Gunslinger Shenanigans
Starlight Glimmer had to admit, if there were any places in the Lego World that she would have expected to be the most similar to its counterpart in Equestria, then it was definitely the farm known as Sweet Apple Acres. While the wagons and carts were replaced with trucks and tractors, and obviously all of the major structures were made of Lego bricks, much of this property had a striking resemblance to the version she was more familiar with. The main house and barn, although not identical to the one in Equestria, certainly shared the same color and basic design. There were also numerous pens for all of the various farm animals — all of which were plastic figures that moved around and behaved much like their counterparts in Equestria. And of course, there was the sprawling orchard of countless apple trees.
If there was one part of this Sweet Apple Acres that Starlight found rather odd, it was definitely the apple trees. The trees themselves were among the few things on the property that were not made of Lego parts — they were real trees just like the ones in Equestria. However, the apples that these trees bore had the appearance of being Lego pieces, much like just about any other food item she had seen in this world.
Even so, Starlight had already seen Applejack eat one of those apples as if it was a totally normal apple, so she figured it was only fair that she try one for herself. As she was chewing through her first couple of bites from one of these Lego apples, she watched Applejack carry an armful of empty cans along a length of wooden fence segments.
“So how are the apples, Starlight?” asked Applejack as she placed one of the cans atop a fencepost. “Are they just as good as what y’all have in Equestia?”
Starlight took a moment to consider her thoughts before she replied, “To be honest, it’s a very weird sensation. When I close my eyes, it feels and tastes exactly like any other apple I’ve had back in Equestria. But as soon as I open my eyes and look at this thing, I just can’t help but immediately think to myself, ‘This is a piece of plastic. It should not be edible.’”
As she placed another can atop another fencepost, Applejack chuckled and remarked, “Well, Ah ain’t been to Equestria mahself, so it’s not like Ah can tell ya if that’s really the case or not.”
“True,” admitted Starlight as she took another bite from the apple. The only thing stranger to her than eating what was seemingly a piece of plastic was actually seeing her bite marks on it, and yet chewing on something that definitely did not feel like plastic. Once she finished that bite, she then asked, “What’s with the cans?”
“Target practice,” Applejack stated simply as she placed the final can atop another fencepost. As she turned away from the fence and began walking towards Starlight, she continued, “Rainbow said she wanted to show ya how to use one of them fancy space laser guns, but for me personally, Ah prefer to use something a lil’ more down-to-earth that fires a solid projectile.”
“Like what?” asked Starlight as Applejack walked right past her.
Applejack picked up a large box and carried it over towards Starlight as she replied, “Such as what’s inside this here box — a gift from mah cousin Braeburn, who lives in Appleloosa over in the Old West Region.” She set the box down next to Starlight, unlocked both locks on the lids, then opened the box and pulled out a small grey firearm.
“What is it?” asked Starlight.
“It’s a type of gun called a revolver,” answered Applejack as she proudly held up that pistol. “It can fire up to half a dozen shots before you have to reload, it’s fairly accurate up to about five hundred studs away, an’ considered one of the best handguns you can get in the Old West Region.”
Starlight looked inside the opened box and saw a second revolver inside, so she reached in and picked it up. As she turned it around in her hands to look at it from all angles, she asked, “So how do these things work?”
Without saying a word, Applejack gently took the revolver out of Starlight’s hands, turned it around, and placed it back in Starlight’s hands so that it was being properly held by the handle. She then turned towards the wooden fence and pointed at one of the empty cans she had placed atop the fenceposts. “Watch that can over there,” she stated.
Figuring there was a reason Applejack readjusted the revolver in her hands for her, Starlight made sure to hold hers steady in that position as she watch Applejack take aim with her revolver, then glanced back and forth between Applejack and the can she had pointed out.
Pow! Clang!
The revolver in Applejack’s hand suddenly released a loud and sharp bang, instantly followed by the can suddenly jumping off the fencepost and falling to the ground. It all happened so fast that Starlight suddenly jumped back in shock and actually dropped her revolver on the ground.
