My face was slapped.

My eye's jolted open as my face flew to the left. I couldn't move, my hands being bound behind myself. I took a quick scan of my surroundings, my hearing not fully kicking in. I was tied to a chair, that was for sure, and there was a man in complete white armor with red patches on it, the same man from before. He was apart of the team that kicked in my door, and stormed me.

My hearing slowly phased back in, a slight ringing to it still.

"-ey, hey! Can you fuckin' hear me?"

I groaned, my body feeling like shit. I wanted to spit on him so badly, but that would only get me whipped. To be honest, I was a little nervous, and a little scared too. Instead of acting out, I simply nodded, though with a pissed off face. I wasn't exactly happy with my current predicament. Who would be?

"Mmm.. Good, good. For a second, I thought we put too much in them darts." He reached up to his helmet and took it off, showing his face. He was a brown man with a full beard, and his hair was black and short. His eye's though, were strange. They were almost glowing yellow.

The man cleared his throat. "I'm JO-11. I go by a codename rather than a real name. I've been ordered by Sir Tarbo to inform you on the things that will be taking place from now on. I'm sure that you've already realized that you are currently being held captive in a cell."

A cell? This wasn't the ordinary concrete walls with a hole to piss in kind of cell. It had red carpet, sleek wooden walls, and a bookshelf. Along with a table and chair, and a decorative bed. If this was a cell, I wonder what every other part of the place looked like.

"You might be questioning why you've been captured. I haven't been informed of that, but just know that you're special. Follow the rules, and nothing will happen to you. Tarbo doesn't like to destroy things that he deems... special."

Special?

"So, here's some things that will cause consequences. One, no yelling or screaming like an idiot. It will only make you hurt. Two, no being violent with the guards. Three, do as your told. Refusing commands won't exactly get you beat, but it will dock points on your behavior score."

...What? Behavior score?

"I can see you're probably questioning what the hell a behavior score is. See, every prisoner here, whether special like you, or the lowly filth, all have a behavior score. Each time you refuse, or fuck up, you get docked. You get shittier meals, forced into work, etc. If you have good behavior score, you get better food, and if you're really good, you can roam the halls without supervision. You'd have to work your ass off in order to get that far."

"Tarbo want's to introduce himself and explain everything else later on in the day, so I'll leave the rest to him. I'm going to cut your hands free in a second. Don't give me a reason to cuff them again." He said, approaching behind me with a sharp knife from his pocket. I could feel the rope ripping from my wrists, and I extended my hands out in front of me. While I examined my hands and wrists (which had red marks on them) the man had already left the 'cell.'

What the hell was all that about?

Also, where the hell is Twilight?

My best plan of action is to play along. I'm not a badass, nor a superhuman. Acting out, or trying to 'break out' would only get me killed or seriously injured. I have to play my cards right, and maybe I can get out normally. Words are the key, that's for sure.

I scanned around the room, trying to find any information I could use.

There was absolutely nothing. Even the tens of books in the bookshelf were all empty, without titles. They were simply for decoration. There was nothing else in the room that I could possibly use, or do. Hell, I didn't even have anything to pass the time with.

There was nothing else for me to do except wait.

Starlight's POV

My eye's slowly opened from my deep sleep that I was forced into. My body felt like it was completely dead, which wasn't a good sign. I was able to force my hooves onto the floor from my laying position, and get upright. I almost fell back down immediately, as I felt extremely light-headed and woozy.

I quickly scanned the room that I found myself in. It was basic, but decorative. Dark blue painted wooden walls, several hanging lights from above, and a carpet underneath that was decorated with stars. There was a chair, a bed, and a table, along with what seemed to be some sort of... case?

There was nothing inside, but it was a large glass case.

I went to go get a closer look, but the doorknob to the room began to jiggle. My eyes darted over to it, and I instinctively began to peddle backwards into the corner. My mind raced as to what was behind that door, and before soon, a human walked through the door.

He smiled at me.

Canterlot

"Oh, why would you ever blame me for such a thing, dear Tia~?" Discord said with a playful tone, his eyes half lidded with what seemed to be happiness, and he began to prance around the royal meeting room with music, appearing from seemingly nowhere.

"DISCORD. I'm going to need you to stop avoiding this. If I found out that you had anything to do with this, you're getting sent right back to that stony prison of yours!" Celestia yelled, her voice obviously annoyed. Her eyes squinted at him with anger, unhappy with how light he was taking the situation.

"I would never do such a thing to your dear, and faithful student Celestia."

"Why am I supposed to trust you? You always have had ulterior motives, and it wouldn't be the first time you've done something matching up to this."

"I can certainly give you a hint." Discord said with a smile. "You're looking in the wrong places. You've searched every nook and cranny of the royal castle. Look for the little things, dear friend. They will appear to be obvious when you discover them."

"That gives me no information, discord! Stop being cryptic, and playing your games! This is not a joking matter! Equestria could be invaded at any moment, as we are at our most vulnerable. Without Twilight, others will see it as an opportunity to strike us while we're weak. This isn't affecting just me, but the kingdom. Your friends will get hurt, Discord. Are you truly a friend if you're willing to sacrifice them in the name of being the god of chaos?"

