//------------------------------// // Chapter Thirteen // Story: Prisoner of War // by Radiant //------------------------------//         “God, I’m so sick of this shit.”         Stormfront’s voice came from behind me. “So are we, and we’re sick of hearing about it from you, so shut up.”         Exhaling sharply, I muttered, “Prick,” and left it at that. Ever since I’d been released from the infirmary, I’d been taken for interrogation every day, and occasionally at night as well. Everybody knew nothing would change, I wasn’t about to start talking, so I figured this had to be punishment for the map thing.         “Why don’t we just tell them, Corporal?” Tovey asked from my left.         I gave the private a look of near disbelief. “Are you serious, Tovey? You already know the answer.”         Tovey looked away. “I know! ...But then we could go home. Isn’t that what you want?”         “Of course it is!” I nearly shouted my response. The daily interrogations, and being confined to my cell were leaving me a bit more stressed than usual. I gave myself a few seconds to calm down before I responded, “But if we do it that way, we don’t get to go home. We go to a prison cell for life, or the executioner’s block. Is that what you want, Tovey?”         He inched away from me. “Well, no…” Slowly, he looked at me, a hint of hope in his expression. “What if we didn’t tell anyone, just kept it a secret?”         I gave the private a full disapproving look, the kind of look a drill sergeant gives a basic trainee that just fucked up. “I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that, Private.” The hope quickly vanished from Tovey’s face, and he shrank away. While I’d had the same thought in the infirmary, and I was ashamed that the thought had even crossed my mind, ultimately, I would never follow through.         “Stop thinking that way, Tovey. It only means they’re winning.” I said, motioning to our guards. “Do you want them to win?”         Tovey straightened and shook his head. “No.”         Looking him in the eye, I nodded at his answer. “Then don’t give in. Don’t give them the pleasure. Show them that we’re stronger than they are.” I grabbed his shoulder and gave it a gentle shake. “Hooah?”         The private nodded slowly and smiled. “Hooah. Thanks, Corporal.”         Releasing his shoulder, I smiled as well. “You’re welcome.”         When I looked forward again, I saw Steel looking back at me from his place ahead and right of me.         “What’re you lookin’ at?”         Ever since the whole racist comment incident, the guards had been showing more open dislike of me. Explaining that it had been a cultural misunderstanding had helped, but some of the guards still regarded me with open disdain. Steel seemed to be on the fence in that regard.         “In your position, even after everything that’s happened, you still stay somewhat positive, and you manage to convey that to your comrade. I don’t know how you do it.” The lieutenant replied. After a brief pause, he added, “And while you are a pain in the plot, your determination and loyalty to your country are admirable as well, even if your methods are… unorthodox.”         I never expected to get a compliment from any of these ponies at this point, least of all Steel, especially since he’d all but stopped talking to me since I’d gotten out of the infirmary.         I covered my surprise with a shrug. “I just have to think about what’s waiting for me when this is all over. With that in mind, it’s easy to keep positive, and do what’s expected of me.”         “Hmm… Amazing what the right motivation will to for somepony.”         With that, the lieutenant returned his attention forward, effectively ending any further conversation.         I hadn’t asked them, but it was random things like that that made me want to know what my guards thought of me. I considered asking right then, but decided they probably weren’t in the mood to answer.         When we arrived at the cells, I immediately flopped down on the bed. Another thing adding to my stress was my never-ending battle with insomnia. Over the last few days, it was getting worse. I was spending more time awake, and what little sleep I was getting, didn’t seem to be very restful. I had suspicions that Princess Luna might be behind it, but I had no evidence to prove anything. Maybe all this was finally starting to get to me, I didn’t fucking know. Whatever the reason, it didn’t seem to matter right then, because I drifted off to sleep in just a few minutes.         “Corporal, wake up.”         I groaned and rolled over.         “Keep it down, Tovey. I’m trying to sleep, fuck.”         “C’mon, Duran. You need to get up!”         Tovey apparently needed lessons in courtesy. He was talking so loud that it seemed like he was… right beside me? The fuck? Rolling back over, my eyes opened and I found myself face to face with Tovey.         “...What the fuck are you doing in my cell? More importantly, how the fuck did you get in here?”         The private shook his head. “That’s the thing, they’re gone, and the cells are open.”         Having just woken up, I don’t think I was comprehending everything he was saying correctly.         Sitting up, I frowned at the private. “The fuck do you mean ‘they’re gone’? What are you talking abo–” I stopped when I looked to the hall. It was empty, and the cell door was open, just like Tovey had said.         “What the actual fuck?”         I looked to Tovey. He just shook his head.         “I don’t know. I woke up about two minutes ago.”         Now fully awake, I checked my watch. Holy shit, I was actually asleep that whole time? It was 0531. That meant, in addition to me sleeping for a abnormally long time without my insomnia interrupting, that the guards should have just rotated, but when I listened, I couldn’t hear anything. I should have been able to hear the hoofsteps of the night shift walking off. What the fuck is going on? The lights were still in their nighttime, low-output mode, so it was still fairly dark.         “What do we do, Corporal?”         I looked at Tovey, who’d moved back from the bed, and stood. “Let’s have a look around.”         Stepping to the open door, I stuck my head out and looked both ways. I knew the cellblock continued down to the left for a hundred meters, before it dead-ended. Seeing nothing, I gestured down the cellblock. “Go check the cells, make sure no one’s hiding down that way. Keep it quiet.” I ordered softly. Tovey’s response was to silently execute the order, stalking down the hallway, his footsteps barely audible. While he did that, I moved off in the other direction, heading for the hallway that lead to the interrogation rooms. As I crept along, my mind raced. There’s no fucking way they would just leave us unguarded, and allow us to roam free. Is this some kind of test? If it is, what kind of test is this and why would these ponies even need to test us? If it’s not a test, what the fuck happened? I was going over possible scenarios, each more unlikely than the last, when I made it to my destination. Clearing my mind, I peeked around the corner. More empty hallways… Jesus, this is creepy as fuck. I barely heard Tovey as he moved up behind me. “Nothing. All the cells are empty.” He reported quietly. “This is creepy.” “I was just thinking the same thing.” I said, keeping my voice low as well. “What now?” “We keep looking arou–” A chill suddenly ran down my spine, and I quickly looked around. “What?” Tovey started looking around as well. “...I don’t know.” I shook off the sensation. “Let’s keep looking around.This has trap written all over it. Either we get caught and thrown back in our cells, or we get the fuck out of here.” Tovey nodded. “I like that second option.” “Me too. Let’s go.” Since I didn’t know where the interrogation hall went, I lead Tovey straight, down the hall that we took to go everywhere else. I was hoping that, between the two of us, Tovey and I might remember one of the ways that we took to get outside.         We moved along in silence for a couple minutes before we came to the next intersection. A right would take us to the showers, but they were a dead end. Straight or left would lead us to the maze of hallways that would eventually lead us outside. Even here, the lights were all dim.         “You’ve been outside recently, what way?” I asked, looking back to Tovey.         “Uh, the last time they took me we went left.”         “Do you remember the whole route?”         He nodded. “I think so.”         “Good. Let’s get outta here. Take point.”         Together, the two of us made our way into the hall, staying low and close to the wall, but not touching it. I had to resist the urge to open any doors we passed, they weren’t important and would only be a waste of time.         At the next intersection, Tovey paused, then continued straight without a word. Since he seemed fairly confident in his memory, I was more than willing to trust that he would get us where we wanted to go.         