Murderous Sorrow

It was dark in Butchershy’s Isolation Cell. She was lying on the mattress with the blanket wrapped around her. She had been through a long day of experiments and just wanted to sleep. She finally found a comfortable position and began to close her eyes.

She didn’t know Crazity had been watching her until she blasted loud rock music in the room.

Butchershy was surprised by the sudden loud noise. Her eyes shifted to the door and saw Crazity watching from the viewing pane. She was grinning at the mare. Butchershy couldn’t fight her. She was too weak and Crazity was outside. She just let herself be punished by yet another grueling restless night.

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Crazity grinned at her work; she knew there was no way Butchershy could fight back. She had more scars on her face, and a heart one on her chest, while one of her eyes turned black completely with a white pupil. She looked on her back to see that the doll she carried around was now gone. Fear crept up on her at the thought of losing her doll, Pinkamina. She looked to her side to see a certain lavender mare in the hallway, levitating a white doll with a pink mane in the air.

“Looking for this?” Darklight asked. She no longer looked like her old self. Her eyes were now those of a Murderess, black irises and darker shade in the pupils. She had scars on a side of her neck, her left foreleg, and around her waist area.

“Darklight, give her back!” Crazity tried to pry her doll out of the Alicorn’s magic, but she hesitated.

“Not unless you promise me you won’t use loud music to keep her awake”

Crazity finally grabbed her doll and held it close like a child. “It’s okay, Pinkamina. Mommy’s here” she whispered to the doll. Then she turned to Darklight, “Why don’t you go to our Alpha yourself?”

Darklight sighed as she watched the mare disappear in the hallway. She peeked through the viewing pane to see Butchershy covering her ears and lying on the floor, as though trying to block out the noise. Darklight didn’t want to give up on helping her out of this mess. She owed it to her afterall.

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“That should teach you to obey me, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!”Pinkamena yelled as she sliced Darklight on the foreleg. She was bleeding on the floor, not much to kill her but enough to be weakened.

Darklight finally gave up, whimpering and nodded. “Yes, my Alpha”

“Good” Pinkamena nodded. “Maybe a cut to the chest should remind you” saying so, she lifted her knife and was about to strike when a yellow hoof stopped her.

“No!”

The mare turned to see it was Butchershy, tearing up and her butcher knife in hoof. She immediately ran to Darklight to help her.

“Are you okay?” she asked as she patched the mare up with the bandages she brought.

“I guess, thank you” Darklight said, weakly.

“Butchershy, get out of here and let me teach this mare to obey her Alpha!”

“I won’t, Pinkamena! She has been through enough and you can’t even see that. What kind of Alpha re you? Alphas are supposed to also care for their followers”

“What do you know about being one? Remember when you lost to Rainbow?”

Darklight was surprised at that as Butchershy bit her lip. “Butchershy, what did she mean?”

“Atleast Rainbow was stronger”

“Well, I outta…” she didn’t get to finish her sentence when she felt a sharp pain in her head. Butchershy saw various things pop into her mind. The force was too strong. Unable to stay awake, she collapsed on the floor.

“Training’s over, Darklight. Go to your room” Pinkamena commanded. “I’ll show this Pegasus to disobey my Authority”

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Darklight couldn’t bear to see the pain. Butchershy had been kept in the Isolation Room for weeks. It was not only because Pinkamena was mad at her, but because the yellow mare kept having breakdowns, nearly causing the house they’re in to be flooded with tears. Crazity always complained about having to mop the floor back to normal and keeping her doll from “drowning”. Rainbow Factory Dash and Murderjack have recently gone dating since the day Rainbow saved Murderjack from drowning. Darklight had been recovering from the latest scars she got from Rainbow, Pinkamena, and Crazity. Pinkamena had been performing new experiments in an effort to find out why Butchershy seemed so depressed. They managed to get one hint that one time.

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“What do you see, Butchershy?” Pinkamena asked as she sat on the couch.

Butchershy was on a chair, her eyes closed and a metal headband device on. “I see something”

“Good, Butchershy. What do you see?”

“I’m…I’m not sure. It’s something orange…in my…cottage…” she paused for a minute as she looked into empty space. “Something’s wrong”

“It’s okay, old girl. Tell us what you see”

“Her name is…is…” she couldn’t take it anymore as she threw a tantrum. Pulling off the device from her head, she almost broke everything in the room if it weren’t for Crazity levitating her.

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That was the only clue Darklight and the others had to the root of her depression, a girl. Who it was they didn’t know yet. Every time they tried to get Butchershy to say it, she would either have a breakdown or cause a tantrum. They still perform experiments on her, but with more restraints and even keep them on whenever bringing her out. Butchershy began to look more and more like somepony from the asylum. Darklight saw Rainbow walk down the hallway, the key in hoof.

“Good evening, Darklight” she greeted.

“Good evening”

Rainbow peered into the viewing pane and saw what happened inside for a few minutes. She closed the pane with a shocked face. Rainbow was always the least enraged if she wasn’t under Pinkamena’s control. She even showed to be caring to Butchershy, revealing that they were once like sisters before becoming Murderesses. At night, when Crazity was away, Rainbow would bring the key to the Isolation Room and let Darklight inside to check on Butchershy.

“What’s wrong with her?” Darklight asked Rainbow Factory Dash as she wrote down new notes into the notebook she kept with Pinkamena’s recordings.