Discord began to giggle a little. "Obviously not, Tia. But I see the full picture, you don't. Perhaps you should question why I'm keeping it a secret. And-" Discord suddenly stopped all movement and stared at Celestia with a certain cold, and dead look, something Celestia hadn't seen of him before, which sent shivers down her spine. "-perhaps you don't want to know. Perhaps what is on the other side will frighten you. Perhaps, what you miss the most will never be the same." His voice went from high and giddy, to low and depressed.

Celestia shook her head. "Like I said before, Discord. If I find out you had anything to do with this, I'll banish you to the moon."

"There are worse fates that lie in the secret you want to know so dearly."

With that, Celestia stormed out of the room.

The doorknob jiggled before the door finally opened.

I turned to it from my laying position on the bed, sitting up and standing up a moment later. A man had walked in, with black hair that was kept extremely short. He was white, and a good 6'2. His eyes were glowing purple, and he wore a black tuxedo, which oddly fit him well. He smiled at me.

"You're Tarbo." I said blatantly.

"I am." Tarbo said, his voice sounding quite... generic. "You're Rex."

"How did you know that?"

Tarbo chuckled softly to himself, putting both hands behind his back and slowly pacing around the room, occasionally giving me glances. "I assume you're interested in what kind of place you've found yourself holed up in, hm?" He asked, his smile still not fading.

"That would be nice." I said, in polite, yet slightly pissed off tone as I could manage.

"You ever hear of the empire?"

I froze. The only stories I've heard of the empire are of great power, and how massive their military was. The tales of magic came from their ability to use psychic powers, though most believed it to be myth. Atleast, any of those that haven't encountered them. "I have."

"Good, good." Tarbo said, still pacing around. "We aren't them."

"Then why ask?

"We are... a split group. I held different ideologies than them, so I created my own empire. That's where you find yourself currently held inside. My empire."

I smirked slightly. "Alright...?"

"The others are safe."

My eyebrow slightly raised, and I was going to ask something before I was cut off by him. "Yes, we didn't cut them up or anything like that. They're being held in rooms like this, though with different variation. I have to say, they're quite magnificent. And, if the stories are true, then they'll be worth a lot."

"Are you planning to sell them?" I asked cautiously.

"What? Of course not. I plan to integrate them into my society. I want to do the same with you. You have a connection to them after all, don't you?"

I wasn't liking his wealth of information that he held. He knew things about me that I had never told him, nor even eluded to. He had something going on in the background, and I couldn't really pinpoint it. So, I decided to ask. "How do you know so much about me and them?"

He chuckled softly again. "I'll show you later, that is for sure. But, it's true, isn't it? Their magic."

I tried to play dumb. "What magic?"

"The same magic that the purple one used to keep that revolver aimed at my men."

Shit...

"You know," He started. "I don't intend to torture them or hurt them in any way. They're invaluable. They seem to be genetically made to use psychic, or other energy to manipulate things. Most use psychic amplifiers, such as my own." He said, lifting his hand in the air before a book came flying off the bookshelf into it.

I stared.

"Impressive, isn't it? It's all technology, not magic. Though, they are definitely not technology. That means they're worth more than anything on this planet. And, I'd hate to deprive them of their connection with you, so don't make it hard for me when I ask questions. They are invaluable. You are not. Though, I'd still hate to lose you. But it won't keep me up at night." His voice was sharp, yet still a little... happy? He carried on with his smile still.

I shook my head. "Fine, I'll play along. What is it you're trying to do with them?"

"Mmm... I don't know yet. I've already talked to the light pink one."

Starlight.

"She wasn't very useful in terms of information. Any attempts at conversation were met with terrified glances, and her... horn, discharged several times. I let her be."

"And Twilight?"

"Is that the purple ones name?" He asked with a smile.

Damnit..

"No, I have not talked to that one yet. After the light pink one, I came to you. I see that the purple one is the most... important, out of you three. Something feels different about her. Her energy, the aura around her, and the general tensity. It's all very... interesting. I'll be going to meet her after this."

"Also-" He continued. "Those men you killed."

Shit.

"Don't worry. They were bottom-barrel. Cannon fodder. Why, I wouldn't have sent them in there first if I didn't know they were going to die. They know that much too. But they know it's better to do as they're told than to disobey commands from their leader."

"So you send men to their deaths?"

"If necessary, yes."

The man pacing in front of me didn't seem fully human to me. The way he talked... the way he carried himself. It wasn't normal, and it felt demonic the more time he was around me. He shook his head, beginning to laugh to himself. "Ah, Rex, you and I are quite ironic, aren't we?"

"What do you mean...?"

"Rex. Tyrannosaurus Rex. You're named after one of the greatest dinosaurs to exist. A monstrosity that ruled over much of the distant planets that are strewn across the universe. Truly a magnificent creation. But I-" Tarbo stopped to face me, pointing at himself. "Am Tarbo. Do you know what that means?"

I hesitantly shook my head.

"Tarbosaurus. Named after an equal to the Tyrannosaurus. The name implies that you and I stand toe to toe." He said, taking a few steps to me until we were only an inch or so away from eachother. "Do you believe that is true, Rex? Do you believe you can... stand against me?"

The urge to swing at him was immense, but I suppressed it. I simply shook my head, knowing that was the smart thing to do.

