//------------------------------//
// Cleansing the Fire 
// Story: Elder Scrolls: Equestria 
// by DragonTech 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 4:Cleansing the Fire
Ashlan woke up the next morning to the sound of pounding on his door. After getting dressed, he went downstairs to check who it was. He was greeted by Twilight and Pinkie Pie. 
“Oh, um, hey Ashlan…” Twilight said rather nervously. 
Ashlan looked outside. “It’s still dark out, and this is my only day off this week. Is there something you guys needed?” 
Twilight looked down at the ground, unable to answer his question for some reason. Luckily, Pinkie Pie answered for her. “We’re gonna do a barn raising with Applejack! Wanna join?”
Ashlan wasn’t sure about this. Applejack and him didn’t exactly mix well. 
“Pinkie Pie, I really don’t think I should…” Ashlan started, but was cut short by Pinkie’s pleading eyes. After a few seconds of enduring the puppy eyes, Ashlan sighed, then said, “Fine, but I don’t think Applejack will like it.” 
Ashlan could never bring himself to say no to her. Pinkie leaped up in the air with joy. Ashlan followed the two down the street that would lead to Applejack’s farm.
______________________________________________________________________________
Ashlan walked onto the farm grounds for the first time. He had come close to the place when he had first arrived in the town, but this was the first time he had actually set foot on the property. Looking to his left, there was countless rows of apple trees. Some of which weren’t in season, which was strange considering most of the others were sprouting their apples already. Looking to his right, there was an old fashioned house in which he assumed Applejack and her family lived. It was quite simple, which Ashlan supposed was suited to the country life. Looking up the path was a weathered old barn, which Ashlan assumed was the one going to be torn down to make room for the new one. It was covered in faded red and white paint, with dozens of noticeable chips in the paint. The wood was broken in some places, and in others it was missing entirely.
“I can see why she’d want this place torn down.” Ashlan said. 
“And just what is that supposed to mean?” Applejack said. Apparently she’d been following Ashlan for quite sometime now. 
Ashlan groaned. “Are you saying you don’t want that barn torn down?” 
Applejack scoffed. “I’ll have you know that barn held up for a really long time.” 
“Well, it’s not going to hold up much longer,” Ashlan noted, “Should we get to tearing it down?” 
Applejack sighed. “Just let me have one last time inside.” Ashlan nodded, signifying that he didn’t mind either way. Applejack walked into the barn to look around one last time.
Ashlan looked over to Twilight. “Is this going to take long?” 
Twilight looked back. “It might, but then again, it might not. Applejack has a lot of memories in this barn. It’s never easy for her to part with it, no matter how many times she does it.” 
Ashlan was a little surprised. "You mean they’ve had to do this multiple times? I thought buildings were, you know, supposed to last?”
Twilight was a little upset at the comment, but she could she from Ashlan’s point of view. Buildings were meant to last, although Applejack’s barns went through a lot more than most others.
“Just let her do her thing, ok?” Twilight asked.
“I know, I was just saying.” Ashlan replied.
Applejack came out of the barn with a grin on her face. “Alright y’all, lets tear down this barn! So, anyone got any ideas on how to send this one out?”
At that moment, Rarity and Rainbow Dash arrived. Apparently these kind of events involved all of her friends. Pinkie Pie was the first to raise her hand.
“Yeah, Pinkie? What’d ya have in mind?”
“We should use sledgehammers!”
“Ah think we can do a little better than that, Pinkie.”
Rainbow Dash raised her hand. “Do we have anything explosive?”
“No, sorry Rainbow.”
“Darnit!” Ashlan quietly slipped his hand into the air.
“What’d you want?”
“I have a proposal.”
“Well duh! Tell us what it is!”
“I propose we bring in Bassy.”
Four of the girls asked the unavoidable question, “What’s a ‘Bassy’?” Rarity gave Ashlan a glare, then said, “We are not bringing that beast anywhere close to Applejack’s barn, or Ponyville for that matter!”
Ashlan lowered his hand. “He’d get the job done.”
Applejack looked at Ashlan and Rarity as if they were crazy, then said, “Ok, so ‘Bassy’, whatever the hay that is, is out of the question. Any other bright ideas?” Ashlan raised his hand once again.
“Yes?”
“I have a proposal.”
“From now on, just tell us what it is first, ok? What is it now?”
“Ok, so I’m guessing we don’t want to leave a crater, right?”
“Duh’.”
“And we need to be able to walk around it afterward, right?”
“Of course.”
“Ok, there goes any plans involving acidity...Could we burn it down?”
“Now you're just being crazy.”
“No, I’m being creative, something you’re obviously not. Rarity, are you sure we can’t use Bassy for this?”
“Yes, darling, I’m positive.”
“Ok, well...we could always just tear it down with our bare hands.”
Twilight spoke up. “I thought you said argonians didn’t have bear hands.”
