Parallel

Jolt stared blankly in front of himself for several long moments, his short black tail flicked back and forth, mildly annoyed. Darling was beside him, she giggled to herself while she braided the longer locks of his mane for her boyfriend. "Aren't you just the most handsome stallion around?" Darling exclaimed as she finished off another bundle of his mane.

Jolt snorted as a response and rested his head down on his hooves, shifting a couple time to find the most comfortable position while his armor was still on. "Can we leave yet? Already mid-day and we have done nothing but sit here the whole time. We could have been halfway back to town by now and had lunch!"

"Oh shush your mouth, Jolt. All you ever think about is food," Darling said as she rolled her eyes and placed Jolt's helmet back atop of his head. "There, now all the cute mares won't know your mane is braided." Jolt imitated a gagging sound, followed up with muttering 'mares' under his breath. "Oh, come on now. Don't be like that."

"The day I let any mare, besides the ones here now, see my mane braided is the day I die. Of embarrassment," he stated shortly.

Darling shook her head. "You're more of a drama queen than my cousin. I swear you picked it up off from her."

Jolt rolled his eyes and groaned. "Please, don't remind me. I'll have to see her again when we get home, won't I?" Darling hummed in acknowledgment, enticing another groan from Jolt. "Welp, wouldn't want to keep her waiting now, would we?"

"Yes, well," June spoke up from the other side of camp, helping Grey pack up the cart, "we are simply waiting for Lightning and Bandit to get back from their patrol around the perimeter. Once they're back then we may leave. And no snacking until we either stop or get back to town, do I make myself clear, Jolt?"

"Wha-" Jolt stopped, looked defeated for a brief moment. "What do you mean? I haven't had a snack in forever!"

Darling tapped her hooves together. "You mean since last night?"

Jolt opened his mouth but no words came out and he reluctantly backed down, he grumbled something inaudibly under his breath. June shook her head and latched the gate on the back of the cart. "Your father was right Jolt," she started as stepped toward the stallion, "you should really cut back. You're starting to get pudgy," June scoffed and gestured to all of him. Daggers were thrown at her when Jolt silently glared at her from his spot, as he refused to return any words to her.

The sudden shift in emotion startled Duena from her nap, she felt overwhelmed with anger at first before it shifted into strong discontent and resentment. She looked over at the group of four guards-ponies and saw a mix of expressions between three of them. Grey was keeping to himself like he mostly did and seemed completely disinterested in what the other three were conversing about. Her attention shifted over toward the group, she noticed a disgruntled Jolt in the mix along with a mildly concerned Darling. She sighed and attempted to make herself comfortable between the roots of a single tree that seemed to have been made perfectly for her.

The somewhat distant chatter and mild arguments between the three ponies continued on, it made falling asleep difficult for Duena. She shifted and turned to try and find a more comfortable spot, she stomped her hooves on the padding of leaves and moss under her several times before she found a decent position. That had been her life for the past few days. Took a nap, woke up to arguing, napped again and then ate, repeating her mundane schedule several times over until the next day came. It was a nice change of pace from constantly being on the run, so she felt she had no reason to complain. But the longer they sat out in the forest, the antsier she got, unable to shake the sensation of danger encroaching on them. She, much like Jolt, was ready to get a move on sooner rather than later.

Thoughts about the fort that was consistently referenced to and danced around in her mind, she wondered about what the ponies there would be like. She would finally get the chance to try pony cuisine, dive into the culture, learn their languages and explore every inch of the landscape to her heart's content. For once in her life, she could taste freedom. But the fort was just the beginning, a gathering point for several other rescue teams. That meant there would be other changelings there too, ones who were just like her. The sense of being apart of a community made her the most excited.

Her thoughts were promptly cut short by the sound of her name being called. Her ears flicked in the general direction, she attempted to figure out who called for her.

"Duena! Come on, we're getting ready to leave!" It was Darling that called for her.

Duena groaned and stretched, she push herself up before she stretched again. After waking herself up a little, she shuffled over toward the camp where all six of the guard ponies awaited her. Lightning waved a wing at her, Duena letting out a long yawn in return. "Hey."

"We all ready to go?" Bandit's voice rumbled through everyone's light conversation. A collection of murmurs and nods answered him. "Alright, let's get going then. Duena, I want you to stay in the middle of the pack, everyone else stay close, but spread."

Everyone gathered around Duena, keeping a couple of feet distance from each other. June and Bandit stood at the front, Grey and Darling in the rear with their wagon, and Lightning and Jolt on either side of her. The group began to head north, slowly they made their way through the thick underbrush for what felt like forever. June and Bandit stopped a few times to consult a map before they continued on again. Eventually, after what Duena could only assume to be a couple hours, the group came to a lightly beaten path. The grass and bushes were either flattened or no longer existed within the single-pony line that followed further north. From there, their pace picked up from a few paces a second to a brisk walk.

