. "Lohtummk..." he muttered. He then began to gather up all the stray pieces of paper and the pencils and put them back into his pack. "Oj kik mah coat, Celestia. Asx mijj zokqk woxod. Asx budd dasxk r'coarod."

When he had everything packed up, he got to his feet and gave Celestia a sad, sympathetic gaze. She stared back at him humbly with a heavy frown on her face. There was a moment of silence between the two.

"Goodbye, Celestia," he said finally. A moment later, he walked off down the hallway, out of sight and out of the building. The door slammed shut and, once again, Celestia was left alone.

She sat motionless in emotionally heavy silence for a few moments. The light flickered on the walls and a cool, chilling breeze wafted in from the window. There was a heavy feeling in Celestia's heart. Her one and only friend in this era had left, so now she was on her own. Yet, no matter how much the two of them seemed to get along, Nikolaw didn't seem to have any intentions of freeing her.

She sighed as more painful thoughts came to her, unbidden. She thought of her horn sitting on display in the King's throne room. She thought of the arrogant King himself and how much he was materializing her. She began to wonder what would happen to her if she fell asleep again while still in their captivity. That was a frightening thought that she tried to direct her mind away from.

And again, she thought of Luna, and wondered where she could be. Her heart ached to see her sister again. No matter how bad things had been in the past, Luna had always been there for her when she'd woken up in an entirely new world. Her absence was heartbreaking but, more than that, it was terrifying.

Celestia began to lie down on the ground. When she moved, however, she heard a crumpling sound. Pausing and investigating, she found that she had been sitting on top of a piece of paper. Nikolaw had apparently neglected to pick this one up. Curious, she flipped it over and looked at what was drawn on it.

A moment later, a small smile found its way to her face. Two things were depicted on the page. One was a drawing Nikolaw had made of the King. It was deviously cartoony and the normally imposing griffon was drawn in such a silly way. Nikolaw had given him a big dumb face and a whimsically comical expression. Celestia recalled how much she had laughed when she'd first seen it, and her smile grew.

Next to it was something much different. It was a drawing Nikolaw had made of her. She remembered that he had spent a long time sketching it, and the effort clearly showed. The young griffon was truly an artist, as could be seen in this wonderful drawing of her.

More than that, however, Nikolaw had drawn her smiling. He had given her a wonderfully pleased expression and had depicted her running and bounding about somewhere like a happy little foal.

She remembered why he had drawn this. She had been getting a little emotional from the stories she had been telling, and this had been his way of saying, 'I like it better when you smile.' The picture had done its job, as Celestia had begun to smile immediately upon seeing it.

And she was smiling right now. These two radically different and unrelated pictures told her the same thing, and they expressed it so powerfully. Nikolaw cared. His loyalty only extended so far, and it was not unexpected of him to not want to go against his country or break any laws, but he still cared.

Even if she had nothing else left in this world or this era, she at least had someone who cared. A warm smile overcame her as she slowly began to realize just how important that was. So, she stood up, trotted over to the blankets Nikolaw had given her, and lay down on some of them. She covered herself in the remaining blankets, snuggling into their wonderful warmth.

She sighed and lay her head down. No painful or troublesome thoughts were around to keep her from sleeping peacefully. Not this time.
> Phase 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 8


As the sun slowly made its way into the sky, Celestia lay sleeping peacefully in her jail cell. Wrapped up snugly in warm blankets, she was having bright cheerful dreams. A smile was on her face as she slumbered.

Her ear twitched and her eyes fluttered open. She lifted up her head, gazing in the direction that she had heard the noise come from. Footsteps were rapidly approaching.

A moment later, Nikolaw suddenly appeared, looking frantic and anxious. Celestia's eyes shot open and her remaining fatigue disappeared instantly. Neither had to say or do anything; Celestia could immediately tell from the look in his eyes alone that something was wrong. 

He stood catching his breath for a moment, and then quickly shoved a piece of paper through the bars towards her. He then immediately turned and departed from the front of her cell, running off to the other side of the hallway.

Celestia looked at where the paper had landed, and then gazed after him in confusion. She didn't hear the door opening, so he hadn't left. All she knew was that something was going on, and she had to figure out what.

She quickly reached for the paper and unfolded it. Written on it was a rather sketchy diagram. There was a drawing of her jail cell, but it was empty and with the door open. There was an arrow pointing to a second drawing, which made Celestia raise her eyebrows. It was a picture of her, bound by her ankles, being led somewhere by a troupe of griffon guards. A second arrow continued from there and led to the largest drawing on the page.

Celestia furrowed her brow and tilted her head. It appeared to be some sort of stage or colosseum. There was a series of seats arranged concentrically around a viewing area, which the drawing depicted as being packed full of griffons. There was a distinctive area near the top, set away from and above all the other seats, where there was an unmistakable depiction of King Talimir. He wore a smug smile on his face.

And standing upon the stage, in clear view of the entire audience, was her. She was still bound by the ankles, with a chain collar around her neck, and a very sad, dishevelled appearance. 

Celestia stared for a moment at the drawing. What was this exactly? Some sort of public shaming? A spectacle? A show? Whatever it was, it was clear that it was at her expense, and seemed to be geared towards showing her off to the masses. A shiver passed through her body.

The sound of the door opening could be heard. Celestia snapped her head upright and quickly crumpled up the paper, storing it in the folds of the blankets. There were muffled voices. Some others had come in. She waited for a few moments in anxious trepidation.

Then, six griffons appeared before her cell, staring in at her. One of them was Nikolaw, who was giving his best neutral expression, and was trying not to look directly at her. Two others were dressed in the same, non-metallic armour as Nikolaw, while the other three appeared to have more elite, metal garb. 

They were all glaring intently at her. She met their gazes and calmly got to her hooves, making her way to the bars and standing before them.

"Niko!" the one at the front said, turning to Nikolaw, "Nexoh xukko jao taojo tosbod?" Celestia got the impression that he was their leader.

Nikolaw shrugged, looking quite casual and aloof as he replied. "Asx noajj oj dasxk."

The leader merely shook his head and returned his gaze to her. "Eba'u, fhadqojjad..." he said in a deep, almost malicious tone, "Oj ajk qoak vïh axho bhëdidw. Beefohaohod, idt jao nohtod dasxk lohcok'qk nohtod."

Celestia stole a quick glance at Nikolaw. He still remained neutral and expressionless. The lead griffon turned to the two griffons closest to him and nodded his head. They nodded in reply, and stepped towards the door to her cell. One of them reached into his shoulder pack and fished out a ring of keys. Celestia's eyebrows shot up.

The other, however, reached into his shoulder pack and instead pulled out a set of shackles, just like the ones in Nikolaw's drawing. Her eyes shot open and she took a step back.

There was a click, and the cell's door swung inward. Celestia watched warily as the one with the keys stepped aside and three of the other griffons slowly stepped through it and into her cell. She backed up a few more paces as they did. The first one through was the one holding the shackles. He was staring directly at her and cautiously approaching. Behind him came another griffon who was carrying something small and unidentifiable, and then Nikolaw.

She eyed the one approaching her guardedly. He had a scowl on his face and was not ceasing in his approach. The second unknown griffon stepped up to stand beside him. "Ronowod jao jasx dasxk," the one with the shackles said.

He made a move towards her. Celestia evaded him to the side. He glared at her and stepped forward more aggressively, his claws outstretched. With nowhere else to move to, Celestia retaliated by lowering her head and shoving back at him with the brunt of her shoulder. He cried out as he was pushed back.

"Xuckod jao axh ataekod oo'ei!" the lead griffon, still outside the cell, spoke in an exasperated tone.

Nikolaw approached from her side. He was now holding rope in his claws. She trusted him, but she was almost certain that he was going to act against her while in the company of these other griffons. She took a defensive stance and observed the three griffons inside of her cell. They were completely blocking her way to the exit and, beyond that, the lead griffon was standing guard at the open cell door, cutting off her escape. Still, they were approaching her with shackles and rope. 

When the one with the shackles again tried to reach out and grab her, she remained defiant with gritted teeth. She quickly tucked her neck in and thrust herself forward, headbutting the griffon forcefully. "Ah, lohvasb'k!" he exclaimed.

The opportunity was ridiculously slim, but she took it anyway. She moved quickly and forcibly, trying to power her way past the temporarily winded griffon. The entire cell quickly became a frenzy of activity. Nikolaw reached out towards her, but she shifted away. The winded griffon tried to move himself so as to block her escape. She put all of her strength into pushing herself past him. She would trample him to the ground if she had to.

Something grabbed her shoulder. Whipping her head to the right, she quickly realized that she had forgotten about the third griffon in her cell. He was grinning deviously. Her eyes quickly shot down to his other claw, where the object she had seen earlier was being held. She only got to see it for a brief second before it was jammed roughly into her side.

A sizzling, electrical sensation quickly spread throughout her entire body, making her eyes shoot open wide. Her face screwed up in severe pain as her body began to twitch involuntarily. A painful, tingling fire was spreading through her blood, and her muscles were stinging and seizing up. She quickly lost her footing and fell roughly to the floor.

The griffon removed the object from her, and some of the pain died down, but she continued to twitch violently and grit her teeth. Her heart was beating unbelievably fast, and there was a pain in her chest and a sick feeling in her stomach. It felt like her brain wasn't working right. She experienced brief moments where she didn't know where she was or what was going on.

She couldn't even scream. It was pure torture.

Finally, her symptoms began to die down, leaving her panting heavily and still twitching lightly upon the ground. She became aware of the griffons' laughter. She fought against her stiff, non-responsive muscles and ignored the burning pain in her side and rolled over slowly to look at them. 

Her eyes rested on the weapon that had just been used on her. It looked like a cattle prod. It was long and thin, and was tipped by two small prongs. It was smoking slightly.

Celestia panted raggedly. She had been on the receiving end of the painful electrical spell used by unicorn policeponies to incapacitate criminals and, indeed, had once been hit with a cattle prod. She preferred not to remember why these things happened, but the effects they had caused were clear in her mind.

They came nowhere close to what she had just experienced. The closest thing she could imagine was when she had been hit with an incredibly powerful lightning bolt spell during her duel with Nightmare Moon. The electricity housed in that weapon was immensely powerful and incredibly painful.

Celestia was sure of one thing: she did not want to get zapped by it again.

The griffon holding the prod finally stopped laughing and looked down at her. "Hah… Nokkod, tujj uiv tom retod. Zokq'k vojjocd." 

"Zu," she heard all the others responding. Celestia was still twitching slightly and finding difficulty breathing. It felt like she had lost control of all of her muscles.

She felt the griffons approaching her and grabbing her again. Her first thought was to kick out and fight back, but instantly she thought of their weapon. She worked her fizzled brain as hard as she could, trying to think of other options, but all of her thoughts came back to the image of the frighteningly powerful electrical prod. She frowned and lay still, letting them do as they pleased.

The one griffon attached the shackles to her four hooves. They clamped tightly around them, causing her to wince in pain, and they made her hooves ache terribly. It was a series of four shackles, connected by a circuit of chain, so that all four of her hooves were chained to one another. The chains seemed quite loose, however, though the shackles did not.

Then, she felt someone behind her, tying rope around her torso. She felt claws groping and grabbing at her, rolling her slightly to get the rope all the way around her. They bound her wings to her body, keeping them clasped shut and unable to move. 

Celestia sluggishly turned her head around to look at the one tying her wings. She saw that it was Nikolaw. They griffon gave her a quick, furtive glance, and then returned his focus to tying the knot. 

She watched him closely as he did. She paid attention to the rope and the knot.

Suddenly, she felt talons roughly gripping her head. She was pulled back and down and was held in place. She looked around in confusion before she felt something being placed around her neck with a click. When her neck was released, she tried to glance down to see what they had just put on her. It was a metal collar with a chain leash attached. The chain was being held by one of the other griffons, who wore a smug look on his face.

"Zokq'k. J'koxod," he commanded, giving the chain a tug. 

Celestia winced as the collar dug into her neck. She slowly, begrudgingly, got to her hooves. The griffons stood and admired their handiwork, seeming satisfied. She was now a completely bound princess; her hooves were shackled, her wings were tied, and her horn was broken.

She hung her head low.

"Wik. Cujj idj woxod," the lead griffon spoke. There was another tug on her collar, and she began to walk with them as they led her out of her cell. The shackles did their job surprisingly well. They allowed her the freedom to walk at a moderate pace, but she couldn't lift her hooves high enough to do anything more; be it running or retaliating. She tested the strength of the chains holding her shackles together, finding them quite unbreakable. She also tested the bonds on her wings.

The griffons led her down the hallway of the cell block. Without even having to look at them, she could tell that they were all wearing smug, satisfied grins. She herself wore a sour frown as she walked.

While her head was down, however, her brain was hard at work, calculating. She carefully considered her options and was always on the lookout for some opportunity to escape. She stealthily observed the position of the procession of griffons surrounding her, all while keeping her head low. 

To her left were two griffon guards who were not particularly noteworthy. One was the one who had shackled her hooves, but nothing else stood out about him. To her right, however, she observed the griffon with the electrical prod walking. He had the weapon out and ready, and he looked like he was watching her like a hawk, ready to jam the device into her at the first sign of trouble. Walking behind this griffon was Nikolaw, his face stony and expressionless.

She was led down the hallway of the cell block and out the door at the other end. Thankfully, the Griffons moved at a pace suited for her shackled hooves. The door opened into another hallway that didn't stand out in any way. There was complete silence all around, save for the clinking of the chains that she wore.

With her head hanging down, she continued to keep a close eye on her escorts, looking for anything that she could use to her advantage. Though her vision was skewed and sometimes upside-down, she didn't let that deter her in the least. She kept her mind calm and clear, and remained ever vigilant. Her situation appeared grim, but she refused to give up.

They were approaching another doorway. Celestia stole a quick glance at it and saw that it led outside. She caught a quick, cropped view of the distant horizon, painted with the bright orange of the sunrise.

The troupe reached the doorway, and Celestia felt a gentle breeze across her face. The lead griffons stepped through and tugged on her leash, guiding her through rather forcefully. The griffon holding the electric prod stepped through as well, keeping close to her. Celestia continued to keep her head down and observe. The final one through the doorway was Nikolaw.

What happened next occurred in the blink of an eye. Nikolaw suddenly began to pitch forward, his talons flailing through the air. One of his hindpaws lagged behind, as if he had tripped over something. He let out a quick, but shrill, cry of surprise.

Nikolaw fell straight forward, directly into the hindquarters of the griffon standing in front of him. Nikolaw's weight pushed down on the griffon's rear-end, causing his hind legs to buckle easily. He gave a quick shout of "Gah!" and tried to keep his footing with his talons, but Nikolaw's full weight was dragging him to the ground.

Celestia didn't waste a single millisecond. The moment Nikolaw fell onto the other griffon, she immediately set her hooves firmly into the ground and gave a quick, powerful shove to her left. The griffons standing there felt the full brunt of her impact, easily being sent to the ground.

The griffon with the prod, in desperation, tried to swing it towards Celestia but, as he was falling, he ended up swinging at her legs instead of her body. Her earlier movements caused him to easily miss his mark.

Only three seconds into the mayhem and four griffons were on the ground. The lead one, holding her collar, had barely had enough time to register a reaction of surprise. Not a moment after she had shifted her torso back from shoving the two beside her, she set her sights on the one in front. She pushed forward and raised her front hooves up as far as they could go. 

The lead griffon tried to hold up his left talon in defence. This was exactly what Celestia wanted. She planted her hooves directly onto his arm, near his shoulder, and used the surprised griffon as a source of leverage. The chains dug into her painfully as she did so, but she ignored it.

As the lead griffon was forced to the ground under her weight, she pushed off of his arm and torso, bringing up her hind legs to do the same. Using him as a boost, she pushed herself up and into the air.

While she was momentarily airborne from this grand leap, she began to push outward hard with her wings. She grit her teeth and prayed that her suspicions were true. She pushed as hard as she could against the ropes that were binding her wings, coming to the apex of her jump. There was a momentary jolt of fear for a few milliseconds as her body began to descend.

Then, all at once, she felt the resistance of the rope give way. The bindings fell loose, allowing her glorious wings to spread out wide. She beat them quick and hard, faltering slightly in the air as she attempted to halt her descent and begin flying. After only a brief moment of flailing hooves, she found purchase in the air and began to rapidly ascend.

Eight seconds after Nikolaw had tripped and the griffons were now behind her on the ground as she took to the skies.

Celestia pushed herself as hard as she could, shooting up into the air. She could hear the confused and angry shouts of the griffons behind her, and knew that it wouldn't be long at all before they were off the ground and in pursuit. She pushed herself even harder, beating her wings furiously to propel herself upwards as fast as she could.

Panting, she quickly whipped her head about to take in her surroundings. She gasped lightly as she saw vast valleys spread out below her. She had just taken off from the top of a mountain, and there were many, many more mountains dotting the landscape all around her. The familiarity of the old Griffon Kingdoms began to become apparent for her, as she started to recognize the similar land forms. 

There was what seemed to be a large city to her left. It was spread out far along the bottom of the valley, but also encompassed three or four smaller mountains; buildings creeping up the sides and sitting perched on the top. She could even see a few cloud homes, though most of the structures seemed to be made of a dark metal. She could barely pick out a few isolated flying forms. Griffons, no doubt. There was heavy cloud cover beginning to set in over the town from the far side.

Celestia turned her head back and chanced a glance backwards. The building she had just escaped from was smaller than she had expected it to be, though it appeared to be well fortified against attack. She winced slightly as she saw that all six of the griffons were in the air pursuing her; even Nikolaw. Behind them, griffons on the walls surrounding the building had taken notice of her and were also taking to the skies.

Returning her gaze forward, she saw the rising sun. That way was east. She tried to remember the map Nikolaw had drawn her, recalling that the ponies were due south of her. Without wasting a moment, she angled herself so that the sun was to her left and took off towards the south. She frowned as she realized that she would be flying over part of the city.

She could hear the shouts of the griffons behind her now. She tried to pay them no mind, and not think about how close they might be. She just focused on pushing herself forward and out of harm's way. 

As the city approached, slightly off to her left, she gazed at it. She tried to veer herself away from it, hoping to avoid any further pursuers and trouble. She saw a few distant figures stop and hover as she passed by them, but no-one else seemed intent on catching her. At least, not yet.

The city passed by quickly on her left side. She was almost past it. However, she looked ahead and saw that she was quickly approaching something distinct. It was a large, open-air stadium of some sort. What set it apart from the rest of the city was that it appeared to be made out of stone. Celestia found herself marvelling at it as she approached. 

It looked almost exactly like a gladiator colosseum from the stone ages, and was also very reminiscent of Nikolaw's drawing.

With her wings still pumping fast, she was propelling herself past it quite quickly. She veered to the right so as not to fly directly over it. However, as she passed, she noticed that it seemed to be packed full to capacity. Every seat was filled with a griffon, many of whom were now looking up to the sky and pointing at her. 

At the far side of the colosseum was a raised area set aside from the rest. Occupying this large, extravagant seat, was none other than King Talimir. The large griffon was standing completely still, staring directly up at her. Celestia gulped.

Something whizzed past her right shoulder, cutting audibly through the air and making her cry out in surprise. What was that?! Were they firing weapons at her now?! Her first instinct was to call up a magical shield to protect herself. She was rewarded with another splitting headache. Shaking her head, she beat her wings even faster, leaving the colosseum behind and quickly gaining altitude.

She still refused to look back, focusing entirely on what lie before her. A few more whizzing sounds passed by her, missing their mark but amplifying her anxiety. She tried to swerve as she flew in an effort to make herself a more difficult target to hit. Truthfully, she was improvising at this point. She had always relied on her magic when it came to confrontations in the past. Having her horn broken was bringing her perilous new challenges.

Celestia continued to ascend, leaving the last few buildings of the city behind her. Before her were many more tall, rocky mountains dotting the landscape. Some were covered in sparse vegetation, but the land was mostly cold and barren. It almost looked like a forest of large, stone trees. The approaching storm that she had seen in the distance was now drawing closer and closer as she approached it.

When something flew right past her ear, making her wince and giving her a ringing sensation, she finally chanced a look behind her. She gasped as she saw that she was now being chased by at least 40 griffons. Some were dressed in heavy armour, some of which was metal, while others were wearing nothing at all and were carrying weapons. Only a few weapons appeared to be ranged, but all of these were currently pointed directly at her.

What really caused her to worry, however, was that the space between her and her pursuers had drastically shortened. They were gaining on her.

She tried to reach her hooves out into flight position to make herself more aerodynamic. Pain in her legs reminded her that she was still shackled at the hooves. Having her legs dangling below her like this was severely cutting her speed. If she couldn't think of something quick, the griffons were going to catch her.

As she returned her vision to the front and pushed wings even harder, she again saw the approaching cloud cover. She was almost upon it, and was nearly at the same altitude as it. Her eyes shot open and she gasped. After a quick gaze downwards, she grinned slightly and quickly shot off towards the clouds. 

More shots zipped past her and she grit her teeth. She couldn't tell if the shots were lethal or not, though they certainly seemed lethal. She didn't want to take the chance. Just barely, she could hear the sounds of the griffons' wings flapping behind her. They were still catching up to her. She put on a determined face and pushed herself further upwards. A shot grazed her right flank, causing unbelievably excruciating pain. She ignored it and continued to bolt towards the clouds.

Finally, with one more grand, powerful thrust of her wings, Celestia disappeared into the dark clouds, vanishing from view entirely. A short moment later, tens of griffons darted into the cloud, flying as fast as they could and giving chase through the heavy cloud cover.

But Celestia wasn't in the clouds any more. As soon as she had entered them, she had slammed on the breaks, angling her flapping wings back to slow herself to a complete stop as fast as she could. She waited at a slightly higher altitude than where she'd entered as the griffons all burst into the cloud and continued ahead. After they had all passed her, she immediately tucked in her wings and fell from the sky like a stone.

She had descended at an exceptionally fast rate to the ground below, where she had pulled out of her dive at the last possible moment, perfectly alighting herself on the surface. She now stood, panting and completely out of breath, in a thick forest below the dark clouds. 

Celestia's chest was on fire as her breaths came in heavy, ragged heaves. Rain was already beginning to fall around her, creating a melodious symphony of noise as the droplets cascaded off of the plant life. The sounds were soothing, as was the cool feel of the water, and they slowly allowed Celestia to calm her racing heart and re-catch her breath.

Looking up, she was barely able to pick out the dark shapes of the griffons as they flew in and around the clouds, desperately searching for her. Her daring manoeuvre seemed to have worked, as it appeared that none of them had any idea where she had disappeared to.

She only allowed herself the bare minimum of time to recuperate her lost energy. As soon as she felt she was able to, she began flying once again. She would have preferred to run, but the shackles around her legs would only allow her to either fly or walk at a very slow pace, so she settled to a low altitude flight only a few feet above the ground.

Again using the sun's position, she directed herself to the south and took off through the forest, a determined look in her eyes.



***



Celestia was completely winded. Every breath she took was a sharp pain in her chest. Her wings felt like they were going to fall off. Her tongue hung out of her mouth as she panted heavily. Yet still, she pushed forward.

The weary princess had been flying for hours. When she had escaped, the sun had just barely been peeking over the horizon. Now, as she flew, the sun had disappeared from view long ago. The last hour of twilight was upon her. It wouldn't be long at all before it was dark.

Her journey had been harrowing but, thankfully, fairly uneventful. She'd kept to forested areas as much as possible, artfully weaving between trees and trying to keep out of sight. There had been a few frightening times where she'd had to cross somewhere more open but, thankfully, there was usually no-one around.

She had passed through many various locations; flat lands, mountainous lands, places dotted with rivers and streams, a very hilly area, and still more of those tall, thin mountains that filled the Griffon Kingdoms. She paid no attention to the scenery whatsoever. She could have passed by the most beautiful waterfall in all the world and she wouldn't have cared. She just needed to get to her destination.

She had, however, been spotted a few times. Thankfully, no military or police personnel had noticed her, but a few isolated citizens had caught a glimpse of her. She had never stuck around long enough for them to do anything, but she always knew in the back of her mind that any one of them could have reported her location, and most likely had.

She had run out of energy long ago, but still she beat her wings, propelling her towards her destination. She wanted so desperately to land and gallop instead, but the accursed chains around her ankles saw to it that she couldn't. Instead, she was forced to push her wings way past their limit. She watched the sky and kept track of the sun, trying as hard as she could to stay true to her mental compass and continue to the south.

Finally, after a long, exhausting day of travelling, she came upon something. She had just exited a thick forest and now found herself at the top of a small hill. As she broke through the layer of trees and into the open, her attention was immediately drawn to many bright searchlights. She gasped in sudden panic and quickly scrambled for cover behind a rock. Catching her breath, she waited. None of them seemed to have been pointing in her direction and no alarms were ringing. Perhaps they hadn't seen her.

Carefully peering over the top of the rock, she gazed at what lay before her. What first caught her attention, besides the searchlights, was the large, imposing concrete wall. It was very tall, possibly 20 feet high. It was a thick, featureless slab of concrete that spread out in both directions. If she were on the ground or anywhere near it, she wouldn't be able to see a thing except the wall.

However, as she currently sat atop the small hill, she was able to see slightly over the top. She gasped at what she saw beyond it.

"Ponies…" she whispered.

There was a collection of houses on the other side, as well as streets, buildings and other forms of civilization. And, walking the streets and lit up by the lights that lined them, there were ponies. Earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns, she caught a glimpse of some of each. This was it. It had to be. She had made it to the pony reserve.

Her elation was quickly curbed as she also took notice of what appeared to be guard towers spaced along the wall. Griffons were patrolling the walkways surrounding them, and also operating the searchlights. The city was heavily guarded, and entry seemed extremely difficult, if not impossible.

Celestia gulped and carefully manoeuvred herself backwards into the forest. She kept herself at a distance that was behind the cover of the trees, yet allowed her to see the city walls.

She took a deep breath to calm herself, and then beat her wings and lifted herself a few feet off the ground once again. She began to move along the tree line, following the city wall and looking for anything that could be of use to her. A weak spot, perhaps. Though she was exhausted and weary, her priorities were set in stone, fuelling her determination. 

She needed to get inside that city.

Fear was inconsequential to her now. She deftly flew through the trees, avoiding the gaze of the searchlights and keeping her eyes on the large, imposing wall. She was incredibly focused and determined, concentrating all of her energy into accomplishing this one, important task.

The area was notably quiet. She didn't hear any voices and hardly any sounds. There was no hum of machinery or the quiet noises of advanced technology. None of the ambient sounds that she had heard during her previous visits to Canterlot Castle through the ages. It was a chilling sensation.

Finally, she found what she was looking for. She landed on the ground, standing with only a single tree between her and the wall. She carefully peered around it and gazed at the section that stood before her. She had singled this section out because there was a slightly larger gap between these two particular searchlights than all the others. It wasn't very much bigger, but she could tell all the same. 

She watched carefully as the searchlights moved back and forth. She sat still for quite a number of minutes, simply carefully observing the path that the searchlights followed. She also, however, spent this time trying to catch her breath and remain standing. Once again, her energy was completely depleted. She was utterly exhausted and felt like collapsing.

She put this out of her mind however. After some time watching the lights, she was able to discern that they followed a rigid, set path. They were clearly not controlled by a living being, and were instead automated. She could use this to her advantage. 

