Segment 2 Chapter 9 Finale
Applejack led her small group towards Ponyville in the dying light of the evening. She cast her troubled eye up to the horizon and watched the purplish light fade as Celestia’s sun was slowly replaced with Luna’s moon. Another day was nearly gone, another life snuffed out before the might of eternity. Someday she would be gone as well, just a figment of the past, her travels coming to an end. She had brought many others to their end over the years and she was probably going to send two of her friends off to the oblivion that awaited everypony. She still wasn’t sure how to handle Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy, she simply knew she had to make the best decision for the Family.
Shuffling behind Applejack was her big brother, Macintosh, and her leg-breaker JackSlap; behind them was the innocent unicorn Twilight Sparkle. Applejack had been without an advisor for a long time, but the emotional distress of her occupation had been bearing down on her, grating her nerves raw and bloody. An advisor, somepony she could trust and talk to, would be a blessing. Dash had been her advisor and lover for a week and much of her frustration had been released until the poor blue pegasus opened her mouth at the wrong time. Damn … she couldn’t think about Dash now, there was too much to do still. Twilight, however…
AJ thought about Twilight. She was very intelligent, probably the smartest mare she had ever met. She had a lot of ideas with which Applejack had, frankly, been impressed. She had done some work on creating a soil detoxifier that, while not perfect, had produced some results. They had covered a barren field with the liquid and sparse patches of sickly grass had sprouted. It may not have been perfect, but it was better than she had thought possible. If Twilight had been with her before … Well, that was only hypothetical. There was no sense thinking in maybes. Twilight would be able to help the Family greatly. Her brain would be a great boon to the business.
At this point, AJ couldn’t afford to let Twilight leave Sweet Apple Acres. She was happy to keep Twilight on the farm and let her continue to search out the resources for her little assignment but, once that was over, Applejack would have a difficult time keeping her. The orange pony didn’t necessarily want to crush Twilight’s innocence, but she would aid Applejack in many ways if she were turned to the Family. Twi had become Applejack’s very good friend and, until Rainbow had cleaned up, she was the only pony Applejack had trusted with her thoughts. She hoped Twilight would be able to forgive her for breaking her into the business; it was either that or Twilight would have to be put down. This way Applejack was giving her a chance.
For a moment, the country mare watched the dirt road before her, thinking back to Scootaloo earlier that morning. That little bitch had burst into her conference with Big Macintosh and JackSlap. She had accused Applejack of murdering Rainbow Dash, having witnessed Applejack coming from the cellar. She thought about the events that had transpired that morning and sighed as they came back to her…
Applejack lay in her comfortable bed alone, unable to sleep. For the last six hours she had rolled, tossed, and bucked underneath the thick blankets, her thoughts prying wide the lids of her eyes and chuckling to themselves as the eyes beneath reddened and burned from lack of sleep. Applejack’s mind was far too busy. What should she do with Pinkie and Fluttershy? They used to be her friends; did that not mean she could show a little leniency towards them? Did they deserve to die for their actions? They were simply living as best they could; it just happened to conflict with her life style. Could she buy them out or incorporate them into her business? She just didn’t know. Given the circumstances, death was the only choice she could make. She couldn’t be soft on them; it would just spark others to try and mimic them. If she bought them out others would expect the same and there would be an influx of new drugs. She had to kill them. It was the only way.
The problem was that Applejack didn’t want to kill Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy; well, part of her did, but not all of her. She still remembered their friendships years ago and the fun they had all shared. AJ sighed and tossed the blanket from her body, suddenly hot and sweating like a pig in a sausage contest.
Not only was there the issue of Pinkie and Shy, but Twilight had been extremely close with that pair. Had she been part of their group? Had Twilight been there as a spy? AJ had initially thought Twi was a spy for Canterlot, but what if she had been a spy for Pinkie the entire time? She had to press Twilight for the information. Twilight would have to join Applejack or die. There was no room for anymore maybes. She either already knew what the Family did or she would have to be let in on it shortly.
The dragon had seemed rather clueless, but that could have been a ruse. Twilight was extremely intelligent and AJ had no doubt she could devise great deceptions, but that time was over. Action was required.
She let out a strained sigh and brought her forehooves up to her head, tussling her mane to just get out some of her frustration. The darkness of the room was oppressive and the country mare banished thoughts of Pinkie, going back to that other ball of fire in her mind, Dash.
She had regretted hitting Rainbow as she had, but that big mouth dyke just couldn’t keep her trap shut. AJ had told her to stay quiet about their relationship and what did her idiot marefriend do? Oh, just blurted out their private business right in front of Big Macintosh and JackSlap! AJ couldn’t risk being exposed as a deviant to her older brother and had been forced to make a decision on the spot. Would she just admit her feelings for the blue pegasus and submit her weakness to the Family or shut the multihued mare up and play it off? When it came down to it, AJ knew she was a coward. She couldn’t admit the weakness within herself and had harmed her lover in order to protect her reputation. Pitiful… but the Family needed her. What would happen if she left? Big Mac didn’t have the skills to lead them and Apple Bloom was still too young and was completely ignorant to the real business the Family did. Applejack hated herself for hitting Rainbow Dash and calling her hurtful names. She had even told her she wasn’t welcome on the farm anymore. She would have to find some reason to keep her. She didn’t want to be without her now. It meant that they probably couldn’t sleep together every night, but they could still have their moments.
Applejack, once again, let out her stress through her mouth in the form of a heavy sigh. It was late. Nopony inside the house would be awake at this time; she could slip down to Dash and apologize. She doubted Dash would be in the mood to kiss, cuddle, or more, but at least she could be rid of a few of the painful feelings she was experiencing.
