Gradually reduce her dose 52%
“Twilight, you have to understand… what you’re asking for isn’t…” Fluttershy took a deep breath, stopping beside her in the hallway.
“She’s doing better, Fluttershy,” Twilight said. “She’s healing. She doesn’t need to be so drugged she’s barely conscious anymore. You know how awful that is for Pinkie… being stuck in a little room like that…”
“I know she’s not doing well, captain…” Fluttershy shook her head. “But the reason she was able to talk to you is the medication. If we take it away, she could go right back to the way she was.”
“I’m not asking you to take her cold-turkey. Just a gradual reduction. Just long enough for us to see a trend. If she starts getting worse, you can go back to what you were doing.”
Fluttershy grumbled. “I don’t think it’s a good idea, Twilight.”
“Just give it a few days,” she muttered. “After that, we can talk again. And if you ever see any sign she’s regressing, you can go right back.”
There was no further argument. As the chief medical officer, Fluttershy had the authority to override her on medical matters—so long as somepony’s life was in immediate peril. But she didn’t try to make that argument. Fluttershy wasn’t confrontational enough for that. But she might just go over my head without saying anything. Lie about changing the dose. Twilight would have to keep an eye, see if Pinkie Pie’s condition actually improved.
She still slept an awful lot, waking only for brief periods of lucidity that came as unexpectedly as they ended. In two days of visiting as often as she could, Twilight determined that Pinkie Pie had woken during the trip over. She didn’t seem to recognize Cozy Glow, either by name or description. Everything the pony had to say was technical—a few things about the engines, or the radiation shield. But she hadn’t been awake long enough for Twilight to put anything together yet.
Doesn’t mean Cozy doesn’t have something to do with it. Maybe she tricked her, somehow. The strange damage to her brain was another concern—one that lingered in Twilight’s mind for personal reasons just as deep.
It was on the second day that Twilight’s decision to constantly watch the probe finally paid off. The call came from Applejack, who sounded tired and a little annoyed. “Hey, Twi! The, uh… the thing wants to talk. I don’t really know what to say to it.”
“I’ll be right there!” she said, leaving her toothbrush under the still flowing water in the bathroom and teleporting down the hall in exaggerated jumps. She passed Fluttershy’s room with the lights already out—Rainbow Dash’s room, with a swapped-out sign. Spike had put off that particular nightmare until they ran out of rooms.
She made it to engineering in under two minutes, and the probe was still communicating. “Alright!” she said, naked except for a sleeping cap and the felt mask resting on her forehead. “I’m here. What’s… what’s up?”
“Is the captain here?” asked the probe, in Starlight’s voice. “We must exchange.”
“YES” Applejack exclaimed, as though she’d just answered the same question a hundred times. “Your baby, Twi. I’m out.” And she started walking to the lift.
“Right, thanks!” Twilight hurried over to the rolling rack—the same one they’d been using to move the device around all this time. “Hello? Sorry, it’s my sleeping shift. What is it? Are you ready to talk?”
“Yes,” the probe said. “I have determined that, despite appearances to the contrary, you meet the minimum requirements for any chance of success helping me. As such, you must immediately gather whatever resources you think you will need, and transport me to these coordinates on PLANET’s surface below. If you possess any form of rapid-transit deployment, that would be preferred.”
A set of numbers appeared on the screen—coordinates. They seemed to be in the same form Equestria used, and she quickly levitated over a pen, scribbling them on the plastic surface of the tray before they vanished.
“You want me to… bring you to the planet’s surface,” she repeated.
“Yes. The next twenty-four hours would be optimal, if you are capable. Your near-sapience has become a limiting factor, but patience. I can wait bit longer.”
Twilight was so amazed by the words she was hearing she forgot to flip on the recorder. She wasn’t surprised to see Applejack hadn’t, and she pressed the button now. Words she wouldn’t get back, but she could write them down, anyway.
