An Equestrian Rogue

Thorne had slipped into a relative light nap as he floated along. He was at the mercy of the waves, but he had his heading. He assumed it didn’t matter where he landed, so long as he made landfall. He needed to get a graphical lay of the world. Maybe even the name of the world. Though those were a medium priority in the face of what was likely a blockade vessel that was patrolling the waters.

A thought had occurred to him that he’d need to get something to prevent unicorn scrying. He figured that was how they had found him. That or there was some magical barrier that he passed through. If it was a barrier, he didn’t feel as though he had passed through anything. He began to question if all magic of this realm could be felt. This brought him deeper into the questioning of how it all worked and if unicorn scrying could even be detected. It ended with him debating himself if such a thing actually worked or existed.

He knew his mind was starting to wear itself ragged. In truth, he was excited that those flares went up. He’d hopefully get some companionship--at least maybe some conversation. Even if it was him being interrogated. Thorne was no stranger to such a thing and fully expected it to happen. What armed force wouldn’t shackle him and throw him in a brig once they found him? He was an alien in a strange land. He started wondering if it’d be a miracle that he wouldn’t be tied to a weight and tossed overboard. He was sure he could take short ponies, but magic was the grand equalizer.

He rose up from his relaxing sun-basking and rolled his shoulders. His hands grabbed the shaft of the paddle and he resumed his arduous task of rowing. ‘Should I play the part of “distraught and helpless human”? Or perhaps go straight in and declare I am a Lord lost in a world without hope of return?’

Thorne gave a chortle to himself. ‘Anything I do will be under intense scrutiny. I won’t be able to influence the ship. And I doubt they’ll take me to shore. They might just throw me back into that wasteland. If they give me a hint that they’re their plan, then I’ll need to take hostages. And I’ll need to outwit that magic. I wonder, if I break a horn from a unicorn, does it cease their magic?’

Thorne smirked. “I do love a good trophy…”

“Oh fuck they have wings.” Thorne said to himself as he spied the ship closing the distance. He had stood up in his raft and squinted to see the ship. He took notice of the equine shapes that buzzed around the ship like small fighter jets. All of them looked armored and were carrying spears. It was just light enough to see the glimmer of metal as the night was claiming the day.

“Oh fuck! They have wings! Pegasuses! Er… Pegasi. That’s right, isn’t it? Wait! Shit! Shit, shit, shit! Wings!” He shouted at himself, swearing up a storm. He swiftly looked himself over and his limited supplies. He looked at his arm.

‘How the fuck do I fight winged fucking ponies?! Especially ones that can have magic as a back up!? Okay. It’s okay. Deep breath, Thorne.’ The man inhaled deeply as he took his poncho off and wrapped it around his hips. ‘First thing, cover the nudity. Look presentable. Second, hands up. No sudden moves… That’s right. Calm yourself. Not like they have wings and horns, right? That’d be a nightmare to fight. Just wings. Just pegasi and then the unicorns.’

He felt his heartbeat steadying itself. He looked toward the boat as it was still several hundred meters. But the pegasi were starting to buzz him. He raised his hands up into the air, issuing his surrender. Several of the flying ponies surrounded him, their spears pointed directly at him. They had him encircled and made ready as the ship came to a halt in the distance.

A voice from the deck called out. It was magically amplified--or they had megaphones. Thorne couldn’t tell.

“You are about to be brought aboard The Deep Blue under the command of Captain Crushing Depths. You are to be shackled upon boarding. Do not attempt to resist as we commandeer your vessel.”

Thorne looked to the pegasi and then back to the ship. Two of the pegasi of pure cobalt blue threw several ropes around the lightweight raft and secured them in place as their brothers and sisters in arms held Thorne hostage. Moments later the man nearly fell on his ass as his wooden raft was pulled forward in the calm waters at a moderate speed. The guards that had him at spear-length all fell away, taking up escort positions. They were no longer directly threatening him with the pointy-ends, but he knew better than to make any sudden moves less he found out what the metal was that made up the spears.

