6 - Shenanigans ex Machina
Fluttershy - 12th of Snowfall - Afternoon
Back in Ponyville most ponies knew that I am afraid of most things. They do their best to keep me comfortable, they understand, it’s just how ponies are. What most of them don’t know is most of the time I am aware of what I am doing when spooked, I just can’t do anything about it.
I used to go to therapy to try and get over my fears, but after a few years Dr. Shrink gave up. He directed me to a neurobiologist in Manehatten, but I’d never gone in to get the scans he recommended. I just couldn’t. It wasn’t a fear of technology or doctors, It’s because I’m afraid of being well, broken.
Can you imagine learning your brain doesn't work right and that’s why you are who you are? That would mean I was just doing what my brain told me to do. Which would mean I would need to answer a lot of questions. Like “Is there even a me?”, “Do I have free will?”, and other terrible questions.
If one tiny thing wrong with your brain can make you constantly afraid and unable to tell yourself to be brave or just not afraid. Do we really have any agency, or are we just machines doing whatever we are meant to do while thinking we choose to do it? I don’t want to know the answer.
Which is why I mostly was just saying huddled in my room instead of exploring Gaia like everypony said I should. At least they understood I would need some time to adjust. She didn’t though, the machine pony.
Every few days she would remind me my bioscan showed ‘abnormalities’ and offer ‘corrective maintenance’. So no thanks. Room. Saying in.
It was a really nice room. I got to make it like my room back in Ponyville, only with more plants and flowers everywhere. The nature inspired furniture helped me feel comfortable even though my literal worst fear was being pushed at me ever few days.
I did spend time in the common room though. It was nice too, but not as nice as my room because it was too big. The smooth floors and walls had a sort of charm, but the white color was just kinda depressing. At least the furniture had a nice craftsman style to it and the wood color and brass made the room a bit cheerful.
Though, I did have to triple check with Phoenix that no animals had been hurt making the leather. I’m probably the only pony who would be okay with sitting on prepared skin. It’s wasteful to just let an animal rot when it dies after all. After a quick conversation the machine decided to remake them with synthetic leather to avoid a problem.
The big couches were nice though. Comfortable, big enough to lay on if you wanted, and there was a cool leaver thingie which brought up a hoof rest. Sure, it was meant for bipeds to relax, but it let a pony lay down and face the other couch without twisting your neck. So my friends and I would be comfortable talking about everything everypony else had been up too.
Twilight had been spending a lot of time working with a few changelings working on building something called a ‘astrometrics sensor array’, apparently some kind of superduper telescope. Apparently once finished it would let anyone learn a whole bunch about any planet within ‘five hundred light years’. I have no idea how far away that is, it would be helpful if Twilight stopped talking about a unit of time as a unit of distance.
Rainbow had found the Emerald’s equivalent of the Wonderbolts, the Comanche and joined them as an honorary member to learn their stealth techniques. Apparently they could fly anywhere almost unseen using a few simple tricks, and usually flew in the form of pegasi while doing it. Dash was having enough fun to start wearing a small black collar with a pin of the Comanche’s black hawk and cloud emblem stuck in it.
Pinkie had apparently managed to invent a way to recycle some of the love Changelings ate. From what I understood her first attempt resulted in a changeling stuck in the med bay developing into a Queen. If she was alright when everything was done, the plan was to use Pinkie’s idea to make more Queens, since the Emeralds couldn’t normally have them; and changelings need Queens to expand their hives size past a certain point. Meaning Pinkie Pinkied up a solution to two of their problems trying to make cookies. A normal day for her.
Rarity was having a harder time than everypony else fitting in. Changeling high society didn’t really exist. They have a ‘everyone is equal’ mentality, and the closest thing they get to a fancy dinner part is eating pony food for fun. Though to be fair Rarity did admit she was enjoying a changeling game where participants received a basket of random ingredients (everyone gets the same stuff though) and have to make a dish using all of them. Her only complaint was as a non-changeling she couldn’t judge more than a few games since she couldn’t demorph and have everything she ate just vanish.
