Chapter 3
Secrets and Truths
Late in the afternoon, Enchanted Brew is currently walking with the Cutie Mark Crusaders through Sweet Apple Acres.
“So this is where you live then, Applebloom?” Asked Brew.
“Yup, our apple orchard supplies ponies all over Equestria.”
“All over, huh?” commented Brew.
“You bet! We even deliver to Canterlot Castle” Applejack says, standing next to an apple tree. She turns to Brew, “Howdy there, Brew. What brings you to Sweet Apple Acres?”
Before he could reply Applebloom says, “I invited him so he could tell us more of his story.”
Sweetie Belle comments, “Yeah, and it's the weekend so we thought that we could get him to finish his story.”
Looking to them, Brew replies with a knowing smile, “I thought you invited me for a tour of the orchard?”
“Uhh, well we…” applebloom looks to the other crusaders before continuing, “We were thinking you could tell us more of your story, uhh while we gave ya a tour! Yeah, that's it.”
Taking a moment in mock thought, Brew replies, “Well, I’m already here"
“Alright then, I’ll leave you to it then, lil sis.” Applejack begins her walk back to the Apple family’s home, “If you’re still here in a lil’ you’re welcome to join use for dinner!” she calls over her shoulder.
“Thank you, but-” before brew could respond to her, Applebloom giggled saying, “Mah sis is one of the most hospitable ponies around. She’ll have a place set for you whether you say yes or no.
“It's fine, Granny Smith is an awesome cook.” commented Scootaloo.
“Sounds like I don't have a choice.”
“You don't.” smiled Applebloom.
Laughing a bit at the bluntness of the filly, “Where was I?”
“Ooh, ohh!” responds Sweetie Belle, “You were chasing Doodle Donkey!”
“No he wasn't, he was chasing a Changeling!” Scootaloo corrected her.
“Same thing.” Countered Sweetie Belle
“Is not!”
“Is too!”
“Is no-”
“OH yes! Now I remember.” Brew said, gaining there attention, “Well what happened next was…”
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A barely conscious Enchanted Brew is being dragged through cave system by Changelings to a prison cell. Upon reaching the cell...
“Stand back!” one Changeling yelled. After a moment the two occupants moved back. The changeling opened the cell and threw Brew in, closing it behind him and leaves.
Brew laid there, trying to stay conscious. Most of his feeling is gone and his head is spinning, his body is aching all over.
“Aaoooh...” He groaned in pain.
“Wait...Brew!” Gale shouted, running from the far end of the cell. What she saw scared her. Brew’s body was covered in cuts, bruises, and dry blood. “Colgate!” Gale shouted.
“Is he one of them?” A voice from the other side of the cell.
“No, he's a friend and he's hurt.”
A light blue unicorn with a dark blue and white mane and an hourglass cutie mark walked forward. “You have friends?” Colgate said while she approached them.
“Shut up, he's hurt.” Gale said.
Colgate replied, “Then let me look at him.” Her horn lit up, a blue light traced its way across Brew’s body. “He has severe lacerations, but they probably don't need stitches.” she explained, “A small concussion, bruises all over, and he has needle track marks, which would explain his low blood pressure.”
“What can we do?” Gale asks.
“Me, nothing much with this faulty horn suppressor, We’re lucky I can at least scan him” Replied colgate.
“Ugh, what kind of doctor are you?” Gale asked rhetorically.
“Well, technically I'm a dentist, but I can work in a hospital and practice healing magic. I just prefer dentistry.”
“A DENTIST?! Great.” Gale replied frustratedly.
“Dentistry is my job but i'm also a licensed practitioner. Come on, if you want to help him come here and hold his head up.”
“Yeah, ok.” Gale did as she was told.
“This is strange,” Colgate said, running a hoof across his slightly tattered vest, “They stripped everypony they brought down here and yet they left him his vest.” her horn lit up again, scanning his vest.
What's it mean?' asked Gale.
“His vest has a powerful enchantment on it. Nopony but the one wearing it can safely remove it.” Colgate replied.
“Safely?” Gale asked.
Pointing a hoof to his vest. “Yes, these holes, cuts, and tearing are probably their attempts, but to do this to him." She explained. "For the most part they just harvest our love, so why treat him like this?”
Gale is about to reply, but is interrupted by a groan.
“Uuuhh, what..Where am I?” Brew groaned, regaining consciousness.
“Easy now, Brew just stay still.” Gale tries to calm her friend, Brew complied and laid back down.
Colgate speaks, "Hello, uh, Brew. My name is Colgate, how are you feeling?”
“I feel banged up.”
“He’s usually more in depth with his explanations.” Gale comments.
