It’s an ordinary visit to the Dell Dwellers, gnome-like creatures who maintain the balance of the Mystificent Forest. Over the years, ponies have made friends with a wide variety of creatures, including Katrina, a bipedal cat who had once enslaved the Bushwoolies. Initially reluctant to change her ways, she’d eventually given in and decided to be good again. She’s joined you on this visit, eager to see the Balance of Nature up close and personal.
Also along are Heart Throb and Ember. The pink pegasus is a hopeless romantic, while the purple filly is energetic and always getting into mischief. Heart Throb is keeping an eye on Ember, to make sure she behaves.
The Dell Dwellers live in a cavern below the forest floor. It’s a factory, where rough lumps of rock are turned into smooth stones for skipping, and acorns are turned into oak tree saplings. In the center of the factory is a barrel labeled ‘Balance’. It’s what contains the Frazzits, multicolored ectoplasmic entities that spread chaos wherever they go.
The ever-rambunctious Ember proves too much for Heart Throb to handle, and she knocks over the barrel while galloping through the Dell Dwellers’ factory. Wind Whistler and Shady had warned all of you about this exact scenario in advance.
Ember’s personality flip flops with Heart Throb’s. Instead of swapping personalities, the Dell Dwellers all act inverse to their own orderly nature. Lumps of rock are ground into powder, while acorns are smashed. The newly love-obsessed silly filly starts chasing the Dell Dwellers around their factory, trying to kiss them. Heart Throb, on the other hoof, is acting bold and brash, running around the factory without a care in the world.
Something has to be done to restore order. Right?
Why return to normal? Normal is boring. Chaos is where it’s at. There’s a power vacuum just waiting to be filled. The thoughts come unbidden, and won’t stop. Your very thoughts are urging you to take over and enslave the Dell Dwellers. With their unique powers, they’d be far superior in producing witchweed potion than the bushwoolies ever were.
You recognize the intrusive thoughts. That was Katrina’s whole shtick. It stands to reason that if Heart Throb and Ember have flip flopped, the same can be said of you and Katrina.
You realize that she’s been bottling this up for years, walking a razor’s edge between good and evil. The evil tendencies are still inside her, looking for a way out. Now they’re your problem. She’s adapted surprisingly well, but she’s had her friend Rep to help her all these years. You don’t have that luxury in your present state. The only one here who could possibly understand what you’re going through is Katrina herself, but she’s acting like you. Your memories are hazy. The question is whether Katrina’s got any clarity with your thoughts running through her head instead.
You hope so, because a cursory scan of the situation indicates that she’s your only hope. Your own thoughts are urging you to betray the ponies, Katrina, the Dell Dwellers, and everyone else.
[CHOICE]Do you give in to temptation?
Of course not. (chaos)
Yes! Give me witchweed potion! (villain)
Witchweed. Witchweed, witchweed, witchweed! It’s all you can think of. The power of the potion that you don’t even know how to make. But Katrina does, and if she doesn’t remember, her former minion Rep and the Bushwoolies do.
It’s time for the world to bow before you. You confront Katrina. “Tell me how to make the potion!”
She shakes her head, claiming ignorance. You toss her aside, storming out of the Mystificent Forest and heading for Ponyland. Rep will give you the information, one way or another. You hope he picks the hard way. That’s more fun…
Author's Note
Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1038366/story-notes-frazzle-dazzle
You push the thoughts urging you to make witchweed potion to the back of your mind and seek out Katrina. She’s trying to solve the problem logically, but no one is listening to her.
You volunteer your services, and she seems surprised that you’re even remotely functional. The two of you try herding the Frazzits back into the barrel to no avail. The now-hyperactive Heart Throb thwarts your efforts, running through the Frazzits and scattering them in every direction.
Witchweed!
The unwanted voice in your head gives you an idea. “Katrina, do you remember how to make the potion?”
Her eyes fly open in recognition and she hesitantly nods.
“Can you make it from what’s available?”
“Maybe, why?”
Yes, witchweed potion!
“You need to drink some, and restore the balance.”
“But…”
“No buts. It can’t be me.”
She nods, understanding. It’s a complicated process, and the only reason it’s possible at all is because of all the machinery the Dell Dwellers possess.
Katrina manages to make the potion and she drinks it. She grows to twenty feet tall and shoots laser beams from her eyes. The Frazzits react poorly to magic, doubling in number. Katrina roars in frustration.
“Grab the barrel and scoop them up with it!” you shout.
She follows your directions, and soon the Frazzits are returned from whence they came. Order is restored and there’s much rejoicing. Katrina’s intentionally limited her intake of the potion and shrinks back to normal, her energy boost completely expended.
While the immediate danger has passed, there’s still work to be done.
If Katrina is dealing with anything like what you’ve just experienced, she deserves comfort and empathy, to help keep those evil urges at bay. You walk over to her, and without saying a word, the look the two of you shares conveys things neither of you wishes to admit to anyone else present. You nod and she nods back.
Witchweed potion is powerful and addictive. Good cause or not, Katrina’s just relapsed because of you. She’s back in withdrawal, and that’s what caused her to become so cold all those years ago and enslave the Bushwoolies. Witchweed was all she could think about, so much so that it became her. It’s up to you to keep her on the straight and narrow and prevent her from falling off the wagon.
Author's Note
Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1038366/story-notes-frazzle-dazzle