It took a few minutes for them to come up on the starboard side of The Deep Blue. The raft made contact with the wooden frame of the sloop with a gentle thump. The ropes from the two pullers went and tied around the side of the ship, securing one vessel to another. The raft was now at the mercy of the larger ship.

Thorne, however, was now at the mercy of ponies. “We’ll levitate you up. Don’t panic. You can understand me, right?” A male voice called out. A rust colored unicorn peered over the edge with a questioning gaze.

“Yeah, I can understand you. Can you understand me?”

There were a few murmurs of surprise and several nods. Then gravity got weird. Thorne found himself slipping free of the binds of the universal force. He could feel it wanting to tug him back down into the universal static, but a blob of color was wrapping itself around him. It startled him with how strong it felt, but it answered several questions as his form went gently setting on the deck.

‘So unicorns can work together to combine their magic. And their magic can influence quite a lot. And several working together can be felt--a strong feeling of warmth.’

The rust-colored unicorn stepped forward and inspected their catch. “Hands together or we’ll force them.” Thorne complied. “My name is Rusty Anchor, second in command of The Deep Blue under Captain Crushing Depths. You are being detained for questioning and examination. Do you understand?”

“Crystal clear, first officer Rusty Anchor.” Thorne responded in a casual tone. He found a pair of iron shackles going around his wrists. ‘Rusty Anchor. What the fuck kind of name is that. Sounds lewd, almost.’

“You look like you need medical aid and rest. As such, you will be given these after a bit of questioning,” Rusty stated as he stepped away. “Captain on deck!” He called out as an amber colored stallion stepped forward. All stood at attention at the call.

“First Officer Anchor, please make the ship ready to leave. We’ll be heading back to Vanhoover. Send a flier ahead to let the port know why we’re returning.” Captain Depths responded.

“Sir, yes sir!” Rusty responded. “Move out, everypony! Make ready!” He shouted as he saluted the captain and turned away, heading to take command of the ship. It left Thorne and the captain in the middle of the deck.

“Alright, alien. Who are you? What are you? I want answers before we give you any assistance. And a reason not to belay my order and go dump you back in that wasteland.” Captain Depths said with a tone that was telling of his experience of naval command.

‘Oh ho. Well then. I know what mask to put on for this.’

The human smiled softly. It was a kind and gentle smile, one worn by someone who wasn’t a snake. But Thorne was a snake. But he had the ability to fool even the most practiced politicians with this award-winning smile. “Oh thank goodness I encountered some friendly creatures! I am Lord Thorne and I have no idea how I got here. I found myself waking up in a cavern. I took what I could find and have been traversing that dreadful wasteland for days. When I finally came to the beach, I saw that raft and took my chances!”

The captain raised an eyebrow. “Lord? You’re a noble?”

“I was. I doubt it means much here… Tell me! Please! Where am I? Inside of that cavern, I found paintings and tapestries of strange creatures. Nothing like you all, but to me you all fall under that category as well. No offense.” Thorne continued.

“Hrm. None taken, though you’re just as strange. Some type of hairless ape almost. You’ve no hooves to speak of, so clearly not of a lineage of minotaurs. You don’t know where you are?”

Thorne shook his head.

“Unluckily, you ended up in the Forbidden Lands. A wasteland full of monsters and exiles. Did you encounter any in your escape from that cave?” The captain’s eyes scrutinized the rag that was passing as a kilt around Thorne’s waist.

“No, Captain Crushing Depths.” Thorne replied.

“Just Captain works,” the captain stated quickly. “It can be a mouthful of a name. So. Lord Thorne--”

“Just Thorne, please.” The human smiled gracefully after interrupting.

“Of course. Thorne. I hope you understand why we need to keep you under surveillance and arrest. But come with me. We’ll get you treated for those burns and blisters. Maybe get you something other than a dirty rug to wear.”

“I would enjoy that very much, thank you, Captain. And I understand perfectly. I was a military man myself.”

