Chapter 1 ~ Prelude to Exile
Oh, where to begin.
Before years were numbered, the realm of Equestria was a fruitful one. Barely fledged and in desperate need of stable leadership, with fertile lands and beautiful landscapes as far as the eye could see.
Nay more than sixty seven millenias since the dawn of time, we awoke - daughters of the sun and moon. But as we were drawn from our eternal slumber, Celestia thawed more quickly, and so she became the elder sister. As she did, the sun ground to a halt, the celestial magic that had once been free for all to access honing in on her. As I roused, the same occurred with the moon.
At first we were nameless - feared by those around us and mistaken for hostile creatures from lands afar. But there was a great imbalance in the world. The sun and moon both ruled the skies, creatures flocking to the twilight zone in refuge from the scorching heat or scolding cold.
We were solitary fellows at that time; conversing in a language of the body. Words were not spoken. We remained by each other's sides for practicality's sake, though we needn't eat, nor sleep or drink.
We were without name nor identity, until a young colt cantered by one day. I, having never seen a beast such as him, watched from the safety of the canopy. My sibling however was more bold than I. She seduced him with small whimpers barely resembling the ripples of sound emanating from his lips. He called out to her, enquiring as to what she spoke, but she refused to cry any louder than a whisper, drawing him into the cave we called home.
The stallion had never seen a mare of such beauty, her rose eyes so devout and warm that he felt comforted by her very presence. It was not until he slept that she dove her horn into his skull, usurping his knowledge in a brutal embodiment of a blood hex. From his memories she chose a name - that of his unicorn mother, whom had once been charged with the raising of the sun. Celestia.
Soon after, an older, more withered stallion approached, robed and bearded. He announced himself as Star Swirl, whom sought those who had stolen the solar and lunar ley lines.
With his authority as Arch Mage of the kingdom, we claimed Equestria for our own. But with my inability to speak, or comprehend that around me, Celestia declared herself Queen of the lands.
Of course, she was overridden by the great armies of Vespitillio - the thestrals, who insisted on us becoming equals. They believed that the knowledge I required was being withheld from me, and so it was at their request Celestia grudgingly granted me her knowledge by more decent means than how she had aquired hers.
In this era, Star Swirl managed the laws and democracy of Equestria, and, noting Celestia's displeasure at the Vespitillio's intervention, declared that no member of the royal guard could be harmed by either of the sisters unless it was their own.
It was a mere month later that my sibling's prized Mage died from what was presumed to be a heart attack. None but myself could smell the charred flesh on his breath.
But his gift had not gone to waste - a sickness had begun to spread within the Vespitillio - a poison laced with a magic I knew all too well. It was then I appointed as many of the Vespitillio to my personal guard as I could, and, to my relief, the sickness cut short.
It would have been folly of my sister to continue spreading the virus, after all.
A mere hundred years later, having now fully recognised and acknowledged my sibling's ruthless nature, I was horrified when she announced she was planning on raising an apprentice.
And so it was that I created an academy of my own - to save the foals of the nation from an education below my sister's hoof. They named it the Lunar Seminary, where young unicorns were offered knowledge without the gruelling hours of studying my sister's tutelage required.
To select the specific unicorns, I created the dream realms, scouring the night for those I deemed promising and offering them a chance to join others of their age and ability. However, as the years sped by, the academy developed into branches for the earth ponies and pegasi, allowing them to harness the dormant magic they too possessed.
Back in those days I was young and foolish. I now know never to underestimate Celestia.
Two years prior we had signed a peace treaty with the Griffon empire, the brutal war concluded by scroll and ink. Needless to say, I did not sign. Instead, I witlessly entrusted my sister to account for both of us. What I hadn't accounted for was her strength in bribery. And foresight.
On the 18th of the Feather Moon, the griffon armies struck my establishment. Over one thousand defenceless foals, teachers and students perished that day, taking with them a scant hundred griffon imperialists.
Those few who survived sought refuge in the streets of Everfree City, surviving on little but the remains of others. Their families believed them to be dead, as did Celestia. I, oblivious to her schemes, listened as she spoke passionately to the crowds; a monarch to be respected and revered for her beauty and benevolence.
Many blamed me for the numerous deaths - among them had been my apprentices, friends and colleagues. When she failed to announce the fact that I was not responsible, I was sickened by her refusal. Pegasi threw rocks at me. Unicorns inscribed emblems of the Solar Empire on every wall within sight of my balcony and earth ponies threw great protests which rocked Everfree in their fury.
