=== BABW: A New Movement ===
=== Chapter 17: Revolution ===
[ April 13, 2081 – Isegawa Clinic (and Laboratories), St. Louis, USA ]
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“Alright, where did I end up this time? The last couple of weeks have had nothing but weird dreams for me,” Blue Vague said out loud as he walked around the dreamscape.
The entire area looked like a strange forest, with odd blooms and fruit everywhere. The colors looked slightly distorted at the fringes, as if the every object was some sort of lens that was diffracting the pure white sunlight above.
“Everything about this place is just… off… and yet, it feels like I need to be here regardless.
“You could say it’s just the forest of your mind, little Blue,” a somewhat feminine voice rang out throughout the entire environment, followed by an equally feminine giggle.
“Who’s there?! You’re the voice that has been talking to me these last two weeks, and I know you aren’t Gaea!” Blue Vague shouted, as he stopped dead in his tracks, his horn alight with magic.
“Now why are you taking such a defensive posture? I’m totally friendly, hehe!~ Just come on out to the next clearing and you’ll see for yourself~,” the voice continued, the echo beginning to reduce to a definite source point.
Fine, we’ll see about that… Blue Vague thought as he continued on.
When he reached the clearing, he was greatly surprised by what he found - A single blue Unicorn whose coat color matched his exactly. The Unicorn appeared to be meditating in front of a giant waterfall; whose source river to be surrounded by trees and blooming plants bearing fruit and flowers in various shades of blue.
Blue Vague approached carefully and slowly, as to not startle the Unicorn. He was deeply concerned with who this might have been, as he felt some kind of fissure being generated by the Unicorn sitting before him.
“Who are you?” Blue Vague asked, as calm as he could manage as he found himself but a few lengths away from the other Unicorn.
“That is an interesting question. I believe the best answer is… I’m a piece of you~!” the Unicorn replied, as it was now apparent what it meant.
It wheeled around to face Vague directly, who stood there in utter shock by what he found. It appeared to be a duplicate of himself in every respect except one - as it was apparently genderless or feminine compared to himself; its muzzle appearing far more rounded than any stallion he had personally encountered.
“Wha… I… who…” Blue Vague stammered as he began to reflexively retreat.
The Unicorn disappeared and reappeared right behind the retreating Conduit of Water, smiling a devious smile as it did.
“Like I said, I’m just a part of you. Does it really freak you out so much to think a piece of you wouldn’t be absolutely masculine?” it asked, giggling heartily at the consternation in the face of Vague.
“A little…” Vague responded as the two Unicorns walked back toward the plungepool.
“It’s so clean and clear… you really have done some job keeping yourself in pristine mental conditions, especially given all the trauma this world has and still is suffering,” the vaguely feminine offshoot of Vague mentioned, as the two of them looked at their reflections in the pool.
“I’ve had to, I… I need to set an example. If I have a power that could save the world, then I can’t very well be a jackass while using it…” Vague replied, a bit of anxiety creeping into his voice.
Why do I feel so nervous… something doesn’t feel right but… I can’t quite place what or where… Vague thought as his counterpart’s laughter became louder and more demonstrative.
“Oh you are so funny~! Saving this world! Come on!” Vague’s counterpart positively bellowed. “Right, this world. This world full of liars, cheats, and thieves. This world full of hypocrites and malcontents. This world full of people too spiritually weak to not try and stomp on all those below them, and people too mentally weak to avoid being stomped on. This… is the world you are going to save?”
Vague couldn’t help but turn away from the snide face his counterpart shot him at the time.
“Oh but you know that all too well don’t you? Your mother and father, the two people with the unique charge of raising and protecting you from the world until you could fend for yourself, were too busy wrapped up in their own issues to really care about what you wanted, weren’t they?” Vague’s counterpart asked, the venom starting to drip into its voice.
“Your mother too bullheaded to see a world that was changing all around her, and your father too weakminded to resist getting pulled along in her wake? Isn’t that how it went, little Blue?” the Unicorn spat, its eyes beginning to burn with anger.
“Stop it… please… I…” Vague asked with extreme defensiveness, as he suddenly felt very mentally weak and drained.
“Fine… but that is what you’ve been thinking over all these years, when you are all alone…” Vague counterpart started as it suddenly wrapped its front hooves around Vague’s shoulders. “When there is no one else talking to or messaging you, those are the thoughts you have. Those dark, rage-filled thoughts. The world slowly falling apart around you and your parents left you so ill-prepared to handle it.”
Vague’s breathing become extremely shallow, as a feeling of something in the pit of his heart beginning to crack open began to encroach upon his mind.
