Chapter 5: 24 hours of pain
I felt a bit of sympathy for Jake, but he walked headfirst into his problems and there was nothing I could have done about it.
Jake checked his emitter. He had a few minutes left before it needed to be switched off. He figured that it was more than enough time to hurry back to the back of the train. Most of the ponies already left the train, but soon he needed to foray into the city for supplies. Because he wasn't exactly into urban exploration and didn't know the layout of the city, he, for some unfathomable reason decided to follow the mane six. He opened the door and climbed to the roof of the train to avoid all the ponies on the platform and ran to the end of the train where he found the weapons pack still under the sheet he had put over it just hours ago. This was an older version of the pack so you actually had to press a button to open it. He opened the pack, hoping to find that I had a spare change of pants in there. Wandering about in wet pants isn't exactly comfortable; he looked and smelled like he had gone swimming in a lake filled with his own sweat. He pressed a silver button located on top of the pack on the upper right corner and a screen on the side of the metal pack. The pack would dimensionally distort the items placed inside it in order to carry more equipment in a small space Jake was astonished with my device and quickly figured out the basic properties but he still had much to learn about it, and he had some investigating to do.
He stuffed his uniform slacks in the pack, and changed quickly. He knew he wouldn’t have the train to himself much longer and the mane six probably ventured far into the city by now. He took a look out the window. He still couldn’t believe he was actually in Canterlot, the capital of Equestria, a hitherto imaginary country. It was truly a sight to see, for the city was up on a cliff haranguing all of Equestria with grace and aplomb. The surface grace belied the fact that the city was also a fortress that could withstand a long siege and that a goddess-queen called it home. The emitter finished charging and Jake had the urge to run outside, a welcoming activity after being stuffed under a seat for hours on end.
He opened the back door to the caboose and felt the fresh air pass over his face; he took in deeply and it felt like water that is found in a desert. He reveled in this sensation for several moments before beginning his search. He looked around the platform and observed that it was extremely crowded with ponies of all kinds; business ponies, the royal guard, tourists, and many more. The objects of his search, the mane 6, were nowhere to be seen. He figured they couldn’t have gotten very far, he hadn’t been in the train for all that long . Twilight probably went off to harass her older brother, while the rest had probably gone off to get ready for the wedding that was to take place. Jake didn't want to wander aimlessly until he bumped into one of the main six. He moved through the station clearing the platform and searched the lobby of the station. He found no trace of them, so he walked outside into the city. The streets were even more crowded than the platform; which is to be expected in the busling streets of a major city.
Crossing the street was a nightmare; even with his super speed he had to time his bursts of speed just right otherwise he would run into a cart or one of the ponies. Jake played a game of Frogger with the moving carts to avoid a head-on collision at 250 meters per second. He had to remember instead of being in Ponyville he was now in a highly populated metropolis, and moving about wasn’t going to be as easy as it had been. He couldn't phase through the objects because he was afraid he would tire out too quickly and that the ability would "short out" when it was really needed . So he could use it to run through a closed door, or solid wall if he had to but he had not fully recovered from the incident on the train yet, so if he could, he kept himself from using his phase ability until his body had a chance to fully heal.
After aimlessly walking through the massive city for several hours and having several close brushes with the ponies, he finally encountered Rarity. Jake spotted her purchasing some fabric and decided to tail her back to her room . Now I know that sounds really creepy, but he was just trying to get his bearings on the city . I can fight for him. Jake does not have a dirty mind and is not a creeper, he just made the rare and admittedly odd decision to act like one while he was in Equestria.
He followed her all the way back to her room in the Canterlot Castle, carefully memorizing the path he traveled along. Thankfully, he allowed the emitter to cool down before continued following her and had the full ten minutes to take only one minor break in an alleyway. After memorizing the pathway to Rarity’s room he found a small corner that peered into the room and well-hidden for him to rest in. All he needed to do now was to wait for her to leave the room or one of her friends came into the room. It was one of the reasons he was glad to run into Rarity first. Rarity was one of those ponies who blocked out the entire world when she worked on her latest dress, and Jake briefly considered peering over her front flank to see. Luckily Jake decided against that.