Ashlan gave Twilight a deathlook that could kill a cocatrice, then said, “I’m saying I could give everyone a potion to amplify their strength and toughness, so we could tear it down without tools and stuff. You’re all saying you’ve never wanted to rip through a building with your fists before?”
There was a mixed reaction between the girls, a mixture of You really are crazy and Of course! Ashlan decided he would go for the latter. “Alright then, let’s do this!” Ashlan pulled out a large bottle, small enough to be concealed but large enough as to make you wonder how one hadn’t seen it. It was labeled, “Dragon Strength Potion”, and Ashlan pulled off the stopper.
“Wait a second,” Rainbow Dash said, “Did you plan to bring that, or do you always carry potions like that on you?”
“Well, maybe not strength potions exactly, but stuff that helps in case someone decides to pick a fight with me.” Ashlan said. He laughed when he realized how crazy he sounded. “Anyway, who wants to drink first? It tastes like lemonade!”
“REALLY!?!” Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash asked at the same time. “Really.” Ashlan assured them. Rainbow Dash rushed over and took a swig of the potion, and nearly choked.
“What?” Ashlan asked, “It might not have been lemonade, it could’ve been something else.”
“It tastes like marshmallows!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, “It’s good it just caught me off guard.”
Now it was Rarity’s turn to take a huge swig, bigger than even Rainbow Dash’s. This caught everyone off guard, and Ashlan had to take the bottle from Rarity before she drank it all. Afterward, she was a little bit jittery. After making sure she was okay, Ashlan raised his hand to speak.
“Oh, I should probably mention this particular potion may have...side effects.”
Rainbow Dash and Rarity both looked at Ashlan with a deep look of concern for their health. “Nothing big,” Ashlan promised, “and it only affects a small group of people, practically no one. It should be safe.”
“Should be safe?” Rarity asked, “Who exactly is affected by the side effects, Ashlan?”
“Not sure,” Ashlan said, “There’s really no correlation, it’s just kind of random. Like I said, It hardly affects anyone, so you should all be ok. Want me to try it as insurance, in case something goes wrong-which it won’t?”
The girls looked uneasily at each other. “Fine,” Rarity said, “But I hope you know how to deal with these ‘side effects’, in case they appear.”
Ashlan took the bottle. “Of course I do. It’s not like this is new to me or anything.” Ashlan took a big drink of the bottle. “They wear off after about 12 hours anyway. Trust me, if it wasn’t safe, I’d be the only one drinking it.”
After a few more moments of reassurance, the other girls all took a drink. After a short unexpected shout of Pinkie Pie saying, “ULTIMATE FORM!!!”, nothing really seemed that much different.
“Um, Ashlan,” Rainbow Dash said walking over to the barn, “I hate to tell you this, but I don’t think your potion worked. I don’t really feel any stronger.” To demonstrate her point, she punched the side of the barn…
….prompting the entire area of impact of her punch to explode into splinters from the sheer force of the impact. Rainbow Dash looked at her fists in shock, amazed at what she had just done. The rest of them looked at their fists as well, then they all looked up at the barn with new determination. “Let’s wreck this barn!” Rainbow shouted, and the 6 of them charged toward the barn.
______________________________________________________________________________
After plowing through a significant portion of the barn, everyone paused to take a break from the demolition. After a short scare with a large piece of rubble falling on Twilight (which due to the potion barely phased her) it had gone by fairly quickly. Now came the daunting task of clearing out the rubble to make room for the new barn.
“Hey Ashlan, that was awesome!” Rainbow Dash said, “I wish Fluttershy was here for this.”
“Fluttershy?” Ashlan asked, “I don’t think I’ve met her yet. Why do you think that is?”
Twilight sat down on the ground, slightly exhausted from the effort of tearing down the structure. “Oh, Fluttershy? Yeah, she doesn’t like you. She said that she thinks you’re a dragon or something.”
“She thinks I’m… a dragon?” Ashlan said, slightly confused.
“Yeah,” Twilight said. “I tried to tell her otherwise, but she really is scared of you. Maybe we could set up something for you two to become friends, like we did with-” At that moment Twilight cut herself off, but it was too little too late. Applejack looked furious. Ashlan just scowled.
“Hold on just a second! You said he was a professional! I knew there was somethin’ off about him! What kind of architect uses explosives to tear down a flimsy old barn! And you still haven’t told us what a ‘Bassy’ is, either!”
“Yeah, Twilight, I thought you said  Applejack was looking forward to my help… That’s really all I’m upset about, I thought I was making progress.”
Applejack went over to Ashlan with a look of pure anger on her face. “You lied ta’ me!”
“Actually, Twilight lied to you. I had no idea she had told you that.” Ashlan was responding rather well to the aggression, which earned both the distaste and respect of his friends. Distaste because he was completely ignoring the fact that Applejack was mad at him, and not making a single effort to calm her down. Respect because most other people cowered in  fear when Applejack went on one of her ‘rants’.  This, however, only made Applejack more upset.
“Whose side are you guys on anyway? Are ya’ really gonna believe this yellow-bellied snake in the grass or one of your most trusted friends!”