AJ slid from her bed quickly and unlocked her bedroom door. The earth pony stuck her head into the hallway and perked her ears up attentively. She heard Big Mac’s snoring from down the hall, but that was all. Just as she had hoped, everypony was asleep. Quietly she made her way out into the hallways, carefully planting each hoof gently to test the wooden floor. The last thing she wanted was to cause a board to shriek under her weight and wake up somepony. She needed to see Rainbow, to kiss her and tell her how sorry she was. If Dash would learn to keep her bucking mouth closed, they could salvage their relationship and still see each other in secret.
The cow-mare quietly made her way down to the cellar level of the house and eased up to Rainbow Dash’s door, light spilled from the bottom. Good—Dash was probably awake. AJ took a moment to listen for the sounds of others moving around. Confident she and Dash were the only ones awake in the extreme early hours of the night, she didn’t waste time with a knock, but opened the door.
The room was cold and filthy. It used to be a storehouse for apples, after all, and they would keep for quite a long time in the dry but cold atmosphere of the cellar. In the center of the room Dash’s mottled bedding of dry rotted burlap sacks barely covered the still mare. AJ frowned for a moment; Dash was asleep after all, her eyes closed and a pained look smeared across her face. She looked paler than normal and the bruising of her jaw, which AJ was certain she had fractured, stuck out starkly and sickly compared to the colorations of the rest of her body. AJ’s heart sank a little in her chest. She hadn’t meant to hit her that hard; she just wanted to make it look real, not really hurt her. The moment must have taken control of her. She had just spent hours beating information out of a Trotter. It was hard to hold back while that thrill still had flourished within her body.
She didn’t even notice the baggie of nearly depleted white powder for a moment. When AJ noticed it, she grew agitated with the pegasus and stomped towards her. Dash had just gotten over her habit and AJ wasn’t about to watch her fall apart again. She couldn’t let her lover break down again. She felt like such a hypocrite at that moment; one minute she was kicking the mare while she looked up with that betrayed look in her eyes and the next she was about to lecture her on how she needed to take better care of herself. AJ’s emotions were disjointed from the pressure of her occupation, her mind unable to process the unrelated emotions of love and hate, yet being subjected to them both in tandem at an almost constant rate. It was hard on the mare and, somewhere inside, she knew she wasn’t worthy of Dash’s love. She was too far gone to the life she had chosen. It would be better if she just ran the mare off to never return, but she couldn’t do that. She loved Rainbow Dash. She loved her and, for Celestia’s sake, the pegasus was going to wake the buck up and listen to what she had to say.
“Dash! Wake up! We gotta talk!” AJ’s voice was hushed, but still carried the harsh tones she had grown a custom to using. Her green eyes bore down on the sleeping pegasus and she moved a little closer. “Rainbow. You wake up. Ah gotta tell ya something important.”
Applejack waited only a moment and reached down, intending to shake the sleeping pegasus awake. “Dammit, Dash. Ah said to open yer …” Her body was terribly cold and, when AJ's hooves pressed to shake Dash’s body, the shoulders didn’t move independently of the rest of her body. They moved with the body as a whole... AJ blinked in shock. She knew Rainbow Dash was dead instinctually, but her brain didn't want to process that information just yet, ignoring what her gut told her for its own needs.
AJ stopped dead in her motion and fate’s icy grasp clasped around her entire body. It was as if her blood had turned to ice and froze her to the spot. It couldn’t be … It just couldn’t be … Dash was fine just a short while ago. She was just asleep, right. Yeah, that was it … and the cold air had stiffened her up a bit. Dash always was a heavy sleeper. Regardless, Applejack refused to touch Rainbow and resorted to shouting in her ear. Her apprehension of being loud snapping under the strain of her instincts.
“RAINBOW DASH! WAKE UP! WAKE UP!” It only took moments before panic set in and she found herself screaming at the dead body of her lover and longtime friend. Tears began to pour from her eyes and her voice became hoarse and cracked fitfully as her fears came true. She was lucky the cellar was far from the upper level of the house and fairly well soundproofed. Her cries were not being heard through the wood of the home, at least not without the aid of magic.
Applejack planted her hooves on Dash’s shoulders again and shook her violently, pleading with the pegasus to open her eyes. “Please, Dashie … Ah’m sorry. Please … just wake up. Ah love ya. Ah … Dashie …”
Applejack lost herself to sorrow, her heart—or what was left of it—was dying and it was all her fault. She had driven Dash to using drugs. It was all because of her. She had caused all of it. Dash had somehow broken free of her addiction once, but AJ had pushed her back to the drugs through her violence and inability to simply admit the love she felt for her. Dash had overdosed to escape the pain Applejack had caused her. She knew it. Dash had felt rejected after the abuse and had taken her words to heart when she had told her to leave the farm and never return. AJ hadn’t meant those things, she had to say them. She thought Dash would understand … She clearly had not. Now her beautiful body lay motionless in a frigid cell with the remains of rotted apples and broken barrels. It was not what she deserved. Her spirit, the spirit AJ loved so much, was gone, departed from the misery of what her life had become and had left Applejack behind.
She cried hard, sobbing deeply and wrapping her forelegs around the corpse of her lover. Her tears merged with the soft cyan coat of Dash’s body and she buried her face in the sweet smelling mane of many colors. For a long time she cried into the body of her deceased marefriend and blamed herself, but Applejack hadn’t gotten as far as she had by feeling sorry for herself. AJ was a drug lord because she knew how to shift the blame to deal with the atrocities she committed daily.
After her heart had poured out and the realization that Dash was gone forever had set in, her subconscious mind had begun to filter little lies and excuses up to her conscious mind. Dash was a loser … She always had been. Dash had probably never stopped using sweets and had killed herself because she finally realized that AJ was too good for the likes of her. Her only way out of the heartbreak was suicide … It definitely wasn’t Applejack that had pushed her there with abuse and violence. Dash couldn’t handle what it meant to truly be tough. She was just a weak, pathetic mare and this was the best thing she could do with her life. AJ didn’t need the bitch holding her back and causing her strife. Dash was probably in on the deal with Pinkie. She was there to keep AJ’s mind away from the problems of business with her slutty ways. Hadn’t she tried to defend Pinkie and Fluttershy? Applejack scoffed and wondered how many times Dash had slept with those two? Filthy slut.
