LEGEND OF THE GODDESSES
Canterlot, 1,003 years ago
Beneath the light of the moon, Celestia stood on a grassy mountainside, along the banks of a river filled with reeds and lily pads, which ended in a waterfall that fell into empty air.
An apparition appeared in the air, of Discord, reclining in mid-air, with his head cupped in his hands, and his legs in the air. You seem to have a lot on your mind this morning, he said in her mind. Is it morning? Well, you just woke up, so we'll call it morning. Morning for you, anyway.
"Shut up, Discord," she spat back through gritted teeth.
Aww, look who's in a foul mood, he said sweetly. That's what you get when you spend your evenings—I'm assuming here that you actually are sleeping during the evenings—in a nowhere town like Canterlot. He gestured vaguely to the tiny, shoddily-constructed village behind her, built at the entrance to a crystal mine. You get a bad mood. What exactly are you doing here, anyway? Your sister exiles you, I'd have thought you'd try to build a life for yourself.
"You know the answer to that, Discord," said Celestia. "You can read my every thought." She attempted to look away, but he remained in the exact same spot in her field of vision.
Yes, but I know how much you love having conversations with me, he said with a grin.
"Verbalizing my thoughts does help me see them more clearly," she admitted grudgingly. "And you're the only sounding board I've got. Very well then. Canterlot may be a nowhere town, but it does afford me a good view of my lost prize: Clovenshire."
She stood at the top of the waterfall, staring down at the walled city a few miles from the foot of the mountain.
A good view indeed! said Discord, reaching down with his claw to massage Celestia's neck. Much to her irritation, she was actually able to feel it. Please tell me the good view is the only thing you're interested in. You're not planning on actually trying to get in there again, are you? You've been taking shots at it for weeks. It's a lost cause.
"Yes, her security overpowers my tactics each time," Celestia agreed, staring determinedly at the castle. "But as long as I live, I have to keep trying. Sooner or later, they'll slip up."
Eeeeeh, yeah, Discord said skeptically, waiting for them to slip up while you keep using the exact same frontal assault tactics doesn't exactly constitute "tactics". It's more "the definition of insanity" than "tactics".
"I will defeat Nightmare Moon and get my position back," she said, staunchly ignoring him.
Your position, yes, of course. Not save your sister, or free your people, get your position back. So predictable, Celestia.
"Hold up mirrors to me all you like, Discord, I'll always like what I see," Celestia sneered.
How does so much denial fit into just one skull? Discord wondered, tapping his claw against her forehead.
"My kingdom will be mine again," she growled.
"Talking to yourself there, little princess?"
Celestia jumped in surprise. A horned and toothed headdress rose out of the river, atop the head of a green-skinned seapony with a long skinny snout and red eyes with yellow pupils.
"Soledad," Celestia exclaimed.
"That's Queen Soledad," she corrected. "Mind your manners, Celestia." She grinned, unsheathing her fangs with a light click.
"Mind your manners yourself," Celestia shot back. "It's Princess Celestia."
"Ah, not from where I'm standing," Soledad said brightly.
Celestia fumed. I'll leave you to it, Discord whispered, vanishing into the corners of her mind.
"What are you doing here?" Celestia snapped.
"Looking for you," Soledad said casually, hoisting herself onto the riverbank and resting on her elbows. "I've never been particularly fond of the sun, even before I found out that direct exposure to it burns my skin. I don't mind getting rid of it, but…" She shrugged. "Everypony I ever cared about in my life… first of all, have all been dead for over a thousand years, and secondly, they were all very fond of daylight, if I recall correctly. I think they would have wanted me to use what power I have to bring it back to the world. I may not be much of a politician, but I am a rather powerful goddess, almost as much as you. So, what do you say?"
She wrapped an arm around Celestia's shoulders and heaved her entire body out of the water. "Shall we team up? Shall we help the world get out of this mess you made?"
Celestia narrowed her eyes and grimaced, baring her teeth at Soledad. "What did you just say?"
"Oh, please, Celestia, anypony could have told you that the way you turned your back toward your sister was in the perfect position for her to stab it."
"Don't you think that's more of a reflection on the one who did the stabbing?" Celestia said irritably.
"Not the way you did it," Soledad said smugly. "The way you behave, it's like you were begging her to turn on you. So much abuse and neglect. If I had ever had a sister like you…" She positioned her tail spikes against Celestia's throat. "But now that we've established that this is entirely your fault, the healing can begin. Let's face it, nopony ever really deserves a second chance, but maybe this perfect example of creating your own demons will inspire you to new heights, no? Make you, erm… make you worth something! That's certainly what I'm hoping it will do for me when I help you out."
Celestia glared at Soledad for several seconds, then shouted, "GO! AWAY!"
Soledad recoiled and dropped to the ground, staring back at Celestia apprehensively. "Fine," she finally said. "Yes, yes, that's fine. I wanted to do one good deed before I die, help somepony along the path to redemption, but if I'm not welcome, I guess I'll head on back to Campus Cuda and drive a stake through my heart without ever having done anything with my life."
"You do that," Celestia spat. "Go be with your loved ones."
Soledad snorted, then slithered back into the water and swam downstream. She gave Celestia one last look. "I so wish I was more like you," she said venomously, before casually riding the waterfall down the mountain.
"This is not my fault," Celestia mumbled. She stared up at the moon, and was surprised to feel a tear come to her eye. "Oh Luna, what did you do with the sun? Will I never feel its warmth again? Or feel the fluttering in my heart as I bring it forth?" She sighed. "There must be a better way to do this."
She took to the air and started flying—not south toward Clovenshire, but east, as hard and as fast as she could.