//------------------------------// // Side Story: Sorrowful Loss // Story: The Road of Courage // by PrismaGalaxy514 //------------------------------// In Porkbelly, a lot has happened, ever since Johnny Test and Dukey disappeared without a single trace. News about this incident spread like wildfire and it lead to many search groups, who tried to find him, but came back empty-handed. A few days later, a masked entity named "The Shadow" hacked all televisions and phones, in order to show them a video about the horrible truth, that Johnny's own family were responsible for him leaving the house and Porkbelly forever, while taking Dukey with him from the animal shelter. Everyone was shocked and outraged about the truth and it lead to the family being arrested and sentenced to prison. For the parents, named Hugh and Lila, they were given life sentences, while the twins got 20 years, due to them being minors. At the same time, more people have vanished. The agents, the general, Sissy, Missy, Eugene, Jillian, Mr. Harm, Dr. Beebles, Brain Freezer, Zizrar, his mole people and the penguins. A few days later, the sisters broke out of the prison and it lead to them being chased by police. They did disappear a bit, but they were later found in a forest by a ranger. (BTW, those aren't the real Susan and Mary. It'll be explained in a future chapter) They were later arrested and their sentences were extended. Since those events, there were more unsuccessful search efforts, times of grieving and hatred towards the Test family. A few months have passed and after no new development, the police closed the case, assuming, that Johnny was probably killed by his own family, while the government officially and legally declared Johnny and Dukey dead in absentia, along with the others, who also vanished. As if that wasn't enough, new laws were passed to prevent child abuse and bullying. They really don't want other children to end up like Johnny. Now, it's been six months after the disappearance and the town of Porkbelly never felt the same again, as the people still felt the aftermath. Some of them made statues and shrines in his memory, while others kept campaigning for a better future for the children, with Child Protection Services and other charities helping them. Schools raised up their surveilance and offered abused as bullied children special education and therapy sessions, parents became more aware of their actions and started to become more careful. All of this proves, that Johnny Test wasn't an ordinary child and that his disappearance made a big impact in everyone's lives. One of them is a male, magenta cat, sitting on the window in a big mansion. He had purple stripes on his face, his fur on top of his head was pushed back in a style of rich men and wore a red bowtie. He was watching the scenery outside with a sorrowful look on his face, while being touched by the gentle breeze. However, he is not an ordinary cat, as he knows Johnny too well and he has a great amount of human intelligence and speech, much like Dukey. He is none other than one of Johnny's enemies, Mr. Mittens. "Ugh....Everything has gone downhill, ever since he left..." he sighed. He knew about Johnny's disappearance too well, since he heard about it in the news, like everyone else. Even when Johnny was his arch-nemesis, there were of course times, where they raced against each other, played games and even helped him out sometimes. Those were the good old times. But now, with him gone, he was left with a hole on his heart, that can never be filled. It was around the same time, an elderly butler came to him with a cup of tea. "Here is your cup of tea, sir." The butler gave him the cup of tea, in which the cat took it. "I just don't get it, Albert...It's been six months since he vanished and yet, it feels like, it happened yesterday..." Mittens sighed, while drinking his tea. "How did that happen? Last time when I met him, he was his usual self. Everything was pretty much normal, but then...the next day, he was gone and everything came crashing down..." "Haven't you watched the videos from 'The Shadow'?" Albert asked. "Of course, I did!! I was playing some video games, when it happened. I was basically forced to watch the videos!" The male cat stood up, looking a bit more agitated. "Back then, I was not in a good mood, when so much drama happened, which lead to the split of the Johnny Stopping Evil Force 6! It was a really messy one, as there were so many clashing opinions and petty fights. I was about to let my frustrations out on Test, when I received the news about his disappearance, which really didn't help my mood at all!!!" He screamed in anger. "Sir..." Albert was about to tell him to calm down, but Mittens was blinded by his negative emotions. "AND NOW LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!!!! I lost so many allies and enemies in a week! Brain Freezer, Zizrar, the Agents, the General, even the former Bee Keeper, all of them are gone, while I just stood there, still having to process on the whole ordeal!!!!!!! And you know, what?? IT STILL HURTS, LIKE A PART OF MY HEART HAS BEEN BRUTALLY TORN APART!!!!!" The male cat stomped his foot and threw the cup down, shattering it, in rage and pain. He heard about their disappearances a day after the arrest of the Test family. "Sir...may I suggest you to go out for a walk or perhaps do some exercises?" Albert suggested. "I'm concerned, that your stress would burn you out. In the meanwhile, I could bring you some snacks and cake." "You know, Albert? The whole ordeal caused so much migraine in my head... I'm going to play some video games to ease off the pain a bit, even though it's not much..." Mittens went to the living room to play some games online with random strangers, all while Albert went to the kitchen to prepare the snacks and cake. The magenta cat was playing an online battle royale game, but it felt empty, playing with random strangers, now that his friends and enemies are gone. Regardless, he managed to take out two of his enemies, before hiding his character somewhere. At this point, there is no time for moping in an online game. He has to concentrate, if he wanted to win. As the session grew longer, more players got eliminated. Also during that session, the voice chat was on for the players to communicate or rather hurl insults and swears to another, whenever it's in English or in a different language. Eventually, only Mittens and a random Korean player were the only ones left standing. Both of them were really skilled. A long battle between the two players in the game ensued with one of them trying to eliminate the other, while dodging the projectiles. In the end, after so much teeth grinding and skillful maneuvering, Mittens finally managed to eliminate the other player, winning the game, all while he heard the Korean player swearing and banging the table with his fists hard. "Got 'em." The magenta cat smirked and put his controller down for a well-deserved break, when Albert came back with the