The formation they previously created formed into the single file line the path suggested, Duena still stuck in the middle, only now Lighting was in front of her and Jolt followed pace from behind, Darling and Grey keeping to the far rear. Duena began to count her hoof steps to give herself something to do during the quiet trek through the forest. It wasn't until she counted to around two hundred that she noticed the number of trees was beginning to thin out, and the underbrush seemed to be recently receded. More and more sunlight was able to poke through the canopy high above their heads, making the whole forest seem just a tad more friendly than it perhaps was.

And, much to her pleasure, the further they marched, the less Duena felt that sense of doom looming over them. Everyone else was seeming just a bit more relaxed now as well. Not long after, conversations began to be picked up among the guard ponies, most of it about their ration supplies and talk about getting another unit to relieve their position, possibly even get to go home for a couple weeks and see family. Much of it didn't really interest Duena and she kept her attention on the path ahead of them. Slowly the path started to open up, the forest continued to thin out more and more until the could see several hundred feet out in front of them. By then, the sun had already begun to sink, the sky started to turn a deeper shade of blue.

Once more, June and Bandit pulled the party off to the side in the middle of a small clearing and consulted their map for the first time in what may have possibly been an hour. Duena found herself a spot to sit down and rest her hooves. Dusk quickly started to approach, soon the band of ponies began to unload a few things from the cart and get themselves settled in temporarily. Lightning joined after she helped set up a small campfire to warm up food.

"How are you feeling?" he asked quietly, as he kept some distance from her.

Duena canted her head to either side while she thought about her answer. "I don't know. Never thought I would make it this far. Not a lot of distance between changeling and pony controlled territory, is there?"

Lightning shook his head. "Not a lot. That's why units like us are important. We have a dual purpose. First, we act as an early invasion alert. Secondly, you." He paused and dug his hoof into the ground. "Being this far up puts us in a lot of danger. Fortunately, the 'lings have been rather mild the last half year or so."

"You guys sit out here and do nothing for a half year?" Dunea asked, quite surprised.

Lightning chuckled and shook his head. "No, no. Four weeks at most at a time before we exchange with another unit. It does get boring, but I'd rather it be that than anything else if I'm going to be honest. I think the same could be said for everyone else, including Jolt."

Dunea didn't say anything back, she watched the other four with mild interest for a little while. Eventually, she spoke up again. "How long have you been doing this?"

"Me? Two years, give or take."

Duena thought for a moment. "Did you do anything else before this?"

Lightning nodded. "Sure did. I use to be a courier believe it or not. Use to travel the kingdom and beyond, meet interesting creatures and ponies alike. The furthest I've ever gone would be the Zebra Lowlands, several hundred miles to the south-east of Canterlot."

"So you're used to traveling like this?"

"Sure am!" Lightning nodded. "Though, when I was a courier, I was traveling all day, stopping only to sleep or eat. Customers preferred if you delivered things quickly. Sometimes they threw in a little extra with the coin. Something like this isn't really anything to me, just a few hours of walking with a few extra dangers."

Duena shifted uncomfortably at the mere nod toward what the forest around them held. Granted, they were much further from the borders of pony and changeling territory, but that didn't make her feel any more comfortable in that moment. She only hoped that the fort they continued to mention was closer rather than further from where they were. "How much longer do we have until we get back to the fort?"

Lightning didn't answer immediately, he nodded his head to each side a couple times. "We've probably been marching for at least three hours. The trail is about the quarter mark, so I would say we have another two-thirds of the trip to go. Better to stop here and eat so Jolt doesn't get too cranky. Plus, it's a nice little clearing. Plenty of space between the trees, not as claustrophobic as the other camp we settle down at."

"Yeah, it's nice to be able to see out around you," Duena agreed quietly. Another thought crept into her mind while Lightning went silent, he seemed to be enjoying the refreshing scenery. "So, what happens after we get to the fort?"

Again, Lightning didn't answer her, he seemed to be avoiding the question altogether. "Hey, I think the food's ready," he chirped happily and made his way to the small fire with everyone else.

Duena sighed to herself and joined the six ponies as well and a small tin with the bland mush she had quickly become accustomed to, was hoofed over to her. The meal wasn't enough for more than five or six bites of food. It was barely even half of what they normally got, almost certain that the group didn't want to stay put for too long. June had already estimated they would arrive after nightfall, which meant they had several more hours of walking ahead of them.

