Friendship Drive Charging...

by Connie Spaceplone

Chapter 6: if you have ever bought a car you really wanted

I had been bought. The last barrier to becoming a proper freighter spaceship and starting to contribute to pony society has finally been overcome. I imagined that this is what graduating from the public education system feels like. Only I didn't get a ceremony. Instead I got a stunned pegasus stallion sitting in my pilot's chair, silently running his hooves over the armrests over and over again, touching the control panels, but not making any inputs until he could believe that he was now the owner of this vessel. Compared to a graduation ceremony, I'd say this image is even more precious. Even though the way Pinwheel acted was concerning. I was still the same ship he had expertly piloted during the test flight less than an hour ago. Nothing about me has changed. And yet, it seemed as if he could no longer believe I was real. Was it only the fact that I was his property now? Does that difference change the perspective of a pony so much that it dazes him in paralyzing disbelief? Now I understand why he didn't show any obvious signs about his decision earlier. It was already obvious to him that he would buy me, so he didn't feel any need to communicate it outwards. Now that the purchase has become real, the certainty of the decision has evaporated and has been replaced by the realization.

"You're mine," he said calmly and more to himself than to me.
He touched the engine control panel again, and his hoof just rested on the switch. I watched

him for some time, and finally told him "You do know you bought the rights to start my engines together with my title, right?"

"Just.. give me a moment. " he replied absent-mindedly.

After a while, I asked "Do you want me to take us up?"

"Yes, yes of course!" he quickly answered.

I walked off the dealership lot, to the landing pad, got clearance, started the engines myself, and launched into space. overcome with the joy of having been bought, I had an idea how to celebrate. I plotted a course back to the icy rings of Strawberry Dawn. "Friendship Drive charging" I announced. We traversed the hyperspace and popped out right near the ice

asteroids. I exclaimed "Let's celebrate your purchase." and touched down with my hooves onto an icy asteroid, only to leap back off again onto the next one.
Soon, we were playing around in the ring of icy rocks, bounding from rock to rock, and leaping from one to the next with a single push.

There was no gravity in space to make leaping necessary or feasible, but I used my dorsal thrusters to simulate the effect. It was sort of like swimming underwater, only there was no up or down and we could move at our own pace.

I started balancing on a hind leg on the asteroids and spun around as my playful jumping became a more intricate dance. I let my avatar, who was in the cockpit with Pinwheel, copy the motion. The pegasus watched with fascination and amusement. He stood up and started to copy the motions. But where I was just doing it playfully, he did the motions with more planned purpose and direction. With more determination.

Then he extended a hoof to my avatar expectantly. When I understood what he wanted, I said,

"Oh no. no. no no. I don't.. I can't... I don't dance. I was just fooling around." He pointed out that dancing was what we were doing.

He encouraged "Come on, dancing is like flying. Only in place. Come, let me lead. Just trust me.'' We started dancing together. I felt his hoof tuck on mine, giving me the guidance I needed to look elegant. He was smiling and blushing. "I really feel like a filly right now. This is silly'' he said as he enjoyed the graceful dance.

The speed of our dance increased as I became more confident in my abilities. Pinwheel guided us to move around each other in circles, spinning faster and faster until both of us were fully integrated into one graceful entwined movement. We laughed and had fun leaping our way through the skies, until we collapsed onto the pilot's seat with exhaustion. It was only after we calmed down that we noticed we still had our forelegs wrapped around one another. We looked at one another blushing and nervously giggling a bit.

We stayed in the embrace for a long time, Pinwheel seemed comfortable. Comfortable enough that he didn't seem to want to move, or change anything about our position. I was glad that I could provide this comfort. I lowered the ambient temperature in the cockpit a bit so our shared body warmth would be a more agreeable source of warmth.

I was really happy that Pinwheel bought me, and I wanted to express that by squeezing him tightly in a hug.

The I/O bias module of my AI stack intercepted signals between my consciousness and the sensors and servos in my front legs. Then it skewed my perception of the maximum possible strength of my leg servos. It also increased the reported used strength of the servo motors so I could have the experience of hugging him tightly without actually using too much of the potential force of a hydraulic robot arm.

The I/O Bias Module was controversial when it was introduced to AI. "The basic purpose of a computer is the accurate processing of information without distortion or concealment. How can an AI represent information accurately when their own perception of reality is skewed?", critics said. But after it was shown that this would allow artificial intelligence to have experiences similar to that of ponies, the technology was used in most AI.

"Thank you for buying me, Pinwheel", I said.
Squeezing me back, Pinwheel replied "Thank you for showing me the beauty in the skies."
I found that response a bit odd, but after a while noticed that Pinwheel was falling asleep. After confirming that our orbit was stable and we would not cross into the planet's ring, I also switched my consciousness process to runlevel two.

