Savage POV

“I have a question, Crystal”, I said to my green sister while we walked.

Crystal turned her head in my direction and waited until I continued to talk.

“I know how much you hate torturing. What a trauma it caused to you and what memories you have of it. But that makes me wonder, how come you are still able to look at me, even though I tortured those raiders?”

Crystal, the normally funny and cheerful mare, wore a serious look now.

“It is because I know that this was not you. I am able to read your mind and when you came back from the raider camp, your memories were blurry. Everything you did was like… some pony else was doing it. It reminded me of… myself.

Maybe it is because I didn’t witness your actions. Maybe it is also because it was raiders and not innocent ponies. But I cannot blame you for something, not entirely done by you.

I do believe that this was just some exception from the Savage who was way too influenced by the goddess. Whose mind is corrupted. And that you are the real Savage. BUT I also understand Zitrus for questioning, who the real you is and Blueberry who has trust issues towards you.”

I was silent for a moment. I was grateful for having such an understanding sister. Because Crystal maybe had the best reason to hate me.

“You said, that you cannot blame me for something entirely done by me. Do you blame yourself for your actions under the Goddess?”, I asked.

I saw how Crystal’s full body tensed.

“I know it was not my fault. But I do not want to talk about it”, she said quickly.

But you should, I thought, fully aware that she can read my mind.

The intel I had gotten was correct. We finally arrived at the secret cave. The cave that hides the Bewitching Bell. The place where I can get rid of my alicorn magic and, with it, my power.

Not that I was looking forward to it. Just to think that I would
lose the ability to fly and cast spells made me upset and scared. I didn’t do it because I wanted to. I did it because it was the best way to show Zitrus and Blueberry who I was. And with it I would prevent this herd from falling apart. To keep these two wings able to fly…

“Guess this is the place”, Zitrus, who was walking a short distance in front of us with Blueberry, said.

We all stopped and took a moment to look at the entrance.
From outside the cave looked just like a hole in the rockface. Isolated and very easy to miss. No wonder it was not found before. And even if you found it, the entrance appeared to lead to a common cave, when in reality, it contains an extremely powerful artifact.

Zitrus and Blueberry went inside while I took one more moment.

“Are you alright?”

I felt Crystals' supportive wing on my back.

“How can I?”, I asked in return. “This is a very hard and unhappy step for me. Necessary but nevertheless not something I would like to do. Whoever would like to give up their magic voluntarily?”

Crystal didn't say anything else. I guess that even she didn't have any cheerful words.

I took one deep breath and then bravely stepped into the cave.

The inside was way bigger than you would have expected from the outside. Inside the cave was a dome like room with walls that were unnaturaly smooth. In the middle of this dome was a base and on this base the Bewitching bell. It looked like a common old bell. The metal was discoloured and it had some cracks in it. But you could still feel the aura radiating from it that betrayed the fact that it was a powerful magical artifact.

The four of us looked at the bell curiously until a demanding voice came out of nowhere.

“Halt! Who are you and what do you want?”

We all looked into the direction where the sound came from. A green alicorn slowly glided down and landed right in front of us. Blocking the way between us and the artifact. She looked at us appraisingly.

“Wait… Mindcontrol? Is that you?”, Crystal suddenly asked.

In response the green alicorn just raised an eyebrow and looked at Crystal.

“It is me, Crystal. Or wait… no… Hope. It is me, Hope”, Crystal said.

“Hope?!”, I, Blueberry and Zitrus said in unison.

“Eeeeeeh… long story”, Crystal tried to wave off.

At first, our newly met green alicorn showed no signs of recognition, but then she seemed to remember. Her face lit up and she pulled Crystal into a tight hug.

“Hope! I'm happy to see that you're alright. How are you?”

“I am very good, thank you, Mindcontrol”, Crystal laughed and hugged the green alicorn back.

Meanwhile, I, Blueberry and Zitrus just looked a bit irritated about the sudden revelation that Crystal used to go by another name. Never ever had she told us about it.

“Would you like to introduce us “miss Hope”?”, Zitrus then asked with an emphasis on the name Hope.

Crystal, for her part, either did not notice or ignored it.