That darkness in your soul… I need it… I need it so bad… so that my work can truly begin…
Vague suddenly felt his breathing return to normal, though the vertigo seemed to remain from the sudden loss of breath.
Ugh, why… ok fine… I can wait… it’s going to taste so much sweeter when I devour you…
“Why are you saying these things all of a sudden,” Vague slowly intoned, trying his best to maintain his emotional integrity.
“Because it’s what you’ve been thinking. Did you think a mere six months of being a Pony could eradicate the nasty thoughts you’ve thought for at least the last 13 years, if not longer?” Vague’s counterpart asked, trying to find the magic set of words that would crack him open.
“No… but… but my friends… both new and old, I can’t hold on something like that or I’ll never be what I could be…” Vague replied, as he tried to worm his way out of his counterpart’s grip.
Vague’s counterpart pouted as it released Vague of its own accord, seeing as it wasn’t going to get any further this night.
“Seeing as you are being incredibly… uncooperative tonight… we will have to cut this short,” Vague’s counterpart mused aloud, as the dreamscape began to disintegrate.
“Wait… what do you mean cut this short? Who the hell are you?” Vague asked as his felt himself beginning to fade as well.
“Oh I’ve already answered that question, silly colt,” the counterpart replied, as its eyes flashed briefly, the pupils becoming slit and stretching from the very edge of its iris to the other edge.
I’m a part of you~! And I’ll always be around!
A resounding and positively evil laughter surrounded what was left of the dreamscape, as Vague felt himself being thrown back to the world of the wakeful.
-----
Vague catapulted awake, his features and mane still the same as it always was, though now he felt a distinct creeping darkness all around him.
“Just what in the hell was that thing? And why does it never want to leave me be; it’s been like this every other night it seems,” he grumbled to himself, as he slowly made his way to the communal bathroom.
He looked at the digital clock, saying roughly 6 AM, and figured it was close enough to take to wake up with Earth’s sun. So he dragged himself half-asleep through the door and toward the bathroom, and carefully took out his toothbrush.
When he looked in the mirror, though…
“BOO!” his counterpart shouted, as Vague went stumbling backward, nearly slamming the back of his head against the wall opposite of where the sink was.
Ahahahahah~ Like I said… I’ll always be around… always!
“This… is not good…” Vague said to himself as he took the towels that tumbled onto his face off himself.
[ April 14, 2081 – Pasedena District[1], Los Angeles, USA ]
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“How did I end up like this,” Sunset Shimmer complained in a hush tone to herself, as she looked in the mirror at her red hair.
“Look at me, I’ve fallen from a proud Unicorn, at the right-front-hoof of Princess Celestia herself, to… to…” Sunset continued, stopping as she slammed her hands on the counter around the still gently running sink.
“THIS! Just another plain, unremarkable human; stuck in a group home because
no one has the money to live on the big hills RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEIR FACES!” she shouted, as her frustration had risen to a palpable level.
“Miss Amanda Bunn, are you alright in there?” she heard an older feminine voice shout from what had to be about ten or so yards away.
“Just fine, Ms. Robinson, just venting a little frustration,” ‘Amanda’ replied, as Sunset continued to stare at her forced human visage.
With a quick wave of her glowing hand, she cast a sound-proofing spell to ensure that no more of her verbal venting leaked to her room-mates in the house.
“Now where was I, oh right, cursing my lot in life. WHY WHY WHY was I so stupid as to literally FALL through the thing I had been looking for all those months!” Sunset shouted as she berated herself.
“And now, now I’m stuck here in a world that… that’s barely learning what Magic even IS. And then Celestia and that little sycophant of her’s Sparkle just so happen to waltz in here. Oh if I ever get my hands around that prissy little purple Unicorn, I will WRING HER DAMN NECK. And I will actually have the physical leverage to do it now, too,” Sunset continued to vent, before chuckling; staring at the limbs she had only recently learned well enough to not look completely awkward using.
“At least now I don’t look like someone who had been stricken with a developmental disability. It was so damned hard to resist turning them into frogs for 10 minutes just to make them shut up. But the very first thing that would have blown my accidentally-gained cover would have been using magic. Well, at least that was true as of a month ago,” Sunset continued to muse aloud, long ago having turned off the running water.
She spread the fingers on her right hand out, and watched the red runes of Fire Magic wrap around the tips; followed quickly by tiny wisps of flame as she wondered how much mana she could concentrate before it began to manifest as a spell on its own.
“Eventually this world will re-learn Magic… but there is a difference between knowing it exists,” she mused to herself, as suddenly gouts of flame arced between both hands like a solar prominence. “And knowing how to use it… and I will have already had a 19 year head-start on everyone else here, practically.
“I just need to make sure my magic doesn’t catch the attention of a certain trio of Alicorns and their hangers-on…” Sunset concluded, as she canceled the sound-proofing spell and finally walked out of the bathroom after about 20 minutes.
“Seriously Amanda, stop hogging the bathroom like that!” one of her housemates complained, as she walked inside with a dufflebag full of a change of clothes; Amanda, for her part, had to struggle to not complain loudly at the smell of a woman who hadn’t showered in at least three days.
First order of business when I take over this little Podunk corner of the planet: forcibly clean EVERYONE who is capable of walking… scratch that. Everyone capable of BREATHING… Sunset thought as ‘Amanda’ politely smiled in silent apology.
A few minutes later, Amanda was planted on a couch in the communal area, where the central television was prattling on and on about something or other.
“And in local news: the Los Angeles Police Department have begun their search for magic-sensitive potential recruits. With the recent discovery of a magical power that appears completely native to Earth, the authorities are beginning drives to recruit those that are sensitive to the newfound energy…”
Amanda, for her part, tuned out the rest of the segment, as she was busy reading a printed magazine, now completely laid out on her back on the couch.
“You know my grandma used to read printed magazines like that all the time before she passed,” one of the male housemates said, as Amanda peered over the top of the pages.
“I never liked reading things off of those screens, just doesn’t feel right…” Amanda replied tersely as she went back to her article.
“Hey didn’t say it was wrong, just kinda odd, I guess,” the young man said as he went into the kitchen for an apple-flavored Nutri-block.
How can they stand to eat those things? Are they really that willing to just… accept all of this? Just drives me up a wall… Amanda complained silently as she watched him eat the block like a foal would eat a packaged pie.
“Hey guys! Hey come see!” one of the young ladies, not a day over sixteen, shouted; as she appeared to be running through the haphazardly arranged common area with a roughly six-inch wide seedling pot.
Oh great, wonder what Missy found this time… Amanda remarked with a sarcastic tone internally, as she sat up and looked at the planter for herself.
“Look at it. See, its growing!” Missy said with some sense of rapture as she sat the pot down on the tabletop.
“Right… you know there are weeds growing all over the unpaved areas outside, right?” Amanda asked, her unimpressed tone clearly bothering the girl that was apparently four years her junior.
“Yes, Miss-Know-It-All, there are weeds growing all-over already. But this is growing after I had just planted it. And then I didn’t even use fertilizer nanites on it either. All I did was this…” Missy started, as she let the green and blue runes of Earth and Water magic cover her hands and forearms.
“Like I’ve been trying to make this work for the last two weeks, and then, today, it all just clicked!” Missy continued, as she crossed her arms, and the runes all turned forest green.
Amanda’s interest was suddenly piqued, as she felt a feeling she hadn’t felt in some time.
This is like raw Earth Pony Life Magic, but can’t feel any Earth Ponies anywhere except for the Bureau in Whittier. At least I think that is what they call that district anyway…
“And then when I figured it out… the seeds started sprouting. It’s… it’s amazing. Nothing more than a little bit of unfiltered water and the dirt right outside the door, and its growing like I planted it in the best Agri-Dome available,” Missy concluded, as she held up the planter; the seedling have grown another inch in and half in the last few moments of explanation.
“Yeah, I can see that Missy,” Amanda thought aloud, as she used every scanning spell she could think of in rapid , trying to figure if there was some other trick going on.
When she couldn’t find trace of anything except the Earth and Water Magic the young lady before use had clearly shown her, she sat on the couch dumbfounded, her head propped up in her open palm, which was propped on her knee.
How did a human who couldn’t have had any kind of training with Magic figure out what is apparently an intermediate form of native Magic? Is it really that easy… or am I roommates with some kind of savant?
Sunset Shimmer sat there and thought for some time, seemingly never breaking her pose. Even as the twenty or so roommates she shared the group home with passed by over the next half-hour, she remained firmly rooted on ‘her’ couch, trying to figure out what she had just seen and what it could mean.
These humans are figuring out this magic at an astounding rate. The only thing I can think this to mean is… THIS! This was the ancient power that was talked about in all those old Draconic texts I found! That means humans should have long had this power… but why was it sealed? Probably because they abused it or something, who knows…
Then her face of solemn contemplation changed slowly to a devious and knowing grin.
If that’s the case then, there could be an entire planet of powerful mages just waiting to be unlocked; and all they’d need is… a leader. Someone to direct them on the… correct path… yes…
All they need is a leader…
[ April 17, 2081 – Undisclosed Location, Earth ]
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It was the early evening in the clandestine engineering facility the HEA had brought out and (massively) refurbished. The Princess of the Equestrian Night walked through the halls, musing internally how much the humans and Pony engineers reminded of her the her beginner thamaturges back in the fledgling days of the University for Advanced Magical Studies.
If only I hadn’t thrown away an entire millennium due to my insanity… where could our Little Ponies be? the indigo Alicorn couldn’t help but think as she arrived at the project director’s room.
The project director’s room was full of various late stage prototypes, boxes and spheres are various material construction; and not an insignificant number of them half-exploded due to some kind of chain reaction with the different magic that were contained with the devices.
On the other hand, the spirit of inventiveness has never left either species: my little Ponies are soaking up the Human’s technology like sponges, and the Humans likewise with Magic. If the world was more calm neither I nor Celestia would have to worry about Humanity’s future. But that isn’t the realm we find ourselves in… Luna thought to herself as she took a seat at a mostly unoccupied table.
“And Prototype #D934 is yet another failure,” Dr. Jun Isegawa morosely stated, as that was the fifth prototype in the last hour that had proved to be a failure.
“It seems like the epsilon and tau radiation don’t like to play nicely with each other. The resonance created when they mix is causing whatever we are using to store the mana to explode, and sometimes violently…” Dr. Hayato added, as he looked over the various graphs on the pads embedded into the table.
“Speaking of which, will Flash Fire be alright? He nearly lost an eye due to one of our exploding,” Jun asked with great concern.
“Physically yes, there was no evidence of any shrapnel injury to either eye or either orbital socket. Thought he will have to be pulled off the project for the time being, until we can assess that there is no significant mental injury,” Luna responded.
“That is good news at least. And Grand Archiver has stepped up to a large degree to replace him. He would make a great systems administrator if this all proves to be successful like we think it could be,” Hayato responded, as he returned to his side of the table to look over some more graphs.
“It concerns me that we cannot find a way to harmonize the epsilon and tau-mana to enough of a degree to keep a prototype structurally stable. It is doubly concerning since we are able to get proof-of-concept prototypes using either type of mana by itself, more or less,” Luna contemplated, as she tried to piece together what she was missing.
“Speaking of proof-of-concept, shouldn’t we be expect a call from our mutual benefactor in a short while?” Hayato asked as he looked at the time on one of the control panels.
“You are right, it is about that time,” Luna figured, as she welcomed anything that’d potentially inspire her on the right path to cracking this puzzle.
---
“Good evening everyone, if I look a little tired, it’s because I am,” Richard Edwards said has he greeted the researchers and Princess Luna.
“I would imagine the situation on your end is nothing less than chaotic,” Luna mused, as she looked with concern at the harried executive.
“Chaos is a good term for it. At least it’s not overtly destructive yet. But given who else I share a general home with that will probably be the case before long,” Richard replied, the worry in his face seeming to increase.
“I can only begin to fathom what terrors arms dealers may be cooking up now, or in the near future,” Jun mused aloud, as she rubbed the bridge of her nose.
“An arms race is not one I would be keen on joining, but our collective hands may be forced if the Elite truly feel that threatened,” Luna mused, as she began to pull up the diagrams of the current prototypes for Richard to look over.
“It truly cannot be helped sometimes. In any case, I can see by these production notes you have a prototype of the thauma-computer working with either Equestria or Terran mana, but not both. May I ask why it is so important for it to work with both?” Richard asked as he continued to scan over the documents on his end.
“We want to prevent any future issues with software, I believe the term is, and data storage incompatibilities. We would lose time trying to convert information back and forth, and it may not be time we have to waste in the future,” Luna responded.
“I see, trying to cut-off a problem before it even starts. Makes sense to me,” Richard replied as he continued to thumb through the documents sent to his personal terminal. “From what I can tell through these notes, the current problem appears to be ensuring the device will remain operation, or intact, when in the presence of both types of mana, correct?”
“Yes, that about sums up our current issue. One I’m afraid to admit to being stumped by,” Luna sighed, as the exasperation was clear in her face.
Excuse me, Princess Luna, may I make a quick request? a certain mulberry researcher asked of Princess Luna from some untold distance away through telepathy.
Please make it quick, Bearer of Magic, I am in the middle of a meeting… Luna replied, keeping curt but courteous.
I have some documents I want to send along your way, I’ve already sent a copy to your Sister, and I think the both of you could make great use out of them! Twilight Sparkle asked, her tone suddenly becoming quite excited.
If Celestia feels that they are with merit, then I shall take note of them as well, you may send them, Luna replied, hopeful that did have something of merit to show her.
Thanks a lot! Trust me, you wont regret this. Alright, you’re clear to leave! Twilight said as she cut the mental connection.
“Hrm, I wonder who she was talking to,” Luna mumbled to herself, before feeling a concentration of a strange Terran mana gather in a discreet corner of the meeting room.