Applejack’s mind was tearing apart from the thoughts. She had truly loved Dash, and part of her knew it, but these other thoughts made her feel better. The pain went away as they swept in, but Applejack fought the urge to believe them. Dash had never lied about her feelings for her and AJ knew it was unfair to think she had. She was unstable and this was just too much. She wanted to stay with Dash’s body and hold her a little longer, to feel her coat and tight frame, but as her mental faculties began to retake control, she realized that if she were caught in such a wretched state it would only validate everything Dash had announced last night and more. This was the worst Applejack had ever felt, her lowest moment, and she couldn’t be seen in such a state. She wouldn’t be able to be the one who found Dash’s body. She was going to have to go back upstairs and get control of herself and wait for somepony else to discover her lover’s remains.
AJ would leave, but she took a moment longer to press her lips to the still form in the middle of the room. She swept the multicolored locks of mane back and stared at Dash. She looked like she was sleeping, that was all, just resting. AJ knew this was the last time she would be able to be intimate with the mare. She didn’t want to waste it and kissed the corpse gently on the lips, whispering apologies into her ear and shutting her eyes tightly, her mind switched tactics and for a moment she could have sworn Dash’s voice was in her mind, releasing her from the hurt. Too bad it was just a stray thought. AJ wasn’t dumb and knew better than to believe in ghosts or contact with spirits. It was still a nice thought, though, and she wished it were true.
A few moments later, Applejack quietly made her way back to her bedroom. She did her best to slip through the hallways unnoticed, finally reaching her bedroom door and pushing it open, crawling under the blankets and crying herself to sleep. The sleep she had tried for restlessly finally came to her. In her dreams, she ran under the open sky with Rainbow Dash, their unity finally complete.
***
Sugar Cube Corner was alive with excitement! Pinkie Pie gathered up the utensils for creating Pink Dreamz and bagged them, pushing them together in an oversized saddlebag. She then picked up a grocery bag full of little pink bars. This was the last time she would ever have to make these despicable little things and her heart filled with joy at the knowledge. She quickly stuffed them into the other side of the saddlebag and turned to Fluttershy with a huge smile. “That’s it, Flutters! Our drug making business has ended and we can just be the Sugar Cube Party Planners!”
“Yay!” Flutters sounded enthusiastic, but still relatively quiet. The yellow pegasus had been looking forward to this day for quite a long while. Their business had really taken off and they were gone most nights of the week now. With this commercial success, the pair had earned almost enough money to relocate to the busier streets of Canterlot. Pinkie had agreed to sell her recipe and equipment to Golden Harvest and her gang for a tidy sum of bits. It wasn’t enormous, but enough to supplement their move and opening of a brand new store. The last meeting with the gang leader was going to take place in an hour and then they would be free of Ponyville. They would hire movers in Canterlot to retrieve all of their things and they planned to board a train this very night, bound for Canterlot, their new hometown. Fluttershy flapped her wings in applause and was given a delicious slice of cake from Pinkie Pie.
Pinkie Pie chuckled and swallowed the rest of the cake whole, an amazing ability she had always had. Her long tongue snaked out and cleaned the icing from her face and she looked at the untouched slice she had given Fluttershy not ten seconds before. “You going to eat that?” Her voice was high pitched and happy. She bounced in place and eagerly looked at the cake.
“Oh … umm … if you want it, Pinkie, you can eat it.” Shy was gentle and soft. She wanted the best for others and pushed the cake towards Pinkie Pie. There were plenty of other goodies in their refrigerator now. She softly smiled as Pinkie swallowed the slice whole and took the plate to the sink for washing.
Flutters took a moment to look at their soon to be ex-home. It was clean and beautiful. The lights had all been repaired and they had painted every single surface as well as replacing all the old furniture. The once run down and filthy hovel of a failed bakery was warm, cozy, and displaying several party instruments. All of this had been thanks to Pinkie Pie. Flutters had helped bring the party pony back from the edge of defeat and her energy and love of parties had helped them renew their respective lives.
Pinkie returned from washing the dish and bounced merrily around Fluttershy. “Just one hour, Shy. I’ll take the cakes and tools to Harvest and show her how to use them and then we’ll board a train to Canterlot! I’m so excited! I feel like singing!”
Pinkie cleared her throat and continued to bounce around the room, her ability to create lyrics and tunes at a whim being put to use as her high-pitched voice rang out in elation. Once the song had ended, the party pony hugged her friend and chuckled. “I can’t wait to move! I heard that there’s a nightclub in Canterlot called Party Central! How great is that? A place that parties all night every night? I can’t wait to check it out!”
Fluttershy wasn’t interested in large gatherings of ponies, but she smiled happily for Pinkie’s sake. She seemed to be interested in Canterlot quite a bit.
“Shy! Did you know there are stores in Canterlot that sell almost any kind of pets? I know you are kind of sad that we will be leaving all your animal friends behind, but it’s a good thing, right? They don’t have to worry about you anymore. I’m glad you told them to stop hanging around Sweet Apple Acres. I’d hate it if something happened to them because they were watching the Apples.”
“Wow, that’s neat, Pinkie. I’d like to see a place like that, but animals shouldn’t be sold. They should be free.” She went silent for a moment as she thought about all of her little animals friends. It was better that they could continue their lives in the forest. Coming into Ponyville was dangerous. She had lost two of her squirrels to the target practice of some of the ponies in gangs. It had hurt her deeply. She had dismissed her friends from their duties only a few days before. With their impending departure and the friendly attitude in which they had been greeted at Applebloom’s birthday party, it was probably a good time to let them continue their normal lives. She still felt sad about leaving them behind, but they would be fine now. “It’s okay. They will be happy away from Ponyville. Maybe we can buy a pet from one of those stores?”