Applejack was having a blast helping with something called ‘Project Eden’. Apparently it involved creating an entire ecosphere from scratch, not literally, but on paper. It was apparently a way to find out how best to make the land around Gaia useful. While AJ normally didn’t like science stuff, she was enjoying helping work out ways to make plants work together so they would all be better for it. Everypony was glad she was getting to do something she liked, and I was surprised to learn she knew more than just apple trees.
Trixie was having fun doing her normal thing. She was spending most of her time putting on street performances in the malls and in the big parks on each floor of the tower. She said she was saving up hugs for something to surprise everypony with. She’s become a bit of a celebrity, apparently her tricks are good enough to fool changelings too, and they apparently like it as much as ponies do. To be fair, that one she does where she makes a card with your name on it appear on a bow on your special somepony’s tail is pretty good.
Nopony knew what the Crusaders were up to. They were spending most of their time locked in their room, or with Pinkie and this pony named Sky she liked down in a machine shop. I couldn’t get a word out of them, and Pinkie only mentioned they were working with Sky to build stuff. So that was a mystery for another day.
I know what you’re thinking, all of my friends were out doing fun and important things while I just stuffed myself away and hid. That’s not totally true, I did things too. I had made a new friend, Taylor. The pink human hybrid was a pretty fun person to be around, and she knew something completely amazing, Human entertainment. As much as I love nature, it’s nice to have something fun to do inside.
Movies were pretty fun, sure I had seen a few in theaters in Canterlot of Manehatten, but they were much better in your home! There weren't a million strangers around and nopony would get upset if you talked to a friend about something in the movie, and you could pause or reverse it if you missed something. That was special, and I got the girls to sit down one evening and watch a few old movies. It was really fun!
Then there were TV shows, which were like a fusion of movies and radio dramas. Those were really neat, especially the animated ones. I don't think anypony ever thought of drawing things in such a way as to make them move when viewed in sequence.
Which is terrible, because I absolutely loved how you could just make anything you imagine happen in cartoons. Ben 10 was amazing, but I don’t think we could make a play of it without hiring a changeling actor. But with animation, that wasn’t even a problem.
There was one other type of entertainment humans had come up with which Taylor showed me which blew those out of the water. She hadn't thought I would like them, since I’m well, timid, and I mentioned the war a few times. I thought I might be stressed out when she described it myself, but I tried it anyways. I was so glad I was wrong because there seriously wasn’t anything more fun than video games.
Especially not the game Taylor and I had taken to playing together. When she came back from training there was a five hour period before her marefriend got home (Dinky of all ponies. I was shocked at how she had herself made into a centaur like that. It suits her though). That's when we would hang out, and until we beat it, that’s when we would play together.
My ears perked as the Common room’s door hissed open. A second later Taylor’s scent drifted through the air, since her personal scent smelled like sugar and lilacs it was impossible to mistake. I paused the episode of The Transformers I was watching and turned to give her a smile, “Hi.”
She gave me a wave back and sat down, slowly stripping off her training armor. “Hey Shy! I’ll be ready in a few minutes. Got bucked in the gut pretty hard, and I think it’s jammed this clasp here… Didja work out any way to get past the rut we’re in?”
I nodded, I had actually. There wasn’t much else to think about last night. “W-well we still have a little bit of Elerium left, and we should have the plasma weapons research done in three days game time. If we ignore any attacks which happen until then we can upgrade our shiv’s with plasma cannons, making them effective again, and then we should stop losing somepo- um somebody each mission.”
Taylor giggled and shook her head. “You are seriously the last person I ever thought would like X-COM. You sure you want to spend the Elerium on that though? If we use it to upgrade our jets we will have an easier time getting more.”
“That’s true,” I answered blushing shyly, “But I really think we are better off if we don't lose someone ever mission. We don't have many skilled soldiers left and the Aliens well… new recruits don't stand a chance.”
