//------------------------------// // Hunters // Story: Corruption 2: Advent of Darkness // by LordLycaon //------------------------------// Flash Sentry hummed a happy tune as he walked through town, his saddlebags halfway filled with groceries and other items that Spike had told him they needed. He reached into one of his bags' pockets with his wing and pulled out the list that the baby dragon had given him. "Let's see…" Apparently, the next thing he had to do was go visit Sweet Apple Acres about that party that that pink mare called Pinkie Pie was planning on throwing in a few days. He needed to talk to Applejack about that. He believed that she was one of Twilight's friends, but he had never really been able to get to know her. Or any of Twilight's friends, for that matter. He supposed that this was as good an opportunity as ever. After getting directions from some of the ponies around town, he eventually found the apple farm near the town's edge. It was a quaint little place, he thought. He had only been here once before, when he first came into town to act as Twilight's bodyguard. It was pretty hasty tour, back when the purple unicorn was still really shaken up about recent events. He walked past the open gate and looked around at the humble farm. He personally wouldn't mind living in a place like this. It seemed like it was separated from the world and its troubles, completely free of all other problems. It was nice and peaceful, just the way he liked it. He soon found Applejack bucking apple trees as her brother Big Mac carried the fallen apples away in a cart. He approached them and waved his hoof. "Hey!" he called. Both Applejack and Big Mac perked up at that and saw the orange pegasus stallion walking over to them. Applejack grinned and said, "Well, howdy, Flash! Been a while since we last saw ya here. What brings ya to the farm?" "Oh, I just need to ask you about catering for a party that your Pinkie Pie friend is planning," Flash explained. He then put on a curious look. "You two wouldn't happen to have any idea what this party is for, would you?" "Nope," Big Mac replied with a shake of his head. "Best thing to do is not question it," Applejack advised seriously. "Trust me. It'd prob'ly be better fer yer sanity not to wonder what's goin' on in that head o' hers." Flash raised an eyebrow, but didn't question that. "Anyway, about the catering…" "Oh! Right! We got that covered. We've got a whole line o' snacks planned fer the party. You can tell Pinkie not to worry none!" "Got it," Flash said with a nod. He looked around at the trees for a second. "I've gotta say, you guys have a really nice farm here." "Eeeyup," Big Mac stated proudly. Applejack nodded in agreement. "We don't usually brag 'round here, but Sweet Apple Acres has got the best dang apples you'll ever eat! We've only got a hoofful of rivals in Equestria, and they just barely manage to match the fruits of our labors!" Flash nodded again and eyed one of the trees. "You mind if I give apple-bucking a try?" "You kiddin'?" the orange mare asked with a joking look. "Go right on ahead." The pegasus nodded and set his saddlebags on the ground, then headed for the nearest full apple tree. -o- Twilight tried not to make eye contact with anypony as she walked through town. That didn't mean that she didn't notice the nervous glances and the occasional spiteful glare sent her way. After a few months of this, she had grown used to it. The few who weren't afraid of her still accepted her. Even Rainbow Dash was willing to forgive her for what she had done, albeit a bit suspiciously at first. She ignored the looks as best she could, but they were still rather biting. It served as a constant reminder of what she had done. And she believed that she needed that reminder. Otherwise, she might make the same mistakes again. She soon came upon Sweet Apple Acres and sighed with a small smile. At least she knew that the Apple family would still welcome her as openly as ever. She walked past the gate and went off looking for Applejack, whom she found sitting on her rump, staring at several empty apple trees with a dumbfounded expression. "Hey, AJ!" she greeted happily. She raised an eyebrow when the earth pony didn't respond. "Is something wrong?" "No," Applejack stated truthfully. "Ah'm just a little in shock is all." "What happened?" "Flash happened." "What?" "Hey, Twilight!" called the voice of Flash Sentry from behind an apple tree. The pegasus flew over to the two mares with a grin on his face. "What brings you here?" Twilight raised an eyebrow. "I came to talk to Applejack about catering for Pinkie Pie's big party. Why're you here? And why is Applejack so stunned?" "Catering?" Flash asked. "Huh. Must've forgotten to cross that off of your to-do list for you. I already took care of that. They're getting some things ready." Flash eyed Applejack for a moment. "As for what's wrong with her… I guess I'm better at apple-bucking than I thought." "Wait, what?" "Yeah, see, I asked if it'd be okay if I tried bucking apples. AJ and Big Macintosh agreed. I started about ten minutes ago. I think I cleared about two acres already, but I'm not sure." Twilight's jaw almost hit the ground. Applejack had been working this farm all her life, and she could only do about one acre an hour. Flash once said that he was the fastest trainee in the boot camp that he went to for training as a Royal Guard, but this proved that he was almost as fast as Rainbow Dash! "Did you fly at all?" Twilight inquired. "No," the pegasus colt answered. "I just did was Applejack was doing. I just bucked the trees and headed for the next one." Applejack shook her head, apparently trying to get over her shock. She suddenly looked like she had a joyful realization. "Shoot, if I'd known you were such a natural at apple-buckin', I'da hired you a long time ago! You just saved us at least two or three hours o' work today!" Flash chuckled. "Sorry, but I've already got a full-time job. Besides, I think it's about time I got those groceries back to the library." He headed over to get his saddlebags when they suddenly levitated in the air sparkling with familiar purple magic. "I've got that," Twilight said with slight smirk a giggle. She placed it on Flash's back, and the pegasus gave an appreciative nod. "You go on back, Flash. I'll take care of everything else from here." "You got it," Flash said with nod as he turned to leave the farm. Twilight watched as he walked away, something Applejack easily took notice of. "You really got it, Twi," she joked with a little chuckle. "You got it bad." Twilight blushed at that statement and gave the orange mare a flustered look. "What? N-no, I don't!" Applejack laughed at Twilight's embarrassment as the purple unicorn rolled her eyes and walked away. That was one more joke she could add to the ever-growing list of times that he friends had teased her about having a crush on Flash Sentry. She knew for a fact that she didn't. -o- Three pairs of eyes watched from the shadows as ponies walked by, going about their daily lives as though everything was normal. The owners of those eyes hissed as one pony in particular trotted by. "There!" one voice said in a deep tone. "That one! That's the pony we hunt! Lead us to Etna Key!" "Yesss," said a second, smoother, raspier voice. "Hunt. Bite. Burn. Make pony talk." A third voice laughed gleefully. "Fun! We have fun hunting!" "Yes," the first voice replied. "We have fun." With that, the eyes sunk deeper into the shadows, disappearing altogether, but not letting their target out of sight for even a moment. They would certainly have fun stalking the pony. They will definitely have even more fun chasing the pony.