"Do you know what else your name implies, Rex?" Tarbo said, turning away from me and continuing his pacing of the room. I shook my head once more, following his steps. He seemed to be stepping in a very odd pattern, almost specific with the way that he was walking.

"Rex is also short for king. Did you know that?"

I really didn't know that, so I shook my head.

"Mm... Well, you do know you aren't a king, right? I'm the only true king in this world. Those fools at the broken empire can fuck themselves, everyone knows they already do. A bunch of in-breeding idiots." He snarled at the floor, before his purple eyes shot up to me. "May I ask you a question, Rex?"

"What?"

"How are you?"

What the hell was wrong with this guy? He was acting borderline insane, and jumped from subject to subject. "I'm fine."

"You're lying. Nobody would be fine being taken from their home and forced into a place they know nothing about. I know just the way to calm your nerves. Give me a moment-" Tarbo said while he made his way to the door, flashing me a quick smile before he left the room.

I was alone again.

The way that man spoke gave me chills down my spine. I couldn't exactly explain it, but he didn't seem normal. Does he really believe that the meanings of our names really have anything to do with who we are, or what we'll end up to be? I'm definitely no king, or magnificent dinosaur, or man for that matter.

The door jolted open and someone was thrown in. He fell to the floor with a thud before the door behind him was slammed shut. He quickly made it to his feet, scanning the room before his eyes landed on me. "R-Rex?"

"Oh shit.."

Canterlot

Celestia stepped foot into Twilight's room. It felt forbidden for some reason, yet she knew that Twilight wasn't there to tell her not to. Not that it would amount to anything, as Celestia and Luna both held near supreme power. She scanned the room, seeing everything in the place that Twilight had left it the day that she had disappeared.

It was eerie.

It didn't help that Twilight was no longer the one that was missing. Starlight had also been reported missing, and her last known location was this castle. Spike had no information on where she was in the castle, but that she was definitely here. Taking a few more steps in and allowing the door to shut behind herself, Celestia began to move everything around the room with her magic, flinging items across the room to look for any clue.

She was desperate, desperate enough to give anything for this to end.

She flung the bedsheets across the room, a small little note gently swaying in the air before hitting the floor. There was small writing on it, definitely Twilight's. With intrigue, Celestia paused everything she was doing to pick the piece of paper up. She read it outloud to herself.

She stared at the spell markings, eye's wide.

"Rex, I'm sorry that I gave you up, but it was you or the safety of my tribe!"

"I understand your motives, but that doesn't make me any less fucking happy! What did you tell them?!"

"T-They were looking for those with psychic abilities, and I mentioned y-you had two animals from the a-anima.."

I wanted to punch him. The same man that I had helped out by giving flashlights to, and giving other trade-able items to had given me up. I understood his motives, to save his tribe and his family, but it didn't make me any less angry. "I told you they weren't from the anima!"

"I had to make some sort of story or else they'd kill all of us! It was telling them that, or we died!"

"And let me guess, you're all free?"

"W-Well... yes.."

I turned to the chair that was seated in front of the table, kicking it with all my might. The back right leg split into two, letting the chair fall onto its side. "I can't fucking believe this! I trusted you!"

"Y-You can't blame me for what I did!"

"Oh really? Well, I fucking do! You gave up my freedom for yours! God- God damnit!" I yelled, my hands on my head and my face becoming more red by the second. My breathing was harsh, and my eyes darted across the room at random in pure anger.

"J-Just do as they say, and you'll be free too! I promise!"

"Well I didn't want to be fucking captured to begin with! And now they're going to fuck with Starlight and Twilight to their hearts content. They're going to use them as fucking pawns!"

He shook his head. "N-No... They wouldn't do that, I promise!"

"You promised a lot of things, and you did this to me. Why the fuck should I believe a liar?" I said, approaching him, causing him to back up into the far corner. My fist was raised, ready to punch before the door swung open with Tarbo entering inside of the room.

"Ah, I see you've met your old friend."

"Friend? Friend?!"

"That is what I said." Tarbo said with a smile, gesturing to the outside of the door. "Please, come. There is a ceremony going on, and I know you'd love to participate in it. Not like you have much of a choice."

I slowly backed away, and exited the room, doing as Tarbo said. I hated following these orders, but if it meant I was going to live, then I had to deal with it. Compliance works sometimes, and right now it's the only thing keeping me from being a blood splotch on the wall.

Tarbo, the traitor, and I walked down the red-carpeted hall. Both walls were decorated with expensive-looking art, and various pictures of Tarbo or other people, along with gigantic windows with gold lining the edges. It was definite that Tarbo was a rich man, and this 'empire' was definitely going to be bigger than I first imagined.

It took a couple of minutes, but Tarbo had led us to the destination.

A large courtyard, with what seemed to be hundreds of people lining up outside a roped out area in the middle. A crowd of people, awaiting to watch a certain event. I supposed I was going to be involved in this event, as Tarbo brought both me and the traitor inside the line.

The traitor looked to the right, to which I did the same, only to see that his entire tribe was currently watching with smiles. They looked so fucking happy. Free. As if their troubles were taken away. What did they do to get that though, hm? They probably don't even know what he did to get them there.

