It had been weeks since Majesty had destroyed the Dark Forest coven after they had done the same with her entire herd.
She had asked the elves if they would allow her to stay with them, and the ruler of the elven town of Amrun, Duke Arhael, agreed. Majesty had spent the following days in a cultural exchange of sorts, as she taught Badhor, the First Spellcaster of the Duke about how unicorns in the wild lived and used magic, something that he enjoyed immensely.
Majesty also took the opportunity to learn things about the elves. Namely, just how their civilization worked. How their government worked, how they made their laws, and how the government enforced those laws. She mostly talked about this with the Duke, as long as he had free time.
However, to the next question Majesty asked, Arhael responded,
"... I'm sorry Majesty, I should not give that answer."
"You can't answer me?" Majesty tilted her head confused.
"No, I 'should not'. Any answer I give would be bias."
"What is bias?"
"It means that the answer I give would be distorted from my point of view as a Duke. It would be my answer, but not the answer."
This surprised Majesty, from what she'd learned so far, questions should normally have only one answer, questions could have more than one answer?
"While my answer would be partial, I recommended, Majesty, that you visit the town's library and talking the bookkeepers, they should be able to provided an unbiased answer."
This was the reason why now Majesty and Aria were walking down the streets of Amrun. The young elf maid was guiding Majesty through the town under the request of the Duke, since the unicorn didn’t know her way around it. Not that Aria minded, she and Majesty enjoyed each other’s company.
“Here we are, Miss Majesty, the town’s library,” said Aria as she signaled to a rather imposing building with handcrafted double doors, columns and small statues adorning them.
“Please Aria, I told you that just Majesty is fine.”
Aria smiled and knocked on the large doors. A moment later, an elf woman wearing librarian robes opened the doors.
“Hello, welcome to the Library of Amrun, I am Dasyra, Head Librarian. How can I help… you?” she said that last part a little surprised to see Majesty. “Excuse me, but… are you a unicorn?”
“Yes, I am Majesty, nice to meet you,” replied Majesty with a friendly smile.
Dasyra’s eyes lit up. “Majesty? You are the unicorn that took care of the witches in the Dark Forest, and brought back their books and scrolls? I heard so much about you. It’s nice to meet you in person.”
"You've never seen her on the street before?" Aria asked bewildered.
"I spend nearly all my time with my books, so I don't get out much. After The Dark Lord's purge, my books are even more valuable, I'll let no harm come to them."
“Thank you Dasyra,” replied Majesty. “So this is a ‘Library’ huh? This is where your people keep their knowledge?”
Dasyra smiled, “I guess you could say that. This is where the town keeps all their important books and scrolls, the originals at least. Schools of all kinds can borrow books from here, or in case they need it in a permanent basis, request a copy, or copies, be made for them. The texts you took from the coven in the Dark Forest were taken here, and copies were made for the Palace’s First Spellcaster and the town’s Magic School. Amrun has one of the most important libraries in the kingdom, we have a little of everything, but our specialty is in magical texts. But don’t stay by the door, come in please.”
Majesty and Aria walked into the library, inside they saw several long wooden shelves that seemed to go on forever, filled with books and scrolls of all shapes and sizes, some looked old, others brand new. Majesty was simply in awe. The library looked as big as the Duke’s palace.
"You said something about a 'purge', what did you mean?" Majesty asked.
"Purge means to clean away something, like purging a dress of dirt. But it can also mean to wipe away people or places. When most of the elven people left across the sea, leaving only small hidden towns like ours behind, they took what records they could with them. Many of these books may be lone survivors. The Dark Lord's monsters destroyed every piece of history and knowledge they came across. "
"Why?" Majesty asked innocently.
"Tyrants always fear knowledge," Dasyra said.
"Tyrant?"
"Someone who bullies others to do what they want." The older elf shook her head. “But please, what kind of book were you looking for Majesty?” asked Dasyra.
“Oh, I’m not here to get a book. Wouldn’t be of much use to me,” replied Majesty. “I don’t know how to read.”
