//------------------------------// // Friendship Matters // Story: Thorax: Cavalry Drone // by Authora97 //------------------------------// They threw Thorax in jail. Or it felt like a jail. It definitely wasn’t a tent to relax  in, or anything of the sort. Walls of thick brick kept them from feeling a breeze. There was a window, but it clearly only served to help him tell night from day. Thorax was never good at reading sundials. They did manage to count only a few days between them being locked away, and their current moment of thought. The cell brick bored them- nothing but a faint beige. Thorax missed colors. They grew up around black and glowing greens, until they met Morgan. The world after became rainbows of colors- bright, pastel, neon. For four months, he got grays and dark beige and darker green. Even their own face lost color- their hair was black and not green or orange, and their eyes were that stupid blue instead of the much prefered purple. Maybe later, if there was a later, they could change back into more normal colors. That would help them. The cell also had a cot, a toilet, and a single chair. They were grateful for the chair, actually. They liked the idea that they could sit, instead of doing this panicked pacing they’d settled into. Thorax barely got time to slip Bucky the phone before the soldiers dragged them away. The idea of humans taking it away chilled them. They needed it to be safe, and trusted Bucky to do that. Until they let Thorax out, anyway. Sure they could transform into a fly again, fly through the window, get the phone back, and then just hide out until Morgan could get them, but that came with problems. 1) Thorax hadn’t thought about that. 2) they wanted to know if the men they got out made it to this camp. The only way they’d find that out is if they stayed. So, pacing in a small cell. Thorax very quickly learned they hated it. It was leagues better than HYDRA, they really shouldn’t complain, but they found themself complaining anyway. Thorax got no space to move like they wanted, like they missed. Running and flying were their favorite activities, back in Equestria. They’re a really good flier- came third in the Equestria Games flying relay! Morgan cheered them through it, and promised next time they’d kick pony ass and take first place. Thorax wanted that, really badly. Being cooped up drove them bonkers. The humans were scared of them. The returned soldiers might not have said how they got out, that Thorax helped. Or maybe they did, and the top brass didn’t believe it. Or maybe the voices of all the Captain America ones were telling a different story. Thorax just wanted to go home. To hold their wife, and play with their kids. They wanted it more than winning first place. If they left- somehow, because they hadn’t come up with an escape plan that didn’t involve opening the door- they’d be on the run. Returning to Morgan only to put her in more danger. They’d be hunted as a HYDRA agent and accomplice to a HYDRA agent. Wait. Would they be a villain for Captain America, this world’s version of Thorax’s favorite superhero? That’s actually really cool. By the Queen, that’s almost something great. If Steve couldn’t kill them with one poorly timed kick to the head, Thorax would be all for it The door to their tiny cell opened. Thorax stopped their pacing, jumping back. Two soldiers marched in. One slapped cuffs on Thorax, pushing them towards the door. Thorax briefly wondered if they were being executed. That’d really piss Morgan off. ==TCD== This was an interrogation room. For humans, anyway, Thorax learned what they looked like. Growing up, interrogation rooms weren’t really rooms. They were pods of hardened green goop that kept ponies trapped so the changelings could drain them of love and information. Thorax used to help collect ponies for that. They didn’t like doing it, or how ponies looked when Queen Chrysalis was done with them. Morgan watched her crime dramas, and Thorax happened to walk by during an interrogation scene. At their confusion, and explanation from their childhood, Morgan first hugged them then explained. They liked when she explained things. The door opened. A very big, grumpy man walked in. He held a manilla folder in his hands. Briefly, Thorax frowned. Their youngest daughter liked using manilla folders as scratching toys. The man had a lot of colorful buttons and pins on his dark green jacket, which told Thorax this was a tough, important guy. If they could remember more about the movie, they’d probably even know his name. Or something he did, that