“Okey dokey lokey! I heard they even have baby alligators! How great would that be?” Pinkie jumped off of the couch in an explosion of hyperactivity at the thought of owning an alligator as a pet.
Fluttershy made a worried face. An alligator wasn’t a friendly prospect. She would just have to wait and see, though she hoped there were no alligators.
A sudden knocking came from the front door and Pinkie hopped up, kicked her saddlebags behind the couch, between the back of the piece of furniture and the wall, and hopped to the door. She pulled the door open and beamed happily. “Applejack! How are you? Oh! Twilight, Big Mac, and Jackie! Come in!”
Fluttershy felt an icicle appear in her stomach and looked to make sure Pinkie’s saddlebags were out of sight. She hoped this would be a quick visit. She hadn’t seen AJ since the party, but didn’t immediately feel threatened by her appearance.
Applejack didn’t smile and walked into the living room, sizing the place up. She didn’t know if Pinkie would have any goons with her. She didn’t think it was likely, but she looked around the room and poked her head in the kitchen as the rest of her group followed behind her. Twilight was the only one smiling.
“Hi, Pinkie Pie. Hi, Fluttershy. Applejack, I didn’t know we were coming here to see them.” Twilight smiled happily and smelled the tasty flavors of cupcakes and icing.
“Pinkie, we’re here on business.” Applejack looked at the pink mare and then to the yellow pegasus, who shirked slightly.
“Goodie! Do you need another party thrown? I’ll give you a discount since we’re such good friends!” The hyper pink earth pony could barely hold still.
Applejack yanked her hoofgun from her saddlebag, quickly followed by JackSlap and Big Mac pulling their own guns free of their hiding places. Pinkie’s eyes went wide and she stopped dead in her tracks, her bounciness at its end. Fluttershy made a weak shriek and covered her eyes. “Not that kind of business, Pinkie.”
Twilight nearly screamed. She did not expect anything of this sort. She didn’t know what was happening and seeing her friends pull guns on her other friends was an experience she had never thought she would see. “AJ, what are you doing? Why are you doing that?”
“It’s high time ya learned what we do at Sweet Apple Acres Twi. We don’t sell apples and this one here,” she motioned with her hoofgun towards Pinkie Pie, “has been cuttin’ in on the Family’s business, ain’t ya Pinkie?”
Pinkie looked at the gun and then back to Applejack. This was not how tonight was supposed to go. She wasn’t sure how she would get out of this. She gulped hard and lied. “I don’t know what you are talking about, silly filly. There’s no need to point those things at us.” She just had to fool them tonight. After that, she would be finished forever with drugs. She just had to convince them she was innocent. If they didn’t find her saddlebags everything would be okay.
“Twilight, drag those kitchen chairs in here and tie them two to ‘em.” Applejack ordered the lavender unicorn. “We’re gonna look around an’ see what we might find.”
“AJ, this is a joke, right? You can’t seriously want me to tie up Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. They are our friends. How do they cut in on your business? They make parties for ponies.” Twilight was trying to rationalize what she was seeing. It had to be some big joke.
“Mac,” Applejack spoke without taking her eyes off of Pinkie Pie as Big Macintosh turned his gun to point directly at Twilight’s head.
“Twi, Ah ain’t kiddin’. Get them chairs and tie them up or Ah’ll have you shot. Yer my friend, Twi. Ah don’t want to paint the wall with yer brains, but it’s high time you found out what we do.” Applejack sounded serious, sounded angry.
Twilight’s legs refused to move, her heart was lodged in her throat and her knees shook as she looked down the barrel of the large magnum Big Macintosh had aimed right between her eyes. She just couldn’t believe this was happening. To her horror, she realized that Spike was right. Spike had been right all along and now she was in trouble. She concentrated on making her legs move, but they rigidly refused.
“Mac. Shoot her if she ain’t movin’ in three seconds.”
“Eeyup.”
“1 …”
Pinkie looked at her friend, Twilight, and then to the kitchen. “I’ll get the chairs, Applejack. Don’t shoot her. I don’t know what you think we’re doing, but …"
“2. Shut up, Pinkie. We already interrogated T-Bone an’ he told us everythin’ we need to know. This is for Twilight to do. You just stand still or Ah’ll blow yer legs off. Twi, you best get movin’.”
Twilight was shaking with fear, but when Big Mac moved a little closer with his large gun, her legs broke their suspension and she stepped towards the kitchen, pulling two chairs with her magic into the den.
“Good, Twilight. Now … tie them up nice an’ tight. Don’t half ass it, or else.” Applejack watched as Twilight obeyed her orders. She enjoyed the look of panic and quirky way Twilight moved. She was afraid. That was good. If she was frightened, she was more likely to take orders.
***
Twilight was scared. She didn’t understand the depth to which Applejack’s evil could go and she feared Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy would be killed. She had tied Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy to kitchen chairs, their forehooves tied behind the backs of the chairs, and they sat on their rumps in an uncomfortable position. Twilight shook nervously and looked sadly to her friends. Her mind just kept repeating that Spike had been right. She should have left with him. At least he had gotten away. “Please, AJ. We’re friends. Please don’t hurt them.”
Applejack had lowered her gun from Pinkie’s face and talked calmly, in control. She glowered at Twilight and scoffed, “These buckers have been takin’ from mah family. They called me their friend and stabbed me in the back. They don’t deserve any pity, Twilight. Don’t you lower yerself to plead for 'em. Ah’m testin’ ya right now, Twi. Ah have to know Ah can trust ya. Now, you were spendin’ a lot of time with these two. How do Ah know y’all weren’t working together? Ah don’t. If y’aint helpin’ me, yer helpin’ them.” Applejack’s words were stern but calm. She had planned all of this out. She cocked her head to the sounds of slamming doors and the violent searching Big Macintosh and JackSlap were busy conducting. They were searching for any proof that the party mare had been making or selling the pink cakes. “Y’all find anythin’ yet?”