Jake waited for several hours; time seemed to pass slower than usual when he was following someone. No one was coming. Chances were that all the other ponies were off taking care of their own preparations for the wedding and he was better off searching building by building for them. He decided to wait a few more minutes before setting off on the search again. He designated Rarity’s suite at the castle as his safe house since he could hide in it very easily. Just before he decided to head out there was a knock at the door.
“Coming,” Rarity trilled.
She put down her sewing needles and trotted over to the door. Her horn lit and blue magic surrounded the handles as the door pulled opened. Jake took careful note of how much time remained on the emitter, and saw that he just finished his thirty second cool down and could last another nine minutes and forty five seconds plenty of time to get out if there were to many at the door. To his relief there were only four ponies at the door: Princess Cadence and her bride’s maids. This made it so he couldn’t move around the room as easily anymore, but it wasn’t impossible, so he waited a little longer to find a way to de-cloak in the room without anyone seeing him. This sudden appearance of Cadence looked promising from his perspective, seeing as for the last few hours nothing had happened.
“Oh my, princess….you’re early.” Rarity commented.
“Yes I know," Cadence responded, "all my previous appointments did not last as long as I expected so I found myself with a little extra time. I believe I am here for my fitting.”
“Oh, why yes, of course you are. Please come in.” Rarity gestured for the princess and her bride’s maids to enter. They all walked in, and lined up next to each other. Rarity dressed the bride first while the others stayed back, each waiting for her own turn. Rarity opened a small drawer from a dresser near where Jake was standing with her magicand pulled out a tape measure and began to measure the length and width of each mare, taking careful note of their sizes. She recorded the measurements on a small piece of paper and then did so for each. The appointment didn’t take long and Jake only had to duck under the bed, which was a better hiding spot seeing as there were more ponies in the room. They were out in short time and Rarity rolled up the tape measure and stuffed it back in the drawer from which she had taken it from and began to sketch her designs for the four mares. The dresses were gorgeous even though they were just rough sketches. He took extra care to step lightly as he walked over to Rarity for a closer look. Fashion isn’t really his thing but he couldn’t resist giving it a look. He got to where he was virtually touching Rarity, but stayed back enough to make the virtually still apply and have her not notice him while he could still get a good look at her sketches. He was surprised how quickly she came up with these designs; it hadn’t been five minutes and she was already done with one. She used her magic to roll up the piece of paper and set it to the side by the window. She then picked up another giant piece of sketch paper and began to draw another. She began to draw but then promptly stopped.
“Oh no, this most certainly will not do,” Rarity groaned.
She crumpled up the piece of paper and tossed it to the side. She pulled up another and began to sketch again.
“Yes, that is much better,” Rarity sighed with approval.
She finished her sketch and was deeply pleased with the result, and Jake was somewhat amazed with her skill, for she came up with an original design within such a short time. Sadly he didn’t get to see much more; he had to de-cloak and needed to duck out for a bit. He hid under the bed because Rarity was now moving about the room preparing to go out for dinner. Rarity began to exit the room, and Jake followed after her. This was the opportunity he was waiting for.
He put a little more distance between him and her as he walked down the long flights of stairs leading up to Rarity’s suite. Eventually he made it out of the castle grounds, slightly winded but undetected. He followed her to what looked to him to be like a coffee shop. It had a simple layout with tables out front and inside, small size in general, and it was on the corner of a street allowing it to be seen from most angles of perception. Rarity walked up to a table with all the other members of the mane 6 sitting around it. They conversed and caught up with each other's progress and Jake knew this was going to be a problem considering he was out in the open and there was no way to allow his emitter to cool down without being seen from this distance. He looked around the immediate area and found that there were no alleyways that he could really hide in without some pony being able to see him from some angle. Although it was late out, there were still many ponies out and about. He phased through the coffee shop door looking for a place to hide . Thankfully the shop was mostly deserted inside with the exception of a cashier and the manager. The room was well lit , allowing Jake to observe every detail of the interior; he noted a giant door with a plaque with the word "MANAGER" behind the cashier. He noted three bathroom doors and felt that while it could work as a hiding spot he was in danger of losing track of the mane six. Jake looked at the third door caution tape was all over it, Jake took a closer look at it and noticed there was a sign with faded letters on it. It took a few moments to make out what was written on it “Roof…Access…PERFECT!” Jake bit his teeth together bracing for the journey through the door. He walked through it and almost blacked out, he collapsed on the stairs his head fell directly on the edge of one of the stairsand he split his forehead and received several splinters. He hadn’t waited long enough before using his ability again and paid the price. Thankfully at the top of the stairs the door leading out to the roof was unlocked. The door opened easily and he was able to walk out into the night air. He felt a horrible throbbing in his head, and put his hand on it when he brought his hand back down it was red and wet. He was now bleeding.
