BRAWLER

Applejack was standing in a familiar place, yet the walls were too darkened for her to recognise it completely. In the room she was in there was a gut wrenching sound of metal against metal. She thought nothing of it though for some reason, looking to the sound in idle curiosity. Applejack spoke a name her mind could not recognise, and a shadow in the darkened walls moved closer.

Her heart began to race seeing the sickening construction of an insect like creature with exposed metallic bones scrape towards her. Turning on her hoof she ran to the door and kicked it open, the stairs a clear path down, quickly blocked by another monstrous abomination with a stomach churning gurgle.

Se spun and kicked off down a hall, running will all her speed until she collided with a far wall. The faster monstrosity was tearing its way toward her as its pieces glinted in the pale lighting that did grace this hall. She felt trapped, and kicked out on all three sides to break free. Her legs hurt, her body grew heavier as the heart teetered on the verge of exploding in the madness.

All her fright accumulate into a whimper then, and she fell back as the creature descended on her.

With a shout Applejack woke to a cold sweat. Instantly she felt the icy morning air, shaking it off at having been caught unaware. Her heart was still beating almost painfully fast, she could feel it swelling in her chest with each frantic gulp of air. She was till in the container, come cage, they had moved Champ away in.

As the senses returned and the scale of the place she was in kind, she noticed an absence that left her questioning the realities of the night before. She retold the events in her mind to be sure, all of them ending in a fear that the newfound Adam had taken advantage of her exhaustion and escaped.

Thinking about it now, what was she thinking. Looking over her body and checking all vital areas, the doubts emerged in a tide. Applejack had spent the night with something she had witnessed massacre one of its own with extreme efficiency. She stood up realizing something; not a scratch was on her. After all the stories around the Brawler she had still dared comfort him in a very frightening time...and he had not harmed her.

Shaking her head, now growing more painful with each throb, she inhaled deeply to try shake off the drowsiness that stubbornly remained.

There was this horrible smell, truly the most foul stench she had experienced. Managing to stand with her spinning head and weakened knees, she successfully wobbled out of the wagon to the sunlight. There was no trace of Rainbow Dash, now Applejack was worried.

She looked back and screamed seeing Adam atop the cage and posed as a gargoyle might do. In the light, he looked even more monstrous. The twisted metal around his body glinted through the stains he collected on his person. The terrifying teeth were what forced her to step back in their twisted smile. The gut wrenching doubt emerged with a newfound appreciation for what it was, and what it could, probably was going to, do to her.

She stifled the shriek with her hoof, and took in the bizarre sight. It looked to her then, and jumped to the ground to quake it in the seemingly casual landing. It landed on one leg, wincing as the other was bent to accommodate the landing force. It did not move, remaining on one knee before her. Whether this was from the pain or respect, she was compelled to speak.

“A...Adam?”

It rose, the voice considerably more clear than last night as it echoed around the metallic grinding of the needle bladed teeth. “Adam is?” The tone of a question was clear, and Applejack was less inclined to dart away now. With his familiar voice her terror was inclined to run away instead of rooting her to the spot.

“Y...”, she gulped, “You...are?”

“You sleep close?”

“Ye...ahem...yes.”

“Why?” His eyes narrowed with the growl as he said it, and the tiny eye on his intact side of the face watched her with unmistakable malice as she leaned more on her front hooves. Applejack found her confidence now, knowing this moment would not only define her motives to him, but her very life.

“You were in trouble there Adam.”

“Speak small!” he barked, startling her. Applejack regathered herself a moment trying tho think it out.

“You have blue inside.” She gestured to herself awkwardly to illustrate. Blue is gone, you shake,” She stood on her hinds and shook her body to show him, “and I sleep close to help.”

He walked to her, the long blade of his arm catching a ray of the sunrise to bring it startlingly back to her memory. “Help is lie, what-” he stopped then and looked at his heel. Applejack smiled then as she recognized the electrified prodding tool she tossed away last night. He looked up and the good half of his face smirked. “No more pain, now you pain.”

“NO!” she sternly shouted. “I no want use. Bad to use.”

His brow furrowed in confusion. “Bad?”

“Bad,” she repeated instinctively.

He stared at it for a while a calm descending on the morning allowing the chirping birds to tickle it once more. She watched in sew as the rod slowly warped in the plated hand, then sparked as it fell apart in his crushing grip. He stared at her then, and she at him, each scaling what they were looking at.