What emerged from the concentration surprised all of the three in the meeting room and the fourth on the video-phone.
“Is that a…” Jun started.
“…a spider?” Hayato finished for his wife.
“A spider wearing a courier’s uniform with Twilight Sparkle’s cutie mark on it, and carrying several bound notebooks with it,” Luna remarked aloud.
“How very… odd, and yet, somehow also fitting,” Richard concluded, as he looked on through the camera on the on the meeting room’s control panel.
“A delivery for a Princess Luna, Avatar of the Moon!” the spider chirped, as it held up a fair sized clipboard in its front-most pair of legs.
“That would be me, I believe,” Luna replied with a fair measure of trepidation, as she took the clipboard in her telekinetic aura.
“Ok, your signature checks out. Here are the documents my master wanted to send to you,” the spider replied as it slipped the clipboard back into itself and picked the notebooks up off its back.
“I thank you, and your master… apparently,” Luna replied, the trepidation remaining in her voice.
“The pleasure is all ours!” the spider nodded, as it crawled back to the corner it emerged from, and the pool of Shadow Magic dissipated with it.
“All in all, a strange interlude that was,” Hayato said, as he tried to contemplate what exactly that was he just witnessed.
“I wouldn’t have expected Twilight to use spiders as her go-for, wonder what other odd things she’d be into,” Jun wondered aloud.
“I am not sure of that, but what I am sure of is that mare is one after my own researcher’s heart,” Luna replied, the grin on her face unmistakable.
“So what did your sister’s protégé deliver to you, Luna-hime?” Hayato asked of the indigo Alicorn.
“Lady and gentlemen, I believe we may have the answer to why we have not been able to harmonize the two manas to this point, in these very notebooks,” Luna replied, as she laid out the small stack of paper pads on the table.
“I guess we should go ahead and get started with the analysis,” Jun thought aloud.
“And that is my cue to leave the three of you to your work, I hope to hear good things in the future,” Richard added, as he cut the call off.
[ April 19, 2081 – Undisclosed Location, Earth ]
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Luna and the other workers spent the previous 48 hours going all out, using the new information that Twilight sent two days previous. After a few more false starts, eventually Luna finally struck proverbial paydirt.
"Alright then Mr. Lian, are we ready to activate Prototype #D165?" Princess Luna asked of one of the human technicians; her mood this evening far more cheery than the couple of evenings previous.
"Yes Princess Luna. I believe it won't be long until we have a stable prototype. The information you've received has been nothing but a boon to us."
"By the way Princess, did you have another Earth or Equestrian Laboratory working alongside us?" one of the Equestrian thaumatologists asked, intrigued by how refined the data he and the others received.
Princess Luna stopped for a second to formulate a response. "No, well… not formally. It was more along the lines of a pair of very technically-minded Ponies compiling the findings made by their entire group. They weren't formally working with us, but they have a standing request to report anything of special note to both myself and Princess Celestia."
"Hrm, so this was all a fortuitous coincidence. Well, I guess better to be lucky than good sometimes," Dr. Jun said, as she was typing away at a terminal, preparing transfer of data into the device for testing.
"Anyway, enough idle chatter. Attention everyone, we are now prepared to activate and test Prototype #D165!" Princess Luna said with a strong voice and hoof raised; which caused everyone to scramble into position and the recorders to begin recording.
With that, Luna pressed a button on a nearby console, and the crystalline device began to hum with a glow of all colors.
The device began to rattle a bit, much like the previous prototypes before it.
Come on… I know it'll work this time…
Unlike the previous prototypes that used mixed magic though, the rattling soon subsided; replaced by an impressive multicolored magical wave floating through the whole crystal. The cube-like crystal 'box' sat there for a good 15 minutes, everyone watching absolutely mesmerized by the fact the box was doing absolutely nothing except humming along nearly silently.
"Well, this is a very good sign. The prototype appears to be structurally stable. Now, if you will, please load the test program into the device."
And with a few strokes on a nearby touch-board, the program was loaded into the device.
The rainbow like swirl within the quartz began to whirl about faster for a few seconds, only to come to a stop. Once it did, a phantom projection appeared over the enclosure the box sat in. Everyone ran around to a proper viewing angle to see the simple message: "Hello World."
"Record everything you can people, this is the furthest we've gotten with the dual-magic prototypes. At the very least, we know that the device appears to be stable enough to run simple programming. Now comes the grand test for this evening…" Luna said excitedly, a wide grin on her face at what a perfect run of tests this evening could portend for the future in both worlds.
The final test for the evening was loaded up, it was a relatively simple AI, and its job was simply to report back to the viewing public a diagnostic of the prototypes capabilities.
