Ponies will not be nice to you
That statement tore through his mind as the days went by, the ponies constantly checking on him. Not all ponies are nice, he knows this.
So why are they nice?
This mystery was perplexing to him. He wanted to move more than anything but his aching body was constantly reminding him of his current inability to do anything but breathe. The mares all pitched in when he wanted to leave the zebra's hut and go home but were disappointed, for some reason, when his directions led them to a cave. Rarity even made a fashionable stretcher and was confused when appeared to be very uncomfortable in the WHITE stretcher in the DARK forest. He may be growing fond of the mares and them; the forest, but they still lacked the knowledge that being seen was bad, Rarity even mentioned shining like a star throughout the Everfree. He had a strong urge to move his hoof to his forehead but his inability to move made that rather difficult.
Fluttershy knows of the animals but believes they can be sweet talked into walking away from a weak and defenseless meal because she's nice, that manicore she 'tamed' a while back was somewhat upset not hungry. Rather young too.
Rarity can't handle dirt and well... outside. Applejack is too stubborn, good in some cases but can be life-threatening in every other case, she is sturdy and strong but isn't very quick. Probably lacks fight experience too.
Pinkie Pie is loud, doesn't shut up and is quite friendly. She wishes to make everything smile and be friends. She may be able to pull things out of absolutely now where but... well... She's too innocent. Couldn't harm a fly.
Rainbow Dash is brash, overconfident and faces everything head-on. She's fast, strong and claims to be trained in martial arts... whatever those are.
Murex was thinking of if they could survive the Everfree, just trying to waste time so he went over what he knows about them. Strength, visibility, speed, knowledge of the Everfree and situational awareness. The forest is kind to none and so he was harsh in his judgement. Together they stood a chance, complimenting each other's strengths and making up for weaknesses. Alone though...
He wished it would be quick.
He didn't want to scare them when they declared they will still visit him to help his recovery in any way they can so he kept his thoughts to himself.
So Murex lay there in his cave, in pain and doing nothing. The bandages were another reminder of his situation, barrel fully wrapped and some more around his legs. He could FEEL what he was missing, chitin blocked a lot of feeling but the cold air blasting into his exposed stomach was alien to him. He wasn't fond of it.
Every fiber of his being yearned to stretch his muscles, breathe the fresh air and feeling the wind wash over his form as he darted through out the trees of his home. Yet he didn't want to move an inch, didn't want to risk his still throbbing body to flare up in pain because he wanted what was currently impossible.
So he cleared his mind with a sigh and let sleep take him, resigning himself to the situation he was in.
Ponies will not be nice to you
He was greeted with a surprise upon return to the waking world. Faced with the ponies he was familiar with, no zebra however, sitting in his cave with smiles gracing their muzzles.
"Am I going to like?" His voice still sounded strained even after the few days of recovery he had. His pronunciation was greatly improved since their meeting with the zebra, although he was speaking less than usual which was already more than usual.
"The Princesses have requested your presence in Canterlot darling, it seemed important. Can you walk dear?" As much as he didn't want to go he felt like he had to. The voice he now associated with Celestia was indeed quiet, he hadn't heard from her in a while.
"So where is Canterlot?" They looked at him strangely. "I live in a forest. Where is Canterlot?"
After some unnecessary discussion about the location of Canterlot they decide to try to help him up, it went as well as Murex hoped. Only severe pain occurred and he was on his hooves for the first time in days. It felt good.
His stomach ached as he tried to walk, protesting every movement. He'd live. He will fully recover. This may have been the worst condition he's ever been in but not by much. The Everfree was kind to none.
So they began their slow trek to the zebra's hut to borrow her cloak on her insistence, she left a piece of paper, the mares read it and told him that she was out getting ingredients for that healing brew for him as the previous batch had apparently expired and would be unsafe to use, why she didn't decide to make it while he was there he'll never know. It was then on to this 'train station' they kept mentioning. He was still learning and they seem to keep forgetting this fact, continuously making him feel stupid. Talking about things he's never heard of and being surprised by his lack of knowledge about it.