In my grief, I had none to turn to except the ashes of the ones I once loved. And in my despair, my sister had taken a new pupil beneath her wing. I could do nothing but watch as Night Star was lulled into the jaws of a vain goddess.
It was one night I stumbled across the dreams of the young and homeless of Everfree, and, immediately recognising the familiar aura of my students, sought the few survivors using a network of distinguished emotions to flush them out in the heaving masses of Everfree nobles and common folk.
At dusk the following day, I met with my sister as we had done for thousands of years, with little abeyance nor hinderance since we had earnt our destiny marks. A benevolent smile was settled peacefully upon her immaculate features, and her eyes shone assuredly in the light of the setting sun.
So chaste did she seem that I fell for her facade, unwittingly begging for the salvation of the escapees of an attack of her own devision. When she declined, I cursed her in the most uncouth of tongues, as a tempest fuelled by my acrimony settled across the land.
Mustering my composure, I began to plan. In the eight thousand years I had seen, I had mastered the psychic techniques. As dusk fell once again, a lance of pure mental energy swept across the network Celestia shared with her guard. All bound to it crumpled as I escaped into the darkness. Come morning, I was gone, as were my children of the night.
Celestia was furious. I had seen it in her eyes when I returned the following dusk. In her eyes gleamed something mad. Something tyrannical. I had managed to save all of my prior students, scattered in foster homes and backstreet alleyways. Into the night we had flown, our destination in the shadow of Foal Mountain.
A moon or so later, deep in my chambers, I was contacted by one Twilight Epiphany, whom claimed to be of the Lunar Republic, fighting for my cause. Fearful that Celestia was censoring my letters, I instead sought Epiphany in the dream realm - a plane where my sister dare not roam. Together, we gathered the members, spread far and thinly, and numbering nearly a thousand strong.
And so I spent my nights in the company of newfound friends and allies, plotting against the tyrannical rule of the sun where it's light couldn't touch us. We gathered supplies, weapons and data. We allied with the Timberwolves, the people of the trees and the respectable diamond dogs of the North, expanding our reach far beyond Equestria.
Due to my focused attentions, the nation once more began to suffer from nightmares without my presence to herd them away, for which I was most sorrowful. But it had to be done.
But for the plan to come into action, first Celestia had to fall.
That was where I came in.
Once I had disabled my sister, the Lunar Republic and Lunar Guard would proceed to tear down the Celestial Guard and rearrange diplomacies with the surrounding kingdoms.
I spent moons organising tactics and weaknesses with Epiphany, once more retrieving the armour that had served me well in the ages of Discord and Sombra.
Celestia had ordered it to be destroyed, deeming it indecorous, and to that day believed it to be melted in the construction effort. However, it had been salvaged by a Lunar Republican under the guise of a construction worker, after it refused to melt. When it emerged from the lava tanks it was as cold as ice.
Now, everything was in place. I would summon Celestia to the throne room, where I would then bring forth an eclipse. Engulfing the raw power from the array should have allowed me to overthrow Celestia. I discounted the risk of the Elements of Harmony immediately. My sister had only ever borne three, and how could a mare of such narcissistic character possibly bear the embodiment of harmony?
Allow me to state this once more. Never underestimate Celestia.
I know now how she managed such a feat. True friendship isn't set by standards. It is set by spirit. Anypony can be generous, or fun, or honest. It doesn't necessarily make them your friend. I've had good friends in the past - ponies i could depend on. Many had their faults, but I had only loved them all the more for it.
One fateful night, I decided to steal into my sister's study. The paperwork within may have been crucial to the Republic's plans, after all, so I took only the files labeled beneath military agreements.
It was then I discovered the multitude of letters between the Griffon emperor and my sibling, clearly stating their intent to attack my Lunar Seminary, and to leave none standing.
With waxing enmity I leafed through the multitude of files containing information of assassinations and organised disasters, many involving members of my newfound organisation.
With wetting eyes I finally found the document I had been looking for. I recount only it being orders for a rockslide in the Foal Mountains before the documents incinerated, the entire study exploding into a flurry of frost as I flourished my wings and took to the skies like the harbinger of death, sending an order via telepathic means to summon Celestia to the throne room. As I flew I was vaguely aware of Epiphany's frantic orders in the dream realm, as she received the fatal documents I had transported.
Relocate them, now! ... Where else? ... Hollow Shades Wood you legless idiots! ... stia's sun won't be able to find them beneath that canopy...
It was time.