Applejack chuckled and remarked, “First shot!” She turned to Starlight and her smile fell when she noticed her revolver was on the ground. As Applejack reached down to pick it up, she cautioned, “Try to be a lil’ more careful. These things could go off when ya least expect if ya mishandle them.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Starlight carefully responded as she watched Applejack set down both of their revolvers atop the storage box.
Applejack then walked over to the fallen can, picked it up, and carried it back and held it out to Starlight.
Starlight took the can from Applejack and soon noticed that it now had a small clean hole that went through both sides of its round surface. With eyes wide in shock, she turned to Applejack and asked, “Did that thing… really just do this?”
“Sure did!” replied Applejack proudly. She didn’t immediately notice the uneasy look on Starlight’s face, but once she did, she asked, “Y’all don’t have anythin’ like it in Equestria, do ya?”
“Definitely not,” confirmed Starlight. “And now that I’ve seen what they can do, I really hope we never will have anything like it. I mean…” She held up the can with a bullet hole through it. “Those things could seriously hurt someone!” She then tossed the can away. “No offense, Applejack, but I’m not too sure about trying it out myself.”
Applejack sighed and, with an understanding smile on her face, said, “Ah get where you’re comin’ from. Believe me, there sure was no shortage of controversy back when these things were first introduced to certain regions of the Lego World, an’ in some cases the debate continues even to this day. Ah guess it’s just one of those things that, once it’s out there for everyone, there’s no way to take it all back. An’ hey, truth be told, Ah wasn’t expecting ya to be much of a gun enthusiast anyway. But remember when Sunset mentioned that ya had to learn a few skills before you could be ready to join us on one of our missions?”
Starlight nodded.
“Well in mah book, knowin’ how to use a firearm is a must-have skill,” continued Applejack. “Ya just never know when ya might find yourself in a situation where the only thing ya have on hand to keep the bad guys back is either a pistol, a rifle, or even one of them laser blasters. Even if you’d rather not do it, it’s better to know how to use one anyway, just in case if ya run outta options.”
Starlight took a moment to consider Applejack’s argument. Eventually, she shrugged and said, “Eh, I guess there’s nothing wrong with a little practice.” The then reached over to the box and picked up one of the revolvers.
Applejack smiled and grabbed the other revolver.
Starlight turned to face the row of cans on the fence, but rather then immediately try to take aim, she asked, “Is there anything important I should know about aiming these things?”
Applejack turned to Starlight and replied, “Since you’re still new at this, Ah’d recommend holdin’ it with both hands to steady your aim.”
Starlight followed that advice and grasped her revolver’s handle with both hands.
“Ya see that lil’ tab on the end of the gun barrel?” continued Applejack. “That’s to help with aiming. If you can line that up with your target, then chances are you’re gonna actually hit that target. It especially helps if ya keep one eye closed while aimin’.”
Starlight acknowledged the advice with a nod. She held out the revolver, closed her left eye, and took aim at one of cans on the fence.
“Once you’re sure your aim is on target,” added Applejack, “take a deep breath an’ just give that handle a good squeeze to fire the shot.”
Starlight took her time to make sure she was on target. After a few seconds, once she was confident with her aim, she slowly took a deep breath, exhaled, and finally squeezed the handle.
Pow! Clang!
The can briefly twirled in the air before it fell off the fencepost. At the same time, Starlight wobbled a little from the strong kickback of firing that revolver, but managed to stay standing.
“Good shot!” praised Applejack. “Try another one.”
Starlight turned slightly to the right to aim towards the next can along the fence. She took a moment to be sure of her aim, took a deep breath, and squeezed the handle.
Pow! Clang!
The can was thrown sideways off the fencepost. Although Starlight still struggled with her balance from the kickback, she smiled and remarked, “Hey, I’m getting pretty good at this.”
“That’s the spirit, Starlight!” encouraged Applejack. “Onto the next one!”
