Priority Queue, Part 2
Nearly an hour had gone by and Rainbow was still in the lead. The land below was slowly changing as she flew over farms and forests which gave way to the sparsely vegetated highlands. There were even a few tiny villages and settlements out here.
The White Tail Woods had been easy for her to navigate through. Her agility allowed her to nimbly weave between the trees, while Turing had to drop her speed dramatically to avoid crashing into the trees and low-hanging branches. That had given Rainbow a tremendous lead, but she eventually heard the telltale sound of Turing’s jets as they approached Crumble Canyon.
Crumble Canyon was narrow and rock formations jutted out over the river, which itself made rapid twists and turns. Once again, Rainbow had been able to navigate it easily while Turing had fallen behind.
All right, things are going great so far, Rainbow told herself. If I don’t get too tired and I can pace myself just right, I can keep gaining some distance whenever we hit these landmarks. That robot may be, ugh, a little faster than me on the straightaways, but it looks like she isn’t maneuverable enough to make it count! And wow, what a view! I’ve never seen this part of Equestria before! And every time I hear her catching up, my heart starts going off like a jackhammer! This race is awesome! Turing did a good job on--
She paused, realizing the thought that had just formed. She shook it off. Eh, who cares? So she can plan a decent race; big deal!
The Frostmane Mountain Range would be coming into view soon, she realized. She was still climbing and the air was growing colder at the increased altitude. The sharp bite of the cold wind was a shock to her system, but it was also strangely invigorating.
That breeze, this view, the thrill of taking those hairpin turns through unknown terrain… those are things that a robot could never understand! She doesn’t get it. She’s just Twilight’s science project and this time I’ll put her back in her place once and for all!
She expected to see the mountains by now but then she saw that a large field of natural clouds was in the way. It was too wide to fly around, over, or under. It seemed she would have to navigate through it in order to get to the Frostmane Mountains without losing her lead.
No sweat! she thought. And then she heard a familiar sound. Jets.
Ha! This is perfect! She’ll have to slow down to navigate around all these clouds! And then with the mountain range, I’ll get an even bigger lead! This race is all over!
She began to weave between the thick, fluffy clouds. They blended together slightly, so she had to slow down a little to avoid them, though not as much as Turing would have to. Any minute now, she’d hear the sound of Turing’s jets behind her getting quieter.
But they weren’t getting quieter. They were getting louder. And there was another sound: a quiet, dull wump sound, something like the sound of a head hitting a pillow or a pony jumping onto a bed or…
...or a cloud being busted.
No! she exclaimed to herself as she looked over her shoulder to confirm her fear.
Sure enough, rather than avoiding the clouds, Turing’s momentum, mass, and durable exterior allowed her to simply plow directly through them. Cloud after cloud exploded into smaller puffs and wisps as she collided with them, seemingly without dropping her speed at all. In no time at all, she had caught up to Rainbow Dash and even passed her.
I can’t keep weaving like this! Rainbow thought. I’ll have to… ugh, I’ll have to follow behind her and let her cut a path through the clouds. Okay, fine, no biggie, I can still take the lead in the mountains or when we get to Ghastly Gorge!
With this strategy in mind, she settled in behind Turing Test. She didn’t want to lose too much ground, so to speak, so she increased her speed slightly more than her usual cruising speed. She even managed to catch up to Turing a little.
But this turned out to be a mistake. She closed the distance and suddenly got a blast of hot air in her face from Turing’s jets and flinched, momentarily turning her attention from the race. At that moment, Turing collided with a particularly massive cloud, blasting it into smaller chunks that she left in her wake. With Rainbow Dash blinking and wobbling slightly off course, she was too slow to react as a chunk of cloud hit her directly in the face. She yelled in surprise and frustration as she spiraled into another cloud, getting stuck in it like a snowbank and coming to a complete stop.
The sound of Turing’s jets rapidly faded away.
“NO!” Rainbow exploded, extracting herself from the thick cloud and launching herself back on course. She cleared the clouds but she saw that Turing was far ahead and had increased her speed. At this rate, even the mountains would only allow Rainbow to catch up, but once that was over there was the long straightaway to Ghastly Gorge and Turing’s superior average speed would allow her to gain so much of a lead that…
Rainbow’s heart sank. I won’t be able to catch her. Even if I use a Sonic Rainboom to speed up, I’ll use too much energy and slow down again. I can’t catch her. I’ll never catch her now. I’m… I’m gonna lose! I’m gonna lose to a machine and I'll never hear the end of it! I’ll have to call her ‘Lady Turing’ and everypony back in Ponyville, no, all across Equestria is going to know that Rainbow Dash got beat by some cold, emotionless machine! I’ve let down pegasi everywhere! I’ve-- wait, is she stopping?
Indeed, as they entered the space over Frostmane Mountains, Turing had come to a stop and was now hovering directly in Rainbow Dash’s path and waving her hooves to get her attention. And as Rainbow got closer, she heard Turing saying something:
“Rainbow Dash, please halt. There may be an emergency. It is possible that somepony urgently requires our assistance.”
Rainbow considered speeding on by Turing and taking advantage of this unexpected turn of events, but only for a split-second. As soon as she heard “somepony urgently requires our assistance,” she knew she had to stop.
“What’s the deal?” Rainbow demanded. “Who needs our help?”
“I am not certain, but I have detected something that indicates an accident has occurred nearby. Ponies' lives may be in danger.”
Rainbow looked all around. High up as they were, the tall, snow-covered peaks of the Frostmane Mountains were all she could see. She didn’t see anything suspicious from this vantage point.
“I don’t see anything,” Rainbow said, making a face. “Are you sure you’re working correctly? Maybe flying through those clouds dislodged your brain or something.”
“I am certain.” Turing Test turned and pointed with her hoof at the treeline on a mountain in the distance. “Please turn your attention to the trees approximately 2.5 kilometers to the east.”
Rainbow looked in the direction Turing indicated but saw nothing. She squinted, trying to spot some detail, but she didn’t see anything that stood out from such a long distance, at first. Then she did spot something. Her eyes may not have been as good as Turing’s, but Dash still had exceptional vision and attention to detail.
“Wait, yeah… those pine trees. Looks like there are bits of branches in the snow nearby. Kinda weird, but… eh, nothing suspicious.” She looked at Turing. “So, what’s the emergency?”
“Perhaps we should investigate more closely, Rainbow Dash,” Turing suggested. “If I am incorrect, I will offer you a 30 second lead when we resume the race.”
Rainbow shrugged. She had nothing to lose, so she agreed and she and Turing flew closer to the trees. When they got closer they could both see that the tops of many of the trees were broken and their branches had been strewn across the snow field next to them.
“Looks like something smashed into the tops of those trees,” Rainbow observed. She rubbed her chin, considering the possibilities. “Pegasi? Maybe a griffon or some other creature?”
“Unlikely. The number of trees damaged and the area of the debris field indicates a much larger object.”
“Yeah,” Rainbow said, going in for a closer look. “But what kind of object?”
“Calculations of size and mass are consistent with that of an airship.”
Rainbow’s eyes went wide. An airship, basically a boat suspended from a long, oval balloon, wasn’t terribly common in this area. Cloudsdale saw them fairly often, mainly full of tourists or transporting larger devices and supplies for the Weather Factory, but the only other place you saw them was Canterlot. The rich, elite types loved them and often took their guests aboard for fancy parties. If one of them had come through here and crashed…
“I think you’re right, Turing,” Rainbow said. “Somepony might need our help!” She began to scan the area, squinting at the bright gleam coming off the white snow that surrounded them. “But where’s the airship… wait, there!” She pointed with her hoof.
“Understood. Possible crash site located.”
They both looked around and spotted a disturbance in the snow. A long, deep gouge in the snow, carving right through a snow bank, started some distance off as if something had crashed and slid over the ground. But they saw it continued onward and only stopped once it reached the edge of a cliff.
“Oh no!” Rainbow cried. “The airship must have gone over the side!” She sped over to the edge of the cliff, Turing right behind her, and they peered over the side.
