//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Midnight Macintosh // by Mocha Jon //------------------------------// The rather massive stallion eventually woke up with a massive headache. He was not sure where he was or what he was doing. He didn’t even know his own name at that moment, all he knew is that he was lost. “Where… Where in the name of beauty and beasts am ah?” He asked with a rather distinctive inflection. There was still a small country drawl to his voice, but it almost sounded, slightly elegant and refined at the same time. It was dimly light outside, and the large pony noticed it was merely daybreak, the sun was still setting in the horizon. He was not sure why he was able to detect the time of day so easily however. He had not known anything about farming or sleep cycles that required rising up early. “What is this place?” He eventually got to his hooves and started walking off in an attempt to find shelter. As he walked, he heard loud clacking sounds with each hoof step. “In the name of lord Celestia, what’s t’at?” He asked as he noticed he was wearing metal boots. That seemed rather impractical considering that he was just sleeping out in the cold, he should be wearing something softer right? Especially because he also noticed he was wearing a red cape with a white lace on the end. Why did he need a cape like that? Before he had time to figure out an answer, he accidentally walked right into the back of a random pony, tripping and knocking the other pony over. The other pony, a purple pegasus with an orange mane, turned around and looked furious, “What in Equestria is your problem!?” He asked as he got right up into the red stallion’s face. Problem? Was he having a problem? Aside from being confused, he had not considered anything to be a bother. “Oh, Ah’m terribly sorry. Ah just have a lotta complications in mah head, needed to self examine.” He tried to say in order to avoid confrontation. The pegasus looked at the big red pony, taking note on what he was wearing, not only did he have on those metal boots and the cape, but he had a strange silver amulet with a large ruby in it. Why would anypony be stupid enough to wear stuff like that in this area? “I take it you aren’t from around here, huh?” While the stallion was still lost and confused, he knew for sure that that place was a mystery, he knew nothing about it so he must be right, “Affirmative.” That was a strange answer, the pegasus was expecting a simple yes or yeah or um hum, but not an answer as formal as that. “I can tell…” He said as he reached over and touched the amulet, “Ponies from over here never dress this flashy, know why?” “Negative.” The purple pegasus quickly put his hoof under the amulet and pulled it back, detaching it from the red stallion’s neck before attempting to fly away, “Cause nopony here can be trusted!” He said with a selfish laugh as he attempted to flee. What just happened? A complete stranger from out of the blue just took something that wasn’t his? The amulet didn’t necessarily hold any value to the red pony, but that was his property. Just something about that seemed to take a large hold on the large stallion. “Who was that ratchet varmint? He took mah property and he must pay his debt!” The red stallion yelled to two ponies who were standing within the distance from him. The two ponies, a pink mare and a green stallion, refused to give the red pony a solid answer initially. “Why do you think we’ll tell you?” The pink mare said with a heavy ghetto accent. “Yeah, he took ya shiny necklace so you ain’t got anythin’ ta offer us!” The green stallion responded, sounding equally urban. The large red stallion was at a loss, he had no money on him, he had no credit card, no check book, not even a quarter hidden a sock for a payphone. It looked like he was simply at defeat. He grunted to himself as he began to turn around, still grunting his complaints. Before he could walk off, his repressed rage began to manifest into a glow on his horn, and before he knew it, a mailbox he was standing by suddenly started having a crystal like substance appear at the bottom of it. That gave the red stallion an idea, so he quickly turned back around and walked right up to the pink and green ponies. “Naw man ya must be stupid if ya think we’d help ya after thirty seconds, unless ya found 50 bits on the ground!” The pink pony said as she held her hoof out to take a bribe. “Negative…” The red stallion said as he leaned his head down, making his horn touch the pink pony’s hoof, causing both to glow. When the large stallion leaned back up, and small crystals appeared on her hoof. The large pony then repeated the steps on the green pony with her. “There’s your bribe, now take me to him.” “Nuh uh bra, we got our gems now, we don’t need to help,” The green pony said as he refused to offer help even after a bribe. “Oh but you need my help… Look again…” The red stallion said as he pointed to their hooves, before the two could notice, the crystals had gotten bigger, covering up their hooves entirely, and they looked like they were still growing. “What the hay is this? Do ya got a death wish or somethin’?!” The pink pony yelled in anger and fear as she saw them slowly growing. “Negative… It’s just a little incentive to make sure ah get what ah pay for.” The