“Well,” Twilight said. “There it is, the end of the trail.”
The trail of purple mist drifted into the mouth of a cave at the base of one of the mountains that made up the Unicorn Range. Applejack had never been here before. She had never had a reason to venture this far north of Sweet Apple Acres. An odd, and very unpleasant smell perfumed the air. It felt colder, despite the sun being at its zenith. Her stomach swirled with a complex concoction of various emotions. She tried to keep her breathing steady, but it proved difficult. The girls needed her to be strong for this. She couldn’t afford to break down like before.
Rainbow Dash landed beside Applejack and glared at the cave mouth. “Well what are we waiting for? Let’s get in there and get Applejack’s parents back. No doubt there’s a terrible monster in there! Fighting a terrible monster would be…” Her words died on her tongue when Applejack gave her an icy stare.
A chilling wind blew past them and made Applejack’s mane flap a little. She took several little steps at first, but then she grew bolder. Apples weren’t ever scared, or if they were, they never showed it. Honestly, Applejack was frightened. She wanted to run home and hide, but there were things that needed doing. And as her mother used to say, ‘When there are things that need doing, Apples do them.’
A quick glance revealed that her five best friends in the world followed her. Even Fluttershy, the meekest and easily unnerved of ponies, found the courage to brave this unknown terror along with her. Applejack was lucky.
As they got closer to the cave mouth, a figure moved out to meet them. As soon as it came fully into the light, Applejack and the others froze.
It was a pony to be sure, but it looked … well…. It looked wrong. Its coat was faded and mostly grey or green with patches of other color in it. The eyes were wide and empty of anything but blackness. The pony had no lips, but its gums were exposed. A bright cutie mark still sat on its flank, and it almost glowed with prominence. When the pony moved, it did so in jerky motions. Its mane hung lifelessly from its scalp, and it lacked a tail completely.
“Ewwww!” Rarity started to back away from it. “What in Celestia’s name is that?!”
Applejack stood her ground and braced herself to buck it if it got any closer.
The pony’s mouth opened. A ghastly voice echoed out. “Go away! The Master doesn’t want you here.”
Applejack took a step forward. Though her voice cracked with unease, she spoke loudly. “Your master stole my parents’ remains. I want them back!”
The pony stopped and even tilted its head at her. “The Master takes many remains. She gives us new life. Go away. Or I will make you go away.”
“Oh yeah?” Applejack whirled around and bucked that creature so hard, it toppled to the ground.
Pinkie Pie pulled out a cannon from somewhere and aimed it at the struggling pony monster. A devious grin plastered itself on Pinkie Pie’s face. “Eat confetti, you big meanie!!!”
The cannon boomed. A giant ball of confetti soared through the air and slammed into pony. The ball continued forward for another ten feet or so and dragged the pony with him. All became silent as the girls gathered around the confetti mound.
Little pieces shifted out of the way as the pony slowly stood up from the giant pile. Bits of paper and such fell from its open eye sockets and mouth.
“Stop!” The pony said. “I will take you to the Master. No more confetti.”
Applejack stepped up to the pony. “Yes, take us to whoever stole my parents.”
The pony slowly stood up and moved into the cave. Confetti still covered its back and sides. The girls followed along, but they kept huddled close together. Both Rarity and Twilight Sparkle activated their horns and shined light as the darkness swallowed them up.
Twilight Sparkle leaned in close to Applejack and whispered so only the girls could hear her. “I think I know that that thing is. It’s called a ghoul. Starswirl the Bearded referenced some ancient and forbidden rituals that could create such things.”
“A-are ghouls dangerous?” Fluttershy asked.
Twilight Sparkle bit her lip a little. “They can be. It really depends on the pony who created it. I didn’t get a lot of information about ghouls, but I did remember all you need is a pony’s remains. I didn’t know any pony knew how to make them now a days.”
Applejack’s heart clenched within her chest. “Do you think this Master could have done that to my parents?”
Twilight Sparkle winced.
The cave itself went on for quite a while until they all came to a large chamber. Towards the back of the space sat a throne made of pure black stone. Twelve creatures identical to the one who lead the group into the cave stood before the throne. In a panic, Applejack scanned their cutie marks. She saw umbrellas, quills, race flags, and more. No apples though.
