//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 - Applejack // Story: Frostpony // by The Original Gaston //------------------------------// There was a knock on the door. Applejack looked up from the ledger that weighed down the farmhouse's dining table. For the past week, Applejack had nothing to do. Yet another snowfall had come months early, and even though it was harvest season, there was not a single apple to be plucked from the withering orchard. She had occupied herself with sweeping, dusting, and polishing every surface in the farmhouse, before starting over and cleaning it all out again. Today, though, she had elected to pour through Sweet Apple Acres' finances. Of course, it wasn't good. It was never good. Two years of near complete harvest failures meant the future of the farm was grim. After last year's early frost, the farm had to mortgaged to make ends meet. Now, with snowflakes coating the ground outside, there wasn't much hope that those debts would be paid off. Then, one day Granny got so sick that she needed to go into a care home, leaving Applejack alone with Apple Bloom to manage the entire farm on her own... Applejack placed a bookmark on her place in the middle of the ledger, before snapping the giant book shut. Swallowing her emotions, she put on a smile and went to the door, "Who is it?" She called. Not giving the pony on the other side a chance to response, Applejack peeked open the door to an influx of cold air. Her brows furrowed as she saw the two ponies, a stallion and a mare, dressed in winter coats. What perturbed her the most about the two was the labels pinned to their collars: "EEC - EQUESTRIAN EXPLORATION COMPANY" "Are you Miss Applejack?" The stallion said, his face grim and apathetic as he stared blankly at her. Applejack's heart fell, and she nodded slowly. What could the two representatives want? Was it something about her brother...? About Twilight? Her fears came to light as the EEC mare cleared her throat, "Miss Applejack, it is Company policy to repatriate the bodies of those unfortunate enough to die on our overseas projects. In our most recent shipment was a casket containing your brother's corpse..." The world slowed, and Applejack's ears froze as a slow, tinny whining muted the sounds of the wind blowing through the trees and the farmhouse's walls creaking. Her heart thundered, and her lip began to quiver. She felt weak, and her legs could scarce hold herself up as she slumped against the frame of the farmhouse door. "With it was a letter from Director Twilight Sparkle," The representative continued, looking away as Applejack turned to jelly, "It was addressed to you. It was also made clear in a recent telegram that in your brother's particular case: funeral costs will be covered by the EEC." The mare held out a letter towards Applejack, sealed with the six pointed star of Twilight Sparkle's cutie mark. "We're sorry for your loss," The stallion mumbled, before shifting his weight to turn to leave, waiting for Applejack to take the letter. Speechless, Applejack took the letter, the burning feeling of tears welling up around her sore, sleep deprived eyes mixing with the painful coils twisting around her heart. The representatives wasted no time in turning and leaving, letting Applejack slam the front door shut. As soon as she was alone once again in the farmhouses foyer, she collapsed to the ground with a painful thud. A nearby vase was rocked off a shelf and shattered to the floor... ...Almost entirely muted by the wails of a farmpony now hopelessly alone in a still, cold world... "Dear Applejack. Today, a fire broke out in the Core. It was my fault. I should have planned it better. I should have been safer. I shouldn't have made the workers go out there that day. I should have taken the time to install some sort of suppression system... There... wasn't much of him left. I am so, so sorry. Everypony blames me, and so should you. I am entirely at fault. I understand if you don't want to call me friend anymore. But please, understand. I did it for you. I did it for all of you. I have sacrificed myself, I have sacrificed so many... all of it for you. If there was any other way to do it, any other way this could all happen... I would have done it in a heartbeat. Signed, Twilight Sparkle." Exhaustion had its own timetable in New Ponyville's workshift. First, there was the deadness Applejack felt as she pulled herself from her hammock. The stiffness of her muscles, the gnawing, empty pit that was her stomach, and the frostbite gnawing at her extremities. There was the absolutely dreadful thought that she needed to work today, and that the day after that she'd need to work again, and the same would happen the day after that... Second, there was the mantra that her mind went through to coax her creaking, overworked body into plodding her way to the coal depot to begin her shift. Her pride was the first to stand centre stage in her mind, making fantastical speeches about how her ancestors did harder things in order to survive, and that they looked down on her with disgust as she complained about hauling a few chunks of coal. The friends and family she had left came second, with Apple Bloom's slumbering form tucked away in bed still, warmed by the Generator she helped fuel, and with the rest of her friends depending on a warm home to come back to. Thirdly, there was the beginning of the shift. Back-breaking labor as she poured, towed, dumped, and repeated the process of hauling fuel 3 times every 30 minute. It was painful. She went from the blistering cold that existed near the