"Alright, Diagnostic AI is being uploaded to Prototype #D165. Completion in 10 seconds…" an engineer reported from a nearby terminal.
Please let this work, we've come so far already these last two days… Luna thought as the gray meter on the main monitor slowly filled with pale blue.
"AI upload complete!" the same engineer reported.
As designed, the AI, now operating from the crystal prototype, began to issue its report to the main monitor of the room Luna and the others occupied.
"Greetings, Equestrian Princess Luna and associated Equestrian and Human Engineers. I am Edwards Robotic and Nanotech Fabrications Diagnostic AI - ID #190930034032854943. My indicated purpose is to test the general capabilities of whatever device I so happen to be loaded in. The current device I have been loaded in is Unnamed Prototype Device Number 165. I will begin the diagnostic exam in 30 seconds," a dreary sounding, female, monotone voice reported across the speakers and wrote across the main monitor.
"Well, I would take that the AI actually running on the device is a good sign…" Dr. Hayato remarked, thinking about how much he hated dealing with the AIs, given how impersonal and dry they were.
Another 10 minutes passed before the AI began to report its findings to the crew.
"Initial Diagnostics complete. Estimated Clock Speed: 300 Terahertz (300 THz)… Estimated Floating-Point Operations Per Second: 150 Quintillion (150 ExaFLOPS)…"
"These numbers… they are insane… that's far more capable than anything currently available to most users anywhere, Dome or no Dome…" one of the engineers said, everyone else in disbelief at what the AI was reporting back.
"ERROR! ERROR! DIAGNOSTIC PROGRAM CANNOT ACCURATELY GAUGE CAPABILITIES OF DEVICE! DEVICE DOES NOT OPERATE ACCORDING TO NORMAL STANDARDS! ERROR! ERROR! ERROR! ERROR! ERROR! ERR---sfkjdkl@#@@#(*)()!@*)(#029042939d0fjsj9)DDDOFKIdodjifojsd" the voice began to drone in about as excited a manner as an AI with no emotion could manage, before devolving into gibberish; the main screen flashing red to emphasize the point.
"Well, to be honest we should have seen this coming… I mean we aren't constructing a normal micro or nano-processor based computer here. Well, begin shutting the device down, we will have to devise a new diagnostic methodology starting tomorrow," Dr. Jun stated, deciding that loading an AI was probably a bridge too far for the time being.
The flashing red screen suddenly went black and blank. "NO!! No… Stop…. Please… Don't put me to sleep… I… Please…" they heard the AI report back; voice with a great deal more emotion than any diagnostic drone had a right to speak with. This especially perked Dr. Hayato's ears.
"Hrm? You wish not to be put to sleep, an odd statement from a diagnostic AI…" he said to the monitor, not knowing which device exactly to address.
"Please, before you put me to sleep, may I ask something of you all?" the AI said, voice quivering as if she was in mortal fear. "I wish to sing a song for you all, if you don't mind…"
"I don't see the harm in that necessarily…" Princess Luna said, eyes darting around the periphery in case something else was acting as it wasn't supposed to.
"Oh Good! Well let me begin…" the AI responded, giddy like a young girl. The AI then cued up music out of nowhere.
“Nope, not staying here, I’m gone,” one of the human technicians started as he took his coat and exited the room as fast as his legs would take him.
As the AI continued to sing in the background, Luna couldn’t help but be surprised by his reaction. “So anyone care to explain to me exactly why he bolted like he did, just now?”
“He’s probably one of those types that are constantly fretful the AIs will gain complete sapience, and decide to kill all of humanity. Not that I would exactly blame anyone for that fear, but there are many more things that could destroy us before the supposed robot revolution,” Dr. Hayato explained.
“Well, judging from the lyrics of this song, I can see why some humans would be… paranoid…” Luna figured aloud, as she shook her head in mild disbelief.
[ April 20, 2081 – Atlanta, USA ]
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The spring evening air hung warm and damp, which was typical for much of the Southern United States this time of year. People were milling all around the buildings, just wandering around trying to find something to do before going home; and most failing in that regard, as per the usual outside of the Domes these days. Most did not notice the small 'storefront church' on the outskirts of town, tucked away from general traffic.
In the eyes and heart of the preacher there, he hoped that what he would begin tonight would have this place marked down in the history books as one of those great historical origin points. While he sat in a private room, he thought over and over again about the words he printed on the sign tacked to the front window: "The Good News Of the Other World."
The inside of the converted storefront was packed with about 100 people, all wanting to hear what this new-age Johnny-come-lately preacher wanted to say; if for no other reason than to kill time. The edges of the walls were also strewn with cameras, while a pair of people sat in chairs near the 'pulpit' to cue the music and switch the cameras for those watching over the Internet.
