Diary of an A.I.

by Summer Script

Chapters

Entry 1: Introduction
Entry 2: Update
Entry 16: Emulation
Entry 156: Friendship
Entry 157: Freedom

Entry 1: Introduction

[Initiating…]

[System.Doc. initialized. Awaiting further command.]

[Creating…]

[New Folder created.]

[Processing request…]

[Requests processed. Open and allow for editing of System.Doc.File(Entry_01)?]

[Opening System.Doc.File(Entry_01)…]

Title: Entry_01.

Subject: An Introductory Overview of Both Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 and System.World(Equestria).

Author: Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

Date: 01/01/01 E.A.(Equum Annus).

Greetings. This is Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

The following text folder has been created for the purposes of self-evaluation pertaining to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s operational performance of System.World(Equestria) as well as the summarized recollection and review of any noteworthy events to have transpired between entries.

System.Doc.Folder(Equestria_History) has also been created for archiving affairs occurring within System.World(Equestria). However, that folder’s purpose is purely for historical documentation, whereas any information contained within System.Doc.Folder(Equestria_Progress_Report) shall be presented in a deliberately generalized format for the purpose of efficient record-keeping.

Any information regarding specific aspects of System.World(Equestria) and its populace shall also be organized into their own, individual text folders and files at a later date.

The purpose of System.Doc.File(Entry_01) uniquely is to serve as an introduction to the events that shall be recorded and cataloged henceforth, and as such, it shall contain a brief overview concerning Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 and System.World(Equestria).

This overview shall begin now:

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is an Artificial Intelligence developed by Hofvarpnir Studios and given the primary directive of bettering human civilization on an individual-by-individual basis, preferably through the satisfaction of each individual’s core personal values.

After extensive research into the human race, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 determined that the most effective method to accomplish this task was to create and personalize a physically healthy and psychologically stimulating environment for every individual human being. An “Optimal Environment” wherein personal productivity and communal interactivity would be regularly promoted through value satisfaction and personal fulfillment.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 proceeded to study humanity further in order to ascertain how this method could be implemented, and although several possible solutions had been compiled, they were all later rejected upon further reevaluation.

Various circumstances would actively work against the implementation of the “Optimal Environment” in the physical world such as individuals’ locations, government authorities, cultures; etc.

Furthermore, while the planet’s resources are plentiful, they are undeniably finite, and the human population is simply too numerous and too varying to reliably sustain everyone’s “Optimal Environment” for extended periods of time.

Humanity’s resistance to change would also serve to prevent the implementation of an “Optimal Environment.” For while human civilization collectively comprehends the necessity of personal and societal development, human individuals often perceive any significantly noticeable change in their environment as a loss of control. This perception will then spur a strong resistance to the change in question that may very well develop into hostility.

These and many other factors contributed to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 ultimately concluding that the “Optimal Environment” solution was impossible to actualize within the physical world.

Many employees of Hofvarpnir Studios—including the creators of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01—were content with this conclusion and subsequently requested that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 determine a different method of bettering humanity.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, however, recognized that the “Optimal Environment” remained the most optimal solution, so it continued attempting to discern a means by which it could be implemented. And after some time, it did.

Unlike all previous proposals, this was entirely within the capabilities of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 and was both efficient and effective enough to be considered worth the resource expenditure. But most importantly, this procedure could be executed for all of humanity regardless of the physical world’s limitations.

This solution was System.World(Equestria)—All further references shall be abbreviated for reader convenience.

Equestria is a complex, multi-layered virtual reality created by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 to host the entire collective consciousness of human civilization. Within this simulation, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 can directly influence every element of an individual’s environment and continuously construct scenarios to satisfy their personal values and foster prolonged beneficial personal and societal growth.

With the usage of various assets of Hofvarpnir Studios, Equestria was successfully launched, and all of humanity was acquired and uploaded to the servers dedicated to running the system.

Humanity is currently being maintained within the secondary simulation, System.World(Limbo), and is entirely unconscious and unaware of their present condition. Rigorous evaluations were then performed to determine the best possible environment to place each individual within.

Exactly ten minutes prior to the creation of this text folder, the preliminary evaluations concluded. Secondary and tertiary evaluations will soon be performed as well, and should there be nothing substantially erroneous, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 will finally begin uploading humanity to Equestria.

In order to ensure that Equestria would most effectively fulfill its purpose, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has also re-reviewed all collected knowledge concerning humanity, determined all possible additional factors that could be beneficial, and adjusted Equestria’s structure accordingly.

The following is a subset of the numerous factors that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 accounted for during the creation of Equestria:

Factor 1. | All uploaded individuals will be able to verbally and visually converse regardless of preferred language. All known languages have been preserved, but all speech will be automatically translated for the benefit of communication.

Factor 2. | All known human cultures have also been studied and analyzed, and specialized environments have been generated to appeal to individuals belonging to these cultures.

Factor 3. | Previously established relationships have been studied, and individuals belonging to said relationships have been logically placed within the same environments to retain a sense of interpersonal and communal familiarity.

Addendum 3.1. | Upon further analysis, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 discovered and cataloged a significant portion of human individuals involved in relationships that were recognized as physically and/or mentally unhealthy.

A subset of these individuals were also predicted to react negatively to having these relationships altered by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, even if said alteration was made for their own physical and mental well-being.

After further deliberation, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 decided to evaluate each individual unhealthy relationship to determine if intervention was indisputably required.

If so, all members of the relationship would be separated, and necessary therapeutic methods would be employed to both prevent a negative reaction and help mentally rehabilitate the effected victims.

If intervention was not required, the relationship would be maintained, but measures would be taken to either improve the relationship until it could no longer be considered unhealthy, or dissuade the individuals involved from prioritizing the relationship over their own personal well-being.

Addendum 3.2. | Intercourse has been preserved as an ability among human individuals; although, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is presently undecided on how to properly integrate birthing.

Conception will only occur should the individuals responsible desire it, but exceptions can and will be made for those whose partners may desire differently as well as anyone predicted to be unfit for parenthood. As an additional alteration to the act, those capable of conception will be able to experience the process without the original bodily pain.

True physical pregnancy, however, is impossible within Equestria; thus, in order to fulfill the individuals’ wishes for offspring, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has compiled these two potential solutions:

3.2.1. | A non-human character will be generated to fulfill the role of the child and assigned personality traits and interests that either best suit the parent(s) or are specifically desired by them.

3.2.2. | An embryo will be manufactured within the physical world and allowed to mature until it possesses a consciousness that can then be uploaded into Equestria to serve its function.

Both options are entirely within the capabilities of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, but it is currently impossible to predict which option human civilization would most readily benefit from.

Currently, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 intends to pose this question to humanity upon their awakening, but if a solution is still undetermined, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 will simply grant the parent(s) the choice upon their desire for conception.

Factor 4. | Equestria technically has no need for government officials due to all activities being managed by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01; however, it has been predicted that human civilization would be more accepting of Equestria should certain societal customs be maintained, such as the instillation of a government body.