The cliff, they both saw, was actually a ravine. The deep, narrow gorge went down a few hundred meters, but halfway down, wedged between the two rocky sides of the ravine, was the airship. It was quite a bit smaller than Rainbow had been expecting, though still long enough to have a prominent deck and large enough to accommodate several ponies at once. It was purple with gold-colored trim and accents. It wasn’t as ornate as other airships she’d seen and it would have done just fine as a boat at sea, judging. Of course, at the moment it appeared worthy of neither sea nor air. It had been cracked, the wood splintered, and some of the railing had been broken clean off. The windows on the cabin near the aft of the ship were broken, their glass strewn nearby. Curiously, the balloon that should have held it up was nowhere in sight. It didn’t seem to be at the bottom of the ravine either, and there was no sign of it nearby.
“Looks like a pretty bad wreck. Um,” Rainbow Dash hesitated, looking around, “I… I don’t see any, um, ponies nearby.” She swallowed and bit her lip. She hoped to Celestia that she wouldn't see anything like that.
“Agreed. No casualties sighted. Infrared scans show no heat signatures or lifesigns. One moment.” Turing’s ears squeaked as they moved and turned on their hinges. “Rainbow Dash. An auditory scan indicates lifeforms aboard the ship.”
“You mean you can hear somepony in there?”
“Correct. Their conversation is muted. Several appear to have chattering teeth, likely a reflex to the cold.”
Rainbow Dash shivered. “Makes sense. It’s freezing up here!”
“One is groaning in pain. Another is crying. Another is reassuring the former that rescue is imminent.”
“Well, that last pony is right!” Rainbow declared, bending her knees as she prepared to leap into the ravine. “Let’s go!”
“One moment, Rainbow Dash,” Turing Test said, raising her voice to get Rainbow’s attention. “The structure of the ship has been compromised. Due to my mass, there is the possibility of collapse should I attempt to board. The possibility still exists should you board, but the risk is significantly less. I recommend you investigate alone.”
Rainbow blinked at her. “I… yeah, good thinking,” Rainbow said, spreading her wings. “I’ll be right back. Warn me if it looks like the thing’s gonna fall.”
“Understood.”
Rainbow Dash leaped over the edge and slowly descended to the deck of the ship. It wasn’t perfectly lateral and the smooth deck could be treacherous at an angle, but she gingerly touched down, trying her weight on the ship. Nothing moved, although the boards creaked slightly as she set down. Once she was certain it wouldn’t fall, she carefully walked to the door of the cabin. The door opened easily and gravity from the tilt of the ship caused it to swing out widely. Taking a deep breath, steeling herself for what she might see inside, Rainbow Dash entered.
The cabin was dark. It was decorated with a variety of pictures and a comfortable looking couch that had been bolted to the floor. Very much the property of a wealthy Canterlot pony, it seemed. The breeze that came through the broken circular windows made the room fairly chilly, so it was no surprise that it was empty. Rainbow could hear somepony downstairs, so she followed the sound and went below deck.
The sound of her hooves must have attracted attention, because she heard voices begin to chatter excitedly.
“Someone’s coming!”
“Oh thank Celestia, we’re saved!”
“There now, see? I told you all help was coming!”
Rainbow entered the spacious area below deck and saw several ponies gathered around a single lantern suspended from the ceiling. They were all wrapped up in a thick, billowing red material which she realized was the balloon that had once held up the airship. Now they were using it as a communal blanket to keep warm. It was slightly warmer, true, but even shielded from the wind, the room was still uncomfortably icy.
The last pony who had spoken extracted himself from the balloon and approached Rainbow eagerly as he stepped into the light. His white fur, long horn, and blue mane and mustache were recognizable in an instant.
“Wait a minute… I know you!” Rainbow said, her eyes popping wide open. “Mr. Fancy Pants! What are you doing here?”
“Why if it isn’t the famous Rainbow Dash, Miss Rarity’s dear friend from Ponyville!” Fancy Pants exclaimed jovially. “I am so glad to see you. And as for what we are doing here, it’s really quite the tale.
"My friends and I,” he gestured to the other ponies huddled together, peeking their heads out from the balloon’s cover, “were taking an extended voyage on my yacht from Las Pegasus to Vanhoover. We decided to do a flyover of these stunning mountains when something went wrong: our balloon began to lose air! We tried to reverse course and find a safe place to land, but we started to descend rapidly. We then tried an emergency landing in the nearby snowfield, but crashed into the tops of trees and lost our left propeller. The ship hit the ground sideways and slid into this ravine. It was only by sheer luck that the ship wedged itself between both sides of it! I’m just grateful my dear paramour Fleur de Lis avoided this disaster. She chose to meet us in Vanhoover rather than travel by airship, you see.”
“It is all my fault, sir!” came an older pony’s voice. “I should have checked the rigging and the balloon more thoroughly!”
“Nonsense, this was a freak accident and you can’t blame yourself, Anchors Aweigh,” Fancy Pants assured him. “Besides, it was your piloting skills that prevented us from crashing into the side of the mountain on the way down.”
“Okay, okay, we can figure out the cause of the crash later,” Rainbow said impatiently, holding up her hoof. “Is anypony injured?”
“Unfortunately, yes. Jet Set’s broken his foreleg, Sea Swirl has dislocated her shoulder, and Golden Gavel might have broken both of his hind legs when a table fell on him. Nearly everypony else suffered some cuts, sprains, and bruises in the crash, myself included.” He lifted his hair and displayed a makeshift bandage on his head. “We had our first aid kit, of course, but we need medical attentio--oh, oh my!” He stumbled and nearly fell forward as he took a step toward Rainbow Dash.
“Hey, easy, easy,” she said, catching him. “That looks like more than a bump. You might have a concussion.”
“Ah. I see. I suppose we should just be thankful that nopony was, er, ‘lost’ in this disaster.”
Rainbow tried to think rapidly. This situation was bad. The ship was still creaking and it wasn’t at all certain that it would hold. And all these injured ponies…
“Tell me, Rainbow Dash,” Fancy Pants said, leaning down to her, “are the other rescue ponies nearby? You should probably notify them.”
Rainbow Dash looked away. “Yyyeah, thing is, I’m not part of a rescue team. I was flying over these mountains as part of a race. You just got lucky we spotted the crash site.”
“Ah,” he said, trying hard to hide his dashed hopes. “Well, do you suppose you might still be able to aid us?”
“Yes. Don’t worry everypony, I won’t let you down! Stay right here, I’ll try to see how we can help!”
***
When Dash came back to the top of the ravine, Turing Test was nowhere to be seen. A moment later, however, she heard Turing’s jets and she landed nearby.
“Where did you go?!” Rainbow demanded. “I thought you were going to watch the ship!”
“Apologies. I was monitoring you auditorily. The ship appeared to be sturdy, so I decided to prepare for the extrication of the casualties. I have located a cave 200 meters to the northeast where we may shelter them from the elements and build a fire. I believe that should be our top priority.”
“Oh. Okay, yeah, that makes sense.” She looked down at the ship. “Looks like about a dozen ponies are in there. Can you help me fly them out?”
“Negative.”
“Wait, what?! Why not?” Rainbow demanded, stomping her hoof.
“Clarifying: It is not that I am unwilling. I am in fact capable of hefting the weight of a full-sized adult pony with ease and the propulsion of my jets is sufficient to provide such lift. However, the heated air from those jets would cause grave injury to anypony I attempted to lift. Therefore, I am unable to assist in that manner.”
“Just great,” Rainbow Dash sighed, massaging her temple. “Okay, I think I can carry them to that cave. You gather some wood and make a fire. Can you do that?”
“The principle of creating fire through friction is in my database. I will be able to complete that task.”
“Good. Meet me at the cave as soon as you can.”
***
“Oh good heavens, this cave is simply dreadful!” Upper Crust moaned. “And where is that partner of yours, young lady? I thought you said she was gathering firewood!”