“She’s acting suicidal; saying something from her past is haunting her and will not rest until they are fully reunited again”

“How did Pinkamena find her?”

“When we got our ego back, even hers showed potential in Pinkamena’s eyes. She thinks that she could cure her. You want to see her?”

Darklight nodded. Rainbow lifted the viewing pane. Darklight looked at one side until she found Butchershy, atleast before the mare moved out of eye range. Rainbow then pulled out the key she was holding and unlocked the door, gesturing for Darklight to go in. Darklight walked into the Isolation Room to find Butchershy standing in front of a mirror. The mare looked like she was staring into nothing and even looked pretty drained.

Butchershy’s eyes shot up when she saw Darklight through the mirror. “What?”

Darklight didn’t respond. Butchershy looked around to see her face to face.

“Sorry, I just came to check on you”

“She’s not gonna let me out” Butchershy looked down.

Darklight shook her head. “No, she will”

“Pinkamena just wants to torture the heck out of me. I was always the black sheep since you came into the picture”

“No, you’re not”

“She tells me it will take time before I can finally say who it is without crying. Is it time?”

“It’s all up you, Butchershy”

Butchershy bit her lip. “I sometimes wish I could die to make it all stop”

“Don’t do that”

Butchershy went closer to Darklight. “I just want it to end, one way or another. Please tell Pinkamena I’m tired, and ready for her next session”

Darklight nodded. Butchershy said one last thing before the Alicorn left. “And Darklight, thank you”

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“Okay, thank you for that report, Rainbow” Pinkamena’s voice rang out as Darklight entered the office. Pinkamena was at her desk while Rainbow sat in the chair. Pinkamena then noticed Darklight came in. “Darklight, what brings you by?”

“Butchershy said she needs rest, and that she’s ready”

Pinkamena nodded. “Thank you. Did you close the door when you went out?”

Darklight nodded.

“Good”

“Are you sure about the pain you’re causing on her?”

“It’s for her own good” Pinkamena said no more as she turned her chair around. She looked down and stared at the floor as she remembered the day she took Butchershy with her.

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“You’re not…scared of me?” Butchershy asked with surprise when she saw that her friends caught her in her Murderess form.

Without warning, Rainbow, Murderjack, Rarity, and Pinkie morphed into their Murderess forms to prove Butchershy to not be afraid.

“We always knew that there were more of us still out there” Pinkamena said with a grin.

“You won’t tell my family, will you?” Butchershy asked.

“We won’t if you promise not to tell ours” Crazity chimed in.

Butchershy nodded.

“Why are you scared?” Pinkamena asked.

“I’m afraid of how they’ll take it if they ever find out”

“When was the last time you killed?” Murderjack asked.

“To be honest, when I was a filly, my first and last one actually”

“You don’t have to be ashamed of who you are, Fluttershy” Pinkamena said as she put a comforting hoof over the mare.

“It’s Butchershy, actually. And I’m afraid of going mad”

“You don’t need to be afraid” Pinkamena said as she eyed the others. “We’re all mad here”

“Can you help me control it then?”

Pinkamena nodded. “I promise”

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“Pinkamena, are you crying?” Darklight asked as the pink mare snapped out of the memory.

Pinkamena then noticed the wetness in her eyes and she wiped it off with a hoof. “No, it’s just a little dusty in here. Anyway, let’s get ready for the session”

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Butchershy lied down on the table with the restraints on her arms and the headband on her head. She was obviously scared and nervous. Around her were the rest of the gang, and Pinkamena with the remote to make the headband start. Rainbow and Darklight had their notes. Murderjack had her shovel just in case. Crazity stood on guard, with her magic ready.

“Let’s try this again. Dig deep and stay calm” Pinkamena said.

Butchershy nodded before the device turned on. She closed her eyes tightly and began to fear for what was happening. All of it only came out as whimpers and cringes. Darklight bit her lip as she watched the process. Finally, the yellow mare spoke.

“No…it can’t be!” Butchershy whimpered.

“What cant’ be, Butchershy?” Pinkamena asked.

“I shouldn’t have left you alone”

“Who shouldn’t have you left alone?”

“No…where did you go? Come back!” Butchershy began to scream. She began to struggle in her bonds.

“Okay, I think we better get her out of it” Pinkamena said as she turned the device off, allowing Butchershy to open her eyes again. The mare began to act more afraid, even traumatized. Pinkamena just tried her best to calm her down.

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Darklight looked through the viewing pane to see that Butchershy was staring at the window, particularly to the flower field ahead. She had her blanket wrapped around her, as though she was freezing. The key in her hoof, the Alicorn opened the door to meet the yellow mare. Butchershy’s eyes were the only ones that moved to see Darklight.

“Hey” she whispered.

Butchershy began to seem afraid, probably due to the latest session. Darklight approached, nonetheless.

“I brought you something” Darklight then levitated the yellow flower she hid, making it float to Butchershy. The yellow mare calmed down at the sight of the plant. “I thought it might cheer you up”

Butchershy took the flower when it was within range. She looked at it tenderly and gave the Alicorn a smile. “Thank you”

“How have things been for you?”

Butchershy closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again. “I think I know who it is”

“Who?”

________________________________________

The next day, the same thing happened again. But there was a different response from Butchershy today. Pinkamena had switched the device on, sending her into another session of limbo. Butchershy closed her eyes again and went through. She looked calm at first, but she shut her eyes tightly as though from fear within seconds.

