Star Swirl looked on with pride at his two daughters. This was what he had raised them for. They were meant to be the rulers of their beloved home, and they were meant to overthrow a corrupt government to do it. He knew of the deceit and lasciviousness that plagued the Equestrian Council, and he was bound and determined to eradicate it once and for all. He felt that his name would go down in history as the stallion who gave birth to the royalty Equestria deserved. He controlled the destiny of Equestria, and he would pull on his daughters' strings to ensure that the nation survived.

"Celestia? Luna?" He asked as he addressed both of them by their new names. The two mares, who now towered over their father, sat on their haunches and listened closely. "You are now Alicorns, and have been granted the gift of an extremely long life. You shall rule Equestria for thousands of years, granting friendship, harmony, and peace to everypony. I believe in you, and so does your mother. But, we aren't quite finished here."

"We aren't?" Celestia asked. She found that her voice had deepened, sounding much more mature and wise than it once had. She rather enjoyed it because it made her feel incredibly important. Maybe she and Luna were vital to the future of Equestria. Maybe they could rule together, and bring a lasting happiness to the country.

"No, my dear, we aren't. It is time for you to receive your final, and most important gift. The gift of a cutie mark."

Luna and Celestia both turned and looked at their flanks. They blushed when they saw how barren they were. Both ponies were rather embarrassed that they had been given the title of "princess" without even possessing their own cutie marks. The notion seemed irredeemably futile, and even amusing to a point.

"Celestia, point your horn towards the sky," their father commanded, "it's almost morning, and it is time for you to raise the sun."

"What?!" Celestia suddenly yelled. "Raise the sun?! But, father, I don't have that capability. Only you and the seven pony sorcerers who you work with have that power!"

"Ah, my dear Celestia, you fail to realize your own lineage. You see, the seven sorcerers are simply there to offer support. In actuality, our family has been in charge of raising the sun and the moon for centuries. It is a magical gift bequeathed to our great ancestor, Ponytheus."

"Ponytheus? The pony of legend? He was real?!"

"Indeed he was, my dear daughter. He was a great pony, who raised the sun and moon by himself for many, many years."

"But, father, who gave him this gift of celestial control?" Luna asked.

"It was the original magic of Equestria. The same magic that has been in our universe well before the dawn of time itself. The magic that created our world and all the first ponies in it. Ponytheus was the son of two of these original ponies, and the magic, who had created the sun and the moon and had first caused them to rise, gave its power to him. It saw that he was worthy, when he showed compassion and kindness to two foals who had fallen by the roadside. They were poor and quite dirty, and one of them had even broken its leg. They were orphans, and he took them in as his own foals. These two were your grandmares from generations long past. He gave his power to them, and they gave it to their foals. It was passed down through the ages until it found its way into my own horn. Now, I choose to give it to you. Celestia, please."

So the white mare pointed her horn towards the sky. Suddenly, she felt a great deal of power surge through it and the great yellow orb of the day flew into place. She maneuvered her head a bit, trying to get the hang of controlling an object so gigantic. It was difficult, and her father stifled a smile as he remembered his own troubles with getting the sun to rise for the first time.

"There," he said encouragingly, "you're getting the hang of it. Tonight, Luna, you shall raise the moon for the first time."

Luna didn't respond, but put on a happy face. Inside, she was still seething against her father's lies. She didn't want any part of his power. She wanted to remain Moonbeam, but use her new position to fight against all of the corruption she saw within him. She wanted to throw her father out of any leadership position and banish him to the farthest reaches of Equestria. But she knew it would take time, and a lot of convincing, to get her sister to agree to such a thing. So she continued smiling and nodding as she watched Celestia finally put the sun in its proper place.

"Very good, my dear!" Star Swirl said approvingly, "I am very impressed! You'll make a natural sun raiser, as I'm sure your sister will do the same for the moon. I am very proud of the two of you. Now, make your way back out of the cave. You have a kingdom to take!"

So Celestia and Luna returned out of The Cavernous Cavern. They left the yawning maw behind and ventured forth into the warm sunlight. Luna suddenly stopped and lay on the grass. She beckoned her sister to join her, and she did so. "So…what are we gonna do about it?" She asked.

"Do about what?"

"Father."

"Why on Earth would we do anything about him?" Celestia asked. She had noticed her sister's hostility towards Star Swirl growing more and more by the minute. But she saw nothing wrong with the great destinies that he had given them.

"He's part of it!" Luna said abruptly. "Don't you get it?! Father is lying about us!"

"Oh, here we go again," Celestia said, rolling her eyes, "our father is not lying about anything! He's doing it to protect us!"

"Protect us, or protect his position on the Council? If he hadn't made that foolish promise to 'keep Equestria as a family,' and if he had married Mother before having us, we wouldn't be in this mess right now!"

"It's not a mess, Luna! Open your eyes!"

"No! You open your eyes, Celestia! Our father is a crooked, lying pony, and we have to stop him before he corrupts the entire country!"

"You're sick! How dare you call your own father a liar!"

"I'm sick?! You're the one who's sick for defending him!"

The fighting sisters got up and snorted in each other's faces. Neither one of them wanted to fight, but they had each taken a solid stand and they felt that they couldn't take it back. Would the two royal sisters be split apart before they had even taken the throne?