//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6: Somepony To Talk To 
// Story: Shadows of Eden 
// by RoccoRoccs 
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Another day in an otherwise hellish paradise... I wasn't sure just how much time had passed down here until I heard the rain beating against the shelter door. The skies were clear when I came down, but now they had overcast and began pouring water and blowing wind. Was it just me or was this storm much more powerful than I was used to seeing? As soon as I cracked the hatch open it was nearly ripped from my hooves by a strong gust. Outside the grass laid flat from its force, great sheets of rain came down more like hail than drops and thunder was booming across the valley. I hope they don't want me to do anything today, because I am not going out in that.

Not only because the storm seemed strong enough to kill me, but because my ghostly pal seemed to really not like water that much. As much as I hated everypony from my time, I was really starting to feel the pain of isolation and lack of passing contact. I was beginning to talk to myself surreptitiously as I paced the small room we were hiding in, mindlessly pressing buttons and turning knobs on the long since dead equipment. 

Rocket was the only company I could keep, but how good could they be at that without the ability to talk back to me? It felt rude to just ignore them or treat them as if they were nothing more than a pet, but what choice did I have? They were hardly engaging and kind of smelled like ozone. Even still, they were perfectly content following me around the one room hole in the ground, mimicking my every movement. If I touched a button, they touched it. If I turned a knob, the pretended to as well. 

After an hour of this, I decided to try my own experiment. On my 50th trot past the desk, I mindlessly picked up a pen cup and flipped it over upside down and sat it back down. I looked over my shoulder as I trotted to the far side of the room just as I had done a hundred times before and took in Rocket trying to grab the cup over and over. I gave snicker and bit my lip as they became more and more frustrated and eventually succeeded in knocking the cup over. I began laughing historically, I'm not sure why I found it so funny, but I was nearly wetting myself. 

Rocket looked on in confusion as I rolled across the floor and began pounding my hooves into the steel grate. It was like my first sip of water after that night in the tower, so refreshing and delightful. Just then, in my moment of spontaneity, I felt two ice cubes on my flank that were so cold I nearly jumped in pain from the sudden touch. It was so cold I thought I had been frost bitten by a yeti or something. 

I looked back from across the room and saw Rocket, transparent hooves outstretched, bobbing their head like a moron. Hey! Was this thing laughing at me? That's so rude! 

"COLD! That was cold, Rocket! What the hell!?" 

More head bobbing from the ghost. Well, I guess turnabout is fair play. I did play a joke on them, but my butt was still stinging from the icy touch of a disembodied soul. Why couldn't I get a warm ghost or something!? It was cold last night on the floor, the least they could have done was cuddle with me and make me warm. But NOOOO! I had to get the ice queen... or king... Do ghosts even have genders? Do they even care? I could imagine ghost sex being unpleasant if they were all that cold. 

"Knock it off, Rocket. It wasn't that funny. And who said you could touch my butt like that!? I do not consent!"

They trotted over to me and seemed to be apologetic and stood beside me, leaned their butt to mine and froze me again. I gave an 'eep' and jumped nearly out of my skin. Ok, this gag was getting old, my ass was starting to actually get cold. 

"HEY! What did I just say!? Geez! Even your butt is cold! WHY ARE YOU SO COLD!?" I shouted in frustration. 

Rocket only motioned for me to follow them from the stairwell to the hatch. At first I thought I was going to be another trick, but that thought left me when they took up position on the floor in front of a puddle that had been slowly forming. They motioned for me to come closer and sit with them and despite my fear of being frozen again, I obliged. The two of us sat there for a moment, me looking at the puddle, them staring at me. Well this was awkward... They don't even have a reflection. 

"Soooo... you are the disembodied spirit of a vampire?" I asked jokingly. To my surprise they didn't reach out to touch me, but rather reached a hoof out and touched the water. The water froze everywhere their hoof went, drawing shapes and soon letters in little prism like bars that looked more like snowflakes than anything. They wrote out "No. I'm dead."

"You're dead... I kinda guessed that." Let down by the answer, but excited to have a way to talk to them, I pressed on with the questions. "What happened here?" 

'Too much, too fast. Ponies died'

"I get that, but what caused all of this? Was it Equaal?"

'No. Too much magic.' I looked to them in confusion but it was like they were growing... dimmer. Like just writing on the water was draining them.

"If this is too much, you can stop. But I would like to know more." I said, trying to hide that selfish side of me that needed more answers. They took their hoof and wrote out 'yes' and 'no' in the water and pointed. I guess we were going to play 20 questions. Fair enough I guess. 