It was the first time he'd left the forest fully since he'd arrived, his nerves were shot and were getting worse the further they went from his familiar scenery.
His large cloaked form attracted many stares on the approach to the train station but nopony acted out, only curious about the strange pony being escorted by the five semi-famous mares of Ponyville, the slight height difference could've been a factor but Murex attention was wholly on the colorful series of boxes, the roaring metal beast. He has seen it before after all.
Only a few times but every time it appeared it was normally spooking his prey or throwing him off while fighting wood dogs or a manticore. He'd never seen it fully only getting glimpses of it as it sped away after disturbing him, always far away from his anger and frustration.
His focus rapt on the train he missed the stare of the Ticketmaster giving out tickets to the six of them for shiny metal in return.
Murex was on edge as they left the Ticketmaster in his booth and entered the metal beast, he felt somewhat silly, the mares with him were completely at ease and here he was on the verge of freaking out. He was a fish out of water the only thing he was remotely familiar with was the mares he was with who he barely knew to begin with. His nerves got a brief respite upon seeing they had entered an empty car, he would've broken down then and there if there were other ponies with him. They sat down as a group, Rainbow next to the window, Applejack next to him and Murex in-between them with the other three on the seat opposite them, and waited.
And waited.
What are they waiting for?
Murex raised his hoof to pose a question, "Uh-" the beast suddenly roared to life and Murex began scrambling for something to grab onto, the thing he latched onto was Rainbow who's face immediately went a deep red as she tried to fend him off, and held on for dear life.
"Is it supposed to be doing this?!?" He shouted, nopony answered, being more focused on what he was doing and laughing at his situation. In his panicked state he was oblivious to everything other than the beast was now moving.
Applejack came back to her senses and got up from her seat so she could get between them to help Rainbow pry him off, she shoved her forelegs between them and forced them apart, accidentally putting pressure on Murex's injured barrel in the process.
His cry of pain shook them all, having never expected such a sound to come from the big scary monster they knew, and his immediate action after only stunned them, if such a thing was possible.
After having been separated he reflexively used Applejack's strength to aid in getting away, landing in the isle he curled up and hugged himself close. His injury made him feel weak, his restricted motion made him wary, the unfamiliar environment put him on edge, the train car made him feel boxed in, the separation made him feel vulnerable, the inability to regain his bearings made him feel exposed and the pain he felt amplified the havoc it wreaked upon his body and mind alike.
He lay curled up on the floor, shaking like a leaf, panting like a dog. Higher thought all but gone as the train rocked from side to side, it made him feel sick. He needed to get off. Now.
In his delirium his eyes darted every which way, the background noise of the beast and the ponies' questioning was rendered mute as his eyes then locked onto his only solace. The outside. He ignored the frantic shapes around him and dove for it, clambering over the colored shapes around him as he neared his beloved outside.
Something blue and something orange wrapped around him, preventing him from reaching his salvation. He thrashed and snarled and kicked as his escape was delayed, he reached out regardless, hoping to get a grip on something to aid him. His hoof was stopped by an obstacle unseen, his joy at finding outside came crashing down and was soon yanked away from the sunlight and forced to the floor, his weakened state made fighting back a herculean task. He tried to get out with all his might but the injuries caused all of his escape attempts to seem like wasted effort yet he tried anyway. White hot pain was rushing through his body as his limbs thrashed and teeth gnashed at the unknown threat. Soon his legs rebelled against him and slowly stopped their movement, even with his bodies' complete refusal to move he still tried. Never giving up the fight to his aggressor, never truly yielding. His vision swam and a deafening ringing filled his ears.