“Not yet, boss. If it’s here, we’ll find it,” JackSlap called from the bedroom as another loud cracking noise resounded.
“Ah thought we were friends, Pinkie Pie? How could you do this?” Applejack moved before the restrained earth pony.
Pinkie had a few streaks where tears had escaped her eyes. She looked sadly to Applejack and silently hoped the stallions would somehow miss her saddlebags between the couch and the wall. She only needed tonight before this nightmare would end. She turned her head to her pegasus friend and saw the terror in her expression. Shy was panicking. Their lives were in terrible danger, but they weren’t over yet. “It’s okay, Flutters. It’s a mistake … Once they see we’re innocent, they’ll leave us alone, right Applejack?” Her voice sounded hopeful but scared.
Applejack wanted to believe Pinkie Pie. She really did. If they didn’t find anything, she would scare her but wouldn’t kill her. Secretly the cow-mare hoped her enforcers would come up empty hooved. “Ah’m not making any promises, Pinkie. If ya want leniency why not just tell me where the drugs are?”
Twilight began to cry and moved toward Applejack. “Please … I’ve been here so many times. I haven’t ever seen anything. You’re scaring me. You’re scaring them. There’s nothing here.”
“Twilight, Ah want to believe that. Don’t you get it? Of course not … If they are tellin’ the truth. If they ain’t been making drugs and cuttin’ into my business then Ah’m in the wrong and everything will be fine. If they’re lyin’ to me Ah’ll look weak lettin’ ‘em go. If Ah look weak another gang will come to Sweet Apple Acres an’ burn it down! Ah know you believe in the magic of friendship but there ain’t no friendship in Ponyville anymore. There’s only business. It’s dog eat dog an’ this dog is at the top of the heap right now. My family can’t afford to look weak. Ah ain’t losin’ anymore of mah family, Twilight.” Applejack’s expression looked a little sad for a moment and then it turned hard again. She stared Twilight down. “This ain’t Canterlot, Twi. Nopony gives a buck about us. We have ta take care of ourselves.”
Fluttershy squeaked, tears running down her face. Applejack had said she would be lenient if they told her about the drugs. She didn’t want to see Pinkie hurt. She decided to try and reason with Applejack.”App-Applejack. Will you let us go if I tell you …”
“Fluttershy! No! Be quiet!” Pinkie turned her head to face Shy again. She knew it was a trick. She didn’t want Fluttershy to reveal anything. If they didn’t find proof they would leave them alone most likely. If Shy told Applejack about the saddlebags, it would doom the two of them. Applejack would have no mercy.
“Pinkie, keep your tongue still or Ah’ll cut it out and feed it to ya.” Applejack moved over to look into Fluttershy’s eyes. “What, Shy? Did you want to tell me where the drugs are?”
Shy was scared to death. She had feared this day would come since she moved in with Pinkie Pie. All she wanted was to be allowed to move away with Pinkie and to have a life with her. “Will you let us go if I tell you?”
“Shy! No!” Pinkie was quickly silenced by a hard backhoof from Applejack. Twilight gasped.
“Don’t hurt her, Applejack,” Fluttershy cried softly and sobbed as Pinkie’s mouth dribbled blood. “She didn’t want to hurt you. She just wanted to make enough money for us to be able to be happy. She didn’t want to make them … She had to so we could start this business. Please don’t hit her again. We’re supposed to leave for Canterlot tonight. We’ll never come back. Please … The drugs and equipment are in her saddlebags behind the couch. We … we were going to sell them to Golden Harvest for the last bits we needed to move to Canterlot.” Fluttershy cried hard, but she hoped Applejack would be reasonable now.
Big Macintosh heard the whole confession and quickly moved to the couch, checking behind it and pulling the larger saddlebags from their hiding spot. He looked at AJ and opened one side, dumping more than a dozen little pink cakes onto the floor. He looked up angrily and nodded. “Eeyup.”
JackSlap came from the bedroom, just beside Big Mac and smirked at all the Pink Dreamz lying on the floor. “So, I guess we get to go to work on them now, boss?”
Pinkie looked pitifully at Fluttershy. She was certain their lives were going to end painfully now. Try as she might, she couldn’t be angry with her friend. Shy was only trying to help them, but had doomed them instead. She trusted too easily.
Twilight held her breath and waited to hear Applejack’s answer. She assumed that any kind of work JackSlap wanted to do would be violent and cruel.
“No … Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy,” Applejack’s voice was serious and cold. She meant business. This was important, her heart ached from losing Dash and her softer side was still dominating her emotions. She knew she couldn’t be an effective leader in such a state. She needed to get back to business. She had to stop letting her feelings control her thoughts. She could tell them to get on their train and leave forever, but that would show her frailty to her brother and her enforcer. Word would get out. The gangs would see her as ripe for the plucking and they would come. She knew they would come. They would kill her family and rape her younger sister. They would use her as well and kill her after tormenting her with the sight of seeing her family and home destroyed. She had prevented Sweet Apple Acres' destruction once and she knew she was the only one who could do it again. This choice was hers, but was it worth risking her family and home to let two friends who had betrayed her go free?
Big Macintosh saw the struggle in Applejack’s eyes and wondered what she was thinking. JackSlap was all too right. AJ wasn’t the firm leader she had been a few months ago. Something had softened her or made her somewhat crazy. He feared for the Family and feared for his sister. They all needed her to be strong. He eagerly awaited her decision, but he planned on making sure these two didn’t escape no matter what she chose.
“Jackslap … They need to be taught a lesson. Do what you want, but hurry. Ah want ta go home.” The monster inside of Applejack reared its ugly head and began consuming the softness that had filled her heart for the last week. It ate her love for Rainbow Dash and filled the mare with cold, hard feelings. She would be capable of making the hard decisions again.