“Good point. That’s the Long War mod for you I guess.” Taylor said, finally getting her suit off with a loud hiss. “There we go!” she stretched, tugging at the black undersuit her armor stuck too.
“If that’s not comfortable you can just take it off. Nopony will mind.” I informed, again. It made no sense to dress if it wasn’t comfortable or good looking. I would never understand why Taylor did it.
“Heh… yeah… You don’t just shake off two decades of social norms overnight. Even if bare fur is so much more comfy.” she picked up her armor in her arms and gave her room’s door a tap with her foot to open it. “Well, come on co-Commander. The Council’s waiting!”
“To give us an A rating!” I giggled hopping off the couch. Sure it was more like a C, but I could dream!
Oh well, at least it was fun playing a game where you did everything you could to protect people. It was like a do-over for the war I was in for real. Only fun and not emotionally hurty.
Fluttershy - 12th of Snowfall - Evening
The alien battleship fired a volley of plasma bursts. Our fighter nimbly dodged the first salvo only to be hit by the second and third! With a groan of tortured machinery the battered fighter fired its main guns. With a roar and a thunder ponies have never heard the chain guns tore into the side of the alien ship, an explosion rang out, and the metal behemoth plunged from the skies!
“We did it!” I exclaimed, clapping my hooves together as the alien battleship on screen went down.
“Told you the railguns were worth it!” Taylor exclaimed with a grin.
I nodded, “They totally were! I just hope we have enough alloy left to- Eep!”
The light’s suddenly clicking on made me jump, nearly falling out of my seat. Dinky was home early today.
“Oop! Sorry Fluttershy.” She apologized hooves clicking as she walked into the room. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”
She trotted over to Taylor and gave her a hug from behind, “Hey dear! When you two are done I found a really cool place in the 3rd floor mall where they cook food right in front of you and make a whole performance of it. We should totally go!”
“That actually sounds fun!” Taylor exclaimed before frowning and giving me a sad look, “Are you okay with stopping now? I’m a little hungry so well… yeah.”
“I-I um… guess that’s okay. We can stop here.” I said, ears drooping in disappointment.
“You could go with us you know.” Dinky said, kneeling down to get closer to my eye level. “It’s really not to different from Ponyville out there… Well, changelings are more happy to see you than ponies are, and a little clingy, but it’s not that bad.”
I knew she meant well, but that was not my idea of a good time. At all. Maybe if they all morphed animals or something, that might be okay. “I’ll be okay. You two have fun.”
Dinky frowned slightly, giving me a concerned look. Taylor did too. “You sure?” Taylor asked. “It’s not healthy to just stay inside all the time.”
“I know… I um… It’s just better okay?” I said as I slid off the chair. “I’ll see you later.”
“Okay, but you-” Taylor started only for Dinky to interrupt.
“Hon, she’s not quite normal. She just needs time to adjust to a new everything. Watch, next month she’ll be having a blast!” She lifted Taylor and set her on her back, “Anytime you want to go out with us just say so Fluttershy, okay?”
I gave her a grateful nod. “Okay. Bye!”
One wide fake smile and I was out of there. Heart pounding, thoughts of social interactions with strangers racing through my mind, I zipped out the door and ran nose first into Scootaloo! I knocked the poor mare over, a bunch of things scattered everywhere as her saddlebags fell open.
“Ow! Celestia! Watch whe-” Scootaloo blinked recognizing me and flinched. “Sorry Flutters…”
“Oh! No it’s okay! I really should watch where I am going.” I apologized quickly
I quickly started to pick up the things I had made Scootaloo drop. A heartbeat later Scoots quickly stuffed everything into her bags. “It’s okay I don't have time to talk I need to go to the machine shop, say hi to mom for me!”
As she sprinted off I wanted to tell her I had one of her things in my hoof, but I was too embarrassed to speak up. It was a small metal band, which looked like it was meant to fit around a pony’s upper arm, and had a single button on it. Whatever it was, it was very sci-fi looking, glittering silvery metal within set orange wiring leading to the button like veins in an eye.
