//------------------------------// // Act II - 11 - Please Let Me Out of Here // Story: Harmony's Warriors: X-Questrians First Class // by Avenging-Hobbits //------------------------------// Act II: “Break on Through to the Other Side” Chapter Eleven: "Please Let Me Out of Here" The sound of a door knob turning caught Carrot’s ears, and he lazily glanced towards the door, his head resting on his crossed forelegs. He was determined to not betray any of the residual fear he might have been feeling inside, since he didn’t want them to think they controlled him. Fear equaled control, Carrot knew that for a fact. If you didn’t show fear, the enemy couldn’t control you. The door knob opened and revealed the same blue coated pony who’d fished Carrot out of the harbor just few hours earlier. Cupcake wasn’t it? Carrot let out a groan, moving a hoof to rub his forehead. “Oh it’s you…” he murmured. “Cupcake right? Come here to screw with my brain again?” The mare smiled meekly, “Yes, I’m Cupcake,” she replied, before shaking her head. “And no, no I’m not,” she added, quietly walking over to the small wooden chair that sat by the obviously one-way mirror. Carrot refused to adjust his position but his eyes followed her, narrowing slightly. “Did that purple bitch make you come here?” he asked, slightly motioning towards the mirror. Cupcake glanced to the mirror before shaking her head in a noticeably more terse manner. “No. Twilight didn’t force me to come here,” she answered, sitting slightly more upright. Carrot’s eyebrows dropped. “Then why are you here?” “Well… I honestly want to help you out,” she said simply, lifting her hooves helplessly, as if it baffled even her. She gave him a slight, incredibly awkward smile. Carrot narrowed his eyes further. “Why?” Cupcake sighed slightly, idly twiddling her hooves. “Because I can’t just leave you here.” Carrot felt his entire face crumple in confusion. “Why?” Cupcake threw her hooves in the air and gave an exasperated sigh. “Because I don’t think you deserve to be locked away in a prison! Even if you are some sort of psychotic revenge-bent m--” She stopped short, her eyes darting warily towards the mirror, before sliding back towards Carrot, and then continuing in a lower voice: “I think you deserve another chance.” Carrot straightened and now looked directly at Cupcake. Her eyes were red, had heavy shadows underneath, her hair was frazzled and her clothes rumpled. She clearly hadn’t slept a wink since they last spoke, and yet, despite that, her words felt fresh and genuine. As an added bonus, he didn’t feel any pressure or suggestions on his mind either. Well, she isn’t lying. So what is her game with me, why does she keep coming back here, what does she want from me--? “Wait,” he said out loud, holding up a hoof. “Wait, wait, wait.” “What, what is it?” Cupcake asked. Carrot smiled slightly, standing up from where he was sitting. “Look, kid, I’m flattered and all--” Cupcake looked baffled. “Flattered? What?” “--But you don’t owe me anything for helping you last night, okay?” Carrot continued, cutting her off, “I just did what any pony would have done and really you had already helped me so I was just returning the favor so we’re good, alright?” Cupcake looked at him with such complete and utter bewilderment Carrot actually had to suppress a snicker. That was an unusual sensation. “What are you talking about?” Cupcake blurted. “Are you implying I’m here to pay some sort of debt or something?” “Why else are you here? Considering how our last ‘conversation’ ended, I don’t think it's because of the sweet nature of your heart or something.” “Yes, in fact!” Cupcake retorted. “Oh so it is because you feel sorry for me?! Oh that’s just great!” Carrot snorted, sitting back down on the other end of the room, glaring at Cupcake the entire time. “Listen here, kid. I don’t want your pity, okay? The only reason ponies feel sorry for things are when the thing is something worth being sorry for. But let me tell you, once I get out of here, I’m not going to be some pathetic little pony, okay?” Cupcake blinked for a second, her indignant expression growing more venomous. "What the fuck? Are you some sort of idiot or something? I'm not here because of pity, I'm here because it’s the right thing to do! Are you seriously going to pass up a chance to get out of here because your precious ego got wounded? Are you seriously that disgustingly vain? That you would rather have yourself rot in a prison then accept help