Starlight moved her aim to the left down the other end of the fence and focused on one of the two remaining cans. Again, she took a moment to calm herself as she took aim and soon fired the revolver.
Pow! Clang!
That shot partially struck the fencepost, but still managed to hit the can and knock it onto the ground. In addition, Starlight lost her footing from the kickback, but stepping one foot backwards was all she needed to regain her balance.
“Nice!” cheered Applejack. “Just one more left!”
Seeing nothing wrong with her changed stance, Starlight went ahead with aiming for the next target. Once again, she took her time to get her aim just right, took a calming breath, and squeezed the handle.
Pow! Clang!
That can was thrown straight up a little and bounced off the fencepost before tumbling to the ground. However, the kickback from that shot caused her front foot to be pushed back against her back foot, causing her to trip over herself and lose her balance. She cried out as she wobbled a bit before ultimately falling over onto her back. As she hit the ground, she accidentally squeezed the handle too hard, firing off another shot from the revolver.
Pow! Ping-clang-ping-ding-ding-clang-ping-ping-clang-crash! BOOM!
The bullet ricocheted back and forth against various solid objects all over the property before finally smashing through a window into the house and setting off a minor explosion somewhere inside. Applejack and Starlight remained completely still, absolutely stunned by the terrifying accident that had just occurred.
A few seconds after the explosion, one of the windows was opened, releasing some thick black smoke, along with exposing the outside to the loud and rapid beeping of the smoke alarm within the house. Granny Smith stuck her head out the window and coughed a few times, then shook her fist up at the sky and furiously shouted, “Darn aliens!” As the thick black smoke continued to billow out of the opened window, Granny Smith turned back inside and hollered out, “Big Mac! Where’s that fire extinguisher at?!”
Applejack let out a sigh of relief, then hesitantly stated, “Well, at least it sounds like nobody got seriously hurt.”
Starlight sat up on the ground, glanced down at the revolver still in her hands, then handed it over to Applejack and grumbled, “I think I’ve had enough of using deadly weapons for a while.”
“Understandable,” said Applejack as she took back the revolver and packed it back into the box. As she then helped Starlight up to her feet, she added, “Though word of advice, try not to use that D-word ever again. Ah don’t know what Equestria’s standards are on profanity, but here in this world, that word an’ variations of it are very forbidden.”
“I’ll be sure to keep that in mind,” noted Starlight.
Fsssshhhh!
Applejack and Starlight turned their attention back to the house and saw the black smoke was now starting to turn white. “That’s a relief,” noted Applejack. “Whatever blew up in there, at least they were able to put the fire out.”
Starlight sighed in discouragement and muttered, “I’m really sorry about that.”
“Hey, it’s okay,” assured Applejack. “Accidents happen, an’ there ain’t much we can do about ‘em.”
“I should at least apologize to Granny Smith for whatever mess I caused in there,” insisted Starlight.
“If it makes ya feel better ‘bout it, then go right ahead, but don’t expect her to believe ya,” said Applejack. When Starlight gave her a questioning look, she explained, “This place used to have a real space alien problem back in the day. It eventually got to a point where Granny Smith now blames ‘em for just about anythin’ that goes wrong ‘round here.”
Starlight blinked once, turned her attention back to the house, and finally said, “I’ve learned from experience that taking the easy way out usually doesn’t work out very well in the end, so I think I’ll apologize to Granny Smith rather than just let her blame it all on aliens.”
As Applejack locked up the box containing the revolvers, she remarked, “Now that’s the kind of honesty Ah can appreciate.”
As they began walking towards the house, Starlight just couldn’t keep her mind off the accident and how it could’ve been avoided had she simply refused the lessons on using that revolver. As a powerful unicorn, she was used to using spells rather than weapons to deal with any serious foes. There was now no doubt in her mind that the firearms type of weapons she had seen in the Lego World should definitely never be introduced to Equestria. There were some aspects of each of the two worlds that just should never be shared between both of them, and she was confident that everyone was completely okay with that.