Manechester (Confessions of a Wasteland Pony)

Manechester is a location in the audio drama series Confessions of a Wasteland Pony.

 It is featured prominently in the third episode, The Duchess Horror.

History & The Foggy Isles

The Foggy Isles are an island chain Northeast of Manehattan in the Celestial Sea.

Long before the founding of Equestria, they were a collection of nine unicorn-dominated tribes on the nine populated islands. Around the time of the unification of Equestria from the earth pony, unicorn, and pegasi kingdoms, The Foggy Isles also united together into one society calling their loose central government the "Chamber of Nine."

The Chamber of Nine was a feudal oligarchy where the ruling member of each noble house would convene together on the Island of Manechester. Manechester was the largest and most populated of the islands, making it a natural fit for their capital. The ruling family were also the most esteemed. The ruling regent of Manechester Island was instrumental in this unification, a wizard named Oakroot the Silent.

Being equally skilled in sorcery and statecraft, Oakroot became a legendary figure in their collective history, their founding father.

Unfortunately, his ideals for equality died with him when the unicorn majorities took the runic magic he was developing and pushed it along the path of augmenting unicorn magic rather than giving magic to the other races. This further deepened the divide between them and their earth pony & pegasi family members.

Many years later, The Foggy Isles would join the ever growing Kingdom of Equestria under the benevolent rule of the alicorn princesses. While little changed among the unicorn ruling class, the earth ponies and pegasi saw the annexation as a chance for a new beginning.

During the "Unification Day" celebration, which commemorated the uniting of the nine islands, the non-unicorn members of the family moved to the mainland to start a new life. This accounted for nearly a third of the population.

The Royal Seal of Manechester, Duchess Rose Petal's cutie mark.

Following the exodus, the unicorns continued on as they already had been. The noble families of the nine islands had intermarried enough that around the time of the exodus they were considered simply one royal family. Although in deference to Equestria, these family members usually go by the honorifics of "Duke" and "Duchess" with the current ruler being noted as the "Sitting Regent." Many members of the noble family would have the royal seal appear as their cutie mark.

Life continued on like this for nearly a millennia as runic magic continued to develop on the islands. It wouldn't be until the advent of arcane technology that their previously obscure magics became widespread, and their runes were crafted into the spell matrices of all manner of new talismans.

In recognition of the part they played in Stable-Tec's development, a Stable was constructed in Manechester for the residents, Stable 79.

After The Great War, the stable dwellers were able to leave and re-establish life on the surface in what they dubbed "New Manechester." They have worked to rebuild Manechester to its former glory in the centuries since, but their cultural beliefs and the harshness of Post-Apocalyptia have made them very hostile to mainlanders. Very few attempted to visit The Foggy Isles and very few islanders ever ventured to the mainland. It wouldn't be until Duchess Rose Petal that they began opening up to the outside world.

Quotes

• "I just felt… called, like my place and purpose were on the mainland. When I landed ashore, I began seeing how much greater the destruction was, and how it had only decayed further over time. Manechester and the other Foggy Isles suffered relatively little fallout by comparison. That is what confirmed for me how I could do my part for Equestria. I would do everything in my power to make her beautiful, once again…" - Duchess Rose Petal
• "With every flash that dazzled the eye, Another leaf did drop or fly, With final burst of evening light, A third the vine was gone from sight.” - A poetic memoir noting the great exodus
• "I read the opening chapters again, thinking back to Oakroot’s teachings… his dreams and plans for what would become of the Chamber of Nine and the Foggy Isles. A new government of the people working together toward freedom, equality, and order… I stopped crying and got up. I was probably dead anyway, so I might as well try to finish what I started…" - Duchess Rose Petal

Behind the Scenes

• Similar to the Lovecraftian themes of the story, the Foggy Isles are meant to embody the culture of turn-of-the-century New England, rather than the British Isles.