But, she did not leap into action just yet. She remained standing still for even more time, carefully observing the challenge that lay before her. She watched, studied, and planned. Twilight was waning and Celestia's energy was further depleting, but still she sat and watched.

Then, quick as a bolt of lightning, she was in the air. Her wings spread, she glided through the dark airspace, swift as a falcon. The searchlights slowly swivelled, turning away from her at exactly the same time, just as she'd expected. By the time she was near to the wall, the area surrounding herself was completely dark and virtually unseen.

She had less than a second. With one mighty flap of her wings, she propelled herself higher, just barely surpassing the wall's altitude. Reaching out with her front hooves as she drew closer and closer, she focused her mind entirely on her acrobatic stunt. She didn't even think about getting caught.

Her hooves caught the top of the wall. She pushed herself forward, propelling herself up and over the wall with barely a hair's length to spare between it and her underside.

Her torso and hind legs cleared the wall without catching on anything, and thus she was in. She was now sailing into the relative darkness of the city's streets. She spread her wings and attempted to right herself, planning to make a smooth, quiet landing.

Her wing muscles seized up. She winced in pain and momentarily shut her eyes involuntarily, cutting off her vision. When she opened them, she was much too close to the ground. She tried to exert her wings as much as she could, but the energy simply wasn't there. It had taken everything out of her to merely sail over the wall. Celestia gave a short, silent gasp and closed her eyes again, bracing for impact.

Celestia tumbled to the hard, stone ground, rolling numerous times and coming to a stop in a painful heap. She moaned lightly and gritted her teeth, trying to withstand the pain and remain quiet. It hurt. It hurt everywhere.

She waited, deathly still. Moments passed by. No sirens rang, nobody was shouting, nothing was attacking or subduing her. All she could hear was silence. Through all the pain, she managed a small smile. She'd made it inside safely.

She tried to make herself stand up, but she just couldn't do it. All she could do was lie in a painful heap, groaning softly. She couldn't move a single muscle. Every part of her body just hurt so much. She had been through so much and had pushed herself far past her limits. It felt like her body was about to simply give out on her.

"Shu…Shuche?"

Celestia's eyes shot open in a panic. Griffon language! Had she been found? Were they closing in around her. She wanted to look up, but found she couldn't move a muscle.

"J'shuiod jao! Bemm shoh!"

"Nuj ajk tuj?"

"Shhh! Hishaw joad."

These voices didn't sound angry. In fact, they sounded somehow different than what she'd heard previously. She groaned and struggled to move. With teeth gritted, she slowly lifted her head and tried to roll herself onto her stomach.

"Shoo...Lehjashkaw..."

As she did so, she felt someone bracing themselves against her opposite side, pushing her and trying to help her up. She felt appendages helping her roll over, and gripping at her, trying to help steady her.

They felt like…hooves…

Once she was comfortably upright and on her stomach, she blearily opened her eyes. There they were. Ponies. A moderate-sized group had gathered around her, composed of earth ponies, pegasi, and a few unicorns. They were all staring up at her in complete awe and reverence.

"Ce…Celestia…?" a dark, navy blue pegasus muttered softly, taking a step towards her.

Celestia couldn't help but smile. "My…My little ponies…" she breathed, finding it difficult even to speak.

"Oj ajuk Celestia! Oj ajuk nahb'cash Celestia!" the navy pony said in an excited but reserved voice, smiling brightly.

"Celestia?!"

"Ti rajk oj nahb'cash!"

"Jao ajk ud idj kihïsb'kiworod!"

"Idjoho Fhadkojjad led toh Jeddo!"

The ponies all gathered in close to her, wonderful, excited smiles on their faces. They hugged her, they nuzzled her, they spoke heartfelt words to her in a language she could not understand. They were all so unbelievably happy to see her.

Despite all the pain and exhaustion she felt, Celestia had a huge smile on her own face and a wonderful feeling in her heart. She tried her best to nuzzle the ponies back. She wanted to show them just how wonderful it felt to make them so happy.

"Ash xehd!"

"Esh doad…Ash xehd!"

The ponies were focusing around her horn, some of them gently reaching out to touch it. Their smiles had been replaced by frowns as they saw the damage that had been done to their beloved princess.

"Ah…" Celestia spoke through heavy breath, "It's…It's okay, my ponies…" Then, she was hugged again. All of the ponies gathered around her and gave her a warm group hug. She melted into the loving embrace, another huge smile coming to her.

"Jao ajk ebu…"

"Ash rad je vhesh, tujj jao um corod ajk…"

A few tears were falling. Celestia wasn't sure if they belonged to the ponies around her or if they were her own. A few more ponies saw the spectacle and gathered around, offering their own joyous smiles. They remained quiet so as not to alert any of the griffon guards, but their incredible happiness was not hard to see. Soon, Celestia was surrounded by ponies she didn't know, but they were ponies that loved her nonetheless.

"My…little ponies…" Celestia breathed. Everywhere she looked, she saw happy ponies welcoming their beloved princess. The city was dark and gloomy, and the ponies were dishevelled and actually fairly dirty, but they were there, and they all loved her.

And she was safe.

Celestia closed her eyes and drifted out of consciousness.



***



Celestia was so exhausted that she didn't even dream. It was more like she had passed out than fallen asleep. Time flew by in a moment for her, as the next thing she knew, she was groggily waking up.

Wincing, she slowly opened her eyes. Though she felt leagues better after her deep, restful sleep, she still felt very weak and malnourished. Yawning and slowly lifting her head, she gazed at her surroundings.

She was in a fairly dark room with no windows and a single door. The only source of illumination was a single, fire-lit lantern. The walls appeared to be made of many different kinds and colors of cheap, flimsy-looking metal. It had a patchwork-like appearance, as if cobbled together with whatever materials were available. The roof, in particular, looked like it would be useless at keeping out the rain.

Looking down at herself, she noticed that she was wrapped in a few bandages, mostly on her right side. That was where she had taken the brunt of the impact when she had fallen upon entering the city. Now, she seemed to have been patched up and treated with care. The shackles around her hooves were gone too, as well as the chain collar.

She was laying on a fairly simple mattress resting on a metal bed frame. The nicest thing about this room were the covers she found herself under. They were warm, cozy, and looked particularly clean. 

Glancing to her left, Celestia found the only other piece of furniture in the room. Her eyes lit up and she smiled. It was a wooden table and placed upon it was a bowl full of apples. Her heart leapt at the sight of food. Wonderful, glorious food! In no time at all, Celestia was out of the bed and sitting next to the table, happily munching away.

She didn't stop until she had eaten a little more than half of the bowl's contents. Truth be told, they were the worst apples she had eaten in her entire life. They were incredibly bland and dry, and tasted quite awful. However, they were still food, which was exactly what she needed right now.

After she had eaten her fill, she sat upon the ground and gazed at the room around her. There was no-one else in the room; she was alone. It was quiet all around. She couldn't hear any voices or anything beyond the occasional ambient noise. It was a truly plain room. The most notable thing about it was the shoddy-looking construction of the walls.

As she turned her head to the left, her eyes fell upon the bowl once again. It was made of some sort of metal and was, thus, very reflective. Curious, she leaned her head down and gazed into it, seeing her own reflection. Her eyes widened as she noticed that her broken horn was now encased in bandages.

Celestia let out a long, deep breath and took a moment to take stock of what was going on. She was safe and her injuries had been treated. She didn't appear to be locked up or restrained, so clearly she was no longer in the claws of the griffons. The hopeful, and most likely, conclusion was that she was in the care of the ponies. 

She had also been awake for a long time now. She had slept many times of course, but she had spent a while being awake, without succumbing to her unusual sleeping spells. She knew that this could mean any number of things. Either the next one was coming up very soon or, perhaps, they had stopped.

Her heart leapt at the latter thought, and she had to remind herself not to get too excited prematurely.

Celestia remained sitting in the empty room for a short while, simply being alone with her thoughts and being thankful to be out of the reach of the griffons. Eventually, the door clicked open and a young, female pony peeked her head in.

It was a gray unicorn with a long, unkempt dark gray mane. It almost looked like she'd had all of the colour drained from her. The most striking feature about her was her eyes, which sparkled brilliantly like two sapphires. She saw Celestia sitting upright on the ground and gave a small gasp.

"Ah, Fhadkojjad! Ti raj'k nush!" she exclaimed with a smile. She then lowered herself into a graceful bow.

Celestia also smiled warmly upon seeing the pony. "Ah…Hello!" she said. She then remembered something and added, "Um…Xucce!"

The pony cantered into the room. She was wearing large saddlebags that seemed to be packed full to capacity. Celestia also took notice of her cutie mark; it was a hoof planted firmly upon the ground.

"Ash shevvo, jao jadt ad ehtdid'oo," she said as she trotted over towards her, a kind, caring smile on her face. Celestia paid particular attention to how she was speaking. She hadn't been able to place her hoof on it before, but now she understood what she was hearing. This pony was speaking the Griffic language, but was speaking it with an accent. She was surprised, and even slightly dismayed, to see that the ponies all seemed to speak the language of the griffons. She recalled that Talimir had identified himself as possibly being the last speaker of the 'old language'.

The pony was currently gazing up at her, not moving or speaking. It looked as if she were waiting for a response. "Um…What?" Celestia faltered.

The pony frowned. "Doad...jufhoshod...Grif?" she asked while shaking her head.

Celestia frowned. The only words she knew were the few that Nikolaw had taught her, such as Xucce she had used just previously.

The pony then nodded. She lit up her horn with a white, magical aura and undid the flaps on her saddlebags. From inside of one, she took out a huge book that took up the saddlebag's entire capacity. Celestia gazed at it, intrigued. There was no writing on the cover, but there was a simple illustration of a pony on the front, standing before an image of the sun.

Placing it on the ground, the gray pony began to quickly flip through the pages with her magic. She was turning them so quickly that Celestia couldn't see what was written on them. She sat and waited patiently for a few moments before the pony nodded, turned to her, and spoke, "You…hurt?"

Celestia gasped. Equestrian! The pony had just spoken Equestrian to her! It took her a moment to get over her surprise before she realized that she had been asked a question. "Ah! Um…No," she said while shaking her head, "No hurt. Just tired."

The unicorn quickly flipped to somewhere around three quarters through the book. After searching through a few pages, she grinned and looked up to the princess, nodding.

"You speak…Equestrian?" Celestia asked dubiously. 

The unicorn frowned. "Ah…No. No…No speak." Fumbling for the rest of her words, she merely pointed to the book in front of her. 

Celestia tilted her head and gazed at the contents of the book. On each page there were two columns of words. The writing on the right column was completely indecipherable to her, but on the left column, she found an alphabetical list of Equestrian words. The mare was using a translation book.

"Oh wow…" Celestia gazed at the binding of the book. It looked not only incredibly old and dusty, but unused and untouched. The mare was once again rapidly flipping through the pages of the book, stopping at multiple letters of the alphabet and looking up many words.

It took her a few minutes simply to say. "You…need water? Food? Things?"

A huge frown found its way to her face. The Equestrian language was dying. Worse than that; it seemed to be dead already.

What did that say about the rest of the Equestrian culture?

Celestia returned her gaze to the gray pony, who was looking up at her expectantly. "What is your name?" she asked in a quiet voice.

The mare momentarily wore a visage of confusion before she returned to the book, flipping towards the "N" section.

"Ah, wait, wait, wait…" Celestia said, holding out her hoof. The mare stopped flipping and looked up at her. "I am Celestia," she said, pointing a hoof to herself. She then pointed the hoof at the mare. "You?"

The unicorn perked up. "Oh! Moad dumo ajk Whudt-Vïxoh"

Celestia paused. "Wuhd…Veeshoh?"

She nodded.

Celestia almost felt like holding onto her head to keep it from spinning away. Even the ponies' names around here sounded foreign. Everything was so strange and different, it was making her head hurt. 

Vïxoh tilted her head in concern. "You okay?"

The princess sighed, a heavy, somewhat painful feeling spreading through her. She nodded and said, "I'm fine. No water, no food. I'm okay."

The mare smiled brightly. "Wik!" she proclaimed. 

Celestia found herself gazing downward, not feeling the drive to continue holding her head up high. She stared at the bandages on her leg, rubbing at them with her other hoof. The area was still a little tender.

"Ah!" the mare perked up, "Nah shukkod oadod uhkuk roshud'tocud asho lohcokwidwod- Umm…" Flip, flip, flip. "Doctor! We doctor-" Flip, flip. "-care you!"

Celestia turned back to Vïxoh. She nodded and tried to offer a smile. "Thank you," she said, hoping the mare knew what those words meant. Then, a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Oh!" she exclaimed. She leaned her head down towards the other mare and raised a hoof. She pointed it at her broken, bandaged horn while wearing a worried, enquiring face.

"Ah, zu!" she replied, "Nah bïmmohkod toad xehd ki…" Instead of flipping through the book some more, she instead used her magic to retrieve something from the other compartment of her saddlebags. From it, she levitated out a collection of papers and directed them towards Celestia, who took them in her hooves.

The very top page was a drawn diagram of a horn. There was a thick line drawn exactly halfway down the shaft. And, drawn in red colour, was a precise, yet jagged line drawn through the horn. It was just above the halfway line, almost touching it at some points.

"Ash xehd rhush ad oadoh wikuhkawod noajo," Vïxoh spoke, "Is okay."

Finally, Celestia smiled. If she was understanding this correctly, then this was a diagram of where her horn had been broken off. The depiction indicated that less than half had been removed, although it was very close. She sighed heavily, intense relief pouring over her.

Her horn would eventually grow back.

She smiled gratefully at Vïxoh, who smiled back at her. "Okay?" the mare asked her, and Celestia nodded.

"Yes, I'm okay. Thank heavens…" she uttered gratefully.

Vïxoh flipped through the book some more. "Um…Other…ponies…Uh, want...want see you."

Celestia's visage brightened even more. "Ah! The ponies wish to see me. Of course!" she said, smiling and nodding pleasantly.

"Shohhcashod!" Vïxoh said, nodding. The used her magic to put the book back into her saddlebags. Then, she turned towards the door and began to trot towards it. Celestia stood up at once and followed her.

Vïxoh stopped when she noticed that the princess was behind her. "Oh!" she said, surprised, "Ash nohto jao shaohshoh ki rhadwod..."

Celestia shook her head. "I wish to accompany you," she said, putting on just a touch of authority. "Um," she then faltered, "Me…go. You." She accentuated this statement with gestures of her hoof. Truthfully, she felt incredibly silly speaking like a cave-pony, but it was really the best way to make sure her ideas were conveyed to these ponies.

The pony in front of her looked confused, or possibly concerned. "Oh…" she said, giving the princess an enquiring gaze. "Jadt jao jashoh? Is okay?"

Celestia nodded. "Of course."

"Okay…" Vïxoh muttered uncertainly before continuing to head towards the door. Celestia followed suit.

The two stepped through the doorway and out into the open. It was daytime now, but the sky was overcast, so the sun's rays couldn't break through. It wasn't raining, but the air was not very cold either. It was pleasant, but gloomy weather.

And 'gloomy' was definitely the operative word of choice here. Celestia gazed at the town around her in awe. There were tons of small buildings everywhere around her. A few were made of bricks, but most of them were made of the same patchwork of metal that had composed the walls of where she'd awoken. Everywhere she looked she saw houses that almost looked like metallic houses of cards. At an initial glance, the roofs didn't even seem to be attached; they merely looked like sheets of folded metal laying atop the walls.

And there were so many houses. As far as she could see in every direction was just more and more houses. There was not a sign of greenery anywhere. Houses were sandwiched in close together, stacked atop one another, built haphazardly onto small hills and valleys. It was utter, overcrowded mayhem everywhere she looked. Wires were chaotically strung wherever was convenient, flimsy-looking wooden supports held up certain structures, doors and windows almost looked like afterthoughts.

As they walked along the narrow street and towards a slightly more open street, Celestia could only think of one thing, which she silently whispered. "This is horrible…"

The two rounded the corner, and Celestia was met with a wondrous sight.

"Celestia!"

"Oj ajuk Celestia!"

"Jao ajuk nush!"

A moderately-sized group of ponies came running up to her with huge smiles on their faces. It wasn't long at all before Celestia too had a beaming smile. She nearly broke down and cried as the ponies galloped to her and began hugging her tightly. A few joyful tears broke loose as she tightly embraced each and every one.

They were dirty and clearly malnourished. They all had dark rings under their eyes and other clear signs of stress. They all seemed to be dark or dull colours. But they were all smiling so brightly, and they were all so happy to see her.

It truly made Celestia feel absolutely wonderful.

"I love you, my ponies…I love you all…"

More and more ponies heard the joyous cheers and rushed to join. Here, away from the watchful eyes of the city walls, a countless number of overjoyed ponies came to hug their princess and cry happy tears. Their princess was back, and she couldn't have been happier.

She was home. She was miles from Canterlot, and thousands upon thousands of years from where she was not long ago, but she was home once again. The world outside was cold and desolate, and it was controlled by creatures that had somehow lost their way and forgotten the meaning of friendship and love.

And yet, Celestia was so relieved just to be here, to be safe, and to be amongst the ponies. She was there for hours, doing nothing more than hugging ponies whom she couldn't understand. The simple act of her being there brought such wonder and hope to the ponies' eyes that she couldn't bring herself to leave the spot or do anything else. In a way, it was plain to see that these ponies needed her then. She could see it in their eyes.

The world around her was dead but, quite possibly, she had never been happier.



***



Everything was swirling like fluffy clouds on a gentle breeze. Celestia felt weightless and relaxed as she floated through the expanse. Everything was so calming and clear. Clouds, sky, grassy fields. It was so simple; without any sign of worry.

She felt unfocused and hazy, and her body was relaxed and free of tension. She didn't know where she was but, oddly, she didn't really care. Was this a dream? She couldn't remember anything past collapsing, exhausted, onto her bed.

"…ia?"

She landed, lounged pleasantly on her side, on the grass. Light, fluffy clouds filled the sky and stretched far and wide. The world was swirly and unfocused, but it was ever so relaxing. The evening sky hovered above, but the light of day prevailed throughout.

"…tia…?"

She could hear something. She perked up her ears and swivelled them, trying to hear the faint sounds. 

"Celestia…!"

It was a voice. It was definitely a voice, and it was calling out to her. Celestia rolled into a sitting position and tilted her gaze skyward.

It was the moon. The moon was talking to her. She blinked her eyes hazily.

"Celestia…Are you safe?"

Celestia hadn't really realized it until now, but her head felt heavy and her thoughts were coming to her sluggishly. "L…" she murmured, "Luna…?"

"Celestia!" The moon was shifting and moving in strange ways. "Are you somewhere safe?"

She didn't answer right away.

"Tia! Tell me!" the moon exclaimed, seeming to fade and grow, "Tell me where you are!"

"I…" Celestia muttered, "I'm in the…pony reserve."

The moon faded from existence. A hazy image fluttered before her vision, causing her to blink and try to clear her head. For a moment, everything was swirly and confusing, making Celestia's head spin, but a moment later, the mayhem congealed together before her.

Luna landed wordlessly and leaned forward to embrace her tightly. "Thank heavens…"

Celestia didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to respond, or even if she could, so she did the only thing she could think of. She hugged her sister back as tightly as she could, closing her eyes and remaining silent in the moment.

Time passed while the two alicorn sisters simply embraced one another, feeling the beat of each others' hearts and listening to the slow droning of their breaths. Simple things like this were what Celestia noticed, what she cherished, but what also confused her.

They began to move away from the hug. "Luna…" Celestia began, "Are…Are you-"

She was cut off when Luna gasped loudly in shock. "Oh my goodness, Tia!" she exclaimed, "Your horn!"

Celestia found herself glancing upwards, even though she could no longer see the tip of her horn protruding from above. "Oh, right…" she murmured.

"Oh, heavens, Tia…I-" Luna fretted, "Are you okay? Does it hurt? What happened?"

Celestia was still feeling murky in her mind. She found it difficult to respond. "I'm…I'm okay…"

"Ohh…" Luna bemoaned, remorse heavy in her voice, "I…I'm so sorry." She reached forward and hugged Celestia again, this time cradling her head softly like an infant's.

Celestia's vision was slipping. "Luh…" she breathed, "Luna…?"

"But you're safe, right?" Luna asked concernedly.

"Yes…"

"You're out of reach from the griffons?"

Darkness briefly overcame Celestia's vision. "Y-Yes…"

Luna held her tight. "Thank the heavens you're safe, Tia. Stay safe, please."

"Luna…What…What is…"

"I love you, Tia."

More darkness overcame her. "L…Luna?" Everything began to fade away. "Luna…?!" Her vision swirled and crumbled until there was nothing left.



***



"Luna!!"

Celestia shot straight upwards, panting and looking around wildly. Once her panicked mind caught up to her, she realized that it was incredibly dark. There was no Luna to be seen but, through the darkness, she could make out metal walls. She became aware that she was sitting on something relatively soft. Looking downwards, she saw the blankets to the bed she had fallen asleep on.

She was awake now. She was no longer dreaming.

"…Luna…"

Thoughts and memories of the dream she had just had filled her mind. She was hit with many powerful emotions, almost making it difficult to breathe. She simply stared forward, panting, and tried to hold on to the memory. She tried as hard as she could to hold onto the image.

"L…Luna…"

She was shivering. Tears were falling. Her emotional state was shattered. Sniffling, she got up off the bed. It was cold in this desolate place in the middle of the night, and her shivering increased twofold, but she didn't care. She began to walk towards the door.

As she crossed the fairly empty room and approached the door, something began to happen to her. As she walked, she began to sway. Her body felt heavy and her head started to droop. It became a struggle to keep her eyes open.

Something was definitely happening to her. Something hauntingly familiar.

She pushed herself towards the door, nearly collapsing into it. Once she had pushed it open, she hauled herself out into the crisp, cool air of the night. Her vision blacked out momentarily, but she regained her balance and willed herself to gaze upwards. She was met with the beautiful sight of the moon

"Luna…" she whispered, "Sister…I…"

Her legs were losing strength. The cold air was chilling her to the bone.

"Was…that really you? Or am I just a hopeless dreamer?"

Her body was beginning to shut down on her. She closed her eyes and sighed. These ponies had only just got her back after so many years, and now she would be leaving them again. 

"Where are you…?"

Celestia collapsed onto the cold, hard ground. She didn't even try to hold on to consciousness; she knew it was futile. In mere moments, she was gone.
> Phase 9
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 9

"Luna…"

…

"…Where are you?"

…

"Wh…What's going to happen?"

…

"What's going to happen to the ponies?"

…

"What…What will I find on the other side…?"

…

"Will there even be anything left?"

…

"……I miss you…"



***



Celestia's eyes gently fluttered open. She felt a familiar groggy sensation, and her vision was blurred. She blinked her eyes and tried to kick-start her sluggish mind. She moaned lightly.

Something was beeping. She winced and shut her eyes again. The beeping sound was incredibly annoying because of its fairly high pitch, but it was also helping her wake up. When she opened her eyes again, her vision was coming in more clearly.

She saw silver. That was it; plain and simple. Her field of vision was filled with silver. Looking more closely, she slowly was able to pick out corners and edges, and saw where the floor, roof and walls were. It was a room that was completely silver and featureless. There was not a single thing in this room that she could see except for silver.

She blinked in confusion. Something looked off. Something felt off too. As she tilted her head slightly, trying to gain a sense of perspective, she realized what it was. She wasn't laying down. She was looking at this room from an upright, vertical position. She tried to tilt her head down, but was met with a painfully familiar clink as her horn connected with something. Another translucent barrier, no doubt.

She still felt very groggy and woozy, and so was not prepared at all when there was another loud beep, followed by a whoosh sound. One moment, the barrier was there, and in the next moment it was open.

She was greeted with fresh-smelling air. She was also greeted with gravity. Before she could even realize what had happened, she began to pitch forward. She was only able to flail her front hooves around and cry out in surprise before she connected painfully with the ground below.

Celestia let out a long, low moan of pain. That loud beeping was still going off, and so many parts of her body were in pain. Worst of all was her muzzle, which was throbbing horribly. She moaned again and tried to move her stiff muscles. Everything hurt, and she just wanted to lie there.

Begrudgingly, she tried to stand up. She groaned as she poured what little strength she had into her left hoof, raising it up and planting it on the silver, metal floor.

Thunk!

Then, she raised up her right hoof and planted it on the metal floor as well.

Claang!

Celestia froze. Her eyes shot open wide. Whatever train of thought had been running through her head came to a screeching halt. Slowly, she shifted herself up into a sitting position, keeping her gaze affixed firmly ahead. Once she was sitting upright, she slowly turned her head downwards and brought her right hoof up into her field of vision.

What she saw was not her right hoof. Instead, she saw a shiny metallic appendage in the shape of her right hoof. It was connected at her knee, creating a stark difference between her off-white fur and the very reflective metal.

She stared. She blinked. She remained completely silent for a few seconds.

Then, she screamed. She cried out in shrill, horrified terror, staring wide-eyed at the metal appendage. Her heart beat rapidly, she found it difficult to breathe, and she began to tremble. And she continued to scream.

She scrambled with her other hooves, backing away along the metal floor. However, the metallic hoof simply followed her. She couldn't get away from it. Celestia couldn't handle this. She couldn't process this. She held the hoof as far away from her as she possibly could and simply began to cry.

She had no idea how long she'd remained like that, sitting and weeping with her trembling hoof outstretched. Eventually, there was yet another different beeping sound, followed by a strange shimmering sound. Celestia turned her head and noticed that an opening had appeared where there had been smooth, solid wall before. Two ponies stepped through, gazing at her in concern.

In her fragile state of mind, she could only look at them in shock. Her eyes widened even further as she stared, jaw agape. These ponies were wearing full jumpsuits that were coloured a slightly darker shade of silver than the walls. It covered every part of their body except for their head, almost seeming like a second skin. Their tails couldn't be seen; they were concealed inside of the suit and reduced to a silvery nub on their rear ends.

On their heads they both wore a device that connected to the right side of their forehead. It was extremely small and discrete, and almost looked like a piercing. It projected a coloured transparent square field before the ponies' right eyes. One had a red square, and one had a blue one. 

What confused and somehow frightened Celestia was that there were no markings on these suits. The ponies were pure silver except for their heads. Her metal hoof was still very fresh in her mind, and so seeing these ponies made her think of only one thing. They looked like metal ponies.

Celestia panicked. She tried to back up further, only finding a wall behind her. Her chest was rising and falling rapidly as she heaved and gasped, trying and struggling to draw in fresh air. The ponies followed after her, looking down with what appeared to be genuine concern.

The one with a blue field before his eye opened his mouth to speak. What came out, in all honesty, sounded like complete gibberish. Celestia stared at him in confusion. It almost sounded like she was listening to a corrupted magical recording of his voice. She couldn't even process it in her brain. It didn't sound like a language at all.

She was still breathing heavily and was still panicking, unable to think straight. The other pony, who appeared to be a female unicorn, stepped forward gingerly. She lit up her horn with magic and retrieved something from somewhere on her body. It was some sort of round device that had two points coming out of it. She said something in her strange tongue, something short and calming, and began to approach Celestia with the device.

