Chapter 79 - The Drudgery
Years of on the run had hone Applejack's survival vision to the point where she could count the buttons on a stallion's military jacket across a musty and smoke-filled room. Tonight was no different, but for a different reason. Amidst the bumping bass solo from Fluttershy and party lasers from the erected rafters, Applejack had caught wind of a magenta earth pony sneaking out from her vest a flask she poured into the punch bowl. That mare had lurked off right before Twilight approached the very same punch bowl for a few drinks.
She wanted to tell the purple unicorn of the punch bowl sabotage, but the devil on her right shoulder prevented her from outright doing so. Applejack smiled slyly when Twilight returned with the drinks, and the two exchanged a toast of life, friendship, and fun. Then Twilight had gone back for more and more. Applejack should not have listened to the devil on her shoulder, and with a heavy regret she watched her friend greedily drink the punch bowl while yelling at other ponies to stay away. Her mood suddenly swung to playful and perhaps obscene flirting. Applejack couldn't tell, but she wanted to wipe the image of Twilight rocking her butt back and forth for all to see. Often she yelled out that she was Twilight, destroyer of the world before attempting to pick a fight with a group of disgusted mares. She brushed them off immediately afterwards, and then jumped on the dance floor content on dancing alone. Before, her dancing had been adorably bad. Now it became downright awful.
"C'mon, Applejack!" Twilight cried out. "Dance with me!"
"I think you had one too many, Sugarcube," said Applejack.
"But you said punch was non-alcoholic! I'm not high on sugar. Pinkie is!"
Tipsy Twilight tried to do the splits. Instead swayed back and forth until she crashed into Applejack and threw up on her hooves. Now it was time to call it a night.
Applejack declined help from the other ponies when she carried Twilight out, even from those she insulted. If the unicorn were to weigh a ton, Applejack would gladly carry her a thousand miles on her back, and she would still be the lightest angel she had the privilege to look after. Even Twilight's drool and snot bubbles would be like holy water to Applejack.
She carried her back to their assigned single bedroom with two full-sized beds and a center nightstand with heart-shaped handles underneath a heart-shaped lamp. The unicorn might have fallen asleep before or after the orange pony tucked her in, and after wiping the drool and snot, Twilight's adorableness returned. She looked so peaceful, and she was alone with Applejack. It was quiet. The airship softly murmured in its flight, and the concert raged on with ponies cheering for an encore.
Alone. Applejack gulped and secured her Stetson hat on the other bed before leaning her muzzle towards Twilight's. She closed her eyes and with her lips pressed forward...
Then she pulled back. Better get out before she did something unforgivable. Applejack hurried out hot and bothered with a pounding heart. Thoughts of consuming more spiked punch drove her panic, but she slowed down realizing that getting herself drunk would be a worse decision. Judgment would be hindered, and that would cause her to go back to the room and have her way…
The orange pony made a full stop and proceeded to bang her head against the wall. No, no, I can't do that my friend! A familiar figure slunk into view in the corner of her eye, and she stepped back to collect her composure to prevent further self-embarrassment. Turns out that Spike had arrived, but his bloodshot eyes and sluggish movements against the wall soon made her worried and suspicious.
She confirmed her suspicions when a changeling reared its ugliness from behind the little dragon. Immediately she called forth her Element of Truth in its katana form and separated Spike from the hissing insect-pony. Her Sword of Truth would be unwieldy to use in these cramped halls, but she kept it drawn as an aggressive gesture in order to create more distance between Spike and the changeling. Of all the times they had to be here, why now?
"Applejack," said an arriving Octavia. "What's going on?"
"Octy!" cried Applejack. "Get away from that thing!"
"Don't be rude, Doomie is part of the crew."
"That thing has a name? I thought you and Deep Blue were fightin' against a bunch of changelings when Apple Bloom escaped Hollow Shades."
"We were, but then Doomie here dropped her disguise and defeated all of them."
"But I thought all changelings were part of Posey's secret police?"
"Not all of them," said a deep-voiced Doomie. "I am part of a group who defected from the main brood in protest of Posey's usurping of our true Queen. Many of brethren have adopted civilian disguises as wait for the return of Chrysalis, but Posey's secret police has been whittling us down one by one. As far as I know, I'm the only left."
"You must trust her, Applejack," said Octavia. "Doomie has sworn loyalty to the Captain after narrowly rescuing her from Posey's changelings."
"Well, I'm still a lil' suspicious about a pony… thing that can change their forms at will. But why the heck is Spike is acting all funny?"
"The fault is with me, or rather, it was Berry Punch's doing. I should have expected it given her reputation."
"I take it that y'all drank punch."
Octavia nodded. "Unfortunately, I became a little tipsy myself, but not enough for me to tuck Spike into bed. Applejack, Spike has mentioned a pony who goes by the name of Rarity. How old is she?"
"Probably around our ages."
"There's not much of an age difference, but due to his slow metabolic growth, he would still be a child well into his fifties. Still, I hope for the best for him."
