Once, Now. We are bound by fates will.
Here, now, when they are gone…
She walked to the archaeological dig site. She was a purple unicorn, lavender to be exact. Down her slightly darker mane and tail was a pink streak. She was a student to her nation’s ruler. As talented as she was, she had yet to reach her full potential. This young unicorn was called Twilight Sparkle. Together with her friends, they were champions to their godly rulers.
An orange Pegasus mare met her at the edge of the dig. Her mane and tail was a dark grey, with lighter shades making their way in straight lines down. Normally she would wear a beige pit hat and vest. Now though, she was wearing nothing, the standard for her kind. She was famous for the book series based off of her. Most of the stories were fictional.
“You must be Twilight Sparkle, I’m…” Started the Pegasus
“Daring Do, my friend is a fan your books” sheepishly interrupted the Unicorn. They shook hooves. A small smile crept onto Daring’s face. As vain as it was, she loved the recognition she got.
“In that case, maybe she would like an autographed copy of one of my books her next birthday” Daring left the statement hanging.
Twilight picked it up “That would be great!” The two made their way into the site. Twilight had little to no information on what was actually here. They passed through a white tent, the only way through the small fence surrounding the place. Legally that is. The guards, dressed in their flashy golden Armour, in a real fight they would be worse than a foal. They did intimidate though, that was all they were paid to do. War and crime was non-existent.
After passing through the security check, they entered the ruins. The sight left Twilight stunned. Daring, who had been here for a week was used to the place by now. She stilled smiled at Twilight's expression. Before them lay a city, one attacked by time and nature, animals made homes in the long abandoned homes and many had been reduced to the frames and foundations. Others stood tall and proud, scraping the sky higher than the bird flies. It was impossible to miss, yet the Unicorn had. She missed the metal and glass spires, the paved roads. She had not seen any of it. Words failed her.
Once, in this place we stand, when they still stood…
The boy stalked the streets. He was of average height and build, the dark brown hair atop his head was scruffy, indicating that he either didn't care about appearance or lacked the time to make himself look presentable, though in these times no one had time. His body was covered in a plain black t-shirt, dark blue cargo pants and a pair of black running shoes. Once these items may have been subject to scrutiny, they would his shown his personality, economic strength and social status. Now they were a luxury, and a necessity. He held a tool in his dark, scarred hands, a shotgun. Once this tool was one of destruction created to kill more efficiently than the old generation of weapons. The purpose still remained; but no longer was this tool taboo. It was a means of survival.
The stories were still told, two nations, the most powerful in the world, went to war. They both had the capability to destroy the world with their weapons. It was exactly this, the two nations did. The missiles took flight in 1999, and thus began the next era. The Twilight era, this would be the end of his species, the end of humanity. They had only been here for a centimeter on the timeline of the universe. They made their marks on the history of everything, though they might as well be scars. Where once were wooden jungles, now lay concrete and steel ones. These new urban centers lay in ruins, not even lasting a measly century, the city the boy inhabited was already dying.
He moved purposefully, the wildlife would not attack him, they still had instinctual fear of the bipeds and their fire sticks. Even if they were mutated beasts, their evolution sped up by the radiation. They boy didn't know why or how they mutated, he did not care. He cared about survival, seeing the next day with the one he loved. He was no longer in the haven, the place survivors called their home. He was in the ghost town, the ruins of the city. His purpose to scavenge anything he could. Old world appliances sold for a lot of money, few were brave or stupid enough to venture out into the wilderness.
He picked a building at random, he memorized what ones he had searched, this was not one. The building was large, one of the skyscrapers, the windows smashed and some of the floors destroyed. But still structurally sound. He made his way through each floor, this place was once an apartment block. Now it was a grave marker for the hundreds died trapped in its walls. The boy pushed these thoughts from his mind, replacing it with his mantra: ‘get in, get the haul, and get back. Then we can eat for another week.’
He scoured through each of the floors, at least those that were safe. He found items from pots and pans, to books that had miraculously survived. It was on the top floor, the penthouse, where he found a truly unique item. Grasped in the skeletal hands of the remains of the dead was a tape recorder. The thing looked undamaged, ready for use. A smile came to his face as a metaphorical light bulb went off in his mind.
Here, now, when they are gone…
Daring got Twilight out of her stupor with a shake and a call. Twilight’s eyes were filled with wonder, the ruins of a past civilization, sprawling out before her, the buildings much higher than Canterlot’s towers. Those who had lived before must have been proficient in magic and science. The thoughts of what Ponykind could possibly learn were endless! Together, the two went deeper into the city, straight to its long dead heart.
