The Problem With Jewelry

by bahatumay

Chapter 5

Applejack’s eyes slowly opened. Her head swam. What did she remember? She remembered… She remembered taking a dart to the back of her leg and falling. Was it poison? It must have been.

She came to slowly. She was laying on her back on a table that felt like logs that had been lashed together. Her hooves were tied with rope tautly to each corner, and she tried to pull, but her limbs felt weak, and she could barely move the ropes to say nothing of breaking them. Realizing just how exposed she was, she flicked her tail up between her legs to give herself a little privacy. It felt like it weighed a ton. What was going on?

She glanced around, trying to gain any information she could. As her vision cleared, she saw a villager seated nearby, facing the wall opposite her, with a long spear over his shoulder.

Applejack swallowed. Her throat felt dry, almost like sandpaper, but she had to try. “Hey… uh… I don’t know if you can understand me, but, uh… I don’t suppose you’d be willing to let me go, would you?”

The villager glanced over at her. “Not a chance,” he said.

“Oh,” Applejack said. “Because I was hoping…” Her eyes narrowed. “Hey!”

“What?”

“You can understand me?!”

The villager cracked a crooked smile. “Yeah. Lots of tourists come through here, scientists. We picked it up, easy.”

“So if you knew what we were saying, why did you attack us?” Applejack asked.

The villager lifted a hoof, revealing shiny golden bits. “Because one language is most powerful,” he answered with a smirk.

Applejack grimaced. That was no good. “At least let my friends go,” she tried.

The villager spat. “Winged ponies got away,” he said disgustedly. “No matter. They pay less for them. Pay most for you.”

“For me?” Applejack asked, confused. “Who’s ‘they’?”

“Didn’t say,” he shrugged. “Only pay.” He paused, then grinned at the rhyme he’d just made.

Applejack felt herself growing angry. “So you sold us out for bits.”

The villager smirked. “Is what it is. For what it’s worth, the dirt-colored winged pony got the dialect right. She was just speaking the wrong language.” He clinked his bits once more.

Applejack scowled. “You low-down no-good mangy varmint,” she spat.

He hesitated. “These are… terms of endearment?” he guessed.

Applejack snarled. “Step on over here and I’ll endear my hoof into your head, you-!”

The curtains opened, and someone stepped in. Applejack squinted. The light made it so she couldn’t see.

A griffon, one she’d seen on the steamboat, stepped into the room. His beak curled up in a twisted smile. “Remember me?”

“Hard to forget,” Applejack spat. She tried to tear her hoof free, but was unable to move.

“You’re still sedated,” he said. “Nice try, though.” He chuckled. “I guess you’re better at poker than you are at fighting.”

Applejack narrowed her eyes. “Let me go and I’ll show you just how good I am,” she threatened.

“Oh, I couldn’t possibly do that,” the griffon said. He paused, as if remembering something. “Actually, I probably could; they tell me that sedative is good for about four hours.”

Applejack's eyes widened. “Four hours?”

The griffon nodded. “The poison comes from a species of frog that lives here. Affects only the limbs. Which is nice, because some of the other poisons tend to stop the victim from breathing, and that’s never a good thing. Luckily for you, you only have to wait twenty minutes or so.” He lapsed into silence, and Applejack scowled.

The griffon sat and twiddled his thumbs. He glanced over at the villager, and then back over at Applejack.

And then he reached over and flicked her tail away.

Applejack’s hackles raised, and she scowled. With a great effort, she flicked her tail back up again.

Whereupon he reached over and flicked her tail down again.

Applejack’s eyes narrowed. She was too weak to try again, so her eyes flicked over to the villager, who was doing a very bad job at looking like he wasn’t staring. “What’re you looking at?” she demanded.

He received a modicum of karma when the curtain was suddenly lifted again, blinding him. Applejack looked back over.

A new griffon stood there. He seemed extraordinarily out of place, what with his white shirt and silk vest. This must have been the one they called Griffone.

He walked around Applejack. “Good, good,” he murmured. “Earth ponies are strong.”

“You’re just in time,” Applejack said. “Your buddy over there was going to untie me and fight me. I promised not to break his skull too badly.”

The griffon laughed. He leaned down to pinch at Applejack’s stomach, and was apparently pleased with the result. “Yes, you have solid muscles. You’re are a hard worker. You’ve got quite the mouth on you, yes; but I imagine that you will… outgrow that in time.”

“Your skull already outgrew your brain,” Applejack spat.

The griffon smirked. “Clever… for a hatchling. I expected better from you.” He leaned down and examined the bracelets she wore. He took a closer look at the one on her left leg, and grinned. “It is growing. Good.” He reached over and cut a hind leg free. Applejack tried to lift it and make good on her promise, but she found herself as weak as a newborn kitten. Almost in a mockery of tenderness, he picked up her hoof; then reached into his vest pocket and pulled out another bracelet.