Applejack could not imagine what eh was thinking, or even if he could remember her from all that time ago, but she took the sight in marvel and disgust. The creature she and Rainbow once knew had been butchered to become a butcher. His left dies was armored with scraped smooth plating, the opposing side boasting three blade like spikes that could be seen. One came out of the right arm, the second out of the elbow, the third out of the knee.

He had several subtle mechanical parts it seemed that meshed artfully to allow crude imitation of muscle and skin. Seeing this transformation was hard to say the least, yet now one word described what Applejack was looking at; unstoppable.

“Very warm,” he finally broke the silence with. “You are master?” She nodded. “You trust much for home open.” She looked back to his cage, the statement making a little too much sense. “I not...” He tapped his head with the good hand, “much. I am Champ, but now A dam?” She nodded again, tanking a step closer. “Master are name?”

“My name is Applejack. You don't remember anything?

“I know Twist gone to darkness. I know your face. It brings...good feeling.” He examined the grafted blade on his arm. “Good feeling...reason you not go to darkness.”

A cold shock washed over. Applejack winced as another pain shot up in her head, she grasped it tightly in a futile effort to stop the throbbing. It subsided with the sudden fear of not seeing him clearly, her eyes looking up quickly to see he had not moved.

“I used my money to buy you. I help you not go to darkness?” she said unsure it was translating correctly. She winced again with a particularly nagging throb in the temple.

“Master pain?”

“My head! It’s really hurting something fierce.”

“You have blue, you have my pain.”

“What's happening to me Adam?”

“Pain normal. You touch me on blue, you take part of blue. Pain small in me, big in you.” She looked up with bewilderment, “Learn with old mates.”

“Learned with...wait, I got that blue stuff in me?”

He nodded. “Little. Do so.” He gestured in a way to imitate the flowing of air in and out. “Pain go soon.”

Applejack felt instantly foolish. This was a type of transfer through contact, something which explained a lot. It must have been in his sweat as the body expelled the toxins. They then were absorbed by her own system. Despite it all, the fact that is was a little amount in her system, only made her imagine how much worse it was for him when the picture of the blue smoke cloud came to view.

He came closer to her but the anger was visibly gone, more so the instinct to flee had failed to emerge as the distance closed with each limping thud. She looked up as he placed a water canister in front of her, not sure of what to do next. His words were only now beginning to sink in. “I no drink, clean.”

“You were going to send me to darkness?” He nodded once, and it paralysed her. Such terror came that her legs buckled, the shattered ideal of what she imagined him to be. The creature here was different to the one that she had held asleep. “But...y...you did not.”

“No. home open, master no have enforcer. Master sleep...close me. You not master, as master with horn. Horn pony is not safe.”

Hearing that, Applejack could understand. It still was more chilling than the air was now to think he had that much awareness, and to imagine what would happen if he did not. “Umm...thanks?

“Drink water, blue out faster.” She obliged with a cautious sniff, very wary of exposing her throat to him. “I no hurt...you old pony.”

“Old?” The meaning was lost, because her age was obviously less that he horned mare form last night. She turned to follow him as he limped to sit on the grass, mouth open in awe as his silhouette blocked the sunlight in its height before receding to the ground.

The form was no less intimidating with less height, for now her legs itched thinking about what one swipe could do. As she circled to the plated and more intact side, he did not move, seeming more focused on other matters with a worried furrow of the brow. It was strangely insulting how casually he had dismissed her interaction.

Applejack took a deep breath to watch the mist blow out of her nostrils. Sitting a few hooves away, she ermined focused on him to be safe. He winced then and hit his upper arm with the plated hand.

“Pain?” Although obvious, she needed to keep talking to understand what he was thinking.

“Dangerous...sleep close...be close. Brave Applejack.” That somehow coaxed her to nudge closer. “Two came, I see one.”

“Two?”

“One of you...and blue.”

“That was my friend, friend.”

“Pony as you?”

“Rainbow Dash is my friend and is like me.”

“Master Rainbow.”

“Alright Adam. Do not hurt her.”

“Hurt...”

“Go to darkness?”

He nodded then, resting his forehead in the bladed arms hand. The horrible scrape gave a visual aid to how he lost that eye, if it was truly gone on that side. “I not hurt...Master Rainbow.”

Applejacks curiosity was compelling her to ask. “Do you understand why you fight?” He stared for some moment before answering.

“I am Adam. Brawler to Master Applejack.”

“No. I mean what is happening?”

“Happening is?”

“You fight other Brawlers to darkness, why do you do that? How did this start?”

“I fight to see next day. Start with bell, not help me. We know of one who...is Master of masters. You understand?”