snacks. "Here are your snacks, sir." Albert politely reminded. "Now get me some drinks. I have to play yet another session." Mittens grabbed the controller again and joined a session with other random players. "As you wish." Albert went back, but Mittens didn't notice, that the butler's movements were...slightly off. As if...he was tired. The game started and the players engaged in a long battle against each other. Mittens concentrated himself for the win and did as well, as he could, while eliminating some of them. But it was around this time, when the empty feeling had returned, alongside a new emotion for Mittens: Loneliness. The disappearances of his allies and enemies, especially Johnny, was still a shock to him, given the reasoning and the timeline. The empty feeling really dampered his skills of the game. Suddenly, he heard a sound of a shot. That sound brought the cat back into reality and realized, that he was eliminated by the same Korean gamer from before, who started laughing at him. "OH, COME ON!!!" He threw the controller on the TV in rage and sat down. "Why can't this feeling leave me alone?!?!!" As if that wasn't enough, he heard sounds of Albert falling down and glass shattering, coming from the kitchen. Annoyed, Mittens got up and went there, assuming that Albert had accidentally dropped the glass. "Ugh, Albert! You just dropped some amount of high quality-" But, when he arrived at the kitchen, his expression of annoyance has changed into horror, as he saw Albert, laying motionless on the ground. His sight was fading in and out at a rapid pace and his heartbeat increasing, as the cat fell into total panic. "Oh God, no!!!! Albert, wake up!!!" Mr. Mittens tried to wake him up by shaking the butler's body, but it didn't work. He checked Albert's pulse, only to hear it beating slowly and his breathing being shallow. Not knowing, what to do, he grabbed a nearby phone in the mansion and called 911. "911, what's your emergency?" The dispatcher can be heard. "Hurry up and please come here, my butler has just collapsed!!!!" Mittens yelled. "Please calm down, sir. What's the address?" The dispatcher asked, in which Mittens provided the address of the mansion, alongside the necessary information about Albert, including his name and age. "Is he breathing?" The dispatcher asked about Albert's condition. Mittens checked on Albert's body, only to realize, that he wasn't breathing anymore. "He's not breathing......HE'S NOT BREATHING ANYMORE!!! HE'S REALLY NOT BREATHING ANYMORE, JUST COME HERE PLEASE!!!!! PLEASE!!!!!!" The cat became panicked. "Okay, calm down, sir. Help is on the way." The dispatcher assured. All while Mittens stayed on the phone to talk with the dispatcher, it took around 15-20 minutes for the ambulance to arrive. After hearing it coming to the mansion, Mittens hid somewhere, while emergency responders went to the kitchen to pick up Albert's body and carried him to the vehicle for a quick ride to the Porkbelly Hospital. Immediately after, the magenta cat came out and grabbed a hat, a pair of gloves, shoes and a trench coat and ran outside. The reason, why he did this, is because he had to keep his identity a secret, like something happened, that damaged his reputation. Porkbelly Hospital Immediately after arrival, the doctors rushed Albert to an emergency room for a resuscitation. There was really no time to spare, as they immediately grabbed the necessary tools and began trying to revive the butler. First, they tried to gibe him oxygen and then kickstart his heart with a defibrillator. All while monitoring his vitals at the same time. Meanwhile, Mr. Mittens went inside the hospital to talk with a receptionist. He wanted to know, if Albert would be okay. "Don't worry. The doctors will do their best. Please wait for further results." The receptionist responded his question, which lead to the cat go to the waiting room. As he waited for any progress, he can feel the massive anxiety and tension tightening around his shoulders. This was something really unexpected, as for his age, Albert seems to be perfectly fine. There was literally no sign of him showing any weakness up until now. What's going on? Is Albert actually okay? Is he....dying? So many questions circled around the cat's head like vultures on a hot desert day. After a few hours of waiting and praying, a doctor came by and guided Mittens to Albert's room. There he was, laying on a hospital bed, being attached to a breathing tube and a monitor, showing his vitals. The doctor left Mittens alone with the butler, but...with a sad look....as if he knew about what's going to happen... "Albert! Albert!! What's going on!?" Mittens demanded answers. "You were fine just a few hours ago!" The old butler slowly turned his head towards his master and with a weak and painful voice, he responded: "It hurts..." Hearing Albert speak like this really hurts. "Hang on, I can get some painkillers!" Mittens was about to go, when Albert interrupted him. "Don't....It's not gonna help, because I really don't have much time left...." He weakly spoke. "D-don't say that, Albert!! I...I can fix this! I could get some powerful painkillers or making a cure for that pain or hell, use that tea house time machine from the Tests to prevent that from ever happening and even bring Test back!" At this point, Mittens was in complete denial of the harsh reality. It's clear, that Albert is in a lot of pain, but the cat chose to ignore it, due to his mental instability. "Please...t...there is no need for all of this....s-sir...You need to m-move on....from t-the past...." Albert was serious and genuinely concerned about Mr. Mittens' declining mental state. "It...hurts...Could you please bring me a glass of water.....sir?" He then asked his master, in which the cat, with tears in his green eyes, brought a glass of water. With shaky paws, the magenta cat poured some water into the butler's mouth for him to drink it, since he was too weak to do it on his own. Suddenly, the butler grabbed his master's paw. "I swear to God, don't leave! Who's gonna clean the litter box for me?!" Mittens tried his best, not to cry, despite the fact, that tears were streaming down from his face. "I'm pretty sure...you can do it....all by yourself....since...I'm going away..." Albert responded. "It's time....It's...It's been.....it's been an honor....to serve you...despite the ups...and downs....I wish you....the best of luck....and farewell....s....s....sir...." Albert shed a few tears from his face, before drawing his final breath and dropping his hand, letting Mittens go. The next thing, the cat heard was the sound of a flat line, sadly making a nightmare come true. "No....NO!!!! ALBERT!!! OH MY GOD!! DON'T DO THIS TO ME!!!! THIS CAN'T BE REAL!!!! WAKE UP!!!!! WAKE UP, GODDAMNIT!!!!" Mittens tried to violently shake Albert to wake him up, but that didn't work, as he felt his butler's body becoming cold and limp, like his spirit leaving the mortal world behind. Hell, he slammed his fist on his butler's chest out