Siphoned

by mindboggled

An Escape

I wonder if this is what it’s like to be in a coma, Kiwi wondered lazily. It’s like I’m stuck inside my head… I can hear everything quite clearly, I just can’t move at all. And here I am, thinking, but merely noting things without feeling anything. Why am I lacking emotions? Why does that not bother me? I mean sheesh, the alien thingy just gave the Doctor what could turn out to be a death sentence, and I think I hear Fluttershy crying, but it’s just… going on. This is awful… I’m so tired, but I don’t even care. How can I not care? Ohmigosh, did they make me a cyber-pony or something? Is that even possible? Probably not… Is that even possible?...

The blue mare twitched violently and then continued to hang limply in her confines.

I’m so tired.

The hissing voice of the Komadar soon filled her ears, “Silence, Doctor. Soon, it begins!”

This should be interesting, Kiwi thought, focusing on the sound of the alien’s footsteps as it advanced towards the Doctor. It was about ten feet away, five feet, three feet. And then it stopped.

“So, Doctor… I will be putting you to sleep for the operation. Anything you want to say before you go?”

The brown pony closed his eyes in defeat.

“I’m sorry Kiwi,” he whispered.

WHAT? The aforementioned unicorn’s ears poked straight up and she began coughing like a drowning cat pulled from the water. Oh god, she thought. A gate opened and dangerously high amounts of raw emotion flooded her consciousness. I’M IN CONTROL AGAIN, she screamed in her mind.

“Go Kiwi,” Pistachio breathed as the blue unicorn began to shake violently all over, horn and highlights glowing bright green. The Doctor grinned and began chuckling as Kiwi’s eyes suddenly snapped open, irises the same electric green.

“You will not touch him,” she threatened the Komadar, voice low and dangerous.

“Oh?” sneered Medidar.

“I’m warning you,” Kiwi growled. “Get out.”

“I will not heed the warnings of a pony chained to the wall,” the reptile spat.

“Sorry then,” the unicorn grinned wickedly. “You should have.”

Kiwi’s horn grew even brighter as she closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. Her eyes flashed open for a mere second, full of confusion and fear. She whispered a terrified “no” before her eyes closed again and an impish look crossed her face again. Medidar suddenly gasped in pain and fell to the floor, writhing and clutching his chest. It let loose a piercing shriek, but was cut off as it began coughing up bits of saliva and blood. Medidar 107 soon fell still.

“Now that that’s out of the way,” Kiwi smiled coldly as she magicked her bonds off, falling lightly to the floor. “Time to get us all out of here.”

“Doctor, what’s wrong with her?” hissed Pistachio, concernedly eyeing her friend.

“Well I’m guessing she’s just dealing with a rush of power, stemming from what appears to be her most primal feeling; the need to protect. Once the adrenaline starts to wear off she’ll be perfectly normal again, or so I assume,” murmured the stallion, “but for now your friend will perhaps be a bit cold. She won’t remember any of it, just treat her as you normally would.”

“Okay,” the pink pony took a calming breath and addressed the blue unicorn helping her to the floor. “You, my friend, are a total BAMF.”

“Thanks I guess,” Kiwi replied a bit regretfully. “But that scream will bring others; we’ll need to get everypony down and out of here.”

“That could be challenging,” the Doctor commented, “if those other unicorns are still unconscious…”

“Well I’m not unconscious,” said a certain pegasus who had woken up during the action. “And that was awesome!”

“Dashie, you are totally getting out next,” Kiwi grinned, magic-ing the pegasus’ bonds off. Rainbow Dash hit the floor, stretching her wings and shaking out her legs.

“You have no idea how good it feels to spread my wings ag—”

She was cut off by the sounding of a loud alarm. It blared tonelessly down every hallway, throughout the entire structure. The ponies also found themselves also bathed in flashing red light. Basically, a cliché security breach alarm.

“And that’ll be our cue to leave!” called the Doctor, looking towards the door.

“But we have to get everyone out!” Kiwi yelled, her frustration beginning to mix with panic.

Pistachio paused, listening to the storm on advancing footsteps. “They’re getting close, but you might still be able to get one more pony out if you do it now!”

“C’mon, let out Apple Jack,” urged Rainbow Dash. “She’s handy in a fight.”

“That was one time,” the orange pony rolled her eyes, “and you’d had way too much cider.”

“We have about a minute!” called Pistachio.

Apple Jack locked eyes with Kiwi. “Let Fluttershy out. She can’t stay trussed up in here. Tain’t right. Let her out and yall get her outta here.”

