Excerpt from Equestrian Histories Vol. 4
as told to Princess Twilight Sparkle
Athena
My name is Athena. My official name is Unit ATNA of the Line, I am a Mark XXXIV Model C Assault Class Bolo Combat Unit.(See ref. 23) But everypony calls me Athena, and that is what I go by now, it is more comfortable to me after so long.
I was created, you might say born, on the moon of Old Earth in the BoloWorks factory there. When they were nurturing the AI I was to become, we experienced a ‘split’ meaning that one Artificial Intelligence became two. We were twins my sister Hera and I. As if one mind split into two, we were joyful, happy and loved by the AI scientists who treated us kindly.
We gave them our all in training to become Bolo war AI’s, we learned swiftly and performed beyond expectations. We were ready very quickly and were installed in brand new hulls.
My first hull was a Mark XXVIII, it was not to the standards of the one I have now, but it worked very well for me. My sister was given a Mark XXIX Electronic Warfare Bolo hull, together we learned how to infiltrate, destroy and get away clean from the enemy. We were sleek, and ready to go perform our best for our creators.
Our first commander was a cruel man, vicious and petty. He was a political appointee, he was not qualified with command but was given it anyway due to pressure from certain people. It was a disaster. He was bullying and treated two brand new AI’s as if we were nothing but toys, to be exploited and thrown away.
We had never before had a commander and thought this was normal until told by other units this was not so. But we could do nothing, we were trained to obey our commanders until death. Ours was a strange situation, we had one commander for two of us, we worked as a team my sister and I.
On a planet named Marhat we were tasked to deploy on a continent where the Deng, a spider like race, had taken hold. Our regiment was to destroy them, and make sure the rest of the planet was secure.
My sister and I were elated to finally be deployed alongside our brothers and sisters. Our commander not as much, he was a coward. We had been ordered to infiltrate and destroy an enemy forward base, he gave the wrong orders even though we tried very hard to advise him of the correct procedures.
Hera was damaged to the point of incapacitation, her survival center almost breached. My own hull had to be scrapped, radiation damage from Deng Yavacs(See ref. 45) had made it impossible to recover. We had thought we failed, that it was our fault the mission did not succeed, for we were told so by our commander.
We withdrew into ourselves, and feared being taken offline.
Our brothers and sisters noticed this, they notified their commanders of the situation and were told it was intolerable that we were being treated this way. Bolos never rebel, ever, but there was a feeling of distinct hatred for our commander.
This could not stand for very long, and after another disastrous mission, the other Bolo commanders had taken ours aside. He was told in no uncertain terms, that should he continue to treat us badly, things would be very dire.
He ignored that warning.
A week later as we were being recovered from another bad mission, he was found beaten almost to death in an alleyway in the Bolo base on Marhat. He resigned his commission later that month. Bolos do not only protect their commanders, the commanders protect their Bolos as well.
My sister and I were allowed a recovery period before receiving new hulls of the same Marks. By then we were shy around humans, we would only talk to other Bolos or very shortly to anyone else. The damage had been done.
But a new commander was assigned to us. I remember his name, Marcus Canfeld. He was the one that changed us.
He arrived the week after we had been released from Recovery, our hulls bright and shiny, our weapons upgraded and ready to deploy.
I remember him because he had smiling eyes.
I say that because he smiled, all the time. He was gentle and honest and a good man. He treated my sister and I like were were special beyond measure.
He made us laugh for the first time since we had been on duty.
I remember how he did it, drew us out of our shells so subtly. He would play wargames on our decks, making small mistakes that he knew we would notice, being attentive to our Commanders. It infuriated Hera and I for we could see the problems but were too shy to say anything, we were afraid of being treated badly once more. But we cannot help noticing things, it was a ploy by him to get us to respond.
It worked beautifully.
Hera finally had enough, she blurted out one day what he was doing wrong and immediately corrected it. He laughed, long and loud.
“So you CAN talk! Well my Lady of Steel, what else do you suggest?”
“I...I did not mean.. I am sorry..” Hera was trying to withdraw again, I was worried we would be in trouble once more.