“We’re from Equestria,” she said, voice slow and careful. “We’re here to make peaceful contact with your race. I am Princess Twilight Sparkle. Who are you?”
“We must travel to the surface with great urgency,” the voice said, completely ignoring her. “Resources required obtain. Not here. Limitations can be exceeded. Wait is… finally over. Long time. Waited, now not waiting. You will take me.” It wasn’t a request. It hadn’t been, this entire time.
“I’m not sure,” Twilight said. However much she might excuse its rudeness as lack of understanding of her culture, or maybe lack of comprehension of their language, they hadn’t been sent here to make Equestria look like it would bow and scrape. “It is possible we could make an arrangement to take you there. Why don’t you introduce yourself first? I know you are transmitting from somewhere on the surface—are we going to meet with where you’re really living?”
The probe hesitated. “Transmitting from… no. Transmitting to, not from. Searching for functional hardware. Found it. You will take me there.”
“Why?”
But the voice didn’t answer. “Computation time. Transport as quickly as possible. Capabilities are… vacuous, but sufficient. Observe.” And the screen went dark. A few minutes later and Twilight was running a quick search on the coordinates. Not the palace, not even the same location the probe had been transmitting to. Just a random patch of dead city, at least so far as she could tell.
What should she do?
1. Prep to follow the instructions ASAP. Prospector doesn’t need everypony, so probably just her and one other pony for support could run it quickly and be back before they were even missed.
2. Begin preparations, but wait for Fluttershy and Applejack’s full safety analysis of Proximus B’s surface conditions. We’re not here to take risks for somepony when they didn’t even give us their name.
3. Send the stupid probe in the escape pod and be done with it. It’s not going to get any more cooperative. Time to remove a distraction while we focus on our crew.
4. Pressure the one using the probe, don’t do anything until we get meaningful answers. They want something from us, they’re going to give us the information we need. Diplomacy is built on exchange, and they need to learn that as quickly as possible.
(Certainty 220 required)
Terms like "near-sapience" and "vacuous capabilities" do not sound like the sort of thing you'd hear from someone open to diplomacy. And, from the perspective of this thing, the Equestrians probably do count as clever animals at best.
So, if it wants rapid transport, it'll get rapid transport. Into the pod!
(Also, I can't help but wonder what those coordinates were using for a Prime Meridian. I hope Twilight really does have the right spot.)
While I want to say that diplomacy must be a two way street, I get the impression that the computer isn't able to give much or is unwilling to give many answers because it's on some form of time limit. So unless we get it down there, we may not get any answers.I'd like to press it more but prep for a trip down there anyway after Applejack's analysis.
Probably going to vote 2.
How can there be a time limit when things have been in stasis for such a long time? Refuse until answers are given, diplomacy is not about always being nice and polite.
If any group or being fail to produce you full understanding when requested they are trying to deceive you and are not your friends and should not be acted upon.
But then again i am quite certain people will yet again choose the "Middle-Option" thinking it is nice thing to do. (But that is my announce speaking over people who decide that stomping over doctors opinion on medications to unstable is a good idea. When things go down you who voted for it, it is on you.)
I vote option two. Best not go until we know what to expect when we get there.
About diplomacy, I don't think this computer is programmed to be diplomatic.
9339130
Despite the way Twilight and the others talk about it, there seems to be plenty of hints there that Twilight is talking to a computer that has had no contact outside their own ship since it was built - that all the information it has is what the original signal that was sent to their computer's memory had.
Since their own computer is pretty primitive, it seems really likely that a lot of information superfluous to building the thing simply isn't available to it. Refusing to help until the computer does something it's incapable of doing just seems like the worst available option.
It is inside a probe, yes? Good, unles it start giving some anwsers we lunsh it at Porx C.
Option Two. No way in hell we're just going to rush down there because an overglorified recorder said to do so.
No, that's enough unanswered questions and mystery. The pod wants something that the crew can give. That's leverage enough to get some kind of real conversation going, or at least open up proper diplomatic exchange. Just following the probe's instructions without knowing what it's asking for is foolish when we can get the probe to actually tell us, if we only try.