She winced and held up both of her hooves, even the metal one, to try to ward off the advancing pony.

The unicorn paused and tried to gaze at her compassionately. She held up one of her hooves and moved it gently through the air, trying to tell the panicking princess to 'Calm down.'

Celestia's chest still rose and fell with her heavy breathing, and sweat and tears were flowing from her face. Everything about her was a mess, especially inside of her head. Now, this pony wanted her to calm down? She was about to lose her mind!

The unicorn took another step forward, holding the device towards her. Celestia, likewise, inched her head back in fear. Both ponies paused. Then, the unicorn used her magic to bring the device back to her and up to the side of her head. She fiddled with it for a moment before she managed to attach it just below her left ear. She held her hoof up to it to emphasize that it didn't hurt.

Celestia gazed at her, still skeptical, but feeling a little more calm.

The unicorn effortlessly removed the device from her own head and again began to bring it towards Celestia's. Backed into a corner with absolutely nowhere else to go, the alicorn simply shut her eyes, grit her teeth, and prepared herself for the worst.

She felt the device attach to her head. It felt like nothing. I was almost like a small bandage, though a little heavier and more rigid. It caused no ill effects, internally or externally, and didn't seem to do anything at all.

She let out the breath she'd been holding in and opened her eyes, panting heavily. She was still trembling profusely and gazing timidly at the other ponies like a frightened foal. The unicorn was still gazing down at her in concern.

"Can you hear me?" she spoke.

Celestia gasped. Had she just heard that right? Equestrian? Had this pony just spoken…Equestrian?

"Your Highness?" the pony continued, "Are you all right?"

"I…" Celestia squeaked, her voice catching in her throat, "Y-yes…"

"Are you hurt? You seem panicked."

Celestia shifted her position, intending to rise herself into a sitting position. When her right hoof connected with the floor, it made another loud metal-on-metal sound and she was suddenly reminded of why she had become so panicked in the first place. She screamed again and held her metal hoof away from her, shivering and staring at it.

"Ah!" the unicorn mare piped up, seeing the problem, "Princess-"

"Wh-What is this thing?!" Celestia screamed, her voice reaching a fevered pitch that was not often heard.

"Princess, wait! Please! Calm down"

Celestia gave a few sputtering, crying gasps.

"Princess, it's okay!"

She gazed up at the unicorn mare, her eyes full of tears.

"It's okay! Really! It's just…an artificial hoof."

Celestia stared at her. She had heard her words and understood them, yet she was only filled with questions and still more pure fear. "Wh- Wh-" She heaved heavy breaths as she tried to talk, "Why…is this…thing on me…?"

The mare glanced away awkwardly. "Well," she said slowly, "a lot of things happened while you were asleep."

"Unfortunately, during your slumber," the male pony interjected, causing Celestia to gasp and remember that he was still there, "there was an accident. You lost one of your hooves."

Celestia's blood ran cold. She felt her heart skip a beat. "My…my…" She began shivering even more, her eyes trailing down to the metal object attached to her foreleg.

"So," the male continued, "we grafted this artificial hoof onto you."

Celestia couldn't breathe. She nearly began to hyperventilate as she stared at the foreign object that was now somehow attached to her. The terrifying idea that she was now missing one of her limbs assaulted her mind, leaving her with gruesome images of how she might have lost it.

"But Princess! Don't worry! It's okay!" the mare said reassuringly, taking a step forward. Celestia still jerked away from her involuntarily, so the mare paused. "It's completely safe, and it's actually kind of neat. See? I have one too."

Celestia watched as the mare lit up her horn and grasped a part of her outfit that was near her right flank. After a moment of fiddling, some invisible seam came loose and the garment fell to the floor, revealing not only her right hind leg, but also her cutie mark. Celestia gazed at the smiling flowers on her flank for a moment before looking at the mare's leg.

It looked completely normal. Nothing about it seemed unusual. It was a standard rear pony leg with light blue fur. The mare smiled knowingly at Celestia's confusion and lifted her leg off the ground. When she brought it back down rather forcibly, it made a very familiar clanging sound.

Her leg was definitely made of metal.

The mare chuckled. "It looks real, doesn't it? They can put camouflaging designs on it to make it look like you don't have an artificial leg at all."

Celestia stared for a few more moments before she returned her gaze to her own hoof. Upon seeing the metal limb, a powerful shiver ran through her body. However, she tried to remain calm and slowly tried to move her hoof around. She was pleasantly surprised to see that it responded to her movements rather well. It bent and flexed at the joint quite fluidly, and she couldn't feel any loss of movement whatsoever.

She placed it on the floor again, and her intrigued face fell into a grimace. No matter how real it seemed, she still couldn't feel anything with it. The sensation was incredibly unnerving.

"You see?" the mare said, "It's okay."

Celestia slowly turned her gaze upwards and looked at the two ponies. "I…" she began, feeling incredibly lost and vulnerable. Now that her panic had abated, thousands of questions were flooding her mind, and she didn't quite know where to begin.

The stallion grinned and fell into a bow. "It is wonderful to see you again, Your Highness. We're glad that you're all right."

The mare also bowed and then looked up and smiled brightly. "Welcome, Celestia, to the year 8998."

Celestia's head began to spin. She planted her hooves firmly on the ground to prevent herself from toppling over. She stared blankly ahead in abject disbelief. Nearly seven thousand years from where she had once been. Seven thousand years had passed by in barely the blink of an eye. She shivered again for entirely new reasons.

"We understand that this is very difficult for you, Your Highness," the mare spoke in a kind voice, "and so we will help you through this awakening period. We have been tasked by Princess Luna to answer any questions you may have and-"

Celestia shot her head up quick as the wind. "Luna!!" she exclaimed, startling the other two ponies. "Where's Luna?! Is she okay? Is she alive?"

The mare smiled. "Not to worry, Your Highness. Princess Luna is alive and well. I'm sure she will be very happy to see you once-"

"Take me to her," Celestia stated.

The mare paused, her mouth hanging open for a moment. "Are you sure you're okay, Your Highness? Do you need anything from us? We will be happy to answer any questions or concerns you may-"

"I don't care," Celestia interrupted, not caring how rude she sounded, "I need to see her right now. I need to make sure she's…she's okay."

"Your Highness," the stallion interjected, "Princess Luna is very busy. She is aware that you are awake, but-"

"Just take me to her," Celestia said bluntly, "This is as important to her as it is to me." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Luna had put off everything in her schedule to spend time with her the previous times that she'd woken up. She was sure nothing would be different about this time.

For so long, she had been left wondering if Luna was even still alive. Simply hearing that she was here was wonderful news, but she wouldn't be able to relax until she was able to actually see her.

The stallion nodded. "Okay, Your Highness. I'll see what I can do." He then appeared to do nothing more than stand still. Celestia was confused for a moment, before she noticed that the transparent field before his eye was changing colours. He was moving his eyes around at a fairly notable pace. The mare wasn't doing anything more than smiling and waiting patiently, so this stallion had to be doing something.

Her confusion was forgotten when the stallion spoke up. "Okay, Your Highness. She wants to see you to. Please come with me." He then walked over to the wall on the opposite side of the room and stood waiting.

Celestia slowly got to her hooves, her stiff joins proving difficult to move. She nearly toppled over when she put all of her weight onto the metal hoof, but quickly caught herself. She took a moment to try walking with the hoof. In all honesty, it didn't feel half bad. It almost felt natural, and the hoof was both sturdy and responsive. It still gave her the sensation, however, that her right hoof was stepping on a cloud each time she set it down, which felt incredibly unusual.

Once she was used to walking with the hoof, she wasted no time in following the stallion. The mare followed behind her. Her mind was truly focused on this one task that she needed to complete. She didn't care about how these ponies were dressed, how strange even this single room looked, or why they were speaking Equestrian. She didn't think about how the world was faring, or what had happened since she'd been gone. She didn't even care what year it was.

She just needed to see Luna.

Once Celestia was standing next to the stallion, he turned and faced the wall. He stood there for a few moments, and Celestia noticed that the field in front of his eye turned green. A moment later, the wall seemed to split apart and form a seam where there had most certainly not been one before. She gazed in astonishment as a portion of the wall before her shimmered and then completely disappeared into thin air. A small room with a pony-sized circular device stood beyond.

"Please step inside, Your Highness," the stallion spoke, "This will take you to Princess Luna. Remain calm; it is completely safe."

Celestia felt a moment's trepidation, but she shook it off quickly and fearlessly stepped into the relatively small room. She had to duck her head slightly to avoid hitting the top of the device. Once inside, she turned and faced the other ponies again. "One moment please," the stallion said.

Having to wait gave her mind a moment to cool off and slow down. "Thank you both very much," she said to them, remembering her sense of etiquette, "Thank you for helping me through this and…stopping me from panicking."

The mare smiled. "It is our duty, Your Highness. We are happy to do it."

"What are your names?" Celestia asked.

"Oh!" the mare perked up, "I'm-"

"Preparations complete. Transport initiated," the stallion spoke.

Celestia barely had a chance to turn her eyes to him before her vision was filled with a white, milky haze. She gasped in shock as the world around her disappeared, being replaced with this misty, white endlessness. Her heart began to beat frantically again as she felt panic approaching. What was happening?! Where was she?

Remain calm; it is completely safe. The stallion's words echoed in her mind. All she could do was take a deep breath and hope that he was telling the truth.

It only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Eventually, the milky haze faded away, and an entirely new environment filled her vision. She could still see the same circular device in her peripheral vision, but she was in a whole new room now. It was larger, and it was actually furnished. She saw a few desktop terminals on a desk, a few chairs and an array of screens, most of which were blank. The walls and floor were still made of the shiny, silver metal.

There was no doorway to be seen, and only now was Celestia realizing that the room she had woken up in hadn't had any doors either. The door through which the two ponies had entered, as well as the one she had exited through, had both appeared on the walls from seemingly nowhere. There was an area on the wall of this room that looked blank, as if a door should go there. She focused her vision on that spot.

As if on cue, a seam appeared on the wall, and a part of it shimmered and vanished from sight, leaving a fairly large opening in the wall. Celestia marvelled at the amazing technology on display here, but only for a brief moment. Through the door stepped a pony, and all of her previous thoughts were forgotten.

"LUNA!!!"

In seconds, Celetia had flown across the room and tackled Luna to the floor in the adjoining room, smothering her in a tight hug. She was laughing and crying at the same time, nuzzling her sister and squeezing her as tightly as she could. She cried out her sister's name a few more times, unable to contain the sheer joy she felt.

"Ack…Celestia…" Luna murmured, smiling but wincing slightly, "Careful with that hoof of yours…"

"Ah! Right, sorry!" Celestia said, stepping back and allowing Luna to get to her hooves. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No, I'm fine," Luna replied. Now that she was standing, she smiled warmly. "Celestia…It is truly wonderful to see you again after all these years.

Celestia was staring in awe at the pony before her. She hadn't noticed it before, but she could see now that Luna too was wearing a jumpsuit that covered all but her head. It was coloured identically to her coat, and even had a sewn-on depiction of her cutie mark. There were a number of devices around her front hooves, each with lights and screens. There was a device in her ear, a device near the side of her jaw bone, and even something akin to a metal ring wrapped around her horn. Her wings were tucked at her sides, but Celestia could see that there was some sort of technology on them too. Some sort of metal lining along the wrists of the wings.

But none of this compared to the most stunning and most obvious feature of Luna.

"You're…You're taller than me…" Celestia mumbled.

Luna frowned and blinked for a moment, and then giggled light-heartedly. "Heh…Yes, I suppose I am now."

Celestia marvelled at this for only a moment before her brain restarted and all of her questions and emotions returned to her in full force. "Luna!" she exclaimed, "I'm so glad you're okay! I thought you were dead!"

Luna closed her eyes and smiled. "No need to worry, Celestia. I'm quite well."

"Wh-where were you? The last time I was around, you…you were missing! Nopon- Nobody knew where you where!"

Luna sighed and frowned heavily. "I…I know, Celestia. I was…gone for a long while." She paused and heaved another sigh. "I'm…I'm sorry for making you worry."

Celestia gave her a heartfelt smile. "I'm just so happy to see you're okay! I…I really thought you were gone forever."

Luna smiled sadly. "I…Thank you, Celestia. That…means a lot to me."

Their eyes met and they smiled at one another, and then moved in for a warm embrace. They remained together like this for a few moments, each simply happy to be in the others' company.

"I'm so happy you're safe," Celestia murmured happily.

"I'm glad you're well too, Celestia," Luna replied.

"What happened, Luna?" the smaller, yet older, alicorn said as she moved away from the embrace.

Luna glanced away. "I…" she began. It was easy to see that she was experiencing pains from the past and remembering darker times. "Celestia, that war was…It was the wrath of the gods," she continued sombrely, "It was the hardest, most terrifying thing I've ever been through in my life."

Celestia frowned, but sat silently and listened as her sister spoke.

"The Griffons were ruthless and cruel. They fought to the death and spared no expense to make ponykind suffer. They were relentless. They were brutal and horrifying. And worst of all…I had to face it on my own. We had a choice to either submit to their demands or fight back.

"My choice was made for me.

"We fought as valiantly as we could. The ponies were brave and strong, and willing to fight for their country. We could never overcome the griffons, but we managed to keep them at bay. Oftentimes, battles would end in a stalemate, and for a while it seemed the war would end that way too…"

Celestia noticed a shiver pass through her sister's body. She knew what was coming next.

"Then…" Luna continued in a quiet voice, "Then they…they dropped their weapon on Canterlot…" She had to pause for a while before she was able to continue. "I survived, but so many ponies lost their lives…Many died simply trying to save me. Equestria was never the same since then…"

Luna lowered her head and shut her eyes. "It was my decision to stand and fight in Canterlot. It was by my hoof that those ponies remained there and were decimated. I noticed the griffons retreating and I didn't find it unusual. I saw them carrying in something unfamiliar, and I gave the order to stand strong instead of to flee."

She shook her head. "It was a battle in a brutal war. I know now that I can't blame myself for things that went wrong during such a turmoil-filled time, but…back then, I wasn't the pony I am today. 

"The bombing of Canterlot haunted me for months and years to come. Since that fateful day, every decision I made was hasty, poorly planned, or just plain wrong. I was trying so hard to keep any other ponies from pointlessly losing their lives. Obviously, as we were at war, these efforts were constantly in vain. I was filled with so much stress, I was beginning to lose my mind. The griffons began winning more and more, encroaching on our land and exerting their dominance."

Luna paused, staring straight ahead emotionlessly. "One day, I realized that we had lost. Battles were still being fought, but victory was a futile dream at this point. One way or another, the griffons would win. The only thought that was in my mind was that it was all my fault. I was at fault for destroying Canterlot and losing Equestria. I was at fault for letting so many ponies die.

"I was about to go insane…so I had to leave…"

The room fell silent. Luna held her head low solemnly.

"Where did you go?" Celestia asked in a quiet voice.

Luna sighed. "The moon," she stated simply.

Celestia arched her eyebrows in surprise.

"I stayed on the moon for…I think it was a little more than 150 years." She turned her head to Celestia. "I do hope you understand, sister. My mind was so far gone at that point that I would've done more harm than good if put into a leadership role." She closed her eyes. "I just needed to be…alone for a while."

Celestia processed this information. 150 years alone and secluded on the moon. While certainly not a millennium, it was still quite a significant amount of time. She had been there while Luna had been gone. She had seen the devastation of the land and the turmoil that the ponies were going through, but she also knew that things had gone downhill even while Luna had been around. From what her sister was telling her, she could understand the kind of mental breakdown she was going through. She knew what that felt like all too well.

Celestia smiled warmly. "As long as you're safe, Luna. I'm just happy to see you again, and I understand what you had to do."

Luna brought her head back up and smiled demurely. "Thank you, Celestia."

Celestia's eyes were then drawn to the room around her, which she honestly hadn't been paying attention to until now. The same silvery metal covered the walls, floor and ceiling. There was a much larger workstation in the corner with an array of video screens. Some were filled with information, while others displayed video feed of something. Truly, the largest thing in the room was this workstation's desk, which nearly spanned the length of two perpendicular walls. 

Besides this, there was some sort of large, cylindrical device against one of the walls. It looked like a tube, but it looked fairly complex and confusing. Celestia had no idea what its purpose might be.

In fact, other than a few small tables and metallic objects, there was nothing else to see in the room. Most of Celestia's view was filled with blank, silver walls. As she observed this, the memory of what had happened a few minutes ago returned to her, where the mare had opened a door in the wall from seemingly nowhere. Perhaps there was more hidden away behind the walls.

She was star struck by what she saw in this small room alone, and even a little frightened. "Wow, Luna, it…" she murmured, "it looks like you've come a long way since I've been gone."

"Indeed we have," Luna replied with a nod.

"So…Are things okay now? Are the ponies okay?" Celestia was utterly floored by the huge contrast she saw between this era and the one she had just been in previously.

Luna nodded and smiled. "Yes, Celestia, the ponies are safe and our society is thriving."

A hopeful look found its way onto Celestia's face. "You mean…?"

"Yes. What you see around you is all the work of the ponies. We have returned from our dark times and are once again the successful society you once knew, Celestia."

Her smile grew immensely. "That's wonderful, Luna! Oh, that's so amazing!"

Luna chuckled brightly at her sister's reaction. "Yes, the ponies were facing difficult times when you were last here," she said, continuing her history lesson, "but that soon changed. In the year 5774 of the Equestrian calendar, the ponies began to revolt. They began to rise up…

"…and once again, they began to succeed."

Celestia sat in silence, completely captivated by her sister's story.

"Though I was on the moon, I could still see what was happening on the planet below. I saw the ponies' revolution. I saw a burning passion slowly begin to reignite within them. For so long, it looked like the griffons' tyrannical reign was going to last forever.

"The tides quickly began to shift. At first, I cast my glance away in fear, not wishing to see any more slaughtering. But…when I turned back and looked again, I saw something remarkable. They were fighting back, they were rising up, and they were emerging victorious. It wasn't easy, and still many lives were being lost, but I saw in the ponies a bravery that I hadn't seen in a long time.

"It was thanks to this newfound vigour of the ponies that I was able to find the strength to return. A second war erupted, but it was much, much shorter. Before long, ponies had emerged victorious and Equestria had been reborn."

Celestia was still gazing up at Luna in awe. "Wow…" she murmured, "That's incredible."

Luna smiled sadly. "I know war is not the most desirable option, but I feel that we came through the second war relatively unscathed. And look where we are now, sister!"

Celestia nodded. "This is amazing, Luna. I've barely seen this new world, and already I'm at a loss for words. I don't even know where to begin." A thought suddenly occurred to her. "Oh! What's this thing?" she asked, pointing to the device the mare had attached to her head.

"Oh, that's a translation device," Luna replied, "So you can understand us."

Celestia blinked. "Understand you…? But you're speaking Equestrian…Aren't you?"

Luna shook her head slowly. "Sister, I'm afraid the Equestrian language died a few centuries ago and has fallen into complete disuse. A new language has evolved that the ponies now speak."

"You mean…You're not speaking Equestrian right now?"

"No, Celestia. It only sounds like I'm speaking Equestrian because of that device we gave you. It's also allowing us to understand you."

Celestia's jaw fell slightly. "You…don't speak…?"

Luna shook her head again. "It has been so many long years since I've spoken in Equestrian. I have long since forgotten."

The older alicorn sat still on the floor, staring in silence as she processed this information. "I…I can't believe it…"

Luna smiled sadly. "You must remember, sister. I have not seen you in almost 4500 years. Things…have changed."

Celestia remained silent for another moment. "I…I suppose you're right." She had her head held down as she said this, and her gaze fell upon her right hoof. A small shiver passed through her body.

"And…" she spoke with a slight tremble, "W-what happened to my hoof?"

Luna grimaced. "Oh, Celestia…I hope that wasn't too much of a shock for you." She sighed before continuing. "Ever since you fell asleep in the pony reserve, it had always been their top priority to keep your sleeping form safe. But…as you can imagine, they had very limited resources. The underground bunker they constructed for you was quite ambitious, but…Once the battles started raging, things became unstable and your safe haven wasn't so safe any more."

Celestia gulped. "The bunker caved in?" she ventured a guess.

Luna nodded. "As soon as the griffons had been fought off, they furiously got to work digging you out. With all of them working so hard, it wasn't long before they got you to safety. Er, well…most of you."

An icy chill ran through her spine.

"Despite the accident, though, the ponies managed to keep you out of the griffons' claws for the whole war. They were so very dedicated to you, Celestia."

She smiled softly. "I'm so very grateful to them…I wish I could thank every one of them. I wish I could have been there to fight alongside them." She turned to Luna. "Thank you for not giving up, Luna. Thank you for remaining strong."

Luna smiled. "Of course, Celestia."

Her eyes drifted up to Luna's horn, and she was suddenly reminded of her own horn. Gasping, she raised her hooves up and tried to touch it. She found a long, thin protrusion that felt quite whole and unbroken. After feeling it for a few moments, Celestia was certain that the entire length of her horn was there.

"This…This is real, right?" she asked, thinking of her metal hoof.

Luna chuckled lightly. "Yes, your horn grew back completely. It's perfectly healthy now."

Celestia gazed around the room and picked out a small box of some sort. She focused magic into her horn and cast the familiar spell of telekinesis. A golden glow appeared around the box and, seconds later, it lifted into the air, following her whims. An immense feeling of relief flooded through her.

"Oh thank heavens…" she murmured, overjoyed to have her horn and her magic back.

"I'm glad to see you happy, sister," Luna said, drawing Celestia's focus back to her.

"I…It's truly not fair that you've had to endure this all by yourself," Celestia spoke, "I would give anything to have been there with you. How are your ruling duties going? Are you…still having difficulty? If there's anything I can do to-"

"Celestia," Luna interjected.

She stopped talking and gazed at Luna, seeing that her sister was wearing a sad, empathetic smile. 

"Celestia, I've…come to accept that you're…not going to be here for very long. We've done this many times before, haven't we? Long talks in my personal chamber that always just end with such terrible emotions and many tears." Luna paused, then gazed down at her sister with an imploring smile. "Perhaps this time we could spend what little time we have together…being happy? Let's just…enjoy this short gift that we've been given."

The now-smaller alicorn sat still, digesting her sister's words. She thought back to all the previous times she had woken up, and Luna was right. Each one had been filled with heartbreak and so many tears. Every time, she felt hope that she wouldn't fall asleep again, and every time she was disappointed. She felt a small stab in her heart as she came to this realization, but she swallowed the pain and silently accepted the truth.

This was going to keep happening, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Celestia smiled. "You're right, Luna. We should enjoy this time that we have together, so that's what we're going to do."

Luna smiled as well. "I'm glad you feel that way, Celestia. I would love nothing more than to simply be with you and smile with you, dear sister."

It hurt a little bit, truth be told, but Celestia felt a little more at peace with herself now. She had spent every past waking moment fretting and worrying about what would happen next. She had been terrified of these unusual sleeping spells, but she now knew that she simply had to accept that nothing could be done. A realization was quickly coming to her that she truly ought to spend what little time she had left enjoying herself.

It was a bittersweet feeling, but she tried to ignore the pain.

"What should we do, Celestia?" Luna asked.

"Hmmm…" Celestia considered the question for a moment. "I'd like to see Equestria's culture, Luna. I want to see the city and interact with the ponies. From what it sounds like, Equestria is thriving and successful now."

Luna nodded. "You are not wrong about that. Equestria has re-entered a glorious age and the ponies are flourishing."

Celestia grinned and got to her hooves. "It sounds so amazing. I wish to see all there is to see about this new, wonderful age."

"Very well, Celestia," Luna cheerfully replied, "That sounds like a grand idea. Follow me and I'll show you around."

Celestia cantered over to stand at her sister's side and was immediately hit with a mind-boggling sensation. Never before had she stood next to Luna as the smaller pony. Her entire life, she had always looked down to see her sister standing beside her. This new perspective was messing with her head.

"Wow…" she murmured, "You're…all grown up, Luna."

Luna simply responded to this with a smile. They both then made their way to one of those empty spots on the wall that Celestia had noticed earlier. She glanced up at Luna to see what she would do. The tall alicorn winked her right eye quickly, which brought up her own transparent screen before her vision.

"What are those things?" Celestia asked, getting the feeling that she'd be asking that question a lot during the course of the day.

Luna didn't glance down as she answered, instead facing ahead while the screen changed colours. "It's an interface device. It's hooked up to most electronic devices by a wireless signal. It tints my field of vision and if I look at something that can be interacted with, such as the door in front of us, symbols will show up allowing me to choose my course of action."

Celestia was about to ask how Luna could control anything with a simple screen, but then she noticed that Luna's eyes were constantly moving as she talked. Their movements matched up with the changing of the screen's colours. "You…control it with your eyes?"

"Yes. I simply focus my vision on the command I wish to utilize." A moment later, another doorway appeared in the wall before them. A hallway was revealed beyond.

"Wow…" was all Celestia could say.

She followed her larger, younger sister as the two trotted down the hallway. It was all made of the same silvery metal; walls, roof and floor. Luna informed her that it was called 'chrome' and was a plentiful and reliable building material during this time. Apparently most all buildings were made with it.

As they exited the hallway and found themselves in a more open hallway, they came across a few other ponies, all wearing similar jumpsuits. The ponies all greeted her warmly, bidding her a good morning and expressing how wonderful it was to see her. Celestia got the feeling that this was like an extremely rare treat to these ponies and they were all trying their hardest to curb their enthusiasm.

One hallway later, the two were standing before a large wall, where Celestia assumed a door would soon be appearing. "Through here," Luna spoke to her, "Lies Canterlot."

Celestia faltered for a moment upon hearing this. "Wait, already?" she asked, "We only walked through three hallways…"

Luna chuckled and replied, "My domicile is much smaller than the huge castles we used to live in."

"Is it?"

Celestia could say no more, however, for at that moment the door opened. A very bright beam of sunlight shone through, and beyond it lay a true spectacle. Celestia's jaw hung loose as she stepped through the doorway and into the air, beholding the city she saw spread before her.

Blocks. The city was made of blocks. 

Completely covering the slightly hilly landscape, which was most definitely not Canterlot Mountain, was an array of silver coloured, perfectly cubic blocks. She was at a loss for words and could only stare at the bizarre sight. There were gentle rolling hills, a few isolated trees and a small cliff off to the left side, and completely covering this landscape was an array of silver blocks. They rose and fell with the topography, creating an uneven, rigid, yet somehow flowing curve of straight, uniform edges.

Celestia could find no better way to describe it than to say somepony had dropped a huge collection of silver dice across the land.

Luna grinned, seeing her sister's bewilderment. "Welcome to Canterlot, dear sister. Welcome…to the 90th century."

"I…" Celestia mumbled, completely unsure of what to say. She remained silent for a moment, drinking in this unusual landscape, before finally asking "Wh-What is this?"

Luna chuckled. "This is our city, Celestia. These are our homes and workplaces. Every cube that you see is either someone's house or a place of business."

"R-really?!"

She nodded. "Yes, Celestia. If there is one thing that can be said about this day and age, it is that efficiency is key. Equestria is thriving, dear sister, and our efficient and proficient lifestyle is to thank for this."

Celestia began to slowly trot down the path in front of her towards some of these silver blocks. As she gazed closely at them, she noticed that each one had a space set aside for a doorway, a window, and each had a number attached. "These…are houses?" she asked, incredulous.

