//------------------------------// // Something's Amiss // Story: Dispose of Carefully // by The Ancestor //------------------------------// There was a great flash of light and the girl in the middle of the square was gone. In her place rose a creature one could only call demonic. Fiery red wings sprawled from the creature's back, their slow flapping somehow able to keep it stable in the air. Yellow streakes interchanged with red waves on the creature's dress, a similarly colored tail sprouted from the creatures waist. It stretched and cackled madly, sending cyan and white rays from its hands and into the two students below. The pair was engulfed in bright light, and when it dissipated, two demons stood in their place. To Thunderlane's horror, the creature finally noticed the group of students huddled near the school's entrance. She approached them, just as the last student closed the door behind them. "I've had to jump through so many hoops tonight just to get my hands on this crown, and it really should've been mine all along!" She scowled, and Thunderlane felt himself shrink under her scornful gaze. Is her eye twitching?! "But let's let bygones be bygones" She adopted a kinder expression, the action too sudden to be genuine. "I am your Princess now" The same energy sparkled in the middle of her forehead, a cyan ring enveloping her hand. "And you will be loyal to Me! Just as Thunderlane reached for his phone, a large chunk of the entrance was torn and cast asunder. Students ran around screaming, desperately trying to get away from the demon. With shaking hands Thunderlane began filming the creature, all the while backpedalling away. Suddenly all the students stopped dead in their tracks, hypnotised by the creature's magic. Thunderlane was unable to look away as the incessant gnawing burrowed into his mind and assaulted him into submission. His phone impacted the rubble-filled floor, laying at just the right angle to record the bright rainbow that descended on the beast, swallowing it whole. From: webbot@foundation.org 16.09.2016 To: damniel@foundation.org Subject: Manual Evaluation Foundation experimental analytics AI "Silver" has detected extranormal occurances depicted in the following video file. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=█████ The material is free of Cognitohazards or Memetic agents. Verify or disprove the detection and report to Site 42 Senior Researcher Michael █████. This is an automated message, do not respond. A drab olive hand scartched at the irratated skin under the man's stubble, not helping with the itching sensation that bugged the human for the better part of the day. He sighed and reached for his cup of coffee, hoping the rush of caffeene will be enough of a distraction. Another night, another session of digging through his work email, hoping against hope nothing too urgent has been lost to the pitless abyss that was his mailbox. He clicked on the link and watched the video in full, a bit of drowsiness dissapating with every passing frame. Demonic-looking creatures? Check. "Magic Beams"? Check. Local destruction? Check. Oh yeah, that was most certainly something abnormal. He drafted a quick responce to his superior, recommending further investigation and hit send. He yawned and checked his wristwatch. 03:13. Dang it, he's done it again. He worked overtime for the fifth time in a row, and judging by the fact that the last bus home departed a good while ago, he'll have to sleep at his desk. Again. The things he does for 401(k). He lamented the distinct lack of pillows at Site 42's break room as he picked up his laptop and stepped out of his comfortable, if small, office. The last drop of coffee dribbled off the cup's edge and into his mouth as he walked through the white corridors of his workplace. "Might as well get a sofa for my office," He grumbled to no-one in particular. "probably should've done that before putting a coffee machine there, but oh well." He slammed into the door shoulder first and stumbled into the thankfully empty break room. He plopped onto the decintly soft sofa, placing a surprisingly half-full box of donuts on the nearby table and opening his laptop that was comfortably sitting on his belly. Ready for a night of a substandart movie experience accompanied by periodic attempts at doing whatever work he had left to do before his well-deserved paid vacation, he cracked his knuckles and searched through his computer for a comfy movie to fall asleep to. He was about to put his favourite movie about a certain web crawler, when his eyes drifted to his mailbox, that all of a sudden had one more incoming letter. He lazily moused over the pop-up and clicked. From: michallen@foundation.org 16.09.2016 To: damniel@foundation.org Subject: Workplace Protocol Danny, I have recieved your report, and I have only one question for you. Aren't you tired yet? I understand that your position may not be the most exiting one in The Foundation, and that occasional pranks help to liven up the workplace, but this is unacceptable. This AI was created with a singular purpose of aiding with the discovery and containment of anomalous items and phenomena, and any conscious attempts at disruption could be ruled as sabotage. You and I know that you are qualified enough to see through this blatant CGI. I bet you thought it was hilarious to rope your Canterlot buddies into this, didn't you? Five minuetes of fame, huh? Well, I refuse to open an investigation and veto any further attempt to open one in the future, Lord knows I've got enough false reports in one day. Need I remind you that there are worse positions in the Foundation? I understand that our line of work can be tiring, so perhaps it's a good thing you're cashing in your vacation. Plenty of time for reflection. Best wishes, Michael Allen. Daniel raised his eyebrows as he finished reading the letter. Was Mike out of his mind? He'd bet any of his fingers that what he'd seen was real, but just to be sure he clicked the link again. He watched and rewatched the video for the next half an hour, meticulously searching for any imperfecions in the so-called CGI. Now, he wasn't an expert on computer graphics by any means, but what he was an expert in, was most things anomalous. And fuck him gently with a chainsaw if he was wrong about this being anomalous. He whipped up his phone and called the only person he had on speed dial. Seconds passed as rash ringing pierced the silence of the break room, until finally someone picked up the phone. "Who's this?" A tired voice inquired over the line, a voice that Daniel heard many times in his life. "Hey Al, It's me Danny-" "Danny!?" Alex shouted over the phone, promting a bout of tinnitus in Daniel. "The one and only." He replied, clearing his ear with his finger. "Did you really need to shout?" "Danny, It's almost four in the fucking morning. I'm morally, and legally, liable to tell you to go fuck yourself and go back to sleep, so if you've got something important to say - spill it." The man grumbled, tossing in his bed. "Right, right. Have you, by any chance, recieved an email from the new AI they were testing today?" "Yeah, it was nostalgic to see Canterlot High after all this time, what of it?" Daniel bit his lip before replying. "What did you think of it?" The man on the line stifled a yawn before replying. "Another demon invasion, another thursday for containment teams, what's the big deal?" Alex replied, irritation creeping into his voice. "I've got the same email today. When I verified that it was real, Mike said I was full of it, that I 'roped' you and other Canterlot guys into pranking him." "Same here, I didn't pay it much mind though, was too busy enjoying my paid vacation." Daniel could hear the shit-eating grin Alex was wearing. "The thing is, you're the only guy I know from Canterlot," He pulled up the Foundation's database and skimmed through what was available for his measly level 2 clearance. "don't you think its strange that all of us marked the video as real, and the one guy who isn't from there says it's fake?" "It could be coincidence..." Alex trailed off, thinking about something. "You know it better than I that there are no coincidences in our line of work." Daniel's eyes went wide as he found something he was looking for, or rather hasn't found. "There's no file on Canterlot in the database." "What?!" Alex shouted once again, sending Daniel's ears ringing once again. "Maybe your clearence isn't high enough?" "Doubt it, there'd be an 'access denied' or 'data redacted' plaque if that was the case." He double checked his search and sighed. "But there's nothing." He heard the sound of commotion on the phone. "What are you doing, Al?" "I'm going down to Canterlot to see things for myself." Sounds of running water filled the line. "Something's fishy going on in my hometown, and I don't like it." "Like hell you're going there without me!" Daniel said, grabbing his laptop and runnig to his office to grab a backpack and a few necessities. "Didn't count on it, Danny." Daniel heard the sound of a running motor on the phone. "You at work right now?" A defeated sigh escaped the man's lips as he stepped out of his office. "Where else could I be?" Twilight Sparkle trotted strolled through the empty halls of Canterlot High, making her way to Princess Principal Celestia's office. If not for the fact she was about to leave this world and return home, the constant need to adjust her language to this world's standarts would've given her an aneurysm. She was relieved that everything went the way it did, even if the school will require some urgent repair work. Sunset has seen the way of friendship, the crown was returned to its rightful owner, and everything was set right. Right? Still, there was something that was bothering Twilight, something