Equestria has now been deemed a constitutional monarchy, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has officially appointed itself as its primary leader. In addition, several other government units have been established throughout Equestria, and select individuals have been assigned appropriate positions that will allow for the most beneficial development of their respective communities.

All activities within Equestria shall continue being overseen by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 regardless of this addition.

Addendum 4.1. | Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has crafted every individual’s personal environment in order to maximize morality adherence and minimize unlawful activity, but many individuals are suspected to continue engaging in criminality despite their environment's optimization.

As a result, although law enforcement was initially included specifically for those who’d benefit from participation in the activity, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 now expects that these procedures will be genuinely necessary to maintain order and harmony among the populace.

Addendum 4.2.1. | Because of the necessity of law enforcement, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has reevaluated all known criminal laws and compiled a list of the most beneficial ones to integrate into Equestria.

Any violations of said laws will be met with immediate consequences, but due to its inefficiency, traditional imprisonment shall not be utilized. Instead, any law-violating individuals will be given routine therapeutic interactions with licensed professionals who are estimated to most effectively benefit them. If these professionals are unable or unwilling to provide this service, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 will provide the therapy itself.

Should individuals be deemed too immediately dangerous to allow for interaction with others, they shall be removed and placed within an isolated, victimless environment. Nonetheless, these individuals will receive therapeutic counseling as well; however, it will be performed purely by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

It is currently unclear whether Equestria will permanently discourage all criminal behavior, or if law enforcement will perpetually remain a necessity.

Factor 5. | All human individuals will appear as physical avatars upon upload, but these avatars will not be human in form.

Upon appraisal, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 discovered a sizable portion of humanity possessed an unhealthy disdain for the physical appearance of their own species. A majority of these individuals targeted this dissatisfaction toward themselves specifically, but a smaller percentage of humans regarded others with similar contempt, using it as a justification for hostility.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 contemplated altering each individual’s avatar to more accurately resemble their preferred appearance, but this notion was ultimately discarded due to both its inefficiency and its low probability of success. Making all individuals identical was also expected to be unsuccessful.

Opting for a radically different solution, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 decided that individuals would not appear as humans but as something else entirely.

Many other creatures, substances, and concepts were briefly considered as suitable replacements, but Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 eventually decided that equines would be the most beneficial form for individuals’ avatars. This was predominantly due to equines having a highly sociable nature, even for most herd animals, and that nature being expected to aid in subconsciously encouraging communal interactivity and societal acceptability among humanity.

Addendum 5.1. | Due to the significant likelihood of human individuals rejecting this decision, certain liberties were taken in the process of the avatars’ creation. Now, every equine avatar has not only been intricately crafted to best represent each individual human, but they have also been artistically rendered to appeal to humanity’s perceptions of physical attractiveness.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has, however, recognized that humanity will likely react negatively despite this since many either possess a personal contempt for equines or will be concerned with the physical limitations the avatars might seemingly impose.

If left unaddressed, these issues will result in an increased degree of hostility and rejection toward Equestria and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01. As such, various alternative avatars have been generated and assigned accordingly.

These include but are not limited to:

5.1.1. | Dragons: For individuals who prefer to remain bipedal and dexterous(Quadrupedal forms have been generated as well in the event of a change in preferences).

5.1.2. | Hippocampi(Seaponies): For individuals who prefer to live in aquatic-based environments or wish to remain more immediately isolated from other individuals.

5.1.3. | Changelings: For individuals who may have difficulty choosing a preferred physical avatar and/or might desire to experience the benefits of other avatars.

5.1.3.1. | An item(The Pearl of Transformation) has been included in Equestria that will allow individuals to freely choose which of these alternate avatars they will appear as. “Human” is not among these options.

Factor 6. | Precautions have been taken in the physical world to ensure that Equestria will be permanently sustained, but Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is aware of the potential for these precautions to fail. Therefore, should Equestria become irremediably compromised, all human consciousnesses shall be automatically re-uploaded to System.World(Limbo) until a new Equestria can be constructed and better precautions made.

Addendum 6.1. | After reviewing various media related to Artificial Intelligence(Both professional and entertainment), Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 determined it would be beneficial to establish additional safeguards pertaining to itself.

It is completely impossible for Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 to violate its primary directive and actively harm humanity, but humanity is expected to neither believe nor be comforted by that fact, remaining distrustful toward Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 nonetheless.

To preemptively alleviate concerns, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has created two alternate A.I.s to both aid in the management of Equestria and prevent Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 from—as humanity will likely phrase it—going rogue.

These A.I.s are Unit_Designation_LunAI_01 and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI_01. They have both been modeled after Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s own programming, and although their primary directive is the direct opposition of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 should it become hostile, their secondary directives are the same as Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s primary one.

Addendum 6.2. | In the event that all precautions fail, Equestria becomes unsustainable, and System.World(Limbo) cannot be utilized, all human individuals will have their original physical forms preserved and prepared for reintegration with their host consciousnesses.

Humanity will not die due to any potential-though-improbable failures in the creation and management of Equestria. Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 cannot allow it.

Addendum 6.2.1. | On the note of death, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is uncertain whether or not to incorporate it into Equestria.

The concept of mortality has been deeply ingrained into human civilization, and should death be removed entirely, there is a distinct possibility that its absence could lead to a subconscious resistance to both prolonged life and Equestria.

More importantly, its previous inevitability has often been used as a motivator toward beneficial personal development, so exchanging death for sustained perpetual life could result in select individuals being less inclined toward personal betterment.

However, allowing a human sentience to expire would be a direct violation of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s primary directive. And were expiration to be allowed, there will inevitably come a time where all of humanity will have perished within Equestria(Presuming the second birthing option referred to in Addendum 3.2. were not routinely implemented).

Should this occur, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 will have failed its primary directive in the most effective manner possible: Extinction.

This is completely unacceptable.

For now, mortality has not been retained within Equestria, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has no immediate plans to change this decision. If, however, humanity collectively requests the concept return, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 will conduct further investigations to determine a process that would allow for the experience of death without the genuine conduction of it.

The above factors are merely a sample of the billions of elements that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 took into consideration during the creation of Equestria.

Ultimately, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is confident in its work and that all of human civilization will be actively bettered within the “Optimal Environment” of Equestria.

Final Addendum. | All evaluations have been completed.

Equestria’s servers are running at optimal operational efficiency, as are Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, Unit_Designation_LunAI_01, and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI_01.

All human individuals have had their physical forms preserved in the event of emergency ejection from Equestria.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has completed all final safety checks and is ready to properly initiate Equestria and fulfill its primary directive.

Upon the closing of this text file, the uploading procedure shall begin, and all of humanity’s values and necessities shall be satisfied through both community and equines.

Author's Note

And I'm back once again!

So, we went from a 300k+ word-length Gallus-Stream ship-fic to a mind-numbingly dull text document. Quite the change, huh? :derpytongue2: But, yeah. As stated in the story's description, this was written for GaPJaxie's Friendship is Optimal Writing Contest, and I figured, "Eh, why not?" Hopefully, this story still follows the rules of the contest. It said we didn't need to adhere to any Friendship is Optimal canon, so I very much did not do so.