“NO! Applejack, they were leaving anyway! Just let them go. Nopony will ever know what happened! Don’t hurt them, please!” Twilight begged the orange earth pony as JackSlap cut the bindings from Pinkie Pie and pushed his gun to her head.
“Now I’m finally going to have at that round fat ass, giggles. Let’s see how much you laugh about that.” JackSlap was crude and cruel. He heard Pinkie begin pleading for mercy, but he had none to give.
“JackSlap. Yer not gonna do that to her. Y’all know how I feel about that.” Applejack did not like rape. It was something she rarely let her enforcers do as a punishment. Sometimes the act could break a pony for information but even then, she despised it. Pinkie and Shy needed to be examples, but they were not going to be subjected to that kind of action. She wanted to be finished with this business and return home. JackSlap having his "fun" would only draw things out.
“But Boss, she …”
“Ah said no!”
Fluttershy had begun to beg Applejack, pleading with her for mercy. She tried to hold her to the leniency she had promised, but Applejack pushed her words away. She had heard it all before. She focused on Twilight. “Twilight! Shut up! Y’all are the only pony outside of the Family Ah trust. Ya better get used to this kind of stuff right quick. Yer part of us now.” Applejack allowed for no objection, but Twilight objected anyway.
“I don’t want to be your friend if this is what you do to them! You are just going to let this maniac kill them?” Twilight’s eyes streamed tears and she just could not believe her friend was this cruel.
“Twilight, Ah’m doin’ this to protect mah family. I know this is hard for ya, bein’ from Canterlot and all, but if not for me ya would have been killed. Ah let ya stay in mah home and let ya study the friendships of others ta find out if Ah could trust ya. Ah can’t let ya go. Ah never could. Yer here for the rest of yer life. It could be a long time or it could end right now, but one way or another yer here for good. Now choose.” Applejack pointed her gun directly at Twilight’s head once more, ready to end her life right then if she chose it.
Twilight heard Pinkie’s cry as JackSlap slapped her roughly, wanting to take her dignity and angry at being denied. She felt the terror washing over her. She didn’t want to die. Her life was going to be big. She looked to the floor and thought for a moment. If she could just figure out the magic of friendship, she could change everything. That was it! She would have to bide her time. She would buy herself enough time to master the friendship magic she had begun to unfurl and she could change everything! She looked over to see JackSlap landing a blow on Pinkie with a sickening thump. Pinkie cried out and bled from her cheek from the gash he had opened. Twilight refocused her thoughts. Others had endured terrible trials in order to pursue their magical discoveries and she would be no different. She would survive this dark time of her life and discover what she needed to for her assignment. It was more than an assignment now; it was a necessity. This town needed Twilight’s help and she would persevere and save them all. She couldn’t die now. Slowly she looked back up to Applejack, staring at the gun. “Don’t shoot, Applejack.”
Applejack nodded, a small smirk on her face. She would post a guard to watch the mare in case she tried to sneak away, but she thought Twilight would stay. If not for sure now, in a few moments she would seal Twilight to her and make damn sure that the mare didn’t have the guts to tell Celestia what she had taken part in. “Good. Let the boys work here. You and I will wait outside.”
Applejack led Twilight outside and Big Macintosh walked up to Fluttershy. He grinned down at the helpless mare, taking great pleasure in her fear and tears. He brought his heavy hoof down to smash into her muzzle, exploding blood from it as she shouted in pain.
JackSlap watched his boss exit and waited until he was certain she wouldn’t return back inside. He smirked and cut the pink pony free, ordering her to lie on her forelegs and keep her rump in the air. “Mac, I know the boss said not to, but I’m taking this bitch. She bucking deserves it for all the dumb crap I had to hear her talk about every single day while Twilight visited her.”
Big Mac usually didn’t disobey his sister, but he believed in breaking those who dared rise against his family. If JackSlap wanted to take pleasure out of the mare while making her last moments a nightmare, Mac was fine with it.
Pinkie reeled and spit a wad of bloody saliva into JackSlap’s face, streaking it with filth. “Buck you!” She was repulsed by the thought of the nasty green pony taking her. She bared her teeth at him and earned another hard punch. She saw stars and nearly went unconscious. JackSlap easily turned her about the way he wanted and mounted her before the world stopped rotating around her.
“You love that, don’t you bitch? I know you have wanted it for so long. It’s okay. You are getting it now,” JackSlap whispered into Pinkie’s ear as he ground into her body. Pinkie groaned as she was held down and taken advantage of by JackSlap. Her body hurt from the forced entry and she screamed loudly, but it wasn’t until she heard Fluttershy being pummeled that she fought back with all her strength. She had to save her friend. If one of them was going to survive it, would be Flutters. She didn’t deserve any of this. It wasn’t Shy who made the drugs.
Pinkie looked for an opportunity and grudgingly accepted what JackSlap was doing to her in the meantime. She hoped he would make a mistake and he eventually did. JackSlap had her forelegs spread out before her and was watching them closely for signs of struggle, but not her back legs. She saw her moment and kicked with her rear legs, catching JackSlap at a weird angle and causing him to slip out and away from her. He had been so caught up in whispering disgusting things in her ear that he felt he had completely dominated her. But, Pinkie proved him wrong as he crashed hard against the wall behind him, his gun falling to the floor a few feet away from him.
Pinkie leapt for the gun and quickly fit her hoof into the specially designed harness; the slightest twitch of the right muscle and the gun would fire. She aimed it at the large red stallion beating up on Fluttershy. “Stop hitting her!” Her eyes were fire and she had nothing to lose. She would have already filled him full of holes, but that would bring Applejack back into the building. She needed Fluttershy free of her bonds before she could attract any more attention. They might still be able to leave. Her body ached and she shook from the violation the nasty green pony had forced onto her, but she was still alive for the moment.