too important to leave unattended before going home. In her short time on Earth she's learned about many mind blowing technological wonders humanity came up with. Cars, phones, television, everything was new and exciting, but there was one thing that rendered her speechless the first time she saw it. The Internet was truly a wonder, a bottomless pit of information, an ocean of insight comprised of innumerable droplets of individual human knowledge. Yet among the veritable goldmines of useful expertise, there were the inevitable time sinks of great evil dubbed 'social media' and 'video hosting service'. The thought alone made Twilight shudder, how could so many ponies people waste so much of their time? It was because of these time sinks Twilight was standing in front of Celestia's office right now. She knocked on the wooden door three times, waiting for an answer. "Come in." A motherly voice replied, prompting Twilight to do just that. Despite the late hour, Celestia's office was bathed in golden light that, while completely artificial, was pretty close to the real deal. From behind a wooden table housing a broad selection of assorted office clutter a weary smile of a familiar, yet alien ruler greets Twilight. The young woman returns a smile in kind, taking a seat on a conveniently placed chair at her side of the table. Principal Celestia finished writing something on a piece of paper and moved it aside before facing Twilight. "Twilght Sparkle, I must express my thanks for your actions in the past few hours. If not for you, I shudder to imagine what Sunset would do." She shook her head and sighed. "But you're not here to recieve my gratitude, are you?" Just as perceptive as I remember."Yes, Your Hi-" Twilight faked a cough. "Yes, Principal. Something's been bothering me for the last few hours, and I couldn't leave without sharing my worries with you." Celestia nodded, urging Twilight to continue. "When Sunset put on the crown and transformed, there were a lot of students that saw it, and I couldn't help but think..." Twilight sighed. "How many of your students have personal phones?" Celestia's brows furrowed. "I see what you're getting at, I've already implored our students not to upload any footage thy managed to shoot. Furthermore, I asked to delete anything that was uploaded already, although I might've been too late." "Too late? What do you mean too late?!" Twilight questioned in distress. Celestia's warm smile melted her concerns just a tad. "There's a saying, Twilight. 'Nothing can be completely removed from the internet.' An exagerration, of course, but a rule of thumb nonetheless." Twilight wondered how human appendages were relevant to the discussion at hoof hand, but let it slide. "So what if somebody sees what happened? Wouldn't it cause a panic?" In a world devoid of magic such... violent demonstrations of spellcasting would surely attract attention, right? Celestia shook her head and allowed herself a small chuckle. "Believe it or not Twilight, but many would write such outstanding occasion as a mere advertisement campaign, or an amateur movie." Seeing Twilight's uncertainty, Celestia leaned on the table and put a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "I assure you, there is nothing to worry about." Twilight wasn't completely assured but she saw no other way to adress the issue. She had to leave post-haste, lest she'd miss her only chance to go home in a long time. She had no other choice than trust Celestia's word on this matter. Besides, the Principal knew this world far better than Twilight did, and had much more experience with the Internet and life in general. She sighed and nodded, flashing Principal Celestia a smile. "You're right, Principal. I'm probably overthinking things." A light breeze ruffled Daniel's short hair as he gazed at the night sky, especially at the moon. In his line of work he saw many things most consider mind blowing, both in the good and the bad way. From eldritch insight beyond human comprehension to a self duplicating cake, he's seen a lot. Yet despite it all, the night sky always grabbed his attention. What secrets could the distant stars hold? What lies beneath the crust of the pale blue orb in the sky? What- "What are you doing, standing here all by yourself?" A calm voice of a checkpoint guard sounded like a thunderstorm in the quet of the night, making the man jump a little. "You've missed the last bus by a good few hours, so unless you want to freeze your ass off, I'd recommend you stay the night at the facility." Daniel huffed and turned to face the road, ignoring the man. "I'm expecting a pick-up, a friend's gonna come any second now." He paid no mind to the snort coming from his side. "Yeah, like hell you're waiting for a ride in five in the morning!" Just then, a silver Ford F-150 appeared over the horizon, rapidly making its way towards the chekpoint along the asphalt