Author's Note

Trying something different with this story, by keeping my chapters open to the public as I'm editing them! That way if something isn't sitting right with you guys, just send a comment my way and I'll try to fix it.

I am open to comments/criticisms/concerns and will try to address them as quick as possible for everyone! Thanks for reading!

(Prologue) Tales of the Riders Four (UNDER REVISION)

UNDER REVISION
Pardon the mess, but we're cleaning up a bit!

There have been many tales throughout Equestria about all manner of magical creatures, both powerful and mundane; such as the ferocious Manticore or the simple Parasprite. But there are darker beings than even this world has seen...

It was the beginning of this passage that piqued the interest of Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship. The book she had before her was titled "Vigil's Compendium of Mythical Tales" and was written in Ancient Ponish- a dead language rarely seen catalogued as finely as this tome.

The Royal Scholar Society sent this tome along with a scroll, describing a currently contained magical anomaly that suddenly appeared, along with the book currently in the purple princess' possession.

If they're involved, it must be serious... She pondered.

The Royal Scholar Society, otherwise known as the Owls of Canterlot, were renowned for their extensive knowledge of many different topics of profound interest. However, they were so protective of the knowledge they hold that not even Celestia and Luna themselves were permitted within their sacred vaults, for fear of the tampering of historical events by the Monarchy. It also explains why a scroll asking for an outsider's help would be considered a very dire situation.

Continuing the passage out of small curiosity, Twilight read on.

To understand the tales recorded within this book, I must first tell you of the delicate Balance between Life and Death; Let's begin with the constant state the worlds are in, ours included: Our plane of existence lies in an ever changing motion upon the Abyss- an ancient and powerful force that drives all of Creation. From its power we are born, and from its power we will end...

"Balance? Abyss? What does it mean?" Twilight asked aloud to no one in particular, reading further to piece together this new puzzle.

Eons ago,
in an effort to keep this constant state of balance, ancient and powerful peacekeepers dubbed the Charred Council were brought forth from the Abyss. If there were a threat to the balance, the Charred Council would do whatever is necessary to prevent the threat from doing irreversible damage, even if it meant wiping out an entire race of beings...

The image the passage displayed of this "Charred Council" was unsettling, to say the least. It depicted what looked like three stone faces, oozing fire and smoke from their eyes and mouths. Staring at this portrait, it awoke a primal instinct of fear within her very being, causing her to slam the book shut, despite how ancient the tome seemed. "T-that feeling!" Twilight spoke, clutching her chest as if her heart would burst out at any moment. She stared at the book, not sure if she should continue reading or if she should throw the cursed object out the nearest window, hoping the overwhelming fear it gave her would disappear along with it. "Okay, just breathe Twilight," she composed herself and pushed forward, more cautiously this time.

Making sure to avoid looking at the depiction of the Charred Council yet again, Twilight pored over the vast knowledge of ancient magicks this tome had, writing down hypotheses and formulas for the Royal Scholar Society to analyze. It seemed relevant, considering the urgency voiced within the scroll sent by the Owls. Many details were obscure, but it did give a broad definition of what type of magic they were dealing with. The magical signature for one, was a huge clue to help narrow down the field of research left for her to do, which is why she focused on this book alone rather than comparing multiple sources. This book held knowledge no other tome had, that much was certain.

With great power comes a cost however: The Charred Council had no physical agent, no form they could take to handle the situation themselves, often having to rely on focusing their essence upon the target, rather than negotiating directly. It hindered their length of governance across Creation and as a result, many worlds that should have decayed and withered simply became deserted. That wouldn't last, however. Thus came the Riders Four... Another image was shown, though aged and withered from time. It showed a vignette of four Horses, their armor weathered with centuries worth of battle scars raked all across them. The passage continued, this time less detailed than previous ones:

Weary of the bloodshed their homeland brought upon creation, it is told in ancient Alicornish that four Ponies dubbed The Riders Four, pleaded with the Council to give them the power to end the bloodshed. The Charred Council accepted their pleas, and gave them but a fraction of power held within their own fiery grasp. "Bound by blade, none shall defy our will!" With this simple utterance, the legend told of the weapons they were given, the vessels that held their power. Thus their true names were abolished, and came their new titles; War, the fiery stallion with his greatsword Chaos Eater, Death, whose twin scythes reaped the souls of those in his path and his ghostly mane and tail were feared by all, Fury, a powerful Crimson-maned mare whose whip was as sharp as mithril yet flexible enough to grasp a hold of even the most agile of creatures, and finally Strife, with his dual pistols as fast as a hummingbird, his electric mane flowing with power. Together, their names were to be feared across the whole of Creation, even a world as peaceful as this were susceptible to their wrath..."

Ponies? she wondered. Looking closer at the faded image, the princess began a deep thought. How were ponies able to obtain such powerful artifacts? Needless to say, she had a lot to think about. With that final passage analyzed and recorded for help with the magical anomaly, Twilight left a bookmark in the time and closed the doors to her library, a whole new aspect of magic opened up to her.

Little did she know the tale just read was no mere Lorebook, for the Riders Four did exist, though underneath a different name: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse...