//------------------------------// // 8: ...and the Blood Begins // Story: Trudge Runners // by ROBCakeran53 //------------------------------// They had driven maybe a hundred feet when they found the first patch of mud. It wasn’t too bad, Bill placing the vehicle into four wheel drive, and they crawled along smoothly. Applejack watched with amusement as mud was flung from the tires and against the vehicle’s side, including her window. She was immensely grateful for not having to pull a cart or wagon through something this mucky. Following along the map, and looking out the windshield, it was evident that the current path they drove upon started winding to the left, away from where they were intending to go. Nearing the bend, Applejack spied a small path branching to the right and hopefully towards Flint. “Say, Bill, look over there. Another set ‘o tracks, might be more direct?” “Yeah, sure, this thing has been plugging along like a champ. Can’t be that bad.” Turning the wheel to the right hard, they were just crawling into it, when suddenly the front end dropped, sending Applejack into the dash with a cry. Then the vehicle leaned to the right, and nearly took Bill out of his seat. “Oh shit!” Acting quickly, the human gripped onto the steering wheel with dear life. So focused he was, he let the foot off the gas, and the little vehicle started jumping until the engine stalled. “Fuck!” Bill shouted, smacking the steering wheel with a fist, then peered to his companion. “Are you okay?” Applejack was currently face down into the floor, with her flanks sticking up in the air, legs on the seat and tail thrashing angrily. “Yeah, yeah, just some warnin’ woulda been nice.” “You and me both. Need a hand?” “Not where I want ya gropin’ me.” Even with the situation they were in, Bill couldn’t help letting a small chuckle escape. As the mare righted herself on the seat, Bill pressed in the clutch and started the vehicle again, placing it into first gear, low on the transfer case, and tried to crawl forward. The little 469 slowly started to crawl forward, just enough to get the last rear wheel down into the rut, which leveled the vehicle. And also stopped it’s movement, wheels spinning. He shifted another lever, the differential lock, and tried again. The vehicle crawled a few inches, and once again stopped, wheels spinning in place. Placing the vehicle into neutral, Bill spoke aloud. “Hm. I think I should have tried to back up there.” “Ya think?” Applejack said with a tad agitation, stomping a forehoof onto the padded seat. “These were not made with ponies in mind. Only pony I know who could sit like you is Lyra, but she’s weird.” “Weird?” “Don’t ask, trust me.” “Alright, but now I want to.” “Later,” Applejack said, then let out a deep breath. “So, we’re stuck.” Bill drummed his fingers along the steering wheel. “It would appear so.” Shoot. If we’d just stuck to the path, maybe… With a sigh, Applejack found what she assumed to be the door handle, and pulled it back. The door released with a clunk, and she tried to push it open, but there was resistance. “Land sakes, how stuck are we?” She tried to peer over the door edge through the window, but she couldn’t see just how deep they were. Bill tried his side with more success, and swung the door open. “We did tip on your side, so might just be stuck.” Swinging his legs out, the mud was only a few inches from the bottom of the door, so he braced his hands on either side of the open door frame, and stepped out. And immediately regretted it. “Oh fuck.” “Bill?” “Uh… well, glad we got cleaned up yesterday.” “That bad?” The human struggled to shimmy himself out. Once confident, he stood. The mud came up to his knees, staining his jeans. The confidence was short lived. “I’m not sure which of us are going to have the worst time,” Bill said as he tried to take a step. After several grunts, and using the vehicle as support, he finally withdrew his right foot. Minus one black sneaker. “Well that sucks.” With nowhere else to step, he reluctantly placed his shoeless foot into the mud, further away from the vehicle, and started to pull his left foot out. This one came out also shoeless. “I think I made an error.” “Just one?” Applejack called from the driver's seat, sitting with a smug look. “I’m sorry, but this is new to me, okay? I’m not a city boy, but I still have a Starbucks less than fifteen minutes from my house by foot. And before you say anything, Starbucks is a big name chain of coffee shops.” “I weren’t gonna say a