//------------------------------// // The Seventeenth Day, Part 1 (You Can't Keep Friendship Locked Up) // Story: Ponid-21 // by Cadenzel Washington //------------------------------// I buried my face into the pillow, slamming my fist down unto the couch I was lying on. The soft material of the sofa diminished the force of my punch, but my anger was still raging. I repeated the motion again and again, venting off the anguish that had built up deep inside myself. All the posturing and encouragement I gave to my friends about how we were going to get through this and it all just blew up in my face. “I’m an absolute failure.” I finally muttered to myself. I pulled my face out of the moisture laden cushion and looked up at the ever familiar sight of Twilight’s library. Normally, I’d think of this place as an area of solace and peace before I take on the tasks and challenges of the real world. Now however it’s just a sign of my failure to do what I needed to accomplish. “God, what was I even THINKING!?” I belted out rhetorically. I was so damn confident with myself that I thought that I could just pull off a stealth mission and be all covert and shit, getting the information and leaving Hayden none the wiser. I was overconfident, that’s what did me in. I heard the familiar sound of the doors opening and once again, I saw a young purple mare trotting towards me. Well, she’s probably here to yell my ear off about how badly that whole operation went. Can’t say I really blame her; it was an absolute mess. My thoughts process fell silent as she wrapped her hooves around me and embraced me in a hug. All the self-hate, anger and frustration seemed to completely melt away in an instant. I stood there silently for a brief moment before returning the gesture in kind, wrapping my arms around Twilight. We stood there for a long time, not saying anything. Eventually, I slowly pulled away and looked down at her. “Well, I kinda screwed that up, didn’t I?” I eventually muttered out followed by a sad chuckle. Twilight shakes her head. “It wasn’t a complete failure. You learned about Hayden’s plans, recorded what was happening with the listening bug Franklin gave you and we know the origin of the mysterious shapeshifter and their motivations. Sure, we got caught and that is a set-back, but I’m willing to bet we can get out of this situation and confront Hayden.” I shake my head and sigh. “I don't know...I’m still worried and it's not about being captured. I’m worried about what will happen to our friends with us knocked out. I mean Dash was right outside and for all I know, she’s been captured too.” “Well, if she’s anything like the Rainbow Dash I used to know, she won’t go down without a fight. I’m not worried at all.” Twilight grinned. “Hmm, that’s true.” I admit, walking over to the window. I had made a habit of looking outside at the world outside the door. Every day, it was getting larger and more detailed, showing off a world that was new to me. Looking outside, I could see all the way out to the horizon. The mountain containing Canterlot Castle and the vast fields spreading out from the peak were all visible to me now. The sky was now a bright blue with swirling clouds flowing through the air. They looked different from clouds on Earth; they were more rigid and seemed less random like they were mass produced. I pulled back from the window and sighed. “You know it’s funny, I dreamed about my world once before but after that it’s been pretty much all Equestria all the time.” Twilight tilts her head. “Oh? That's odd, the view from my room has been quite different.” I raised my eyebrow as Twilight moved over to the window on the opposite side of the room. She opened it and revealed a sight I hadn’t seen in over two weeks. I placed my hands on the window sill and stared outside. It was my old neighborhood. The same streets that I had grown up on, the same familiar houses filled with the same people I had made friends with over the years and among them was my own home, still the same as when I had left. “Wow,” I managed to utter. “It’s all here.” “Yep! It never went anywhere, it’s always been here.” Twilight said, smiling. “You’ve just been so worried that it escaped your mind for a bit.” “Heh...imagine that.” I say, shaking my head. “I said we were in this together and I meant it.” Twilight said, suddenly adopting a serious tone. “We’re equals here. No one is losing themselves and no one is taking over.” “Huh? Where’s this all coming from?” I ask, puzzled. “Listen Penn, you’re going to face a tough battle ahead when you confront Hayden. But I don’t think we’ll be able to take him on if we keep thinking of ourselves as two separate individuals. We’re both here in this body and we should be together as one.” Twilight then shows me an open hoof. The reason is clear to me. I reach out and grab her hoof. The two of us… It was never two of us. It was always just me. I was just so worried about losing myself. I didn’t want to imagine myself as anything different. My physical body may have changed… But I am still me! I breath out and settle down onto the floor on all four hooves. I look outside. I see the quaint New Jersey neighborhood that I’ve called home for over two decades, still the same as it’s always been. I turn and look out the opposite window. I see Ponyville, the cozy little town I’ve called home for several years ever since I came here for the Summer Sun Celebration and defeated Nightmare Moon. The two thoughts passed through my mind. They were two separate lives and two separate sets of memories and yet they both felt right and proper. They were both experiences I felt and they were both lives I’ve lived. “I think I’m ready.” I say to myself. I march my way to the door and reach out to grab the handle... \/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ The Seventeenth Day My body thrusts up as I awaken. The colorful hues of the library had given way to the sterile walls of the facility. I pulled myself up just in time to have a wicked jab of pain hit my horn soon followed by a general dull pain in my skull. I shook my head, desperately hoping the pain would go away if I just banged my head around hard enough. I knew deep down it wouldn’t but my monkey/horse brain instincts felt like it might do something, even if it was only a placebo. I pushed through the pain and stood upright. As I started to take in my surroundings, I could tell immediately that something was off. The light fixture was similar to the one in my room but instead of a nice healthy glow, it was giving off a much more orange light, the buzzing from the apparatus filling the otherwise silent room. The glass that would normally be reflective was instead see through, albeit very tinted. There was a wire mesh going through the window, which was already a notable difference but as I looked closer, the metal looked somewhat different. It had a notably bluish hue to it unlike the typical gunmetal grey you’d see in security windows.  