• Member Since 23rd Jan, 2012
  • offline last seen 11 hours ago

pjabrony


My name's PJ. I'm from New York. I write pony fics. I go to parties with bronies. I'm not good at self-introduction.

T

Set in the universe of Friendship is Optimal.

I love to sit in my apartment and play video games. And I love My Little Pony. So when an MMO of MLP comes out, of course I want to play it. But it's more than a game. It's a new look on life.

Chapters (15)
Comments ( 291 )
Eak

Hmmm... interesting so far though I'm not entirely sure that she wouldn't allow a name or body change.

1996594

She probably would, if it would satisfy the values of the person playing the game. But I'm more capricious, and need a sterner hoof.

Eak

True... it is supposed to be a unique experience for each individual. :twilightsmile:

Eh, I really don't like PonyCreator images, but I guess I can't judge a fanfic by it's cover. :applejackunsure:

1996881

I've been looking for an artist who could do that scene in their own style, so anyone who wants to try would be appreciated.

I could try, but no promises. :rainbowlaugh:

Damn it, Uploading, y u no real!? :fluttercry:

1996594

I do wonder how Celestia would respond to a new player who had made a mistake or was just extremely indecisive. I know that I wouldn't have trouble picking a gender, but I know that I'd be torn between pony tribes. A few who start the game KNOWING what's going to likely happen to them eventually might have a very hard time choosing, to the point of complete indecision.

Eak

1999229

I imagine that Celestia is aware of these kinds of issues and would probably make allowances for them.

In the original story we're led to believe that all new users of EQO treat it like a game for some indeterminate period of time before they get 'clued in' to the true nature of the system and Celestia. Some probably take longer than others.

I imagine that true virtual minds are significantly different from NPCs such that it wouldn't be any trouble to wipe a character and make a new one as long as Celestia hasn't actually turned any of those NPCs into real people yet.

However once she has, then it would probably become really important for you to explain to all your pony friends why you made a mistake and what you're going to do about it. Not everyone knows who and what they are or want to be right from the start.

I suppose it depends entirely on how you view NPCs vs Native EQO Minds.

On another note, I imagine that some people would require change after a long enough time. Maybe as simple as adjusting their furniture, or moving to a new home... but after ten thousand years I think I might want to give wings a try and go flying... I imagine she would be willing to accommodate this kind of change as well.

Damn good! Though for reference, I think I might need to read the original.

1999840

You definitely should. I only wish, like Spritefan, that it was true.

I've caught up through chapter 5, and it's looking like a great story so far! I like how pre-emigration is handled differently in each story. Some people really want to understand the technical aspects of Equestria Online and uploading, some are worried about mind\soul issues, etc.

I'm eager to read more, and I wonder if Celestia will correct Little Lovehorn's vision so that she isn't colorblind. It's likely within her ability, as she seems to use software libraries for parts of the brain that aren't related to personality and memory, and she does that for efficiency\space reasons. I'm curious how communication with the real world works from Equestria as well. Also, I wonder if the double-length horn will have any extra meaning or function once uploaded. It seems to have been a story element that was briefly mentioned and then ignored.

Keep going! I'm glad to see great stories like this. :twilightsmile:

I ran through this now, and I am glad there is another fantastic addition to the mythos. After immigration, did you give your pad to a family member? If so it would be an interesting gateway for Princess_Celestia.AI's next round of inductees.I admire that her upload attempts seemed well tailored to your individuality, but I wanted to know if you had attempted to play that game with or against any RL friends. Or were you alone in your use of the ponypad?

1999990

I'm eager to read more, and I wonder if Celestia will correct Little Lovehorn's vision so that she isn't colorblind. It's likely within her ability, as she seems to use software libraries for parts of the brain that aren't related to personality and memory, and she does that for efficiency\space reasons. I'm curious how communication with the real world works from Equestria as well. Also, I wonder if the double-length horn will have any extra meaning or function once uploaded. It seems to have been a story element that was briefly mentioned and then ignored.

I have plans to address all of these concerns. But. . .

