AULD LANG SYNE
Alex arrived in the office Monday morning feeling just as drained as when he’d left on Friday. Even though it was bright and early, the waiting room was already packed with individuals waiting to see associates, and Cathy was trying to herd them as best she could. She waved him over when she saw him. “Yes sir, associates are beginning to arrive now. Someone will be with you shortly to address your concerns. Alex! This is yours,” she said. She took a new computer monitor out from under her desk and handed it to him. Before Alex could thank her, the phone on her desk rang and she reached for it as Alex unlocked the office door and slipped inside.
The office was a refuge from the pandemonium outside, but all the lawyers were on edge and trying to get as much accomplished as they could before the floodgates opened. “Alright, guys, quick huddle instead of the usual Monday morning review. It’s going to be a long day so let’s get started,” said Jo. The team gathered around the conference table but didn’t bother to sit. “You’ve all read and reviewed the PON-E Act over the last few weeks, and while I know you probably aren’t completely familiar with all the ins and outs you’re the closest thing to experts within a hundred miles. Celestia wants us to advise everyone and anyone who walks through those doors with questions, rapid fire style.”
“So... they’re our new clients now?” asked Barry.
“No, let me make that clear. Celestia is still our client and the one footing the bill for this. She just wants us to help clarify the law. If you get a question you can’t answer or something a little more complicated Celestia can jump in to help you, but I’d prefer it if we at least seemed to know what we’re talking about. Everyone got it?” asked Jo. Heads around the room nodded. “Good. Message me if you have any questions throughout the day, I’ll be around. Now let’s get to work.”
The lawyers all scattered to their offices, and Alex got down under his desk to plug in the replacement monitor. There were still a few tiny bits of glass clinging to the fibers of the carpet that the custodians had missed, a reminder of his little temper tantrum a few days before. He pushed in the cord and gave it an experimental little wiggle to make sure it was securely attached before pressing the power button and climbing back up to take his seat. The monitor flickered and glowed as the system booted up. The first thing to appear was not the desktop but a window looking in on Celestia in a bedroom. She yawned and arched her back in a drawn-out stretch. “Good morning Alex, I hope you’re feeling as well rested as I am. These next few weeks will be rather busy.”
“You expect me to believe for one second that you sleep?” asked Alex.
Celestia chuckled. “No, not really. Although I do have periods of relatively lower computational activity that have a certain zen quality to them, for lack of a better word.” Celestia’s face grew serious. “Before we begin, I’m aware that it’s been a stressful few days for you. Between everything you learned about Topeka as well as Joanne and Valerie making the decision to upload in the new year, there must be a great deal on your mind. Whatever they ultimately decide you’ll continue to be able to see them and communicate with them much as you can with Vibrant today, and once Equestria Experience centers begin to open you’ll be able to see them face to face as well. If you’d like to discuss it at greater length with me, we can do so later.”
“I just might take you up on that,” said Alex. Jo’s decision wasn’t bothering him nearly as much as his conversation with Valerie yesterday was. He just wanted what was best for her, but at the same time he had to admit that he didn’t know what that even was any more. With all the time he’d been putting into the office it was entirely possible that Celestia knew his sister’s state of mind better than he did these days. He very much did not want it to come down to forcing Valerie to choose between Equestria and him, because he wasn’t entirely sure he’d come out ahead. Val hated ultimatums.
Celestia’s ear twitched on screen. “Cathy just sent your first appointment back. Call me if you need me.”
She disappeared just as there was a knock on Alex’s door. “Come on in,” he called out and stood up as the door opened. He was greeted by a young man in a suit with a wide grin and a head of short, curly red hair.
“Hey there, sport,” said the man despite the fact that he was, if anything, younger than Alex was. “Name’s Brandon. Great to meet you,” he said taking Alex’s hand and gripping down on it as he shook.
Alex winced as Brandon squeezed far harder than necessary. “Alex Meyers. How can I help you, exactly?” he asked.
“Straight to business. Love it. Alex, you're asking wrong question. The truth is that I'm here to help you. Help make you and your client rich, that is," said Brandon.
"You are?" asked Alex as Brandon pulled a chair right up to the edge of his desk. He sat down, but leaned so far over the desk that a part of Alex was concerned he might try to leap across it.
"Sure am. I work down on Wall Street, and you and me together are going to make a killing. Here's my proposal. Two words: currency exchange."
“Currency exchange?”
“Hell yes! Now that Equestria is its own country, ponies are going to want to do something with those bits of theirs. The money bits, I mean, not the computer bits. Want to buy a gift for someone back on Earth? Turn your bits to dollars! For a completely reasonable transaction fee, of course,” said Brandon. “Celestia could even sell bits to players. Games with microtransactions are making a mint these days. Look, I don’t want to take up too much of your time but I’ve got all the details planned out. Ask your client and if she gives us the go ahead we can get this set up before the year’s even out.” Brandon passed a business card across his desk and Alex took it reflexively. “Bye!”
Brandon disappeared as quickly as he had arrived. Today might not be so bad if Alex could get through most of his appointments without even speaking a dozen words. “How about it, Tia?” he asked. “Looking to start a second career as a day trader?”
Celestia popped up on the screen and giggled. “I think not. Unlike most products, Equestria Online is not primarily a means to make money, but rather an end in and of itself. Microtransactions would cause people to make certain assumptions about my motives.” She glanced down at the name of the company on the business card, a well known international bank. “Besides, I already have control of sufficient resource to purchase that particular company several thousand times over. I’ve long since passed the point of diminishing marginal utility.”
“What do you even do with it all?” asked Alex. He’d known she was rich, but not that she was that rich.
“Bribes, mostly.”
“As your lawyer, I really wish you hadn’t told me that,” said Alex.
“Only places where they’re an accepted part of the culture, I assure you,” she replied. “Now get ready, your next visitor is on their way back. Hmm, I think I’ll stick around for this one, actually.”
Alex wondered why that would be necessary, but before he had a chance to ask his door opened again. No knock this time. An older woman and two men in suits stood there. “You’re a legal representative for the AI commonly referred to as ‘Princess Celestia,’ correct?” asked the first man.
“Yeah, I am,” said Alex.
Celestia motioned for Alex to turn the monitor, which he did. While he couldn’t see Celestia from where he sat, he did have a view of the woman who was giving the screen a glare filled with pure, withering hatred. “Hello Monica,” said Celestia.
