Treat her here 94%
First there was the simple notification from the ship’s computer that they were nearing the end of their deceleration burn, and would soon fire the navigational thrusters to settle into stable orbit around Proximus B. This meant the Eye could get a good view, and would likely have interesting information about the planet below.
But on her way to the eye’s little station near the top of the Equinox, she got another message—from Spike. “It’s finished,” he said, his voice nervous and eager. “The thing we’ve been working on all this time. It didn’t take as long as I thought. Once the fabricator started working…”
And she turned, lifting into the air and using her unicorn magic to make “down” be along the corridor, so she could “fall” back towards the elevator as fast as she could go. She held the radio in her magic as she went. “What’s it doing? The machine… is it safe? You shouldn’t have switched it on without a crew meeting!”
“I didn’t!” Spike sounded almost hurt. “It’s finished building, Twilight. And the last step… I’d never do it without your permission. It’s too dangerous.”
Spike had been obsessive about that stupid fabricator for months now—a very dragon way to behave. But he hadn’t forgotten his training, or his loyalty. Somewhere deep inside, he was still the egg she’d hatched in the Imperial Academy all those years ago.
Only once she was breathing easily did she get the call from Fluttershy. “Um… Captain? Captain Twilight?”
She stopped what she was doing with her magic, settling onto her hooves. Spike was almost all the way down, and she was only one deck away from medical. Best stop running if her medical pony was going to need her. “Yes, Fluttershy?”
“It’s, uh… about Pinkie.”
“I want you to tell me everything I need to know in the next sentence you say, Fluttershy. Tell me what happened.”
Fluttershy’s deep breath was all the confirmation Twilight needed.
“She’s awake. But—”
But Twilight hardly even heard her. She was galloping now, not mustering enough of the magic it would take for a careful flight. The one who knew what had happened to her ship was awake. Maybe now she would finally get some bucking answers.
“Are you still coming, Twi?” That was Spike, his voice distant and out of focus. “I need your help to decide what to do!”
“Bring it to medical. Pinkie just woke up, I can take a look at it after talking to her.”
“Okay,” Spike answered, and finally fell silent.
It only took Twilight another minute to get to medical. She could hear Pinkie’s voice drifting down the hall before she even left the lift. “Seven roads! The darkness writhes down seven roads!”
Down the hall, something crashed and shook, glass shattering. “Please, Pinkie! You need to—”
“They’re inside you too! Can’t you fell them?”
Twilight didn’t hesitate—she closed her eyes, and crossed the rest of the hallway in a flash of light.
Medical looked like a bomb had gone off. Anything that wasn’t nailed down had been tossed onto the floor, with equipment and vials of medicine alike broken. Pinkie Pie herself was in a corner, clutching a scalpel in her teeth like she had just fought a bear with it. Fluttershy cowered on the other side of the room, as far away from her as possible. “I was calling for help!” Fluttershy called, her voice feeble.
Pinkie Pie did not look well. Even without the madness in her eyes, Twilight would’ve winced to see her. The grafts were healing, though the stitches connected to the rest of her looked like the coat might never grow in again, and left harsh, bare lines in her pink fur. Her cryosleep sickness lingered in several gray patches, and a mane that grew only in wispy tendrils.
Then there was her eyes—only once in her life had Twilight seen a pony with that expression, and he hadn’t survived the night.
Twilight took a breath, and called on a different kind of magic.
Twilight attempts to use her Alicorn Sovereignty to calm Pinkie Pie down. Success
“You will drop that knife, Pinkie.” She spoke with absolute confidence—the same confidence her teacher had once manifested in the face of Discord’s unknowable chaos.
The Earth pony obeyed. It tumbled out of her mouth, slicing through and sticking in the textured plastic, blade-down. “What happened to you, Pinkie? Was it Cozy Glow?”
“Saw it coming. I saw it, when nopony did. Safe. You’re safe.”
