To Feel Again

Strike and the others had just patched up Crazybloom’s body and waited for her and Nuttie Belle to be resurrected from the Healing Tea. When Blood Seed finally calmed down, Suicidaloo spotted a file in the shelves. It looked like it was some missing file from all of Fluttershy’s records during her stay here in the Organization.

The file read,

It has come to my attention that Butchershy and Rainbow Factory Dash may not be the only ones who were present when RFD had defeated Butcher in Single Combat. It may be possible that somepony else was there and witnessed the whole event. When we took a closer look at the scene, we found what looked like an empty vial of liquid on the floor. Upon further investigation, it was found out to be some kind of memory erasing potion. Who it was used on, we will never know. Perhaps somepony had witnessed the scene and threatened to tell everypony but RFD had shoved it down their throat to make them forget. The cameras didn’t catch who it was as that part was ripped out to prevent evidence.

“What’s in it, Suicidaloo?” Strike asked as Blood Seed readied Crazybloom’s body for carrying around.

“Some sort of lost file from Fluttershy’s records. It says that it was possible somepony else was present and was drugged to forget”

“That’s odd, who could’ve been there? Whenever they sequence a Single Combat battle, they always keep it in the files and the rooms are locked to prevent interference” Blood Seed said.

“Well, nothing here is normal in the Organization. Especially an Apprentice who is secretly a Huntress hunting other Apprentices at night”

“Suicidaloo, that thing you used on me to snap me out of Brazy’s spell, what was it?”

“Some compass that a filly named Dreamer dropped. Nuttie used it on Brazy’s ghost Pawns and now they’re set free, even put to rest. No doubt that it can’t be used on Brazy as all she feels is real anger”

“Excuse me, did you just say Dreamer?”

“Yes, Dreamer. She’s a ghost too”

Blood Seed sighed, “There’s something you need to know about Dreamer, and Siren”

________________________________________

Brazy watched their whole conversation with one of her viewing globes. She watched them as they revealed to one another what they each found out from one another’s perspectives.

“Guess I have to remove the Dreamer and Siren tactic, and keep them from entering my room. Time to get nasty”

________________________________________

“So Dreamer and Siren are nothing more than Brazy in disguise?” Suicidaloo got struck with surprise.

“Yep, I couldn’t believe she was able to split into two and morph into two fillies” Blood Seed nodded.

“Okay, if she could seize control from one of us, then deceive us by putting on a disguise, then we have to find where she is and stop her before she does worse” Strike declared.

“LIKE WHAT?!” a voice rang out behind them.

All three turned around to see Brazy with her Agony Blade in bowie knife form. She gave a smirk as though she was about to pull a new nasty trick. And with Brazy, it always that when her sanity is off.

“Brazy!” Strike cried out.

“Well, looks like you found out about my cloaks, Dreamer and Siren. But I must admit: Siren was just adorable”

“Brazy, you need to snap out of your own anger. We know you don’t really want this. Your rage is just clouding your thinking” Blood Seed tried to reason to her.

“Really? Then bloodlust is what clouds the thinking of every apprentice in this Organization”

“Brazy, think about it. If they find out, what will become of you? Is this what Fluttershy would’ve wanted?” Suicidaloo took her turn.

“Fluttershy is dead!” she growled.

“This won’t change anything, trust me”

Brazy looked down before she hissed. “I don’t trust any Apprentice anymore!”

The alien didn’t waste a second anymore as she levitated them all in the air, including Crazybloom and Nuttie Belle’s bodies. She then casted a faint glow on all of them and declared,

“Time for round three of our Single Combat battles. Nuttie Belle is out, so is Crazybloom, which leaves Strike, Blood Seed, and Suicidaloo. Only two move on to round four. Only one moves on to the final round. Defeat me at the finals and I’ll let you go and maybe cooperate. You lose, you get the point”

The next thing that happened was that they all were teleported away, while Brazy gave way to herself and teleported to the grandfather clock downstairs. She looked at it with a grin,

“Their time is running out”

________________________________________

Blood Seed and Strike suddenly found themselves in the library that Strike was in earlier.

“Great, I’m back where she put me a while back” Strike groaned.

Blood Seed noticed something on one of the floor, an open notebook. Both headed over to the table to see that it was. It appeared to be a type of diary.

February 20
We’re leaving Ponyville today, Pinkamena’s orders. As much as I don’t want to, I have no choice. Thanks to submitting to her, I have to bend to her every will, makes me wish I was still free without an Alpha to guide me. I already packed what I needed and got ready to tell the animals I was leaving. But I know that I have one friend who just never wants to be without me, my apprentice Bunny. I’ll drop her off at Twilight’s Castle, where she, Spike, and the CMC will stay until we come for them. I hope Bunny likes the carrot toy I got for her, it’s full of catnip.