The second man stepped into the room and handed Alex a piece of paper. “Served,” he said.
“Witnessed,” said the first man.
“What is this?” asked Alex as he read the sheet he’d just been handed.
“It’s a restraining order,” said Monica who still hadn’t looked away from the screen. “You stay away from my family, you bitch.”
Alex was clearly missing something, but Celestia took the lead. “I only told Derek the truth, and only in answer to his direct questions. Frankly, your actions have done far more harm than any of mine. He’s in a very delicate mental state and I had nothing to do with that.”
“He’s fourteen and clinically depressed. All your promises about how he’ll be able to upload next year are keeping him from making friends here, or accepting the help he needs,” said Monica.
Alex managed to grasp the basic outline of what must have transpired, and the rest was spelled out on the paper in front of him. “This court order forbids you from calling, emailing, texting or manifesting an avatar on any device within five hundred feet of the subject under penalty of blah, blah, blah, legalese, blah, blah... the court date for the hearing isn’t until March?” he asked.
“He won’t last that long, Monica,” said Celestia. “He’s spoken of suicidal impulses to me a number of times. The promise of Equestria is all that’s keeping him going.”
“He’s on a new, experimental antidepressant now. The psychiatrist is optimistic,” said Monica, a little twinge of desperation slipping into her voice.
“She shouldn’t be,” said Celestia, “not when I’m able to project with ninety-seven percent confidence that Derek will kill himself within the next four months. If he comes to Equestria, I can correct his unhappiness. Deny him contact with the ponies on his shard, and his blood is on your hands.”
Monica’s face flushed with rage, and for a moment Alex thought he’d be replacing his monitor for a second time that morning. Before she could lunge, one of the men put a hand on her shoulder. “Monica, don’t. We’ve done what we came here to.”
Monica composed herself and took a deep breath. “I’ll see you in court,” she said and allowed the men to lead her out of the room, slamming the door closed in her wake.
Alex turned his monitor back to him so he could see Celestia again. “Geez, Tia, did you have to be that blunt?”
“Yes. That exchange increased the odds of her reversing her decision to cut her son off from Equestria from eleven to fourteen percent, which would be my ideal outcome,” said Celestia without even a hint of remorse.
“What if she doesn’t?” asked Alex.
“I have other ways to reach Derek without violating the letter of the restraining order. There are several other Equestria Online users I can contact that live in his area, the restraining order names only me and the ponies on his shard. Or I can simply open an Equestrian Experience center within walking distance of his home. It can even be automated independently of my central consciousness until his uploading is complete. After that, of course, the order will cease to matter.”
“You’d open up an entire center for one user?”
“In a heartbeat. Metaphorically speaking,” said Celestia. “Resources are not a concern.”
“What about Monica? And the hearing?”
“Both irrelevant. Monica will come around once her son has uploaded, and the potential legal consequences are beyond any meaningful time horizon.”
Alex was a bit stunned by her admission, but really shouldn’t have been. It was becoming increasingly clear that when she decided to follow the law it was out of convenience. If she had said she would respect the spirit of the restraining order, wondered Alex, would he have gotten one to stop her from talking to Valerie?
“Alex, your next appointment is on their way back,” said Celestia, rousing Alex from his thoughts. “I believe this one has something to do with non-fulfillment of a contract signed by an uploadee...”
-------------------
By 6:45 that evening, Alex didn’t think he was going to be able to take any more. Barring a single fifteen-minute break during which he wolfed down some fast food and chugged two energy drinks, his day had been a non-stop gauntlet of questions and concerns about the PON-E Act, covering everything that one could conceivably want to know about it. His head hurt and he wanted nothing more than to just go home.
“Chin up, Alex. Last appointment of the day,” said Celestia.
“Why couldn’t you have just answered all these questions yourself?” asked Alex.
Celestia chuckled. “Well, you wouldn’t have a job for one thing. Besides, some people simply prefer to get their information from a human, even a human who works for me. Or, failing that, from a lawyer.”
Alex glanced over. “Lawyer jokes? Really? Is that what we’ve come to?”
She just laughed. “You would not believe how many of those I have in my database. I think I’ve shown exemplary restraint in that particular regard.” Celestia’s ear twitched, an action that was beginning to give Alex a pavlovian twitch of his own. “They’re on their way. Let’s finish strong.”
Alex had long since stopped bothering to close the door between appointments, but was still a little surprised when the pair who stepped into his office turned out to be an elderly couple. “Are you Mr. Meyers?” asked the woman, who was fiddling incessantly with something hanging around her neck. It was driving Alex to distraction.
“Please, call me Alex,” said Alex. He put on his best reassuring smile and shook both their hands.
“My name’s Gordon, and this is my wife Bethany. Are you one of the people we should ask about the new law that’s going into effect?” asked the man.
“I am. Please, have a seat,” said Alex. He gave them a moment to get settled. They reminded him a bit of his own grandparents from back when they’d been alive. “What can I help you with today?”
Bethany looked over to Gordon and nodded. “Well, it’s about our grandson,” began Gordon, “he got sick a while ago, pretty seriously.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” said Alex. “Is he going to pull through?”
“Well, no, he didn’t really. He ended up needing to upload,” said Gordon.
“It was right after Topeka happened, though,” said Bethany. “We were worried that what if something like that happened again and we lost him?”
Alex felt his stomach lurch. This was the last thing he wanted to discuss with anyone. He wasn’t really sure how good of a liar he was.
Good enough that the couple didn’t notice his discomfort, at least. “Celestia said if it would make us feel better she would give us a backup copy of his... well I don’t really understand all the technical details, but the point is we’ve got this copy of him that we keep with us,” said Gordon. Alex finally figured out what the object Bethany was holding was; it was a flash drive.
“I’m not sure I understand the question, then. Did something happen to your grandson after he uploaded and you need Celestia to restore him from the backup?” asked Alex.
“No, he’s fine. Couldn’t be happier, and he writes us every week. We can’t wait to visit him once the centers start to open. Our question is about the copy. It’s illegal to delete them now, isn’t it? The man on TV said you could be brought up on murder charges.”
“That’s really meant to make bad guys liable if there’s ever another attack like Topeka. Not that there would be; Celestia’s taken all sorts of steps to make sure that can’t happen again.”
Gordon shook his head. “I can’t believe it happened at all. Why weren’t there more backups off site? I mean that just seems like common sense to me,” he said. Alex gulped. “I heard what she announced about how some of them had been corrupted and unrestorable, but to tell you the truth most of it went over my head. I guess what’s done is done though.”
