//------------------------------//
// Letter from Aristallion to Nostradamare 
// Story: Equestrian Mythology ~ Tale of the Scions 
// by Keeper of Jericho 
//------------------------------//

To my friend, Nostradamare:

‘Tis with great delight that I take pen to the horn and write thee this letter. It has been too long, no doubt, but I hope that thou can find it in thy heart to forgive me, for my research hath claimed all of my attention. Indeed, my housekeeper claims I have even lost weight because I ate too little, locked up in my study as I was. Regretfully I must confess she speaks the truth. She now seems to have every intent of having me make up for it, giving me servings an entire family could eat their fill from every meal, and not caring if my stomach agrees with the amount it has to take in or not. I fear her worry for my health will be more devastating to my aging form than my days of self-imposed exile to my study ever were!

It was worth it, however. At long last, I can inform thee that I have finished my manuscript of the Scions’ tale, the end-product of a lifetime of research, digging up the oldest of tales and myths and translating and studying the most ancient of texts. Thou hast always supported me in my quest, and thy suggestion of visiting the ruins in the forest of Everfree proved invaluable to the final pieces of the puzzle I have been painstakingly putting together my entire life. History has always caught my interest, of that thou art most aware, and nothing piqued my curiosity more than the truth that might lay behind the tales and myths we tell our foals. 

The answer to all the questions I had is now encased in my book, which I wrote with utmost care. I have now come as close to the truths behind the myths as a pony could ever get. A truth that is, to be frank, even more fantastic and unbelievable than the myths that spawned from them. For indeed, could ponykind ever fully comprehend the sheer power of those behind the myths, those who but a rare few know as the Scions? The Scions, who crafted works of cosmic scale, who understood and even influenced the fabrics of our very world and existed. Could we, mere mortal ponies, ever truly understand such beings, or what plays inside their minds? 

Perhaps we cannot, my friend. And this brings me to a matter I would like to have thy council on. Thou and I are scholars, though our fields of interest differ, and the knowledge that there have been and are greater forces at work in our world than we can see, is, though still great, not new to us. It is something that scholars learn throughout their studies, and a truth that is slowly fed to us so we can digest it easily. But what of our fellow ponies, who are not as learned as we are? I admit, my friend, that I am far from certain if they are ready to handle the truth of our history. And perhaps they shall never be, which is not an insult to their capabilities, mind you. But this is certainly a subject and matter most delicate. 

Thus, I ask for thy opinion and input. My book is at long last now finished, but I am not certain if I should allow it to be published. Would it be wise? If my work is going to be the cause of mass-hysteria amongst ponykind, or inspire sudden fear of our monarch, then frankly I would rather have it remain on the shelves and catch dust till the pages fall apart. I study history, but have no desire to go down history myself. Certainly not as one whose work spread fear and doubt amongst his kin. 

For that matter, I am not even certain if the Princess would allow my studies to see the light of her glorious day. I do not suspect her of censorship for her own gain, most definitely not. But she played a great role in the tale, and was and still is capable of things that ponies cannot imagine. I doubt they can harmonize the idea of their kind, wise and loving monarch with the image of the Scion of Day who set the very sky ablaze and made the earth scream in terror under her hooves during the War of Tears. It would damage her public image, possibly, and cause ponies to distrust and fear her, no matter how much my tale proves there is no need for that.

To be frank, it is not something I wish to be responsible for.

Thou art wise and insightful, my friend, perhaps more so than I. So I would ask thee a favour. With this letter I have also sent you a copy of my manuscript, and I would ask that thou reads it. And once you have done so, tell me if thou thinks that our fellow ponies are ready to learn of the truth I have uncovered. I value thy wisdom and opinion greatly, and I hope dearly that I am not imposing with my request. Briefly the idea crossed my mind to simply step to the Princess herself with what I have now asked of thee, but I reconsidered and decided to ask for thy insights first.

Now, as for the book and its contents, I do not think I have to say much that is not contained within the pages. As thou know well, the Scions were creatures given great, nearly cosmic power with a duty to oversee an aspect of all that builds up our world. Ilfirinë was the first Scion, and she brought forth the birth of twelve others, who were often called her ‘children’. Though the truth of the Scion ‘family’ and how Ilfirinë created them is all written down in the book, so I shall not elaborate on it here. 

My scripture is divided in thirteen chapters, each chapter handling and explaining the origin, power, charge and life of one Scion. I do not have precise dates or an exact timeline of the events in the book, however. The earliest tales are simply too old, and no records remain of those ancient times. Only the Princess herself could tell me, though for reasons I think obvious I have not asked her. Instead I have ordered the tales by order of each Scion’s end. That is why you shall find Aragniel in the first chapter, and not Ilfirinë, for Aragniel was the first to fall. For the same reason I did not interweave the tales in one flowing narrative. ‘Tis a lot of information to take in as it is, without the reader having to, say, halfway Edlin’s tale go back to Sírdhem’s tale to find out what caused the latter to quarrel with the former again. No, all Scions’ have their tale concentrated within one chapter, regardless of chronology, instead of one chronological retelling of the events where I would have had to constantly change which Scion I was handling.

The final point I would like to address concerns the names of three of the Scions. Each Scion had a name in their own language, which is long since lost and forgotten. However, those Scions that were more directly involved with us ponies were called by different names by us, that were easier to pronounce and understand. Because we know Celestia, Luna and Discord by those names, and not their true names in the Scions’ tongue, I refer to each of them by their pony names throughout the book. For completion’s sake, however, their true name is mentioned at the beginning of their individual chapters. Though I would like to inform thee that I had to go to enormous lengths to uncover these forgotten names. Discord’s, in particular, seemed to have nearly been erased from history.

I pray that thou will find the literature satisfying to read through. Since it is a copy, it is for thee to keep. Consider it a gift, out of gratitude for the many times when thou aided and supported me in my quest and research. Should there be parts of my work that still leave thee with questions, I would, naturally, be most happy to answer them to the best of my abilities. 

Please, think of my request as well, if it is not too much trouble. I know thou art a busy stallion, but this work has the ability to change how we ponies look upon our very history. That is a thought as exciting as it is dangerous, and requires great thought and should be handled with the utmost care, I am sure I need not tell thee that.

I eagerly await thy response.

Your lifelong friend,
Aristallion