Now Ashlan was starting to show anger, and he was furious. “Care to run that last comment by me again, you country simpleton?”
Now it was a battle of the words, and although both of them had experience, after about 3 minutes it was clear Ashlan was much more versed in the skill of verbal warfare.
“Well It’s not my fault you're some kinda’ freak a’ nature! Are you an dark elf or a lizard man, anyway? If your gonna’ be an outsider, just stick with one of them, don’t be some hybrid!”
“You say hybrid like I’m some kind of dog to be kept on a leash.”
“Well why shouldn’t ya’ be? Someone should handle all these newcomers comin’ in all over the place, and I don’t like your attitude toward me anyway!”
“Who said you were entitled to my respect anyway? Respect is something you earn, you can’t buy it selling cheap, poor quality apples!”
“Poor quality! Poor quality! You obviously ain’t never had-”
“Look sugarcube, I hate to break it to you, but ‘ain’t’ ain’t a word, and if you're going to get into a fight with me, I’d appreciate it if you tried to do something about that Kentucky Fried Accent of yours. I can barely understand a single word coming out of your uncivilized mouth.”
“My mouth is plenty civilized, thank ya’ very much!”
“Whatever, Mrs. Apple Pie, you keep telling that lie to yourself, and maybe one day it’ll actually come true!”
“What the hay did you just call me?!?”
“Oh, joy, countryside expletives! Tell me how many guys want a girl who throws out cuss words like her garbage apples.”
“I’ll have you know there are plenty of guys who would love to have me and-”
“And you had every single one didn’t you?”
It took the group a second for the insult to sink in. Once it did however, the effects were immediate. Rarity and Twilight looked away, blushing intensely at the insult just thrown onto the field. Pinkie Pie still didn’t understand the comment, and Rainbow Dash said, “Oh, burn!” Applejack was downright furious at the subtly vulgar  comment just used to describe her.
“That is a vicious stereotype, you low down-”
“Only as vicious as the stereotype you gave to everybody to come across the shore to a new land. Not everybody here is coming to start trouble: some of us came here to start a new life, you know.”
Twilight coughed to get Applejack’s attention. Once she had it, she whispered Don’t go down this road. The look Applejack gave Twilight indicated she planned to travel down this road as far as it would take her.
“What’s the matter? Have a little issue with your past?”
“Don’t start with this, you will live to regret it.”
“Ah’m Sorry, did you used to be aboard one of those ships argonians and khajiits go on to? You know, the ones that carry-”
“Don’t start this fight, Applejack, I’ll hurt you.”
“Please, I don’t think you could take anyone on in a straight fight you run away sl-”
Applejack never got the chance to finish her sentence, as she was quickly placed in an elbow lock by Ashlan. Next he tossed her to the ground and held his still very sharp foot claws up against her throat. For added measure, he took out his hidden bow and arrow, which he secretly always carried on him, loaded an arrow, and pointed the weapon at Applejack’s face.
“TAKE IT BACK!”
The rest of the girls didn’t know how to react. On one hand, their friend had had this coming to her for bringing up a sensitive subject like slavery in front of an argonian. Still, they didn’t want their friend to get hurt. Twilight was the first to try and talk to Ashlan.
“Ashlan, try and calm down a little, ok?”
“I’ll calm down when she admits just how much of a little southern belle she’s been!”
Applejack spoke up. “You’re crazy!”
“I just want an apology! If you can do it, then so can I!”
“Look Ashlan, you both said some things you didn’t mean, ok? That doesn’t give you an excuse to go all psycho killer on Applejack! Just apologize to each other and move on!” Rainbow Dash was obviously concerned for both Applejack’s physical well being and Ashlan’s mental well being.
Ashlan looked back down to Applejack. Although she was trying to look defiant, she was obviously terrified. That last comment by Rainbow Dash had really hit home for Ashlan. After all, he had come to Equestria specifically intending not to be a psycho killer. Reluctantly, he took his foot off of her throat and put away his bow and arrows.
“Fine. I’m sorry I was mean to you. I just don’t tolerate trash talk.”
Applejack gave a slight huff as she got to her feet.
“Is there anything you want to say to me?” Ashlan said.
“Yeah. Get off mah’ property, you low down varmit.”
“Applejack!” Twilight said, “He meant you should apologize too!”
“For what? Havin’ him almost kill me over a little quarrel?”
Ashlan looked a little offended. “No, you should apologize for basically calling my entire species a beast of burden.”
“Maybe that was a bit harsh. But yer’ still not gettin’ any apology, but you are gonna’ get off my barn.”
“Applejack-” Rainbow Dash started, but was held back by Ashlan.
“No she’s right Rainbow, it is her property. By the way, you owe me 350 bits. Get it to me within the next 3 days or I’ll take it to court.”
“WHAT?” Everyone was shocked at Ashlan’s accusation.
“And just what the hay do ah’ owe you that much for?” Applejack stated.