As I got closer, the metal suddenly glowed bright and lightning started to arc nearly clipping my horn. “Gah!” I let out a feminine wail. “Wouldn’t recommend that.” An unnamed voice called out from behind the thick steel door. The tone was devoid of passion. “It’s a field that can intercept any of your weird voodoo powers you use with your horn. Getting too close will set it off. And despite what you might think, it can get you if you decide to teleport. I won’t warn you again.” He spoke about the window’s defenses with the same passion you’d use to read an End User License agreement. “Oh and just so we’re clear, the vents have the same metal field inside it, we stripped the room of any objects and we’ll be giving you dishware and cutlery that you can't levitate, okay? That's what I was told anyway.” He finished, feeling less like he was bragging about the cell’s defenses and more getting things out of the way so he could get on with his life. So I was locked up and I couldn’t use any magic to teleport my way out of here, there were no exits and I have no idea what’s going on outside. Great. Well, I wasn’t going to let a near impossible situation stop me from doing what’s right. I started pacing around the room to get the creative juices flowing in my brain. If there’s no avenue for me getting out of here, then I guess the next logical way is to try and convince the guard to let me out. His total apathy for guard duty seems like a good place to start. I approached the window but far enough away so that I wouldn’t trigger the magical defenses. “So...you sound like you’d rather be anywhere but here.” I observed. “It’s a paycheck.” He bluntly replied. “I get paid well enough. I don’t ask questions. Just smile and wave and let the check clear.” I frowned. “That sounds...pretty boring, Mr...” “It’s ‘Guard’ to you, and I don’t need to justify my life choices to a talking horse. I’m good with making what I need.” “But…” I trail off a bit. “Doesn’t that seem a bit empty? I mean, don’t you have any friends or anything?” “Not really. A couple but they’re not close or anything.” “What about anything you’re passionate about?” I press further. The guard shakes his head. “I- ju- what? What’s with the 20 questions?” “You left me in a cell with fuck all to do, so talking to you is literally the only entertaining thing I can do to pass the time.” I bluntly replied. The guard pauses for a moment before letting out a breath of air. “...that’s fair.” He turns around so he can look at me face to face. He had on a similar outfit to the National Guardsmen though it was notably missing identifying markers like a name tag or flag patches. If I had to hazard a guess, this was someone who was in Hayden’s pocket and not a part of the guard but armed like them. “Well, if you honestly must know. It’s well…” His eyes dart away before he mumbles something under his breath. My ears barely manages to catch “-ing” “What was that? Could you say it again?” I ask. The guard crosses his arms and huffs. “It’s. Sewing.” “Oh? Sewing? I never guessed that was what you were into because it’s-” “Queer, right?” He interrupts, a mouthful of venom in his voice and a look of tranquil fury plastered on his face. I clear my throat loudly, taken aback by his sudden reaction. “...because it’s something that I don’t typically see from big military guys like you.” The guard’s expression softened slightly and he exhaled sharply through his nose. “Well yeah, it’s the kind of ‘hobby’ that gets all kinds of dirty looks where I grew up. Men are men and women are women. We stay in our lanes and we don’t mix things up. Doesn’t matter that I had to learn all sorts of things when one parent dies and the other is working themselves to death half the time and is sick the other half. Doesn’t matter that I had to do it for practical reasons. Doesn’t matter that I’m damn good at it and I could make a killing with it if I was just allowed to do it! It’ll all just end with, ‘Oh, you like to sew? What a fag! Why don’t you just wear a dress while you’re at it?’ from every clown in town. So I have to bury it.” I sat in silence as I listened to this man’s story. I certainly didn’t expect that this is where this conversation was going. Still, hearing him talk about his problems and his feelings, something inside me was compelling me to help him. Escaping from my cell suddenly seemed secondary. I couldn’t just leave this man in such a disharmonious state. I needed to try and help him. The man shook his head. “Fuck man, why did I even say all that shit to you?” “Well,” I began. “Probably because you ‘buried’ an integral part of yourself. You shouldn’t deny a part of yourself like that.” I stated. “But people will-” He began. “Fuck what they think!” I snapped back. “You should look out for what you want to do! Does your sewing end up hurting anyone? Unless you’re jabbing them with needles, I highly doubt that. If it’s something that brings you joy and it’s something you think you could make a living doing, you should pursue that.” The man falls silent, his gaze pointed off to the side. After a few seconds, he pulls something out of his pocket and holds it up to the window for me to see. In his hand is a small little charm that looks...a lot like me! “When they brought you in, it gave me inspiration to make something and well, you were good reference