I'm giving for free? I don't know about you, but I tend to think that everypony, no matter what, deserves a second chance. I happen to think the same about you, you arrogant selfish prick." She angrily crossed her forelegs, practically spitting the last word. There was an awkward, quiet pause, before Carrot simply raised an eyebrow slightly. “Okay… so what’s your offer?” Cupcake's expression softened slightly. “Help Agent Sparkle find Gustav.” Carrot tensed up. “Absolutely not,” he replied, his voice low. Cupcake shrugged. “Fine then. Be that way." She stood up off the chair, starting to the door. "I can tell you right now that Twilight isn't going to just let you go if you continue to be stubborn like this." She paused, looking over her shoulder. "But if you help them, I can promise you that she will do all she can to find Gustav, and bring him to justice.” "I don’t want justice. I want revenge.” Carrot replied crossly, causing Cupcake to let out a sigh. “Well it's either justice or nothing, take your pick. You can't have both." Carrot sighed, rubbing his forehead. “What do I have to do to 'help' this Agent Sparkle.” Cupcake's expression softened. “All you have to do is tell her what you know about Gustav, where he's going and what his intentions are.” Carrot mused for a moment. He didn't want to stay locked into what amounted to a fancy cage for the rest of his life. He had revenge to exact. “Fine… I'll help, with one condition." "What's that?" Cupcake asked, taking her seat again. Carrot sat up, leaning forwards. "I want to be there, every step of the way. I want to be there when they catch him, and I want to see his face. I want to personally escort him to whatever imprisonment, torture, or execution they have planned for him.” Cupcake nodded slightly. “I guess that can be arranged.” Carrot smiled slightly. “Alright then. I’ll do it.” Cupcake smiled. “Great! She'll be so happy to hear that!" Carrot nodded slightly. “I’m sure. Now can some pony get me out of these damn things? They're chaffing." Cupcake glanced down at the tie-wraps, giving a slight shrug. “I’ll talk to Twilight about it, see what she can do. That okay?” Carrot shrugged slightly. “I guess.” Cupcake practically beamed. “Great! I’ll get right to it then!” She strode over to the door happily. She opened the door, swinging it shut behind her, leaving Carrot alone again. //////////////////////// Twilight stepped into the room, carrying a small fold out table in her magic, and glanced briefly towards Carrot, who remained in his corner of the room, idly returning the glance with a sarcastically raised eyebrow. “Good evening, Mr. Cake,” she said clinically, levitating the small foldout table into position and sitting down. “Would you be kind enough to take a seat please?” she motioned to the area immediately in front of the table. There was a pause, and Twilight motioned towards the empty area again, this time more pointedly with her eyebrows lowering. “Please take a seat, Mr. Cake.” Carrot gave a slight huff, standing up and coming to sit down in front of Twilight. Twilight's expression was passive as she pulled a pen out of her breast pocket. She popped the cap open, and began to jot down some basic information. “Now, Mr. Cake, trust me when I say this, I don’t wish to be here anymore than you do. I honestly would rather be out in the field right now, proactively moving towards the capture of our mutual friend. So, I do wish that you be cooperative with me.” “You rehearse that speech before-hoof?” Carrot scoffed. Twilight gave a slight headshake. “No, sorry to disappoint. I simply wish to be swift and concise. Now--” She put the cap back on the pen and set it down, steepling her hooves. “Miss Silverhoof told me that you were willing to cooperate. Will you, or should I leave you alone to sulk like you’ve been doing for the past few hours?” Carrot sighed. “That depends. What do you want to know?” “Everything. How you found Gustav, what exactly your connection is with him, perhaps his current location if possible.” Carrot shrugged. “Well, I have no answer for that last one. I didn’t know he had that damn submarine either, until now. That was a surprise,” he trailed off, his expression losing its sarcasm. “Alright then, so you didn’t know about the submarine. Then how did you know about his yacht?” Twilight asked, opening the pen again and jotting down what Carrot said on the notepad. "I got the pony who runs the harbor to tell me. Not exactly neuroscience, you