Veridis Quo

Interlude 4

The internet was terrifyingly useful.

Really, it was an incredible invention of the later twentieth century re-imagined. When one thought about it, the entirety of that digital library was made up of zeros and ones! Complexity beyond complexity and enough room for a millennia forward! If the old is erased, similar to history.

On the web, a curious soul could find their call in life as long as their determination held steady. From cooking tutorials, pure entertainment and illegal explosive instructions, anything and everything was bound to linger in some dusty corner of the virtual space.

However, it was a double-edged sword. Without it, the world would remain shrouded in blissful ignorance. With it, in our case, the world was lit by willful ignorance. Which one was worse? That had sparked a debate among many timeless of its kind.

One such dilemma was the political position of the /AFOMH/ fandom, board more accurately. Why would a forum about fantastical, instinct creatures on a website tucked away spark a conflict regarding real issues? Boredom, as well as ragebait.

Animals around the world of all walks of life could meet on this tiny moon in the fabricated cosmos, sharing their likes and dislikes, creating memories and generally having a good time. 'Divided by race, united by porn,' what that how the saying goes?

Regardless of the authenticity of the source, the infamous board was a phenomena future psychologists would study and disassemble in pursuit of a doctorate. Everyone and their mothers knew nowadays humanity had gone extinct eons before the animal kingdom gained sentience, the ancient cousin of the primate family forever lost to the march of time.

A shame that a majority of the fossils were incomplete or contaminated by radiation. Only a handful of rocky bodies were put on display in the museums around the globe, the artifacts as invaluable as research for cancer.

For as long as civilization recorded, the dream of the human race was just that; a faraway melody. Folklore of spirits never seen, horror tales to frighten the bad kids into behaving, theories on /pol/ of the usual crackheads after downing a dozen energy drinks and less than two hours of sleep.

Science had insufficient evidence, religion went as far as the faith of the believer and with the modern age shunning the superficial, the topic remained in a faded, lucid state. Always there, but just out of frame like the inbred member of the distant family circle.

Until he appeared.

One day, as predicted for centuries passed, the yearly twinkle in the night sky greeted the world. Some believed it to be a sign of fortune, or a day to ask God to forgive their sins.

Only this time, it did not vanish.

And the discovery of the mysterious vessel did not fit under the governed rug. One after another, uncountable sightings were reported, and the world nearly broke.

Aliens. That was the initial thought. The proceedings were as they were. Panic, speculations, 'nuke that sonuvabiatch outta the sky!' There was enough insanity to feed the poor for a whole year. And the blame did not exist.

They should consider themselves extremely lucky none of the popular theories came true, for it was the obscure great uncle who showed up to the party, cackling and decomposing like a wet cigarette.

Indeed, humanity was behind it all. The dubbed 'Arrow' was a fascinating achievement, the technology that allowed him to survive the ages to the present day under strict supervision, mediated research, and clearance protocols; it was a dangerous toy, one that should not be trifled with!

But that wasn't what interested the world.

It was the human.

The sweet, beautiful, smooth, innocent human aboard the vessel.