//------------------------------//
// Job Hunting 
// Story: Pantheon, the Artisan of Baking 
// by Hawattie 
//------------------------------//

	While more than adequate at providing shelter from the elements and a place to prepare baked goods, Pantheon's home was severely lacking in one crucial area. It had no supplies for the man to bake with.
In order to acquire baking supplies, Pantheon would need money and to get that, he would need a job. Since, according to Rainbow Dash, there was no jobs to be found that required fighting, Pantheon couldn't rely on his traditional fallback of mercenary work. He would have to rely on his other skills to find employment. Namely, his titanic strength and reflexes honed by the heat of battle. His baking was not yet good enough to seek employment with.
Since most of the town still stared in fear and confusion whenever Pantheon walked by, he figured his chances of getting hired by someone he didn't know were slim to none. Fortunately, Rarity struck Pantheon as the type of person who liked to keep on top of the local gossip. He figured he could kill two birds with one stone by thanking the mare and asking her where he could get a job.
Stoically ignoring the stares like he always did, Pantheon made his way through the streets of Ponyville to Rarity's home. The drawing of Rarity's home on the map didn't do the building justice. The picture showed the building to be tall and fancy, which it most certainly was, but was unable to capture its intricate detail. In Pantheon's experience, only the shining towers of Demacia and the grand entrance to the Institute of War could top the architectural magnificence of Rarity's home.
Pantheon raised a fist to knock on the door but was unable to due to the door opening on its own. Standing in the doorway was a small -by pony standards- white unicorn with a two-tone pink and lavender mane facing the mare Pantheon had come to meet. "Now you have a good time crusading with your friends, Sweetie," Rarity said. Neither pony had noticed Pantheon yet.
"I will, Rarity," "Sweetie" chirped. "Love you, sis!" The two shared an affectionate nuzzle before Sweetie bounded out the door- running headlong into Pantheon's armored legs.
"Oh hello, Pantheon, I didn't see you there," Rarity said as she made sure Sweetie was unharmed. Pantheon stepped out of the way so Sweetie could continue on her way unobstructed. "Be safe, Sweetie Belle!" Rarity called after the filly's shrinking form. 
"Understandable," Pantheon reasoned. "You were otherwise preoccupied." Pantheon could respect people who put family in front of everything else.
"Please, come in," Rarity said, motioning inside. "Would you like some coffee?" She walked into a kitchen, where the bitter drink could be smelled brewing.
"No thanks," Pantheon shook his head. "I'm not a fan." He had tried the drink once back on Runeterra and did not find it appealing.
Rarity exited the kitchen holding a steaming mug of coffee in her magic. "Suit yourself. I take it Fluttershy showed you our gift?" Pantheon nodded. "Did you like it?"
"It was without a doubt the greatest gift I've received in years," he said. "Thank you."
Rarity took a sip of he coffee. "You're very welcome," she said. "Now what else did you come here for?"
"You're very perceptive," Pantheon commented, ignoring the smug look on Rarity's face. "I need a job. Do you know where someone like me could find some work?"
Rarity hummed thoughtfully. "Have you ever considered farmwork?"
"I've never had the need to consider farmwork before," Pantheon said. "But I have no objections if the pony I would be working for has none."
"Wonderful!" Rarity clapped her hooves together. "Let's go see Applejack right away!"

~~~

Rarity led Pantheon to a massive apple orchard on the edge of town. Two pony-shaped blobs, one orange and the other red, could be seen in the distance.
As they drew closer, Pantheon could see that the two ponies were bucking the trees, causing apples to rain down into several baskets placed below. A cart rested nearby, presumably to carry the baskets away in.
Once they were within hailing distance, Rarity called, "Hello Applejack!" The orange pony looked up from her work, then did a double take upon seeing Pantheon. The warrior was mildly surprised to see curiosity in her gaze instead of the fear most ponies showed.
"Howdy Rarity," Applejack said, removing her hat to wipe the sweat from her brow. "Is this the alien Pinkie Pie was telling me about?"