see, just a little persuasion." Twilight merely glanced back up at him, arching an eyebrow slightly before returning to her notes. "Mmhhmm. Do you have any idea where he might be heading, any concept of his future plans at all?" Carrot raised an eyebrow slightly. "You mean besides destroying innocent lives? He’s just a sick bastard. He never really has any big goals or schemes.” he replied, his voice losing its previous sarcasm. “He just wants more power.” "Power?" Twilight looked up from her pad. "How do you mean, political power, military power?" "Any power. Just so much as it's more." Carrot answered with a slight shrug. "For what reason?" Twilight pressed. Carrot shifted, growing more uncomfortable. "Nothing that I can think… besides hurting things. I'm telling you, he's not exactly a deep guy. If he can hurt somebody, he’ll do it. If that means blowing up half of Equestria with some wacko destruction spell--” Twilight’s ears perked up. "Does he intend--" "I was being metaphorical. I don’t know anything about any destruction spell. What I do know is, that if there’s a situation or a thing that offers the most power for him, he’ll come for it, I can promise you that.” "So in other words, I don't need you?" Twilight asked, looking up with pointed air. Carrot glared at her and hated himself at the same time for doing so, for giving her a chance to affect him. Even when he answered he couldn't keep himself from growling: "Considering my history with him, I’d suppose I’d be the best at predicting his actions. Certainly better than you.” Twilight raised an eyebrow again. "Really? How so? What about your history makes you such an expert on him?" Carrot let out a huff. "Didn't the kid tell you?” "No. I think she'd like to give you the choice of keeping your privacy," Twilight responded in an almost clinical manner. Carrot paused. That was actually… rather decent of her. Maybe he should go easier on her next time, after all, it seemed she was just a kid being pushed around by these jackboots after all.... "Mr. Carrot?" Carrot looked back at Twilight, who now looked vaguely impatient. "Excuse me, what was the question again?" he murmured in response. "You were going to tell me something about your past. Or you weren't. I’d prefer the former, because if not, I have a war criminal to catch, and I’d rather spend the little time I do have actively searching for him then having a runabout conversation with you.” Carrot felt suddenly unwell, memories that hadn’t been on his mind welling up like sewer water in his brain. He let out a slight cough as he tried to clear his throat. “Can’t I--Can’t I just say I have a past with him and leave it at that? I mean, don’t you trust me?” Twilight merely shook her head. "No. Frankly I do not trust you." Carrot frowned slightly. "Didn't think so," he murmured as he rubbed his forehead, glancing up at the ceiling lamp and wincing slightly at its brightness. "Umm, I was born in South Griffinheim." He paused, finding it hard to get his mouth to speak. Twilight was scribbling on her notepad again. "When?" she asked, peering up at him from under her bangs. "Ugh… twenty-five years ago, I think, roughly. I've forgotten the date," he replied, feeling a wave of shame flow through him. Mama had it marked it out on the old calendar that they never threw away because they couldn't afford a new one. Somehow she always had a little gift for him, a tiny cake or some candy. Once it was a new hat, well new to him, it had obviously seen some wear, but he could still feel how surprised he'd been. "Mr. Carrot?" Why couldn’t he remember the date? It had been so special to her. "Mama you don't have to spend money on me, I don't need anything." "But I have to, Carrot. To thank you." "For what?" "For being born. You're the greatest gift I ever was given. That's why mamas give gifts to their babies, to thank them." "Mr. Carrot!" Twilight’s voice snapped Carrot out of his memories, and he looked at her with slightly widened eyes. “Yes, sir?" he croaked, more on reflex than anything else. "Do want to discuss this at a later date?" Twilight’s expression looked surprisingly calm and gentle when compared to the clinical, almost cold looks she’d given him before. He wanted to say yes, heard the word in his head, but he merely answered: "No. Let’s just get this over with." Twilight nodded, her expression still sympathetic as he cleared his throat again. Think about moving forward, to getting to him, to killing him. "What else do you