thing.” “Exacactly, you sass with your stupid eyebrows.” Applejack raised a brow. “Like that! Stop judging me, and help me, I can’t reach anything and I’m going to fall over.” With a resigned sigh, and the knowledge that she was about to get very muddy, Applejack quickly removed her tail scrunchie, tied her tail into a bun, then put the scrunchie around with the other on her mane. And then she jumped, landing as far as she could, which was a few feet past Bill. She landed on slightly harder ground, although there was still water and muck kicked up as she splashed. Lifting each hoof, she could walk through this with relative ease. “Alright, now let me just…” Turning around, Applejack did everything in her power to hold back righteous laughter. Her landing had kicked back mud and water, splashing it all over Bill, who stood there, arms at his sides, and a dejected look on his muddy face. “That… snerk… were an accident, promise.” “Of course it was. Just, help me please?” Applejack nodded, then undid her tail bun, re-tied it with the scrunchie, then backed up as far as she could, and flicked her tail at the human. “Alright, grab on tight.” “You’re joking.” “Nope, my tail is about as strong as my legs, and I have more freedom with it. Now grab on.” With another flick, Bill reached out and grabbed her tail just below the scrunchie. “I swear, if this amounts to anything sexual, I’m leaving you here alone.” “Naw, tail pullin’ is my friend Rainbow’s thing, she just don’t like to let ponies know.” “I don’t even know her, and I still wish I didn’t know that.” “Yer fault. Now grip tight and hang on.” He did so, and Applejack started pulling, digging her hooves into the mud, slowly but surely pulling Bill out, to the point he could pick his feet up with less effort. By the time they hit somewhat solid ground, Bill was now two sneakers and one sock down. “Ya good now?” Applejack asked, standing next to a kneeling Bill. “Yeah, that was just a lot. I didn’t do any exercises or runs this morning. I didn’t expect to be doing… this.” Both stood there, about 25 feet from the vehicle, as it continued to burn gas and have the front door wide open. “Fuck I forgot to turn it off.” “Is that bad?” “Yeah, it burns gasoline to run, and if it just sits there all day it will run out, and I don’t know where we even find anymore besides on that map.” “Well, is there anythin’ else we can use ta pull it out?” Bill scratched his head. “Yeah, there’s an electric wench on both bumpers, but I don’t see a damn thing close enough to hook to.” He looked around at the mostly open area, save for the trees that spread out a hundred or so feet away. “If I had a harness, I could probably help with it.” “Of course you could.” Applejack looked up at the human, brow raised and smirk on her face. “Is that a challenge?” “No, but you look like you want it to be.” Both stood there, quiet, staring each other down, or in Applejack’s case, up. “We also left the map in there,” Bill added. “Nuts ‘nd shoes.” Bill started looking around. “Well, do you think maybe this path does lead anywhere?” “Well, how tha map looked, I figured this path either took us t’wards Flint, or maybe that collapsed buildin’ he mentioned.” Bill snapped his fingers. “Oh, right, I forgot about that. Good call, other than… that.” For the first time, Applejack’s ears laid flat. “Not that this is your fault! Just, we didn’t know. So, let's try to follow this, see where it goes?” “Yeah,” Applejack said, then started walking. “Hey, Jackie.” The mare stopped, ears perked, and she turned her head to look back. “It’s alright. Not. Your. Fault.” Applejack stood there while Bill, heavy footed and mud covered, made his way beside her and gave the top of her mane a pat with his hand. Afterwards, he kept walking. “Now come on, slow poke. I got two less legs than you and I’m still moving faster.” Shaking her head, Applejack caught up and walked side by side with the human. —------- An unknown time, and unknown distance later, both were now walking on solid ground, a gravel like two track leading them through the woods. Up ahead, it opened up, and Applejack was the first to notice a structure ahead. “That must be it,” she said. Bill nodded, and the two continued walking. “How’re yer feet holdin’ up?” Before he could respond, he cursed, kicking his left foot, sending a small pebble off into the grass. I never realized how sensitive a creature’s paws, or feet, could be. Makes me take my hooves fer granted. Exiting the forest, they found there were actually two