Orphaned

-The Ancient Cosmonaut Theory-

-foreword by Dr. Strawmane Tsoukalos-

Aliens.

They have been the focus of Equestrian fiction for many generations, capturing the imaginations of both adults and foals alike. There is something about the unknown which both terrifies and excites us all.

Alien stories tell the tales of creatures from planets beyond our own who have come to our peaceful word for reasons beyond our understanding, be they benevolent or malevolent. Their physique is almost always completely foreign to our own. They might have multiple heads, insect-like antenna, they might even be a cloud of sentient gas, in the most mind boggling cases.

They always posses a level of technology far more advanced than that of our own. Ray guns, Flying saucers, automatic doors and limitless lifespan are all recurring themes in the science fiction genre.

Sometimes the author will make them skilled in powerful, strange magic, as alien to ponies as they are themselves. They may also posses an understanding of life above our own, the same way as the Zebra seem to think they do. They may even have ascended to a god-like state, able to blink everything we hold dear out of exsistance with the stamp of a hoof (or foot, or a tentacle, or a claw, as the case may be).

But what if WE are the aliens?

At first, this question seems absurd. Of course we are not the aliens. How can we be the aliens? We have lived in Equestria for longer than anypony can remember, even the Princesses. We do not posses the powerful technology and god-like understanding that extra-terrestrials from the stories do.

But before you jump to conclusions, tossing this book aside and dismissing it as merely the ramblings of a silly old gentlecolt with way to much time on his hands, let me present the facts to you.

Firstly, what other species on the face of Equestria are like us? What other creature do you know of will gain a magical marking on their flank when they learn their calling, their so-called 'special talent'? Our genes and innate magic is unlike that of any other known species on the face of the world. We have no genetic ancestors or relatives other than the Zebra, fact. I personally spent years of research on the subject and I can tell you with absolute certainty that this is 100% true. But what about the Zebra, you ask? Don't worry, I'm saving the best till last.

Most other sentient races on the planet do not see eye to eye with us psychologically either. They do not understand the way we think. They believe us to be cowards. Although I could write an essay on the subject (and any of the others I have mentioned on this page, for that matter), for the purpose of persuading you to buy this book, I will cover this in greater detail in later chapters. Instead, I will focus on the one thing that all ponies fear: The Everfree forest.

For those of you who don't know, the Everfree forest is one of the few untamed areas within Equestria, situated to the north-west of Ponyville. There, the laws of nature, rather than the laws of Canterlot are enforced. The place is rumored to be infested with all manner of terrifying predators, and it is easy for one without the blessing of flight to get lost within it forever. Ever since I was turned to stone by a Cockatrice when I was but a young colt I have had horrible nightmares about the place.

Five years prior to this book's publishing, I faced my deepest fears and led a small scientific expedition into the Everfree to try to find out the real reason why the 'dark forest' was so horrifying to ponies. It can't have just been the stories, for even ponies who have never even heard of the place tend to stay as far away from it as possible. After a week in under its canopy, taking down my thoughts, asking my companions (of which I will give a full mention at the end of the book for their bravery) what they felt, I came to a startling conclusion.

It was not the threat of the Ursa Majors or the Manticores that they feared. I made specifically sure that the candidates I picked had no prior knowledge of such creatures or the Everfree itself (they were mainly from Stallionrad, hundreds of miles north of Ponyville. It seems that the town council does not like to advertise the presence of the forest to the outside world) but simply nature itself. Unscheduled rain, falling leaves, the lack of constant light. All contributed to their phobias.

But surely, if we grew up on this planet we would be used to nature? Why do we fear the natural, the unscheduled and the unpredictable?

Since its creation, Equestria's ecosystem has been carefully maintained by the citizens that reside within it. Winter wrap-up, the running of the leaves, just to name a few of the fun but vital festivals that allow our nation to function, not to mention the weather teams that dictate the, well, weather.

Once again, this is more definitive evidence that the Ancient Cosmonaut theory must be true. That we are in fact a foreign species, trying to bring our homeworld's stability to the wild planet that we live on today. We have lost our mastery of technology to the erosion of time, but our base instincts remain. Many of the more extreme of my peers believe that the ancient equine civilization that we hailed from to be still around, just waiting for us to rediscover it. Personally, I believe such ideas to be fanciful and unrealistic.