The captain let a chuckle as he turned and began to escort Thorne back down into the belly of the small ship. “A noble and a service member? Rare. Only hear about such things from the pegasi.”

Thorne gave a light hum in acknowledgement. “It wasn’t common back where I’m from either. Then again, we didn’t have pegasi nor unicorns. You look familiar, though, Captain. We had a creature like you that wasn’t in folktales. Are you just… a pony? No offense meant, of course.”

The captain turned his head as they entered into the lower deck. “None taken. It must be strange. You sound like you’re from another world. But yes, I am an earth pony. Unlike my compatriots of unicorns who channel magic, nor the pegasi who can fly and control the weather, I have the strength of the very earth in my veins. Stronger and more stubborn, I suppose.” He gave a soft chortle.

'Pegasi can control the weather?' “Huh. Well I suppose I am in another world then. My planet was called Earth.”

“Sounds like my kind of place. We’re on Equus. And we’ll be heading toward Equestria. Specifically, Vanhoover. So what are you, Thorne?” The captain questioned, leading him into a small corner of the lower deck. There was a large red cross painted on the wall next to it and a single bed. “And here we are. Good evening doc,” the captain casually remarked as they entered into the secluded area.

A unicorn mare was managing a few vials and gauze with her pink magic. She shook her flank back and forth as she was distracted by her humming and work. She herself was a cream color of white with a bouncy pink and red mane. Thorne noticed something glaring as he stared at her flank. She had some strange tattoo. It was a white cross layered on top of a droplet of blood.

The captain cleared his throat. “Doctor.”

Thorne took the chance to peek down at the captain while the mare was startled, wondering if he had some similar marking. To his surprise, it was different. His was a whirlpool that spawned from an inky abyss. It took a good portion of his flank up.

“Oh! Sorry, sorry!” The mare responded in a thick accent that made Thorne raise an eyebrow. ‘Sounds Canadian.’ “How can I help...you… Oh my.”

Stunned silence followed as she stared at the bipedal creature that stood next to the captain. Her cream coat would have gone pale sickly white with the terror that flushed through the poor mare. Thorne could see the panic rising in those adorable pink eyes that matched her mane. He stared at her with his golden orbs, appraising her.

‘Will you run, oh good doctor? Or see the hurt victim before you?’

The mare seemed to take a step back, those massive eyes scanning the form. She noticed the old scars and wounds, then the more recent ones--burns from the sun, along with blisters. Several scrapes and cuts from wandering the wilds. His ape-like feet were almost bleeding. The stallion before her looked soaked to the brim with sea-water as well. But her eyes kept coming back to his.

“Like a thestral…” she uttered.

“Doctor!” The captain reprimanded. Thorne didn’t know what for.

“Huh?! Oh! Sorry… you… you… Hrm.” She shook herself, trying to brace her mind against what she was seeing. “Sorry, your eyes are so striking. And a silver mane!”

“A thestral? Really?” The captain deadpanned before gazing up to his shackled prison. He squinted at the tiny eyes that resided in that face. “Barely has a mane to begin with, but yeah those eyes are rather colorful. Though, not unheard of as far as a color in ponykind…”

The mare shook her head. “No, it was just... I don’t know, it was like I was looking at a predator!”

Thorne smirked at that. “I might be,” he said with a sing-song voice, teasing the poor soul.

The captain chuckled. “You might look odd, but you seem rather genuine. You’re not a monster.”

‘You’re rather trusting, dear captain. Too bad that humanity is nothing but monsters. If you were smart, you would have killed me thrice over by now.’

“Not that I’m calling the thestrals monsters, of course. But you lack the cat-like eyes they have. If you had those, then maybe there would be some credence to Doctor Cheer Heart apprehensions.”

‘Cat-like eyes, hmm? Interesting. Sounds exotic. Almost enticing, even.’

“Hmm. Doctor Cheer Heart. A pleasure to meet you. I am Thorne. I’d give you and the captain a customary bow, but I am afraid I can’t use my arms at the moment,” he said, bringing the shackles to their attention. “If I may be so bold and do forgive me for my wandering eye, but I just noticed something. You two have interesting tattoos upon your flanks. Is that some kind of custom in Equestria?”

