A bunch of eyes kept staring at her while quite a few of the ponies in the hideout started glancing back and forth at each other and speaking in hushed whispers.
Applejack didn’t let any of her dwindling patience show on her face. She kept that big friendly smile there because she wanted to make a good impression on these ponies. Show that while she was a stranger she was a friend too and nopony to worry about.
“Nice day here aint it?” Applejack said. “You all having a good time up in these mountains?”
“Y-You!” A loud voice came from by some of the tents.
Applejack looked to see a familiar mare standing there and pointing at her. She tipped her hat in greeting to her. “Hello there, Miss Bubbles. Maybe this time we can have a friendlier conversation?”
“Who is she?” A stallion asked, frowning. He and a couple others took a few steps closer towards Applejack.
Probably ponies that attacked Fire Vent. Applejack thought as she looked at them.
“She’s the one who was at the Lava Lily Hotel!” Bubbles said. “She hurt Brisk Wings and got Ace and Golden Grove arrested!”
“Now hold on—you all attacked me. I was just defending myself and trying to get my things back. And I aint here because of any hard feelings,” Applejack said.
“Tephra wouldn’t want us starting trouble with a mare from out of town,” another stallion said.
“That’s not what we’re about,” a mare said.
Bubbles and the ones who approached Applejack grimaced, looking dismayed and unsure of what to do.
Applejack decided to press on. “If you want to get Tephra I’m willing to wait here.” She sat down. “All I came here to do was talk with him. I’m just trying to help you.”
Bubbles scrunched her nose and furrowed her brow. “Fine… I’ll go get him. The rest of you watch her!”
“Thank you,” Applejack breathed a sigh of relief as Bubbles trotted off.
While she waited there now, most of the ponies kept watching her either out of suspicion or curiosity. Suspicion for the healthy adults, curiosity for the fillies and colts. Applejack politely waved back at any who met her eyes. All of them had probably gone a long time without seeing a pony who wasn’t from Fire Vent. And the way Applejack talked and the hat she wore might have made her seem even more foreign. Some ponies at least realized that she was just any other mare and got back to what they were doing before she walked in. Though a little more quietly and privately.
Before long, Bubbles came back with a stallion in tow.
Applejack stood up and stared face to face with him. Middle-aged with a silvery mane and a pale red coat. He had a smart look to him—together. But she could still see a hint of both wariness and the slightest discomfort in his eyes. He didn’t like that she was here.
“What can I do for you-?” He raised an eyebrow at her.
“Applejack. And you must be Tephra?” She asked.
“That’s right,” he nodded. “I’m in charge here, and I wanted to apologize actually for how my ponies behaved last night. We don’t have a problem with you—in fact we rely on ponies like you. I didn’t mean for anything like that to happen.
“I understand, and that’s not why I’m here,” Applejack said.
“Bubbles said you wanted to help us. I’m assuming you know what we’ve been through since the Citadel of Al-Karamaretel closed its bridge. And what’s happened more recently.”
Applejack nodded. “That’s right. And I’mma be honest with you right now. When I say I want to help you, what I mean is I want to convince you to stop all this and go back down to town.”
Tephra stiffened and quite a few of his followers swung their heads over to him to see how he’d react. More mumbles rippled through the crowd. Applejack however stood tall and strong, not letting anything get to her. She had to show she was both sincere and wouldn’t be cowed.
“I hope you aren’t serious about that,” Tephra said.
“Sorry, I am,” Applejack stated.
Tephra’s eyes narrowed at her. “Why would you even bother with this? What’s in it for you? You’re just some pony not even from here.”
“A pony can’t just want to help others? I heard about what happened—I’ve been in the middle of what’s going on. I’d like to help your town and that means helping all of you,” Applejack shrugged.
“Helping us would mean taking down Sheriff Crater and bringing things back to normal,” Tephra growled.
“I don’t like him either but… naw, things aint that simple. Frankly I don’t think either of you are really in the right,” Applejack said. “You’ve both let things get way out of hoof and stopped caring whether what you’re doing is actually good for Fire Vent or not. How many things have you stolen from town? How many windows have you broken just out of anger to punish them? Aint that just gonna make it less likely for visitors to come back, or like me, ruin their visit when they do come here?”
“We needed things from town, and if they refused to help and join us it meant they were going along with that petty control freak,” Tephra said.
