//------------------------------// // Interrogation // Story: Unchangeling // by Kira //------------------------------// Chapter 2: Interrogation The walk through the woods was quiet, but Crunch was used to quiet. Most of the time, he sat in his room fiddling with things. He enjoyed building new and odd things. As he walked, however, he didn't imagine new and wonderful things. Instead, he noticed how everything around him was silent, even though it had been full of life as he looked over it before. As he walked, he caught a glance of a deer. The deer saw him and promptly ran off, as did a squirrel next to it. Even the birds in the trees flew away as he neared. The only company he truly had was his shadow, which was usually covered by the tree shadows. Every so often he would reach a clearing or meadow and enter it, just to feel the sunlight and see his shadow. Sunlight was new to him. The hive always glowed with an artificial magic light. As he walked, he also noticed a feeling completely foreign to him: loneliness. He had never truly been lonely, as his mother had always been there for him. While it was true she had not loved him (as love was forbidden through Chrysalis's fear of another changeling tapping into it), she still had raised him. That was something one did not easily forget. As well as those things, he noticed one thing most of all. Everything around him was slow. In the hive, there was no slacking off. Everypony always moved as fast as possible to be super productive. That was why, Crunch assumed, Chrysalis hadn't hesitated for more than a few seconds to decide to exile him. The hive was militaristic and swift. The world around him was more lax, which he found he kind of enjoyed. It was nice to be able to stop and catch your breath. Crunch happened to come across one of those clearings just as the sun started to set. He looked at the colors in the sky and was mesmerized. He wanted to fly up and see it better, but his weak bug-like wings only buzzed behind him. He plopped down on the ground and looked up at the sky from his back. It was nice to get a break from all of that walking. He closed his eyes and relaxed, but almost immediately heard a gruff, but female voice. "What are you doing here?" it said. Crunch just laid there until something held him down by the legs. He opened his eyes and saw a light blue pony with a rainbow mane. "What... what do you want with me?" Crunch said, fear beginning to fill him. The pony's eyes widened and she loosened her grip a little. "I didn't know you things could talk on your own." she said. Crunch took the opportunity and rolled out of her grip, quickly getting to his feet. He ran off into the wood, not bothering to get a sense of direction. He just wanted to get away from the pony before she did horrible things to him. "Hey... HEY! Get back here!" the pegasus called after him. He looked back and saw her running after him. His wings buzzed and he cursed himself for never trying to make them usable. They would be very helpful if he had just worked them out more. He kept running at a full sprint through the forest, branches slapping his face, roots threatening to trip him up, until, finally, he collapsed, exhausted. He looked back and didn't see the pony. "Oh, thank Chrysalis." he wheezed to himself. "Don't thank anypony just yet." came the pony's voice. Crunch looked up to see the pony quickly dropping down on him from above. She held him down and put his forelegs behind his back. He was powerless against her. "Why?" he asked quietly. "Why do you ponies hate us so much?" She either didn't hear him or didn't care, because she lifted him off the ground and began flying. As they ascended, Crunch hit his head on the branch of a tree. He saw a large amount of ponies in the town ahead of him, and the last thing he saw before he passed out was a gray pony far off. She had a yellow mane and caught his attention more than anything else. Before he could think about it, he fell into unconsciousness. "Hey Twilight, I think he's waking up!" the pony said. He slowly opened his eyes, his head pounding. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he could make out a familiar figure of a blue pony, as well as another purple pony coming into view. His vision cleared and he tried to sit up. Something held him back and as he looked at his legs, he saw thick leather straps holding him down onto a wooden table by all of his legs as well as his torso. "What do you ponies want with me?" Crunch asked. It was beginning to become a monotonous question. "A better question is 'Why are you lurking outside of Ponyville?'." the purple pony, Twilight said. "Lurking? I was lurking? I was trying to take a nap!" Crunch said. "Why, in all of Equestria, would I be lurking outside of Ponyville if I knew I was close to it?" "Rainbow Dash." Twilight said with pursed lips. "Is this true?" "I, uh... Maybe?" Rainbow Dash said. She began to back away but was lfted into the air and brought back over by Twilight's magic. "Listen, if you ponies are going to kill me, please just do it now." Crunch said. "Just... just have mercy and make it quick." The ponies just stared at him, bewildered. "Kill you?" Twilight asked. "We're not going to kill you! We just want to get you out of here! But first we need to know what you were doing outside of Ponyville, alone." "You were alone, right?" Rainbow Dash asked warily. "I AM GETTING VERY CONFUSED BY THIS CONVERSATION!" Crunch yelled. The ponies stepped back away from him. "I'm sorry, I just... I'm confused. Why do you care so much about this? What could one changeling possibly do to hurt you?" "Well, you guys normally kill us and steal our spot in life." Rainbow Dash said. Crunch stiffened and tried to sit up once more. One of the front leg straps broke and he removed the other one. He sat up and looked at Rainbow Dash. "You wanted to know why I'm here? It's because I'm worthless." he said with malice in his voice. "I can't transform and I can't fly. I can't use my magic because I can't transform, so that's out of the question. I'm just a deer with holes in it. I can't do anything useful for society." He flopped back down on the table and sighed. "Whatever. All you changelings are just freaks in my eyes, and you're the first one to admit it." Rainbow said ruefully. This brought tears to Crunch's eyes. At the hive, he was shunned for not being able to fly and transform. They called him a freak on a daily basis. He couldn't believe that he was being tortured by his past even here. Twilight seemed to notice his tears. "Are you okay?" she asked. He simply turned his head and stared at her, hatred deep in his eyes. "I can't just go back home. I'm stuck with you evil, evil creatures and before I even get into town, I get knocked out and brought here, only to be insulted. I actually want you to kill me at this point." he said. "But, please, whatever you actuallly do... get that spawn of Discord out of here." "Spawn of Discord? What- I -You're the evil one!" Rainbow Dash yelled indignantly. Still, she followed his wishes and stormed out of the room. As she opened the door, he realized he hadn't noticed the room around him. He was in a library, of all places. "I'm sorry about her. She's just being... Rainbow Dash. That's pretty much all I can describe her with." Twilight said. "So, if what you're saying is true, your wings are useless, and you can't transform?" "Yes, that's what I said. But before we go on, can I ask why you're being nice, but she has a very obvious extreme hatred for changelings?" Crunch said, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Actually, I don't really know why. Not all ponies are that, as you put it, 'extreme' about it." Twilight explained. "I'm afraid that she's just not one for change, so it may take a long time for her to get used to a nice changeling." "Great." he groaned. "You don't want to kill me, but I'll be pushed away by these ponies, too?" "Well, maybe for a little while." Twilight replied meekly. "Here, let me get those straps for you." She removed the straps from his torso and rear legs, succeeding in changing the subject. "Well, do you know why you can't change?" Twilight asked him. "No, and I don't want to know. I'm fine with not knowing. I'd rather not get scientific about my freakishness." Crunch said bluntly. He started towards the door, but was stopped by Twilight's hoof on his shoulder. She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Please don't go. I would love to have you as company." she urged. "And become your lab rat?" Crunch replied, distaste in his voice. "I don't think so." Crunch opened the door and was treated to a kick to the face by Rainbow Dash. "That's for calling me a Discord spawn!" she said, flying off. Crunch clutched his snout with one hoof, blood beginning to flow and pain beginning to start, and looked around Ponyville. It was less than a minute before a pony saw him and began screaming and running. All of the other ponies began doing the same. This is going to be a loooooooooong exile... Crunch thought to himself as he began walking down a random street.