Beneath The Surface

Canterlot is often described as the shining jewel of Equestria, home to the rich and powerful. Every detail carefully crafted to flow together in an elaborate display of grace and power. According to the history books, it was built after the Fall of Chaos as a place to house the newly re-unified nation of Equestria.

After the last two Alicorns had taken their stand against Discord, the three pony tribes flocked to them, praising the Alicorns as saviors and looking to them for leadership. With the remaining chaos magic being cleansed from the land, peace and prosperity settled far and wide. Ponies of all races worked together, resulting in the creation of Equestria. Over the next thousand years, the borders expanded, cultures intermingled, and society developed. Where there had once been nomadic tribes, there was a unified people. Where fear and distrust had reigned, there was now hope and friendship. What was once a time of destruction and war, had settled. Replaced by a comfortable peace, brought about through cooperation and understanding.

Or so says the history books.

Through the course of my life, I have grown accustomed to taking such stories with a grain of salt. After all, over such long expanses of time, things will become... Muddled. Details will eventually be lost. Events will be changed with every telling, and each new generation will interpret the story differently. I have found that the best accounts are rarely the popular ones that tend to be wrapped up in a neat little bow, leaving the audience feeling content. Rather, I find the accounts that choose to tell the truth without spinning a story to be the best. The ones that do not aim to entertain, but to teach. Some may think these stories disturbing or depressing, yet I find that they are the ones that fill me with hope. It is not from victory that we learn, but from hardship. Every day that ends in exhaustion, every gasp for breath, every push back against whatever force held us back. It is only through this struggle that we grow and become who we are meant to be.

I have been blessed in my life to have been close to some of the few beings whose lives have spanned the ages. Theirs are not the stories of conquering heroes, saving the day in the nick of time, or a happily ever after. Their stories are often those of crushing defeat. Of lost souls, and of arriving too late. However, that is not where their stories end, like so many others before them. After every loss, they had faced a choice. They could have given up, choosing to fade into obscurity, or they could push on. Not letting their burdens become a weight upon their back, slowing them into a standstill. Instead, they looked to them as a source of resolve, finding the determination to continue onward.

More important, however, is that their stories were not solely of themselves, but of those who were by their side. Those who were a source of strength, wisdom, or comfort in times of need. They told of those who had been with them through it all, and of those they had lost along the way. When I heard the stories from those ageless faces, they did not speak out of a search for glory, but rather out of a desire to pass on their friend's memories.

I have heard firsthoof accounts of the history of Equestria, and I have found it more inspiring than what is now taught in our schools. It is not the history of success and joy that the books claim it to be. It is a tale of struggle. Teaching a generation that had known nothing but the rule of Discord how to survive in a new world was not as simple a task as some claim it was. There were those who despised the Alicorns who had dethroned a god and wished to return the world to its chaotic state. When the nation had formed and the rule of law was brought to the land, there were those who sought to prey upon the weak for their own gain. There were wars, famines, and plagues. Times in which all hope seemed lost. It was in these times when they saw those who would stand out. The ones who would push through every hardship they faced and stood tall.

Oftentimes, many of these brave few would not survive to see the results of their victories. But when I heard their stories told, it was never about how they sat down and gave up. Even when speaking of their friends demise, I would see a fire inside the one telling their story. For it was in those figures deaths that they often showed who they really were. Day to day, they would not have seemed special. They were bakers, farmers, office clerks and wanderers. They were neighbors, and friends, and brothers, sisters, and children. But when it came down to it, they had shown a willingness to do what was necessary, not because they would obtain glory, but because it was not who they were to let another fight in their place.

Many would consider my life to have been an unfortunate one, and at one time, I may have entertained those thoughts myself. Yet, as I look back, I consider myself to be lucky. I have had the fortune to know figures of great conviction. To have seen great victories, and to have shared them with the ones that I consider to be my friends. My chosen path has taken me through the plains of Zebrica, to the vast deserts of Saddle Arabia, and through the many forests and cities of Equestria. I have known success and failure, seen great figures rise and fall, and I have lost the ones that I loved. But I had my friends by my side, offering me that strength, wisdom, and comfort that came from our shared bond.

It is for these friends that I now find myself drawn to tell of our story, both of the good and the bad.