structures. Closest to them was a small house, trees hiding it from view on the back side. It looked run down and abandoned, but still standing with an apparent solid roof on top. Past that was a half collapsed barn, and a large truck partly covered with a green canvas tarp. “Do you think we are lucky enough?” Bill asked. “Maybe. I say we check tha barn ferst. If I can find a harness, we can get tha little suv out and drive it back here.” “Yeah, radio Flint and see if he see’s us.” Bill looked up, covering his eyes. “Sun’s about all the way up, so it has to be around noon or so. I did pack the rest of those crackers so we had a snack.” “That’s good, cause after all that walkin’ I’m gettin’ a might peckish.” To prove her point, the mare leaned down and took a mouthful of grass, munching on it as she cringed. “And this here grass ain’t tha best.” Chuckling, “At least you can just do that. I can’t eat grass, so I’m on the road to food issues.” “Well, fer now, let’s check the barn.” “Okay.” The two walked past the house, entering somewhat of a clearing. Applejack looked around, but couldn’t see much of anything besides trees, and the tall peak of the mountain behind the structures. Suddenly, a blinding light flashed her, causing her to stop and rub her eyes. “Applejack?” “Dunno, somethin’ just blinded me fer a second.” Bill looked around, then towards the mountain. “Well, I’ll be. I found Flint.” “What?” Applejack looked around. Bill leaned down, squatting, and using his right arm and hand, helped point out something in the distance. A small bit of light was being reflected from the sun, getting their attention. Applejack waved, so did Bill. “I can’t even see the damn tower, but my bet is that’s Flint letting us know we’re on the right track.” “And he ain’t shot us with his… uh, gun I guess?” “Yeah, so that’s good. Damn, if he could see all this from there, and now us? That must be one good scope.” After a minute, the reflected light stopped, and once again they saw nothing but trees. “That’s a lot further than I thought by the map,” Applejack said dejectedly. “Yeah, so much for a day’s trip.” Bill started walking back towards the barn. Applejack followed, and as they neared the large truck, Bill turned toward it. “Why don’t you go ahead?” he said, then, “I’m going to check this out first, maybe it has something to make the job easier.” “Gotcha.” Walking towards the large doors, the barn’s back half was clearly collapsed in, making it a wonder to the mare how the front half was still standing. Reaching for the door, she gingerly opened it, sliding to the right, and the door opened with a long, continuous creaking sound. The afternoon sun shone brightly inside, through the half missing roof, showing Applejack not much of anything inside. Stepping ahead, she began looking around, searching wooden crates (empty), metal pails (empty too), and nearing the debris of the collapse, she found two stalls. She’d never seen stalls this huge before, sure they had them for some of the animals on her farm, but whatever was housed in these must have been massive. Peeking inside one, she found nothing but moldy old hay and a discarded bucket. Across from it, is where she struck paydirt. Inside were several different items. Old leather halters, mostly molded and with rusted buckles, some mouth bits half rotten, and lastly, pegged onto the wall, and amazingly spared the weathering of time by a sturdy shelf above, was a great big harness. Picking it up, it was heavy, about the same as her brothers, but this one was also much larger. To properly use it, she’d need to make an insert for it to take up some of the space. The two horns on top, while rusty, weren’t to the point of loss. She could clean them up with some sandpaper, throw on some grease, and they’d be just fine. It still boggled her mind how something so large could be housed in a barn of all places, but maybe this was something about humans? Bill had mentioned horses before. Were they really this big? If so, no wonder he finds my size so funny. Placing the yoke around her neck, it almost drug along the ground, but if she walked tall and kept her neck up then it cleared the ground. With a final glance to the last couple spots she hadn’t searched, she walked out of the barn, just as she heard the large truck outside turning over, trying to start. She approached, just as Bill was stepping down. He walked away and opened the cap of a tank behind the cab, towards the middle of the truck. “Well?” Applejack asked. “Strangely, the