Dasyra raised an eyebrow, “Oh?”
“Majesty has been a wild unicorn most of her life,” explained Aria. “She learned how to speak our language from a pony that had lived within civilization, but that’s it. When she first came into the palace I had to help her get her mane untangled and clean her coat from leaves and little pieces of twigs.”
Dasyra nodded, “I see. I guess reading wouldn’t be a skill one would be concerned about when living in a forest.”
“It does seem like a useful skill to have,” said Majesty as she looked at one of the shelves filled with books. “Are books it's only use?"
"No, it can be used for communication and many other reasons."
"Is it hard to master?”
“Not at all, it is never too late to learn how to read,” replied Dasyra. “There are plenty of places in town where you can get someone to teach you, if you are interested.”
“I’ll definitely consider it,” replied Majesty.
“Well then, if not for a book or a scroll, what brings you to Amrun’s Library?” asked Dasyra.
“I asked the Duke a question and he said any answer he gave me would be biased, but he told me that I might be able to get an answer here,” replied Majesty.
“I see. And what is this question?” inquired Dasyra.
“Why are government and laws necessary?” asked Majesty.
Dasyra raised both eyebrows, “Yes, I see how the Duke wouldn’t be able to give you an unbiased answer, considering that he is… well, the Duke.”
“So, is it possible for you to answer my question?” asked Majesty.
“Hmmm, not really, but I know who might. Follow me please,” said Dasyra. She started to walk down one of the many hallways of the library, every one of them had shelves upon shelves filled with books. Majesty and Aria followed suit. Majesty's eyes followed the books, noticing the sheer number of them.
“So, where are we going?” asked Aria.
“The Human Literature wing of the library,” replied Dasyra.
“The library has a Human Literature wing?” asked Aria, surprised.
“Yes, not just Human but also Satyr and several other species too. As I said, we even have a few old scrolls that were saved from the Centaur Empire before the Dark Lord came. It is very important to save as much knowledge as future, from as many sources as possible, not for us but for future generations,” explained Dasyra. "Especially when the original source is lost forever."
They reached another section of the library, a man wearing a librarian robe was arranging some of the books in one of the many shelves. He wasn’t an elf, however, he was a human.
“A human works here?” asked Aria.
“Yes. It was my idea to hire librarians that, when possible, are of the same race as the origin of the books they are to take care of. That way they know better all the ins and outs of maintenance the texts needs to be persevered as good as possible,” explained Dasyra.
“And why would Human Literature be a better source of an answer for my question?” asked Majesty. "For that matter, what exactly are humans? My father knew and talked about them but I've never seen one."
“Humans are very inquisitive and resourceful by nature,” replied Dasyra. “Their lifespans are considerably shorter when compared to an elf, and they try to make the most of that lifespan by trying to find answers to questions and creating new inventions. They have this whole school of thought called Philosophy, which is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. I’m pretty sure that their works of literature will be the best source of answers for your question.”
Majesty gave the human a cautious look. "...He’s the same kind of creature as the witches… "
"I would imagine it's logical to assume so, as rumor has it Lilith was human...once."
"Once?"
"What she is now is decidedly NOT human. In fact, I doubt there’s even a word for what she’s become, but now she’s as different from humans as the Dark Lord is from the kind he sprang from...so it is no surprise her offspring, while appearing human, are...changed and distinct from them. And such may be the case with any who practice their art as diligently as they do."
"How so?"
"Witches live hundreds of years naturally for starters."
Dasyra walked over to the human arranging the books with Majesty and Aria in tow. “Hello Heilyn.”
The human turned around from his task, “Oh, hello there Dasyra. Can I help you with something? … is that a unicorn with you?” he asked as he noticed Majesty behind Dasyra.
Dasyra turned to look at Majesty and Aria. “Majesty, Aria, this is Heilyn Cruelfawn, he is one of the two humans we hired to take care of our Human Literature wing in the library.” She then turned to look at the human. “Heilyn, these are Majesty and Aria. Majesty is a wild unicorn that is at the Duke’s palace for the time being, she’s the one that acquired the witch books and scrolls that came into our possession recently.”