"Indeed," Luna replied, stepping up to match her stride, "At current date, we have a population of around 25 million ponies. This allows everypony to live together comfortably."

Celestia did a double take. "25 million?!" she blurted out. She was floored. She couldn't have heard that right. Canterlot during her time had barely surpassed a population of 25 thousand ponies. How could so many ponies be living in one place, and where did they all come from?

And yet, looking out across the sea of cubes, Celestia somehow found that she understood. If this were a population of 25 million, it didn't seem to cover an absurdly large amount of area. It was barely double the size of Canterlot, and Canterlot was at the top of a thin mountain. If one were to squeeze 25 million ponies into an area this size, efficiency would definitely need to be considered.

"This is Canterlot?" Celestia asked as the two began to trot down a path that seemed to be the main road. It was, almost surprisingly, not made of chrome, but rather some thick mixture of gravel that was packed down tightly and glossed over. It had a thick, black colour.

"Yes, this is the new city of Canterlot," Luna replied, "As our new nation began to grow, we decided to name our capital after the city you knew that once stood atop the mountain."

"Where are we right now?" Celestia asked.

"We are in the south-eastern region of the continent, near where south-central Equestria was during your time."

The two came upon some of the cubic houses. Glancing back over her shoulder, Celestia beheld the building they had just exited from. While it was larger, it was almost the same. It was rectangular, and was only maybe three times as large as the houses. Her mind boggled at the thought; Luna lives in a rectangle.

They were alone on the street at the moment. The area was still slightly dark and tinted orange with the early morning. Celestia glanced in the direction of the sun's rays, but she couldn't see her celestial body. It was hidden behind a moderately-sized hill filled with cubes.

So many identical cubes.

"Would you like to see inside one of the houses?" Luna asked, recapturing Celestia's attention.

"Inside?"

Luna grinned. "I'm sure we could find a homeowner who wouldn't mind giving you a small tour."

Celestia considered this and then nodded. "Um, sure…Okay."

"Very well," Luna replied, "It is not too early in the morning, so ponies should be awake."

The two trotted towards the nearest cube. When they stepped up to it, Celestia was clearly able to see where the door would appear once it opened. Her mind was getting used to picking these spots out. Luna didn't knock on the door. Instead, she brought up her transparent-eye-screen, which Celestia had been informed was called a "scouter". Luna stood still for a few moments, then closed her scouter and waited.

"What did you do?" Celestia asked.

"I sent a visitation request into the home's interface. The residents will see an icon indicating that we're waiting outside on some of the screens inside. It doesn't make any noise, so it will not disturb them."

"I see."

"It also notifies them specifically when it is myself making the request, so as to not be a complete surprise."

Celestia chuckled. They waited by the blank wall for a few moments, and then there was a shimmer and part of the wall disappeared. On the other side stood a teal-blue pony with a light, orange mane. He was an earth pony and he was wearing the same jumpsuit that everypony else was wearing. Suddenly, Celestia was starting to feel like the odd one out.

He gave a simple smile as he gazed up at his Princess. "Good morning, Princess Luna," he greeted her, falling into a quick, but respectful bow, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Hello, young sir," Luna replied, "I have a very special guest with me today; my sister Celestia has awoken from her slumber."

The stallion looked up and took notice of the other alicorn. "Oh wow! Princess Celestia, what an honour to see you! I am humbled. This is truly remarkable."

Celestia smiled at the pony. It was wonderful to see his face brighten like that at the sight of her. "Hello sir," she greeted him, "I trust you are doing well today?"

"Yes, yes! I am faring well," the stallion replied. He then turned to Luna and spoke, "What can a simple stallion like myself do for the two most wonderful Princesses?"

Celestia noticed that the two of them were speaking in a peculiar way. In fact, it was difficult at first for her to discern exactly why it was so peculiar. This manner of speech was common back in her era, but as she'd been thrust forward in time, the Equestrian language had changed, been reshaped, and become more lax. To hear these two talk like this almost felt like a step back in time.

It was at this point that she had to remind herself that neither of them were speaking Equestrian. She was hearing all of their speech through the translation device she was wearing. She didn't pretend to understand how it worked, but came to the assumption that the language must have been much different than Equestrian, and this was being reflected in its translation.

All in all, it still felt quite peculiar.

"Celestia would like to see our culture," Luna said in reply to the stallion's inquiry, "May we step inside your home and give her a look around?"

The stallion smiled. "Of course, Your Highness. Of course. I would be honoured."

"Excellent," Luna replied, "Thank you, sir."

"Thank you very much," Celestia added.

The stallion stepped aside, allowing the two to enter his house. Once inside, Celestia found herself in a moderately-sized room with the familiar chrome walls, ceiling and floor. Besides the window, which was currently closed, the room contained a comfortable-looking couch, a fairly large piece of furniture that resembled a credenza or wardrobe, a shelf containing a small assortment of objects, and a bright light on the roof.

Celestia paused, glancing at all the room had to offer. It was remarkably plain.

"What do you think, Celestia?" Luna enquired.

"Well, I…

"It is the result of years and years of dedicated thought, planning and hard work."

"This…isn't all there is, right?"

"Ah, no. Of course not." Luna addressed the stallion. "Sir, would you mind opening the other doors?"

"Sure, Your Highness," he replied. He then trotted across the room to the wall opposite the front door and brought up a scouter of his own. It cycled through various colours for a moment before three doors shimmered into appearance on the wall. At the inviting hoof of both ponies, Celestia trotted towards them.

Beyond the leftmost door was a room filled with small, unusual looking appliances. She was informed that it was the kitchen and, upon a further glance, she was able to pick out the stove and refrigerator. It was fairly small, but not terribly so. It seemed like a pony would have plenty of room to cook things in there. Though, she was left wondering what function all the appliances performed.

The central door held a small, simple washroom with toilet, sink and shower. Nothing was unusual except for the shower, which didn't seem to have a shower head.

Finally, behind the rightmost door, there was a small room with a bed. That was it; there was nothing more inside the room except a bed and a window. It was almost the size of a closet.

"I see," Celestia said upon seeing the three rooms, "Is there any more?"

"That is all, Celestia," Luna replied, "I know you are used to much more lavish homes from your previous time period, but we ponies are more careful in our usage of space now."

Celestia couldn't help but frown. "I…but, it's…so small…" Celestia murmured. The entire house was only about half as large as the average household in Canterlot or Ponyville. It definitely did not contain more than a single storey, and there didn't seem to be any basement. This was it; only four rooms.

"Small, Your Highness?" the stallion spoke up, "I do not believe it is small. It perfectly suits my every need."

Celestia made to respond, but then paused and gave that statement some thought. She glanced around the house as she did. Food, bed, facilities and security; they were all here. These were what a pony needed to survive.

"I suppose you're right," she uttered, slowly coming to accept what she was seeing. "But," she continued, facing the stallion, "do you ever wish for something bigger?"

The stallion tilted his head. "Bigger?"

Luna stepped in. "Celestia, by law no houses may be any larger than this. The uniform 'cube' shape and size allows houses to be easily planned, easily built, and easily accessed, and ensures that we do not overcrowd the city."

"Oh…" Celestia muttered, "How…interesting."

"Shall we depart?" Luna asked her, and Celestia nodded in response. "Thank you for your time, sir," she then said to the stallion.

"It was my pleasure," he responded.

"Yes, thank you very much!" Celestia said with a smile.

A few moments later, the two were on the street again. Celestia saw a few ponies walking the streets now. She smiled and waved to them.

"May I see another house?" Celestia asked. Not only had that stallion's house been small, but it had been incredibly plain. She hoped to see something a little more unique in another pony's house.

"Certainly, Celestia," Luna replied.

Celestia took a quick glance at her surroundings. She saw how the houses stacked on top of one another. Compact stairways were installed, allowing access to some of the higher cubes. "How about that one?" she said, pointing her hoof at a house that sat four levels up. It was on a slight hill, but was also stacked upon two other houses.

"Sure. Follow me," Luna spread her wings and quickly took to the air. Celestia also unfurled her wings, but had to pause before taking off. Once again, her wings felt stiff and aching. Her extended periods of sleep were not being kind to her extra appendages.

After a quick stretch, she caught up to her sister. They approached the higher house and alighted on the stairway leading up to the chrome wall. She looked down and saw how the stairway carefully avoided the "door area" of the house below it. She couldn't help but be impressed by the design.

Luna lit up her scouter again, and soon the door to this house opened as well. This time, an orange pegasus mare stepped out. A scene similar to the one before played out, with the pony bowing to both princesses and happily granting access into her home.

"Thank you very much, miss," Celestia said as she followed her sister through the door.

"It's an honour to meet you, Your Highness," the mare responded.

Celestia smiled at the mare as she entered the house. Her smile melted away as she saw what was inside. Her jaw fell slightly as she stood still, staring at a sight that she couldn't quite believe.

It was the same. The house was exactly the same as the last one had been. Luna had the mare open the same three doors, and the same three rooms were revealed beyond. Even the bed had the same blankets.

"I…I…" Celestia stammered. What was this? Was this a coincidence?

"What's wrong, Celestia?" Luna asked.

"It's…the same, Luna…" she murmured.

Luna chuckled. "Yes. Yes it is, Celestia."

"Are they all the same?"

Luna glanced upwards and considered the question. "There are a few small deviations here and there, but for the most part, our streamlined schematic has been followed as closely as possible."

Celestia couldn't believe this. There was a hint of pride in her sister's voice. Was she happy that all of the houses were the same? "But…" she stammered, confused. This couldn't be right. They couldn't all be the same. "But…"

The mare tilted her head. "Is…there something you do not like about my house, Your Highness?" she asked.

She turned to her. "I…Well, no…" she muttered, trying to find her words, "There's nothing wrong with it. It's just…" Celestia paused and glanced around at the shiny, bare walls. She looked at the furniture that filled the room; a chair, a sofa, a rug, some sort of box off to the side, a dresser. They were all the same objects that were within the stallion's home. "Don't you…? I mean, this is your home," she continued, "Doesn't it bother you that it's…the same as all the others?"

The mare stood for a moment, and then frowned. "Erm…forgive me, Your Highness," she responded, "I don't mean to sound entitled, but this house is owned by me. As such, I expect it to have the same level of quality as all the others. If mine is not the same as anypony else's, then there is a problem."

Celestia was silent as she digested this. She glanced around at the house once again. Well, she thought, quality assurance is one thing, but… Then, however, she paused. The more she looked at the relatively small living space, the more she came to a sobering realization.

There was no room here for customization. There wasn't enough space for this mare to do much of anything to make this living space her own. Much of the floorspace was occupied with furniture, and if anything else were added, it would make getting around difficult. There certainly wasn't any space in any of the adjoining rooms to add anything.

The walls were fairly bare, but Celestia had seen how the doors seemed to appear from nowhere on the wall. She got the feeling that these chrome walls held more properties within them, and so things like pictures could not be hung from them. Simply thinking about these weird walls made her shiver slightly.

Then, she thought about the outside of the buildings and, at first, thought that the outer walls were a perfect place for customization. Then, however, she remembered how one accessed this particular house; stairs had been built onto the house below it. The outer walls needed to be kept free of clutter in case any stairs needed to be built.

"I…I suppose you're right," she murmured, slowly coming to accept this strange, new aspect of this futuristic world. 

The mare tried smiling at her. "I hope you like it, Your Highness," she said, "I know this must be a little strange for you."

Celestia sat down. She faced the mare and looked into her eyes. "How do you like this house?" she asked.

"It's perfect," she responded, "It has everything I need."

Celestia considered this. The mare's smile seemed real enough. When one got down to it, life's necessities were truly more important than one's desires. Even back in her own time, she had always put the highest focus into making sure her entire country was fed and sheltered. Though extravagant, her castle could have been even larger than it had been, but she had chosen to consider everypony's needs first.

"I suppose that's a good thing," she said, finally allowing herself to smile.

The mare beamed. "It's wonderful to see you, Your Highness. I feel like a really lucky pony."

"It's nice to meet you too, miss. I'm glad to hear that you're happy here."

"Yes, I'm quite satisfied."

"Do you live here by yourself?" Celestia asked.

"Yes I do."

"I see. You don't have a partner?"

"Oh, I don't know about that…Maybe if I work hard…"

"I suppose that would be for the best…" Celestia murmured, glancing at the house again. She couldn't imagine how any more than a single pony could live in a house like this. Perhaps another house would be built on top?

"Wow…" she heard the mare utter softly. Returning her gaze to the other pony, she saw that the mare was gazing at her cutie mark.

"Oh!" the mare exclaimed, "Oh, I'm sorry, Your Highness. I didn't mean to stare."

Celestia smiled. "It's quite all right."

"It's just…It really is the sun. I've heard stories and seen images, but it's really amazing to see a cutie mark like yours for real."

Celestia chuckled. "I'm glad you like it." She tilted her head and gazed at the mare's flanks. "I just wish I could see yours."

"Oh," the mare said turning around to gaze at her own flanks, covered by the silver jumpsuit, "My cutie mark is of a cute little rainy cloud." She glanced back at the Princess and smiled. "I've always liked it."

"Aw, how adorable," Celestia cooed. "So, tell me a little bit about yourself. What do you do for a living?"

The pegasus appeared to be confused by the question. "Um…" she muttered, "I…work on the weather team." She proceeded to tilt her head slightly.

Celestia was somewhat perplexed by the mare's odd reaction, but chose to ignore it. "That sounds nice. The weather team is a very exciting job…or at least it was the last time I saw it. I trust it still is?"

The mare nodded. "Yes. Yes it is."

"Do you enjoy your job?"

"I can say that I do, Your Highness. It's very enjoyable and very rewarding."

"And what is your-"

The two were interrupted by a fairly loud beep. They both turned their heads towards the source, which happened to be Luna. The tall alicorn's scouter flashed a few colours for a moment, and she then turned her gaze to Celestia. "I am needed," she spoke, "Celestia, would you accompany me outside, please?"

"Oh," she replied, "Oh, certainly." She then turned back to the pegasus mare and spoke as she stood up. "Thank you very much for allowing me into your home. It was wonderful to meet you."

"It was wonderful to meet you too, Your Highness. Have a nice day!"

"Thank you! You too!"

A few moments later, both alicorns had departed from the house and flown down to the street below. A few more ponies were out and about now, keeping a respectful distance, but gazing in awe and reverence.

"My presence is required back at the royal residence," she spoke succinctly, "I apologize, Celestia, but some duties I cannot avoid."

"It's okay, I understand," Celestia replied, "Perhaps I could continue to explore the city while you're busy?"

Luna pondered this for a moment. "Hmm, yes. I suppose that is acceptable. Hold on for a moment." She then closed her eyes and lit up her horn. Celestia realized that this was the first time she had seen Luna using magic. Every task up to this point had been performed with the scouter. Luna's horn glowed for a few moments, and then there was a flash. When the light dissipated, a second scouter was hovering before her in Luna's telekinetic grip. "Here, take this."

Celestia grabbed it with her own magic.

"This is one of the scouters we have in reserve for temporary visitors to the city. It has less functionality than a resident's, but it should still prove useful to you."

"Oh, okay. Thanks," Celestia replied. She levitated the device up to her head and tried to attach it in the same way that her sister's was attached. It took a bit of fiddling, but eventually the device was resting on her ear and positioned in front of her eye. The screen was transparent, but then Luna told her to push the button on the side to activate it.

Once Celestia had pushed the button with her hoof, she nearly reeled back in surprise. Her vision was instantly filled with images of boxes, labels and buttons. What appeared to be nametags were attached to every pony she saw, including Luna. Squares were drawn around things of interest, such as the areas on houses where doors would appear. At first, it was incredibly disorienting.

"Don't be alarmed," Luna said to her, "It's perfectly safe. I've set it on simple mode, meaning that some more advanced commands are disabled. Remember, to interact with something, just focus on it with your vision."

"I…" Celestia mumbled. She turned her eye towards Luna. The 'nametag' lit up and more information appeared under it. A box also appeared around her sister and a few rectangles with commands appeared next to it.

"I can't read any of this…"

Luna appeared confused for a moment, but then frowned. "Oh yes, that's right. Your translation device only applies to spoken word, not written. Unfortunately, the interface is written in New Equestrian."

Celestia was finally getting used to the interface, her confusion and dizziness ebbing away. As she continued to focus her gaze on different things, she quickly became used to what things looked like through the lens of the scanner. She tried to avoid gazing at any of the commands, though, as she wasn't sure what any of them did.

"Don’t' worry about accidentally doing anything," Luna continued, "To activate a command, you must have your vision trained on it for two full seconds." The same, loud beeping rang through the air once again. "I must leave, Celestia. I'm sorry. Perhaps you could ask one of the residents to teach you the basics."

Celestia nodded, causing many boxes to appear, disappear and re-appear, disorienting her slightly. "Okay, Luna. That sounds like a good idea. I'd like to interact with the locals anyway."

"Excellent," Luna replied, "I can also track you with that scouter, so I'll know where to find you. However, those reserve scouters' range only extends to the city limits, so you should not leave the city. Otherwise, you might get lost."

"Okay, Luna."

"I'll see you soon, Celestia. I'll try not to be too long." Luna then extended her wings and beat them downward, propelling herself into the air. In a short moment, she took off and flew towards the slightly larger building that was her home.

Celestia turned around so that she was facing towards the center of the city. The scouter's interface was very complex, but she was quickly getting a feel for it. She didn't know what most of the words said, but she was beginning to see patterns and could make educated guesses.

Every time she looked at a home's doorway, three commands popped up. The second option was in red, while the other two were not. She made the assumption that the first command was the same one that Luna had used; sending a request into the household to let the residents know that somepony was outside. She then deduced that the second, red option was some sort of urgent version of the former command. It was probably a way to let the residents know that they were needed outside immediately.

All in all, it was incredibly impressive. She had never seen anything even close to this before in her life. She found herself enthralled by simply wandering around the town and looking at different things, seeing what the scouter would do next.

In fact, she was so enthralled by the device that she wasn't quite paying attention to what she was doing. Many ponies waved to her or bowed, but went completely unnoticed by the fascinated princess. A few even had to step out of the way, lest they be run over. 

It wasn't long before something happened. With a cry of surprise, the world before her flew upwards and she came crashing down to the ground.

Groaning, she pulled herself up into a sitting position. She shook her head and opened her eyes. Luckily, the scouter didn't seem to be damaged. She, on the other hand, was aching from the tumble. Glancing back, she saw what she had tripped over. It was a medium-sized silver pipe that lay partially buried in the ground, running across the road.

"Are you okay?" she heard a voice ask. 

Rubbing her aching head, she turned to the source of the voice. "Yeah, I'm okay."

The ponies, two stallions and a mare, had gathered around her, and were all looking at her in concern. She was barely able to see boxes on all of their scouters which, she assumed, were trained on her.

"I just tripped," she continued, "I'm fine."

One of the stallions, a unicorn, grinned. "That's good, Your Highness. It would have been awful to see you hurt."

Celestia chuckled. "I was too busy looking at my scouter," she said as she got to her hooves.

"Oh!" the other stallion, an earth pony, perked up, "Do you need some help with it?"

"Uh, sure…" Celestia replied, trying to think of specific things to ask. "How do you…? Is there some way to make it so the labels and things don't show up? Such as, when I'm talking to another pony and I want to focus on them and not my scouter."

"Yes, there is Your Highness," the earth pony explained, "It's the little icon in the bottom right. In the very corner of your vision."

Celestia searched the interface for a moment before she found what she was looking for. Recalling her sister's instructions, she kept her vision trained on the small icon for a full two seconds. Then, the scouter's field changed from yellow to clear, freeing up her vision and getting rid of the labels and squares. She could still see a few icons, including the one she had just used, but her vision was a lot clearer.

"Ah, I see. Thank you, sir," she said with a smile.

"It's my pleasure, Your Highness. And, might I add, what a wonder it is to see you." The three ponies took this moment to bow before her.

"Thank you, my ponies," she said as they rose back up, "It's so wonderful to see Equestria like this. Everything seems so perfect and happy."

"What you perceive is correct, Your Highness," the mare, another earth pony, said, "Our civilization is thriving and life in Equestria is good."

"There is no war, there is no strife," the unicorn chimed in, "There is hardly any crime, there is little pollution, and our technological advancements are pushing forward every day."

"Ponies everywhere work together and strive for the best possible future," the male earth pony added, "We do our jobs, working hard, and then everypony reaps the benefits."

Celestia gazed at the three ponies. They were all smiling up at her with sparkles in their eyes. They all wore the same scouters and full-body jump suits. A small frown came to her. "Are those outfits comfortable?" she asked.

The mare glanced back at herself. "Oh, yes. These suits are cool and comfortable. They're very sleek and you get used to wearing them very quickly."

"But now I can't see your cutie marks," Celestia continued.

The mare gave a small laugh. "I suppose you're right. It's just a design choice, really. It's not terribly important."

Celestia frowned. She could go on for days questioning these ponies about their attire, but all it really boiled down to a constantly changing idea of fashion. Luna herself had looked drastically different in each era that Celestia had seen her in.

This simply must have been the way of the future.

"I see. So how are all of you today?" she said, changing the subject.

"Erm…" the mare faltered. 

"What?" 

"I am sorry. It just felt a little unusual to hear 'how are you?' coming from…you."

Celestia blinked. "Really? Why so?"

"Well," the unicorn said, "We're all still a little star-struck to see you, Your Highness." He paused and then added, "You're like a legend to us."

After a moment of silence, Celestia found herself chuckling. "I suppose I understand where you're coming from," she said, "It has been quite a long time since anypony has seen me at all." Speaking those words gave her a twinge of sadness, but she pushed it away and tried to focus on the positives. She gazed down at the ponies' smiling faces and instantly felt better. "So, how are you?"

"Actually," the earth pony stallion replied, beginning to turn around, "I would really love to talk to you, Your Highness, but I need to get to work soon. I'm sorry, but…"

"Oh wonderful!" Celestia brightened up, "May I accompany you?"

"Really? Are you sure?" he replied.

"Of course! I would love to continue chatting with you. Are you two working now as well?" she continued, addressing the other two ponies.

They shook their heads. "No, I do not have to work until later in the day."

"Myself as well."

Celestia's smile grew. "Would you like to join us?"

A few minutes later, the group of four were trotting down the main road of the city, passing by the hundreds and hundreds of perfectly cubical houses. At first, the three ponies seemed intrigued by the fact that the fabled Sleeping Princess was simply trotting along with them, but they quickly grew comfortable with the circumstances.

"So where do you work?" Celestia asked the earth pony whom they were following.

"I work in construction," he replied, "I'm an architect, and I help plan out the construction of these houses.

"Oh, how interesting!" Celestia replied, "Do you enjoy your work?"

The stallion didn't reply right away. "Umm…'Enjoy', Your Highness? I'm afraid that might not be the correct word."

She frowned. "You don't like your job?"

The stallion shrugged. "Not particularly. It does tend to get a little repetitive and dull, unfortunately."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"It tends to be the most difficult part of my day, but it must be done."

Celestia paused and then asked him, "Have you ever considered looking for another job?"

The three ponies all stopped walking and stared up at her. They were giving her perplexed gazes. She too stopped and gazed back at them. "What?"

"Wh…What do you mean…?" the stallion said slowly, "What do you mean, 'another job'?"

Celestia blinked. Her brain was stalling. Such was the kind of question she never expected to hear and, thus, did not immediately have a concrete answer for. "Uhm…" she murmured in response, "I mean, if you don't like your job, you could just quit and get a new one."

"But…" the stallion replied, "my cutie mark is for designing, Your Highness. It's a mark of blueprints."

"Why does that matter? That doesn't mean you have to keep a job you don't like. It's your choice, isn't it?"

The three ponies glanced at each other, sharing confused glances.

Celestia paused, her stomach sinking slightly. "I-Isn't it…?"

"Your Highness…" the mare spoke slowly, and it was clear from her tone of voice that she couldn't believe that Celestia did not know this, "a pony's job is decided by their cutie mark. You can't just…change it."

Celestia's mind skipped a gear for a moment. "I- What…?"

The mare gestured to the unicorn stallion. "When he got his designing cutie mark, the city assigned him his job and that's what he's been doing ever since. Why would he change his job if he can't change his cutie mark?"

The princess opened her mouth to respond, but found she had no words. What had she just said? Celestia couldn't believe it. She had to be misunderstanding this somehow.

"You mean…" Celestia spoke slowly, "that once a pony gets their cutie mark…they get assigned a job based on their mark? And they have that job for their whole lives?"

The three ponies nodded.

"Are…you serious?"

"Well, it makes sense, doesn't it Your Highness?" the earth pony stallion asked, "It's the job a pony's going to be the best at, right?"

"Well, yes, but…" Celestia fumbled, unable to complete her thought. She tried to make sense of this new information, but she found herself unable to grasp it. Jobs for life because of a cutie mark? How could that be? A pony's cutie mark didn't have to run their life. She could think of many examples of ponies whose jobs were not related to their cutie mark, at least not directly.

Rarity's special talent had been finding gems, but she owned a fashion store. She didn't work in a mine unearthing gems for a living. Pinkie Pie worked in a bakery, but her special talent was throwing parties and bringing happiness. She wasn't a party planner or a clown of some kind.

"Is…this true for just this city, or…?"

The mare shook her head. "No, all of Equestria follows this law."

"How long has this been happening?"

The mare seemed surprised by the question. "Um, well as long as anypony can remember. Why? Has it not always been this way?"

Celestia was floored. This was completely beyond her grasp. It seemed ridiculous. It sounded like a joke. "So…" she spoke, "if a pony, one day, gets a cutie mark of, say, a shield then-"

"They would be placed on the security team, yes," the mare finished for her.

Celestia shook her head. "He has no choice at all in the matter? That's his job, no ifs, ands or buts?"

The three ponies nodded.

"And he's going to be doing that job for the rest of his life?"

"Well…" the earth pony stallion said, scratching his head, "if he ends up doing a poor job, then he'll get fired. Then he can get a new job if he proves himself adept enough at something else. But, that doesn't happen very often. Not many ponies can get fired from a job they're born to do."

Celestia sat down. She held her head. Born to do. It all sounded so wrong to her. These ponies were talking about pre-destiny and living exclusively by one's cutie mark. Just because a pony has a cutie mark of something doesn't mean it's what they're born to do and only what they're born to do.

True, their argument had some validity. A pony doing a job related to their cutie mark would be bound to succeed. But, that didn't mean it was the best job for them to do. Things didn't always work in such a black and white way.

And yet, here she was, being told that every single pony was bound by this apparent practice of having a job assigned to them based on their cutie mark.

"Your Highness…?" the unicorn stallion said in a concerned voice, "Are you all right…?"

She gazed down at them. "Oh…Yes, I'm fine. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." She paused and sighed. "I'm just finding this a little difficult to take in. Things were not done like this at all during my time."

The ponies glanced at each other in surprise.

"But…" Celestia said wistfully, "I suppose it's not my position to complain or argue. This is a different time, a different culture. I just have to accept that things are done differently now. Perhaps it's for the better? I truly don't know."

"Your Highness," the mare spoke whimsically, "It's so easy to forget that you came from such a far-off time, especially when we see you with that scouter and your prosthetic hoof."