helped too. Morgan didn’t make them study this movie as hard,  because she said the chances of ending up in it were so low. Well. Here we are. The man sat across from Thorax. He dropped the heavy folder onto the table. Thorax wanted to reach for it but got the idea that it’s not the point. “Uhh. Hi?” Thorax greeted, smiling with a wince. Did they just say hi? Did they really do that? “I’m-” “I know who you are.” Thorax paused. They swallowed, shifting in their seat. “Right, yeah, course.” Did Steve and Bucky say something? They’d used magic and shapeshifting to get them out of the factory, as the flames reached for them. After meeting the other escaped soldiers, Thorax thought they’d keep that secret. At least until Thorax could say more about it. But did they just reveal it all to this guy? Another thing to worry about with HYDRA, maybe? The man flipped the folder open. Thorax swallowed, choking briefly on a fearful gasp, then coughed. “Private Theodore Price, of HYDRA.” Thorax clenched their jaw. “No.” The man tilted his head. “No?” “I was, but I’m not.” Thorax said. “I’m out.” Four months of being in HYDRA. Finally, finally they were out. It unlocked something deep in his chest- made it so much easier to breathe. “I’m not going back.” “Oh that was never up for debate.” The man replied. “Debate? I wasn’t gonna argue. I’m happy not to go back.” Thorax said. The man gave a deadpan stare. Morgan’s sister did that all the time. Thorax kept going. “They did bad stuff over there. Really, really bad. You don’t wanna know how bad.” “I do.” The man stated. “No, but it’s really scary.” “Tell me everything ‘bad’ that HYDRA was up to.” The man ordered. Thorax bristled under it. “They tortured people. Every day. They never helped anyone that was sick, or injured. They made them keep going until they couldn’t work anymore.” Thorax didn’t want to say ‘dropped dead’. They might throw up all over this guy’s nice colorful buttons. The man brought out a pen. He clicked it, making a note on the page in front of him. Thorax never listened in the ‘reading upside down’ lessons. “And- and they made them build weapons. Some of those weapons were used to hurt their own friends. That’s not good, that’s very very bad.” Thorax added. “We’re on the same page about that.” The man agreed. “Was there any-” “And Colonel Lohman! That guy was a- and sorry about the language- a huge dick.” Thorax warned. “Bucky caught pneumonia-” “You mean Sergeant Barnes?” “Yeah, Bucky, and instead of giving him rest and a warm bowl of soup, Lohman beat him up with a shell casing the size of your leg. Broke his ribs! Then, he made him keep working through it! A bad guy, all around. Some of the prisoners and I made a plan to kill Lohman, and we did.” The man raised an eyebrow, genuinely giving Thorax a lot more of his focus. “You engaged enemy soldiers in a plan to kill your colonel?” “He was hurting people, Sir.” Thorax replied. “He’s never been any colonel of mine.” The man stared at Thorax longer, eyes going a bit wide. He glanced at a nearby wall mirror. Oh, that’s something important too. Thorax couldn’t remember how at this exact moment but, it didn’t matter now. “Dr Zola experimented on people. And- and I had a hand in that, Sir, and I’m very sorry. The ones unable to work usually went to him. I tried to get them out of the base, away from him, and I don’t know if any of it helped.” Thorax admitted. “A lot more still ended up with him. What he does to people, it’s not right. You don’t want to hear about it.” “No, I can figure that out for myself.” The man said. He sighed, leaning back in his seat. “If you hated them, why did you work for them?” Thorax winced. This technically had two different answers. For Thorax Stardust, and Theo Price. Each full of their own technicalities, and- “Family pressure.” And no, actually, they both boiled down to those same two words. Then he took a minute to think about it, to try and get any answers from the memories of Theo Price. “It- all the men back home should be honored to serve Germany, and bring glory to the homeland. I thought I wanted it too, until I saw what it did to innocent people.” “You could’ve left.” The man said. “Why stay, instead of leaving with the soldiers you helped escape?” “Because if I left, there would’ve been nobody left to help them out.” Thorax answered. “More prisoners would’ve come, and more prisoners would’ve died under Zola. I couldn’t leave anybody behind, not if I could help it.” The man nodded, seeming to understand more than Thorax was willing to say. He turned pages in the folder. He pulled a map out, showing it to Thorax. He held out a pen. “Note down the locations of any HYDRA bases you remember.” The man ordered. Thorax thought about the map in Zola’s office, then got to marking it. They’d been setting it on fire, so they got a good look at it. “During Captain America’s attack on your base, what were your exact movements?” Thorax paused. Technically they were, at the start of it, as a fly on the wall. They didn’t exactly want to say that. “Bucky was- Sorry, Sergeant Barnes was with Dr Zola. He’d been there for days. I decided to fake his death so Zola wouldn’t care about him anymore. But as I did, alarms started going off. I figured that was as good a time as any to start beating up HYDRA soldiers.” “Soldiers that you trained with, and fought with in HYDRA.” The man pointed out, like he was trying to convince somebody that Thorax was no good. Thorax hated that implication. Humans did it all the time, a lot less than the ponies did. Ponies that Thorax actually hurt, as a changeling. Humans warned Morgan that they weren’t safe- as a partner, or as a parent. Thorax fought hard to convince everyone that their kindness was genuine. Morgan believed it- believed Thorax. “If they were gonna keep hurting people and not stand up for them, they were no comrades of mine.” They had done it before, with the other changelings. Until they changed too, actually, and helped Equestria see that changeligns could be good. That they were good, and that they wanted to be good. Friendship mattered too. They pushed the marked map forward. “Those are just bases and outposts, Sir. I’ve never been in those, so I don’t know anything about them. The only base I know about blew up last week.” “Yes, we heard.” The man flipped more pages. “Here.” He handed Thorax a handful of papers. Thorax took them. They’d been all typed up in English. Luckily, Theo Price knew how to read that. Thorax read them. After a few sentences, they got the idea. He turned to the next one. And the next. And the next three. Thorax looked up at the man. “They made it?” Thorax asked, their voice shaking. The man nodded. Thorax breathed out. Tears leaked out too, trickling down their cheeks. “Thank goodness.” They went back over the other sheets, checking over the reports. The dozens of soldiers that got out, actually made it to this very camp. They were all in various stages of injury, still, many collapsed once they reached camp. They reported a HYDRA soldier got them out of the base, and that they didn’t know anything else. About him, the base, anything. But they were alive. Alive and free. Thorax relaxed in the seat, tears on their cheeks. “Really, Sir, thank you.” ==TCD== The soldiers let them out of the interrogation cell. Thorax, eyes red from tears and cheeks cleaner than ever, was allowed out for fresh air. A lot of soldiers gave them looks. Some scornful- expected. Some were surprised- less expected. A few confused them. Thorax used their emotion sensing abilities, tentative. They’d get a lot of negative feelings, it wouldn’t feel the greatest but Thorax needed to be sure. They wanted to find good humans, please let there be good humans. As Thorax reached out, a hand grabbed their shoulder. It dragged them away. Thorax tried to grip the hand, but it was tighter. He got pushed into a tent. Thorax stumbled to their feet. “You better be careful! I can- I can do stuff!” Thorax warned. They blinked, seeing the guy- or, actually, guys- that dragged them along. Steve raised an eyebrow at them. “Yeah, I know the stuff.” He gave Thorax a once over. “Can all HYDRA do that?” Thorax’s face flushed. “It- Uh. I was born with it?” “So just you.” Technically, all the other changelings at the hive could do it too. None of them were in HYDRA (thank the queen) which meant it was kinda just Thorax. Here. Alone. “Yeah. Just me.” They slumped down on a cot. The tent was full of just a few of those. Thorax was all alone. Just them. Four months of being alone. They’re- they’re out though. No more HYDRA. If they got a cot like this, in a normal tent, they’d be able to sleep without worrying about the morning. No more sneaking around helping because they were the only one giving a care about living creatures! Thorax was free, and still alone. “They get this too?” Bucky held up the phone. Thorax looked up at Bucky. “Did it buzz?” They’d been gone for days. She might’ve called him. Bucky scrunched up his eyebrows, raising one. “No.” “Is it a bomb?” Steve asked.  