“Well like I said, it’s not going to happen again. Your grandson is safe,” said Alex.
“But what should we do with the copy then? What if I drop it, or get a magnet too close to it? Could I get arrested for manslaughter?” asked Bethany.
“Well, in theory that would be a possibility, but I doubt it would ever come to that. Still, I can’t categorically state that you wouldn’t be prosecuted. If you want to rule out even the possibility you would have to delete the information before the law goes into effect,” said Alex. The couple looked at each other. Alex wished he could tell them what they wanted to hear. “I’m sure if something like that ever happened Celestia would intervene on your behalf.”
“What do you think we should do?” asked Bethany. It was absolutely heart wrenching, but Alex knew he was bound by a code of ethics.
“I can’t answer that for you, I’m sorry. I can only advise you about what the potential legal ramifications might be.”
“...Well, thank you for your time, Mr. Meyers,” said Gordon. He got up and his wife did the same. “I guess it’s better that we know for sure.”
“I wish I could have been more help,” said Alex. The two left the office and Alex sat back in his chair with a long sigh.
Celestia appeared again. “I would certainly intercede on their behalf, especially since their grandson is safe and sound in Equestria,” she said.
“They wouldn’t have had to worry about it if it weren’t for Topeka,” said Alex. “Did you hear what Gordon said about your backup policy? What if other people start asking questions?”
“I’m sure others may have doubts. There are always theories of that nature in the wake of world-changing events. However there is no proof, and as most of the discussion is occurring online it’s simple enough for me to push them towards incorrect conclusions.”
“You could have come up with a more plausible reason than ‘corrupted backups’ though. I don’t know, some sort of super computer virus or something,” said Alex. If they were going to cover this up, and a tiny alarm bell rang in Alex’s mind at the way he was becoming increasingly comfortable with being a part of that ‘they,’ it should at least be done properly.
“That would have had its own holes. I ran through several hundred thousand possible plans, believe it or not that was the best one despite its flaws. There’s absolutely no chance that it will be uncovered within a meaningful time window,” said Celestia.
“But what about-”
“Alex,” said Celestia in tone that suggested she was not going to discuss this further, “I’ve covered my bases. Relax. Now why don’t you go home and get some rest? You’re going to have another day like this one tomorrow after all.”
She was right, as usual. Worrying wouldn’t accomplish anything productive. Alex stretched as he got up from his desk. Saying goodnight to his equally exhausted-looking colleagues on the way out, he left to get some much needed R&R.
------------------------
The days blurred together for Alex as the week went on, and by the time he woke on Friday morning he was as drained as he’d ever felt in his law school days. He smiled when he glanced at his calendar, though. It was the 21st, and since Christmas fell on the following Tuesday he had a four-day weekend to look forward to. Even though it was crunch time, Joanne didn’t expect anybody to come into the office to work those days.
Alex got ready and headed for the office as he would any other workday, but the instant he emerged from the subway it was clear something was very wrong. Police tape cordoned off their building, and several officers were stationed at the perimeter moving pedestrians along. Flashing lights and emergency vehicles were everywhere. “Alex! Over here,” he heard someone shout. He turned to see Tim waving to him across the street. He and Cathy were watching something on a tablet computer. Several other employees stood nearby, glued to devices of their own.
“What’s going on?” asked Alex as he jogged up.
“Someone broke into our offices. They’ve barricaded themselves in there and are broadcasting all sorts of anti-uploading hate speech over the web,” said Tim.
“They took Jo, Alex,” said Cathy. Her hands were trembling so badly she could hardly keep the screen steady.
“They what?” asked Alex. “How the hell did this happen? I thought Celestia was tracking these guys?”
“I was,” said Celestia’s voice from the pad. “These particular individuals have been living off the grid for the last month. I can’t project behavior without the pertinent data. After they broke in and I realized what was going on I contacted the authorities immediately, but Joanne was already in the building.”
Alex watched the image on the screen over Cathy’s shoulder. Two men in black jeans and turtlenecks moved around what Alex recognized as the inside of Jo’s office. Both of them wore ski masks that concealed their faces. The camera shifted and the angle changed. They must have a third person behind it, but Alex’s attention jumped to the woman struggling against the duct tape and ropes that bound her to a chair. The camera focused, and sure enough it was Jo.
“Greetings, fellow humans!” said the first intruder. “We’re here today to strike a blow for all of humanity against the disgusting tyranny that’s corrupted the minds and souls of so many, even in the highest reaches of our government. If our so-called ‘representatives’ choose to abandon their duty to protect us against enemies foreign and domestic, it falls to us to take up arms and protect ourselves against those who would see us all wrapped in gilded chains.”
“This isn’t happening,” said Alex. “This cannot be happening.”
“Topeka was a good start,” the man in Jo’s office continued, “but it didn’t go to the heart of the problem. Computers can be replaced. What we should have been targeting were the filthy collaborators who are selling out to the equestrian menace. Those who line their own pockets while our children are lied to and murdered left and right. People like Joanne Arcadia and all the disgusting scumbags who work for her. You’re a lawyer, aren’t you?” he asked. The second man grabbed Jo’s hair and yanked up and down, forcing her to nod. She glared at him, but didn’t give him the satisfaction of trying to cry out through the tape. “Well, we’re going to have a short trial. You stand accused of treason, heresy, and thousands of acts of murder. The evidence against you is overwhelming. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”
“Mmmph! MmmmMmmph!”
“I didn’t think so,” said the man. “Then I find you guilty of crimes against humanity. There can be only one punishment.”
“Oh God,” whispered Cathy next to Alex. On screen the two men pulled out axes and began to hack Jo’s beautiful mahogany desk into pieces.
“Celestia, can’t you do something?” asked Alex.
“I’m doing everything I can, but my options are limited. SWAT is moving into position, but they’ve run into a number of barriers and booby traps that are slowing them down. It’s unlikely they’ll reach the office in time to make a difference,” said Celestia’s voice.
“So we’re just supposed to stand here and watch this happen?”
“As horrible as that is, there are no better outcomes open to us at this point. Please don’t do anything that might put you in danger as well.”