material.” “Do...do you just bring your sewing materials with you?” I asked. “Obviously. Who knows what kind of emergency situation will come up where you need a thread and needle, ya get me?” He replies calmly. “That’s pretty forward thinking of you!” I responded. I leaned in closer to get a full look at his handiwork. I was genuinely impressed with the charm, and even with my lack of knowledge in the needle, I could tell there had been a lot of care and effort put into his little project. The curve of the ears and the small roundness of the snout, the tiny horn having a perfectly woven spiral in it, and the tail being in the same style as my own just on a smaller scale. It was truly a marvel how he managed to make something so small have that much attention to the specifics. “You know, that charm there is truly impressive. You should start an Etsy store or something. You could probably make a killing.” “Hmm, yeah.” The guard nodded. “Hank.” “Huh?” “You asked me for my name earlier and I was short with you. But my name is Hank.” “Oh, well, thanks for telling me!” I smiled. “Mmhmm.” Hank nodded and looked over at the wall. “Man, I dunno what compelled me to spill my guts to you, but there’s just something about you, something that resonates with me. I feel like you’re someone who can act as an understanding friend...which is a bit odd since this is the first time we’ve met n’ all.” I frowned. It did seem a bit sudden. I was just trying to see if I could find a way to let me out of here but then the subject drifted away and before I knew it, I was giving him advice and encouraging him in his sewing. It was like I had to help him and I was compelled to give him friendship advice. “Listen...I’m gonna go out for a smoke break. So if you were to get out and run around the place while I was away well...I wouldn’t be able to stop you.” He turns back to me. “It’d be a…’shame’...if that happens.” I stared in silence for a moment before I let out a small gasp, realizing what he was telling me. “Anyway, I’ll be back.” Hank muttered as he opened the outside door, leaving me alone. I quickly scanned around my room, trying to devise an escape. I could try and find a way to short out those magical wires that are keeping me inside but there could be unintended consequences or side-effects to using it. Hank said that teleporting would still activate the trigger and I’m not good enough with my magic to teleport far enough away to not trigger it...not on my own anyway. I shuddered when thinking about how I was falling through the sky thanks to an uncontrolled teleport. I paced around the room. Hank gave me an opportunity and it was important that I not waste it. I think my original plan of getting someone to open the door would still work but I'd need to plan things out. It would have to be with only one guard around and I would need to catch them with the element of surprise. All I need is a bottle of ketchup and then I could thin it out with water to make it appear more like blood and then I could have a puddle of it beneath me to make it look like I’ve been injured. All I would need to do then is to lie still for the guards to make it look like the injury is serious and the door is already open an- I paused. I whipped my head around to see that not only was the door to my cell already open but there was a figure standing in the doorway. It was a face I had only run into once before and it was a face that belonged to the creature that helped put me in here in the first place. It was that shapeshifter from the meeting I was spying on before I got knocked out by him. I immediately took a defensive stance, ready to take on this guy with everything I had...which admittedly wasn’t much but I did have a determination to get out of here. My moxie was stifled somewhat when the creature before me knelt down or whatever you do when you’re a quadruped and put his head to the floor. “I want to help you.” The shapeshifter murmured, his words being muffled thanks to his mouth being pointed towards the floor. “Well, you could start by pulling your head up so I could understand you better.” I advised, trying to make him feel a bit more comfortable. The shapeshifter hesitantly raised his head. It was then that I was able to get a good look at him for the first time and I had to admit, his colors were pretty wild. He had a vibrantly green sheen to his body. It wasn’t a coat like the other ponies or even feathers like the few gryphons I had seen before. It looked like a hard surface, almost like that of a bug. In fact his eyes were non-reflective and were a deep purple. He possessed a large set of orange horns that jutted upward and wouldn’t have looked out of place on a stag beetle. “Oh...oh wow.” I unintentionally uttered out. “W-what?” The shapeshifter stammered. “Ah! Sorry.” I winced, realizing my gawking was not being kept to myself. “It’s just that your color scheme is very...unusual.” I remarked, trying to be as diplomatic as possible. The shapeshifter sighs and shakes his head. “I’m not exactly proud of my appearance. I tend to hide from other people by disguising myself. I don’t really like people seeing me like this…but I figured if I came to you without a disguise, you might be able to trust me a bit more.” “Hmm…” I mused to myself. “Well, what do you want?” I inquired, still not willing to trust him fully. “I want to help you.” He stated. “I don’t want to work for Hayden anymore and I wanna get out of this place. You and your friends seem to be trying to throw a wrench into his plans and I want to do whatever I can to help you out. For starters, I’ve opened the door here so you can get out.” “I see. Well, don’t think that just because you’re saying you want to help and you’ve helped me escape, that doesn’t mean that I immediately trust you.” I huffed. “You’re also the reason I’m in here in the first place.” The shapeshifter lowered his head. “I know, I understand.” “But...thanks.” I added, giving him a slight smile. “Alright, let’s get out of here. Is there a safe place we can hide out and catch up on things?” The shapeshifter nodded. “Yeah, I know a place. Follow me!” With that, we both stormed out of the cell.