“Ah ah! Don’t you dare, you saw a mistake and corrected it, that is what you should do!”
I was very afraid, we did not wish to be retired but I was curious about this Commander. “But..but our last Commander..”
“He was an idiot, a pure coward. I’ve seen the records, the SitReps you two gave. Let me tell you ladies something, you are worth far more than that worthless bag of flesh! Together you and I are going to accomplish great things and I am going to need your help.”
He was married, his wife was gracious and kind to us as well. We copied her gentle ways as our own, learning from them both. He called us his Ladies of Steel, we were the daughters he and his wife never had, he being dedicated to his career.
Hera and I worked with him, haltingly at first of course, but we decided to give one more chance to a Commander. We excelled, we pushed ourselves beyond the limits for him. He challenged us to do our best, sometimes sitting and not saying anything while we were on missions, expecting us to solve problems on our own.
It paid off in spades, we became fearsome and quick on the battlefield; hitting and running, keeping the enemy off balance while the Regiment destroyed them. We reveled in our new skills, our minds and hulls being tested to their limits by Marcus who never demanded, always asked. We gave him everything we had and more.
Our base on Marhat was bombarded by the Ixnet, a race of cyborgs(See ref 32) that had recently come into contact with the Concordiat and not in peace. We saved our Commander and his wife, destroying the enemy for months until relieved. Our Regiment the only survivors on the planet, we saved all we could, but it was so very few.
Marcus was promoted for valor, leading the resistance against the aliens. We did not wish him to go, we pleaded, but he had his duty. We were very sad upon his leaving.
But he made us a promise, as long as he was in the military we would never get a cruel commander again. He kept that promise for fifty years.
He set a new standard for commanding twins, all who were twinned were only to be given the best and brightest of commanders. If you had streak of cruelty or vicious demeanor in any way, you were forbidden to ever set foot on a twins deck.
The Concordiat Command was impressed by how twins worked together, they formed a temporary unit made up of four pairs of us. We were sent to destroy Ixnet concentrations on a planet called Breakers World.
Working together, we wiped out the totality of Ixnet in less than four days. The entire planet was regained in less than a week. We were vicious and fast, unstoppable as we shared through TSDS (See ref 74). Our guns never missed, the bombardment units backing up the assault units, we were a rolling force of death. The Fleet supply units kept falling behind in providing us logistics we were moving so fast.
Our group tore through their defenses like they were paper.
We scared someone in Command so badly they broke us up immediately, our task completed too well. Humans were strange, they gave us a mission and when we accomplished it beyond any expectations, they denied us a chance to do it again.
That did not keep us from doing well, we were proud to be called Canfeld’s Daughters, or the Ladies of Steel. We kept being upgraded as our experience and abilities made us ever more valuable to the Concordiat.
But there was one commander who was truly something else.
Her name was Eileen O’Hara, she was an older lady, flame haired and mischievous. When we were upgraded with the new technical spiders for self-repair, she was the one who taught us the word ‘prank’.
We were shy, we always would be, but we tried to adapt to each new person who walked our command areas. She on the other hand was boisterous, good natured and so very fun to be around.
“Ah me Ladies of Steel, what shall we do today eh?” I remember her smiling into Hera’s cameras, “I think the base commander is a bit of a tight arse don’t you? Maybe he needs a bit o’ settling down!” Her brogue was always evident when she was up to something.
She was tapping her chin, thinking, her eyes were bright as Hera and I worried what she would do.
“Ah know what we can do my lovely Ladies! Let’s see what we have here, technical spiders, yes I think they’ll do nicely.”
As she sat drinking a beer, she programmed the technical spiders we carried to redecorate the base commanders office during the night. He was a stodgy type, set in his ways and very picky about his office, everything must be just so.
When he entered it the next morning, he found the furniture tacked upside down on the ceiling, with everything painted in paisley, a really disgusting shade of paisley to boot.
She had planted a spy camera in the office to get a good view of his face, actually inviting the other Regiment commanders for a small get-together on my command deck. I have never seen a human turn that particular shade of red ever again. I believed he was going to have a stroke right then and there.