battery's good. Cranks over, but if the gas gauge is correct, which this thing here-” he knocked on the round tank, and Applejack heard an empty echo, “- confirms it’s empty. So, we’re kinda stuck in the mud with this one. No pun intended.” Then, he looked at the mare, and smiled. “Well at least you seem to be successful in your pillaging.” “Pilla- I ain’t no thief!” “Bah, don’t think too much about it. I get the feeling no one’s been here for ages.” She didn’t doubt it either, but now that he said it, the act still left an uneasy feeling in the pit of her gut. “So, do you really think you can pull the truck out with that?” Bill asked, pointing at the yoke around her neck skeptically, “seems a bit big on you.” The farm mare nodded, some of her confidence coming back. “Yeah, I ain’t as strong as my brother, but I can still outpull most every other earth pony in town when it’s rodeo season. And yeah it’s too big, but I can fix that later with some padding.” “Huh, well if you’re sure, then shit, let's give it a shot.” —------- The walk back to the 469 was just as uneventful as the walk away from it, save both were in more high spirits, joking around at each other’s expense. At one point Bill tried to wear the yoke with mixed results, but many laughs. Both stopped as the two tracks turned into muck, with the small SUV ahead of them by about twenty feet, still running, door still wide open. “So, how do we wanna do this?” Bill asked. Applejack looked up to him, brow raised. “Yer askin’ me?” Bill looked down to his only remaining sock, sighed, and removed it. “Screw it. I’ll go in, get the winch, and try to pull it out as far as I can. You stay here, and we can hook up, then I’ll hop in and try to help drive it while you pull.” “Sounds good ta me. Even if I can’t get it all the way, if we can just get it closer to them trees.” Bill nodded, tossing the sock into the tall grass. He then attempted to roll up his pant legs, but with how crusty they were, he gave up. “Okay, here it goes.” Sitting on the ground, the farm mare watched the human walk into the mud, at first only his feet sinking, and he took as long of strides as he could. With each step, he sank deeper and deeper, until he was half way up to his knees, and it took him several grunts to pull a foot up and out of the mud, and to try and take another step forward. After several harrowing minutes of trudging, Bill finally arrived at the front of the vehicle, and unhooked the hook from the front bumper, then looked around the front. “Oh come the fuck on, no way.” “What?” Applejack called out. He called back, “The release tab is busted off, and there’s no damn controls out here, they must be inside.” “Well, shoot,” Applejack took off the yoke, laying it on the ground, then slowly walked forward. Bill watched her carefully, then started to make his way around the vehicle, trying and failing to use it as support. Much like the human had, within a few steps Applejack started sinking in the mud, well past her fetlocks. Each step, each hoof sank more and more, up to her knees, and she was still about five feet from the front. It only now struck her she forgot to bun her tail like before, but too late for that. By this point, Bill had activated the winch, making it uncoil. A call from the mare stopped him, just in time before it could start backrolling and bind it up. The mud wasn’t up to her belly yet, but it was getting close, however she pressed on, just far enough she could stretch her neck out, grabbing the hook from the mud with her teeth. She started to turn around, walking forward just as slowly, until she hit a point where it was taught. Before she could mumble anything she heard the electric motor whirr to life, and the cable slacken. Slowly, she made her way back to the edge of the worst of the mud, and just as she got onto the harder surface of the dirt two track, it went taught again, and she stopped. “That’s it!” Bill shouted. Applejack spat the hook onto the ground. “A’right, this should be plenty then. Lemme get hooked up, then when I hollar, go ‘head ‘nd start to crawl it.” “Got it!” Bill yelled back, giving her a thumbs up, then climbed into the 469. As she hooked the cable to the yoke, there came a slam of metal, and a loud curse from Bill. She looked over, and he was leaning out the top half of the door. “Sorry,” he shouted, “didn’t know how this window exactly worked. Guess the top half of the door just sort of folds down.” She rolled her eyes, but placed the yoke over her head and onto