She then began to speak. “NO! I wish I didn’t leave you alone!”

“Butchershy, who didn’t you wish you left alone?” Pinkamena asked, as though trying to reach out to her.

“Where are you?!” the yellow mare whimpered.

“Where’s who, Butchershy?” Pinkamena asked.

The only response she got was the yellow mare breaking her bonds. Everypony stood back in fear from that. How did she break those bonds? It never happened before! Butchershy then sat up as her hooves climbed to the device.

“No! Why did they trap you inside?!” she cringed.

“Who’s trapped inside?” Pinkamena asked.

Butchershy only got worse. She looked like she was about to cry as the grip on the device grew stronger. “BURNING! BURNING! DON’T BE…!”
She then was able to pull the device right off her head. Then she opened her eyes widely in that very second it was off.

“Butchershy, how did you get that off?” Pinkamena asked, quite amazed.

The yellow mare only looked her way, fearful. “Where is she?!” she yelled frantically. “What did you do to her?!”

“Butchershy, calm down!” Darklight called out to the mare.

The Pegasus then shifted her eyes to Darklight. The Alicorn just looked at her with concern. Butchershy had never seen that look in a long time, not since she began to rebel against Pinkamena. That look began to make her suddenly calm. Pinkamena was confused by what Darklight was doing, but was even more surprised when Butchershy just plopped herself back on the table without even screaming.

“That’s it, just breathe. Breathe” Darklight said as she approached the mare.

The yellow mare just did as told. She started out shakily at first, but her breathing began to slow down. Within a few seconds of trying, her breathing was back to normal. Everypony in the room was perplexed. They saw Pinkamena try to stop Butchershy many times with the craziest things she could conjure and Darklight calmed her down just by talking to her!

“There we go. See? You’re alright” the Alicorn said as she put a comforting hoof on the mare.

Everypony just gaped, but Pinkamena growled.

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Later…

Darklight walked down the hallway when she heard the loud music playing again. And right on schedule, she saw that Pinkamena was at the door of the Isolation Room, blasting the loud rock music. She had her earplugs on and was writing something in a small, red notebook with a bloody cupcake on the front. On the other side of the door was Butchershy, trying to desperately block out the sounds by covering her ears. Darklight had been planning this since she knew of the experiments, and now was the perfect time to put them into action. Taking a step forward, she turned off the music with her magic. She then opened the viewing pane to see Butchershy in a corner. The yellow mare took notice of her when she realized the music stopped playing.

“Are you alright?” Darklight asked the mare.

Butchershy nodded. “Thank you”

“Hey! What’s with turning down that rock music?” Pinkamena yelled as she took off the earplugs. She glared even more when she saw Darklight.

“Darklight, why aren’t you in your room?”

“How long have you been keeping her up like this? And why?”

“I have been doing this since the first time she flooded the house. This is to try and make sure she doesn’t cry in her sleep”

“You put her in the Isolation Room, keep her in Trance Bands to make her talk, and keep her up loud music. You’re not helping her! You’re only making her worse!” Darklight yelled, catching the attention of the rest of the gang. “She needs to rest!”

Pinkamena growled. She thought she already taught the Alicorn a lesson and yet she still is against her. She was about to go for another reprimanding when she noticed that Murderjack, Rainbow Factory Dash, and Crazity were staring. She began to feel that they started to agree with Darklight; she was treating Butchershy cruelly. If she doesn’t try to make it look like she cared, they’ll begin to ally against her.

“Alright, fine!” she said atlast. “I guess she HAS deserved a well-earned break”
________________________________________

The next day…

The entire gang was outside in the small garden of their house. Rainbow and Murderjack were drinking some cider under a tree. Crazity was combing her doll’s mane near the flowerbeds. Pinkamena was helping herself to a try of cupcakes from her last Victim at the chair she sat on. Darklight peeked her eyes out from the book she was reading and looked around for Butchershy. She found the mare at the small pond, as though looking at her reflection. Darklight put her book down and went to check on the mare. She then noticed that there was a black strap around the Pegasus’ head.

“Butchershy?” she called to her when she was beside her.

The yellow mare turned around to show that she had a muzzle on her.

Darklight was surprised. “Why do have a muzzle on you?”

Butchershy grabbed a nearby branch and drew something on the ground: a diamond with a blood drop in the center, Crazity’s cutie mark.

“CRAZITY!” Darklight called out.

“What is it, darling?” the Unicorn asked in annoyance as she walked over with her doll on her back. “You’re scaring Pinkamina”

“A muzzle?! You can’t be serious!”

“I don’t trust Butchershy without restraints. She can never be calm”

Darklight glared at the Unicorn, then turned back to Butchershy. The yellow one dragged a hoof across the ground with her head low, as though from shame.

“What if I prove she CAN be calm?” Darklight challenged.

The scared mare stole a glance.

“I doubt it, but if that’s even possible, you can remove her muzzle” Crazity giggled.

“You’ll see” Darklight smirked.

Butchershy paid no attention to their conversation. She knew she was already the black sheep of their gang. She then noticed a lavender hoof infront of her.

“Hey, now” Darklight whispered. “It’s alright”

Butchershy was shaking from fear. She was afraid that Darklight was about to hit her. Sure, she was kind but you never know. She was about to attempt a scream and jump in the water when Darklight just ran her hoof gently across her mane. Something about it seemed…soothing. It’s like it was telling her there was nothing to fear. She hasn’t felt such a friendly touch in sometime. She began to relax.

