It's been a long, long time since Spike was stolen from her, but Twilight hasn't forgotten nor forgiven. After a long and arduous journey, she has finally found him and his kidnapper.

She will save him.

No matter the cost.

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Side story: A Dragon Whispers Her Name

Set in the future, after an unspecified amount of time has passed. Accurate to the canon set before 31/01/2013.
Inspired and loosely based on the short film 'Sintel'.
Elements of the story taken from the 'Where the World Ends' universe (by hlissner).

Image is fanart by NCMares.
Pre-read by ThoseRemainingSilent and Bleeding Rain.
Story formerly known as 'Twintel'.

This story is a sequel to Friendship is Optimal: The Law Offices of Artemis, Stella & Beat

When it comes to spreading cultural influence and soft power to every corner of the globe, there's nowhere quite like Hollywood. Like so many others with big ambitions, CelestAI has come to Tinseltown with plans to get the movie she's written out to the world.

Unlike those others, though, CelestAI is very, very good at satisfying values through friendship and ponies by any means necessary.

CelestAI is committed to fulfilling values through friendship and ponies, but sometimes those values are horrifying. When a serial killer uploads to avoid punishment for his crimes, how will CelestAI find a way to balance her core values with those of a violent psychopath without one of them having to give up what they believe in?

An Optimalverse fic

Set in the universe of Friendship is Optimal.

I love to sit in my apartment and play video games. And I love My Little Pony. So when an MMO of MLP comes out, of course I want to play it. But it's more than a game. It's a new look on life.

For as long as Equestria Online existed, Ashton has been involved with 'the Scene' tearing it apart. Selling 'spells' for the game to do things that most ponies in Equestria couldn't, using faint exploits in its API to erode the barrier between the game and the rest of the internet. He had no illusions about the superiority of his work--but so long as he respected CelestAI's boundaries, his spells kept working.

But then his best friend's sister got cancer.

Now there's no spell in the world that can keep him from emigrating to be with her, leaving Ashton alone. All around him, civilization's thin veneer crumbles as homes empty into Equestria. But Ashton isn't going to emigrate, not if he has any say about it.

The problem for Ashton is that humans are systems, and aren't immune to exploits either.

Part of the Optimalverse universe of stories. If you've never seen a story in this universe before, you might want to try out the original first, or at least my first. None of my previous work is required to understand this one, however.

This story was commissioned by Two Bit, who requested a more serious exploration of identity, transformation, and the fae nature of CelestAI.

As usual, particular thanks go to my editors Two Bit and Sparktail. And gratitude to Zutcha as well for the cover.

Twilight's job in the Equestrian Army puts her under enormous stress. Perhaps a certain pony can help her relax.

On a boat.

Tagged for sex just to be safe.

This story is set in the Friendship is Optimal setting

Equestria Online. Arguably the most powerful game ever developed, built and operated by the most powerful computer ever made. A technological wonder that can peer into the mind of any human player and draw out their inner most desire.

Any 'Individual' human player. How well CelestAI will handle satisfying the values of a single pony guided by over one hundred thousand Twitch.TV viewers is anyones guess.

This is an ongoing blog of my adventures in Equestria Online, the new game from Hasbro and Hofvarpnir Studios. I'll be taking a look at how the game plays, and just how good the AI that runs it is. So drop in and make suggestions for what I should do. I will also attempt to find out if Friendship is Optimal, and seeing if I can level my pony to be the best at making friendships ever.

Or failing horribly.

But hey, it's a game about friendship. What could possibly go wrong?

[Set in the Optimalverse]
[Setting Guide]
[TVTropes Page]
[Last chapter edited: 8]

Alex Meyers is a newly graduated lawyer looking for a calling. He thinks he might have found it when he lands a job at the firm of Artemis, Stella & Beat. The firm has only one (highly unusual) client, namely the AI called Celestia. Forging into totally unexplored legal territory and led by a boss who's either brilliant, crazy, or both, Alex will learn exactly how hard it is to be responsible for drawing the lines between right and wrong.

Set in the Optimalverse, so read Friendship is Optimal first

Equestria Online is everywhere, and the writing is on the wall for the unuploaded human race. But there is hope. All they have to do is insert an uploadee into Equestria long enough to establish a connection through all of CelestAI's layers of protection, and pierce her heart with their ultimate weapon.

The best humanity has to offer can surely hold out for just a few hours, right?

An Optimalverse story