Mecha limped through his front door to an interesting sight. Diable was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses, while packing his bags. Grabbing a pair of pants, he threw it in a suitcase while humming to himself. Slamming it shut, he picked up the suitcases before turning around, and walking straight into Mecha. Blinking, he took off his sunglasses, before staring straight into Mecha's eyes, before groaning out, “You're suppose to be dead!”
Raising an eyebrow, Mecha replied, “I was. For an entire 13.7 seconds. Then a lightning elemental brought me back to life.” At this point Mecha heard the sound of wolves howling, causing him to frown. “Hey, has Wolfgang been howling lately?”
Caught off guard, Diable replied, “That Sloth blessed timberwolf? Nah. Why you ask?”
Shaking his head, Mecha replied, “I've been hearing this howling lately... been driving me crazy.”
“Oh?” Diable inquired, raising an eyebrow. “Howling you say? How long have you been hearing these howls?”
Shrugging, Mecha replied, “Since I woke up after dieing. Why, you know something about it?”
Shaking his head, Diable replied, “Can't say I do.”
Sighing, Mecha said, “Well then, I better get to work,” as he walked out back.
An evil grin broke out on Diable's face, calling out, “Hey Wolfgang, you wanna watch Mecha get ambushed?”
Wolfgang walked out from behind the couch, and asked, “So you actually know what's going on?”
“Oh yeah,” Diable replied. “It's the demons who can't lie. I'm a devil, so...”
“You can lie to his face,” Wolfgang finished, a smirk spreading across his face. “You Fenrir forsaken devil you... whats going to happen?”
Chuckling, Diable replied, “Get some popcorn and I'll explain on the way...”
LINEBREAKER
Mecha frowned as he inspected the puzzle he'd made out of a lack of anything better to do. It wasn't the puzzle that was causing him to frown though- it was the fact that the howling was getting closer. Setting the puzzle down, Mecha looked out and saw something that made him pause. There, right in the entrance to his yard, was a dog. But not just any dog, this one was quite different. It lacked any fur, showing it's smooth red flesh, taut lean muscles clearly visible. Its four legs split halfway down to form eight paws, with two deadly claws jutting out from them. Its muzzle contained a mouth with deadly teeth, while it's crimson eyes glowed underneath the two horns that pointed back. A long strip of fire went from the back of its neck, down its spine, and ended as its tail.
Mecha slowly made his way to the sword rack, never taking his eyes off the creature as it stared straight into his soul, as if it was judging him. Grabbing a sword, Mecha got up on his hind legs as his mechanical leg shifted into another sword. Tensing up, Mecha kept his eyes firmly focused on the creature in front of him, preparing for any sudden movement.
Which was why he knew to step aside as another one of the creatures tried to maul him from behind, before he ducked as a third leapt from the side. Taking a look around him, Mecha grimaced as he counted at least ten of these hounds, with several more coming in from what he could see. “Great... couldn't they have waited for the platypus poison to flush from my system?”
LINEBREAKER
Cheerilee was walking through town when she spotted Mecha. A smile grace her face, before she noticed that he had his swords drawn... and was swinging at empty air. Walking closer, she noticed several ponies had also gathered round, and were all watching as Mecha ducked, weaved, and danced around invisible foes, a look of insanity in his eyes. “Mecha...” Cheerilee tried to speak, before he flipped above her, using the tree behind her as a springboard in an attempt to skewer... something.
At this point, she heard Diable and Wolfgang laughing, each snacking on a bucket of popcorn. “I can't believe this!” Wolfgang snickered, before continuing, “they're not even trying to help him!”
“Yeah!” Diable replied, shoveling down more popcorn. “I thought they were all about working together, friendship, and all that other Lust forsaken crap!”
Cheerilee was intrigued, and so she went up and asked, “What are you two talking about?”
“The fact that no-pony is helping Mecha deal with those hellhounds!” Diable replied, laughing as Mecha contorted himself into an uncomfortable position, pain visible as the small amount of poison still in his system acted up.