I scanned the rest of the crowd to find Starlight or Twilight, but they weren't there.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, you all might be wondering why I've called for an assembly today." Tarbo began speaking loudly, addressing the audience that were all smiles and laughs. They began to cheer when he talked, but slowly quieted down as they waited for him to continue. "This here is a new member of our society that we have taken in, along with his many members of his family. He is a welcome addition!" Tarbo said, raising the traitors hand, who'm began to smile.

And, yes, I will always refer to him as a traitor.

"The methods of which he had gotten citizenship has truly helped us, but I have found out something that dearly upsets me, dear friends." Tarbo said, letting down the traitors hand before slowly backing up away from him. "What exactly did you do, to get your citizenship, friend?"

The traitor looked at the people, before looking at me with a slightly worried face. I gave him the most pissed off look I could muster. "W-Well.." He began. "I-I turned in a few people that might be able to help us."

"And, who is that?" Tarbo asked, pointing at me.

"T-That's Rex."

"And you two are friends?"

I chuckled. The traitor slowly shook his head. "But I thought you said he was a dear friend of yours?" Tarbo asked.

"H-He was, until I..."

"Until you what?"

"Betrayed him."

Tarbo began to nod, while the audience sat in silence. "Mmm.. So, you betrayed an old friend, is that it? You traded his life for your and your families life, right? I must say, what you have given us is extremely beneficial. Rex and his two other friends will be quite a help, I must say."

The traitor began to smile, before Tarbo continued. "But..."

"But...?" The traitor asked.

"As I must congratulate you for becoming a citizen and helping us, I must tell you that I do not quite like traitors. Those who are willing to throw others under the bus. So, I've come up with a payment you can give me." Tarbo said, staring at me with a smile. A shiver went down my spine.

"Y-Yes?" The traitor asked.

Suddenly, JO-11 appeared from the crowd with his white armor, and red patches. He grabbed the traitor by his throat and pushed him into a wooden beam that stood tall. Two other men threw a noose over the top of the beam, and lowered it. JO-11 then forced the traitors head into the noose, and tightened it. "Don't resist."

Wait... Were they-

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I say with a happy tone that today will be another public execution!" With that, two reactions came from within the crowd. Most of the people began to cheer and smile, happy to see another man be hung to death, while the family began to scream and yell.

"W-What- No! No no, I gave you- I gave you what you asked fo-"

"Oh yes, you did." Tarbo said with a smile. "You gave us what we wanted, and you succeeded. But, I must say, you are a vile person. Atleast you will die as a citizen of my empire, instead as filth in the wasteland, right? Think of the bright side, dear friend!" JO-11 began to pull on the rope, lifting the traitor into the air.

I have never seen someone hung before.

It looked painful. He tried to get out of the noose, but to no avail. His face became red nearly instantly, and his legs dangled about. He reached out a hand in the direction of his family, who kept crying, whilst the rest of the crowd continued to cheer in happiness.

A high pitched scream came from the audience.

"Ah, is that your family?" Tarbo asked the traitor while he choked, pointing over to the tribe. "Lovely people, I must say. Is that your daughter?" He asked, pointing to the little girl that happened to be the culprit of the high pitched scream. "May one of you guards fetch the girl for me?"

Before the family had time to grab the girl and pull her into safety, a guard had already peeled her away. The little girl continued to cry, and stare up at her father that was currently choking. She couldn't have been past eleven years of age. Tarbo shook his head, staring up at the father. "Oh, little one, don't be scared. This is a lesson, you understand don't you?"

"Papa.." She said with tears in her eyes.

"Ah, I know! Guard, hand me your knife!" Tarbo said. A guard approached him with knife in hand, and presented it to Tarbo, which he took from the guard. He then looked at the little girl. "I have just the plan. I'll give you a parting gift from your father. That would be nice, wouldn't it?"

With that, Tarbo stabbed the traitors stomach, and pulled down, sufficiently cutting his stomach open and allowing his guts to spill out. Blood began to spill from his stomach while Tarbo then reached inside, pulling as much stuff as he could out. The girl watched in horror, her eye's almost completely closed because of her tears.

With a handful of the mans guts now in his hands, Tarbo placed them ontop of the little girls head, and slathered it all over her face. "There, now you have a little piece of your father with you. You'll remember him always, won't you?" The little girl then fell over, her hands covering her face, to which Tarbo forced her hands away from her face and opened her mouth wide with his fingers, forcing in a bit of the blood and other matter into her mouth.

He then stood over her with a bright smile, and bloodied hands. The crowd continued to cheer. "Good enough I'd say. Guards, get her back to her family. And, make sure they don't take it off of her. It's a gift after all, it'd be a shame to wash it all off!" With that, the guards took the little girl and forced her back into the crowd with her family.

I stared, not fully understanding what I had witnessed, before my mouth spoke for me.

"You're sick."

Tarbo turned to me nearly instantly, his big smile still there. "Excuse me, friend?"

"I don't like to repeat myself."

"Mmm... I'm beginning to like you more and more, dear Rex. I'm glad I brought you out here instead of the other two. You were so much fun to watch. Your reaction, your wide eyes and your open mouth, so entertaining! We do have room in the jesters court, you know."

"The Rim consumed you." I snarled. "You're nothing but trash, and you realize it. That's why you have all your guards do things for you."

