“Hold up. I want to take a look at this.” Princess Celestia pulled the reigns on her sky chariot and pointed at a fresh scar gouged through the earth. It looked as if a giant claw had scraped along, tearing up boulders and scattering dirt. Her royal escorts nodded and spiraled down, bringing her next to the groove. The early morning sun illuminated dew on the grass like beads of glass, but the trench itself was in deep shadow.

Celestia hopped down and peered in the direction that she'd been traveling. That way led to Ponyville, and the end was nowhere in sight. In the other direction, the groove stretched all the way to the base of a mountain where it was cut off and buried by a fresh rockfall. The avalanche had probably been caused by the same thing that had created the groove.

“Such power.” One of her royal guards joined her in examining the scar.

Celestia nodded slowly. She turned around and walked along the edge towards the mountain. “Yes. I had heard about Twilight's battle with Lord Tirek, but this is the first chance I've had to survey the damage.” Nearby, a boulder about the size of a house had been sliced in half. The surface looked glassy and smooth and it curved upwards into a sharp, menacing spire. Celestia shuddered. “Sombra had never been that powerful. Not even Nightmare Moon could have caused such destruction.”

“Let us be grateful then, that harmony has been restored.” The guard bowed his head in general respect.

“Yes, let's.” Celestia started walking back to her carriage. “Wait—what is that?” Breaking off, she walked through strewn rubble into the rocky field. The royal guard followed her dutifully.

Celestia stopped in front of a plant with wide spade-shaped leaves and a fuzzy, hairy stem. It had a flower bud on the tip of its stalk. “Why it's a sunflower.” Celestia smiled. “My favorite plant.”

“This mostly barren rocky field is quite a strange place to see one of those,” the guard, named Adamant, said. “It's also pretty runty for a sunflower.”

“Runty or not, it's still a sunflower. You know, I've heard a lot of tales about these flowers, and most of them are true.”

“Oh?” Adamant raised an eyebrow.

“It is said that they follow the sun throughout the day, taking in the light and basking in its glory. Once the sun passes its zenith, the flower will wish to give its thanks and open wide. Its wide, yellow blossom is a tribute to the object that it adores. However, it will only bloom if it can directly see the sun, as it wishes to be seen and appreciated.” Celestia took in a deep breath. “The most determined of sunflowers will even find a way to shine through the thickest of clouds, and this little fellow must be determined indeed to grow in this desolate, rocky terrain.”

Celestia swept a hoof out in front of her. “Why I can imagine it blooming, going to seed, and soon there will be a whole field of sunflowers here.”

Adamant snorted. He shook his head. “That's never going to happen.”

“What?”

“Even if it could find the sun through clouds, no plant, no matter how determined, can find the sun through tons of rock. Once the sun passes its zenith, this plant will be in the shadow of the mountain. It's never going to bloom. It's never going to go to seed. It will wither and die without ever showing its colors.” He sighed. “It's cruel, but sometimes fate works that way. No amount of meddling on our part can change it, either. I doubt that even Lord Tirek could have moved this mountain.”

“Well, that's depressing.”

“I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do. We should go. The mayor is awaiting your arrival.”

Celestia sighed. “I suppose you're right. As much as I'd like to fix everything, there are some things that even I cannot do.” She turned and walked back towards her royal chariot. As she did so, the morning sun glinted in her eye. Whispering to herself, she added, “Though that doesn't mean I can't try.” Next Chapter: Nightmare Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 24 Minutes