"When you meet her, don't try to be judgmental. She might appear vapid, but she has a lot of heart. And guts."
"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you for your honesty."
The good doctor might have claimed she was a little drunk, but aside from a brief yet subtle stumble, she retained her classy poise as she trotted over to put Spike onto her back before he passed out sleeping. Octavia gestured a good night to the orange pony before taking Spike to bed.
That left Applejack and Doomie standing across from another in an awkward silence. The orange pony wasn't used to conversing with a changeling, and this would be her second encounter. It was hard to know what these fearsome creatures were thinking with their exposed fangs and blank eyes, and she did not want to bother to find out. She tipped her hat as respectful as possible as she tiphooved past it.
Applejack did not remember what she did last night or why she did it. She vaguely remembered wandering onto the Spitfire's bar and meeting up with the dastardly pony who spiked the punch. She thought she engaged in a hooffight against her for getting both Twilight and Spike drunk. Instead, one thing led to another…
Then she woke up with the bottom half her body stuck in an unused cannon. Empty beer bottles surrounded her, and Stetson precariously hung off the tip of one of hundreds of tall missiles of Gaean design, yet modified with Atmos capabilities. For several minutes, Applejack squeezed herself out inch by inch, using her own spit as body grease while fighting a pounding hangover headache and bad odor.
Her hat was too high to reach, and she didn't want to buck a missile just to get it down like she would do on an apple tree. The missile bay did not appear cavernous as she hoped to. Normally in a dreadnought-class airship, there would be at least a high catwalk for her to lower herself down. Maybe there were would be a ladder or lift nearby.
Then her hat suddenly landed on top of her blonde-topped head. Funny. Applejack was several feet away from the missile, and there was no wind, natural or not, that would have blown her hat over. The way it landed so perfectly on her head could only mean that a generous unicorn nearby, and she could think of two out of four who would be responsible.
She didn't count on a fifth one lowering herself from a platform pulley right in front of her. Applejack never expected to run into the very DJ who handled the mixer and lighting controls at last night concerts. She was the one who had a blue mane, magenta shades, a pair of connected musical notes on her flank, and earphones whose beats she bobbed her head up and down.
Applejack never got to thank the strange DJ mare, who may or may not have winked a "you're welcome" to the orange pony before sashaying down the line of missiles. She did not want to interrupt the unicorn's work or her engrossment in her tunes, so Applejack excused herself out.
Another unicorn, huh? She could be an unknown journeymare from Unicornia, or more likely an exile from the Crystal Empire. No matter. Applejack would find out about her origins eventually.
She made her way through the quiet halls of the Spitfire, carefully treading over a few unconscious ponies slumped on the floor or against the wall who were likely drunk or tired from the concert party last night. Miraculously, Applejack made it to the mares' quarters and creaked open the metal door leading into the bedroom she shared with Twilight.
At least, she thought she shared it with Twilight. While her own bed remained vacant, Applejack saw an octet of hooves both purple and white hanging over the edge. This was no surprise. Sunny was in Twilight's bed again, with her legs wrapped around the purple unicorn's body.
"Good morning, Miss Applejack," spoke a deep voice from behind.
The orange pony jumped upon seeing the frightening appearance of Doomie sneaking up on her. This time, the changeling wore a navy blue neckband scarf.
"I'll be honest with ya, guy," said Applejack. "You bein' here freaks me out."
"I appreciate your honesty," said Doomie. "In kind, I have to honest to you that I am, despite my deep masculine voice, a female."
"That freaks me out even more!"
"Truth be told, we aren't even females in a mammalian sense, even if we are the living extension and will of the Changeling Queen. While we possess a nearly exact copy of her genome, we cannot reproduce."
"T.M.I., Doomie. What are you here for anyway?"
"I'm here to escort you to the deck for your assigned duties."
"We have duties?"
"Please wake your up your unicorn partner. She has been assigned the same duties as you are."
With a rowdy crew as this, Applejack didn't expect them to be as strict in their work, but perhaps the day was just beginning. Still, she really didn't want to work when Pegasopolis and the Fifth Element were within their reach, but she didn't want to argue with a changeling without backup. That backup happened to be Twilight.
If she could, Applejack would kick Sunny off the bed if there weren't a wall behind her in this small and simple room. Instead, the orange pony carefully separated the alicorn from Twilight leg by leg, and slowly roused the purple unicorn from her sleep. Her groans and her messy mane made her too adorable for Applejack to resist blushing or cracking a wide smile. The unicorn stumbled out of her bed and plopped down onto the floor, while Sunny's good wing seemed to have latched onto the unicorn's tail. The alicorn was up with a messed up pink mane and needy eyes staring back at Twilight.
"No, Sunny, stay in bed," said Twilight. "I'll send the doctor over to check up on you. Make sure she sees the notes I left in my saddlebag."
Sunny grumbled again before throwing a pillow on top of her horned head, giving Twilight the chance to quickly comb her mane and tail straight before heading out with Applejack. Expectedly, she became surprised by Doomie's appearance and her navy blue scarf, but a quick explanation from both the changeling and the earth pony cleared things up.