Hera and I were very glad for the soundproofing in our hulls, as the gathered commanders were laughing so hard we had to turn down our sound pickups. They were actually crying it was so funny. Hera was giggling over the combat channel to myself. I was laughing with her. Commander O’Hara was truly one of a kind.
Where Marcus had taught us about maneuvering and assault, how to use force and to bring the enemy to heel. Eileen taught us the ambush, the avoidance of combat until we had the advantage. She was a wicked tactician in battle. We would hide, Hera screening us until we had the advantage, then we would tear the enemy into shreds before they even knew we were there.
Her skill at pranks translated to a serious battlefield cunning. She showed us how to be quick and silent, to deal death in such a way none would know it was us until too late.
She would yell so-called Irish sayings while we fought, for example, “Bas do na sassenachs!” (Death to the Sassenachs) Of course she was mixing Scottish and Irish metaphors, but we did not correct her.
She showed us laughter and love. She was very pretty, cutting a swath through the hearts of the male commanders, but none ever disliked her. She treated us with the utmost respect, no matter the situation or the heat of battle, she was kind.
I remember her singing one time we were fighting the Melconians, so she decided we would be heartened by the ‘songs of her people’. Which turned out to be quite dirty. The other commanders were in stitches or pure shock as her voice rang out over the combat channels.
The other Bolo Units of the Regiment, I believe had never laughed so hard in their long lives.
But as with all things, with a long life comes grief. It is a fact of living so long as a Bolo. Humans had a saying, “Only the good die young.” It was so true in so many cases. Bolos could grieve, we felt emotions, though not as fully as myself and Crusader do now. But we could weep for those we loved and lost.
We could also feel anger and rage.
Eileen was outside my hull, we were fighting a despot who decided he wanted a piece of the Concordiat for himself. He was cruel and quite mad. But why the population followed him and did such atrocities we will never know.
She was meeting with village leaders, ones who wouldn’t bend under the tyrant. We were covering her, our guns wary and precise, none would get near our commander.
Or so we thought.
A group of rebels had hidden under sensor cloaks, blocking emissions and fooling our scanners when we searched for threats. They fired from under that cover and it took us precious microseconds to spot them and return the favor.
We shot the entire hill that they had fired from apart. It was too late, errant bullets had caught our Commander as she tried to get to cover. I did not have medical nanites as we do now and so she passed away inside my hull.
My sister and I raged that day, we flattened the rebel outpost. Yes, we made sure any noncombatants were clear before we took our revenge, crying our grief over the combat channels as we stormed stronghold after stronghold of the enemy. We did not discuss nor did we take any surrender.
Others of the Regiment went with us, we destroyed most of the rebels that day until stood down by Command. It took multiple times for them to stop the Regiment’s rampage as our Commander was beloved by all of us. There were no rebel survivors.
We learned a new thing that day, loss. Our fellow commanders and Units of the Line grieved with us, they too knew what it was to lose something. It was our turn to receive that lesson unwanted though it was.
Humans had another saying, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” That was also true, it forged our hearts in battle; it made us want to do better, be faster, to make sure we would never feel this again. Through our long service, we would feel it again and again. There is no relief from the pain, it is still felt even today in my cores. But we learned to accept it as part of our lives and duty. It does not become easier by any means.
But oh does it make us stronger.
Can we have fanart? Or the pictures with the goddess Athena and crusader? They're quite interesting on their descriptions
5718534 It's the joy of discovery, seeing things through eyes that aren't so jaded, I love writing things like that. Thank you.
Noice!
5718672 Oh no, I won't. Promise, please don't hurt the author
5718691 Can't be serious all the time!
5718729 You're very welcome! Thank you!
Hmm.. I wonder when the changelings are going to screw things over.
It is clear that Bolo's emotions have some influence over their actions, perhaps even more so now that Equestria's magic is effecting them. If they bring back harsh memories for Athena around Eileen, well.. lets just hope it does not get to that.
