Why we forget the earth...
A gray haired old man stood firmly in front of a podium, young minds around him eager to learn and eager still to hear what he had to say.
The students with baited breath waited for him to being, “Students, class of 97' and graduates. You our are brightest, our best the very future of our race. It is with a heavy heart I see you go onto the bright futures you all are destined to see.” bright smiles filled the room as he continued, “But let us not forget our roots, our homes, and families, and as always our forgotten mother.” The students quietly murmured “Forever in our hearts” before he continued, “3000 years ago....”
Long ago on earth, before the time of the magi our earth was polluted, plagued and dying. Almost 40 years after the collapse of the American empire and its eventual resurfacing, the world was plagued with and issue, there just wasn’t enough space.
To solve this problem they turned to a long abandoned program known now as Project Infinity, the attempt to build a true interstellar vessel, one that could tour the stars for a century before returning to earth.
Over fifteen years they built her, the Unity, loaded with food, supplies, medicine, fuel, and a crew of almost 5000. There destination far out amongst the stars, a far off world of Autumn, in the Bernard star cluster, scant light years from earth.
With her crew in cryo sleep and here engines primed the Unity controlled by a at the time revolutionary AI set out amongst the stars, her precious cargo tucked away safely inside her armored hull.
For almost six years she accelerated reaching 15% the speed of light before her massive engines taxed for a half decade finally shut down, now pocket marked with meteors and she sent one message back to earth...
Mission Critical, Primary Drive Failure, Fusion Ram Scoop Shutting Down
It took the unity almost four years to hear a response drifting ever farther away from her intended flight path taking her far off course. Only a portion of the technical crew on-board had been awoken, with dwindling energy they acted quickly and managed to re-engage one of the six massive drive engine while essentially scraping the other five.
Two months after reengaging there only working engine and managing to reorient there coarse back towards autumn they received horrifying news.
Earth now fourteen years behind them had payed homage to there funeral and declared them dead, but moments before a response was sent even more interesting news appeared on there screens.
A bubble the size of Texas appeared on earth shimmering light upon the cusp of there homeland, an awe inspiring sight to behold, even more shocking were the strange creatures pouring from it, ponies they were called, ruled by a monarchy they sought peace and friendship with humanity.
As more information poured in a decision had to be made, though the ship had plenty of fuel to get to autumn they only had enough stored energy to either send a message back a consuming task that would fry the communication systems and return earth a trip that would take almost 32 years with only one engine, or continue with there mission and send a message once they got to autumn, where the ambient star could bounce a signal strong enough without frying the ships communication system.
A vote was cast, a decision made, and once again the ships engine flared to life its communication antenna silent.
So the ship and her crew slept once again as the decades passed on board there vessel, when they finally arrived on autumn, the released a bated breath and gave a collective sigh of relief.
As the first colonist descended to the surface preparations were made to send earth a signal, a hello from another world. But news of events on earth quickly challenged this idea.
In the scant few decades they had been asleep earth had changed, bureau were invented, potion was found, and humans became something else. At first it was harmless enough, but soon things became violent, radicals on both sides took up arms in belief that there ideas were right even if that meant the alternation or destruction of others lives.
In horror they watched as humanity grew smaller and smaller, until before the final news station went offline reports of armed and organized groups of pony’s were hunting down humans for conversion.
With this new information in hand, the humans of unity, shut down there communication system and stripped it of parts, and made there final descent onto the planet, choosing to forget what they had seen, in a attempt to create a better world on Autumn.
Two hundred years passed before those original colonists now over ten million strong made it back into space and rediscovered there long abandoned transport and relearned what had happened to there home.
Using the Unity as a base these intrepid humans built sister ships to explore the stars. Fifty years later they discovered the Salrim, the first meetings were cautious and guarded but soon the two species became quick allies as there combined scientists twenty years later invented faster than light travel.
Within two more centuries, Autumn was now the hub of an interstellar alliance of a dozen worlds a burgeoning empire with only a gleam in its eye and hope in there hearts.
Over the next millinia, three more species were found and joined the alliance forming a nation over three hundred worlds strong. Now renamed the Great Consortium this alliance spread further amongst the stars. The humans of Autumn never forgot there home and kept it a closely guarded secret for almost a thousand years.
In a annual peace summit humanity revealed its closely guarded secret to the ruling council of the Consortium, for humanity was troubled, there best and brightest, and all of humanity was torn, earth there home besieged by invaders taken from them called for action and revenge, but man had matured saw the path that lead down a dark road and was unsure if it was the choice to make, so man showed the universe his heart and asked for help.
The support and friendship formed over century’s burned bright as planets and species pledged ships aid and personal in a great effort to retake the brothers home, a great fleet was assembled of the fastest and strongest, the smartest and brightest and made there way to mother earth.
They arrived mere days after leaving the ages between honing the drives these ships now used and waited for any sign, sparkle or glimmer of recognition. When after three days they received none they pressed forward.
Taking position in orbit of mars they sent probe after probe to gather any and all information they could get, and when they returned the found a earth glittering green with life and blue with water, it seemed perfect at first.
A team was sent onto the ground to gather hard evidence, ambient radiation, soil samples and all manner of measurements were taken and analyzed, they found a world living on borrowed time as the long affects of humanity's pollution had only been covered up, its city’s rebuilt and used as homes, its progress in environmental reconstruction abandoned as its resources were stripped and its flat lands used as farms for a growing population wildly out of control, as mass starvation and stagnation killed thousands a day, many more lost to violence or local wildlife still clinging to life.
However where the shimmering bubble once stood, now a picturesque continent lay, with flowing fresh water and green lush forests, it was a empire built on the dying back of a broken world, its resources used in keeping the elite fed and happy as the masses around them, these New Fouls no longer converts but there decedents died in the droves.
As the news was relayed back across the consortium, a consensus was taken, a plan was formed.
The grand fleet would send delegates down to negotiate with the local leadership, the white and blue monarchs, as the rest of the consortium would send ship after ship of aid and supply's to help humanity’s long lost brothers.
When the first delegation never returned a second was sent, and after two more attempts a message was sent highest priority across the cosmos. Dead were there negotiators, the rulers long dead and uncaring masters having long taken there place considered the “human threat” of little consequence.
When the support fleets arrived to carry the sick and dying off the dying world they returned to find the great fleet laying waste to an entire continent, as towns and cities were smote from the surface of the planet.
In under just two hours what was once equestria was turned to molten slag as cannons long unused laid waste to paradise, as drop-ships from a thousand worlds landed to give aid to those in need.
“…..and that young ones is the story of how in our darkest hour, when genocide was such an easy choice, we instead turned to our brothers and sisters and offered a arm not in hate but in friendship.”
The old man smiled as a roaring applause filled the room and if one listened close enough the distinct sound of clopping could be heard too.
