It was a late evening in Equestria. Celestia, the princess of the day, prepared to sleep. Yet, she couldn't. She was thinking about everything that happened during the recent two weeks.

The answer for her letter came, telling that Twilight Sparkle and her friends will arrive the next day. Celestia knew she had time to prepare herself for the revelation she is about to tell.

Celestia understood that what she did was wrong, and now she can't do anything. Yes, she could've just used a time-traveling scroll that is stored deep within Canterlot Achieves, but she knew that tempting with time is a very bad thing to do.

So, all Celestia could think of was herself. To her, she looked pathetic. Known by ponies as a strong, kind, and understanding ruler, she acted against everything that she has built over the hundreds of years of her sole rule. She didn't try to reason with Andromalius because she didn't understand. She didn't listened to him, thinking of him as evil because she wasn't kind to him like she should have been. And she wasn't strong enough to try to find him herself and apologize for her actions.

The spies she sent for Andromalius were called back after Celestia realized everything.

There was a large and sturdy dam within herself, keeping her emotions under control. Even after her sister's banishment, the dam held itself, albeit less strong than before. Cracks started appearing on it.

Then, a kingdom of Equestria was attacked by the Griffin Empire. It has seen that Celestia couldn't even keep her own sister. Water started sipping through the dam as the bloody war raged.

Fearing of any progress, Celestia forced the country to stop developing any technology. The technology brought new weapons, new instruments of death and fear. That is why the solar princess denied it, keeping her country in stagnant state for hundreds of years. The dam was almost broken, paranoia has shown itself. The mask Celestia wore was about to fall, revealing her fear.

A thousand years without the closest one to her, Celestia ruled the country that was meant for two rulers. Every time Celestia brought out the moon to begin the night she remembered her sister, and each time she shed tears.

When Luna returned, Celestia was filled with both joy and fear. She feared that her dear sister will disappear again, that something or someone will separate them.

And then, Andromalius came, a creature with a mind unlike pony's. He brought chaos to her tortured soul. And then, Luna and Andromalius became friends. An infernal creature became close to Celestia's sister, and the solar princess was scared of that. The dam was about to fall.

And then, Andromalius demonstrated his magic. It was far more powerful and dangerous than that Celestia knew. The dam fell, and her fear clouded her mind. Doing everything to protect Luna, Celestia made things even worse and more complicating with Andromalius.

Now, she had little hope, and her soul needed healing.

With those dark thoughts in her head, Celestia waited until the morning.

The next day.

Celestia, Luna, and the six bearers of Elements of Harmony were in Celestia's bedchambers. Its owner said that she has something really important to say.

"Dear sister Luna," Celestia started. "And you, the six bearers... I have a confession to make..."

Celestia explained everything to them. At the mention of Andromalius, Rarity blushed a little, and nopony knew why.

"...so, I don't think I am in proper state of mind to rule Equestria." Celestia said. "At this moment, there is no peace, no balance inside me. I need some rest, I need to fix my mistakes, to repair the damage I've done.

"That means I will give all the power to you, Luna." she turned to the night sister. "Until I find balance within myself, I can no longer rule Equestria efficiently."

"Sister..."

"No, Luna, it is what I need." Celestia sighed. "I need to stop being a princess for a while. And you..." she turned to the six. "Can you give me some advice on how to fix everything with Andromalius?"

"Well, princess, none of us knows him well." Applejack was the first to reply. "But If he was as nice to princess Luna as ya have just told us, then Ah suppose he's fine, even if a little bit scary."

"I think that if he didn't any real harm, then, uh, you should go and apologize to him, princess. No offense, but you did wrong, after all, misjudging him." Fluttershy shyly added.

"He's chillin' me to the bone." Rainbow Dash stated, shivering. "But, well, I'm siding with Applejack and Fluttershy here. I would give that fellow a chance, even if he looks odd."

"He seemed to be a scary fire-meany," Pinkie Pie said. "But if he's friendly, an apology is needed, princess. It would be even better if you throw him a party!"

"I... I honestly don't know." Twilight Sparkle said nervously. "If he has so much magical potential, that means he's dangerous to all ponydom. But if he uses his powers for good, I have no objections."

Rarity just said that she can't say anything about him. A slight blush could be seen on her face.

"Well, I heard you." Celestia stated. "I'm going to make it up to him somehow... I mistreated him. I must find him and apologize in person."

After making an public announcement, in which Celestia said that she needed some rest from her royal duties, she packed some food, water, and other useful things. She put on a dull white warm cloak that hid her features completely. She shortened her mane and stopped its ethereal flow.

Thankfully for her, the ponies that she ruled in solitude for a thousand years understood her, and they had almost no issue with Luna ruling in Celestia's place. After all, everypony thinks that the solar princess makes no mistakes.

Celestia knew that Andromalius is somewhere in the north, and she was going to find him no matter what.

She must dispel her fear of him and, hopefully, earn his trust again. She thought that he still needed guidance, needed help, and she wanted to lend him a helping hoof. This time she's not expecting it to be bitten off by a beast of evil.

A few hours later.

Andromalius was walking through the white plains of snow. It was cold, about twenty degrees Celsius below zero, and it was getting colder the further he went.

He just focused on walking, ignoring anything and anyone else. Some ponies that he saw on his way tried to tell him that it was stupid to go there, others just stared at him in confusion. He ignored them altogether, focused on his task.

He has been slowly making progress, not even once stopping to rest. He didn't feel the cold nor did he feel tiredness. The inner hellfire kept him alive, warmed him.

Suddenly, something made him turn around. He saw that someone followed him, and that someone was wearing a white cloak. He narrowed his eyes, then started moving towards the cloaked pony. He thought that he should have hidden his trace.