coal depot, far away from the center of the Generator, to the sweltering heat that existed right next to the giant furnace's bins. She could never be comfortable with any level of clothing, and eventually she elected to just have a singular layer on. Not only did it not slow her down, but she didn't become a ball of sweat every time she neared the Generator. Fourthly, there was the pain. Every muscle revolting, every tendon snapping and twisting. The intense discomfort of trembling with hypothermia out by the coal depots, all the way to the scalding heat of the Core. Even worse, with such a high demand for coal in the Generator, every moment she stumbled, every moment she stopped to take a breath, meant a rushed gallop to dump another cart in before the bin emptied itself fully and the furnace shut down. Finally, there was complete apathy. Eventually, the brain just blocked out the suffering of the body. The world became a grey, dusty blurr. Breaths became haggard and short. Motor function went on autopilot as all the oxygen in her lungs went solely to trying to keep her muscles alive. She was a zombie by halfway through the shift, hauling carts of coal to the hungry guts of the Generator. Her heart beat slow and hard, and her ears rang constantly from the lack of bloodflow. Then, there was the whistle... SKREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET "Shift's over! Stow your tools!" The voice of an Overseer shouted over the cacophony of the Generator, "The Captain has announced that the Cookhouse is too cold to-" The Overseer's announcement became distant mumbles to Applejack as she collapsed, the empty cart she had been wheeling back to the depot falling to the ground behind her. She wheezed out painful breaths as she felt her heart beating erratically, and her muscles locked up once again as she lay there, helpless. She didn't know how long she lay there, wavering on a line between dead and dying. Eventually, though, she felt a hoof wrap around her midsection as she was suddenly lifted to her hooves. She took a sharp, painful breath as her throat was assaulted with lingering coal dust particles. Squeezing open her eyes, she saw a yellow earth pony, with a face just as stained and mottled with coal dust, blisters, and ears just as frost-nipped as her own. Hefting Applejack up, the mare shouted something barely audible to Applejack's whining ears, "You alright? Hey! Talk to me!" Applejack nodded weakly, before wincing in pain as she felt herself being sloppily dragged along by the worker. She took the opportunity to keep squeezing lungfuls of air into her lungs, each breath being a struggle as her heart was beset by a vice-grip pain. She passed in and out of consciousness, each time she woke up she felt the painful sensation of being dragged across the gravelly soil of New Ponyville's basin. Eventually, though, she felt the dragging sensations stop, and the world slowly refocused around a bowl of water sitting in the middle of a flapping canvas tent. Despite how much she willed her body to move, her legs simply would not move from their curled up resting place beside her. Moving her neck made her feel dizzy and weak, and currently only her frustratingly bleary eyes could dart around the tent she had been placed in. It was much like her own, with three hammocks hanging from the ceiling, a small cot in a corner for children, and an electric lantern to give light. Except, instead of triangular like her own, this one was built in a rectangular shape instead. She felt a rag pillow beneath her head, and a burlap cloth was draped over on top of her single layered coat as a pitiful blanket. Frost covered the floor of the tent, and even though Applejack could tell the Generator was definitely still online, it felt as cold as it was outside of its range. She heard hoofsteps plod on the dirt behind her, "Sorry. I tried to bring you to the doctors, but they were out of space." As Applejack opened her mouth, she instantly realized just how cold she already was as her teeth chattered together, "D-Damn. A-Ah guess I got lucky to have m-mah leg fixed earlier th-then..." Her own voice was weak, and constantly out of breath. "I don't know where you lived, so I couldn't go grab extra coats for you. You must be freezing," The voice said, beginning to walk around above Applejack's head to get into her vision. "W-Why isn't... Isn't t-th' generator workin'?" Applejack stuttered out, trying to crane her neck to look at the voice. It was the same yellow earth pony as before, except a bit more cleaned up. She wore a padded leather coat, just like many others in the city, had her scarf pulled up above her nose, and her hood pulled up over her ears. A tuft of orange mane stuck out from under her hood, encrusted in frost. "It is. Big, angry weather pulled up and dropped the temperature a clear 20 degrees. Generator can't keep up. Made it too cold to cook food in the Cookhouse, even if there was any raw food left to cook. And even though they're buildin' a place to grow stuff, it's apparently gonna be too cold there to work too. Didn't you hear it in the morning announcement?" She leaned down, procuring a bowl of water before holding it out to Applejack's mouth. Applejack greedily slurped down on the tin bowl's lip. The bowl of water was not dissimilar for the water she'd have put out for old Winona, yet she'd never have imagined drinking from a doggy bowl... until now. The water itself, aside from drenching her parched mouth, was nothing special. In fact, it was freezing cold, and Applejack could see flakes of ice drifting around in it