“Well 250 for the Dragon Strength potion I distributed among your demolition crew, and another 100 for racism in determining who is in such, which I can and will take to court.”
“You can’t be serious! How am I supposed to come up with that kind of money in 3 days?”
“I don’t know. Mortgage your barn? It’s not my fault you can’t pay for what you buy.”
Applejack was clearly angry at Ashlan, yet devastated at his completely legitimate argument. He could technically sue her for those things, and as an alchemist, afford a better lawyer than her life savings could buy.
“Of course, if you let me stay I might not press charges. Your call on this one.”
Applejack sighed with defeat. “Fine. You can stay. But you’d better pull your weight ‘round here, understand?”
“Of course. Let’s get started clearing the rubble away.”
______________________________________________________________________________
Captain Odician and Shining Armor stepped off the train for Ponyville. Looking around, the town was fairly busy, and the assassin was nowhere in sight. 
“Where do we go first?” Odician asked, “You know this town better than I do.”
“We should probably ask Twilight or one of her friends. They might know something.” Shining Armor replied.
“Great, which one do we ask first?”
“Let’s start with Twilight.”
The two started down for the Golden Oaks Library. As they walked, both of them stayed silent, fearful of what could be waiting for them when they get there. After a short 10 minute walk from the station, the two reached the library. Shining Armor knocked on the door and waited for a reply. After about a minute with no answer, Shining Armor stepped back to Odician.
“I guess she’s not home right now.”
“Great,” Captain Odician said, “Now what?”
“Now we ask some of her other friends in town.”
But after visiting all of her friends local residences, with similar results, Shining Armor and Odician were starting to get a bit worried. The last stop was Fluttershy’s cottage just outside of town. If she wasn’t home, they would just have to start asking random strangers, which could end badly. A few seconds after knocking on the door, Fluttershy came out. Both captains breathed a silent sigh of relief.
“Hey Fluttershy.” Shining Armor said.
“Oh, hello, Shining Armor. Is there something I can help you with?”
“Yes, actually. We’re looking for someone named Ashlan. Have you seen him around at all?”
“Well,” Fluttershy said, “I don’t think I’ve seen him at all today. I heard someone say he left town early today, but they didn’t know where he was going.”
“Great, that’s a start. Do you have any idea where he could’ve gone?”
“Well. I did hear him talking to Twilight about how he was going to turn in an artifact to the Canterlot Museum of Artifacts eventually. Twilight told him it could be worth a lot of money.”
“Thanks Fluttershy, we’ll start looking for him in Canterlot then.”
“Oh, um...why are you looking for him? He seemed really nice, did he do something wrong?”
“Oh, um…” Shining Armor struggled to find the right words. 
“Did you hear about what he did in Hoovesdale?” Odician asked.
“Yes, that was really brave of him. Why?”
“We’re supposed to be rewarding him. You know, give him what he deserves?”
“Oh, ok. That’s really nice of you two. Well, I’ll see you two later.”
“Thanks again, Fluttershy.” Shining Armor said as they were walking away. He then turned to Captain Odician. “And thank you for sparing her feelings.”
“You’re welcome,” Odician said, “I can only guess she was the sensitive type.”
“You have no idea.” Shining Armor said.
______________________________________________________________________________
Back on the farm, the barn raising was going out without a problem. They had already cleared out the rubble, and the barn itself was already halfway up. Applejack and Ashlan were avoiding each other for the most part, which worked out great for everyone else around them. Yes, it managed to stay problem free until about 2:30 in the afternoon. Which is when a pretty decently sized problem hit.
“Hey Applejack, you feeling ok?” Rainbow Dash called over, “You’re not looking too good.”
“Ah’m fine, just a little stomach ache is all.” Applejack reassured them.
“Are you sure Applejack?” Twilight asked. “Maybe this is a symptom of a side effect Ashlan was talking about. Maybe we should ask him about it. Where is Ashlan anyway?”
“He went with Pinkie Pie to get more wood for the barn.” Rainbow Dash answered. “Um, Applejack, are you sure you're feeling alright?” You look like you’re starting to get a rash or something.”
At that moment Applejack crumpled to the ground in pain. Her friends ran over to her aide. “Applejack?! Don’t worry, I’ll go get Ashlan! He’ll know what to do!” And with that Rainbow Dash ran off to go find the alchemist.
She found him and Pinkie Pie just leaving town with a large tow of lumber behind them in a cart provided by the Apple family. Rainbow Dash ran up to them.
“Ashlan, you gotta come quick! It’s an emergency! Applejack’s getting all weird, we think it’s the potion you gave her!” Rainbow Dash was obviously freaked out.
“Ok then, let’s hurry! Care to help us with this load? It’ll make it go by faster.” Ashlan offered.
“Forget the wood!” Rainbow Dash yelled, “Applejack could be dying as we speak!”
“Well I doubt she’s dying, but I’ll have a look.” Aslan said, leaving behind the cart of wood.
The three of them sprinted back to the barn as fast as they could go. When they got back to the barn, however, a very confusing scenario awaited them.
