Mage/Theme/Orders/Mysterium/History

 Of the four Diamond Orders, it is the Mysterium alone that was the sole dissenting voice when Gaveston spoke against the Martyr of the Tree. They had been late to arrive to the area, were largely uninvolved in the events of the Unnamed War, and were so wrapped up in uncovering the mysteries of the new world and its many esoteric practices that they simply didn't have much time to participate actively in the genocide of the native peoples.

 But this does not mean they were without sin. They did not act against the local populace in any organized or deliberate way, but neither did they use their influence or authority to protect them, either. The war was considered a political matter, a temporal matter, a matter for politicians and soldiers not researchers and sages. Their high minded ideals and aloofness from the events taking place around them made them complicit in the murder, the relocation, the pestilence, and the predation.

 Only after they witnessed the end of an entire cultural practice right before their eyes did the truth finally break through the cloud of their cult-like devotion to the Mysteries. If you do not preserve indigenous mystical cultural practice, they will not be there to study later. And then, only because of colonial brutality.

 So now they are a political order, at least moreso than most caucuses. They may be political along a mostly singular axis, but when it comes to safeguarding the Mysteries and fostering cooperation and preservation of indigenous cultures and practices, their factota are inspired and relentless. Their close partnership with the Children of the Tree in pursuit of its Mysteries bears that out, as does the opening of their libraries to a dedicated wing for the preservation of texts important to the Children of the Tree. They rightly point out that having these texts in two store houses ensures a tragedy at one won't leave the world without that knowledge.

 Given the lesson of history, the Children could hardly argue. The curation of the collection is provided by the Mysterium as a service. They ask nothing in return, viewing it as an ongoing repayment for letting a living library fade from reality right before their eyes.