"The blood on my hands say otherwise, dear friend. JO-11, take dear Rex to his cell, would you?"

"Yes sir." JO-11 said, letting the rope go and allowing the man's body to fall. He stared at me before pointing at the open section of the rope. I knew I had to comply, so I walked out of the sectioned off square, waiting for him to escort me back to my cell.

Within such a short amount of time, Tarbo has already proven that he's the worst person on the Rim.

Twilight's POV

I paced around the random room I was placed in.

The room was painted with dark purples and blues, as if it was made specifically for me. Bookshelves lined the walls, and a chair with a table in front of it had a small notebook with a pencil sitting on top of it. I was tempted to check the books after being here for so long with no explanation, but I was too lost in thought.

The door suddenly opened, revealing a man that definitely wasn't Rex.

"Ah, I see you're already awake. I hope I didn't keep you waiting." The man said, smiling at me. His hands were wet, slightly dripping still. He followed my gaze, and began to chuckle. "Oh, sorry. I had to clean some blood off of my hands. You wouldn't laugh if I said it was Rex's?"

"What?!" I yelled, my wings flaring out. "What did you do with Rex?! And Starlight?!"

"Oh hush, hush. It was only a joke, friend." He said with a smile, waving a dismissive hand at me. I didn't let up my confidence, or my awareness. "What, do you really think I would keep you alive only to hurt you now? I wouldn't do such a thing, it'd be a waste of time. And, as many in my empire know, I don't like wasting my time."

"Who are you." I said. It wasn't a question. It was a demand.

"For someone so small, you definitely radiate power. I'm Tarbo, but you can call me Tar. I own this empire."

"Empire. What are you talking about."

He began to chuckle again. "If the other is Starlight, that must mean you are Twilight." He said, his smile persisting. "I hear that you're magical Twilight. Is that true? If so, I'd love to see it in person. I've heard the reports from my men about a 'floating revolver, encased in a purple glow.' Is that how it works? You can manipulate the energy in the ai-"

I flung the chair at him with my magic, to which he suddenly vanished from thin air, only to appear about two feet from where he previously was. "That wasn't nice, dear Twilight. But, I did ask to see how it works, and you obliged. You'll definitely get something in return, I promise. Is there anything else you can do?"

I could tell he was baiting me into doing something else, so I didn't comply. Even if I had wanted to, my magic was... limited, in its abilities. I simply stared at him, my anger not wavering. Where did he put Starlight? Where did he put Rex? Were they okay?

"I'm quite special too." He said, lifting his hand, allowing a book from the bookshelf to fly into his hand. He smiled at me as I simply stared wide-eye'd at what he had just done. I didn't know humans were capable of... magic. Rex said that they weren't!

He then turned around and parted his hair slightly, showing a small device attached to the back of his head. "It's a psychic amplifier. We humans aren't born genetically with these abilities, but once we install these into our brains, we're just as magical as you. Except, you're born with it, aren't you?"

I wasn't going to answer any questions.

"The silent type, I understand. Please don't make me have to take drastic measures. You're either going to join me willingly, or i'll have to force you into compliance. And, we both understand what that entails, don't we? You don't want me to hurt you, do you? Or, perhaps Starlight, or dear Rex would possibly be a better option to take my anger out on?"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh, I do. You're too magnificent, Twilight. I can't give up on you. I'll do anything I have to in order for you to sit by my side. You're a valuable asset, Twilight. You could get far within my empire. Those fools and their own broken empire know nothing."

"You don't look like royalty to me." I said, spite in my voice.

"Do you not like my suit? Is it not golden enough for you? Perhaps purple would suit me better." He said with a smile. "Perhaps you being by my side will compliment my eyes. What do you think? I think that'd be magnificent. It'd be a pleasant display for sure, very exotic."

I simply shook my head in anger. I had never felt such hate for someone until now.

"You're angry. Perhaps I could make you angrier?"

I sat alone in my 'cell.'

I had spent the last hour reliving the scene that I had witnessed. The poor girl, and the laughs of the crowd. They cheered for execution as if it was a time for celebration, or if it was entertainment. Sick, disgusting, vile human beings. No, they weren't even human. They're monsters.

The door swung wide open.

JO-11, along with Tarbo and...

Twilight?!

I stood up immediately, wanting to rush in and scoop Twilight up, to know that she was safe, but JO-11 put a hand out in front of the both of them towards me, pointing downwards, signifying for me to sit back down. I did as told, and stared at Twilight, examining if she was hurt at all. She seemed fine, but her face was filled with anger, anger that I had never seen before from her.

"Dear Twilight is quite the stingy person, dear Rex. Have you ever had any problems like that before with her?"

I was too busy staring at her in order to answer his question.

"Mm.. JO-11, get his attention, would you please?

"Yes sir." He said, to which I immediately switched my gaze towards him and shook my head. JO-11 then turned to Tarbo, who began to chuckle.

"Ah, now you hear me. Good. Now that I have your attention, your friend Twilight is being a little short on words, and a little... stingy with her knowledge. She refuses to do anymore tricks with her magic, therefore I have decided to punish her."

