Chapter Eight: Thumos
The next few days were, for Applejack, an exercise in creepy. It felt like somepony was constantly watching her while she worked. For now Big Macintosh was handling the sales while AJ did most of the physical labor, an inversion of their usual routine during applebucking season. Applejack’s recently heightened senses were absolutely wigging out while she was alone though. Every few minutes she would look over her shoulder and just stare, looking for a pony who wasn’t there. She could feel the wildlife around her, that didn’t bother her. When she felt a squirrel beside her, she could look and see the squirrel. When her senses told her if a ripe looking apple was still too sour, she could bite it and prove it to herself. The phantom pony, however, just wasn’t there, even though every fiber of her body was screaming out that it was. If this was what Pinkie felt like every moment of every day, no wonder the mare was crazy.
On the third day, things took a turn for the worse. Objects she would leave lying around would suddenly be close at hoof when she needed them. Apples would sort themselves. Every few hours a glass of cold cider would appear beside her. Whoever this ghost was, at least they were hospitable.
Finally, around four thirty in the afternoon, an entire salad bowl with her favorite dressing just showed up on a stump while her back was turned. Applejack screamed and reared back, stomping the ground with enough force to cause a localized earthquake. The grass and trees for a dozen feet around shot up and out to outrageous proportions. Another scream wailed back at her from somewhere in the jumble of stalks and twigs. Applejack’s jaw set harder than a block of granite while her eyes took on a dangerous glow. Stomping through the weeds she came upon a pink-maned, green-furred pegasus tangled in the branches of an apple tree. The pegasus grinned weakly at AJ. “Uh, hi!” she said.
“Merry. May. Whut. In. Tartarus. Are. You. Doin’. In. Mah. Tree!”
“… helping?”
“Y’all nearly scared me ta death! How long have ya been sneakin’ about!?”
“all week…”
Applejack shook with barely constrained rage. In a hoarse whisper she asked. “And whut possessed ya ta do that?”
“I wanted to show you that I could be helpful so you’d like me…”
“Well, it ain’t workin’.” Applejack telekinetically tore the pony from the entangling branches that held her prisoner and continued to hold her as she trotted out of the farm. When she was a short ways from town, Applejack released the hapless pegasus and did an about-face. As she trotted away from her erstwhile stalker, she heard Merry May call out to her, but didn’t respond. Never had Applejack felt so furious in her life. She absolutely seethed at the insincerity and flattery of the ponies of Ponyville. As she stomped towards the storage barn the earth blackened under her hooves, accompanied by little wisps of ash. Nearby plants wilted at her anger and she frankly didn’t care. She sat down in the mostly empty building, trying to calm down before she broke something, or somepony.
A good half hour later there was a knock at the door. Applejack ignored it. A timid, wavery voice called out from the other side. “Hay Applejack. I-I’m sorry if I upset you. I got you something to apologize.” Silence. “I guess I’ll leave it here.”
Applejack waited until she heard the flapping of a departing pegasus before retrieving the gift. It turned out to be a basket of chocolates and edible flowers. Snorting in displeasure, she grabbed a chocolate orange out of the basket and started munching on it. Admittedly, it made her feel a bit better. It still felt insincere, but at least it was tasty insincerity. Sighing, she turned back to the orchard. There was plenty more to do today. She had just gotten the apple baskets laid out under a row of trees when Big Macintosh galloped up all in a lather.
“Sis, be ready.”
“What’s that supposed ta mean?” She looked back in the direction that her brother was staring. A horde of ponies could be seen in the distance marching along the path. In the front of the procession was somepony holding a hastily made banner that read, “Cheer up the Princess Parade!” A certain pink and green somepony. All the stress, insanity, betrayal, frustration, confusion, and empty flattery of the last couple of weeks boiled up in Applejack as her eyes narrowed to pinpricks. Big Mac backed away, slowly at first, then at a gallop. Applejack threw back her head and let out a scream of rage that shook the very foundations of the world and perforated the air above her. She extended her wings to their fullest breadth and rose into the air, carried on a wave of pure magic. As she rose, glowing green and orange with foxfire and magic, the earth around the farm rumbled and shifted aside as massive brambles shot up from the dirt, peeling aside the fences and gates. They snaked to impossible heights and criss-crossed the skies overhead. Within moments the entire farm was covered in a dome of thorns. Not a single space was left where even the smallest pony could squeeze through.