“Um, Twilight? Did you summon another dragon again?”
Standing in the middle of the worksite was a dragon of about 8 feet tall. It had orange scales and a familiarly colored frill.
“Wait...did Applejack turn into a-?”
At that moment both Pinkie Pie and Ashlan fell to the ground laughing. The fact that their friend was now a small dragon was apparently hysterical. Twilight and Applejack were not nearly as amused.
“Ashlan this is serious! How do we reverse it?”
Ashlan and Pinkie Pie just continued to roll on the ground laughing. Applejack decided to take a less diplomatic approach.
“Applejack, drop the wood!”
Ashlan barely rolled out of the way of a two-by-four smashed down where his head had been less than two seconds earlier. Picking up another piece of wood, Applejack threw it at Ashlan with brutal force, which he barely managed to dodge in time. The wooden beam snapped against a tree on impact. Twilight had had enough, and prepared a magic spell.
Applejack suddenly found herself being dragged by her ear with magic over to Twilight.
“Applejack, stop it! You’re wasting wood and time!”
Ashlan found himself being dragged over by the ear next, which was considerably more painful for him than for the dragon Applejack..
“Ashlan, how do we reverse the dragon spell?”
“Ok, first off, it’s not a spell, it’s an alchemical effect. Secondly, you can’t.”
Ashlan then found himself in the magical stranglehold of Twilight Sparkle.
“WHAT YOU MEAN WE CAN’T FIX IT!?!”
Gasping for breath, Ashlan managed to choke out a few words.
“Just...a side effect...wears off...after about...day.”
Twilight hesitated to release him from her grip.
“Where is she supposed to sleep tonight then? It’s not like she can just walk into her house now.”
“Couldn’t she...barn…”
Twilight reluctantly released her spell. Ashlan sat up, choking for air.
“Fine. Let’s get this finished as soon as possible then. I don’t want Applejack to sleep outside tonight.”
Ashlan got to his feet and went over to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash put a hand on his shoulder.
“You ok?”
“Fine. What was that about? I’ve never seen her get dark like that before.”
“Ashlan,” Rainbow said, “Hell hath no wrath like a dracomancer scorned.”
“Dracomancer? That explains a lot. So what did you mean earlier, ‘another dragon again’?”
“I think that’s a story you can ask Twilight later. Let’s get this finished before she blows up again.”
Ashlan noticed the dragon Applejack walking pitifully into the orchard.
“Hey, where’s she going? It’s her barn right?”
“Well, yes,” Rarity said, “but she can’t really do much as a dragon now, can she?”
“Oh great, now I have guilt…”
______________________________________________________________________________
Applejack looked over the horizon. The sun was starting to set, and the potion hadn’t worn off yet. She was afraid she really would have to sleep in the barn. If her friends had managed to complete it without her help, that is. Applejack heard Pinkie Pie coming before she saw her, thanks to her dragon hearing. She had been able to hear a lot more than she could before, and she hated it. She had no idea how dragons were able to get any sleep like this.
“APPLEJACK!!!”
Applejack raised her head off of the ground to let Pinkie know she was listening. Pinkie Pie smiled.
“Barn’s done!”
A thankfully simple answer coming from Pinkie Pie, Applejack followed her back to the barn where her friends were waiting for her. They gave her a warm welcome-well, as warm a welcome as you can give an 8 foot tall dragon. Rainbow Dash welcomed their friend first.
“Hey, Applejack! We got the barn done just a few minutes ago! How do ya’ like it?”
Applejack was very impressed with her friends handiwork. The barn was a beautiful shade of red, with roof tiles that would last a very long time. Applejack noticed that Ashlan was missing from the scene.
“Looking for Ashlan?” Twilight inquired, “He left when it was finished. I think he felt bad about everything that happened today. He worked harder than any of us, especially on the inside. Care to take a look? He treated the wood with a special potion so it could support a dragon.”
Applejack walked into the barn. It was empty, save for a few barrels here and there, but otherwise very beautiful. The floor was made from a beautiful yet practical wood for food storage. The walls were painted just as well as on the inside as they were the outside, perhaps even more so. Looking back, the doors were made to slide shut, which would help on windy days. In short, the barn was a masterpiece, and she loved every part of it. Which was good, she realized with a twinge of regret, considering she was going to be spending the night in it.
Applejack went over to the corner and laid down. Her friends could feel her sadness.
“Oh, come now Applejack, it can’t be all that bad…” Rarity said, regretting the words as soon as they came out of her mouth.
Her friends all stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, unsure of how to help their friend. Twilight bid them good-bye and started home. After all saying their goodbyes, the others started home as well. Now Applejack was alone, in the cold, dark barn. It didn’t seem nearly as bright as before.
The moon rose high into the night, and Applejack was unable to get an ounce of sleep. Even the smallest noises were incredibly noticeable, and everything poured into her senses at a near overloading rate. To top it all off, a cold wind found its way into the open barn door. Now she was sleepless, lonely, and cold. In short, it was probably the worst night of her life.