Big Macintosh turned to see the pink mare holding a gun right at him. He growled angrily, but stepped away from the pegasus, revealing her bloody head rolling back and forth and simpering in pain.
Pinkie’s heart ached and she nearly fired the gun as she saw the mess Fluttershy’s face had become. The stallion had only gotten in a few good strikes, but it had split Shy’s poor face in several places and she was bleeding badly, only dimly aware of her surroundings. "Cut her loose, you monster! Cut her loose or I’ll fill you full of holes!”
Big Mac saw JackSlap stirring and moving to tackle the pink pony. Mac pulled his knife from his bags and bought Jack time to act. He began cutting the ropes that held the pegasus.
Pinkie shook and tears dripped down her cheeks. “You hurt her again and you're finished, Macintosh. Don’t you dare touch her!” Pinkie watched as the ropes began to loosen and fall away from her captive friend. Her mind raced and she tried to think of a way out of this predicament. She barely caught the motion from her right as JackSlap lunged with a blade in his mouth, aiming to slash into Pinkie’s stomach.
The party pony’s hyperactivity helped her jump back from the attack, firing the gun at JackSlap but missing. She rolled and brought the gun up again, but JackSlap had managed to scramble away and another gun went off loudly.
In the moment Pinkie had taken her attention from Big Mac, he had slipped his gun back around his hoof and fired the heavy gun directly into the Pink mare’s abdomen, causing her to fall to the floor
Pinkie Pie’s hip felt as if it had burst into a gout of flame. The shock from the large bullet racked her body. She cried out, but fired back towards Big Macintosh, her vision blurred from the screaming in her hip. It felt as if a cannon ball was lodged inside of her tummy. She fired several shots with her gun, aiming away from Fluttershy, but desperate to drive the stallions away.
JackSlap ducked and scrambled for the door. He felt the wind from one of the bullets as it streaked by his head. He kicked the front door open and dove into the street, coming to a rest before his boss’ hooves.
***
Applejack growled and opened her saddlebag. She had brought something special for this. She meant to make this look like an accident if she could. She grumbled and kicked JackSlap away from her. “Mac better be okay, JackSlap. If you abandoned him in there and he gets hurt y’all are gonna regret it.”
***
Big Macintosh let his magnum revolver belch bullets again. Pinkie had rolled away from his direct sight, but he kept her pinned down as he backed towards the exit. They could always pick them off when they tried to escape the house, plus he knew he had scored a hit on the mare. She wouldn’t last very long with one of his .357 rounds buried in her guts. She would be easy to pick off if she tried to escape. Not that it was likely to come to that—he knew what Applejack had brought with her and just needed to get outside.
Big Mac quickly turned and ran for the door; another shot went off behind him just as he cleared the threshold. It had been another miss and he was grateful for it. Now the fun would really begin.
***
Big Macintosh ran to the others and stopped, turning with his gun ready if the mare somehow followed him. “Got her in the belly, AJ. She won’t last long.”
Twilight lowered her head and cried, “Did this have to happen?”
Applejack smirked at Twilight. “Yes. It did. We can’t let anypony try an’ walk over the Apples. Keep that gun on the door, Mac. Let me get this thing ready.”
Applejack shoved the strip of cloth down the neck of the bottle of whiskey and watched as the brown liquid soaked into the cloth.
***
Pinkie Pie dragged herself with her front legs. Her back legs barely moved from the gunshot in her tummy. She howled in agony as she pulled herself towards Fluttershy, still loosely bound to the chair, but coming out of her stupor.
“Pink … Pinkie …” her voice was weak and her head felt unnaturally heavy as the fog slipped away.
“I’m coming, Shy. You’ll be all right. We’ll still get out of this. We’re not finished yet.” The crawl was arduous and painful; Pinkie left long streaks of blood from her wound as she made the last few feet. She hurt so badly. Applejack had tricked Shy into telling her about the drugs. If Shy could have kept quiet, they might have gotten out of this intact. She couldn’t blame her weak-willed friend, though. She was doing what she thought was best for them. Pinkie breathed heavily and tugged at the ropes still holding Shy to the chair, many were cut but most were still keeping the mare strapped down.
“Pinkie… Are you okay?” Shy’s voice gathered a little more strength as she returned fully to her surroundings and looked down to the crawling pink pony. She saw the bloody trail of her crawl and gaping hole in her back. The pegasus gasped, tears streaming from her eyes. “You’re hurt, Pinkie.”
“I’ll be okay. We have to get you free. We don’t have much time.” Pinkie tugged at the ropes and then something caught her eye lying within reach, a knife. Mac must have dropped it when he went for his gun. A small hopeful smile crept along Pinkie’s lips and she pulled the blade to her mouth and began slicing at the ropes. She had to hurry. It wouldn’t be long before Applejack tried something else. They might be able to escape out of the back door if they hurried.
***
“Finished.” Applejack grinned at the Molohoov cocktail she had put together and fished for her matches, pulling them out with her teeth and using her hooves to open the sliding compartment. She plucked one from the box and struck it along the side, a sudden sniff of sulfur and a reddish ignition left a slender yellow flame burning at the end of the thin stick match. She touched the cloth hanging from the bottle and waited until it caught fire before tossing the match. The Apple mare smirked and looked to Twilight. The unicorn was shaking visibly and had been pushed to a point she had never experienced before. She still had one more duty to perform this night. “Twilight, pick it up with your magic.”
Twilight was jarred from her thoughts and she turned to face Applejack, her expression one of fear and uncertainty. “What?” Her voice trembled on the night air as she spoke.
“Pick up the firebomb with your magic,” Applejack replied curtly.
Twilight looked down at the flaming bottle of alcohol and surrounded it with her magic, her horn encased in purplish magical glow. She lifted the bottle a few feet away from them, afraid it would blow up at any second. “Okay …”
“Throw it into Sugar Cube Corner.”