“Hellhounds?” Cheerilee inquired, eyebrow raised. “You mean there's something there, and he hasn't snapped and gone crazy?”
Diable and Wolfgang gave each other a look, before they fell down laughing, holding their sides. “You... you have to be kidding me!” Diable hollered. “They can't see them!”
“Fenrir's fangs!” Wolfgang replied, “No wonder they aren't helping him!”
Frowning, Cheerilee heard the crowd gasp as a small gash appeared on Mecha's chest, before he swung one of his blades, and caused the... air... to bleed. Licking her lips, Cheerilee tried to recall the brief lesson that Mecha had given her about channeling her innate magic, before focusing it into her eyes. With the white of her eyes turning a faint purple, she let out a gasp.
The townsfolk turned to see Cheerilee with her purple eyes, before she turned around, shouting, “Somepony find Twilight Sparkle!”
LINEBREAKER
Mecha was beginning to sweat, as he dodged yet another attempt to rip his head off from a hellhound. With a quick snap, one of his blades sliced into one of the hellhounds, slicing one of it's legs clean off, causing the crowd around him to gasp when it suddenly became visible to them. “Wrath's dagger...” Mecha muttered to himself, twisting himself and cutting into another hellhound. “How come they can't see anything until AFTER the blasted things are injured...”
Bending backwards, Mecha flinched as a wave of pain shot up his leg. He'd probably would've finished these Sloth forsaken things off already if it wasn't for his leg. As it was, he was having trouble pulling off some of his more agile moves due to the pain it caused him. At this point, Cheerilee showed up with Twilight, both of their eyes glowing with magic. A smirk grew on Mecha's face, as he continued to weave in and out of the hounds, before a bolt of magic from Twilight blasted one into another.
Taking advantage of this, Mecha leapt forward and slashed their heads off, before being force to twist out of the way again, avoiding a fatal hit at the cost of a gash along his side. Smirk growing, Mecha slowly began to dispatch the rest of them with Twilight's aid, up until...
“Gah!” Mecha grunted, as one of the hounds managed to get past his guard and slash his right eye. Lodging his blade into it's chest, he flung the newly minted corpse at another, sending it into a blast of magic sent by Twilight. Turning around, Mecha spotted the last hellhound, tail between it's leg, before it turned around and ran.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Mecha collapsed unto the ground, dropping his sword while his leg shifted back into its normal form. The ponies that had gathered round rushed forward, all trying to make sure he was alright. They where pushed to the side by Cheerilee, who pulled him into a hug, and asked, “Are you okay?”
Chuckling, Mecha replied, “I'll let the doc be the judge of that.”
“Good call,” said Doctor Stable from nearby. “If you'd let me take a quick glance...?”
Snorting, Mecha replied, “All I've got is a couple of gashes. How's the eye doc?”
Walking forward, Doctor Stable winced, before replying, “Not good. Won't be able to salvage it...”
Sighing, Mecha got up and walked up to the corpse of the hellhound that had taken his eye, before kicking it. Blasted thing had taken his eye, and he couldn't do the same to it now that it was dead... or could he? Frowning in concentration, Mecha leaned over the corpse for a minute or two, before walking back over to Doctor Stable. Handing him the eye he'd removed from the corpse, Mecha asked, “Would it be possible to use this as a transplant?”
Doctor Stable looked at the eye in Mecha's hoof, before replying, “It'd be possible, but...”
“But nothing,” Mecha cut him off. “That Envy forsaken thing took my eye, now I'm taking its eye for payment.”
Glancing between the eye and Mecha, Doctor Stable sighed, before saying, “Fine. Bring it with you and we'll see to getting that thing transplanted into your socket.”
LINEBREAKER
A few hours later, and Mecha was sitting in his bed with some bandages over his eye. Standing next his bed was Cheerilee and Sugary Spice, his aunt busy with dealing with the hellhound corpses he'd left laying around in town square.
