10,000 years ago
Chicago, Planet Earth
“Command this is Captain James Iverson of the 97th Sky Jumper Corps. We are close to the President's last known location.” A man of Latino descent said into his radio as seven other figures flew behind him.
He was a large man, standing over seven feet all, thickly muscled, and weighed nearly 300 pounds. He had dark tan skin with short brown hair, his physique littered with numerous scars from years of war. His armor sported a scratched picture of a Golden Fleece on his chest, the symbol of the Argonauts.
“Affirmative captain. You are to confirm if the President is KIA, then report to General Hawthorne in the Millenium Park bunker.” A voice over the radio said. “Be advised, Hydra forces have broken through our defenses and will soon take the building. You’ll be alone from here on out.”
“Affirmative Command, we’ll get to the bunker.” Iverson was quiet for a long moment. “Humanitas in aeternum.”
“Humanitas in aeternum.” was the last thing said as the feed cut out, replaced by static that Iverson quickly turned off.
“Team, roll call.” Iverson demanded over the radio.
“Lieutenant Dominic Navarro reporting sir!” A Japanese man with short black hair answered. Navarro was Iverson's oldest friend, having met Iverson when they were both assigned to the 97th Skyjumper corp. Navarro's armor held a drone on his back, encased in a protective shell so it wouldn’t be damaged.
Navarro was the team's mechanic, helping to maintain the team's equipment and utilized a drone for scouting and combat.
"Private Tommy Dean Lee reporting sir!" A young southern boy with long curly blonde hair responded. Before he became a soldier, Tommy was a farm hand for his family’s beef ranch in Oklahoma, one of the few remaining farms on Earth that specialized in raising cattle for real meat. A wheat field was painted all along his left arm, scratched and burned due to the war.
Tommy specialized in close quarter fighting, carrying a shotgun and collapsible baton in addition to his assault rifle.
“Private Tony Barelli reporting sir!” A gruff voice called out from the radio. Tony was the second tallest of the squad, being an impressive 6’7” tall. His suit was the most unique, and perhaps the most terrifying, having taken the time to paint a skull along his helmet, and covered in ‘trophies’ from dead Hydra.
Tony was the only one in the squad to forgo an assault rifle, choosing to instead wield a mini gun and grenade launcher.
“Private Andy Barelli reporting sir!” Tony’s older brother answered. Despite being older than Tony, Andy was shorter and weaker than his brother. He was also the complete opposite to Tony, contrasting his brother’s serious and dour mood by being a wise ass prankster. Andy’s armor had various engravings of puns and small pictures of Hydra being killed in a wacky fashion.
He was the team’s demolitions expert, carrying an assortment of grenades, demolition charges, and wrist fired rockets.
“Corporal Alexander Ritchie reporting in.” A posh British voice said over the radio. Alexander was born in York, England, but had failed his Earth Citizenship Exam and was forcibly emigrated off world. He moved to the planet Chronisia, where he opened a men’s tuxedo shop. He was perhaps the weakest of the team, having the most slender body type of his teammates.
Due to this however, he was perfect for fitting into places the rest of his team couldn’t, making him ideal for recon and stealth. When fighting from the shadows, he utilized suppressed arms.
His armor was also immaculate, foregoing flashy details for shiny chrome and metal. It was a wonder how he managed to keep it so clean, despite its no doubt extensive use.
“Sergeant Danny Kowalski reporting sir!” A Polish accented man called out. Danny was a certified genius, knowing a plethora of maths and sciences, and considered a whiz with technology. He showed great promise as a leading scientific mind, if not for the war that is. His armor sported the Harvard University coat of arms emblazoned on the back of his hands.
He was the team’s engineer, carrying an assortment of equipment on his back and belt.
“Michael reporting sir.” A small voice called out in barely a whisper. A man with black skin they only knew as Michael, no rank or last name. Michael was a mystery to the rest of the group, as he mostly kept to himself. What was known was that he was the peacekeeper of the group, always seeking to end conflict among his teammates. He was also known for his strong belief in God, which the others scoffed at. His armor proudly held a black cross along his midsection.
Michael was considered the best Marksman in the army, dubbed ‘The Silent Killer’ due to his supreme stealth and ability to kill from afar. He was also the team’s medic, two first aid kits hanging from his waist.
“Team, we have been ordered to determine if the President is still alive then bring him to the Millenium Park Bunker. Hydra resistance is expected to be high.”
“Ha! Knowing that poor bastard, he’s definitely still alive.” Andy called out. “What is this? The sixth time we’ve saved his ass?”
“Shut up Andy!” Tony growled angrily. “... and it’s the eighth time, not the sixth.”
“Bastard owes us a round for saving him so much, especially since he banned alcohol.” Kowalski declared jokingly.
“I’m half tempted to leave him to his fate for that.” Ritchie said with a curt laugh.
“Enough.” Came Iverson's voice over the radio, silencing everyone immediately. “Stay focused, we drop in thirty seconds”
“Sir!” They all said in unison, following after Iverson when he started plummeting to the ground.
Present day
Twilight's castle library
Twilight feverishly jotted down notes as she studied another human artifact.
They had recently come across this relic after Discord revealed its location in the Ghastly Gorge, trying to make up for the Grogar fiasco.
This new artifact had been a major breakthrough in Equestrias research. Instead of being something akin to a diary, this artifact held a wealth of knowledge on Humanity.
There were pictures of great cities reaching miles into the air, pictures of their Solar System, information on Human physiology, blueprints detailing much of their technology, and much more.
Her and other top researchers were no longer confined to a single video (as Sunset liked to call it) that gave no context or details, but now had a clear picture of Humanity.
She had also discovered what exactly ‘William Wilkins’ was fighting.
The Hydra, as Humanity had dubbed them, were a reptilian race with rough scales, flat noses, four pitch black eyes, and a mouth full of fangs that grew in irregular and oftentimes random ways.
Twilight was taken aback by what she saw. Her and the other researchers had deliberated and speculated at length of what a ‘Hydra’ looked like, having little more to go off of than a shadowy silhouette for half a second at the end. This was not at all what she had expected.
This… thing could not exist in a Fillies worst nightmares. Even a depraved mind like Grogar wouldn’t dare think up something so horrific.
Despite how horrifying the Hydra were, she was frustrated with how little information the artifact had on them. She guessed it made sense, the Humans no doubt made this to document their species, they probably weren’t keen on sharing information about the very thing that wiped them out.
She was still frustrated however. This is the most information they’ve had on Humanity for years, and they still knew precious little about their society and their ultimate demise.
Or why their artifacts were scattered about the planet, or why Earth shared so much Fauna and Flora with Eques, and (perhaps most disturbingly) why the artifact had files about Horses and Ponies. Horses and Ponies that looked nothing like she had seen on Eques.
These were barely more than animals, having more in common with a squirrel than with her.
The implications presented in this artifact scared Twilight, almost more than the Hydra did. Hopefully they’d find more artifacts soon and finally put to rest all these questions.