As soon as the dreadful spell was complete, all the color drained out of the exhausted alicorn. The sound of her falling was far too quiet for anypony to hear.
***
Far off in Canterlot, two sets of ears perked up then immediately flattened. The Sun and Moon shared a glance that pierced stone and earth from opposite sides of the palace.
***
Outside Sweet Apple Acres, an impromptu parade found itself suddenly stymied. Merry May dropped her cheerful banner in shock. There had been some horrible, unnatural keening noise, and then this massive barrier of thorns showed up. Was… Was Princess Applejack ok? The pegasus looked behind herself at the ponies assembled. There were quite a few of them looking at her expectantly. It honestly made her feel very important, kinda like Mayor Mare or Pinkie Pie. She’d never been paid any serious attention before now. The mare drew herself up to the fullest of her little frame. As the official… well… unofficial-official hoofmaiden of the new Princess, it was her duty to rescue her if she was in trouble. She could make up for whatever she had done wrong this morning. “E-everypony!” Dozens of eyes gazed at her. “Th-the Princess needs our help! She has been trapped by an evil enchantress and it is up to us to break through and revive her!” She actually had no idea, but it sounded right. Wasn’t that the plot of Sleeping Handsome?
Trotting up to the barrier, she started gnawing and pulling at one of the nasty tasting weeds. The stems were a lot tougher than they seemed. The rest of the group started pitching in, but it felt like no progress was being made. After a few minutes of this, a unicorn galloped up from behind the group and charged at the thorns at a dead run. Just as Merry was about to call out to her, she disappeared in a flash of purple. Merry’s eyes went huge at that. “Hay, everypony! Uh, don’t hit the thorns at high speed.”
***
Twilight Sparkle wasn’t going to let anything or anypony keep her from seeing if Applejack was alright. She’d been in her library sorting books when some kind of commotion had taken place outside. She’d ignored it. A few minutes later though, there had been a faint wailing sound on the wind, and a subtle rush of strange magic. It wasn’t unicorn magic at all. It felt a little like one of the times when Princess Celestia had let her stand next to her while she raised the sun. It was still different than that feeling though, a little wilder, far more uncontrolled, yet also fainter. Putting two and two together wasn’t hard for the scholar, and she had rushed out the door as soon as she finished the equation.
Twilight gave a low whistle as the massive dome of thorns hove into view. Non-unicorn magic indeed. Growth spells were pretty tricky, but something of this scale and complexity was outright impossible. There was a group of ponies fruitlessly trying to pull a section of it apart, but Twilight didn’t have any time for that. She teleported straight through the bramble onto the other side. The farm was in shade, but otherwise seemed the same as always. None of the Apples seemed to be about, so she rushed towards the farmhouse, praying to Celestia, Harmony, and anything else she could think of that AJ was ok.
***
Merry May had managed to clear a hole big enough to stick her head through when she heard a rush of flapping overhead. Worming free, she glanced up in time to see both Luna and Celestia cruising overhead, trailed by what must be an entire Wing of the Royal Pegasus Guard. The guards, at some unseen signal, broke formation and descended on the mass of thorns, circling it neatly. Three of them landed near the erstwhile parade. She and her posse soon found themselves shunted away from the thorn wall as Celestia and Luna landed in their place. Merry May furrowed her brow in determination. They could pull her away, but they couldn’t stop her.