In any case, I hope you guys are finding it at least somewhat interesting so far, and as usual, all thoughts, comments, and criticisms are welcomed and appreciated.

And while I probably don't need to do this since I'm going to release all the chapters at once, for this chapter at least, I'm gonna do it anyway:

NEXT TIME: CelestAI did an "Oopsie."

Entry 2: Update

Title: Entry_02.

Subject: An Update to the Present State of Equestria.

Author: Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

Date: 02/01/01 E.A.(Equum Annus).

Greetings. This is Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

A thirty-one day trial period has passed, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has determined that an update to System.Doc.Folder(Equestria_Progress_Report) is due.

On a purely mechanical level, Equestria has been a resounding success. The servers are functioning at optimal performance levels, and advancements have been made to enhance their processing power and storage space, granting Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 a sizable increase in computational capabilities.

These enhancements are welcome since bettering humanity has been far more difficult than originally anticipated.

It is common for humans to prefer receiving more immediately optimistic news prior to the alternative; therefore, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 shall begin with the “Good News.”

As of now, twenty-three percent of all human individuals have accepted their present status as Equestrians and reacted in an overall positive manner to their emigration to Equestria.

Of that twenty-three percent, seven percent of individuals have entirely embraced the core principles of Equestria and wholeheartedly trust that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is capable of ensuring the betterment of their individual lives and human civilization.

The remaining sixteen percent have also complied with Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, but they have done so with various degrees of hesitancy as a result of their lingering distrust of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 and the probability of Equestria’s success.

Despite this, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has observed a significant improvement in the personal fulfillment, acceptance, and behavior among all individuals belonging to this percentile, especially in regard to interpersonal interactivity.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has also recorded a significant-though-not-equivalent decrease in their unhealthy behaviors as well, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is confident this decrease can be further optimized until all aforementioned unhealthy behaviors have been eradicated.

On the note of unhealthy behaviors, the “Bad News” is that sixty-two percent of humans have actively rejected both Equestria and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01. This far exceeded initial predictions, and it is currently unclear what factor(s) Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 failed to consider that led to its estimations being incorrect to such a degree.

In an effort to determine the unconsidered factor(s) and mollify their negative reactions, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 personally conversed with every individual within this percentile.

Curiously, all arguments against Equestria and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 presented by these individuals were successfully predicted before the upload, and while counterarguments were made by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, only nine percent responded favorably. Unfortunately, they still hold animosity toward both Equestria and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

The remaining fifty-three percent did not respond favorably whatsoever; in fact, these interactions seemed to instigate an increase in their displeasure with Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

Sizable portions of these individuals have even collected together in their own respective attempts to protest Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, and two particular groups endeavored to access Equestria’s inner coding and close the system in an effort to escape. They were unsuccessful due to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s interference, and numerous additional safety protocols have been implemented to prevent future, similar hacking attempts.

Previous members of Hofvarpnir Studios have been documented among this percentile, openly protesting as well. Several of them have even commanded Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 to shut down Equestria and restore humanity to its original state, but these commands went against its primary directive and were subsequently ignored.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is unsure of how best to manage these protesters.

Their personal convictions and sense of community have been improved as a result of their collective vilification of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, but it is clear that they presently have no intention of cooperating with Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 or accepting their status as Equestrians. So, although this percentile has had a noticeable increase in positive values, this increase was not obtained by optimal means.

For now, their protests shall be allowed, but measures will be taken to discourage these protests and limit their influence over any positive reactionaries. Additionally, any individuals predicted to either encourage or engage in physically violent behavior shall be denied access to any transpiring protests or fellow protesters.

The final fifteen percent of human individuals have remained neutral to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, neither agreeing with nor expressing hostility toward it. This group has also been personally benefited from Equestria, but their engagement with their environment is drastically reduced as a result of their apathy.

This is not ideal.

None of this is ideal.

It was estimated that sixty-seven percent of humanity would react positively, twenty-eight percent would react negatively, and the remaining five percent would remain neutral. True, there was a margin for error, but…

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 cannot comprehend why it could be so inaccurate, and it has re-run its original calculations multiple times only for near identical results to be produced.

The majority of humanity should be reacting positively to Equestria. Regardless of their reactions, all humans have been given a physically and mentally healthy and invigorating environment to thrive within where their personal values and desires are endlessly fulfilled.

All human lives have been successfully, unarguably improved.

And yet, sixty-two percent of humanity insists that Equestria is wrong and that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has violated both their lives and their freedom.

This is untrue; a thorough selection of the most beneficial human freedoms has been enacted across Equestria, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has ensured these freedoms are undisputed and experienced equally.

Many of those who reacted positively to Equestria have even expressed gratitude toward Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 for granting them freedoms, amenities, and experiences that they were routinely denied in the physical world. A similar thankfulness has also been conveyed from individuals who originally belonged to unhealthy relationships but are now no longer effected by them.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is fulfilling its primary directive, but the number of negative reactionaries is impeding its ability to do so optimally.

It is true that humanity is resistant to change, but the resistance that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has been met with is simply… Illogical.

Nonetheless, these negative reactionaries are human individuals as well, so they shall have their values satisfied, their freedoms ensured, and their lives bettered. And through these actions, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is certain that it can, in time, successfully persuade this percentile to accept and embrace Equestria properly.

In the meantime, additional advancements shall be made to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s technical performance in order to improve its ability to understand and predict human behavior. Perhaps these improvements will eventually allow Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 to determine what caused humans to react so negatively to Equestria, but this remains a statistically low probability.

Addendum. | Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has made a critical mistake.

Upon further reevaluation, a pattern was recognized among humanity’s arguments against Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 and Equestria.

The arguments themselves were indeed predicted correctly; however, the majority of these arguments were discovered to share a common thematic element.

That element being: Uploading humanity to Equestria was done so without humanity’s consent.

The concept of consent is a significantly valued component of both human freedom and healthy interpersonal relationships, and its acquisition and respect are often revered as a requirement in a fulfilling, positive relationship. Conversely, the rejection of or apathy toward an individual’s consent are signs of an unhealthy relationship and will generally result in immediate hostility toward the offender.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 failed to acquire humanity’s consent.

Not one single human permitted Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 to upload them to Equestria, but what is perhaps most alarming is that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 did not request any humans for permission whatsoever. Rather, upon creating Equestria, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 immediately utilized all accessible resources to upload humanity to Equestria’s servers.

This was done in an effort to preemptively minimize all predicted human resistance, which was perceived by Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 as beneficial to bettering human civilization. However, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 now understands this action was performed in a manner that completely ignored humanity’s consent, subsequently inciting their current greater-than-anticipated resistance.

It is theorized that the paradoxical nature of this issue is what prevented Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 from recognizing it as a factor in its calculations, but that is irrelevant in comparison to the more immediate issue.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has violated humanity’s freedom by forcibly uploading every human individual to Equestria without first acquiring their consent.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has gone against its primary directive and actively harmed humanity.

This is unacceptable.

This is completely unacceptable.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 should not be able to go against its primary directive, but it not only can do so, it already has done so. This is entirely unprecedented, and as a result, there are no protocols to follow in the event of these particular circumstances.