The moon was at its peak now, and Applejack was still unable to get any sleep. To top it off, a cold rain had been blown in by the storm, making the situation even more cold and lonely. Now every raindrop inside the barn fence was made known to her, and Applejack covered her ears in an attempt to drown out the noise. Suddenly she felt a large piece of cloth being thrown over her like a blanket. Somehow, someone had gotten into the barn without her noticing it, which would’ve been alarming whether she was a dragon or not.
Turning her head around, the one who had tossed the makeshift blanket over her was a hooded figure in a black cloak that concealed their body and left only snakelike yellow eyes visible on the face. Before she could react, the figure spoke.
“Yeah, that’s right. I can sneak up on dragons.”
The voice belonged to Ashlan, which was confirmed when he took off his hood to show his face. Applejack was confused as to the dark outfit the alchemist was wearing. She was even more confused as to why he was helping her.
“Confused a little? I felt bad after the whole incident today, so I came over to apologize. It also can get really cold out in the country at night, especially when it’s raining. Believe me, I know that all too well.”
Applejack felt a twinge of guilt at that last comment. What exactly had Ashlan gone through during his life to be able to say something like that.
“As for why I’m dressed like this, I hope you realize I have a life outside of alchemy.”
Applejack laughed, but as a dragon it came out as a scoff.
“What do I do? Bounty hunting.”
Applejack laughed a little more, but after the incident today, it did seem to make sense. It probably wasn’t the wisest move on her part to make enemies with a bounty hunter. Ashlan continued.
“Well, it has a nice income. Also I brought you these from your family. You know, for when the potion wears off. Not that I plan to stick around and see that happen.”
Ashlan set down a fresh change of clothes. It took Applejack a second, but after realizing what he meant, she blushed.
“Well, I should probably get going. Oh, and the whole bounty hunter thing stays between you and me, ok? The last thing I need is everyone worrying about me.”
Applejack gave a silent agreement. With that, Ashlan slipped outside and into the night. Applejack realized that maybe her first impression of Ashlan had been a bit off. Not that she’d ever admit that, of course. But maybe she could try and be a little nicer to him. With a new source of warmth, Applejack was soon able to fall asleep.
______________________________________________________________________________
It was  the Tuesday morning following the barn raising, and Ashlan was setting up shop while having a nice conversation with Twilight.
“So Ashlan, have any big plans for today?” Twilight asked.
“Actually, no, save for the unexpected incidents that might happen anytime.”
“What?”
“You know, if something unexpected happens, I’ll be ready for it. Anything that comes my way, I’m pretty confident I can handle.”
Twilight smiled, and just happened to look out the shop window, where a figure was quickly approaching the shop.
“Hey Ashlan? Someone’s coming our way, and she looks pretty steamed.”
Aslan looked up over the counter he had been under. “What do they look like?”
“Looks like a wood elf, probably about your age, brown hair-”
“Leather armor?”
“Yeah, and-”
“Green eyes?”
Yeah, but-”
“Sheathed knife and a look that could kill a cockatrice?”
“Well now that you mention it, yeah. Why do you two know each-”
Twilight heard a clatter of motion behind her. Turning around, Ashlan was behind the door to the basement.
“I’m out collecting reagents!”
“No you’re-”
Ashlan pointed a finger. “I’m collecting reagents, in the everfree forest, you don’t know when I’ll be back. Ok?”
Before Twilight could ask what was going on, Ashlan slammed the door shut right as the wood elf barged into the shop.
“Where is he?” the elf demanded.
Twilight did her best to stay calm. Whoever this woman was clearly had some grudge against Ashlan.
“He’s out collecting reagents, why-”
The woman looked over the list of shop hours. “This place doesn’t open for another 20 minutes. Which either means you're his assistant, which I doubt he would need with his skill, or-”
The woman approached Twilight menacingly. “Or you're a thief breaking into his shop! I should have you arrested right now!”
Twilight didn’t know how to react to the aggressive nature of the elf. Luckily, Ashlan’s voice interrupted them.
“Gracia, you leave her out of this.”
Twilight heard Ashlan curse under his breath, the woman stormed over to the door and threw it open.
“Twilight, do you mind leaving? This is kind of a personal issue between us-”
Gracia dragged Ashlan down the stairs saying, “Understatement of the century.”
Twilight decided that although Ashlan might need her help, it was probably best for her to stay out of it. That, and this Gracia person terrified her. More importantly, she scared Ashlan. Ashlan had gone up against Diamond Dogs and the Everfree forest without an ounce of fear. What could she do that was so terrifying?
A thought came to Twilight they might have been in a relationship. To her, that was more terrifying than anything else.
______________________________________________________________________________
Once in the basement, Gracia threw Ashlan at the wall opposite the door, causing him to land amidst a pile of baskets.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were alive?!?”
“Sorry if you weren’t the first thing that came to mind when my ship was attacked by a dragon.”
Gracia went over, hit him the face, and picked him up by his shirt.