Applejack’ gasped.

Now, his eyes brightened. “Oh, yes. You know the story of the bracelets of Oddi, then?” he said. His eyes glinted. “Then you know your fate.” He slid the bracelet on, while Applejack was helpless to do anything but watch. “You’ll make a wonderful servant. Perhaps even an assassin. I’ve heard about those hind legs. You’ve got quite the muscle on them.”

“I’ll crush your head between my thighs, if that’s what you’re asking,” Applejack threatened; but internally, her heart was racing. She was now wearing three of the four bracelets! Did he have…?

“Tie this one back down,” he ordered, and the villager stepped up. Trying—and failing—to make it look like he was not looking between her hind legs, he retied her leg down.

“These are my favorite kind of artifacts,” the griffon continued as he retrieved the fourth bracelet from inside his vest.

Applejack’s face grew white. How? How did he have them?

“Simple to use, simple to control, and an absolute pain in the feathers to destroy.” He grinned. “I suppose I should thank you,” he remarked blithely. “I simply could not find that last bracelet.”

Then he froze as he heard the roaring of a jungle cat. He scowled. “What are they doing so close to camp?” he demanded of no pony in particular.

The villager had shot to his hooves, spear at the ready. He stuck his head out of the curtain, and muttered something under his breath.

And then something grabbed him and yanked him out of the building. He screamed… and then was suddenly cut off.

To Applejack’s horror, the griffon seemed to brighten. “Now seems like a good time to test these,” he said. He leaned down and slid the fourth bracelet on, and then withdrew the collar with a leash from his vest as well. Applejack’s breath grew ragged. She shook her head, silently pleading for mercy.

None was forthcoming.

He buckled the collar on, a bit tighter than strictly necessary, and Applejack almost choked. He took a slight step back and held the other end of the leash. “Now. Go kill whatever made that noise,” he ordered as he took the leash off and wrapped it around his wrist.

Applejack was not sure what he was expecting. Her body was still weak and paralyzed; she couldn't move even if she'd wanted to.

She wasn’t expecting her hooves to suddenly tear themselves free of the ropes and drop to the ground. She saw her wrists turn red from the rope burn; but she didn't even feel the pain. Her body seemed to move on its own, slowly and steadily, out towards the tent opening; Griffone following closely behind.

I'm going to die, Applejack thought. I'm walking towards a giant jungle cat and I don't even have a chair on me.

Her body kept walking outside the tent and she screwed her eyes closed, stunned by the light even as her body kept moving.

“Psst!”

Applejack forced her left eye open, and saw Daring Do waving at her. She brightened…

And then her body started running.

“Whoa!” Applejack cried. “You did that roar, didn't you?”

Daring cracked a smile. “Yeah. But, Applejack, you don't have t-”

That smile quickly faded as Applejack swung. Daring Do ducked just in time, and her hoof embedded Daring’s pith helmet into the tree trunk.

“Whoa!” Daring cried.

“Daring, I can't-” Applejack started, horrified at what her body was doing.

“I know!” Daring called back, also sounding terrified. “Rainbow, get the leash!”

“What leash?” Rainbow called from a nearby tree.

“Big griffon has it!” Daring shouted as she squirmed over, barely dodging Applejack’s powerful stomp that left cracks in the mud.

Rainbow saluted. She darted over… only to quickly stop in front of the tent opening. As Daring Do jumped over Applejack’s swing behind her, she flew back, picked up a rock, and chucked it through the opening.

She was rewarded by a solid thunk and a groan, and she grinned. She darted in, suddenly overwhelmed by the darkness.

She was still able to hear, though, and she heard a grunt. She flapped her wings and flew back out of the way, and the chair Griffone had swung hit harmlessly on the ground.

Griffone scowled angrily, the blood streaming down his face giving him an extra air of ferocity. With an animalistic roar, he swung at her, determined to claw her into oblivion.

Rainbow dodged the first, slid around the second, then delivered a few rabbit kicks to Griffone’s face. They weren't designed to knock him out, oh no; Rainbow was determined to make this as painful and long as possible.

Unfortunately, any fighter knows that the longer the fight goes on, the more likely she is to make a mistake. After the next pass, though she left nice hoofprints on his chest, he managed to grab her tail. He flung her back towards the table, trying to use her momentum as a weapon.

But Rainbow tilted her wings and used his throw as a boost, easily using it to her advantage. She slid right under his open forelegs, and delivered a beautiful kick to his ribs.

Griffone collapsed, coughing up blood. Rainbow looked down and smirked. “How you doing?” she asked. “Because I'm just getting warmed up.”

Griffone scowled. “Then let's give you something to whet your egg tooth on!”

Rainbow squinted. “My what, now?” she asked.

She got her answer when Griffone hefted the leash. “Kill the rainbow one!” he ordered.