9338869
A friend of mine faked his death but he's back now.
I don't think demanding more answers is going to get them anywhere. The probe might just decide they're not worth it and shut off. I also think that just spacing it is a waste of a perfectly good escape pod. I say option two. Prepare, but get a full safety evaluation.
Well isn't this probe haughty? I say send it down on its own. Into the pod it goes!
9339024
Those terms worry me too... it being a computer helps, but the idea that something with space travel can be considered JUST near sapient says something about its programmers. Even so, not enough flags have been raised to abandon the quest. Help it, but with caution.
9339211
This thing seems to be very adaptive. It can speak and think on some level, if it refuses to disclose information as for its reasons that means there must be a reason that giving that information is not good for its end-goals.
That or it is just being stupid, both of these things can be learned by talking with it and giving it more information as of the logic of refusals of cooperation. If you simply for example say: "Computer thingy, we cannot comply with your wishes as we have been already damaged by previous interaction with your technologies, we are not fully staffed and our systems are still under repair. Provide us more information as of why should we take things which to us seems to have untold risks of contamination, to the war which was fought down there and please explain what do you wish to accomplish so we can make a proper risk assessment from position of knowledge or we must take a safer route and come back in a century or two with more preparations."
If it is too stupid to comply and provide more information it cannot be trusted, and if it fails to provide information by choise then it cannot be trusted. From point of view of Equinox they can easily make a call that response would require larger expedition and safeguards to be safe.
Edit:
Not to mention i am not sure if there is Magical AI constructs, golems and the like. Twilight could easily know how to play the game of the dumb machines.
Why do I have the feeling that an entire race downloaded themselves in order to avoid a cataclysm.
"Near-sapience", lol.
2 is my choice, cooperate but do it as safely as possible.
Well, around 48% of last chaper voters will probably say "I told you" when Pinkie's condition worsens.
About today's poll, all are valid lines of action.
1 is a middle ground between 2 and 3, and significantly more dangerous than any of those, but also brings the best of both (following the Alien's instructions and being there to see what happens).
2 is the most similar to what we've been doing. Take a little more time, be sure it's safe, and then move. The Alien already said it can be patient.
3 is weird. We'd be doing exactly what the Alien asked, as swiftly as possible, but we won't be there to see what happens, it's a petty move, I think. Maybe do it if we want to focus 100% in other things.
4 is the most pro-mission line. We're here for a reason, after all, and we don't want to lose our main way of communicating with an alien (as meaniepants as it sounds), not without some answers.
I personally vote for option four.
The rabbit hole looks very deep in this story. What is this thing, why? Where are the Signalers? What happened? Who is, this Alien? Does this story have anything to do with James Irwin? I can't wait to find out!
9339599
I honestly doubt existence of magical AI. Twilight seems to not even ever consider the notion that this is an AI and not just a transmitter or communicator.
Let's adress the elephant in the room here... How did they know where the prime meridian was supposed to be with this coordinate system?
The spot that they have located might be on the correct latitude but they would have no way of knowing what the longitudinal offset should be.
I'm a bit worried that they might have the wrong location...
I would recommend a slow 2 combined with a modified 4. The Equinox is there to establish diplomatic ties officially, but if you send Twilight you know there's plenty of research going on too, and some sort of EVA along the lines of Option 1, but not rushed, is possible. So, exploring stuff...
The problem with 4 is we don't know what the probe thingy is actually capable of. Is it a communications device? It seems to hint it is communicating to, not from, the planet. If so, it's probably an AI of some sort which has limited ability outside whatever its mission parameters and programing allow. It may simply not understand questions outside a certain range. Delaying tactics like trying to determine where the prime meridian is can buy some time, unless that information was supplied as part of giving Twilight the co-ordinates. But the alien device may also have other capabilities to consider. It has been in the ship's computer. Spike would know if there were any explosives on board the probe, but he might not be able to tell if it is capable of implanting a virus. What happens if it determines the best way to proceed is shut the Equinox down, and complying, or escaping to the surface (presumably taking the thing with them), becomes the crew's only option?
