//------------------------------// // Thursday, November 16: Part 1 - Changelings 1 // Story: Oncoming Storm // by Elusive Phoenix //------------------------------// Applejack stood by the shiny metal railings of the train-tracks, tapping her hoof impatiently on the wooden platform of the station's platform. She tilted her hat forward slightly with a hoof, blocking the sun’s burning rays from blinding the orange farm-pony. She shook her head a little to move a stray string of hair. Her bands kept the rest of her mane and tail together and gave her the signature look she always had. They also normally kept her mane out of her eyes. The sun scorched her coat, causing her to glow brightly, as well as sweat heavily. She glanced down the steel tracks, tilting her hat with her to keep blocking the sun. The train was obviously late, as she’d been waiting for half an hour, standing in the heat of the sun. One more reason for the train to come than just take her to Appleloosa: to get her out of this scorching pit. Her lip itched slightly so she bit it with her teeth, in alternative to using her hooves. It dispelled the itch, but the flavor of salty sweat filled her senses. She rubbed her tongue on the roof of her mouth, hoping to remove the horrible taste. The attempt failed, and the taste of salty sweat held its place on her taste buds. Applejack was reminded of her father again. She remembered how he rarely ever put salt in or on anything, purely so he wouldn't end up like other ponies. Some ponies enjoyed salt as an extra ingredient of flavor to some food and drinks, like Applejack and her father. But to others it was like a drug: irresistible and delicious. Personally, Applejack didn't like more than a few grains of salt in anything. Its flavor seemed too strong for her tastes. She spit out a glob of saliva onto the nearby dirt, removing the flavor from her mouth. She peeked down the track once more; this time noticing a small glowing dot in the distance. Either she was going blind, or the train was finally here. Applejack sighed in relief, happy that her rescue had come to take her away from the invisible flames of the light. As the train pulled up, a crowd of ponies shuffled out of the doors. An unusual amount to be visiting Ponyville, but it might be because of the Harvest Celebration. The Harvest Celebration was created to, well, celebrate the, uh, harvest. By... eating all of your food. Originally, it was invented as less of a celebration and more of a marking of Winter's introduction. Back then, ponies suffered from food shortages. But as time went on, the amount of food increased exponentially, and it turned into a country-wide festival. Families gathered to make memories and strengthen friendships, all of which was doubled by the beautifully prepared meals. Applejack waited for the crowd exiting the train to dissipate before she entered, sighing in joy at the feeling of the new-found coolness. She trotted inside, her guitar case bouncing against her side. She glanced up and down the car. A few ponies were visible in their seats. A stallion with a green jacket and a long, scruffy beard sat in the front of the car, and to her right was a yellow Pegasus mare and her small, red, Earth pony filly. Applejack took a seat on the nearest chair/bench, and lowered her hat over her face. Now the only thing that remained was the trip to Appleloosa. She slowly closed her eyes, resting calmly as the train started up again… _______________ “Excuse me?” Applejack snorted loudly as she was woken from her slumber. Mucus filled her throat, causing a thick, uncomfortable feeling. She cleared it and coughed, choking on her surprise wake-up call. When she finished, she leaned forward and lifted her hat back onto her head. She looked at the source of the voice. “Can I help you?” The little red filly stood next to Applejack’s seat, fear and worry in her eyes, “What’s wrong?” Applejack asked sympathetically. The filly sniffed loudly, “I can’t find my Mama. She’s not at our seat, and I’m scared!” She looked down the car, checking for any sign of her mother. Applejack looked over her seat to try as well, but to no avail. She slid off the chair, resting her hoof on the little red filly’s shoulder. She looked down the car. The stallion was no longer there either. Only Applejack and the filly remained from the initial pick-up. She looked to the back. They were in the caboose, so the mare couldn't have gone back there without being visible from the window. “Come on, let’s go look for your mother.” Applejack guided the filly down to the front of the car, reaching the door to the next one. She opened it, sliding it across the opening, and onto the side wall. To her surprise, the room was dark. Curiously, she stepped in, an eyebrow raised inquisitively. “Hello?” She called. Applejack squinted to try and see anything, but the lack of light was unnerving. The only available light was from the door she had come out of, and that only left an outline of itself in the dark room. “Hello?” She repeated, taking another few steps into the room. Suddenly the light was gone, only leaving darkness. Applejack turned to where the door supposedly was, blind now due to the lack of brightness. “What?” She galloped over and knocked. “What are you doing? What’s going on?” She heard hoofsteps behind her. She turned her head, seeing multiple pairs of glowing blue eyes, much like an insect’s. She knew those eyes... “Changelings.” She muttered angrily, remembering their invasion of Canterlot. If everything wasn't already black, it was when she was knocked out. ____________ Applejack’s head felt so heavy it could have fallen off, given a little assistance, and her neck cramped from being in the same position for too long. She groaned audibly, lifting her head and opening her eyes. A single light bulb was lit above her, illuminating the room slightly. Her vision was blurred, and lifting her head took far too much energy, but it was clear enough to see the outlines of the changelings and the glow of their blue eyes. Four pairs of eyes... Trained on her. She coughed, clearing her throat. She was tied to an old, splintered, wooden chair by her own rope, noticeably hers by the tears along its body. The farmer had used it enough times to know it better than the back of her hoof. “You are Applejack, yes?” One of the Changelings hissed in her face. “The element of Honesty, correct?” Applejack spit out her answer. “What’s it to you?” Her vision cleared, and she stared straight into the eyes of the creature. “You helped to banish us from ‘Canterlot’, your country’s capital, yes?” Applejack gasped, realizing this was some kind of revenge. On her specifically. She struggled, attempting to release herself from the rope. “It’s useless! You’ll never be able to break that rope! It’s tied by our best knot specialist!” The speaker smiled, pointing a hoof to one of the others. Applejack followed the hoof, and looked at a Changeling who waved shyly. Applejack sighed. Great, I was beaten up by a modest Changeling. The insect-like Speaker hissed, “Your "clone" will replace you in life, taking over all that you once had!” Applejack growled, and struggled once more. To her surprise, the rope loosened a little. The Changelings didn’t notice while laughed in victory. “Your friends will never know the truth, and we will feed on their love forever!” Applejack struggled once more, and this time the rope fell to the ground. The Changelings’ jaws dropped. The speaker looked to the "knot specialist". “You said it was inescapable!” The supposed "specialist" shrugged and smiled shyly again. Applejack slowly stood out of the splintery old chair, and took an almost predatory stance, ready to pounce on any of the Changelings. Two of them screeched in terror, sounding like nails on a chalkboard. Applejack folded her ears, attempting to block the noise. She closed her eyes, as if it would help to stop it. The two Changelings ran out of the room, leaving Applejack and the other two to duke it out. Applejack was still regaining her composure, and one of the Changelings took it to their advantage. They bucked her in the face, sending her tumbling backwards, smashing the chair with her weight. Applejack roared in pain before climbing to her hooves once more, growling. The Changelings were surprised by her ferocity. She took her position again and said, “Oh, now you’re going to get it!” She pounced at the nearest Changeling, grabbing them around the leg. The other used their magic to lift Applejack to the ceiling in an attempt to save their friend. Applejack held on, bringing the Changeling she'd grasped into the air with her. With her new position, Applejack took the advantage she had, and flung the Changeling she grabbed at their friend. The one using magic had little time to respond, and was hit in the face by their teammate. With the lack of concentrated magic, Applejack fell to the ground, belly first, knocking the wind out of her. She quickly recuperated, and glanced at the Changelings. One was slowly making its way to its hooves. Applejack gave them a swift buck to the head to knock them out for good. She glanced at the other one to make sure they wouldn't get up again. The didn't. She breathed heavily, smiling at her victory. She glanced around the room, trying to find something of use. She grabbed her rope in her teeth, and galloped through the door that the panicked Changelings had exited through. She passed through the door, finding the other two Changelings trying to open the opposite aperture to the outside-section of the caboose. One of them wore her hat. Applejack smiled psychoticaly. The Changelings turned to face her, fear stained in their eyes. Applejack said through her teeth and rope, “Happy to see me?” The Changeling with her hat shook his head, “Thought so.” She lassoed the rope around the other’s neck, and flicked her head up. The rope seemed to make a wave along itself. When it reached the Changeling, it was lifted into the air. Applejack threw her neck down, almost touching the ground. The same situation happened once more, but with the reverse affect. The Changeling was slammed into the floor, knocking it cold. The Changeling with her hat cowered in the corner. Applejack moved her head in such a way that the lasso removed itself from the first Changeling’s neck, and whipped it in the direction of the other. The final Changeling’s head was whipped against the wall, rendering it unconscious. Applejack’s hat launched into the air, then it slowly floated to the ground. She made her way to the Stetson, rolled up and laid the rope inside, and re-placed it on her head. She stared out the window at the track. The train was still moving, so it must have only been those four on the train. Applejack gasped. Maybe the large amount of ponies leaving the train was a Changeling group! She would have to send a letter to Twilight as soon as she reached Appleloosa. The mare trotted up the train, trying to find any more Changelings. There were no more passengers in the cars. She finally reached the engine, and opened the door. There was a pony shoveling coal into the furnace. On either side were the openings for the conductor to climb up on, revealing the fast moving desert region near Appleloosa. “Excuse me?” Applejack asked politely. The pony did not turn to reply, only continued to shovel coal. “Excuse me?” Applejack approached the pony. Green flame suddenly enveloped the pony as they transformed into a Changeling. "Oh, come on!" Applejack yelled as the Changeling swung the shovel at her head. She crouched under it before spinning on her forehooves and bucking the Changeling in the face. It recoiled and hit the wall, dropping the shovel off the edge of the car. The insct stared at Applejack and growled. It leaped at her, throwing its full body weight into its attack. Applejack dodged the Changeling, grabbed one of its hooves, and swung it off of the train and into the desert. It seemed to float alongside the engine for a while before its hoof touched the ground and was sent into a spiraling rampage across the dirt. Applejack panted and smiled, happy that she had finally rid the train of Changelings. She peeked around the side. She could see Appleloosa approaching. Applejack glanced at the controls for the train. “How am I supposed to park this?” She yelled to herself. She looked around at the many controls of the train, trying to decipher what could stop the automobile. As Appleloosa approached, she finally found the lever that looked most like a brake. She gripped the switch, closing her eyes and pulling, hoping to Celestia that it was the break. The sound of steel grinding on steel filled her ears, and she was thrown into the front of the car, stopping herself with a hoof just before she hit the furnace. The train began to slow down. She sighed in relief. At least now she wouldn’t have to walk all the way to Appleloosa from wherever the thing stopped. The train came to a full halt at the exact place it should have. Applejack stepped off the train engine and onto the platform, still breathing heavily from the Changeling encounter, slouching in exhaustion. “Cousin!” Applejack turned and saw Braeburn trot up to her, “Glad to see you could make it!” Applejack smiled in return for just a moment, before placing her gaze back on dirt, and Braeburn remarked, “I didn’t know you learned how to drive a train!” Applejack laughed. “Good to see you too.” She stood up straight, stretching her back. “I’ll tell you all about it after we get some "supplies" loaded off!” Braeburn chuckled. “I hope these supplies will help us out?" The mare grinned. "Not quite."