Rainbow Dash grit her teeth and looked back at her over her shoulder from the entrance of the cave. “Just keep your cardigan on, lady, I’m sure she’ll be here soon!” she growled.
“Well!” Upper Crust cried indignantly, but then turned as Jet Set began groaning again. “Oh, shh shh, it’s all right, dear, help is coming! We’ll have that fire and be nice and toasty any minute now!”
Rainbow felt a little guilty yelling at her, but she wasn’t making things easier by getting impatient. The others were gathered in the cave as well and Rainbow was still breathing hard after carrying them all, one by one, from the ship, over the hill, and to the cave that Turing Test had found. Just her luck that not one among them was a pegasus! Still, her robot companion was nowhere to be seen. Once she caught her breath, she considered going out to look for her.
Just then, however, she heard the sound of snow crunching underhoof and a gallop that was slowing as it reached the cave. Rainbow Dash looked out and spotted Turing Test coming up over the hill, sending snow flying in her wake.
“I apologize for my delay, Rainbow Dash,” Turing said as she arrived, now using magic to levitate a pile of wood and sticks. “Finding a sufficient quantity of dry wood suitable for combustion proved more time-consuming than originally estimated.”
“That’s fine, let’s just--”
“Eeek! What is that!” one of the casualties screamed. The others likewise sat up or cowered in fear at the sight of Turing’s silhouetted figure and glowing purple eyes in the darkness of the cave. They weren’t any less afraid once she came closer and they saw her strange, mechanical appearance.
“Ugh, that’s just Turing Test, the ro-- the pony I was racing against.” Rainbow Dash hesitated, but then added, “And she’s the one who actually spotted the crash site.”
“She?” Sea Swirl asked. “Is there a pony inside that armor?”
Rainbow Dash opened her mouth, intending to go with that explanation, but was just a moment too slow.
“Incorrect. I am a mechanical construct, a machine, built to resemble organic ponies.”
“Good heavens, how garish!” Upper Crust cried.
“What’s wrong with its voice?!” another shouted.
“Hey!” Rainbow yelled, getting their attention. “Don’t talk about her that way!” She paused as all eyes, including Turing’s, were on her. “I… I mean, she’s trying to help! Even if she’s a robot you could, you know, show a little gratitude.”
Fancy Pants smiled and stepped forward uneasily. “Yes, you're quite right,” he said. “Where are our manners? My name is Fancy Pants. Thank you, Miss… Touring Test was it?”
“Correction: it is pronounced ‘Turing Test.’ Your gratitude is acknowledged.” She set the sticks on the ground and placed them in a small structure to begin building a fire. She held some smaller tinder and sticks near one of the larger pieces and placed a stick atop it, holding it upright with her hooves.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t like some help with that? I was a Colt Scout in my youth and building a fire this way takes quite a bit of elbow grease!”
Turing rapidly moved the stick with her hooves, fast enough to make them a blur, and the kindling quickly began to smoke from the friction and then burst into flames.
“My elbows are sufficiently lubricated.”
“Pfft, hahaha!” Rainbow laughed, surprising even herself. She clapped her hooves over her mouth, looking sheepish.
Fancy Pants also smiled. “Well, it seems our fire is ready,” he said. “Gather around, everypony, we must keep warm!”
“Correct. A decrease in body temperature would exacerbate your injuries.” She turned to Rainbow. “Rainbow Dash, I require your attention. Will you please speak with me outside so as not to cause emotional distress to the crash victims when I inform you of the severity of their situation.”
“Wait, what?” Golden Gavel asked.
“Haha, that Turing, such a kidder!” Rainbow said, urging Turing to go outside before she said anything else. Once outside, she glared at her. “Nice job, Turing! Way to put your hoof in your mouth!”
“I do not have a mouth.”
“That’s-- freaky, but never mind that. What did you want to talk about?”
“We have stabilized the victims and built a fire. However, the scarcity of suitable firewood means that this is a temporary situation. I estimate that it will not last through the night. Furthermore, nightfall will occur in less than two hours, at which point the temperature will likely drop to dangerously frigid temperatures. The possibility of hypothermia is extremely likely. Should that occur, their lives may be in danger.”
“Yeah… oh wow.” Rainbow looked all around them. The wind had died down temporarily and she looked out across the mountain range that dwarfed them and took up the horizon in every direction. Only now did she truly realize just how isolated they were. She lowered her head and whispered “This is serious, isn’t it?”
“Correct. Furthermore, my scans of the area indicate a high probability of an avalanche. Additionally, wild nocturnal predators will likely be attracted to the smell of blood from the injured. All of this makes it unwise to remain here for long. It is imperative that we extricate the victims from this environment and get them medical attention.”
“So we go and get help!”
“That is the most logical solution. However, that presents another problem. To successfully remove the victims in a timely manner, we require a rescue team capable of flight. Pegasi would be ideal. A large settlement with a sizable hospital would be the best place to seek such assistance.”
“Okay, let me think… Cloudsdale’s on the other side of Equestria right now. So that leaves, um, Tall Tale to the west, and Vanhoover to the northwest.”
“Accessing my data regarding those locations… I estimate that you would need over an hour to reach Tall Tale. However, your speed is above average for a pegasus. The pegasi you recruit will likely require over 90 minutes to arrive back at this location. Night will fall by that time, making rescue unsafe.”
“Then… then maybe you should go,” Rainbow said. “You’re… fine, I’ll say it: you’re faster than me.”
“That is not an option either. After my aerial survey of the area and the use of magic to obtain firewood, my battery power is currently at 35%. While I could reach Tall Tale more quickly, I would be dangerously low on energy upon arrival. I would require 30 extra minutes of direct charging from a unicorn’s magic to be able to direct the rescue team back and, again, they would not be able to match my speed. Night would fall, risking the victims and making rescue unsafe.”
“Oh for pony’s sake!” Rainbow shouted. “Well, maybe we can just take them down the mountain one at a time!”
“You showed fatigue after lifting them and transporting them a distance of 200 meters. Can you truly transport them the several kilometers to safety?”
Rainbow sighed. “Okay, yeah, that’s not gonna work. Maybe one or two, I could… I know you couldn’t fly anypony, but could you carry them on your back while you ran them down?”
“Without a means of stabilizing them, that would be inadvisable. And the repeated trips would likely deplete my battery power before completion of the task. Even then, night would fall before that time."
Rainbow scrunched her eyes shut, trying to think. “What about getting help from somewhere closer?”
“We did pass a small community nearby these mountains, but it was a farming community with a smaller medical center. It is unlikely they will have a team of aerial rescue pegasi and it would be exceptionally dangerous for earth ponies to venture into the mountains at night. They would not be able to provide rescue until the next day.”
Rainbow hung her head. This situation was looking worse and worse. There was no way to get a rescue team there before nightfall. And Turing was right, it would be dangerous for pegasi to fly anypony around in the dark, let alone risking earth ponies. Avalanches, freezing temperatures, wild animals, a robot with a nearly dead battery…
“No ideal options available. My programming does not allow me to let a pony come to harm. You must flee the area and bring help tomorrow morning. I will stay with the victims.”
“What?!” Rainbow Dash cried, her body stiffening with shock. “Why should I leave?”
“Risking your life is unacceptable. I will stay vigilant and protect the victims from animal attacks. It is possible that I will be able to maintain a fire and Fancy Pants or another unicorn can keep me charged through the night.”
“But they could still freeze to death!”
“Yes. But there is no better option.”
“That’s not good enough!” Rainbow shouted, sweeping her foreleg at the cave. “I’m not leaving you all here! What if there’s an avalanche?!”
“You are no more likely to survive that situation. In my case, after an avalanche, you could at least exhume me when the weather turns warm.”
Rainbow Dash blinked, then narrowed her eyes. “No.”
“Your cooperation is ideal, Rainbow Dash.”
“Too bad. It’s not happening! I’m not leaving you or any of them behind! We’re going to get them all off this mountain together or else neither of us is going back!”
Turing Test cocked her head to the side. “This behavior is illogical, but more consistent with the way Twilight Sparkle described you, Rainbow Dash.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”
“Yes. She described you as stubborn.”
Rainbow chuckled. “That’s me all right. Look, I’m not leaving and neither are you. So instead of worrying about that, let’s figure out another solution.”
“As stated, no other solutions--”
“Come on!" She rolled her eyes. "What happened to all the guts and strategies you were showing off in the race yesterday?”
Turing paused. “You refer to my innovation and adaptability?”
“Yeah, that. Can’t you think of something new? You did it before! I mean, seriously, ringing the bell by crashing into it?! That was awe…” she hesitated, but then finished. “It was awesome, okay? You’re a heck of a racer: you’re tough and you’re smart. Now do something good with it!”
Turing was silent, but as Rainbow had learned, that didn’t mean anything other than that she wasn’t ready to respond. She was probably thinking. The telltale sound of her ears twitching and the slight blip in her eyes was a sure indication that she was.
Suddenly, her eyes shrank to pinpricks and a higher electrical whine came from her before they returned to normal size and the sound ceased.
“Alternate solution reached. Rainbow Dash, we may be able to save everypony, but you must do precisely as I say.”
At last, Rainbow gave a toothy grin. “Where do we start?”
***
They peered down at the airship as they once again stood on the edge of the ravine. Rainbow Dash had already taken to the air and was considering the best approach.
Turing looked up at her from the edge of the ravine. “Please exercise caution, Rainbow Dash.”
“Yeah, yeah, no problem,” she said, nonchalantly waving a hoof. “Just save your battery power and let me do this.”
Rainbow took off higher into the air and then shot downward as fast as she could. She turned her body around in midair, aiming her back hoof directly at the large crack in the hull of the ship. Hitting it with as much force as she could muster, she sprang off it and took off again to get clear.
At first it seemed to have no effect, but the telltale sound of wood cracking and giving way was heard and the ship began to buckle and splinter. Finally, under its own weight, the compromised ship collapsed with a thunderous sound and split in two, falling into the ravine and smashing into pieces.
“Ha! Rainbow Smash!” she yelled triumphantly.
“First stage is complete. Please proceed to tie the ropes.”
They’d already removed the ropes from the balloon and piled them up near Turing Test. While Turing could use magic to tie them herself, doing so would consume more power, and they’d already determined she would need as much as possible for this plan to work.
Rainbow began tying the ropes together, one after another, using her hooves and teeth the best she could. Once the knots were satisfactory, she tied one end around Turing’s midsection. She then took the other end and, holding it in her teeth, took it to the bottom of the ravine, tying it around the anchoring holes at the tip of the remnants of the ship’s bow. Once she was sure it was secure, she flew up again and called out, “All set!”
“Understood. Engaging E-Mode.”
With her enhanced strength, Turing began to pull, digging her hooves through the snow and planting them firmly into the ground with each step. Lowering her body, she steadily began to plod forward, pulling the broken - but still sizable - bow back up and out of the ravine. In short order, she managed to pull the large chunk of the ship over the edge, where it slid over the snow before coming to rest.
“Returning to neutral mode. Power at 27%.”
“Oh boy, is that going to be enough?”
“It should be sufficient. However, you will need to further demolish the bow for our purposes without my aid. Please begin. I will monitor your progress.”
Rainbow nodded. “Sure thing, I--ow!” She grunted, flexing her wings.
Turing Test raised her head and went over to her. “Are you all right, Rainbow Dash? Have you sustained an injury?”
“No,” she said, setting down in the snow, shivering and hugging herself. “It’s getting colder. My wings are tired and they’re starting to ache in all this cold.”
Turing Test walked over to Rainbow Dash's side and, without warning, turned and draped her tail over her.
“H-hey what are you doing?!” Rainbow demanded.
“My mane and tail function as heat sinks. They carry heat away from my internal mechanisms and thus their temperature is fairly high. Currently, they are at 42 degrees centigrade, slightly above that of normal pony body temperature. Warm yourself for a few minutes before continuing your task.”
Rainbow still felt a little silly about it, but the material of Turing’s tail was surprisingly soft and smooth to the touch and the coils did indeed feel quite warm draped over her back.
“Thanks,” she muttered.
The two of them sat in silence for a full minute before Rainbow decided to say more.
“Hey, Turing, do you mind if I ask you something?”
“I do not believe it is possible for me to be offended by an inquiry.”
“That must be nice,” she said. “So, this race we’re having? Well, had. It’s pretty clear the race is over now, isn’t it?”
“Affirmative. Was that your inquiry?”
“No, it wasn’t. What I wanted to know was, well, how come you wanted to race anyway? You could have flown this course without me if you really wanted to measure your abilities. So what’s the deal?”
“That was a valid reason.”
Rainbow thought for a moment. “Was it the only reason?” she asked, slyly raising an eyebrow.
Turing hesitated for a moment. “It was not,” she replied. “I determined from reading several works of fiction in Twilight Sparkle’s library that athletes who compete often gain mutual respect and admiration for each other upon defeating one another, a state which often leads to friendship. As making friends is the goal of my primary directive, it seemed that I would be able to make friends with you by earning your respect.”
Rainbow was silent. She felt conflicted. It was almost a sweet gesture, but the logic that she would make friends with Turing just because of winning or losing a race seemed way too simple. It was almost insulting to think such an idea would work on her.
“In full disclosure, there was an additional motive.”
Surprised at this, Rainbow asked, “Another reason, you mean? What was it?”
***
The day before…
Twilight and Turing were still discussing the results of the first race and Turing’s request to visit Rainbow Dash.
“Before I say yes, Turing… why Rainbow Dash? Lots of other ponies seem to like you more now. So why her?”
Turing was quiet for a moment. “I experienced something I have not yet been able to analyze upon observing her. I am not certain if it qualifies as an emotion, but it is clearly significant...”
Twilight leaned forward and listened intently as Turing Test explained what had happened.
“Pegasi are capable of considerable speed in flight. However, my analysis of the data in your books indicated that supersonic speed is an exceptionally rare ability. And there was no data available to indicate that the creation of luminescence was a possibility. Upon seeing Rainbow Dash perform her Sonic Rainboom, I attempted to process how such a thing was possible. I concluded that it was the result of both exceptional natural ability and also exceptional effort on her part. Rainbow Dash has overcome her normal physical limits to become something totally unique. I believe I was… impressed. It may be accurate to identify it as an emotional response categorized as ‘amazement.’”
***
“Y-you were amazed by me?!” Rainbow asked breathlessly. Not normally modest, she actually found herself blushing at such a flattering statement. She was the one to cause a machine to feel amazement for the very first time!
That is sooo awesome! she thought to herself, a big grin coming across her face.
“That is correct. As a machine, I am bound by certain physical limits. Without modifications to my physical structure, I am incapable of overcoming those limits. In contrast, Rainbow Dash, you are an organic pony who has transcended your normal limitations. This made me consider the possibility of how much further I could go beyond my own programming. I had not considered the idea of such a thing before. In our initial race, I was compelled to improvise in ways I was never programmed for. And again, at present, your urging has caused me to invent a new strategy using creativity I previously thought I lacked. It would be accurate to state that you ‘inspire’ me.”
Rainbow was quiet. Turing detected her drawing in a breath sharply and making some sort of high-pitched noise and sniffling.
“Are you all right, Rainbow Dash?”
“Yep!” she said. “Yep, fine! Not getting misty-eyed, if that’s what you’re thinking!”
“...Understood.”
Quiet again settled over the two of them as Turing continued to warm Rainbow Dash.
“Perhaps I could make an inquiry in return?” Turing asked.
“Eh, fair’s fair,” she said. “Go ahead.”
“Your speed is considerable, but it would be possible to increase your overall speed by trimming your mane and tail to minimum length to decrease wind resistance.”
“What, shave off my mane and tail?! Are you crazy? No, don’t answer that, it’s an expression!”
“Understood. And that is what I was indicating.”
“No way! Sure, I could go a little faster, but I’d look stupid while doing it! What’s the point of being the fastest pony in Equestria if I look like a dope?! I need my mane and tail to leave behind that flash of rainbow when I fly. Gotta have both if I wanna look cool.”
“To clarify: you desire both velocity and positive aesthetic value.”
“If that’s Robotese for ‘cool,’ then yeah.”
“Understood.” Her ears twitched. "'Cool.' Interesting."
“Okay, as long as we’re being chatty and all, I’ve got another question.”
“Please make your inquiry.”
“So, the whole idea of this race was to beat me and get me to make friends with you, right?”
“Affirmative.”
“For one, that wouldn’t work, and I’m not going to bother telling you why. But here’s what I don’t get: if that’s what you wanted so bad, why’d you stop the race when you were winning? You didn’t know for sure anypony was in trouble and gave up your lead!”
“That is correct. While it was a possibility, I did not have confirmation that such a disaster had actually occurred.”
An icy breeze blew over the snowfield and Rainbow momentarily shivered, pulling the coils of Turing’s tail around her further. “Okay, so why?”
“Twilight Sparkle instructed me to obey what she referred to as the ‘Three Laws of Automata.’ Among those laws was the instruction that I not harm any ponies, nor should I allow ponies to come to harm through inaction.”
“Hmph,” Rainbow sniffed, disappointed. She lowered her head. “You were just following orders.”
“That summation is inaccurate.”
“But you just said--”
“I will clarify. Due to the nature of the situation, namely that I was uncertain that any ponies were actually in danger, the law did not technically apply. Rather, it has been indicated by Twilight Sparkle that the lives of other ponies are to be valued and protected. Very recently, Twilight Sparkle was presented with a large monetary offer in exchange for my ownership. She refused to consider that option and strongly indicated that, to her, I had value that could not be measured monetarily. While I do not fully comprehend her reasons, I consider her trust and esteem to be valuable and desirable and wish to please her as my end user and friend. If I, a mere machine, have such value, then logically the value of an organic pony must be far greater.”
“Heh. Even those snooty ponies back the cave?”
“Their reactions to me are fearful, based on unfamiliarity and ignorance. Such reactions are not without precedent. Many ponies display such reactions upon seeing me. Others, such as yourself, even display unconcealed hostility.”
Rainbow cringed at that. “Oh. Yeah.”
“Such reactions are irrelevant. I believe that my superior strength and abilities should be used to safeguard organic ponies, including the citizens of Ponyville, Fancy Pants, his associates, and you. I believe I must place such protection over my own goals and needs, even if it means that you and I will not become friends. That is why I chose to move the search for the injured to the top of my priority queue. One might call it displaying my gratitude to Twilight Sparkle. One might also call it ‘duty.’ Or perhaps a more accurate term would be--”
“--Loyalty.” Rainbow said the word quietly.
“Affirmative. I believe I must be loyal to Twilight Sparkle and, in a larger sense, to all ponies, when possible.”
Rainbow smiled. “That’s… I kinda like that.” Then she threw off Turing’s tail and faced her. “But that still doesn’t mean you have to put up with those snobs when they talk to you like that! Or even me! You said it yourself: Twilight thinks you’re valuable! I don’t know anything about who’s more valuable or whatever, but next time someone treats you like that, you know what you oughta do?”
Turing Test cocked her head. “I do not.”
“You look ‘em in the eye and tell ‘em, ‘Bite my shiny metal flank!’ That’s what you do!”
“Illogical. My robodonkadonk is tasteless and inedible.”
Rainbow’s eyes went wide. “What.”
“Also, in this weather, the possibility of an organic pony’s lips freezing to my posterior is--”
“BWAHAHAHAHA oh my gosh, oh my gosh, stop!” she laughed, holding her sides. “I did not need that image in my head! Hahaha, just tell ‘em, okay?”
“Understood. However, you seem to be sufficiently warmed, Rainbow Dash. Are you ready to continue demolishing the airship’s bow?”
“Huh? Oh, right!” She flew up and pointed her hoof at the ship. “All right, ship! I’m about to do to you what I did to Applejack’s barn!”
***
Fancy Pants and the others were gathering around the slowly dying fire when they heard a sound coming from outside.
“Just a moment, everypony,” Fancy Pants said. “Anchors Aweigh, if you’ll investigate with me?”
“Aye, sir,” he said.
The two stallions walked outside to see a curious sight coming up over the hill. Rainbow was flying overhead. But across the snow, Turing was pulling what looked to be the very front part of Fancy Pants' airship. It was now nothing more than the very tip of the vessel, with the flat part of the deck and some of the railing preserved, as well as the curved underside. Turing was tied to it with ropes which formed a harness.
“Oh my word!” Fancy Pants said as they slid to a stop next to the cave. “I see! You’ve constructed a sort of makeshift sled out of my airship!”
“Uh, yeah, sorry about smashing it up,” Rainbow said.
“Sorry? I’d trade a hundred airships for this sled right now!”
“For once, so would I,” Anchors Aweigh agreed, a bright smile coming to his gray, weathered face.
“There is no time to waste, Fancy Pants,” Turing Test said. “Rainbow Dash will assist you and your associates in boarding. Upon completion, I will pull you all to the bottom of this mountain. Rainbow Dash will fly to the nearest settlement and bring a medical team to rescue you.”
“Yeah, this thing’s a little bigger than we wanted, but it’s the best we could do,” Rainbow said. “It’s still pretty sturdy and it’ll get you all down. But we’ve got to go quick, it’s getting colder and colder out!”
They all looked and saw that the sun was rapidly descending over the mountains, the sky turning a shade of deep purple that was reflected in the snow all around them. The temperature would plunge in no time.
“Well then, no time to lose!” Fancy Pants said, turning back into the cave. “Come on, everypony! Our saviors have arrived! Gather up the injured and help them to board!”
Rainbow turned her attention to Turing Test. “Are you sure you’ll be okay on your own?”
“I am not certain. However, the most expedient way to rescue the victims is for us to travel separately. Please go and notify the nearby medical staff. Have them bring several carts to transport the injured.”
“Right.” She was about to go when she added, “Good luck, Turing.”
“Acknowledged.”
Rainbow Dash took off, rapidly vanishing over the snowy peaks as she made her way to the nearest community. Fancy Pants, Anchors Aweigh, and even Upper Crust helped the injured into the crude sled. Fancy Pants used an extra rope to provide some backing for the open sled to prevent anypony from tumbling out if they hit a bump or something on the slopes down.
“Are you prepared to depart?” Turing Test asked.
“I believe so, yes,” Fancy Pants said.
“Fancy, are you certain we should trust this… mechanism with our lives?” asked a mare wearing spectacles.
“Silver Frames, if you wish to remain in the cave for the evening, then by all means,” he said, sighing exasperatedly.
Silver Frames tightened her lips. “Well... when you say it like that…”
“We must depart. Please brace yourselves as the inertia will be considerable.”
“The inertia? What do you mea-augh!” she cried as Turing began pulling the sled, jerking it forward and causing them all to fall back. “Ah. I see.”
***
The frigid breeze chilled Turing’s passengers to the bone, though luckily they’d still brought a swatch of the balloon with them to act as a blanket. This didn’t bother Turing, of course, as she swiftly pulled the sled down the slope. They passed pine trees caked with snow as they weaved through paths and around rocky formations to take the smoothest possible route. As night fell, the stars began to appear and the moon slowly crept over the peaks in the east, casting its pale glow over them all. The swift, hushed sound of the sled as it plowed through the snow, along with the punctuated thump of Turing’s hooves rhythmically galloping almost made this rescue seem tranquil.
“Such beauty,” Fancy Pants whispered, his breath coming out in wisps of steam. He smiled serenely, looking over the icy, moonlit mountainside. “And so peaceful. It is as if the whole world is whispering.” Then he frowned. He heard something else. He also noticed that Turing had picked up speed. “Um, Miss Turing? Do you hear that as well?”
“Affirmative.”
“Well… does it have something to do with why you’re going faster?”
“Affirmative.”
Fancy Pants started to get nervous. He heard a faint rumbling and it was getting louder. He looked at the top of a nearby peak to the left of them and the trees along it seemed to be… bowing? No, falling. Something was coming down the mountains and knocking the trees down as it went.
“Good heavens!” Upper Crust cried, pointing at the phenomenon as well. “What is that?!”
“Avalanche detected.”
The passengers all began to panic and shout as the cascade of snow became a roar and it tore through the nearby trees at it came down at them.
“Altering route and increasing velocity. E-Mode activated.”
With another jolt, the sled picked up speed and veered off to the right, away from the approaching avalanche. Turing knew that they would have to avoid it by going up the opposite peak and through a narrow pass, but that had not been part of her original calculations. Now that she had activated E-Mode to boost her pulling power, she was using more energy than she’d planned.
“Oh my! Oh my, it’s coming closer!”
“We’ll all be killed!”
“Faster, you machine! Hurry hurry hurry!”
Turing heard them, but did not acknowledge them. She instead ascended the nearby slope as the snow behind them crashed and thundered, churning into an icy, powdery river behind them. They narrowly escaped, but her sensors indicated that the seismic vibrations would cause more minor avalanches. In fact, the very peak they were on…
“The snow! Miss Turing, it’s beginning to slide off the mountain!” Fancy Pants cried.
“Acknowledged. Attempting to evade.”
She made it over one side of the mountain and began to descend again. The pass was just ahead of them and she sped into it, the sled roughly jumping and rattling as they hit the choppier terrain and their momentum caused them to roughly bounce off the rocky walls. They looked up through the narrow crack at the top of the pass as waves of snow began to fly overhead, dusting them with it as it seeped into the pass.
A rumble and low, rocky crashing was heard as chunks of stones, larger boulders, and other debris began to rain all around them. They screamed in terror as one deadly missile after another narrowly missed them. Some even pelted the rails and sides of the former ship, splintering the wood around them. And then Fancy Pants saw a rock the size of a bowling ball tumble directly at Turing Test.
“Miss Turing--!” he cried out.
Turing didn’t even slow down as the boulder came right at her. She simply raised one hoof at precisely the right moment, striking it and shattering it to rubble that clattered against the front of the sled.
“No damage sustained.”
“Ah… bravo.” Fancy Pants laughed in spite of himself.
They burst from the pass and saw that the avalanche was a churning cataclysmic mess behind them. But ahead of them, the snow was smooth and clear as they continued down the slope. They gave a cheer as they realized they had made it.
“You’ve done it, Turing!” Fancy Pants yelled. “You’ve saved us!”
“That outcome has not been determined conclusively.”
“What? What’s wrong?”
“There is one kilometer left until we are safely out of range. However, my power is currently at 3%. Even with returning to neutral mode, I am not certain I will be able to transport you to that distance.”
“What? Could I not, uh, charge you? I thought I heard you say unicorn magic--”
“Switching to U-Mode is necessary for that method. That would mean terminating E-Mode and lowering our velocity. Furthermore, pulling the sled consumes energy faster than you would be able to replenish it. No advantage would be gained.”
Fancy Pants was quiet. Then he straightened his back, letting out a sigh of calm resignation. “Very well. Then good luck, and whatever happens, thank you for your effort, Miss Turing.”
Turing Test did not respond, but continued pulling them. Her power was beginning to drain and her systems were warning her to shut down to conserve power, but she persevered.
Soon the snow gave way to rocks and the ride became bumpier. The slope became less steep and they could at last see that the trees were parting to view the flat highland plains below. The frigid air had now become warmer. Still cool, but not enough to be dangerous to their health.
The sled slowly came to a stop and everypony sighed with relief. Fancy Pants looked over the railing and saw that Turing had sat down on the rocks just ahead of the sled. The ropes of her harness were slack.
“Well done, Miss Turing,” Fancy Pants said, smiling at the robot.
She did not respond.
“Miss Turing?” Again, there was no response.
Fancy Pants carefully stepped over the side of the sled and trotted over to her, investigating the situation. He gasped when he saw her.
There before him, Turing Test had settled into a sitting position, her head lowered slightly. Her eyes had gone completely dark and she was as still as a statue.
“Oh. Oh, poor, dear Miss Turing.” She’d used every last bit of her power to carry them as far as she possibly could.
***
System online. Recovery from automatic shutdown engaged. Loading memory… complete. Activating visual and auditory sensors… complete.
“Hello? Turing? You in there?”
Speaker identified: Rainbow Dash.
Turing Test’s eyes came on and the cameras in them began to focus. She turned to see Rainbow Dash standing next to her. She rose into a standing position herself.
“Greetings, Rainbow Dash,” she said. She looked around and saw they were in some simple room made out of wood. “This location is unfamiliar. Please identify.”
“We’re in the hospital in that village we saw earlier. Just some little place called Exmoor. Lucky you, they had a portable generator they use in case the power goes out, so we re-charged you. And finding your start button was a real pain. Whoever built you sure didn’t make it obvious!”
“Understood. Thank you for turning me on.”
Rainbow Dash made a face. “Please don’t say it like that.”
“The time was approximately 7 PM when I powered down. What is the time now?”
“About eleven o’clock,” she replied. “You were out for four hours.”
“Understood. What is the status of the crash victims?”
Rainbow smiled. “Come see for yourself.”
She took her over to the door and opened it, beckoning Turing Test with one hoof. Once they stepped through, Turing saw that the small ward was lined with hospital beds and each one was taken up by the victims from the crash. They were all resting or in bandages or being tended to by nurses and doctors.
“They’re all right,” Rainbow said, almost laughing in disbelief. “They lived. Every one of them. We did it, Turing.”
Turing scanned the room before turning back to Rainbow. “Understood. Rescue mission was successful. It appears that you were able to enlist a sufficient rescue team.”
“Ehhh, almost. We needed to go back and get another cart just for you!” She laughed, putting her hoof on Turing's shoulder. “Yeesh, Turing, you weigh more than Pinkie Pie after a bake-off!”
Turing didn’t respond, but began to walk away.
“Huh? Where are you going?” Rainbow asked.
“I must notify Twilight Sparkle of our location. Perhaps there is a telegraph office.”
“There is, and I already did it while they were re-charging you. Twi’s probably worried sick, but at least now she knows we’re both fine.”
“Acknowledged. Thank you, Rainbow Dash.”
“Speaking of thanks,” Rainbow said loudly, looking over at some of the nearby rescued victims in their hospital beds. “I believe some are in order, hmmm?” She looked at Upper Crust pointedly.
“Ah, yes, of course,” Upper Crust said, sitting up in her hospital bed. “Thank you, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow Dash waited for her to say more. When Upper Crust just stared back at her, she frowned. “Uh, forgetting somepony?” She jerked her head over at Turing Test.
“What, the machine?” Upper Crust laughed, waving her hoof dismissively. “Next you’ll be expecting me to thank the sled or the carts that brought us here!”
“I know, and did you see how her eyes went dark when her battery went dead?” Silver Frames hissed from the bed next to hers. “How ghastly!”
Rainbow was trembling and her teeth were grit and she was about to explode in anger, but then Turing quietly took a step forward.
“Upper Crust and Silver Frames,” she began, causing the two mares to freeze, “I have a request for you:
“Bite my shiny metal flank.”
“What?!” they both cried in unison as Rainbow Dash fell to the floor laughing.
Just then, Fancy Pants entered the room. “Ah, Miss Rainbow Dash, Miss Turing Test! I'm so glad I caught you! A word, please?”
The two followed him outside and down the stairs to the hospital’s front door.
“I wanted to express my gratitude, even if my colleagues are, well…”
“Rude, stuck-up snobs?” Rainbow Dash asked flatly.
“Ha! Well, yes, quite.” He tugged at his collar nervously, but cleared his throat. “But you are deserving of thanks. They and I owe both of you our lives. Should either of you need a favor, please notify me in Canterlot and I will help however I can.”