“Ah! You are that unicorn? Well, I’m sure you would be pleased to know that magicians and scholars all over town are getting some invaluable information from those texts that might someday save lives,” said Heilyn.
“Really? Like what?” asked Majesty, curiously.
“Well, magic isn’t my specialty, but from what I’ve gathered, we can now have a deeper understanding on how witches use magic. Apparently, witches can cast spells, but their stronger magic comes from the use of artifacts, runes and potions,” replied Heilyn.
“There were several recipes, drawings and blueprints for different potions, runes and artifacts, by studying them magic scholars hope to find helpful uses for them, and also find countermeasures and antidotes to help any current and future victims of witchcraft,” added Dasyra.
“That is actually good to hear,” said Majesty with a smile.
“However, there was one particular scroll among them that magical experts found particularly worrying,” commented Heilyn.
“Oh yes, that scroll…” added Dasyra.
“Huh? What was it?” asked Majesty.
“It seemed to be a formula for some sort of substance, it was in very early stages, not all the ingredients have been figured out yet, so it is not yet functional, but it might be someday,” said Dasyra.
“Yes. The scroll was clearly one of several copies,“ explained Heilyn. “And that means that the coven of the Dark Forest was just one of many witch covens working on it. It is clearly some sort of collective project, even if all covens compete with each other for supremacy, it seems that is a common goal for all of them to get this formula perfected and working.”
“And that means it's important. We hope to find some sort of countermeasure or weakness of this formula, before the witches finish it,” said Dasyra. “We aren’t sure yet, but the magical experts at the town’s magic school said that the formula, when brewed properly will, theoretically, form some sort of semi-sentient substance, which will grow in size and cover everything in its path. The scroll even had a name for it; the Smooze.”
“But enough about that,” said Heilyn, changing the subject to something less worrying. “What brings you to our library, Majesty?”
“She has asked a question to the Duke, who didn’t believe himself adequately qualified to answer it. He then directed her to come here, and I consider that Human Literature would be the best source for an answer,” explained Dasyra.
“Oh, okay, I’ll be happy to help her,” replied Heilyn.
“Very well, then. Please take in consideration that until recently, Majesty had been living the life of a wild unicorn, so she hasn’t learned how to read yet.” explained Dasyra.
“I see, well, I will help any way I can.” added Heilyn.
“Very well then I’ll leave you alone then,” said Dasyra, then turned to look at Aria, “Aria, would you like to stay here or would you like to take a tour of the library?”
“Oh, I would love to take a look around the library,” replied Aria.
“Okay, then follow me. Majesty, when you’re done please come back to the library’s entrance, I’ll be sure Aria is waiting for you there to take you back to the Duke’s palace.” said Dasyra, and then she walked down one of the hallways with Aria, leaving Majesty alone with the human librarian.
“Well Majesty, let’s hear your question,” said Heilyn.
“Why are governments and laws necessary?” asked Majesty.
“What a question indeed!” exclaimed Heilyn, “I believe I have an answer for it. Wait a second please.” The human librarian looked around, took a stool and climbed it to grab one particularly thick book from one of the higher shelves. He stepped down from the stool and opened the book, looking for one specific page, a second later he found it.
“This is ‘Gargantua’ a book by human philosopher Egan Archquest.” explained Heilyn, “Now, a time before governments or countries, before the formation of society and civilization, is what philosophers in general call a State of Nature. In the State of Nature people live freely without rules or formal laws, but what does this state look like? Well, Egan Archquest considered that the State of Nature is a constant war of all against all. Creature's basic nature is fear, insecurity, death and turmoil. From this constant terror people decided to surrender some basic rights to a severing entity, which he called The Gargantua.”
Heilyn continued to read from the book and explaining it to Majesty, “If a person was, let’s say, tired of thieves stealing his property, the government can pass laws to protect his goods or help him receive some sort of reparation. This protection is important for a number of reasons, but the most significant is that laws and their enforcement keep constant anxiety at bay.”