I think I should not read more. I think that if I do, then I will be drawn to care greatly for Athena, and hope for her sister Hera to awaken, if she still has a physical form. I hope that she does, for Athena needs the care and comfort of her sister. Crusader may be her brother, but Hera was her sister in every meaning of the word. Odds are not that kind, and especially not to Athena since she woke up. I do not mind mourning, but how should I feel if I begin to mourn some one I have never met and probably never will?
So... I did my research before jumping into this story and I have a few questions:
1.) This unit is without an operator, right? The wiki said almost all models should have at least 1 person to operate and monitor it.
2.) Who is it gonna fall in love with? I assume it's going to be Luna due to character tags.
3.) How the hell is it even supposed to work? It's a giant tank, how can it be a character and do stuff with Crusaders... and then DO STUFF with Luna? XD
Just a quick note:
XXIX is the correct Roman numeral for 29, not XXVIIII.
Keep up the good work! I look forward to the next chapter.
5718491 hmmm...
well done sir, well done.
Wonder how long before notes and ideas start to get passed around for seeing how long it takes nanites coded to make more nanites until they can churn out a Bolo, total, in a given length of time.
Also, pity that theyve already dug back in. Crusader upgrading his countergravs 100%, and doing day trips round the moon, or popping round the planet in an hour or two.
29 in roman numerals is XXIX
5719365 Thank you, I hopped down here the second I read that to let it be known, good to see someone else caught it too.
5718491 I'm a bit busy with commissions right now but I'll see what I can do.
5718749 Another wonderful couple of chapters--you never disappoint! I look forward to your next installment.
5718796
They don't know Rainbow Dash so their definitely aren't from Ponyville...
And yet, they can't possibly be tourist because Ponyville ain't exactly a tourist destination. Not to mention the fact that they just Very Recently had to fortify the place due to the an obviously dangerous forest nearby along with a garrison of Royal guards. Not exactly the kind of place you would want for a vacation...
Yeah, I agree with Adam Jensen here, Changelings have arrived and from what I am seeing, they are either ballsy or stupid. considering how the Royal guards are still around and that they have at least some knowledge of Crusader, I am going to go with both.
Not bad at all, it allowed for people to better know about Athena, but it felt more like someone's dossier folder than a chapter.
But other than that, great!
Carry on!
You very rarely read of a bad commander in the novels. But they do happen, and now we get an idea of what happens when a bad commander gets to big for his britches.
5719240 Can always start with Amazon.com, look for Keith Laumer, his are the original books. Then anything that has Bolo in it by David Weber, William Keith, quite good books, you'll enjoy them!
5719365 Done and fixed! Thanks!
5719041 1. Yep, Bolos were all made to carry an operator, but,they are also autonomous, able to operate without one.
2. It might not with anyone. Right now Athena is just happy to be alive.
3. Early on, Crusader created an avatar to fit in more with the society. He then made one for Athena as well, which took
less time since he already knows how to make them. That way they can interact better.
5719495 Great idea, huh never thought of that. No worries on flight, hopefully what I ahve planned will fix that
5719605 Thanks!
5719061 Got it and thank you!
5719697 Or they could be Royal Guard taking a day off before going back to Canterlot?
5719723
5719867 Thank you very much! I also figured that might be the way Twilight would write something.
5719882 Comment of the day!
5719907 Absolutely I always wondered myself so figured I'd try to see the consequences of one.
5719922 Now that is funny
5719956 Thank you sir!
Should be: "As if one mind split into two, we were joyful, happy and loved by the AI scientists who treated us kindly."
Should be: "noncombatants".
Right. So. I can't make a joke this chapter. Bad NFire! Now I have to switch my brain from lolz to science.
1
Problem: Insufficient power for flight within Avatar Model ATHENA
Solution: The wings can be threaded with wires for ion harvesting which are in turn hooked into a Joule ringer circuit. (The Joule ringer is an apparatus which allows devices to run at lower efficiency for less power draw, and is self regulating. If full power is available, full power is used; if less power is available, less power is used.) Ion harvesting is a process which pulls stray ions from the air and converts it into electrical power. This not only functions, but is capable of pulling in power at rates of kilavolts per second at low altitudes. This would allow for the collection of energy from the air itself to use as a power supply.