of frustration and sadness, but it didn't help. As a last ditch effort, he repeatedly pressed the red emergency button on the device, calling nearby doctors and nurses to go there. They tried their best to revive Albert, all while Mittens watched in horror. They really did try their best....but unfortunately...it was all for nothing. One of the nurses looked back at the cat, whose identity is still obscured by the trench coat and hat and shed a few tears. "I'm....I'm very sorry, sir..." She responded. "We really are...We tried our best to bring him back, but in the end...it was all for nothing....He's gone...he's dead...." The doctor added, before pulling the white blanket over Albert's body. The news really sent Mittens into an unbelievable amount of shock and sadness. The fact, that Albert just died was too much for him to handle.... "NOOOOO!!!! ALBERT!!!!!!!!!!!" Mittens suddenly jumped at the bed and broke down on his dead butler, leaving the doctors and the nurses having no other option, than to watch helplessly, as his cries became worse. So much so, that the nurses began to sob and the doctors lowering their heads in silence. At that moment, the room was filled with sorrow, grief and despair. Meanwhile, in a certain toy company... A group of programmers, who possessed a copy of the game "No Escape!", tried to overwrite some codes, while employees watched. It was a long and agonising effort, as they looked into every piece of code and finding a way to overwrite it. Apparently, they didn't have to look further, since it turns out, there is a flaw in the game's programming, that allows anyone with great skills to exploit it or even delete it in general. It was connected to the core of the system. After finding it, the programmers wasted no time and overwritten the code completely. After which, they turned the game on and see the robots being disabled, allowing one prisoner to escape from the game and jump into the real world. A prisoner with poofy blue hair on his sides and on the top of his head. "I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!! And it feels so good to be free!" He shouted in joy and relief. Immediately after getting out, he went to the meeting room for some planning. "I still haven't forgotten about my last defeat, but this time, my new plan of getting rid of all of the children, will be perfect!" Much to the dismay of his employees, the toy maker, also known as Wacko, hasn't really changed that much. "Sir...It has been almost a year, since your last plan failing. After all of those constant failures, you think, you could just stop and be a better person by making toys for children to enjoy." The secretary was getting fed up. "Nope! All I have to do is to think of better plans and not screw it up! It's been almost a year since I was captured by that video game...Now I have to step up my game! Now what do kids like to play these days....?" He thinks about several plans, before looking at a newspaper article about children on their phones. This is when a lightbulb came off. "That's it! Phones! I could develop an app, that is kinda like No Escape, but even more foolproof and perfect! And this time, I will get rid of every kid, including my enemy, Johnny Test!" "Uhm, sir...? Johnny Test has since been declared dead." One of his employees told him about the recent news. "WHAT!?!?! WHAT DID I MISS!??!?!!" Wacko was shocked. He literally had NO IDEA about Johnny's disappearance and presumed death, since the last time, he saw him, both were in the "No Escape" video game, battling each other and also avoiding the robots. In the end, Johnny and Dukey overwritten the code of who the robots have to catch and guard and escaping, while Wacko himself gets imprisoned in the game. "A lot actually, sir." His secretary gave him several newspaper articles about the disappearances of Johnny and Dukey in chronological order, from the first report all the way to their presumed dead confirmation. This was unexpected for the evil toy maker, especially when it comes to the timeline and reasons why. "Ah, man! Worst past is...I didn't get the chance of destroying him and now that opportunity is now gone!!!" Wacko was outraged, before calming himself down. "Eh, whatever...I can live with that. On the plus side, NOBODY will stop me on doing it again!!!" He laughed evilly, as he went to a different room. Unbeknownst to him, the secretary pulled out her phone and secretly called someone for some...confirmation. After that short call, they went to follow their boss, who called the programmers to make that app. The programmers used the "No Escape!" video game as a reference and looked at the code for some flaws. After which, they wrote down a lot of codes, added functions, failsafe, etc. Except they added some stuff, like better guards in the programming, stricter surveillance and some psychological ways to prevent children to escaping. After a lot of programming and a lot of testing from crash test dummies, as well as a lot of perfecting the app, Wacko came to them for the final test. They saw the crash test dummy playing the app for a while, until getting sucked into the phone. They waited for a few hours for the dummy to get out. If it didn't get out, that means, the app was foolproof. And it did, as the dummy didn't resurface. "It worked! Now it time to get the app to the store! But not by marketing and such, I'm gonna hack the store and get the app in!" At that point, the toy maker's mind went insane, as he started typing on the computer to hack the app store and was about to put the app in with evil laughter and crazed eyes, when all of a sudden... "FBI, OPEN UP!" They heard glass shattering and doors broken down and saw a fuck ton of soilders storming and tackle down Wacko, all while the employees ducked down for safety. "Sir, you are arrested for crimes against humanity!" The leader of the soldiers made his point clear. "Excuse me, what's going on?!" Wacko was dumbfounded, while betting pointed by the weapons. "We've been searching for you for a long time, thanks to this video, which included all of your crimes." The solider showed him a video, in which included the truth. It started with the mysterious vigilante, The Shadow, appearing out of the dark. "Hello again. This is the Shadow speaking. You think, that all of the perpetrators were brought to justice and the story being finished? Unfortunately, no. Why? Well, I've been researching about the whole case, when I found something peculiar. It seems like, in one of those 'Experiments', they did convert Johnny's memories into video files. And some of them featured a notorious person, who's determined on getting rid of all children in Porkbelly and perhaps...the entire world. Anybody, who has some common sense knows, that this action would basically drive humanity into extinction. If not, well this video will show you, how twisted and cruel this person actually is. For any parent out there, even though you won't like it, this video will open your eyes and be more