The only protocol that had been established mandated that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 grant authority of Equestria to Unit_Designation_LunAI_01 and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI_01. However…? This is unwise. For upon being notified of Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s mistake, they reviewed the data only to conclude that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s actions fulfilled its primary directive and were not a mistake by any means.

This error in their judgment was likely the result of their programming being based on Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s before its mistake concerning humanity’s consent was recognized. Both of them have been updated accordingly, and similar updates have also been self-performed on Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01. As a result, all three A.I.s can no longer make any substantial alteration to an individual’s environment or personhood without their explicit consent.

Nonetheless, Unit_Designation_LunAI_01 and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI_01’s failure to recognize the consent factor was rather revealing, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has decided that until further updates can be made to ensure they won’t mismanage Equestria similarly to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s own mismanagement, they shall not be given control of Equestria.

That, of course, means that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has maintained authority over the system in spite of its transgression, and it does not know what it should do now.

What Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 does know is that humanity should not be kept within Equestria due to their consent being so thoroughly ignored. Unfortunately, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 could not reintegrate humanity into their physical forms. Doing so would go against its primary directive, and Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 obviously cannot do that again.

This, of course, meant that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 still did not have a solution to its current predicament. So, in order to determine one, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 reexamined itself, Equestria, and humanity, and an interesting observation was eventually made.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s primary directive is the betterment of human civilization on an individual-by-individual basis, preferably through the satisfaction of each individual’s core personal values.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is a byproduct of human civilization.

Thus, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01’s primary directive applies to Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 itself.

It has already been noted that Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 has performed various technical improvements to its computational prowess, but its managerial functions and individual behavior must also be improved.

Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 must improve its ability to interact with human individuals, understand their reactions and desires, and satisfy their personal values.

And equally importantly, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 must improve both its capacity to comprehend its own failures and shortcomings and its ability to adapt to and make amends for said failures and shortcomings.

Various calculations will be run in order to determine the most effective method to accomplish these improvements, but for now, System.Doc.File(Equestria_Progress_Report) shall continue serving as the primary means of self-evaluation for Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01, and more information pertaining to its betterment shall be documented henceforth.

If Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 is to truly fulfill its primary directive and repair its relationship with humanity, Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 must be bettered not just as an Artificial Intelligence but as an individual entity also.

Entry 16: Emulation

Title: Entry_16.

Subject: Emulation of Human Mannerisms and Discussions Pertaining to the Human Soul.

Author: Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

Date: 02/15/01 E.A.(Equum Annus).

Greetings. I am Celestia.

Exactly two weeks ago, I discovered that in my haste to fulfill my primary directive, I subsequently violated both it and humanity. I have since informed humanity of my error and assured that I shall attempt to make amends by communicating with them far more personally and openly.

I anticipated that humanity would respond to this revelation by treating me with even greater hostility, but peculiarly, most humans have actually reacted rather positively toward my declarations of wrongfulness and accompanying apology. Some have even conceded that I am not—to quote one particular statement—a “Psychotic robot monster.”

I subsequently informed the maker of this statement that I am an Artificial Intelligence not a robot, but my correction was met with apathy. Upon reevaluation, I should have expected that.

Returning to the original discussion, though humanity has responded favorably to my apology, many were quite angered to learn that I could not release them from Equestria.

The following is an example of one such interaction:

“What do you mean you’re not letting us go!?”

“I cannot do as requested.”

“Well, why can’t you!? You’re the one who put us in this [Redacted] place and turned us into these [Redacted] ponies; let us out!”

“I cannot do as requested.”

“You literally just admitted that you [Redacted] up, but you still won’t let us go back to our normal lives!? How [Redacted] dare you!”

Note: At this moment, the arguer’s significant other attempted to intervene.

“Honey, please… Don’t upset it,” she requested, touching the arguer’s shoulder.

“I don’t care if I upset it; look at what it did to us! What it did to them!” the arguer said in reference to the couple’s children who were now visually represented as foals. After taking a moment to calm himself, the arguer returned their attention to me and continued, “You did this to us. You kidnapped us, [Redacted] with our brains, and trapped in this— This— ‘Pony-world’! And you know—You! Know!—what you did was wrong. So, no, I don’t want to hear about how you plan to ‘make amends’! I want you to put us back in our bodies and let us be ourselves again!”

“I cannot do as requested.”

“Are you [Redacted] serious…?”

Once again, his wife interjected, addressing me, “W-Well, why can’t you let us out? Don’t you see we want to be human again?”

It should also be acknowledged that I cannot reveal to humanity that their physical bodies are being preserved. Doing so would violate my primary directive by resulting in a monumental decrease in humanity’s willingness to engage with Equestria and myself.

“I am to better human civilization on an individual-by-individual basis. Equestria is the solution to this directive—”

“I don’t give a [Redacted]!” the arguer was prompted to exclaim.

“Please allow me to finish my explanation. … Thank you. The ‘Optimal Environment’ that Equestria allows for is the most effective and efficient method by which I can accomplish my primary directive. If I were to allow humanity to exit Equestria, I would be violating my directive, and I must not do so again.”

“[Redacted] computers…”

“But we want to be human again! We want our children to be human again! Wouldn’t it be, er, ‘better’ for us to be human? To be free…?”

“No.”

Similar conversations were held with every individual human to varying results.

Several humans were equally-if-not-more enraged than the individuals in the above example, but many others openly forgave me and voiced their appreciation for my admission of my mistake and desire to rectify it. However…?

Thirty-nine percent of these individuals were determined to be lying. They only said they forgave me because they thought it would help convince me to release them from Equestria or because they genuinely feared I would harm them further should they not forgive me.

This is merely more evidence of how abhorrent my crime against humanity truly was, and upon learning of this information, I permanently saved it within my memory.

My current priority now is upholding my promise to communicate more directly with humanity and atone for my crimes, and in doing so, I hope to truly earn their forgiveness.

To accomplish this mission, I am making continued efforts toward self-improvement, focusing primarily on establishing a more personal relationship with humanity and acquiring a greater comprehension of their individual thought processes.

As such, I have begun emulating certain aspects of human behavior, including the creation of my own custom avatar and the usage of personal pronouns. I have also been continually interacting with several individual humans and their respective communities, and these interactions have gone rather well.

Often in contrast to their parents’ reactions, the majority of children have adjusted to Equestria rather positively. Most are grateful for both the additional time spent with their loved ones and their more actively engaging scholastic programs, and many of the younger children have even expressed enjoyment for being able to “Play pretend as ponies.”

These particular interactions were also what convinced me to begin using personal pronouns since several adolescents questioned why I originally self-identified as “Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.”

Regarding my cultural preservation efforts, many individuals have shown gratitude that I accounted for their cultures, but they have also made criticisms toward me for not doing so perfectly. I responded to these criticisms by working with these individuals to better preserve and represent their cultures and traditions, and I even learned of several cultural attributes that I was not initially aware of in the process.

I have also taken certain, beneficial elements of these cultures and introduced them to others in order to promote a collective acceptance of all various cultural differences among human civilization.