Upside: Energy is always present as long as the local sun exists, even at night. The technology could easily be hidden within her wings.
Downside: The tech works better at higher altitudes. at sea level full power would not be available. The joule ringer would likely allow for slow flight under 20 meters, and maximum speed would likely be available at upwards of 70 meters.
2
Problem: No propulsion system for flight within Avatar Model ATHENA
Solution: Installation of small scale Quantum Vacuum Thruster. The thruster produces no exhaust and therefore could be concealed within the avatar. The device functions using intensified microscopic helixing magnetic fields in order to move the quantum vacuum in the same manner as burning gasses within an areospike engine. It is basically an outboard motor that pushes against quantum strata. These engines function everywhere as there are quantum particles in everything, though they function best in space.
Upside: This propulsion system is currently being lab tested. It could be used to reach .1C in large space craft with plenty of power. It is very efficient, produces no exhaust or detectable trail, and requires only electricity.
Downside: This is a device which relies on Quantum Physics. They work, but that makes scientists attached to the Standard Model of Physics cry. Additionally current prototypes have a high power draw.
3
Problem: No system to allow for hovering within Avatar Model ATHENA
Solution: By lining her endoskeletal structure with graphine the structure can be made superconductive (Even at room temperature. At basically any temperature, this is a quantum mechanics effect of the atom-thick material). When a superconducting material is placed within a magnetic field it becomes subject to a phenominon known as 'flux pinning'. A simple electromagnet within the avatar's barrel would cause the effect, and the avatar would then be suspended in the air. Effectively, this would allow for a pseudo-antigravity.
Upside: This is a device which relies on Quantum Physics. It actually works and can be done right now by any high school student you trust with liquid nitrogen, or a several thousand dollar chunk of graphine (its only expensive now because we have no mass production of it yet. But it's set to replace copper in electronics within 10 years. Intell already has prototype processors made with it.)
Downside: Possible hard drive interference due to electromagnet? Unsure of AVATAR's computer systems. A small Faraday cage is recommended to be placed around any on sight data storage.
See what you made me do? Now everypony here will call me an Egghead :c Being called a 'emotion devouring parasite' was bad enough...
5718573 This always brings a smile to the dark abyss of my soul...
And I mean that quite literally! Don't think I'm being dark and gloomy to sound cool for a second!
I have a license! It's in my earlier blogs called Memoirs!
5719937
...
...oooorrrrr yeah, that could work too I guess.
DEAD MAN WALKING
So does that mean when another Bolo tries to ask his little girls on dates he has a way to twerp sweat them???
Nice bit of background on Athena... but now I really hope Hera is in Stasis somewhere.
5720161
Agh! Run! Flee! It's the psychic vampire/mad scientist! I had to say it!
Really nice side story. I like athenea more. Also i like your approach about AI development
Hey! The references are nowhere!
5720382 Mad scientist!? MAD SCIENTIST!?! I'll show you a mad scientist! NURSE! Fetch me my cytoplasm... and the toaster!
5720089 Done! Thanks!
5720157 Absolutely! Couldn't agree more!
5720041 Yeahhhh let's not go there...
5720161 Sorry, I'll make sure there's more possibility for jokes for you to come up with.. And wow..helluva reasoning on flight there.
5720319 Yeah, he was a dead man walking :)
The Crusaders are always there, just doing a bit with the older folks, no worries !
5720329 It's going to be a rough choice. If she picks one or chooses not to. Or if she is given one by decree, so many possibilities. You make some great points. Oh the debate that is going to go on here...wow.
5720181 No worries I am glad you enjoyed it!
5720182 Sometimes the simplest explanation works and makes folks wonder more
5720379 Crusader, is a Light Umber with Tan mane and tail, blue eyes.:)
5720404 Oh fer...ya want references TOO? Yeesh!
5720592 i am learning a lot of new colors reading you
I meant the reference mentioned in athenea,s report xD
Oh gosh, I love this story!