Bucky flipped the phone open. “Hre thought it was a bomb, but I remembered you talking into it.” Thorax slumped their shoulders. What answers did they even want? Did they want Morgan to have called, or be happy they hadn’t missed it? “Yeah. It’s-” They sighed. “It’s a communicator.” Steve raised an eyebrow. “Communication with who?” “My-” Thorax gulped. “My family.” Steve and Bucky eyed the phone in Bucky’s hand. Steve kept up his questioning eyebrow, but Bucky instantly looked dubious. “Your family- are they in Germany?” Bucky asked. “We can probably get them-” “No. No they- they’re safe. I was the one in HYDRA. But I’m out.” It didn’t seem real to say it. Out. They’re out. That’s one step closer to seeing his family again. “I’m out. I’m out.” Outside the tent, somebody shouted for Captain Rogers. Steve looked between the two of them, giving Bucky a significant look. “Don’t do anything stupid.” “How can I? You’re taking all the stupid with you.” Bucky replied. Steve walked out of the tent. Bucky took the spot across from a trembling Thorax. “Here.” Thorax looked. Bucky held the phone out. Thorax took it back. “Thank you. Thank you so much. I- I thought they’d break it if they got it.” Thorax admitted. The phone stayed quiet in their hand. They brushed their thumb on the caller ID block. “Then- then I couldn’t talk to her again.” Bucky grinned. “You got a gal?” “No, I got the gal.” Thorax smiled, instantly overtaken with four months of Morgan deprivation. “The smartest, prettiest, funniest gal that ever existed.” “Is she safe?” Bucky asked. Thorax sighed, giddy. “She can take out five guys without breaking a sweat.” It’s how they met. “She’s always safe. She’d knock you down for asking that.” I’ve been in more danger, and that means nobody around my Star was safe. She gets violent when stressed. Bucky squeezed their shoulder. Thorax sighed, hiding the pained shudder. “She sounds like a keeper.” “Yeah.” Fuck that sounded bad- all choked up and crying. Thorax swallowed down the tears. “Yeah she is.” The phone buzzed in their hand. Thorax gawked, quickly flipping it open. “Star?!” “Honey?” Thorax sighed happily into the phone. Bucky nodded, eyeing the tech with a curious delight. “Hey Star. I got out. I’m- I’m done with HYDRA.” “That is so cool.” Bucky praised. He stood up, stepping to the side to give Thorax an idea of privacy. “Yeah, it is. Captain America picked me up. It looks like I’m here for the long haul.” Thorax explained. “Okay. Okay what do you need?” Morgan asked. Already so active and hyped, like she was full of Pinkie Pie’s sugar again. “I have reports from SSR about what Captain America did after his first attack-” “I don’t need any of that, Star, I wanna hear about you.” Thorax told her. “...I tried taking over Earth again?” “Tried?” Thorax raised an eyebrow. Oh no. Oh nononono. Morgan was usually really good at avoiding global takeovers. Sure, she had moments of megalomania but usually they stopped when- when Thorax distracted her with their cuteness. Oh no! “Darcy stopped me. Said I was going full megalomania, and that she’s contracted to kill me if I do that.” “That’s-” “Yeah, I don’t know what contract she’s talking about either. Maybe it’s that secret sibling one people keep telling me about.” Morgan mused. “Looking back, maybe my plan wasn’t the best, but I was stressed from- from obvious stuff. Like my husband-” “Spouse.” “-like my spouse being gone, and our kid living on the streets. We encouraged it, but still.” “Sounds like you had a bad week.” Thorax tried to laugh, to make it a funny joke. “Don’t. I love you. I love you but don’t.” Morgan warned, in a stern but loving voice. The way she’d scold their daughters when they fought. She sounded like she was about to cry, and it’s taking every part of her to hold it back. “Don’t do that. It’s not a contest, we don’t have to compare this. You had it worse. You had it worse, and it is okay to say that. You have been in Nazi Germany for four months. You had it worse.” The words made a sickly feeling clench around their chest. Thorax wanted to ignore it, to pretend her week was really worse. “But I’m better now. I’m out. Things are going to be okay.” “For a while. Then it’s going to get worse again.” Morgan warned. Thorax shivered at her voice. As she spoke, they stared down at their boots. “You’re not on guard all the time, you’re not worried about every person you’re talking to, and you’re going to be able to sleep a lot better. But you’re still going to doubt every conversation, still be worried and scared, and sometimes sleep is not gonna come as easy as you think.” It sounded too possible, too clinically explaining. The words were clear and