"Ok... So yes or no questions only?" They pointed to yes. 

"Ok... So if you say too much too fast... And by much you mean magic... Do you mean that ponies got greedy and started taking lots of Equaal?"

They hovered their hoof between the answers. 

"So half right?" 

'Yes.'

"Ponies started taking lots of Equaal?"

'Yes.'

"Did it have something to do with how bad things were getting?"

'Yes.'

"Did they know the world was ending?"

'No.'

"So Spark killed everypony?"

'No.'

"They were trying to... help?"

'Yes!' They pointed over and over. 

"That doesn't make since! They sent me here and now I'm... Wait... Rocket, Do you know who I am?"

They gave me a long look and hovered over 'yes' slowly. 

"So I made it back then? I knew Jet would figure it out! I'm not really the type, but I swear I'll kiss her when I get back!"

All I got was a look from the ghost in the room like I was crazy. 

"Sorry... Got excited. Rocket... If you are a ghost and I can see you, why can't I see others like you?"

They waved their hoof over the water and cleared the ice away and began to write. 

'Equaal overdose. I am magic. No cure. No time.' They then seemed to melt into the floor. The effort they must have used to write that out took its toll and they seemed to float to the other side of the room and sit up. 

"ROCKET! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-" I was cut off by the wave of a very dim looking hoof as they slouched. I couldn't help it, I felt terrible that they were using up what I was guessing was their life force just to tell me all of this. Water must have a draining effect on them like heat does to a pony in the sun. I trotted over to them and saw them motionless, just staring at the ground. Knowing the risks from earlier, I paid them no attention as I reached out and put a hoof around them. I clinched waiting for the cold, but it never came. It felt more like static to touch them. 

Cautiously, I wrapped my other hoof around them to offer something of gratitude for what they had given me. It was far from the full answer, but it was something nonetheless, maybe all they could give. They seemed shocked at first, but soon leaned into me, resting their weightless head on my chest. It felt, weird. But they seemed to be enjoying it so I did not dare move. 

We sat there for an hour at least. You would think that ten minutes would have been a long hug, but I was more than ok with the time. Not just because I felt bad, but because something interesting was happening. The more they were close to me, the brighter and more vibrant their color became. It was as if they were feeding off the feeling of closeness or the mere contact. Had that been why they came to me that night? Were they... feeding on the living? If so, why did they pull away so fast that night? Did I like, taste bad? Maybe they just wanted a snack? 

There were too many questions and not enough time. I had to find a way to make this easier for us to talk so I could get a better idea of what happened here, how it could be avoided or even how to reverse it. As much as I was coming to like my pet ghost, I didn't want them to have to exist like this. I didn't want the world to end. We soon broke company and they began trotting around the room again, all the while glancing back at me still sitting there on the floor. I felt... drained, tired even. I needed a nap.   

I rolled to one side, feeling like I was drunk and tried to take a step but failed. They trotted closer again, this time coming nearly nose to nose with me. Despite the hug I began scooting back from them in my seat, but there was nowhere to go, my back was against the wall. They leaned in slowly and brushed their nose to mine, I shrank back, expecting the icy touch I had come accustomed to, but it was warm. Like, really warm! Like a nose should be!

"Wait, you can do that!? You can be hot OR cold!? Where was that last night!? I was freezing my hooves off on that cold steel floor!" 

They just kept staring at me, nose to nose, their heat warming me slowly. It felt... good. I liked it in fact. It wasn't until the beep from my Cuff scared both of us before we parted company. If I didn't know better, I would have said that Rocket was about to try and kiss me. Oh goddess, what would that even feel like? One slip and my tongue would have been frozen, like when I was a filly and I licked a flag pole. I tried to stand, tapped the message and let it play out. It was another message from Jet, I guess they got my message and sent one in return. 

"Dingy, it's Jet. I know you are scared, I would be too if I were you, but I know you can hang in there. You have to. I won't berate you about it anymore, but you need to know that you are not alone, I'm right here with you and will be until this whole thing is over. I know it's hard to imagine, but I care about you, not just what happens to you, but about YOU. I guess when you have nothing to look at but white walls and computer screen, you tend to get attached to anypony outside your little world that will have anything to do with you. 

Oh my... That all came out all wrong. Look. Forget that first part... I also meant that you are not alone there either. I was going over your data last night and that's why it has taken so much time to get back to you. Your Cuff detected an abnormally large magical signature between 5:30 P.M up until you sent the message to me last night. This ghost thing you are talking about... At first I thought you were being metaphorical, but now...

