Once upon a time, the defeat of Equestria would have brought malicious joy swelling in the Lord's chest. The heat of the fires razing their cities to the ground would have been a pleasant hearth to roast the flesh of his enemies upon, and their dying cries would have been the sweetest croon of a lullaby to ferry him to the dreaming realm.
Now however, it was a simple story's end, rather than the bloody conquest he craved so, and it wasn't even at his own hands.
What had swept Equestria away had been seen by many, yet known by almost none. It predated even ancient beings like Discord, reaching back through history with an arm that seemed to stretch on forever, until it disappeared into the obscure, gray blur beyond when time began. And then, it reached further, further, yet further, and Tirek felt his heart quiver to see the eternity that this thing had seen, and was destined to see.
For all of his research in his youth, he had recognized many tales of it, even from his homeland, but never heard a true name- never saw a real face. Each culture he'd ever found a piece of it in always put their own name and face to it- for the yaks, it was a massive beast with the thickest fur, and the strongest horns, who would turn the world over until everything was buried under hellfire and magma, in a rage from being awoken from its eternity of slumber by some unforeseen event. For the caribou of the Northernmost, it was known as the Last Dusk, and they told that it would cradle the sun in its antlers and steal it away as it set, leaving the world to disappear into eternal darkness, silently, peacefully, in the dead of night, never to awake. In his own homeland, they knew better than to give it a name or face. It simply was, and that was all that was truly needed.
The ponies never developed their own theory on how or even if it would come. They lived in an idyllic world, where everything would eventually turn out well. They were unprepared, yet hoped beyond all reason of hoping, that it could be stopped.
He didn't know whether to be irritated at them for their arrogance, or to be amused as they failed and suffered for said arrogance. Ultimately, he could only muster up pity. It wasn't something he could see, or hear, but he felt it, and while disappointed that he hadn't conquered Equestria before it came, even the great Lord Tirek, when he felt its shadow fall on the world, sat down, and waited.
He waited, for how long, he didn't know, but he waited, but when something finally entered Tartarus, it wasn't it. Hooves previously white and clad in gold touched the cold, dead stone of his prison, dark gray-red with blood and ash. Once, her mane played in the ethereal wind that her magic generated, but now, it hung limp and dull, and her eyes, once so fierce, were tired and afraid.
"Tirek." Even her voice had fallen. It was little more than a whisper, a soft croak of sound that spoke of countless tears, and endless sorrow, and he stood. His joints ached, and his muscles protested the movement after an age of stillness, but he stood, and he approached the edge of his prison.
"I don't know how much you're aware of, here...but I...I need to face all of my mistakes and regrets. Including you." He held her gaze, then calmly gestured for her to continue. She was too tired to mask her surprise at his compliance, too preoccupied to wonder why he was so complacent.
"I...need to tell you, that though I do not regret defending my kingdom from you, nor will I ever take back my actions, I still yet wish that somehow, our conflict could have eventually ended peacefully. I believe, like I believed with my precious Luna, and with my dear friend Discord, that we could have reached an understanding. I only regret that I never had the chance to call you an ally, rather than an enemy, Tirek. I regret that the world never saw a version of itself before it crumbled where you and I no longer met on the battlefield." She waited, her gaze holding his. He could tell, she expecting him to roar and yell, or perhaps she expected him to laugh, and taunt her beliefs. He couldn't find it in himself- now wasn't the time for his normal self. Only when she shifted did he finally opt to speak, and when he did, it was softly, at the same volume she had been using.
"I do not regret our conflicts. I do not agree with your beliefs. All that I regret...is that I could not give you the death you deserve." Celestia's eyes narrowed, and she released a heavy sigh, and his sharp eyes took note that somewhere along her barrel, near her shoulder, something shifted that was not supposed to, and she broke into a coughing fit that yielded blood and clear liquid. He waited, for a full minute he waited, until finally her lungs quelled and calmed, and she took a few shallow gulps of air to try and regain her breath.
"...You know something, don't you?" Tirek's ears swiveled forward, and she once again met his gaze, this time with embers in her eyes. Too weak for a fire, too strong to give up. "Do you know what is that's doing this? What is swallowing our world?!" She wheezed, lifting her head as her volume rose. He held her gaze, until finally she loosened, and looked down again.
"Do you know what it is, that killed my sister? Do you know what killed Discord, and Cadence and Twilight...? Do you know what took the world?" So it had reached them- he wasn't surprised, but he noted its progress, and quickly surmised it would soon be coming for Tartarus. He would not have to wait much longer.