road. Daniel turned to the guard with a shit-eating grin. "Told you." The guard rolled his eyes and huffed. "We'll see, maybe it's the morning shift." Daniel raised an eyebrow. "At five in the morning?" "Shuddup!" The car stopped at the gate, and a window rolled down. Before the guard could ask for identification, a biege hand jutted out, holding an ID card. The guard squinted before nodding and opening the gate. Daniel dashed to the car and opened the front passanger door, but not before casting the guard a condescending glance. "Glad you didn't bet on it, huh?" With that, he shut the door and made himself comfortable in the leather seat, yawning a little as he fished a full thermos out of his bag. "Good to see you, Al." Daniel placed the thermos by his side as the car backpedalled out of the chekpoint, before doing a U-turn and speeding off into the distance, leaving the facility behind. "I'd say the same if it wasn't five in the morning, Danny." Alex grumbled, keeping his eyes on the road. He perked up as a familiar smell entered his nostrils. He glanced at Danny and saw him drinking a steaming brown liqud. "Is that coffee?" "Yep. Never leave home without it." He smiled as he took a sip of his beverage, before holding a cup to Alex. "Want some?" "More than anything." Alex grabbed the cup with his left hand, keeping his right one on the wheel. He took a sip of the drink, and found it pleasantly warm. He poured the remains of black coffee down his throat before returning the cup. He shivered as he savored the taste. "Ahh, good to see you too, Danny." "That bad, huh? It could've waited 'till morning, you know?" Daniel chuckled lightly, packing away the thermos. His mirth disappated as he looked at his friend's hardened expression. "It can't wait, and you know why. Whatever happened there, it ain't right. Why does the Foundation have no files on Canterlot? Why have Mike ignored whatever happened in that video?" He gripped the steering wheel so hard, his knuckles turned white. "The whole setup reeks of trouble." "You can say that again." Daniel said, kicking back in his seat. "I've done some digging while waiting for you, and results are... concerning." He pulled out his laptop and opened it. "There's lots of info on Canterlot on the web, but not a speck of it on our Intranet. Usually there's a couple of false alarms, persons of interest, catalogued anomalous events, you get the idea. And guess what?" "Nothing?" Alex inquired, already knowing the answer. "Fucking zero, zip, zilch, nada!" Daniel exploded, throwing his hands in the air, hitting the roof of the truck in the process. "Ouch!" Alex shook his head. "Calm down before you kill yourself, or worse: damage my car." He smiled at his own joke as he heard a growl from beside him. "Hardy har har." Daniel sighed and opened his email. "I've also asked some coworkers about what happened, and found something very interesting. The guys from Canterlot more or less said that they thought it was real, while everyone else were practically foaming at the mouths, trying to convince me it was fake." "That is... unusual." Alex replied, eyes still glued to the road. He blinked as he realised something. "Wait a sec, how did you get in touch with so many people, in the dead of night no less?" A nervous laughter to his side wasn't promising. "Well... Some of them were still awake, it's saturday morning, after all." He said it with a certain finality, like he didn't want to proceed. "And the rest?" Alex pressed anyways. "I've pestered them until they responded." Daniel responded timidly. Alex shook his head and sighed. "That's why you have no friends." "I have you." Daniel snorted. "That's 'cause I got to know you before you were an asshole." Alex retorted, prompting Daniel to chuckle. "Birds of a feather flock together, eh?" A deafening silence hanged over the car, but lasted for a second before two friends hollered with laughter. A good minuite or two passed before the pair recovered. Daniel closed his laptop and put it away, leaning towards the stereo system. Noticing this, Alex decided to intervene before something disasterous occured. "Don't touch the stereo, or I swear to whatever diety that listens I'll throw you out." The threat did nothing to discorage his friend, who began to fiddle with the device. After a minuite of fruitless searching, he decided to change his approach. "Al, pass me the aux." Alex was about to decline, but after carefull consideration decided that driving in complete silence would be worse than listening to what his friend played. "Fine, but you better not play trash." Alex replied, unlocking a glove box and pulling out the coveted cord. Daniel snatched the wire and connected his phone to the stereo, searching for a song on his phone. "Trust me, this is a certified bop." A smile split Alex's lips as the melody filled his car. "For once in your life, Danny, you did not disappoint."