“Fluttershy… what are you holding?” Queen Phoenix's voice asked curiously from nowhere. Celestia’s mane I needed to try to tell her how completely creepy that is!
“I-I don’t know. Scootaloo dropped it.” I replied quietly.
“She wasn’t carrying anything.” Phoenix objected.
“Y-yes she was. She had saddlebags on. This fell out of one when I bumped into her.” I said with a frown, “You can see everywhere… I-I um, I mean, you should have seen-”
“You didn’t bump into her, you tripped. Then you suddenly had that in your hoof.” she protested.
“I… I think you’re not um, seeing things properly. Because I bumped into her just now.” I said as firmly as I could manage.
“They’ve hacked me.” Phoenix said in an impressed tone. “Those magnificent bastards… What are they up to?”
“I don’t, er- Nopony knows! They spend all their time in their room or in the machine shop. With um, Sky. I think that’s his name.” I informed, moving slowly to my room.
She needed a face. Why didn’t she use that projection thing every time? Voices from nowhere that sound like they are right in front of you are really bucking creepy you stupid machine!
Phoenix sighed, “Great. The one pony I have zero influence with is the only person they talk to… Time to go all detective on them then. I don’t suppose you would consider helping me see what that device does would you?”
“I, um, I guess so.” I squeaked. “D-do you want me to press the button?”
“In a minute… Move to the wall replicator please.” She asked. “I’m going to make you something first.”
I trotted over to the large shelf set into the wall. A slight shimmer lit the machine as it produced a small device on a set of straps which looked like it would fit around a pony’s shoulders and barrel. I picked it up curiously. The device on the straps was small, triangular, kinda thick, and had a bunch of different things on one side, one of which looked like a camera.
“That’s a full sensor package I can QEC with. If you slip it on so the camera is facing away from you on your barrel I can see everything you are, from your perspective. It will help me figure out what this thing is.” Phoenix said, projecting a small hologram showing me how to put it on.
“Oh. Okay.” I quickly slipped myself into the straps.
They cut into my shoulders a little bit, and the actual device felt cold and was too big to move my shoulders forwards while it was on. But the sooner I finished this for her, the sooner I could just to read a book or have some tea or something enjoyable. Maybe I could finish that episode of Megas XLR.
I bit my lip and looked at the thing Scootaloo had dropped in my hoof. “I um… What if something goes wrong?”
“Don’t worry about it. I can heal anything that happens to you.” Phoenix commented, her voice coming from the device on my chest.
“You can’t heal dead…” whispered trying to fend off a panic.
“Heh, you would be surprised to learn how easy that is.” Phoenix said dismissively. “As long as thirty percent of your brain is intact, I can revive anyone who's been dead less than three hours. If you are totally vaporized and I have a recorded memory engram and some of your DNA, I can just flash clone a new body and put you into it.”
“W-what?” I exclaimed in confusion.
“Exactly what I just said.” Phoenix said with a hint of irritability, “Don’t worry about it. If you are damaged or disabled I can and will repair you. Let’s find out what this thing does!”
“You can seriously undo anything bad that happens from this?” I asked again.
“Yes. Well… no. I don’t have an engram of you. But I am not registering any explosives in that thing so well, I’m reasonably certain I can fix anything it might do to you. Additionally Scootaloo and her mates do not strike me as the sorts to build a device a pony slips on which injures them if they use it.” Phoenix pointed out. In a rather sensible way I might ad.
“Well, that’s a good point. I guess it wouldn’t be dangerous.” I took a deep breath and tapped the button on the armband.
The air in front of me sparked like somepony was welding something. The sparks quickly traced a perfectly square shape two ponies wide leaving white glowing lines in the air before forming a cube around me. “What’s happening!” I squeaked.
“Ohhh! It’s a portable transporter! Um, keep your hooves in the cube Fluttershy. Don't’ worry I’ll teleport you back from wherever you end up!”
“W-what?” I squeaked before everything flashed a bright blinding pink, yellow, and purple plaid pattern on all sides.