"Talk, damn you!! You know something, I can see it in your eyes!" Her voice broke halfway through, and his attention drew back to her as she sunk to her knees and began to cry. "Please, if nothing else give me a name to curse as it consumes me too!" His chest constricted slightly at the thought of facing it, and through his spite for her, he had to admit to her bravery. Or was it foolishness?
"I cannot." Those two words seemed to freeze time. Celestia stilled, and he watched her form. It felt like an eternity, wherein he simply stood over her, and she shared her gaze and tears with the floor. He could feel the question burning in the air, all but audibly presented, and finally he drew in air and continued.
"What it is called, my homeland had no word for. We did not give it a face, or a voice. It simply was, and that was all that was needed."
"What is it then?" He had to lean forward and aim his ears towards her to catch the question, and even then, he wasn't sure he heard her right. Still, he answered all the same.
"It simply is. During my life, I conquered many lands, and almost all of them whispered of the same thing. It simply comes, and then, it is the end. I did not expect to live long enough to be present, yet here I am. The end." Celestia released a soft sob.
"Why are you acting like this? Are you only pretending to be Tirek? Is the face you wear not your own?" He shifted his weight then slowly sat down- the weight on his weakened bones was beginning to ache, and he found himself face to face with her once more.
"Like I said- I had never expected to live long enough to experience the end. But in my homeland, it's just...there. The end. It's just 'the end'." Her mane finally shifted away from her face, and the pain of a thousand deaths hit him full force at the sight of those lilac irises. He knew, he'd seen this look so very many times before, but somehow, here and now, it held so much more weight than ever before.
"My people always keep it in our heads. Every child in my homeland, every elder, every noble or peasant, knows that every story must have an end. We are prepared. I am prepared. There is no gain to roaring or fighting you. My fate draws near, as does yours, and nothing I can do will prevent it." Celestia's confusion was practically palpable, and she rested a hoof on the barrier imprisoning him.
"You don't mourn those you must have lost by now?"
"I do, but as with all else at the moment, I know there is nothing to be done. Those who I would have cared for, in another life, were raised the same way I was. They...he would know, as I do, that he must simply accept the choices he's made." It didn't take a genius to figure out who he was talking about, but Celestia fought back the urge to speak Scorpan's name aloud all the same.
"He died." She flinched. Such a blunt statement, from someone such as him, could have been mistaken for callousness. Perhaps dismissal, or apathy, yet somehow it felt like more.
" Scorpan died. That's all, nothing more. No fanfare, no metaphor, no brilliant final words. The culmination of the most influential concepts in all of history is "He died." It's only natural to be sad, but not because of the words "He died"- but instead, because of the life that happened prior to those words." With a soft groan, he stood, and walked to the center of his prison, staring upwards, arms hanging by his sides. "When the end comes, it is just the end. Our world has lived all five of its acts, Celestia- and fate is not asking us to be happy that our story is finally over." With a deep sigh, he turned to Celestia. She's crying again, he notes, and he can't blame her. Were he not taught this from the moment he could understand, perhaps he would be too.
"All that we can do, we have done. All that we must do now, is allow time to turn the page...continue reading, and let someone else's story begin." Several strides carried him back to her, and he could feel, in the distance, Tartarus's gates tremble and fall. The barrier separating them crumbled, and he took the opportunity to set his hand on her shoulder. She let out a soft gasp, then lifted her head to look him in the eye. His gaze was calm, even now that he could feel it slowly consuming Tartarus, coming for them, turning the last few pages. Celestia searched his face for something. Maybe hope, maybe grief, but he knew she would find nothing but quiet acceptance, and she seemed to tremble under his claws before she took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
"Ironic." He hummed softly as her mane fell in front of her face, and she released a soft, tired chuckle, shaking her head. "I just...feel it's ironic. I came here, expecting to face down the only regret left I have that hasn't been put to rest. I expected to be yelled at, or laughed at. I never would have expected that you, of all beings in our entire world, would be giving me the words I apparently needed..." Tirek released a gruff rumble of accordance, and she wiped at her face, leaving streaks of ash and blood on her cheeks and across the bridge of her muzzle.
"I guess that even villains like you have something worth listening to." Tirek felt enough of a spark of annoyance to roll his eyes, and he folded his arms stubbornly.
"And horses like you have ears to listen with. Imagine..."
"...Tirek? What is it that your homeland called it. Not its name, just what it was?" His neck creaked as he tilted his head slightly, and he watched as she moved to sit next to him, looking forward as a soft darkness slowly crept up on their vision.
"The End."