as her vision continued to clear. The freezing water did nothing to help warm her already freezing insides, and even as it gave her a brain freeze she continued drinking until the bowl was empty. As soon as it was empty, her caretaker lifted the bowl away, causing Applejack to cough and hack as water accidentally went down her airway as she tried to gasp for air. "...Sorry..." the other mare winced as she saw Applejack engage in a coughing fit. "Ah'm... fine..." Applejack spat out along with a glob of water as her lungs emptied themselves of the impromptu water. Mixed in with her spit was some black, gooey substance that she didn't exactly like the look of. "Hold on..." The mare took off one of her coats, leaving her with only a singular layer on, one that didn't include a hood. She then took off Applejack's meager blanket, before wrapping an extra layer around the farmpony, "...There." Applejack coughed one final time, before looking up at the pony gratefully, "...Ah d-didn't catch yer name..." She sat down next to Applejack, taking off a snow-covered boot before laying her warm hoof over Applejack's freezing head, "Carrot Top. And yours?" "A-Applejack," Applejack shivered once again, beginning to feel feverish as Carrot Top felt her down. "Applejack, you're... really cold, you need a doctor," Carrot Top bit her lip, before tugging Applejack's coat tighter. Applejack couldn't complain, simply nodding as another fit of shivers overtook her. Despite knowing she was freezing, she could feel herself becoming hot and feverish. The coats felt suffocating on her body, and blood flushed to her head. Carrot Top's hooves curled around Applejack's midsection once again, and she hefted Applejack up, before placing her on her back, where she lay limp and helpless. Every jostle that Carrot Top made was painful as a headache began to thunder in Applejack's skull, and she began to feel a numbness all around her coat. "W-Where..." Was all Applejack could say before a jostle in Carrot Top's step forced Applejack's breath out of her lungs. "We're going to the Captain, he'll figure something out," Carrot Top said, also giving a shiver as a blast of cold wind completely overrode the lukewarm breeze emanating from the Generator tower. Applejack continued to shiver as snowflakes tumbled through the air and wind, falling towards the two of them as they walked through New Ponyville's makeshift streets. Eventually, though, she felt herself being set down on an icy, wooden roadside. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she resisted, trying to stay awake as she was placed facing the side of the Captain's tent. Her breath slowed, and her heart was finally beating at a slow pace after nearly a month of being overtaxed and overworked in the Steam Lorries and Coal Depots. Her eyes focused as a familiar stallion stepped out from the tent flaps of the large, hexagonal tent in front of her. There were multiple voices shouting at the Captain as he looked around. Applejack struggled to crane her neck, trying to keep occupied from the impending darkness hypothermia was beating into her. Many other ponies surrounded the Captain's tent, some carrying sick, some being very obviously sick themselves. All of them were encrusted in frost and covered in snow, freezing as cold wind continued to whip through the city. The Captain stared around in shock, before being suddenly grabbed by the familiar orange figure of Carrot Top, "Captain! You've got to help us. She collapsed trying to fuel that damn generator, and now she's freezing to death out here!" "Captain!" Another voice called from behind Applejack's cone of vision, "Captain! My poor little Dinky went playing in the snow yesterday, and now her legs are all purple! The doctors won't treat her!" "I'm sick, Cap! I'm coughing up my lungs every mornin, and it's not gettin' any better! They keep turning me away from the medical post 'cause they think I just have a flu!" Yet another one chimed into the mob. "We need a real hospital!" Somepony screamed. "You wouldn't know, you lucky bastard! Your ass sits on a vent all day! You tell us to work long hours in that freezing cold workshop and now we're literally freezing our arses off!" The crowd of the sick and their families pressed in around the Captain's tent, until finally the stallion nodded. Raising his voice, he shouted over the protestors, "Okay! Okay! Do not panic, ponies! Nopony's going to die if I can help it!" Applejack's hearing became tinny again as she tried to resist the beckoning of rest. Fortunately, there was a rivet protruding from a nearby pipe, which she shifted herself onto, giving a piercing pain right through her side. Through the pain, she squeezed her eyes open once again. "Bring all the ill into my tent. It's warmer in there. I will call doctors over to treat them!" The Captain shouted, causing the crowd's anger to quell slightly. Somepony else in the back continued the protest, though, "We need more medical posts, though!" "We need our tents to not be freezing, Captain!" Somepony else added. "We need food! We were already starving, and even missing a day's worth of food... we're chewing on our own hair because we're so hungry!" Somepony else stomped a hoof close to Applejack's head. The Captain nodded understandingly, "I will solve the heating problem! I will build a new medical post! We will find food soon and heat the Cookhouse enough to make it! You understand? Something this small will not undo us! We must endure!" Applejack suddenly felt Carrot Top's hooves wrapping around her barrel once again. With a heave, the other worker