her neck. Standing, she walked forward just one step to where the cable was taut, then put on some more muscle as she pulled slightly. “Holy shit, you moved it!” Bill shouted from the vehicle. “Alright, Bill, go ‘head ‘nd start ‘er crawlin’.” The sound of the vehicle going into gear was loud enough to make her ears twitch, she could pick up the slow, smooth rev of the engine. The last thing she saw was mud starting to fling around the wheels. Then Applejack looked forward, lowered her head down, put pressure on the yoke with her chest, lifted a single foreleg, and pushed. She was certain that this was one of the heaviest things she’d ever pulled, putting her own strength to the test, but slowly and surely, she took step after step, gritting her teeth and cursing in her head all the while. The normal cheering from her apple trees when she’d run a plow was absent, this forest choosing to be quiet. “You’re doing good, Jackie!” Although, Bill’s hollering made up for it. Huh, when did he start callin’ me that? A few times, she felt the tension of the cable go slack, as probably Bill would gain some traction and gain on her, but just as quickly she took a couple steps ahead to compensate, and she’d be jerked back by it going immobile again. Her iron shoes dug into the dirt with each step, doing their job of both traction and protection. Finally, as the mare started to near the treeline, Bill honked the horn, and Applejack stopped. The cable lost it’s tension, and it laid upon her back. Panting heavily, she sat, then laid down on the dirt and gravel pathway, trying to calm her breaths. Without looking, her ears twitched as she heard the door open, and soft feet make their way towards her. “Hey, Jackie, you okay?” She didn’t look at him, just nodded, still trying to calm herself down. Suddenly, his hand rested on her shoulder, and the other hand on the underside of her head. Huh, when did I lay down on my side? “Hang on, girl, I gotchu.” Carefully, Bill removed the harness, tossing it to the side. “Do you need a minute? Or, like, twenty?” Applejack shook her head, then as her breathing calmed, she righted herself, laying on her stomach. Bill then handed her, of all things, a vodka bottle. She gave him a funny look. "I found a few empties, filled them with water from the kitchen." Nodding in thanks, she twisted the top off and with both hooves tipped the bottle back and greedily drank from it. Sighing with relief, she hoofed it back, and he too took a drink. “Thanks, sugarcube. That was just a lotta work, ain’t pulled nothin’ that hard in ages.” “I was trying my best to help keep the slack off of you, but that thing just was not happy in that mud.” “Neither were we, so can’t fault it there.” Bill chuckled, “Yeah, that’s a good point. Want me to carry you back to the car?” Again, she shook her head, and started to rise to her hooves. “Naw, I’ll be fine. Need ta get that reeled back in,” she said, pointing at the winch, “and I’ll throw that yoke in tha back seat. Hang onto it, may come useful later.” “Right, right.” Bill stood, then walked over to unhook the latch on the yoke’s horn. On shaking hooves, Applejack approached, and taking the yoke from Bill she placed it around her neck again, and walked towards the vehicle. As Bill reeled in the winch, she opened the back door, tossed the yoke in, then deciding she earned it, jumped in the back to lay down on the bench seat, kicking the sports bag down to join the yoke. Within a few minutes, Bill was back in the drivers seat, and after closing his door, he looked back to her. “You good there?” “Yeah, just need ta rest a spell. By tha time we get to that house I’ll be good.” “Okay, if you’re sure.” “I were sure ‘bout me pullin’ this out, weren’t I?” Looking forward, Bill placed the SUV into first gear, and began driving forward. “Yeah, I guess you were.” It was quiet for several minutes, as Bill put it into second. “Say, when did ya decide to call me Jackie?” Bill didn’t say anything right away, focusing on what was ahead of him, but he did drum his thumbs on the steering wheel. “I… don’t know. It just sort of came out back there.” “And earlier, too.” “It did?” “Yeah, when ya said it weren’t my fault fer gettin’ this thing stuck.” “Oh, I didn’t notice.” “Uhuh. Ain’t nopony called me that since ma pa.” “Oh, sorry, I won’t-” “Don’t fret, sugarcube. I like it, feels nice hearin’ it again after so long.” Bill didn’t respond, focusing on driving and staring ahead. Silence took over the rest of the drive, a happy, tired