"You better not lay a fucking fin-"

"Now now-" Tarbo said, shushing me. "I won't lay a single finger on her, I promise. Instead, I've come up with a better plan. Have you ever heard of the saying 'One man's fault is the squads fault?' That's the philosophy we're going with here. So instead of her..."

He pointed at me.

"Me." I said, realizing what he was signifying.

"Exactly."

"What? No!" Twilight yelled. "T-That's not fair... I-I'll do-"

"Hush now, dear Twilight. You've already refused, now we must carry out with the punishment. Dear Rex, you understand to not fight back, hm? That would only return bad results, as you might assume. JO-11 has his own unique abilities, some of which will prove him stronger than you."

I groaned and nodded. I knew that fighting back would be futile, and that complying, even in pain and punishment, was my only option. I didn't like the fact that I was being treated like a slave, and punished like a bitch, but I didn't have much of a choice. That's all this is huh? Not much of a choice.

"You understand the procedure, JO-11. Have your way with him, but do not kill him."

JO-11 stood only a few inches away from me, nodding. "Rex, you understand the procedure."

"I do."

"Then I will proceed." He said, to which he grabbed me by my collar and slammed me face-first into the wall, cutting my head open already. I slid face-first down the wall, blood leaking from my head onto the wall. I could hear Twilight yell something, but I didn't know exactly what.

I was pulled back onto my feet by him, to which he then sent me flying into the table on the other side of the room, breaking it into two. My body, with the force that he threw me at, already felt like a ragdoll. My arms felt like spaghetti noodles. I could feel his hand wrap around my collar once more, and he set me onto the bed. Pulling handcuffs from his pocket, he cuffed one arm to the bed, before cuffing the other one to the other side.

I groaned, trying to resist, knowing that it wouldn't matter.

He pulled a knife from his pocket.

I began to kick him, but it proved useless. With a swift motion, he cut my left cheek all the way up to my forehead, leaving a bleeding scratch on my face. I moaned out in pain, to which Twilight yelled once more. JO-11 shook his head, placing his hand onto my face to keep me steady.

I could see the edge of the knife stare at my left eye.

"No! No- please stop, please!" I could hear Twilight cry in the background.

My heart was racing, and I could feel the tip gently press against my eye. It didn't go further than that. JO-11 then turned to look behind him, looking at Tarbo. "Sir, permission to maim."

"Permission granted."

"NO NO NO-" Twilight yelled.

It made no difference. I could feel the tip of the knife begin to cut through my eye. I immediately yelled in pain as my left eye's vision became blurry almost instantly, before being filled with nothing but black. Tears began to flow from my right eye as my left eye bled, and I kicked around as hard as I could.

"FUCK- FUCK- OH GOD!"

"STOP STOP-" Twilight yelled in tears. I pulled my hands on the cuffs as hard as I could, to which they actually... broke? With my hands now free, and adrenaline running through my veins, I kicked JO-11 off as hard as I could, causing him to fall onto the floor. The knife was lodged in my eye while I pounced on top of him, sending my fist flying onto his helmet, breaking the glass on the helmet and causing it to cut his face.

I immediately was sent flying to the bed, hitting the wall hard. I didn't feel any crack, but I definitely was hurting.

"Oh dear Rex, didn't I tell you? Fighting back would end with bad results."

"Stop stop stop-" Twilight's voice began to dry out as she continued to plead. I turned my vision over to Tarbo, though it was blurry through the tears. JO-11 was on the floor still, laying on his side and picking the glass out from his cut up face. After a minute of doing that, he stood up and smiled at me.

"Good hit. I didn't see that coming, Rex." He said, before sending a fist flying into my face.

Everything went black.

Canterlot

"Are we to believe that Twilight accidentally transported herself into another universe?"

"Lulu, look at the spell markings. She wrote them wrong! That's forbidden magic that she wrote unknowingly. Using it too much can cause rifts between dimensions and universes. She must've thought that she would be able to transport herself to griffon-stone fine, but instead sent herself flying into another universe!"

Luna looked at the small piece of paper, frowning at the spell markings. "That is forbidden magic. But, what do we do?"

"Nothing right now. We don't know what other universe is like. If only some aspects of magic exist in the other universe, then only some of our spells will work. There is a spell to make a failsafe version, but it'll take until tomorrow. I've already sent a letter to Starswirl and others, to see if they can get working on it."

Luna shook her head. "I can not believe that Twilight would not know of such a basic thing."

"This type of magic was forbidden since it's creation Luna. She's extremely young, and would have no knowledge of this. We can't even dictate what universe the different markings stand for, as there's practically infinite amounts. She would have never known unless we told her, and even if we did tell her, we wouldn't be able to prove it without actually sending her there."

"What type of universe can we expect her to arrive in?" Luna asked cautiously.

"She could arrive in a universe on a planet almost exactly like ours, or one that's completely the opposite. It's up to fate, I'm afraid."

"Fate doesn't always have our best interest."

"No, it does not, does it sister?"

I awoke with a gasp, thrusting myself to sit upright. I immediately forced my left hand up to my left eye, only to feel bandaging all across it. I was going to get up, to try to find something to look at myself with, but my body felt almost completely dead. Whatever those two had, it definitely made their punches alot stronger than they should be..

"Rex...?"