A light blue unicorn with light green hair sat upon the throne. She had the most splendid purple irises. On her flank rested a laughing pony skull. The unicorn hopped up from her throne as soon as Applejack and the others came in.
The unicorn smiled. “What do we have here? Visitors? I love new friends, although I prefer to make my own friends.”
Applejack pointed her hoof at the unicorn. “You stole my parents! I want them back.”
The unicorn smiled. “No.”
“No?” Applejack winced. The anger within her festered. A dark bitterness surfaced that she was unaccustomed to. “What do you mean no? They’re my parents and you had no right to take them.”
The unicorn arched an eyebrow at her. “Oh no? I had no right? I bet you think it isn’t fair, don’t you?”
Rainbow Dash flapped into the air above the others. “You’re darned right it isn’t fair! Who do you think you are, anyway?”
The unicorn placed a hoof to her chest. “My name is Jitterbug. JITTERBUG! My parents gave me a cute name and expected me to have a cute little life just like them. Well guess what? When my cutie mark finally came, it wasn’t a cute little bug or a flower like I wanted. It was this!” She pointed to the grinning skull on her flank. “When my family and friends saw this, they all shunned me and called me cursed. I was left alone! How was that fair?!”
Applejack stamped her hooved on to the ground. “I don’t care if you had a rough fillyhood. I want my parents back!”
Jitterbug waved her off with a dismissing hoof gesture. “I don’t care what you want. They’re my friends now! If I’ve learned anything in this world, it is this: no one will love you unless you force them too. These ghouls are my friends because I command them to be! I won’t ever be alone again. I won’t ever be unloved!
Pinkie Pie bounced forward. “But that’s no way to make friends! You’re doing it all wrong! Real friends choose to be with you. That’s how they show you they really care.”
Jitterbug turned her back to them. “No one cares about me. That’s why I had to do all of this. This is the best I can do.”
“How did you do this anyway?” Twilight Sparkle asked. “I thought these rituals were lost.”
Jitterbug flourished a dramatic pose. “Well it is my super special talent, after all. I could only create one ghoul with my magic though. Step forward, Fruit Cake.”
One of the ghouls toward the front of the pack stepped forward and placed itself beside Jitterbug.
“Fruit Cake was my first real friend. You don’t want to leave me do you, Fruit Cake?” Jitterbug asked.
In a monotone voice, Fruit Cake replied “No, Master. I would never want to leave you.”
Twilight Sparkle asked “Well how did you raise the other ones then?”
Jitterbug trotted over to the black throne. “With this! It called out to me and told me it could help me never be alone again. It gave me the power to make all of these friends.”
“Don’t you see what you’re doing to yourself?” Applejack asked. “This ain’t natural. These ponies don’t really want to be your friends. They have no choice! You’re probably hurting them more then helping them. You’re being selfish.”
Jitterbug’s eyes grew harder. “You’re lying! These ghouls love me.” She waved her hands at the legion of unnatural ponies before her. “These ponies were all long forgotten in old graveyards. I watched those places for a long while before I took their remains. They were just lying there in the ground. No pony cared about them. I gave them purpose.” She pointed at Applejack. “Now that I think about it, I stumbled across a pair of long forgotten grave markers a couple days ago. I salvaged their remains from that desolate spot in the woods. You forgot them and now they’re mine.”
Applejack stepped forward. “You didn’t turn them in to ghouls yet, did you?”
Jitterbug frowned. “Not yet, but I will as soon as I deal with you. You’re not welcome here! Go away and leave me alone with my friends.”
“Don’t you see? This isn’t real friendship. This is slavery.” Twilight flapped up into the air beside Rainbow Dash.
Up till this point, Fluttershy had been quite nervous and silent. Slowly, she skulked forward. “If you really want to find out how they feel, then ask them to tell you honestly.”
Jitterbug opened her mouth to say something, but then stopped. Her eyes quivered with unease.
“You’re afraid, aren’t you?” Applejack stepped up closer.
Several of the ghouls moved to block her, but Jitterbug held up her hoof. She watched Applejack with wavering eyes.
“I know it’s scary, but if you really care about these… friends of yours, you’ll ask them honestly.” Applejack rested her hoof on Jitterbug’s shoulder. “It’s the only way to really know if you have friends, or if you’re alone.”
Tears rimmed Jitterbug’s eyes. “What if they don’t really like me?”