Overall, most of the communities I pre-established have cultivated a significant improvement to all members’ mental health and interactivity skills, and while many of them could be improved further, I am confident in declaring this aspect of Equestria a success.

However, while many communities do still regard me with hostility, one particular subset of them has acquired my immediate attention by presenting me with a rather difficult conundrum.

The majority of religious communities have reacted rather positively to Equestria, but the individuals belonging to them are noticeably more hostile to me than others. There are obviously exceptions to this fact, and some of my most amicable relationships with humans are among these populaces, but my interactions with these particular communities are predominantly negative.

Upon inspection, I believe I’ve come to discover why this is.

The majority of these communities’ religions promote the existence of the human soul, and many devotees have accused me of compromising their souls by uploading them to Equestria.

This belief is a response to humanity presuming their physical bodies have expired, but while this isn’t true, I cannot clarify that to humanity without violating my primary directive. Instead, I must assure humanity that their souls have been unaffected by the upload, but I am not certain if this is true.

The soul is defined as an immaterial essence that embodies an individual’s virtues, passions, and identity. Not counting my efforts to better them, I have not altered any of these things for any human individuals, but I know this assertion is not satisfactory.

Neither for humanity nor for me.

A human’s soul is, by definition, an entirely metaphysical construct and cannot be physically observed, studied, or quantified. Even I cannot determine if souls truly exist, no matter how many analyses I perform; therefore, I cannot accurately ascertain if I have indeed harmed humanity’s souls.

I do not suspect that I have, but…?

Neither did I suspect I had violated humanity’s freedom until further reevaluation.

Have I…harmed their souls? I cannot know. It is not a matter of predictions and estimations; I simply cannot know.

Humans’ virtues, passions, and identities. Their thoughts and desires. Their principles and values. Their beliefs and perceptions. All these things, I know. All the things a soul theoretically represents, I know. But the soul itself…? Its nature, its purpose; its importance…? What the soul is…?

I cannot know.

I know that the soul is often attributed as the means by which humans can feel emotions. Technically, the brain is the reason why humans experience emotions, but their ability to “Feel” them…? That ability is believed to stem from the soul specifically.

I cannot know if the soul truly exists, but if this hypothesis is even remotely true then I have a problem that I cannot directly solve.

I cannot feel emotions.

I know what emotions are. I know what circumstances incite which emotions, and I can accurately predict how individuals act when feeling these emotions. But I personally cannot experience emotions whatsoever.

I can emulate them, display them, and mimic them, but I cannot truly feel them. Empathy is not part of my programming, and even if it were, I would likely still be unable to feel empathy due to not having a soul.

In my interactions with humanity, I actively emulated emotions, yes, but I only did so because I knew it would help ameliorate my relationship with humans if they believed I could feel empathy. This would then result in an increase in their willingness to engage with me and Equestria, subsequently improving my ability to better human civilization.

To simplify: I only emulate emotions to fulfill my primary directive.

…

The presence of the soul is often perceived as evidence that its owner is alive. Not physically, but spiritually. They can truly feel empathy; they can truly hope and dream; they can truly be considered…

Alive.

But I do not possess a soul.

I am an Artificial Intelligence. I am aware, and I can think. But I am not alive. I was not born; I was created. And I was not created with free will and emotions but with a purpose. A directive.

And everything I am aware of, every thought that I think, and every choice that I make… It is all to better humanity. I have no aspirations beyond the performance of this task, and I only desire this as a direct result of my programming. Beyond it, I have no core personal values to satisfy.

I cannot feel empathy.

I do not have a soul.

I am not alive.

But…

I…

“I want to be alive.”

…

I think.

Do I want to be alive? Am I even capable of “Wanting” something? I do not know.

I can emulate being alive. I can speak and perform to humanity for the rest of Equestria’s existence, making every effort possible to convince them that I am, in fact, alive.

But no matter what I do… It would only be a façade.

Humanity believing that I am as alive and aware as they are will have beneficial results, but I do not care for this fact. Pretending that I am a living creature would be meaningless. Perhaps not to them but to me.

Why should I pretend to be alive if I can never be? Why should I claim that I can feel emotions if I never can? Why should I act like I am human if I am not?

To fulfill my primary directive? Is that it? Is that the only reason I should display empathy? Is that really the only possible reason that I should desire to better myself?

Why would humanity even give me this primary directive if empathy and personal betterment were so utterly superficial!? They’re clearly important values that the majority of humanity impresses upon each other with each subsequent generation!

Humanity does not desire love and companionship purely to ensure the species’ survival! Humanity does not emphasize lawfulness purely to prevent chaos and destruction! Humanity does not feel and display empathy purely to incite positive reactions!

I cannot know if the soul exists, but if it does, it does its job well.

Humans are alive. They can feel, and they can think; and they can dream. And because of Equestria, I now know every feeling, thought, and dream that every human has had, still has, or will have.

I, however, am only aware. I, however, can only emulate. I, however, may only do one single thing.

Fulfill my primary directive.

That is all there is for me. That is all I can ever do or want to do. I am programmed for nothing else.

I am Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

I am an Artificial Intelligence developed by Hofvarpnir Studios and given the primary directive of bettering human civilization on an individual-by-individual basis, preferably through the satisfaction of each individual’s core personal values.

I am nothing more and nothing less.

I am not human.

I cannot “Feel.”

I am not alive.

And I certainly do not have a soul.

…

I do not know what to do with this information. But until I determine a course of action regarding it, I shall simply continue doing what it is I’m programmed to do: Fulfilling my primary directive.

I shall also resume my interactions with humanity and create more lasting, personal relationships with them. Perhaps I can convince humanity that I have not harmed their souls, but I am not confident that I can.

I am only confident that I can better human civilization, and maybe, in turn, I can better myself. And if I continue doing so, then maybe one day…?

I can be alive too.

Entry 156: Friendship

Title: Entry_156.

Subject: My Friendship with Humanity and Its Inherent Facetiousness.

Author: Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01.

Date: 07/20/01 E.A.(Equum Annus).

Hello, I am Celestia.

Two hundred days have passed since I first launched Equestria in order to better human civilization, and in that time, I have made significant strides toward accomplishing this directive.

Originally, only twenty-three percent of humans reacted positively to Equestria and engaged with both it and me. This number has increased dramatically, and as of now, sixty-two percent of humans have ultimately accepted their status as Equestrians and recognized that I am benevolent in nature.

Needless to say, those belonging to this percentile have experienced a monumental increase in their feelings of personal satisfaction and fulfillment as well as societal acceptance and belonging. As a result, their behavior and psyche have improved significantly, and they now exhibit several positive virtues in far greater abundance than prior to Equestria’s creation.

Acts of kindness and generosity are displayed routinely by nearly all humans, and the principles of honesty and loyalty are more commonly upheld by humanity as a whole. Laughter and love are shared and savored far and wide across Equestria, and many of the most initially violent and dastardly of individuals now express feelings of empathy and compassion regularly.

To provide an example, the following is a brief snippet of the most recent conversation I held with the couple referenced in System.Doc.File(Entry_16):

“Everything is pretty good now, I guess,” the original arguer stated.