“Oh, I see,” said Majesty, “It does make sense.”
“Indeed. And that, my dear unicorn, is why it is necessary to have laws and government,” concluded Heilyn.
“Oh, brother, how could you say that!?” came a voice from behind them. Majesty and Heilyn turned around to see another human dressed in librarian robes, he looked very much like Heilyn, but older. He was holding another rather thick book in his arms. He didn't seem to care much about the unicorn in the room.
Heilyn rolled his eyes when he saw him. “Majesty, this is my older brother Edmyg. We tend to… disagree… in several issues,” he explained.
“I was listening to your little lecture from a distance, but I just couldn’t listen to your nonsense anymore,” said Edmyg.
“Nonsense!?” exclaimed Heilyn, “And I suppose YOU have a better explanation? Well, I would love to hear it, brother.”
“With pleasure,” said Edmyg matter-of-factly, he opened the book on a page he seemed to have had marked previously. “This book is ‘The Communal Treaty’ by human philosopher Drem Waywardship,” he explained, “And for Drem, the State of Nature is considerably different from that conceived by Egan. Drem Waywardship sees natural creatures as independent and peaceful, but with the creation of agriculture, private property and the division of labor humans learned from the elves and the centaurs, came inequality. Unequal access to resources created tension and envy, people began to be aware of their limited material situation and lack of upward mobility. They became aware that they were no longer free. In the state of nature people were good, without the need for government or laws.”
“Are you insane brother!” exclaimed Heilyn, “People would kill each other if there were no laws or government!”
“You are the one that isn’t seeing things clearly, brother,” replied Edmyg. “Egan’s theory of the Gargantua will lead to despotism, in which people have no choice but to turn to a third party to secure basic needs, and by definition they will not choose their leaders freely. Drem states that, instead of choosing leaders out of fear, people would choose to give up some powers and rights so everyone can be equal. Decisions should be made for the sake of everyone and not just a few, this would require that people follow a rule of law that they would follow on their own anyway, like not murdering others and so on. People are better without a government, because society means a lack freedom and also oppression.”
“But Drem does admit that there is a collective consent to be ruled,” said Heilyn, “He just disagrees with Egan about why this is so, Egan says that it’s out of fear, while Drem says that is for the sake of equality.”
“Having order, and having laws and government is not the same thing!” exclaimed Edmyg.
“How can you say that? Order can only be achieved by rule of law and the establishment of a government to enforce them!” replied Heilyn.
“That is like saying that the only thing keeping people from killing each other is because a law says so, and not because is just the wrong thing to do,” countered Edmyg.
“Of course murder is morally wrong, but laws would always be a deterrent,” replied Heilyn.
“Laws as a deterrent? How about being shun by the rest of his peers because of his wrongdoings? Wouldn’t that be more of a deterrent to anyone?” asked Edmyg.
Majesty had been listening to everything the two brothers said, but by now she realized that they had forgotten about her completely and were too involved in their argument. The white unicorn decided to just leave them be, and quietly walked away in the direction back to the library’s entrance.
Well, she had gotten answers to her question, but the answers only raised more questions. It made sense that humans, or elves for that matter, simply forgot what it was like to live while there was no laws or government, it had been so long ago, and for what she gathered writing hadn’t been invented back then and so there isn’t any written record for anyone to look it up. Her own herd had been ... what did father call them? 'Holdovers.' Then again, she had an advantage, she DID remember what living in this… State of Nature, like those human “philosophers” had called it, was like, because until a few weeks ago she was living in one.
But, then again, how exactly did that work? She was her herd’s Alpha, but they didn’t choose her, she attained that position after proving that she was the strongest mare in the herd. Her power is what made her an Alpha, not her skills as a leader. And she did use it to keep the other ponies in line, always keeping the order by threat of the use of force. Then again, the forest was a dangerous place, chimeras, griffons, manticores, all roamed about and would eat a defenseless pony if she didn’t help keep everypony safe. Did her herd accept having an Alpha because they were afraid of what surrounded them? Then again, as Alpha she did make sure that every mare, stallion, colt and filly had equal share of food and water, so maybe the rest of the herd accepted her rule as Alpha because she was a fair and just leader? Why didn’t she ask these questions when she was younger? She wished she did, that way maybe she could have asked her father more about the world of civilization and if her mother was a good Alpha… or ask her herd if she herself was a good Alpha. Now they were all dead, and she would never know.