need to know? Bullet points?" "Your parents’ names?" Twilight stated, setting her pen at the ready. Carrot swallowed. "Chiffon. Chiffon was my mother's name. I don't remember if she mentioned my father's name to me. She didn't talk about him that much." Twilight nodded slightly. "So he was not present in your life?" "He died of consumption--that's what they called TB over there, where I lived at least." "Was Carrot his surname name or your mother's?" "His." He then added rather over defensively, "She didn't talk about him because she was upset he died, not because she didn't like him." "What is your connection to Gustav?" "He shot my mother." If that came as a shock to her Twilight didn't show it, only writing that detail down and then asking, "Do you know why?" "For a laugh." Carrot shrugged. "What was his position at this time?" "He was a Colonel then." "Is that all that passed between you two?" "No, he took me with him after he killed my mother." "For what purpose?" Carrot hesitated, briefly wondering if he should answer. Of course, she’d already seen him at the harbor, and it would be pretty much near impossible to explain Gustav’s interest in him otherwise. “He knew about my… abilities. He wanted to examine me.” "Why?" Carrot frowned and ran through the encounters with Gustav through his head. Then he gave a dry chuckle. "You know, funny you ask. Now that I think of it, he never did say why." "So this griffin kills your mother and kidnaps you for no reason?" "I had always assumed it was some special government project of some kind. The doctors there always gave off that feeling." "Doctors?" "Yeah, they performed the examinations." "What does the examinations entail?" "Whatever they thought necessary. Drawing blood, looking in my mouth, dislocating my shoulder, it depended. They usually didn't see fit to tell me why. They just did it." "Did Gustav oversee these proceedings?" Carrot shook his head. "Not the physical ones. He was there for the psychological ones though. Mostly illusions, just to gauge my reactions to certain triggers or stimulations. I heard the doctors mention he came in now and then to see their written reports but at odd times, nothing really planned or anything." "How is it you came to Equestria?" He considered purposely misunderstanding her and saying some snarky lie, but he felt too tired to be difficult. The memories made him tired. "I escaped," he answered flatly. "Impressive. How exactly?" "Killed the doctors and burned the place down.” Twilight’s raised eyebrow caught his attention. “I was kind of in a rage," he added. "There was no response? No attempt to recapture you? Gustav just let you go?” Twilight asked, tilting her head slightly. Carrot merely shook his head. "None at all. I don't know why either, it would have been so easy enough back then. It's not like I knew much about laying low or anything." Twilight continued to jot down information. "I see. Have you had any contact with him since?" Carrot shook his head. "That night on the yacht was the first in nine years." "Did he say anything that would hint to his plans?" "No, but he apparently got some new powers." Twilight actually leaned forward at this. "What kind?" "I think he mentioned something about kinetic energy. I never saw him do that before." "How powerful would you say it is?" "He was toying with me but even so I couldn't do anything to prevent him. Given what I know of his nature, I'd say on a scale of 1 to 10, it's most likely around 12 or so." "Did you recognize anyone else on the yacht with him?" "No." Twilight put her pen down. "So you know just about as much as the rest of us." She let out a sigh, capping it again and putting it in the pocket of her uniform. She stood up, giving him a nod. “Thank you for cooperating.” Carrot watched as she headed to the door. “So am I getting out of here?” Twilight paused. “I need to discuss it with my superiors. But, if all goes well, yes.” Carrot found himself smiling a little. “However, it will have to be in a place where we can keep an eye on you, if only to make sure you and Gustav don’t meet up again. If what you said is true, he’ll likely try to make sure you don’t say anymore then you have,” Twilight added, her expression concerned. “And honestly, if what you said about your experiences with him are true, then it’s our responsibility to keep you safe. Understand?” Carrot’s smile faded and he said nothing in response. Twilight merely nodded her head slightly. “I’ll take that as a yes.”