//------------------------------//
// Amends 
// Story: Atlas's Burden 
// by Funkyfresh 
//------------------------------//

Run... Just keep running. If you stop they will catch you. If they catch you, they will burn you and break you.
It was all I could do, to keep running before I let the agony freeze up my body and override my thoughts. I just had to keep running and they wouldn't catch me. So I ran and ran, until my breath ran ragged and everything was quiet in the wood around me. That is when the full agony of what had transpired hit me, when I actually had a moment to think about it and absorb the sensation of the brand. I could feel it now, pulsing in the center of my back almost in time with the rapid beating of my heart.
Then I did the only thing that I could do to make things better, at least by a little... I screamed. I let all the anger, fear, and pain that had built up in the course of today out in that animalistic scream and I continued to scream until I passed out from exhaustion. I woke up a few hours later.





Back at Sweet Apple Acres
"Oh Applebloom, are you sure you're alright? It didn't hurt you?" Applejack said, checking over her sister one last time.
"Ah told you sis, it stopped the brand and ran off. I was scared when it first stood over me, but then I saw it's eyes and..."
"What did you see when you looked in its eyes?" Fluttershy asked softly.
"It looked scared and hurt... It's eyes looked like a pony's when I looked into them. They didn't look like the other humans eyes, they looked more alive."
"Now, Applebloom you know that just ain't possible. Humans show less emotions than some of Shy's animals do."
"Well, you are right AJ, most humans don't show any emotion other than 'hunger' and 'anger'. Atlas was different though." Noticing Applejack's skeptical look she carried on, "It was a lot more observant and docile than most, and besides I think that it may be a different species based on it's body. Like how there are black bears and grizzly bears." She added noticing their confused looks.
"So you're saying that we just found a species of human that neither of us have ever seen or heard of before? Twilight's gonna love that, I can already hear her..."
A prolonged and pain-filled roar echos out from the Everfree.
"Oh, I hope he's not too hurt. I'm not sure that he would be willing to come to me for help after I brought him here and you tried branding him."
"Well Shy, we should probably go tell Twilight about all of this. If anypony can find information about that 'Atlas' it would be her."





Zecora was out gathering what herbs she needed for a potion when she heard the roar, causing her to nearly ruin the plant she was plucking leaves from. She was at first wary, because she had never heard a roar like this in all her time in the Everfree, but eventually her curiosity got the better of her and she cautiously made her way towards it. She almost missed the figure laying prone on the forest floor, if not for it's size and how it stood out from the surrounding foliage. When she realized that the thing was unconscious she was able to gather more of her courage and move closer to better inspect it.
She was quite surprised to find the largest human that she had ever seen, nearly a good foot taller than those found in Equestria. Upon inspecting the giant beast she also found what looked like a brand burned into it's back, personally Zecora did not like the way the ponies treated the humans sometimes, but she was a guest in these lands and their customs were their own. She did feel the need to help the poor thing though, so she did the only thing she could shy of taking it with her to her hut and spread a salve on it's back to soothe the burns on it's back and left a scent marker around the clearing that it lay in to keep predators out. Thus finished with what aid she could give it, she started back upon her path towards her home.





I woke up feeling like utter shit. Not only was there my aching muscles and the burnt mark on my back, but I was also very hungry and thirsty after only having the apple that Fluttershy had given me apparently yesterday if the sunrise was to be believed. I did notice that my burn did not hurt as much as it should for being such a strong burn. Fearing that it was burned far worse than I initially thought, I felt around where the burn should be and found that a salve or ointment had been rubbed onto it. 
Did Fluttershy do this? If she found me and didn't bring me back, does that mean I can still trust her?
My thoughts were interrupted however by the growls of my stomach and by how parched my throat was. If I was going to do anything, I was going to have to take care of some of my basic needs first and I knew just where to take care of them. The stream that ran by Fluttershy's hut seemed drinkable and I could follow it towards the orchard, hopefully I could find something to eat on the way be it a fish or a berry bush. So after finding the very clear trail I had left in the undergrowth, (how had they not tracked me down? Did they decide to let me go?)
I decided to let these thoughts stew in the back of my mind, as I was far too hungry and thirsty to think properly right now and really had to focus on getting that taken care of before all else. A silver lining in the otherwise shit-tastic time I've been having here is that I actually did find a small trickle of fresh water that seemed to be a tributary to the stream by Fluttershy's house and after tasting it I found it to be drinkable. Now that I had my fill of water it was time to get some food into my belly, now I was hoping to find some berries or even fish along the riverbank, but if need be I would probably try stealing from those ponies that tried branding me.
I know I know stealing is wrong and all, but so is branding people and I still got branded in the end cause of that stunt I pulled saving the girl. I was walking the wood line near their property and I still hadn't found anything that was edible so I started to see if any of the ponies were nearby so I could nab a couple of apples when a voice startled me.
"Hey there big fella!" I had nearly jumped out of my skin when the little filly beside me decided to speak up. "You lookin fer something to eat?"
At first all I could do was stare at Applebloom as she stood there holding out an apple... what the fuck?
About thirty seconds ago
"Now if I was a big ol' human, where would I be?" Applebloom thought to herself as she sat near the edge of the woods, the treats that she had brought with her sitting in a wicker basket. Then as if on cue Atlas walked out of the brush, apparently not noticing her as he scanned her family's farm watching for anypony. That's when she pulled out a red delicious and said, "Hey there big fella! You lookin fer something to eat?"
Back in the present
"Why was the little pony on her own near the scary woods and why was she giving me an apple?" I thought to myself.
"Who cares, food." 
My stomach's eloquent retort won that debate and I slowly reached for the apple. Upon seeing that it was in fact, not a trick I took a step back while munching on the apple. God that was a good apple, were all of their apples this damn good? No matter, the real question is why the little one was giving me food. I looked at her and she just stood there beaming at me with those big ol' puppy eyes, and the longer I stared the more my resolve weakened. She hadn't tried to hurt me herself (she just wanted to be like bro and sis), she brought me food, and she was so fucking adorable. 
That's it, I can't hold back anymore I just can't. I tentatively  reached out and put my hand on her head. She had been searching through her basket so the sudden appearance of my hand had startled her at first, (can't blame her I have pretty big hands,) but she relaxed as I began to scratch her behind the ears. We stayed in a cycle like this for quite some time with the two of us snacking from the basket she had brought while I gave her scritches. The cycle was interrupted by a voice coming from the Apple property.
"Applebloom! Where the hay are you?!" 
It was one of the ponies that I definitely didn't want to see right now, mostly because I still felt the burn of that brand fresh in my mind. Applebloom seemed to notice how rigid I had become and started to shoo me back to the woods.
"C'mon now, git. I know you're still skittish, but I also know I can change that. Just give me a bit and you'll be helping on the farm in no time! This time without the brand too." She said to me with a big grin and those puppy eyes. Dang it, no matter how much I don't want to, I can't help but like this little pony. I'll have to keep an eye on her.