As I followed Tovey, my mind drifted back to the distinct lack of ponies we were experiencing. So far, we hadn’t run into anyone. No guards, no servants, no one. The longer we went like that the more confused I got. There was no way all the residents of this massive castle would just up and vanish overnight, without leaving some kind of hint as to what happened. It also occurred to me that this could also be a dream, and Luna was fucking with me. That last theory evaporated when I walked, face-first, into Tovey’s back when he stopped short.         Note to self, watch spacing. Rubbing my nose, I move up next to Tovey. “God damn, man, why’d you stop?” He paused before answering, “I think I took a wrong turn, we should have been there by now, plus I don’t remember that.” Tovey pointed down the hallway. “Shit.” A short distance ahead, the hallway curved to the left. I thought I could see something flickering on the wall, but I could have just as easily been imagining it. “We’ve gone this far, might as well keep going.” Tovey nodded, and fell in behind me when I moved ahead. Hugging the inside wall as we rounded the bend, I stopped as the hallway abruptly ended, dumping us in what appeared to be the main foyer for the castle. There was light filtering in through several windows, reflecting off a chandelier, and covered the walls in countless spots of light. That would kinda explain the flickering I’d seen in the hall. “...Fuckin’ A. I don’t know how you did it, Tovey, but I think you got us to the front door.” “Huh, lucky us. Lets get out of here.” “Lets.” Together, we moved to what was hopefully the exit door, since It wasn’t marked anywhere. At the door, I grabbed what looked like the a release, and the two of us pushed half of the double-door open. Even though there was light shining into the room, I still had to shield my eyes with my arm when the direct sunlight hit me. When my eyes adjusted, I lowered my arm and looked around. Just like the castle interior, the area was empty, as were the city streets beyond the castle grounds. After a few moments, I looked to Tovey. “Even the town is empty… something is seriously wrong. Where the fuck are they?” He shook his head and shrugged. “Don’t have an answer, Corporal. I think we should try to regroup with the others, then maybe worry about the missing ponies.” As Tovey started towards town, another chill ran down my spine, and I reached out and grabbed his arm. “Hold up.”         “What?” The confusion in his question matched his expression.         I didn’t answer immediately, instead I began scanning everything I could see. “I’ve been thinking about this, and I don’t think an entire city’s worth of ponies would just vanish. I’ve had the feeling that we’re being watched ever since we left the cells.” I said, after finding nothing in my search. “I’d bet a months pay that this is some kind of ruse set up by the princesses.”         Tovey jerked his arm out of my grip. “You think they’d set up this,” he gestured to the area, “just to get something out of us?”         I nodded. “At this point, yeah.”         The private stared at me like I’d grown another head. “You’re crazy. There is no way they could pull that off.”         “They’re the rulers of the country.” I argued. “All they’d have to do is give some kind of valid sounding reason, and I doubt anyone would give it a second thought.” I started pacing. “Think about it: we are the only thing standing between the princesses and finding the others in a timely manner. Aside from whatever mind-reading magic they have, which they’re reluctant to use for whatever moral reason, thank god, what’s easier than just letting us go, and letting us lead them to what they want?” I stopped pacing and looked to Tovey.         The private was still staring at me like I’d grown a second head. “I think your lack of sleep is getting to you, Corporal.” He shook his head. “Even if they are the rulers, I still don’t think they could pull off something like making all their ponies disappear.”         Frustrated, I ran a hand through my hair. “How else do you explain the distinct lack of ponies, then, Tovey?” I asked loudly, motioning to Canterlot.         “I don’t know! But them letting us go just sounds crazy!” Tovey slowly walked up to me, and put his hands on my shoulders. “You’re acting strange, Duran. Are you okay?”         No, I wasn’t okay. This whole thing was really bugging me. Something was going on, and I wanted to know what it was. While it looked like a ticket to freedom, I couldn’t shake the overwhelming feeling that this was just a trap. The fact that Tovey couldn’t see that was a possibility wasn’t helping.         