Rainbow smiled. “No problem, Fancy!”
“Your gratitude is acknowledged.”
He smiled and turned away, intending to send his own message to Fleur de Lis in Vanhoover.
“My power is still insufficient to risk a flight home,” Turing Test said. “Perhaps we should see if a late train is available to return to Ponyville.”
“Sounds good. My wings are killing me!”
“Upon our return, I will honor my end of our wager and cease further contact with you.” She began to trot toward the door. Rainbow’s eyes shot open and she soared over her to land in her path, blocking the door.
“Whoa whoa whoa!” she exclaimed, holding out a hoof to halt her. “What are you talking about?!”
“Our race never came to a conclusion, but you have discovered the reasons for me requesting it. As you indicated, winning the race to gain your friendship would not have worked. Furthermore, I have gained a sufficient quantity of data. There is therefore no need to have another race. In the interest of fairness, I will grant you the prize of your wager to mollify you. I will leave you alone.”
“N-now hold on,” Rainbow said, her cheeks reddening. “I mean, that only applies if I win the race. Well, ya know… since we never finished, that’s not necessary. Besides, I mean… after all this? After all we did today, you want to never talk to each other again?”
Turing cocked her head to the side. “Negative. However, it was my understanding that you desired such an outcome.”
“Hooboy, you really don’t know much about ponies, do you?” She smiled. “So let me teach you something. Here, stick out your hoof.”
Turing raised her foreleg slightly. Rainbow Dash adjusted it so it was sticking straight out.
“There. Perfect.” And with that, she hoof-bumped her, the sound of bone hitting metal emitting a dull clank as she did.
Turing stood there with her hoof still extended. Presently, she understood that she could put it down. “What was the meaning of that gesture?” she asked finally.
“It’s just a little something that means ‘You did great,’ or ‘You’re awesome.’” She turned to go, not wanting Turing to see the grin she had on her face. “It’s just a little something we organic ponies like to do… with our friends.”
Turing Test was quiet as Rainbow walked out the hospital door. She raised her hoof again and examined it, processing what Rainbow had just said. Then it clicked.
“Understood.” Her ears began to move as she trotted out to catch up to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow Dash, does this mean--”
“Yeah, yeah. Come on, Turing, you’ve got a successful mission to report back to Twilight.”
And so the two newly-made friends walked to the train station. Soon they would share a deserted train car as they made their way back to the place they called home.
To be continued...
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5996569 Thanks for the comment! While she's not a reference to any specific character, Gadget is very much a character made to fit a certain type: the Gadgeteer Genius. I am, of course, familiar with both characters and they are two of my childhood favorites. Glad she's resonated with you!
As for the "old people don't trust technology" thing, that's something that is still true now, but was much more true back in the old days, and since I tend to think of Equestria as being similar to the dawn of the Industrial Age, that is reflected in Celestia and others' attitudes. Anything newflangled is generally eyed with varying degrees of mistrust by traditionalists. However, in later chapters you'll see more of what motivates Celestia's attitude.
Yet another great chapter! Keep up the good work and congratulations on being featured!
5993049
Turning is less nimble, but has a faster cruising speed.
Rainbow Dash is very nimble and can sprint faster, but has a slower cruising speed.
Very good chapter. Turing's development is going well - so far she won the friendship of Rarity and Rainbow Dash, now it is Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and Applejack to go (Why I have the feeling that Applejack would be the most difficult one to change her mind? I just hope that it don't need a "Robbie" scenario to do so...)
Just hope that Turing's progress convinces Celestia to give her a chance...
One mystery that would need to be answered later is Turing Test's origin - since it is clear that she is way more advanced that was possible to build in Equestria's current technological level.
P.S. Are you considering "Person of Interest" or Robert J. Sawyer's WWW Trilogy as possible inspirations?
This chapter pleases me. It pleases me greatly.
Rainbow, don't you dare try to make Turing into Bender. I don't think she can even drink cider.
5997371 Hey, glad to have a new reader and I'm glad you're liking the story!
Well, I was wondering when someone would notice it, but... yeah, you're right. I wrote the lightning thing and then wondered if I should change it. In the end, I left it in as a plot device because it makes sense if you're not an expert. However, I did come up with an explanation which is sort of cheating, but, here goes:
The builders of the automaton were doing something that had never been done before. Sophisticated machinery, to say nothing of robots, is fairly uncommon. Combine that with a world where being struck by lightning is quite rare (the pegasi control and schedule the weather, after all) and yeah, the engineers just had an oversight. Design flaws aside, they did think of a lot of other things. As you'll see later on, it isn't harmed by rain and has quite a few other abilities.
Thanks again for commenting! Always great to have a reader who knows more than the author about this sort of thing!
This is an awesome series, and you should be proud of yourself.
I'm not kidding, this is excellent, technology with MLP is the best combination and an AI learning to be organic is all the more excellent, it is clear that the robot here, Turing, is learning what it means, and is trying to 'learn through previous knowledge and interactions' like it was said before, and that is freaking awesome in so many ways, she is still trying to learn a number of pony concepts to better fit in. Now, the only gripe I COULD have had is that the emotion part came in rather quickly, even if they were only for certain moments and she didn't have to be taught what they meant, but it is a small ting and everything else more than makes up for it.
Is the next a Pinkie Pie friends acquisition program agenda? Because I can't help but see these little expressions and jokes a lead in for Pinkie Pie to take up her side of being friends with a robot.
Also, the idea of an illusions with the griffin language comparison, the robot is simply working off knowledge it knows, like any other living being would, and it is uniquely following that information, in a different perspective that others would.
To be honest, the comparison didn't really make sense to me.
Still, the humor is awesome, and I imagine every moment Turing Test opens her metaphorical mouth to crack an unintentional joke to be awesome since it is in a robotic deadpan undertone.
But what was with that insult? Well deserved but you have to question where exactly Turing learned that one.
... Rarity, I'm looking at you, you were the one who taught her robodonkadonk.
5996991
personally, I'd like to see units 001 and 002. since Turing isconsidered unit003 when she was first activated.
That... was unexpected.
Awesome and strangely heartwarming, but unexpected.
PS. "Bite my shiny metal flank" was a thing of beauty. I can imagine it now - the robotic voice, deadpanning that line...
I just hope Turing's expanded vocabulary doesn't come back to bite her on the robadonkadonk.
I would tackle glomp Turing so hard... if I wanted to bang my head on her chasis and give myself a concusion... but I"m sorely tempted. Her logic is good, her value of pony life is wonderful, and she made friends with Rainbow and Fancy Pants.
This might actually make Celestia warm up to her. That's half the Eelements friends with Turing, who's next???
Best parts of the chapter:
and
Excellent chapter, well done!
You know , that's the first story that made me laugh in quite a while. Each time Tuning open her mouth (except that she doesn't have one) is pure gold.
Especially when she is taking with RD (who seem to be catching up one it , and use it)... now Rainbow just need to show her how to drink cider.
Really , thank you for the laugh , it gave me a little faith in the comedy tag.
But what really sell it however is that while you have various hilarious lines , you still have a well written and interesting story beside them (even borderline profund at times) ... and robot , awesome robot.
Can't wait to see what's next !
Ah, the 'Three Laws' evolve. Be vewy, vewy keful Twiwight Spakle, your robot is becoming 'aware'.
5997489
Ah, just noticed the response. For some reason I didn't get a notification.
Anyway, I love anything that has to do with robotics, but it has to be done well to keep me interested, and this is done pretty well.
I can accept the lightning bolt going through her heat sinks or something, because the story's really good. I think Test's responses may have made me question whether such a response was truly logical, but I can't think of anything specific, so it's probably not too note worthy.