Kiwi nodded, magic-ing the yellow pegasus to the floor. Fluttershy was trembling and flinched away when the blue unicorn tried to help steady her.

“Here they come!” yelled Pistachio as another door between Pinkie Pie and Apple Jack slid open and a line of armed Komadar stormed in.

Fluttershy squeaked and cowered at the far side of the room as Rainbow Dash took to the air and dashed rainbowishly back and forth before the front line of Komadar, boldly driving them back until they had receded into the roomy hallway from which they had come.

“Hold off there, Rainbow,” Apple Jack ordered the blue pegasus. “They ain’t comin’ anymore.”

The angry lizard-soldiers stood in a couple rows of five, spanning the width of the hall. They all glared at the single pony who had pushed them all back. One, a commander, stepped forward to speak.

“Doctor… You have killed one of our brothers. I would ask if you were wanting war, but the Doctor never wants war. Yet here you stand, with a comrade of mine at your feet. War is what you shall get. Unless we just kill you all now—”

“Okay, interrupting!” the Doctor interrupted. “Now, you’re right in me not wanting a war, but I never killed a comrade of yours.” He grinned and pointed a hoof at Kiwi. “That was actually my friend Kiwi over there, but you’ll have to pardon her. She’s going through some… self-discovery. I mean, not only has she recently found herself a unicorn in another dimension, but she’s a blue unicorn that can kill aliens! I’ll be the fist to say that I did not see that coming.” The timelord turned to the impatient commander. “Well if you say you’re going to kill us, come on and shoot us already!”

“The Komadar have… standards, Doctor,” the commander hissed. “Don’t worry, you will be shot in good time, but we’ll let you have your pointless ramble first.”

“You’re too kind,” Pistachio said dryly.

“Well at least they have manners!” the Doctor ginned cheerily. His face grew serious as he began pacing back and forth across the small room. “But see, killing doesn’t seem like something that would naturally go on in this world, so why was our blue friend able to kill that Komadar? Her tattoo thing is the sonic screwdriver, and she can do sonic-y things, but I don’t think the sonic has the ability to kill people… Unless…”

“Unless what, Doctor?” Kiwi asked nervously.

The timelord’s eyes widened. “Well, my screwdriver might have been able to excite the oxygen molecules in the blood stream enough to accelerate circulation, which would cause the heart to have a backup and BOOM! There goes a Komadar. But see, to operate at the molecular level, the sonic would need to be impossibly and immensely funneled, otherwise it wouldn’t be strong enough…” He turned abruptly and walked over to where Kiwi was standing, legs shaking ever so slightly. He gave her a concerned onceover.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Fine. I’m fine,” the unicorn lied.

The commanding Komadar rolled its eyes. “How long is this going to last?”

The Doctor snorted. “Well if you’re just going to be rude about it, you might as well just go ahead and kill us.”

“Much obliged, Doctor. Now you die.”

“Lovely,” muttered the stallion.

Pistachio’s eyes widened. “So they’re going to kill us now?”

“Yes, that’s the general idea. Prime weapons!” the Komadar commanded as the silent ranks of reptilian aliens flipped switches to activate the large guns at their sides.

“Weapons up!” The dragon-like creature yelled. The Komadar lifted their weapons to their shoulders.

Fluttershy whimpered.

“Take aim!”
“BYE!” Kiwi shouted as the door separating the two parties slammed shut and clicked as it locked from the inside. Everypony stood there, stunned for a second. The Doctor, recovering first, started and ran to the only other door out of the room. He stopped to glance at a comatose Rarity and frowned momentarily as he called to the others.
“Come on then! Kiwi, could you be a dear and open this?” he said, nodding to the door.
The unicorn obliged and the door slid open, revealing a dimly lit corridor. The only light came from flashing red orbs, still blaring out the alarm. Pistachio began nudging a rather shell-shocked Fluttershy into the corridor behind Rainbow Dash, who had already flown down to the door at the other end. Pistachio looked over her shoulder at the door still separating them from the Komadar troops’ it was beginning to glow a dull orange.
“Doctor! They’re blasting through, they’ll be here any second!”
“Go, get in the hallway,” he encouraged, lingering in the room. He glanced wearily again at the unconscious unicorns and then addressed Apple jack and Pinkie Pie. “I’m sorry. We’ll be back for you. Be strong.” Then the brown stallion turned and darted down the corridor, nodding as he passed Kiwi. She smiled weakly at the chained Earth Ponies and slid the door shut just as the Komadar burst into the room.
The commander, Camdar 217, and his troops flooded the room. Rushing to check the ponies still on the walls, they scowled at seeing the other door, locked and closed for business.
“They have escaped!” screamed Camdar. “You fools! Why didn’t you blast through the door faster?!”
One of his soldiers stepped forward. “We are sorry Camdar 217, but our weapons have been in repair and are not working at maximum power levels. Taking down this door will take just as long as the last. May I suggest we alert the general of the escape? We can get more troops and a search party out.”
“Yes,” Camdar hissed. “Yes that is the perfect idea… If you were an idiot! We let the prisoners get away! If the general finds out... We’re dead!”
“But he must be alerted,” the soldier urged. “Better to hear it from yourself rather than another.”
The young commander sighed. “I suppose you’re right. Come… What was your name?”
“Sodar 568, sir!” the eager soldier barked.
“Then come, 568, you’ll be assisting me in making the report.”
“Yes sir!”