“She gave her a catnip toy?” Strike asked.

“Wait, there’s more” Blood seed as they began to read some of the other entries.

March 20
I can’t believe it’s been a month since we left. Many things have happened. Rainbow seems to have been hitting on Murderjack. Pinkamena’s training Darklight for killing. Crazity made a doll that she named Pinkamina. Me, I do my usual routine, but I can’t ignore how I worry about my apprentice. How is she? Is she getting anxious? No doubt she misses me. I hope I can get back to her soon.

April 20
I’m so excited! Pinkamena got us tickets, just me and her, going to Ponyville! We’re on the train now, and I’m really happy that we’re finally going to get back our friends. As much as I wanna stay awake, I’m getting tired. Better get some rest, big day tomorrow.

April 21
I can’t believe it! We got to the Castle, but none of them were there! No Cutie Mark Crusaders. No Spike. Not even…Bunny. They must’ve left to look for us. Even worse, ponies say that they haven’t been heard from in weeks. I’m crying as I write. How I wished I stayed!

June 23
Something’s wrong. I felt a major headache today, but also something else. I felt some type of other pain, like somepony threw me to a wall. And I heard Bunny’s voice, I swear! She was looking for me. She sounded…scared. Oh, Bunny, where are you?

“It looks like a diary written by Fluttershy” Blood Seed said.

“Sure looks like her hoof writing” Strike added.

“She went back to get us, but we were already in the Organization by then. We have to find that carrot toy and use it to make Bunny lament”

Strike nodded. “But it makes you wonder, how did Fluttershy’s diary end up in Insanity Mansion?”

“Maybe Brazy hid it here to prevent us from finding it when she turned off her sanity”

Strike nodded. “Okay, we’ll take that”

“Strike, Brazy said that only two will make it to the next round, but we’re now two” they looked around to see that one filly was missing amongst them. “Where’s Suicidaloo?”

________________________________________

Suicidaloo found herself alone and awake in a dark room. She was scared from the lack of company that Brazy would now take an opportunity to corrupt her. She saw infront of her, a video playing loading a video caught on tape. When it started to play, her eyes widened at what she saw

“No, Suicidaloo!” Nuttie Belle cried as she was pinned down the floor by her friend. “What’s happened to you, Cidaloo?”

The camera rolled in to show that Suicidaloo had the same demented smile as Blood Seed did while she was under Brazy’s spell, and she also had the same dark aura around her. She held Nuttie down with one hoof and the other hoof had the same knife that defeated Nuttie.
With one smooth move, Suicidaloo stabbed Nuttie Belle with the knife, ending the Unicorn. When she knew she was out, the Pegasus closed her eyes to make it look like she ended herself. The Pegasus then walked away with no remorse, and bumped into the compass that Nuttie Belle dropped, causing the events that happened from that point to occur.

With that, the video ended.

Suicidaloo was beginning to tear up. Nuttie Belle didn’t end herself for others, she did. Her defeat was on her hooves. What’s worse was that Nuttie was her closest friend when she was getting over Orion. She helped her move on. And how did she repay her? She made her look like she ended herself! There was so much to process as tears swarmed the Pegasus’ eyes.

“No…NOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

From her viewing globe, Brazy was enjoying this revelation. Suicidaloo was now more vulnerable to her spell.

________________________________________

“Blood Seed, it’s never gonna work!” Strike said as the filly tried to charge again at the door to take it down.

“It will! It has to!” the filly yelled as she charged again. The door wouldn’t cooperate with her.

“The only thing that will ever open the door is as if one of us has been defeated, but I don’t want to hurt my friends. Suicidaloo doesn’t want to hurt her friends, wherever she is now, maybe getting attacked by Brazy all alone. You didn’t mean to hurt to your cousin”

“Great! So, we’re stuck here forever?”

“I have no idea. And wherever Suicidaloo is, I hope she’s fine”

“You don’t get it, do you now? You just said it, only two could go on”

________________________________________

Suicidaloo sobbed as she kept on pondering on about Nuttie Belle’s defeat. Brazy’s spell was beginning to get to her. Suddenly, the compass began to move again, pointing to South and North. Suicidaloo noticed and thought that it must mean her and Nuttie. The centerpiece then began to glow as it went up like a button.

“Nuttie Belle, are you trying to say something? There’s no way you’d ever forgive me, right?” Suicidaloo thought before she pressed the centerpiece down gently. She gasped at what it did.

