//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 - Trains, Training, Trades, and Technique // Story: Equestrian Celestial Forge // by TheDriderPony //------------------------------// Twilight sat onboard the train, alone. It was a three-hour ride from Ponyville to Canterlot, but she'd packed a book to entertain herself. And in the event she finished it (which was more likely than not), she'd also brought a knife and some scrap wood to give whittling a try, just like she'd read about in books about life in frontier towns. Twilight's feelings were... mixed, regarding her new skill. It was handy, certainly, and opened her eyes to so much about the furniture and materials around her that she'd taken for granted. But that wasn't enough to drive out the underlying concern. This was not how Special Talents worked. Applejack's recent gain had only further weakened her hypothesis of secondary Talents (especially since this would be the mare's third). She was a little worried, but the thought was balmed by the knowledge that she was soon to receive Princess Celestia's guidance directly. The princess would know what was going on, definitely, and then she could put her fears to rest and enjoy her newfound hobby in peace. In the meantime, she hoped that her friends would be wise enough to keep their new skills to themselves until they understood exactly what was going on. As Twilight whiled away the hours of her trip, her friends back home were quite busy themselves. "Step right up, step right up!" Rainbow Dash barked in her best impression of the Flim Flam brothers. "Try your might against the toughest mare in Equestria! Two bits gets you in the ring and getting her out of it wins you the pot!" Bon Bon put her shopping on pause to take in the crowd that had gathered at the edge of the market. She considered herself a considerate mare, not overly obstinate or abrasive to change as was the usual Earth Pony stereotype, but even she couldn't help but frown at the display. It was a raucous group, disturbing her peaceful grocery run with their cheers and blocking the quickest route to her favorite oat vendor. Honestly, what kind of ponies had the free time to hang around in the middle of the day and—  "Serpentine, Raindrops! Serpentine!" ...aaand there was her marefriend, in the thick of it. Of course. She wove her way through the crowd and climbed atop a bench where a green unicorn who'd never fought a day in her life had taken it upon herself to yell out advice like she was a veteran coach. "What's going on?" Lyra's shout died as she spun in surprise. She grinned and pulled her marefriend in close. "Bonnie! You're just in time! Applejack's charging ponies a fee to fight her!" "What? Why?" "Who knows! But it's wicked entertaining! You win ten bits if you can pin her, and half the take if you can get her out of the ring. Two bits buy in, five if you want to tag-team her." For a moment, Bon Bon actually considered participating. She had quite the bevy of hoof-to-hoof combat skills from her previous employment so victory was practically guaranteed. Besides, it wouldn't hurt to get ahold of a few extra bits to treat her marefriend to a nice dinner. "What's the jackpot up to?" "Don't know." She tossed some popcorn into her mouth. "Been too focused on the fights. Get her, Carrot Top! Give her the twister punch!" "Where did you get popcorn?" "Over there." She gestured in a vaguely leftward area of more crowd. "Pinkie opened a stand." Bon Bon stole a hoofful of the crunchy treat (to half-hearted protest) and turned her attention to the makeshift arena. Credit where it was due, Lyra had picked a great vantage spot and she could see the fighters clearly despite the three-body-deep wall of spectators between them. Her eyes narrowed as she watched Applejack take down Carrot Top with a tricky maneuver that turned the farmer's weight against her. Her narrowed eyes evolved to a thin-lipped frown as the next three challengers all failed to so much as unbalance her. The mare was good. Too good. She wasn't just taking them down, she was playing with them. Drawing out the fights for a spectacle, then ending it without causing more than light bruises. Those were not the skills of a farmer. If anything, she fought like a trained Agent. Was it possible that Applejack had also been a part of... She shook her head, banishing the idea. It was impossible. The Agency's internal infosec was top-notch, but that hadn't stopped her from piecing together the identities of most of her colleagues. So unless Applejack was some sort of Tartarus Black Security Level asset who was risking outing herself with a public demonstration of her skills, she wasn't part of the Agency. Though that still left the question of where an apple farmer had learned to execute a perfect Minosian sleeper hold. "Fluttershy, I must inquire, as to these plants which you desire. While I would gladly aid your quest, to some of these, I must protest!" Zecora slammed the sheet of paper onto her table, setting her various potion bottles and jars of mystical ingredients rattling. She grabbed a charcoal stick and began underlining different items as she read them off. "Sapphire Hemlock, Chest-popper Pods, Snarling Ivy, Fool's Goldenrod? Poison Joke and Heaving Lily, Six-leafed Crimson Weeping Filly?! All you've missed is Razorbow, For 'Everfree Hazard' Bingo! What task of yours could truly need, such a host of dangerous breeds?" Fluttershy did her best to suffer through the rant, holding back her reflexive winces as best she could. She knew Zecora wasn't angry at her, not really. Just concerned and with good reason. Asking for any one of those plants would raise eyebrows. Asking for samples of all of them must have sounded like she'd lost her mind. It's for a good cause, she reminded herself as she steeled her will. Her zebra friend hadn't even refused her. She just wanted an explanation. "I