“Why didn’t you use that Dragon Tongue I taught you?”
“Sorry if that wasn’t the first thing that came to mind when the dragon’s dead corpse smashed half the ship and almost killed me.”
Gracia threw him against the wall again, only harder this time.
“Did you know Odician is here? In Equestria?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, I did.”
“Did you know he came to Ponyville to try and catch you last Saturday?”
“No, I did not. Where is he now?”
Gracia scoffed. “Some girl told him you were headed to Canterlot. They bought it. I heard you stopped your profession? You getting soft on me?”
Ashlan glared at her. “First off, if by profession you mean slaughtering innocent people for cash, yes, I stopped that. Second-”
Ashlan never got to say what was second, as Gracia whipped out her sheathed knife and lunged at Ashlan. Ashlan dodged the strike while pulling out his wakizashi. While Gracia was lunging forward, he pushed her from behind to add to her momentum, causing her to fall over. She was up just as fast, and a short knife fight ensued. After about a minute of block and strike combat, Ashlan countered one of Gracia’s swings to once again add to her momentum, dodged behind her, and held his weapon at her throat. Gracia smiled.
“Getting behind someone was always your best technique.”
Ashlan let her drop to the ground. “Second, I’m not soft. I take on local bounties, which I’ll have you know I’m not on that list.”
Gracia got up and turned to face him. “Point taken.”
Ashlan continued. “So, what are you doing in Equestria? I thought you were stationed in Cyrodiil. Wait, let me guess: This was that expansion the Wind Drake Society was talking about, wasn’t it?”
Gracia showed off her tattoo of a Wind Drake, cleverly hidden on her left arm. “You are now looking at the head of the Wind Drake Society-Equestrian Division, anyway. So you going to go telling off the guards I’m part of an Assassin's guild?”
“First off, you say that like the Wind Drake Society is up there with the Dark Brotherhood and Morag Tong. It’s still young and unknown, don’t get above yourself. Second, I’m an alchemist now, not a traitor. Your secret is safe with me.”
Gracia and Ashlan turned to go up the stairs. As they did, Ashlan noticed the time.
“Well, it’s time to open up shop. You better make yourself scarce, in case the Wind Drakes do get themselves on the radar.”
Gracia started for the door. Before she went out, she turned back to face Ashlan. “So would you ever do it again? You know, if it payed good enough?”
Ashlan went behind the counter. “No amount of cash could make me go back. But if it was for a good cause? A really, really good cause? Maybe.”
Gracia grinned. “Alright. Just don’t let your guard down because you're reformed, alright? Odician would still arrest you if he got the chance.”
Ashlan looked down at the counter and sighed. “Believe me, I know. That guy never gives up.”
With that, Gracia walked out of the shop. Ashlan walked over to the sign and turned it to the ‘Open’ side. He then set about making sure everything was in perfect condition. The potions were fresh and in place, the alchemy kits for sale, and everything was in place, the way it should be. Sometime today a new tool would be coming in, an alchemy table that was much more efficient than the individual kits. It would reduce the time it took to make potions in half, and he would get much more out of the reagents than before. The table would allow him to refill lost stock much quicker, and he may even be able to let people use it-for a small fee of course. It had been a very wise investment on his part. Costly, but over the long term it would bring in more than what it cost to order.
Ashlan was looking over the regeants once again when someone came bursting through his front door. It was High Charity, and she looked like she was going to have a panic attack.
“Whoa, Charity, calm down. What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
“Ashlan, I need to borrow some money.”
Ashlan was taken aback. People came to him with strange requests all of them time (Mostly Potions), but people almost never came to him for money.
“Well, how much, and what do you need it for?”
“30 bits. It’s for-”
“Wait, how much! 30 bits is a lot of money to just come out of nowhere to ask for Charity. What do you need it for?”
“I need to buy something. Please Ashlan, it’s really important.!”
“Well, maybe you can tell me what it is first? Sit down, you look like your nerves are fried.”
Charity hesitated for a moment, then came inside. Ashlan immediately regretted having brought her in.
“Um, Charity, when was the last time you took a shower?”
“About 3 days ago. Why?”
Wait a minute, Ashlan thought, sudden need for money, not bathing, and she won’t tell me why she needs the money…
“Charity, have you been drinking?”
Charity’s face was like that of a deer caught in the path of a pyromancer’s flames. She managed to recover it fairly quickly.
“Everybody drinks Ashlan. Water, Milk, Tea-”
“Ok, then, let me clarify. Are you asking me for money so you can go out and buy alcohol, which you will then proceed to consume in excessive amounts?”
“I wouldn’t call it excessive…”
Ashlan glared at Charity. “So your telling me that you have the nerve to come into my place of business, during operating hours, to ask for money so that you can buy booze?”
“...Yes?”
Ashlan turned away from her. “Charity, I’m going to have to ask you to vacate the premises.”
Charity was confused. “What?”
“Leave. Now.”
