The Living Weapon

Danny could feel himself afloat in a void. He could only see darkness in his vision. He was unsure of what was happening. The man could hear ringing in his head, and a constant feeling of unsureness and entrapment in his gut made him shiver. Something about it felt familiar to the man, but he was unsure of how.

So, with no other option, he opened his eyes. Danny's blurry vision was greeted with a ceiling. A broken, molding ceiling, with tiles hanging or have already fallen. The only source of light beaming on him was from a small window.

Danny tried to move his arms and legs, but felt something pull them back hard. Able to see fully, Rand moved his head, seeing that his limbs and chest were strapped to a chair. He let out a defeated grunt and laid his head back on the small pillow that he was given, 'Shit. Not again...' he thought in annoyance.

The sound of a door opening with a loud creak got his attention and he turned his head to where he heard the noise, seeing bars. 'Must be a prison cell. Crap. What did I do?' thought Rand, confused by what was happening. Steps were heard, and getting louder. A shadow could be seen getting bigger as it got closer to him.

Surprisingly, the man expected an elder doctor or a prison guard, but what he got instead made his jaw drop.

It was a pony. Wearing clothes. Even Danny was surprised to see such a sight in his lifetime. And he had seen many bizarre things.

"Uh..." stammered Rand, who had nothing to say at the moment.

The pony waved a hoof and shook his head, "Do not be worried. We will not hurt you unless you are hostile. We just want to ask you a couple of questions."

'I-It can talk. Is this some hallucination or something?' Danny once more said in his head, wondering what was happening. He cleared his throat, "U-Uh, okay... So, you're a talking horse. Can I ask you a simple question? Why am I here? Is this even real?"

The pony nodded, "Of course. You were found unconscious right outside this very building. To avoid a panic, we merely brought you in here until things have calmed down. Like I said, you are in no trouble unless you are hostile."

"Well... I'm not hostile. You can take these off." insisted Danny, moving his strapped hands.

"Sorry, sir. But you must be kept here until we know for sure you're not a threat." the pony explained, "Oh, my name is Guard Watcher by the way. I'm going to basically interview you. And you are...?"

The man sighed, "D-Danny..." he whispered his name to the pony, "Danny Rand..."

Guard Watcher sat on a stool placed next to the cell, a soft sincere smile on his face. The look eased the man a little, getting the feeling that he was actually not in trouble, "Well, Mister Rand, what are you? You are not a pony, that's for sure. Nor are you anything that we in Equestria have seen."

Rand gulped, "I-I... I'm a human..."

"A human? There are no documents of such species. Do you know of where you come from?"

"Y-Yeah... Earth... New York." Danny answered honestly in one breath, "But where am I even at?"

"Equestria, Canterlot to be exact. I have no recollection of this Earth place you mentioned. Care to elaborate?" he suggested, writing some information on a notepad by holding a pencil in his limbless hoof. Danny had no idea how they did that.

"..." Danny was silent, unsure of how to continue, "I don't know how to explain this. This could be a dream for all I know. I'm a human from a world with other humans and now in a world of talking ponies and God knows what else. Can you just please let me out?" he asked again, moving his trapped limbs.

Guard Watched chuckled, "This is no dream, I assure you. Honestly, it feels like a dream for me seeing something such as yourself. I think we are making some progress here, Mister Rand."

"Danny. Just Danny." insisted the human, "And this is all new to me. So... How long am I supposed to be here for?"

"Until we get everything sorted out. Shouldn't take too long if we're being honest." the pony answered.

A sigh escaped Danny's lips. "Thank God. Can you take off one of these straps."

At that suggestion, the pony lit up his horn and removed the chest strap, freeing his torso. "Thanks..." said Rand. "But all of this... I shouldn't be here. I need to get home."

"I understand, Danny. But we can't have you wander this world freely. I have my orders." Guard Watcher explained, "But do you wish to explain how you got here?"

Danny nodded, "It's simple. I was stopping a shipment, found an object in there. Everything was black. I woke up here." he elaborated as much as he could.

"...I see. Well, I think I got all the information I need. If all goes well, you should be released tomorrow at the latest. In the meantime, I will see if there is anything for you to eat." Guard Watcher said. After that, he walked out, closing the door behind him to find him a quick meal. This left Danny to stew in his thoughts.

'How did I get here?' mused Rand, 'This doesn't make any sense. One minute I was in New York, trying to figure out what to do... But then... I wake up in a world with talking ponies... And people thought K'un L'un and my disappearance and coming back was unbelievable. I might need to head back to the asylum if this is actually real and not some dream.'

Danny closed his eyes, choosing to meditate and calm his thoughts.

"I-I have come back with information."

The figure faced the wall and nodded, allowing Guard Watcher to continue, "Danny Rand has arrived like you wished. He thinks he's being here for the safety of the public of Equestria. I have gotten the information you requested. It all adds up. This is the man you were looking for."

"I see. I think it is time we moved him. He has followed us here, albeit accidentally. But he cannot discover our presence here. Take him to the padded room. He's gonna have some company."

"A-Alright, sir." gulped Guard Watcher. He walked out with a plate of salad in his magic grip.

The figure growled, "You cannot be here, Danny, and I wish I wasn't here. But I have a debt to pay... Again."