“There we go, that’s it” Darklight whispered to her.

Crazity was stumped. That never happened before.

Darklight withdrew her hoof momentarily from Butchershy before she began to remove the muzzle. “I don’t want to see you with this” she whispered.

Butchershy only watched as the restraint was removed from her. Darklight trusted her enough to remove her restraints. She couldn’t even comprehend it so much when the Alicorn ran her hoof on the mare again. She relaxed at that touch.

“There we go. Let me see that pretty face”

Everypony else then watched the whole scene. Rainbow and Murderjack stopped their drinking match. Pinkamena looked at the sight. She spat the cupcake out when she saw what was going on. Darklight had been able to keep Butchershy calm, even outside the house and no restraints.
The pink mare was already furious.

________________________________________

Butchershy wrapped herself in the blanket. She was inside the Isolation Room, but quite happy with what happened today. She thought she was about to become a somewhat crazy mare again, but Darklight was helping her through it. Darklight even kept her calm without a muzzle, and even stopped her from throwing a tantrum from the experiment. She never thought somepony would trust her, but Darklight had changed that for her. Taking a deep breath, she lied down on the mattress and closed her eyes. Perhaps she could even get some rest since Darklight even convinced the others to not keep her up with loud music.

Outside, Darklight was peeking through the viewing pane to see how Butchershy was doing. She was relieved to see that the yellow mare was sleeping peacefully. It was good to see that her friend was now able to finally relax in peace. Still, she couldn’t help but think, why did Pinkamena treat her cruelly even before the experiments began? Was it because she saved Darklight the first time? Was it because she possibly envied her weapon, The Chainsaw Amulet? Or maybe it could be because she may have known all along that who Butchershy was really looking for was…

“Darklight, there you are, darling!” Crazity’s voice rang out, snapping Darklight out of her thoughts.

“Good evening, Crazity”

“I must say, you were impressive with how you were able to calm Butchershy down. Pinkamena tries everything and you calmed her by just talking to her!”

“Sometimes, you just gotta talk to a pony to make them feel safe. When I saw Butchershy react to Pinkamena, all I saw was fear. From fear came the outbursts, and then the misunderstanding”

“I see. Well, I just tucked in Pinkamina in her bed, so would you like to take a look at my dresses?”

Darklight grabbed the key Rainbow gave her and opened the door to the Isolation Room. “I’ll pass”

Crazity frowned when Darklight shut the door. She wanted to spend some time with Darklight normally, for once, and the Alicorn just wants to go see a yellow and weak feathered pony. She opened the viewing pane slightly so as not to give away her snooping. What she saw made her wish her black eye wasn’t deceiving her. Butchershy was on her mattress, but Darklight made sure that the yellow mare was using her lap as a pillow. The Alicorn caressed the Pegasus as she slept without a care. Crazity growled under her breath while her ears folded back.

“What’s gotten you so worked up?”

Crazity looked around to see Pinkamena, pretty awake but half sleepy. She looked as though she tumbled out of bed and drank a cup of coffee just to run a marathon.

“Don’t you see?” Crazity answered. “Ever wondered why she was so fussy about helping your little subject get better but in a more appropriate way? The stroking, the care, the empathy, it all adds up! Darklight is inlove with Butchershy!”

Pinkamena’s jaw dropped as the realization hit her. So that’s why she was going against her so much with her tests. She didn’t do just to help Butchershy, but to also try and impress her! “Well, that would explain everything”

“What do you suggest we do?” Crazity asked, coldly.

“Well, Darklight has been trying to make herself better than her own Alpha. So, what if we get her to challenge me? She has no chance anyway”

Crazity shot her look up, surprised. There was always a Challenging the Alpha event that happened atleast once in an entire group of Murderers and Murderesses. This would mostly occur that if one member of the group decided to Challenge the Alpha, the challenger and the Alpha would fight in single combat. If the Alpha wins, they keep their title, but if the challenger does, they are the new Alpha. Pinkamena was a very powerful mare alone. She was the Apprentice of Brandon Hoovesworth herself. Darklight was an Alicorn but she couldn’t even lift a knife. If Darklight loses, Pinkamena will be able to stomp on her like a doormat.

“Oh, you’re evil, but I love it”

________________________________________

Butchershy began to stir as she opened her eyes from a nap she hadn’t had in a long time. She quickly realized that her head wasn’t on the mattress; it was on somepony’s lap. She felt the soft touch of a hoof caressing her mane as though she were a child. She looked up to see a friendly face.

“Hey” Darklight greeted when she noticed the mare was awake.

“Hey” Butchershy greeted back.

“How’s your sleep now?”

“The best I’ve had in a long time. Thank you”

Darklight blushed. “Aww, it’s nothing”

“No, really” Butchershy looked down. “I haven’t known a friendly touch in some time”

“Really?” Darklight asked in disbelief.

Butchershy hesitated, but nodded.

“That sounds awful”

“I manage”

________________________________________

It just doesn’t seem right, Darklight thought as she walked down the hallway to her bedroom. Sure, she rebelled but has to be another reason. The muzzle just emphasizes it! She just managed to lull Butchershy to sleep and left the room to go to her own and retire for the night. Every thought just contemplated in her head. Darklight wanted to find out the truth, everything about why Pinkamena always treated Butchershy the way she does.