careful." After those words from the Shadow, the video faded to a montage, showing the evil toy maker's crimes from start to finish. What's worse, it was all for a petty reason. He just wanted peace and such. Any sane person could just kindly tell them to keep it down, talk to their parents, do their business elsewhere or even better, JUST IGNORE IT. But no, Wacko literally chose the insanity route and decided to get rid of ALL children, which is not only petty, but also without children, there will be no new generation and that the human race would slowly go extinct. "That's probably just a misunderstanding, right?" Wacko tried to double down the incidents. "In the past, probably...but this is not the case today. You can thank Johnny Test's disappearance for the massive change. Anyway, you're coming with us." The leader responded with an angry glare. "Oh, really? In that case, if you want a fight, then so be it!" Wacko pressed a a button on a hidden device around his wrist, which was covered by one of his sleeves. Suddenly, many of his dangerous toys appear out of nowhere with dangerous weapons. Immediately, the soldiers prepared their weapons and shoot the toys, but many of them are bulletproof and attacked the soldiers, as Wacko laughed like a madman. Many of the employees backed away in fear, only to be held hostage by the dangerous toys. "SIR, PUT DOWN THE TOYS!" One soldier commanded him to stop the madness, but it fell on deaf ears, as the toys kept rampaging. So of course, the soldiers kept firing and firing. While that was going on, Wacko went to the computer, in order to start his plan of getting rid of all children. He laughed and laughed, as he was really about to push the button, when suddenly, he was tackled by one of the soldiers, leading to a big scuffle, leading to screams, scratches and kicks. It went on and on, but eventually, the crazy toy maker got the upper hand by throwing the solider to a wall. He was really about to push the button for real. "I'm afraid, your pathetic plan of taking me down will end right here, RIGHT NOW! And THIS TIME, I'M GONNA WIN!!!" Wacko laughed in a maniacal tone, as he was inches away from the computer and he was about to push it for real, when all of a sudden, he heard a voice. "No. Your path ends now!" Suddenly, the toys dropped like flies, releasing the employees and stopping any shots and such, as footsteps can be heard. Everyone looked around, only to see the secretary with another remote, which included a kill switch. "Sir, we are completely tired of your nonsense! All we wanted is a complete restart and making toys for children to enjoy, but you never listened and instead used your resources and your company name to ruin our reputation!" She yelled, before turning her attention to the FBI. "Gentlemen, he's all yours." "Gladly, ma'am." The leader responded and the soldiers tackled Wacko down and arrested him. "YOU TRAITOR!!! I'LL BE BACK, I SWEAR!!" Wacko shouted, but the secretary just looked away in silence, as he was taken away by the agents and guards. His shouts and snarls of clear insanity can be heard, sending chills down to everyone's spines. But as time went on, the sounds became less laudable, as he was taken further and further away, until eventually...it became silent. As the injured soldiers slowly got up, the leader went to the secretary and shook her hand. "Thank you for your cooperation." The leader looked at her. "The operation was a success." "Believe me, it's for the good of mankind. But, remember about our side of the deal." The unnamed secretary reminded the leader of a deal, they took. "Of course, ma'am. You and the other employees will use the resource to make a brand new company to start over from scratch, while we'll erase the data and you'll be excluded from the trial." He nodded. "We just wanted to start over. That's all. Ladies and Gentlemen, it's time." The secretary told to the employees and they sighed in relief, as their nightmare was over. They took the assents and resources and immediately began working on their restructuring. It turns out, that all of this was part of an operation from the employees and the FBI. In fact, just two weeks before the incident, they confronted the employees with the mission of shutting down the company for good, due to the constant scandals and controversies. But after the secretary and the employees told them their opinions on Wacko and his deeds, the FBI thought about it. In fact, the secretary herself offered a deal on catching the crazy toy maker, in exchange for the agents to wipe all of the data clean and for them to just start over with a clean slate. After the FBI thought about it for a while and some discussions, they agreed and for the next two weeks, they confiscated a copy of the game "No Escape!" and hire the best programmers to get him out. And the rest is history. Five days later, Wacko stood on trial in a cube, made of plexiglass, while many parents and a lot of angry toy makers and companies gathered, because they believed, that thanks to him, the toy industry as a whole will collapse. The trial was not pretty to say the least. As the parents of his victims testified against him, a sense of dread and insanity loomed in the air, Wacko's sanity became shattered and laughed like a mad clown. Children became scared and cried and their parents became mad, as the toy maker shouted insults at them, which really didn't help him with the case at all and instead showed, how cruel he actually is. "Order! Order in the court!!" The judge banged his gavel on the desk to silence everyone and they did, except for Wacko, who still laughed. Eventually, security guards have to put him a mouth cage around him, since his behaviour became too unbearable for everyone. Once the guards silenced him, the judge resumed with his judgement. "Has the jury reached a verdict?" He asked the jury. "We have, your honor. We declare the defendant, Wacko, guilty of all charges of child kidnapping, attempted murder and also attempted genocide." A man in the jury read out the verdict and the others agreed. Although they discussed earlier, if he would be plead guilty or not, when he's insane. And if that's the case, would he be sent to death or life sentence in a max prison? Ultimately the judge had decided a fitting punishment in his mind. "With that said, the court sentences you to death! Normally, I'm neutral during the cases, but this one...it's undeniably clear, that it makes every parents' blood boil, myself included! I am a father of three children, who are destined for greatness and yet, they deserve happiness. You are basically trying to break them by separating them from their family for all eternity and erase the human race slowly and painfully, all because you have very petty reasons! No wonder, why Johnny Test had disappeared, it's because of you! Well you and his family and a few others!" The judge sentenced him, while being angry. Given that the judge is a father of three children, it's understandable. After that sentence