Interviews With Equestrians

by Jmaster49

Subject 203: Zebra Lands IV

This mustn't register on an emotional level.

I had a really creative, well thought-out plan to subdue her, but ultimately? I chose to ignore her. Kwaade was a waste of my time in this instance, and the ponies who had started to gather down below needed my help more than anything.

With a swift kick to the jaw, I kicked her with one of my hind legs which knocked her away from me, and forced her to release the grip she had on my tail. I took a dive, and luckily, I was able to land on some hay bales that were down below.

“Oof…pbbt!” I spat out some of it--not very tasty honestly. Once I rose up, I found that Zecora had subdued the guards on her own! “What in the--”

A hefty thud, I watched as the body of the last guard fell at Zecora’s hooves. She turned to inform me of what had just happened. “Oh don’t worry, they are not dead,” she held up another small glass bottle--this time it was empty, “They are just sleeping thanks to a brew I created.”

“Just how many things do you own, Lady Z?” I trotted up and took a look at the bottle.

But she quickly put it away with a judgemental glare. “Now now, my son. I can show you that at a later date. For now, we have a lot of friends who need your assistance and leadership to put an end to the horrid affairs of this state.” She pushed me towards the congregation.

And what a massive crowd it was.

Various pony-zebra hybrids had gathered in the square. Mares, stallions, and many even had foals. Some were jet-black like myself, others were varying shades of brown, some gray, and some even had half of a set of stripes.

But one thing they all had in common? They were in pain.

I gazed at them all. Most of them were bruised, scuffed, scraped, and some had dried patches of blood. Others had black eyes. Among those without such obvious external injuries, there were a few hybrid ponies that looked sleep-deprived, malnourished, and jittery--as if they were paranoid of whatever may come up behind them in the dark.

It pained me to see it, but there was no time for emotional turmoil to hold me back. I needed to not only lead these folks to a better tomorrow, but also do my best to uncover the source of all of the hexes used in Equestria as of late. But to do that, I would need some support…

“My friends. Your so-called masters have done unspeakable things to you all,” I addressed them all at once. Their eyes focused on me. “In truth, they fear you. Why exactly? I have...no idea, admittedly. However, that won’t stop us. You all deserve to be treated fairly as any other pony or zebra would! Isn’t that right?”

There was a bit of idle chatter among the crowd. As if they were unsure of what to do and whether or not they should support my notions. So I decided to play it in their favor.

I pointed to a random hybrid pony--a stallion with a child by the looks of it.

“You sir,” I pointed to him, “Tell me your plight. What sort of injustices have you endured?”

The stallion shivered, his foal--his son most likely, clung to him for protection. “Papa...?”

“It’s alright,” the stallion reassured his child before he responded to my query. “...I work in a field constantly. Plowing endless hot days on a farm for the zebra family that I work for. But I’m not allowed to do or say anything. My son’s life is in jeopardy if I dare do anything against their wishes. So...I have no choice.”

Bastards. If that was how they treated him, then I couldn’t fathom how they treated the others. Next I looked at a lonesome mare. “And you, miss? What have you dealt with in your time here?”

The mare shuffled her hooves back and forth. “I...I…This is a bit difficult to say...but...I’ve been separated from my family. I was brought here one day for a purchase and now all I do is clean windows and do whatever my...o-owner tells me to. Even if she…” The mare paused for a second, and took a step back. “...makes me do things I don’t like.”

A pair of foals suddenly came up to me. Their manes rugged and knackered. Their coats were covered in blemishes and other spots. They clearly hadn’t bathed in weeks.

“I can’t even go out and play…” said the filly, “All I’m allowed to do is watch over some scary old basement…”

The colt spoke up with a more cynical take on the situation. “That’s my sister. She and I have no parents. We’ve been tasked with cleaning out dirty areas and getting rid of toads, rats, moths, maggots--generally anything that could be a nuisance to our masters.”

My knees shook. I nearly popped a damn blood vessel from the amount of rage that welled up within me. Not only were these hideous mistakes of zebras using hostile forms of magic in my friend’s home of Equestria, but they also treated their own home no better?! I felt steam hiss from out of my nostrils.

I asked for more information, and I recieved it. All of them had been forced into subservience in one way or another. Chefs that were forced to cook for hours on end, maids that had to do nothing but clean, miners who did nothing but gather precious minerals for the jewelry that the upper class wore, and the children were taught to never question anything about how this land was governed.

For if they did...the punishment was severe.

That filly and colt had several lashes across their backs. They weren’t deep enough to cause lasting injury, but just enough to sting. Then I looked at the rest of the hybrids in the crowd. Sure enough, their backs were covered in whip strikes. This was beyond criminal. I was not going to allow this wretched place to hold influence over the place that my friends and I called home.

We were going to fight back.

“Everypony...this may be a difficult thing to do, but together, we can take down what has kept you all in shackles for so long and get you all free of this place,” I proclaimed, “I was lucky enough to escape thanks to my parents. It’s not too late for the rest of you.”

Unfortunately, everyone seemed mixed on the idea. None of them spoke up in support of me, and they simply exchanged awkward looks with each other as they muttered. Likely to weigh the risks.

I looked at Zecora. “...What do you think, Lady Z?”

“Listen. Listen well,” she replied, “These ponies may have more to tell.”

Fair enough. However, in the back of my mind, I couldn’t shake something.

Where did Kwaade go?!

Comments

[Neo4K]

Like I said before, don't you just hate racism in another country? Slavery? That's...wow. It's like harmony only exists to one species like Equestria used to be.

Where did Kwaade go?!

Good question.

[Jmaster49]

10709588
It does hurt. The MLP movie even implied that ponies were being bought and sold in regions beyond Equestria.