***
Luna fretted to herself. The gossip she had overheard as they had flown over Ponyville had been bad. Apparently Applejack had been throwing ponies forcibly off of her farm, handing out feathers as presents to her most loyal, and even cackling in the library over the past few days. Celestia was over by the barrier, one hoof resting on the thorns. No doubt she was quietly drawing and quartering herself for another ‘failure’ while the situation continued to flow past her unawares. Luna shook her head. Applejack would NOT fall like she had. There were plenty of fallen gods and goddesses, but there would not be another one, not here, not now, not if Luna had anything to do with it.
The villainess finally tips her hoof!
lh5.googleusercontent.com/-GG6cUirR1W8/UJIAQ9j1D8I/AAAAAAAAAG4/tKDArbbXwOY/s138/Evil+Merry+May.png
When I first planned this story out, Merry May didn't have nearly so big a role.
May I just say, getting over writer's block, in most cases, is simply a matter of using brute force. Even while the stuff coming out of your keyboard seems like absolute drivel, just keep typing. After a few hours, or days, of pure agony, you are almost guaranteed to have a sudden burst of happy inspiration that allows you to go back and immediately delete everything you have written and replace it with a few succinct paragraphs.
Huh, maybe that's the kind of stuff I should blog about.
Anyway, I love you guys in a mostly platonic way! Keep commenting and I'll keep writing!
See, this is why Merry May ended up dead when she appeared in my story.
Merry May is officially dubbed 'Village Idiot'.
LEAVE AJ ALOOOONE
Ah, now I'm anxious for the chapter where she finally talks to the Princesses.
green coated pink maned pegasus? I will just imagine it's minty mc squeakers.
So wait, is Merry May doing this on purpose then, or is she just severely misguided?
1556182
Somepony needs to make a .gif of that.
Nao.
1556285 Who?
1556303 Like all the best villains, she's doing what she thinks is right.
1480032
i disagree... spike-corn
Some ponies just don't know when to STFU and give it up. Don't hold back AJ! Turn Merry into a tree!
1556328
this pony
I think that Applejack is going to be okay... physically at least. She's probably got the mother and father of magical exhaustion but apart from that, the real issue is going to be her emotional and mental state. She'll either attack Twilight or fall weeping onto her shoulder and beg her to help her hide.
I think that Luna is right about one thing: Celestia is going to be too busy blaming herself to seek solutions right now. The fact that she doesn't even know what's really been going on (but is making assumptions based on rumour) is only going to make things worse.
I admire AJ's patients, if it were me, I would have gotten so angry by this point I would of banished her
That last bit... talk about misunderstanding... darn town full of idiots...
Also... is Mary May that worked up over an autograph or rather there are some suppressed feelings that she realised may be for nothing if AJ goes to Caterlot to rule. Not that she is yet... though you never know.
Oh, wait... Twi's inside... oh, Celestia is going to freak out if she also believed those rumors. Or maybe it'll be Luna.
1556339 That is something I have never seen. Though I thought I saw one fic where he actually changes into a pegasus when Twilight tosses the Element of Loyalty on him. "You're the new Rainbow Dash."
1556358 Cute.
1556367 It's really hard replying to your comments without spoiling things. You think this through almost as much as I do.
1556387 That's how gossip works. Also, in the show, Ponyville's greatest weakness has always been group-think.
That's just what Equestria needed - religious nutjobs...
images.wikia.com/dragonage/images/2/2a/Anchorman-well-that-escalated-quickly.jpg
In all serious, looking good. Like you say, it's nice to see someone else get the ultimate power-up.
1556458 But they make everything so funny!
Don't give up Merry May! You can be AJ's first disciple. Just stand still and she can teach you about the important learning' to be had at the school of Bucky McGillicuddy and Kicks McGee.
Okay, sarcasm aside, can you imaged the mess if AJ actually did go and kick someone like that? Their skull would be out their ass.
I'm liking this story. The comedy is there and it's pretty funny usually, for example Merry May's complete dumbassery with her "I have to save my goddess!" completely forgetting the fact that it's a goddess. But there's also room for some slightly more serious stuff and drama. I mean, if you wanted to this could be a really heavy drama. Not that I'm saying you should do that, I like this as it is, but there's a lot of potential here for this to fit into practically any genre, and I think that's a great thing. Do you plan on keeping this just to comedy, or will this go somewhere eventually?