Dingy, is there an actually ghost there with you? Can you interact with it like you said or are you just pulling my leg? I want to say you are messing with me, but the data never lies. There is enough magical signature there that it nearly bled over and corrupted the audio file you sent me. The magical framework of what I am looking at reminds me of another source we have studied in the past, but I won't know for sure until I get back into the lab this morning. 

Your Cuff also captured a drop in barometric pressure not long before you went into the shelter. You can expect quite the storm outside today, it might be best to hunker down and wait it out if you can. You should receive your first update today as well, so be on the lookout for it too. Dingy, I have a plan. I don't know if it will work, you will just have to trust me that it will. I won't go into detail about it, I don't want to take that chance, but just know that you will be going on a hike here soon. 

Feel free to message me with the text function. It's relatively new tech and they don't monitor it. The latency is also much quicker through text so I can respond quicker as well. Just do not talk about anything test or blast related when you do, just to be safe. Good luck, Dingy.

Jet, out."

Text function. Oh! Like my phone! I'm good at that, most days it is all I have to do. Granted, I have no clue what latency is. Maybe it only works late at night? Does it mean that it will get there late? No that would be stupid... I really am hopeless when it comes to the ways of technology. I fumbled around the Cuff's menu until I found the text function and began the process of 'chatting'. What more did I have to do? It was raining cats and dogs and even though I had an apparition to mess with, that got older and older with every icy touch. Not to mention that I knew that they could turn it off and on at will meant that I was at a serious disadvantage. 

'Hi Jet! Yeah, I know about the powerful magical signature... They are sitting right beside me! Don't worry, they are friendly, I think. Apart from trying to nose me to death, all is well... well apart from the whole being stuck a few thousand years in the future all alone with no pony to talk to... GET ME OUT OF HERE!'

I tapped send and slouched back against the edge of the stairway and watched the puddle of water grow larger at my hooves. Rocket seemed to amuse themselves with the long since dead computer. They would nose around the tower, then try to push buttons on the keyboard, followed by even more nosing around. Their movements became more frustrated with every passing minute as they tried to reboot the machine. Finally, they bolted upright and began waving at me to come over.

"What is it girl? Little Tinny fell down a well? Is Ms. Pie sick? Oh no! Do I have mail?" 

Wow, I never thought I would see a anypony, let alone a ghost looking so fed up with me. I rolled over and went to investigate what strange thing they had found now. Rocket had discovered a power strip and was enthusiastically pointing at the power switch. 

"You want me to turn on the computer..."

I was given a vigorous nod for my correct answer.

"Why do you want me to turn on the computer?"

I was given a blank stare.

"Rocket... you are acting strange... er.. stranger than normal. What, need to send an email?"

More blank stares from the ghost. 

"Ugh... fine." I said as I flipped the little red switch and the computer let out a puff of smoke. "See? It died. Is that what you wanted? To finish off this poor piece of technology- Rocket, what are you doing?"

I watched as they began trying to shove their hoof into the power strip with a fair amount of force. This thing just keeps getting weirder by the second! First they want me to turn on the power to a computer that is dead now they are-

"ROCKET!" 

The room filled with sparks and bright flashes of light as magical energy filled my ghost. Bolts of lighting began tracing lines all over their body like great veins of electricity and blue fire. Gradually a low hum started to echo off the steel walls as heat from around Rocket grew like a raging fire. Their body convulsed rapidly and their dim glow started to grow brighter with every jolt. I ran for my life and hid in a caged storage locker and watched on in horror. 

I don't know what scared me more. The thought of them being tortured to death with magical electricity, the fact that I could die at any second or being alone out here again. I had just found comfort in my new found friend and here they were, dying right before my very eyes. I wanted to help, I wanted to be brave! But there was no way I could even get near them. There were lightning bolts striking the ground all around them, blowing the panels off the floor and shattering steel around them. 

The lights on the breaker box began to glow brightly as if to say 'Here, flip this big red main switch and all will be well'. But before I could make my move, the box exploded and the room went dark. A few seconds later the red emergency lights came on, but they were all but nonexistent in the presence of the bright blue glow that was standing beside the now smoking surge protector. Rocket was... Ok? They were much brighter now, even more so than when I ran into them in the tower. It was like they were radiating pure light. Their wispy form was much more pronounced now, clearly showing the body of a mare. 