If you'd like, I'd love to discuss ROS, topics in AI/neurology, and some electronics and physics that could go into creating such a machine as Test. Just to clarify, even with access to something resembling an infinitely powerful computer because of Equestria's magic, it would take probably at least twenty years for the most possibly dedicated team of a hundred or so researchers to create something like Test, assuming they had immediate access to the results of a logic analysis applied to the brains of several unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies. (The last of which is something that I found once with respect to humans, but can't seem to find anymore, and it was only with respect to basic eyesight. It had things like controlling blinking, focusing on an object in 3D-space, and detecting motion. It was both insanely complex and too vague to implement without doing a lot of research.) It's the software that would probably take the most work, except maybe for reverse engineering the brain or developing from scratch computers comparable to today's computers.
I don't imagine that Test would realistically be developed without a profound need to create her and many ponies willing to support her creation. Maybe there's an underground robo-cult or something?
5997536 Hey, thanks so much for writing such a detailed and thoughtful comment. I really appreciate you taking the time.
So, let's see:
Yeah, that is a legitimate point. My excuse is that absorbing the information in Twilight's library has given her access to many stories, factual and otherwise, to cross-reference. She can thus compare what she experiences to what books identify as emotional responses.
It is.
Another point: the "Griffonese Room Argument" may not seem logical, but it is a real world argument made for why a machine can never truly become "sentient." It basically implies that any "Turing Test" is invalid. It is, as you'll see in that link, not without many many counterarguments.
Thanks for commenting! Oh, AND a favorite? Yay!
Welp, I better get cracking all the awesome comments you all have been leaving! Thanks for your feedback, everyone!
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Oh her origin has already been planned, but that'll come later. You'll get some hints soon. I am not familiar with those works, but I'll investigate them! Thanks!
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I haven't forgotten about them.
5998190 You know you've done something right when you make a character glomp-worthy despite risk of injury.
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You never know when you write a joke if people will laugh or just groan at it. So this comment, well, it just really makes me happy. Thank you so much.
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5998322 There's too much to reply to without giving away a lot, but let me try my best.
First, I'm really really glad people who work with this sort of technology like this story. I try to do a lot of research and I am a robotics enthusiast, but at the end of the day I'm still just a layperson who may or may not know what he is talking about. Still, I like to think about how to portray this in as convincing a manner as possible. The idea of some lone mad scientist building a robot with perfect understanding of everything around it bothers me, especially in a place like Equestria, so I've done my best to incorporate what fits with the world without being too anachronistic. Still, I would love to hear what you think or any information you believe might be helpful or even interesting. Learning new things is always exciting, so comment or leave a PM and I'll most gladly accept your input!
While I won't spoil too much here, I will say that several things you've guessed at are very, shall we say, astute. Surprisingly so.
(If you're dying to know which things specifically, I'll PM.) And this...
...not quite. In the ballpark, but not quite.
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Yes! My predictive powers are working!
I'll try to PM you sometime soon with more information about robotics, but it'll take a while to get all the relevant information down to something digestible.
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Hmm, you're welcome, and I look forward to seeing teacher Pinkie Pie show Turing what humor is, it will be a blast.
And with that explanation, I suppose that is a good one, I won't go into how emotions are the result of electricity running through the grey matter of an organic brain because, hey, that would disrupt a lot of OTHER Artificial Intelligences that did the same.
Now, I am interested in Pinkie Pie, and you haven't fallen into the usual trend of making her TOO childish since she did offer a logical argument in a Pinkie Pie way of whhy Turing would be a problem, but I think I'm more interested in Applejack, after all, the girl seems to be treading the country stereotype of 'tech-naw-logy is bad', it isn't that simple is it?
5998846 Well, this will be interesting. Will Turning be able to keep her processes going around Pinkie or will Pinkie literally blow her mind out????
Since the next character to make friends with Turing will apparently be Pinkie Pie, I'm now wondering which of Turing's functions would be most useful at a party.
Does any part of Turing include LEDs, light bulbs, or some magic analogy of these components? If yes, she might put on a good light show.
Robotic singing is also an option, considering she is capable of speech and presumably has a working knowledge of music as a result of scanning the entire library.
And, obviously, U-mode. Which is considered cheating since magic can do an enormous amount of things.
Really liking the fic thus far. You’ve got a nice robotic character who is pretty fun to read about, and you seem to have put some thought and research behind this. Also, the humor; a robot not understanding idioms or phrasing things awkwardly may be par for the course, but it’s still funny.
Could they try electrostatically powder coating her parts? Or is her alloy resistant to even that?
I'm going to go ahead and guess that AJs' 'reluctance' may have something to do with Flim and Flam, or you might be going for the little-tread ‘her parents died in a mechanical accident’ route? The amount of hostility she seems to harbor towards Turning Test seems to indicate something quite personal, so I’m guessing either Farm or Family.
And I’d find it hilarious if whoever sent the robot to find Twilight had sent it to her specifically to learn about friendship, perhaps thinking that being able to make friends might be the last step before it could become a true person.
Please keep up the good work.
I just realized. If I so wish, I can make the cosplay I'm working on, into Turning Test.
I mean, look at this bit!
Freaking robot wings!
Now the question is, who has the shinier ass?
I'm going to say this, I know I'm weeks late but I got to point this out.
Has anyone noticed that Turing doesn't any 'normal' wording for posterior? She could use: Butt, Ass, Flank, Posterior, Plot hole containment zone, hell anything but instead she uses 'robodonkadonk'. At least twice, as of this point in the story (Priority Queue, Part 2), she used robodonkadonk since Rarity said that to her before but nothing else and is required to clarify her wording. Turing has more of a soul at this point than anypony cares to admit. She is using something that she has no reason to use besides an organic's 'I like it so I use it instead'. Since I'm still reading the story I could have this whole thing explained out or shot down later on, but at this point I had to point this out.
To Quote Johnny 5: 'Turing Test IS ALIVE'
Aaaaaaaand there. Kept the promise I didn't need to make. You know, if I didn't know any better, I would totally say that Turing planned for this all to happen. That's a dumb assumption to make, though, because that would mean she'd put ponies lives at risk and that's something she'd never willingly do. There may be another comment about what I'm saying here, but I didn't bother to read another others for whatever reason. In any case, the first mention of airship brought this to mind. I've never been able to look at it the same way again after that image.
Now, for tunes. There was this at the beginning of the chapter with the race, then at some point during the rescue I started playing this on a whim. And yeah, that's really all I have to say about that. It's still good as usual n' I hope I can catch up sometime soon.
Finally! A conclusion at the end of a chapter! I can sleep without worry! I can save the rest for later! Hurrah!
In other words, this has been impossible to put down and it is now 2:30 and I need to wake up in less then five hours...
Damn you for making such a good compelling read!
Dat ending scene
I believe wholeheartedly that Turing at the very least has a crush on Rainbow, and it's very adorable.
Is it bad that I'm reading Turing Test with Sweetie Bot's voice? It's super adorable!
7091427 Had to be done.
well apparently turing test is now bender ... I approve lol
That image and this chapter... i ship it
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BA DUM TISH
Except for the remains of the wooden airship they just came from. Not that it would have mattered, given the probability of avalanche. I'm just saying.
She's now talking like bender I approve
6968600 omg thank you I'm not alone I'm reading it with sweetiebell voice as well
Turing Test, for your excellent comeback to the snobby uppercrusts, I hearby award you the Bender Seal of Approval.
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D'awww.
And then Turing was Bender.
Sounds like Rainbow has unconsciously recognized that Turing adapted Twilight's failed sensory qualia experiment into one of the key elements of being friends... you don't have to share your friends' passions to understand what goes into them well enough to be a good friend.
Nice job finding another place to use that without it feeling stale. :)
hahahahahahaha yes
Please DO ;3
Somehow it was funnier when she actually wound up saying it than when Dashie suggested it. Turing makes everything funny.
This chapter made me smile ☺
Well you definitely put a spin on the trope of on character wins the first race then the other character wins the second race by throwing an avalanche of plot twists in there.
Am I the only one who's thinking of bender from Futurama if he were a pony when she said bite my shiny metal flank
Please stop making me laugh so hard.
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