• Published 2nd Nov 2018
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Twilight’s Short and Incomplete Guide to Equestrian Magical Theory - ReaderReads



Twilight likes books. Twilight knows that not everyone does, but Twilight knows that everyone loves knowledge. So, the obvious conclusion is a short guide to her favourite subject, yes?

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Chapter 1: Magic by Pony Type

Many Equestrians lack a basic knowledge of magical theory- some unicorns, yes, but mainly earth ponies and pegasi. For this I cannot blame those that are not aware of this important field, since they have mostly no use for it. However, what not many Equestrians know is that even as an earth pony or a pegasus it is very possible to manipulate magic. This is on a lower level than most unicorns, but a skilled pegasus or earth pony can easily levitate, for example, a book.

Maybe you're asking why you've never seen any ponies apart from unicorns use magic, but the answer to this is a simple one. Ponies don't know this. The education system in Equestria has been on the rise for many years which has resulted in more educated ponies, but most ponies still aren't very well educated compared to your average pony in Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns or another private Canterlot, Manehattan, or Cloudsdale school. These schools are rare and most ponies instead choose to enter a state run school.

These schools have recently been sent more funding as the need for an Equestrian military force dies down and the economy of our country rises; but I digress. We are not here to talk about Equestrian politics. The fact of the matter is that it is mostly unicorns who go to private schools, and knowledge of magical manipulation is exceedingly rare- it is knowledge I have stumbled on only a year ago, and kept for this book.

See, the average pony body accesses ambient magic via a series of vein-like objects underneath the skin. Magic is ethereal, and so passes through the fur and skin and is 'caught' by these veins. This magic is then transported through the body and concentrated in certain areas of the body which have thicker magical veins. In a unicorn, it is obviously concentrated in the horn which manipulates magic with the 'horniglymphene' organ- this organ is located directly underneath the thick, chitinous shell of the horn, which is why hitting the horn of a unicorn can be so painful. A magical vein, the thickest of any, is completely encompassed by the horniglymphene, which allows the horniglymphene to absorb and manipulate the magic when it phases through.

The horniglymphene uses a process called 'de-etherealisation' to turn the magic from the raw form it arrives in to a refined, gas-like form that can be manipulated by the horniglymphene with the will of a unicorn. However, more on de-etherealisation, the horniglymphene, and other unicornic magics in a chapter later on. This is, after all, a chapter on magic by pony type.

Now, though the horniglymphene is what allows unicorns such polished and efficient manipulation of magic, all ponies in Equestria know that pegasi and earth ponies have some sort of ambient magic- an earth pony's helps them work the earth and the magic of a pegasus is what allows them to fly with their wingspan and weight as well as interact with and manipulate, mainly, clouds. This is not all their magic does.

The magic of a pegasus is sent through their magical veins- henceforth modes- and is evenly distributed throughout their body. This magic in its raw form effectively lightens the pegasus, making them weigh much, much less. There is no special concentration at any point in the body. The manipulation of clouds, in the meanwhile, is actually caused by the equivalent of a horniglymphene located in the hooves, which is why the hooves of a pegasus are often much harder than your average pony of another race.

This organ is called the hooviglymphene, and effectively acts the same as a horniglymphene. However the hooviglymphene is much less refined- a magically skilled and knowledgeable pegasus can still levitate, maybe make a simple bubble shield and cast a stun spell, but never in Equestrian history has a pegasus been able to access higher level spells such as teleportation or materialisation. As an upside, the hooviglymphene has a sort of passive effect- it interacts with the magic trapped in cloud matter, more on that in a later chapter, and allows a pegasus skilled manipulation of the cloud. It does the same with rainbows and others.

An earth pony, meanwhile, has magic concentrated in slightly thicker modes near their organs, effectively sending them into a sort of overdrive. Again, more anatomy in a later chapter. This allows blood to be pumped around the body faster, proves the myth of earth ponies being heavyweights true, and is why earth ponies are generally related to things such as stamina and nature. As pegasi and unicorns, an earth pony also has a magical organ located in the exact centre of the body.

This is the baseglymphine. You may notice it is not spelt as the hooviglymphene or the horniglymphene, and this is because it is different in purpose, albeit not incredibly different. The baseglymphine actually acts as a magnet for magic, attracting it in raw form to itself through the body. It then pumps most of the magic through the modes, but leaves some to itself- a calculated 10% or so. This 10% is used to interact with any living thing, accelerating their growth or making their own organs more efficient; though this effect is lost on larger creatures such as ponies, griffons, etcetera, the effect on smaller creatures such as plants, maybe dogs, is clear. Plants receive accelerated growth as the magic leaves the baseglymphine- not something a horniglymphene or hooviglymphene can do- and interacts with its own modes in a similar way to the earth pony's.

Dogs and other small animals will receive extended lives as the magic flows through their modes, fading away slowly but making their bodies more effective in general- in short, the effect is like what the baseglymphine does to an earth pony, except temporary, lasting between a week and a year depending on the strength of the baseglymphine and the amount of time the earth pony spent with the animal before leaving.

On that note, I think I shall end this chapter here. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, and learnt a lot you didn't know. One final thing, just to clear it up, an earth pony cannot perform magic like a pegasus or especially a unicorn, since there is no magic-refining organ in the body. Take a break from reading, my studious reader, and come back when you're ready!

Author's Note:

I don't know if this is a good idea, but it seemed like an original idea. Constructive criticism appreciated, angry comments funny, nice comments nice. Editor/proofreader needed, especially for science-y stuff. Next chapter: Magic by Pony Type, continued. Also maybe what magic is.