Applejack sighed at the barrier, upset it would now take more time to fix this. She laughed once imagining Twilight loving to step in and teach him a thing or two. “I do not, but I understand there is some creature at the head of all of this.”

“Master of masters is head, I cut forever.”

“She...” Applejack said out loud in contemplation. “A lot of Brawlers?”

“I not know. I know nothing much. Cannot understand much...stupid.”

“Hey now.” She rested a hoof on his bare shoulder, not a trace of fur left. “You’re not stupid. You did not send me to darkness, you are not stupid.” He grunted in a dismissive manner, a detrimental manner. “We will have to sort this out later. Right now you need a real fixing. Hows the knee?” Applejack pointed to the spike protruding from his knee for clarity.

“Knee...much pain.”

“Well we’ll get you cleaned up as soon as you get home.”

“Yes Master. Drink. I no want to end you, you safe.”

“I guess you would have already done it...can’t say I blame you.” She popped the lid and drank deeply, it was definitely spring water. He had been away some time, and she cursed her heavy sleeping with a shudder to the nightmare that came. Applejack rose on time as always however at the crack of dawn, so it was likely he did all his activities before the sun came up.

“Busy morning?”

“Yes.” The s was icy with the deformed mouth then. Isolated it sounded more of an hiss.

“Did you clean up in the river?”

“No understand.”

“It’s alright,” she laughed. “I can we are going to have to learn you a think of two.” he did not respond, still looking numbly out to the dawn with the every rising sun.

“Pain Adam? Too much pain?”

“I want gallop.” She remained silent as he gestured to the open expanse. “I want gallop no stop.”

“Why don't you?”

“I no where to gallop. I stay.”

“Do you want to stay?”

“Still much pain. Hurt to understand. You...you say words I know are nice, kind voice. You buy me from horn and Titus.” It was clear he understood little and did not express that confusion much, it betrayed his pride.

“That's right Adam.”

“Why?”

“Oh dear.” She sat down beside him. “Looks like later has come.”

“No understand.”

“You are better than that.”

“No...understand, Master.”

“I want to be your friend. I buy you so you not...go to darkness?”

“Ah, that I understand. You are Brawler keeper?”

Applejack responded calmly, stifling the offence that insinuation instilled. “No...”

“That good. Not smart...to let Brawler cage out.” He pointed to the line of trees bordering the open meadow. It was a bright and sunny morning in the least, the lovely light bathing the field in gold and the speckling the trees with flakes through the foliage. “Brawler hunger quick.”

Somehow it made sense to her. “What did you...do?”

“Eat. Very hungry. Need food.”

“What...umm...”

“Master does not want to understand. Master-”

“Did you eat Rainbow!?” she yelled at him.

“Rainbow?”

“My FRIEND?!!”

“I no eat Master Rainbow pony Master! I swear!” He leaned bak on sudden fear as she rose up to stare at him with terror nod disgusted rage. His fearful eye encouraged it somehow. “I eat small white thing! I no eat Master or blue one Master, Master!”

“You eat what!?”

“No name to me, small with big ears.”

“A bunny?”

“No know name.”

“A rabbit? She held two ends of her mane up to illustrate for him.”

“Small?” She parted her hooves for him, hoping that this was not the rabbit she feared it was.

“Smaller.” He held out the plated hand to gesture with two fingers. It was too small to be a rabbit at least and she sighed with relief. There was a terror in his own eyes at her anger, and she looked away feeling guilty. He had enough of that back there.

“I..I'm...sorry.”

“Is..Master...”

“I'm fine Adam. Just scared me there.”

“I never eat you pony. I very hungry when wake.”

“Alright...but you have to stop eating critters!”

“What is...craters?”

“No, critters. Little animals.”

“No eat animals. I need eat craters. What else?”

“Oh so much Adam, and I know you fellas are omnivorous. Just please hold on and wait until help comes. Where’s Rainbow?”

“Wear is...?” He repeated it slowly. Applejack was a little annoyed then, but it faded realising he was trying to understand in the least. For some reason, this beast was relenting to her efforts to bond.

“Where is Rainbow Dash? My blue friend.”

“Friend goes to get more help. She come morning, scared I go to darkness. She say her friend give trouble, she does not yet bell...I've?”

“Believe?”

“Means...”

“To trust in something a pony says.”

“Trust to say... Yes, she does not...believe...I am here.”

“You remember that?”

