//------------------------------// // Captured // Story: OTR: Haven Station // by The King of Hearts //------------------------------// //// Captured //// Alex and Twilight were escorted through the compound toward the spa, both brooding over the horrible situation they were in. “Where is that stupid pony?” Twilight whispered, looking around for Dax, assuming he would come out of nowhere, and kick some serious rump. “Why does everypony think I have ANYTHING to do with him?” Alex growled. “Shut up and keep moving!” The guard shouted as they walked through the front doors of the facility. The pure white color of the lobby blinded the two of them as they walked in from the darkness of the outside world. Holding his breath, Alex looked at the next set of doors, not wanting to see what was on the other side of this door. “Welcome to the manager’s office,” A guard said, opening the door, revealing an equally white room, with a large desk in the middle, “Alpha will be with you soon.” Walking out, the guards left the two of them alone, locking the door behind them. Alex and Twilight looked to each other afraid of what was coming for them. “So… Dax isn’t coming?” Twilight asked, losing hope quickly. “I have no idea,” Alex said, sounding completely betrayed, “I actually started to trust that asshole.” “Well, if he really is you, he’ll be back,” Twilight said. “Maybe…” Alex said. “I doubt it,” Alpha’s voice said. Looking around, the two looked for the source of his voice. “Down here,” He said. Suddenly, the floor started lowering, taking the two of them down into the basement, where they assumed they figured Alpha was waiting. Reaching the floor, they were taken from an intensely white room, to one of darkness, with no light source, besides a faint green glow. “Alpha!” Twilight shouted into the darkness around them, “Get out here!” Looking around, they tried to make anything out, besides the various instruments and walls barely lit by the green glow coming from above them. “Of course, Twilight,” Alpha said as the lights in the room came to life, illuminating everything. Alpha stood on a small podium with them in a truly massive room that stretched underneath the entire courtyard, all the way to the hotel. The space was almost empty, save the few instruments immediately surrounding them, and the support pillars that held the ceiling above them. “Now… We need to have a discussion,” Alpha said, walking over to Alex, and pushing his face up, looking into his eyes, “Good, blue.” “What?” Alex asked, snapping away. “Your friend has green ones,” Alpha said, “But, he’s gone now, so it doesn’t matter.” “Where did he go?” Alex asked, holding his breath. “He was seen flying away from the perimeter,” Alpha laughed as a massive monitor turned on behind him, showing Dax flying away from the mall, into the night. “He’ll sneak back,” Alex warned, “You won’t have cameras covering every inch of this place.” “I don’t need them,” Alpha laughed, “I’ve fine-tuned my anti-magic machine to tell me if there are any disturbances in the anti-magic field caused by discordic magic since your friend Dax is teeming with the stuff.” “He’ll find a way,” Alex insisted. “He won’t.” He said, “Any other questions?” Alex frowned at his quick dismissal. “Where are our friends?” Alex demanded. “We’ll get to them later,” Alpha laughed. Alex growled, “What’s your plan then?” “I don’t care about any plan!” Twilight barked, stepping between Alpha and Alex, “WE need to have a discussion!” “Listen, Twilight—“ “No!” She shouted, “I kissed you!” “And I’m very—“ She slapped him hard across the face. He didn’t respond. “I FRENCH kissed you!” She shouted, slapping him even harder, “Who the hell are you?!” Stepping back, Alpha gave them both a serious look as he rubbed his face. “I guess I owe you that, Twilight,” He said, stepping back on to his podium.” “I am…” //// Celestia slowly opened her eyes. It was one of those nights again. Recently, she had been waking up at all hours of the night, and found it incredibly difficult to get back to sleep. Getting up, and making her way to the throne room, she briefly thought to Twilight and her friends. She hoped that they were having a good time at the station. “Sister!” Luna smiled, “You are having trouble sleeping, once again?” Nodding, Celestia walked over to the window overlooking Canterlot and smiled. It was always calming seeing the lack of activity of her subjects. They were all in bed, resting for tomorrow. “Oh, Sister!” Luna said again as Celestia turned to her, “Twilight Sparkle sent you a letter.” “Oh, did she?” Celestia smiled, walking over to the parchment Luna was levitating, taking it herself, and opening it. Luna watched her read over it, and followed her facial expressions as she made her way through it. A smile changed to a calm face as she read the beginning of it. However, her face suddenly took a grave turn. “What is it, sister?” Luna