“You don’t even know where we’re going, do you?” accused Rainbow Dash. The Doctor grinned and shook his head as the party of five turned another corner, dashing rapidly down the dim hallway.
“Well, we’ll get out eventually!” Pistachio yelled above the blaring alarm. “How’s everyone doing?” The petite pony glanced at each member. Dash did a little barrel roll, to which Kiwi rolled her eyes and smiled. The Doctor mentioned something about being used to doing an awful lot of running. Fluttershy, hooves clamped tight against her ears, gave a tiny, determined nod. Pistachio gave a sigh of relief; happy to know everypony was faring well enough.

They all screeched to a sudden stop as they reached a fork in the hallway. Both hallways, to the right and left, looked exactly like every other corridor they’d already run down. Fluttershy’s eyes widened.

“Which one do we go down?”

Camdar 217 waited nervously in the lift, headed to the top of the dome where the General’s offices were located. His clawed hands gripped the gun at his side as his palms filled with sweat. I’m dead, he thought. New prisoners today and they escape! How can we have been bested by ponies?! He glanced at Sodar 568, grinning like an idiot next to him. That moron. Thinks he’ll get an advancement for reporting bad news. He’ll be lucky if we get out of this alive.

The door in front of them dinged and opened to a large room, with a large desk centered in front of the lift. Camdar gulped. He’d always hated how the room was set up so you were stared down the second you entered the room. Now was no exception. Camdar flinched involuntarily as his eyes locked with those of the huge Komadar sitting at the desk.

The general stood. “What business do you have here?”

Camdar cleared his throat. “General Rodar, we have come to make an urgent report on the prisoners.”

Rodar looked pointedly at the commander. “What is it?”

“The new prisoners… They…” his voice caught and he hung his head in shame, unable to go on.

Sodar 568 stepped up eagerly. “The new prisoners killed Medidar 107 and escaped.”

“Wut.” It was not a question. It was a statement.

“I said WHAT?!” Rodar screamed. “They’re PONIES! Little fluffy mammals! How did they get out, and why did you let them get away?”

“You can watch it back on the video records,” Sodar 568 stated smugly. “But they’re somewhere in the building still, so I suggest you send more troops to—” The soldier stopped as he looked up to see his general slowly priming a scary looking gun and taking aim.

“You do NOT lead this army. You do not lead. You are a soldier. You fight. You die.”

Sodar 568’s eyes widened in confusion and fear as the streak of energy slammed into his chest. The young soldier looked down at the sizzling hole in his armor and looked to his commander. “What?” he asked as he crashed to the floor, unmoving.

“What was that?” burst Camdar. “He was one of my best fighters! Yes, he was insolent, but I’d like you to respect my unit a bit more!”

Rodar slammed the gun down onto the desk. “That could have been you! 217, you’re a good commander, but you’re not ready to have a unit completely under your leadership yet. You haven’t had enough experience! Above all, you need discipline. Not necessarily obeying orders, but you lack a complete trust in yourself. You can’t start doubting when you’re responsible for so much! And you let the prisoners get away. The entire force is after them, and they’ll catch them eventually. Luckily, this place is a maze to those unfamiliar. They won’t escape.”

“Of course, General. But on the smallest chance that they do escape, I would like to volunteer to lead a search party,” proposed the commander. “I need to recapture these ponies that have bested me. I need to settle the score.”

“So be it. But they won’t escape.”

The Doctor peered down the left hall, then leaned over to glance down the one to the right. “Just a guess, but I’m saying right. I’m just assuming we’d rather keep running than get bagged by these chaps coming up the left.”