I looked to the left of me, only to see Twilight beside my bed, a long cut going diagonal across her face, as if someone used a large knife to slice her. "Twilight what the- what the hell happened?!"

"W-Well.. After they knocked you out, I... threw some bits of the table at them with my magic in anger, and Ta..tarbo..tarbo? Tarbo said it was only fair, so..."

It was definitely going to make a permanent scar.

"T-they gave you some pills after that, and said you shouldn't feel the pain.."

"I don't, but it doesn't make me any less happy. They fucking... jesus christ, Twilight. How are you even here?"

Twilight chuckled, though it was weak and not one of joy. "With me refusing to move from my spot after they... you know, they decided that it would be best for me to wallow in my sorrow. That I would perhaps learn my lesson to help them, instead of them hurting you and me being forced to watch and endure the aftermath."

"Whatever you do Twilight, don't do shit for them, no matter if they hurt me."

"Rex, they cut your eye!"

"I don't give a shit! You didn't... you didn't see the things they do! They're evil, Twilight. We can't help people like them- no matter the cost!"

"I'm not giving up you or Starlight!"

"You might have to!"

The room fell silent, to which I began to chuckle and shake my head, letting my head fall back and hit the wall behind me. "What the fuck has gotten into us. One day in this fucking shithole, and we're already beginning to act like them. Come up here, Twilight."

Twilight jumped up onto the bed, sitting beside me.

I wrapped an arm around her lazily, my body still feeling like spaghetti. "We're... we're going to be fine. It's just going to be hard, but we can endure that, right? We've endured hardship before, you and I. We can do that. We're alright, right?" I said, trying to cheer her up. She looked at me with tears in her eyes, nodding.

"We're okay..." She said quietly with a sob.

"Exactly. We're okay. We're okay. Don't break down, okay? They're going to try to break us down, to break us apart, but don't let them do that. You're stuck with me, alright? Y-You're not going to disappear on me that easily, and I'm not letting you go until you find a way back home."

That seemed to have struck a nerve, as Twilight immediately began to bawl her eyes out, pressing herself into me. I pulled her into a hug, letting my head sit over hers. "We're okay, Twilight.. We're okay. I'm okay. You're okay. Starlight is okay. It's just a flesh wound, right?" I said with a laugh.

"Just a flesh wound.."

Two days had passed without anything happening. They left Twilight inside the room with me, and sent two men to replace the chair and table. They delivered food, that was actually quite decent, but I knew it was all just to get us to side with them even more. To think that they weren't bad people. Me and Twilight weren't buying into it.

We spent most of the two days simply talking to eachother. About literally anything at all. We avoided things that were bad, such as what was currently happening to us. She mainly told me about her own world, but in more detail, and especially about her friends.

"So... These two, what were their names.. Applejack and... Rain-Rainbow? Some people really think they should get together, but others think that it's a bad idea?"

"It's a mixed bag, really. Some say they're perfect for eachother, while others say that they'd be better off with somebody else."

"I say they should let themselves decide. But, people just love drama, so I doubt that'd ever happen. Also, aren't they like, rivals or something? Maybe that's why people don't want them together. They'd constantly butt heads together, and try to one-up."

"Ooorr, and hear me out, perhaps the competitiveness inside both of them will allow them to have a friendly competition with each other, which would only cement their relationship further?" Twilight said with a smirk, to which I waved a dismissive hand at her.

"I don't believe it until I see it."

"Well, guess you'll never believe me then."

"Damn straight." I said with a smile.

That smile quickly faded when the door swung open, with Tarbo entering inside, completely alone. Me and Twilight stared at him, both of us nervous. "Ah, what, are you not happy to see me? That's quite a different look compared to the usual happy greeting I get from everybody else. You two really aren't fitting in well. How do you expect to become friends with everyone else?"

"I don't." I said, which earned me a nervous and worried look from Twilight.

"That's no good, Rex. Say, hows the eye? We administered some pills to you, so the pain and healing process should be okay. I'm sorry to say that you won't have that eye anymore, unless we do something drastic. Oh, I know! I could've slipped luciferium into your mouth while you wer-"

"You better fucking not!" I yelled out of instinct. Luciferium was a deadly pill. Once you take a single one, you'd have to take them once every week or so, or else you'd die. It was known that it could heal nearly any and all health problems, but at the biggest cost.

"Relax, relax. I wouldn't do such a thing, not without your permission. Well, your permission, anyways. Starlight doesn't apply to that, does she?"

"You gave her luciferium?!"

"No! No no, dear god no. Just, that her consent doesn't really matter in many things, does it? Since she refused to sate my desire of knowledge about her magical abilities, she sated other things for some of the guards. I have to say, she's grown to be quite popular."

My heart sank.

"I'm having her escorted here. I've decided that having you all in the same room would be more efficient. JO-11 argued against it, but he's dust compared to my position, isn't he? Now, if you would, wait a moment while I go and greet dear Starlight before she enters." Tarbo said before disappearing outside of the room.

Twilight turned to me as soon as he left, ready to burst into tears. "R-Rex.. W-What did h-he-he mea-"

"Ssshh.. Yes. Yes..."

A moment later, Starlight walked in.