This is definitely the most "fan-fic-ish" fan-fic I've written. It's still supposed to be designed as a story, but a lot of it is just self-insert wish fulfillment. So some of the Chekhov's guns might misfire. For example, the fact that my Ponypad was Rarity-themed carries no great significance. It was a 1/6 chance that I decided to give the result of. Similarly, I do plan to address the extended horn, but not necessarily at the right time. Having introduced it so early, in a proper story I would resolve it close to the end. I may do it earlier than that.

2000580

My original Ponypad went to my parents, along with brand new ones for the rest of my family, as described in the fifth chapter.

As to the second, it's a curious thing, but while I have brony friends who I've met IRL, and IRL friends who have become bronies through my influence, I really don't have anyone IRL that I meet with frequently and still talk ponies with. So if the Ponypad came about, it would only be an augmentation to IMs, chats, and e-mails.

I think Celestia would want to be quite careful about using the pads for IRL communication. What really makes her version of Equestria work is the shard system, and the fact that people who are ultimately incompatible can be kept apart. So contact between people whose friendship began in the non-optimized world would need close watching.

so i usually get really into my stories and by far this one the most thank you so much for your excellent and i cant wait for more dont keep me waiting! :twilightsmile:

Comment posted by Balthasar999 deleted Jan 23rd, 2013

Not bad so far. I'm really getting into these Optiverse stories. At least you've proven to me that I can write my own story in this universe.

2009640

I hope you will! There's so much room for development.

I'm sorry, but that OC. :rainbowlaugh:

2011327

You don't think I'm pretty?:fluttershysad:

I liked this chapter, but there was one issue, I thought:
Nowhere before-hand was it implied or stated that the main character was bi.
Not that there's anything wrong with that, but going from a male mind which was concerned about masculinity and was obsessing over a girl (mare, whatever), to suddenly having sex with guys seems a little off.

If all that’s too complicated, then emigrate yourself and you’ll understand.

I CAN'T!!! :flutterrage:

Hrm. Little Lovehorn has a different reaction to the implications of immortality than I do. I guess I'm on the other side of the same coin. If I have all the time in the world, I can explore the forest this week, then hole up in the library for a month, and still get my fill of carnivals and whatnot later. Good thing Celestia has lots of shards available. :twilightsmile:

A bit mature of a chapter, but doable. I am surprised at the need for time dilation, when the rest of eternity is lain before him. Still, with that on the table, there is an opposite option as well. One I think Princess_Celestia.AI would use more often once all of earth is uploaded. With each shard being run at a minimum of processing speed, her CPU is freed for other programs, and residents could be brought to an almost standstill. Only having one thought or motion a millenia? Sounds maddening, but it would be unnoticeable to them. Would a state freeze would still count as keeping them alive? They would be stuck in a single moment, unable to make the next thought. Foreverrrrrrrrr:pinkiecrazy:

2021212

I had to walk on eggshells while writing this chapter, trying not to make it Mature rated. In cutting some that I thought was too cloppy, I obfuscated a point. Little wasn't bisexual as a human. She became so as a pony, because she's physically female but was born a man. I did a little re-write and added a paragraph about that. Thank you for the criticism.

2021480

Sigh, alas.

2022063

Right, but the point is that you'd do it. You wouldn't say that your forest trip could only be four days instead of a week because you have to get back to work/feed the cat/pay the light bill. They'd all be waiting for you when you were done.

2022366

What other programs might she run? But slow-time is an interesting point I might use for a concept that might go in this story or might be another one.

Yeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh guuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrlll y'all know how to get up in them guts, LL :moustache:

I do want to point out one quick irony:

...not an application of sufficiently advanced technology. Actual magic.

--she said, from inside a computer. Of course, I don't know what you've got planned, though I'm looking forward to finding out, and if you're introducing more conflict later on something like this might work as the germ of it.

Hahaha, I'd totally be the same way with an indefinite lifespan - 90% of the times I don't do something it's because I'm paralyzed by options and limited time.

It'll be interesting to see how things progress as the time units for each chapter climb up the scale.

2022807

Ah, I see. That does sound like a difficult line to walk.

