Applejack kept on running. Where, she didn't care. All that mattered at this point was getting as far away from Granny Smith as possible. It wasn't so much the fact that the old mare had only now told her the whole truth, as much as it was the fact that now she knew what had really happened to her parents up in Canterlot all those years ago. Why hadn't anyone told her sooner? And why had Gold Talon not been caught? He couldn't possibly keep running away forever. Could he?
"Applejack! You come back here this instant!" Granny Smith shouted. Applejack ignored her and ran even faster. Before long she was approaching the west orchard.
Unfortunately, Applejack forgot to watch where she was going, and fell down into a deep dark cave. She had forgotten that Apple Bloom and her friends had been trying to earn their cutie marks in tunnel digging, only to stumble across the very cave Applejack was now stuck in.
Applejack soon found that she was not alone. The cave was inhabited with all sorts of bats. Regular bats, fruit bats, and even the once dreaded vampire bats. Applejack could still remember how foolish she had been to ignore the request of her friend Fluttershy and try to drive the bats off all together. Fluttershy had been right all along, there was more to the bats then just eating apples. Funny how it had taken one of her best friends being turned into a bat to make her see sense.
That wasn't the only memory that came back to Applejack as she looked around. She could also remember a time back when she was still just a little filly.
Apple Fritter was hard at work teaching his son how to work the fields and buck apples. Big Macintosh had just gotten his cutie mark, and Apple Dumpling had just learned that she was pregnant with her third child. It was a happy but busy time for the Apple family.
"Pa?" Applejack asked, looking up at her father. A brown stentson rested atop his head. It had originally been Applejack's, the filly having won it bobbing for apples at a state fair. But the hat was too big for her, and so she had given it to her father as a father's day gift. Apple Fritter had promised Applejack that when she was old enough he would let her wear the hat that was rightfully hers.
"What is Applejack?" Apple Fritter asked, taking time off from his demonstration of applebucking.
"Why do we fall?" Applejack asked.
Apple Fritter paused, and thought deeply. After what seemed like several minutes he said "I don't really know Applejack, but if you ask me, it's so that we can learn to pick ourselves up."
"Why is that?" Applejack asked.
"Because... in life nothing is easy. There will always be times where something may seem difficult, or even impossible to do. But no matter what happens, the only wrong thing to do is to give up. As long as we keep on trying we will always win, even when we lose. When we fall we should not lay down and expect someone or something else to pick us up. We should stand up ourselves, dust ourselves off, and try again. If we do that then there's nothing we can't do. At least, that's how it seems to me sugarcube." Apple Fritter explained.
As the memory faded Applejack gained a newfound determination. She had fallen, and the time had come for her to pick herself up. With a newfound determination she explored the cave, she was surprised when she discovered how vast it was.
Suddenly, Applejack saw a fruit bat. A young one at that. From the looks of things the bat had somehow fallen out of its nest. But rather then wait for its family to come and pick it up, the young bat was trying to fly back up to its nest on its own power. Time and time again the bat tried to make it back up to its nest, only to fall short. But the bat refused to give up, and eventually it managed to fly back up to its nest.
Applejack saw a lot of herself reflected in that bat. Particularly the refusal to give up, and the will to keep on trying no matter how many times it would've just been easier to quit. But one thing that the bat had that Applejack wished she had as well, was the lack of fear of anything.
Fear. That word was quite strong. Applejack had easily seen how powerful fear could be for both good and bad over the years. The experiences with Zecora and King Sombra were prime examples of that. And now, Applejack was starting to realize how big of a role fear played in the world of crime.
In her dreams at least, Gold Talon had never once shown fear as he murdered Apple Fritter and Apple Dumpling in cold blood. And from the looks of things Applejack was willing to bet that other criminals also never showed fear. If anything they likely inflicted fear upon those who they targeted. It would explain why the police and the royal guards were having such a hard time dealing with them. They were afraid.
Well, perhaps it was time that the world of justice had someone that could teach the criminals about fear. And already she was starting to develop an idea in her head about who that someone was.
Applejack could recall the time she had dressed up as The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well. That brief stint as a superhero had showed her just how much influence a superhero could have on his or her surrondings.
And then there was that whole "enchanted comic" incident from a few months ago. As Mistress Marevolus Applejack had discovered what it was like to fight for what you believed in. And how you didn't need superpowers to do super things.
If she could combine these revelations with her discovery of the power of fear, she could give the world of justice the hero it needed. And the world of crime the opposition it deserved.