She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn’t notice that she was already infront of Pinkamena’s room. She looked around to see if anypony was around. The area free, she opened the door slowly as she tiptoed inside. She looked around to see some of the things she’d expect inside Pinkamena’s room. There were lists of everything and everypony the pink one killed. There were movies of gore and war piled in an area. Notebooks, documents, and clippings about her uncle were kept on a shelf as though as a trophy. Pictures of her victims were all over the walls, kept as posters.

Darklight wanted to leave now, but something caught her eye: a pile of unkempt taxidermies. She went and checked through, and found that it was hiding a small safe. Darklight immediately just opened it with magic from the inside. When she looked, she found a small notebook along with the others.

“We’ll do that tomorrow, Crazity!” Pinkamena’s voice rang out as hoofsteps were heard.

Darklight immediately grabbed the first notebook she could get, put everything back to the way it was, and silently teleported out of the room.

Pinkamena opened the door, puzzled. “Well, maybe it was just the wind”

________________________________________

Darklight teleported in her room, panting from fear. She just got in and out of her Alpha’s room and stole one of her notebooks! Oh well, she began to rebel against Pinkamena a long time ago anyway.

Turning on the lamp by her bed, Darklight opened the notebook and began to read the first words that were on the pages. What was weird enough was that it seemed to be a journal. There were entries and dates written on different pages. Darklight read further and saw the contents. What she found made her think a lot more.

________________________________________

April 20

It’s been weeks since we last came back to Ponyville. After I found out who Shy meant this whole time, I decided to give her a little surprise: we’re going back to Ponyville for a day to find who she needed back. We’re on the train right now, and we’ll be there by morning. Once we get back her old friend, she’ll be back to her old self. She’s asleep right now on one of the beds in our compartment. I have to admit, despite being worn out from her crying, she’s still as beautiful as ever. Her mane, I could still remember the day she let me cut it so that I could decorate my necklace. I only wish that one day I could tell her that. You know, maybe when we get back her friend, I’ll probably do it on that very night! I managed to keep the rest of the gang on their showing how to help Darklight adjust to her new life as a Murderess. I can just tell they’re expecting me to bring them a bag of something from Ponyville when we get back.

________________________________________

Darklight closed the book for bit. She contemplated herself on those words that were written. Beautiful? Feelings? Was Pinkamena having a thing for Butchershy back then? The date even read, April 20, 2013, which were a few months before all these experiments happened. Darklight had to know the outcome, so she flipped the page to the next entry.
It was the one that gave her the answer.

________________________________________

April 21

I hate her.

I don’t care so much anymore about this Pegasus, I’m done with her. Whatever I once felt for her is so over. You wanna know why?

We ran immediately to Darklight’s Castle, she flew faster than ever so as to go faster. I had to bounce around since we were in our Normal forms just to keep up with her. When we got there, the place just seemed to be abandoned. We were hoping nothing was wrong. Butchershy knocked on the door, expecting for Spike to answer. Nopony did. We opened the door and looked around to see none of them were there. We thought that maybe they just went out to get something but then Mr. Cake dropped by. He was quite happy to find me, but we had to cut the reunion short. We asked him if he saw who we were here for.

I swear I heard Butchershy’s heart skip a beat when he told us what happened.

“I’m sorry, Pinkie and Fluttershy. But, nopony has seen or heard from them in weeks”

We couldn’t believe what happened. Our friends have gone missing for weeks? Oh, how I wished that it wasn’t in a vain attempt to find us themselves. We tried to act as Normal as possible for the rest of the day in Ponyville, but Butchershy was already messed up.

When we got on board in the train that was when madness went on. She cried. And she didn’t stop crying or held back. I tried to comfort her, but she wouldn’t stop. Probably in her rage and sadness, she blamed me for making us leave Ponyville. She said that if we didn’t leave them alone there for so long, we would’ve still been able to get them. What else made me mad was what she said about her Turning.

“Sometimes at night, when I get taken back to that time that I Turned and your Uncle got arrested, I wish I just bled to death there and that you got taken to the asylum!”

I couldn’t believe those words. We said nothing for the rest of the night. She had even called me a Freak, that she wanted to die, and that she would rather stay put than leave her life. That very night my feelings for her broke into a million pieces.

I could never look at her the same way again.

________________________________________

Darklight put down the book and hid it away as she closed the lamp’s light. She couldn’t stop thinking about what she read. Pinkamena was hostile to Butchershy because she dejected her feelings for her? Now that was something hard to contemplate. She shut her eyes in attempt to get some sleep.

________________________________________

Darklight, wake up!

Darklight woke up by the feeling that somepony shook her awake. She opened her eyes to see that Rainbow Factory Dash was shaking her to wake her up. Her face was full of fear and concern. From the looks of it, morning had arrived. Darklight was groggy from being woken up early, but she had to know why she was woken up at probably the crack of dawn.

“Rainbow Factory Dash, what is it?” the Alicorn yawned.

“You have to come! Pinkamena’s gone mad! And I mean MAD!”

“What? We’re already all mad”

“What she means to say is, ‘EMERGENCY! PINKAMENA’S GONNA KILL BUTCHERSHY!’” Murderjack yelled frantically.

“WHAT?!” Darklight yelled before jolting out of the room. The speed she used was fast enough to make Murderjack and Rainbow spin for a bit, causing them to be dizzy.