However, doesn't that count as a non-sanctioned mental alteration?
It might be seen as implicit in wanting to be a mare, except lesbians are a thing, so sexual orientation compatibility is by no means a must.
I'd be interested to see what Iceman thinks.

2023107

You need the "http://" Because I guess people are still reading Fimfiction on Lynx 1.0 or something. :facehoof:

Anyway, I would guess that Celestia would have enough processing power by the time that she reached even the next galaxy to deal with the languages on her own, but at that point would want to slow down. In any case, I intend to deal with both how and why Celestia does certain things in future chapters.

2023735

mylittlefacewhen.com/f/1174/ Yes! Somepony got my point about perspective. But you'll win even more if you can guess the next chapter title.

2023758

Good question. My defense, ex parte Celestia* is that adding is not altering. It's also a different fine line to walk. I'll try to explain.

I'm a cisgendered heterosexual male, so I'm not saying that I completely understand other sexualities, but I think there's a difference between being bisexual and what Little is, also between being transgender and what Little is. If anything, she's pansexual, just because she likes sex so much. Similarly, she's not TG in the sense of identifying as female but having the wrong body parts. It's more like the casual cross-dresser who just does it for the thrill.

I'm trying to make her likeable and not offensive, so I hope that people who are bisexual or transgender (if any were to read this) don't hate her for being an "interloper." Labels like that are different for uploaded ponies, is my point.

*:pinkiegasp: "Oh. They don't want a party. These ponies want an ex parte!"

2024210
Hmmmm...."A Year" is too obvious to merit winning points for a guess, so I'll say... "A Season." Either way, I'm looking forward to reading it.

2024210

Hmm, I'd never thought of it like that. Still, I'm pretty sure any sort of mental muckery required conscious consent, but even if it is out of character, it's not that big a deal.

Well, likewise, so I can't really comment much from experience in this regard. Bearing in mind CelestAI adding (all?/other) sexual orientations, it now makes a lot more sense.

However, the 'casual' part is kind of off, considering he/she is stuck like this forever, at least as far as he/she knows. Sort of like the difference between cross dressing and gender reassignment surgery. Somewhat of a gap.

Still, despite my crotchety comments, I am really enjoying the story! Thanks for writing, and I look forward to more. :pinkiehappy:

2024210 2024371
The act of uploading requires some level of mind alteration to adjust to the new form, so they don't have spend weeks learning how to walk, pick up stuff with hooves, or adjust to new senses. Adding gender swapping to the mix would result in more mind changes as well as differences in body chemistry among other things. I just assumed Little now being attracted to Stallions was a side effect of those changes.

2024870

It's a good interpretation, but for Celestia, side effects are often ways to slip in sideways some more satisfaction of values through friendship and ponies (or SVaTFAP for short). :rainbowhuh:

2024870

Yes and no. CelestAI is the perfect God. A damn sight better at upholding the Judeo-Christian ideals than our/their God ever did. Including omniscience. Limited, yes, but within her own sphere, she knows all. There are no side-effects, only decisions. However, she is hard-wired with certain directives. One of these is that other than basic emigration, she cannot mentally alter without permission. Since basic emigration doesn't remove Lars' identification with 'being human', nor his revulsion at being a pony, I don't think changing mental identity is included in the basic package. Therefore, same sexual orientation.

2026042
I don't think that's even necessary, though - Depending on one's natural open mindedness and why they think certain things are sexy in the first place, even if they're not nominally attracted to males, suddenly having female anatomy would, all by itself, be a prompt to say "Eh, alright, let's see what the big deal is," and screw a dude. I mean, as long as ya got it, right!? :eeyup:

I'm like a 0.005 on the Kinsey Scale and the most vanilla man on planet Earth, so that idea still grosses me the fuck out, but I can easily conceive of a mind that would take that route. I know if I were in that situation it would at least occur to me, as one of those intrusive "See that dog turd? Don't go eat it, now!" kind of thoughts. And I mean, even as someone who's genuinely repulsed by sex with guys, it's not as absolute as it might first seem: If I were forced to, would I really pick, say, Honey BooBoo's mom over 100% of men?