“And so they were part of the problem? You knew what you were doing to them was wrong and not fair but it’s okay cause it was for a good cause?” Applejack pressed. “If you needed so much stuff from town doesn’t that also tell you that you can’t just live up here on your own—you’re still Fire Vent ponies.”
“I know that we’re not exactly “right”. But we can’t let some dumb fool do what he wants with Fire Vent either. That isn’t going to help things. He was the one who first started it all, saying that it was necessary, but it hasn’t stopped the decline at all. Everything he says is just an excuse to keep in charge, he doesn’t really care about Fire Vent like I do!” Tephra said.
Applejack rubbed the back of her head. “I don’t think that’s entirely true, he just has his own way of going about things. But look—I said I was here to get you to stop doing this and go back to town. I’m also going to talk to the Sheriff and convince him to relax too. I’m not on either one of your sides. I’m here trying to help you both and get you to come to a compromise for the good of everypony. I want you to come on down to town and you, me, and the Sheriff can all chat together.”
“And how do I know you’re not just saying all this? What if it’s a trap and you’re been bought off by him to lead me down there so he and his deputies can rush me? You already got two of my friends arrested,” Tephra suspiciously glared at her.
“Well I don’t have no way of proving what I’m saying is true or not. I can just give you my word and hope you trust me,” Applejack shrugged. “Though I think your wife would agree with me right now.”
Tephras’s eyebrows shot up and a much quieter voice then came from his mouth. “You met Maggie? Is she alright?”
“I’d say she’s taking things pretty dang well actually. She didn’t have nothing kind to say about Sheriff Crater either but she’s not happy with the way things have gone. I’m telling you she’d want you to talk things out and end it.”
“As long as she’s still imprisoned I won’t-”
Applejack cut off his angry shout with a raised hoof. “And that’s why one of the things I’m going to promise is that I’ll get Sheriff Crater to release her—and your two other friends for that matter. They don’t need to be kept in those cells, I know that. If I can convince him to let your wife free won’t you at least think about talking things out?”
Tephra bit his lip and ground his teeth back and forth. It was clear this was gnawing at him more than a bit. The other adult ponies around looked just as torn up and uncertain.
“I...” Tephra managed. “I’ll come and talk with him.”
A big relieved smile made its way across Applejack’s face. “That’s great to hear.”
“But not alone. I still don’t trust him—or you—so I’m not just walking into Fire Vent without any backup. We won’t start a fight or anything but I’m bringing along any able ponies with me,” Tephra said and looked around him at the others in the hideout. “You all hear that? We’re going to go talk with the Sheriff. No fighting unless he starts something first but I want you all on your guards. Hopefully we can end this all today and start helping Fire Vent.”
There were murmurs of agreement through the other ponies, including Bubbles. It seemed they were ready and willing to go along with Tephra. Applejack hoped cooler heads would prevail once she could get them talking and make them see the folly of what they were doing. Kind of ironic that everypony had to cool down right in the shadow of an old volcano.
Applejack smirked as they all got ready to leave.
When the group had come down from the mountains and started making their way to Fire Vent, it was no surprise that they were spotted. As Appplejack knew now, Sheriff Crater had a number of deputies on patrol at the perimeter of the town. They were all quite shocked to see the large group coming down here in broad daylight and they had run off to the jailhouse to tell the Sheriff what was going on. So while Tephra’s group waited, with Applejack standing out away from them, the Sheriff and his deputies gathered and came out to meet them in the flat and empty outskirts of town. Between the last line of buildings and the mountains—it was a place nopony was in control of.
A large group of ponies soon emerged from the town, walking to meet the brigands. They didn’t look like they were coming for a fight but they were clearly wary. And Sheriff Crater was leading them.
Applejack looked between the two groups—both about evenly sized at around fifty ponies. After reaching the hideout she wondered just how many ponies in total made up these groups? A glance at the dense town made her wonder how much they really represented things…
Sheriff Crater came to a stop and the deputies halted behind him as well. The older stallion huffed, looking first at Tephra and then over at Applejack. “Well, I suppose you weren’t just blowing hot air when you said you wanted to talk. I’m surprised you managed to bring him down here.”
“The talks are gonna end real quick unless you do something first,” Tephra growled at the Sheriff.