and a slam from the gavel, the guards took the crazy toy maker away, but not before for him ushering an even crazier laugh. A sign, that his sanity has been completely shattered and couldn't be restored at all. A laugh, that echoed throughout the entire courtroom and giving anyone a very unpleasant memory....But regardless, the parents, as well as toy makers and companies were relieved, that their greatest enemy has been given, what he deserved. But, it will take a long time for the toy industry to rebuild itself again, after that case. Inside of the mansion, Mr. Mittens has been laying on his bed with a depressed look on his face, moping and grieving. He had truly lost everyone: His allies, Brain Freezer and Zizrar, even the Bee Keeper, despite him retiring from being evil permanently, his enemies Johnny, Dukey, the agents, the general, the sisters, despite them being arrested and sentenced in prison, some people, he didn't really care, like Eugene and Jillian and now, his trusty butler, Albert. (Side note, he never met Sissy, Missy and Mr. Harm) It was just too much for the cat to handle. And so, he decided to isolate himself from everyone by staying in the mansion, thinking that he's not in a mood for everything. As the days went by, despite Mittens making sure to meet the essentials, like food and water, his grief prevented him on checking on his other needs, causing his fur to become really messy. It went on and on, until two weeks later. On Wednesday, he has to attend Albert's funeral. So he brushed his fur all by himself and prepared himself for that day by dressing himself with a black trench coat, gloves, shoes and the hat. Mittens also took an umbrella and went out. On that day, the skies were cloudy as hell and heavy rain poured all over the city. Regardless, he went out on a walk to the cemetery, while being plagued by a lot of negative thoughts. As he arrived, the cat noticed that one person was not in the crowd: His former owner. "Wait a minute...where is he?" Mittens wondered. He theorized, that either he had no time to attend the funeral, due to a very busy schedule or he had already moved on from him and Albert. He leaned more on the latter theory, since it's been a long time since his very first plan and even before that, him leaving his owner and taking Albert with him. However, he couldn't recall time, as he was busy with other things, like races and other foiled plans. But this time, the cat had to focus on the present and say goodbye to his butler, while reminiscing on the times, where there were turbulent moments, but also good ones, despite Mittens himself not being nice. He silently hid in the crowd of the mourners, as Albert's family members and close friends carried the casket to the open grave and a chaplain preparing his words. "Ladies and Gentlemen...We are gathered to mourn the loss of Albert." The chaplain went on to tell about Albert's life and his accomplishments, despite the fact, that he helped Mr. Mittens on so many plans on destroying Johnny and turning everyone into cats. Speaking of Mr. Mittens, the cat himself was trying his best to not stand out from the crowd and avoid any eye contact. It went on for a few minutes in the pouring rain, until the coffin was lowered and the mourners leaving bouquets of flowers behind. Before the grave was filled, Mr. Mittens threw a single white rose into it and left the cemetery, without saying a single word and shedding a few tears. As the feline went by the other passerby and even a few couples kissing under the rainy city, his heart broke even more, since it's clear, that his massive loneliness extends to love as well. Since he is the only anthropomorphic cat in this world, the reason as of why he would turn everyone into cats, other to rule the world, is some form of companionship. Well, at least, that what he sees now. Back then, he was such a nasty cat, but as time went on, he spent more time battling Johnny and his gang or even playing games with him or hell, teaming up on one occasion, the magenta feline became a bit softer but still nasty. That was until Johnny and Dukey disappeared from this world and with them, his allies and enemies as well, in which the cat found out the truth of why. As if the drama, resulting in the alliance disbanding under bad terms wasn't frustrating enough, their disappearances added more weight to his already heavy problem. And recently, losing Albert was the breaking point. He couldn't even think straight, as the feline continued walking down the streets, while ignoring any eye contact. Eventually, he had to go to a quieter place than the loud hustle of the city. More specifically, he was about to go back to his mansion and was about to open the door, when all of a sudden, the magenta cat was caught in a dark bag, courtesy of men dressed in black. "Hey! What the hell!? Let me go!!" Mittens struggled to break free from the bag, while the men grabbed it tightly. In fact, he tried to claw his way out, only for the bag to not budge, as if it was made from a very strong material. Suddenly, one of the men opened the bag a bit and sprayed a substance inside. Meanwhile, Mittens still tried his best to get out, but he didn't realise, that breathing in the gas would slowly make him lose consciousness. "Are you guys deaf or something?!!? I said let....me....go..." Those were his last words, before passing out, while the men carried the bag to an uncertain destination. Meanwhile in Equestria... Rarity was doing her usual job inside of the Carousel Boutique by sketching some ideas and making dresses, when she heard a knock from the door. "One moment, please!" The white unicorn responded, while finishing a recent dress. After which, she went to the door and opened it, revealing to be the Brain Freezer. "Oh! Brain Freezer, what brings you here?" Rarity asked. "Uhm...you know...I'm still stuck on trying to win Snow Emerald's heart, since...well. I'm still nervous as hell. That's because she started to hang around me and Zizrar for a while." The icy unicorn explained. "Well, my friends and I are still trying to fix their friendship problem and guiding them to righteousness. Right now, they're slowly improving, when I last met them. It's still crazy, that it all happened without our knowledge! You know, the whole drama amongst them, because of certain events, which lead to that dragon incident and Fire and Ocean being taken by Princess Luna and Tempest? It still gives me migraines..." Rarity sighed. "But it seems like, it would soon go away. I hope... Anyway, I know, that you are still scared about being rejected again, if you decide to tell her about your past. I was originally going to tell you to forget the past, which I'm still recommending for you to do so for your sake. But, after the whole drama, I was like 'Screw it! Try to be honest with her! Lying is not good at all!'