Really, the only complaint I have to say about this story is I might like slightly larger chapters, but then the really frequent updates make up for that.
Oh, and is it just me, but are Merry May's feeling not entirely divinely inspired... It feels like there's a crush there or something.
1556437
Wait what? What fic was this? I must see it with my own eyes.
I just feel so, so sorry for Princ- Er, I mean, Applejack.
thought the title of the chapter was "thumbs" for a moment
you can bet i was very confused for a moment
1556458 Hey now, some of my best friends are religious nutjobs. Heck, I'M a religious nutjob! Just not a judgmental one.
1556690 That would make my day.
1556720 It's true.
1556761 Not eventually, the next couple of chapters I have written out are actually a little heavier. We do have an Adventure! tag to live up to. Don't worry though. I don't know if I even have it in me to write a depressing story. Hmmm... writing challenge for another time? As for the character of Merry May? Well, you'll just have to keep reading! Thanks for the well-crafted compliment.
1556856 Here's what I saw. I can't recommend it since I haven't actually read it yet. It could be good though.
1556929 Yep, Lyra suddenly rises up in her giant robotic human-suit and threatens Ponyville with sudden industrializaion. Only Applejack will be able to stop her mad scheme and get everypony back to their agrarian roots!
Well, at least Merry May means well?
Still loving this concept and story AJ deserves all the love she can get (Except from Merry of course )
what would applejack do? assemble an army? lol! i wish...
Yeah...there has to be some other reason that Merry May is being a royal jackass about Applejack becoming a goddess.
"Gasp! I just heard a horrible scream and now the farm is covered in thorns! I gotta go save Applejack!" Is Merry May unable to take a hint? Unable to put two and two together?
Poor Applejack. Now she's going to have a misguided Princess trying to help her
Damn it Luna, this is possibly the worst time to try and get real facts from a town full of ponies that are obsessed with their new princess. So many misunderstandings abound, I can't wait to see where this goes lol. Merry needs to step off, god girl you just can't take a hint.
Applejack's powers are really awesome so far, she's definitely not somepony you want to upset like this. I enjoyed the drama set up in this chapter though, being a new alicorn isn't all sunshine and flowers and poor applejack has to deal with it all upfront.
Also your update speed pleases me. Do continue.
Let's see... Luna fell because she wasn't getting enough attention. Somehow, I don't think she'll quite understand why Applejack would want less of it.
1557336 *double checks description* Nope, still no romance tag. Whew. Glad you like it though!
1557557>>1558196 Yeah, Merry May isn't the sharpest cheddar on the rack. As to my update speed. I am a robot.
1558420 Exactly, there is a definite mental disconnect there for Luna. I view her as still healing from being Nightmare Moon. Just because you cut out the cancer, doesn't mean the patient is whole yet. And you can darn well bet that she's gonna do her best to make sure no one else suffers like she did.
Do keep going with this. I'm enjoying it immensely.
1557132
Ponyville will be dragged into the Industrial Era kicking and screaming! Dragged by the metallic hands of Lyra's robo-ninja horde! (On loan from an alternate universe.)
1556328 THEN BURN HER AT THE STAKE!!!
I never knew Mary May before but she must be a little dumb when she irritates a goddess like that, and can't even understand she is doing it.
1557132
I'm pretty sure being overly-judgmental is one of the job requirements for 'nutjob'.
1559591 I have a sudden urge to write a one-shot trollfic.
1559626 Oh... My...
1559800 Logic!?
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1559824 I have no idea how others characterize her. She is all but an OC here.
1559869 One day of freaking out plus a lesson in tolerance and humility, or a week of grumpy where nopony learns anything? You gotta weigh the options.
1559898 Oh. Darn, guess I'm out of a job.
1559967
Guh, I just have problems with 'Feeling Pinkie Keen'. I get that it was supposed to be about humility, but it felt more like 'stop asking questions or else the Universe will punish you.'