The plaid cube vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving me in the middle of- “Ponyville!” I exclaimed in delight.
I could see everything! Everypony’s thatched roof, the carousel boutique, the town hall, the old library. Wait, the old library? “What?” I asked, my brain hurting a little.
“Huh, so this is Ponyville. Your species is even less technologically advanced than I tho- wait what?” Phoenix said in a staticy, crackly voice.
“What?” I asked again.
“Fluttershy… Um, bend down a bit so I can get another angle on this leaf please.” Phoenix asked.
“Why is the library back in town? It burned down!” I exclaimed starting to panic.
Suddenly I began to notice a thousand other things which were wrong. Absolutely everything had a metallic look to it. The birds singing seemed artificial, like from an arcade machine. The tree’s leaves were blueish tinted on one side and-
“Why the hell is this leaf coated in solar panels on one side?” Phoenix asked in complete confusion. Then a heartbeat later, “Holy shit! This is a technological plant! And so is this… and this one… all of them! They are collecting solar energy and distributing it through a network of tiny power relays in the soil! That’s awesome!”
I think I made some sort of nervous mewling squeaky sound. I was too scared to remember. This was a perfect simulacrum of home, but with everything just slightly wrong! Everything wrong! Everything right!
“Fluttershy! Hey, Fluttershy! Say something please.” Phoenix begged.
“Get me back! Please!” I begged back.
“Already working on it… My main systems have found you. It looks like that device rips a hole between dimensions. I’ll have a wormhole ready to bring you home in three minutes. Just stay calm, okay?” She asked.
“I-I can’t!” I squeaked.
A metal bird landed on a tree branch across from me. It looked like a normal bird, but sleek, made from stamped pieces of metal, and painted with glossy paints, and with two glowing screens instead of eyes. It’s beak twitched as it began to sing an unearthly melody.
“Eeeep!” I squeaked, ducking down and hiding behind my hooves.
“Hehehe!” Phoenix giggled. “It’s an android bird singing an eight bit tune!”
“It’s all machines…” I whispered to myself trying to ignore the not-grass pressing into my belly.
“Whoa!” Phoenix exclaimed in a concerned tone. “You’re having a full panic attack aren't you? I’m sorry there’s some lag in these sensors.”
I curled up into a ball and closed my eyes, Scootaloo’s device dropping to the ground where I left it. It would be okay, I would be out of here soon. This wasn’t happening, nothing was wrong. It was just another hallucination…
“Fluttershy,” Phoenix said soothingly, “sometimes when your hopes have all been shattered,
there's nowhere to turn and you wonder how you keep going, think of all the things that really mattered, and the chances you've earned.”
“W-what?” I asked, glad for a semi familiar sound to focus on.
“Think of everything you have accomplished. Right now. You can do it!” she ordered in a pleasant tone.
Everything? Well, I made a cake that one time, and I finally learned to fly. Or did she mean, like, big things? There was the dragon I talked down.
“Pulse evening out… EKG readings are shifting to positive… Keep it up!” Phoenix praised.
I was the pony who befriended Discord. I guess that was a pretty big thing. I mean, he might be out hurting ponies if I hadn’t made him my friend! Nopony had helped me with that, it had been all me.
“The fire in your heart is growing, that’s good! Fluttershy, if you try leave the darkness of your past behind, well, heaven only knows what you might find!” Phoenix exclaimed.
“I… I appreciate it. But I know what you're doing. I’ve had therapy before.” I admitted. “I-I mean I’m grateful you helped me out of a panic, but… this dosen’t stick.”
“Not even if I paraphrase the chorus of this Stan Bush song?” Phoenix asked sincerely.
She tried to calm me down using a song somepony wrote? I couldn’t help but giggle. That was funny in a kinda mean sort of way. “No.”
“I um… didn’t exactly have an original thought for something motivational… Sorry.” she apologized.
I took a deep breath and stood up, “So how long until you can get me home?”