“Works!” said Rainbow Dash, taking off down the right hall. The others quickly followed suit, although the brown pony lingered a moment until the charging lizard soldiers came into view. Then he turned and ran down the right tunnel. He soon caught up to the mares, who were waiting around an open door. Outside, the wind stirred the long grass as the sun burst forth its final light of the day.
Kiwi smiled proudly, “Being able to unlock stuff at will is coming in pretty handy.”
“Yea, yea,” said Rainbow Dash. “We can play with your magic more once we’re out of here. Let’s go!” The blue pegasus took Fluttershy’s hoof and the two flew low as they darted across the small clearing to the cover of the forest. The Doctor, Kiwi, and Pistachio quickly ran after them.
Once they reached the trees, the brown stallion took charge, as he led the small pack to the left through the underbrush. Moments after their exit, a squad of twelve Komadar rushed out the open door after them. The aliens charged into the woods, but soon found their bulky size hindering them in the pursuit. Yet they were far too slow to catch to ponies anyway. The leading officer ordered a small group to sweep the surrounding area, in the possibility that one was left behind. The soldiers fanned out, but none of the escapees would be found that evening.

“I repeat,” Dash glanced at the Doctor as the party barreled onwards through the dimming forest. “Do you know where you’re going?”
“Yes… And no,” the earth pony panted. “I know the TARDIS—”
“The what?” Rainbow Dash interrupted.
“Big old box that’s going to get us out of here,” the Doctor huffed. “Anyway, the TARDIS landed near a cliff when we arrived. We walked out to the outcrop to look down at the… Dome thing. So we need to go up, which we are, and based on our view of the satellite on top…”
“We need to be at the correct height and see the same side of the satellite. That should get us right to the TARDIS!” Pistachio finished.
“Yes,” the Doctor smiled. “See, I know exactly where I need to go, I’m just not certain of how to get there.”
“Right,” a winded Kiwi nodded. She glanced to the left at the Komadar base from the ledge they were galloping along. “The view side of the satellite we originally saw is beginning to come into view. We should be getting to the TARDIS in the next few minutes.”
“And then we’re safe?” coughed Fluttershy.
“Well, you’ll be safe,” the Doctor smiled. “But I have a duty to go back for the others.”
“You’re going to go back?” Fluttershy asked, agape.
“He has to! They have our friends!” Rainbow Dash frowned. “And I’ll go with you, Doctor. Once I get my hooves on those scaly freaks, I’ll—”
“Here’s our cliff!” called Pistachio, who had pulled a bit ahead of the group. “That means…” she slowed to a trot, “Here’s our ride!”
Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. “How are we all gonna fit into that? And how is it our ride? It has no wheels!”
“I… I need a rest,” Kiwi puffed, walking shakily up. She pushed open the door and entered the TARDIS. “Dibs on the… the…” The unicorn trailed off as she began to sway on her hooves, and then all four legs gave out and she crashed to the floor. “couch…” she murmured as she lost consciousness.
“Kiwi!” Pistachio yelled, galloping to her friend.
“Everyone in!” the Doctor ordered, pushing the two pegasi into the box. He quickly shut and locked the door before rushing up to the controls. “Miss Dash, please help Pistachio there get our unicorn friend to the sofa. Fluttershy, if you remember where the kitchen is from your last visit, kindly fetch water and ice!” He flicked a final switch and pulled the big lever, taking them back to safety.
Rainbow Dash obediently fluttered over to help Pistachio, looking around wide-eyed. “This can’t be real,” she breathed. “How is this possible? We were outside, and this box was tiny, but now it… it’s huge!”
“It’s dimensionally transcendental,” the pink pony replied worriedly, looking down at her friend. She looked up to the pegasus. “But you’ll get used to it pretty quick. Give me a hand, er, a hoof here, will you?”
Together they carried the unicorn to the sofa, where they deposited her limp body. Rainbow Dash, who had calmed down a bit, looked at Kiwi concernedly. “What’s wrong with her?”
“She’s spent,” the Doctor said, coming down from the controls. “Used up all her magic, and then some. She’s probably got negative energy levels. If we had another unicorn on hand, we'd be fine, but seeing as none of us have much extra energy to give…” He turned to Rainbow Dash, “There is a hospital in your town, correct? Because we’re going to need some help. And fast.”
“Could she die, Doctor?” Pistachio asked, eyes watering.
“Take a moment,” the stallion said. “Look at us all. We’ve had magic and energy drained and we’ve just run for about an hour straight. Once the adrenaline wears off, Kiwi isn’t the only one in danger.”