“It’s probably the concussion, don’t let him fall back asleep for now"
“Right.” shaking brew a bit, Gale says, “Hey, stay awake. Look at me, ok. No sleeping, you got that?”
Brew reopened his eyes and looked to Gale to study her current state. Gale is missing her jacket and her left eye is swollen shut. There were bruises showing through her coat as well as spots of her coat appeared to have been pulled out.
“What...happened to you...Gale?” Brew forced his words.
Gale smiles and says, “You should see the other guys after you chased that impostor out of the diner. You were jumped by those two goons from earlier and I ran in to help but there were even more hiding, so it took eight of them to take me down. None of them left there without a limp.” Gale states proudly.
“I’m sorry.” Brew replied.
“Sorry? For what?”
“If I hadn’t chased after him…”
“Now stop that” Gale interrupts him “There was nothing you could have done. Besides, this is why I’m here in the first place” Gale says.
“Now what does that mean?” Colgate asks.
Well, I'm a member of a secret task force that answers only to the princess herself, Celestia’s Solar Rangers. I’m here to investigate the strange happenings of this town.”
After a moment, Colgate asks, “What kind of strange happenings?”
“The specifics are classified but after what we've seen it all makes sense now.”
“So, what now?” Colgate asks.
“We wait, I'm supposed report in every other day, so once I miss that a large squad of the rangers will show up...probably.”
While they were talking, Brew was rummaging through his vest until he finds the vile he's looking for, but after he pulls it out Gale snatches it from him.
“Hey!” he tries to shout.
“What’s this?” Gale asks as she reads the label on the bottle. “Wait, this is painkiller?” Brew, how?--”
“Potions are my talent and a traveler is always prepared." he explains.
After a moment, Gale gives Brew some of the potion and then gives it to Colgate. As the potion works Brew begins to slip into sleep as Gale starts going through his pockets.
An undetermined amount of time later.
Brew stirred from his sleep and jumped to his hooves in a slight panic.
“Woah, woah, easy there, Brew” Gale said.
Turning to her, Brew recalled the previous events, calming a bit, “What happened?” he asked.
Gale gave you one of your potions, “You had quite a few of them.” Colgate says, pointing,
“Had?” Brew asked, turning to see that she was pointing at several empty bottles. “You shouldn’t have done that! Without knowing what they did there's no tell-”
“Hey, I read them so calm down, jeez! You were hurt, ok?” Gale retorted defensively.
“So were you” Colgate added.
“You read them? Gale, you can read zebra?” Brew asked.
“Yes, I can. In my line of work it pays to have more than your good looks and fighting skills. It's a good thing too, you were really banged up.” Gale stated.
Colgate used her magic to scan Brew.
Brew looked between the two and sighed, “I’m sorry, and thank you” he said, “I was that messed up, huh?”
“Yes you were” Colgate states as she finishes scanning Brew, “It's strange though, in all this time I haven’t seen them treat anypony like this before. What did you do?”
Taking a moment, Brew said, “I told them the truth.” Brew said, and after seeing the looks he was getting he continued, “A Changeling cannot take love and such from another Changeling unless it is given willingly.”
“So why did they beat you like this then? I still don’t get it.” Gale says. after taking a moment to think how to word his response Brew said, “They couldn't take any love from me. They demanded why, they didn’t like the answer.”
Colgate seemed to catch on and backed away from Brew a bit while saying, “S-so your-”
“One fourth Changeling” Brew interrupts.
After a few moments of silence Colgate says, “So you’re one of them?”
“NO, OF COURSE NOT!” Gale shouts, “They wouldn't have beat him if he was.”
“I guess so, but how?” Colgate asks.
Sighing, Brew replies, “Well, allow me to start with the changelings of Zebraca. They’re far more friendly than these ones. They have a bit of an anger problem, but other than that, they’re are quite pleasant.” Brew paused before continuing, “My father is half pegasus, half changeling.
“And your mom?” Colgate asks,
“Mother...mother was a zebra. I got my appearance from her and my wings from father.” Brew replied solemnly.
Gale took notice, changing the subject, “Well, there’s nothing to worry about. The rest of the Solar Rangers will be here in a day or two.
“That's not good” Brew said
“What? How is being rescued not a good thing?” Colgate asks.
“While I was being...interrogated I overheard that they were going to move everypony somewhere else” Brew explained.
“WHAT?! shit, this is not good. Brew, are you sure?” Gale asks.
That’s what I heard them saying” Brew replied.
Gale began pacing back and forth, “Ok, we need to get out and send word to the rangers.”
“How? You tried that when they first threw you in here” Colgate states.
“Yes, but now we have Brew” Gale countered.
“Me?” Brew replies.
