//------------------------------// // Murder Is Bloomin' (POLLS CLOSED) // Story: The Black Apple // by Duke of Canterlot //------------------------------// Big McIntosh worked alone in the fields. It was his responsibility to ensure that the Apple family business was still strong. It was a beautiful day outside, but Big Mac certainly didn't live in a beautiful world. His youngest sister, Apple Bloom, was the mastermind of the tragedy which hit Equestria. All of those dead ponies. More barbaric species, such as griffons, killed others all the time. However, killing ponies was a rarity. Apple Bloom was eventually caught for the murders and locked away in Tartarus for her crimes. It was sad to think that his brilliant sister chose that path of life. Big Mac wished he was there for her more often. He might have been able to stop the murders from occurring. Big Mac could have given Apple Bloom the right advice. She could have been anything she wanted to be. Apple Bloom was even smarter than Twilight Sparkle, Ponyville's well-known brainiac. A year had passed since then. The news had hit Granny Smith especially. A day after Apple Bloom was caught, Granny had a stroke. Granny couldn't believe that her sweet little granddaughter was capable of such horrific acts. The evidence was clear though and Apple Bloom didn't deny what she did. His little sister seemed awfully proud of being a mass murderer. She saw it as the way to cleanse the world of the "bad ponies". Given Apple Bloom's targets, Big Mac had to admit that she went after those he personally disliked as well. However, he didn't think they deserved death. Granny was recovering nicely, but had even worse trouble walking than she did before. Applejack, his other sister, had been devoting her time to taking care of Granny and didn't work on the farm as much anymore. Big Mac wasn't bothered by taking on more of the work by himself. He wouldn't be good as a nurse, but he was a damn good farmer. There was also the death of his parents so many years ago. Killed by goddamn timberwolves. Big Mac knew that the sudden death of his parents had affected Apple Bloom on a very deep level. She was only three years old, but already had the mental capacity of a teenager. Apple Bloom was heartbroken by the death of her parents.. absolutely heartbroken. She would never be the same. Of course, he and Applejack were changed forever, but Apple Bloom lost any sense of trust in the world. Only one good thing happened from all of this. Big Mac now had a marefriend. Her name was Cheerilee, an elementary school teacher. Cheerilee was devastated over the death of four of her students and the fact that her star student was a killer. The two of them were able to bond over their losses and were there for one another. Cheerilee wanted to quit teaching altogether, but Big Mac knew the right words to say to stop her from quitting. Big Mac was hurting too, but he was awfully good at showing the world that he wasn't hurt. He needed to stay strong and silent for the ponies he cared about. The farm would have been dead if it wasn't for him. "You should take a break." It was Cheerilee. Big Mac turned around to see her and said, "Nope." "Why not", pouted Cheerilee. "The family needs me more than ever now, especially given all that happened." "How's Granny?" "She's doing much better, but AJ still needs to take care of her. She can barely move on her own, but she's gaining some mobility." "I know it's tough, I can help you out with some of the work." "Ah can't let a lady like you do farmwork." "C'mon, it will be a lotta fun, Mac. I want to help!" Big Mac sighed. He appreciated Cheerilee's enthusiasm, but she wasn't built the same way as Applejack. He didn't want her to get hurt while bucking a tree. However, Cheerilee would probably be good with the animals.. better than him. "Alright, you asked for it", said Big Mac with a smile, "I want you to make sure all the animals in the barn are fed. Take good care of them. I can finish the harvest on my own." "Thank you, Mac." The two kissed and Cheerilee ran off to help the animals. Perhaps Cheerilee could even help keep the Apple family going in the long run, thought Big Mac. He continued on with his work. It was the middle of the night. Spike, Twilight's assistant, was asleep but woke up upon hearing a loud crash outside. "Twilight, did you hear that", gasped Spike loudly. "Spike", groaned Twilight, "I want to sleep. It's nothing." Spike tried to go back to sleep, but he couldn't get around it. Spike had to go outside to figure out the source of the noise. Spike went outside. It was peaceful. But something didn't seem right. "Ah'm back", said a feminine voice, "judgment has been brought upon you. Your verdict is guilty. Your sentence is death immediately." Sounded like Apple Bloom. Suddenly, Spike felt his body being stretched. What was going on? Spike heard laughter. The laughter was masculine. Tirek? No.. it couldn't be...how was this possible? Spike was dead before he could scream. The news of Spike's death shocked Ponyville. There was absolutely no trace except that he was found ripped in half outside of Princess Twilight Sparkle's castle. Twilight was absolutely devastated over Spike's death. She shouldn't have dismissed Spike like that. Twilight was so sure it was nothing, but it wasn't. There were rumors that Apple Bloom had escaped from Tartarus. Twilight never thought she would be so terrified of Applejack's little sister, but she was. If Apple Bloom did escape and kill Spike, who knew what else she was going to do? Except for the trick played on Apple Bloom with the muffins, Apple Bloom always seemed to be many steps ahead of every pony else. Twilight was always nervous about that. It seemed too easy to get Apple Bloom to go to Tartarus. There was little resistance and the filly openly admitted to the murders. Twilight should have known better. Somepony will probably go to Tartarus and find that Cerberus is either dead or missing. Twilight heard a knock on the door. She wanted to tell whoever it was to come back later, but every knock meant something important. Twilight opened the door and saw that it was Pinkie Pie, a pink party pony who was also a brilliant detective, and Zecora, a zebra who was skilled with potions. Despite Spike's death, they seemed cheerful about something. "Hello Pinkie and Zecora", said Twilight sadly. "I am sorry for your loss. Spike the dragon will now be one with the moss", said Zecora. "But", said Pinkie, "maybe not!" "Huh", said Twilight. "Zecora and I have been working on some mighty sweet potions... we might be able to bring the dead back to life." "Really? Stop shitting with me, Pinkie. Nothing will ever be the same without Spike." "Yes, but don't ask for more. Right now, we would only be able to bring back four", said Zecora. Twilight couldn't believe it. Pinkie and Zecora were serious about this. "If what you're saying is true", said Twilight, "we can only bring back four of the murdered. How the hell are we going to decide who to bring back?" "Easy. We create a brew and recite a chant with the four we want to bring back to life." "I meant", said Twilight, "how are we going to decide who to bring back?" "I know a way, but I have to keep it somewhat of a secret from every pony", said Pinkie. Pinkie Pie went to the basement of Sugarcube Corner. She pressed a button which was at the bottom left corner of the fourth wall and a portal appeared on the wall. Pinkie jumped right into the portal. She was in the human world. Pinkie couldn't tell any pony about this, not even Lyra who was obsessed with humans. Pinkie bounced down the street and rang a doorbell. It was the house of Duke of Canterlot, her main contact. "Hi, Duke of Canterlot!" "What brings you here, Pinkie?" "Well, Zecora and I think we know how to bring ponies back to life." "Which ponies died who I care about?" "Ummmm.... errrrrrr... you wrote that shipping story about Blueblood and Bon-Bon, right?" "Yea, but that Blueblood was out-of-character. The Blueblood who Apple Bloom killed was a prick. I have some cake for you." "Yummy", cheered Pinkie. She opened her mouth extra wide and ate the entire cake. Duke could never get over how bizarre that looked, but it was Pinkie Pie.. you can't question what Pinkie does. "So, you want me to decide who comes back to life?" "Yea", said Pinkie with a giggle, "we can only bring four of the ones Apple Bloom killed back though." "I don't know if I can make that decision." "But... you're not a pony and you will be fair about it." "Perhaps, I can ask some of my human friends about this. They might be able to help me decide who comes back to life." "Okie dokie lokie", said Pinkie bouncing. Duke always wondered whether Pinkie's legs had springs in them, but he figured Pinkie wouldn't know the answer to that anyway. "I'll ask the folks at FimFiction, but you know that Apple Bloom is probably going to kill them again anyway." "That's a risk I'm willing to take, Dukie." Oh, Pinkie Pie..