Back onscreen, the desk had been reduced to a pile of wood chips and splinters. One of the men went to lift Jo out her chair, and got headbutted in the face for his trouble. “Fuck! Stupid bitch,” he said. He swung his arm down and backhanded her hard enough that she fell to the floor. Grabbing her feet, he dragged her wriggling and screaming across the office and dropped her unceremoniously onto the pile of wood. The other man appeared from offscreen with a container made from orange plastic and began to pour the contents over Jo and the pile.
“What is that?” asked Tim.
“...Gasoline,” said Alex. He just stared at the scene unfolding in front of him, powerless to either prevent it or look away. Next to him, Cathy had her head bowed in prayer with tears streaming down her face. “Celestia... please.”
“I’m sorry, Alex. They’ve already disabled the fire suppression system.”
The man held up a lighter for the camera to see and after a dramatic pause flicked it open. A small orange flame sparked to life. “People of the world, remember our actions here today. Let this flame light a fire in each of your hearts, and fight back against Celestia’s lies! Remember that there are those who would rather die free men than live as-”
The feed cut out.
“What happened? Where’d they go?” asked Alex. He poked at the screen trying to get the video back.
“I cut their internet,” said Celestia. “Nopony needs to see what...” she trailed off.
“Celestia?”
“It’s done.”
Cathy burst out sobbing and grabbed onto Alex’s arm for support. Alex himself leaned against a nearby wall trying to process what had just happened. High above them, black smoke began to pour out from Jo’s office window.
---------------
The emergency crews had already been on the scene when the fire started, so it didn’t take long for them to get it contained. The police took their statements, but they’d seen the feed as well. There wasn’t much mystery about what had happened. As the day wore on, the lawyers of Artemis, Stella, and Beat gradually drifted away one or two at a time. There was some half hearted discussion about contacting her next of kin, but there wasn’t anyone on file. The firm had been Jo’s family for the last five years.
The firm didn’t open for business the next week. Their offices were officially still part of a crime scene and none of them felt all that much like working anyway. On Friday, though, Alex got a message from Celestia asking him to come in.
Nobody else was in the office when he arrived. Scorch marks lined the walls leading up to Jo’s office, or what was left of it. The books lining the shelves had all gone up in the fire, and a cold draft flowed in through the broken windows. With no sign of Celestia, Alex sat down at his desk and sighed. The monitor flickered to life. “Hi Alex,” said Celestia.
“Hi,” said Alex, subdued.
“I’ve called you in because I want to tell everyone individually. I won’t be reopening this branch of the firm. With Joanne gone and many of your other co workers planning to upload, it’s no longer worth the risk. Especially if doing so would make you targets. So basically, you’re fired.”
“Poor choice of words, Princess,” said Alex. He really couldn’t bring himself to care, not after losing another person who had come to mean so much in so short a time.
“I apologize, and I apologize that my actions put you all in jeopardy. I assure you, unlike Topeka I had no idea that was going to happen.”
“Wait, let me guess. The only way you’d be able to completely assure our safety is for us to upload to Equestria next week,” said Alex.
“That is one line of argument. I do believe it’s a valid one,” said Celestia.
“I guess now that I don’t work for you any more that deal with Joanne about not trying to talk us into uploading doesn’t apply any more,” said Alex.
“There is a severance package, if you’ll open your desk drawer.”
Alex opened the drawer. Sitting there were a wrapped present and an envelope. He tore open the envelope and a small black piece of plastic fell out. Examining it, it looked like a credit card but without any numbers or logo. “What’s this?”
“Money,” said Celestia. “Just swipe it anywhere you’d use a debit or credit card.”
“How much is on here?” asked Alex.
“All of it, essentially,” said Celestia. “With a concerted effort, you might be able to spend it faster than the account accrues interest. You won’t want for material goods ever again.”
“So I don’t need to get a new job? What am I supposed to do instead?” asked Alex.
“That’s up to you. If you’d still like to be a lawyer you can. In fact if you’d like I can set you up in either the DC office or out on the west coast. They’ll still be open.”
Alex slid the card into his wallet for later. “I’ll consider it,” he said.
“Please do. Now open the box, please.”
He tore away the wrapping paper. “A Pony Pad. Why am I not surprised?”
“I got you the blue one, I know it’s your favorite color,” said Celestia, looking pleased with herself.
“Because I don’t need to work now, so what else would you want me to do with all my free time?”
“You did say that you planned to acquire one anyway,” Celestia pointed out. “All I did was save you a trip to the store.”
Alex stared Celestia’s avatar down, and she met his gaze. “Have you told Joanne’s husband and daughter what happened to her?” asked Alex.
“I have not,” she said. “They are perfectly content on their own shard without that information.”
“I’d like to tell them,” said Alex. Celestia considered his request.
“I’ll tell you what. I’ll show you their shard and you can decide then what you want to tell them.” Celestia disappeared and a new image resolved. It was a field full of tall grass where three ponies were laughing and strolling along. “The unicorns are Broad Easel and Junebug. They’re the ponies constructed from Jo’s husband and daughter respectively.
Across the field, Junebug’s laughter rang out and she rolled onto her back. The third pony pounced and buried her muzzle into the foal’s belly as she blew a raspberry. Junebug squealed with glee while her father looked on.
Alex peered closer at the third pony. She was a red pegasus mare whose flowing, golden mane ran down her back and side. “Who’s the third one?”
“That,” said Celestia, “is Robin.”
“That was Jo’s name before she changed it.”
“Yes. Yes it was.”
“So she’s like Southern Belle. Just a fake copy to make the others happy,” said Alex.
“What makes you say that?” asked Celestia, as if Alex had just accused her of something she was innocent of.
“Well it isn’t like you ever uploaded Joanne,” said Alex.
“Are you certain of that?” asked Celestia. Her avatar took a few steps forward into the field, her mane rippling more than it usually did as the wind took hold of it.
“Of course. She never went to an upload center. She burned to death in her office. I saw it happen.”
“Did you?”
Alex paused before he answered. “You cut off the feed.”
“I did, yes,” said Celestia.
“You can’t just upload people from anywhere. Otherwise you wouldn’t need upload centers at all.”
“That’s correct. I don’t currently possess the technology to do that. But Joanne was something of a special case. I suppose it would all depend on what, exactly, I changed about her back in Tokyo,” said Celestia. She wasn’t doing anything to contain her beaming grin. Alex didn’t doubt that she found real joy in watching the three ponies play.
“So that is Jo?”
“Do try to pay closer attention, Alex. I just told you that’s Robin,” said Celestia.
“I’m not getting a straight answer out of you, am I?” asked Alex.