asked, standing up and approaching her. “Luna… Do you remember, all those years ago before we became Princesses…” Celestia somewhat mumbled, still processing something. Luna listened silently. “We encountered a group of very strange looking ponies…” She continued, “Ponies that had a very… particular way of naming themselves, when being addressed…” It was a bit vague, and Luna needed a bit more help than that. Looking up to Luna, Celestia gave her a grim look, “Twilight has met a pony named Alpha, and with him, Betas, and Gammas.” “You must write her back, and warn her of the danger!” Luna said, now understanding. “We can’t risk them being discovered,” Celestia said, “We’ll go in ourselves.” Luna nodded, “I’ll call the guard into action.” Celestia turned and faced the train that sat outside the castle, “We leave in a half an hour, for Haven Station.” //// “I am Alpha,” He said as a green glow surrounded him, “The general of the queen’s army.” “Queen?” Alex asked, “What queen?” Suddenly, his entire body was surrounded in a green flame that seemed to melt his skin from his body. At first, Twilight thought Dax had come to rescue them, and had horrifyingly murdered Alpha in the process. However, it quickly became apparent that he wasn’t being hurt, and another pony was clearly under this first layer of now-melting skin. “Queen Chrysalis,” He smiled confidently, as revealing his true self, to be an entirely black pony, with several holes throughout his body, wings, and horn. “You’re a changeling?!” Twilight said in disbelief, “I-I’ve never seen a real one before…” “Well, here I am,” He laughed, “Now you understand why we wouldn’t have worked out, Twilight.” “What are you talking about?” She growled, “I would have dated a changeling, you think I’m some kind of racist?” “Well, no,” He said, a bit put off by this, “I mean, I’m not exactly on your side.” “No shit!” Alex shouted. “Enough of this,” Alpha said ending the line of conversation, “It’s time for your conditioning. You two are going to join the rest of your friends.” “Over my dead body!” Alex said, taking a defensive stance in front of Twilight. “Do you know advanced hoof-to-hoof combat?” Alpha asked, “Because your harmonious magic is being blocked in this room.” “Does that mean I can still use discordic magic?” Alex asked, hopefully. “Dax took that ability with him,” Alpha explained, “We both know that.” “Well, I hope he gets in here then,” Alex said to himself, “Then he could stop you.” “His magic may be blocked outside this room,” Alpha explained making a gesture, as the guards swarmed them, and started forcing them toward a bunch of beds, “But I can move the field to wherever I need it to go.” Alex struggled as he was placed on a bed next to Twilight as they were both restrained. “Try not to struggle too much,” Alpha said, somewhat comfortingly, “You’ll be with your friends soon.” //// Celestia and Luna finished loading the guards onto the bullet train as Celestia moved to the front to speak with the conductor. “Can we get this train to Haven Station any faster?” She asked. “I can ramp up the speed a bit,” The conductor explained, “But if I push her too hard, we’ll lose control.” Thinking to herself, Celestia got an idea. “If crashing isn’t an issue, how fast could this train go… Theoretically?” Celestia asked. “Uh… At maximum speed, it would be somewhere in the neighborhood of three hundred percent faster.” He said, shocking the princess. “That fast? We could be at haven station in eight hours?” She asked in awe. “We’d never keep steady though!” He insisted. “I can keep us steady,” Celestia said seriously, “I’ll keep us locked to the ground. Nothing will divert us.” “…Are you sure Princess?” He asked, clearly nervous at the idea, “I don’t feel like this would be a safe thing to do…” “I’m sorry that I have to say it, but this is an order, and you will follow it.” Celestia said, extremely out of character. “Yes ma’am,” He sighed, “Turning to the control panel, and working a few knobs, “I’ll let you know when we’re departing.” “Thank you,” She said simply, exiting the car. She had to get to Twilight before she was hurt. Normally, she would teleport herself there, but she had never been to the place… So she wasn’t able to do it. So, her only option was to get them there fast. “Alright everypony!” The conductor called, “We’re going to be moving fast here… So please be careful during acceleration.” “Are we ready to depart?” Luna asked. “Yes,” Celestia said, “But I’m going to need you to help me keep the train steady during the trip. At the speed we’re going to be moving at, the train needs assistance to keep from derailing.” “Of course,” Luna nodded. Sitting down in a nearby seat, Celestia waited anxiously for the train to start moving. Twilight was so far away… And she was going to have to wait for eight agonizing hours, hoping that she was okay… It would be torture. ////