Darklight hurried into Butchershy’s room. There was no doubt; it looked like Pinkamena had lost it completely. Butchershy was cowering a corner; her scars that were closed had been reopened, making her lose a high amount of blood. Her half-lidded eyes were full of fear. Pinkamena had a bloody knife in her hoof.

“How does it feel to be cut open in the areas where you were sliced open in before?” Pinkamena mocked.

“Please…stop…” Butchershy choked out.

“No! You listen to me! I accepted you into a group of those who were just like us! I saved your life the day Rainbow cut you open in the stomach! I even took care of you until you were fully healed! And this is how you repay me?! You, Butchershy, are about to die by the hooves of the niece of Brandon Hoovesworth. I hope you have a cute heart because it’s about to be carved out!” saying so, Pinkamena raised the knife, ready to stab Butchershy when she was halted by magic.

“NO!” Darklight fired a blast of magic to Pinkamena, causing her to fly to the wall. Darklight hurried to the bleeding Butchershy. Her pulse was weak and she was very pale now. Her breathing wasn’t stable.

“Who…?” she choked out.

“I’m here, Butchershy. I’m here. It’s gonna be okay. You’re gonna be okay” Darklight whispered.

“Help…me…”

“Darklight, how dare you?!” Pinkamena yelled at the Alicorn.

“You’ve gone far enough, Pinkamena! We’re not even supposed to kill colleagues and now Butchershy is dying! Rainbow, get the medical kit!” she called to the Pegasus, who went to get as she was told.

“Hey! I’m the only one who gives orders here! To do so, you’d be trying to take my position!”

“Then that’s what I’ll do!” Darklight declared.

Everypony stopped.

“Really? Are you serious?” Pinkamena smirked.

Darklight bit her lip. This was risky. Challenging the Alpha? If she lost, she will be subject to Pinkamena for good. She heard Butchershy breathing. This was too much. She had suffered enough at the hooves of a bad Alpha, this whole group has.

“Yes! I Challenge you, Alpha!” Darklight declared, her wings flaring from her sides.

“Then it has been settled. Fight starts at Midnight tonight, give it your best shot, rebel” saying so, Pinkamena left the room to clean herself up.

Darklight took a deep breath before her mind registered about Butchershy. She went over to her immediately as Rainbow moved again and brought the medical kit.

“It’s gonna be okay, Butchershy. Just hang on” Darklight said to her as she tended to the wounds.

________________________________________

“You challenged the Alpha, for me?” Butchershy asked. She was lying on a couch, covered in bandages. “Darklight, what were you thinking?”

“I couldn’t stand her hurting you r the others anymore! I just had to!” Darklight said.

“Well, what are we gonna do now? Fight starts at midnight and you can’t even kill an ant”

“No, but with good training, she will be able to fight a full grown mare” Rainbow said, stepping into the room. “I mean, you never really underwent training, but maybe we can help. Pinkamena has Crazity, but you have me and Murderjack to prepare you”

“Are you sure?”

Rainbow nodded. “I let her torment the only family I have left, my adopted sister Butchershy, and now I want to make up for that”. To Butchershy, she said “Butchershy, I’m sorry that I let that pink mare go on and torment you day and night when I should’ve stood up to you like when we were innocent fillies. Ever since I regained will, I regretted my neglecting you. I can’t say it enough; I’m sorry, little sis”

Butchershy nodded. “I don’t blame you, Rainbow”

“I want to make up for all that, including how I caused the scars on your body to be there in the first place. And I know where to start: training the one who could set us free from this torment”

“Give her one for us all, Darklight” Murderjack added.

Darklight let out a happy sigh. “How do we begin?”

________________________________________

“If you wanna be on the top of the pride, you gotta be tough” Rainbow demonstrated by hurling Murderjack who tried a surprise attack. “If you wanna be the leader, you gotta be alert” she demonstrated by grabbing AJ when she tried to pounce on her. “If you wanna be Alpha, you gotta know where your opponent is weakest, and attack them from there” Murderjack tried to aim her shovel, but Rainbow got her in the chin, where her scar was, and that made Murderjack give up.

“Sorry, Murderjack!” Rainbow then helped her marefriend back up on her hooves, and applied bandages to the chin.

“It’s alright”

“How do you know so much about how to be an Alpha?” Darklight asked.

“Duh, I was Alpha before I got defeated by Pinkamena. Now, we have to start” Rainbow taunted with a hoof.

Darklight teleported and tried to attack from behind, but Rainbow threw her.

“Try harder than that, every Unicorn does that first try”

Darklight was dizzy, but understood.

________________________________________

“Ignore the pain, Darklight!” Rainbow yelled as she threw the Alicorn to the wall.

“Think fast!” she threw a knife at her, and she was cut.

“Rainbow, can you atleast go easy on her? I really wish this drug would wear off right now” Butchershy said. She was still lying down on the couch because the drug that was used on her made her unable to move for a few hours.

“Sorry, Shy. But she needs to learn. She is afterall, going to face the Alpha Murderess herself”

“Can you atleast give her a break?”

Right at that, Darklight fainted.

“Okay”

________________________________________

“IGNORE IT!” Rainbow yelled as Darklight got cut on the wing. The Alicorn was running on a treadmill, panting and training. This level was about multi-tasking. This should’ve been easy for her because of how organized she was in the past, but this was already disappointing.

