//------------------------------//
// Chapter three: Prelude to Nightmares Part One – Honest Strength. 
// Story: Equestrian Gourmet Adventures 
// by BlurtheHedgehog 
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Someone once said, out there in the world exists a volcanic region where spicy curry bubbles up from below the surface, where said curry flows over fluffy rice mound, Curry-cano fields. The world is in the great Gourmet age, an age where people quest to discover unknown and wondrous delights.

Marshall was currently sitting in the dining car of the friendship express with Smith. Three weeks ago he had been made a special guest of Celestia after the Cragadile mission and had sampled the food. Luckily the chefs had been told about the diet of their guest and had meat added to the menu for his stay. A day ago Celestia had told Marshall about the Summer Sun Celebration and that it was being held in Ponyville. She had told him to go and meet the locals and sample the area’s food. Marshall noticed that Smith was reading a book with the title Ponyville: a History. “What did you find out about the town?”

“The town is primarily an Earth Pony settlement.” Smith stated as he recalled what he read. “Started out as a homestead for a family of apple growers, with the discovery of a fruit called a Zap Apple it soon bloomed into a prosperous town.”

“Zap Apples, hmmmm?” Marshall said as he started to drool. “Those sound really good.” He wiped his mouth before adding, “We should visit that family when we get there.”

“Next stop,” the conductor stated, “Ponyville Station, thirty minutes until arrival.”

“This is going to be so exciting.” Smith said as he returned to his book, “The primary export of this town is apples although pears were a close second up until 24 years ago.”

“While that is interesting,” Marshall said as he took up a lotus sitting position, “I’m going to get in touch with my Appetite Manifestation.” Marshall soon closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing until he heard the sound of someone eating something. He opened his eyes and saw The Butcher sitting at a large table. The only change to its usual appearance was the white tuxedo it now wore. Above and behind the starry being were its tools, crossed over a shield shaped plaque. “I half expected you to be wearing a butcher’s smock and standing behind a butcher’s table.”

“We aren’t on a hunt right now.” The Butcher stated as he cut a piece of meat that was on his plate. “You wish to learn something from me, don’t you?” the mouth part of its face tore open into a fanged maw as it ate its meal. “What do you wish to know?”

“What sort of Full Course Meal would unlock your true power?” Marshall asked as he noticed some of the dishes served were only halfheartedly eaten.

“I do not know the exact dishes that would accomplish that task,” The Butcher stated as he looked at the offered dishes before it with an unsatisfied look on its face. “However, I do know that it is a meal that will taste all the more flavorful when shared with true friends.”

“A Full Course Meal of Friendship, hmmm.” Marshall said thoughtfully. He grinned as he looked at the Butcher. “That is a menu I can get behind.” Marshall then felt a hand on his shoulder and was dragged back to the real world. “To use a tired old question, are we there yet?” Marshall asked Smith when he woke up.

“We are just pulling in to the station.” Smith said as he grabbed his backpack. Marshall picked up his duffle bag and followed Smith out onto the platform. The town looked like it was taken from the late 1600’s back in Marshall’s home dimension. “Alright let’s see,” Smith said as he looked at a map of the town that Celestia gave him. “We are here,” Smith pointed at the northern part of the map, “And Sweet Apple Acers is here.” He pointed to the southern part of the map. “Wow it looks like a nearly strait walk there from here.”

“Well then,” Marshall said as he turned south, “Let’s get going.” As the two of them walked toward their destination, Marshall reminisced about how the town reminded him of his own home town. “There is so much nature here.” He took in a deep breath in through his nose. “The air is so fresh here.” He smelled the air again and caught a curious scent. “That’s odd.”

“What’s odd?” Smith asked as he looked at the gourmet hunter.

“I smell something very sweet nearby.” Marshall said as he sniffed the air, “It’s gone now, whatever that smell was it made me hungry.” He drooled for a few second before he wiped his mouth. “Let’s get to Sweet Apple Acers and try those apples out!” It took Marshall and Smith about half an hour to walk toward the farm. The farm had near countless rows of apple trees all of which were filled with ripe apples. ‘These Gourmet Cells are both a blessing and a curse.’ It was taking a godly amount of will power to keep himself from jumping the fence and just take one.