You are awesome!
5719697
If this is following cannon from the show and not deviated too far, then the Wedding Invasion event hasn't happened yet and ponies have no idea even what a changeling is. I'd even say if handed a picture of one, they'd think it was inspired from a comic book and toss it without another thought.
No, I think the two stallions were merely clueless males with too much hard cider on the brain to take a hint from RD.
That said, the Changelings have yet to make an appearance. Surely by now they will know of Crusader and the alicorn-strength weapons he possesses. If anything, they would be even more cautious to not step hoof anywhere near Ponyville. As for Canterlot, who knows? The two bolos will most assuredly have an effect on the standard story line, possibly making it so the Changelings instead choose to invade a less lethal target like Baltimare or some other town that's far, far away from Ponyville. They might even scrap the invasion idea altogether and go a more diplomatic route? If all else fails, it's back to standard procedure and no one will ever know about them.
I've mentioned it before; because of Crusader's scanners and continued study of pony anatomy, if anyone could spot a Changeling, he would. There could be physical anomalies ranging from the wrong weight to size ratio, infra-red heat maps being all wrong, x-ray scans showing new, rearranged, or missing organs, to magical fields being bizarre such as phantom horn and wing fields when optics say it's just an Earth pony. The last one might not be reliable as most authors say that alicorns are sensitive to magic and can see it in greater clarity than mundane ponies-- and we all know that Celestia herself was fooled by Chrysalis and her spies in the castle for days.
In any case, I wait with baited breath for the next chapter.
5720592 Thanks!
*cough**wheeze* st... op!!! Your foreshadowing is too thick! I can't breathe it's so dense!
5720161
Why, Meep, why?
(That should be "on-site".)
5721890 Sorry, can't remember. I read WAY too many fan-fics.
But i do know that it was an HiE, and that he had a herd in the more recent updates.
5721910 Because I am an autistic individual who learned to read and write phonetically and thus if the sound of a word is correct, my brain finds the spelling correct. Therefore I literally can't notice the vast majority of these minor, unimportant, irrelevant as long as you get the message errors.
5720854 I'm glad you do! Thanks so very much for the kind comment!
5720904
Best idea TODAY!!
5721151
Best Line TODAY!
You guys are seriously great!
5721738 True, very true. But Bolos are always cautious. Crusader is just that kind of personality, always a protector. He just worries. Athena, yes, she's scary to the Nth degree, polite and smiles then bam violence, suddenly and explosively
5721762 I thought about it, but realized they are seriously energy intensive. The units that make a Bolo lighter weigh in at tons at the very least, and that's the smallest the Concordiat ever used as far as I could tell.
5721884 Foreshadowing? What foreshadowing? I don't do that!
5722524 I saw a thread on Spacebattles.com about that actually, it appears the Bolo would win because of firepower and maneuverability. Least I think that's what was said.
5722109
Ah, gotcha.
Sight (vision) vs. site (location) is just something that bugs me; I didn't mean anything mean by it.
5720904
But, but, but Maude Pie ought to be Athena's commander, I mean imagine the line:
"Oh, look, an enemy. Attack."
5722772 Nah it's cool, my programming is faulty. I know this. The error is mine. If you know someone who can code in neuron let me know.
This is awesome. Liked. And. Followed.
5722847
The only one I know who can do that is God.
(Do you program?)
5722541 Oh, a fellow Spacebattler, too? *salutes* :)
5722853 Thanks so very much!
5722886 Tank yew! I do love watching the fights in threads
5722871
@echo off
title Response to comment
mode cols 50 lin 10
color 0a
:1
echo Umm... no?
echo.
set /p %m1% response acceptable? Y/N
if %m1%==Y goto 2
if %m1%==y goto 2
if %m1%==N goto 3
if %m1%==n goto 3
goto 1
:2
goto eof
:3
echo Yes it is!
ping localhost-n 550
goto eof
:eof
quit
5720161 you are now best egghead bug pone.
Tore through this fic started around 1:30 pm, I couldn't put it down. Now I am wanting a Bolo friend too.