Celestia glanced down at her metal hoof and shivered. "Well, regardless," she said, pushing her uneasiness away, "thank you all for helping me learn more about this new pony culture." Her ears perked up as a thought suddenly came to her. "Oh my goodness, I just realized…I never asked your names. Oh, you'll have to pardon me. It's been a long day already."

She was met with tilted heads and perplexed expressions, and instantly a whole new feeling of dread could be felt in the pit of her stomach.

"Names?" the mare spoke inquisitively, "Your Highness, only you and your sister have names."

"Yes. We don't use names," the unicorn concurred.

Celestia was silent.

"My identification is 45DP3X," the mare continued, "Perhaps that is what you meant?"

"Mine is HH5D89," the unicorn spoke.

"And mine is 12A0OV," the other stallion concluded.

Celestia stared at the three ponies in utter disbelief, her jaw hanging open slightly. All three of them had genuine, innocent gazes.

"N-" she muttered, trying to form words, "None of you…have…names?"

They all shook their heads.

"Nopony has a name?"

They shook their heads again.

Celestia began to quiver slightly. She rose to her feet and shook her head. "I- I'm sorry…" she murmured, "It was nice meeting you, but…" She felt slightly dizzy as she began to quickly trot away. "I need some…I need to think…"

The three ponies stared after their Princess as she quickly departed from the scene.



***



Celestia found herself wandering through the town. She trotted aimlessly, following roads and pathways without knowing where they led. The ponies of the city, in their silver jumpsuits and wearing their scouters, all waved hello to her or bowed respectfully, but she barely paid them any more than a passing acknowledgement.

Her mind was going wild, working overtime just to comprehend this new information she had just discovered. Jobs decided based on cutie marks? No names? Identification numbers?! What kind of world was this?

She had been walking for almost fifteen minutes, simply thinking. She couldn't understand it. She was having difficulty accepting it. Just how had it come to be that the very idea of names had been discarded? Where was a pony's identity? What happened to individuality? She had 'knocked' on the doors of three other houses, and had found exactly the same interior three times over. The template had been followed to the very smallest detail.

As she walked, looking through her scouter, she noticed that the labels that appeared over ponies' heads bore these same, six-digit ID's. But, that's all they were to her; random combinations of numbers and letters. They didn't mean anything to her, and she couldn't understand how they could mean anything to anypony else.

As she walked, she found herself approaching a fairly open area. It was a circular, paved area with a few trees and garden beds. The houses that surrounded it were all singularly stacked; no extra houses were built on top of any of them. It was clear to her that this area had been built specifically as a gathering place of sorts for pedestrians. She drew parallels to village squares from her time.

At the far end of this area, three young foals were running around. They were all earth ponies, coloured in various earth tones, and none of them had cutie marks. She knew this because, surprisingly, they were not wearing silver jumpsuits. As she watched from afar, she saw them laughing, playing and having fun. They seemed to be having the time of their lives.

She saw a mare sitting off to the side, watching them closely. She was a parent or caregiver no doubt. Celestia found herself gravitating towards her.

"Oh!" the mare exclaimed as she turned and saw who was approaching, "Oh my goodness! Good morning, Your Highness!" She fell into a quick bow and then was back on her hooves, gazing up at the princess in wonder. "I'd heard you were awake, but I didn't think I'd actually get to meet you! It's so wonderful to see you!"

Celestia offered her a small smile. "Good morning, young miss. How are you today?"

"I am doing quite well!" the mare enthusiastically replied, "Thank you so much for asking! And how are you faring?"

She sighed softly. "I…I'm a little troubled, to tell you the truth," she said, taking a seat beside the mare, "This strange new world is so much different from everything I've known. Ponykind has come such a long way, and I feel like I've been left behind."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," the mare spoke empathetically, sitting down as well, "Have things really changed that much since you were last around?"

"Yes, they have…" Celestia murmured. 

The two silently gazed out at the three children, laughing and playing on the streets. They were having too much fun to notice their tall alicorn guest.

"Are any of them yours?" Celestia asked after a moment of quiet.

"Yes. The light brown colt with the black mane."

Celestia had to stop herself from asking the mare what her son's name was. "Are those his friends?"

The mare giggled lightly. "Yes, those are his two best friends in the whole world. They're nearly inseparable."

Celestia continued to watch them for a few moments, reflecting over the huge smiles on their faces and just how much fun they were having. The mare's son, in particular, looked like he could've been the happiest colt in the whole world. Though they too had scouters and wore silvery clothing on their hooves and around their torsos, she could see their genuine love of adventure and thirst for fun. They were just the same as any colts from her own time.

"They seem to be having a good time," she said quietly.

The mother sighed wistfully. "I envy them…I remember how much fun I had, way back before I got my cutie mark. That seems like so long ago…"

A small dagger embedded itself in Celestia's heart. "Oh…What…" she spoke slowly, "What's your cutie mark?"

The mare looked up at her and smiled. "I am an educator. I help these young foals learn about the world around them."

"That…sounds nice," Celestia replied. She had noticed how the mare had answered with her job instead of with a description of her cutie mark.

"Yes, a pony's best time is when they're young. They have no job yet, and have all the time in the world to have fun. They have no responsibilities yet! The whole world is open to them."

Celestia tried to smile, but there was a heavy feeling in her stomach. "Y-yeah…"

A few more moments of silence passed as they watched the colts play.

"So you were given your job as a teacher as soon as you got your cutie mark?"

The mare nodded. "Well, not right away. I had to attend a couple months of training."

"Right…" Celestia murmured.

The pony beside her frowned. "You seem upset about something, Your Highness. Is everything all right?"

"…"

Celestia didn't reply. She was lost in a sea of thoughts. She watched the colts romp and play, imagining how blissfully unaware they were that their lives were soon going to be decided for them. How long until their freedom expired? How long until they began to lose everything that gave them an identity?

"Okay, bye!"

"Bye! See you later!"

She heard the shouts of the colts and shook herself out of her stupor. Two of the colts were waving as they departed down a side street. The third colt, the mare's son, was currently trotting towards them.

"Hi mom!" he chirped, "Who's thi-" He then proceeded to gasp rather loudly as he stared at the tall alicorn. "Wh-…Whoa!!! Princess Celestia? Are…Are you really Princess Celestia??"

The alicorn smiled. She couldn't help it. This colt was adorable.

"Son, do not be rude to Her Highness," his mother spoke in a gentle, but scolding tone, "Address her properly."

The colt's eyes widened and he immediately fell into a bow. "Forgive me, Your Highness," he spoke to the ground, "but…are you really, um, Your Highness?"

"Yes, of course I am," she tittered, "How are you doing, my little pony?"

"Wow! I- I'm doing great! This is so cool! I can't believe I'm actually talking to you!"

Celestia gazed down at the colt in amusement. He was still bowing and staring at the ground. "You can get up now, young one."

The colt quickly got to his hooves and resumed staring up at the princess in wonder. "Wow…" he murmured, "You are so awesome!"

Again, she couldn't help but smile. There was something about this young colt's innocence and wonder that warmed parts of her heart that had been damaged recently. Looking down at him, she could almost see once-familiar faces that were now long gone. For a brief moment, the colt's fur changed to a purple hue in her mind's eye.

"I didn't know you had a metal hoof! That's so cool!"

"Son!!"

"Oh, right. Sorry! It's just so cool to meet you!"

Celestia closed her eyes for a moment and simply breathed. Then, she turned her gaze down upon the colt and gave him a warm smile. "It's wonderful to meet you too, little one," she spoke to him, "I've been exploring your world and learning so much about Equestria in this era. It's all so strange to me. In fact, I'll be completely honest with you; it's a little frightening."

"Really??" the colt asked in surprise.

Celestia nodded. "But I truly am having a wonderful time during my…stay here. And do you know why?"

The colt shook his head.

"It's because of ponies like you. Ponies like your mother, and your friends. You are all so wonderful, and it warms my heart to see you."

He giggled. "You're wonderful too, Your Highness! Mom always told me that Princess Celestia was asleep in Luna's place and that nopony knew when she would take up. I never ever thought I'd actually get to talk to you!"

"Well, I'm glad I could brighten your day."

The young pony smiled giddily and looked to his mother. "Mom! Mom, it's Princess Celestia! Isn't this awesome??"

"Yes dear, I know. We're very lucky ponies, you and I."

"I…I…" the colt gestured wildly, trying to convey something that his words simply could not, "I just don't even know what to say! This is like the best day ever!"

Celestia chuckled. 

"Can…Can I see your wings?"

She paused for a minute upon hearing the request, but then smiled and unfurled her wings, extending them to their full length. She smiled as the colt's eyes lit up even more, sparkling like stars in the night sky.

"Whoaaaa…." he murmured.

Again, she chuckled at his response.

"They're really pretty, Your Highness!"

"Aw. Thank you!"

"I think pegasus ponies are really cool, even though they don't really fly that much. I wish I could fly. Having wings must be so neat. I only have one pegasus friend, and I always ask him to show me his wings. It annoys him sometimes. Haha!"

She smiled and watched as he rambled on, as young foals often did.

Suddenly, the colt gasped quite loudly. "Oh! Oh my gosh! Mom? Do you think I could…I mean, could I…Um…" He then fell silent, but Celestia noticed that his scouter had changed colour. A moment later, his mother's changed to the same colour and her eyes moved back and forth, as if reading something.

"Well, son," she replied out loud, "you can go ahead and ask her if you want. She's probably very busy, though."

Celestia gazed at the colt in confusion. "Hm? You want to ask me something?"

"Um, sort of…" the colt mumbled as he gazed at the ground and scuffed it with his hoof. "I was just wondering, if…um…" He paused.

"Go ahead, little one. You can ask me anything," she said in a reassuring voice.

"Um, Your Highness?" he muttered, "Do you think…you could letmeflyonyourback?"

Celestia blinked, then she broke out in a brilliant, golden smile. "Of course! I would be more than happy to give you a ride!" She could see the colt's mind imploding as she lowered herself to the ground and tucked in her wings. She gave him an inviting glance and gestured towards her back.

"R-r-r-really?!"

"Sure! I can see how much it would mean to you."

"Really really?! Can I really go, mom?"

The mare stepped into Celestia's vision. "Are you sure, Your Highness? You don't have to do this if you're too busy."

Celestia chuckled. "Nonsense! It would be my pleasure!"

"Well, all right," the mare said, turning her attention to her son, "You hold on tight and listen to whatever Princess Celestia says to you, okay?"

The colt leapt probably ten feet in the air. "Yaaaaay!!! Oh my gosh! Thank you! Thank you so much, Your Highness!!"

"It's my pleasure, little one."

The colt quickly scrambled onto Celestia's back, settling himself into a secure and comfortable position. Celestia stood up and extended her wings, and a few seconds later they had left the ground behind them. In a matter of seconds, she climbed high into the air above the city, hovering just below the clouds.

The little pony had been making wonder-filled joyous noises the entire time. Now, as Celestia began to fly in small circles above the village, he was gasping in amazement. "Whoa! Whoa, whoa! We're so high up!"

Celestia smiled. "Do you like it?"

"It's amazing!! This is so awesome! Thank you so much!"

"I'm glad to hear you're having fun."

From this new vantage point, the princess was able to see the city much more clearly. She saw below her a cascading sea of silver, spreading out like a blocky splotch of paint on canvas. Roads and pathways leaked through the splotch like veins, almost giving it the appearance of a cell.

"Ooh!" the colt piped up, extending his hoof, "There's where I live! Right down there!"

Celestia followed his hoof, though it didn't help her much. All she could discern was a general area of silver blocks that looked no different than any other group of silver blocks. She began to wonder how ponies found their way around this place.

Hovering in place, she turned herself around. Her altitude dipped slightly and she had to correct herself. The added weight of her metal hoof was throwing her off. She frowned as she regained her balance.

She gazed up at the building where Luna lived and where she had woken up. From above, she could see that it was a tad larger than she had originally thought, though it was still extremely small when compared to a grandiose castle. 

"Wow…So this is what it feels like to be a pegasus?"

Celestia turned back to the colt and gave him a grin. "It truly is a wonderful feeling," she said to him.

"We're really high!"

"Are you afraid?"

"No! Not at all!"

Celestia chuckled. "That's good!" She then beat her wings and propelled herself through the air some more, drawing out whoops and cheers from the pony on her back. She circled around the city some more, letting the wind rush through her mane and simply letting the experience of flight speak for itself.

"Whoa…" the colt muttered as Celestia began to slow once again, "You can see the whole city from here!"

Celestia paused to once again behold the spectacle of the strange, futuristic city. As she gazed, her eyes were drawn to the area surrounding the city. From her current location, just above where she had taken off, she saw green spreading out before her. There was a moderately-sized ravine leading away from the city, and trees were growing all around on either side of it. This side of the city was almost completely flanked by the forest.

One thing stood out to her, however. Just beside the ravine, about half a mile outside the city, there was a large building sitting alone in a clearing. It was almost as big as Luna's residence was and seemed firmly built. Notably, it didn't seem to be built out of metal. From her distant viewpoint, Celestia guessed that it was made of stone. Three smokestacks sat on top of the building, each expelling a stream of black clouds.

"Little one?" she spoke up, grabbing the colt's attention, "What is that building down there?"

She felt movement as the pony repositioned himself on her back and gazed out in the direction she had indicated. "Oh," he replied, "that's the factory where they make all the food."

"A factory for food?"

"Yeah. I think one of my friend's dad works there. We get almost all of our food from there."

"Really?" Celestia replied, incredulous, "All of your food?"

"Mhm! Pretty much everything except water."

Celestia continued to gaze, intrigued, at the building. It stood out to her in many ways. It was far separated from the rest of the city, it wasn't made of metal, it seemed to be producing pollution…

"Do you know anything else about it?" Celestia enquired.

"Nah, not really. Every city's got one, though."

"Hmm…"



***



Not much later, Celestia found herself galloping along. She had returned the colt to his mother and had bid the two a fond farewell. The young pony had been so excited to tell his mother all about the amazing ride he'd just received, and his mother was ever so gracious to her for providing her son with such a wonderful experience.

After the two had left, she had made her way along a roadway to a small cliff that overlooked the ravine. From there, she had gotten a slightly better look at the factory. It looked even stranger than it had from the air. 

Now, she was trotting quickly through the grass. A large, rocky ravine was flowing to her right, trees were to her left, and tall smokestacks were approaching in front of her.

Her curiosity had gotten the better of her and she had left the city behind. Glancing back, she could still easily see the small cliff she had been standing on not a few minutes before. This 'food factory' wasn't very far outside of the city. She surely wouldn't get lost out here. In fact, she guessed that she'd still be able to see parts of the city from the factory. It wouldn't be that big of a deal.

After passing a few more trees, she finally came upon the clearing that housed the large building. She stood on the edge, gazing at the enormous structure that stood before her. She had been correct; it was built from mostly stone. It was not cubical in shape and almost seemed similar to a factory from her time. She was facing a brick wall, and on it were a series of windows and a heavy-set metal door. To the far right, she saw an area that seemed to be set up for loading things in and out of the factory.

Gazing upwards, she saw the three gigantic smokestacks on top of the building. None of them were expelling and overly large amount of noxious clouds into the air, but black wisps were still coming out. Gazing back down, she saw that something was written along the side of the building in big letters. She couldn't read it, but she guessed that it was the name of the establishment.

Fuelled by her curiosity, she crossed the grassy field, not caring if anypony saw her, and quickly approached the building. Nopony seemed to be around, in any case. She picked a window at random, approached it, and held her head up high so as to gaze into it.

Inside, she saw a very cluttered, but somehow organized arrangement of both machinery and plant life. She saw all sorts of fruit plants growing; strawberries, watermelons, and small trees with apples and oranges on them. She saw some sort of tall mechanism filled with dirt that had many carrot stalks peeking out from it. The more she gazed, the more fruits and vegetables she saw.

"Wow…" she murmured, marvelling at the concise, compact way these ponies seemed to grow food. It was a fairly small room, but there was an extremely large amount of produce being grown there, and none of it looked sickly or unripe. She made a mental note to find out if she could see this room up close.

She sidled herself over to the next window and looked inside of that one as well. Her eyes shot open and her jaw fell, eliciting a loud gasp. What she saw in this room was something entirely different.

It was a large room, divided into many aisles. Lined along every wall and along every aisle were hundreds upon thousands of cages. They were stacked atop each other right up to the ceiling, filling in any possible available space. The cages were miniscule, small so as to be as space efficient as possible. And crammed into each one of these tiny cages was a single chicken.

Celestia couldn't believe what she was seeing. These cages were barely big enough to hold these chickens. They had little room to move and she could see that it was impossible for them to completely turn around. The cages were made of metal, and the only padding the chickens got was a small amount of straw. A few cages even seemed to be lacking this one single commodity.

Her eyes roamed around the room, trying desperately to figure out just what was going on in this place. Then, she caught sight of something on the far end of the room; something being piled into a container.

Eggs.

She could see it clearly now. This was an egg-farming room. These chickens, which she now noticed were all hens, were being stuck into these small cages just so they could produce more eggs. These were battery cages, a practice she had outlawed even before her sister had become Nightmare Moon.

Even so, she had never seen egg farming on a scale like this. This was mind-blowing. She continued looking at the hens. Their feathers were scruffy and many of them held their heads low. She could see that they were suffering. She could see that these were horrible, unacceptable living conditions. This was animal cruelty! Celestia was shivering. She was horrified.

"Celestia!"

The alicorn nearly jumped out of her skin. Whipping around to look behind her, she found herself staring up at a very displeased Luna.

"I told you not to leave the city."
> Phase 10
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Phase 10

Advisory: Portions of this chapter may be disturbing to some readers. Viewer discretion is advised. If you are squeamish, you may consider skipping the text located between the >>> and <<< marks. 




"Oh heavens, Luna! You scared me!"

Celestia held a hoof to her chest, catching her breath and staring up at her displeased sister. Luna was gazing down at her, not with malice or rage, but merely discontent. She somehow looked frustrated.

"Celestia, what are you doing out here?" Luna asked, her voice not raising much above her normal pitch, "I told you that I could only track your scouter while you're within the city boundaries."

The smaller alicorn frowned. "I was just-"

"It's just lucky that I found you so quickly," Luna continued, "Or we could've been out here looking for hours."

Celestia was silent for a moment. "I don't think you needed to worry about…" Suddenly, her brain clicked. "Wait! Never mind that! What is this??" She gazed up at her sister with a mixed bag of emotions flowing through her. She was confused and desired answers from Luna, but was also growing more and more frightened and even distrustful.

Luna closed her eyes for a moment, then gazed up at the building and extended her hoof. "This," she declared, "is the New Canterlot Nutritional Facility."

Celestia followed her sister's hoof, which gestured to the writing on the wall that she wasn't able to read. She took notice of a small symbol of a star inside of a circle near the center.

"This standardized, centralized facility covers the entire city's nutritional needs in one efficient, compact structure," Luna continued. She trotted towards the first window Celestia had peeked through and gazed inside, gesturing for her sister to do so as well. "In here, the finest technological advancements and genetic engineering have allowed us to grow food enough for an entire population, confined to this small room. Note the short, tiny apple trees. They produce as much fruit as a full-grown one would in an orchard."

Luna trotted to the next window to the right, away from the egg-harvesting room. Wanting to give her sister the benefit of the doubt, Celestia held her tongue for the moment and followed her, gazing inside this window. Within, she saw something surprising. There was wheat everywhere. It was growing on every patch of available floor space, but was also growing from the walls, from between the aisles, and even from the ceiling.

"And here you can see one of our wheat rooms. All available space is put to use, growing the finest wheat without taking up so much space in fields."

Celestia paused as she continued to gaze at the 'wheat room'. Not only was wheat growing sideways and upside-down, but it was also growing more clustered and close together without any noticeable ill effects. "It's…" Celestia spoke slowly, "It's impressive, sister." She wasn't lying. What she saw in this room and also in the 'fruit room' had definitely impressed her.

"But what's going on in here?" she said, quickly trotting back to the window of the egg-harvesting room. "What are you doing to these poor chickens?!"

Luna followed her calmly. "That room is for harvesting eggs," she said, as if Celestia hadn't picked up on that already, "Protein is extremely important for pony nutrition, sister, and so eggs are a valuable commodity."

Celestia stared at her sister, completely dumbfounded. "But…But…"

"Just like any other food," Luna continued, "we have developed a streamlined and efficient way to produce and harvest it so that we can feed the entire populace, while also keeping space usage to a minimum."

Celestia turned back to the window, gazing in at all the scruffy chickens stuffed into their tiny cages. "But, Luna…! These…These are battery cages!"

"Yes they are," Luna confirmed flatly.

"Luna!" Celestia cried, indignant, "I outlawed battery cages centuri-" She stopped herself. "I outlawed battery cages when you were still tiny!!"

Luna nodded slowly. "Times have changed, Celestia. A larger population requires new practices and different ways of thinking."

"But those chickens! They're all stuffed into tiny cages! There's not enough room…! They're…"

"Celestia…"

"Luna, this isn't right! This is animal cruelty!!"

"Celestia," Luna said a little more loudly, recapturing her sister's attention, "I'm sure you have many questions about what you've seen and experienced today, and I will be happy to answer any of them for you. However, this is not a suitable place for a conversation. Dinner has been prepared back at the royal residence, and I will answer your questions there."

Celestia stared at her sister for a moment. "But…" she said, turning away and beginning to trot towards the next window to the left. "Luna! You can't be-"

"Please, Celestia," Luna said, stepping before her, "It's going to get dark soon and I'm sure you don't want to have a long conversation in the cold and the dark."

"But…"

Celestia gazed up at her taller sister. Luna was gazing down at her with an imploring, yet caring and genuine expression. Despite the growing distrust she was beginning to feel, there was still that undeniable sense of comfort she got whenever she gazed into her sister's eyes.

"I can promise you this, Celestia," Luna spoke, "We never harm the hens. We never kill them. We're not monsters, sister."

"I…I know you're not…" Celestia murmured. She glanced around for a moment before finally saying, "All right, Luna. Let's go eat dinner."

Luna smiled. "Thank you, sister. I know this is all strange and frightening to you, but I hope I can ease some of your confusion. Come stand next to me."

Celestia complied, and gazed up as Luna lit up her horn. She waited for a moment while a brilliant blue glow began to surround the two of them. She felt the magical energy around them growing and growing until finally there was a bright flash. When she opened her eyes, she found that they were standing outside of Luna's residence.

"Follow me," Luna said.

Celestia silently followed as Luna opened the large, main doors of the building and led her down a couple of hallways. A few minutes later, they found themselves in a moderately-sized room with a small, chrome table in the center. It was large enough to fit four ponies at maximum. Luna sat herself down at one end of the table and Celestia sat down opposite her.

She waited for a moment, expecting servants or waiters to come and deliver them some food. Then, she noticed Luna was once again utilizing her scouter. A few moments later, part of the top of the table shimmered away and a new section rose up. Spread out on it was a modest arrangement of foods including fruits, vegetables and breads.

"Wow…" Celestia murmured, impressed, "These chrome things…The walls, the doors, this table…Do they run on magic or some other form of power?"

Luna flashed her a proud grin. "Everything in this city, and almost every city in Equestria, is powered by the same, renewable energy source. They are all powered by silvite."

"Silvite…?" Celestia repeated the word, "And…what is that?"

"It's fairly complicated to explain," Luna replied, "I won't bore you with the details. The most basic explanation is that it mimics magic, but acts like electricity. It can be used to power almost anything, and it can be produced in mass quantity."

"I see…"

Luna gazed down at the food with an appetizing grin on her face. "Ah, the cooks never fail to deliver an excellent meal. Well, feel free to dig in, sister."

"Thank you," Celestia replied flatly, reaching down with her magic to pick up a fork and use it to skewer some lettuce leaves. A few moments of awkward silence passed as each ate a few bites of food. Celestia gazed at her sister, a mix of emotions flowing through her mind.

"Luna," she said, finally, "The factory. You're going to have to give me some explanations."

Luna, food halfway to her mouth, set her fork down and sighed. "It is necessary, Celestia."

"What is?" Celestia shot back, suddenly feeling indignant, "The torture of those poor animals?"

Luna appeared as if she'd been struck. "Celestia, we don't torture them."

"That's not what I saw!"

Luna turned her glance away, "We keep them in cages, yes, but we feed them and we keep them warm. When they get sick, we treat them. When they get old and no longer produce eggs, we set them free instead of euthanizing them."

"Luna," Celestia said in a low tone, "If you had done this during my reign, then you would have broken countless animal rights laws and sent many activists into a frenzied rage."

Her sister turned back and stared at her. "During your reign, sister, you did not have to care for a population of 25 million." She paused, and then continued, "And that is not something atypical, sister. Most, if not all, cities in Equestria today have a population of at least five million."

"That doesn't-"

"Our population has grown far beyond what it once was and, as such, our needs and practices have adapted."

Celestia was silent as she stared at her sister. Her temper was still boiling within her, but she found herself unsure of what to say next. "Luna…" she spoke slowly, "What I saw through that window was horrid. Those chickens all looked so sad and miserable. They deserve better than to be treated as egg-making machines."

Luna stared at her evenly. "Celestia," she replied, "they're only chickens."

A moment of poignant silence passed. Celestia was floored. "Wh…'Only chickens'?? What's that supposed to mean?"

Luna sighed again. "They're chickens, Celestia. They're not highly-intelligent beings. They're not cognisant like we are. The nutritional needs of the residents of our cities are more important than the luxurious life of a mere chicken."

Celestia stared, utterly shocked at what she was hearing.

"We give the chickens everything they need in life. They eat, they mate, and they die. We don't hurt them, we don't kill them, in fact we care for them. So, I'm afraid I don't see what the problem is."

"But…Luna…"

"But what, Celestia?"

"You can't…" She trailed off, unsure of what to say. Already, she could see that her argument was getting her nowhere. Luna's claims sounded justified enough, and it seemed true that these ponies weren't doing anything terrible. "It's just…It feels wrong."

Luna merely closed her eyes and took a sip of tea. "It's necessary."

Celestia frowned. "But surely, Luna…" she continued, still a little steamed, "There must be a better way to get eggs for the populace."

Luna glanced at her. "And what better way would that be? I repeat myself, Celestia, that we must feed 25 million ponies. In the same way we grow enough fruits, vegetables and grains, we must also supply ourselves with enough eggs." She then used her magic to pick up some sort of box from the table and held it up. Celestia saw that it was marked with the same star symbol that had been on the side of the factory. From inside it, she levitated out a hard-boiled egg.

"Though we strive for perfection, dear sister," Luna continued, "The best of us realize that not everything can be perfect. An entirely flawless world is something that exists only in fantasy."

Celestia stared at her calm, collected sister, trying to control the indignation she felt inside of her. "How can you be sure," she spoke, "that your practises are clean? Can you be entirely sure that no chickens are ever harmed or killed?"

"Of course," Luna spoke idly while peeling the shell off of her egg, "Ponies assigned to the egg harvesting room are well versed in animal care, and all areas of the factory are recorded and monitored. Those assigned to surveillance immediately alert the proper authorities if any mistreatment is being performed."

A light bulb suddenly illuminated in Celestia's mind. "And what's this I hear about ponies being assigned jobs because of their cutie marks??" she asked, direct and to the point, "Some locals told me that a pony gets a job for life as soon as their get their cutie mark!"

Luna nodded. "Indeed, Celestia. This practice has been in place for almost a millennium."

"You can't be serious, Luna!"

Luna gave her a confused look. "I am quite serious, Celestia. It only makes sense. A pony's cutie mark determines what they're best at, so it only makes sense that they utilize these skills to aid the rest of society."

"A pony should not be controlled by their cutie mark!!" Celestia hotly retorted, "They should be free to pursue whatever interests make them happiest! What happened to freedom of choice? What about individuality?" Something else clicked for her. "What happened to names?!"

In response to this, Luna gazed upwards in reflection. "Ah, yes…I remember when everypony had a name. To be honest, it got pretty confusing with the growing population, and especially when we were trying to program the first scouters. We gave everypony their own, unique ID and, soon, names just sort of died away."

There was silence for a moment. "It's really not a big deal," Luna spoke. When she heard no response, she gazed back down at her sister. "Celestia?"

The alicorn at the other end of the table was shivering. Celestia had a look upon her face that was a strange mix of anger and intense sadness. She was gazing imploringly at Luna, a slowly diminishing fire dancing behind her eyes. "What…What happened to this place…?"

"I…I don't understand, sister. What's the matter?"

"How did it all come to this, Luna?" Celestia spoke with a quivering voice, "What happened?"

Luna closed her eyes and heaved a sigh. "Time. Time happened, Celestia. Years and years and years passed by. Some things were simply…left behind."

Celestia merely stared at her food, her appetite completely gone.

"Are you…really this upset by what you've seen?" Luna asked in a tender, caring voice.

Celestia gazed up sadly and nodded her head softly.

"I thought you'd be proud, sister!" Luna said, "I thought you'd find all of our successes and major advancements wonderful and amazing!"

"I…" Celestia resumed staring down at her food, "I just don't know any more, Luna…"

A moment of silence passed.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Celestia." Luna spoke quietly.

More silence passed.

Celestia didn't know what to think. She didn't know how to feel. She couldn't deny the amazing things she'd seen, and spectacular leaps forward in technology that were out on display, nor could she not see the proud way Luna spoke of her accomplishments. Still, though, she could only find what she'd seen unnerving and wrong.

"Why can't you build farms?"

"Hm?"

Celestia gazed up at her sister, the sadness gone from her eyes for the moment. "Why can't you build big chicken farms? I looked around the city. There seems to be plenty of unused land for miles in most directions. Why not clear away an area for a chicken farm?"

She frowned at Luna. The destruction of forests was not something she particularly enjoyed, but she was not so blind as to see that it was necessary in some cases. So long as it was done in a smart, controlled way, there was no real harm to be done.

Luna merely shook her head. "Those aren't trees, Celestia."

Celestia's brain stalled for a moment. "Er…What?"

"There's a few collections of real trees out there, blended in with the rest, but most of them merely look like trees."

The shorter alicorn gazed across the table with an infinitely perplexed look. "Those aren't trees?? I ran through those woods. They looked like trees to me. What are they then?"

"Temperature control."

Celestia blinked. "What?"

Luna gazed at her, and an expression of sadness slowly found its way to her face. She gave a painful sigh. "Sister," she spoke forlornly, "You have not tried to move the sun since before the war with the griffons, correct?"

Celestia's eyes widened. The sun!! It had completely slipped her mind. After spending so much time during the reign of the griffons without the use of her magic, she had somehow forgotten that she could once again move the sun.

Then, she stared at Luna. The way she had suddenly brought this up was setting off alarm bells in her mind. "Wh…Why?" she asked slowly, her heart beginning to beat fast.

Her sister gazed away. "It…is better if you find out for yourself."

Celestia's heart sank, simply from those words alone. Find out what?? Was something wrong?! Her pulse was racing fast. Apprehension of the unknown was quickly overcoming her as she tried desperately to figure out what Luna wasn't telling her.

Her gaze drifted to the left, out an open window and to the starry sky outside. She gulped, knowing there was only one way to find out. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and channelled powerful, familiar arcane magic through her horn and out into the heavens. After a short moment of searching, she found her sun.

A moment later, Celestia lay screaming on the floor. She had her forehooves clamped to the sides of her head and her eyes clenched shut. Luna had quickly gotten up and was now at her side, but she couldn't hear her sister's words. She simply screamed, a horrible sound like a banshee's cry filling the room.

She had hardly even recognized her sun. It was so angry and in so much pain. Its fires raged and burned like the flames of tartarus, wild and uncontrolled. The incredible heat it gave off actually began eking into her horn, giving her a searing pain in her forehead. Her sun had aged so rapidly that it was now something incredibly unfamiliar to her. No longer was it her baby; no longer was it her cherished star that gave gentle light and warmth. Now, it resembled a ball of fiery chaos.

Worse so, the sun didn't seem to recognize her. She had nearly been blown away after her initial magical contact, and it was a struggle to remain connected even for a few seconds. She could feel it violently pushing her away and struggling against her. Only a moment had passed before she could hold on no longer.

Now Celestia lay, shivering and writhing on the floor. Luna was shouting at her and shaking her with her hooves, but she could only hear her own screams. That was not her sun. That was not her sun! That was an abomination. That was a wretched, dangerous body of destruction.

And yet, she knew she couldn't lie to herself. That had indeed been her sun.

"Celestia! Please, stop!" she finally heard Luna's say, "Please! It's okay, sister! It's all right."

Her screams began to die down until eventually she was just moaning. She stared up, shivering, and gazed into her sister's concerned eyes.

"Are you all right, Celestia? Do you require medical aid?"

For a moment, Celestia could do no more than moan. She weakly reached up one of her hooves towards her sister, and Luna took it in her own. The taller alicorn continued to gaze down at her with concern in her eyes. No, Celestia realized, That isn't concern. It's fear.

"Celestia…" Luna murmured, "Please speak to me. Tell me you're okay."

"Wh…" Celestia spoke between panting breaths, "What…was that?!"

Luna frowned heavily. "I guess it was quite a shock…"

"What…What happened…to my…my baby…?"

"The same thing that's been happening since we lost you, sister," Luna spoke, "The sun won't accept a new master. It's being forced through the sky…and it's dying."

Celestia's shivers intensified and she felt the urge to scream again, but she fought it off.

"I've gained much better control over it," Luna continued, "It's no longer a struggle to get it to rise and set…" She paused. "But I can still feel its resistance. The sun needs you, and it won't accept me. It's been getting worse and worse over the many, many years…"

Tears were now rolling down Celestia's cheeks. She was shivering as Luna took her hooves and helped her up into a sitting position. "My…My sun…" she murmured, "My baby…"

"I'm really sorry, Celestia, but there was nothing any of us could do."

"I…I…" She couldn't stop shivering. She couldn't stop her tears. In the back of her mind, there was a small voice trying to remind her that it wasn't her fault and that there was nothing she could've done. However, the memory of what her sun had become was overpowering it. She felt that she couldn't handle it.

"As the sun continued to deteriorate," Luna spoke in a simple, professional tone, "it became more volatile and global temperatures continued to rise dramatically. It was recognized early on that many life forms, including ponies', would be severely threatened if the temperature got any worse. And so, temperature control units were designed and placed around Equestria in key places. As time went on, though, more and more were needed. Thus, we not have the 'forest' that you see surrounding our city. The devices not only regulate temperature to a liveable degree, but they also produce oxygen."

Celestia took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. It barely helped. "The…The trees…are keeping you…alive?"

Luna nodded sombrely. 

"Wow…" Her heart was beginning to slow down, but tears were still flowing from her eyes. A heavy, gloomy cloud still hung over her.

"You can see now, surely, why space efficiency is so important to us," Luna continued, "If we don't use our land properly, we won't have enough room for all the necessary temperature control units."

"I…I see…" She tried to push the thought of her dying sun out of her mind, but all she could think about instead was the chickens in the factory. She now understood the reasoning behind such a cruel practice, but she still found herself unable to condone it.

"The world has changed," Luna spoke, "and we have adapted."

A moment of silence passed as the two ponies gazed at one another. Finally, Celestia gave a small nod of her head.

"I'm sorry about your sun, Celestia," Luna said in a caring voice, "I…did my best."

"N-no…It's…As long as you did your best, Luna, I-" Celestia choked up, unable to speak further. 

The room was filled with a shrill beep, causing both ponies' ears to spring up. Luna quickly gazed at her scouter, moving through a few menus and interfaces. After a moment, she sighed. "I'm needed," she said once again, "It looks like you could use some time alone, anyway."

Celestia again nodded slowly.

"Good," Luna said, offering a small smile as she stood up, "I'll try not to be long. We'll talk again later, okay?"

"O-okay…" As she sat crying, staring up at the taller alicorn, who was giving her a kind, caring smile, she was overcome with an incredibly strange feeling. She felt like she was the younger one, looking up at her big sister. Throughout nearly her entire life, Celestia had not known anypony older than her. Sitting here now, gazing up meekly with tears in her eyes, she wondered if this was how Luna used to feel sometimes.

"I'll see you later, Celestia," Luna said before quickly turning around and trotting off.

"G'bye…" Celestia murmured as her sister disappeared through the door. When it closed, she found herself completely alone in the silent room. She sniffled and gazed at her surroundings. Luna was gone now; she'd need to deal with her problems on her own.

She gave a painful sigh that ached in her heart and got to her hooves. She trotted back to the table, where the food still remained. Using her magic, she picked up a few apple slices and began to eat them. The apples tasted absolutely wonderful. They were so sweet and juicy, she immediately craved more.

As she ate, a torrent of thoughts were moving through her mind. She tried to ignore any thoughts about her sun. She knew that they would just make her incredibly upset, and tried to tell herself that she simply had to accept what had happened. There was nothing she could've done, and there was nothing she could do now.

Picking up some chocolate-chip cookies with her magic, she again began to think of the food factory. With large, free-range farms out of the question, she began to realize that there really weren't a lot of other options. Making any more room for the chickens would require the factory to have more space available, and that meant the loss of the surrounding 'trees'.

She sighed, gazing at the cookie she ate. Food seemed plentiful and it all tasted spectacular, but was it really worth it? Eggs are an incredibly important part of a pony's diet and cannot be given up. However, she couldn't help but feel for the poor chickens. Nopony could deny that they looked incredibly miserable in their tiny cages.

Pouring herself a glass of milk, she sighed again. Maybe Luna was right. At this point, it may be more important to serve the needs of the ponies first. They were chickens after all. They couldn't talk and they couldn't think very well. They had much smaller brains when compared to ponies. Thinking this way made her feel like an incredibly cruel individual, but perhaps she had to adjust her way of thinking.

Her train of thought was momentarily sidetracked as she put down her now-empty glass. The milk here was incredibly delicious! She couldn't recall ever having milk that tasted this fresh. Curious, she picked up the carton and looked at it.

The carton fell to the floor, spilling its contents everywhere. A shivering, frightened Celestia was slowly backing away from it. All of the colour had drained from her face. Eyes wide and filled with terror, she was subtly shaking her head. 

She kept her eyes fixated on the milk carton as she continued to back away, as if it were a wild animal that would attack her. Her breathing became quicker and more frenzied and her panic level slowly rose. She scrambled her hooves, nearly tripping over her metallic one. "No…"

Celestia turned and ran, only barely managing to use her scouter to open the door in time. It closed behind her, leaving behind the carton laying in a pool of spilled milk. Pictured on the side of the carton was a symbol of a star inside of a circle.



***



Celestia didn't know where she was. She didn't know what she was doing or where she was going. All she knew was that there were big silver blocks on every side. She was putting all of her efforts into trying to remain calm, and wasn't having much luck.

She had been wandering aimlessly like this for a couple of hours, horrible images assaulting her mind. The sun had long since disappeared and the sparkling night sky was overhead. The city streets were lit up, though Celestia couldn't see any source of light. It made her shiver.

The city had been empty for the most part, though she had seen the occasional pony walking about. They all waved to her enthusiastically, but she pretty much completely ignored them. At least this city doesn't have a curfew!!

Presently, she found herself in an area that was no more distinguishable than any other area. She sat down off to the side of the road, staring off at nothing. Despite the relatively warm temperature, she could not stop shivering. 

What happened…? What's going on with this place? Why…is everything like this…?

She couldn't handle it. She honestly could not handle it. The terrifying thoughts and memories that consumed her mind would not allow her to relax. Though she tried to focus on the positives, she couldn't stop thinking about how horrible this city was. 

And her sister was running it. Luna was behind this city, pushing it forward and making every decision. She had tried to justify her actions, and Celestia couldn't help but see the sound logic behind them. Still, however, she just couldn't handle it.

A breeze drifted by, causing her to shiver further. She heard a low hum surrounding her, and she heard some ponies talking not too far away. The city was dormant, yet it was still very much alive. It was alive, but what kind of life was this? It was a terrible, forceful life that fed off the misery of animals.

It didn't seem all that terrible, at least not at first glance, but Celestia had caught a glimpse of what lie within.

She heard ponies' voices again, drawing nearer to her. Her ears perked up as they became louder and more comprehensible. 

"Do I…really have to?" a young-sounding voice spoke. It was quivering and feeble, as if the pony speaking were crying.

"Move faster," an older voice spoke. It was not a harsh, commanding tone. Rather, it sounded calm and almost bored.

"But…But…" the first voice said.

"Stop panicking," a third voice said, "You are fully aware of our laws."

"B-but there must be something else I can do!" the first voice was pleading, "Anything!! Anything else!"

"Be quiet. You're going to wake everypony."

The voices had drifted past Celestia, and were now moving away. Already on her hooves, she strained to hear more but could not. Confusion, curiosity, and panic were all battling each other inside of her head for dominance. She took a few steps towards where the voices had gone. Just what was that?!

It sounded like somepony was in trouble and needed help! That young voice was crying and scared. Was somepony being kidnapped? Were they being forced to do something horrible? Having already seen frightening things in this city, her mind didn't hesitate to jump to the worst possible scenarios. 

On the other hoof, however, one of the other voices had said 'You are fully aware of our laws'. Were they perhaps policeponies? Was this some criminal they were escorting away? 

Quickly, she began to trot in the direction the voices had gone. She had absolutely no idea of what was going on, and knew that it could very possibly be something completely benign. However, she couldn't shake an eerie feeling that something bad was happening and was determined to do whatever she could to help if such were the case. After everything else she had seen in this city, she had absolutely no idea what to expect.

She tried to listen for more voices, but they had stopped talking. Quickly, she found herself turned around amongst the identical-looking houses. Cursing under her breath, she came to a stop and closed her eyes, slowly swivelling her ears. She heard hoofsteps, but they were coming from multiple directions from different ponies. She tried to remain calm and continued to listen.

Her ears perked up as she picked up the faint sound of the young pony sniffling. Without missing a beat, she was off cantering in the direction it had come from. Lawful or not, somepony was crying. She knew, somehow, that she had to help.

She followed a couple of streets, traveling in the same general direction. She focused her ears and followed a set of clopping hooves that she was sure belonged to her targets. Still, however, she could not catch sight of them. For a long while, they remained elusive from her vision.

After passing a few more houses, she found herself at the edge of the city. Not far from the street she was standing on, a huge vista of trees spread out before her. To her left slightly, there was a small, grassy hill. Her eyes were drawn to it because there was a noticeably large silver pipe leading away from the city and up it. It was nearly twice the size of the one she had tripped over earlier.

At the top of the hill, and at the terminus of the pipe, was a large, cubic building. Visually, it was identical to any other of the cubic houses. What set it apart the most was its size. It was perhaps only slightly smaller than Luna's residence. The large pipe fed into the side of it, leading directly into the wall facing the city.

At the front of this large building that was separated from the rest, she saw three ponies. Two she didn't know, but the third pony, who was being restrained by both of them, she recognized immediately. The sight made her  gasp. It was the young colt she had given a ride to only a few hours ago.

The ponies escorting him were standing before the building, as if waiting for a door to open. They were unicorns, and they were using their magic to carry the colt along through the air, rendering him completely helpless. They also had a large mark of some sort printed on the side of their jumpsuits.

Celestia focused her vision. She saw that the colt was crying hysterically and was struggling against his magical bonds. Her eyes widened when she noticed that the colt now had a cutie mark. Adorning his flank was an image of a bushel of carrots.

While she was studying them with a look of utter confusion on her face, the door opened before them. It took a moment for her brain to click and she raised a hoof and called out to them, but by that time they had already disappeared inside of the building. 

"Damnit…" Celestia quickly cantered across the street and made her way up the hill. Once she was at the building's entrance, she activated her scouter and focused her vision on the door area. For some reason, she expected that she would be denied entry. However, she was pleasantly surprised when the doorway shimmered into appearance and granted her access. 

She stepped through the doorway and glanced around. She found herself in an incredibly simplistic room with not much more than a desk and a doorway to the side. She blinked as she noticed that it was an actual, physical doorway, though it lacked handles of any sort. Also occupying this room was the large silver pipe, which entered through one wall and disappeared through another. Seeing nothing more of interest, and certainly not seeing her young colt friend, she used her scouter to open the door on the opposite side and stepped through it.

Now, she found herself in what appeared to be a thin hallway. The only thing inside of this room, besides a door at each end, was an expansive window occupying the wall to her left. As she trotted through the room, she turned and gazed through the huge window, looking at the large room that lay beyond. In it, the large silver pipe fit into a few mechanical devices, mechanisms and gauges. The room seemed to be designed to monitor whatever was inside of it.

Inside the next room, she found an exact duplicate of the previous room. Through this large window, however, she saw something different. Her eyes grew wide and she slowed down for a moment to gaze at it. What she saw was a huge vat filled with a silvery liquid of some sort. It was approximately three quarters full, and nearly reached the roof. A silver pipe led from it into the room she had just previously seen. At the top, there was another pipe feeding silver liquid into the vat.

For a moment, she found herself pondering just what was going on here. The only thing she could discern was that this room was used to store a large quantity of…whatever this stuff was. Then, however, she remembered what she was doing here in the first place and stepped through the next doorway.

Again, she found herself in an identical room. She was beginning to realize that what she was walking through was probably some sort of viewing tour for the building. Each room showed off a different part of the facility's mechanics, and she was seeing the process in reverse. This window, however, made her stop completely. She stared through the large window with wonder in her eyes.

Before being stored in the vat in the next room, the silver liquid was being fed through some sort of translucent sphere. It was growing quite brightly, and the liquid seemed to sparkle and shimmer while inside of it. Squinting her eyes and looking closer, she saw that it appeared to be floating too. Her eyes trailed to the right and she noticed that the liquid wasn't silver before it entered the sphere. It was dull, gray and impure.

A bright orange flash caught her eyes, and she turned her gaze to what was behind the glowing sphere. She gasped as she saw that there was a huge, roaring fire burning back there. Above the flames, a conveyor belt was dumping something into it. She couldn't quite see what was on it, but it looked reddish-brown and gross. Putting the pieces together, she realized that it was an incinerator. "Wow…" she murmured, wondering if this was another factory of some kind.

Shaking her head, she refocused her mind on her mission. She had to help the little colt! That is, assuming he was in danger in the first place. Still, she was filled with incredible curiosity. Even if there was no danger, she very much wanted to know what was going on in this building. Moving quickly, she made her way through the next door.

Yet again, she was in an identical viewing room. As she moved through it, she gazed through the large window. She found herself slowing down once again, but for entirely different reasons.

The room was filled with pipes and conveyor belts, all carrying a multitude of materials. What was being fed in from the opposite side of the room was a single inflow on a conveyor belt. The lighting in the room was low, so it was difficult to see, but it definitely looked like something disgusting. It was mostly red, with hints of brown and yellow, but also contained specks and spots of gray here and there. Celestia was immediately repulsed by it, despite not having a clue what it was. 

The conveyor belt led into pipes and shaking pans, which separated the material onto numerous other different conveyor belts. She had to admit that she was impressed by the procedure. By the end of the room, all of the grey material was inside of one translucent pipe, while everything else was on one of two conveyor belts leading elsewhere. What began as a huge, disgusting, slimy lump ended up flawlessly separated. Though still disgusted, she was fascinated. 

She began to trot towards the doorway, having seen all that this separation room had to offer, but found herself slowing down and staring out the window again. Her gaze drifted to the gunk coming into the room. Just what was that stuff? It made her sick to her stomach simply from the sight of it, so she asked herself why she was still looking at it. It reminded her of dog food. It had a meaty appearance to it.

"This…slop comes in…" she murmured, "and by the end of the process, it's a bright, silver liquid?" She found herself amazed that something so beautiful could come out of something so crude, but couldn't stop wondering just what this stuff was that was coming in. She could feel a churning discomfort in the pit of her stomach, and wasn't quite sure why. She felt incredibly unnerved when she looked at this disgusting stuff, and again asked herself why she was still looking at it.

Then she remembered that the colt had been dragged in here against his will. Just what was that all about? Why did they want him here?

Her ears perked up as a very muffled cry drifted through the doorway. Scrambling on her hooves, she quickly threw open the door and dashed through. One more long room met her, though this one lacked a window. It was empty, so she paid it no mind and quickly ran towards the next door. As she crossed the room, her ears picked up another noise. It sounded like whirring machinery. She threw open the next door and stepped through, finding herself at the top of a metallic staircase, similar in appearance to a fire escape.

"-is nominal," she heard voices from below.

"Executing procedure."

She had entered the room from a high vantage point, and so she quickly scanned her surroundings. Below her, and at the bottom of the staircase, a moderately-sized group of ponies wearing white lab coats over their jumpsuits were stationed around buttons, levers and other such interfaces. They had just noticed her entry and were gazing up at her in confusion. She quickly picked out the two ponies that she had followed to get here.

"Princess!!"

Celestia followed the direction of the frightened cry and whipped her head to the left. Her eyes shot open wide and she gasped in shock at what she saw.

The young colt was suspended in the air, all four of his hooves shackled by study metal clasps. He was being held above a large, open tube that seemed to feed into the floor. There was a conveyor belt to his right and a strange, long metal thing to his left with a blunt claw at the end.



>>>



He was staring at her with a terrified expression, tears running down his cheeks. "Please…!" he called out in a desperate, pleading voice. Something moved behind him. Celestia raised her hooves up, over the railing, ready to dash to his aid. However, before she could even take off, a long metal prod-shaped thing moved up behind him and pushed itself into the back of his neck.

For a brief second, his face showed shock. Then, his head fell forward and his body fell limp. He hung there, lifelessly, as Celestia cried out in horror. She quickly vaulted herself over the railing and spread her wings. But even as she flew towards him, the metal claw also began to move.

"Is that Celestia?" she heard voices below her.

"Is she allowed to be here?"

"What's she doing?!"

Celestia propelled herself as fast as she could across the length of the room, but she wasn't fast enough. Before her eyes, the metal claw-like device moved to the front of the colt, whirred as something thin protruded out from it, and jammed straight into the torso of his lifeless body.

She reeled back and cried out in horror, covering her mouth with her hooves.

It took all of her focus to simply remain airborne while she stared in utter shock at the scene before her. The thin needle-like object began to draw out a thick, red substance, which was collected in the claw. After a few moments, a portion of the claw detached and dumped what it had collected onto the conveyor belt.

Celestia began to tremble. Her jaw hung open uselessly as she stared in horror at what this machine was doing to this poor young pony, who was now clearly dead. For a while, all she could see was murder and evisceration. Though she so desperately wanted to, she couldn't tear her eyes away.

Finally, she made the connection in her mind. This pony's…insides were being put onto the conveyor belt; the same conveyor belt, she realized, that delivered the 'slop' to the rest of the factory and was eventually turned into the silver liquid. Her stomach churned. The silver liquid…was ponies. 

Finally, she had to tear her eyes away. She forced herself to look at something else, and ended up looking at the ponies in white lab coats below her. They were all looking up at her in confusion, and some of them were still working the controls as if she weren't there. None of them looked shocked, apologetic, or even malicious. They all looked…so normal.

She heard a clicking sound and gazed back at the colt without thinking. She regretted it immediately. The claw had been retracted, leaving behind the sickening, raw image of what was left of the colt. Then, only a few seconds later, the clasps undid themselves, dropping the lifeless husk of the pony into the open tube below.

Celestia stared, horrified. Her blood ran cold and her stomach retched violently. She had just watched a young colt get murdered before her eyes…and then have his…his…

She couldn't even finish the thought. She began to tremble violently, and nearly plummeted to the ground. As she had entered the factory, she had seen so much silver liquid. That gigantic vat had almost been filled. All of that…was ponies!!

Her heart began to race. Her stomach turned on its head. She was going to be sick. Sweat poured all over her body and she found it hard to breathe. Her mind was rushing, with so many images flying at her and assaulting her. She was quickly overloaded. She began to hyperventilate.

She had to get out of there!

Celestia made an about-face and simply bolted towards the door. She was barely able to summon the mental capacity to use her scouter to open the doors that were in her way. She refused to look out the windows as she fled from this nightmarish building, hooves flying as she struggled to leave it all behind her.



<<<



Finally, she burst through the front door and into the cool air of the night. She panted raggedly, struggling to get precious air into her lungs. She nearly toppled over as she swayed on the grass, heaving painful breaths and moaning. Her vision was blurred as she made a few steps to the side before leaning down and depositing her dinner onto the lawn.

Groaning in pain, she took a few staggering steps down the hill. She felt dizzy and her stomach hurt. She could not get those horrifying images out of her head. Why? What had she just witnessed and why had it happened? What was going on?!

Celestia had truly never been more terrified in her life. 

As she stumbled her way to the bottom of the hill, trying desperately to block out the horrifying memory, she nearly tripped over the large silver pipe. Panicking at the sight now that she knew just what was inside of it, she backpedalled furiously, ending up seated on her rump and panting.

Her eyes followed the pipe as it led away from the factory and into the city. As it reached the houses, it began to diverge. A lot. Slowly getting to her hooves and gingerly approaching the city proper, she followed the many silver pipes as they spread out from this starting point and snaked their way across the city. A horrified look came to her when she began to notice that every single cubic house had a single, small silver pipe leading into it.

Recalling the pipe she had earlier tripped over, she trembled as she stared out across the strange city. The whole town seemed to be connected to a single source of this vile liquid. Her eyes widened as memories of something Luna had said resurfaced.

"Everything in this city, and almost every city in Equestria, is powered by the same, renewable energy source. They are all powered by silvite."

Her heart leapt into her throat and her blood ran cold. She felt like throwing up again, even though her stomach was now empty. An icy expression of pure horror filled her face as she stared out at the enormous network of silver pipes spreading out to the city's houses.

Silvite…

She couldn't breathe.

"Celestia!!"

The horrified princess whipped her head to the right, seeing her concerned sister galloping towards her. "Celestia, are you all right?" she was calling out, "You weren't at the-"

"Don't come any closer!!"

Luna came to a halt, a shocked and perplexed expression on her face, as Celestia quickly got to her hooves and backed a few steps away.

"Celestia…What's wrong?" 

Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest, and she was backing down from Luna like a frightened animal. "Luna?!" she exclaimed, "What in the fiery depths of Tatarus is going on here?!"

"What??" Luna appeared incredibly concerned about her wellbeing.