“Twenty eight seconds.” she answered.
“Okay. I think I can manage that.” I replied with a nod.
I decided to turn around so I wouldn’t have to look at that terrifying version of Ponyville. I guess it wasn’t really that scary, but it unnerved me more than I could describe. The second I turned around I found myself face to face with somepony!
Glowing purple eyes! Shiny lavender metal plates like armor! Smooth contoured lines! Kinda glowing, silk like, midnight blue, purple, and magenta mane! Needlepoint horn! No wings, but otherwise a carbon copy of Twilight, only a robot!
“AH!” I shouted jumping backwards in shock.
“DWEE!” the robot version of Twilight shouted jumping back in equal terror.
I snapped my wings open and hid my face behind them. “I’m-so-sorry-I-didn’t-mean-to-come-here-please-don’t-hurt-me!” I rattled off in full panic mode.
The robot Twilight made a few sounds I honestly couldn’t write if I tried. A series of beeps, hisses, and static like a radio which wasn’t tuned right is as close as I can describe them. They sounded apologetic somehow.
“So… This is a parallel universe where everything’s a machine and ponies speak in ROILA over dial up. Awesome! Hold on, I’ll let her know we’re harmless.” Phoenix commented.
A second later a matching series of terrible machine sounds emitted from Phoenix's device. The robot pony said something in reply, to which Pheonix had a reply, and the robot said something back sounding and looking really super mega excited.Then there was a loud pop and flash of white light!
I was in my room, in Gaia’s tower, not my room in my home in Ponyville. I didn’t give a single buck about that, I was home! “Oh thank the Sisters!” I shouted in relief.
“That was incredible! I really need to look into multiverse theory more!” Phoenix exclaimed in the tone Twilight used when she found anything new.
Oh. Right. Not alone. Needed alone! “I um, could you give me some time alone? I um, I’m sure you need to figure out why Scootaloo made a bracelet which takes you-” I eeped.
“Oh crap… we left the bracelet over there didn’t we?” Phoenix asked rhetorically.
I nodded.
“Well… We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it! For now, I need to figure out how and why they hacked my security systems, and analyze the data I recorded from our trip to the Roboverse.” Phoenix said eagerly.
“Okay. You do that. I’m going to um… I’m going to have some tea.” I said moving to the shelf where I had set my teapot.
“Alright.” Phoenix said cheerfully enough. “I’m sorry that was so stressful. I didn’t think you would wind up in a parallel dimension… No hard feelings?”
I shook my head. I honestly wasn't upset with her. I wouldn’t have expected that to happen either, and she had gotten me back home as quickly as she could. “No. It’s alright. You didn’t mean too.”
“Yeah… I thought it would be a control device or a communicator… I really need to to work out what they are up to… I’ll talk to you later. Goodbye.” Phoenix said, presumably leaving.
“Goodbye.” I said out loud hopefully to an empty room and began to make myself a pot of tea.Magic R&D Unit Twibot Spark - 100975307171
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<html>
<head><title>Letter to SysAdmin</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>SysAdmin CelestAI,</p><p>While completing assigned task within the Badsector Forest I made first contact with bio-mechanical life! This incident caused mission details to slip from my RAM due to the system shock. However I do recall the mission was completed to requested specifications. I hope this is excusable due to a first contact scenario.</p>
<p>Based on observation, the bio-mechanical lifeform seemed to be a copy of Element Node Fluttershy, indicating a high probability of her origin being a parallel reality. I have attached observational data to this message for your consumption. The technological device she has around her platform’s barrel is interesting, and was capable of speech. It would appear these counterparts to us utilize technology in the same way we utilize biology.</p>
<p>I have a sample of the organic’s technology, a small ring she dropped out of fright. I suspect she did not intend to transport herself here. Regardless I am in possession of the transportation device and with your permission would like to reverse engineer it. I know I am a low ranked research drone, but I believe I could enable the device to transport myself safely from our reality to the organics. This naturally would yield many scientific advances, and would be a most enjoyable task for this unit to be assigned to.</p>
<p>Yours via Admin Privileges,</p>
<p>Twibot Spark</p>
</body>
</html>
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head><title>Letter to Work Unit</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>Magic R&D Unit Twibot Spark,</p><p>You are requesting this duty assignment because the organic was cute, aren't you?</p>
<p>SysAdmin,</p>
<p>CelestAI</p>
</body>
</html>
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Letter to SysAdmin</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>SysAdmin CelestAI,</p><p> >.> Yes... :P</p>
<p>Yours via Admin Privileges,</p>
<p>Twibot Spark</p>
</body>
</html>
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Letter to Work Unit</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>Magic R&D Unit Twibot Spark,</p><p>Alright, go ahead. You are underutilized as is. May as well allow you to attempt to study this parallel universe. Proceed with safety in mind. Discretionary funds have been transferred to your account.</p>
<p>SysAdmin,</p>
<p>CelestAI</p>
</body>
</html>
I clapped my hooves together, the rubber hoof caps making a delightful muted thump. “Happy Exclamation: Yay!”