Shaking his hands of me, I took a step back. “I’m fine, but we can’t leave.”         Disbelief slowly crept into the privates features. “You’ve lost your mind.” He said, slowly. “This is our chance to escape and go home, just like you want, and now you want to stay?”         Why the fuck can’t he see what’s obvious? “If there’s a chance that we’ll be followed back, we can’t take the risk.” I explained. “Even if we tried to lead them on a wild goose chase, they’d figure it out and just recapture us.”         Tovey clearly wasn’t going to be convinced. “Fine, you can stay here then, but I’m leaving.”         As he turned to follow through, I reached out and grabbed his arm again. “No you’re not. You’re staying here.” When he turned to glare at me, I glared back, and added, “That’s an order.”         His eyes narrowing, Tovey said, “Fuck you, Duran. You’ve clearly gone insane, so I’m not going to follow any more orders you give.” He ripped his arm out of my grasp, and took several quick steps away.         “Use your goddam brain, Private!” I yelled, pointing at him. “If you’d stop and think this over, it’d be pretty obvious what’s going on!”         Tovey replied with another, “Fuck you”, then turned and started walking. Fucking privates. I almost went after him, with the intention to force him to stay, but that would just be a waste of time. The little shit would see soon enough that I was right. He would get lost, then recaptured, or just recaptured, then he’d be right back here… but on the extremely slim chance that he did make it…         “I swear to god, if you lead these bastards back to camp, and we take any casualties, I’ll put you in the ground myself!”         Tovey didn’t give any kind of response. He just kept on walking towards Canterlot. I watched him walk off for a few moments, then turned back towards the castle. I wasn’t crazy… was I? Have these ponies finally gotten to me? I mean, I’m about to walk back into their castle and their custody… No. I’m right! This is just a ruse to get what they want.          “Fuck Tovey, that fucking fuck. He’s got me second guessing myself.”         Looking back into the foyer, I deflated. With a sigh, I walked back inside. Finding an empty place on a wall, I put my back against it, then slid to the floor. After a few moments, I glanced at the door. It was only a dozen meters away, I could still very easily change my mind, and bolt, but I couldn’t see that ending favorably. With another dejected sigh, I leaned my head against the cool wall and closed my eyes.         A short time later, I’m not sure how long, I heard the rattle of armor, and hoofsteps approaching. When they stopped right in front of me, I opened my eyes to see my four guards, armed with spears, standing a meter away. I fucking knew it. I don’t know how they did it, but I knew they didn’t just disappear.         “Told you he wouldn’t take the bait.” Heartmender said, then looked to Stormfront. “That’s five bits you owe me.”         The pegasus replied with an unhappy grunt, glaring at me the whole time, but that was nothing new lately.         “Let’s go, Corporal.” Steel ordered, motioning for me to stand with his spear.         “Yeah, yeah…”         Getting to my feet, I let them escort me back to my cell.         I’d only been back in my cell for about an hour, when Princess Celestia paid me a visit. She wore a passive expression and studied me from the door for a moment. “Princess.” I greeted from my bed. Since she’d never paid me a visit while I was in my cell, I could only wonder what had brought her here. I doubted it was just to chat. “Open the cell and restrain the Corporal.” She said, motioning to cell door with a wing. I frowned as Lieutenant Steel moved forward to comply. I’ve got a bad feeling about this. “What’s going on?” Celestia stared down at me. “Unfortunately for you, your comrades have forced my hoof.”         My mind recapped the interrogation when I’d asked why she hadn’t just taken the information she wanted from my mind. Oh shit, what the fuck did they do?! It also could have been Tovey… Fucking Tovey. The door slid open, and dread slowly began to build in my gut. My eyes shot to the lieutenant as he approached, shackles floating along in his magic. I unconsciously began inching away from Steel, then forced myself to stay put when I noticed what I was doing. My hands were forced out in front of me, and the shackles closed around my wrists.         My gaze drifted back to Celestia when she spoke again, “No more playing nice. You are going to tell me what I want to know, Corporal Duran, whether you want to or not.”