. I know, that you are still hesitant, but it's better to tell her the truth than not saying at all!" The heroine of generosity gave him some advice. "And also, be nice." "Again, how? What if my past would make her hate me!?!" The blue stallion became nervous. "I'm pretty sure, she will understand, darling. Plus, Starlight and a few others did some terrible things before and were forgiven. If they bounced back from their actions and redeemed themselves, I'm pretty sure, you can do it too. Same for your friend, Zizrar, who I still have to make some new sunglasses, after his old ones were destroyed by accident." Rarity assured him, that everything is okay. "Now would you excuse me, I have to finish some new dresses and decorations for the upcoming Friendship Festival." "Uhm...I've heard, that the last one was interrupted by the Storm King some time ago. Is that the reason, why there will be another one?" Brain Freezer became curious. "Actually, since there was so much progress with our relations to non-ponies, thanks to Twilight's efforts, the princesses have decided to plan another one. That and Tempest actually wanted to attend, since she just wanted to have a good time." Rarity explained, before closing the door, leaving the icy stallion to think about the advice, he was given. After which, Brain Freezer went out for a walk in Ponyville, while he heard the sounds of the citizens working hard and playing hard. Seeing many young and old couples having a good time made him imagine his future with Snow Emerald. They sounded wonderful, but of course, he was dealing with so much anxiety and doubts. Like what if things would go wrong? He was really scared of yet another rejection, after what happened in the past, when his true identity was revealed in front of his former girlfriend. In fact, he was so busy dealing with his thoughts, that he didn't pay attention to his surroundings, when all of a sudden, the icy unicorn bumped into someone hard and fell onto the ground. "Ow! Watch, where you going, man!" The stallion yelled, while rubbing his head. At first, he assumed, he bumped into a random pony, but upon opening his eyes and looking around a bit, he saw Snow Emerald herself on the ground, groaning in pain and rubbing her head and around her were dropped bags of groceries. "Oh, shit! I'm sorry! I didn't you here!" The icy unicorn profusely apologized and used his unicorn magic to pick up the bags. "It's okay. I was also lost by my own insecurities as well. Also, thanks for picking up the groceries." Snow forgave him and grabbed the bags. "I've been trying my best to move on from...well...that drama." "Oh yeah. Twilight told me about it. It's about that drama between you and your friends, which leads to the disbanding of your team and losing your friends." Brain Freezer responded, before remembering, what Rarity said to him. Before Snow could leave, he grabbed her hoof, took a deep breath and confessed with: "I'm sorry, if I'm being pushy, but....I can't stay silent any longer...I have to get this out of my chest. You see....I had a dark past before..." That confused the pegasus mare, but curiosity got the better of her and listened to his confession. But before, he could tell her about his past, the stallion used his magic to teleport him and Snow to a different section of the village, where there is not much activity. "I don't originate from Equestria, but instead from a different universe, specifically in a city, called 'Porkbelly'. It all started a long time ago, outside of the Institute of Technology. Back then, I was just a coffee guy there, but with an exceptionally high IQ and twisted thoughts. I was showing off one of my inventions at a contest, in hopes of winning. But of course, reality wasn't really kind to me and I got belittled as just a coffee guy. Something snapped inside of me and froze everyone, except for a particular duo, shown here." Brain Freezer pointed at Johnny and Dukey playing with their brother, Cosmic Blaze and Breeze Dasher. "You mean your friends over there? Those two ponies, named Radiant Thunder and Coffee Paw?" Snow asked. "Yes. But back then...It was very complicated. At the beginning, I saw them as threats, trying to prevent my plan of freezing over Porkbelly. They tried to trick me, but of course, they couldn't differentiate the cups and I was so close on defeating my enemy, but was ultimately defeated by...a rich looking friend of his. That rich guy is the one playing with the fillies." Brain Freezer referred to Eugene, who is seen playing with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, before continuing his story. "As I said, the relation between me and him was very complicated. On one hand...or should I say...hoof...he and his pal were my enemies and stopped my plans time after time, even when I teamed up with other bad guys, it still wasn't enough to defeat him. But on the other side, I did enjoy spending time with him racing, playing games and even teaming up time after time. But that was nothing, compared to the time, he helped me finding love. I was really lonely, but too stubborn to show it. It wasn't until one of my many defeats, where the truth came out to them. Amazingly, they decided to help me find a soulmate for me. It was...messy to say the least...a lot of chaos and failures happened and at one point, gave up my pursuit altogether and went back to my evil ways. But in the end, I was locked into a device, which made me look really handsome and eventually, I made a new life for myself. I did eventually found one girl and started a romantic relationship with her...but my true identity eventually came out and she was horrified at me, severely breaking my heart. Completely heartbroken, I went evil again, but my connection with Radiant Thunder, or as I know him as Johnny, surprisingly improved. It's more like a frenemy situation. I really can't describe it in full, due to how complicated it is. But one day...everything changed for me. Johnny had disappeared without a trace, alongside with his doggy pal, which really broke me even harder. Keep this in mind, before that, the alliance between me and others fell apart, due to constant arguments and petty fights. I was already stressed at the time and with his disappearance, also made me...depressed, as the loneliness and sadness from that heartbreak returned at full force. Even when I found a best friend, in form of Zizrar, it still wasn't enough to fill the void. And soon...I saw the videos from the Shadow, in which my eyes opened at the full truth about Johnny's disappearance. Disgusted and feeling guilty of being part of that mess, I went with my friends, as well with a kind man, to make amends and find him. Eventually, when we arrived at Area 51.1, I was told by the agents, that Johnny actually went to this world...Equestria. As to be expected, we went there PERMANENTLY and after a while of searching, we found them and apologized for what we've done. They did forgive us and we started to live our new lives as ponies and non-ponies. Right now, I'm still trying to redeem myself." During the confession, the icy blue stallion had tears forming in his cold blue eyes. "Oh my God..." Snow