He heard noise, all around him. It sounded like something was running around him, celebrating victory maybe? His previous situation completely escaped his thoughts, he stilled wanted out, he still wanted to be anywhere else but he couldn't move despite his efforts. His limbs felt like stone, he wasn't moving any time soon he knew that much but it didn't stop him from trying. His consciousness was fading into black yet he still fought.
His eyes snapped open with a sharp intake of breath, darting around to gauge his situation. Waking up quickly never felt good but it was always necessary. They were quickly shut again as the brightness of the room assaulted his unprepared eyes.
Trying again he opened them again and fared much better as he was prepared this time around. Mostly. It was a white room because of course the creature that loves dark places would wake in the brightest possible room, quite ironic, the only non-white thing in the room was Murex's borrowed cloak that hung on a white wooden... block that had half circles of metal on parts of it. Switching his focus to what he lay on it was one of those things that ponies slept on, only much larger than he thought it would be, what did Pinkie call it? A bed. It was difficult to gleam what she was talking about when she said 'Softest, comfiest, sleeperific thing ever!' but he managed to decipher her meaning, after a few hours. He looked around the annoyingly white room and saw a lot of... Hanging cloth? Near the outside that had a golden fence around it. The room itself was almost as big as his cave, enough for a manticore to move around in but little beyond that.
Ignoring the cloth as he had no idea what purpose it served he soon came across an image of the sun. It looked familiar.
He had no idea how to describe this room other than white. It was similar to those dream 'houses' Rarity kept blathering on about, he can only withstand so much of her at once. That mentality isn't exclusive. Fluttershy's shyness frustrates him, Applejack's talk of work and apples bore him, Rainbow's gloating gets on his nerves and Pinkie needs no explanation.
The door to the room creaked as it moved and Murex's head snapped towards it. Assuming the worst he leaped from the bed and moved to the block that held his cloak for cover, well that was the intention. As soon as he jolted up to move his body felt like he had just been smacked by a manticore but he continued, more focused on the potential danger. As soon as he made to leap towards the wooden block his legs buckled and he lacked the strength necessary to shield his head as he fell.
The chitin on his head and upper torso was enough to protect him from the initial impact but some force still carried on through the rest of his body causing him to yelp as the air was forced from his lungs and flesh that was busy healing was disturbed once again. The ground having fur was more than odd. A soft giggle alerted him to the presence he assumed to be danger.
"Nice to see you could join us Murex." A voice he recognized said to him. Friendly, warm, welcoming with a hint of something else. He hated hearing it as much as he wanted to keep hearing it. "When I was told of your escapades on the train here I was quite surprised that you agreed to such a thing. Unknown environment, strange happenings and going far from home. Due to your reliability of baser instincts I'm quite impressed that it wasn't worse." The way she explained it made her sound like... Twilight... These ponies infuriated him more often than he would like to admit.
"If you knew it would happen. Why'd you let them?" He questioned, pulling his forelegs under him and attempted to lift himself with little success, his hind legs still hanging off the bed.
"I didn't, I may move the sun and be a thousand years old but I can't predict the future. Now I'm sure a certain few mares would like to say something." She stepped aside to reveal the mares as they filtered into the room one by one. Once they were all inside they all opened their mouths at once, to apologize most likely, but he wasn't having it. He could have refused the trip. Right? Whether he had a choice or not they didn't come all the way here to talk.
His head turned to Celestia, brushing along the floor fur and ignoring them entirely. "Why are we here?" Being left breathless didn't allow him more than that.
Celestia looked displeased and the mares seemed somewhat hurt from his interruption. "Twilight is on trial for her transgressions against you Murex. Everypony needed is present and while it normally would take a month or so for the actual trial to take place, I have taken control of it as she is my student." Celestia informed him, everyponies expression darkening at the mention of the lavender unicorn. "Come. We shall make our way to the court room." The mares moved in to help Murex get off the floor and it's fur, being unable to get up on his own made him feel helpless. The Everfree eats the weak and helpless, how will he survive until he's healed?