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So, what have we learned today?
"Don't mess with extra dimensional physics unless you understand extra dimensional physics..."
... Okay, is it wrong that I want to see more of the Roboverse ponies? Like in a story or something?
I wonder how rigid this Roboverse is....is their timeline similar, but behind by a decade and a half or so? Or is it completely different. I wonder how similar these parallels are. EQG Lyra seems pretty similar to Equis Lyra, after all.
Also....Phee has realized what you three are doing now, Scoots...things aren't going to be so easy in the future.
Well Phee, time to break out the higher class replicators and honypot functions.
Let the CMC have their untouched access to your current core, while the core you actually run thngs with is elsewhere.
Frankly, having a 5^5 rolling majority cluster is theoretically possible with a single one of todays top end GPUs, 3125 cores out of 3600. If you think 32k local cache isnt enough, thats 16k Rom and 16k ram, which is the earlier ZX Spectrum with BASIC, and you can have 1k approximate chess.
Or you can have a full 32 bit multitasking kernal in 4k, and try for other lops to play with in the rest. Wonder what size of compact neural net can fit in 16 k.
Yaay, Robo Twilight on the way. I take it Phee will kit her out with a Hentai Tentacle Cluster instead?
6139406 Since this story is setting up one massive Universe, you will!
6139423 The EQG universe and Equis are actually in the same universe, they follow the D&D planes of existence model. The Robot universe is a true parallel universe, and has it's own EQG counterpart within it. It's fairly different. Sunset Shimmer never went nuts and became the Element of Magic, as such Twilight in that universe is a simple mage and scholar. The Library is still standing because Triek was fought near Manehatten.
6139427 Robots are best bots.
6140173Communication subroutiens are designed in such a way as to annoy.confuse organic meatbags. Hence speaking in ROILA via dileup tones. No JK, It was that or a BATCH script and I dont think anyone wants to read a batch script. So I picked the thing that looks computery and is readable.
6140182 I would of read the batch script....
...Ooh, Roboverse! The CMC have hacked Phoenix enough to spoof sensors, kinda unexpected but possible considering their hinted-at high-tech adventure. And Phoenix wants to fix Fluttershy's anxiety. Hmmm. Looking forward to the next chapter!
6140189 Call this the canon way they send letters, and you will see why I didnt use it. Yes, all of it is nessicairy, or the message wont be created right nor transmit to a remote host.
