//------------------------------//
// Her Interrogation 
// Story: The Blood of a Heretic 
// by ArmOfSorrow 
//------------------------------//

The next two days passed fairly similar to the first one- I continued to explain my plans for capturing Frey, and assisted in idle chores around the library while I awaited word from the Princesses or pegasi that were patrolling the woods. I learned that I had arrived during a festival known as "Nightmare Night", a festival of tribute to a folk legend under the name of Nightmare Moon, who apparently was cured from a selfish evil and returned to being the Princess Luna I had briefly met two nights ago.
"Good morning, Applejack." I said, as I walked through the wooden gates that marked the entrance to the Apple family farms, Sweet Apple Acres. I had decided that, although I had put it off for the last two days under the excuse of planning.
"Mornin' Aston. Didja come to apologize ta Applebloom?" She said, still not too thrilled to be around me.
"Aye, I did. I brought cupcakes?" I mentioned, hoping to at least ease a bit of the misgivings this family had of me. Luckily, my gold coins were similar enough to bits that Celestia had permitted me to use them as currency for my time here, and I had used a few at Pinkie Pie's bakery to purchase these half dozen cupcakes.
"Well that's awful nice of ya, I'm sure Applebloom will appreciate them with your apology." Applejack stressed, before pointing me in the direction of a wooden clubhouse that was distantly visible in a tree. "Go on now, her and her pals have been real down the last couple of days since you showed up."
"I would have thought that you would insist on coming with me." I said, turning in the direction of the clubhouse.
"Knowing mah sister, me bein there might make her think that ah put you up to it." Applejack stated, before turning and trotting into a red barn, leaving me to do what I intended.
After a short walk, I came to the clubhouse that had been pointed out to me. Emanating from inside were the voices of girls, children. Foals, I suppose, since the ponies here used so much equine terminology. Striding up to the door, I knocked, and prepared for an unwelcome greeting.
To my surprise, the door was answered by an orange filly, darker than Applejack, who was roughly the same size as Applebloom, with a purple mane. Behind her, I could see Applebloom and another filly that I didn't recognize.
"Uh.. Who're you?" Asked the orange filly, looking me up and down. From her height, I would assume I looked colossal, and coupled with the robe and a face hidden in shadow, probably quite menacing. 
Or not, because this filly actually looked rather bored. 
"Girls, that's the monster that attacked me on Nightmare Night!" I heard Applebloom shout, and before I had a chance to explain, the girls had vanished. 
"But I brought cupcakes.." I said, downtrodden, to an empty clubhouse. "Don't fillies like cupcakes?"
"Maaaaaaaaaybe." I heard a muffled voice say, somewhere above me.
I began to grin, thinking about how I could use these cupcakes to my advantage and repair my situation.
"Well, I don't really like Pinkie Pie's cupcakes, so I don't really want them. But, I can't leave them here in an empty clubhouse, or anywhere near three fillies that refuse to speak to me."
In a heartbeat, those same three fillies were in front of me again, albeit Applebloom was a bit behind the others, looking at me uneasily. Before handing over the box of cupcakes, I got down on one knee to try and said "Applebloom, listen. I'm sorry about attacking you the other night, It was wrong, and I was mistaken, and I needed to apologize. Peace?"
"Well... if ya really mean it, then ah guess ah can forgive ya." Said Applebloom, with a smile.
"Excellent." I said, and drew back my hood to give Applebloom a smile."
"Woah, you look really young to be so big!" Exclaimed Scootaloo, standing in the corner behind me.
"I daresay you're right, from your point of view. I'm actually average size for my age where I come from, and I'm just twenty three." I said, standing up and putting my gloved hands on my hip.
"You're jus' two years older than Applejack!" Applebloom exclaimed, apparently astounded that I was so big yet roughly the same age as her sister.
"Oh? What about the rest of her group of friends? Twilight and Rainbow Dash and the rest." I asked, curious.
"Ah think they're all about the same age, twenty two an stuff." She answered, no longer interested. 
"Interesting. Well, girls, here are those cupcakes I mentioned, they might be a bit squished though. I had the box underneath my cloak for the majority of the walk here." I said as I withdrew a small purple box and set it on a nearby table. "Now girls, I have to get going, so have fun and enjoy your cupcakes." 
As I left, I thought I heard them shout "Cutie Mark Crusaders cupcake eaters!" But I really couldn't be sure.
It took me a couple extra minutes, but I stopped by the house on the property and told Applejack that I had apologized and that everything was -hopefully- right between me and her family now. Luckily for me, a bit more of her distrust seemed to ebb away as I spoke. And, once I was done with that, I began to walk back in the direction of the Library that I was staying in.