I carefully crawled out of my cage and trotted closer to get a better look. They were... radiant. For all the fear that had been crossing my mind during the previous events, two things were made very clear. Rocket is one tough girl and it was going to be impossible to sleep with how bright SHE was. 

"Rocket? You ok?"

They looked up at me and... was that a smile I saw? Oh what the hell, that had better not have been a joke. 

"Yes... I am fine." 

"Oh good... because for a second- AHHHH"

I found myself back in the cage, hiding from the the now talking ghost.

"Please, do not be afraid."

"That is EXACTLY what a ghost would say before they kill me!" 

"It is ok. I do not want to harm you."

"But you can talk now! What was that, with all the sparks and lighting? You were trying to kill me!"

"Please. I can only speak for a moment. Each word drains my strength."

"Ok... Then explain to me why you just went and tried to electrocute me."

"Please. I did not try to electrocute you. The power that runs through these lines is magical energy, the very same that makes up my presence. I was weak when you found me, even weaker after signing with you. I needed to recharge." 

I stepped out of my hiding place, all the while clearing a path in case I had to make a retreat for safety. Her voice sounded tinny, echoey even. Almost like they were speaking through a fan. But the words still found my ears as calm and inviting all the same. 

"You mean you are not a ghost? You are, just electricity? I should have named you Jolt."

"It is ok. I like the name Rocket. No, I am not a ghost. I am an embodiment of magical energy. I don't know how I came to be, or why it is that I am still here and all the others are gone. So many ponies, so many faded away. But not me."

"Ok, so you are a magical presence. I guess you followed me because you were lonely?"

"No." They said almost longingly. "I feel an attraction towards you. There is an energy. I can feel it, but I can not grasp it. I was... Drawn to you."

"Oh... So you think I am cute?" I said batting my eyelashes playfully. What was I doing? One minute I'm running for my life and the next I'm flirting with a ghost!? I have to get out of here. What's to say that I'm not just cracked in the head and this is all a figment of my imagination.

"Maybe. I do not know. I remember feelings, but I can not feel them now. There is an attraction, strong, alluring." They said as they sat down. 

"Can't take it back. You called me cute. I'll take it." Seeing as I had not been complemented since I lived at home with my parents, I was counting that as a win, no matter what the context. "Wait, if you could have just done this all along, why didn't you? I have been going crazy without somepony to talk to."

"It is... Very painful." 

"So you have just been shocking yourself over and over again to stay alive? That sounds terrible, why would you do that?" I asked, coming closer to her and taking a seat. Wow, all my hair was standing on end. I imagine that I look like I just fell out of a dryer on high.

"I do not know. I just know that I have to keep going."

"How long can you stay like this? How long can you keep talking, I mean?"

"A few days... if nothing drains my energy. Water takes my energy away."

Great. She can talk, but because it's raining we are stuck here. I thought back to that moment at the stream, in the field where everything she touched seemed to just... die. Everything there was damp. It must have been draining her just to follow me. If what she was saying was true, whatever it was that was driving her to chase after me must have been stronger than the fear of fading away. I felt guilty about my own selfish desire to press on and get back home when she had put herself out so much just to follow an urge. 

"Rocket... Why do you want me to call you, Rocket?" I asked, finding a seat near her. 

"I like that name... it reminds me of something. Something I can't remember, but something that makes me happy."

"Curious... I know a pony named Jet. Maybe you knew them? I mean, I'm from the past and so are they."

"I do not know. I know that I have seen the name, Jet. I know that I have memories of ponies. But I do not remember a pony named this."

"You are an odd one. You know that, right?"

"You are talking to a mass of spirit energy..."

"Fair enough." I said as a thought hit me. "You said that water drains your energy, and clearly magical electricity replenishes it..."

"Yes, but it is very painful."

"Yes, I know. What about a small amount of electricity? Like, over time. Would that hurt too?" I asked, looking around the desk. 

"I do not know."

I rummaged through the drawers and... AH HA! I knew there would be one of these here, I used to find them lying everywhere back in my time. "Rocket... I have an Idea, but I don't know if it's going to work. If it does then replenishing your energy might not be painful anymore. Are you game?"

"I do not want to be hurt." She said, shying away from the long cord I was trying it bite through. 

"That's why this is an experiment. If it works then awesome! If not, I will unplug it. Easy peasy!"

"Ok. I will try. But I do not want it to hurt." She said as she stepped closer.

"Oh com'on, what else do we have to do? It's raining, we can't go outside and I need somepony to talk to before I go crazy. The last thing I want is for you to crap out on me when the depression hits."

"I do not know what 'crap' is." She said looking on in confusion.