smile adorning the mare’s face. —------- Bill pulled up to the house, then placed the 469 into 4 wheel high and drove into the field towards the barn and larger truck. Applejack watched from the back seat, curious at first, but realized what his intention was when he grabbed for the radio microphone. “Hey, McLintock, are you there?” This time, his response was much faster. “That’s a big hello, come in. How ya hearin’ me?” “Just fine. We saw you earlier, or at least we think so. We’re parked at the same spot, in the little SUV.” “Yeah, I sees ya. Was wonderin’ why ya’ll were walkin, but you sure got that little four wheeler mucked up. Stuck I take it?” “Yeah, J- Applejack found a harness, and she helped pull it out.” The mare smirked at that. “Strong lady that one, then again havin’ four legs is better than two! Hah!” “Yeah, I guess so,” Bill looked back at the mare, shrugging. “So, can ya see my here tower?” “No, unfortunately. Too far away, and too many trees.” “I were ‘fraid ‘o dat. I’ve been tryin’a survey the land ‘round me, found a couple two tracks, not sure where they go or where they come, but otherwise not much else I’m findin’.” “Figured as much. Hey listen, you can’t see it but there’s also a small house here. We’re gonna check it out, then head back to the garage. Applejack’s beat, and we’re both muddy and dirty like you would not believe. The big truck here is out of fuel, so I’m gonna see if I can find any.” “Watcha want a big truck like that fer? Yer just gonna grab me ‘nd we blastin’ outta these woods, right?” “Shit,” Bill whispered, mic off, “do we tell him?” Applejack shook her head. “No, not now. When we have him with us, and show him what we got at the garage.” “Alright.” Bill keyed the mic, “Uh, just in case, ya know? Might need it. Will you be okay another day? Or… worse case, several?” “Oh for sure, for sure. I’ve survived worse. Gotta say though, seeing that little lady the first time, ya both had me right startled. Couldn’t believe my eyes, but ya’ll were right. Ponies! Hah, wonder what other sort of stuff’ll pop up next.” Applejack motioned with her hoof, and Bill turned in his seat, presenting the mic to Applejack and keyed it for her. “Trust me, Flint, I thought the same thing when I met Bill here.” “Hah, that’s a right good one! Well be safe now, ya hear? I’ll catch ya on the flip side!” “Talk to ya later, Flint!” Applejack said cheerily. Bill replaced the microphone, then placed the SUV into reverse, using the right side mirror and looking backwards through the window to back up to the house. Applejack looked around also, keeping an eye on the left side of the vehicle, in case he might miss something. He backed up basically right to the front door, placed the vehicle in neutral, pulled another lever he’d mentioned as the parking brake, and turned off the engine. “Alright,” Bill started, looking to the back seat, “you feel up for doing a little exploring?” “So long as there ain’t no more mud, sure.” “That’s the spirit!” Bill said with a slap to his mud coated knee, then opened his door and stepped out. Taking the handle in her muzzle, Applejack opened the backdoor on the same side, and stepped out, flakes and chunks of dried mud falling off of her legs and chest. She gave her tail a few flicks, sending that mud flying. “Boy, we’re a right mess ain’t we?” she commented as Bill closed the back door for her. “Yeah, this is going to suck if this is an everyday thing.” “Yer gonna need better foot coverin’s,” she added, then started for the house door. Bill followed along by her side. “Yeah. Not sure what we can do for you, though.” “If we had a unicorn with the know-how, I could have a pair of shoes enchanted with Lighter than Air, which while not good fer traction, would allow me to basically walk along the top of the mud.” “You ponies are something else with that magic. Can you do anything? I mean, without the horn or wings or whatever?” She stopped at the door, looking up to the human. “Sure, jus’ my magic is more akin to plants, trees mostly, but I can grow just dang near anythin’, anywhere.” “Great.” Bill walked up to the door, and tried the handle. It turned effortlessly, but it took him pressing his shoulder against the aged wood to open the door enough to enter. They stepped inside, and it was dark. "Hang on," Bill said as he opened the front window blinds. As he did so, Applejack saw something tall hanging from a ceiling rafter by rope, a chair knocked down below it. One quick glance to Bill and back had the mare screaming.