“Safe from what? From a stowaway?”
“Their voices in the darkness. Filling your veins with sugar and making the worst cakes ever.”
Almost thought I’d gotten through. “Sedate her,” Twilight instructed, gesturing urgently. “I’m not sure how long she’ll be…”
Fluttershy responded instantly, hurrying over. A few seconds later, Pinkie Pie slumped to one side, breathing heavily. “I’ll get her into restraints before she wakes up,” she said, panting. “I… I was afraid this might happen.”
“Afraid she might be…”
“Damaged,” Fluttershy whispered. “It’s the same kind of scarring as on you, Twilight. But you’re an Alicorn. She’s… not.”
“Help her.” It was the only instruction she could give, and probably not even a necessary one. But she could hear someone coming down the hall—Spike, rolling a wheeled metal cart from the sound of it. Twilight nodded once to Fluttershy, then hurried out.
There was Spike, behind one of the carts that would’ve been used to load the single torpedo tube—if they hadn’t stripped it for parts. The probe settled onto soft cloth in the center had been stripped itself, with its fins and engines and everything except the casing itself removed. And from within, the faint warmth of active electronics.
“You put it in a probe shell?” Stupid question, she could see it in front of her. “What is it?” she asked, before Spike could get into the painful subject of what had just happened.
“I don’t know,” Spike admitted. “has, uh… some kind of screen, look.” He rolled it over, and through what had been a sensor access panel there was now a flat bit of glass. Words were printed there, simple instructions in Ponish clearer than any screen she’d ever seen.
Require direct connection with archive to complete download. Please connect immediately.
Archive… it wanted direct access to their mainframe. It wants all that data taking up space on our computer.
Twilight was in a poor state to decide anything. But Spike didn’t look like he was going to give her time to think.
1. Connect the strange device directly to the mainframe. There’s no way it would hurt us, that would be a huge waste of time and energy. It’s like Fluttershy said, that isn’t how the Signalers act. It’s time to see what they really wanted. Maybe we’ll get good news for once.
2. This has gone far enough. Remove whatever is powering that thing and pack it away into a crate for later study. Sorry Spike, but this went on far enough. We’re not in any place to fight enemies on two fronts. Maybe when we’re safer, or when we’re back in Equestria. We have bigger problems right now.
3. Destroy the device and eject all of the new fabricators into space. They’re responsible for all of this. (-morale Spike)
4. Twilight has an inventive plan, to wait until the Equinox is in stable orbit, then disconnect all the archival servers and temporarily wire them through a portable computer. This will prevent another (even accidental) camping trip, while still following the machine’s instructions.
(Certainty 180 required)
I say route it through the portable computer. Shelfing the unit will just leave spike distracted and destroying iit will make him mad and defiant but just hooking it right up is too risky
First time I tried to vote here... not worth the pain so I didn't vote.
(When your browser is kitted out to keep Google from tracking you, reCAPTCHA likes to force you to fill out CAPTCHAs for what is often over a minute to penalize you for not letting them put a uniquely-identifying "reputation cookie" on your machine. I didn't even bother letting reCAPTCHA load when it failed to let me submit after I set uMatrix to allow everything but that familiar mix of Google requests that reCAPTCHA uses.)
I was going to vote for option 4.
P.S. If anyone is trying to replicate my bad experience to investigate further, I believe a key part is having CanvasBlocker installed and set to "Fake readout" mode so Google can't identify you via canvas fingerprinting.
Hey, if it just needs the alien data, only give it the alien data.
Still, Pinkie... Brain scarring isn't something even Pinkie can bounce back from. Not immediately, if ever. Though there may be method in her madness... though that will likely only make sense in hindsight.
option 4 is the best of both worlds. As for Ponkers, it seems her insight's been pushed into overdrive. I would have Flutters take a closer look at the scaring, and a more detailed look at any potential medical abnormalities that her typical scans have yet to see. Remember, most lab testing is either very narrow focused for unusual stuff, or broad for known parameters. In this case, a narrow focus would be needed.