Twilight subconsciously followed Daring. Daring expertly weaved her way through the vast city. “How was this not found earlier, how did I not see this on my way here?” inquired the young and curious unicorn.
“The Everfree’s chaotic magic makes the city impossible to see until you’ve been inside. This place is also not the safest place ever” Daring said with a mischievous grin, she knew exactly what Twilight was going to ask now.
“Wh-what do you mean, not the safest”
“There are some strange beasts living here, in all my travels I've never seen anything like these, thankfully all of the dangerous ones are nocturnal”
“What are the day-creatures then?”
“Well there are these wolf-like creatures, though they have six legs and are adept climbers. They normally don’t attack us though.”
“Is that it?”
“Well, we haven’t exactly been through much of the ruins. It really has been only a week; but we found something that is amazing!” The sentence was ended excitedly by Daring. Twilight on the other hand was shocked at how far they had travelled in their short conversation. Now, they were among the highest rises. Many of these still somewhat intact with only a few sections destroyed. It seemed improbable that these were in such a great condition, yet here they stand, who knows what could be found in metropolis.
After a few more minutes of uneventful walking, the two stopped outside of a large gate. It looked like something made hastily, with the intent on keeping things out by sheer intimidation and nothing else. To the wildlife it may work, in the case of the Ponies, their curiosity getting the better than them. The two explorers made their way around the side of the gate, finding a hole in the fence. Twilight went through after Daring. Inside the complex were some ponies, they were going through the buildings, organizing and categorizing all the “artifacts”. One brown earth pony stallion walked up to them. He had a short black mane and his cutie mark was a small brush dusting off a rock. The stallion greeted them “Hello Daring and you must be Twilight Sparkle, the Princesses representative.”
“Yes I am, thank you” replied Twilight, she was secretly glad that the stallion did not recognize her because of her status as the Element of Magic.
“I am Dusty, the head of this excavation” he proudly said, “I am also to take you and Daring to the History Room.
“History Room? What is that? Did the inhabitants leave behind their history?” the Unicorn yelled with glee. If there was the History of these people, there would be so much she could learn.
The stallion chuckled at her enthusiasm “Yes, they did leave behind some of their history, but there is more, you’ll just have to wait.” At this, Twilight sighed. She knew that she wasn’t going to get anything out Daring or Dusty if she kept asking…
Once, in this place we stand, when they still stood…
The boy, no, the old man sat at the table. He was the oldest in the community. Ever since he found the recorder, he had been busy. The recorder was still in perfect condition, even though his skin wrinkled, even though his hair greyed. He
smiled; his job was done, almost.
He scanned across the room. It was small and dark, in the corner was the safe, it contained his life work. The old man picked up the recorder, still not used. He pressed the record button.
“To those who find this: Hello. Who I am does not matter, though you can call me the Collector. This room contains everything on Human history I could get my hands on. For the last thirty years I have roamed the ruins of the city. I scavenged through schools and libraries for everything on Human history I could. They reside in the safe behind my skeleton. Yes, I don’t intend on living much longer. The combination is 2847. Make sure you preserve these as well as you can. They may be the last copies in existence. I would go on, but that would be pointless. So goodbye and good luck hopefully you won’t make our mistakes.”
His voice was weak, but he finished his message. His task was complete, now it was up to fate to keep his legacy alive. The old man put the recorder on the table. Then he closed his eyes for the last time, with the hope of Humanity in him. The old man finally gave in to the Grim Reaper.
Here, now, when they are gone…
Dusty and Daring watched Twilights face during the recording. When the last word was finished Twilight summoned the courage to ask “We could understand him, is it possible that our language is based off theirs?”
Dusty answered the question “Yes, from that recording as well as other written texts we’ve found, Equish may be the child of his races language” he pointed his hoof at the skeleton. It was preserved perfectly through thousands of years. The two hands cradling the skull, the elbows resting on the table and the bones completely white from saprophytes decomposing the flesh, it showed how much effort was put into making this room as protected as possible. Twilight had initially cringed at the sight, now she was used to it.
Daring picked up the conversation “We haven’t opened the safe yet. We were waiting for you”.
Twilight looked at the safe with high scrutiny. If it did its job, the history of man would live on. She examined it for cracks, holes, any compromising imperfection. To her relief she found it had nothing of the sort. She looked back at the other two, who nodded with a smile. The unicorn took a deep breath, spun the dials until the code 2847 was locked in. It was with great nervousness she opened the safe, and inside laid Humanities legacy, untouched by time.