It didn't take long for everyone to finish off their food and get their tins washed out, the party of seven moving out again. At some point, Duena had lost track of time completely and before she knew it, the sky had gone from a lovely mix of purple and orange, to be almost pitch black. Specks of stars and constellations began to dust the heavens above them, and lanterns were lit to light their way. Everyone was on high alert now, the overwhelming sense of everyone's nervousness made Duena increasingly anxious. The harsh shadows created by the lanterns began to make Duena second guess if they were a changeling or not. However, another few hours passed rather uneventfully.

As they continued to march for another hour, the forest finally began to recede completely and give way to a large open field of nearly chest-high grass. Off in the distance was what Duena could only assume was more lantern light. Moods lightened up as well with the pace of their march getting a bit of a boost, and the only thing that was on Duena's mind at this point was the chance to sleep and feel relaxed for the first time in almost a week. One last stop was made, the walls of the fort now within eyesight in the pitch black night. June and Bandit exchanged a strange and unfamiliar form of communication with another pony on the walls of the fort, the light from the fort's lantern would flicker in a sequence, with the two leaders returning their own for several minutes before the march was allowed to continue.

Minute by minute the deceptively short cobblestone walls of the fort showed themselves to be quite substantial, it stood about five ponies tall with guards patrolling it, barely able to be seen in the darkness until they passed in front of the lanterns. A large wooden and iron double door stood in their way from entering, the maw only beginning to open as they got close. Duena was met with what looked to be a rather lackluster sight. The walls reached around in a circular fashion, the large wall sporting several towers, but not much else. In the far back a small wooden outcropping pushed out from the wall of the fort, fabrics are thrown over to cover an anvil and what she could only assume was a furnace.

The inner walls of the fort were mostly barren, save for a couple towers decorated with two banners. One painted with golds and whites, the other blacks and purples, both depicted a mare with a long pointed horn and wings extending down the long side of the fabrics. The edges of the banners were trimmed with a reflective material, which made the banners shimmer in the torchlight. Within the center of the walls was a large circular stone platform that had a large pillar with a wooden door in the center of it.

"This is it?" Duena whispered as she glanced around at the others, clearing expecting more. No one answered her. They stopped after they made it inside the walls, the gate closed behind them with a thud. A sense of dread suddenly came over Duena when she noticed a line of six guards waited beside them with a seventh standing stoutly in front.

"17th RRU. I'm impressed," the stallion greeted them with a tone that would contradict his comment. "Perhaps the most rag-tag group of ponies I could possibly have under my command find themselves a catch." Neither June or Bandit made a remark to the stallion, they’d rather watch him closely. "You all should know what to do. I'll make my decision in the morning what to do with it."

Duena watched as the line of guards followed the decorated stallion march off to another side of the fort while Darling got Grey untethered from the cart. She snapped over to look at June, unsure of what was going to happen. "What aren't you telling me? What is this?" Again, no response. "Lightning?!"

Lightning hushed her before lowering his head and spoke in a low voice. "Just follow us. It's going to seem bad, but trust me. Please."

Duena shook her head and took a step back, but Jolt was behind her to give her a nudge forward. He gestured forward toward the center platform when she glanced back at him, and, to her surprise, she noticed an apologetic expression on his face. However, that expression quickly shifted as he pushed her forward with significant force, making her stumble while she tried to catch herself.

"Get stepping, bug," he snapped not a moment later. He took Duena's left flank while June took her right, as they led her toward that center area. Two guards opened the door as they approached.

A staircase led downward in a steep slope, the whole length lit up by torches mounted on the walls. It was wide too, going down in several tiered layers. On either wall, there was a hole cut out that led down several more corridors, going deeper and deeper into this underground labyrinth they called a fort. The other four from their group split off their separate ways while the three continued deeper, the air growing musty and dank the further they went. Duena soon found herself having a difficult time breathing by the time they had reached the furthest tier.

Jolt shoved Duena through another doorway that lead down another long hallway, lit by the same torchlight all the way down. At the end of it was a decently sized room with another door at the end of it. A couple of guards stood by the door and opened it as they approached, which led into a hallway that came to a dead end further down. On either side of the narrow passage were small rooms that were barred off by steel with a single door and lock. It quickly occurred to Duena that this was more of a prison than a fort.

Almost every cell they walked past had a changeling in it with a few items crammed in with them. Most of them sat in the back of their cells while a few angrily rattled their doors and spat words at Jolt and June. She didn't recognize any of them, but she could sense the collective sense of anger and dread, the feeling almost being contagious. June stopped them at an empty cell at the end of the block, opened it and gestured them towards it. Duena hesitated.

"Listen, just make this easy on us," June began apologetically, she opened the door wider, "so, please. You just need to trust us."

Duena took one last glance back at Jolt who had his back turned to them. She knew she couldn't run, she had nowhere else to go. With a saddened sigh she stepped into the cramped space, the door squeaked as it shut behind her with a loud clang. June locked the door before she and Jolt disappeared, leaving Duena to the confines of her new home.