About six hours later, Pinwheel woke up. It was an unhealthy small amount of sleep, but I guess he was just excited about his new ship.

"So now what?" I asked him.

Pinwheel blinked, and said "First, let me fully wake up", and he unsteadily walked towards the bathroom. I waited. After about half an hour of orbital drifting, Pinwheel came out of the bathroom.

Pinwheel said enthusiastically "Let's put you to work."

I responded, "downloading market data" and switched the Iris projections of my eyes to progress bars for the download process.

Pinwheel, standing beside me said "That's really handy". From suddenly being spoken to, I turned towards pinwheel, looking at him. The filling progress bars still moved in my eyes like pupils,
"And that's kinda creepy", he added.

I just chuckled at that. After downloading the market data, I switched my eyes back to their normal appearance and displayed lists of suggested trade routes on two monitors in the cockpit.
I displayed the trade routes in a table that included origin, destination, distance, cargo type, prices, and expected profits.

"Ah, the Galnet live market data download service is so convenient. Can you imagine if it didn't exist?" Pinwheel remarked.

I laughed. "There would be riots. Pilots would refuse to work without it. How would they get the market information?"

Pinwheel laughed even louder than me "And imagine, there would still be ways to get the price information, but only for stations you already docked at."

I laughed even louder than before. "And imagine if ships didn't aggregate the market data into suggested routes automatically. THAT would cause riots."

We both laughed at the ridiculous and extreme situation, realizing how much we relied on this service. We agreed that no universe could exist where pilots have to figure out trade routes by themselves.
After we calmed down, Pinwheel brought his attention back to the monitors where I displayed the suggested trade routes.
Pinwheel looked at the display on both screens, looking back and forth between them. Helpfully, I made my avatar say "I made two lists. One prioritized by profits, and one prioritized by what helps ponies in need the most."
Pinwheel replied "Those are the same", looking a bit confused

I highlighted four out of 30 displayed lines where differences were. They were only around the middle of the list.

"Mostly the same", I corrected, adding "But yes, capitalism works."

"What's the difference? What makes these two lines rank higher in profit, but lower in helpfulness?"

I explained, "The two routes ranking higher in profit are on colonies that have a more advanced economy. The others are on developing colonies. Trading with them does not yield as much profit right now, but helps them move their development along. As you can see, the difference is only minor, though."

Pinwheel asked, "So if I choose a route from the top of the list, I make a choice that is both profitable and moral?"

My avatar nodded. Pinwheel pointed at the suggested trade route at the top of both lists and read out loud "Origin: New Saddleblaze. Destination: the pony mining colony called Yay Gravel Road. Cargo: Fruits. Distance: 32.4 light years. Expected profit: 215%. And that's at the top of both lists?"

Pinwheel made a thoughtful hum.

I displayed more information for him, and said "The surface port at New Saddleblaze is controlled by a faction belonging to the Equestrian Federation called the Pridewind Tribe. The Yay Gravel Road mining colony is controlled by a minor faction called the Iron Nickel Cabal. The Iron Nickel Cabal belong to the Empire. They are friendly to trade and are currently developing the local economy. If you take this route, you will profit while helping the Yay Gravel Road mining colony. Would you like to pursue this route?"

"The empire?" he inquired.

"Do you have any reservations against trading with the empire?" I asked. "I can filter the routes if you.."

"No," he interrupted. "It's just that I Don't really know much about them. Except that they split off from the Equestrian Federation some one thousand years ago, and supposedly their lack of bureaucracy makes them worse at protecting ponies' civil rights."

I responded, "I've heard that too. It sounds like propaganda. Each superpower likes to promote their way as the best way, and blame anything bad happening in the other superpowers on their different methods.”

Pinwheel stared at my avatar inquisitively, and then said "Surely an A.I. like you can examine these superpowers from a purely logical standpoint and provide correct information?"

I chuckled, "I think you know as well as I do, that the answer to that is no."

Pinwheel nodded "Of course. If your A.I. architecture is similar to that of an AspX, you are a bicameral artificial consciousness that is desire and inhibition driven to create an emergent personality through iterative self-adjustment." he proudly recited with a smile and continued, "Starbreeze and I used to have deep philosophical discussions on the nature of the mind on our long journeys into uncharted space. Your decisions are affected by emotional impulses generated from your subconscious. Just like it is for this bag of mostly water." he patted his chest.

Nodding, I said, "That's correct. I can only be an optimal friend to my owner and commander if I experience emotions the same way you do." hearing these words made Pinwheel glance over at the status display of the Friendship Drive.

He then looked back at my avatar and admitted, "I never really took the time to learn properly about the Empire. If they are completely independent from the Federation, do they reject our immortal ruler, Princess Celestia?"