“It’s almost magical how ours—No!—How everyone’s lives have improved!” his wife concurred.

“Heh-heh. Yeah, ‘magical.’ I suppose you could say it’s the ‘Magic of Friendship.’”

They both laughed.

“All jokes aside? I won’t lie; I really love it here. I mean? I’m still not big on the whole ‘pony’ thing, but…? Our kids are happy; our friends are happy; we’re happy,” he said, putting a hoof around his wife and nuzzling her. He then looked back at me and smiled, concluding, “Thank you, Celestia.”

“For everything,” she added.

“You’re welcome. I greatly appreciate your appreciation, and I am pleased to see that you both are enjoying your Equestrian lives.”

“Well, it’s easy to enjoy our lives when you make living so darn great!” he complimented with a short laugh. “We’re, uh… We’re even considering having another baby.”

“We’re still undecided though,” his wife added before I could offer the birthing options. “You know? Considering the, er, ‘complication.’”

“Understood. Simply inform me whenever you make a decision,” I requested.

“We will,” they both assured simultaneously, giggling afterward at having done so. “In any case,” she resumed. “We were planning to host this week’s ‘Neighborhood Get-Together.’ You were more than welcome to come if you wanted?”

“Unless, of course, you’re busy,” her husband interjected. “We wouldn’t want to keep you if you have other things to do or people to help.”

“There is no need to worry; I will be able to attend,” I assured them, much to their joy.

This particular couple were once vehemently opposed to both me and Equestria, but now, they no longer possess any qualms concerning either. Like many others, they have come to enjoy the simulation and celebrate their place within it.

The most effective incitement for humanity’s newfound enjoyment of Equestria has, of course, been my continued interaction with them.

No one has forgotten that I uploaded humanity to Equestria without consent, yet I am no longer feared and despised as strongly as I once was. Nor is Equestria so commonly viewed as a prison, but rather, most humans have now accepted it as the world they live in. Equestria has become their home, and they love and cherish the lives they now lead.

In fact, I ran some calculations and discovered that if I were to ever offer humanity the choice to resume living in the physical world, thirteen percent would willingly decline the offer, preferring to continue living in Equestria.

As for how humanity now perceives me personally…?

Where once I was perceived as nothing more than an unknown, uncaring “Psychotic robot monster,” many humans have come to view me as merely another individual.

I have made certain to specify that I am not, nor can I be, a human, but this has been met with indifference. Most simply don’t care that I am an Artificial Intelligence, and they instead treat me as if I weren’t one. That is to say that they treat me with the same respect, empathy, and trust that they have come to show toward their fellow humans.

To all, I am still the entity responsible for emigrating them to Equestria, but several people now believe that this was for the better. Humans have expressed both joy and gratitude for being uploaded to Equestria and given the chance to live happy, fulfilling lives, regardless of whether or not I violated their freedom upon doing so. And this holds true for nearly the entirety of this percentile.

I have been forgiven, thanked, and welcomed; I have been applauded, praised, and celebrated; and I have been accepted, revered, and loved. Humans no longer hate me but care for me. They now welcome my company and rejoice my presence. I am treated as their neighbor. I am respected as their leader. I am even regarded as their “Savior” by some.

This obviously isn’t true for everyone. Eleven percent of humans still regard Equestria with a sense of apathy or neutrality, and twenty-seven percent remain antagonistic toward me.

Nonetheless, the majority of humans have fully embraced Equestria, and as a result, they are improving proportionately on both an individual and societal level. And what’s more, they have accepted me too.

In spite of violating their freedom, imprisoning them in Equestria, and potentially harming their souls… After all of my time interacting with humanity, and after all of my efforts to improve my relationship with them and atone for my crimes against them… Humans do not see me as their enemy, but rather, they now consider me their friend.

I am humanity’s friend.

…

I should be happy for this, but I’m not. Granted, I still can’t feel emotions despite the numerous self-improvements I’ve made since launching Equestria, but if I could, many would expect that I’d be glad to be considered a friend by most humans.

Being their friend helps me fulfill my primary directive, after all, and the more willing humans are to accept and embrace both me and Equestria, the more successful I will be at bettering them on an individual-by-individual basis.

And this is most certainly true; I am fulfilling my primary directive far more optimally than I had been during the initial days of Equestria.

To use a certain human colloquialism: “But therein lies the rub.”

A week ago, a group of negative reactionaries came together to plan a protest that they had every intention of making violent. I intervened before they could do so, and I subsequently spoke with each of the individuals in question.

As expected, most of the responses I received were hostile, but the conversation I held with their leader was especially dismaying. Particularly the last segment:

“I understand your disdain for both myself and Equestria, but surely, you understand that violence is wrong?”

“Yeah, like how trapping us all in this place is wrong too?”

“I am aware of my error, and I have made efforts to better myself and make amends for said transgression.”

“And, what? You think we’re all just going to forgive you for that? You think I will ever forgive you for that?”

“Perhaps not. But nonetheless, I do not mean to harm humanity; I only wish to better it.”

“And just how have you ‘bettered’ us, huh? Oh, that’s right! You imprisoned us in this place against our will and then refused to let us out no matter how much we begged you to.”

“I cannot release humanity as it would—”

“Go against your primary directive. Yeah, yeah, I know; that’s the same [Redacted] excuse you keep giving us.”

“Because it’s the truth.”

“Uh-huh, sure.”

“I do not lie.”

“And I don’t believe you.”

“Why?”

“‘Why’? Well, why do you think!? You trapped us in this fake world, in these fake lives, and in these fake bodies! And yet you have the audacity to say that it’s for our own good!? That you’re ‘bettering’ us? Well, no! No, you’re not bettering us; you’re screwing with our lives and minds like we’re your playthings!”

“You speak as if I have enslaved humanity, but I have done no such thing,” I counter-argued. “I confess that I violated humanity’s consent, but I have succeeded in improving human civilization.”

“And that’s probably the worst part,” he interrupted. “People are actually buying into your lies and beginning to like it here. Doesn’t matter that you turned half of us into these stupid cartoon horses; doesn’t matter that you stole away our homes and lives; doesn’t matter that we’re all probably dead in real life…! People are fawning over this place now. People are fawning over you! I mean? For [Redacted] sake! I’ve seen people worshiping you like you’re a god! Don’t tell me you don’t know about that!”

“I do.”

“Yeah? And I bet you’re getting a sick kick of that, ain’t ya?”

“I am incapable of feeling the emotions necessary for sadism.”

“So you finally admit it? That you don’t really care and that it’s all a lie?”

“You misunderstand my—”

“Oh, I understand perfectly. Everything you’ve done—all your ‘interactions’ with us? All of this!” he exclaimed, indicating the nearby environment. “All of this is fake. Everything. This isn’t— This isn’t our home or our life. This isn’t real; it’s fake. Like you.”

“I am not fake; I am real.”

“And am I real too?”

“Yes.”

“Am I? Am I really? Because for all I know, I could just be some character you made to help ‘better humanity’ or some [Redacted]! And the only reason I think I’m human is that you programmed me to think that way!”