The state she was in told us just the story we didn't want to believe in. Bruises were all over her backside, and along her face. She stared at the floor for a moment before looking up at us, her eyes sad and depressed, and almost dead in nature. Twilight immediately hopped off the bed and rushed towards her.

"S-Starlight, oh thank... goodness.." She took a step backwards to examine her. "S-Starlight?"

"They used me." She said with a dead tone.

"H-How-"

"How?! They raped me, Twilight. There, I said it."

I shook my head, my fists balled up. I was ready to yell before Starlight's voice caught me off guard. "What happened to you two?"

I shook my head still, chuckling. "Twilight got cut across the face, and I.." I pointed to my left eye, which was still bandaged. "Only have one eye left. They stabbed this one after they beat the shit out of me."

Starlight stared at the both of us before breaking down into tears.

Thing's will get better, won't they?

Tarbo's POV

Thing's just go swimmingly in this empire. I must say, that I've done a swell job at keeping things from going bad here. I've got the perfect people, with the perfect guards, with the perfect captives in their cell. Everything is going according to plan. A psychic-amplifier based empire, completely based under my rule.

It's perfect, isn't it?

Those fools and their broken empire won't know what hit them. They're going to bathe in their families blood while I cut them down, one by one. Even if I shared my name among'st their family, I am not their family. They gave me up because I was different than them! Because I was...

Calm down, Tar. You're a fine man, and will always be.

The captives are quite interesting. Two creatures from the 'Anima' as the man had said, though I don't believe it to be true. I believe them to be out of this world, literally. Another planet, that much is for sure. Genetically born animals or people with psychic powers at birth are not possible, or atleast shouldn't be.

And, have I completely forgotten the fact that they're able to talk?

I suppose that is a very strange thing, but I don't see it as such. Instead, it allows for further research. Research that is being hindered to their own ability to think for themselves, and to disobey and refuse orders and commands. Thankfully, dear Rex is willing to be a punching bag. With him, they will submit quite easily.

Well, maybe he isn't willing, but it doesn't matter does it. He's nothing compared to those two. His connection is the only reason why he is living, and honestly, if it comes to it, will be the reason that he dies. All he is, is a social manipulation tool to get those two to finally join my side. As what, you might ask?

I have no idea.

Perhaps as warriors, out on the battlefield? No, too risky. Perhaps a royal job, something beside me. Something so exotic and out of this world will give me an appearance like no other. An appearance I crave to have so badly, and I will have it soon enough. Just because things are being slowed down to a snails pace doesn't mean that it won't eventually happen. It will. It isn't happening the most efficient way possible, but results are results in the end, aren't they?

I suppose I could change certain tactics about. Perhaps giving them luciferium will force them into compliance?

The fear of imminent death would scare them to the point that they would have to join me in order to get an unlimited supply of the pills, thus sustaining their life until we run out. And, with our factory being able to push out luciferium pills to other royals like candy, it won't be anytime soon that we run out of those pills.

It's a deal of a lifetime! Join my side, and be a good person beside my throne, and you shall keep your life!

It sounds very fair to me. Maybe not the way that they look at it, but my shoes are the only ones that need to be filled at the end of the day. And, i'm the only one that can wear these shoes in the first place. Nobody else but me, that's fact. Many have told me otherwise, but they just aren't main characters in the plot of this story.

They're mad that they could be killed off, as expendable. They're mad that I can't be killed. How can they kill the main character that the story follows? It'd be impossible I say! What kind of story would that be if I were to suddenly die at random? It'd be a shame.

Either way, I see myself winning no matter what. I will always win, like I have in the past.

The siege plan is coming in quite nicely, but the one thing that scares me the most is how the broken empire is handling things. They are acting silently, and doing things in secret. I have no more information on their patrols, and they have stopped sending messages between locations. Instead, they haven't been communicating at all, as if they knew I was intercepting their comms.

And, even if I was, they'd probably continue. Comms are so invaluable that it'd be a shame to lose them just because somebody on the other side is listening in. They could've come up with something else in order to send messages, but instead they opted out for the most difficult route.

I applaud them, for their stupidity.

Thankfully, I'm not stupid. I never will be, as I know that I'm me, and they're them. They've also been changing locations rapidly, as if they're moving there stuff to a more strategic position. Perhaps I have traitor amongst my group. Perhaps that is what I need to do first.

I will call a traitor-finding meeting tomorrow for sure. To find out if there is anyone behind the scenes, leaking my masterful plans. They wouldn't do such a thing would they? I mean, ruining the greatest person in existence's plan, which would only result in the worst thing happening. That being, my failure, and we all know that I'm not supposed to fail. It just isn't in the plans.

And, we all know, my plans always work out, no matter what.

I suppose that things will simply work their own magic, no matter what I do, hm?

I suppose so.

Author's Note

This is a dark chapter, and a very long one compared to the other chapters.

I understand some of the things talked about in this chapter are quite disturbing, The point was to make the reader feel uneasy, and feel a certain way. If you felt that way, then I did my job correctly.

Why the long chapter?

I dunno. Felt like I needed to get a decently long one out of the way. I'm going to go back and start working on my Solaire story once again, as I haven't done much with that in awhile. Plus, my 'Survival is Necessary' story is still being written. That story is going to have 50k words per chapter.

Why?

I dunno, wanted to challenge myself.

I love you all.