The Sane and the Lost

by Sky Blue CMC

Chapter III: I'm Not Alright

Author's Note:

This is Sylus's second chapter, done in his namesake's viewpoint. We've agreed to alternate chapters so that I write the Clara chapters and he writes the Sylus ones. I'll now stop using author's notes to tell you about the story's chapters and viewpoints, and only use them for things that need to be explained sooner than the next chapter. I'll start writing the next one tomorrow, when I've come up with more ideas. I have a tune for the bells' ring in mind, and I'll play it after I record it.

We finished our meal and left in silence. My eyes rested coldly on the floor. My words spoke truth, but did I really believe in them? Horrors encompassed this wretched place, implanting more than just fear on my heart.

We made our way back and found our way to the lounge area, being cursed to watch the poor souls sit in their own madness. I studied their sunken and lifeless faces, sadness and loss filling them. But of all of the pairs of eyes, the one that held the most of these emotions was Pinkamena. She held her gaze low and away from me and Clara, so I decided not to pressure her into talking.

We found seats near the other entrance on the other side of the room. There was chatter between most of the patients, some of the nurses and caretakers as well. One of them being Fluttershy. I shifted to a comfortable sitting position to listen in on her conversation but just as I was able to understand what she was saying the room went dead silent. I looked around the room for the cause of the silence. My blood ran cold as I laid my eyes on the source.

A woman dressed in a tight fitting suit, the rainbow haired headmaster of this mad circus, Overseer Dash. She stood tall and firm like a soldier standing at the ready of their commanding officer, shifting a cold stone stare over the room. I found it rather off putting that her hair was the colour of the rainbow, not fitting for someone as callous and as cold as her. She strode through the room with heavy footfalls that surprisingly carried more weight than her gaze. I never felt so fearful in my life, how did she have so much command in her way about her that can silence an entire room? My gaze followed her as she found herself in the company of nurse Fluttershy. I listened, careful not to look conspicuous, Fluttershy said somewhat with higher volume and more light hearted, “Oh...hello...Overseer Dash…”

While her voice appeared that she was happy to see the Overseer, underneath the facade I caught the undertone of sobriety. Still, the real reason for this undercurrent remains a mystery. Fluttershy seemed uncomfortable addressing the Overseer as such. The Overseer’s face bore no expression and promised nothing short of pain and desolation. Her voice was low tone but still carried a bit of femininity, both of which blended well together. She said, “Hello, Fluttershy. How does the day bring you?”

Fluttershy did not look at her and said, “Yes...well enough.”

Overseer Dash simply nodded to her reply and stated flatly, “How has your job been faring?”

I took the pause in their conversation to analyze what exactly what the Overseer said. There was an undercurrent of something secret, just by the way she said job. What job? I looked back and saw Fluttershy’s face. Her expression said it all. She looked overtaken by anguish and with distraught. She said in a broken and lowered tone, “I just...it...it’s been fine.”

Her voice trailed off as she finished. The conversation hurt her in more ways than one. Before I could overanalyze what she said, more was revealed from the Overseer after she sighted. She said in a surprising voice filled with sentiment and worry, “Fluttershy, this is good for her. She will recover from this. We almost have the answer.”

I immediately stopped listening in on their conversation. Our plan of escape was beginning to formulate in my head. Fluttershy played a key role in our escape. I refocused as my pink haired companion said under her breath, “If it only were that simple. The darkness in my heart can’t be healed.”

Those same words were spoken before by many others. People believing they were forsaken. Under other circumstances I would think she was a liar, but her voice was so saddened and filled with so much anguish it caused my heart to sink. She spoke truth. I looked at her and said, “You know the Overseer?”

She noticed my comment, but she refused to acknowledge it to answer. Silence hung in the air and I took a deep breath. I said lowering my voice and softened my tone, “I want to help. We can help.” as I gestured to my sister with a simple turn of my head, not to alert the guards.

She lifted her head. There was anger, but behind her anger I heard the same sadness in her tone, “There is nothing on this earth that can help me. You can’t help me. No one can…”

She slumped back but I pushed forward with my softened tone, “I am going to try. We can’t escape out of here without you. Please, you deserve freedom from this prison!”

She sat back in silence and she clenched her eyes shut in hurt and pain, I saw deep in her eyes the exact pain she felt. Deep past that, I saw the innocent girl she once was. It hurt knowing that she was gone. It tore me in half looking into her eyes and seeing as such. She looked back at the floor and said, “No...no one can forgive for what I did. No one can forget.”

Her voice was overtaken by remorse and nothing else. I decided not to continue the conversation. I sat back in my wooden chair and crossed my arms over my chest. As I did so my sister cleared her throat granting her my attention. She said leaning in with a silenced tone, “Ahem... Brother Sy? I apologise for interrupting, but we do have a plan to formulate.”

She looked at Pinkamena for her approval. She noticed us looking at her and she said with a depressed sigh, “Alright...I’m in. What’s the plan?”

We all sat in silence forming a plan. I thought long and hard. How are three inmates of an insane asylum supposed to escape? Undetected no less, nearly impossible. Finally, after a few moments of thinking, I said, “First and foremost, we need to do so under the cover of night. I’ve noticed that security is less tight at night.”

Clara added in, “We would need to escape separately. We choose a rendezvous where we meet up, and then we leave together. But while we are in the building, we leave separately, to draw less attention.”

I nodded in agreement and so did Pinkamena, I said, “The only problem is the Overseer. I heard she never leaves the asylum unless instructed to by Celestia.”

We sat in silence for a few moments. The silence hung heavy in the air and rested uncomfortably on our shoulders. After a few minutes Pinkamena added in, “Three nights from now she has to leave to meet with the senior doctor, Doctor Twilight Sparkle, where they will discuss new procedures for the asylum. They do this every few weeks for security reasons.”

Clara and I looked at Pinkamena with surprised expressions. Pinkamena looked at us both and said, “What? Someone needs to keep an eye on them.”

I continued finishing the escape plan, “So. Three nights from now we are going to escape the asylum. While there are few security guards, there is still the problem of security doors. We would need a certain keycard to bypass some of the doors.”

Pinkamena waved her hand dismissively, “We’ll take care of that once we are brought to it. We need a halfway meeting point, this asylum is rather large.”

Clara rubbed her chin and said, “We can meet by the requisitions desk near the security room.”

Pinkamena and I nodded in agreement and Clara said, “Then we escape this hell hole three nights from now.”

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