Outside, Daring Do lay on her back, teeth bared as she fought to get Applejack’s left hoof off her throat. Applejack reared up and raised her right hoof, intending to smash Daring’s skull in; but it came to an abrupt stop a couple inches above Daring Do’s forehead. She spun back around, and realized in horror exactly what was happening. “No, no, no, no, no!” she pleaded, but her body didn't listen.

She was going to kill Rainbow Dash.

She burst through the tent door and leaped, reaching out for Rainbow Dash. She darted backwards, but the low ceiling of the tent stopped her from escaping. Applejack felt her teeth clamp down on Rainbow’s tail, and her body yanked her down.

Rainbow Dash hit the ground hard. Air was forced out of her lungs as she hit the dirt floor. Applejack raised up a hoof. Rainbow’s eyes widened.

Griffone laughed. “Smash her head in!”

And in his excitement, he forgot to check his corner.

Daring Do flew in, hind leg extended in front of her. She blindsided him, driving that hoof into the side of his head with a sickening crunch. His head whipped around and he dropped to the ground. He did not move again.

As he fell, Applejack did as well, no longer held up by his order. She collapsed on top of Rainbow Dash, once more driving the air from her chest.

“Come on,” Daring hissed, peering out of the tent flaps. “We've got to go before they get back.”

“I’m a little stuck!” Applejack hissed back.

Daring Do realized instantly. “Paralysis,” she grumbled as she tried to lift Applejack up, but Applejack’s limbs were as strong as limp noodles. “Great.” She managed to lift Applejack off Rainbow.

“Is it permanent?” Rainbow squeaked as she got to her hooves.

Daring Do grunted, the weight of Applejack’s body causing her own bruises to ache. “No, but we’re going to have to physically carry her until it wears off,” she answered. “None of my medicines or herbs can undo it. None that I know of, anyway. Unless you want to order her around with the leash?”

“I vote against that,” Applejack pleaded. She hoped she’d never experience that again. Not being in control of her own body was a nightmarish experience.

“I’ll start,” Rainbow Dash offered, ducking under Applejack’s stomach. She gently stood up, and Applejack balanced precariously on top. Daring cracked a wry smile, and she took some of the ropes from the table to strap her down.

“There’s no way there’s just two, though,” Rainbow mused as Daring finished. “I mean, there’s gotta be more griffons.”

They looked out the open doorway to see a group of griffons walking towards the village. One raised a claw and pointed; and though they couldn't understand his words, it was clear what the intentions were.

“Aw, nuts. I hate it when I’m right,” Rainbow muttered.

“Run!” Daring hissed, and they took off.

* * *

Daring Do had a hunch that the griffon gang was more intercity than anything else, and had probably dressed accordingly. Thankfully, she was right. The majority of the griffons wore nice suits and ties, and clearly did not want to follow them through the jungle; instead, many elected to fly over.

This was to their disadvantage; the canopy provided plenty of cover. By the time the lowest-ranking griffon had been ‘elected’ (pushed) into chasing them down on paw, the two pegasi were long gone.

It wasn’t long before Daring Do held up her hoof. She hopped up on a low tree branch and looked around, and she nodded. “I think we’ve lost them; but stay low and under the trees anyway.”

Rainbow Dash was still carrying Applejack. Daring Do made a motion for her, but Rainbow shook her head. “I got her,” she said.

Daring shrugged and continued walking.

As their heart rates slowly returned to normal and the adrenaline faded, their pace slowed.

Rainbow Dash glanced up. The thick canopy above was almost completely trees, but she still had a momentary thought of a griffon flying over. She shuddered and kept walking.

They walked along in silence for a while. The only sounds were hooves against grass and mud, fur on fur from where Applejack rested, and the straps on saddlebags. Daring Do had somehow managed to keep hers, something Applejack found rather impressive.

“Hey, Applejack?” Rainbow suddenly said.

“Yeah?” Applejack said.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Applejack asked.

“We left you behind—Ileft you behind—and I’m sorry for that.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not,” Rainbow insisted. “I was just so excited to be here with Daring Do again that I almost forgot about you. And you almost died.”

“But I didn’t.”

“But you could have. Worse, you could have been turned into an assassin or a murderer, and it would’ve been all my fault.”

Applejack tried to nuzzle her, but still found herself too weak to move. “Nah,” she said. “Wasn’t your fault I didn’t dodge the dart.” She tried to give her a playful nudge, but she once again failed. She scowled, but then continued calmly. “‘Sides, you rescued me, right? Way I see it, I owe you one.”

Rainbow exhaled, relieved. “I don’t think so. And I still feel really bad.”

“Don’t even worry about it, Sugarcube,” Applejack insisted. “I’m sure you’ll find a way to make it up to me later.”

Rainbow Dash nodded as she reached back to gently brush a hoof against Applejack's cheek. “You know I will,” she promised.