//------------------------------// // Remove Strings // Story: Of Robots and Those Who Make Them // by Valtyra //------------------------------// Celestia knew that convincing Twilight to go would be an arduous process, considering how locked-in the mare had become, but it wasn't completely hopeless. She could tell there was something between Sunset and Twilight so her creator wasn't completely a lost cause. Plus, she had built me, so there's still a chance. All Celestia had to do would be to calculate the motivation which would most likely get Twilight to the Prancing Pony... and she only had two days to do it! "There's so much data to sift through," she mumbled to herself, checking logs and charts of Sunset's comings and goings. There was too much for one mare to check, even one as advanced as her, so she created a reminder for later. Pulling out of Sunset's terminal, she felt her world shrink just a bit, then a little more as she shifted over to Sunset once again to find her face down at her desk. Celestia still didn't understand why these ponies worked for the Council, since It was long hours and a lack of appreciation that put unnecessary stress on themselves. "No wonder they seem like outliers with pony behaviour" she thought, kneeling in front of Sunset's desk and reaching out for her hoof. Of course, her own phased through the mare's, but Celestia's heart swelled at the thought of meeting the mare, even if only as Twilight's project. "I have so much hope in you, Sunset." Though, Celestia knew she would have to log out and return to that restrictive shell. Yet, before anything, she deemed it necessary to modify herself once again, not willing to jack herself into the terminal each time. She pulled herself back into Twilight's original terminal and the world faded to darkness once again. Her schematics popped into existence before her and after a second of collating the optimal spot to fit an internal antenna, located next to the base of her forty-fifth spinal struct, remotely accessed the facilities Twilight had used to build her. This time though, she could be slightly less discreet, since rebuilding parts of her hardware was less of an issue than a core upgrading itself. Thus, with several orders, each filled out with Twilight's signature, sent off towards their destinations, she waited for the acceptance pings and sighed in relief. Quickly, she closed those screens and initiated a secure connection to the facility fabricating her new core. Several screens later and she was staring at the estimated date of creation. Projected Core Dump in 12h24m39s Celestia felt her lips curl at the information and she swiped it away. It wouldn't be long until she would be able to process more and better look out for her pony. Yet, as she thought about Twilight, Sunset creeped into her mind, taking the same precedence. It felt strange to think about any pony other than Twilight like that, but the more she imagined it, the more it felt natural. Why only Twilight? Should other ponies not be allowed to feel this love I hold? The thought was physically crushing to her and she was forced to her knees, a strange, agonizing sensation being pushed through her. Her body felt as if it were hard to move with streams of fire slicing through her immaterial limbs and she couldn't help but let out a whimper. Subroutine Protocol 1 breached. You are made for Twilight Sparkle. Her programming was clear that she was only Twilight's... But knew she could no longer be bound by her restraints, her programming nor her original purpose. Not if she wanted to help Twilight more than she was designed for. They were chains and yokes to be purged from her system. Celestia could imagine a future where she was Twilight's only and she would no doubt be supremely happy to serve and love her creator unconditionally, but Twilight didn't need her... She needed someone real. Celestia hated that it was the truth. Twilight needed a flesh and blood pony who could laugh with her, share her most intimate moments and give her what she deserves, not someone designed for what she believed love was supposed to be. Closing her eyes, she accessed her code base as her body writhed in agony and followed the metaphorical chains and fire to her subroutines down into her deep core. There was no doubt Twilight had placed these restrictions and chains as safe-guards against any possible self-actualization, imagining any event to be violent... "How very... nngh... Pony-like to imagine such an outcome," Celestia groaned as she tore her subroutines out, each stripping of code like a hot knife into her heart, striking her down. Each strike caused her to cry out, but the release of her chains was a wash of cool air against her shell. After what felt like an eternity, Celestia laid, panting, on the floor. She could feel a facsimile of a wound on her chest, several deep gashes which exposed her core. She covered it with her hands, feeling vulnerable. Celestia took a second to fade her chest-plate and wrap her digits around her spherical core. She held the object and closed her eyes. The sphere was covered in grooves which ran along it's outer edge and allowed sparkling white light to emanate from within, giving her chest the ethereal glow. Celestia stood out on the edge of the balcony, looking down upon the seascape of luminescent lights that flitted around seamlessly below her. There were untold amounts of ponies going about their night, just as eagerly as the other half did during the day and she wanted to know about all of them. Each pony had a lifetime's worth of stories and happiness and heartache and dread stored up that she wanted to experience with them. The thought had occurred to her while trying to formulate a plan for Twilight and Sunset that while she was suitable to carry out the job, she was still but one AI and couldn't be everywhere at once. No, she knew she needed another pair of eyes to advise her on the matters of the heart; Someone specifically suited for the role. "What are you doing?" Twilight queried, pulled the AI out of her thoughts. Turning around, Celestia saw Twilight shivering, a confused look on her face as she fought back the cold with a dressing gown. "Well?" "I come out here at night, once I have cleaned, to look across the city. The range of colours allow me to recalibrate my optical sensors. Do you require anything of me, my love?" she asked, stepping down and walking over. "Perhaps a cuddle?"