Jake saw his blood drip on the ground. He assessed that he wasn't bleeding too badly, but he would need to tend to his wounds later. He brought the pack he was carrying down, and opened it again. He went to the med category and brought out some bandages and medical tape. When he bandaged his wounds, the splinters reminded him of their presence with sharp, spiking pain into his forehead. I hadn’t packed a mirror in the pack so Jake was on his own for this one. Suddenly the bathroom seemed more appealing. He found a spot where water had collected into a sizable puddle which he could use as a mirror and pulled out the tweezers. Thankfully none of the splinters managed to make their way into his eyes or near them. One by one he plucked them out and felt a small pinch each time he removed one. After a time, the pain of the splinters intensified as he grew sensitive to pulling them out.
After several minutes of constant pain, most of the small chunks of wood had been removedand he removed the bandages he used to apply a counter-pressure and saw that they were drenched in blood. He quickly wrapped the bandages around his head and used the med tape to made sure they didn’t fall apart or off his head. He now had the time he needed to walk over the edge and observe the six poniesand he tunred the emitter off. The sun was now completely downand was not visible from the roof. He peered over the edge and saw them, They were still talking non-stop the same way girls did back home. He missed his home dearly, for he hadn’t laid eyes on it since the end of World War III. For the past few years, he explored other worlds and the vast reaches of space. He shook his head and focused on trying to find a place to stay for the night. He would choose one of the ponies who was a heavy sleeper, at least in his opinion. Rarity was an adequate choice, but the only place he could really sleep if he chose to stay with her for the night would be under the bed and that was a little too close for comfort, especially since he didn’t know if he snored or not in his sleep. Fluttershy was instantly taken off the list; even though she was quiet ,her hearing was amazing and she wasn’t a heavy sleeper. Jake considered Twilight for a moment she would be horribly stressed and have loads on her mind exhausting what little brain power she had left, but after thinking about it a little she is trained to stay up late, and wake up with no alarm clock . She is highly observant, hiding from her would be difficult especially after that last move he pulled on the train.
Jake was running out of options. Applejack was a working mare, so she would probably be tired from cooking all day and managing the kitchen and, from what he saw on the show, slept soundly unless disturbed. Jake did not want to take his chances with Pinkie Pie because he didn’t know her sleeping habits and honestly didn’t want to. She has unbelievable amounts of energy, and probably wakes up at the oddest of times to do Celestia knows what. She was too unpredictable and he didn’t like that. The last choice was Rainbow Dash; she had been working out all day and a good athlete knows they need their sleep and she had most likely been dedicating most of her time to training for the sonic rainboom. The final option was to look for some deserted place in the city where he could sleep, which simply wasn't viable because of the high population density and the fact that he was too tired to exert himself. If only one of the ponies discovers him at least he would have to run from a pony rather than several. The life of a transient was not for the faint of heart, and Jake considered himself faint in this matter. Jake thought long and hard about all his options, weighing them all with their positive factors and the negative ones. He cut his thinking time short when he saw that the ponies were leaving, and he rashly decided to tail Applejack. He made note of the Canterlot tower, where the ponies were staying. He still couldn’t believe he was actually looking at it. It was a gorgeous tower andhe never thought he would ever be this close to it.