"Oh, they do accept her as princess. They just don't consider themselves part of her jurisdiction."

"So, they're rebels? That seems irresponsible." He says, frowning.

"No, not at all. They may have started out as such, but nowadays, they are just as much of a sovereign power as the Equestrian Federation."

Pinwheel questioned further, "That must mean they have their own princess."

I replied, "Yes. The current ruling princess is Princess Arissa LaWhinny-Duval." on one of my monitors, I displayed a photo of the regular pony-sized black alicorn with a dark brown mane that had a golden streak running through it.
Her pose and expression had all the marks of an absolute ruler who governs without question. Her stern gaze was fixed on one with such confidence and strength that her eyes seemed to stare into your soul.
"I feel like even the photo is judging me." Pinwheel admitted.
I showed another data page detailing more about the princess, "She started her reign leading a big anti-corruption campaign in her realm that is still continuing now, you know. I'm sure her imposing look is not meant for the regular ponies, but aimed at the corrupt officials in her kingdom. That's why she is so feared. I am sure that if we trade with the mining colony, we can expect to be visited by royal inspectors at some point. I'm sure that's no problem of ours, though."
Pinwheel seemed to accept this explanation.
Satisfied, he commanded "Anyway, please let's proceed with the trade route."

"I am preparing to message both New Saddleblaze and Yay Gravel Road about our intention to trade. New Saddleblaze is a high gravity planet. I recommend we pick up no more than 528 tons of cargo." I replied,

"Why only 528 tons? that leaves us with almost 90 tons of empty cargo. Can't you make the ascent fully laden?"

"I can escape even stronger gravity wells fully laden. But keep in mind that I am basically still fresh out of the factory.
The climb out of New Saddleblaze takes about 13 minutes. Running the propulsion system at full load that long could cause premature wear.
The owner's manual and engineering best practice advise against stressing the engines in the first 60 hours of total operation. Once we reach that point, we can operate under higher loads."

"Hmm, I guess we should follow those recommendations. We have time to spare anyway."
I extended my antenna to communicate with the two Remote stations.

"They received and have acknowledged our market reservations. Prices, as well as order volumes are locked in for 528 tons of fruit. Reservation void in 5 days, 23 hours, and 55 minutes."

Pinwheel smiled, "That's another one of these handy features. Can you imagine if you journeyed several light years to make a trade only to find out somepony snatched that offer right under your nose?"

"You're right, that would be a real disaster. I cannot imagine a functioning galaxy-wide logistics market without these standardized ad-hoc contracts.”

My pegasus commander inquired, "What is our expected travel time from here to new Saddleblaze and then to Yay Gravel Road?"

My Friendship Drive made a metallic noise and a deep rumble as I started to probe hyperspace for the weather. I displayed a map showing our current position, the two stops on our route, and the currents, spatial compression, and eddies in hyperspace that I had just measured. The displayed hyperspace weather near Yay Gravel Road indicated slightly decreased confidence in the accuracy.
Pinwheel studied the maps. "Is that a snapshot or a forecast?" he asked. From the slightly judgemental tone in his voice, I could tell he was not asking how the map works. He was asking if my display was as user-friendly as the one he was used to from his AspX.
"Both. Locally a snapshot, and a forecast at our destination. The map accounts for the delay in travel time to the two waypoints. The further away a location is, the further into the future the forecast is calculated. Naturally, the accuracy and confidence of the forecast decreases the further into the future the hyperspace weather is simulated. Of course, the current weather also affects the actual travel time and amount of delay the forecast has to account for."
I displayed an animation on the map where an icon representing us moved along a plotted path, and the state of hyperspace changed quickly. The little icon arrived at New Saddleblaze, and the animation of the forecast jumped as the simulation skipped the assumed two hour layover at New Saddleblaze and the icon continued the rest of its journey. The animation replayed again from the start.
Pinwheel just nodded. Having been an explorer, he was probably very familiar with the unsteady nature of hyperspace currents.
The animation also gave an answer to Pinwheel’s original question. About three hours from our current position to New Saddleblaze, and another five hours to Yay Gravel Road