Still not convinced? Still believe that all of this is merely a coincidence? Well, this final piece of evidence may just sway you.

You will most likely be aware of the recent (or not so, depending on time of reading) events involving the resurfacing of the ancient Crystal Empire. Of how the Elements of Harmony and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza defeated the evil King Sombra and freed the city of its terrible affliction. You will be most likely aware, or maybe even had the honor of visiting the glorious city, visiting its attractions and its friendly, upbeat crystalline residents.

Being a scholar, I jumped at the prospect of visiting the city's extensive and well stocked library, even larger than the world famous Canterlot archives, containing many rare tomes that had been lost to the wider Kingdom.

While searching for books that could aid me any way in my quest for knowledge, I stumbled across a tome that almost instantly caught my eye, in one of the more secluded sections of the library. It was laying in at the bottom of an empty bookshelf, and was falling apart at the sides. Many of its pages were gone or heavily damaged. When I inquired the librarian about it, she seemed at rather strange herself, having never even seen the book before. It was as if fate had placed it there for me to find.

Upon recovering the book for closer inspection, I found that it was well over three thousand years old (tested using magical dating techniques), way before the beginning of the classical era. The fact that a book written over three thousand years ago had even survived to the modern era is a testament to the skill (or technology) of the original makers.

Many traits of it seem completely alien to me to, suggesting off-world origin. The heavy cover was made of a solid but flexible material that is unlike anything any bookmaker has ever seen before. Also, the tome was protected by high tech locking mechanism that regrettably meant that I had to damage the cover considerably to get it open.

When I finally opened the book, I was met with a title page which read - 'Zebris Genetica'.

What is interesting is that the title is written in classic Equestrian, and it roughly translates to 'Genetics of the Zebra' in modern Equestrian. A book on Zebra genetics? How does that prove anything you may ask?

The book spoke of the great plains south of the great Macintosh hills, the ancient homeland of the Zebra tribes. Many of you may know of how this place is only habitable to the Zebra, of how almost everything thing there, from the flora to the water supply, is inimical to Ponies and highly toxic. Only the creatures that reside there are immune to it's effects, as if the place is trying to ward away outsiders.

It detailed a very complex plan of manipulating Earth Pony DNA and the DNA of a local insect known as the Zebrii ant (now extinct, however specimens can still be found preserved in resin) to create a genetic hybrid capable of surviving the hostile environment without the need of respiratory equipment or magic. If what this book is detailing is true, then I think this can go along way to explain the Zebra's also rather elusive family tree. It's certainly far more plausible than the current theory of a one night stand between a stripey ant and a drunk Earth Pony. The rest of the book was too heavily damaged for me to read, however it's clear in my mind that whatever they were trying to do with these experiments, they succeeded.

Another interesting point about this book that I insist on repeating is that it is over three thousand years old. That's a whole thousand years further back than the history books currently go. How could somepony over three thousand years ago, when the ancient ponies were using cave paintings to communicate and written language wasn't even a thought, manage to write a book, in perfect classic Equestrian, on the subject of genetics of all things. In the field of science, the concept of genetics is a relativity new concept, the double helix itself only being proved to exist by Dr Rosebud Franklin around fifty years ago. The fact that somepony was aware of it over three thousand years ago is astonishing.

Of course, if such information were to become public the implications could be massive. Relationships between our noble kingdom and the Zebra tribes could be severely damaged, not something our government would want to happen considering how dependent our economy is on trade with them (This book you hold in your hooves was published in the Griffon Kingdom, so to avoid any legal complications.) However, I am strong believer in free information, and this is vital for the acceleration of our understanding of science, our environment, and our place as a species.

If you're still reading this book, then I thank you. I thank you for being open minded enough explore avenues that would be considered absurd by the ignorant majority. Believe me, I realize how far fetched this theory sounds. I was a skeptic myself once. But maybe, just maybe if we looked beyond what we knew, and peered into the deep well of the unknown, we could find something truly amazing. Is such a thing possible? Yes, it is.

I end this foreward with a quote from Sugar-Crates, the great philosopher -

"There is only one good, knowledge and one evil, ignorance."