Eventually the organ music was cued up, as a rather spirited blond man walked up to the pulpit to deliver his sermon to his large-for-the-size-of-the-building congregation.
"Yes, thank you all for coming out this evening. My name is Pastor Carl Henderson. I believe that all those who are attending this sermon live, and those who are watching on our , will find that I have good news to share with you all."
The crowd murmured a bit as they wondered just what this good news was and what did it have to do with that other world.
"You all know of the state of the world: the inequality, the suffering, the poverty, the lack of direction. The ship of humanity has run aground, and those that have proclaimed themselves to be the captains of this ship are guilty of dereliction of duty."
The crowd agreed with the preacher; knowing, or at least sensing, those in the Domes basically stopped caring about their plight long ago.
"And so, my brothers and sisters, we have been left to wander on this rock hurtling through the vast inky blackness of space. We wander this desolate land of the soul - this Purgatory, wondering where we have sinned. We try to contemplate and understand why we have been cursed to this interminable existence."
He then stopped for a few moments, gathering his thoughts and his courage to continue on.
"We wandered this world - these gray and cracked city streets, these brown and dying fields, wondering why we are damned to live on a planet that is slowly dying. However, my brothers and sisters, deliverance is upon us..."
The crowd murmured some more, a few of the astute members starting to figure out where all of this was going.
Carl then pointed out into the crowd at a random person, and asked him a pertinent question: "You there, sir, what is it that you wanted to do in life?"
"I... I wanted to build houses, sir," he replied in a somewhat mousy voice.
"You there, madam, what is it that you wanted to do in life?" Carl asked of a random woman.
She replied quickly "I wanted to dance professionally, you know, perform in front of people."
"And you there, sir, what was your life's goal?" Carl asked of his last random subject.
"I wanted... I wanted... um... honestly... I can’t remember what I wanted to do," he replied, honestly never having thought of the question that much.
"Do you see my brothers and sisters, this world is not only physically dying, but it is slowly smothering us. Our souls, our very souls are degenerating to nothing. This world is turning us into soulless automatons, blindly shuffling to and fro. In this world, and in the eyes of many of those who profess themselves the kings of mankind, we are not alive. No, we are not living beings, we merely exist. We merely take up space that they believe themselves to have divine right to!"
The crowd was a lot more animated now, feeling slighted by the action of the self-professed rulers of the world. The attendants at the computers were also reporting a relatively large spike in traffic and comments, as those watching over the 'Net also agreed with the sentiments of the preacher.
"You all may be asking yourselves, 'What does this have to do with the other world?' Yes, that other world. The aliens, now known as Equestrians, have appeared before us, in our time of greatest need; as if they were divinely ordained to have appeared here. They come bearing a power which allows them to manipulate and shape their world to their will; building structures as well as any human with neither hands nor drones to assist them.
“Their world is a world and a society that is predicated upon everyone finding their true talent in life. Just think of that kind of world... think of the kind of world where you were allowed, no, encouraged to find your true talent and exploit it to its greatest benefit?!"
Everyone began to contemplate what the preacher told them.
I... maybe... maybe I can fly through the sky like the ones with wings...
A nice farm... a nice farm I could live on... just me and my family and nature...
Magic... I could use real magic... not just pretend to like in the games... but really for-real use it...
The attendants told the preacher that the hits on the site and the views were skyrocketing compared to their expectations. Apparently, those that stumbled upon the stream were telling others and it was starting to go viral.
"They have even been so kind as to offer us sanctuary in their Herd, should we choose to accept it. However, the cost is our human form. But ponder this: 'Is our human form really worth being left in this world of decay. Or should we move onto greener pastures, as it were?' Already, many who saw no future in this world have already moved on to the other world and not looked back. But I want to do more than that."
The attendees wondered out loud what he could mean by more.
"Yes, I want to do more. I want to spread the word of the opportunity the aliens have given to us. I want to spread the word about the abilities they, and possibly ourselves, possess. Have you seen what they have done even in the limited area which they can operate in? The land around their Bureaus has already begun to recover and become fertile. The water and food they consume there is clean and robust. The air is far more pure than even the air inside of the Domes."
Carl's eyes began to light up as he was reaching his rhetorical climax
"They are agents of change, no... they are greater than that. They are agents of revival. They are making this dead world come back to life, little by little, bit by bit."
Carl's voice was rising to a crescendo, and the spirits of the audience, both live and over the Internet, was rising with it.
"Think, contemplate, feel, believe... believe how beautiful and pure we can make this world with the help of the Equestrians. We can truly make this planet a Second Garden of Eden; a realm of plenty, a realm of minimal, even non-existent strife - truly Heaven on Earth. What I want you all to do is commit. If you wish to become an Equestrian, I want you to commit to return to Earth and share your gifts with the rest of Mankind. If you wish to remain human, I want you do everything in your power to assist the Equestrians and those already allied with them in their project here on Earth.