A terrible voice echoed throughout the chamber. "Don’t listen to them, Jitterbug. They are lying to you. They will shun you like your family did."
All eyes fell on the throne.
“That thing can talk?” Rainbow dash asked. “That’s creepy.”
Applejack said “Ask them.”
At first, Jitterbug stared at the throne, but then she turned her attention to the ghouls. “D-do you really want to be here with me.”
The ghouls just stared at her, but then they spoke one right after the other.
“We want to be released.”
“We hate it here.”
“We are your slaves, nothing more.”
Fruit Cake lowered its head. “I want to be released and rejoin my husband.”
Tears streamed down Jitterbug’s cheeks. “Y-you too Fruit Cake?”
Fruit Cake slowly nodded. “I’m sorry, Jitterbug. I do like you. You have a good heart, despite your dark intensions. You need to let go of all this and make real friends. I am your friend, but I am tired. I want to rejoin my husband. Please let us go. Please do the right thing.”
Once more, the voice screamed out. This time, it carried greater resonance. "No! I will not let you go! You will do as I command!" Suddenly, the throne started crackling with energy. Jitterbug’s body started jerking wildly. She screamed.
“It’s the chair!” Pinkie Pie said. “We have to destroy the chair.”
The eyes of the ghouls glowed wildly, and then they turned on the ponies. In one unified voice, they said “The Master commands us to destroy you. We will trample you beneath our hooves.”
“No you wont!” Twilight Sparkle flew a little higher into the air. Her horn radiated with intense magical energy. A moment later, a powerful beam of energy blasted toward the throne. When it struck, the beam simply ricocheted off.
The voice laughed. "Silly alicorn. Only Jitterbug can destroy me since she awakened me. And she won’t do that because she’ll be all alone if she does." The voice laughed again.
Applejack bucked one of the ghouls to the ground but the others closed in. She backed up and stared at Jitterbug with pleading eyes. “You can do it! You can do the right thing.”
Jitterbug glanced up to the only ghoul who had not followed the commands of the throne. Fruit Cake leaned down and said something to the light blue unicorn. Applejack didn’t hear what was said, but whatever it was, it made Jitterbug sob a little.
Slowly, Jitterbug rose to her feet. Streams of magical energy zapped all over her body. Anguish painted itself in her eyes. Her horn glowed.
"No you fool!" The voice hollered. "You will be alone and no one will love you. You need me. You need them."
“Shut up!!” Jitterbug pointed her horn at the throne and sent forth a blueish – green beam of power towards it.
"Nooooooooo!!!!!"
The throne exploded in a giant shower of shrapnel and dust. As it did, a powerful wave of energy spiraled out and struck every pony. As it hit Applejack, she felt her hairs stand on end. When the wave hit the ghouls, they collapsed into hunks of meat and body parts.
All at once, beautiful wispy images melted from the bodies of the ghouls and floated in the air. Each of the images looked like the ghouls, only if they were living ponies. Every single pony danced about and gazed at one another with a sense of relief. They laughed. They praised Celestia. None of them gave Jitterbug so much as a passing glance.
One of the ponies started flying toward the exit, so others did as well. Jitterbug watched them go with a quivering lip. Slowly, she turned back to Fruit Cake, who was still a ghoul.
“I’m going to mi-miss you,” Jitterbug said.
“Please release me.” Fruit Cake’s face contorted.
Jitterbug closed her eyes and her horn glowed. Fruit Cake’s body crumpled before her. A ghostly image of a beautiful brightly colored mare emerged from the fleshy prison. Rather than go for the exit, she hovered there and gazed down at the light blue unicorn.
“Let go of it all and make real friends,” Fruit Cake said. With that, she floated toward the exit.
Applejack came up behind Jitterbug and rested a hoof on Jitterbug’s shoulder. Though a small degree of anger still existed within her, Applejack remembered one of the most important aspects of being an Apple was being as neighborly. Yes, this mare had performed the worst theft of all, but it was over.
Jitterbug averted her eyes from Applejack’s, or from any of the pony’s for that matter.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I just didn’t want to be alone anymore.” A small whimper escaped Jitterbug. “Now I am.”
Pinkie Pie came up beside her. “You know, if you come to Ponyville and promise to be a super nice pony, I’ll be your friend.”
Jitterbug blinked and then locked eyes with the pink mare. “Y-You mean it?”
