Force of Five: Sundered Together

by DustyDominic

Chapter 6: Come Along

Emerald Thistle paced back and forth against the walls in her cell.

She could feel her mind going. She couldn't take the loneliness and the starvation from social contact. She had been awake for four hours officially, but to her it felt like four days.

She had almost lost her voice yelling at the camera, yelling at the door, yelling at the walls and ceiling and floor. She had jumped up and down on her cot, trying to reach the tiled ceiling to access the ventilation shafts. She had tried pounding on the door to get any passerby's attention, but nopony passed by except steel-eyed stallions in blue security uniforms.

Emerald was not naturally confrontational. During school, she had never pressed her way for anything and she was always rather pushed around for it. Everypony told her what to do, and she almost always went along with it. Psychologists told her parents she was "empathetic," but everyone else called her just "pathetic." If it weren't for her half-sister, Ruby Thistle, constantly sticking up for her and defending her, she would have probably sunk into depression and withdrawal years ago.

But this. This was pushing her to the limits.

Dragged out of her home. Given drugs to keep her quiet and to put her to sleep. Kidnapped from her life in Phillydelphia, which seemed was finally going right for her.

Dragged, drugged, and kidnapped. How dare they! As soon as they opened up that door, she was going to rant and rave and give them such a verbal tirade that-

"Miss Thistle."

She jumped in the air and landed on the bed, completely taken by surprise. In the doorway, which was now wide open, stood a silver-haired lab-coated mare, who regarded Emerald with curious eyes.

At last, she managed a small squeak, "Yes?"

"It's time for your orientation," said the mare. "Come along now."

"All right," Emerald whispered, mentally chastising herself. She had completely forgotten everything she had wanted to say, but it was too late now. Now she was being escorted down concrete hallways by a lab-coated mare and two security stallions to somewhere.

"Come on, keep up," the mare ordered. "We're on a schedule."

To hell with your schedule, she wanted to say.

"Yes, ma'am," she said.