The Fall of the Anoian

by bookhorse125

Chapter Six - Flurry

Time seemed to pass slower than a snail.

Flurry Heart had paced in every direction at least a hundred times each. And still nothing had changed. She was thirsty, her stomach was growling with hunger, and nopony had come to see her since the incident with the magic meter. Nopony came to study her and take notes and make her drink radioactive dye or anything. The absence was unsettling.

The young princess wondered what her aunt and her mom were doing right now. Probably tearing the continent apart looking for her. But Flurry had a feeling she wasn’t anywhere near Equestria. She was somewhere else entirely, beyond any of the kingdoms. Past Mount Aris, even.

After what felt like an eternity in the darkness, the door cranked open again, and Kiwi Garbage Pony was back with her companion. Kiwi carried a suitcase in her mouth, probably forgetting she had a horn and could do magic. Blank Face trotted around to stand behind Flurry, which made her uncomfortable.

Kiwi Swirl opened the case and pulled out a syringe. She looked at Flurry with relish, as if she’d always wanted to do this.

“Hold it still,” she commanded. Blank Face happily obliged, slamming his front hooves onto Flurry’s back, pushing her down. Her wings sprawled out, and Blank Face planted his hooves onto her wings, pinning her to the ground. Flurry struggled, but it was no use. Kiwi approached her with menace in her eyes, holding the syringe with her magic. The sharp point gleamed in the dim light. With no remorse, she plunged the syringe into one of Flurry’s front hooves. Flurry cried out in pain as the syringe filled up with blood - her blood. When it was full, Garbage Pony pulled it out again, her eyes gleaming as she stared at the blood.

“When Boss gets this sample…” She chuckled menacingly. “Well, that was only the first of many tests, you little nuisance.”

Flurry Heart whimpered. Where the syringe had been on her arm was a small dot of blood that trickled down her hoof in a wavy line of crimson.

“Keep it down,” Kiwi told Blank Face. Flurry squirmed and struggled and tried to pull away, but Blank Face finally held her completely paralyzed her with his magic. Flurry was suspended in an aura of dark green light, but she couldn’t move. Kiwi Swirl smirked and used her own magic to grab a lock of Flurry’s mane and to cut it with some shears that were in the case. Flurry cried out when the lock of hair fell to the ground. Kiwi picked it up, nodded in satisfaction, and dropped it into the case as well. She also plucked one of Flurry’s feathers from her wings (Flurry winced) and took a sample of Flurry’s DNA. She took these samples and her case with her as she finally left the room. Blank Face released Flurry and scurried after her.

For a while, Flurry just lay there, shivering in the darkness, trying and failing to ignore the pain that was racking her body. It was a while before Flurry realized that they had detached her cuff from the chain that kept her to the floor, but the cuff still prevented her from using magic. Flurry limped over to the water bucket and drained it. She managed to choke down the scraps, but it did little to ease her hunger.

“I wish I had one of Aunt Pinkie Pie’s cakes,” Flurry moaned to herself. “Or one of her pies. Or… well, really anything.” Thinking of her aunts back home made Flurry’s heartache. It was all she could do to keep from breaking down crying. She circled and lay down, resting her muzzle on her hoof, closing her eyes. Flurry tried to get some sleep, but she couldn’t seem to drift off. Occasionally, her cuff would send small shocks through her leg until it was numb, but Flurry was so depressed she didn’t even notice this was unusual, as she was not using any magic.

When Flurry finally fell asleep, she dreamed of all the times her aunts had saved Equestria. She hadn’t been there for many of them, but Aunt Twilight had told her the stories in such great detail, and so many times, that Flurry could recall them almost instantly.

She saw her aunts using the Elements of Harmony on Nightmare Moon and Discord. She saw her parents use their love to defeat Chrysalis, and her mom returning the Crystal Heart to defeat Sombra. She remembered being told about Tirek and Starlight Glimmer, and how Starlight Glimmer had saved Flurry and her family from Chrysalis again. She recalled Aunt Twilight’s story about the Pony of Shadows and about Cozy Glow. Most importantly, she remembered helping chase Sombra out of the Crystal Empire, although he came back, and her aunts dealt with him then. Then there was Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow working together. Flurry hadn’t witnessed the final battle, but she’d heard there were a lot of magic rainbows.

A strong shock jolted her from her peaceful rest. Flurry’s eyes snapped open, pain and shock racking her body until she was numb. When the pain finally subsided, she glanced at her cuff. The grooves around it were glowing brightly. Her hoof felt like it was being poked by a thousand needles.

“Fascinating,” a voice said quietly from the corner. “It’s heart rate only increased by 15%.”

Flurry whirled around. She didn’t see anypony, but when she strained her eyes, she spotted a camera hiding in the corner. The voice came from there. A fresh wave of rage swept over the young alicorn, and she resisted the urge to run over there and rip the camera out of the wall. The only thing holding her back was the fact that whoever was monitoring her could set off her cuff at any moment, sending fresh waves of pain and shock throughout her body. So Flurry settled for sitting in place and glaring at the camera as if daring the ponies watching her to anything more. Which they did.

Suddenly Flurry thought she should start flying. Flurry had no idea where that had come from, but the thought was so overwhelming, pushing any other thoughts out of her head. So Flurry spread her wings and started to fly in circles around the room.

Speed up, a little voice in her head told her. Flurry obliged. The room passed in a blur. Flurry glanced at her cuff and noticed it was glowing dimly.

Sweet Celestia! she thought with a jolt. They’re sending thoughts to my head to make me do what they want! Well, that won’t work.

Flurry forced mental bands of steel around her brain, pushing out the false thoughts. She landed at the edge of the room and glared at the camera.

Start flying again! the voice whispered in her head. Go super fast! Don’t stop for anything, not even water!

“No,” Flurry said out loud. She pushed those thoughts away. “I won’t.”

Yes you will, the voice said coaxingly. It was smooth and gentle, like her mom’s voice. Every sense in Flurry’s body was telling her to listen to it. You will fly in circles until we get enough data. You will fly in circles as fast as you can. Do it. You cannot escape me. I am inside your head. Do it. I will always be here. You cannot fight me. You. Will. DO IT.

It was like Flurry couldn’t think anymore. Her body wouldn’t respond to her brain. Her wings spread again and flapped hard, propelling Flurry in circles around the room. Flurry’s mind screamed to stop, but nothing would work. It was like she was trapped inside her own brain, and she couldn’t control anything. Now she would do whatever these cruel and vicious ponies wanted her to.

You hate this, the voice whispered in her ear. You can’t stand this. Let me help you. You won’t have to control anything. You won’t feel any more pain or fear. Let me take control. Let me lead you to a victorious future.

No, Flurry whispered inside her head, but it was a pathetic attempt to push the voice out of her head. Suddenly, it was like her brain shut down. Flurry’s eyes glazed over, and her body went limp, doing whatever the other ponies wanted her to do. She became a robot, a zombie, an obedient servant of the leader of this world. She would do whatever she was told. She could be a weapon or a bribe. What she couldn’t be was free.

From that moment on, Princess Flurry Heart never remembered anything.

Author's Note:

Constructive criticism is appreciated.