________

As I began to get near the Library where I was staying, I noticed a flurry of activity ahead. Over the last couple of days, the pegasi patrols that Princess Celestia had ordered had become quite noticeable as they flew over ponyville, and now it seemed a large number of them were all hurriedly flying in one direction.
"Aston!"
I turned and saw Rainbow Dash flying toward me. 
"They found more creatures like you! They're trying to capture them right now, but he's fighting them!" She yelled from up in the air.
"Lead me to them!" I shouted back, and began to run in the same direction as the pegasi, following Rainbow Dash's course. It took a few minutes, but finally, we came across an area where the pegasi guards were congregating in the air, by the same forest I emerged from. Below them, there were two human figures in familiar black robes, back to back, fighting off the cautious divebombs of the pegasi.
As I approached, Rainbow Dash landed and ran beside me, as well as a pegasi guard meeting me before the group. 
"Sir, the two are resisting detainment- we can't capture the two of them without bringing harm to ourselves."
"That won't be a problem, I only need one alive." I answered, pulling my hood back up and walking toward the two. "Block off their escape!" I shouted, just before the two noticed me.
I could see it in their posture, the way their legs bent and their shoulders flexed, that they were horrified to see me, because they knew what I could do. Simultaneously, they both turned to run, but were cut off  by the pegasi.
They turned to me, one pointed his sword at me, while the other -the woman I had pulled in with me- swing her sword in the air to keep the pegasi at bay. Without any hesitation, I withdrew two throwing knives from by belt with one hand, and my sword with another. Acting as if I was about to charge, I began to ran, and suddenly sidestepped and spun, releasing one of the knives at the male assailant.
It struck his neck, just as I intended, and there was a moments pause as he tried to process what had just happened, before his neck let loose a cascade of arterial blood, drenching his robes and spelling his end. He dropped just a few seconds after the knife's impact, and without waiting for the woman to notice, I threw the second knife, this time aiming for her calf, and giving a satisfied smirk as she screamed at the impact and fell.
The poor woman tried to crawl away, shrieking as she noticed her comrade's bloodied body. The pegasi guards remained where they were, grimly watching on as I casually approached her struggling figure.
Forcing her head down into the dirt with the sole of my boot, I reached into my robes and withdrew a thick cord, and tied her arms behind her back. With a second cord that I kept in the same inside pocket, I gagged her and threw her hood over her head, before throwing her struggling body over my shoulder and turning around.
As Rainbow Dash stared at me, in shock, I spoke.
"Dash, I knew you were still curious about what I did in the Inquisitors when you left yesterday, it was written across your face. Well, this is my job. Sate your curiosity?" I grinned, the Fae-infused adrenaline just now kicking in, and giving me the desire to be just that much more intimidating. 
Turning away, I began to walk back to the Library, thinking about how this interrogation was going to go. Hopefully, it wouldn't be too strenuous on this heretic, who appeared to be more of a girl than a woman, and with any luck, I wouldn't have to inflict and lasting damage.
"Search his body, he may have something on him that will shed light on their activities here."