“YE-HAW!” A female voice shouted from nearby. Marshall and Smith turned to see a young woman running at a tree before she planted one hoof and delivered a roundhouse kick to the tree. She wore a blue denim skirt and a white and green shirt. Her blond mane and tail were styled in a classic cowgirl ponytail. She stood back to admire her work as her green eyes sparkled with amusement. Every apple in the tree fell into the baskets below.

“Those are some impressive skills, Miss Apple.” Marshall said as he and smith walked up to her. The mare turned to the one who spoke to her and saw Marshall and Smith.

“Howdy there, stranger,” the cowgirl said as she walked up to the duo. “My name’s Applejack, what can I do fer you gentle colts?” she shook the hands of the two men and only left smith still shaking when she let go.

“I am Gourmet Hunter Marshall and this is Gourmet Cartographer Smith.” Marshall stated as he stopped Smith’s arm.

“So you’re the feller that whooped that Cragadile a couple weeks back.” Applejack said with an impressed tone in her voice. “Thousand year old varmint from what I read and y’all took it down with your bare hands.”

“Whoa now don’t go making me sound cocky.” Marshall said nervously as he looked over his shoulder. ‘I know I’m going to get sniped by a voice missile if people make too big a deal out of my deeds here.’ “My job often requires me to deal with threats to an ecosystem and that Cragadile was certainly a threat.”

“Glad to see you don’t like to brag.” Applejack said as she looked the duo over, “So what brings you fellers to this neck of the woods?”

“We are here to map out Equestria.” Smith stated as he held up his note book. “As a Gourmet Cartographer it is my job to document where ingredients grow best or make their home.” Smith then pulled out the history book he had with him. “This book said that your family grew the best apples in the area and we were wanting to try some.”

“Well if you came to sample some Apple Family apple product you certainly chose the right time to do so.” Applejack said as she walked over to a metal triangle. “Me and my family were just about ready to break for lunch.” She rang the triangle before shouting, “SOUP’S ON EVERYPONY!” Marshall and Smith were pushed to a small gazebo that was growing around a stump the size of a bistro table. “This here is my immediate family.” Applejack stated as she stood with three other ponies. One was a stallion, standing on her right that was a head or two taller than Applejack with red fur and an orange main and tail. He wore a red flannel shirt over a white t-shirt and blue jeans. He had large muscles that did not hinder his movement. He also had a gentle giant aura about him. The next pony he saw was a filly, standing to her left that was height of the average twelve year old. She had yellow fur and a red mane and tail. Her mane was held out of her face by a red bow. She wore a green t-shirt and blue jeans that stopped at her knees. The last pony was a head or two taller than the filly. She stood to the left of the filly and looked absolutely ancient. Her mane and tail were done up in a bun. She wore a beige blouse and red skirt. Around her waist was a white apron and over her shoulders was an orange shawl with red apples polka dotted on it.

‘So these are the apples I have read about and seen in the show.’ Marshall thought before an image super imposed itself over the family before him. He saw applejack and the stallion wearing military garb, the filly wearing a fancy sundress and the old mare wearing what she was only it looked more upscale. ‘Okay I can definitely see this family like that one.’ He then tapped his right cheek as he looked at the stallion. ‘I wonder if he actually knows THAT greeting?’ he smirked and took off his jacket. “Hey Smith,” Marshall stated as he held his jacket out to the Cartographer, “Hold my jacket for a moment.”

“Um, okay?” Smith asked cocking his eyebrow. Once the jacket was in the small man’s hands Marshall walked around the table and stopped in front of the stallion. He then grunted as he pressed the back of his hands together over his chest and tensed his muscles. Said muscles bulged as he flexed, his shirt tightened and defined his physique. A full minute passed before he looked the stallion in the eye. The intense nature in them seemed to speak to the stallion.

“Are you feelin’ alright?” Applejack asked as she saw Marshall flexing. While she was annoyed at anyone who would show off for no reason, she had to admit Marshall did have a nice body. ‘You could grind rocks on those abs.’ She heard the rustling of fabric coming from her right and saw her brother taking off his flannel shirt then held it out to her. She took it with confusion as her brother stepped forward. An intense look suddenly appeared on his face as he flexed his own muscles, his palms pressed together. “What in tarnation is going on here?” Applejack asked/shouted after a minute. She was then surprised when Marshall and her brother stood up and shook hands.

“Hoo-wee,” Her granny suddenly stated as she fanned herself, “Ah ain’t seen the Strongman Greeting since mah pappy met that Minotaur prince when ah was Apple Bloom’s age.” Seeing Applejack and Apple Bloom were looking at her in confusion she explained, “It’s a special greeting in which two buff stallions would gain each other’s respect by flexing and letting their muscles do the talking.”

“Well now that we are done with that,” Marshall said as he put his jacket, “Let’s eat my friend.”

“Eyup.” The stallion agreed as he put on his flannel shirt and sat down.

“Well now since you’re all chummy with mah brother,” Applejack stated as she set some apple desserts down on the table. “Allow me to introduce you to everyone.” She pats the stallion on the shoulder, “This is mah big brother, Big Macintosh.” She ruffled Apple Bloom’s hair, “This is my little sister, Apple Bloom.” She then held her hand out to the elderly mare, “Finally we have mah grandmother, Granny Smith.”

“Before you have any of our desserts maybe you should have one of our apples as is.” Apple Bloom said as she handed Marshall a Red Delicious.

“Smooth skin and a natural shiny surface,” Marshall said as his companion took one for himself. “Certainly one of the best looking apples I have ever seen.” He held his left hand in front of himself, “Itadakimasu.”

“What was that you said?” Applejack asked before Marshall could take a bite.

“It can mean either ‘thank you for the food’ or ‘let’s dig in’.” Smith stated before he repeated the gesture. “Most of the time we say it before we eat.”

*CRUNCH* Marshall bit into the apple he had been holding and his eyes widened in surprise. ‘A crisp and refreshing crunch, as I chew the rich apple flavor spreads throughout my mouth. The fruit is naturally sweet like it could be a candy all on its own.’ He swallowed and was met with a new sensation, ‘The juices of the apple are so soothing as it goes down.’ The moment it was in his stomach a jolt of energy race through him. ‘My body feels more awake right now like I had drunk an entire pot of coffee.’ “Yummy!” Marshall cheered as he took another bite. While he ate, Applejack sat shocked. She had never seen someone eat an apple with such gusto before. It did however fill her with pride to see this honest reaction.

“Apple fritter?” Big Mac asked in his rich baritone as he offered Marshall a plate of the golden brown pastry.

“Thank you very much.” Marshall stated as he took three of the pastries. He took a bite and shivered at how good it was. “Crunchy shell, fluffy inside and fruity flavor, so good!” He grabbed a slice of pie and took a bite. “The cinnamon and sugar enhancing the apples natural flavor and this crust is just firm enough to hold the slice together yet flakes away.”

“This cider has a great punch.” Smith said as he drank some of the cider provided. He then looked thoughtful for a moment. “Where are these Zap Apples that we have read about?” he asked looking at the table.

“We usually turn those into jam almost as soon as they are picked.” Granny stated with an apologetic tone. “We also sell out of those fairly quickly.” She tapped her chin a moment before looking at the barn. “Big Mac, I got a jar of the jam squirreled away in the hayloft. Go and fetch it for these fine gentle colts.”

“Eyup.” Big Mac said as he stood up to go get the jam. Three minutes later he came back with a Mason jar filled with Zap Apple Jam. A semiliquid substance in the seven colors of the rainbow it also glowed softly in rainbow sheen.

“Zap Apple Jam,” Marshall said as he looked at the jar in awe. ‘I think it might just be the gourmet cells in me but this looks so much more mouthwatering than in the show.’ He stood there mesmerized by the jar before him. He took a plain biscuit and twisted the lid off the jar. He gulped nervously as he took a butter knife and dug into the jam. “What, it’s heavy?” Marshall asked no one as he held the jam to his eyes. He had apple jam plenty of times before back in his home dimension however this was different. He then spread the jam over the biscuit. “It is like spreading cake frosting.”

“Are you okay there sonny?” Granny asked as she saw Marshall shivering a little.

“I’m a little nervous,” Marshall explained as he stared at the treat in hand, “We did our research before coming here, but now that we’re here, with this famous spread in our presence, I’m a bit overwhelmed.” He quickly took a bite and was shocked. ‘Did I just bite into a real apple?’ he asked himself as he chewed. The jam subtly shifted between different kinds of apples, staying just long enough to be recognized before leaving. When he swallowed, every cell in his body charged up and he started to glow.

“Whoa nelly!” Applejack exclaimed as she shielded her eyes. “Ah don’t think ah ever seen anyone react like that to havin’ some of our Zap Apple Jam before.”

“En-nope.” Big Mac stated.