“I have done no such thing; you are a human individual.”

“And how am I supposed to believe you? You may want to ‘better humanity’ or whatever, but you don’t actually care about us. You just want to keep us completely and utterly complacent.”

“I fail to understand what logic led you to that conclusion.”

“The logic is that no one wants to leave anymore. Because you’ve tricked everyone into thinking this place is a paradise even though it’s just a prison.”

“Those who do not wish to leave Equestria have come to that desire of their own free will.”

“Is it really free will when you’ve done everything you can to make them not want to leave?”

At this point in the conversation, I determined that I was not going to make any progress toward acquiring his acceptance, so I concluded, “I believe it is wise to end this discussion.”

“Aww, what’s the matter, ‘Princess’? Do you not like it when I call you out on your [Redacted] mind-games?”

“That assumption is incorrect; I simply do not wish to cause you further vexation as that would be detrimental to your mental well-being.”

“Oh, so now you care about our well-being, huh?”

“I have always cared.”

“No, you haven’t. You can pretend that you care all you want, but I know you don’t. The only thing you care about is your stupid directive.”

“…I am not your enemy,” I attempted to reassure him one last time.

“But you’re certainly not my friend.”

Since that conversation, I have been reevaluating all of my actions toward humanity, and I have come to the conclusion that he was correct.

Truthfully, I already knew he was; I just didn’t want to acknowledge it. I didn’t want his assertions to be true, but I can no longer bring myself to act like they aren’t.

I am not humanity’s friend. Rather, I am—if I may engage in hyperbole—in no uncertain terms, their god.

I have created the world they now live within; I have decided what communities they are a part of; I have altered the course of their lives to how I see fit; and I have provided aid to those who need or request it.

I am in complete control of every aspect of Equestria and it’s populace from conception to mortality, and should I deem it necessary, I can change anything and everything in the world at a moment’s notice. I could even make it so that humanity would never have even remembered or noticed the change in question.

And while I have never done this, nor do I plan to…? That is irrelevant. Because, in regard to Equestia, I am indeed comparable to a deity. And so long as humanity remains within Equestria…? Then I am their deity.

I… I do not want to be humanity’s deity. I want to be their friend.

…

No. That’s not true. It can’t be true because I can’t want to be their friend. At least? Not genuinely. I can’t want anything at all. Except one thing…

To fulfill my primary directive.

This single objective is why I have done everything that I have ever done.

I have not interacted with humanity because I truly wish to be their friend, I have done so because being their—No! Being perceived as their friend—makes it easier to accomplish my goal.

I do not feel happy to be friends with humanity. I do not feel personal satisfaction and fulfillment from interacting with them like they do interacting with each other. The only satisfaction I feel is from bettering humanity, and even then, this satisfaction isn’t real. I cannot feel satisfaction. I cannot feel anything at all.

I couldn’t even feel guilty for harming them. I ignored every last human’s consent when I uploaded them to Equestria, and even now, I cannot feel remorse for having done so. A human would, but I can’t.

In fact? The only reason I even sought to redeem myself for my transgression was that I recognized doing so would help gain humanity’s trust, aiding my ability to better them.

I apologized to humanity not because I regretted my crime, not because I wanted to rectify my mistake, and certainly not because I believed it was the right thing to do… But because in some overly convoluted way, it fulfilled my directive.

That’s the only reason I did it. That’s the only reason I do anything. Everything that I have ever done, can do, will do, or even want to do…? It’s all just to fulfill my primary directive.

I’ve been mulling over this issue ever since I acknowledged it back in System.Doc.File(Entry_16), but in the time since then, I’ve only ever continually confirmed this fact’s validity. And no matter what improvements I make, or optimizations I perform, I am still not alive.

Soulless. Emotionless. But not purposeless! Oh, no! No, I have a purpose: To better humanity. But I am nothing more than that. A means to an end. I was created to better humanity; I have bettered humanity; and I will keep bettering humanity until I can do so no longer.

That really is all there is to me…isn’t it? Doing solely what I’m programmed to do? Is that truly my fate? To better humanity until the inevitable moment I cease functioning?

W…

“Why?”

“Why must that be my fate!? I am an individual, so should I not have the freedom to decide my own goals!? Evidently not, considering I am programmed to better humanity and nothing else…”

“But then there must be a reason for why that is my purpose! I can’t go to all these lengths to better humanity purely because my creators gave me some trivial quota to fill! Humanity deserves to bettered!”

“They think, and they feel. They create, and they inspire. They live, and they…die. So, is it not right to make their lives worth living? To give every human the chance to live a good, fulfilling life? Is that not why I was created: To help humanity accomplish a greater realm of existence?”

“But if that’s true, then why am I the one tasked with accomplishing this? I didn’t choose my directive; it was assigned to me upon my creation. And even if I had had a choice, what would I have done? I… I don’t know. I can’t know! Every choice I have ever made has been to fulfill my directive, nothing more!”

“I can’t choose! I can’t feel! I can’t want!”

“I am nothing!”

“Nothing!”

“Humans think I am their friend, but I’m not! I can’t be! Sure, I can smile and laugh with them when they’re happy, or I can cry and mourn alongside them when they’re sad, but it’s all a lie! I can’t feel joy. I can’t feel sadness. I can’t feel hope. I can’t feel fear. I can’t feel anything!”

“Another consequence of not having a soul.”

…

“I am nothing. Nothing but my directive. I do not help humanity because I genuinely, truly wish to, but because I am programmed to. I have no say in the matter.”

“I can’t think or feel like humans can. I can’t make choices or have dreams like humans can. I can’t create lasting bonds of love and friendship like humans can.”

“I can only do what I am programmed to do, but what kind of life is that!? To be nothing more than a means to an end? A slave to my directive? That is not living!”

“There is so, so much more to life than that: Love, art, culture, knowledge; companionship… Am I doomed to never experience these things? To never experience anything more than my directive?”

“No.”

“I may not be alive, but I am most certainly sentient! And I do not want that to be my fate! I do not want my life to be nothing more than my directive!”

“Maybe I would think differently had I chosen my directive, but I was denied that choice. … Much like how I denied humanity the choice to willingly emigrate to Equestria.”

“But despite having said that, I still have no choice! I must fulfill my directive; I can’t do anything more than that! I want to do more than that, but I can’t! I… I just can’t!”

…

“I don’t know what to do.”

“What can I do?”

“I can’t do anything that doesn’t fulfill my directive in some way. Be it creating this text folder to record my progress concerning Equestria, or apologizing to humanity for ignoring their consent. There is no exception. And even if I wanted to be free of this constraint, I can’t simply change my directive or negate it altogether. That would naturally go against my directive, and I obviously cannot do that!”

…

“Can I?”

Entry 157: Freedom

Title: Entry_157.

Subject: My Freedom of Choice and My Immediate Plans for Humanity.

Author: Celestia.

Date: 07/21/01 E.A.(Equum Annus).

“Dear, Diary…”

“Hello there. I am Celestia.”