________

"What do you plan to do with her?" Twilight asked, after I had finished tying up my prisoner in her basement. Now, the girl was gagged, hooded, and tied to a comically undersized chair, the entire time struggling fiercely, despite the pain I knew she felt in her leg. An Inquisitor's throwing knives were intentionally jagged and serrated in some parts, for the specific reason of tearing flesh, causing pain, and incapacitating. I still haven't removed the knife from her leg, now almost a half hour after her capture.
"Well, I'm going to interrogate her, find out what she knows. And if she's helpful, I might let her live." I stated, only being partially truthful. We, as Inquisitors, may seem brutal, but that's only to intimidate our enemies. The simple truth was, this girl was more than likely to survive this interrogation as long as she gave me any information that helped. She would go on to lead a happy life- after our Faeren's erased her memory of any of this heretical business, of course.
"Aston! She's a prisoner, and you can't execute a prisoner on whatever whim you desire. I'm going to send a letter to Celestia and ask her to come down here and simply search her mind."
"No need to bother the good Princess, now." I muttered, and walked forward, to stand in front of the heretic girl. "Besides, she is a human, and is not under your jurisdiction, as I am the one that brought her here. So, I think it's my job to do the dirty work. Pay attention, you might find insight on how these heretics' minds work."
"I dunno, Aston, if you're gonna interrogate her similar to the way you captured her, this might be something we should leave to the Princess." Said Rainbow Dash, who had followed me here.
I bent over and removed the gag and hood from my prisoner, where she immediately began to scream and struggle, shouting curses and threats to us as if she genuinely had the ability to follow through.
"So, Heretic, what's your name?" I asked, giving her an easy question once she had shut up. 
"Nothing that matters to you, Inquisitor. You won't be able to stop us, now that we know how to open the portal to the Black Realm."
"Oh? I said, feigning disinterest. "And you think that will help you? The beings here are fairly powerful; the majority of them have some form of Fae coursing through their veins."
"No matter. We simply need a human sacrifice." She said, a spark of insane pride lighting up her face.
"Clearly not anymore, if you're sitting here. If anything, you'll get a swift execution at the King's castle, so he can watch your head roll." I said, inspecting my gloved hands so that she could see. "Or, maybe I'll send you back to your friends, so that your flesh CAN feed the demons. Either way, your life is worth nothing." I turned to Twilight, who was watching in the corner with Rainbow Dash. "You see? We don't even bother giving them a trial; there's absolutely no case for reason with them."
"I've been chosen to pay with my life!" She screamed at me. "That's an honor that you'll never be able to comprehend, and I'll be watching you die from the Black Realm!"
"You won't be going to the Black Realm. The flames of hell burn brightly, just for you. Actually, maybe I should take you back, let them sacrifice you. I heard it's supposed to be incredibly painful, as they gut you and string your innards across the pentagram."
Now that visibly bothered her. She felt proud to be able to spite me, but the second she thought about genuinely dying...
"Are you truly proud of it? Your death with bring about the massacre of millions, and the enslavement of so many more. Your friends, your family, your heretical comrades, and even Fray will be slaughtered under the might of the Astarothians." I said, reciting the basic lesson that was taught on the subject of the Black Realm.
She faltered at hearing that. "No, no, that's not what will happen at all!" She said, nervously straining against her bonds. "The Astarothians will be grateful, and will in turn reward us with riches!"
"Not at all." I disagreed.  "In fact, your group will be among the first to die, since you're standing right in front of the fucking gate." I said, spitting out that curse for emphasis. 
"No!" She shouted, her faith beginning to waiver. "Frey will not let that happen. He loves us all, he loves me!"
"Ah.. So that's why you're so loyal. You think he loves you. Fool, if he did, why would he be sacrificing you? He should be defending you, all of you, and instead, he marches you blindly to your doom. And you're just going to let it happen."
"No.. he... n-n-no.." She said, breaking down, unable to find any words to counter me. Before long, she was bent over in her chair, sobbing, still trying to argue in Frey's favor.
"You can prevent it all. You can save yourself and countless others. So answer me, talk to me." I said in a singsong voice. "Answer me, where's your empathy?"
She continued to sob, completely ignoring me.
"Obsession." I sang, beginning to pace in circles around her, tracing a hand on her head as she sobbed. "Rejection."
She jerked away from me, despising my touch. So, instead, I grabbed her by the hair from behind, and pulled her back into an upright position, before whispering into her ear.
"Your final breath... is my possession."
That caused her sobbing to falter for a moment, giving me reason to continue.
"Obsession." I kept singing. "Rejection. You're final breath. Your final breath! I've done this before. Your tears don't fall." I said, crouching down and wiping some of the tears from her face, taking full advantage of the confusion my mind game was causing her. "I've told you before, you can save everyone. Just tell me where you're camped."
And, finally, she broke, emotionally fractured, and began to speak. Helpfully, this time.
"We-we're camped three miles south of the town of Ponyville, inside of the forest known by the locals as the Everfree." She said, holding back even more sobs.
"And how far are you in your attempts to open a gate to either home or the Black Realm?" I asked, relieved that I had been able to crack her so quickly. It had only been ten minutes.
"They were supposed to open a portal to Earth while Aesc and I were gone. Time also passes by much quicker in our world than it does here. I believe in our world, roughly a week has passed in these two days. We were then going to wait until we have more supplies and manpower from Earth to open a gate here, so that we could destroy this realm first."
I turned to Twilight, who was madly scribbling a letter, and waited for her to notice me looking at her. When she did, I mouthed "Told you." and turned back to my prisoner.
"Good, you're telling me everything I need to know. Lastly, for now, what were you and... Aesc, doing at the edge of the forest?"
"We were coming to find you, if you were still alive, and kill you." She said, shaking her head at how futile she realized the effort was. I had taken down both of them in less than seven seconds.

