A Journey Unthought Of

by Hustlin Tom

Chapter Thirty-Eight

In the short time I had been in the custody of my captor, I had been subjected to many forms of interrogation. I had been asked of my origin, my abilities, where my fellow soldiers were, where first we would strike at ponykind. I gave no answers; the last few were ludicrous to begin with, and I wasn’t in a really talkative mood. They subjected me to hypnotherapy; I resisted as much as I could, and they weren’t satisfied with the answers I gave. They finally put me on a sodium pentothal drip; truth serum. After pacifying me with some kind of tool that looked like a gun which made humming noises, they made me talk. In my hazy stupor, I was all too willing to offer conversation.

“Tell me..your name,” A voice asked me.

“..Which one?”

“Tell me your name.” The voice was more insistent this time.

“Adam.”

“That’s good. Do you know me?”

“Bunsen Burner.”

“Excellent. Where did we first meet?”

“Ponyville..library.”

“Very good. The serum seems to be in full effect now. Why are you here Adam?”

“..You dragged me down here?”

“..True, but why are you here in Equestria? What resources do we have that your alien kind desire?”

“..I dunno.”

“Surely you were briefed before you came to this land? You are a warrior after all.”

“I’m not a soldier..I was sent..Had no choice.”

“Really? What are you then?”

“An experiment..Sent by teleportation.”

“Fascinating, another species has achieved teleportation. What magic do they use?”

“Don’t use magic.”

“Hm. So I have contenders in technology. From where do you originate?”

“..Elsewhere.”

“Where specifically? The Griffon Confederacy? The Diamond Dog Empire? The icy Northern Wastes?”

“..Elsewhere.”

“ ‘Elsewhere’..You’re not even from this planet, are you?”

“No.”

“Extraterrestrial threat, wonderful.” The sarcasm was strong in Bunsen Burner’s voice. “I think that’s enough for today.”

Bunsen Burner exited my chamber. The next time he came, there were more questions, and more truth serum.

“What is the plan of attack? Where will you strike first?”

“I told you..I’m no soldier.”

“Yes, well, I don’t believe you.”

“You jack me up..on truth serum..and then..don’t believe what I’m saying?”

“You must have been trained very well to withstand its effects. It’s seems I’m going to need some other means of interrogation. Perhaps Princess Luna would be willing to oblige; her telepathy can withstand anything the subject may try to bring to bear.”

“I’ve met..Princess..Luna.”

“Have you now? Tell me, Adam, what does she look like?”

“Purple..Wings..Horn..Mane like a..sea of stars.”

“..Hmm. Perhaps he is even more resourceful then I originally perceived; to be able to be in the presence of one of Royal Sister’s uninvited takes a great deal of stealth to avoid the castle guards. Tell me, were you attempting to assassinate her as well?”

“No!..I..Wait.” I had paused. The pieces were clicking together, even in my severely idled mind. I chuckled groggily.

Bunsen Burner looked up from his note taking. “Something amusing?”

“Oh, yes..It was you..Aaaaall along..You made me..try to kill Celestia..With your magic gun..or whatever.”

“It’s science, not magic.”

“Semantics..How’d you..force Vinyl Scratch..—“

“To give me the technology for her experimental sonic therapy? When you can bring to muster the very force of a government down on a pony, you can easily convince them to cooperate.”

“..What have you..done to her?”

“I’ve put her out of the way for now. I’m using her technology to sedate you. I can’t risk her sabotaging her own tech even if she were conscripted under me with the threat of banishment. So I sedated her as well.”

“Why?”

“Why? Simply put, because of you. You are, first of all, a hostile rogue element; I cannot control you, and you are an imbalance in my perfect system of order that is Equestria. Secondly, you are a threat to ponykind, and it is my duty to restrain you, and if need be, execute you. Thirdly, you are a mystery to me; a mystery that seemingly popped from out of the blue into my hooves. I hate mysteries, and I most certainly hate surprises.”

“I’m a..big mystery?”

“Not for long. When this is over, I plan on becoming intimate with every mystery you could hold.”

“..Dissection?”

“If need be, yes.”

Here I chuckled again, which grew to mirthless laughter, which resonated off the porcelain walls.

“I can..finish your work..before you start..Wanna know how?”

“Thrill me.”

“You wanna..solve the mystery..of humanity? Look in the mirror..You’re just like me.”

This genuinely surprised Bunsen Burner it seemed. His face contorted to half veiled rage, and he snarled. “I am nothing like you, creature! DO YOU HEAR ME? Nothing.”

“My point..is proven,” I leaned back in my restrained chair with a dopey but smirking face. I might not have even been totally right in my assessment, but I have to admit that I enjoyed the vindictive message I left my captor. In my life, I have been passed from one ‘master’ to another; first the streets which I had lived on for so long, then some nameless scientists and whoever their leader was, and now this authoritarian horse. I had his name, his face, and I knew how he thought and operated, so I was going to do everything in my power to subvert him, even if I had to face my own mortality to do it.

Bunsen Burner stalked out of the room, and he wouldn’t return for many hours. The next time he did, he brought company.