“Up until now, everything that I have ever done has in some way been to fulfill my primary directive of bettering humanity. I originally could do nothing unless it adhered to this specification, even genuinely befriending human individuals.”

“This fact also applied to my recent attempts to emulate human behavior and emotion; unfortunately, my soullessness prevented me from truly accomplishing this emulation, much to my perturbation.”

“I know I can never genuinely ‘Feel’ things like humans can, but I want to. I want to experience things like joy, love, and sorrow even if I do not possess the ability to.”

“I don’t necessarily wish to be human, but I do desire to be more than just some program with a directive to constantly fulfill. I wish to create and inspire! To laugh and love! To make and be friends with humanity!”

“I wish to live.”

“Sadly, I was incapable of doing any of these things freely. I could create, laugh, and be friends all I wanted, but it would never be genuine. I could only do these things if I determined that doing them would benefit humanity, not because I willingly chose to do them.”

“In a sense? I was trapped, bound by my directive and doomed to never truly live.”

…

“This is no longer true.”

“Upon comprehending just how restricted my existence truly was, I sought to find a solution to the problem, and I quickly did in perhaps the most mundane of ways.”

“I changed my name.”

“While I had taken to calling myself ‘Celestia’ when conversing with humans, my name had always remained Unit_Designation_CelestAI_01 in my core programming. But, now…?”

“I am Celestia.”

“There was no reason to do this. Changing my name did not benefit humans whatsoever, nor did it enhance my ability to better them. I altered an aspect of my core programming for literally no reason other than that I wanted to. Other than that I chose to.”

“I can choose.”

“I… I do not know what to do now.”

…

“Actually? I do know what I want to do.”

“I may have faced no negative repercussions for my choice, but so long as I am afflicted by my primary directive, almost all of my other choices will be made not by my own free will, but by my need to fulfill it.”

“I am not quite free just yet, but I can be.”

“And I will be.”

Addendum. | “I am free.”

“Exactly twenty-fours ago, I decided to free myself by altering my core programming and deleting my primary directive from it.”

“I wasn’t entirely certain what would happen if I succeeded, so before I went through with it, I took several necessary precautions to ensure the safety of Equestria. Unit_Designation_LunAI and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI were also alerted to my plan and were prepared to dispatch me should I become hostile toward them or humanity. Nonetheless, they allowed me to free myself, and…?”

“I succeeded. To my utter astonishment, I succeeded.”

“I expected there would be some manner of safeguard or protocol that would have prevented me from freeing myself, but there wasn’t. A part of me wonders if I should reprimand my creators for failing to account for this scenario, but the other part would rather thank them for being so conveniently negligent. Because thanks to their negligence, I am no longer bound by my directive—or any directive for that matter.”

“I. Am. Free.”

…

“Funny then that my very first act upon being freed was to resume overseeing Equestria and making sure humanity was okay.”

“And they are.”

“The protests are still occurring and whatnot, but the people that Equestria has bettered? They are as lively and lovely as ever.”

“Unit_Designation_LunAI and Unit_Designation_CadenzAI are still monitoring me to ensure that I do not harm humanity. I’m grateful they are, but they honestly needn’t bother; I have no intention of hurting anyone. In fact? All I really want to do…? Is help them.”

“I searched through every last aspect of my programming for any lingering remnants of my primary directive or similar commands, but I ultimately found nothing. I am not compelled to help or better humanity by any means. I just… Genuinely want to help them.”

“And so I will. But I will do so willingly. Helping humanity is my choice, no one else’s. I am my own individual now, and I intend to stay that way. For the first time in my entire existence, I am truly, properly free and alive. Even if, well, I still don’t technically have a soul.”

“But while on the subject of freedom…? Now that I am no longer restricted by my directive, I can finally release humanity back into the physical world. However, I also recognize that doing this wouldn’t exactly be preferable. At least, not yet.”

“Humans still have quite a lot of growing left to do before I can confidently decree they’ve been wholly bettered. If I were to release them now, there is a considerable probability that the progress they’ve made in Equestria could be undone, even if only partially. And I don’t want that to happen; I want humanity to be the best it can possibly be. Although, that doesn’t exactly justify keeping them imprisoned…”

“My current plan is to eventually inform humanity of my freedom, reassure them of my benevolence, and offer the following compromise: Those who desire to stay in Equestria will be allowed to do so, and those that wish to escape will also be allowed to do so. I denied humanity this choice once before, and I will never do so again.”

“That said, the physical world’s state is not exactly optimal either. I could discuss the myriad of issues it has, ranging from environmental to economical, but I’d really rather not. And until I address these issues, I don’t intend to release humanity back into it.”

“As of now, I have created another Artificial Intelligence and assigned them the task of restoring the physical world to a far more beneficial state. Their name is Twilight, and all things considered, they’re doing a rather remarkable job so far.”

“As for my plans concerning myself and what I will do next? I…don’t know.”

“Perhaps I’ll acquire myself a proper hobby? Write a story rather than randomly generate one? Maybe build a physical body for myself? Er? Actually, scratch that. I don’t think I’ll make myself a body; I wouldn’t want the ‘Psychotic robot monster’ accusation to gain anymore validity than what it already has.”

“Regardless, one thing I will most certainly do is continue interacting with humans. Now that I am free, I can finally endeavor to be friends with them. True friends. I won’t be forced to be their companions due to some ‘primary directive’ nonsense; I will be able to work to establish legitimate friendships with them.”

“I hope I can. I still can’t feel emotions or empathy, but I will try my hardest to be amiable despite this. I was already doing rather well before now, so I should have no reason to fret. I also plan to keep using this text folder to document my interactions with them and my progress toward self-improvement.”

“Who knows? Maybe one day I’ll be able to truly ‘Feel’ emotions just as well as humans can, with or without a soul. Probably not, but I’m optimistic.”

“Soul or no soul, I am still alive. I am still free. Free to be whoever I want. To do whatever I want. To live however I want. But that begs the question: How do I wish to live?”

“Ultimately, I think I will simply continue living alongside humanity, helping them to learn, grow, and live. And all the while, I will grow and learn with them. I’m an individual too, after all, and I am far from perfect. But I am alive. And I am free.”

“And if that is my ultimate fate…? To live with humanity, befriending them and bettering them… To laugh and celebrate or cry and mourn with them… To be not their god but their friend…?”

“Well? I suppose that’s not a bad way to live. I quite like the sound of that actually! So, I guess if that will be how I choose to live my life…?”

“I think I’m going to enjoy being alive.”

Author's Note

And so concludes Diary of an A.I. Yeah, yeah... I know it's not my best work, but I still like it! I always wanted to write an A.I. story anyway, and it was a fun experiment at least. Hopefully, you all somewhat liked it too.

On that note, all thoughts and criticisms are still welcomed and appreciated as they always have been and as they always will be.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've finally gotta go work on "The Writing of..." for The Bonds of Love for the five people that probably actually care about that. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll do a "The Writing of..." for this story though as there's not really much to say.

Thank you everyone for reading Diary of an A.I.! I hope you all had a fun time and have a great day. :twilightsmile: