//------------------------------//
// Chapter 15: Ancients 
// Story: Equestria 485,000 
// by Unwhole Hole 
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Silken drifted through the facility silently. She did not naturally make sound when she moved, apart from sometimes the tapping of the tiny pointes of her feet if the floor she was walking on was especially hard. Nor did she moved at the pace she walked when she was with Twilight. On her own, she moved much faster, even at a relaxed pace. Doing so produced no strain on her body; as a machine, she would never tire.

            The ponies had been placed in a room that Silken had deemed appropriate for them. It was somewhat separate from the techno-organic machinery and one of a number of large, geometrically regular rooms that had been cut from the rock walls themselves. This room was quite large and warmer than the others- -these ponies had higher temperature requirements than modern ones, as Silken had quickly learned- -and was only coated by the black growth on one side and most of the floor. This had been necessary, as otherwise there would have been no source of light without having to make one. Interestingly, the ponies did not seem to mind the black growth that surrounded them. In fact, they had not even seemed to acknowledge its presence.

            Silken drifted into one of the darker parts of the room, her optic sensors automatically adjusting from active to passive scanning. Three ponies were present, standing much nearer to the orange light at the far end of the room: Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack. Silken took a moment to try to remember their names as well as possible. They were not easy names. Silken had been programmed to speak a wide number of languages- -including the Old Language, or what was known about it from research by the Cult of Twilight Sparkle- -but she had never expected to use it. Trying to remember names that had letters other than the two standard vowels of modern pony language was challenging.

            “I have completed analysis of the water supply,” she said, causing all three of the ponies to jump and Fluttershy to scream. Silken was confused by this, as she did not know that they had been afraid of water analyses. Still, she continued. “As I anticipated, the glacial melt water is extremely toxic. The trace radioactivities is high, as well as particulate matter. I recommend against drinking it. However, I found several pools deeper under the main body of the facility. They appear to serve some purpose to the machines, and although the fluid in the reservoirs is black and smells of iodine, I see no reason why it should not be drinkable.” The ponies continued to stare at her. They looked nervous, and Fluttershy was shaking. “I would have brought some but I did not…have a jar…”

            The ponies stared at her, and she at them. Silken, of course, did not blink. She did not have eyelids. This only seemed to make the ponies more uncomfortable, and the earth-pony- -Applejack- -turned away and began to pace the room near the door.

            “Is something wrong?” said Silken. “I really did not have a jar. I am sorry.”

            “It…it’s not that,” said the unicorn, Rarity. “It’s just that, well, you’re appearance is…striking?”

            “If by ‘striking’ you mean ‘absolutely terrifying’,” said Fluttershy. She was quivering on the ground and had covered her eyes. “You looked like a gerenuk. But scarier.”

            “I do not know what that is.”

            “It is a type of antelope with a very long, thin neck.”

            Silken’s eyes swiveled downward to her neck. Compared proportionally to the necks of the small ponies, it was substantially longer, as were her limbs. “My body was designed to closely resemble that of  modern ponies.”

            Rarity seemed greatly surprised. “You mean…that ALL ponies are that tall?”

            “Remni are traditionally built to be between eight and ten percent taller than ponies out of tradition, but yes. All ponies look like this.”

            Rarity’s eyes widened in surprise. “All of them? You mean…you’re all that tall?”

            “I believe I just said that, yes.”

            Rarity continued to stare. “Oh my…if that’s true, then think of the possibilities!”

            “For what? Because my programming is somewhat limited when it comes to doing things like- -”

            “Dresses, darling! Dresses of course!”

            “Rarity,” snapped Applejack from the far side of the room, “at a time like this, dresses are the absolute LAST thing you need to be thinking about!”

            “Oh, Applejack, there’s always time for proper attire!” Rarity looked up at Silken. “Just think of what I could do! All that fabric…it would cost a fortune, but the SCALE! The level of intricacy that could be achieved!” Rarity was becoming increasingly excited. “Silken, darling, you just have to sit down and tell me about what fashion looks like! I mean, a WEEK in fasion is an ETERNITY, let alone…well…”

            “I prefer to stand,” said Silken. “Largely in case there are monsters.”

            “Monsters?” squeaked Fluttershy, looking up with tearful eyes only to look away. Somehow, seeing her that afraid made Silken feel bad.

            “Yes. If I am standing, I will be able to more readily react.” She turned to Rarity. “My knowledge of fashion is not extensive. Largely because it does not exist.”

            Rarity blinked. “Doesn’t…exist?”

            “Ponies do not wear clothing. It is seen as an affront to their perfect, biological nature. To wear clothing in the presence of another is considered a grave insult.”

            “Twilight was wearing clothes,” noted Applejack without turning away from the door she was staring out of.