"They…They…" Celestia was panting so hard that is was difficult to form words, "They…killed him!! And…And there was so much…In the big tank…And…" A violent tremble overcame her before she shouted, "What are you doing in there?!" and pointed her hoof at the accursed factory.

Luna followed her hoof and then grimaced. "Oh…" she muttered, "You weren't supposed to see that… That scouter isn't supposed to let you-"

"This is what silvite is?!" Celestia exclaimed.

"Celestia," Luna took a step towards her, "I-"

"You're killing ponies!!" Celestia took two hasty steps back, "They took in that little colt and murdered him!! And…And then…" Celestia held a hoof to her mouth. She felt violently ill.

"Celestia! Are you all right?"

She shot Luna an incredulous look. "NO! I am not all right, I just saw a young pony who had just gotten his cutie mark get eviscerated before my eyes!!"

"Ah," Luna replied, "His cutie mark, you say? What was it?"

For what seemed like the millionth time that day, a gear slipped in Celestia's mind. "Er…" she fumbled, "It was…a bushel of carrots."

Luna nodded and said, "That explains it then."

Celestia's eye twitched. "WHAT?!"

"Please, sister," Luna said, taking a few slow steps forward, "let me explain."

The white alicorn was still trembling and shaking on her hooves, and felt so terrified that she was ready to simply bolt at a moment's notice. However, she tried to muster up enough bravery to at least hear her sister out.

Luna closed her eyes and spoke calmly. "Celestia, you're aware that when a pony gets their cutie mark, they are assigned a job." She paused and then said, "However, as you might imagine, such technological advancements as the ones we have achieved today have rendered many jobs, well…obsolete.

"As an example: carrot farming. All farming in general, really. As you've seen, all of our food is grown in automated, controlled environments. We no longer have a need for farmer ponies."

Celestia took another step back, horrified and sickened. "So…you just decide a pony is worthless and then mash them up into some gunky paste to power your…your…stuff?!"

"Celestia, as I'm sure you're well aware," Luna continued, "each and every pony on this planet has magical energy inside of them. Well, it was recently discovered that this magical force could be utilized as a form of energy. At first, we only obtained it from deceased ponies who had previously volunteered." Again, she paused. "However, our population grew, and so did our demands.

"But a single pony's magic can sustain a city for months, so luckily the need is not that large. We simply utilize a small portion of the population for the greater good, sister. It's-"

"That's sick!!" Celestia exclaimed. Luna started and gazed at her in concern. "You…You can't…" Celestia rambled, "You can't just decide that a pony is of no use to you and then murder them!!"

"Celestia-"

"That…that vat was so full! How many ponies have you killed?! How many in this year alone?! All those ponies…They had lives, Luna! They could've become something amazing, and instead you use them!!" She was trembling so viciously, her breath coming to her in short gasps. She stared at the other pony through tear-filled eyes, unable to see her sister and instead seeing a horrible monster.

"Celestia, you haven't been around. We used to use different sources of energy that weren't renewable. They were hurting our planet and polluting the air. Silvite is perfect, you see. It doesn't pollute, it doesn't cause any harm, even if there's a spill, and it's incredibly efficient. We can get so much of it for such a small price."

The trembling princess couldn't believe what she was hearing. All she could force herself to do was to continue backing away slowly.

"And Celestia, you shouldn't concern yourself. The parents of the pony that's converted received a substantial sum of money as compensation, and they're permitted to have another child."

Celestia couldn't breathe. She was losing control of herself. She couldn't take it. She couldn't handle this. She couldn't handle the words this pony was speaking. She came dangerously close to just shutting down.

"Celestia…?" Luna spoke in a slow, soothing voice, "Please, come with me. You don't look well."

"Luna…" Her voice was trembling. "I am truly…horrified at what I have seen today. Everything here is just…awful."

The tall, blue alicorn had a hurt look upon her face. She wore a heavy frown and had her ears splayed.

"It's awful!!" Celestia began to shout, "It's horrible!! Everything is so wrong, Luna! You must see it! What in the world has happened to our beautiful, happy country? I…" She paused and took a few shuddering breaths. "I almost think it would be better if the Griffons took over again!"

Though she had been frowning before, Luna did not seem very affected by this last bold claim. "Oh," she said calmly, "Well, there's no chance of that…" She gave her a small, half-smile.

"What do you mean?"

"The griffons are extinct, Celestia. As I told you; we rose up against them and defeated them. Now, there are none left, so you don't need to worry."

Silence filled the air. A frozen look of horror occupied Celestia's face as she stared at this pony. She shuddered. She trembled. For a few moments, she didn't even breathe.

Genocide…Her sister had committed genocide. And, what's worse was how she had spoke of it so calmly.

It was wrong. It was all so wrong!! Everything was backwards! This was a living nightmare! As her breath returned to her, it quickly rose to a fevered pitch. Her mind ran rampant, and soon it was moving too fast for her to even comprehend it. She was going to be sick again. Everything hurt. Everything was wrong!

It was all wrong!!

Dear heavens, make it stop!!

"Celestia??" Luna spoke, sounding very worried. She began to approach her distraught sister.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!!" Celestia exclaimed, catching Luna off guard. She quickly scrambled back, breathing harsh, ragged breaths and staring at this pony. Staring at this monster.

Luna appeared as if she'd been stabbed through the heart. "Celestia…?"

Tears were flying from Celestia's eyes, but she barely noticed them. "You stay away from me!!" she continued to shout in a crazed voice, "You monster! You filthy monster!!"

"Celestia, please!" Luna pleaded, "You're not well. Come with-"

"You- You abuse animals and you take away ponies' individuality! You take away what makes them them! And…And then you kill them!!" 

She was quickly beginning to hyperventilate. Her vision began to blur and mix together into a devilish inferno of the nightmare that was surrounding her. It was closing in on her, consuming her. Everywhere she looked, she saw blank faces, heartless robots, and dead colts. The silvite was everywhere. She was walking amidst a cesspool of death.

"Celestia!"

In the midst of her panic, she hadn't noticed Luna walk up and stand directly in front of her. Blinking her eyes and clearing her vision, she saw the blue pony standing over her. She screamed in panic and lashed out with her hooves, connecting her metallic one against Luna's chest. She scrambled at the ground, trying to put distance between her and the monster.

"Don't come near me!!" she cried out in sheer terror.

Luna was holding a hoof to where she had been struck, staring at her sister in disbelief.

"You're not my sister!!" Celestia exclaimed. "You're not my sister! You're not my sister! You're not Luna!!"

The other pony couldn't talk. She could only stare in silent shock.

The nightmarish images were already crowding in around her again. The buildings were moving. They were turning into silvite and cascading over her. Drowning her. Dragging her down in to the depths of death. She screamed. She screamed many times. Somepony was calling her name, but they couldn't save her.

She tried to escape. She had to run!!

Her hooves connected with the ground and she took off running as fast as she could, trying to leave Tartarus behind her. She didn't dare look back. She might've heard somepony calling after her, but she didn't pay them any heed. She just had to run.

She left the streets of that vile city behind her and ran as fast as her hooves could carry her. She ran and ran and ran, only barely focusing on what was in front of her. Things whipped past and her hooves began to ache. The night wore on, darkening the landscape and making everything appear even more sinister. Her legs were dying. They were in incredible pain. She had no idea how long she'd been running. Hours?

She'd tripped and fallen four times now, but each time she simply got back on her hooves as fast as possible and continued fleeing. Bloodshot terror was in her eyes as she gasped desperately for air. Her stamina was quickly being depleted but she continued to push herself. There were no words. Her mind was overrun with horrifying images of everything she'd seen, and she wanted to get as far away from those monsters as possible.

Finally, miles and miles into the middle of nowhere, her strength finally gave out and she could run no more. Her vision swam as she frantically tried to catch her breath. Her heart was hammering painfully in her chest as she struggled simply to stand up. As she took deep, agonizing breaths, she swept her eyes across her nearby surroundings.

She was mostly surrounded by trees. Yet another spike hammered itself into her brain as she reminded herself that these were not trees. Her shivering intensified and her panic grew even more. She was losing the ability to breathe and stand. 

She caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a small rocky overhang to her right. It was like a small, shallow cave with a sturdy rock roof. She dove for it, frantically squeezing herself inside.

Finally, surrounded by earth and cut off from the outside world as much as possible, she lay down and tried to relax. She kept her eyes away from the opening of her shelter.

Calm. Calm down! This is safe! You're safe here!

Her breath came sporadically. Her trembling was worse than before. Every part of her body hurt and her mind was going wild and frantic. Her eyes darted around rapidly at the stone walls. She tried to calm herself by focusing on the composure of the dirt and the interesting shapes and lines it made. Instead, she caught a glimpse of her metallic hoof, drawing out a painful moan and sending her even further in the wrong direction.

This wasn't working!! She couldn't escape it! Everything was closing in on her!! Those horrible, horrible ponies were coming for her! They were going to take her back and kill her! They were going to use her body to power their electronics!!

Celestia let out a desperate, choking cry. She was fighting a losing battle. Her panic was growing, her shivers were intensifying, and breathing was becoming more and more difficult. Her sanity was slipping away. She was quickly losing her mind.

"No!!!" she exclaimed, "No no no no no!!! NO MORE!!!" She dug at the ground and thrashed around violently. "No more!" she shouted to the heavens, "I don't want to see any more!!" More memories of New Canterlot assaulted her, driving her to shout, "LEAVE ME ALONE!!"

She shut her eyes and held her hooves over her head. Princess Celestia knew what she wanted. She wanted sleep. The tired pony desired only to fall asleep once again, and this time she didn't want to wake up. 

If this was the direction that Equestria was headed in, then she no longer wanted to see what the future held. She didn't want to see any more ponies, she didn't want to see any more of the land…

…and she didn't want to see Luna.

The sun rose, and she lay there waiting. The sun set, and still she waited. She continued to shiver in her tiny safe haven.

Hurry up…Take me away…

A battered, weary, broken pony lay still under a rocky overhang.

Put me to sleep…

She did not move a muscle.

…and don't let me wake…

The sun began to rise on her unmoving form. Her chest rose and fell rhythmically, and her eyes were shut. No tremors, no heavy breathing, no panic.

Silence filled the air…



***



Celestia's eyes blearily fluttered open. She gave a quiet, emotional moan, her turmoil still fresh in her mind. She was waking up from a sleep she couldn't even recall having fallen into.

Where was she? When was she? Had she left the terrifying world of 8998 behind? Was she somewhere even worse now? She had wanted to sleep forever, though it appeared that the universe had other plans laid out for her.

She didn't want to get up. She just wanted to lay there until she fell asleep again and continue to stay that way forever. However, unusual sounds were reading her ears and odd colours appeared before her blurred vision.

And, above all, it was incredibly hot.

Groaning and resigning to her own damned curiosity, she slowly began to pick herself up into a sitting position. Her head was spinning and she was having difficulty focusing her vision. Once she was sitting up, she rubbed her eyes with her good forehoof and blinked them multiple times to clear away the fogginess.

When her fatigued mind finally allowed her to see what lay beyond, she fell completely silent. She couldn't say anything, she couldn't gasp, and she couldn't cry. She could barely move a muscle in her body. It felt like her entire being had been frozen in ice, despite the intense heat.

Spread out before her was a flat, endless expanse composed entirely of dry, cracked earth. There wasn't a single thing in sight. Her entire field of vision, from where she sat until the horizon, was empty and void. There were no hills or valleys, there was no water, and not a single sign of plant life or civilization. There was just…nothing.

Above the horizon, the sky burned a brilliant orange colour. The reason for this was not difficult to see. Hanging in the sky just off to her left was the sun. It burned like a fiery inferno in the sky, ten times as large as it had been before in an angry reddish-orange.

Celestia turned her head to the left, following the horizon. Still there was nothing here. As far as she could see, there was nothing left.

There was a heavy lump in the pit of her stomach and she was, again, finding it hard to breathe, which had nothing to do with the heat. A tremble overcame her as she tried to accept what she was seeing. Tears came to her eyes, and they flowed silently down her face. 

This was it. This was the end. She had reached the end of the world.
> Phase 11
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phase 11

This was a moment that Celestia was not prepared for. She had never, ever put more than a passing thought into the end of her beautiful little planet. It had seemed so far off, thousands and even millions of years away. Truly, without any idea of what to expect, she hadn't even been sure if she'd still be alive by this point.

Yet, here she sat, gazing at the lifeless scorched planet with a volatile, dying sun above. It was painfully hot, and she was sure that if she hadn't been an immortal alicorn, then she surely would've perished. She found that she didn't quite know how to react. She couldn't think of anything to say, and barely had any poignant thoughts in her mind. The only show of emotion she could muster were the tears flowing down her face.

She looked around in silence for a few more moments. She breathed slowly and evenly, taking in the dead expanse around her and trying to process what she was seeing. Looking down for a moment, she saw that she was sitting in a capsule, much like the ones she had woken up in so many times. However, the glass was shattered and the entire thing was burned and broken. It appeared like a relic from an old world, dragged through the sands of time.

Finally, staring straight ahead, she heaved a cold sigh, her body trembling. This is really it… she thought, her mind finally opening up to her situation, Everything's gone… Equestria is gone, the planet is gone, and…my baby will be gone soon… She punctuated her thought with a glance upwards at the violent red sphere looming above. 

She hiccupped, a fresh torrent of painful tears flowing from her eyes. My…My home… She sobbed a few times, bringing both her real and her metal hoof up to hug herself. It's…It's all gone…

Celestia had gone through a wild journey filled with such emotional turmoil, but nothing compared to this moment. A dark, empty feeling was coursing through her, causing her pain and making her shiver. Her breath came in stuttering gasps as she began to cry. She had come so far on such an amazing journey, and now she had finally reached the end.

It seemed like so long ago that she had lost everything and had been thrown forward so many years into the future, but in reality it had only been a couple of days for her. She had spent more than 2000 years shaping Equestria and helping it grow, and in only a few days time it had completely died.

There was a horrible, twanging pain in her heart that she couldn't bear. It made her cry so much, powerful emotions flowing through her. It was the same pain she felt when somepony close to her had died; indeed, she had felt it not too long ago when she had learned of Twilight's passing. However, it felt a hundred times worse.

Such a powerful sadness was growing in her, worse than she had ever felt before, and yet she could only cry softly. This was far too much to cry out to the heavens. It was all just too much.

"Wh…" she sniffled, her voice coming through rough and croaky, "What did I ever do…to deserve this…?"

Again, she gazed up at her sun, not even daring to reach out to it with her magic. She feared that such volatile energy would burn her horn right off. She heaved an empty, painful sigh and gave a quiet, emotional moan.

"You…You made it…"

Celestia gasped as her ears perked up. Whipping her head around to behind her, she gazed at the origin of the raspy, quiet voice. 

Sitting behind the capsule, alone on the cracked ground, sat a hunched, frail-looking pony. She was thin, her coat lacked colour, her wings were drooping and scruffy, and her mane was a frazzled mess. The pony trembled weakly as she gazed up at Celestia through worn, wrinkled eyes that carried the signs of years and years of fatigue. She didn't look anything like the tall, impressive mare that had once stood over her, but it was clear who she was.

"…Luna!"

The blue mare mustered a tired smile. "I was afraid…that you would miss it…"

Celestia wasted no time in getting herself off of the capsule and rushing over to her sister, embracing her in a gentle, yet loving hug. She was crying instantly, weeping onto her sister's shoulder as she held on, afraid to let go. Luna moved slowly, but eventually managed to return the hug, nuzzling her softly.

"Luna…" Celestia breathed, "Oh, Luna…" She sniffled and caught her breath, shivering as emotions overwhelmed her. "I thought I'd lost you…"

"I…couldn't go without…seeing you one last time…"

Luna's statement brought a pain to her heart as she remembered just when and where she was. The two moved away from their embrace, and Celestia gazed down at her sister.

The alicorn didn't appear old, rather she just looked aged. It was clear to see just how far she had come and how much the passages of time had ravaged the once glorious figure of her younger sister.

Before she could say anything further, memories of her last meeting with Luna flashed through her mind. She grit her teeth and glanced away, splaying her ears. For a few minutes, she remained silent, her mind and her emotions hard at work. Luna remained silent all the while, gazing up at her with a neutral expression.

Celestia sighed. "Luna?" she spoke softly, "I am sorry I…freaked out like that, but-"

"Tia, please don't sugarcoat it," Luna interrupted.

Celestia blinked and gazed down at her. "What?"

Luna wasn't looking at her. She was staring at the ground, a deep, dark shameful look upon her face. "I…I made some mistakes, Tia…"

Celestia didn't know what to say. 

"I…I made really bad mistakes. So much time had gone past without you, and so many things had changed. It was so hard just to keep up sometimes. Things just happened and it all seemed to make sense…"

Two tears, glistening in the fiery glow of the sun behind them, fell to the ground. "It wasn't until you arrived that…I realized how much of a monster I had become."

"Luna, no!" Celestia interjected, "I'm sorry I called you a-"

"In that moment…after you struck me and ran away in fear…that's when it all came crashing down. I'll never forget that day, Tia. All the souls of those ponies that we killed…they all came back to me in that one moment. They were surrounding me and screaming at me…I got so scared…"

"Luna…I never meant to strike you…"

"I just…" Luna was shivering, on the verge of a breakdown, "I just want…to thank you…for opening my eyes that day. Without you, I wouldn't have realized the horrible mistakes I was making…I would've kept on…"

Luna hiccupped and more tears fell, pulling on Celestia's heartstrings painfully.

"From that day, I strived to fix everything that had gone wrong. We never used silvite ever again…I abolished the cutie mark laws…I had the silvite factory demolished." She paused, letting silence fill the air. "I…I just hope…I pray, Tia…that you can…maybe…find a way…"

Luna gazed up at Celestia with pleading, tear-filled eyes.

"…to forgive a monster like me…?"

Celestia was silent as she gazed at her sister. She was silent as she gazed at the fiery, dead surroundings. She was silent as her mind replayed everything that had happened in 8998.

"Luna…" she spoke slowly, "I saw…some truly horrifying things when I last saw you…I grew to become…very afraid of you, Luna. I've never been that scared before in my life."

The frown that appeared on Luna's face showed true, raw fear.

"I simply must condemn everything you did during that era, and know that it shall be a black spot in Equestria's history if it somehow already isn't. Understand that you took many lives and ruined many others."

"T…Tia…I-I'm…"

Celestia sidled up next to her sister's frail form and draped a wing across her back. "But I can forgive you."

Luna gasped. "Y- You can…?!"

Celestia held her tight with her wing, gazing down at her and offering a warm smile. "You're my sister, Luna. No matter how far you fall, you'll always be my sister…and I'll always be there for you. And if we can't come together now, of all times, well…"

Luna's lip quivered and more tears welled up her eyes. "I…I…" she murmured before throwing herself into Celestia's embrace and wailing, "Tiiiaaaaa!!"

Celestia held her crying sister tightly, shedding tears of her own. The simple, emotional embrace softened much of her turmoil and quelled most of her fear. Being here with Luna was all that mattered right now.

"I'm sorry…" Luna murmured, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

"Shhh, Luna…"

"I didn't…I didn't mean to…I was just…I was trying to…"

"Luna, it's in the past," Celestia spoke softly, giving her sister a gentle nuzzle, "There's no use worrying about it now. What's done is done."

"But Tia!!" Luna cried out, "I did so many horrible things! I-"

"Luna," Celestia interjected, "I forgave you for Nightmare Moon."

The small alicorn's eyes shot open and her jaw fell slightly. She gazed up at Celestia, who gazed back down at her. There was a moment of silence between the two.

"I'm sorry, Tia," Luna spoke simply, "I…did bad things."

Celestia nodded. "I know. But I forgive you."

More tears welled up in Luna's eyes and she clutched her sister tightly again. She let her tears out, crying softly into the burning, empty air. For many minutes, the bland landscape was filled only with the sound of her sobbing. Celestia didn't say anything and only nuzzled her until she began to calm down.

"So…This is really the end, is it…?" she spoke quietly.

Celestia's own mind was turbulent as well, but she was quickly coming to accept the fact that everything was just…over. Nothing else mattered now and there was little use in lamenting what was in the past. It was incredibly depressing and painful, but it was no longer something that was actively attacking her sanity. It was a strange feeling that she hardly even noticed. All she knew was that she didn't much feel like crying any more.

Well, maybe a little.

"Y-yeah…" Luna murmured in response to Celestia's question. 

"What year is it?"

Luna was silent for a moment. "I think it's…22 092"

Celestia frowned and winced, a pain in the pit of her stomach for two reasons. First was that her sun was dying well before it was meant to. It was far too soon for the sun to be at the end of its lifecycle. 

Also, however, she realized just how long she had been gone this time. More than thirteen thousand years had passed since she had last been awake, longer than any of her previous slumbers by far. Millennia had passed, countless civilizations had probably risen and fallen, and her poor sister had been alone without her the entire time. She thought back to the crazed thoughts that had been in her mind before she had fallen asleep. Had the universe somehow heard her?

"I…I can't even believe it…"

Luna merely moaned emotionally and nuzzled her big sister.

"What happened to the ponies?"

Luna slowly turned her gaze upwards, a heavy frown on her face. "They're gone…"

Silence reigned for a few more minutes. The heat around them seemed to intensify. A few tremors could be felt. Celestia draped her wings around her sister and held her tight.

Luna was beginning to cry again. "Tiiaa…" she moaned, clutching tightly at the tall alicorn.

"Luna…" Celestia cooed, "Don't cry, please…"

"It's not fair…" Luna bemoaned, sniffling, "It was so hard…It was all so hard. I made so many mistakes, Tia…! S- So many things went wrong, and I didn't know what to do most of the time! Every time I thought I was getting it, the world just bucked me in the face! It all went so bad, Tia!"

Celestia was silent as Luna expressed her sorrow. She simply closed her eyes and listened.

"This…This wasn't how Equestria was supposed to go! It wasn't supposed to be so bad, so chaotic, so miserable!" She groaned out in pure, emotional pain. "It wasn't supposed to end so soon…Tia, it wasn't right without you!! I had to do it all by myself and I…and I…I just don't know!"

Celestia nuzzled her sister gently, feeling the trembles of her emotionally-wracked body.

"Tia…" Luna's cries weren't subsiding. They were getting worse, making her sob uncontrollably. "I'm sorry, Tia! I'm sorry!" She could barely speak. Too much of her mind was simply overcome with pain. "I just…wasn't good enough…"

Celestia began to hum softly.

"There was just so much sadness…So much misery…I couldn't make their lives better. Twenty thousand years and it never got better. Twenty thousand years missing you; crying at night as I wished you were here…I…I…"

Luna's emotional outbursts died on her tongue as she slowly gazed up at her big sister, who was still humming a gentle tune. "Tia…" she murmured, "What…is that…?"

A single tear rolled down Celestia's cheek, but she continued to hum a calm, familiar tune. The air was filled with her quiet, serene voice, and the notes themselves seemed to absorb all the negativity in the air.

"That…That song…" Luna murmured.

Celestia held her head high and hugged her wing around Luna snugly. She continued humming a few notes, then took a deep breath and began to sing.

"Hush little sister,

Lay down to sleep.

You're safe with me now,

There's no need to weep."

Luna was silent. Her trembles subsided and a certain calmness seemed to overcome her. "The…lullaby…"

"I will watch o'er you,

'Till you wake again.

For now rest and sleep tight,

In dreamland's domain."

The ground trembled violently. Luna said nothing more and simply nuzzled herself up next to her sister, being as close to her as possible. Many tears ran down her face, but she did not sob.

"The phoenix flies high, while the fox wildly dances,

The otters swim sweetly, the tigress, she prances,

But nothing shall disturb you, 'till your slumber is through,

Because I will stay with you, Luna…"

Terrible noises erupted around them and the ground shook so hard that it nearly toppled them over. Celestia ignored all of this and leaned her head down, planting a soft kiss on Luna's forehead.

"…I love you."

Luna had her head buried in Celestia's side, hiding her eyes from the turmoil around her. However, she was calm and breathing evenly. She had stopped shivering and was hugging her warmly. Celestia couldn't see her face, but somehow she knew that there was a small smile on there somewhere. "I love you, Tia…"

As chaos erupted around them, the two alicorns remained in their tight, loving embrace. Celestia slowly raised her head and took one last look at her sun. It was expanding rapidly. Hungry, churning flames met her eyes as the horizon was slowly engulfed. She took a deep breath of the hot, burning air and sighed.

The world had just passed by in a flash. In only a short couple of days, pony life had come and gone, and now she had reached the end. It had definitely not gone the way she would have preferred to experience it, but somehow a smile came to her face. She couldn't change the past, and there was no way to change what was about to happen.

It was time to bid Equestria farewell. 

As the temperature skyrocketed dramatically and the ground shifted below them, she held her dear sister as tight as she could and waited as the flames consumed the world.



***



Things were hazy and blurry. Everything hurt; nothing felt right. Basic principles such as space and time were becoming difficult. Which way was down? Her head was spinning and her mind felt incredibly sluggish.

Celestia blearily blinked open her eyes. She was met with a vision of darkness. She moaned and held her head with her hoof, noting that she was lying on some kind of solid surface. For a moment, she poured all of her energy into sitting up.

Still, she couldn't see anything. A dizzying sensation of blindness overcame her. Her vision was completely useless. As she steadied herself with her hooves, she gently shook her head. She felt like vomiting.

Celestia had the worst headache of her entire life. Groaning, she raised her good hoof up so she could hold her head. When the white form of her hoof came into her vision, she gasped. Blinking in confusion, she stared at her hoof. She could see it just fine, as if the light of the sun were shining upon it. Glancing down, she saw more of her own body. This was all she could see, however. Everything else was pitch black.

"Where am I…?" she murmured, glancing around futilely. Am I dead…? she thought to herself, Are these…the heavens? She tried standing up, though it was difficult to do so. Her body felt weak and useless. There's…nothing here.

She tried walking around for a bit. Her hooves connected with solid ground beneath her, but she could see nothing down there. Stranger so, her hooves didn't make any sounds as they connected with the ground. It was a very strange sensation.

She stopped walking, having found nothing. A quizzical expression was on her face. She had not given very much though to what lay beyond death, but she had definitely not expected this. There was nothing here!

She didn't feel injured or burned to a crisp at all, so she had to be dead. She looked normal, could move fairly normally, and was still breathing, but she knew what she had just experienced. The end of the world had occurred, and now she found herself…here.

"Hello?!" She felt incredibly silly calling out into absolute nothingness, knowing that there was nopony around to answer her. Still, though, her confusion was beginning to frustrate her, and the endless expanse was even frightening her a little.

Her ears twitched. She could hear something! It started out incredibly quiet, almost impossible to detect, but slowly grew louder. She turned herself all around, trying to find the source of the sound. As it grew louder and more clear, she began to recognize what it was.

It was…laughter?

It seemed to be coming from all around her. She continued turning around, but couldn't hear where exactly it was coming from. She was filled with abject confusion as this jovial, uproarious laughter surrounded her.

Suddenly, she stopped turning, her eyes growing wide slightly. Wait…That laugh…

"Ahahahaha!" the phantom voice cackled, "Oh my goodness, that was fun!"

Suddenly, the empty air before her shimmered and various coloured blobs seemed to form. They swirled around for a moment before the colours all connected themselves together, forming one large imposing body. The hideous, deformed creature stood tall over Celestia, gazing down at her with a smirk on his face.