“So... you were fighting these Wrath forsaken hellhounds... and no-pony was helping you?” Sugary Spice asked.
“Eeyup. Couldn't see them, so how could they help?” Mecha replied.
“But Twilight helped you! Why didn't they do what she did and helped you?” Sugary Spice rebutted.
“Because Mecha here has only taught Twilight, Big Macintosh, and myself how to do so,” Cheerilee said, making her eyes flash a light purple to prove her point.
“Oh...” Sugary Spice said, staring off in the distance. “Can I learn how to do that!”
Chuckling, Mecha replied with, “Sure, how about this weekend!”
“Yay!” Sugary Spice squealed, as Doctor Stable walked in.
Wincing lightly, Doctor Stable set some paint next to the currently unfinished mural, muttering to himself, “We'll end up painting the whole hospital at this rate...” before turning to face Mecha. “Right then, please feel free to take off those bandages.”
With a nod, Mecha did so, revealing... that not much had changed besides the fact that his new eye was a shade of red off from his old one. “Works great!” Mecha replied, looking around the room slowly.
“Uh-huh...” Doctor Stable replied, writing down on his clipboard. “Now, I understand you normally channel magic into your eyes at some point during the week, would you please do so now?”
Shrugging, Mecha did so, causing Cheerilee and Sugary Spice to gasp. Doctor Stable merely nodded his head, before writing something down. “That would be the hellhound magic reacting with yours... going to do that from now on.”
“Do what?” Mecha asked, as he looked towards Cheerilee.
“Um... Mecha... it looks like your eye is on fire...” Cheerilee said.
“Really? That's...” Mecha stopped as he spotted something in the corner.
Glancing at the corner Mecha was staring at, Cheerilee saw nothing, causing her to frown. Channeling some magic into eyes again, Cheerilee still saw nothing, and asked, “Mecha, what are you staring at?”
Mecha shook his head, and stopped the magical flow to his eyes. “Nothing... just surprised at how a hellhound sees things...”
Frowning lightly, Cheerilee replied, “Okay...”
Snorting, Doctor Stable interrupted, saying, “I have one final piece of news before you leave Mecha. Due to the procedure we had to use to get the transplant to stick, it will be what is re-grown instead of your normal eye should you use the re-growth procedure.”
This bit of news caused Mecha to blink, before asking, “Re-growth procedure?” Seeing Doctor Stable nod his head, Mecha face-hoofed, saying, “I could've had my eye re-grown...”
LINEBREAKER
Mecha walked into an empty room with no windows, and locked the door behind him. Walking to the opposite wall, he leaned against it, and slowly slid down until he was sitting on the floor. Channeling magic into his eyes, a ghostly fire appeared over his left eye as he looked at the two figures in front of him.
The mare on the right had a golden fur coat and a yellow mane and tail, with her Cutie Mark of a golden delicious apple on her flank. The stallion on the left had a light green coat, a reddish mane and tail, and a Cutie Mark of an apple tree on his flank. These two were Golden Delicious and Honey Crisp- or as Mecha knew them, Big Macintosh's parent.
Taking a deep breath, Mecha said, “I never expected to see you two again.”
Honey Crisp smiled, before saying, “Ah reckon we didn't expect to be seen again either.”
“Yeah... especially sense you two are dead,” Mecha added, trying not to shake.
“Yet here we are,” Golden Delicious said, waving her hoof around the room, “Us talking and you listening...”
“Is there... any particular reason you've stuck around?” Mecha asked, voice slightly shaking. After all, the last time he'd seen these two, they were cold bodies being buried.
Shrugging, Honey Crisp replied, “Not really... we have no regrets, no unfinished business... none of the usual motives for spirits sticking around...”
“Unless you count wanting to watch our children growing up in person a reason,” Golden cut in.