The portable computer route sounds safer, but honestly at this point I trust the aliens more then I trust the crew/computer onboard the ship. And the portable computer route might just have the computer tell us, to connect it to the mainframe and nothing else. In which case we have the same decision to make down the road.
Just plug it in and sees what happens.
"Can’t you fell them?' should probably be "feel".
Although 4 seems the better option, who says the "archive" is their mainframe? Maybe it's the alien' server, and it needs access to the ship' sensors to receive it's signal. I'd say 1, more chance of it working properly.
It could also explode, but it's not like they have anything to lose right now.
I saw option 4. It's safe, and follows the instructions. Destroying the machine is just a waste of time and resources.
Thank you for not failing at that dice roll, Twilight.
Same scarring, eh? So is Pinkie suffering from both the extra wake up and the same brain damage issue, or was maybe Twilight woken up extra as well and got put back to sleep more gently but with a mindwipe?
Twilight's plan, definitely.
9322694
Yeah, I kinda agree with this - Twilight's plan "sounds" like the reasonable middle road, but my instincts are screaming at me that something will go wrong with it, just like everything else that is going wrong.
I wouldn't be surprised if their mainframe blew out as they reached the planet, the ship crashed or was otherwise rendered inoperable or something else came up precluding the use of the mainframe or the alien computer. I know the options looks "reasonable" and "safe", but for some reason my instincts are screaming at me that if we wait, we might never get the chance to use the alien computer.
---
And damn, Pinkie has gone crazy? That's ... unexpected. I wonder if the brain damage is a possible side effect of stupidly long crysoleep? Obviously there wouldn't have been any tests that lasted as long as the crew has actually spent in crysleep, and this is their first attempt at such a long-range exploration using the system. It's possible that spending decades in the cryochamber runs the sort of risks that short-term testing wouldn't necessarily reveal and predict.
... Great, and now I'm worried that every pony they wake up runs a risk of waking up with braindamage. They are 50/50 so far for braindamaged ponies, don't seem like great odds, if that is what it is ...
Guys, I think WE are the voices in the dark.
About the poll, 3 is not an option. Then, 4 is strictly better than 1. So it's either 2 or 4, depending if we want to do it right now or wait until we reach a more stable state (not just stable orbit).
What is more important now? Advance with the communications with the Signalers, or solving the problems we have right now (read, treat Ponks, get real food, up the morale in general).
I'll personally vote for 2. I think we should be more careful. We aren't losing anything if we wait. Stockpile some food paste, and then go hybrid with geneseed and real food. Maybe investigate if there are any moons in Proximus C with conditions for viable agriculture.
4 is probably gonna win by a landslide.
Fell->feel
Anyway, I'm thinking that both Pinkie and Twilight have a connection to a spiritual realm/fourth wall/whatever and that's what causes problems with the cryo.
And yeah, we are the whispers. Or, part of them.
4, definitely. Everything else makes no sense, at least wait until they aren't immediately worrying about one of their friends having brain damage/psychotic episode/psionic invasion or what have you.
I’m going with 4
4 is there really a better option? Find out what this is all about, while taking the least risk possible.
9322770
Or it's not the waking up and going back under that caused it, but the mind wipe itself. This really is interesting and eager to see where all this goes.
Ooh, this is a tough one. But hopefully Twilight's action will work. I vote for it.
Come on, Purple Smart. Redeem yourself for all the failed rolls!
If Pinkie had suffered any more brain scaring she would have never survived waking up back in equestria no matter how much better the medical care is.
as for the vote ...
Leap of Faith. #1 (Spike has yet to be wrong. keep going with it plus I still think the device is the key to the system). with #4 being a relatively close second.
ya know i feel that the exsplosion was a crash by sabatours on accident to send a signal for an operative to revive cozy becuase think of this so far all the crew has had crypto sleep sickness for a month or 2 that made even applejack bed ridden for a week how the hell did cozy survive
Guys, just because we get a special twilight option does not mean it is the best one.