“Take a guess” Darklight dodged the first slice on her head.

“Good, but still…” she failed to dodge the one below, causing the treadmill to stop.

“We really have our work cut out for us” Murderjack munched on her popcorn.

________________________________________

“Why does it take so long for these drugs to wear off?” Butchershy whined. “If I could move right now, I would’ve already stabbed you in one of your scars, Rainbow”

“Sorry, but Darklight has to learn” Rainbow said as she threw a knife while not looking.

Darklight was already getting exhausted from this training. She remembered that earlier, when she concentrated, she was able to hear Butchershy’s heartbeat. Murderesses could also hear weapons and have cat-like reflexes that allow them to stop something from hitting them in the nick of time. The entire time after she Turned, she never really tried any of these advantages. But now that she’ll need it most, she gave it a shot. She concentrated on the sound of the knife passing through the air with her eyes closed. She caught it before it got her.

“Think fast, Dark…” Rainbow noticed the Alicorn wasn’t there anymore.

“How’s this?!” Darklight then stabbed Rainbow in the foreleg.

Rainbow screamed and held her bleeding leg. “Not bad. How did you?”

“I concentrated on the sound and attacked when you were too caught up. Is it too much?”

“Nah, I’ll be fine. This is getting good”

________________________________________

“Now you’re getting it!” Rainbow complemented the Alicorn as she was able to dodge both the lower and upper strikes on the treadmill. “How come you knew how to do spells and arrange books at the same time but it takes you a long time to actually know how to dodge attacks on a treadmill…” Rainbow was impressed as the Alicorn dodged all attacks even while listening to Rainbow. “…even while listening?”

“Just got the hang of it” Darklight replied as she dodged a middle strike.

“You’re beginning to embrace your Murderess perks” Butchershy said. “Are you not afraid anymore?”

“I’ll have more control now”

“And being Alpha is one huge responsibility, are you ready for that?” Murderjack drank her cider.

“If it means saving my friends, then yes”

“You’re persistent and persevering; it’s a great quality” Butchershy said, rather placid.

“Are you feeling okay, Butchershy? You sound like you’re drained” Darklight dodged the upper cuts.

“I’m fine; sometimes these drugs make me feel…” she yawned. “…really tired”

“When was the last time you slept?”

“I passed out while you challenged Pinkamena. Does that count?”

Darklight teleported off the treadmill and pulled a blanket over Butchershy. “You better get some real shut-eye”

Butchershy yawned. “Oh, come on!”

“I’m serious. You need to sleep”

“Okey-dokey, I need it for tonight anyway”

“But before you drift off, can I ask you something?”

“Sure, but I don’t know how long I’ll still be awake”

“How were you able to rebel against Pinkamena’s control?”

“Wasn’t easy. I had to find something to feel that would make me feel against her. It took a while. Like when you Turned. But after that, I had to find something else to keep myself from being under her control. And you know that it was a who again”

“But that still doesn’t explain who this friend of yours is! Who is it?” Rainbow tried to ask.

Her only reply was a slight snore from Butchershy.

“Oh, come on! The suspense is killing me!”

________________________________________

“Okay, if we do more, I think I’ll go to the Hospital!” Rainbow said as she backed away from Darklight. They were already practicing her for Single Combat, and she was getting good. So good, in fact, that she already made Rainbow feel like surrendering.

“Ah think you’re ready now” Murderjack said as she patched Rainbow up.

Darklight nodded. She glanced over to Butchershy, who was still sleeping. It’s strange. When Butchershy’s asleep, she looks
so…peaceful…innocent…and very vulnerable.

It’s all for you, Butchershy, Darklight thought. It’s all for you.

________________________________________

Butchershy opened her eyes from her nap. Her vision seemed blurry at first, but soon it cleared up. Her half-lidded eyes darted to see Darklight was sitting on a chair beside her. The Alicorn was reading some sort of notebook. Butchershy couldn’t help but her eyes stared as Darklight read the book, then they followed down to her lips as they moved. Butchershy felt a slight blush creep up on her face. Was she beginning to fall for Darklight? That would be weird.

“Well, somepony’s finally up” Rainbow’s voice rang out, snapping Butchershy out of her trance.

Darklight put her notebook away with magic in a hurry. “Oh, hey Butchershy! How was your sleep?”

The yellow mare stretched. “Just fine. Oh! And I could move again! What were you reading?”

“Oh it’s nothing”

“Yeah, but it will no longer be nothing when you go up there and fight Pinkamena in Single Combat!” Rainbow walked in with bandages on her foreleg and stomach.

“Rainbow, are you okay? Butchershy asked with concern.

“Just fine, sis. We had some actual practice for Single Combat and I have to admit: Dark here is hard to beat. I haven’t fought like this since the day Pinkamena beat me”

“So you think I could defeat her?” Darklight asked as Butchershy sat herself up.

“Unless she tries to do something outrageous, then yeah” Rainbow said.

________________________________________

The time had come. Midnight was near, just five more minutes, but the Crazed Six had already gathered in the old fight room in the basement. This was the time to prepare for the fight that would determine the fate of the group. Darklight Sparcackle or Pinkamena Diane Pie, whoever wins will be the Alpha and will be in command of the others in the group. The room was dark, with the lights from the lightbulbs being the only thing that made sure everypony could see. There were seats in the sidelines that were protected with a spell that should keep them from getting hit by the fight.