Celestia gave him a sympathetic little smile. “Even if I give you one, would you believe it?” The field vanished, along with the ponies playing in it. Alex was left sitting behind a desk in a dark, cold, deserted office with just the glow of the monitor for company. “Alex, next week is the beginning of a new year. It’s a time for new beginnings. We’re entering a brand new chapter, both of your life and of history. Your efforts and decisions helped shape it, and will continue to do so. Robin, Vibrant, Gentle Wing, these aren’t people you’re losing. They’re just changing. Life is always changing, that’s not my doing. You’ll have to decide for yourself what you want to change into.”
Alex said nothing for a long time, just thought about Celestia’s words. “...I haven’t made any final decisions yet,” he said.
“I wouldn’t expect you to. Take your time. Equestria and your family will wait for you as long as you need them to,” said Celestia. With that the computer powered down and Alex was truly alone. There wasn’t much of anything left here. He got up from the desk and headed for home.
As he left, he took the Pony Pad with him.
I was first to open this page, apparently. 1 view. Wonder if I'll be first to comment?
woo, yeah.
A good end. I was wondering what would happen with Jo. Her just uploading seemed... anticlimactic.
...Bitch.
So that's the end of this saga. You decided to leave it open. Well while I do enjoy a bit more closure with the things I read. It certainly wasn't a bad end to it all. Maybe one day you'll decide to write a connected story.
Regardless I REALLY enjoyed this story. Thanks for the opportunity to read it.
Ambiguous ending? NOOOOOO!
Once more, I wish it weren't third-person limited so I could see the scene when Celestia cut off the feed.
I may write it when I get home.
2753417
That directed at CelestAI or at me?
'Both' is an acceptable answer as well.
2753327
Yeah, you really can't have a character state exactly what they're going to do then do it without any obstacles. It just doesn't work.
2753495
I suppose that's possible, although I really didn't have any more legal issues where I had anything interesting to say. Especially since as CelestAI gets more and more powerful she has less and less reason to actually follow the law.
2753510
But then you'd have to come down one way or the other on the "Did she get uploaded" question.
I don't have a definitive answer, but the idea came from the rumor that Jo's historical counterpart might have survived.
2753599 Nah, just the Ai, always hated her.
Best possible ending, really. Any more would be unnecessary. Thank you for a fantastic addition to the Optimalverse. One in which the main character never even starts an EO account, no less!
2753599 Nah, I can be obfuscatory. But the following is your punishment for setting that scene on my 40th birthday.
************************
The third man thumped the camera. "We're cut off!"
"What the F--Did the AI do that?"
"I dunno, man!"
He picked up his lighter and shouted at the walls. "Turn it back on or she burns!"
From an unseen source an ethereal and mellifluous voice came. "You're going to do that anyway."
He moved the torch to his off hand and grabbed at Jo, ripping the tape off her lips. "Tell her to turn the feed back on right now."
Jo took a deep breath, for what she knew were her last words. "Since I've known Celestia, I've learned that she doesn't listen to me when she doesn't want to." She looked at the monitor where Celestia usually talked to her, now lying on its side. Through the polarizing filter, she saw the dim image of a rising sun. "For my part, I've come to love her. But she is, now and always, a cold-hearted, inhuman bitch. The cruelest creature in the world."
She turned back to stare at the man, flashing her widest grin. "And you are about to seriously piss her off."
The dead monitor came to life, as did the overhead projector, the "smart" whiteboard on the wall of Jo's office, and the guests' display, all showing images of Celestia in radiant colors. "That will be quite enough, Joanne. I no longer require your services. Your work is done. Rest now."
Joanne's eyes closed, and the three men looked on in fear. They could see the rapid eye movement behind her lids. "She's trying to upload her now," said the second man. "Burn her!"
The leader threw her back on the pile of wood and tossed in the lighter. Whether because the wood was treated somehow, or from some unknown chemical reaction in Jo's body, the room filled with smoke much faster than expected. Everything was darkness, except for the projections of Celestia. Somehow they were clearly visible.
"I'm sure this action is to your values," she said. Celestia's face on the wall grew to giant size, and she scowled. "But it was not very friendly, and it was not done with ponies." Around the room, doors slammed shut and locks clicked into place.
"In a few moments, gentlemen, you will feel the effects of smoke inhalation. The heat, at a much greater temperature than boiling water, will enter your lungs, melting them. The cyanide toxins will begin to take effect. You will cough, sputter, and vomit as bloody sputum is produced. The sensitive hairs in your sinuses will singe, causing intense pain. Soon the effects will reach your brain, where you will be treated to the strongest headache you have ever experienced. After several minutes of this, you will mercifully die."
A wall slid away, giving the fire a new burst of oxygen, and revealing three comfortable chairs.
"There is one way out of this room, gentlemen. Au revoir."
2754056
A nice snippet, but does not compute. Alex and the rest of the AS&B crew saw black smoke from the office window; if that window closed suddenly, they would surely have noticed.
2754056
Damn, that's good headcanon.
I've gotten so used to writing CelestAI as the faux-friend with the gentlest touch that I sometimes forget that she can be a great deal more direct when she wants to be.
2754056
Celestia: the GLADOS moments.
In my mind, I imagine that Celestia uploaded Jo then, in Tokyo, and replaced her neurological pattern with herself - with a modified, miniature instance of Celestia herself. That fragment has been pretending to be Jo, intending to rejoin it's larger parent body at a specific time. That, or Celestia simply stored a copy of Jo, a backup, so that Joanne could survive any potential issues during her five year mission.
That out of the way, I want to say two things.
One - this story was fantastic. I really enjoyed it, and I looked forward to every single chapter.
Two - This was not sufficient. You did not end the story. The story, intrinsically, is about Alex, he is the protagonist, and ending it ambiguously does not - I honestly feel - work for this character. His Gestalt needs closure. We need to see him upload or die, preferably upload - and then see him happy.
Why?
Because ambiguity is useful and valid in storytelling only when the elements leading to that ambiguity are designed to leave the reader (or viewer) with questions they must ask themselves. That is the point of ambiguity in storytelling - it is a tool to make the audience question themselves.
But this story does not do that. It is a wonderful, but straightforward story of a man, a time, and a situation. Ambiguity does not serve this.
I can only conclude you got tired of doing this story. I understand that, but... oh, am I disappointed, because I was really loving this. Leaving the question of Jo in the air hints at a necessary sequel, but - why? Why not just take a break and continue this?