            “Well, yes,” said Silken, “but clothing is acceptable when it is used for a practical purpose. That, and the gods are held to slightly different social standards. And of course there is no one here to insult. Or was not supposed to be.”

            “Darling!” cried Rarity. “That view is simply all wrong!”

            “I can review my statements, but my conclusion on their veracity- -”

            “I don’t care about veracity, I care about the TRUTH! And the fact is that clothing isn’t worn for some purpose. Trust me on this, don’t trust Twilight on fashion decisions. She’s…well, she tries. But clothing isn’t meant to be practical! Fashion is an end in and of itself!”

            Silken did not understand, but she liked that somepony was talking to her. “Meaning?”

            “Meaning? Meaning clothing isn’t meant to COVER your natural beauty, it’s meant to ACCENT it! Wearing the clothing is the event itself! They don’t need to do anything except look fabulous!”

            “Modern ponies might not see it that way.”

            “Then I will have to educate them! Why, the market must simply be enormous, all those ponies walking about in the nude, having never once seen a dress in their lives!” Rarity paused. “I could bring them ALL fashion! Oh my…that is indeed a grand responsibility. But one I am certainly willing to shoulder.” Rarity looked around. “You wouldn’t happen to have a sketch pad, would you?”

            “No.”

            “Oh. Well, perhaps some makeup? I feel positively naked without my eyeshadow.” She turned and rubbed her flank. “Although for the first time in years I don’t think I’ll need any moisturizer. My skin is as soft as a newborn foal!”

            “Rarity,” said Applejack, growing increasingly frustrated in tone, “there isn’t make up here, and she’s not going to have any.”

            “It doesn’t hurt to ask!” Rarity looked up at Silken. “You could probably use some too. To break up all that white. Trust me, I know. Having this color can be a curse sometimes if you don’t have proper constrast. If only you had a mane…”

            “Would that make you less afraid of me?”

            The room fell silent. The ponies looked at each other awkwardly.

            “Darling,” said Rarity, softly, “we’re not afraid of you, per se…”

            “I am,” said Fluttershy. “I’m downright terrified.”

            “Fluttershy, that seems to be a default case for you.”

            “A mane,” said Silken. “I can do that.”

            She tilted her head back and engaged part of her internal repair system. Instead of attempting to rebuilt part of her that was broken, though, she forced her body to produce something new. The morphiplasm and machinery within her responded to her instructions, and she began to modify the thin coating that covered her carapace. Tiny structures formed, and then extended. Within seconds, she had grown the start of both a mane and tail. What she had produced was not hair- -it was not even remotely like organic hair in any way- -but it resembled it closely. The resulting fiber was silvery and somewhat metallic due to limitations in Silken’s design, but it was soft and fell somewhat messily over her shoulders and between her rear legs.

            Silken shook it slightly, noting how it felt. Like the ultra-thin hair of normal modern ponies, it was almost weightless. “It has been a long time since I have had a mane,” she said. She turned to Rarity, who was looking upward dumbfounded. “Is this better?”

            “So much better,” whispered Rarity.

            “I might be able to modify the eyes too. Hold on.” Silken switched her pupils to the mode normally reserved for wide-angle scanning. They dilated vastly, revealing the various optic units that were actually installed in her large eyes. She did take a step back, though, as the world came into focus.

            “Is something wrong?” asked Rarity.

            “No. I can just see much…more.” Silken’s eyes tilted toward Rarity. “Did you know that I can count every individual hair on your body?”

            “Are you…did you just call me hairy?” Silken did not answer Rarity’s question.

            Fluttershy looked up. She was still afraid, but seemed to tolerate Silken much better than before.

            “Am I less frightening?” asked Silken, suddenly lowering her head and putting it inches from Fluttershy’s. Fluttershy instantly froze, her eyes locking on Silken. All that escaped her was a tiny, low squeak and perhaps some liquid.

            “I like your wings,” continued Silken. “They look so soft and poofy!” She pulled her head back. “In fact, you all look so little and adorable! I just want to hug you all!”

            “Since when does a robot want to hug?” muttered Applejack. Her statement was not meant to be heard, but Silken turned her head.

            “Again. I am not a robot. I am a remnus. There is a distinction.” She turned back to Fluttershy. “Can I hug you? If I were to squeeze you, would you make cute sounds? I promise I would not squeeze you too badly.”

            “Um…no,” said Fluttershy, very softly. She was less frozen, and although Silken had surprised her Fluttershy was beginning to gain some level of composure. She stood up- -shaking, of course- -and looked at least slightly toward Silken. “I have…a question,” she said with a great deal of effort. “Equestria…the animals. I mean, if it really has been that long, and I wasn’t there to take care of them, it’s just…well…”

            “Before the Exodus, Equestria had undergone prolonged ecological devastation,” said Silken. “The planet became uninhabitable to all known life, and all speices of animal were thought extinct.”