(Also, re: the troll fic: Doooooo iiiiiiiittttt)
1559967
Anyway I like how you are doing your story so far, if I had been writing it I properly wouldn't have gone to the trouble of checking out background ponies like that but just made a regular OC.
Anyway, I hope to see more from you soon. I hope I can be finished with my new story "Ataxia" today. I have been a little discouraged writing because I generally can't spell very well, so everything I write needs extensive proofreadings. I am a little jeleous on people that can just write without making any spelling mistakes. I wouln't tell you what these guys have tried to do to me
Anyway Ataxia isn't about our favourite earthpony but on our other earthpony and an answer to the Pinkie conundrum
1559967 [youtube=9UcS9nINxb4]
The Owl proceeds to sip his tea.
"... What?"
What Applejack need's is a bar tender that doesn't care about appearances or rank, fifty gallons of hard liquor and some Johnny Cash
On a unrelated note have Pinkie Pie tempt Applejack to join the Dark Side of the force.
1559967
If you do I shall one-up you and write a fic where a second Lyra from an alternate dimension breaks in and has a long, drawn-out fight with her evil doppelganger that will end up revealing them both as reverse wereponies that finally settle their tiff with a triathalon of a thumb war, paper-rock-scissors, and finally, Global Thermonuclear War... the board game, from WOPR Industries.
While they're doing that, a Luna from yet another alternate dimension shows up, berates them all for the silliness, and sends them all back. Except for evil Lyra's giant Mecha-Lyra, which will be destroyed with a Redeemer™.
The citizens of ponyville are so clueless they couldn't tell why Applejack is getting so mad even if it came up and hit the in the face Poor Applejack
1556095 if this charcter existed in real life, she would be dead in 10 seconds flat. merry may..... most annoying thing in equestria.
This is one of the best foundation concepts for a fanfic I've ever seen. Stereotypically, fanfic writers often make the mistake of making small problems blow up into huge drama, turning it into a soap opera fest, but you've done something brilliant and derived conflict from a pony's steadfast ANTI-drama... all without making it a repressive 'denial of something that obviously needs fixing' scenario.
Some farcical communication mishaps are to be expected, but I hope you won't rely on it as a primary plot driver in future chapters. After all, Applejack IS the element on honesty and she's already experienced why running away from simple truths is a bad idea in canon, and Celestia isn't one for jumping to rash conclusions. What makes this fic so great isn't so much a series of wacky mishaps so much as it is a very simple and perfectly understandable sharp difference in reactions. You could also milk this a lot for exploring pony views on theology, depending on how introspective you care to make it.
And 'Appletheosis' is a lovely title.
1560001
Uh, now it is. Retroactively. That's quite a bit darker than my typical fare, but dang.NOPE NO JUST NO. Got a few more chapters in. That is way way way too dark. Absolutely nightmarish.1560017>>1560721 Totally gonna do it.
1560203 Now those are some major feels.
1561078>>1561989 S-such invective!
1562048 Thank you! I generally believe that the characters drive the plot, and a plot that requires the characters to go too far off-model is inferior. AJ just wouldn't behave like that, so she doesn't. As to The Last Roundup, yeah she learned to swallow her pride, but AJ has a few basic methods of dealing with problems: Throw a rope at it/buck it in the face, ignore it, and run away.
Merry May is a silly pony, even moreso than Applejack.
Also, someone needs to shut down that rumor mill, it's spewing crp again.
To quote Twilight, "Everypony. THIS TOWN. CRAZY!"
1556083 True story, bro... It kinda sucks, but that's the only way through ANY block... It SUCKS like MAD trying to get through it, but you gotta plow through it. It's the only way. I know a few people who FORCE themselves to write for an hour or two a day minimum to help keep themselves productive, learn how to ignore blocks better, etc. Just keep at it! We love this fic, and I can't wait to see where it goes from here! :3
That cliffhanger
But looking for the next one