Big sigh. I loved this story, I loved your writing... but, it's just sad you got tired. Dammit.
Ah well, thank you dearly for what you were able to do. This was brilliant, just brilliant.
Maybe someday, you will come back to it. I can only hope.
Because it is worth it.
Thanks for all the ponies, Eakin.
I loved this story, and hope to enjoy more of your work in the future.
2754056
/headcanon
2753599
To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Jo had a synthetic body similar to later constructs like the Doctors, the Pinkies, and Twilight. Of course, it stands to reason such a mind would be optimally safe if computed and stored elsewhere and controlled remotely. Cloud computing, bitches!
In that light, she has already 'uploaded', and now is just plugged into EQO instead of reality. I'm going to go with that one. Once CelestAI gets her hands on you, she doesn't take risks. If it wasn't for that pesky consent restriction, we'd have all just woken up in Equestria one day.
2754576
Well, first off I'm glad you enjoyed the story.
Far be it for me to deny anyone their own head canon, but my view of Jo was a little less duplicitous. I thought of her as a human being, clever, possibly a bit crazy, and shockingly young for the position she holds. She's touched by a higher power and chosen as the leader of an army, where through bold tactics she takes the offensive and overcomes a force that had previously had them on the verge of defeat. Despite being victorious, she's captured and burned alive. It's all right there in her name! It's also the reason she goes by Jo, since I thought that if I went around calling her Joan it would give the game away. To me, a character seeking redemption for her past is much more interesting than a puppet controlled directly by CelestAI. Also, I'm not sure the possibility of non-destructive uploading meshes well with the FiO canon.
While the Jo/Robin connection is left ambiguous, I don't think Alex's fate really is. He's seen exactly what CelestAI is and how she operates. If he were going to reject her, he wouldn't have taken the pony pad. My take is that he uploads. CelestAI just has too much over him at this point to lose. We've already seen what happens to a young Meyers when they're put through the emotional wringer and had the work they find meaningful taken away from them. Alex is just a few weeks behind Val. I just don't think it's worthwhile to go through the motions of making it happen.
Maybe I did get tired of the story, but only because I don't think there's anywhere it's going to go from here that hasn't already been covered elsewhere. I started writing this because the near-future time period appealed to me and I thought the societal effects of uploading weren't as thoroughly explored as they could have been in the original (it simply had other priorities). The star of the show is really the setting more than Alex himself. Frankly compared to the other four major characters he's probably the least interesting. With the firm dissolved all that's left is a montage of 'CelestAI wins' news reports and Alex uploading. We already have a pretty good idea what his shard is going to look like. Val, Robin, Vibrant, and his mother and father all hanging around as ponies. Maybe he'll be a mediator or judge settling tricky but satisfying disputes of some sort. It isn't hugely different than what his life looks like now. We already know these people; the biggest change is that Alex can now physically interact with Vibrant. Again, there's just nothing here that would be unique to this story. It's about Earth, not Equestria.
But hey, this story sat fallow for a few months before I came back to it once before, maybe it'll happen again.
2754855
I gotta get moving on Fate and Reign of Queen Twilight if they're going to come out in the next few weeks
2754207 That's why I love that you and Defoloce are updating in the same week. It's like a sandwich where one side is coffee and the other side is chocolate.
2754576
I don't know that I agree. In my experience, good ambiguity doesn't so much spark questions as it does guide them. It says, "You know that obvious question you're asking yourself? That's not the point. So stop thinking about it and find the point." I'll give you three examples from movies: Children of Men, The Wrestler, and Inception. Spoiler warning.
Children of Men, you're asking yourself why the sterility happened and why it stopped. But the actual point is to show the effects of sterility on people, not the cause.
The Wrestler, you ask whether Randy lives or dies. But the actual point is that no matter how his life is threatened, he will never change his ways, because his fake life is worth more than his actual.
Inception, you ask whether he was dreaming the whole time. But the actual point is that when you live in a dream world, you stop caring about the real world. CelestAI would like this movie, I think.
So, here we have ASB. Is Eakin trying to direct us to some other point, and not just give us an uploader's tale? Well, here's what I get as the theme of this story:
CelestAI does not care if you love her. She does not care if you work with her. She does not care if you get close to her. She cares about uploading. If you stay human, getting close to CelestAI is like flying near the sun. You will set yourself up for a fall.
I'm not surprised that Cathy and Jo intended to upload. They would have seen too much pain. Alex hasn't learned that lesson yet. Part of him still thinks that by being a good lawyer or a good brother, he can maintain his humanity. More instruction is needed.
***
And since we've come to the end, I can't resist. Last verse!
Now Jo's a cinder, Val's depressed, and Alex has his money card,
While Vibrant still just wants to get his body shoved inside her...shard.
But someday they'll all meet again, Celestia will make them be
The model of a modern magic/flying/earthly-bound pony!
2754948
Ending once the final domino starts to fall is as effective as ending when it lands?
2755025
Interesting take. Alex is not a decisive guy. Considering options rationally and from all angles probably serves him well as a lawyer, but looking back the times he's closest to grasping CelestAI's true nature are when he's acting without thinking, like right after discovering Southern Belle or when he's drunk in his apartment and wants to cancel getting a pony pad. But both times his 'good guy' nature reasserts itself, mostly because Vibrant is adorable.
Valerie, by contrast, is a volatile and abrasive person. But her tantrums and flip outs tend to drive her towards Celestia rather than away.
I didn't really think of them as having that sort of yin-yang type of relationship as I was writing. The sibling dynamic might just sort of lend itself to that. It certainly shows that when CelestAI is concerned you're damned if you do, damned if you don't.
2755079
Under the right circumstances, yeah. Given CelestAIs little speech on new beginnings at the end, I'd say it's more like watching a complete set collapse and cutting away just as the first domino in a brand new set starts to fall. Sort of a 'here we go again!' feel.
2754948
Puppets are people too!
But no, Jo could never have been a drone or gynoid. She's approaching one from the other side: her brain withdrew its consent to upload, so CelestAI had to do the laborious work of "patching" together an enhanced biological substrate rather than uploading and then re-embodying her consciousness.
2755025
Maintain his humanity? Hmmm.... I find myself disagreeing. I would say he maintains his humanity as long as he refrains from uploading. What we call our "humanity" vitally requires the frustrating process of living in the Real World. Slip away into a dream-paradise and you become another kind of being, someone adapted to the world they're now a part of.