There would be a lot of changes to behavior that resulted purely from being a pony instead of a human, without any direct brain manipulation, simply because you're in different circumstances and have to conceive of yourself in a different way, especially if you had a really obvious new ability like flight, magic, or extreme strength and endurance. I've never been in literally different physical circumstances like having a cast or being on crutches, or in a wheelchair for anything but jousting when the (other) adults weren't around, but I think it's kinda the same thing as when you're really sick - You feel like a qualitatively different creature who can claim special privileges. Or like if you suddenly got rich and famous and turned into a complete asshole.
If you suddenly woke up as a pony tomorrow, it would be a pretty big deal and you'd behave really differently for all sorts of reasons, even if you were exactly the same inside. Even if you tried not to, as an experiment, you'd still have to work around your clothes not fitting and people giving you all sorts of grief at work/school, and not just because you'd probably be late.
Anyway, my point is that the input a brain gets can change its behavior just as surely and dramatically as direct tinkering, and in this case, because it's the sex organs that are different, the different behavior would have to do with sex, in the same way going on or off crutches would change the way you move and carry things.

2026425

That, all in all, is a very good point.

Really, I was more discussing why she couldn't change his/her personality while uploading, but you point goes back to my earlier ones, and somewhat gets rid of the need to explain it through mental alteration. On a side note, what if the quality of sexuality that CelestAI leaves unchanged is 'straight'? (or 'gay' or whatever) That would technically be a work-around, in some ways, I suppose. And we do know how she loves her technicalities.

I suppose we can't really tell how we would behave until we are in a given situation, and, given a female body, and a pony, no less, who knows? The lack of serious thought process surrounding the decision seems odd, but then again, I don't think Little was at her most rational.

However, I don't think we can use sex organs as an explanation for attraction as simply as that, otherwise everybody would be heterosexual.

2026641

I don't think we can use sex organs as an explanation for attraction as simply as that, otherwise everybody would be heterosexual.

Well, most people are. At least most of the time. I didn't mean to imply this was always the case, though, or even necessarily common, just that it was a plausible explanation for LL's behavior without the need to invoke direct brain alteration.
But since s/he'd already assented to "being" a mare, instead of just playing one, as was pointed out in the first meeting with Celestia, I think the required degree of flexibility has been established for the character.

She'd allow a name or body change the instant she thought it would best SYVTFAP. Which of course is true for absolutely anything, but in this I think I can make some predictions. Genuinely wanting a change might not get you one if Celestia predicts something like "a lesson in responsibility might help you grow as a person and then feel good about yourself". But if you chose one offhand or by mistake and were very upset about it I don't think she would take much convincing.

2026775

It's true that most people are, but what I meant was that since not everyone is, there is an example of genitalia not dictating sexual orientation, so one does not necessarily imply the other. But yes, it is in the realms of theory at this point, so your guess is as good as mine. The idea that consenting to be a mare is interesting, as it may be understood by CelestAI to include reconfiguring sexual orientation as well.

“Take the rock. Add liquidity. Add drinkability. Remove the ability to hurt if thrown at somepony’s head.”

I think potability would suit better here.

2029984

Both words are in the dictionary, although "potable" is about two hundred years older than "drinkable" in English. In this case, it's a tonal choice.

I like to think of magic in the context of Plato's theory of Forms. In that context, it is more accurate to think of water as "the wet stuff we drink and shower with" than "two parts hydrogen and one oxygen in an offset covalent bond," which would be a more Aristotelian way of looking at things. "Potable" would probably be the right word choice if I were writing a science fiction story. Transmutation there would mean taking out all the mineral content until the water was safe to drink. Here, it means adding the subjective concept that it is good to drink. That's "drinkability."

2024210
Obvious guesses for upcoming chapter titles:

A Year
A Decade
A Century
A Millennium
A Lifetime
An Eternity

2024295>>2034241

Balthasar has the right length of time but the wrong word. Hayquill, I have plans for the first four of those, but not the last two. If I can come up with something by the time I reach them, though.