“Leave note, I try read.” He passed her a paper the bladed hand was clutching, stained wit the morning activities. It was clear he tried with great effort to understand the contents of that note. “Still sleep much when she come, still on blue. Master Rainbows kick me to wake and try talk... Master Rainbows not...wait as you.”

“That's her alright. It looks like she needed to prove you were here so we could get some help. She took something to show her friend.”

“She take something to show?”

“What did she...” Applejack realised it just now, he was completely nude. Barren of hair, that body was extremely strange to look at. She had to turn away quickly to stop her eyes from looking any lower, already a peek stolen and quickly learned they did not hide as well as Stallions. There was a lot of muscle on him. “Why...wh...ahem... She took your cloth...”

“Say my cloth has old belt. It show my here.”

“I think I understand.”

“You are cold?”

“I'm alright, morning freshness.” She took a deep breath to greet the scents of the new day, smiling to him as best she could with those horrible teeth smiling back. They were attached to his cheek, not the jaw. “Just taking it in. Try.”

“Take.”

“Take a deep breath like this.” She repeated the action and circled her hoof in example. “Try.”

He closed his eye and breathed a little, she winced as he did seeing the metallic fittings stretch the skin they clung to. It was remarkable how many repairs had been done to the body. Applejack was not the kind of pony that dabbled in the science stuff outside of the farm life, but it was amazing to see the harmony of the mechanism as it twisted to accommodate the stretch. As sickening as it was, it had been crafted well. He finished with a wince, the sounds of the sharpened teeth grinding no longer as intimidating.

“That's better?”

“Cold.”

“Yeah.” As she enjoyed the morning air, a waft reached that shattered to calm. It was strong enough to merit attention. Looking to Adam, the smell became obvious. “You are in pain...” she said with realisation to the perceived extent of it.

“Pain. I am alive.”

“We got to fix that. Make it better.”

“Pain does not go.”

“Once we get you cleaned up, we will worry about that.”

“Clean is?”

“Bad smell gone.”

He did not answer, staring out at the edge of the road. “Sorry I smell. I try wash but many critters in river.”

She smiled with a little pride at him having used a new word, even imitating her accent as he said it. “I’m not complaining big guy.” He shifted slightly further away, the scent was not as difficult to bear as the wind shifted.

“It’s really cold this morning. Would you like me to sit closer?” There was no answer. “No understand, huh?” He nodded, wincing as a piece of the metal caught on the skin. Applejack was trying to keep calm, but every time he moved she became more and more shocked. It was torture, literal torture what they did. She could not ignore the fact that it kept him alive tough, and she remembered what the mare said about it.

“Adam?”

His head rose, she could not make anything out from the side she looked at. Breeze or no, he was bunching up, and getting colder. Applejack carefully shimmied closer to touch against to his intact side, and leaned in. It was cold, incredibly hard. There was a great deal of metal plating all along the arm. It reminded her of the pony gladiators in stories, but there were no straps holding them on, and she did not want to know how they were secured.

He writhed as she touched him, but did not move as her weight sunk against the side. The proximity became obvious and the warmth that emanated blanketed him must have been a welcome against the cold air.

“Thank...you, Master.” Apparently the minor cleansing of the blue smoke did a lot to relieve his delirium. That and what he ate a few minutes ago. A long time passed in the twittering of birds before he spoke again, the growl drowning out the ambience.

“You take me away, I can breath.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“What you do to me today?”

“We will go to my home, and try to fix you up. Make better. Then I don’t know. We must stop this, that one I’m sure of.”

“Stop...”

“No more Brawlers go to darkness.”

He ermined silent, not daring to move a muscle. Applejack imagined he remained still so as not to hurt her with the plating. “Stop brawling...”

“Later. Right now we have to wait a while until Rainbow gets back with her friend.”

“Friend help?”

“Yeah.”

“Friend...what is?”

“Again another saddening thing to hear.”

“I am your friend.”

She shuddered and tensed her muscles as the plated arm slowly touched her shoulder. If anything, it was remarkably gentle in the minor massaging motions. This tenderness was unthinkable from looking at him. It was strange this creature was displaying as much intelligence as it did. He was still a shell though, a shell of what Applejack once knew. Broken however was not a word that could be used to describe him, not in any sense.

This now had taught Applejack one thing or another; these things were intelligent enough to understand trust, or they were intelligent enough to plan. His next words however confirmed to her what she knew of the old champion, and she knew there was time now for Rainbow to get help.

“Friend... Master applejack is my friend...” He sighed then, long and heavy in an almost release of tension. “I like my friend.”