“Of course. This is Mindcontrol, an old friend of mine. She joined Velvet Remedy a bit later than I did and we two bonded very quickly. Mostly because we both questioned the decision to group up with miss Remedy, who is a unicorn. But unlike me, she stood with her”, Crystal explained.

“I still dislike Velvet”, Mindcontrol admitted, “BUT she actually did a lot for the alicorn kind. So, I might not be friends with her, but I support her. It is sad that you left, Hope. I missed you. I heard you had such a big argument with your wing that you left them. Trying to find a way to have foals on your own. But I see you didn’t stay alone for too long.”

Mindcontrol stretched her wing at me and Blueberry. Crystal followed her pointing.

“Oh yes, this is Savage, Blueberry and Zitrus. The ponies I am in a herd with”, Crystal explained with a happy smirk.

“An earth pony?”, Mindcontrol questioned and gave Zitrus a judging look. He, for his part, held his ground.

“Well, you always had an open taste, my dear sister. So, I won’t judge your decision”, she then said to Crystal.

“Could we please focus on the main reason why we’re here?”, I said impatiently.

The nervousness gnawed on me. I wanted to get this over and done with as fast as possible, and put it behind me, even though I was not looking forward to it nor the outcome. I guess this is how ponies feel if they have to get a shot or an operation. You don’t want it, but you know it has to be done and pushing it back for later would only means that you will be tense for longer.

“Right, Mindcontrol, do you mind if Savage used the Bewitching Bell on herself? To get rid of her magic”, Crystal asked our other green sister.

“If you are really sure about it, go ahead.”

“Wait, what?! You are just alright with this?”, I asked with a mixture of surprise and shock.

“Well, you are not the first sister who wants to lose her magic”, Mindcontrol started to explain. “You see, when we found the Bewitching Bell, we realized very soon that it has the potential to suck the magic out of you. First Velvet wanted to destroy it but then some alicorns signed up voluntarily to lose their magic. That is why I am here now. To take note of who has used the bell. But also, so that it does not get abused or even destroyed. Some sisters might still have the ideology that alicorns should be powerful and that such an artifact, able to take their powers, should not exist.”

Crystal, Blueberry and Zitrus looked at me at this final statement. I ignored them for the moment.

“How many alicorns already have given their magic to this bell?”, I wanted to know.

“So far it has been seven. Some could not handle so much power and wanted to lose it to save others from an outburst. They saw such power as dangerous. Some had personality problems and didn’t see themselves connected with alicorn magic. They said that this magic would not belong to them. And some wanted to lose their connection with the Unity. To start a new life. What is your reason?”, Mindcontrol asked and looked directly at me.

I hung my head a bit as I answered: “I guess a bit of everything.”

“We assume that there is a way to return the magic once given but we haven't had time to study it yet. But I still hope you know what you’re doing, dear sister”, Mindcontrol consulted."As soon as you have lost your magic you will no longer be able to cast spells or fly. You will also loose the strength from your earth pony magic. After you lose your magic, you will just be… a pony. Nothing more.”

I gave a nod.

“Will I at least still look the same? Will I still look like an alicorn?”

“That you will”, she assured. “The bell will not change how you look nor your character. You will still be Savage.”

Except that the old Savage might never be able to come out again. That part the bell will also take, I thought to cheer me up a bit.

Then, with a quiet worried voice I asked: “Does it hurt?”

Mindcontrol shook her head.

“They said, it is not a pleasant feeling but it does not hurt too much. One, maybe two seconds and it is over.”

Again I gave a nod. I closed my eyes and took one last deep breath. When I opened them again, i started walking towards the bell. I tried to keep up a brave expression but half way there, I had to look back. Crystal seemed worried. Zitrus, on the other hoof, had a bit of hope written on his face. Blueberry had a neutral expression and was hiding her feelings. But none of them seemed to stop me.

For you all…, I thought.

I turned my head again and crossed the last distance between me and the Bewitching Bell until it was right in front of me. I closed my eyes and reached my right leg out. And as soon as my hoof touched the surface, I felt the effect hit me like an electrical shock.

Author's Note

I hope you all had a happy Christmas / Heart’s Warming Eve. And maybe got a better present than Savage just did.
I just realised that when it was summer, I was writing winter chapters and now that it is winter, the story comes to early summer…
Feel free to give comments and feedbacks. They always help me to improve my story.