began to pull her along once again. Applejack's vision bounced around as she was dragged across the street towards the entrance to the Captain's tent. She vaguely saw the authoritative stallion's silhouette above her as she passed by, being the first one to be dragged into the tent. It was, indeed, warmer inside the Captain's tent than it was anywhere else. A steam vent in the middle of the room constantly gushed warm air directly from the heart of the Generator. Extra thick canvas was layered onto the walls, just like in the medical posts. Applejack couldn't remember much more than the blurred visage of the Captain's tent. The warm air and the promise of safety all shaved away the last remnants of her endurance. Before she could really comprehend it, the world simply faded to black as her brain failed to keep up the fight against sleep any longer. Applejack slowly regained consciousness to the snout of a brown earth pony staring at her, with the blinding gleam of some kind of electrical light shining directly into her eyes. She blinked, before noticing that the pony had his hooves around her muzzle, holding it open as he studied the inside of her mouth. He was wearing a cloth face mask, glasses, and had white cloth wrapped around his forehooves. The numbness in her extremities had been replaced with white hot muscular pain. Her legs felt stiff, and as she tried to move them, all they did was twitch and give hard, aching resistance against the movement. Her chest ached, and as the pony held her mouth open, she felt a coughing fit building deep in her lungs. "Alright. Put the lantern down. You're blinding the poor mare, Octavia," The stallion said, finally releasing his hold on Applejack's muzzle. Applejack responded with a fit of painful coughs, her lungs feeling like they were being constantly scraped by sharp, serrated knives. Eventually, she coughed up phlegm, spitting it out onto the dirt floor as she panted, trying to replace the air she had lost through coughing. "She's been inhaling coal dust a lot. If she doesn't already have black lung, she will soon," The doctor took his eyes off of Applejack and turned to somepony out of her eyesight, "...You said her heart was beating erratically when you picked her up?" "Yes," The familiar accent of Carrot Top caught Applejack's ear, "It was really bad." "She might've had an arrhythmia and that's why she collapsed. As far as I can tell her heart's beating fine again now, but that might not hold up," The doctor stood up, "She should stop working such long shifts. 12 hours on the job in those conditions? It's preposterous!" "It's bad for all of us. I'm... in a lot of pain too, doc," Carrot Top sighed, "And I only started that shift yesterday." There was a long pause. Applejack tried to talk, to cry out, but the only thing that came out was a hoarse whisper. She was too weak. She felt... helpless. Burning self-hatred began to stir in her. She felt like an animal, lying on the dirt, depending on others for support, and trapped under her own exhausted body. Only three years ago, she felt like she had everything. Five good friends, a loving family, the farm was doing well, and Ponyville was as tranquil as ever. Life was a usual grind of hard, trusty work. Get up at sunrise. Do a walk around of the orchard. Eat breakfast. Repair fences, feed pigs, do whatever it was that was important to do... then knock off at sunset to go do things with friends, or go out for a walk through the untouched countryside. Feel the breeze on your coat, feel the dirt under your hooves. Look up to the sunny blue sky and count the clouds. The first thing that was taken from her was her farm. An early frost came that year, and half the harvest was ruined as the orchard was blanketed in snow. It was no big deal, of course. There was enough squirreled away in the Apple Family's coffers to feed everypony and buy the supplies for next year. But then the next year, the snow only melted for a few months, despite the ponies' repeated attempts to wrap up winter. Snowstorms kept blowing in despite the Pegasi's best efforts, lakes kept freezing over, and animals refused to leave their dens. When things finally thawed, the Apples planted once again. Yet, the growing season only lasted a few months, before another blanket of hungering frost wiped out their crop once again. The next thing she lost was her brother. Big Macintosh, wanting to make ends meet, signed up for Twilight Sparkle's expedition to the frozen north as food prices soared and the winter buried their homes in snow. Instead of returning with money for winter, he instead... returned in a casket. The next thing Applejack lost was her friend. Twilight Sparkle, vanishing as her expedition returned from the north, despite other members of her entourage having returned unharmed. She did not even write them a letter. Not that it mattered, Applejack was too busy grieving to care, and when Hearth's Warming came and went without the Princess of Friendship, it was already too late to repair a broken heart. Then, Applejack lost Granny Smith. She passed away peacefully in the hospital, her many years finally catching up to her. Applejack didn't even get the chance to be by her side when she passed, but at the very least, she thought, Granny didn't have to see the world end. Finally, Applejack lost the farm. Despite the bank threatening foreclosure, and the pantry constantly hanging barren, it was instead the cold that forced her from the last thing she held dear. A promise from Raven Inkwell, one of the Royal representatives working with the EEC, weaving tales of a safe haven in the far north that would shelter them and their children. Applejack worked hard. She told herself it was for Apple Bloom, for the friends she had left, and for the hope of ponykind's survival. But now, as she lay on the floor, helpless as she was poked and prodded by a doctor that clearly had more important things to do than tend to a waste of space and food, she knew what she was doing it for. She was doing it for herself. To selfishly squirrel away any bit of remaining ego, to tell herself that she had something to cling onto still. She worked to numb the pain, to forget the cold that nipped at her heart, and the loneliness that swallowed it whole... "Regardless. Short shifts for her, if she wants to live. Don't know if we can afford to do that, though..." The doctor grunted, before standing up, "Tell me if her condition seems to worsen," the shadow of the medic turned towards somepony out of Applejack's field of view, "Octavia. Let's move on." She secretly wished that she had been left on the floor next to the Generator, and that she could've gone in peace. Maybe then she could be with her family again. Maybe then the pain would stop. Over the next several hours, the pain slowly subsided away from Applejack's legs and chest. Applejack had been unable to get sleep since she was inspected by the doctor. Instead, she had been suspended in an uncomfortable stasis. Between the constant twinges in her chest, and the tight feeling she felt whenever she breathed, to the hard dirt of the tent's floor and the stabbing pain in her muscles as blood slowly worked its way back into them. She blinked another speck of dirt out of her eyes, before taking another labored gasp as she shifted from her point on the ground to look around. Carrot Top was fast asleep in a corner of the tent, along with a few other concerned parents and sickly patients. The two doctors were still inspecting the ill that piled up in droves around the Captain's desk. The Captain himself sat at his desk, talking with another administrator in a hushed, secretive tone that Applejack couldn't quite catch from her position on the floor. Applejack grimaced as she saw the state of the ill and injured. Foals, adults, elderly, all were lying on the ground sprawled in various, uncomfortable positions, with nary a burlap sack to rest their heads on. A few volunteers, stained with dirt and grime, walked around to give the ill water and check up on their needs. The foals were the worst off, with many of them seeming to be running high fevers, with frostbite staining their delicate coats and dark mucus spilling from their noses. It only drove home the self-loathing deeper into Applejack's heart, seeing foals lying ill right next to her. Could they be treated any faster if she wasn't there, wasting space and time? Would a stronger pony be better at protecting them from the cold? There was a sudden commotion that cut through the general murmur of the tent as a grey pegasus mare suddenly burst through the flaps of the tent, carrying a bundled-up foal in her hooves, "Help! Help! Somepony help me, oh Celestia please-" The two doctors, the Captain, and the administrator mare he was talking to, looked up from their duties as she entered. A chilling breeze blew in through the entrance, and a few flakes of snow drifted through. A few by the door shivered, before grunting as they got stepped over by the panicked mother. "What's going on?" The male doctor grunted, standing up and adjusting his facemask as the pegasus came up right next to him. "It's my poor, poor Ditzy! She went playing in the snow while I wasn't looking, and she's gone all blue!" The mare held out the foal to the pair of medics. The grey earth pony mare put a hoof to her mouth as she inspected the foal, "Dear Celestia... she's-" The stallion gave his comrade a stern look, before reaching out to take the foal, "She's badly frostbitten, ma'am." The pegasus didn't fully let go of her daughter as the doctor laid a hoof on her, "C-Can you... can you fix her...?" Applejack huffed, pulling one of her legs under her to prop herself up to look. It felt like knives were stabbing through her shoulder and muscles, but she managed to pull herself up to somewhere between lying down and sitting up, propping herself up with her leg. Many of the other sick who were conscious turned to look, and the room fell silent. The male doctor, looked between the grey pegasus and the Captain, "...She must've been up to her barrel in snow. The ice soaked into her coat and has frostbitten her to the bone. Her legs are already gone, if I don't amputate they'll rot right off her and kill her." "Goddesses..." The purple Administrator the Captain had been talking to whispered. Applejack's face fell as her ears flattened themselves. Images of Apple Bloom wandering off with her friends into the snow, outside of the protective aura of the Generator, bit at the back of her mind. Her stomach turned as old concern came back to her once again, and she hoped dearly that her little sister had a straight enough head to think better than to make that mistake. The pegasus mare fell silent, her breath freezing in her throat as she raised a forehoof to clench down on her muzzle. The Administrator shook her head, "Captain. She'll never walk again-" The doctor grunted, "That's an understatement, Captain." Catching the Captain's gaze, the Administrator put a hoof on his shoulder, "Captain. We have methods to keep ponies like this alive. We can treat deep frostbite in an Infirmary once we build one! Not only that, but-" the Administrator gave an exasperated huff, "Not only that... but it was straight up illegal to do something so cruel! We would have your license for even suggesting such a thing! "Please..." The mother choked out before her yellow eyes flooded with tears and her breath began to hitch. "Captain," The doctor demanded, stomping a hoof, "In any other case, I'd agree with Administrator Amethyst. But if we were to try those methods... we'd need a unicorn doctor to keep up a variety of spells and enchantments, and they'd simply remain untreatable and unfit for work. If you let us amputate, we can save more lives." "It's..." Amethyst scowled, "...Medieval." "It's what we need to do, Captain," The doctor didn't take his eyes off of the Captain, his frown deepening, "Some of the ponies here, and those at home, are only going to get worse. How are we supposed to save lives if we are stuck casting Sustain Life on necrotic limbs all day?" The Captain, who up until this point had been switching his gaze between Amethyst and the doctor, eventually adjusted his stance to a more authoritative pose. Looking at the doctor, he nodded, "Do it, save who you can." "...Thank you..." The doctor nodded, before looking to the female medic next to him. With a gulp, the grey earth pony mare took the foal out of her mother's hooves, before laying her on the floor next to the surgical bag... The mother broke out into wails, falling to the ground on her knees as the tent was filled with the eerie screams of yet another stricken with grief. Amethyst stared at the Captain for a moment longer, before going to place a hoof on the pegasus's shoulder. The mother, in turn, responded by reaching out and grabbing Amethyst and drawing her in close, her tears quickly staining the Administrator's red sash. Applejack, defeated, fell back to the ground as her leg gave in once again. Many of the other patients on the floor of the Captain's tent also returned to their foetal positions, labored breaths and coughing continuing throughout the tent. She supposed the doctor was logical enough, but that didn't make it any less cruel. Another stare down to her legs made her bite her lips. Was this what the world plan on taking from her next? First her friends, then her family, then her farm, and now maybe a limb? A shuffle from the Captain's desk made Applejack's attention turn away from herself. The Captain, sitting back down, looked away from his ponies, shutting his eyes and whispering, "...The city must survive..." Applejack wasn't sure how much time had passed, having slipped into unconsciousness from pure exhaustion multiple times. But, considering she heard the whistle of the ending shift for the dayshift coal gatherers, and the fact that she had awoken once to find Carrot Top gone from her position against the wall, she believed she had managed to drift between states of consciousness for the entire day. Her aching pains persisted, and although she believed she could most likely stand, after the events of last night she was stricken with apathy. Besides, it wasn't like anypony would care if she didn't show up to work. She was sick, and even though a past version would have pushed past it, in the present she couldn't bring herself to. Applejack's stomach once again rumbled, and she decided to look around once again. The Captain was gone from his position at the desk, and the ill still lay in circles around said desk. A few had seemingly recovered and left, although a good twenty or so still remained. Applejack's eyes curiously scanned the crowd of fillies and colts grouped together against one wall. They landed on one filly in particular, gripped in the forelegs of a sleeping pegasus. Just as she feared, the young unicorn's legs had been replaced with bandaged stumps. Applejack's hunger ravenously beat against her stomach, and wishful images of delicacies from the old world drifted through her mind. She would kill for a good apple pie, or scratch that- just a normal, juicy apple would be amazing at this point... Applejack empty stomach was almost making her think on instinct, and she secretly wondered just how bad dirt would taste if it would fill the empty pit in her midsection... A booted hoof came down on the ground next to Applejack's face. She looked up to meet the familiar eyes of Rarity, who stared at her with a concerned face, "My Celestia, Applejack... I'm so sorry... I- I was stuck with a 24 hour shift last night, and when you didn't show up this morning I was so afraid..." Applejack licked her parched lips, "...hey rares..." she croaked, twitching one of her forelegs to life to try and prop herself up. Most of the stabbing pain in her muscles was gone, replaced by stiffness and intense resistance to any change from her resting position on the ground. "The doctors told me you had a heart attack, are you okay?" Rarity crouched down, using her magic to take off her boot to lay a bare hoof onto Applejack's forehead. Applejack sighed, pushing herself up with a leg with a loud, groaning sigh, "...Ah'm.. fine. Fine now, anyway," Desperately wanting to change the subject, Applejack pressed on, "...How are... how are the fillies doing?" "Scootaloo, the poor darling, she got herself a case of hypothermia..." Rarity bit her lip, "I'm hoping she can recover by herself, because there's no places in the medical post and..." Rarity looked around, "This place looks dreadful." "Ah..." Applejack sighed, "...Ah see that..." Rarity reached out a hoof to Applejack, "...Can you walk? We need to get you to a real bed. You're only going to get more sick if you stay on this filthy floor." Applejack didn't respond, instead gritting her teeth as she attempted to pull herself up. After a few painful, stiff seconds, she managed to do so, hissing with pain as she finally straightened up. She nearly toppled over, but was held up by the steadying grip of Rarity's magic. Rarity gave her friend a concerned grimace, before helping Applejack adjust her coat once again. The two of them struck out into the cold outside of the Captain's tent once again, the night sky clouded by angry stormclouds mixing with the black trail of smog drifting from the Generator Tower. "Are there... are there any rations... Rarity?" Applejack huffed, limping along next to her friend. Rarity shook her head grimly, "Ever since this cold front moved in, the cookhouse has been too cold to cook food in. The Engineers have apparently installed a heater to keep it warm enough for now, but we're all starving, and the raw food from the new Hothouse has been very tempting. The other Overseers are afraid ponies will start stealing it before it can be cooked and rationed out properly." Applejack gave a disappointed sigh, followed by another painful twist in her stomach, "...What's... what's this 'Hothouse', then?" "A sheltered garden for a few plants. I was going to try and ask for you to be moved to that place, since you have a natural talent for farming..." Rarity sighed, "...But I couldn't find you... and after I heard what happened the positions were already filled. I'll ask again soon, though, and I'm sure they'll take you and you can get out of that dreadful coal shoveling job." Applejack frowned, "...I don't wanna. Ah'm sure there's plenty of other good earth ponies who can grow better than ah can..." Rarity stopped, turning to Applejack with an incredulous look, "...What are you talking about, AJ? You're..." Rarity blinked and shook her head, "You're one of the few farmers we do have. And nothing's more important than growing food nowadays! Anypony can pull coal, darling. It'll get you out of that nasty, toxic coal depot anyway!" "Any earth pony can do what ah do, Rares," Applejack looked away, avoiding her friend's look, "And if you try'n beg for me to be put in with the plants, it just means some other poor sap needs to do mah job..." "...Applejack, I-" Rarity gave a sharp exhale, "...I don't know what-" Applejack shrugged off her friend's grip, with a snarl "Ah need to go this way to get to mah tent anyway. I can make it on my own," She hobbled a bit unsteadily, but eventually got into a rhythm, working against her stiff joints, to walk down the street. Rarity didn't attempt to grab Applejack again, instead just staring as her friend disappeared around a corner. Applejack found herself standing in front of the Generator, the boiling heat of the Core feeling insignificant and distant against the constant snowfall and wind, even when up close. Twilight Sparkle's plaque glowed brightly as the giant machine blasted water into steam behind its sturdy, steel composite plates. The gigantic pressure gauge mounted on the front of the tower stood steady at capacity, and occasionally blasts of steam escaped from the overpressure valves mounted on the sides of the tower. She didn't know why she was here, instead of at home resting in her bed. When she had escaped Rarity's grasp, wanting to be anywhere except near her friends, she had simply continued walking, past her tent, and all the way to the inner ring. To the point where there was a gap between the tents and the Generator to avoid stray coals from the tower setting any of the tent canvas alight. The nightshift coal haulers walked past her, too exhausted and overworked to care. Above her, a bunch of engineers toiled away at some sort of maintenance panel on the side of the Generator, stained with sweat and grime as their fancy coats were soiled. And behind her, most of the city slept in their tents, stomachs empty and hearts stricken of hope. Applejack struggled with her thoughts.She wondered once again if there was a point to her struggle. She wondered how much more loss she would take before she decided enough was enough. She wondered just how much anypony would miss her if she was gone... A hoof landed on her back. Applejack sneered. She didn't want to talk to Rarity right now. She didn't know how hard it was. That prissy little Canterlot mare had been living a life of luxury all her life. Sure, she lost her family, but who here hadn't? Now, she was given a cushy little job telling other ponies what to do. She got to call in favors, got to eat first in line, got to- "Ma'am?" An unfamiliar voice came from right behind Applejack. It was soft, soothing, almost motherly. Applejack's shoulders relaxed as she slowly turned around, meeting the eyes of a cerulean earth pony mare, with a pair of purple eyes and a dark brown mane, messily done underneath a snow-capped hood. She wore a purple, hoof-knitted scarf, which was currently pulled down to reveal a genuine, concerned muzzle. "...Ah don't want to talk to nopony..." Applejack sighed, defeat in her voice as she turned away back to the Generator. The hoof retreated from her back, "...That's alright," The voice said, "You don't need to talk to me. It's just... me and my friends over here..." Applejack turned once again to see the mare pointing a hoof at a group of other random citizens gathered behind her. "...We're currently going around having prayers, and we noticed you here... and we wanted to ask if it would be alright if we could pray for you," She smiled, "You don't have to say anything, we'll just be here for you." Applejack narrowed her eyes, "Who are y'all praying