He followed Applejack all the way back to the castle reinforcing his belief that they all had castle suites, but Applejack's suite was located on the other end of the castle from Rarity. It was also located on the ground floor ,closer to the kitchen allowing AJ to get there quickly from her room. He followed her down the long and elegant halls of Canterlot Castle. Unlike the journey to Rarity’s room, the journey to AJ’s room was a mostly indoor hike with much fewer stairs. Jake was glad he could rest his tired legs after all the walking. Eventually, he found himself standing outside a door etched and oiled in fine wood with a white finish. Applejack opened the door and switched on the lightHe suite was quite large and empty in comparison to Rarity's walk-in closet of a room, easing Jake's worries for the night. There was plenty of room for him to move around ; although it was smaller than Rarity's room in terms of square-feet, it had more than enough room for him to move about. He could easily hide in the deep closet without being noticed but didn’t want to run the risk of her opening it and discovering him. Jake’s eyes moved back and forth as he looked for a way to hide himself in the closet in case Applejack decided to open it. Behind some of the hanging cloths he found an old wooden storage box that was longer than him and the only way to access the interior was a sliding cover. He could easily fit in it. With the clothes hiding it and the closet door shut if he closed the box door he would easily be able to sleep without waking up Applejack . This was the best option, and he could already hear Applejack snoring in the other room. He rolled up the hoodie for a pillow. Jake slowly opened the sliding door covering the entrance to the box, and found that there were clothes inside for padding. “It's not what I wanted, but it'll do.” He crawled inside the narrow box, his body stretched all across the long stream of clothes and was asleep within a few moments.
“WHO THE HAY ARE YOU!?”
Jake’s eyes shot open, the shock drove his body to immediately want to stand up. He forgot that he was still inside a wooden box and his head collided with the top of the box. The blow aggravated the injuries he had received the previous day. Arg…it’s too early for this, Jake thought silently.
“HEY! I ASKED YOU A QUESTION!”
Jake suddenly remembered where he was. Even though he had an urge to face the pony who was talking to him who sounded to become more aggravated every second, he refused to answer her questions. But he remembered he was exposed right now she would be able to see his face. He quietly pulled out his mask and slipped it on. She couldn’t see his face but could still drag him out of the box if she wanted to.
“I KNOW YOU’RE NOT JUST A LUMP OF CLOTHS IN THERE! I COULD HEAR YA SNORING FROM A MILE AWAY!”
“Dang, do I really snore that loudly?….Wow…When I get back to Earth, I will do something about this.”
“COME OUT NOW, OR I’M GONNA DRAG YOU OUT!”
I wouldn’t doubt AJ when she makes a threat, especially one as simple as this one. Jake falls under the category of intruder even if he was just looking for a place to spend the night. He mustered up the guts to try his phase ability again because it was his only shot right now. He tried activating it and found that the feelings of fatigue and disorientation for the most part had left, but he didn’t want to experiment with his limits right now andwanted to get out of dodge. AJ jumped back as she saw Jake roll through the door without breaking. He jumped up and ran literally straight through her and the closet door. The look on AJ’s face as Jake ran through her was one of utter shock and astonishment. Jake ran for the door and tried to activate his emitter all he got was a red screen reading “ERROR- BATTERY CELL NOT CHARGED!” then it promptly turned black. Applejack burst through the closet door yelling after Jake. He opened the front door and bolted out into the hallway and slammed it shut just as two guards were walking down the hallway carrying massive metal spears, blocking the route he took to get to the room.
They both stopped, slightly startled at the sight of Jake, but quickly broke free of the shock and pointed the tips of their spears at Jake. A tough looking unicorn was the first to speak up. “Halt what is your business here?”
Jake wasn’t sure how to react. He was scared to speak; if he did he would have to be clever and make up something that would be believable without removing his mask. He looked behind him and the hallway behind him looked very promising as an escape route. Applejack flung open the door to her suite and ran into the hall. “THIS VARMIT BROKE INTO MY ROOM AND I FOUND HIM SLEEPIN' IN THERE!” Jake was relieved he wouldn’t have to have that conversation with the guards, but now he had to put up with out-maneuvering them. He could try and break through one of the many windows to his left, but if he didn't hit it at just the right angle he would fail and he didn’t know if it was clear of anyone who might see him. It looked like the sun was just rising but without the emitter running around the city would still be extremely difficult at this time. His second option was taking his chances with AJ and the guards and run about the halls of the Canterlot castle, blindly hoping he would come across an exit. And the last one was taking his chances with the guards, they were armed and if they ran him through it was all over for him, but he had no intent of being captured even if that was the only way he knew for certain lead outside.