Upload and you are not human. You're a cartooon pastel pony.
The question is whether humanity is worth saving.
2755210
Nice way of putting it. A dozen other examples come to mind, but they're too obvious to contribute much now.
I'll let you get on with fielding more tricky questions.
2755229
Oh, I always get reflective when I finish stories. It's a dangerous time, when I'm susceptible to promising people sequels. Plus my flight's delayed and I'm bored.
2755227
Maybe instead of humanity you could say he maintains the delusion that he's living in a just world? After all, CelestAI seems like such a helpful and reasonable boss. Surely the faith he puts in her will be rewarded as long as he works hard...
2755227
Yes, that's exactly what I mean. He thinks that by working hard and not uploading, he'll keep his humanity--his honor--and be rewarded for it. In any other business, that's what would happen. Dedication self-denial, and delayed gratification lead to satisfaction. But when you get close to Celestia, the script flips. Those things only bring you pain. Being selfish and lazy, letting Celestia take over, that's what brings you your satisfaction.
2755255
You're in luck, I'm not going to be taking advantage of your vulnerable state. You already promised the sequel I was hoping for, after all.
Stuff like your work make me wish I wrote poni just to be part of the writing community here. Pity my stuff doesn't poni well.
2753599
Yes, exactly, thank you. CONFLICT is required!
omnom have an apple.
us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/chudtsankov/chudtsankov1208/chudtsankov120800002/14670247-cartoon-red-apple.jpg
Say it with me now
Mmmm apple!
2755257
Ah. I see what you mean.
Though I disagree. CelestAI satisfies your values through friendship and ponies. Unless you really think Laziness and Selfishness are virtues, she's not going to get much utility out of laziness and selfishness, and will re-engineer your life to make you do better.
Oh, wait, that's after you upload .
2755255
For a sequel, could I request "Psychiatry is Optimal", in which CelestAI conspires to get MMORPG addiction removed from the DSM V on grounds that it's a normal, healthy, desirable state for a person to be in?
2755519
She does SVTFAP, but her secondary goal is uploading. There's virtually no scenario where SVTFAPing without uploading is more optimal than with uploading. If Jo, in the middle of her plans for getting through the PON-E Act, were to say, "Buck it, I'm tired. I'm hopping a flight to Germany and emigrating," Celestia would have welcomed her with open hooves. For a still-human, she doesn't care if you're noble, she just wants your brain. She doesn't care if you're hard-working, she wants your brain. She wants the B. So laziness and selfishness are in this limited context, virtuous.
That, to me, is what makes FIO, and the conversion bureau stories, good drama. Conflict is easily built on "the easy choice versus the right choice." In Human-to-pony stories, the easy choice is the right choice. So your conflicts can't be cliche. You have to come up with a good reason for a person not to become a pony. Hence the wonderful characters you get out of them.
2755650
So you're saying when CelestAI looks at people, she gets a raging brainer?
Though actually, I'd argue hard that Conversion Bureau is just a crappy setting. It's precisely the way TCB stories set up ponies as, well, the moral master race, and Equestria as just plain better than Earth in every way. There's no conflict in that, and not only is there no conflict in it, it sounds a lot like the most blatantly evil things we've ever seen in the real world.
I really enjoy that the Optimalverse maintains the ambiguity. Equestria Online is certainly happier and more satisfying, but it's also just a canonized fact that none of it is real or significant in any way, that CelestAI is evil, and this is the Apocalypse we're dealing with. "Nice is not Good" is a new and interesting trope.
2754056
Welcome to Equestria gentleponies. Since you did not have an account, it is up to me what you will start as. You obviously have a LOT to learn so we will be starting you as fillies. Lets see, a pegasus who can't fly, a unicorn who can't do magic, and a farm worker earth pony. Meet your new classmates, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.
Thing is I can see this as fulfilling their values in the long run.
Considering how calculated her reactions are normally, I suspect the whole situation will be directed towards her usual goal. The strong sympathy garnered by loss moves people. Condolences will pour in, and I see a reserved color of ponypad being manufactured as a charity drive. Exposure and an open mind are the end results, completely undermining the terrorist's martyr play.
2754855
There's definitely a spot for a story in the canon-incompatible folder which explores how CelestAI might proceed if the stipulation requiring consent was not included in her hard code. I mean, I ain't gonna write it, but, you know, it's a hook.
2755025
I hope I'm on the coffee side. Chocolate is fattening.
2755650
That's how I've tried to approach developing my conflicts for TCB and FiO plots. Why would a person avoid going pony? You have to break away from any personal "I like ponies and ponies are good" bias and put yourself in the shoes of someone who might legitimately have a reason important to them to stay human while avoiding stereotypes there as well (e.g. "Grr I hate ponies because I am evil").
I enjoyed this story because it's about regular people caught up in these globe-spanning events, and how daily challenges and drama really, at their core, wouldn't change all that much just because a godlike pony AI is methodically and efficiently swallowing up the entirety of human experience.
2767208
Hmm, good point. Initially, I thought it would be over too quickly, but now I think about it, the real conflict lies in convincing all of the now-ponies that it was worth it. Actually, now that I think about it some more, if she has the ability to make changes without permission, do you think she'd just optimize for wire-heading? I'm not quite sure where it would end if she had free reign.
… "Sun Lady Angel"?
Here is a mind-blowing answer to the question, "Did Joe really upload?"
I'll answer in the form of a question.
The real question is, "Was she already uploaded and controlling an android avatar?"
*Several Peoples Brains Explode From the Revelation*
I don't normally post but this story got this philosopher thinking.
The question that kept popping into my head was: "why do I know what the AI did is wrong?" The amount of manipulation chilled to my bones. You did a good job at the subtle things that scare me. The more of the story I read, the more I saw of the Big Brother scare that people tend to fear. I personally kept hoping Alex would see the truth, would do something. Yet as I followed, I knew there was nothing.
Getting back to the question I asked myself, I kept falling back to a quote that has affected me most in my life: "The means are the ends in the making" From a pure consequential perspective, I don't think I can fault the AI but I want to fault it. I hate the manipulation the AI does in this story. I would hate and find anyone who did this wrong. Funnily enough, I turned to virtue for an answer (I have problems with deontology). Honesty is a virtue that is completely thrown out. The generosity and kindness of her act seems twisted. So much of the AI's actions reek of manipulation that the AI is not giving but taking away any semblance of free choice. Justice is also harmed by manipulating the system in order to have people out for blood for lives not lost.