It gave a hologram of Nuttie Belle looking at her, smiling warmly. The filly only said one thing, “Let’s make up, Cida”

Suicidaloo teared up from that. She forgave her. Even if she was the reason that she was down, she forgave her. She was a true friend no matter what.

“Nuttie…” Cidaloo sobbed as she held the compass close to her. “I love you…Nuttie…”

Brazy groaned as her spell subsided from Suicidaloo.

The filly then noticed that the door had opened, allowing her to go out.

________________________________________

“What are you saying, Blood Seed?” Strike dreaded the answer.

“You know that one of us has to go down” saying so, she pulled out the bowie knife from earlier.

Strike’s eyes widened at the knife. Had she gone mad again? He was about to backpedal, when he saw that she had positioned it on herself.
“Blood Seed, what are you doing?”

The filly gave a small smile. “Helping you get to that crazed alien”

Saying no more, Strike tried to stop her, but she had already stabbed herself in the chest. Blood Seed was in pain, of course. But she ignored it as she thought she had done something good. She disqualified herself from the fight, allowing the other two move on. Now, it was only up to them about who would go to final round and stop Brazy. She thought about all this as she succumbed to the bleeding and pain.

Strike was shocked as he was engulfed in a bright light and teleported out of the room. He found himself at the other side of the door. He tried to open it to come back for Blood Seed, but it wouldn’t budge. Even setting it on fire didn’t work anymore. He took it hard as he began to sob on the floor.

“Strike?” a voice called out.

Strike looked up to see that Suicidaloo was just above him, pity on her face. From the looks of it, she had just gotten out of a sad experience as well. The filly and dragon hugged each other as they tried to comfort one another of what had happened. Blood Seed was down. Three down, two to go.

________________________________________

Strike and Suicidaloo had looked around for anywhere Brazy could b, trying their best to keep anything from making them kill each other and advance to the final round. At one point, Suicidaloo had found a hallow part in the floor when they were stepping on it. With Strike’s help, they opened it and found something that may help them as soon as they find Brazy.

It was a small, worn-out, carrot toy with a cute smile.

Taking the toy with them, they ventured on down the halls. They found a door that was closed shut. Suicidaloo fiddled on the door, but it was locked. Strike had tried to blow fire on the knob, but it had been enchanted to resist fire. They decided to try a new tactic: Use Strike as a pillar and bust the door down as he blew fire. It went pretty well as it was opened. Though they had to deal with the fact that it was pretty much reduced to ash, they took a breath away when they realized where they were.

The room was well-lit up. There was a small bed to the side where a window was. The drawers nearby had dolls sitting on top of them like trophies. They were the dolls of those other fillies and colts that Brazy had hunted at night. A vintage mirror was on one side, covered by a huge cloth.

“I think this place is Brazy’s…”

“LEAVE!” a voice rang out from behind them.

Both turned around to see that a familiar orange face was in the doorway, anger in her eyes. Brazy had her Agony Blade in hand, though still in its standard form. She looked pretty ready to take one out and then battle the other next.

“Brazy, you gotta listen us!” Strike cried out.

The alien just smirked. “I’ll have your bodies for a trophy, freaks!”

Saying so, she charged at Strike. Suicidaloo was quick to block her off with the compass.

“Oh, I see that my Dreamer form had dropped my Innocence Compass. How nice of you to find it. I bet Orion was relieved” Brazy was nuts.

“Braze, listen to yourself! You’ve gone mad!” Strike said as he tried to approach from behind, but the alien grabbed him arm with her tail and sent him flying to the other side of the room.

“Brazy, please” Suicidaloo begged.

“Your efforts to stop me have been futile” Brazy said.

Suicidaloo stopped her from plunging her knife down as she called out to Strike. “Strike, can you still stand?”

The dragon got up, a little wobbly. “Yeah”

Suicidaloo didn’t want to, but the look on Brazy’s face showed no choice. “You have to be the one to fight Brazy and make her get back to her senses”

Strike was flabbergasted. “ME?! But, Suicidaloo, you’re the one that never gave up on her no matter what while I got Blood Seed to shove down sedative pills every night down her throat!”

“But one can only be convince to come back to her sense with the help of a true friend. You and Brazy were besties even before she joined the CMC back when we were just Normals. You were her best friend as Normal, and you have the memory that will give her back her sanity. Do it for us, Strike” she said before she faced the alien. “I forfeit!”

“Wise choice” Brazy said before she casted a spell on the filly. “FREEZE!”