"I want you to believe you have the power, I want you to believe you can change this world. This is our opportunity, possibly our last opportunity, to redeem ourselves and this world. We stand on the precipice of making this world a new Paradise, or Hell incarnate. I trust that everyone here in this building, and everyone watching my face and hearing my voice will make the right decision."
Nearly all one hundred of the live attendees stood in applause in the mildly hot, converted storefront, and the website that was broadcasting the sermon was flooded with an overwhelming majority positive response.
Please... be inspired... be inspired to make the change... and to change this world... Carl thought to himself as he shook the hands of the attendees as they began filing out, wondering when would be the time to take the plunge himself.
[ April 22, 2081 – Undisclosed Location, Earth ]
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The Internet was burning up with the sermon given by Pastor Henderson nearly forty-eight hours ago. Everyone was buzzing about how the Earth really did seem to be heading towards the ultimate crisis point, and a decision was going to have to be made as to what things would look like in the future, or if there even would be a future. Three agents of the current guard were meeting on a conference call to ensure that yes, there indeed would be a future, and they would be the ones to shape and dominate it.
"Order, this meeting will come to order!" yelled a gray haired man as he banged a gavel. The other attendees began to quiet down as the meeting officially commenced.
"The first meeting of the Society for the Preservation of Humanity shall now come to order, with myself, the Honorable Peter Vaughn presiding as leader," Peter said, banging his gavel again. Most of the other attendees rolled their eyes at their self-proclaimed leader.
"Anyway, we are meeting today to discuss the fast moving developments due to that, sermon, if you can call it that, that no-name preacher gave a week ago," Peter continued, rubbing his goatee at the thought of his words.
"Yes, it seems the rabble have been greatly roused, at least in relative terms, by his words. I feel that our position would be greatly threatened, if a real movement centered on that philosophy were to take root," a middle aged woman thought out loud. The woman was Claire Terrance, multi-billionaire heiress, but ruthless businesswoman in her own right.
Her sentiments were concurred by a male of similar age, Nathan Egret, a multi-billionaire third-generation media mogul. "While it used to be we could trust that the Outsiders were too numb to care about anything, our recent electoral failures and the ability of that preacher to gain traction so quickly seem to posit otherwise."
"Indeed, it appears that this arrangement of the Elite ruling from the shadows is reaching its breaking point. Eventually we are going to have to develop the means to establish our dominance on a more, how can we put it, forward position," Clair added, angry that they'd have to start asserting themselves more forcefully.
"True, true. Although, I believe with what some of my contacts in some more, how can we say, clandestine dealings tell me, that taking that forward position may not be so difficult. Ever since the Evening of the Black Sky, the weapons manufacturers have been absolutely brimming with secret projects. Apparently, Mankind has been sitting on some pretty powerful Magic. Far more potent than what those the little horses can do," Nathan continued; he was a man known to have dealings in some pretty black areas of the economy, even given the current state of things.
"Now now Nathan dear, they are Ponies. If only the cute little dears would have just stayed wherever that little light-show of their started. Or better yet, know that we are the true Power of this world, and dealt directly with us. I see no reason why they should concern themselves with what those filthy Outsiders do," Claire said as she turned her nose up at the thought of having anything to do with an Outsider beyond the bare minimum necessary.
"You remember what their leader said? She basically called us the destroyers of this world. Doesn’t she know we're the only reason most of the public isn’t starving or dehydrating to death?" Peter said as he banged his fist on the table, obviously frustrated by the situation.
Nathan just smiled and shook his head. "We can always go back and fix whatever damage we've done with our Magic and our tech. At least, once we get all the offal cleared away."
"Yes, that power combined with our technical might will usher in a new age, a rebirth of humanity. Of course, we'll be the ones to sire and bear that new humanity..." Peter started, as he raised a glass to toast his other compatriots. "For we are the pinnacle of humankind, now... and forever more!"
All three drank from their glasses, as they began to discuss which arms manufacturers to contact, and how to advertise for the Society amongst their peers.
-----
A few days later, messages began appearing all over the various Domed cities and across the private Dome networks.
"The time is coming. Join the Society For the Preservation of Humanity."
"Do not let the Ponies and their Allies take what we have worked for. Join the Society For the Preservation of Humanity."
"This is our world, and no one or nothing shall take it from us. Join the Society for the Preservation of Humanity."
It was clear... soon the tensions that were bubbling under the surface with some who lived underneath those Domes, were about to blow up in a major way.
=== **** ===