            What little pastel color that Fluttershy seemed to have drained form her face. “Ex…extinct?”

            “Oh my!” said Rarity. “That’s just terrible!”

            “You mean…you mean that aren’t…aren’t any animals AT ALL?”

            “That was based on our initial predictions, yes. However, my own surveys of the surface have indicated that while no vertebrates survived the cataclysm, the modern ecosystem is teeming with invertebrate life.”

            “That’s even WORSE!” cried Rarity, her voice raising pitch by several octaves. Fluttershy, though, looked relieved- -but only partly.

            “You mean…animals like mice, bears, chickens, songbirds…bunnies…those are all gone?”

            “Yes,” said Silken. “Although I have no conception of what any of those words are.” This seemed to cause Fluttershy’s spirits to fall even further. “The ancient ponies attempted to bring animals with them into space,” explained Silken, “but the vast majority could not adapt to the conditions.”

            “They were taken from their homes. Of course they couldn’t adapt. The poor things.”

            “Some did, though,” said Silken. “Some thrived, but very few. I recall that as a filly, I had a pair of pet space hamsters. They were very popular at the time.”

            “What’s a space hamster?”

            “Like a hamster. Except in space.”

            This idea seemed to provide Fluttershy with some level of cheer, but it did not last long. “But the rest…all the animals are gone. That’s a very sad thing.”

            “I’m not so sure I’d be one to believe it,” said Applejack, darkly, as she stood across the room. The others turned to look at her.

            “Applejack,” said Rarity. “We’ve already been through this. Ms. Silken clearly explained- -”

            “Explained what? That somehow we ended up Celestia-knows how long in the future? I remember yesterday, Rarity. I was on the farm, settin’ up for the harvest. Fluttershy was supposed to come down later to give a talk to the birds about pecking my apples, and Big Macintosh was working on clearing out the barn for inventory on the cider making equipment.”

            “I…I do remember that,” said Fluttershy. “I was on my way there, but I stopped to help a family of copperheads cross the street safely. Their little heads were just so adorable.”

            “And now you’re tellin’ me that, somehow, we just woke up here, in this weird place? That’s a mighty tall tale if I ever did hear one.”

            “Applejack,” said Rarity, sounding somewhat exasperated. She pointed up at Silken. “I believe this is all the evidence we need. Now, I may not be the most worldly of ponies, but I have six individual boutiques throughout Equestria.”

            “How industrious,” said Silken.

            “Thank you! And that said, I’ve seen a great many things. And things like her just don’t exist. Anywhere.” She looked up at Silken. “Although I do apologize for calling you a ‘thing’, dear, I just didn’t know what else you were.”

            “I am a thing,” said Silken, “nor am I programmed to take offense at any time.”

            “Hogwash!” said Applejack. “Rarity, think of all the stuff we’ve seen! I’ve seen things that would curl your hair! And at least two things that DID!”

            Rarity shivered and held herself. “So…curly…” she whispered.

            “And who says ponies like her weren’t somewhere in Equestria? Built up in some lab on top of a hill, or dug up out of some hole. You know we have a problem with that sort of thing.” Her eyes narrowed. “Or one of them aliens.”

            “I am not an alien,” said Silken, “although I admittedly not native to Equestria.”

            Applejack took several aggressive steps toward Silken. “Frankly? I trust you about as far as I can through you, which even for me wouldn’t be very far seeing as how tall you are. And your story? If I took it with a grain of salt, that grain would be illegal to transport across county lines on account of its size!”

            “I have no reason to lie to you.”

            “Road. APPLES. I’d sooner have a fox do my taxes than believe a word coming out of your weird little mouth.”

            “That’s racist!” gasped Fluttershy.

            “And I don’t care!” said Applejack. “I’m going to find Twilight!”

            Without a further word, she stomped out of the room and into the shadows beyond. Silken watched her go, and Rarity stepped forward to her side.

            “I really must apologize for her,” she said. “She’s just not usually like this! But you have to understand, this has been quite stressful on all of us.”

            “No,” said Silken. “I understand. I still do not fully believe that you are ponies form the era you have specified. I do not have enough data to make that conclusion.”

            “I think it must be this dark, confined space. I mean, really, the decoration here is dreadful already, and she was always more of an outdoor pony.”

            “I don’t think that’s it at all,” said Fluttershy. Although Rarity did not seem to catch it, Silken immediately understood what Fluttershy’s tone was meant to convey.

            “I agree,” said Silken. “But there is not much we are able to do about that.”