“This jam is resonating with my Gourmet Cells!” Marshall exclaimed as he looked at his glowing body. “Could this be one of my dishes for my Full Course Menu?” After a moment of thinking he said, “It needs to be paired with something before it can get an actual spot on my menu.”

“What is this I hear about a Full Course Menu?” Apple Bloom asked with a raised eye brow.

“All Gourmet Hunters have a set of dishes that they eat to bring out the full power of their Gourmet Cells.” Smith explained as he had some of the jam. “Oh wow! This is really good.”

“Miss Smith,” Marshall said with a bow, “In the spirit of the trade agreement between Equestria and the IGO, allow me to give your family,” he placed a bag on the table, “These Blue Apple Berry Seeds. These seeds are for a blue berry that grows to the size and shape of an apple.”

“Some exotic produce would attract some of the fancier folk.” Granny Smith said as she accepted the bag. “We’ll get these planted after the Summer Sun Celebration.” All of a sudden the ground started to shake. Marshall, Smith and The Apples looked around for where the shaking was coming from.

“That’s comin’ from the west orchard!” Applejack exclaimed as she started to run toward the orchard in question. The group of six ran to the epicenter of the small quake and when they arrived they all saw the ground was cracking as something was coming out of the ground. The creature that emerged was toad like in appearance with a hide covered in moss. Its red bulbous eyes held a nigh insatiable hunger. The monster stood half again as tall as Big Mac. “What the hay is that thing?”

“I don’t know what that thing is but I have a feeling that it is bad news.” Big Mac said as he and Applejack took up a boxers fighting stance. The toad opened its mouth and launched its tongue at an apple tree before pulling said tree back into its mouth and eating it.

“We have to exterminate that thing before it eats anything else!” Marshall shouted as the amphibian swallowed the tree. The toad launched its tongue out again but Marshall was ready for it. “300 Degree Hot Press!” Marshall shouted as his ignited fist made contact with the offending muscle. The creature croaked in agony as it pulled its burning tongue back into its mouth.

“Haaa!” Applejack shouted as she bucked the creature into the air with a dent shaped like her hoof in its squishy side. “Big Mac, its falling your way!” Applejack stated as the toad flew through the air.

“Eyup!” Big Mac stated as he punched the toad in its mossy back. The toad croaked angrily after it bounced and rolled across the ground for a few meters. It launched its tongue out at Big Mac only for him and his sister to catch it and pulled the toad to them.

“-300 Degree Cold Press!” Marshall shouted as he and the Apple siblings kicked toad’s face. A cracking sound was heard as Granny Smith was covered in a green aura returning her to her late forties. She was ripping a chunk of stone from the ground alongside Apple Bloom. Between the two of them they crushed the boulder into bowling ball size chunks. The toad croaked in anger and jumped into the air intent on crushing anything beneath it.

“Take this, ya filthy varmint!” Apple Bloom shouted as she and Granny threw the chunks of stone at the toad at cannon ball speeds. After it was bombarded by stone the toad was now staggering and dazed. The Apple Family stood ready to charge the creature for a couple of seconds.

“Raaahhhh!” The Apples shouted out in unison as they charged forward and delivered a combined rising kick to the creature and sending it over the horizon.

(Meanwhile in the Dragon Lands.)

A large grey reptile stood in front of a cauldron of bubbling liquid as she tapped her chin with a giant wooden spoon. “This soup needs something,” she thought out loud, “Something exotic and not easily found in the Dragon Lands.” Something landed in the cooking pot with a splash. The dragoness looked down and saw a moss covered toad. She blinked a couple times before grinning, “That will do.”

(Back in Equestria.)

“Whooo-weee!” Applejack cheered after the battle. “That was a real hoot and a half.”

“Much obliged Marshall,” Granny stated as she turned back to her elderly form, “If you hadn’t been here that might have been far tougher.” Big Mac and Apple Bloom helped Granny stay standing.

“Dealing with things like that is all a part of the job.” Marshall stated before his stomach growled again. “That fight really worked up an appetite, too bad that creature was launched over the horizon would have been nice to have tried that creature’s meat.”

“Let’s go get something to eat to celebrate.” Apple Bloom said as she helped Granny back to the table.

“Eyup.” Big Mac agreed.

(Smith’s notes)
Species name: Marimo Toad (Edited)
Species type: Amphibian
Species appearance: Toad covered in moss
Species diet: Herbivore possible omnivore (Edited)
Species use: Unknown at this time (Edited)
Capture level: 6 to 10