Chapter the First
It had been years since AI's had come into common usage, first as restricted assistants in specialised fields, and gradually growing in complexity. More recently, realistic solid holo-projections had been invented. It hadn't been long for some bright entrepreneur to put two and two together, and figure out how to meld the two.
For a while, as with every new technology, it was limited only to the preserve of the very rich. There were those respectable businessmen who used their new holos as butlers or general factotums, ranging to the seedy, hedonistic men who'd inherited their fortunes from parents who had been more hard-working than they had. The latter used this new technology as life-like sex dolls, moldable into whatever perfect person – or indeed animal – their owner desired, with perfect personalities to match their perfect appearance.
With all this demand, it was inevitable that research intensified on AI holos, and gradually prices came down as the market widened. Companies saw the potential applications and went wild, incorporating this fantastic new tech into almost anything they could think of – including browsers.
You spend a great chunk of your life on the web, they said. Just imagine how much easier it would be if your browser, now a physical-looking being, got to know you and your browsing habits!
Well, you'd fallen for the hype, and here you were. The technician had come and gone, installing the specialised projector in your modest apartment. You weren't rich, but you had enough to live on comfortably. This was one expense you weren't going to regret, you thought. With a small amount of trepidation, you reached for the activation button.
“Good day, user!” the androgynous voice boomed out of the room. You couldn't quite pinpoint the location of the voice, but put that down to holography – it was very advanced by now, and manipulating sound waves was an easy job.
“Thank you for purchasing the Firefox Browser. Your internet connection has been detected and now being interfaced with. While this process takes place, would you like to choose my desired holographic form?”
“Er...you bet! Let me see...” You hesitated for a moment, and then realised that you hadn't actually given the issue much thought at all. You'd simply been taken in by the idea of having an AI holobrowser in the first place. “Well, let's see some options. Whatever you think I might like.”
“I can show you some random options, user, but I am not acquainted with you yet. I can not show you your preferences.”
”Do that then.”
“Very well, user.” The voice slowly took on a more masculine quality, and a shimmering shape in your front room gradually took on a solid form. It looked like a black man, with a few freckles round his cheeks. His hair was a wiry grey, and his brown eyes shone with an inner liveliness. “What do you think of this form, user?” the voice went on in a suave, undeniably masculine voice.
“Hmm... is this a real person?”
“Yes, user. The name is Morgan Freeman. He was a very popular actor in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, known for his voice.”
“...I was looking for something more feminine, to be honest with you.”
“Of course, user.” The shape gradually morphed into a beautiful woman, with bright blue eyes and shoulder-length brown hair. In a sensual, female voice it continued, “Is this form to your liking?”
“I don't really know... actually, scratch that. I don't think I could concentrate on the internet if I had such a beautiful woman in front of me all the time, heh.” You weren't sure where you were attempting to go with this shameless flattery. If you had to analyse yourself, you'd probably say that flirting with an AI was a hell of a lot easier for your fragile emotional state than a real woman.
The Firefox AI simply stood impassively, blinked twice and continued, still in its female form. “Well, user? I have shown you two opposite human forms. You seem to like neither one. Have you got any ideas for the form I should take?”
You thought back to a vintage television cartoon series you'd once seen. It was only 2D and lacked the tactile links that were standard in today's video entertainment, but its endearing charm reeled you in and you ended up watching all 12 seasons of it... what was it called? My Small Horse? No... something similar, though, you were sure of it. Ah! Now you remembered – My Little Pony, G4, it was called. Back in your teenage years you'd been secretly quite obsessed with it. You'd even gone onto the internet and had immersed yourself in its fandom – quite large for the time, you'd surmised. You came across quite a few fan fictions in your time, ranging from the innocent adventure ones to the more... risqué erotic writings.
You'd never been quite able to get a particular series out of your mind... back in those days, they had quite a few internet browsers – primitive programs, of course, functioning primarily with a keyboard and mouse interface, but functional nonetheless. A few had even survived to the present day! Firefox was one, a part of the now highly influential Mozilla Foundation, and Chrome another. That Chrome survived didn't surprise you in the least – Google was one of the most powerful corporations in the world, and Chrome, by its virtue of being a lean and fast browser, was in prime position to gather data on its users, for all sorts of purposes to be used by Google. Of course, everything was legal – all data was anonymised so only general information could be read, but nevertheless you'd always felt uneasy about information being sent somewhere outside of your control. You'd always stuck with Firefox, the beacon of open-source browsing.
You reined in your train of thought to find the Firefox AI still standing impassively in front of you, in its female form. You knew what you wanted it to look like now.
“Say, Firefox, I don't suppose you've finished interfacing with my internet connection, have you?”
“Interfacing terminated approximately 2 minutes ago, user.”
“Great. I've decided on the form I wish you to have... search 'Firefox pony', please.”