"Crap is everything, really. This desk is crap, the computer is crap now that you went all mother nature on it, my coat color is crap... everything is crap... its a saying. It means something is bad or... not good enough."

"If crap is bad, I do not think you are crap."

"Very sweet of you." I said through a mouth full of cords as my teeth worked to strip the isolation from fine copper wires. "There! Now, hold this red wire in one hoof and the black wire in the other." I said passing them to her. I then plugged in the little black box to the wall and... a faint blue light began to glow from her hoofs. No lighting, no sparks, no unholy screaming. It worked! 

"Rocket? Are you ok?"

"It tickles."

"Perfect! Do you feel anything? Besides the tickling?"

"Yes... I think. I do not know. Yes I feel better." They said trying to figure out why they were not being tortured. "I think this works. What is it?"

"Phone charger! These things are everywhere! I used to cut them and strip the wires to make all kinds of things! Night lights, chargers for other things, I even made a little heated blanket out of one once with a broken space heater and cookie sheet." 

"You are clever! I like this!"

"Well when you are poor, you figure it out! That's what my dad always said."

"What is... Poor?" She asked, relaxing on the floor and absorbing all the energy the little charger had to give. 

"Well... it's complicated. In my time you have to have money for everything. Food, housing, heat, water... things... When you don't have a lot of money, you have to be resourceful. When you can't afford bread, you have to make it. When you get cold, you have to find a way to stay warm. You have to figure it out."

"Is that what I have been doing? Figuring it out?"

"I guess so... You made it this long. You said the others winked out already, right?"

"Yes... I do not know... It is, complicated. I remember ponies, but I do not remember their shape. I remember knowing ponies, but I do not remember who they are. I think of it, but the memory never comes. I want to remember." 

"I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"It is ok. I want to remember them. I know that I had friends. I know that I had family. But I can not see their faces. Why can I not see their faces?" 

The question found my ears with an innocent tone not unlike that of a foal who had lost their mommy and just didn't understand what had gone so wrong. I couldn't help but feel and pang of guilt and sadness for them. Here I was fighting so hard to get back to my world, my time, and to what? Nothing? I barely had any friends. I didn't have any family. All she wanted was to remember just one face, just one memory of who she was. Deep down I felt my own problems trivialized, insurmountable in comparison to such a lonesome feeling. But another part of me felt a strange connection to them. We both just wanted somepony to talk to. Neither of us had anypony here, but now we were in the same room. 

"Hey, chin up my little glow in the dark buddy! You might not be able to remember them, but at least you know they were there. I can't even think of anypony who will miss me being gone. But at least we got each other for a little while, right?"

"Yes, we do." She said with a happy little smile. Was it me or was she becoming more energetic from her little charger? "Rocket, you seem more... clear."

"Yes, I am feeling better. This thing you did with the wires is helping. Do you think if I keep charging, I will remember somepony?"

"Maybe, I'm no scientist. Honestly it's a wonder I made it this far or that this little trick didn't just set the place on fire. Only one way to find out."

We spent the next few hours talking. Every so often we would have to stop as Rocket tried to remember something from her past, but it always ended the same. As sad as it was, it was cute how she would look like she was about to sneeze the memory out before giving up. I would then pick up the conversation and keep talking for the both of us. I told her about how the world was back then and how I had come to find myself here in the bunker with her. She told me about all the things in the world I was now in. To her they seemed trivial, but to me they were dangers to avoid. The longer we spoke the clearer her voice became and the more coherent her sentences. I had danced around the whole, remembering other ponies thing more than once, but I was starting to wonder about it myself. 

But the selfish side of me that wanted out of here knew that we could never spend enough time here to charge her that much. Maybe If I found a battery charger? How much power could I pump into my little light bulb before she just popped? Was there a limit? At what point would it hurt? I was conflicted. I wanted to help, but I also wanted to go home. That thought would lead me right back to the question 'back home to what, exactly' and the whole damn process would start over again. I was getting frustrated. I had not heard back from  Jet in hours now, It was still raining and I was running out of witty topics to impress my new friend. 

"Rocket... I'm getting tired." I said as I laid down on the floor. She looked at her hooves and back to me before offering me the leads to the wires she was holding. "No... Sweetie, I don't work like that." She froze, just staring at me curiously. She started to lean in before quickly backing away again and staring off into space. "Rocket? You ok?"

"That word... Sweetie... I know that word."

"Yes... I'm sure you do. It is a term of endearment... or a name, if your parents are bakers or something."