Celestia shivered and thought of turning around but she decided to face Andromalius. As he walked closer to her, she couldn't feel anything but fear of what he can do to her.

Andromalius stopped a few meters before Celestia. She pulled down her hood, revealing herself to him. Celestia nervously shifted in place as he looked at her with those burning eyes of his.

"Princess Celestia." he greeted her in a blank voice, then pulled down his cloak's hood as well. His eyes pierced her very soul, and she could see some anger and, surprisingly, compassion.

"Andromalius." she nervously replied, then inhaled deeply, averting her eyes from his gaze ablaze. "I... I want to apologize."

A surprised look appeared on Andromalius's face.

"Apologize?" he warily asked.

"Yes, I do. I mistreated you, I... fucked everything up with you. I shouldn't have." She made a wry face at her own profanity, but that way she got her point across clearly.

"Why?" he stepped closer, narrowing his eyes.

"Because you did nothing bad, nothing wrong." Celestia explained, then sighed nervously. "I shouldn't have reacted the way I did." she nervously rubbed her left fetlock against her right cannon.

"Your apology is accepted." Andromalius nodded, sighing. "I understand why you did that. But what are you going to do now?" he asked.

"I want to make it up to you." Celestia replied, taking a step closer. "And I won't take no for an answer."

"It is your choice, then." Andromalius nodded. "But don't you need to rule Equestria?"

"I gave all the power to my sister, I am in no proper state of mind to rule right now. I will return, but only when I regain my inner balance." she explained. "What I realized is that I need some rest from the royal duties."

"And that is why you want to go with me, on a quest full of danger?" the hell stallion looked at her skeptically. "There is something wrong with you if it is so."

"I want to remember the time when I wasn't royalty. I and my sister were adventurers: we searched for ancient artifacts, we fought ancient evils. Those were good times." Celestia sighed. "After we became royalty, everything became a routine of paperwork and listening to ponies. It isn't bad, leading them, guiding them to peace and harmony, but it is very stressful. I live for over a thousand years, and the stress has always been my companion. It isn't easy being a near-immortal, ageless alicorn. Controlling yourself is a hard thing to do, and I'm not exactly a very strong person. I can block my emotions, yes, but it makes everything worse in the end.

"Ponies speak of me as a perfect ruler, a kind and understanding one. Yes, I try my best, but even I fail at times. I fear the danger, the instability of things that happen all around the world. When I was young, I welcomed any danger and overcame all of them, as well as my sister did. But I grew old, and everyone knows that the older you get, the more peaceful life you want.

"I must face my fears, I must face dangers again to be able to lead ponies. That is why I want to come with you, Andromalius. Now, I'm not a princess but just an adventurer."

"I think I understand it all." Andromalius nodded. "However, if you want to follow me, you must know that there are many dangers on the way. I can't tell you what my goal is, but you must know that I don't want anything bad to happen to Equestria. In truth, I want it to prosper as you do. However, becoming a ruler of this country isn't my goal. I have another destiny, which I'm not ready to tell you about.

"So, I must know, are you going to stay with me or would you like to leave? There will be no way back, at least not alone."

With little hesitation, Celestia nodded and said: "I will go with you."

"Good. Now, follow me."

Andromalius and Celestia walked for three hours, covering at least fifteen kilometers. There was nothing but snowy plains with a few snowy mountains deeper into the Frozen North. The cold was freezing, and Celestia's warm cloak barely protected her from it. Even with some warm clothes underneath, a chill ran through her.

As for Andromalius, he didn't feel any cold at all. The temperature was comfortable to him, even occasional winds didn't bother him much. He just kept on walking, sometimes glancing back to see if Celestia followed him. Surprisingly for him, she did, not complaining even once.

"Where are we going? The lands further into the north aren't habitable." Celestia asked.

"We aren't searching for anyone alive. We're searching for what is left of those who left this place thousands of years ago." Andromalius replied, not even stopping. "A city, if you need specifics."

"A city? All cities are buried under the snow." Celestia raised a brow. "There is nothing here but the everlasting winter that was created from hatred."

"I know, but there is a city that has been empty since before the winter came. It is somewhere in the furthest north." the hell stallion explained.

"I've never read of any cities that were that far away." Celestia frowned.

"I doubt any book has information about that one." Andromalius shook his head, then thought: "Inanna, how was that city named?"

"Regnum." the succubus replied.

Andromalius thanked her silently, then asked Celestia: "A city that is named Regnum, do you know anything of it?"

"I don't think I know." She shook her head. "There were multiple cities of pony tribes, but none ended with -um. Are you sure you know what you're searching for?"

"One hundred percent sure." he nodded.

After his last words, none were shared for a long time. Celestia wondered what just was the thing Andromalius was looking for.

Some time later, in the evening.

Celestia felt herself tired and cold. She lowered her sun, and now nothing could warm her at least a little. The temperature fell much below zero, now about forty degrees Celsius, and it keeps falling.

Due to Celestia's tiredness, Andromalius had to organize a hideout for the night. He made a small dugout in the snow, making the room for both of them.

Celestia shivered from the cold, and the hell stallion had to share his own cloak to make her something to sleep on rather than snow. He didn't care for his cloak, he couldn't die from the cold anyway.

So, he enchanted her and his cloaks to stay warm during the night. Celestia was thankful for that and immediately fell asleep.

Andromalius, however, couldn't close his eyes. Something was bugging him.

He felt that there is someone in these barren lands of ice and snow.

Someone full of hatred, pain, and anger. Someone that wants Celestia and her sister dead.

Equinae de Umbra.

Author's Notes:

Into the eyes of fire,
Into the gaze ablaze,
Into the burning light
Of Satan's rays...