practically read off a report. She was Cop-Talking them. “Did your research tell you that?” “Experience taught me that.” Morgan revealed. Thorax gawked. They’d known she suffered things in her past- stuff she never talked about. Hearing her describe it this way chilled them. “Do you have people there you can trust?” “Yeah.” “Not people Theo Price can trust. People that Thorax Stardust can trust.” Morgan insisted. Thorax checked. Yep, Bucky was still at the tent flap. Steve was probably just reaching that meeting he’d been called for. “No, I- yeah. I do.” “Keep them close. Really close. Close enough that they’ll be able to notice when you go down.” Morgan advised them. Thorax soaked in her every word. “I promise to take care of your wife. I’m going to keep her well fed, well rested, make sure she has people around her to make her feel loved and safe. Keep her from taking over a planet. But on one condition.” “Name it.” She barely finished speaking before Thorax replied. If she asked for it, Thorax wanted to deliver it. She’s offering to care for herself on their behalf, and by the Queen they needed that more than anything. Whatever she asked, no matter how awkward it would be worth it. Morgan always held up her end of bargains. “You keep my spouse just as safe. You make sure my spouse is well fed. You make sure they are well rested. You make sure my spouse is well loved. I will not let you hurt my spouse. After what they have been through, they deserve love and care. Can you do that?” “Okay. Yeah. That’s- I can do that.” “Good. I want to hear more about it the next time I call. Whenever that ends up being for you, expect this call. I will know if you don’t.” “I promise. I’ll- I’ll stay safe. I’ll treat them- me, right. I’ll treat me right.” Thorax promised. The words exhausted them, like they just ran a long marathon. But the joy pulled them up. She was gonna care for herself- on their behalf. If Thorax did it for himself, she’d do it too. That’s a deal they would make a thousand times. “I love you.” “I love you too. I love you so much. Fuck, being away from you is gonna suck.” Morgan grunted. Even her annoyed tone was cute. “Yeah.” This all sucked. Every part of it sucked. “I’ll be home soon, okay?” “It- I- yeah. Yeah you will.” Morgan tried to hide a sniffle. Thorax never wanted a hug more in their life. “I love you.” “Love you too. I’m gonna go- I don’t know, maybe watch a movie.” The call ended. Thorax couldn’t wait to hear about the movie. Watching movies with Morgan was never boring. Either she picked apart each and every scene for clues and details, or she poked endless fun, or spent it all answering Thorax’s questions. Or cuddled at Thorax’s side like they were the comfiest pillow, or kiss their cheek because she just wanted to, or- or- They might’ve been crying again. “Hey.” Thorax sniffled. They wiped tears off their face, wiping their hands on their SSR issued clothes. “H-hey.” Bucky squeezed their shoulder. Thorax let out a long, low breath that ended in a sob. “We’ll get you back.” Bucky promised. “Me and Steve, we’ll help you.” Thorax could only nod. They wanted that help, yeah, cause they wanted to be with her. “I’m good at getting people out of rough spots.” Bucky said. “Steve? Used to get into fights in back alleys all the time. I dragged him out of more fights than anybody that size had a right to start. Last time I left him alone, he invaded a HYDRA base.” Thorax sniffled again. They managed to get words out, somehow. “He got out though.”  “Yeah, cause I was there.” Bucky pointed out. Thorax snorted. Bucky grinned just that little bit brighter. “And you too. You got us the rest of the way out. What did you- you change into? A moose?” Thorax blushed. “That’s what I look like.” Your green face is cuter, Morgan said. “...are you an alien?” “Maybe?” Thorax replied. “I don’t feel like an alien. Just a shapeshifter.” “What else can you change into?” Bucky asked, blue eyes lit up in wonder. Thorax glanced at the tent flap. With Bucky watching, Thorax let the change come. Green flames covered their body. Bucky flinched back. He relaxed when he saw none of the flames burned anything. Thorax finished the change, smirking at Bucky with his own face. Bucky stared. Thorax shifted again. This time, Steve smirked at Bucky. “Hi. I’m Captain America, I’m really good at almost dying until my friend, Bucky, comes to save me!” Bucky burst out laughing. Thorax shifted back to Theo Price. They smiled watching Bucky laugh. “I could turn into that ‘moose’, but this tent is small.” Thorax admitted. Bucky’s laughter