know it seems strange, but I do have a good reason. I'm sure I don't have to tell you that these are the most magical plants in the Everfree Forest." Zecora nodded. "And poisonous, and some hungry. The risk is great, even for me." "I know, and I'm sorry for asking you to put yourself in danger. There's... a long story behind it, but I recently learned about some new exotic plants that could do a lot of good for a lot of animals and ponies. But to cultivate them, I need some very magical compost." Zecora gave her a disbelieving look. "You want these hazards just to rot? Surely your shops, compost has got?" Fluttershy shook her head. "I did check, but theirs isn't strong enough. I need— It's hard to explain, but I just know exactly what I need to make these grow. I can make some substitutions, but anything less won't work.” She reached into her saddlebag and pulled out a small drawstring bag. "And because I know it's so dangerous is why I'm not just asking it as favor. I'd like to make it worth your while." "I have no need for bits you see, I forage all my meals for free." "How about a magical badge that makes you immune to confusion, vertigo, sleep, petrification, shrinking, electrocution, and poison?" She pulled from the bag a round pin with a Pinkie-Pie-worthy smile on it followed by a square green badge with a big swirling starburst. "And a second one that makes it much harder for monsters to hit you." If Zecora had worn her mane in any style other than a mohawk, her rising eyebrow would have vanished from view. She eyed the badges with an appraising squint, turning them over and even giving one a curious lick. After a minute of consideration, she passed the first one back to Fluttershy along with a corked bottle. "If true, these would be an invaluable creation, but would you oblige me a brief demonstration?" Fluttershy smiled and her worries eased. That was nearly as good as an agreement. She swapped her current badge for the Feeling Fine and downed the bottle of mystery fluid without an ounce of her usual reservation. There was nothing to fear, after all. Not when she had an absolute, unshakable confidence in her creations. They couldn't not work. She knew it as surely as she knew gravity was down. After five minutes, Zecora checked her temperature and the color of her tongue before declaring her poison-free. She gratefully accepted the Feeling Fine badge as well as the Lucky Day and attached them to either sides of her mohawk. "That toxin should have left you quite giggly and high, I thank you for this priceless gift, my dear friend Fluttershy." “So, is that enough for you to consider getting my plants? I have more badges, if you want, I just thought those would be the best fit and—” She was cut off  by a raised hoof and a smile. "With these in hoof, I must admit, you’ve made my home much safer. So worry not, by weekend next, I'll have finished your labor." “Thank you Zecora. Oh!” Fluttershy shivered as a growingly familiar tingle ran up her primaries. “I think one of my friends just got something new.” It was a great day, a fantastic day, a stupendous day to be Pinkie! After all, how often was it that she got to sell popcorn and crackerjacks off to the side of a homemade arena where her friend Applejack was delicately folding ponies into pretzels? Not often at all! In fact, if she had a gold bit for every time she'd sold concessions for a vaguely-legal fight club, she'd have one bit, which wasn't a lot but it was enough to buy a small popcorn for foals under ten. The only thing that could reasonably ruin such a fine day would be if Mayor Mare decided she had a problem with their little venture and sent the local Guard in to shut it down, but that didn't seem likely. They were more a public spectacle than a nuisance, and they even had a first aid tent off to the side, not that Nurse Redheart had seen so much as a single patient. Whoever had taught Applejack to fight had made her really really good at doing it without hurting ponies. She passed Roseluck her order as a strange feeling ran up her legs. It was like her body was slowly filling with pop rocks and diet soda, a rising crackly pressure that built and built till it bloomed out of her head. And with it bloomed new understanding. She could fix things. Well, she could always fix things but not like she could now. Being a professional party planner was more than just baking cakes and blowing balloons; big events had a lot of logistical and infrastructural issues to deal with. And the bigger the party, the more likely something would go wrong. Poorly hung decorations falling, wet matches to light the candles, broken music systems. Pinkie always did her best to fix those sorts of things when they happened. But now, her best was so much more. She took in the world with a newly trained eye, appraising the faults and failures around her. The chalkboard menu on her little thrown-together bodega was hanging a little wonky. Easy-peasy. She didn't have any nails, but her handy-dandy new magic toolbox had an unlimited supply of hammers and drill bits. What was a drill bit if not a screwy nail? She thought of the kitchen back in Sugar Cube Corner, of the one oven whose timer was always a few minutes off. Another easy fix, all she needed was some paper clips and a rubber band. She grinned as more and more solutions came to her. The world was a cracked oyster and she'd just been given a bottle of superglue. "Uh, Pinkie? You okay in there?" came the voice of the next pony in line. "Is my order gonna take much longer? Bulk Biceps is fighting soon and I want to get a good seat." "Sorry! Got distracted!" She took his bits and wedged them next to the hinge of the popcorn kettle, sealing them in place with a bit of caramel. "Righto! That oughta fix it. Just step to the left please, Davey, and it'll be ready in a sec. Next pony, order up!" It was indeed, a great day to be Pinkie.