"No... I remember something." She said, pinching her ghostly eyes shut. "I was called that before... Please, say it again."

"Sweetie?" 

"No. Like before. The tone." 

"Oh.... Ahem... Sweetie..." I said, feeling rather foalish.

"Yes! I remember something!" She squeaked. Funny, I didn't know ghosts could squeak... or talk... or recharge with phone cables... it's been a long day. 

"What do you remember?" I yawned. 

"A mare... Not a mother... I can see her, kind of. She called me that. It made me feel... happy? Fluttery? Embarrassed! Yes, it made me feel embarrassed. I have not felt that in a long time!"

"Huh... So you bat for the other team then." I said as I curled my head into my hooves. 

"What does that mean?"

"Honey, it means you like mares. You are... were a mare. Same sex relationship."

"I like this word too! Honey. What is same sex relationship?"

"Oh hell.... I don't know, what is any relationship? It means instead of liking bucks, you like mares. Conventionally, mares like bucks. And vice versa... Just one more thing we have in common."

"I like mares... I LIKE MARES! YES! I remember now! This is exciting!"

"Yes. Very exciting. You are hella gay, and I am hella excited for you. I need sleep."

"Yes... I am... Hella... gay! Thank you. I think I feel happy!"

Rocket was overcome with levity as I had a sobering thought of my own. I had never had an actual relationship before. The closest I had come to even asking anypony out was Lilly at the green house a few years ago. Even then she shot me down because... Well, she played for a different team than me. Beyond the odd fling I had never even had a pony to call my own, I had never felt that kind of affection before beyond my parents. How irresponsible of me it was for me to come here, I should be out chasing dreams and finding my own way in the world. It was just one more reminder of how much of a bad idea this all had been. 

All it had served was to put me in my place and remind me that back home I had options. Here, I had nothing but a cold floor, terror and a ghost to talk to. This was a cruel, torturous pain that I could not feel, but I could see moment after moment. What if I never make it back home? I'll just be alone out here, forever. What if I do? What then? The world could turn to dust any day, how could I live knowing that could happen any day? The moment I walked into that building I signed my life away. Maybe that is what I had always heard. Spark kills ponies, but we never knew how. Sitting here now, I wish I still thought they did experiments on ponies until they died, this was so much worse. They did take my life from me, but I still have to live, trotting hollowly through life wishing I could forget. 

"Rocket... If I can't make it back, to my time, would you stay? Like, hang out with me?"

"Yes. I would like that very much." She said, playing with the little red and black wires. 

"I don't want to be alone anymore. I got enough of that when I was back home. But if we stick together, then we can be alone together." I said sheepishly. 

"Yes, alone together! Then we will not be alone anymore!" 

"Sure... Whatever your say, Rocket."

"What is your name?" She asked as she gave the wires a sniff.

"Dingy. Dingy Beige. The most bland pony you will ever meet."

"Nice to meet you Dingy. Maybe one day I can tell you my name. Can I ask you something?"

"Go for it, sparky."

"Where are you trying to go? Where is this home you keep talking about?"

"Back to my time. I have to fire off some spell somewhere in a rift and I can travel back in time to my time."

"Wait! You are from the past!? You must tell them-"

"WAY ahead of you, Rocket. I was sent here to figure out the effects of what we were doing back then. I guess I never imagined it would be... THIS."

"I am beginning to remember things. I used to have a job, but everypony was always sad... tired. Maybe I was helping to try and stop everything that happened." 

"Maybe, maybe not. I guess we won't know until you recharge enough... I hope."

The truth was that the chances of them knowing what happened or how to prevent it were slim at best. Even if she knew anything helpful at all, then how would I bring that back beyond simple words and short stories. Who would believe me? Jet... She would believe me for sure. But who else? The sad fact of the matter was that I was not just in a different time with little contact with the world I knew, but in a whole other world all together. The stark contrast between the proverbial Eden and the industrial ravaged land I knew was hard for even me to believe. I wanted her to remember, not just so I could maybe fix things but... She was more than just a ghost or whatever she was. She WAS a pony, she used to live here and still does. I wanted it for her sake as much as everypony else's. 

I wanted her life to mean something. If her plight in life was to wonder about this world alone for eternity, then I wanted that to not be for not. Maybe she could be the key to fixing all of this mess or even reversing it all. With my eyelids growing heavy and my mind aching for sleep, I felt my Cuff give out a soft beep and little vibration signifying I had a new message from Jet. But I was too tired, I am sure she could wait until morning for me to respond.