And immediately, the spell froze Suicidaloo in her tracks. Brazy herself went away from her. “Just in case you try to intervene”

Brazy stared at Strike. “So you’re the one who will try to beat me in Single Combat? Better make things a little fair”

She summoned a table full of weapons that ranged from bowie knives and cutters to swords and meat cleavers. There were also some shields. She put aside her Agony Blade for later as she picked up an ordinary kitchen knife, so did Strike.

Strike stared at Brazy. There was no turning back now. He was ready to fight. If he let his friends down, he’ll let himself down. He let out a loud roar and Brazy let one out too.

Getting on all fours, they charged at each other. Brazy got the first swipe and almost cut Strike if he didn’t dodge. Strike tried to shoot fire at Brazy, but the Huntress jumped out of the way. Brazy threw a block of knives to fly directly at Strike, but the dragon used a shield that made them turn around. Brazy threw one knife before dodging the others. The said knife cut Strike on the shoulder.

The dragon then used her dagger to try and pierce Brazy from mid-air, but the alien used her cat-like reflexes. She then threw a smoke bomb that clouded the dragon’s sight. When he looked, she wasn’t there anymore. Strike decided to focus on the sounds so he closed his eyes and concentrated. Brazy appeared from behind, but Strike stabbed her in the arm with his blade.

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

“I can’t even die anymore” Brazy then made her fangs grow and they bit on the blade, sending Strike to the wall. The dragon cried in pain as she was tossed to the side. As Brazy got up, the dragon began to bleed.

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

Strike’s body was in pain. He almost thought of giving up, and then she noticed Suicidaloo from the sidelines. He had to do it.

“IS THAT ALL?!” Brazy yelled.

Strike began to lose hope. And there, he saw it, a small locket that he once gave her as a gift, a token of their friendship. It had great sympathy and value in it. Brazy looked and saw that the locket had fallen out where she hid it and grew alarmed.

________________________________________

“Are you getting scared, Bunny?” Spike asked the alien while she looked out the window into the night sky.

“Scared? A little”

“It’s a lot worse than we ever thought”

“What if they make you into a full monster like them? I’m afraid of that” Bunny faced the dragon.

“Bunny” Spike put a claw on her shoulder. “I would never do that. And I would never hurt you or the others, for that matter”

Bunny smiled, but looked down uncertain.

“To make sure of it, I got you something as a promise” he then held up a small locket. It was a golden heart, with writing inscribed, “Besties Forever and Ever”. Bunny looked at it. “I got it before we left the Castle, just in case. It’s to establish one promise to our friendship, Bunny. I know that when we first met, I was scared of you like every other dragon. But then I saw that you were on good terms, and offered friendship. Now, I want to offer you something that would symbolize it”

Bunny smiled as Spike put on the locket on her.

“No matter what, we’ll always be friends” he said before pulling her in for a hug.

________________________________________

Strike spoke to the frozen Suicidaloo, “Cida, she’s still in there. I know it. Otherwise, she would’ve thrown away that locket by now”
Brazy smirked. “Says who?” with one smooth move, she tore the locket from her neck and used a strong fire that made it burn into ash. She grinned as she gave a little giggled.

Strike said nothing, but focused on the corners of her eyes.

“See? Why would I care for some old, pathetic, meaningless…” right then, she felt a few tiny droplets forming in her eyes. She put up a paw and saw them on it. “What?”

“Brazy, it’s okay. I don’t even want to fight you” he tried approaching her again, ignoring the pain he was in.

The young alien shook off the tears and went into rage. “STAY AWAY!”

“Fluttershy’s sad too. Most of her entries included how worried she was about you”

He expected that to hit her in the heart. That it would cause her to go calm. That she would ask in a worried voice, ‘Fluttershy? Who…How…Where is she?’

But instead the alien went directly infront of him and laughed as she drew out her Agony Blade. “I’m gonna give you your judgment now, got it?”

“Brazy, stop!” Suicidaloo cried, still frozen as the alien almost got to pierce Strike with her Agony Blade.

Strike then finally put together that last part of the puzzle. “We know that you were compelled to forget…that Fluttershy died before your own eyes!”
Brazy stopped and gasped as she remembered that day. It was long-forgotten from the drug, and buried deep in her sub-conscious, but now those words had just unlocked it. It finally saw the light again.

________________________________________

A certain yellow mare lay down on the floor; a huge slash in her stomach had caused her to lose a large amount of blood. She was as pale as a ghost and cold as death. Above her, a cyan Pegasus with a knife in hoof and tears in her eyes stood.