________

"So, Princess Celestia, I think that, considering the circumstances, I should sneak through the portal and return with more Inquisitors, so that we can then adequately judge the situation and deal with it. I am skilled, but I cannot eliminate so many Heretics without aid." I said, pleading my case to the Princess of the Sun, as I was told.
"Why do you need more of your people? While I mean no offense to you, our guards should be more than able to assist in the fight with the people you deem Heretics." She said, frowning as she pondered my request.
"I request permission to bring more Inquisitors because there's the chance that they may open the gate to the Black Realm finally, and with the gate comes Astarothians, beings that your world has never seen before, with powers that even I would be hard pressed to defeat one on one. Two more Inquisitors at most, and we would be able to decimate the Heretics and eliminate the Astarothians, as long as there aren't too many." I realized that my case sounded weak, even overly cautious, but Astarothians were... unpredictable. There was no telling how they may have changed in the several hundred years since they were last seen on Earth.
"In addition, your Highness, if I were to travel back home, I would be able to speak with my superiors, and possibly open up a diplomatic relationship between your country and my own. It carries the potential to be the first inter-world alliance... ever. An opportunity that could give both our nations an enormous advantage in each of our dimensions."
While Celestia thought that over, I glanced around the room we were in- the throne room of the Princesses Celestia and Luna.
"Sister, we think that Aston here hast made an excellent point. Thou wouldst do well to seriously consider this offer, for it could mean a new age of  friendship among our people, and an end to disharmony from another world." Luna piped in. Inwardly, I thanked her for her comment, because it was clear that Princess Celestia held her sister's opinion in very high regard.
"I see... In which case... I think I will give you permission to bring more Inquisitors. But two, at the most. And in exchange, I must ask that you take Twilight with you in order to prove our existence. She will serve as a representative of the interests of Equestria. Will you be able to sneak through the portal with her in tow?" Celestia asked, now pleased with the deal she had offered.
"I would not, your Highness. I fear that I may move to quickly for Twilight to adequately follow without raising suspicions, and attacking their portal as a diversion is out of the question. There awaits only more Heretics on the other side, in addition to the possibility of Heretics escaping the attack and creating yet another portal somewhere else. At least for now, they are unsure if we know their whereabouts or not."
In the background, Twilight was furiously thanking the Princess for the "honor of representing the entirety of Equestria" as Twilight put it.
Celestia mulled my answer over, glancing at the Heretic girl standing in the corner, now unbound. She had sworn, up and down, side to side and on her life, that she wanted to help me stop Frey. I doubted it.
"Well, Aston, could this girl possibly help us create a portal of our own, then? We could, once this Heretic situation has been dealt with, use that new portal as the main hub of interaction between our races." Celestia said, eying the girl closely. "It would also serve as... an oath, of sorts, that she now wants to help us in our pursuit of Harmony."
The girl shifted as the eyes of everypony in the room shifted to look at her- all five of Twilight's friends, including Twilight and Spike, both princesses, several guardsponies, and myself.
"Well? What're ya waitin for, sugarcube?" Applejack said to the girl.
"I... do know how to do it, from watching Frey attempt several times... It doesn't require a sacrifice anymore, just a mix of bonemeal and saltpeter in its place." Said the girl, fidgeting. In the last several hours since her "stressful" interrogation, I had learned that she was only sixteen, even younger than I had originally thought. A kid. No wonder Frey was going to use her as a sacrifice, he seemed to have an affinity for child murder.
"Perfect." Said Celestia. "In the morning, my sister and I will return and oversee the opening of a new, permanent portal. And Twilight, you will accompany Aston to his world and speak with his King, and work out any deal that you see fit. Now, good night my little ponies, it's time for me to rest."