stallion said as the crystals continued to increase, at this point making their arms unable to unbend, leaving them to stand on three hooves. “Ya can keep the original crystals, but ya gotta lead me ta that traitor over there…” The red pony said with a look on his face that lacked any humor, and proved he was not playing around. The two witnesses were at a loss, they had no choice but to give the stallion what he wanted, “Ugh fine, he’s about two blocks from here, we’ll take yas, just stop this!” The green one caved in, with the pink one nodding with an equal grunt. “Affirmative, lead the way.” The red pony cooed as he gestured his hoof forward to signal them to start walking. After about twenty minutes of walking, the two ponies were seen further covered in the crystals. They had reached up to their necks and most of their torsos, making walking a challenge. They eventually made it to what looked like a severely damaged home. It was rather small, only looking like it had one single room, and there were chips of paint falling off the wall, and the single window was broken. “Alright, here’s the place! Now let us go so we can beat you until ya skin is a red as ya coat!” The large red pony looked annoyed and confused at that comment, “You must be dumb as livestock to threaten who holds your fate…” He said as he almost walked inside himself. “She is!” The green one interjected, “Look, ah’ll keep this chick cool, just let us go and ya won’t hear from us again!” He begged, and before he knew it, the crystals began to recede from his body, returning back into the small hooffull sized one it initially was. The same did happen for the pink pony too, but hers was much slower than the green one. “Get her far away from me…” Was all the red pony said. He clearly wanted her to be at a distance when she was able to move again. The two awkwardly nodded as they slowly walked away, not even bothering to look behind them. The red pony then walked to the door of the hobble, he wanted to barge in and knock loudly onto the door, but after the first harsh knock, the door simply opened itself, as it was clearly unlocked and damaged. He refused to be formal and wait for a response and simply rushed into the house. “Where is it?” He yelled loudly. When he arrived, he noticed the purple pony was sitting on a cardboard box, and he was not alone. There was a red filly with a bright blue mane sitting with him, and she looked like she was about to cry. “Daddy, they’re here early…” She said as she looked terrified. The filly was used to intruders coming into their home, as they are robbed rather frequently. “You? How did you find me here?” The purple pony asked as he stood up, still holding the amulet in his hooves. He clearly positioned himself to block his daughter. “I assume you want this back?” He asked with a scowl on his face. “Affirmative.” The red stallion confirmed, he looked around and noticed that all that was in the room were a box filled with bags of rice and potatoes, presumably all they could afford, and a ripped up blanket that looked like it was wrestled from a stray dog. “It’s okay daddy, he can have it back…” The filly said as she took the amulet herself, and held it up for the red pony. At her angle, her cutie mark became visible, it was that of a diamond. “I hope you’re happy. She’s supposed to be a jeweler but we can’t even afford playground rocks…” The father said, disappointed, but he conceded. “Negative…” He said as he took the amulet back, and put it on his neck. He then removed his large red cape with his horn and placed it on the filly’s back like a blanket. “I thought you stole it for yourself, but for her, a father must take risks…” He then walked right up to the purple pony and looked him dead in the eyes, “You have a responsibility to your daughter. I am willing to help you give her a future… But if you ever steal from anypony again, ah will lock you in a barn’s dungeon and have rats eat ya eyes out and crawl out ya belly button…” The filly just stood back in shock from that image in her head, “You mean if I promise never to steal again, she can have the amulet?” The dad asked, also worried. “Negative. Ah don’ know why but ah need this with me.” He said as he looked the two both in the eyes. “But ah have another solution…” The red pony said as his horn light up and before they knew it, the filly was holding crystals similar to the ones that almost imprisoned the witnesses. The dad looked scared but the filly looked confused, “What are these?” She asked. “They’re a gift, they grow on their own.” He said as he reached down and broke one in half, they both quickly regenerated into equally sized crystals as the first one. “Save one, take the rest to a jeweler, sell your new supply every week.” He said as he went off wanting to leave then and there. The purple one looked suspicious at such an offer, “Why would you do this…?” “Ah hate thieves with a passion, stealing is a horrible act that nopony should do. If ah can stop it, ah will. Don’t mean ah need to be violent though…” He said as he began to turn around and leave. “Sir…” The filly interjected, “What’s your name?” The red pony was not sure how to answer that, he was not sure. He looked back, looking a bit morose, but instead of answering, he just left the hobble, leaving the crystal gifts.