Rainbow gaped, “Butchershy, I’m so sorry I…”

“Mistress?” Bunny’s voice rang out. Rainbow turned around to see the alien. How she got there, she would almost never know. When the alien saw the body, her eyes widened in fear.

“Bunny, you saw it, didn’t you? Rainbow began to near the alien. “You just had to see”

Bunny tried to run, but Rainbow caught her and drugged her with the memory loss serum from the cabinet. Yes, she stole it from the cabinet were Butchershy keeps her emergency kit just in case. Rainbow rammed it down Bunny’s throat as far as it would go. Finally, the effects kicked in, and Bunny fell to the floor unconscious.

When she woke up, she couldn’t remember what happened.

________________________________________

Brazy’s eyes widened from the memory. She was drugged to forget about seeing the death with her own eyes. She hated how it all happened. It was bad enough that Fluttershy was dead, but it was worse to know that she drugged to forget about it. She let go of Strike and backed up, allowing the dragon to breathe. She used a small spell that brought back the others and unfroze Suicidaloo, signifying she conceded.

“It was painful, wasn’t it?” You were frustrated, weren’t you?” Suicidaloo said with pity.

“You tried to tell the truth, but you no longer had anypony to tell it to. So when you relearned one half of it, you began to…”Crazybloom added.

“It’s over now” Strike said as he removed the Agony Blade from her paw. She offered no resistance.

Brazy’s eye’s filled with tears from her sorrow. She had been hunting from rage and it never went out. All it did was make things worse for her. It only drove her mad enough to cloud its sadness. Tears streamed down her face from a long time of being held back.

“Suicidaloo, could you bring that carrot toy over here?” Strike asked.

Suicidaloo nodded and handed the toy to Brazy. “Here, it’s the last thing you had to remember her by, right?”

Brazy held the toy with great care. It WAS the last thing she had to remember her beloved Mistress by.

________________________________________

“Promise you’ll come back for us?” Bunny asked as Fluttershy got ready to leave.

“I promise. And to seal it, I got you this” Fluttershy then held up the carrot toy infront of her apprentice’s face. “It’s filled with catnip”

Bunny held it close lovingly. She was now assured that her Mistress would return for her.

“Bunny, you must know that no matter where I go, I shall always be with you” Fluttershy added as she gave a petting on the alien’s head.

________________________________________

Brazy couldn’t believe that she hid it away where nopony could find it. It held very high sentimental value. The faint smell of old catnip infiltrated her nose, teasing her about the times she would play with it while waiting for Mistress to return. It gave her all the more sorrow as she cried. She held back all her tears for so long, and now they had finally overwhelmed her.

“I’m sorry that I hurt everypony! I’m sorry!” she sobbed.

Everypony felt sorry for the poor thing. Strike was the first to come up and hug the alien. She kept holding her toy and wouldn’t even fight Strike off herself. The next moment, the whole gang came in for a group hug.

Strike looked down at the crying alien.

“I…missed…you” she sniffled.

“I missed you too. We all did” Strike said.

Brazy nodded as she made a glow surround them. The next thing they knew was that they were back in their own house at the Organization. It was good to finally be safe, but they still had to comfort a crying alien as she let out all her sorrow.

________________________________________

Later that night…

Brazy was finally asleep on Strike’s lap. She had worn herself out from her crying. The others went to fix things up. Strike stayed with her, whispering her about the good times to make sure she would sleep just fine.

Suicidaloo entered the room. “How is she?”

“Tired, I guess. She cried so much that it wore herself out, who would’ve known?” Strike said as he pat the sleeping alien. “She told us to remind her to never let her turn off her sanity again because it hurt too much. How’s destroying that Agony Blade doing?”

“Terrible. Blood Seed and Crazybloom made up and tried everything, but nothing seems to work on that thing. It’s indestructible”

“Well, I guess we could just ask Brazy how to get rid of it once she’s all better. How are things with you and Nuttie Belle?”

“Just fine. She knew it wasn’t my fault and we made amends”

“Well, I guess our group finally has its Alpha”

“Yeah, but I think it’ll be fine with you in control. By the way, we are soon going to have to get ourselves assigned to new Mistress and Masters. How do you think she’ll fare? I mean, she kinda hates to be anypony’s apprentice except for those who she trusts. And it’s hard for her to get over her old one”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it”

“Great, so are you gonna sleep down here with her?”

“Don’t want her to suddenly wake us up from her crying”

“Okay, Goodnight, Strike”

“Goodnight, Suicidaloo” he then whispered to Brazy’s ear. “Sweet dreams, Brazy”

Underneath her collar, a familiar locket appeared on Brazy’s neck.