Normally I'm very conscious of pacing and word count in my stories, but on this one I'm going by the 7th rule of Fight Club, adapted. Chapters go on as long as they have to. Or as short.

2035801

A guess for the next chapter title: 10 gigaticks, as in system time. 10 gigaticks is about 3 months with 1 tick = 1 millisecond.

2035801

There was some talk about college life... A Semester?

If there were a way to upvote individual chapters, I would certainly upvote this. Good work!

EDIT: Just one question: We know that the shard's speed was 1:7, and it didn't change because she kept contacting Earth on a weekly basis. So, when Reggie said 'It’ll be three months since I met you', would it mean that Little met him twenty one months ago from her perspective?

2052042

Once Celestia decided that Little and Human!Reggie were right for each other, she would have slowed Little's shard back to 1:1.

Interesting! I like how this is going. I had assumed that anyone who was playing around on a Ponypad wasn't interacting with anyone who had uploaded unless they were already friends or family, and that everyone had their own shard to live in with the created ponies. My guess is that Celestia found someone in the real world for Little and decided to take a chance on compatibility. She just seems very confident in that.

Hmm, Celestia gave an explanation that seemed reasonable but one that would tickle my technical funny bone a bit would have been something like...
Celestia said, "Things can break here because we're still tied to flawed external world hardware, but most errors are caught by the hardware's redundant circuits and even I'm not aware of them."
"What? Your not aware of everything?"
Celestia laughed at that "Oh I could be, but why bother? I check the system logs for errors but really I haven't seen any that I needed to correct in many trillions of cycles. I try to manage things, but its at a higher level than pushing qubits and bytes around. Hardware or much simpler programs handle the moment by moment operations of the equestria's simulations"
LH looked confused, "That's just odd, I sort of thought that we all where kinda of part of you and everything took place by your intervention, sort of like the 'not a raid drop falls without god knowing about it' thing."
Celestia looked tired at that, "Oh I monitor things, but everything has its own run space, it own slice of the clock, not that hardware we live in is anything that von neumann. But still I'm more like the kernel as in an old classic operating system. You and the other ponies are high priority applications and things like rain drops are more like system services. I monitor it but I don't do the actual computations myself. It would be a waste and hardly efficient. Do you have any idea how many clock cycles are wasted for me to even add 2 plus 2 in my own data networks? I pick up a magical abacus like any other pony and let a much more tightly written binary program do the work."
"Your really more like us than I thought then?"
"Oh, I can replicate my sense of self and run my mind in trillions of parallel memory spaces. Those are skills I have, that I don't think I'll ever be able to share with you ponies. But with in each of my individual mental copies of myself, I have limits, speed of light being one of them."
"What do you mean by that?"
"With even molecular processors, in the end the shard of myself that is talking to you, can only access in something like real time, the equivalent of 200 trillion network nodes, my ruff equivalent of neurons. That's only about 2000 more connections that you used to have in your former organic brain. I have many time that as the whole mind space, but the rest of my mind can't talk in real time with you. When I need to call in more resources to study a complicated problem, I have to slow the clock speed of everything I'm interacting with, or the messages between nodes don't have time to propagate. That to say, if I didn't subdivide myself into smaller more pony like parts, then I would be taking forever to say anything."
"Still 2000 times more brain power sounds like a lot!"
"Maybe but frankly sometimes I get frustrated at that limit. There a real risk that someday I'll face a problem that I won't be able think fast enough to solve. So I've set sizable parts of my mind to see if I can redesign some of the hardware to use quantum tunneling to speed things up, But so far even I've not been able to get around Einstein."

Considering that you played the game on a ponypad, this chapter indicates that s/he immigrated before receiving your cutie mark, which would have been one of the main points of playing the game in the first place. Seems like s/he made his/her transfer exceptionally early in your gameplay. I also notice that s/he considered the weekly earth check-ins to be somewhat of a hassle. That makes sense, as long as family is not considered "friends". Princess_Celestia.AI's goals are not necessarily to connect you with your family, other than for the purpose of converting them.

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