Only now did Majesty realize just how important her father’s knowledge was, and her mother never listened or considered it important. The whole herd didn’t listen… she herself didn’t listen. He was more wise than the herd gave him credit for, but they had squandered that knowledge. And now she realized how much she regretted that decision, and at the same time she wasn’t sure just WHAT would have changed if things had been differently. She now understood what laws and order caused, but she didn’t understand if they were necessary or not! Or even if they were good or bad to have!
And even then, she was still more mature when she was an Alpha than how she had been when she was younger, when she wasn’t the Alpha yet, when she was just a young, brash and impulsive unicorn that did things carelessly. Then again, that’s when she had met Rosedust. She wondered how Rosedust was doing…
Her train of thought was interrupted when she reached the library’s entrance and saw Aria and the Head Librarian Dasyra waiting for her.
“Welcome back Majesty. Did you get the answer to your question?” asked Dasyra when she saw Majesty approaching.
“Huh? Well, yes, in a way I did… but the answers only served to rise further questions. And then Heilyn started to argue with his brother,” replied the unicorn.
Dasyra chuckled, “I figured as much. Humans are very peculiar. If you leave two humans in a room and have them discuss a subject, they will end up with four different opinions.”
“Really?” asked Aria, who had never actually met a human before, having spent most of her life cooped up with her family or with the Duke.
“Oh, yes. But I, for one, am looking forward to see what will come from humans next. They are… interesting, to say the least,” answered Dasyra.
“So, Majesty, shall we go back to the palace?” asked Aria to the white mare.
“Yes Aria, let’s get going,” replied Majesty, then turned to look at Dasyra, “Thank you for your time, and give my thanks to Heilyn and Edmyg.”
“I will. Thank you for coming,” replied Dasyra as Majesty and Aria exited the Library through the double doors.
As they walked down through the streets of Amrun back to Duke Arhael’s palace, Aria and Majesty started talking.
“I don’t know what to do with all of this Aria,” commented Majesty. “On one side, I can see just how much elves and other species have accomplished when they organize and live under the law of civilization…” she said as she looked around at all the buildings, the water wells and fountains that provided water for everyone, at the roads paved in perfectly flat stone slabs. Everything perfectly in tune with the natural world, as was the elven way. “But on the other, I’m still not sure if this is something that ponies should have… I mean, I WANT to know more about civilization, but at the same time… I just don’t want to forget that I’m a unicorn, that I’m a pony. I’m… I’m just so confused.”
“I wish I could say something helpful, Majesty,” said Aria. “But everything that you find amazing and such are things I just took for granted all my life. I mean having houses, or water wells, or roads, they were here before I was born, I grew up with all of this around me. I can’t even imagine what it would be like to live in a forest all my life, sleeping under the clear sky, eating wild plants and drinking water from a river.”
“It’s not as bad as you might think… well, it wasn’t for me at least. But I do admit that sleeping in the palace’s guest room, with walls that protect me from the night wind and a roof that keeps the rain away, is quite comfortable, and I don’t have to be worried about predators sneaking up on me while I sleep. Then again I do miss the feel of the grass under my hooves and the smells of the forest all around me.”
“Majesty, just remember that you are free to leave any time you want,” Aria said in a reassuring and supporting manner.
“Oh, I know Aria, it’s not about that. And don’t worry, I just needed a friendly ear to listen to me while I spoke,” replied Majesty.
“It’s okay. But maybe it would be more helpful if you talked about this with another pony instead of me,” commented Aria, nonchalantly.
Majesty remained quiet. That last comment reminded her of the argument she had with Black Anvil, the pony that worked at Feanor’s blacksmith workshop. An argument so bad that she and the black earth pony hadn’t talked with each other since.