One by one, the mares entered the room. Darklight and Pinkamena were in the battle area. Crazity had her doll with her on her lap, grinning from ear to ear. Murderjack and Rainbow had popcorn, cider, and brown bags to breathe in in case things got tense. Butchershy, who had regained her ability to move again hours ago, was watching anxiously.

Midnight was only seconds away and Pinkamena gestured for Murderjack to go and start speaking. The orange mare nodded and went up between the two. “Members of Crazed Six, we are gathered here today for yet another completion but one that would determine who would lead our group of insanity. From the basement of Brandon Hoovesworth, give a warm applause for Pinkamena Diane Pie! And from the shed of Butchershy, let’s welcome Darklight Sparcackle! Now here are the rules, each opponent has to fight with the weapons they carry with them. No summoning. Whoever wins this fight will be crowned Alpha of the Crazed Six! Competitors, are you ready?”

Pinkamena nodded, holding up her dagger and letting a growl escape her mouth.

Darklight nodded, activating her magic to summon a knife and flaring her wings.

“Then to the growl of the Competitors!” Murderjack then left the area and went to her seat. “Ah sure hope Darklight wins” she whispered to Rainbow.

Darklight stared at Pinkamena. There was no turning back now. She was ready to fight. If she let her friends down, she let herself down. She let out a loud growl and Pinkamena let one out too.

Getting on all fours, they charged at each other. Pinkamena got the first swipe and almost cut Darklight if she didn’t dodge. Darklight tried to shoot magic at Pinkamena, but the Alpha jumped out of the way. Pinkamena threw a block of knives to fly directly at Darklight, but the Alicorn made them turn around. Pinkamena threw one knife before dodging the others. The said knife cut Darklight on the shoulder.

Butchershy almost let out a tear as Rainbow and Murderjack noticed. Crazity just grinned and stroked her doll’s mane.

The Alicorn then used her dagger to try and pierce Pinkamena from mid-air, but the mare had cat-like reflexes. She then threw a smoke bomb that clouded the Alicorn’s sight. When she looked, she wasn’t there anymore. Darklight decided to focus on the sounds so she closed her eyes and concentrated. Pinkamena appeared from behind, but Darklight stabbed her in the foreleg with her blade.

Crazity almost strangled her doll as the other three mares smiled.

Pinkamena merely looked at the cut and laughed maniacally. Both mares then engaged in a sword fight. Each tried to keep the other from hitting them. Pinkamena was getting the advantage when Darklight made her sword go off. Pinkamena fell to the ground, and was met by the edge of Darklight’s blade. The Alicorn gave her a look, “Any last words?”

“Today’s not my day” Pinkamena then put something in her mouth and then she opened it to reveal the metal teeth set, which she used to bite deeply into Darklight’s foreleg. The Alicorn cried in pain as she was tossed to the side. As Pinkamena got up, the lavender mare began to limp.

Butchershy felt the tears swarm her eyes as she was about to cry. She wasn’t upset about herself. It just hurt her so much that Darklight was going through so much pain.

“Is that all, whimpering foal?” Pinkamena mocked as she delivered a huge punch in the jaw. “Soon-to-die? Is that all?” she yelled. “HUH?!”

Darklight’s body was in pain. She almost thought of giving up, and then she noticed Butchershy from the sidelines. The yellow mare was crying for her. Her ears were filled with tears. Crazity’s grin broke wide and she held a knife that looked like she was gonna use for Butchershy later. Darklight looked down on her foreleg. She had to do it.

“IS THAT ALL?!” Pinkamena yelled.

With a battle cry, Darklight grabbed her dagger and stabbed it right through the scars on Pinkamena’s chest and cheek, the mare’s weak points. Without anymore warning, she cut Pinkamena on the other scars, causing the mare total pain. Pinkamena fell to the floor, all bloody but alive. Darklight was above her, and she closed her eyes for her after. But the lavender mare just extended a hoof out to her.

Pinkamena was confused but she accepted it and got up. They looked to the others, and Pinkamena nodded.

Murderjack got up and declared, “Everypony, the match is over! Darklight wins! Meet your new Alpha, Darklight Sparcackle!”

“Why didn’t you?” Pinkamena said as Darklight handed her over to Crazity to patch up.

“I still see the good in you; you yourself just need to rediscover it. And by the way…” Darklight then gave back the notebook she took. “…sorry”

Pinkamena was weak from the fight, but she let a smile out and nodded while she accepted the notebook back. Darklight was then greeted by

Butchershy, who hugged her tightly from happiness.

“Congratulations, Darklight! You won!” she said. Then noticed the wounds on the new Alpha, “Oh here! Let me”

“Looks like you don’t have to feel upset anymore” Darklight said as Butchershy patched her up.

“What convinced you to…?” Butchershy was cut off mid-sentence when the Alicorn forced her lips on hers. Butchershy was wide-eyed but she didn’t pull back. Everypony else was staring, gaped. Pinkamena just smiled and nodded.

Darklight then pulled away, staring deeply and lovingly into Butchershy’s eyes. The yellow mare was blushing red.

“I love you, Butchershy” Darklight said.

The yellow mare snapped out of her trance. “I love you too, Darklight”

They both looked at the others who were still in their reactions.

Darklight sighed. “Everypony, prepare for a trip” she then looked to Butchershy. “Because I think I found where Bunny and the others are”