Pantheon opened his mouth to protest being called an alien, but closed it again when he realized the description was not inaccurate. "Yes, his name is Pantheon," Rarity explained. 
"Pleasure to meet you, Pantheon," Applejack said, offering a hoof for him to shake. The mare's grip was surprisingly strong and the force behind the shake was impressive.
"He came to my boutique earlier and asked if I knew where he could find work," Rarity continued. "I seem to remember you commenting about how you could always use some help around the farm."
"Is that so?" Applejack studied the man, taking in his armor and size. "You look like a hard worker, but do you think you're up to the task?"
Pantheon smirked. "I've never met a challenge I couldn't overcome," he boasted.
"Ah reckon you figure yourself to be pretty strong," Applejack said. "Think you could beat Big Mac here in a hoof wrastle?"
If Pantheon was correct in assuming that a hoof wrestle was the same as an arm wrestle, then he was absolutely certain he would win. No man on Runeterra had ever come close to matching Pantheon's sheer strength. "It would be my pleasure."
One of the empty wooden baskets was overturned to be used as a table. Big Mac, who certainly lived up to his name being a full head taller than any other pony Pantheon had seen so far, took his position across from the warrior. "Are you prepared to be defeated?" Pantheon asked, setting his spear and shield down and bringing his arm into place.
"Eenope," Big Mac replied defiantly, taking the man's hand with his hoof.
"Are y'all ready?" Applejack asked. Both the man and the pony gave an affirmative. "Then go!" Both combatants immediately began straining against each other.
To Pantheon's surprise, Big Mac's hoof did not instantly go down. In fact, it seemed to be an even match. Beads of sweat broke out across the man's brow and with a grunt of effort he began slowly to force his hoof down, inch by inch. Big Mac snorted, steam coming out of his nostrils, and with a titanic push managed to halt Pantheon's advance.
Pantheon's eyes widened imperceptibly as his hand was slowly pushed back towards the vertical. Big Mac's momentum died off once the fight reached its starting position again, and the stallion was unable to gain any more ground. Pantheon's eyes narrowed into a determined glare, which he focused on his opponent. His glare was met with one just as fierce.
Sweat ran in rivers down the two, collecting under Pantheon's armor and matting Big Mac's fur. Neither of them could tell how long they'd been straining against each other, and neither of them truly cared. The match had turned into a test of endurance and would take as long as it needed to.
As focused as they were on their competition, neither of them noticed the small pony run up to the two mares watching. The mares tried for several moments to get their attention, but it wasn't until Applejack bucked both of their heads that they payed her any mind. "What's up, sis?" Big Mac asked calmly. Pantheon was not nearly as calm as the stallion about having their match interrupted, but held his tongue upon seeing a distressed filly being comforted by a worried-looking Rarity.
"Scootaloo says a pack of timberwolves have trapped Applebloom and Sweetie Belle in their clubhouse!" Applejack nearly shouted.
"Timberwolves?" Big Mac sounded alarmed. "What're they doing outside the forest?"
Applejack sounded frantic. "Ah don't know, but the clubhouse's door won't keep 'em out forever! We've got to help them!"
"Where is this clubhouse?" Pantheon interjected.
Applejack pointed further into the orchard. If Pantheon wasn't mistaken the Everfree Forest was that way too. "About half a mile that way," she said. "But I don't know what..." she trailed off when the earth started to rumble slightly. 
All the dirt and dust in a circle a few meters wide around Pantheon was drawn inwards, as if caught in a breeze. The ponies stared in confusion towards the man, who was gathering his strength for what the League of Legends called his "ultimate ability". With a shout Pantheon released all his energy into a mighty leap. He shot almost straight up like a bullet, trailing dust high into the sky.
The ponies watched his form shrink to a speck in less than a second in slack-jawed awe. Applejack was the first to break the silence with a whistle. The mare turned to her brother. "Y'know," she told him, "I reckon he might've gone easy on you."
Big Mac could only nod.