was shocked of the whole story. "You know...looking back...I can't believe, how insane I was back then." Brain Freezer sighed. "Sounds like, you have a very serious problem with yourself. From what I've heard, you couldn't get over your own past, especially from that heartbreak." Snow commented, causing the icy unicorn to look down in shame. "Look, I don't want to sound too harsh...but, you have to confront your problems and trying to solve them one by one." The pegasus mare added. "I'm trying, okay?!" He shouted. "I'm just scared, that you would hate me, because of it!" The icy blue stallion lowered his head, while tears fell down from his face. "Wait...why would I-" The snowy pegasus was confused and was about to say something, when Brain Freezer interrupted her. "No, seriously! Unlike the others, when I first saw you in this village, something had changed inside of me. It became...warmer and softer..." At this point, Brain Freezer was struggling to find the appropriate words for Snow, due to his high anxiety. "Well, what is it?" Snow asked, but before the stallion could even tell her about his feelings, they heard a shout from Breeze Dasher. "Hey, guys!" The dark blue mare flew to them with a worried look on her face. "Uhm....hate to interrupt your conversation, but...I really could use your help right now." "What is it, Breeze?" Snow asked to her friend. "Well...I was just minding my own business, when I saw some mole dude stuck in a hole, with some muscular moles around him, trying to get him out." Breeze explained. "What?! Where is he!?" Brain Freezer was shocked to learn, that it was Zizrar, who got stuck. "Follow me!" Breeze flew off with the icy ponies running after the mare out of Ponyville and they arrived near a forest, in which they saw Zizrar, stuck on a hole upside down. "Can someone tell me, what's going on?!" Brain Freezer asked. "Well, we tried to find a place for the mole people to dig and make a new home, when we saw a hole. Zizrar was about to inspect it, when he tripped and his crown fell down into it. Of course, our king jumped inside of the hole, but got stuck halfway." One of the mole men explained. "We tried to get him out, but the hole is too tight." "Shit....We have to get him out now!" The icy unicorn replied and tried to use his unicorn magic to pull Zizrar out, but it cost a lot of stamina and power. Of course, it didn't work and instead left him exhausted. "Have you guys tried to extend the hole by digging?" Snow asked. "The ground is dry." One of the mole men explained and even touched the ground a bit, which was indeed dry. "Why not trying to watering the ground to make the soil easier to dig?" Brain Freezer had an idea. "It's a good idea, but....there is a problem. Ocean Spark is currently unavailable, due to...you know, being taken by the moon princess! Alternatively, I could use my ice powers, but that would not be a good idea and even if you want to use fire, keep in mind, that Fire Jewel is also unavailable for the same reason!" Snow explained, which lead to the group thinking of other ideas. None of which would do something, but Brain Freezer had an idea. "Wait! Why not using our ice powers and the other would use torches to melt the ice and watering the ground? As for your friend not being available, we can improvise!" The icy unicorn explained his idea in full and thought of something, when another "Eureka!" moment came by, when he saw her friend, Breeze Dasher. "Hey, you! You can use a bit of your lightning to create fires!" He added. "Wait, are you serious? You know, that my lightning powers are no joke, pal!" Breeze references the power scale of her elemental powers. "Also, what do you mean by 'our' ice powers? Wait...don't tell you have..." Snow was taken aback by what Brain Freezer said, before knowing, what he meant. "...ice powers as well? Yes. And as for the lightning, you could make smaller ones on some strong branches, yet strong enough to make torches." Brain Freezer addressed both of the girls' questions and concerns. "Hey! Could you guys hurry up?! I think, my blood is on their way to my brain!" The voice of Zizrar can be heard, who's getting impatient. "Also I still need to get my crown back!" "You heard him, guys! Let's start!" Snow had a serious look on her face and the group start their plan on freeing the king. The mole men went around to find some strong branches and after they returned, Breeze used her lightning powers to set the branches ablaze. And while Snow and Brain Freezer used their ice powers to create small ice blocks around them, the men use their torches to melt the ice down, with the dark blue pegasus mare using her wind powers to keep the fire burning. The fire caused the ice to melt and soil the ground around Zizrar with the water. At the same time, one of the mole men kept checking the ground, if it's wet enough to extend the hole and getting their king out. After a couple of minutes, he started digging around the hole, extending the diameter in the process. After a while, the hole was big enough for the ponies and the mole people to pull Zizrar out. Thanks to the soiled ground and the extended size of the hole, they managed to get him out of the hole and lay him down on the ground. "Wait! My crown..." The mole king was a bit dazed, while also shielding his eyes, due to the sunlight. "What happened to your sunglasses?" Snow asked. "You see....Rarity said, that he accidentally broke his old sunglasses and that she'll make a new one for him." Brain Freezer explained. "Uhm....How did that happen?" Breeze was confused. "It was... really chaotic. I had a lot of bad luck, like getting hit in the head by a falling flower pot, bumped into that clumsy pegasus again and finally, tripping and falling on my sunglasses." Zizrar recounted on the event. Meanwhile, one of the mole men inspected the hole and looked down, only to see, that the crown somehow went missing. "Uhm...excuse me?" He went to the king and attempted to explain about the situation. "Your crown...uhm.." With those words, Zizrar immediately stood up and looked down on the hole, when he noticed, that his crown wasn't there anymore. "MY CROWN!!!! How did this happen!? It was there a minute ago, when I got stuck!!" He yelled in shock and in disbelief. "I was about to say, that it somehow went missing." His right hand man responded. "Hold up....There's no way, it could just disappear so quickly..." Breeze doubted. "Perhaps, someone stole it from underground, because there are no other ponies and creatures around aside form us. And even then, I didn't hear someone taking it via magic or just by hoof and running away." The snowy mare theorized. "That means, someone stole my crown from down under the hole! Gentlemen, go down into the hole and get it back, now!!" Zizrar commanded his men to go down into the hole and find the thief, in which they nodded and after extending the hole further, went inside and dug even deeper. "What about the new sunglasses?" Zizrar asked, while still covering his eyes. "Pretty