His mood darkened considerably at the thought.
"Awww... Why are you all chummy my chum buddy?" Pinkie asked in her usual chipper attitude while poking his side, the hurt she displayed moments prior completely gone. Her touch made him flinch with a low growl at the unpleasant feeling he was subjected to, he was not happy with something managing to touch his chitinless flesh.
"I went from running around freely to being unable to get up on my own," They helped him up on all fours but when his legs started shaking, Rainbow brushed up against his side, wordlessly offering herself as a support which he accepted gladly. "I've been completely covered in chitin for as long as I can remember, I still haven't got over the fact that I'm not anymore." He replied sharply as his borrowed cloak was suddenly draped over him, it annoyed him that they always seemed to forget that he isn't a pony like them. "I am sorry, I never thought I'd suddenly be without some." He apologized, he mustn't take out his frustrations on them, it's unfair. Whether they brought about his frustration or not. His apology earned him a wing holding him close though.
"It's okay! I wonder what having cheetan would be like, would it be heavy? Or cold? Or hot? Would it be really really hard to move and you would be like a statue? What if you had fur?-" He tried his best to block out her ramblings, he didn't have it in him to snap at her again after he apologized for doing just that.
After the quick back-and-forth between them they followed Celestia in silence. The girls were quite talkative before he was like this and now they have suddenly nothing to say. Is it because Celestia is here? Or are they recovering from Twilight's examination in their own way? Murex mightn't have known them for very long but he can't allow this incident to affect them badly. They want to help him, it would be unfair.
The zebra had told him about her life before Equestria. How the Everfree is a proving ground for only the most hardened of zebra shamans, to progress from the silver bands to gold. Zecora was so at peace with life in the Everfree that she came back after proving herself, and earning her gold bands, to live there.
A far cry from the ponies ideology of the zebra's just being barbaric nomads from a far away land. Zebras were very spiritual and held their traditions close. Ponies did that a lot in history... In general it seemed. A misinterpretation of another race or just labeling them as 'bad' and conveying themselves as perfect, after the war of the three pony tribes at least.
Nothing against the ponies but they don't seem to see past their own little world, that nopony can do wrong and other races are to be feared just because they aren't them. Few ponies can see past this little world and Murex just so happens to be walking with six of them. He hoped that whoever was in this court room place could do just that. See that he had been wrongly harmed and not something else, something ridiculous.
He couldn't be sure as the only knowledge he has of the world outside is from the zebra.
Another thing he couldn't be sure of was where they were. He hadn't been keeping track of how far they had walked or how many turns they had taken. Celestia had stopped walking and turned to large golden double doors that was being guarded by two guards, each armed with a pointy stick. Celestia's horn lit up with magic and the doors were enshrouded in her aura before slowly opening. She rolled her wings in their sockets before raising them making her seem much larger, she walked through followed by the mares and Murex. The room and it's contents were revealed to him and he set about soaking up as much of his current situation as quick as he could.
Rows and rows of seated ponies. They sat on long, fully wooden seats that lined the sides of the fairly large room and left a walkway down the middle. They went from the back where the door is and continued until they reached a small wooden wall that left an empty area at the front. The only thing in front of this wall was two desks which were occupied. To the sides of this empty area were two large wooden stands, behind these stands were strange colored windows that stopped just above the wooden wall. One was empty and the other was filled, the front of the area had another one of these stands but had two large cloths that depicted an image of the sun on the left and a crescent moon on the right. Underneath the moon was a deep blue pony with a wavy mane like Celestia but without the colors. This ponies' wavy mane depicted a starry night instead, a sight Murex has grown fond of due to his nightly hunts with only the stars to light his way.
The middle of the open area was what gripped his attention. Standing there chained to the ground and looking back at Murex shamefully was the only pony he would ever kill without regret.
Twilight Sparkle.
He didn't try to bite back his snarl.