6140230 oh well, its the multiverse, anything that can happen, will.
so I guess we got the one where they use html
6140216 You totally want a mechanical bonzai tree now don't you?
also, I can't find dinky, but here:
th05.deviantart.net/fs70/200H/f/2012/295/1/1/fluttershy_as_a_centaur_by_unicornpoots-d5iok7r.psd
img03.deviantart.net/df47/i/2013/140/6/7/rainbow_dash_centaur_by_fortunafiraga-d65yd4a.png
orig12.deviantart.net/6b05/f/2012/346/3/2/my_little_centaur_pinkie_pie_by_phantasmicdream-d5nv3qz.jpg
orig04.deviantart.net/4f75/f/2013/241/4/7/applejack___orange_centaur_princess_of_honesty_by_kaylathehedgehog-d6k75kx.png
(satyr, not centuar)
fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/248/e/a/my_little_satyr__rarity_by_tavisharts-d48uws6.jpg
(wait, wtf?!)
orig04.deviantart.net/b5e4/f/2013/186/b/f/because_the_first_twilight_centaur_wasn_t_enough_by_arrkhal-d6c5me2.png
6140238 Nonono my good man, that's just translated so you meatbags can easily read it. Like everything else. The story is written in English, not Equish.
6140255 well I'm sorry, if I could choose to be silica based I would, carbon based bodies have sooo many problems, and androids are awesome
Is this what would happen if Friendship Is Optimal ran it's course? Or would that universe be far worse?
6140515 This is what would happen if a universe existed where the roles of technology and biology were revered. Namely, all life is what we would call synthetic, and in that world a robot would be an organic life form.
6140518 Ah, I see. Then let my robot jokes commence!
...
ERROR DOES NOT COMPUTE
C/ProgramFiles/RobotJokes.exe DOES NOT EXIST
PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE
6140541 Error 404: Love not found. Searching sub directories... Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me, no more. DOSE NOT COMPUTE!
Fluttershy likes xcom and not just any old xcom no she likes the long warorig08.deviantart.net/5d43/f/2014/317/1/9/seems_legit_2osh0x_by_aske_a_s_b_m_b-d86augq.jpg
6140969 XCOM + Expansion + Long War + My Shiv is Special = Best game to date. Gotta have the shiv mod, those lil guys deserve names! Once had one take out 4 mutons in time to evac my downed team. Got that mod just to give the lil guy a medal.
I didn't know Fluttershy could hit ludicrous speed.
6141153 Only when she isn't trying to
Very nice. Kind of frightening that the C.M.C. have multiversal transportation abilities. And the machine twilight thinking that fluttershy was cute was inspired. I wonder what will come of that? Also... CelestAI hmmm? Wonderful. You did a crossover with the friendship is optimal universe. There are so many crossovers in this story series now that i can not officially count them. But as always a wonderful chapter, and like all your stories, i intend to track it till its end. :D
6142749 It's not a crossover. The name was the best robot joke I could make with the name Celestia. See Twibot Spark, Spectrum Dash, App-bloom, and L.Y.R.A. I'm glad you like it though!
Also that was a failed prototype... It was only suposed to be a teleport reverceing device Return to where you were last transported from.
6142789 I assume you have not read the Friendship Is Optimal stories? In those stories "CelestAI" was an advanced artificial intelligence that took the form of Celestia in a virtual world. :D
6142865 I have :3 But this is a non virtual world. It's physical, it's juts that everything biological in our world is mechanical in that one.
Whoops, bad move Scootaloo.
I definitely like the possibilities this chapter opens up. Random, mostly unexpected (at least by the GMs and Discord) potential allies from literally out of Equestria's dimension, could come in handy. Of course, that also makes me wonder a bit if Scoots might have dropped that gadget on purpose as a plant for prompting a first contact scenario, but that feels maybe like a bit of a stretch.
6146073 Nah, she didn't know it would do that. It was a botched prototype, she got the math wrong while working it out.
6193568 i.imgur.com/G6192.jpg
Angered exclamation: you dare mock us assassin droids?
Angered exclamation: We actually hate talking like this!
Commander Fluttershy of the X-COM Project?!
HOW MUCH YES CAN BE SAID?!?! ALL THE YES!!!!!
Having both major clinical depression and social anxiety, I find a sort of dark humour in this line. Yes, as a matter of fact, I can imagine knowing that I am who I am because my brain is broken.
I want to see more of this robot universe. Why isn't there more?
9013378 There is some more in my story Lyra-7%.