After a few moments, he charged at Applejack. He ran at full speed with his speed power blasting through, but she jumped right in front of his path at the last moment. He ricocheted off of her and fell to the ground. “Where….Did she….Get reflexes like that…?” Before he could get back a hoof forced him down to the floor and the guards pointed their spears at him .
“Thank you miss, we’ll take from here,” a guard said. Jake needed an escape plan. He could phase through the floor but the movements would be unpredictable so if he did that he would have to do what he did on the train, and preferred not to risk it . Applejack just continued to stare into his eyes similar to what Pinkie was doing.
“Hold up a moment fellas.” Applejack began. Jack grew terrified as Applejack stared into his eyes.
“Miss," the guard said to Applejack, "we need to get this guy out of here. He is clearly an intruder and must be questioned.”
“I know y'all, but could you give a girl a moment?I haven’t seen his kind for quite some time now.”
One of the guards raised an eyebrow and looked at Applejack. “You know what that thing is?” He asked as he motioned to Jake.
“I suppose I do….but I REALLY DID NOT LIKE THE IDEA OF Y'ALL SNEAKING INTO MY ROOM! NOW, WHO ARE YOU?!”
She reached to remove Jake’s mask. “Please don’t," Jake pleaded, "not yet anyway.” The guards backed off for a moment in disbelief.
“It can…talk?!”
Applejack's eyes grew wide and stared at Jake, as if she remembered him from some far-off memory and was taking in his face for the first time.. “Your voice," Applejack said quietly, "I’ve heard it before...But you’re not…” In that moment, she unconsciously removed her hoof and the guards had given Jake a small opening to stand up. Jake decided now was his chance and sprung through the opening. They were pulled out of their stupor and gave chase.
“HEY! HE’S GETTING AWAY! STOP HIM!”
As Jake sprinted down the hall, his mind raced and he made the split-second reflex to go right. But he found a line of guards waiting for him at the door and they prepared to do battle. Jake was up a creek without a paddle. He considered using his phase ability until he noticed the seconds line of guards come up behind the first, he and he realized how much he didn't want to be skewered on a spear. He whipped out his peacemaker and pointed it at the window. He pulled the trigger several times, punching several holes through window and ran towards it. He jumped straight window, shattering the glass cover separating the inside from the outside world. It wasn’t a long drop and most of the guards followed him through the window. The moment his feet hit the ground, he began to sprint for the gate since he had his speed ability. He outran the guards in no time and reached the gate long before the order could be given to close it. Jake watched and laughed as the guards frantically tried open the gate, but his expression changed when he saw half the guards spread their wings and take to the skies. Jake ran out into the streets completely exposing his alien form to the ponies. Predictably, he got a wide variety of reactions to his appearance from the ponies. Some screamed, others were fascinated, then others simply let him pass by, wondering what all the commotion was about after seeing the hordes of guards running past them.
Jake couldn’t use the any of the alleyways because they were easily sealed. At this point, Jake felt that he would invite the attention of many large armies to capture him. Apparently breaking into the castle was a “serious felony.” His speed allowed him to gain the advantage until unicorns began to use their magic to obstruct his path and trap him. He was able to put a considerable distance between him and the mob but guards were stationed throughout the city. You would have thought Jake just pulled off the crime of the century with all the guards chasing him. Every time he would run through a courtyard or round the corner of a street, more guards almost teleported to his location.
Eventually, Jake began to notice massive defensive lines forming in the streets to form large detours. They had their lances pointed straight at him and began a slow advance creating a box around him that was slowly shrinking. Impressively, they had to seal off one-fourth of the city to capture him. There were still civilians and officers chasing him within the box, making it all the more difficult to try and escape. He thought about hiding in a nearby structure but that would be suicide as well especially since they could surround it and he had no use of the emitter. Eventually, two of the defensive lines blocked in the front and the back, and he couldn't run in any direction. The pegasi were constantly were dive-bombing onto Jake in attempts to knock him down. He was still exhausted and constantly running at incredible speeds wasn’t helping. The pegasi were quickly gaining on him as well as getting better and better at lashing out at him.