The fear and apprehension faded from the doctor’s face as she went over and began to examine Thorne with a more thorough eye. “You mean our cutie marks?” She trotted around him as he raised an eyebrow out of view.

“Cutie marks?”

“Wow… Captain, please look at his back! His mark is massive!” The doctor said in an astonished gasp.

There was simply more confusion from Thorne.

The captain turned and peered at their captive’s back. There in colorful ink was displayed the mark of the Black Roses, though no text gave any signifier to what it meant. A shield background, one that was steel in color, the outer edges appearing to be riveted and raised. The shield itself had the design of several human skulls imprisoned upon it--the design showing they had been beaten rigidly into the metal for decoration. On the foreground was a downward pointed dagger that was wrapped in a black rose. The hilt of the dagger formed a T across the shield. The bloom of the flower rested at the butt of the grip, it opened and proudly displayed to the world. It looked as though a few droplets of rain water had blessed the plucked-from-the-bush flower. The green and thorn-filled stem wrapped around the knife until the end tapered near the tip of the blade. From the blade tip, a large drop of red blood formed into a perfect droplet, ready to be released should the tattoo come alive.

“My word…” the captain remarked. “What does this signify, Thorne?”

“It’s a tattoo. One to show pride in my Black Roses,” he admitted before he gave it thought. He immediately had the afterthought of ‘Shit!’.

“Black Roses?”

“The military company I served with!” He said hastily, trying to keep the mask from failing. “In fact, I led them. As I said, it was my noble duty to lead and command.”

“A noble?” Doctor Heart said as she slowly came back to his front. “And served? I suppose that explains all these scars… But what is a tattoo?”

Thorne smiled softly, his mask returning. “To answer the captain first, I am a human. That is what my species calls itself. And a tattoo is a… a painting. Except one that is, albeit painfully, etched into the skin. My people used small needles dipped in ink to pierce our skin and paint beautiful murals on their body as a sign of respect.”

‘Or to put grotesque and disrespectful images on themselves,’ he thought callously.

“Is it really so different from those ‘cutie marks’?” He asked, motioning again toward their flanks. They both scoffed.

“Entirely different. These appear when we find our purpose in life. Or find what makes us special. Or helps explain a certain talent we have. It’s a magical connection telling of who we are, what we do, and what we can aspire to get better at.” The doctor remarked as she went to her cabinet in order to fetch some gauze, bandages, cream, and two pills. Next came her getting a cup of water. She worked amazingly fast with her horn, giving away a practiced pace. “First things first, we need to get you bathed. Need to clean you properly and get you out of that rug. Then we need to dress those wounds. Have you eaten anything recently, Thorne?” She asked.

‘Cutie marks. Another magical thing on this mud ball. Intriguing…’

He responded simply and truthfully. “Yes, I ate. Not much, but I have something on my stomach.”

“Good,” she was quick in reply as she floated the cup and two pills to him. “Take these.”

‘Damn, she slipped right into professional doctor mode rather quickly.’

Thorne maneuvered his hands to grip the pills and the water. He tossed the pills back and slung back the drink like a shot. He set the metal cup on the small shelf she was working with before looking about. “So, a cleaning, huh?”

“Mhm. Drop your rug, will you? And captain, you can leave him with me. I’ll take care of him.” Doctor Heart said as she scribbled a few things down into what looked like a new medical report.

Thorne looked to the captain with a raised eyebrow. Captain Depths sighed. “I’ll be sending two guards down here to keep an eye on you and to help out.” That merely got a ‘mhm’ from the distracted doctor. With that, the captain shoved off.

Thorne shrugged and reached down, undoing the shawl that had protected him, letting it drop to his ankles. The mare turned only to pause and let the pen and clipboard she was holding drop from her magical grasp as bore witnessed to undraped splendor.

Thorne merely smirked at the reaction. ‘So much for professional doctor mode.’