Ordinarily, Applejack and Twilight would be the first mares awake to start the day, whether it was gathering supplies or planning for the day ahead. Today, a pounding hangover headache almost kept them from maintaining balance on their hooves. Twilight nearly threw up twice as they followed Doomie up the spiral stairwell, giving Applejack a convenient excuse to grab hold of the unicorn to keep her under control. Twilight rewarded her friend with a cute smile that Applejack blushed on first sight. The orange pony had to turn her head away to hide her attraction, and at least the dim stairwell obscured the pink in her cheeks.
Upon arriving onto the deck, the early morning breeze nearly tipped off Applejack's Stetson hat and messed up Twilight's mane. Both had been keenly aware that they were on an airship, but not one exceeding their usual expectations. Most of the deck was pure Gaean steel painted with a dark indigo color, and some kind of insect-like plating accented the perimeter railings. The metallic command bridge rose up at the back of the deck, and it was topped off with a radio tower and a crow's nest occupied by a dopey-eyed pegasus dual-wielding two telescopes that pointed at differing directions.
The day had started off quiet given that Applejack, Twilight, and Doomie were the only ones on the massively long deck. Immediately on their right was a pair of mops, a pair of water buckets, and two sets of ropes.
"As per the agreement between myself, a bound and legal representative of the Captain," began Doomie, "and you two, Magisister Twilight Sparkle and Rebel Applejack, you are hereby charged with the daily swabbing of the Spitfire's deck and the cleaning of its outer hull."
"Twilight and I agreed to that?" Applejack asked.
"Shall I repeat what you replied in verbatim?"
"No, that's fine," said Twilight. "It's just that with a crew so large, I thought there would be more ponies to help us."
"Due to the increased ferocity between Pegasopolis and Gaea, all crew have been reassigned in anticipation of future battles."
"Then how come we get stuck with the dirty jobs?" Applejack asked. "Where are our friends?"
"Your Alicorn friend has been interred with the good doctor due to her Silvercurse. Cabin Girl Scootaloo is taking care of your filly friends. Spike is currently apprenticing under head engineer Cherry Berry and assistant engineer Crackle. Rarity has been promoted to adjunct corporal of fashion under the supervision of Lieutenant Captains Aloe and Lotus. Fluttershy is in charge of taking care of the Captain's pet tortoise, and Pinkie Pie has been reassigned as Pirate Queen in charge of catering services and airship entertainment."
"You didn't answer the first question."
"Applejack, shush!" hissed Twilight. "Doomie, we thank you for your information."
"Then I shall take my leave and report to the captain," said the changeling. "Let us know if you run into trouble."
If it weren't for her navy blue scarf and utter politeness, Applejack wouldn't have kept herself from attacking Doomie on sight for assigning such mundane tasks. The deep-voiced changeling went back down through the hatch and into the airship's massive hull. What followed was a long and uncomfortable silence interrupted only by the screech of a distant eagle and the thud of a mop knocked over by the airship's usual rumbling.
"So," Applejack said with wandering and rolling eyes, "we're alone now."
"What's that?" Twilight asked.
"I mean, I suppose you can get all this done if you use your magic."
"I could, but with a ship this big, I'd be all spent out before noon. You know I have to eat twice my weight after an intense magic session."
"You sure look cute when you eat."
"Huh?"
"I mean, there's no way we can get this ship cleaned by ourselves."
"We could make a race out of it. Me versus you."
"Oh, so you're challenging me, Sugarcube?"
"After we we've been through so far, I think I can endure swabbing an entire deck in no time flat."
"Without magic?"
"You better believe I can do it without magic."
"I can't wait to see that. Okay, then. Why don't I take one half of the ship and you take the other half?"
"You're on."
"Just because I like you doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Unicorn or earth pony--let's see who comes out on top."
They kept each other eye to eye as they gathered their cleaning materials. Their sides had been chosen. Mops had been moistened. Both Applejack and Twilight agreed to an unspoken gentlemare's agreement that the first one to flinch begins the race.
They were off! Neck and neck Applejack and Twilight created a bubbly trail on the painted metallic deck. Both had struck a few bumps and cracks, which was a forgivable oversight nonetheless, but it did little to slow down their speed and their fun. While this was supposed to be a playful competition, Applejack found herself struggling to keep in line with Twilight, not that she was losing to her. Instead, the orange pony after years of honing her running skills found it more challenging to slow down than to speed up. All her effort was concentrated admiring Twilight's gyrating stride, her smoothly toned muscles, and her striped mane and tail streaming through the air. This was one of the very few times she saw the unicorn genuinely happy. It didn't just make Applejack happy as well; it sent her heart aflutter.
Then her lovely expression turned for the worse. Applejack couldn't hear Twilight's words until it became too late. An explosion rocked the deck, and the orange pony found herself immediately losing balance and being struck hard on the head before falling unconscious.