to? Princesses are dead. If there's any other goddess out there, she don't care about us no more..." The mare shook her head, but her smile remained, "Miss, there is indeed a goddess out there looking out for us. Princess Twilight Sparkle, in her infinite wisdom, built for us this Generator, which has been the only thing keeping us alive in this harsh, unforgiving reality we find ourselves in." Applejack rolled her eyes, "Ah knew Twilight. She weren't no Goddess, that's for sure." "Maybe. But she was an alicorn, and she wielded the powers of Celestia and Luna at one point, did she not?" The mare asked. After hearing no response from Applejack, she continued, "Are we not alive solely to her efforts? How else would you define a Goddess, miss?" "Ah'd define a Goddess as somepony still alive, ma'am," Applejack grunted bitterly. "Her legacy lives on. The Generator gives us life," The mare's warm smile persisted, "...Please, miss, I can tell you're downtrodden. Let us pray for you." With a sigh, Applejack looked away back to the Generator, "...Ah guess it couldn't hurt." The mare's entourage had grouped up behind her, and upon hearing Applejack's words, they bowed their heads. The mare began to speak, laying a comforting hoof on Applejack's back, "Twilight Sparkle, whose name rests among the heavens, and your legacy in the center of our lives, I would pray for this downtrodden stranger before us..." Applejack wondered why the priest's words were having such an effect on her. Was she enchanting her with some sort of fancy unicorn spell? No... that would be pretty hard to do considering she was an earth pony. Was Applejack really just that desperate? "Oh Great Generator, whose great structure watches over us every day. Whose boiling heart makes away for us to survive despite the apocalypse that has descended upon us. Please, warm our hearts and provide us light for the future. Provide us hope to continue moving forward, and a reason to push on every day in this fragile world..." Applejack frowned as she stared at Twilight Sparkle's plaque, its letters glowing through with heat from the Generator. Was it bad that she wanted the priest to be right? That she wanted Twilight to actually be looking down on her from the afterlife? I mean, it was probably possible. With all the magic the alicorns had, there had to be some sort of way for them to preserve themselves after death. They were immortal... right? "For this stranger here, I pray that you may lift the great burden that is on her shoulders. That you may illuminate her path and ease her struggles..." Applejack noticed that the crowd of ponies had gathered closer around her, with their eyes locked on her. While she found it slightly creepy that as they gathered around like a herd, she sensed genuine looks of concern on their faces and whispering echoes of the priestly leader's prayer for her. "That for whatever she may be troubled with, that she will find solace and community, and warmth around your blessed design. In your name, and in the name of your fellow Goddesses, I pray this to you..." The priest swallowed, seeming to be about to finish her intercession. BRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUM Applejack jumped as the sound of the Generator's horn blasted through the air. The priest's prayer was interrupted as her entourage jumped back, looking up at the Generator tower with wide eyes and agape mouths. Up on the balcony, by the maintenance panel, the Engineers appeared to cheer, although any noise they made was drowned out by the sound of the Generator, as they looked up the side of the tower. Applejack would not wonder about their joy for very long, as a wave of heat suddenly raged forth from the Generator's hull. The steam vents on the sides of the tower stopped hissing, and the panels of the hull glowed a brighter shade of red as the Generator's rumbling grew louder. The large gauge on the front of the tower inched a few ticks closer to the red line, but eventually stopped just shy of it. Applejack's ice-nipped coat warmed with the blast of heat, and the snowstorm felt just that bit less severe as the Generator grew in power. "Ah'll be damned..." Applejack wondered, a tiny smile breaking on her lips. "If this isn't a sign! I don't know what is!" One of the members of the crowd shouted with joy. "Aye! It's a miracle!" A stallion exclaimed, "The Goddess herself blessed the Generator with more strength! We're saved!" The priest shook her head, "Don't get too excited, my friends. Our faithful engineering team simply engaged the Great Generator's overdrive system," She looked down to Applejack and gave that same, warm smile, "But it's timing... that is the miracle you should seek." Applejack stared back at the priest, her frazzled mane flapping in the wind. No matter how ridiculous the religious mare's dogma sounded, the elements of truth to her story, the improbable timing of the engineer's action, and the undeniable fact that, ultimately, Applejack wanted the priest to be right, made her words give a spike of hope in her heart. Taking off her hat and holding it near her chest, Applejack's smile swelled, "...Ah'm... pretty tired. But... if you wouldn't mind letting me hobble along, would ya mind if ah joined y'all?" The priest nodded, "Of course not. Everypony needs a bit of hope, especially in these times..." Applejack simply nodded, before following along behind the group as they departed from the Generator's side. Meanwhile, the Generator's glow pierced the snow around it, giving an almost heavenly halo that pierced into the sky above New Ponyville's valley...