Later on, that day,
Rarity and Pinkie pie returned to Ponyville once they determined that the rock farm problem wasn't Diamond dogs but a stallion. They figure that Limestone can get rid of it and that they weren't needed anymore. Marble and her parents returned to the sinkhole to fill it up. That leaves Limestone to deal with the groundhog. Limestone walks to the hole where the stallion had disappeared to. She picks up the megaphone and shouts through it.
"Hay Squatter! I need to speak with you!" She puts down the megaphone and waits. And waits. And waits... Nothing. She picks up the megaphone again. "If you don't get up here, I will have my sister shout at you again!" Soon after she said that the ground started shaking again, and out popped the stallion covered in dirt. He sits in his hole like the mole he is with only his upper body sticking out. He lifts his goggles glaring at Limestone.
"What seems to be troubling you, mam?"
Limestone moves closer to the stallion. "What wrong is that I got a stranger digging holes and tunnels all over my Rock Farm, making sinkholes everywhere!"
"A Rock Farm?" The stallion looks around before looking back at her. "Is that what this is? I thought this was a deserted land with many rocks."
"That is the idea of what a Rock Farm is!"
The stallion nods at this. "Right. It would appear that we have come across a bit of a problem on our hooves."
"That can be solved right now with you leaving, so Beat it!" She said, stomping the ground and leaving an indent in the ground around her hoof.
The stallion is unfazed by this and snorts at her. "Not going to happen, mam."
The was a slight twitch in Limestone’s left eye. This never happened before. "What did you say?!"
"There is still much work for me to do here and I am not going to let some mare tell me to get lost."
Anger started filling Limestone’s voice as she stared down at the stallion. "My family has owned this land for years! There is no way you could have been here before them. So, we say who gets to stay and who gets lost." She got in his face before saying, "UNDERSTAND!"
The stallion didn't get mad or shout back. He pushed back Limestone’s face away from his with his hoof before answering. "That is a very sound agreement you make there.” She nods at this, “By all rights I have invaded your property causing problem for you and your family.” She agrees, “And you can even have the guards come here and escort me off your property.”
“Natural,”
“However, there is one slight error you are unaware of.”
“What?”
“Your statement only applies to creatures that live above ground. So, you have no say about what I do underground. Besides, the guards can’t touch me since I am just trying to do my job." He then lowers his goggles. "So, I bid you a good day and goodbye, mam." With that, the stallion goes back underground covering the hole as he leaves.
This makes Limestone Furious. "GET BACK HERE!" She shouts as she stomps the ground continuously. Little did she know that ground she was standing on wasn't very stable, and creaks were forming around her. "IT SO DOES APPLY TO YOU! YOU NO GOOD LIAR!" more creaks, "NO PONY TELL ME WHAT I CAN'T OR CANNOT DO ON MY OWN ROCK FAR-" the ground gave out underneath her hooves, and down she went. "BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!"
The feeling starts returning to Limestone's body as she moves her limbs but quickly brings her left foreleg back to her body when it hurts badly while stretching it. She opens her eyes to see that her hoof is wrapped in bandages, and some sticks are firmly bound to the sides. Noticing that she was in a bed with an old blanket covering her. Her eyes gaze across the room.
She appears to be still underground but in some pony's bedchamber. There wasn’t much to look at, just some glowing mushrooms lining the walls to light the room in a Hud of light blue, a table to the far side with small tools and boxes next to it, an old curtain covering the entrance to the room, a small table with a bucket of water next to her along with a stew of some kind.
She moves the blanket off her and tries to stand up, which is a bad idea. Pain ran across her body as she fell back on the bed. Limestone catches her breath as she hears somepony approaching. The curtain to the room was moved to the side, and the pony entered the room; it was the Stallion digging in her farm. He puts his pickaxe and shovel on a bench and notices that she is awake.
"You are awake. That is good." He said before turning to his bench and moving smaller tools with his magic.
Despite the pain. Limestone grits her teeth and stares down the stallion. "Where Am I?"
"In my bed chambers at the moment," He said while working on his tools. "Sorry for the mess, but I wasn't expecting any guests."
Limestone relaxes a little. Figuring that if the stallion meant her any harm, there would be easier ways of doing it. Like leaving her to deal with her injuries, lost in one of the many tunnels, this stallion had no doubt made. More than she would have done for him. After all, he is not family.
"What happened?"
"After our last meet and shout. You started stomping the ground underneath you, causing it to give out underneath you. I found you shortly afterward and brought you here after binding your wounds. Nothing life-threatening, but you will be bedridden for a while."
Anger filled Limestone’s body as she stared at the stallion. "This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't started digging holes all around my farm!"
"Not true, miss." The stallion replied calmly.
This confused Limestone, "What?"
"The hole you fell into was not of my making. It was there long before I got here."
Limestone grunts angrily and looks away from the stallion, "So what? You are saying I should be thanking you then?"
The stallion put down his tools quickly and loudly, getting Limestone’s full attention. He stares into her eyes from his workbench. A hint of anger in his eyes captures Limestone's eyes as she can’t look away. "I am saying that you should be thanking Celestia that you didn't die when you fell down that hole." He turns back to work on his tools, breaking the trans as Limestone blinks her eyes. "Can't somepony help another out of courtesy anymore?"
Limestone looks away in shame and replies in a quiet voice. "Sorry."
If he heard her reply, he didn't show it, "You focus on getting better. It is too soon to move you from here without hurting you. Once you get stronger, I will take you back to the surface." The stallion picks up his pickaxe and gives it a swing with his magic before grabbing the shovel and putting them on his tool belt under his cloak. "Now, if you excuse me. I have a lot of work to do." He left the room, calling over his shoulder, "Shout if you need me. I know you have the lungs to do that."
Back on the surface,
Limestone's parents have been searching the farm for any signs of their daughter. She never leaves the farm, and she has been missing for Hours. The Father searches the farm’s perimeter while the mother searches the area where they meet the stallion earlier. Marble was told to wait at home in case she came back.
"Limestone!" Her mom called out to her. "Limestone, where are thou?!" She felt the ground moving and saw the stallion from earlier coming out. The mom rushed over to him. "Sir, have you seen my Limestone?"
The stallion lifts his goggles and replies calmly. "She is the purple mare with the lime next to stones as a cutie mark, correct?"
"Yes! Where is she!"
"She is my care right now. She fell a hole and hurt herself." The mom was about to say something, but the stallion raised his hoof to stop her. "And before you accuse me. I had nothing to do with it. I found her at the bottom of the hole and bandaged her wounds."
"Can I see her?" the mom asked frantically,
But the stallion shakes his head, "Not yet. She needs to rest. But I will bring her back to you when she is ready. You have my word."
The mom was taken aback by this, "Your word of honor? No pony has used that since my father’s time."
The stallion nods gently, knowing what she said is accurate; however, "I may have been born in this generation, but I was raised in the old world if it makes you feel better. I will take you to her tomorrow when she is feeling better. Will that be alright with you?"
"Yes, but please take care of my daughter."
"Of course, mam." And with that, they departed from each other.