In Celestia we trust

This was a nightmare. Matt wished he could wake up. It had all been just a huge nightmare from the day he had chosen to go do his apple experiment to this very moment, the last of his life that would end in the most horrible of suffering. And all he could think about was what he could have done wrong to come to such an outcome.

He had never wished to be burn alive for his beliefs. That was a certainty. But also, he had never wished for Celestia to actually not exist. Or maybe just a little, but he would have been fine with her continuing to be there. And still, that wasn’t the cause. He thought of the trial and Twilight Sparkle, that was no tied beside him, unconscious, and how wrong he had been to trust her with his defense. How wrong had he been? Well, actually, not so much. She had tried her best, he should have just abandoned his principles and said what everypony wanted to hear. “Yes, sure, Celestia exists”. How easy would that have been? Then neither he nor Twilight would have had to face such a terrible fate.
So it was mostly all his fault.
But maybe it was deeper than that. Had he never been interested in the study of the natural laws, he would have never conceived that Celestia might actually not exist and he would have lived just as happily, if not happier. Why did he have to study those natural laws? Not even because somepony had told him or even proposed him to do so, but only because they were there. He had encountered a mystery he had wanted to solve. He had simply been too curious, and honest. But curious and honest were part of who he was. So how could he have done anything differently?
The blame wasn’t his to bear. Had the natural laws never existed, none of it would have happened.

And in the end, knowing who to blame wasn’t changing the fact he was going to be burned alive. He saw a pony putting a torch on his stake and the fire beginning to expand all around him. Already the air was difficult to breathe in as the smoke was replacing everything else.

He looked around him, in the hope to find any sign of help coming, but saw none. He was simply there, surrounded by an angry crowd. Twilight still hadn’t woken up. Luna was too weak to intervene. He was alone. Completely alone and powerless.
To say he was terrified beyond belief was an understatement.

He began to cry. The pride he had taken comfort in since his childhood wasn’t serving him anymore in such circumstances. He didn’t need to hide the fact he was different form the others, he didn’t need to value himself after everypony around him had told him he was wrong and crazy.
So he just cried and screamed as the fire began to eat his back hooves and slowly climb over his body in an insufferable agony.

It was all over and he fainted.

But Twilight's voice took him out of his slumber. The princess of friendship had woken up and, even if Matt, tortured by the flames and the smoke, had difficulties to grasp it, was talking.

"Stop it! Stop it in Celestia's name!" Twilight was shouting.

But the crowd, of course, didn't listen. So Twilight adressed her words to another interlocutor.

"Celestia, please, we need you more than ever!" she shouted as loud as she could, hoping the princess of the sun would hear her against all probabilities.

"Please, Celestia, help us. Save us. We need you.... I need you..." Twilight said again, her voice slowly fainting to leave place for tears as the wood under her was also being devoured by the fire that would soon consume her.

But at that very moment, from the flames, from the heavens and from the deep core of everypony's souls, a voice made itself heard that was shaking the most foundamental components of reality. A voice that seemed to come from the dawn of time itself, a voice that was both personal and eternal: the voice of Celestia.

"HOW DARE YOU?"

And from behind Twilight, the white silhouette of the alicorn appeared, jumping over the burning stakes and landing in front of the pony crowd, revealing all of her wrath, as the air, the sound and even consciousness was leaving its place to the sole will of Celestia and behind her the burning sun in its glorious majesty.

To please her, a strong gust of wind blew and extinguished the fire, leaving only Celestia's anger burning. Then, the gust of wind quickly disappeared to not upset the royal figure.

"Your majesty..." a pony faintly said, caught between the joy of seeing the princess again, and the incredible fear she was imposing on them at that very moment. "We thought you were gone."

He stopped there and bowed down again, seeking forgiveness, as it was clear he could have spit on the princess and still insult her less.

"And that would give you the right to harm innocent ponies!?" Celesita reprimanded them all. "You should all be ashamed of yourself. I am very disappointed."

At those words, cries and scream of despair came from the crowd, as they all felt like their goddess had decided to give up on them. They all tried to implore her to pardon them, they told her how sorry they were, they shed every tears they had to show her how great their regrets were and upon everything else, they implored the princess not to abandon them in the darkness.

"If you truly regret what you have done, then begin by doing what is right." Celestia told them.

Seizing that chance to redeem themselves, the ponies quickly freed both Twilight and Matt, began treating their wounds, all while apologizing over and over again.

"It will do." Celestia stated, and all ponies stopped. "Now go home and think about the crime you were about to commit. We shall then speak again."

All too happy to know the princess was willing to give them a chance, the ponies bowed down once again and obeyed her command diligently.

Then another pony came to Celestia for forgiveness.

"Big sister..." Luna began. "I am so sorry. I failed you. I couldn't save anpony."

But Celestia embraced her little sister and comforted her.

"My dear Luna. You have no reason to blame yourself. You did your best to help and that is already more than I could ask."

Then Twilight came near Celestia and she too asked for forgiveness:

"Thank you for saving us. Thank you for saving him." she first said, pointing at Matt. "But I know that, contrarily to Luna, I bear the blame for what happened. It is my stubborness that resulted in such a catastrophic ending. I am deeply sorry princess."

But Celestia embraced the little princess and comforted her.

"My dear Twilight. You have no reason to blame yourself. You tried to help an innocent pony and that should never be considered as something bad. I wish more ponies would blindly take the defense of those they don't understand just to do what is right."

Both Luna and Twilight were feeling embarassed, and still guilty, but the comforting words were helping them forgive themselves. Whether or not those words were true, they were the words they needed to hear at that moment, and that in itself was sufficient.

Then Celestia went to Matt and, using her divine magic, healed his injuries, to the point where he couldn't even remember what the bites of the fire had felt like, or what the black smoke tasted like.

"I... Thank you your majesty." the poor stallion gratefuly said. "I am so sorry I doubted your existence. Please forgive me for my blindness."

Hearing him say that, Celestia sat down near him to bring her head more at his level, and then booped his nose with her front hoof with a little giggle.
Matt obviously got surprised, but then found comfort in the childish behavior of the princess.

"You are a weird pony, my dear Poly Matt, and that is something to treasure and never be ashamed of. And if you wever live as long as I have, you will probably realize that blindness is a very relative concept when it is applied to what one believes."

"I'm not sure I understand..." Matt replied, having a little idea of what Celestia was trying to tell him, but unsure how it would make any sense whatsoever.

"I do not demand from you to believe in me, my dear Matt. You are a good pony, so I don't need you to. And certainly not out of gratefulness that, quite frankly, I don't think I deserve."

Her voice was gentle, her smile comforting and her words sounded like freedom. And still, Matt had difficulties understanding them.

"I understand that you are a bit disconcerted. After all, I told everypony that I don't exist and now we are discussing together. This must look very contradictory to you." Celestia told him, almost reading his mind.

"Yes..." admitted Matt.

"Here is the truth I offer you." Celestia told him. "I am here for you. I will always wait at your side, no matter who you are or what you have done, and if one day you need me, I will be there for you, trying my best to help you. Because I am your friend."

None of those words made any sense to Matt, but he smiled nonetheless, because he liked how their sound.

"Now please, dear Matt, you must be exhausted. Rest. You have deserved it well."

And under Celestia's wing, Poly Matt quietly closed his eyes and found peace.

THE END