“Oh?” Crater raised an eyebrow full of derision. “And what would that be?”
“Hold up you two,” Applejack said, walking between them. “We don’t need things starting off all nasty like that.” She took a breath and looked at the Sheriff. “What Tephra wants, and what I want too, is for you to set Hot Magma free. And the other two for that matter. Aint no reason other than petty spite you’re keeping them in those cells and we both know it.”
“She’s a criminal! She started all this nonsense!” Crater barked.
“You had no right to do anything you did! My wife didn’t do anything wrong!” Tephra shouted back.
“Enough!” Applejack yelled louder than either of them. “You’re both right. Can’t you even see that this isn’t the kind of situation where one pony’s right about everything and one pony’s wrong about everything? It’s more complicated than that! You’re both being right fools! Everything bad that started because of Al-Karamaretel is bigger than simply taking control of everything and thinking you know best-” she shot a glare at Crater. “And it’s bigger than selfishly making things worse just cause you don’t agree with a pony.” She glared at Tephra. “You’re both right and you’re definitely both wrong too. And if you keep going down this path, Fire Vent aint gonna be nothing but an abandoned mess.”
She sighed and dragged a hoof down her face. “You’re both from here. You both love your home. So let’s be a little smart about this and put these grudges and all these past little grievances aside. Let’s talk. And to do that, it’d first be best if some ponies were set free.”
Both Tephra and Crater looked uncomfortable, annoyed, and angry. Possibly at themselves and not just each other and Applejack. The two of them kept staring angrily at one another but shifting their eyes back and forth every few seconds. Applejack was getting a little fed up with it and about to demand that one of them say something.
“Alright-” Sheriff Crater finally said. “I’ll have some deputies go and let your wife out, and those other two friends of yours as well. They’re all just taking up space anyways...”
Tephra bit his tongue, his hooves clenched and he squeezed his eyes shut. “Thank you.”
Applejack could tell how much effort it took him to say that.
“Whew...” She sighed in relief. There’s step one down.
While the rest of them all stayed out here, two of Crater’s deputies went back to the jailhouse to retrieve the prisoners. There was still a lot of tension in the air and this time Applejack didn’t break it. Everypony was staying quiet, staying on their side, and just waiting. Hoping for the best this time. Applejack could see plain as day there was a lot less enthusiasm in everypony besides the two leaders here. They were loyal to Tephra and Crater for sure but Applejack could tell they were wishing for a finish to all this chaos.
Shortly, the deputies returned with three familiar ponies coming with them. Applejack heard Tephra sharply suck in his breath and then watched as a huge smile lit up Hot Magma’s face and she started running right towards him the moment she saw him.
“Tephra!”
“Maggie!”
He held his hooves wide open and let her practically crash into him, swinging her around and kissing her deeply.
Applejack blushed at the loving display and had to sheepishly look away. “Shucks now...”
“Ace! Golden! Are you alright?” Bubbles asked her friends, making sure they didn’t feel left out while the two lovers continued their kiss.
“We’re fine, nothing much happened,” Ace answered.
“Well there you go, they’re all back safe and sound. What a happy reunion...” Sheriff Crater snorted, shaking his head at the display.
“You just let them have their moment, okay?” Applejack said to him.
He dismissively waved a hoof her direction but didn’t say anything else.
“I missed you so much,” Tephra said to Hot Magma after a second, holding her close.
“I missed you too… and it was boring in that cell,” Hot Magma said back to him.
Tephra frowned and, while still hugging his wife, looked back at Sheriff Crater. “I suppose we can get back to business now.”
“Wait,” Hot Magma said and reached a hoof to his chin, tilting his head back down to look at her. “Applejack must have told you how I feel about all this? I’m out now, Tephra. You don’t need to continue doing this. Let’s fix things for Fire Vent, let’s turn it back into a town where we can all live happily and where nopony has to fight one another.”
“That’s up to him!” Tephra angrily pointed at Crater.
“You can all do things my way or you can take a hike again,” Crater said back.
There was a lot more grumbling in the groups behind the leaders now. The thieves and deputies all seemed to be a lot less willing to fight after seeing the reunion and how angry Tephra and Crater still were. It was apparent they were hoping with Hot Magma’s words and freedom that maybe their leader’s would be willing to compromise a little more. But so far they were just shouting at each other again.