As Jake saw the two massive lines approaching him, lances pointed straight forward he had a choice to make; take his chances with the alley way or surrender. The second option was looking more and more appealing every second but he knew he couldn’t take that option; not now anyway because he couldn’t risk them figuring out his identity, even though he was receiving several hints that they already knew. "No. I can’t take that chance. I just...can’t." He ran down the alley as fast as he could but the pegasi were faster and planted themselves at the other end, they spread their wings across the entry way effectively blocking it. Jake turned to go back and try another way but the guards had already blocked off the other end.
One of the guards stepped out of the crowd. It was a white unicorn who Jake assumed to be the leader of the guards. It removed its helmet, revealing its dark blue mane. Its cutie mark was a white shield. “I am Shinning Armor, captain of the royal guard. Surrender and come with us willingly and you will be treated fairly in accordance with Equestrian law.”
“And if I refuse?”
“Then we shall take you by force.”
Jake was flattered he had caused so much commotion that even Shinning Armor was hunting him, despite this being the week of his wedding. "Guess breaking into the castle was slightly more of a big deal than I anticipated" he thought as he stared at the razor sharp tips of the spears pointed directly at him.
“Answer us now, or we will take you by force.”
“I am sorry gentlemen," Jake replied, "I am going to have to decline your offer.”
He answer caused some of the guards to burst out laughing, while others just gave him a more serious look, curious as to what he tricks still remained up his sleeve.
“There’s nowhere for you to run. We have you boxed in.”
“You see, that’s where you’re wrong.”
“Oh…?” Shinning Armor raised his eyebrow.
Jake took a deep breath and phased through the wall to his left, leaving the alleyway and more than likely loads of confused looks on the faces of the guards. Jake switched to his night sight so he could see who all was in the buildings. The first one was deserted, but he knew he couldn’t stop. He looked behind him and could see all the guards now scattering. It was only a matter of minutes before they caught him. He continued to run, running and phasing through walls trying to put as much distance between him and mob of guards as possible he was doing well despite the screams he received every time he entered a populated building and ran out the other side. He thought he was going to succeed with his plan until his face met the flat side of a burning hot frying pan, he phased through a wall and wasn’t paying attention to what was in front of him and he failed to prepare for the pony holding a dirty hot pan. She had just finished cooking a fresh meal for her family and was just holding it upright preparing to clean it when Jake ran into it.
As if his head wasn’t throbbing enough, now it had a burning sensation all over it and it spread to all over his face. "Oh what I would do for an icepack right now." He tried to get to his feet only to get beaten back down again.
“I’LL TEACH YOU TO BREAK INTO MY KITCHEN! HHHHIIIIYAAAAAHHHH!” She bucked Jake square in the gut.
Jakes vision went normal again, as he felt the pain soar through his upper body. “Lady…..”
“WHO YOU CALLIN' LADY?!” She grabbed him by the shirt with her mouth and threw him across the room. Jake hit a shelf with several glass items on it. It shook for a bit and then the glassware fell on him, shattering as they hit both him and the floor. "What kind of mare is this?" He looked at the cutie mark, it was a block of sushi didn’t think equestrians ate sushi but I guess you learn something new everyday.
“Get it mommy! Get it!” The little foals chanted as the mare went over to picked Jake up again and threw him out the window into the street.
“AND STAY OUT!”
Jake tried to stand and almost fell again. This day was just getting worse and worse. His body pleaded for rest but he heard a guard yell from down the road, “THERE HE IS! GET HIM!”
Jake had run far enough through the line of buildings to break free of the defensive line in the streets, so now they would have to reform it before they could trap him again. Jake needed to take advantage of what little confusion remained in the guard and look for a building to lay low in for the time being. He tried to reactivate his vision but something was preventing him from doing so. The more he concentrated and tried to activate it, the more his head ached with pain. He also lost could not sense the other ponies around him. He tried to use those abilities, but he found that his attempts made him bleed from his forehead. His wounds had reopened and probably worsened after his encounter with that mare with the frying pan. He needed to change his bandages but he needed to find cover and fast. He ran through the streets hoping his lack of direction would make him unpredictable for the guards to capture him . He ran behind a long row of buildings for cover because they all looked identical. He tried to activate his night sight but it would not activate. He was truly lost.
