//------------------------------//
// Chapter 11 
// Story: Behind the Veil 
// by FeralFox 
//------------------------------//


”Behind the Veil”

Chapter 11

by FeralFox






They traveled down the scarcely used dirt path as the midday sun warmed the morning. In the distance, Marckus could make out a small farmhouse just past a wooden gate, and a barn a ways past it. Beyond the generic farm setting laid a rolling sea of green, dotted with various reds and other greens as well. The pair crested the hill and he stopped to take in Sweet Apple Acres in its full glory. The timid sea of trees extended to a vast ocean that spanned the majority of his vision, all the way out to the horizon, painting an astonishing picture against the tall purple mountains that back-dropped it. Twilight looked back at the awestruck man and smiled.

“Beautiful, isn't it?” He responded simply with a nod. “Well, let's keep moving; it looks even better up close.” He nodded again and they set off towards the massive orchard. He rarely got to witness such a great display of nature from where he lived, but when he did, he'd learned to appreciate it for its simple beauty.

A few minutes more of walking, and the two came to the front gate of the property. A familiar aura enveloped the latch of the gate and lifted out of place, allowing the lavender unicorn to push it open with her hoof. She trotted through and Marckus followed close behind. He followed her up to the barn where they saw a crimson stallion, larger than any pony he had seen previously, hauling a large, four-wheeled cart brimming with apples. The two approached the red workhorse and he stopped and looked at them, tensing a bit, but showing no other signs of emotion in his stoic gaze. After a moment of silence, Twilight decided to introduce the towering man beside her, seeing that the workhorse wasn't going to flee.

“Hi, Big Macintosh, this is Marckus. He's from a different world....long story.” Marckus gave his personal check-mark wave to the large pony and smiled politely. Big Mac looked up at the tall man and shifted the piece of straw he was chewing to the other corner of his mouth before giving a silent nod. “Anyways, do you know where we could find your sister?” Big Mac motioned with his head back in the direction he came from.

“She's out workin' the orchard. We still got lots-a apples to harvest.” Twilight nodded and the two started off into the huge expanse of apple trees. After a short while they came across an area where all the trees had large bushels placed around the base of the trunks. They started to hear a loud cracking noise every few seconds and they came upon a tree that was shaking violently every time the noise sounded. With each shake a large amount of apples fell from their branches and landed in the strategically placed baskets. After the tree had become barren, a familiar orange pony, Stetson firmly in place, cantered out from behind it.

“Hey, Applejack.” Twilight said as she walked up to her friend.

“Howdy, Twilight. What brings you 'round these parts?” Twilight gestured to her companion with a hoof.

“Zecora gave Marckus a potion that healed up his wounds, so we thought it'd be nice to give you the good news.” The man smiled and waved his favorite wave at the tangerine work-pony.

“Congrats.” She said flatly. “Anythin' else Ah can help y'all with?”

“Actually, I was wondering if there's anything he'd be able to help you with. He's had all of this pent up energy, and I figured that helping you around the farm would be a great use of that.” She turned to Marckus who shrugged and nodded, agreeing. He hadn’t expected to be working, but any time he could give helping others was time well spent. She turned back to Applejack, who was now scowling at the idea.

“Twi, Ah don't know if you've exactly noticed, but Ah trust this feller 'bout as far as Ah can buck 'im.” The Stetson-clad mare said. Twilight cleared her throat intentionally, while looking nervously at Marckus out of the corner of her eye.

“Ah-hem! Applejack, you do know he's standing right there, right?” Making a point of the orange pony's severe lack of tact. She opened her mouth to speak again, but Marckus held up his hand to stop her.

“No, it's fine Twilight, I understand why she'd feel this way.” He turned his attention to the abrupt mare in front of him “They say that actions speak louder than words, so maybe instead of honest words, how 'bout an honest day's work, if you'd allow?” Applejack glared at the tall man as she mulled it over in her mind.

“An' you ain't just tryin' to weasel sum bits outta this?” She raised an eyebrow while maintaining the scowl. Marckus cocked his own brow and turned to Twilight.

“Bits are our currency.” She said informatively.

“Ah,right.” He nodded and stroked his beard as he breifly reconsidered the statement. “Absolutely not. I offer to do this for free in hopes that my place here is justly earned.” He locked eyes with her to show that his words held truth.

“Promise.” She said, her cold gaze unwavering.

“Alright, I promise.” His face determined and tone sincere.

“Pinkie Pie Promise!” She ordered. Once again, the man turned to Twilight to help him along. She sat back on her haunches and proceeded with gesture that consisted of making an “X” across her chest with a hoof and covering her eye. He pondered the motions for a moment before recognizing it as a particular promise that was often used by children in his world. He nodded again in realization before speaking again.

“Ah, alright. I promise, cross my heart,” He drew an imaginary “X” over his heart with his index finger, “hope to die, stick a needle in my eye.” He ended the ritual with the same finger resting on his closed eyelid. He looked down to see two very disturbed ponies before him. He looked down at them confused. He sighed in slight frustration as the severe culture barrier reared its ugly head. “I suppose that yours isn't quite that, hm?” Applejack was cautiously taking a few steps backward.

“I knew there was sumthin' wrong with 'im!” She scolded the lavender unicorn.

“Now, Applejack, I'm sure that he has an explanation.” She said defensively. She turned up to him, the look in her eyes showing just a hint of desperation. Marckus scratched the back of his neck as he thought of a good enough explanation as to avoid further distrust from the orange mare.

“Eh-heh...well, I'm not really sure where it originated. I'd say it's a child's equivalent to a blood-oath. But what I can assure you of is that that promise was completely sincere.” He knelt down on his right knee and brought out the pendant that hung around his neck, holding it up with his left hand and covering his heart with his right. “I swear on my mother's grave.” His face was straight and serious, and his deep bass voice took on a somber hint. Applejack's expression softened slightly and she turned to Twilight. Now she was unsure. Twilight also had a woebegone expression as she recalled the man's tragic story and nodded her head, answering the work-pony's silent question without hesitation.

“Awright, Ah'll give ya a shot.” Her expression softened more noticeably. Then her face hardened again. “One. Shot.” She emphasized. He tucked the trinket back in his shirt and nodded.

“Well, now that that's settled, what work did you have in mind?” He questioned as he stood, returning to his full height. Applejack looked him over, pondering the possibilities.

“Wull, yu're nice 'n tall, I bet yu'd be able to reach up an' just pick the apples right outta the trees...” She thought for a moment. “Nah, that'd take too long. Hmm...How good are ya at haulin' wagons?” The man scratched his chin before answering.

“I can't say that I've ever hauled a wagon before, but it shouldn't be too hard. I'm willin' to give it a shot.” He looked down to his new employer for her reaction. She sighed and looked up at him with a stern face.

“We'll just have ta find out then, won't we?” She asked rhetorically. Twilight and Marckus smiled as Applejack's face softened slightly. “Wull, let's git goin'. If ya can haul wagons, than that leaves Big Mac able to buck more apples.” A look of confusion spread across the man's face at the statement.

“I'm sorry, 'buck more apples'?” He asked. Applejack rolled her eyes and walked to the nearest tree. She reared up on her front legs and brought her hind legs up to her chest. In a second, she unloaded the energy in her legs into an explosive kick that landed square on the trunk of the tree, causing it to shudder and shake, relinquishing the fruit it bore into the baskets that lined the ground beneath. Marckus nodded with understanding. “Ah, now I see.”

“You better.” Applejack huffed. “Now let's git to it. We're burnin' daylight hours here.” Marckus held an arm out to the side in the intended direction.

“Lead on.” He said politely. The trio walked back to the barn where they met up with Big Mac, who had just finished unloading the wagon of apples into the cellar for storage. He was just about to fasten himself into the harness when Applejack curled her lower lip around her teeth, letting out a shrill whistle.

“Not today, Big Mac. We've got sum new help that'll be doin' that. Yu're on buckin' detail with me.” Big Mac got out of the harness and looked up at the new farmhand with his ever-stoic gaze.

“Eeeyup.” Was his only response. Applejack walked over to the wagon and gestured to it with her hoof.

“This here's the wagon yu'll be haulin'. Follow me.” He did as directed and followed her behind the cart to a large trapdoor in the ground. “This is where yu'll unload the apples from the wagon.” The man nodded silently. She walked over to the wagon and pointed to a pin on the back panel towards the top. “Just pull this pin an' its partner on the other side an' the gate'll drop down, lettin' gravity do most of the work fer ya.” He nodded again. He followed her back to the front of the vehicle. “Now, how exactly do ya intend to fit into the harness, what with bein' all upright and what-not?” The man took a step back and examined the cart for a moment. Then a thought entered his mind.

“Do you have any spare rope handy?” He asked, the idea festering in his mind.

“I reckon.” She said flatly. “Mac?” The scarlet stallion moseyed into the barn only to return shortly with a mouth full of rope. With a flick of his neck, he threw the rope bundle to Marckus who caught it easily.

“Eeyup.” The stoic stallion said again. Marckus set the rope down on the ground and went to work removing the harness from the two beams that connected it to the rest of the wagon. The three ponies stepped back and watched the man at work. With a few bolts undone, the harness was quickly removed, leaving an open space between the beams.

“Now, how in tarnation do ya expect ta pull the darn thing without the harness?” Applejack asked impatiently. Twilight cast a side-long glance at the orange mare, and returned to watching the man intently, whose concentration went unbroken. He took the rope and tied a knot around the left beam, behind the widened bulb at the end with one end of the rope, leaving the rest free. Using rest of the rope, he twisted it until there was a lone knot just about a quarter of the way from the shorter end. He then wrapped the rest of the rope around the other beam, doubling it back and tying a slip-knot just behind the other knot in the rope. The result of all of the twisting and tying of the rope was a single line that extended from the center of the rope, connected to either beam. He grabbed hold of the line and gave it a firm tug, jostling the wagon forward a bit, making sure it held firm. He stepped back to admire his work for a moment, only to have Applejack interrupt.

“Awright, now that that's said an' done with, let's git to work.” With that, Marckus nodded and grasped the bottoms of his sweater and outer shirts, lifting them over his head off his body, leaving him in his light, white cotton undershirt. He tied the sleeves of the sweater that still contained his other two shirts to the beam of the wagon and untucked his undershirt. He took hold of the rope and held it over his shoulder.

“After you.” He said to his new boss. She quickly turned and walked back into the orchard with the others following suit, Marckus now dragging the wagon behind him with ease. They made their way back to the section of trees that had baskets under them. The two work-ponies went to work slamming the trees with their powerful kicks, knocking the fruit free of their branches. In a moment, the trees were barren, and the baskets were full.

“Ya fill the wagon with these bushels of apples.” The Stenson-clad mare said. Marckus dropped the rope and hefted one of the decent sized baskets up to his chest with little effort. He walked back to the cart and dumped the contents of the bushel in, tossing the empty basket back to Applejack, repeating the process with the others. After a few trees, the wagon was brimming with apples, so he took hold of the rope once more and dragged the now significantly heavier cart back to the barn. Once in place, he opened the trap door to the cellar and pulled the pins out of the cart's gate, releasing the apples. He pushed the few remaining into the dark cellar and closed the gate, returning the pins to their slots. This went on for an hour or so until Twilight grew tired of watching the man work, no matter how much it fascinated her.

“Well, have fun with that.” She said waving good-bye to the Apple Siblings and their new help.

“See ya Twi'.” The tangerine pony called. Her brother merely waved before returning to his work.

“Catch ya later, Twilight. I suppose I'll be seeing you in a few hours or so?” The man said as he began hauling a full wagon back to the barn. The lavender unicorn nodded and set off down the road. 

She walked back to the Library to check up on Pinkie Pie's party progress. She opened the door to the tree-building and stepped in to be greeted by her faithful companion and number one assistant, Spike, going through his daily chores of cleaning and organizing the Library.

“Hello Spike.” She said with a smile, always happy to see him.

“Oh, hey Twilight.” He turned from his duties to look at her. “Where's Marckus?” Concerned that the tall man wasn't still tagging along with one of the more responsible ponies in Ponyville.

“I left him to help Applejack around the farm. That should keep him occupied for a while.” She trotted over to the staircase to the living area, where even more stairs that led to the atrium were.

“Hey, Twilight?” Spike called.

“Yes, Spike?” She replied.

“What's going on upstairs? Pinkie came in earlier with some weird cannon and a bunch of balloons and streamers.” He said uneasily.

“We're planning a surprise party for Marckus and the whole town is invited.” the purple unicorn said matter-of-factly. Spike did a double-take at her and shuddered at the thought of having to inevitably clean up a town-sized party. With that, Twilight ascended the two sets of stairs to the atrium to find a certain pink pony bouncing about the giant room, hanging banners and tying balloons to rafters and such. She landed beside the aforementioned cannon and heaved its trigger. A resounding boom emanated from the black, iron device, blasting streamers onto the walls. “Looks like you've got this under control.” Twilight said, content with the progress made thus far.

“Yup-yup-yuparoo!” The over-zealous mare said before firing the cannon a second time, peppering another wall with streamers. Twilight slowly backed out of the room, uneasy at the prospect of giving Pinkie, of all ponies, free reign over a cannon, and returned to the Library to help Spike with chores.


After several hours and many, many more cannon shots fired, Twilight decided that it was time to collect her other-worldly companion and move on to tell another friend of his recovery/delay his return to the Library. The Sun had passed its zenith and was well on its way to its daily meeting with the face of the mountains. She trotted down the path and through the gates to see Marckus hauling a full wagon of apples from the orchard, accompanied by both Apple Siblings. His undershirt was now off and tucked into his belt, hanging from his hip. He walked behind the wagon and let loose an avalanche of apples as was routine. Once he locked the gate back up, he walked back to the front of the wagon and leaned on the beam. His muscles were swollen from labor, giving his body a more fine definition. His skin glistened with sweat from a long day's work in the hot sun, its lightly tanned color had darkened a few shades to a sort of dark beige. Twilight reached both he and Big Macintosh waiting by the cart as Applejack went and fetched some juice for them all. Marckus waved his usual wave as Twilight approached them. He took his shirt from his belt and wiped the sweat from his body, turning it to wipe the sweat from his face and head with the dry part. Once satisfied, he slung the moist shirt over his shoulder.

“Hi Marckus, Big Mac.” The red work-pony nodded silently. 

“Hi Twilight!” Applejack called, having returned with a tray of bottles filled with apple juice balancing on her back.

“Hello, Applejack. You taking a break?” She asked as the hat-clad mare craned her neck back to grab hold of the tray off her back, turning to set it on the beam beside Marckus. The three each took a bottle, leaving one left on the tray. Figuring it was for her, Twilight grasped the bottle in her magic and levitated it to her.

“Takin' a break? Shoot, we're finished fer the whole day!” Applejack said with a bright smile. “With this fella' here to haul the wagon, both me and Mac were able to keep on buckin'. We met today's quota in record time, and then sum!” She turned up to the tall man. “You might not have earned any bits, but you sure earned that juice!” He lifted the bottle from his lips, into the air and nodded his head in a gesture of thanks and one of welcome. “Yu've also earned mah trust. Thank ya Marckus.” She said with a smile before taking a swig of juice. The man looked down with a smile of his own.

“I'm glad to hear that. And I'm happy to help, anytime.” He threw his head back as he finished the last of his bottle's worth of juice and set the empty container back onto the tray. Once she finished her own, Twilight turned to Applejack.

“I'm also glad to hear that, but I'm afraid we must get going. We've still got to tell the others about his recovery.” Applejack nodded. She turned back to Marckus who was now untying his multiple shirts from the cart.

“See ya Marckus, thanks again fer the help.” He grabbed the collars of the sweater and shirt, yanking the second out from within. He slipped it on over his head and rolled up the sweater, shirt, and undershirt, before he looked down at his no-longer-boss.

“No problem at all.” He said happily. On that note, he and Twilight turned from the two Apples and walked away, waving good-bye. As they walked, Twilight couldn't help but ponder the meaning of the graphic on the front of the man's shirt. It was a black shirt with words in silver lettering. It said: AC/DC, where the'/' was a lightning bolt, and just underneath those letters, in a smaller print, was the phrase “Back in Black”. He turned to Twilight and followed her gaze to the front of his Tee.

“Oh, this? It's the name of one of my favorite bands and one of their albums.” Twilight perked up at this. “But that's a whooooole 'nother subject.” He made a wide, sweeping motion with his head to accentuate the word 'whole'. Twilight slumped a bit as they walked. She really wanted to hear about his world's music. They continued back up the dirt path for a while. “So, who's next?” He asked, wiping his brow of the remaining sweat. Twilight narrowed her eyes as she thought of who would make the best distraction. A light bulb could be seen clicking on inside her head.

'I know! Hah, perfect!' She thought to herself.






To be continued...