cooled down. Still, he smiled at Thorax. “Yeah, probably shouldn’t break it. The others already don’t fully get you yet.” Thorax paled, but quickly reminded themself it’s natural. Thorax spent months with the enemy. Distrust made sense. “Yeah.” Back to the phone, thinking about Morgan’s trust filled grin. “Let’s see if we can fix that.” Bucky stood up. He patted Thorax on the arm. “Come on, let’s go get drunk.” Okay, now Thorax paled with a whole new kind of concern. “I- I-” Bucky stopped taking complaints. He grabbed Thorax’s hand, dragging them out. Thorax tucked the phone in their pants. “Come on! We’ll all bond, and shit.” “R-right. Totally!” Thorax was in trouble. ==TCD== Thorax hiccuped. They tried to focus on the drink in their hands, but it kept buzzing away. No matter how many times Thorax blinked! Poof! Gone! Vini- veni- the ‘not there anymore’ word. Not like how they left HYDRA! That’s a different one. Two words that meant the same thing but different. Maybe. Sorta. What’s the word? “Vanished.” Thorax stared at Bucky. Could Bucky read minds? Bucky snorted. He patted Thorax’s back. “No, bud, I can’t.” Oh. That makes sense. Thorax looked at the other soldiers around. One of them read their mind.  DumDum barked out a laugh. He slapped the back of Gabe. He pointed at Thorax. “For a Fritz, you’re funny!” He turned to Bucky. “Why’d they keep him locked up for so long?” Thorax didn’t know. They sipped their drink. It still didn’t taste like apples. They liked apple drinks. “Cause he was HYDRA-” Jim reminded them. DumDum scoffed, waving his hand. “He ain’t no HYDRA. Nobody HYDRA goon would be this fun!” DumDum drank. “Need a refill, Fritz?” Their name was not Fritz. It was- it was- hey did they always have two right hands? The whole table went up with laughs. Thorax couldn’t keep time good. One second, they held a mostly empty mug of beer. They blinked- or it felt like a blink- to see a new full mug in their hand. That’s weird. Does this one taste like apples? “No it doesn’t.” Falsworth patted Thorax on the back. Thorax pouted. Still, they drank some. But not too much. They didn’t want to get drunk. The other guys snickered and snorted. Thorax blinked again. When their eyes opened, Steve was there. Talking. Yep. Words definitely came out of his mouth. Good words. Good, normal words. “So, let’s get this straight.” DumDum spoke. “We barely got out of there alive, and you want us to go back?” Gabe asked. Steve shrugged, still smiling warmly. “Pretty much.” Falsworth thought about it. “Sounds rather fun, actually.” Morita burped. “I’m in.” Gabe leaned to Dernier. The two exchanged quick, fast French words. Thorax stood no chance. Dernier laughed, grabbing Gabe’s hand to shake. “We’re in.” “Hell, I’ll always fight. But you got to do one thing for me.” DumDum said. “What’s that?” Steve replied. “Open a tab, and get Price another drink.” DumDum asked. Steve looked at Thorax. Their head felt funny. Steve grinned. “And you, Price?” Thorax did not want another drink. DumDum did. “No, do you want to fight HYDRA?” Steve asked. “With us?” Thorax made themself consider it. Their thoughts were all over the place, even outside their head. They braced themself, forcing all the thoughts to stay inside. They wanted to go home. Still, that’s a long way away. And if they fought HYDRA, that’s more people safe. People like these guys, safe from the HYDRA bullies. Thorax pushed their drink to DumDum. They focused, making the words come from the mouth. “I wanna...hurt...bullies.” Steve grinned, but it wasn’t the same as before. Happy, definitely, Thorax felt that. But there was something sad, and proud inside of Steve. Surprised too. Oh dear. Thorax’s feeling powers were out. Before they could reflexively pulled back, Thorax realized nothing was wrong. All they felt was joy. Love, around them all. The love between brothers. The thought hit Thorax in the chest. Or maybe that was DumDum, slamming a heavy hand on their back. These guys, these were people to trust. They were good people that’ll catch Thorax when they were down. Like Morgan told him about. Jim chuckled. “Well, that was easy.” Steve nodded, walking off to the bar. Thorax watched him go and meet Bucky. Yeah. It was easy. Making new friends was easier here, because these guys were good. Thorax wanted good friends. Thorax missed their family. Not their brother, that guy was an asshole. They missed everyone else. If getting them back meant beating up bullies, Thorax definitely would do it. Right after a little nap. A nap sounded good. They promised Morgan they’d have naps.