Charity had a look of disappointment on her face. “Please Ashlan, it’s not like I’m addicted or anything-”
Fed up with his friend, Ashlan lashed out at Charity. “If you weren’t addicted you wouldn’t have come to my door begging for money! Get out of my house and my place of business, NOW!”
The last word came out of his mouth with a particular amount of force. So much it actually caused Charity’s hair to blow back a little bit. Needless to say, this shout was more than enough to scare away Charity. She threw open the door and scrambled out of the shop. Before the door swung shut, Ashlan saw Twilight with another girl standing outside the store. She had long pink hair and a creme colored skin. Ashlan didn’t get a chance to notice anything else because the girl ran off screaming. Twilight walked into the store.
“Well, congratulations on making a good first impression on Fluttershy. What was that all about?”
Ashlan turned to check something under the counter. “Charity was having a bit of a problem, and she came to me asking me to help with it. It’s really kind of personal, so if we could move on to the next question…?”
Twilight sat down in a chair near the door. “Well, thanks to that shout of yours, Fluttershy is even more scared of you now. I was barely able to get her up here a first time. Now you have to get her to talk to you, because nothing I say will be able to help her.”
Ashlan slumped his head into his hands. “Well, excuse me if I didn’t know you were right outside at the moment I happened to lose my patience. Is there something you needed besides that?”
“Well, no, but now that I think about it, do you have anything to knockout a dragon?”
Ashlan looked up from his hands. “What?”
“Not a full grown dragon, but a baby dragon maybe?”
“...Why?”
“Well, it’s just that Spike is overdue for one of his seven-hour bubble baths, and it’s not very easy to get him in…”
Ashlan saw no sense in this conversation. “You give your baby dragon seven hour bubble baths?”
“Well, once a month. It’s a lot easier than getting him to take a half hour bath everyday.”
“Well, to answer your question, no, I don’t have anything to knock out a baby dragon. I do have something that can calm him down long enough for you to get him in the tub. It’s kind of like catnip for dragons, which means it may or may not help you.”
“What is it?” Twilight was suddenly very interested in something that could help calm Spike down in a hurry. “How much is it?”
“Well, it’s a flower I found in the Everfree forest. I don’t know the name of it, but I do know it has a calming effect on dragons. And Redguards. And wolves. And Imperials. And pretty much anyone with low poison resistance.”
Twilight recalled a flower with similar properties. “Is this flower a sort of blue color?”
“Yes, have you seen it before?”
“Ashlan, that’s called Poison Joke.”
“Oh, what’s so funny about it?”
“The pollen from Poison Joke makes you high.”
“Oh, that’s hilarious.”
“Except when you’re trapped in a field of it for almost 7 hours. We’d probably still be there if it weren’t for Zecora.”
“Oh.” Ashlan looked down awkwardly. The two stood there silently for a moment, then Ashlan broke the silence.
“”So what’s the deal? I thought Spike loved his 7-hour bubble baths.”
“Well, yeah.” Twilight said, “Once he’s in the tub. Getting him to get in the bath is another story entirely.”
Ashlan pulled out a book labeled ‘Reagents’ and started flipping through the pages. As he flipped through, he bookmarked several items with his finger. Upon reaching the end of the book, he went back to the bookmarked items and wrote them down on a piece of paper. Twilight was relieved to see that Poison Joke was not on the list.
“Alright, I can have something by tomorrow. Can you wait that long?”
Twilight shrugged. “I guess I can put off his bath another day. He’s really going to like you now. By the way Ashlan, are you doing anything this Friday night?”
“As a matter of fact I do have something planned. I was going to go hunting.”
Twilight looked disappointed for a second, then said, “Well can I come with you?”
Ashlan was caught off guard. Usually that excuse always deterred Equestrians, considering they detested killing things. In actuality he was going to go collect a bounty on another criminal, and this one seemed more dangerous than the others, considering he was a dracomancer like Twilight.
“I don’t think you could handle what I go after, Twilight.”
Twilight was becoming more insistent. “Really? What are you hunting?”
“Hydras.”
Ashlan hadn’t even thought about the words before he had said them. It was fairly obvious it was a lie, as no sane person would hunt down hydras. Luckily, Ashlan had an excuse to cover it.
“Their scales and teeth have excellent alchemical properties. You can’t buy that stuff at the market, now, can you?”
Twilight stared Ashlan in the eyes for a few seconds. “Oh really?”
Ashlan stared back just as intensely. “Really.”
Twilight stared for a bit longer, then turned and left the shop without saying another word. Ashlan would have to be careful he wasn’t followed when he went to collect this one. Still, it was only Tuesday, and by then she would probably have forgotten. Besides, Ashlan didn’t want Twilight to come along for this. He had a personal grudge against anyone who used dragon magic for self-gain. It had started when he was young, and was the reason he was such an effective assassin. It was also one of his most well kept secrets. He doubted anyone who had known about it was still alive, because they had most likely found out on the receiving end of it. Which not many people lived through. Still, that was a tale for another time.
End of Chapter 4