Tephra and Crater had walked up to each other and were face to face, yelling and trying to shout over the other. Hot Magma looked on with disappointment while Applejack shook her head in annoyance and dragged a hoof down her face.
“Can I ask something?” Applejack said.
The two didn’t hear her.
“Excuse me? Could the two of ya pipe down for a moment?”
They kept shouting, ignoring her.
“Oh for the love of—that’s it!” Applejack stomped a hoof on the ground and shot a tremor through it, shaking the ground beneath the two leaders and causing them to stumble backwards.
The both of them blinked in confusion and looked at her, wondering what had just happened.
Applejack smiled. “Right, now that I got your attention, I’ve been meaning to ask something.”
“What?” Tephra asked.
“Well—how many ponies actually joined up with you? Like how many been living up in that hideout?” Applejack asked.
Tephra frowned, thinking for a second. “About a hundred. Total. Including the kids and the elderly...”
“And how many deputies you got?” Applejack raised an eyebrow at Crater.
“Uhh...” he coughed. “Fifty in total or so...”
Applejack sighed and closed her eyes. “And how many ponies live in Fire Vent?”
“Around two-thousand. Give or take,” Tephra answered.
“So most ponies don’t care one way or the other?” Applejack opened her eyes and looked back and forth between the two leaders. “They’ve just been going along, ignoring most everything? How many ponies are really affected by this at all? Would they even know the real business between the two of you? To me it seems neither of you really represents Fire Vent or what’s best for it. You’re more like a couple of gangs with a silly rivalry. Hay—when I first came into Fire Vent I saw how apathetic most ponies were. They couldn’t give a hoot about nothing going on, I bet all they cared about was how business has dried up. And is anything either of you are doing going to fix that? That problem aint gonna be solved by what you’ve been doing. Whether one of you gets their way, most ponies in town are just gonna be drifting along, suffering and poor, until Fire Vent falls apart completely.”
Both Tephra and Crater looked a bit ashamed, confronted with how small what they were doing is. And looking back at their comrades they saw how lackluster their support was becoming.
“I tried to get ponies to take things more seriously and listen to me...” Crater mumbled.
“You think maybe your heavy-hoofed approach might have been a problem?” Applejack asked him.
“I didn’t want ponies having to listen to him. That was all,” Tephra said.
“And you didn’t make any friends with the way you went about it. You let yourself be too angry,” Applejack told him.
Tephra sighed and looked over at his wife. “Are we… are we really both just being stupid?”
Hot Magma had a sympathetic smile on her face as she shrugged. “Maybe just a little bit.”
“But it doesn’t matter,” Sheriff Crater said. “None of this matters, our problems aren’t going away so easily. Al-Karamaretel still isn’t letting traffic through. And as long as it isn’t, Fire Vent is never going to go back to normal.” He stared at Applejack. “You talk and you talk, but what’s your solution to fixing our real problem?”
“I’m going there. That’s my solution,” Applejack said.
“What do you mean?” Tephra asked.
“I need to go past Al-Karamaretel. So whatever’s going on there I need to solve it too. I don’t know how long it will take, but trust me that I’ll fix things. I promise things will get better for you again in the future, just give me a shot. I keep my word on things,” Applejack told them. “I will open up that bridge that the Citadel of Al-Karamaretel guards and I’ll make sure ponies can start traveling through the west again.”
“Well you’ve already helped out here a little, I think I might just believe you,” Hot Magma smiled.
“And I guess… I guess there’s no reason to make things worse,” Tephra sighed. “If you think you can solve what’s going on at Al-Karamaretel, I promise to not stir up any trouble with Crater here in Fire Vent. We can hold out. Even if things won’t be fun for the foreseeable future.”
Crater scratched his head, an uncomfortable frown on his face, but he nodded. “That’s… yeah that works for me too. Even if we disagree on some things I promise we won’t come to blows or do anything crazy. Things shouldn’t be any worse in Fire Vent than they need to be.”
“So it’s a truce then? A compromise for now?” Applejack asked.
“Yeah,” Tephra said.
“Yes,” Crater said.
Smiles and relieved sighs erupted throughout the rows of ponies behind the two leaders. Everypony was happy to see this outcome. Another step had been taken to fix Fire Vent.
Applejack breathed in and grinned as well. “Sometimes it really is that easy.”