The pain in his head grew worse and worse until he felt ready to faint. He tried to phase through another building. But the moment he phased through, his night sight returned and he guessed it to be a bedroom, one that was occupied. Standing in front of him was a strange creature with a lime green aura flowing around it. Jake immediately recognized the shape as a mare who was brushing her mane. Jake quickly deduced who the mare was, an she realized that she was not alone in the room.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" She screamed, " WHO ARE YOU AND HOW DID YOU GET INTO MY ROOM?! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!” Jake flipped out his peacemaker.
“BACK OFF AND SHUT UP!” Jake fired off a shot of peacemaker at the wall near where the creature was standing. The creature went silent.
The creature dropped the brush she was using and slowly backed into a corner. W-w-w-what do you want?” She asked as she shivered in fear.
“Shut up you monster!" Jake threatened, "I know what you are.”
“What? Please don’t hurt me, I would never do anything to harm any of my subjects.”
“Subjects? LIAR! YOU THINK I WOULD FALL FOR A CHEAP TRICK LIKE THAT WHEN I CAN CLEARLY SEE YOU RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!”
Jake was about to shoot the creature when he recognized he was about to shoot Princess Cadence. But the aura and shape of the creature he saw a moment ago didn’t match that of what he was seeing now . He tried to read her mind but his head trauma prevented him from doing so. "GAH, what do I do? There is a possibility the real Cadence is here in front of me, but my vision showed her as something different! What do I trust? Do I run the risk and trust my eyes? I can’t do that. What if she’s the real thing? My legs are about to give out; if I run I won’t get very far and SHE’S SEEN ME. No, I won’t harm her. Not until I know she’s the fake." Jake was split he didn't know whether to shoot. In the end he couldn't do it he lowered his pistol and saw Cadence began to smile. She walked over to him and put a wing around his shoulder. This was way too friendly considering what Jake had just done for his comfort level.
“You say you know what I am..Well what am I? Why don’t you remove that mask and let me see your face?” Jake did as he was told, even though every brain cell he had screamed at him in protest. He stuffed the mask into his pocket and Cadence snickered. Jake became more suspicious of her by the second. “Here," Cadence cooed, "come with me. Your injuries look just awful and require tending to.” He caught his reflection in her mirror and saw the blood trails on his face and his bandages were soaked. "No wonder I have been feeling light headed. But she is being way too nice, even for Cadence. I just threatened her with a lethal weapon. I don't think anyone, not even someone with a heart cutie mark, would easily get over that."
Every cell in his body told him to run out of this house to another, despite Cadence offering care. He was compelled to follow Cadence. She walked up the stairs and lead Jake into what looked to be an upstairs storage area, but there was a sink, a desk, and a wide variety of other objects on top of being a small storage area. It seemed as though it was also used as an office. She lead him into the sink area and aimed her horn directly at him.
“Don’t worry, this will only hurt for a second.”
Jake saw her eyes flash green and a beam of green magic flew towards him. He was petrified with his hands just a few inches from his revolver. He knew he was tricked . “DANG…IT”.
She began to laugh at him. “Wow, that spell I used on you in the other room worked more efficiently than I thought. You fell for every word I said, even though your will is incredibly strong and your sense of logic even stronger . Now, hold still darling, you seem to know a little more about me than I would like and it's horrible that you know so much about me yet I know so little about you, and I am dying to know every little tidbit there is to know about you.”
He saw his field of vision go lime green and could physically feel her trying to pry her way into his mind. Jake began to resists her using whatever will he could muster.
“Hmmmmm," Cadence said. She stared into his eyes, or rather through his eyes. "What is this? Usually breaking a mind is easy…I’ll figure you out. Just you wait.” She assaulted Jake's mind once again, her power almost feeling like a saw cutting through his head.
