We believe this to be the oldest known image of our great metropolis. It’s not the only one we have that shows there was terra firma at one time, but it’s one of the earliest. That beast besides the gentleman is called a “horse”. In case you’ve never seen or heard of a horse, they were domesticated animals used for labor such as helping to move large items-
What was that?
Yes, exactly. It operates very similar to today’s hoverchests. Unlike today’s systems, however, the horse had no way to track you. If you notice, the gentleman is holding what are called “reins”. They would use those to lead the horse. Now, if you look at the beast’s back, you see what they called a “saddle”. A person would sit upon this and ride the beast for great distances.
Pardon? No, no, the beasts didn’t naturally allow this. They had to be trained by professionals before they could be ridden.
Now, the important thing, the beautiful thing to notice is the “land”. Can anyone explain to me what land is?
Speak up a little louder.
Yes, very good. “Land” is what Terrestrial ecoregions used to be known as. The four broad types of ecoregions being: Terrestial, Freshwater, Marine and Societal. Many materials that you know, synthdirt, prototrees, etc. are based on the items you see in the picture. Since we can no longer visit the other 3 ecoregions safely, we can only study them in media.
You in the back, quiet down.
Now, here’s the most exciting part of this picture. Look at that first hill in the distance. It is real. It’s not a structure covered in synthdirt and prototrees. It’s a mound of ogranic material, shaped by the natural powers, not man-made machines. Look down at your feet. If it were possible to somehow make your way through all the layers of structures and societal debris, eventually you’d touch that hill.
Yes, nothing gets by you does it.
It is true. I did touch it. It was highly illegal and very, very dangerous. It took me about a year to get there, but I did it. Don’t ask me how, for I don’t even recall now. Once I got there though, I grabbed two hand fulls of dirt.
You want to know it felt like?
It felt much like synthdirt, but more “real”. The doctors say tactically there is no difference between the two, that the feeling was more in my mind than in the physical make up of the material.
Did I smell it?
No, no, I wasn’t that idiotic. Luckily, for if I had, I’d be dead. You see, real land is full of germs and substances that are very lethal to man. As I began to make my way back up to society, I noticed a change in my hands. By the time the authorities tracked me down, the various parasites and bacteria contamination had my hands and forearms. To play it safe, doctors removed both my arms.
Why don’t I have prost-arms?
The price I had to pay for my blatant disregard for the law and the safety of our people was twofold. One, I was forbidden to have prost-arms and forced to live in a bio-contam suit. This was a form of physical shame and rememberance of my deeds. The other punishment was having to spend my life here, in public service. I get to explain to you all about the things I learned to hopefully discourage you from doing the same.
Yes, that’s right. You definitely don’t want to wind up looking like me. Let’s move on now, shall we?