“Yes, you. You gotta have something in these potions that could get us out of here, like acid or something, to eat through the bars” Gale says.
“These are magic bars, they are protected by a powerful spell and can only be unlocked by magic” Colgate explains.
“I have to agree with Colgate on this, Gale. I mean, if I had all my things I could make one that could eat through the bars, and I don’t carry such a dangerous thing on me” Brew states.
“Well, what about her horn suppressor then?” Gale asks.
Brew thought on the idea, “Yes, it would be easy with what I have, but it could also dissolve her horn”
“WHAT?!”, Colgate yells, backing away, “No way!”
“Ugh, then what? We have to do something!” Gale says, beginning to pace around the cell again,
Brew took a moment, looking to Colgate, who is fiddling with her horn suppressor, then to Gale as she paced back and forth. He began taking inventory of what their captors left him with: Some smoke bombs, a few explosives, sleep dust, solvent most of his medicinals had been used on him and Gale and lastly, he sighed at his discovery, “A needle and thread” Brew said aloud, catching Gale’s attention. She looked to what Brew was holding.
“THAT'S IT!” Gale shouted excitedly, causing them to jump a bit.
“What’s it?”, Colgate asked.
Gale, walking to Colgate says, “Brew, give me that, would you?”
After receiving the needle, she began to fiddle with Colgate’s horn suppressor.
Nervously, Colgate asks, “W-What are you-”
“Hold still, would you? I don’t want to arm it and snap you horn off” Gale interrupts.
“Eeep…” was Colgate's reply.
after a few moments of silence, *CLICK*, “And that, everypony is how it’s done!” Gale said, holding up the horn suppressor.
“Very impressive, Brew comments.
Colgate rubbed her horn and smiled, “Ok, what’s the plan?”
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The sound of bell rang through the orchard. “Super time!” the distant voice of Applejack calls.
Turning to the Crusaders, Brew says, “Well, I guess that’s it for now” earning an, “Aww” from the three of them.
Now making their way to the farm house, noticing the silence Brew speaks up, “Don’t worry, little ones you’ll hear more another time.”
“Ah guess” Applebloom replied, “Oh well, can you tell us more about the Solar Rangers? they sound awesome!”
“Yes, we had quite a few adventures” Brew commented.
“Wait, you’re a Solar Ranger too?” Sweetie Belle asks.
“I used to be, but that’s a different story entirely”
“Howdy there, Brew” interrupts Applejack, “Since you're still here would you like to join us for dinner?”
“I would not want to impose” Brew replies.
“Nonsense, we’d love to have ya.” says Applejack, guiding Brew into the farmhouse.
A giggling Applebloom says, “Told ya so”
Ignoring Applebloom, Brew asks, “You sure it’s no trouble?”
“None what-so-ever. just have yourself a seat” Applejack replies, showing Brew to the kitchen.
Upon entering the room, Brew takes notice to the all too familiar pony. “Macintosh?” Brew asks.
“Enchanted Brew” Big Mac replies.
“Hey, I didn’t know you knew my brother” Applebloom says.
Thinking back to the oath Brew and Macintosh took to take a certain incident to their graves, Brew says, “We've met before”
“Eeyup” Big Mac adds.
Applejack eyed them suspiciously.
“Oh leave them be, Applejack” an elderly mare says walking into the kitchen. She turned to Brew, “And who might you be, young’n?”
“Hello ma’am, my name is Enchanted Brew.”
“Nope, I wont be hearing any of this ma’am stuff. Just call me Granny Smith, young’n” said Granny Smith.
“Well...Granny Smith, it's nice to meet you”
“Likewise” she replied, "So what have you been doing to keep them crusaders busy? They’re usually wilder than a timber wolf.”
“He's been telling us a story that’s suppose to help us get our cutie marks!” says Applebloom.
“I don’t mind telling you my story, little one but I never said my story would help you get your cutie marks”
“Thats ok, this story is awesome” said Scootaloo, “I mean, you fought Changelings!”
“Well, I haven’t gotten to that part yet” Brew replied.
“So you do? this is gonna be so awesome!” Scootaloo continued.
“Umm…”Sweetie Bell speaks up, “So you’re really part Changeling too?” this got Brew looks from Applejack, Big Mac, and Granny Smith.
“Well yes, like I said in my story I’m one fourth Changeling, Sweetie Belle”
An awkward silence filled the air, as confused and uneasy glances were shared among the Apple family. Brew cleared his throat before continuing, “This reaction is common. Perhaps an explanation?” Brew said, looking to Macintosh, he replies nervously, “E-eeyup.”
So Brew began telling the Apples a bit about his family and before long they were enjoying dinner.