“No…you’re… not……going….to get….in here!” He fought off her attack and then reflected her magic back at her, breaking free of the spell and threw her across the room. He had full control of his body back and was now able to seize his revolver and pointed it straight at her. She quickly scrambled out of the debris back to her feet when she saw the barrel pointed at her. “Now, where is the real Cadence, changeling? Or should I say Chrysalis?”
Chrysalis looked back slightly shocked but her expression quickly changed as she turned to answer. “You are in no position to ask questions, pitiful boy. What chances do you think you have against me?” Her horn lit once more and she prepare to fire another shot of magic.
“I’ve taken down dudes twice my size and blown crap up at least 100 times more powerful than me. I think I can handle you.” Now just to give you an idea of Jake’s feelings towards Chrysalis, she is probably the one entity that exists in Equestria that he has a desire to actually physically harm . Chances are, if given the chance he would not only pull the trigger and watch her fall to the ground, but he would pull it a couple more times just to make sure she’s really dead .
“You are so sure of yourself, yet you bring no means of protecting the very body you possess.” She cast a spell before Jake could react, throwing him back against the wall and he fell to the ground. She walked over as the smoke cleared and each step seemed to echo throughout the room. Jake faked being unconscious and waited for her to get close.
“So pathetic…Such courage, yet no strength behind it.”
Jake didn’t waste his chance. Carefully, he moved his left hand up and pressed the barrel of the gun against the temple on the right side of Chrysalis’ head. “You obviously don’t know me very well.” He pushed it harder against her head insuring he wouldn’t miss. “Funny isn’t it; you have such powerful magic and claim to be able to beat me easy yet you brought nothing to protect that wonderful head of yours.” He pulled the trigger and heard a small click. “You have got to be kidding me…..” Ammo is like water in a dessert: it’s never around when you truly need it. He tried to bring his fist up to punch her but she blasted him point blank with her magic, hitting him square in the chest not enough to permanently injure him but just enough cause him loads of pain, weaken his body, and scramble his senses. She kept him pinned and then surrounded him in a ring of green fire. Jake recognized the ring same as the one on the show. He was going to be thrown underground or destroyed he didn’t know if the ring only dragged people underneath Canterlot. All he knew is Twilight got surrounded by it and was shoved into the caverns underneath Canterlot.
“You two check those buildings. The hounds picked up his scent; he must be close.”
Chrysalis walked over to the window to observe the commotion going on outside.
“Oh my, don’t tell me it’s you they’re looking for.” Chrysalis taunted. Jake said nothing as he began to lose he senses one by one. “Maybe I should hand you over. After all, you did break into my house. But then again, you know who I am and I would be giving you a chance to tell all of Equestria. But nobody would believe you, a fugitive alien creature who dragged my 'fiancé' on a wild goose chase on his wedding day. Eh, why take the chance? I’ve come too far to be stopped by someone like you.” He felt himself moving down into the ground, soon the light of day was gone as well. Jake was powerless to move. He felt himself beginning to gain speed as he watched the stolid rock pass him by. Chrysalis wasn’t going to be as gentle as she was with Twilight. He knew exactly where she was putting him and knew in the condition he was in. Getting out wasn’t going to be easy, and his speed continued to increase until he found himself in complete and utter darkness. He felt like he was in free fall and hitting the ground came as a massive shock but he welcomed something solid. He wanted to immediately get up and explore his surroundings and knew this area may not be safe but body was exhausted. The only thing he was able to do before blacking out again was take a look at the watch he was wearing, which read the time of 10:15 A.M. He had been in the city of Canterlot for a full twenty four hours and already he felt like dying. As he blacked out, he had a few moments to dwell on the situation. How do I get myself into these kinds of situations?…Well it isn’t every day that I get to travel through Canterlot or get chassed around by Twilight’s brother…Twenty-four hours later, and I still don’t have a single answer to any of my questions. What a shame . I wonder how bad my injuries are…Hopefully I won’t die here there. I still have things I wish to do in life, but then again this was something I never imagined myself doing oh well…This….I contend…has probably been the most…interesting trip…I have ever been on… And he felt nothing more.