What if Celestia is dead?

[ManaMinori 4,149]

Everyone knows that the sun, like any star, takes energy to continue to burn. But what if Princess Sunbutt, has depleted all of hers?

 

As the solar sister, it's not an issue of "what if", but "when"? If it has happened already, due to exhausting her power supply, I.E. the EoH, then like the actual sun, Sunbutt is in a white dwarf state, bright and luminous, but still a dead star thats only role is to cool off over time. Through six seasons, we have repeatedly seen Sunbutt in such a role, where she is frequently played as the powerless damsel in distress, unable to properly protect her own citizens, and "dwarfed" by six stars who shine far brighter than her, and are more competent in their role as guardians of Equestria.

 

I think it is clear that Sunbutt has long since become a dead white dwarf (physically, and metaphorically), and likely, the physical remnants of the celestial luminary that she controls, has as well. Though it takes a long time for stars in such a state to cool off after their death, it may not be immediately obvious to ponies or fans for a long time yet to come.

 

Luna is the lunar sister, and the moon has no power source to deplete, which explains the imbalance of episodes given to each sister. If Sunbutt is dead, how can you write for a departed pony? If Sunbutt's last remaining light as a white dwarf fades out, and she becomes a "black star" (Nightmare Star), then I can see an episode based off of that, but would fans be ready to accept that such a transition would spell out that she was indeed dead (and probably has been for a while), and Nightmare Star being her final goodbye?

Edited March 19, 2017 by Nightmare Muffin

[Sunny Fox 5,961]

Celestia and Luna control the sun and moon, but I doubt they are connected to the bodies as such. Before they ruled, the unicorns used their magic to make day and night (stated in Hearth's Warming Eve). I don't think it's a "as below, so above" kind of deal. An interesting concept, but I don't see any such connection.

[ManaMinori 4,149]

Celestia and Luna control the sun and moon, but I doubt they are connected to the bodies as such. Before they ruled, the unicorns used their magic to make day and night (stated in Hearth's Warming Eve). I don't think it's a "as below, so above" kind of deal. An interesting concept, but I don't see any such connection.

but for the unicorns, controlling the sun (and moon) wasn't their destiny. For the sisters, it is. The twig determined it.

 

When the sisters were captured by the plundervines, the sun and moon stood still, meaning there was a connection between them. Also, in the JotTS, it explains that the raising of the sun /moon rejuvinates the sisters' magic, but if the actual sun is a dead white dawrf, and so is Sunbutt, from exhausting her power from using the EoH, then what energy does a dead star have to give to it's counterpart, to rejuvinate her and bring her back to life?

Edited March 19, 2017 by Nightmare Muffin

[Jeric 46,882]

When in Equestrian history was it a red giant? There is actually an equation you can do to determine how long a red giant will be in that stage of stellar evolution if you know it's mass/compisition, but even without that we now the lower and upper limits. Red giant to white dwarf ... takes at least a few thousand years to burn through all the helium.

 

Also the planet Equestria is on would have been engulfed by the red giant if we assume that the planet is in a current habitable zone. Luminosity levels also don't appear to be altered.

 

Wait. Maybe this happened during MMC and everything since then is a stellar version of a fever dream after the planet was swallowed or push out of its original orbit.

 

Also, moons can have an internal power source and atmosphere. So you can't​ say concretely their moon has no power of its own.

[Sunny Fox 5,961]

but for the unicorns, controlling the sun (and moon) wasn't their destiny. For the sisters, it is. The twig determined it.

 

When the sisters were captured by the plundervines, the sun and moon stood still, meaning there was a connection between them. Also, in the JotTS, it explains that the raising of the sun /moon rejuvinates the sisters' magic, but if the actual sun is a dead white dawrf, and so is Sunbutt, from exhausting her power from using the EoH, then what energy does a dead star have to give to it's counterpart, to rejuvinate her and bring her back to life?

I haven't read JotTS, so I'll take your word for it. But even if the bodies, as you say, rejuvinate their magic, or that their destiny was always to control them, those two things don't necessarily mean the sisters and their respective celestial bodies mirror each other in the way you suggest. Unless it clearly states in that book (or elsewhere) that there is such a mirroring effect, then I'm still skeptical of your theory. But I give you credit for coming up with an interesting idea.  Although I did say I saw no connection, and you've clearly made the case that I was incorrect in that assertion.

[gyashaa 252]

I'm not sure exactly what you're trying to say...

Her being weaker than the mane 6 doesn't make her dead. Just weaker than the mane 6. Plus I would say that she's weaker than the mane 6 together but stronger than them individually. And she could just be getting old.

She's an alicorn who controls the sun, not the sun itself. Maybe she is connected to the sun somehow but the show has not said so.

This does sounds like a good fanfic though.

Edited March 19, 2017 by gyashaa

[ManaMinori 4,149]

I'm not sure exactly what you're trying to say...

Her being weaker than the mane 6 doesn't make her dead. Just weaker than the mane 6. Plus I would say that she's weaker than the mane 6 together but stronger than them individually. And she could just be getting old.

She's an alicorn who controls the sun, not the sun itself. Maybe she is connected to the sun somehow but the show has not said so.

This does sounds like a good fanfic though.

its not just that she's weaker, but that her light, her physical presence (screentime AND infuence on other ponies) is fading, like the remnants of light from a dead star. This, too, applies to her magic after banishing her sister with the EoH. Just like she's unable to use them anymore, so too, could she be unable to rejuvinate her own power and self through the sun, because it and she are dead. It's only a matter of time before Sunbutt, the dead dwarf star becomes a black star, and then Nightmare Star, as her former self leaves the mortal plane, like the sun she controls. I mean, its pretty evident. History played out through Luna- a celestial that reflects the sun's light- becoming NMM. How could Luna reflect what's not there? The Nightmare of the sun's burnout WILL happen in due time.

[cmarston1 5,964]

I am pretty sure that she isn't dead in the slightest.