Granny Smith eventually managed to find Applejack in the cave, creating a tunnel that linked the barn of Sweet Apple Acres to said cave in the process. Applejack quickly apologized for running off, and Granny Smith quickly apologized for not telling the whole truth sooner.
Once the apologies were taken care of Applejack expressed her desire to become a superhero, as well as her intent to go after Gold Talon.
Granny Smith didn't take kindly to the idea. "I don't know Applejack. This seems more like an attempt at revenge rather then an actual attempt to fight crime." she said "And you know your folks always told you about what could happen if you stuck your nose into the business of others."
"I know Granny Smith. But that Gold Talon has escaped justice for far too long, and it's time someone put to stop to that. Especially before he kills someone else." Applejack said.
"That may be so, but I don't think the royal guards or the police will take kindly to you trying to replace them." Granny Smith said.
"Whoever said I was trying to replace them? I intend to help them by hunting down the criminals that slip away from them." Applejack said.
"There's still the issue of what you're gonna do if those high level criminals like Gold Talon pull out their guns." Granny Smith said "I already lost my husband, my son, and my daughter-in-law. I don't want to lose my granddaughter as well."
"I'm well aware of that, and I've already thought of a solution. I'll just need to make sure my crime fighting outfit is bullet proof." Applejack said.
"Outfit?" Granny Smith asked.
"Yeah. If I'm gonna fight crime I need to become something else entirely. I need to create a completly new identity, one that no one will suspect. An identity that is mysterious and unknown, but an identity that is on the side of justice." Applejack explained "And it's not gonna stop with just an outfit. If I'm gonna fight crime I'm gonna need a whole bunch of stuff."
"Like what?" Granny Smith asked.
"Well, I'll need gadgets for one thing. Like a grappling hook for climbing. Pellets filled with knockout and stun gases, in case I need to make a hasty retreat. Tracking devices so I can keep an eye on my targets. And even a utility belt to store all my tools and weapons." Applejack explained "I'm also gonna need some sort of vehicle that matches with my new crime fighting persona, and a secret base to house of all my crime fighting stuff. And, as it just so happens I already have an idea in mind for a secret base."
"Dare I ask what you have in mind?" Granny Smith asked.
"This cave seems like the perfect place." Applejack said "Think about it. It's big, it's well hidden, and I can easily access it without drawing attention. Of course, before I do any of this I have to ask, do you approve of my decision Granny Smith?"
Granny Smith said nothing for a moment. She just stood there, taking in all the information and processing it. Then she spoke up "I suppose, as long as you're only helping the royal guards and the police I don't have a problem with it. Just promise me you'll be careful. I don't wanna have to burry you."
"Relax Granny Smith, I'm not gonna be reckless." Applejack said "Now then, I'm gonna need your help in creating my crime fighting superhero, and in keeping it hidden from Apple Bloom, Big Macintosh, and anypony else that I don't want to have finding out about it."
Over the next two weeks Applejack and Granny Smith were very busy. Granny Smith worked tirelessly to make the cave into a superhero lair, and on Applejack's instructions installed various pieces of equipment. Some of which were from a recently opened technology firm in Canterlot, and some of which were from Princess Twilight Sparkle, Applejack's closest friend.
Applejack meanwhile, had her friend Rarity design a very unusual costume. The specifications were to make it bulletproof and as flexable as possible, it had to be black so as to blend in with the darkness, and it had to be as batlike as possible. Rarity was quite shocked, but took up the task anyway. It took her four tries to get it to the point where Applejack liked it, and even then Applejack wasn't entirely certain she liked the yellow circle with a black bat emblazoned upon it.
When Rarity had asked what the costume was for Applejack had told her that it was a secret, and that she could not tell what that secret was. Rarity, having learned her lesson about gossip, didn't pry any further.
Lastly, Applejack managed to come across an old carriage in surprisingly good condition. The owner of the junk yard where it was found was all too happy to let Applejack part with it for a very low price. For the carriage had been sitting in the junk yard for months, and no one had bought it. As a matter of fact, Applejack purchased it only days before it was to be turned into scrap metal.
Applejack took the carriage home, helped Apple Bloom and the cutie mark crusaders fix it up, and then modified it into a sleek roadster like design, complete with a futristic looking rear booster. Once that was done it was just a simple matter of painting it, and it taking it for a few test drives to work out any teething troubles.
At long last the Batsuit, the Batmobile, and the Batcave were completed. And by that point Applejack had already decided on a name for her crime fighting alter ego. Batmare: The Dark Knight.