"He's in here sir. We thought it was best to isolate him." the dog soldier explained as he lead his commanding officer to the door of the cell. He fumbled through his ring of keys for a moment before finally finding the right one and opening the door to the cell. Inside, bound in shackles that were bolted to either side of the room and the floor was a light brown stallion with red and black hair. A young earth pony, average height and build, he looked up at the two dogs as they entered.
"I see you brought a friend with you this time. Is he the one who takes you for your walks?" the pony asked, mockingly. The dog grunt snarled at the prisoner. The commanding dog took a step forward into the room and examined the pony. He raised an eyebrow; this was the one who was causing all the trouble on the dig teams?
"We had him on digging duty in the mines. Somehow in the past day, he sharpened down a piece of crystal into a knife and attacked two security teams." The dog handed his superior a green gem, sharp as a blade. "It took a whole squad to take him down. I've got troops in the infirmary."
"I should've whittled it into a bone and told them to 'go fetch'." the pony said with a goading smirk.
The commanding dog was beginning to get impatient with the stallion's mouth. "If he's being difficult, why has he not been dealt with?"
The grunt pulled out a small black and red pendant. "He was found with this."
The commander looked at the jewelry. "The Alicorn Amulet? Where did you get this?"
"Durr, I found it on da ground and picked it up cuz it was pretty." the pony played dumb.
"What were you planning on doing with this? You can't even use magic, it's useless to you!"
"I found it being used as a door stop. Figured if I just layed it there, one of you dumb mutts would've eaten it." the pony said. This earned him a backhand to the face from the commander. The prisoner's head reeled back from the blow.
"Talk! You were planning on getting this to that other princess weren't you?!" the commander demanded.
The young stallion turned back to face his attacker. He spat blood onto the mutt's mug. "Kiss my flank!" he shouted.
"I haven't been able to get anywhere with him sir."
"You said it took an entire squad to incapacitate him?"
"Yes sir. There injuries aren't serious but-"
"I think I'll have a chat with Lord Vice about him. He might be useful to us with the proper modifications." The commander started leaving the room.
"Why? You overdue for your flea bath?" the pony asked as they left the room. The door closed behind them and their footsteps echoed down the corridor until they left.
Bullseye grabbed the Alicorn Amulet from the stand beside him. The dogs had been right; he couldn't use magic so its magical powers were useless to him. But the edges of the pendant were perfect to pick the locks on the binds holding him in place. He tasted blood in his mouth, the mutts hit hard. He spat on the floor as he freed himself from his restraints.
Slowly, Bullseye brought himself down on all fours. The locks had held him in an upright position. They were clearly meant for bipeds, punishing other dogs most likely. Examining the floor, it looked as if the room's past occupants had seen more than their fair share of discipline. He put the Alicorn Amulet around his neck. He wasn't a unicorn or alicorn, so its dark properties wouldn't corrupt him, at least he hoped. He picked up the shiv he'd made from crystal with his mouth and started picking at the lock to the door. After a few moments, the lock snapped and the door slid open with a creak. He stepped outside, for the moment the cellblock was clear.
He wasn't quite sure how far into the Everfree Forest the mining compound was but using the sun as a compass, he could make his way to Ponyville. He thought about what the dogs had said about the other princess. They must've been talking about Luna. Maybe, if she escaped capture and got ahold of the Alicorn Amulet, she could use it to take out the soldiers. Gripping the shiv in his teeth, Bullseye trotted into the cellblock halls.