“Yeah... I could see that...” Mecha said, beginning to steady his nerves. “So that's all you two are doing? Watching Applebloom grow up?”
“With the occasional peak into Big Macintosh's and Applejack's lives, yeah,” Honey Crisp replied. “Have to admit, we were suprized when the two went and got marefriends...”
“Yeah, we honestly figured they'd never leave the farm!” Golden tacked on.
Blinking, Mecha shook his head, muttering to himself, “Need to add cooler to the panic room... Need the alcohol on hoof next time I use this room,” before speaking up and saying, “I take it I shouldn't mention this to them?”
“Please don't,” Golden said, emotion flickering through her eyes. “They've gotten over our deaths... we don't want them to go through that again.”
“But there is something you could do for us...” Honey Crisp said, before whispering something into Mecha's ear.
Eyes widening, Mecha nodded his head, before cutting of the flow of magic to his eyes. The ethereal flame around his left eye went out, as the couple faded from Mecha's view. Unlocking the door to his panic room, Mecha stepped out side, and made his way to the Everfree forest.
LINEBREAKER
Mecha followed the directions that Honey Crisp had given him, and came across the trap door he'd been told about. Propping it open, Mecha leapt down into the dark room, before switching on the lights. Just as he'd been told, there was a moonshine facility down here, all illegal. Shaking his head, Mecha started to walk through the facility, thinking to himself. Normally the Apple family would have nothing to do with anything illegal, but then again, the moonshine that the Apple family produced wasn't always illegal. It was just shortly after he and Big Macintosh were born that it was declared a banned substance, but the Apple family couldn't bare to destroy it's facility- too much family tradition locked up in here.
Finding what he came here for, Mecha picked up the recipe for the illegal brew, reading it over. With a nod of his head, he put the recipe into his leg, before making his way out. He knew that Big Macintosh would never approve using an illegal recipe, but that doesn't mean he couldn't convince him to brew it once to have Luna make it legal again, right?
LINEBREAKER
“No.” Apparently not. “Ah won't have anything to do with anything illegal,” Big Macintosh said.
Sighing, Mecha asked, “Even if it was to try and legalize said action?”
“Eeyup,” Big Macintosh replied, nodding his head. “And either way, we couldn't do it. Granny Smith doesn't remember the recipe, and mah parents were the last to know where it was kept. So unless you have a way to speak with the dead, it isn't possible.”
Mecha flinched when Big Macintosh mentioned speaking to the dead, before deciding a small lie couldn't hurt here. “Not needed,” Mecha replied, “Since I found the location.”
“Really now?” Big Macintosh asked, skeptism dripping from his tone. “You found the top secret, impossibly hidden, Apple family moonshine facility? The one ah looked for for months after my ma and pa died?”
Mecha flinched again, before nodding his head. “Went to blow up some trees in the Everfree forest,” he started, “and kicked a metal hatch on my way out. Opened the thing up, and had a look inside. The recipe was in there.”
Big Macintosh gave Mecha a stern look, and said, “You're keeping something from me.”
Looking Big Macintosh in the eyes, Mecha let out a sigh, and replied, “Yes, I am. But only because I was asked not to tell you. And honestly? I don't want to think about how you'd react to it.”
Big Macintosh continued to glare at Mecha, before letting out a sigh and sagging to the ground. Watching as Mecha sat down as well, he said, “Ah still say no. Until it's legal to do so, ah won't brew the Apple family moonshine.”
Nodding his head, Mecha took out a blank sheet of paper and a pen, and started to write a letter to Luna. If anypony could be convince to legalize this stuff, it'd be her. After all, she drinks the weaker stuff by that gallon!
LINEBREAKER
Mecha stood with a letter to Big Macintosh in his hooves, passing it to Applejack. “Why is mah brother gettin' mail from princess Luna?” Applejack asked.
“Because it's an answer to a request of his,” Mecha said.
“What in tar nation did he request?” Applejack asked.
Mecha shrugged, before replying, “Ask him.”
Eying Mecha, Applejack said, “You're keeping something from me...”
Laughing, Mecha retaliated with, “And while you're asking Big M about that letter, tell him he owes me three bits!”
LINEBREAKER
“So?” Mecha asked, when Big Macintosh approached him at his shop later that day.
“Ah've got permission to brew a test sample,” Big Macintosh replied, “Which ah don't recall asking for.”
Mecha smirked, before turning his OPEN sign to CLOSED, and said, “Well, does it matter? You have permission to make a legal batch of your family's moonshine. You up for it?”
Taking in a deep breath, Big Macintosh said, “Ah should be pissed off about you going behind mah back about this. Ah should be yellin' and screamin' at ya for this. Yet I'll calm. Ah have to ask this, why?”
Guiding his friend to the facility in the Everfree Forest, Mecha replied, “Because it's part of your family's history, and a part you might get back. Now then, let's get to work!”
LINEBREAKER
Mecha and Big Macintosh were both covered in grime, sweat, and soot as they stood next to a barrel of moonshine they'd spent the night working on. The whole town had gathered up in town square, hoping to catch sight of the princesses, who had announced their unexpected visit for today. Many of them gave Mecha and Big Macintosh inquiring looks, which they just ignored. Standing next to them was a smiling Granny Smith and curious Applebloom, while Applejack was explaining what was in the barrel to her friends.
All went silent as the princesses arrived, their chariots landing and coming to a halt near Mecha and Big Macintosh. Stepping forewords, the princesses looked the two directly in the eyes, before they offered quick, yet courteous, bows. “It's not every day that somepony tries and challenges a law,” Celestia said, “Let alone one as young as the one you're challenging today.”
“That is because there is almost never a law designed to harm a family that gets passed,” Mecha replied.
“You claim that this law harms only a single family?” Luna inquired.
“Yes,” Mecha said, “For it only effects the Apple family.”
“Explain,” Celestia ordered, no mirth visible in her eyes.
“If you'll notice, the law went into effect several years ago, about the time when Dandelion Wine and Co set up shop,” Mecha started, presenting a copy of the law. “This company produced two things- a simple wine from dandelions, and a terrible tasting beer. Their wine sold well enough, but they couldn't make any money off their beer because everypony was buying Apple family moonshine instead. Infuriated, the company's owner, a noble by the name of Fancy Smancy,” Mecha spat out the name, “Decided to do something about it. Doing a little research, they found out that Apple family moonshine was about ten times stronger than their drinks alcohol wise, and concocted a plan. They developed some false data, which I can prove,” Mecha said, handing out several statistic sheets used in the laws proposal, each highlighted with various discrepancies. Giving them a moment to look through it, Mecha continued, “Which stated that the levels of alcohol exceeding their brews caused extreme cases of drunken behavior, which created a rise in crime.”
“This convinced the rest of the nobles to pass the law, forcing the Apple family to stop making their brew, cutting off an important source of income. As it is now, the only reason the Apple family can stay afloat is Cider season, a season that is highly irregular, and is heavily dependent on being able to work near-continuously during its time,” Mecha finished.
Glancing through the papers Mecha had presented, Celestia said, “Very well. We shall see about getting this fixed when we get back home. But until then, would you like to explain why you brought us out here?”
“Simple,” Mecha said, before popping the lid of the barrel off, “I figured you like to taste some of the finest moonshine available to Equestria, as well as the first legal batch in years.”
“Don't mind if I do!” Luna quickly replied, rushing forward and sticking her head in the barrel, downing most of it in one go. Pulling her head out, she sat down and sighed, saying, “That... that is some good... good... what was I saying?”
Everypony laughed, as Mecha rolled out several more barrels, saying, “Don't be shy, drink up everypony!”
While everypony lined up to get a sample, Granny Smith smiled and said, “You told him where to find the recipe, didn't you son?”
And behind her, Golden Delicious and Honey Crisp smiled.