Honestly, the Signallers have shown no hostile intent, and I agree that it just doesn't make sense for them to act like this if they were malicious.
It's entirely possible that trying to be clever and wiring everything to give it access to the archives without the main computer will have very unexpected consequences. Or it will just flat out ask for access to the main computer anyway, making our "cleverness" a moot point.
I say let's take a leap of faith and oblige the Signallers with their request.
Just because it's a colored option doesn't mean it's a better option. You only need to look at some of Applejack's previous suggestions to see that.
9322726
That's what I assumed "archive" meant until I read Twilight's interpretation. Especially considering some of the stuff that's come up in the rolls on Discord.
Pinkie... I don't know what to say about her. Let's all blame this on Cozy Glow. Surely that's a healthy decision.
4 sounds to be the best in theory, but in this story, theory doesn't count for much.
Still 4, though.
9322783
I won't believe that the author is rigging the system like that. And if he is, then the sooner this house burns down the better.
9323973
I don't rig anything, the rolls are all on the table. The bot GM decides all things. I only get to watch with everypony else.
Perhaps getting the alien device operational is more urgent than we thought. After all, why spook the ponies by transmitting the plans in interplanetary space when they're already headed for Proximus B?
Oddly specific demands. A proxy connection for monitoring and rate limiting should be default operations whenever questionable devices are introduced (refer that one Borg baby from Voyager).
Speaking of Borg, attempting to decipher Pinkie's output, seven roads, hmmm, an infection perhaps? Curiouser and curiouser...
9323961
Because looking at the track record this story has, something bad was going to happen no matter who we chose
Option 4 seems to be our best bet for now.
9323606
I'm curious to know how putting the alien data in a separate computer and letting the machine the fabricators built access -that- could be a -bad- option. It lets you know if that's all it wants without risking it trying to hijack the ship. (I -don't- think that's what it is, but better safe than sorry and all that).
Option 4
I cant help but feel like 1 and 4 are gonna have some drawbacks. They'll need some time to stabilize their food and medic supplies as well as having some time for pinkie to heal. Too bad option 2 implies waiting for far longer then they should
9322803
You might be onto something here. What are the odds that if the voices (us) send some calming or assuring words that we only seek to help them succeed and survive that she'll calm down and cope a bit better?
To bad doing so is a bit too embarrassing for me to do.
I feel like it would be important to hook it up directly, because it could probably learn from what's on there and correct translation errors regarding the original signal, and communicate more effectively if it's able to.
I know I'm late but waiting until Fluttershy can look at the new message in ponish on the device might have been a good idea. So far my guess is that they are trying to "ascend" ponies to a "higher" less corporeal form of existence. That's just completely based off the message. But Fluttershy knowing that they can write ponish instructions might have changed her previous profile on them.
Been reading through the last couple days and this is the first decision I vehemently disagree with.
Sentimentalism is nice. Carrying for your friend is good, but this is a maybe drain on medical supplies for a damaged ship that has an alternative.
I only found this fan fiction today and I haven't had enough time to catch up to the latest chapter (chapter 84) at the moment so I decided I'd comment my thoughts anyway bc heck
the chapters before this where we found out pinkie had clothes on in her freeze pod and this chapter where she's pretty much insane genuinely make me wonder what could have happened if the first pony resurrection vote had ended up voting for pinkie instead, I wonder how THAT would have gone
Option 4
Caution does not go out the airlock in Spaceflight without a very good reason, and no such reason has occurred.
Many things are happening at once. Stabilizing Pinkie and finding out what happened during cryosleep is the biggest priority. Once that is taken care of, Twilight can rig up the mobile terminals to prevent another "camping trip" and finally figure out what the aliens brought us.