Celestia's pupils shrank to dots and she took many steps backward in surprise. The memory was distant but ever so clear, and her heart pounded in her chest as she realized just who she was staring at.

"Discord!!"

The serpentine creature with a mismatched array of body parts cackled madly. "Yes, of course! The one and only! Master of chaos, anarchy and all that good stuff. Currently living out of a stone prison, thank you very much. I really should have scoped that place out before I signed the lease. I have absolutely zero elbow room in there!"

Celestia was breathing heavily as she stood against the imposing form of this creature. This was the madman who had been the reason for the terrible War of Chaos. This was the evil being that had caused the deaths of thousands of denizens of this world. The monster that stood before her had come within inches of killing her five times.

"Well anyway," Discord continued, speaking in a pleasant, conversational tone, "It's nice to see you again, Celly. I love what you've done with the place. I never liked that planet either…"

"What are you doing here?!" Celestia exclaimed, funnelling all of her bravery into a commanding voice, not wanting to appear weak before him.

"Why, I'm just enjoying the end of the world," Discord replied nonchalantly, "Fire and brimstone raining down, continents destroyed, planet shattered…You didn't think I'd miss a party like that, did you?"

Celestia didn't know how to react to this. Her mind was minutes away from completely shutting down. Too much had been happening in too short of time. It was incredibly dizzying.

"Quite dull once it's all over with though. But enough about that." Discord curled his sleek body through the air and brought himself down closer to Celestia's level, circling around her slowly, "I trust you had fun on your little expedition?"

Celestia scrambled on her hooves as she tried to rotate herself so she could keep his entire form within her vision. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"This is the end, is it not? Did you see anything exciting? Oh, I'm sure you did. You'll have to tell me all about it since, you know, I'm stuck in stone and all…"

Celestia kept up a defensive stance. Discord was a dangerous creature, no matter where he showed up. He had boundless, unexplainable powers that seemed to defy all logic and sense. The War of Chaos, way back in the 10th century, had lasted nearly ten years because of his seemingly unstoppable nature.

He was definitely the last creature she wanted to see right now.

"Discord…" Celestia spoke evenly, a hint of venom seeping into her voice, "What is this place? Where are we?"

Discord rolled his eyes as he circled her. "Uh, duh?! Is it not obvious?" In the blink of an eye, he had wrapped his lion's paw around Celestia's shoulder, causing her to gasp, and was gesturing into the blackness with his other limb. "It's nothing!!"

There were a few moments of silent. Celestia arched an eyebrow at him. "Erm…"

"After everything is gone, there is nothing!" Discord continued, slinking away from her, "Obvious as the sun in the sky! Or the one on your rear-end. Both are quite the spectacle to look at."

A rosy blush suddenly found itself on Celestia's face. "Discord!!" she exclaimed.

"But who cares about where we are?!" Discord cut in, "As you can plainly see, there's nothing interesting here. Well…Almost nothing. I am here, of course." He chuckled and adopted a proud pose. "Anyway…Tell me all about the wonderful, messy, chaotic things that happened before the universe kinda went…boom."

Celestia's fear was quickly being replaced with a burning anger. She didn't reply, and merely growled lowly.

"Well, come on!" Discord said impatiently, "We've got nothing better to do for the next quadrillion millennia, so you might as well tell me. C'mon! Oooh, look at that! I bet there's a delicious story behind that metal hoof you've got there."

Celestia gave a huff of frustration. "Discord!" she commanded, "Tell me exactly what is going on! Now!"

"Ugh," Discord moaned with a roll of his eyes, "You have a dull one-track mind, you know that? You put me in a statue for years and years and years, the least you could do is indulge in my curiosity a little bit."

Celestia remained stone-faced.

Discord slithered in closer. "C'mon! How many wars were there? Was there a big plague or two? Did they ever invent a way for it to ever actually rain chocolate?"

Celestia let out a huff of frustration. This was ridiculous. She turned away from Discord and sat down on the floor of black nothingness, a peeved look on her face. Apparently Discord wasn't here to cause any trouble or harm her in any way. If such were the case, he would've done so already. It seemed his goal was only to annoy her.

"Tiaaa!" came his irritating voice, "Don't be a huffypants!"

Celestia groaned. Nothing about what was going on made sense, and it really frustrated her. Perhaps she could somehow see Discord's 'spirit' now because she was beyond the ethereal plane of her world but, if this was all that awaited her after death, then she was sure she had somehow found herself in Tartarus.

"Tiiiiaaaaa~!"

"Leave me alone, Discord," she grumbled venomously, her wings sulking at her sides. She could feel Discord curling through the air behind her.

"Aww…" he droned sarcastically, "Sounds like somepony's a little cranky." As Celestia rolled her eyes, she felt him slide up next to her and begin to speak softly into her ear. "Maybe she didn't get enough…sleep."

Celestia's eyes shot wide open and she whipped her head to the side, but Discord wasn't there. 

"Hahahaha!" she heard from behind her, and whipped back around that way to see him cackling madly. 

"What?!" she shouted at him.

"Goh-lee," he continued, "How much beauty rest do you namby-pamby pony princesses need? I mean, I thought 500 years was a lot, but then you went and surprised me."

Celestia was now on her hooves, staring up at the mad creature floating before her. An icy chill was running down her spine. "What…What did you say…?"

"You should have had an alarm clock, Celly. You really overslept!"

She was trembling now, gazing up at him in abject shock. "You…You…"

"Well, then again," Discord said, idly examining his claws, "Everybody's always wishing they could sleep more…"

"You did this…?" Celestia whispered with a haunt in her voice.

"Hm?" Discord replied nonchalantly, "Did what? Oh! You mean putting you to sleep for years and years and years and then watching to see what would happen?" He paused, then grinned, "Oh yeah…I guess I did."

The air was then filled with a violent, blood-curdling scream and Discord grunted loudly as he was suddenly tackled to the ground. For a moment, he gazed up in confusion at the ravenous, furious pony standing above him with fire in her eyes. "I'LL KILL YOU!!" she shouted.

With a snap of his fingers, Discord disappeared from under her, causing her to fall to the ground and land directly on her snout. Pain coursed through her head, but she ignored it completely, scrambling to her hooves. She saw Discord floating a few yards away, chuckling.

"I'LL KILL YOU!! I'LL KILL YOU, DISCORD!!!"

She charged towards him, but he merely snapped his fingers and teleported away again. When she finally caught sight of him once more, she channelled powerful magic into her horn, intending to hurl a dark, deadly spell at him. Her horn didn't even spark.

Discord was still chuckling, holding his paw to his mouth. He was laughing at her as if she were making a fool of herself. She probably was, but she didn't care.

"Dear me, Celestia!" he quipped, "I don't think I've ever seen you so-Whoa!"

With another shout, she charged towards him again, using her wings to propel herself. He merely snapped his fingers and teleported again. "YOU MONSTER!!!"

"Now, Tia…Why don't you-"

Discord had to teleport away again, as Celestia was not letting up her animalistic assault. The dishevelled princess was shouting in unbridled rage the entire time. 

"Hey!" Snap. Teleport. "Ugh…" Discord moaned as he reappeared once more and rolled his eyes, "This is getting old."

With one more snap of his fingers, Celestia suddenly cried out in surprise. Her mad pursuit has been brought to an abrupt halt when she'd suddenly found her four hooves somehow cemented to the floor, nearly causing her to topple over. She strained and groaned against her unseen restraints, but she was completely immobilized.

"That's better…" Discord said with a grin.

Celestia unleashed a powerful, guttural cry that was a mix of rage and anguish. "Damn you!!" she cried, still pushing against her bonds and trying to escape, "Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!!"

"My word, Celestia! Such language! How unbefitting of a Princess!" Discord mused.

"Damn you!! How could you be so cruel?!" Tears were streaming from her eyes as she struggled, trying to get at this foul creature so she could strangle him. "You ruined my life…You ruined Luna's life…You ruined everypony's life!! You've ruined everything, Discord!!!"

"Really?" Discord spoke, sounding bored and observing the back of his paw, "Did I set a new record or something?"

Celestia glared at him, fires hotter than the ones she had just seen in her sun burning in her eyes and her soul. She grit her teeth and growled like a caged tiger, which only made Discord chuckle. "Discord!!" she screamed, "You are a foul, heartless beast from the fiery depths of Tartarus! You are a cruel fiend!! You do not deserve to live!!"

Discord flashed a smug grin at her. "Why, Celly! That's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me! Thank you so much!"

She stared at him, fire and anger dancing inside of her. She hated this creature more than anything. She had never felt such raw hatred before in her entire life. He was the one who had done this! He had caused her so much pain and destroyed Equestria as she had known it.

She then burst into tears, crying out and hanging her head as unbearable anguish began to consume her. She sobbed loudly into the darkness as many tears fell to the ground below, and she heard Discord cackling madly before her.

"Oh dear…" he said jovially, "I've gone and made Tia cry. Oooopsie!"

"Damn you…" she whispered, refusing to look up. She watched as her tears splattered below, her unkempt mane hanging around her. It no longer flowed like waves of magic; she had been through too much for that. She shivered and heaved as the intense sobs overpowered her.

"Ahahahaha!! This is just perfect!" Discord proclaimed, slithering in close to her and grasping her chin with his paw. He forcefully tilted her head up so that she was looking at him.

She hated this creature. She despised this horrible being. She wanted him dead. And yet, all she could do was cry. This was simply too much. She couldn't move, and she couldn't muster the emotional strength to even be mad at him.

He had beaten her; both physically and mentally. He had won.

"Why…?" she moaned out.

Discord laughed. "Because it was fun, Celly!! Ponies these days don't know how to have a little fun!"

She didn't respond. She remained as she was, trembling and weeping.

"It hurts doesn't it, Celestia?" Discord spoke in a low tone, "You can't handle the purest, most natural forms of chaos that exist, and I know this. I know your weakness, Celestia."

She tried to wrench her head away from his grip, but she had nothing left to give. She was an empty shell of a pony.

"Next time, think twice about imprisoning someone in stone for all eternity."

Her head fell limply as he released his grip. She heard him chuckling to himself in a dark tone as he moved back.

"How…?" she whispered.

"Hm?"

Slowly, she rose her head up to look at him again. "How did you do this…?"

"What, this?" Discord replied before blowing a raspberry, "You think this is a challenge for someone like me? Do you know who I am? I am the GOD of disharmony! I am the ruler of all that is chaotic and disorderly. You use your little powers to move a big shiny ball through the sky, while I can create, rule and destroy a small planet before tea time."

"But…" she murmured, the last of her strength beginning to fade, "you were trapped in stone…" Discord had most definitely still been inside his statue when she had last checked in 2010. 

"Mmm…" Discord grumbled, "Yes, that was my biggest obstacle, thank you very much. But really, even so, did you honestly think a little stone prison could hold me back entirely?!"

Celestia hardened her gaze. "That was no mere stone prison. It was crafted by the Elements of Harmony."

"But still rock," Discord interjected, "Do you know what happens to rock over time, Celestia?" Discord held up his lion's paw, showed it to her, and then gave it a gentle tap with his reptilian claw. The paw shattered like glass. "It cracks."

Before she could even register what had happened, Discord re-grew his lion's paw and slithered back over to her. "As time went on and on and on," he continued, "little cracks began to appear in the statue. Small at first, but like all good chaotic things, they began to grow and diverge. Not enough to wreak havoc, and certainly not enough to escape, but I was quick to discover that my powers could easily seep through it."

Celestia tried to keep her eyes on him as he swam about through the air.

"So I did what anyone in my situation would to; I experimented." He grinned, gazing upward nostalgically. "I found that I could extend my powers and just…seep out slowly. I could seep into the minds of anypony who was close enough to the castle, though I couldn't do much except whisper. Most of the time, they couldn't even hear me.

"Then I found out that if I waited, I could leak out more of my powers at once. You can think of it like I was filling up a water balloon ever so slowly. It took a while, but the payoff was much better. I could influence ponies' thoughts. I could alter their dreams! I even found that if I waited long enough, I could teleport things small distances."

He then turned his gaze on her and narrowed his eyes. "And so, being that I was trapped indefinitely not knowing when or if I'd be free, I turned my thoughts to you, dear Celestia. I began thinking how I could use these cracks to get back at you. As time went on, the cracks would grow, and by pooling my magic, I could increase the effects twofold. And fourfold. And tenfold. More, more, more…

"And so I waited…

"I waited for seven hundred years. For seven centuries, I sat there doing absolutely nothing. The temptations were horrible! There was so much chaos I wanted to wreak! But I kept telling myself to be patient. I knew that the longer I waited, the more I'd be able to do, even though I was in that damnable prison."

Discord concluded his explanation with a toothy grin. Celestia merely stared at him with a broken expression. "You're a monster," she spoke.

"Thank you!"

Celestia let her head droop. Her eyes began to drift closed. She was losing everything she had. She was losing all of her energy and the will to fight. She barely had the will to stand. She was just so…tired.

"And oh! The fun I had!" Discord cheered, "My patience really paid off! Watching you rush through all of Equestria in the beat of a heart was the greatest show I've ever seen!"

"…"

"You both cried so much! Wah, wah, wah! Oh, and then the Griffons dropped the bomb and totally wrecked everything! Hahahaha!! Such wonderful chaos!"

"You're horrible…"

"Oh, but the best part was the second-to-last chapter! Silvite!! Hahaha!! I don't think I could've come up with something like that! Your sister's like a little version of me!"

"Shut up…"

"Hmm? What was that?"

"I said shut up…" Celestia muttered, trying to dig up some anger but not finding any, "Don't talk about her like that…"

"Ah, yes…" Discord mused, "Pooooor little Luna. She had to go through so much without you! How terrible! How pitiful!" He ended this remark with another cackling laugh.

Celestia gave an empty sigh. "I'm sorry, Luna…" she murmured, "I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to cause you so much pain…" She shivered, beginning to feel the strength in her legs give out. "I wish I could have spent more time with you. I wish I could've been there with you. Even back before all of this began, I should have been at your side more often. You needed me just as much as…I needed you." She closed her eyes and let two tears fall. "I'm sorry…"

"Oh…You actually learned a lesson?" Discord groaned, rolling his eyes, "Uggghhh…I hate when that happens."

"Discord?"

"Hm?" He arched an eyebrow.

"Can you release these shackles? Or, at least let me lie down? I'm…I'm ready to…go…"

This only made Discord chuckle more in his dark tone. "Oh poor, poor Tia wants to go sweepy-bye? After all the sleeping she's just done? Hahahaha!"

Celestia was motionless.

He gave a golden sigh and smiled. "Ah, well…It was a fun ride while it lasted, wasn't it Celly?"

"…"

"It's just a shame I couldn't make this your permanent end…"

Celestia moved her head up slightly. "…What?"

"Even with all that waiting, I still didn't have enough power to actually alter the course of set events. I do so wish I could've had you end up here, stuck dead forever."

Celestia narrowed her eyes in confusion. "What…? What are you talking about…?"

"If I had been free and not trapped in that tight, cramped one-room hovel made of stone, I could've actually put you to sleep for thousands of years and watched the consequences. It would've been so much better…but this is just as good."

"What do you mean 'actually' put me to sleep? You just…did…" Celestia paused, tilting her head slightly, "Didn't you?"

Discord grinned. "Yes! Yes I did!"

Celestia blanked. "Uhm…"

"But," Discord continued, "without my full powers, I'm afraid I couldn't make it…well 'canon'." He punctuated this last word by making air-quotes with his fingers.

Something golden and glowing, though dim, began to fill Celestia's eyes. "Discord…" she spoke slowly, gazing up at him, "What are you saying…?" Something began to make her feel warm and jumpy inside. It felt sort of like…hope. "Are you saying…none of that was real?"

Discord snickered so hard that if he had been drinking something, it surely would've come out of his nose. "Ha!! Oh no, Celestia. I assume you, that was quite real."

Her entire body sank.

"Yes, those were a true course of events guided by the real flow of time. You went through all of that, your sister went through all of that. It was as real as you can get."

Though it felt like her entire body had been skewered on a sword and all of the glow was gone from her eyes, she continued to hold her head up and look at him. "Then what are you talking about…?"

Discord smiled, opened his mouth, and held a claw up in the air. When no words came out, he shut his mouth with a frustrated expression. He seemed to ponder something for a few moments before throwing his hands up in the air and shouting in exasperation.

"Ugh, this is completely impossible to explain unless you have an advanced understanding of chronography, quantum linearity, hyper-dimensional rifts and an advanced degree in wibbly-wobbly. I'm not sure your tiny brain would be able to handle the big words."

Celestia simply stared at him.

His smile returned. "Well, whatever. All that you need to know is that was most definitely a real timeline of events, and now you're here at the end. Wasn't it fun?!"

Her mane began to cover her face as she let her head sink again. 

"Oh, don't look so down," he mused, "Don't forget what's most important; I had fun!" He then cackled once again.

At this point, Celestia would've told him 'Kill me', but she wasn't sure he'd even be able to. She was dead now, wasn't she? The sun had destroyed the world.

"Tiiiaaaa?" Discord sang. He reached a claw out to grasp her chin again, but she jerked her head away, not wishing to see his malicious eyes.

"Fine then, be a sourpuss." She heard him float away. "Whatever, this has been fun, but your pouty attitude is getting old. We should do it again some time."

For a moment, she continued to remain silent. Then, however, a strange sensation began to overcome her. Opening her eyes and gazing down at herself, she saw that she was being enveloped in a bright, white glow. "Wah…?!" she cried out.

"Don't fight it, Tia. Just go to sleep once more…"

She felt the restraints on her hooves disappear, but also began to feel really heavy. It was as if gravity had been intensified threefold. A cloudy sensation was overtaking her mind.

"Sleep tight, Tia," Discord whispered  in a sinister tone, "Don't forget all the hardships and pain you went through. I worked really hard on them, after all."

She was laying down now, unable to stand up, move, or talk. She could barely breathe.

"And just remember," Discord whispered, suddenly right next to her ear, "You cannot erase your world of chaos. I'll always be there…"

She let out one last, fighting breath, and then her head hit the ground and everything went black.



***



…

"I love you, Tia…"

…

"I'm really sorry, Celestia, but there was nothing any of us could do."

…

"Celestia! Are you somewhere safe? Tell me where you are!"

…

"No! I won't let her!" Celestia shouted, "I won't abandon her!!"


…

"Tia…?" Luna said quietly, "I'm…not fine."

…

"Tia!! I'm so happy to see you again!!"

…

Celestia's mind was hazy. Her vision was swirling…

"Tia, don't leave me again!! You can't!!"

Where was she…? What was happening?

"Tia…!"

Her body felt lifeless and weightless. Her muscles were weak and her limbs drooped below her. She was floating in an endless expanse of nothing.

"Tia!!"

Where was she going? What more was there to come? Was this…truly the end…?



***



"TIA!!!"

Celestia groaned and shifted. The extremely familiar sensation of feeling sluggish and sore was beginning to get old. She tried to open her eyes, only to be met with the harsh, blinding light of the world around her. It made her wince and groan again.

"…Tia??"

Someone was calling to her. Someone was nearby. She felt something touching her torso. Had someone been nudging her? She slowly opened her eyes again, squinting against the brightness. Once the whiteness faded away, she saw…

Flowers.

A bright array of colours and a lush collection of green plants met her eyes. She was laying on her side on the ground, gazing with a skewed angle at a bed of flowers. A garden? The ground below was gravel, but it was not terribly uncomfortable. The path she was on seemed well-kept and uniform.

She opened her eyes wider. In contrast to her previous awakenings, she seemed to be regaining her strength rather quickly. She began to feel energy coursing through her body, and her fatigue was beginning to dissipate. She heard a voice, but her mind was still a little too hazy to focus on it. She simply tried to move.

Digging into her reserves, she found the strength to stretch her two forehooves out in front of her, eliciting a gasp from someone. Her vision swam for a moment, but soon enough she was able to see her two hooves extended out before her.

Something was off. Something didn't seem right about what she was looking at. She tried to ignore it, but the feeling was nagging at her. Was it the garden or the path? No. Her hooves seemed to be the same. Sleek, large, and coloured a brilliant rosy shade of off-white.

Her eyes shot open wide and her mouth fell open slightly. Both of her hooves were there! She stared down at the hoof that had, not moments ago, been forged artificially out of metal. All traces of the metal were gone. What had once been an unnerving eyesore that had stood out starkly against the rest of her body was once again…normal. She tried dragging it along the ground slightly. Her eyes lit up as she realized that she could feel the gravel below it. This was her real hoof!

Before she could process this revelation any further, an extremely concerned voice met her ears. "Tia…? Are you okay? Say something!"

Slowly, she rolled herself slightly so that she was looking up. Though she was still quite stiff, moving herself was proving to be much easier than past experiences. The first thing she noticed upon changing her viewpoint was the bright, blue sky above her. It looked wonderfully pleasant; there were no exploding suns in sight.

"Tia. Over here."

She followed the sound of the voice and soon a figure came into her vision. She gazed up, slightly groggily, at the pony that was standing over her, a frightfully concerned expression on her face. The pony was leaning down, gazing closely into her eyes. "Tia?" she spoke, "Please…Say something…"

"Luh…" Celestia breathed, "Luna…?"

The pony smiled gratefully, though much concern still remained visible in her expression. "Oh my goodness, Tia…Are you all right? You scared me…"

Celestia blinked, clearing away the blurriness in her vision. The pony standing above her was indeed Luna, which was enough to spark immense confusion in Celestia's mind. How was Luna here? Had she somehow found her in…the afterlife?

"Luna…?"

But there was more. Luna looked noticeably different since the last time she had seen her. She seemed much smaller, even more so than she had been at the end of the world. Her coat seemed to be a lighter shade of blue, her features seemed somehow younger, and her mane was entirely different. It was not flowing and ethereal, like her own was. Instead, it was a simple sky blue mane like one could see on any pony.

She…She looks exactly the same as when…as when…

"Tia!" Luna spoke as she stepped closer, "Are you hurt? Should I go get help? Here, let me help you up." She extended her hoof, clad in shining sky-blue hoofwear.

Celestia grasped the hoof and allowed herself to be pulled up. Again, she marvelled in confusion at her fully fleshed hoof that she could move and feel with. She had only just gotten used to using her metallic one. As she rose up to a sitting position, she gazed at her surroundings some more. The more she saw, the further her jaw fell.

"Luna…" she murmured to the pony sitting across from her, who was looking very concerned, "What happened? How…did I get here?"

Luna frowned. "I don't know! We were just walking and then suddenly you collapsed! You were out cold for a couple of minutes! I had no idea what to do! It was really scary!"

A great number of shivers coursed through Celestia's body as she stared wide-eyed at her sister. Slowly, she reached out her golden-clad hooves and placed them on Luna's shoulders.

"Luna…" she spoke very slowly and deliberately, staring straight into her sister's eyes, "…What year is it?"

The smaller pony furrowed her eyebrows and tilted her head slightly. "Wh-what?" she asked, perplexed, "Are you okay, Tia? Did you hit your head when you fell?"

"Luna, please…!" Celestia was shivering slightly, gazing with a rapt expression at the other pony. "This is very important. Just please tell me…What year is it?" Her breath was bated as she anxiously waited for her sister's response.

Luna was silent for a moment, contemplating the request, before she finally opened her mouth and replied.

"It's the same year that it has been for the past six months, Tia. It's 2010."

With that, a sudden rush of emotions began to overcome Celestia. Her heart beat fast as wonderful, golden happiness and untold amounts of joy began to flow through her, warming her and causing her to break out into a huge smile. Tears began to flow but, for the first time in a long while, they were not tears of sorrow. 

"Luunaaaa!!" she cried out as she leapt forward, seizing her sister into a tight, loving hug. Luna gave a shout of surprise, but then gave a warm smile and hugged back. 

"Tiaa! Hey!" she said, chuckling in both amusement and confusion, "What's going on?"

Celestia was nuzzling her sister so much, keeping her in a tight hug and holding tight, afraid to let go. She trembled as too many happy emotions coursed through her. This was truly it. She had come back! The location she awoke in, her position on the ground, Luna's age; it was all the same as it had been back before any of this had started. She didn't know how, and there were even some small lingering doubts at the back of her mind. She ignored these however, because somehow she just knew it to be true.

"Lunaaa!!" She cried out again. She began to sob, completely overcome with emotion, as she held onto her sister like a lifeline. 

"Tia?" Luna spoke concernedly, "Hey, are you okay? What's wrong?"

Celestia gasped for air as her body was shaken by torrents of emotion. "I…" she gasped, "I…Luna! I'm so glad you're okay!! I thought I'd lost you!!"

Luna was patting her back comfortingly. "What? 'Lost me'?"

"Luunaaaa…" She held on tight, feeling her sister's warmth, noticing her sister's heart beat alongside her own. She felt comforting hooves and warm nuzzles. "I'm…so glad you're okay…"

"Tia, calm down…" Luna spoke soothingly, "It's okay…"

"I'm sorry Luna!" Celestia cried out, "I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!!"

"Sorry? What are you sorry for?"

"For…For everything! I'm sorry Luna! I'm sorry…! I've…been a horrible sister."

Luna pulled herself out of the embrace, holding on to Celestia's shoulders and gazing into her face. So much worry and concern were written in her expression. "Tia…" she spoke softly, "What happened to you…?"

Celestia's tear-stained face showed a raw mixture of relief and anguish. She shivered as she sat, being held up by her sister's strong hooves. "I…" she let out in a warbling voice, then was forced to take a deep breath. "I…went so far…" she murmured, clear mental images of her painful journey fresh in her mind. "It…it was all so- A-and everypony was- I…"

She focused her eyes on her sister, seeing how much genuine care was in those deep, blue eyes. "Luna? Is…Is it really…2010?"

Luna nodded slowly.

"Please…Don't lie to me, Luna. It's really 2010?"

"Tia, I would never lie to you."

She was silent for a moment. "And…what you just saw happen…?"

Luna frowned. "We were walking through the gardens. You had finally gotten some time off and we were talking about…your lullaby. Then you seemed to get dizzy and you just collapsed. You were out for a couple of minutes and then you woke up."

She drank in her sister's words. She let the realization of just what had happened wash over her. A smile formed on her face, and it only grew wider as she beheld her younger sister. She sniffled as more tears of joy made their way down her face. 

Celestia couldn't help herself. She leaned in and hugged her sister tightly again, clutching her and nuzzling her affectionately. 

"Ah!" Luna blurted in surprise, "Tia?"

"I…" Celestia murmured, "I love you Luna."

There was pause, and she felt her sister's muscles loosen and relax. 

"I love you too, Tia," she replied in a heartfelt way, "but…can you tell me what's going on? Please?"

"I was…I was gone…" Celestia breathed, "I was gone for so, so long…" She shivered at the painful memory. "I left everything behind…and found myself somewhere horrible…"

A moment of silence passed.

"Are…you all right, Tia?"

Celestia gave possibly the biggest smile she had ever given in her entire life and snuggled her sister. "I am now…" she spoke softly, "I am now, Luna…"

Luna made to move away, but found that her bigger sister didn't seem to want to let go. When Celestia began to weep again, she patted her back and brushed her hooves through her mane. Luna closed her eyes, held her quivering sister close, and began to sing a familiar, soothing lullaby.


The End