This was written December 24th, 2025
Unicorn Evolution
Evolution sometimes works in unexpected ways. Let us look at the unicorn for instance. In modern days, we simply consider them as an upgraded version of the horse, don’t we? One which is associated with magic, along with a lovely and powerful horn on its forehead.
But, what if I told you it was actually the other way around? That horses are descended from unicorns and are actually a byproduct of evolution: A genetic accident that has led to better survival odds. But, with all the additional power we attribute to the unicorn, how could that possibly be?
Well, in a long ago time, back when magic was more common, unicorns were one of the principal sources of magic. You see, unicorns were one of the primordial Wizards, exhibiting natural magical powers, and channeling it through their wand. What wand? Why, this should be obvious, the one protruding from their forehead, silly.
Once upon a time, magical creatures in perfect harmony with human proto-wizards, the early humans who were getting exposed to magic. They wouldn’t themselves be able to wield any magic, but they partnered with unicorns, each helping one another with different tasks, and going on missions together. It is even said that a unicorn and their partner could communicate telepathically, although this might only be legend.
So, what eventually happened? Well, you’ve probably heard long ago how unicorns are weary of humans and only accept the presence of the “pure” virgin? Well, that’s only partially true, a distortion by humans based on their own religions. It should really be seen as the pure-hearted, as opposed to the virgin. But why? I hear you ask. Well…
At some point, a group of enterprising humans wondered whether there was a way to themselves access magic. Eventually, one of the was struck with an idea: What if they harvested it from unicorns? At first, they opted for more “ethical” methods, since humans and unicorns did live in harmony. Accordingly, they waited for a unicorn to die naturally and then went on with their plans, claiming they wanted to avoid the unicorn’s magical power to be “wasted”.
Believing ancient myths, they thought a unicorn’s magic was found in their heart. Thusly, the unicorn still being freshly dead, they carved out the heart, and one of them consumed it whole, before carving out the horn to use to channel the magic. Turns out, it worked flawlessly, and so did we get our first human Wizard. But obviously, it did not end there, now the box was open, and there was no going back. Others also wanted to get powers for themselves.
At first, they kept only going after unicorns that were dying either naturally or from normal battles, until the demand grew much higher than the supply. At this point, they had to find new means of fueling the supply. And thus, the hunt was on.
People started acting like savages, capturing unicorns, carving them, consuming their still beating hearts because of their own myths, and ripping out the wand. Yet, this was a hassle, and wouldn’t lend itself to a great economy. After all, you had to be present in order to consume the heart.
Eventually, people experimented further, trying to create potions or powders from the heart, and all of those worked. It was silly of them to not realize sooner that consuming the heart was completely useless; had someone tried to use another Wizard’s wand, they would have realized they were able to handle it. Then again, it might also have been propaganda to keep the Wizards as part of the Elite. Ah, but once this realization came about, the flood gates were open, and the hunt reached new levels.
Human savagery and brutality can never be underestimated. I’m guessing you’ve heard of what some fisherman do to sharks, right? Due to the popularity of Shark Fin Soup, a lot of fisherman have been known to just carve out the fin of the shark and then releasing them back into the water, to die a rather cruel death. “After all, only the fin would fetch a high price, why waste time and space with the entire carcass?” would be their reasoning. Well, in a similar way, unicorns were being chased by humans, and their horns would be ripped off their own heads, leaving them powerless and vulnerable.
Accordingly, unicorns became much more selective of which people they would associate with: Unless they could confirm the person’s heart was pure, and thus would cause them no danger, they would flee. Still, they were still being hunted, with their number dwindling.
Luckily, nature found a way. By pure accident, a new breed was born, the horse. New genes were introduced, which wouldn’t trigger the growth of a magical horn. Gradually, since this gene protected the new breed from unicorns’ new predator, human, this gene propagated more and more, and thus horses became the dominant species, with unicorn gradually becoming extinct.
What are you thoughts on this whole tale, tragic right? Do you wish we’d been more careful and been more in harmony with unicorns, to hopefully keep magic around? How foolish of you! And it wouldn’t be surprising you’re only thinking this because of how special unicorns are seen in modern culture. But this kind of tragedy, or extermination, and pure atrocity is nothing special in the entirety of human history. This was neither the first nor the last such tragedy. Such things are still happening to this day, and we’re just letting them happen. Why? Convenience, there’s an apparent gain to it, albeit short-term, and unsustainable.
Although, to come back to unicorns. They’re not exactly completely gone, the necessary genes are still present in some of the modern specimens. Did that relieve you? Make you believe that you might one day encounter one? Live a magical experience? Foolishness once more! Those genes are themselves already rare, and require the correct combination. Why do you think we haven’t seen any unicorn in who-knows-how-long? A naturally occurring unicorn, at this point, is extremely unlikely. Although an artificially created one might still be in the cards.
And if you think that’s all the magic that’s existed in the world, that would be a silly thought. Though just like with unicorns, a lot of those were hunted out of existence by human foolishness. Alas, seems like we can’t have nice things…