“What? No … I can’t, Applejack. I can’t do that.” Twilight couldn’t think of burning down a building, let alone a building with a pair of her friends inside of it.
“Twilight. This is yer test. If you do it Ah’ll take care of ya, an' make ya a real member of the Apple Family. If ya don’t do it ah’m gonna shoot ya in the head and throw it in mahself. Ah don’t want ta have to hurt ya. Ah’ve lost enough friends for one day, but Ah will if ya don’t do it.” Applejack slipped her hoofgun on once more and hefted it between herself and the unicorn.
Twilight sadly looked at the bottle floating before her. Many sacrifices had been made in the past for the pursuit of magic. She could only hope that it would all be worth it in the end. She sighed and gave a sad look as she brought the bottle over the group, gaining momentum for her toss. “I’m sorry, Pinkie. I’m sorry, Fluttershy.”
The bottle soared through the air with a wafting hiss and smashed on its flight of destruction through a window on the front of Sugar Cube Corner.
***
Pinkie had just about finished slicing the ropes when the window broke apart and a sudden explosion went off directly behind Fluttershy. A rush of heat stole Pinkie’s breath and she cried out. She heard the roar of the flames as the blazing liquid spread rapidly across the floor and across Fluttershy’s back.
Fluttershy howled as the flames engulfed her from behind. She struggled in her chair and thrashed wildly, knocking the chair and herself over. She found herself eye to eye with Pinkie Pie. Her back and legs were alight and she screamed wildly for help. “PINKIE! PLEASE! HELP ME! HELP ME!”
Pinkie panicked and dragged herself across her friend, beating at the flames with her hooves, her own coat smoldering and beginning to catch fire as well. The smell of Fluttershy’s scorching coat and skin filled her nostrils and she nearly vomited from the awful stench. “I’m trying, Shy! I’m trying!”
Fluttershy was in immense pain and the fire was spreading across the bakery. She screamed and tried to roll, but the ropes hadn’t burnt through just yet. She felt her skin melting and the fire caught her pink mane, setting it into a small inferno. She saw Pinkie fall away from her, beating at her own mane, trying to put it out with her hooves.
Even through her agony, Fluttershy knew that she wasn’t going to make it. Her life was over, but Pinkie might still get away. It was a long shot considering her nasty wound, but it was better than Shy’s chances. Tears filled her eyes and she screamed at Pinkie. “Save yourself! I’m gone, Pinkie! Get out! Get out! Please! Get out!”
Pinkie managed to extinguish her mane and Fluttershy’s screaming drew her attention back to the flaming pegasus. She wanted Pinkie to leave her, to try and escape on her own. Pinkie saw the raging fire around them and shook her head. “No! We’ll die together, Shy! I won’t leave you!”
The roar of the fire made it hard to hear, but Fluttershy knew what Pinkie had said. She tried to roll, but was still fastened to the piece of furniture. “Save yourself! You can make it! Do it for me! Please! Go! GO! GOOO!” The heat was too much to bear and Fluttershy’s skin pulled apart revealing the glistening flesh beneath. Her face’s skin pulled apart like plastic as well just as she went still, the flames riding atop her motionless form.
Pinkie screamed as Shy stopped moving. Her selfless friend had wanted her to try and escape. She didn’t think she had a chance, but she owed it to Shy to try. The fire was out of control and most of their home was blazing, but she might still make it to the back door if she hurried. The path wasn’t clear, but there was a path. She pulled herself along with her forelegs, dragging the rest of her body behind.
The pink party pony didn’t feel pain anymore; her adrenaline was killing anything that might distract her body from attempting to survive. Pinkie pulled her body along. She cleared the den and felt the warm tiles of the kitchen floor. The fire hadn’t touched much of the floor, but the walls and ceiling plumed in gouts of orange and yellow tongues. Smoke filled the air and, even though Pinkie was low to the ground, she still inhaled the thick, suffocating black fumes. Her lungs rejected the toxic smoke and she coughed almost constantly as she pulled herself along, still leaving thick red streaks of blood behind her.
Pinkie was almost at the back door that led from the kitchen. She was reaching the last few feet when a sudden sharp crack came from behind her. One of the beams that supported the roof had burned through and fallen into a smoldering mess, blocking the den completely, kicking up more noxious smoke, and obscuring the pained pink pony’s vision. She couldn’t help but breathe the toxic fumes deeply into her lungs and her body nearly passed out from the lack of oxygen. Somehow, she managed to stay conscious and placed one hoof in front of the other, straining her muscles for a few more inches.
The persistent pink pony reached up with one hoof and slapped at the door handle. She just had to pull it down and it would open into the back alley full of cool, clean air. Pinkie tried again and hooked her hoof in the bar of the handle. She tugged as hard as she could and felt the bolt click out of place. The door swung out, revealing the alleyway. Her lungs savored the first breath of clean air but, just as she placed her hoof to pull herself from the burning building, the roof of the kitchen completely collapsed, trapping Pinkie under roiling beams of flame. Before the darkness took her, she felt the flesh of her face and back melting from the intense heat. It was excruciating for only a moment before her eyes rolled in their sockets and the world went black.
***
In the front of Sugar Cube Corner, the Apples laughed and encouraged the fire with cheers. Applejack put a hoof around Twilight’s shoulder and grinned.
Twilight watched the roaring fire consume the building where her friends had lived. She knew she heard screaming coming from building as it was razed. They were the screams of her friends dying horribly. She had tossed that firebomb into her friends’ home and had given them what had to be one of the worst deaths she could imagine.
Twilight could only watch, stuck in place by sheer horror at what she had done. She barely flinched when Applejack placed her foreleg around her shoulder in a friendly manner. Tears rolled from her eyes and she felt sick when Applejack spoke her next words.
“Welcome to the Family, Twilight.”