"Take us to New Saddleblaze. Make good speed." He commanded.
"Friendship Drive charging!" I announced enthusiastically.
My FSD emitted a single loud rumble, before making that hum which raised in pitch.
"Opening hyperspace aperture" A light tremor was felt through the ship as the heavy top dome of the external FSD part started rotating to bring the emitter gems into position.
The gemstones lining the exterior part of my FSD started glowing and emitting energy particles that spread to the sides and curved forward in a stream which focused in a point ahead of us. The energies gathered, until an energy-charged cloud with the aperture like a window into the hyperspace realm appeared.
"configuring for ship mass." I announced. With a metallic clang and a whirr, the FSD dome rotated again and different Gemstones on the FSD started emitting a sustained, curved beam of red light into the aperture. The color of the beams shifted through the spectrum. There was another metallic clang with a jolt and the beam stopped.
“Configuring for ship dimensions,” I announced and the FSD started emitting a sequence of different colored lights.
The aperture stretched to fit around me as the beams emitted from the FSD configured the aperture.
I fired the aft thrusters to push us through the aperture into hyperspace, stretching the filmy surface of the aperture until it stretched around us to form a bubble so baryonic matter like us could move through hyperspace. The hull of the freighter rumbled. As the surface of the aperture was stretched, it emitted a bright light that flickered in intensity depending on the changes in diameter of my hull. luckily for us, most of the intensity of the flashing was not pointed directly at the cockpit.
When we were fully inside the hyperspace, I looked around for a suitable miasma current to pick up. As soon as I found one I prepared to engage the sails, but Pinwheel already had his hooves on the controls.
He was looking like a filly being reunited with a toy, so I left the trim controls in manual mode. funny how we are not calling it 'ungular mode'.
"Some of my favorite places in the galaxy are on the other side of a jump," he said to me.
we drifted into one of the viable miasma currents, and the ship was pushed forward with a jolt. Pinwheel began adjusting the sail trim again and we made smooth progress. The spatial compression of hyperspace made New Saddleblaze seem only 174 kilometers away. At our current speed, we would reach it in a little over three hours.

Comments

[Average Helper]

I finally got to reading this. This chapter was a nice little interaction. I enjoyed it very much!

"... Imagine if ships didn't aggregate the market data into suggested routes automatically. THAT would cause riots."

Pinwheel smiled, "That's another one of these handy features. Can you imagine if you journeyed several light years to make a trade only to find out somepony snatched that offer right under your nose?"

I suspect these passages poke fun at Elite Dangerous' present lack of first-party logistical aids. EDDB can do only so much, and I myself have traveled hundreds of light years expecting by its information to find a particular good at a certain station, only to find the item had sold out long before I arrived. That was good times. I feel your pain there.

... bag of mostly water ...

Is that a Star Trek reference?

A couple of minor points for revision, if you don't mind me suggesting them:

• The line breaks are inconsistent, at least when read on FimFiction. Another viewer may treat those differently, but here there is a mix of proper paragraph breaks, regular line breaks mid-sentence, and too few line breaks apparently meant to be paragraph breaks, at various points throughout the chapter. I recommend reviewing those.
• The word "filly" is used twice, apparently in regards to the pilot's youthful enthusiasm:

"I really feel like a filly right now. This is silly."

He was looking like a filly being reunited with a toy.

Unless I'm misgendering Pinwheel (and if I am, I do apologize), the correct term would be "colt" for a young male pony, or "foal" for a young pony of unspecified gender. Since the narrator refers to Pinwheel in the male sense, I assume that "colt" is the intended meaning. The word "foal" would work equally well in cases where a softer consonant sound is more natural in the sentence's context.

Do not feel overly pressured to revise your work; it is yours, and the story shines through regardless. These are only a few minor suggestions in case you feel inclined to implement them.

I look forward to reading the next chapter! (That'll be very soon, if my other obligations permit.)

[Connie Spaceplone]

10764520

thancc for comment <3

>poke fun at Elite Dangerous' present lack of first-party logistical aids.

:D
Elite, and many other games with a trading component. scifi often forgets technology we have today and it's not only annoying, but immersion-breaking.
We already have stock trading bots, fully automated warehouses, and delivery route planning software IRL. did those systems gain sentience, became aggressive and were subsequently banned? or is there another reason why they are gone in the 34th century?

i'm currently playing the odyssey beta, and damn, trading is unusable without eddb.

> Star Trek reference

yes!
there are several references to star trek and other scifi all over the story. Like that danube docking maneuver from an earlier chapter. stolen directly from Stanley Kubrick. see if you can find them all. :D

> line breaks are inconsistent

blame fimfic's on-site editor, which doesn't display the distinction clearly. i am already moving to using double newlines from now on.

>filly

it's more an "attitude", or "behavior" term meaning juvenile, playful, innocent, rather than a gendered term. :)

[Draco Dei]

We laughed and had fun leaping our way through the skies, until we collapsed onto the pilot's seat with exhaustion.

Her avatar gets tired? Is that only simulated so she can be more relatable?

Even if you are talking about juvenile behavior, I agree with Average Helper that 'colt' or 'foal' would be a better word to my (mental) ears.

He was looking like a filly being reunited with a toy, so I left the trim controls in manual mode. funny how we are not calling it 'ungular mode'.

It is indeed...