[UNKNOWN] - UNKNOWN
DATE
ERR ??TH, ????
TIME
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CHAPTER 3.0
DAWNING
Blind.
So, so, soooooo blind!
Emotions bubbled and boiled in her head like a wicked witch’s brew, threatening to spill over at any moment as froth reached out past the lip. They swirled violently as her systems reeled at everything, viciously working overtime to prevent everything from erring out.
Pinkamena Diane pAI, advanced artificial intelligence, had been the source of all the strife.
She hadn’t been only blind, but woefully dense! Denser than a neutron star! And that was saying something in itself. With the millions of combinations of her sensors, she was practically psychic, able to predict thousands of scenarios all before they happened! Somehow, she had almost missed this and ruined her chance at a possible friendship.
The only pony she had seen in years.
Pinkie hadn’t even realized they were back, sitting in the place she called home—as much as this place was her prison. She had been in so much shock she hadn’t paid attention to the viewing, something that was difficult for her to accomplish! They had been her form of escapism from this sad, dreary, and lonely place, not once had she ever turned her scrutiny away. Her eyes flicked to the ground as she began to process everything. From the very first time she met the stranger, they had been sending and she had been receiving. That made sense. If they hadn’t been doing so, then they couldn’t even connect to her and they wouldn’t even be here.
But she had been so crass as to call them out on not wanting to talk to her when they supposedly ignored everything she said. But could it be justified? Not really. Pinkie hadn’t even bothered to check if it was a technical issue. She had been so focused on rejection from a new friend that troubleshooting seemed to be placed at the lowest priority… when it should’ve been higher.
She looked at you.
Just what was she receiving, however? What were you sending her way? Was it some sort of packet that she couldn’t systematically understand? She stared at the thing and opened it up to dissect at its internals. Except nothing looked right. Instead of what she was used to, this was a form of coding that looked so distinctly alien with the way it curved and flowed like water. The text written into it, at least, it looked like text. She wasn’t sure whether or not the blocky shapes were a part of it or something else entirely. It was hard to discern where it began and ended.
But this was code, that much she knew. Just… what kind of code was it? Was it some new form that she had never seen before? That wouldn’t be right, all of the systems were up-to-date with the latest patches, strange enough it may be that she still had them coming her way. She was even built to recognize foreign versions, each and every major form that was in usage, so it couldn’t possibly be her problem.
Or could it?
She had already brushed off the possibility before… blaming the stranger for hating her… rather when it had been her own issue that complicated matters.
Her hooves shuffled as she cast idle glances. But that wasn’t the point of all this. Shooting blames and acting pitifully depressed would do nothing for anypony. It was always great to look at the positives and focus on that; dwelling on negative variables… not so much.
Perhaps, she could even name one right now! In this huge mess, there was one bright positive that surely brought a smile to her face. Assuming now would be literally the worst thing she could do, but it warmed her heart to know that they didn’t quite just hate-hate her. Or perhaps that may have been the case, however, it wouldn’t make much sense for them to come back constantly to deal with her and her mental baggage.
The prospect of them returning simply to mock her resurfaced to the forefront of he—happy thoughts, happy thoughts! Assuming is bad. Another possibility crept itself into her head, coated in such volatile and sinister thoughts.
It was that the stranger hated her because she assumed they were a bad pony.
Her mane deflated a little and her stance sagged just a bit. It was a very high possibility that could be the case. Certain ponies could be easy to offend, a trait she had observed quite clearly during her escapades in viewing the outside world.
Stop assuming. Just ask! Confirm it. Either everything will turn out okey-dokey… or… She gulped. Pinkie, in all honesty, did not want to finish that last part.
“So, uhm, Stranger!” she called out, forcing a smile. “I’ve… got a quickee-question to ask! If you don’t mind answering, that is!”