“Of course.” Pinkie gave her a small hug. “I love making new friends. We’ll have to find you a new job though. You can’t raise the dead in Ponyville.”
“Well,” Jitterbug said. “There is something else I can do. Maybe it will make up for me stealing your parents.” She glanced at Applejack. “Follow me, I’ll take you to where I stored your parents’ remains.”
Jitterbug led them to a small cavern that extended off of the large room. Inside the room laid a pair of pony skeletons. As soon as Applejack saw them, her eyes watered.
Jitterbug approached the skeletons.
“Now hold on, just a minute!” Applejack stomped her hooves. “I won’t have you defiling my parents anymore!”
Jitterbug held up a hoof. “I won’t. I promise. I have one more super special talent that is related to the dead. This one, I think you might like.”
Once more, Jitterbug’s horn glowed. The air started blowing all around them as if an invisible whirlwind had appeared. It grew slightly colder. The skeletons started to glow too. Applejack opened her mouth to protest, but two ghostly images appeared above the bones.
At first, they were devoid of any distinguishing features. The coats started to take on specific colors. One of the ponies, a female, had a red coat and a blond mane and tail. Her hair had been tied into a braid. The other pony was much larger and had a yellow coat and bright red mane and tail. The male wore a white and green plaid shirt.
Applejack’s knees felt wobbly. “This is some kind of trick. It ain’t fair for you to tease me like this.”
Jitterbug said nothing. She merely smiled as the ponies softly landed beside Applejack.
Applejack’s mother’s eyes filled with tears. “By all the glory of Celestia, is this real? Is that really our little Applejack?” She reached out and touched Applejack’s face. Actually touched it.
Applejack shuddered.
“Don’t be scared of me, Sugar Cube,” her mother said. She nudged Applejack’s father. “Oh… say something, dear.”
Applejack’s father grinned as rivers flowed down his cheeks. “What am I supposed to say? I never thought this would happen? How are we here?”
Applejack’s mother rolled her eyes. “Who cares how it happened, I just want to hug my little girl.” Her eyes took on a more mournful quality. “Can I hug you, Sugar Cube?”
Applejack leapt into her mother’s arms and felt her body. Though there wasn’t as much warmth as what she would have liked, it still felt more wonderful than anything Applejack could have ever hoped for. Her father joined in on the hug.
“We’re so proud of you, darling,” her father said. “We’ve been watching you for such a long time. When you went into this cave, everything got… cloudy.”
From behind her, the sounds of her friends openly sobbing sent shivers down Applejack’s spine. She couldn’t focus on that now though. Once more, she sobbed into her parents.
“I’m sorry, Mom and Dad.” Applejack pulled away. “I sure ain’t acting like an Apple bawling like this. I hope I didn’t let you down.”
Applejack’s mother locked eyes with her daughter. “Don’t you ever let me hear you say that again. You are too acting like an Apple! You always have! Never doubt yourself again. Your father and I are always proud of you. Nothing is ever going to change that!”
Her father opened her mouth to speak, but Jitterbug cleared her throat. “I’m really sorry. I can’t maintain the spell for much longer.” She gave an awkward smile. “Once I rest up, I can bring you back for another meeting.”
Fluttershy’s eyes opened wide. “So… you can communicate with the spirits of ponies that have passed on?”
Jitterbug winced. “I know that’s kind of freaky.”
“Freaky?” Rainbow Dash hovered so she was eye level with Jitterbug. “It’s awesome!!!”
The ghostly images of Applejack’s parents started to waiver.
Applejack grabbed hold of her parents’ hooves. Slowly, their bodies got softer and softer.
“I ain’t ready. There’s so much I want to say to you.” Applejack sobbed outright. “I love you and miss you so much.”
Applejack’s father kissed his daughter on the cheek. “We love you too. If what this mare says is true, we’ll be back very soon. Just know that the both of us are so proud of you and your siblings.”
Applejack’s mother poked her in the chest. “You never stop believing that you’re a perfect Apple. We’re going to be waiting for you, Big Mac, and Apple Bloom when the time comes. Be good.”
Applejack nodded furiously. “I will. I promise.”
Her parents faded altogether. Applejack just stood there and stared into the space where they once were.
Jitterbug said “So would…”
Applejack cut her off. “I’m sorry, but I need a few moments.” Tears still trailed down her cheeks.
Thankfully, the other ponies gave her all the time she needed.