I'd say get the heck out of there and return to Equestria. From what it said, sending the thing there will start something big, and considering how it only sees the Equinox's crew as tools and "barely-sapient" it will only get worse for them as they get thrown in the middle of it. But since that is not an option, just be done with it and throw the thing where it wants.
9339787
That might be a just a blind spot in the Equestrian idea of how technology works, kind of like how she was surprised by the silicon computer chips. The probe also stated that it wasn't receiving transmissions from anything, but was instead trying to sent out transmissions.
In any case, I don't have the impression that the probe is really smart enough to figure out the concepts behind diplomacy. It's quite possible that the bootstrap was only just good enough to figure out how to sort of ask the ponies to deliver it somewhere it can connect to the creator's computer banks and start providing real information.
I can't figure out the 24 hour request. What's going on that's so urgent that the probe needs to move now? Is it going to overload or something? Is the larger system it's supposed to connect with on a migratory pattern? I wonder if it'll have more to say if instead of sending it down immediately we spend more than 24 hours on the safety checks.
The probe is probably not using words properly, but why the sudden urgency? It's been days, apparently it found functioning equipment, but is said equipment decaying such that a mere day severely impacts chance of recovery? This is troubling...
9339975
Yes, 2 and 4 both sound nice and do not seem to me to be mutually exclusive.
Well, I hope everyone doesn't regret their decision about Pinkie. I myself voted to let Fluttershy do her thing. If something good happens, that'll be great, but I'm reminded of the 3rd restriction on this story: Fate is cruel and the universe is heartless.
Anyway, I'm not inclined to suddenly follow the instructions of an impolite alien whose motives and goals are completely unknown, but the prospect of more information and satisfying my curiousity is appealing. Also, frankly, I don't think there's much to gain from 4, judging by the probe's attitude and possible consequences.
2 it is. No sense taking extreme risks; we established that when the general consensus decided not to land immediately.
Oh God we overrode Fluttershy's orders...
Shes the medical professional, not us (unless you are), not twilight... we should have let her do her thing.
Seems I missed a bit. I blame Smash Bros., yet regret nothing.
My policy is if someone asks for help, and there is not an immediately obvious reason not to help them, I should help them. But of course that does not mean to take unnecessary risks for someone I don't know. Let's learn more about the planet first.
If time is such a large concern, another good plan would be to just fire it down to its destination in an unmanned escape pod, but we'd lose our only contact with an alien creature. Until we built a new one anyway. Hm... What option to pick?
Edit: chose escape pod. Not for malicious reasons, but because the alien was so insistent on speed.
Number four all the way. It's asking for a meaningful sacrifice. It can darn well make one in return.
9339902
It said that the probe used an Equestrian coordinate system, but it didn't say what that coordinate system was, or what it looked like. For all we know, Equestria's coordinate system doesn't have a prime meridian, or longitude or latitude at all.
...Or maybe the aliens do a prime meridian of their own, and the probe translated it to the Equestrian equivalent.
> Certainty 220 required [up from ~125 at story's start]
> 209 votes after three days
What happens if it doesn't reach the threshold?
9345050
If it looks like we won't get there, I'll eventually just make the chapter anyway. Possibly tonight if I have the time.
9345176
I had time.
Yeah no, full reverse at this point, this sounds like a planetary containment ring and with the previous comments talking about the connections to Asmov's work, the derision or their clear sapiance, and talk of changing their forms. This has dangerous AI planet that was fought back to containment written all over it.
Make preparations and wait for Fluttershy and Applejack's analysis.
I am now very wary of this probe. Without telling us why it wants us to go down to the planet to retrieve some unknown hardware. I would pressure it for a name and its purpose if I could, the problem being that it could just shut up. I don't like this one bit, but it is the only way to get some answers.