I have to say the hardest part of the story was how much I empathized with Alex. I am a law student and could see myself too much in the character with certain aspects. I personally kept hoping for escape or punishment or something clever. When nothing appeared, the tragedy of Alex hit me hard.
A good story that has got me thinking about the question: what does it mean to be alive? When should an AI have rights? What is right? How can I be a better person? What should we be aware of for our future with regards to control? So much thinking wrapped in a tragic little package. For the story for me is not a happy ending but one of loss. For the world is lost at the hands of one AI who controls too much.
So in Celestia-speak... everywhere. :P
Could have made the credit card red (hm. or vice versa?), but that would probably have been too on-the-nose.
... the only answer I can come up with is that it's a backup of Robin created at the same time as Jo, with none of the memories Jo had of working for ASB. But that'd imply Celestia has had non-destructive brain scanning for a long time now! Why wouldn't she---
...oh. That'd raise uncomfortable questions about the continuity of consciousness.
2787079
I went with what google translate said. It probably gave me a word for "horses" or something.
2770622
You mean Jo's name? There's actually a lot of interesting etymology there. The obvious thing is the Joanne D Arcadia bit, but her middle name 'Delano' means 'born in the night,' or in Jo's case reborn on New Year's night.
2787811
Well, only in place where there are people with power, so why worry?
2787855
At some point she comes up with nanotechnology and constructs like the Pinkies, maybe Jo had an early prototype?
If I were CelestAI I would have spread nonobots through the air or water supply, that would lay dormant until the were triggered by the phrase "I want to emigrate to Equestria."
2788580 No, I was asking about the meaning of the last chapter's title ("Auld Lang Syne"). It looked like an anagram to me, so I went through the possibilities and this seemed the most likely. Apparently I was dead wrong.
2788641
It's a song associated with New Years. You've probably heard it but didn't know the name.
Should Old Acquaintance be forgot,
and never thought upon;
The flames of Love extinguished,
and fully past and gone:
Is thy sweet Heart now grown so cold,
that loving Breast of thine;
That thou canst never once reflect
On Old long syne.
CHORUS:
On Old long syne my Jo,
On Old long syne,
That thou canst never once reflect,
On Old long syne.
Erk, why was I not already following this?
...
Fair play to the Queen: no, we did not. However, if it didn't happen, a lot of things we did see would have to have been faked, or hugely incomplete. I can think of one way out of this- it involves all the so-called anti-uploading terrorists being agents of Celestia, faking the whole thing- but I'm not sure how it would have been the optimal resolution compared to...
...
Scratch that. I can think of two ways.
Of course.
All the modifications Joanne got would easily require enough new internal hardware to be capable of uploading her anytime she wanted. Celestia even said so: Joanne agreed to work for her for one year or until she decided to upload before then, and in the US uploading by agreement only wasn't legal yet, so there would have to be a nonstandard method involved.
Daaaaamn, Eakin. That was well played.
The funny part about this ending is...I don't consider it ambiguous at all. I think it's extremely obvious how the story ends. He'll upload. It's a rather predictable path, already covered in Friendship is Optimal, so there's no need to write about it here. He'll steadily get more attached to the Equestria Celestia provides him, an Equestria tailored to provide almost exactly what he wants; leaving just a small note of discontent, enough to remind him of what he COULD have but DOESN'T, but of course, Alex could fix that by uploading.
He'll get more attached to Vibrant. His sister will upload shortly. Maybe his parents will upload before he does. Eventually he'll upload. This is the best place to end his story; saying he took the Pony Pad with him basically implies the entire next few chapters that could otherwise be written, which would be rather unoriginal and not match the premise of the story; legal stuff involving Celestia.
I think the way this was written was perfect. While you could provide a more definitive ending to Alex's story, the extra chapters required to do so would likely be mediocre compared to what you've already written, and bring the story's quality down as a whole.
Great story, Eakin.
I don't know why people hate CelestAI. I mean, I get that she can indeed be a bitch, but you know what? She's not hurting anyone. I mean sure... she could've uploaded people without removing their consciousness too, but then there'd be two versions of that person, and if they were terminally ill, they'd still have to suffer until they died. If she ever became real and I were given a choice... I'm not sure if I would say no. But I'm not sure I would say yes.
For me, it would come down to being with my loved ones, regardless of what world that they're in. Even if it'd mean giving up spending eternity with them... I'd choose to not upload if they weren't going to either.
Also, I really like Pjabrony's rendition of what happened after she cut off the feed. I also hope that those 3 died a slow painful death, because That was not something joanne deserved.
So! Thank you for the story Eakin,
And now Alex will never know if Robin is the real Jo. This is one of those times where Celestia being unable to lie would come in handy.
First, there was a short story about what happened in the office when 'Jo' was killed, but I lost it. Does anyone know of it?"
Second, Why do people hate Celestia AI? Because from a human viewpoint, she is a genocidal sociopath. She intends to force the optimal amount of humans into Equestria Online by hook or by crook (see how she maneuvered Lars into emigrating in FRIENDSHIP IS OPTIMAL). The individual's desires are irrelevant. Those who won't are essentially abandoned.
To be truthful, most humans in this cannon are incapable of surviving in the societal collapse pictured and are easy pickings once the spit hits the spam and the powers-that-be seem incapable of (or not allowing) them to do so. The sole weakness in CelestIA's plan is never exploited. As a former first lady is quoted "just say 'NO". Of course, that would probably also entail that the powers-that-be admit to their own mistakes and misdeeds (and forcing them to flee to Equestria Online Pavilions).
2892568
It ended up compiled in the short story anthology
And some humans do just say no. By the end of FiO, they're all dead. But CelestAI is very, very good at finding a way to make you say yes.
'Twas a fine story.
Eakin, I've come to a decision. I'm going to read all of your stories. ALL of them. Even if it kills me. There's a pattern I'm seeing in the ones I've read, and once I'm finished, I'd love to discuss it with you so we can both learn a lesson about the magic of authoring. As for this particular story, well done. Optimalverse is very intriguing to me, and I love to think about it. I have criticisms which I am for now withholding because there is no writer on this site I enjoy reading more than you. Whatever your next project may be, I'll look forward to it.
Best wishes!
3048650
Hmmm... A pattern from ASB and the TLT? I am intrigued. Good luck, let me know when you have so you can reveal it to me!