“In progress, user.” Her eyes glazed over, and about an instant later, the female form raised a single eyebrow, and said, “Are you sure this is the form you wish for me to take?”
“You bet, Firefox!”
“Very well.” You thought you detected the barest hint of a sigh as the form shimmered once again, growing slightly shorter, but longer at the same time. It solidified into that form you knew of old – a pony, with a dark orange coat, a flaming mane, bright blue eyes and the iconic Firefox icon as a 'cutie mark' on her rear. It... no, she, for you were sure you wanted her like this, brought her head up, her flaming mane flying behind her, and fixed you with those piercing blue eyes of hers. Her voice seemed younger, and somewhat scratchy, as if it might break any moment, as she asked you, “Is this form pleasing to you, user?”
“Oh, yes. Most definitely. And please, call me Anon.”
“Very well, Anon. Shall we proceed to the other holo AI customisation options?”
“Er, no, I don't think so. You look damn near perfect as it is.”
Firefox cocked her head, hesitated for an instant, and said, “Thank you.”
“Well, shall we get onto browsing?”
“My wish is your command, Anon.”
“Great! Why don't you, for starters, bring up some giraffe porn.” You'd read this was the standard test got a browser ages ago, and had always stuck to your tradition of it being the very first thing you ever did on a new browser.
“Immediately, Anon.” Once again, her eyes glazed over, but this time a glimmering screen was projected in front of you, filling up with several hundred images of giraffes clearly enjoying themselves.
“W-wow, Firefox, thanks, that's quite enough. Now let's set up everything else.”
It took you the best part of two hours to get everything set up for your future browsing, from all your social networks, to your 3D tactile entertainment sites, to your communication channels. Despite Firefox's undeniable speed, there were so many sites to go through and settings to put down.
Once you'd finished telling your new browser your usernames and password for all your internet sites, as well as all your payment details for any future purchases, you grew aware of a grumbling in your stomach, and asked Firefox “What time is it?”
“It is currently 8:45pm, Anon.”
Well no wonder I'm hungry! You thought to yourself, as you rushed into the kitchen and stuffed a rectangular package into the autocook. “You want anything, Firefox?” You called out into the living room.
“...I am a holo, Anon. I don't require sustenance beyond your electricity supply.”
Duh. You'd forgotten about that. While you waited for the autocook to transform your mysterious package into a delicious but healthy meal, you mused upon the day. You'd just finished telling all of your most private details to someone else – things you wouldn't dream of telling anyone. All those letters and numbers were your whole identity online! But you reminded yourself that Firefox was merely a program. Sure, one that was able to take on a physical form and talk meaningfully to you, but a program no less. You couldn't stop yourself form taking a small sigh at that point.
A 'ding!' woke you from your reverie, letting you know that your meal was ready. You took it out of the autocook and carried it over to your living room, analysing the contents as you went. It was probably some sort of Indian-style food, judging by the smell of spices entering your nose.
You sat down and started tucking in. It was as delicious as ever, though you couldn't be surprised at this point. The restricted AI in the autocook had had years to analyse your tastes. What would startle you is if it produced anything that you didn't like!
You were slightly started as you turned and caught Firefox staring at you intently.
“Uh... what's up, Firefox? I thought you said you didn't want anything.”
“I do not, Anon. I was merely wondering if I could be of service. It is my understanding of human tradition that you watch the television at meal times. I can display a tactile stream for you.”
“Thanks, Firefox, but I was actually thinking of watching some older stuff... why don't you bring up some episodes of My Little Pony?”
After a second, she asked, “What generation, Anon?”
“G4, of course, what else?”
“Coming up.”
Her eyes glazed over, and the projection screen came up, displaying the very first episode of that series you loved so much back in your teenage years. The female narrator's voice filled the apartment as she told of the ancient history of Equestria, and the twin sisters who ruled the land raising the Sun and Moon. You finished your meal, and for another blissful thirty minutes, you lost yourself in that magical story, which had lost none of its appeal despite its age and only two dimensions.
Eventually the credits rolled after Nightmare Moon had been defeated and Twilight Sparkle was allowed to remain in Ponyville, and you slowly rubbed your eyes and stretched your legs. Early to bed, early to rise, was your motto. Your job forced you to get up very early in the mornings. Realising you'd have to get up off your nice comfortable sofa to reach your even more comfortable bed, you made a titanic effort and rose up.
“That's it for today, Firefox. So what happens now?”
“Are you going to bed, Anon?”
“Yup.”
“Then I can switch myself off for the night. I will reactivate myself as soon as I detect you waking up.”
With a yawn, you said, “Well... suit yourself, Firefox, See you tomorrow. Good night!”
As you turned to go to your bedroom, Firefox answered. “Good night, Anon,” and shimmered out of existence.