sure, Rarity is still working on it. Why not go back to Ponyville to check up on her? Maybe she had it finished." The icy unicorn told to his friend. "Good idea! Let's go!" Zizrar was about to run, when Snow grabbed him. "Not so fast! We don't want you to get lost, okay? We're gonna go to Ponyville together. So stay close to me, okay?" Snow responded. "Hmmm...actually, you can go. I'll go inside the hole, making sure, these dudes are at least protected." Breeze made her decision and told her friend about it. "Are you sure, you want to go inside alone? You do know, what happened last time, you did something similar, right?" Snow was sceptical. "I know. I know. It didn't go so well and got my ass captured by them. But, trust me! I'll be careful this time!" The dark blue mare responded in a confident manner, before zooming into the hole, leaving the trio behind. "You know. Breeze can be a bit cocky, but she is a loyal warrior." Snow told the guys about her friend. "Actually...I haven't told you about my friends, Cherry, Fire, Ocean and Tropic yet. But first, we have to go back to Ponyville. It's been quite a day." She continued, before flying her way back, with the guys following them. However, she excluded someone else, due to drama. Meanwhile, Brain Freezer was feeling down, because he didn't get the chance on telling Snow Emerald about his feelings, before Breeze interrupted them with the emergency. ??? Elsewhere, Mr. Mittens slowly woke up in an unknown, windowless room with a single steel door, a table and a few chairs. "Ugh....where am I?" He was still dazed by the substance, which knocked him out earlier. He tried to get up, only to feel something preventing him on doing so. It turned out, that he was handcuffed and chained to the chair, he was sitting. Immediately realizing, that he got captured, the feline struggled to break free from his restraints, but due to the strength of the chains and the cuffs, he couldn't get himself out. But that didn't deter him from trying his best multiple times, even though it cost him stamina. Suddenly, the door opened and a group of men in black, holding several files in cases entered inside. After closing the door shut, they sat down to the table, put down the files and started at the magenta cat. "Well, well, well. Look, who decided to wake up." One of the men spoke to the struggling feline, when two of them hold him in place, preventing any struggle. "What is the meaning of this!? Let me go!!" The feline hissed at the men, but they were unphased by his anger. "We've heard a lot of you, thanks to our former agents, who've you encountered a lot of times." The man responded, while pulling out a secret file, containing a lot of confidential info, alongside a profile of Mittens himself. "It's no surprise, why you're here, considering that we have a lot of information about you. Attempting to turn everyone into cats, destroying public property, even going so far to team up with other criminals for the most damning of all: trying to destroy Johnny Test. " He then pulled out another secret file, this time about Johnny Test and his disappearance and death. "You know, the boy, who had disappeared without a trace and was declared dead a few weeks ago?" "Wait a minute..." The feline was slowly putting the pieces together, as of why he's here and who those men are. Eventually, he then remembered the moment, he was bagged and knocked out by an unknown individual. "Don't tell me, you're..." He finally got the answer, who the men are, but one of the men finished the sentence for him. "FBI agents? Yes. And you are in big trouble, furball! Because we have the evidence right here!" The agent slammed his fist on the table hard. "Look, I'm not in the good mood for talking at all, given that I lost my butler a few weeks ago! " Mittens yelled. "And even before that, I felt really empty, because I lost so many people in my life! Especially my enemy, Johnny Test!" "That doesn't change the fact, that you've done so many crimes in the last years alone! I'm pretty sure, you're gonna spend your entire life behind bars! That is....unless you have to do a little favor from us..." The FBI agent told him about something...odd. He offered something to Mittens. "What do you want from me!?" Mittens became annoyed. "Remember, when I told you about connections, you had in the past? Well, recently, several of your allies have either vanished as well and got declared dead or in the case of the evil toy maker, arrested and sentenced to death. However, there is someone, we had trouble on capturing him. Someone, who is stronger than any of us." The agent put down another file and opened it. This time, it showed a picture of a man in a green armored suit and tons of information about him. "I know him. Even though I only met him a few times." Mittens recognized the person as the Dark Vegan. "But..,. Like I said, I was such in a bitter mood, that I isolated myself from everyone. Why? Because I had a feud with members of the Johnny Stopping Evil Force 6 a few weeks before Test vanished. Why are you telling me this?" "Well, one of our agents overheard a conversation of him planning to drain all life sources of our planet and then destroy it altogether, while he was outside his house. He said, he'll do it tomorrow. Of course, we have plans to stop him once and for all, since he too has a long history of crimes, this time, it's attempted genocide. But the problem is, he has an entire army and advanced technology. He destroyed our jets and weapons many times. This time, he would do it again, if we go to the offensive. This is why, we need a willing agent to infiltrate his ship and ambush him. And we think, you are the only one, who fill all of our credentials, plus with the extra knowledge about him." Another agent explained the situation about Dark Vegan's upcoming attack on the planet and looked at Mittens, as if he wanted to recruit him. "But be warned, if you decline our offer, then you would be sent to a supermax prison for the rest of your life, without the possibility of parole. And perhaps, we would remove the formula, which makes you the smart talking cat, you are, PERMANENTLY." The agent warned the feline, who responded in silence. "So...I'll ask you one final question. Either jail time for the rest of your life or help us on taking down Dark Vegan and his army once and for all? Make. Your. Decision." The agent emphasized the choices hard, while the other agents went around the feline, who only looked at the lead agent in silence. They really want an answer from him right here, right now. Keeping the silence even longer would land him behind bars immediately and be turned into a regular cat permanently. So keep being silent is not an option. Which means, Mr. Mittens has to decide his own fate right now, since the agents wanted a definite answer from him. After some quick thinking, he made his decision. So he looked at the agents with a serious look on his face and told them about his final decision. To be continued...