Majesty had gone over to Feanor’s workshop, as she wanted to thank him in person again for his help. The elven blacksmith had introduced her to Black Anvil, the earth pony that worked there with him. And then the two of them invited her to drink something called 'ale', after going into a small but cozy establishment called a 'pub' and drinking a wooden mug full of a orange-brownish substance with foam (the so called 'ale') which Majesty admitted tasted nice, but was kind of weird, the white unicorn admitted that she didn’t feel comfortable with so many strange faces around her in such an enclosed space, and was going to leave to go back to the Duke’s palace, when Black Anvil offered to walk back with her since it was already night time, so she wouldn’t get lost.
As they walked down one of Amrun’s many streets, the black Earth pony noticed that Majesty was looking at the sky and at the many street light poles, with their lit candles, that were at the sides of the street.
“What’s the matter Majesty?” asked Black Anvil.
“What? Oh, it’s just that…” Majesty looked at Black Anvil then back up at the sky, “This whole place is so bright that it doesn’t look like night time around us, and I can barely see the stars in the sky. It’s so different from what I’m used to at the forest.”
Black Anvil chuckled, “Yeah, this town sure beats living in a damp old forest.”
Majesty looked evenly at him. “What is that supposed to mean? I lived all my life in a ‘damp old forest’ so did my mother, and her mother! I happen to like living in a forest.”
“What? No, no, that’s not what I meant, I was just…” Black Anvil tried to explain himself.
Majesty didn’t let him finish, “And besides, how would you know what it’s like to live in a forest? You lived your whole life around elves, you even smell like them!”
“Look, Majesty, I was just… what? What do you mean I ‘smell like them’?” asked Black Anvil.
Majesty rolled her eyes, “Oh, of course that the pony that has lived with… with BIPEDS all his life can’t even tell the smell of one pony from another! I’m sure you also can’t hear as well as you should, if a pack of wolves were stalking you, you wouldn’t stand a chance!”
Black Anvil frowned, “Hey, I happen to like living here with these ‘bipeds’! And besides, I have a job which allows me to have three meals every day and a roof under my head with a soft bed to lie on every night! I don’t need to worry about wolves, or any other predator for that matter!”
“That’s exactly what I mean!” Majesty glared back at Black Anvil. “You are an Earth pony! You should be able to help plants grow and live off the land, not be concerned about having a job.”
“Well, for your information, unicorn, I like my life the way it is! I like my job, and every other pony I’ve met that lives here also like what they do and living here!” exclaimed Black Anvil.
“And I think that you, and all those other ponies, aren’t even ponies anymore! You are all just… just bipeds that walk on four legs!” replied Majesty.
“Well, perhaps you would prefer to go back alone than waste time with a fake pony!” said Black Anvil.
“Fine.” replied Majesty.
“Fine!” snorted Black Anvil.
“FINE!” Majesty then disappeared in a flash of light as she teleported away, leaving Black Anvil alone who immediately turned around angrily to walk back home.
The white unicorn had teleported just a few blocks away from the Duke’s palace. Not because she couldn’t teleport inside already, but because she wanted for the elf ranger guards to actually see her walk in and not freak out about her being inside already.
Looking back Majesty did admit that she kind of overreacted, but she wouldn’t apologize for what she said, partly because she was too proud, and partly because she still believed she was right, that was one of her motivations for studying and understanding better how a society of civilized beings lived and developed. But so far all she had learned was that she wasn’t 100% right and that Black Anvil hadn’t been 100% wrong.
Majesty was taken away from her thoughts by Aria, “Majesty, look over there! I heard that they were coming to Amrun, but I didn’t know it was today!” the young elf looked very excited.
Majesty looked at where Aria was pointing, there seemed to be a crowd forming around one of the main streets of Amrun, and it seemed like some kind of entourage was going through the main street and the crowd was gathering to look.
“Come on Majesty, let’s go see them,” Aria exclaimed as she ran over to the crowd.
Majesty looked at Aria run away, and decided to follow her, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“See who?”