Chapter 5: Riverton
“So, what's your story?” Midnight asked as she and her guest sat down for tea.
“Ah...” don't wanna talk about it. That was what she wanted to say, but she felt the need to talk about it. “Ah killed someone... someone very close to me. Ah mean, Ah didn't do it directly, but it's still mah fault. It was because of mah actions.”
“Well, that sucks,” Midnight said dispassionately. “Sorry for not getting worked up, but I didn't know this pony, and I don't know you.”
“Thanks,” Applebloom said, truthfully. “Ah appreciate honesty more than just hollow words, anyway. What about you? What's your story? You like a thestral alicorn or somethin'?”
“Ha! I wish,” Midnight laughed humorlessly. “No, I'm part wyvern.”
“Say what?” Applebloom looked at the large mare skeptically. “How does that work? Wyverns are wild beasts. That's like a pony getting knocked up by a timberwolf.”
Midnight scoffed, “Yeah, well, it wasn't my choice. Long time ago, this crazy stallion was doing illegal research with chimeras. Most of it was just splicing animals, but a couple involved ponies. I was one of those experiments. When the royal guard raided the place, I made my break. I fled into the forest and was take in by an old widow. She raised me until she passed.”
“Splicin' animals together, huh?” Applebloom mused. “Sounds like the story of Doctor Frankincense.”
“That's the guy,” Midnight stated plainly.
Applebloom nearly choked on her tea, sputtering a bit before she got control of herself. “But that was like eighty years ago!”
“Seventy-six, yeah,” the half-dragonkin confirmed. “I look good for an eighty-two year old, don't I.”
“Woah... Dragon blood must do wonders for the complexion, huh,” Applebloom joked.
“Yeah, but it kills your social life.” Midnight chuckled mirthlessly. “You're the first pony I've really socialized with for more than twenty years. Other than for business, anyway. The town's not too fond of me. They tolerate me because nopony else has the guts to get lumber from the Everfree, and the next closest forest is Whitetail woods on the other side, near Ponyville. The only ways to get lumber from there is to ship it all the way around the forest or fly it over, both are expensive. So, they hate me, but they need me.”
“That's just wrong. Ah mean, sure you look a little intimidatin' but that ain't no reason to act like a jerk.”
Midnight gave a genuine, if small, smile. “Thanks. It's nice to meet ponies that don't run in fear, or sneer the second I show my face.”
The two sat in silence for a moment, finishing their tea.
After draining the last drop, Midnight stood up and said, “Alright, let's get you to town. We can find somewhere to set you up for the night.”
“That's alright. Ah can set up camp in the forest,” Applebloom assured.
“You don't have any money, do you?” Midnight observed.
Applebloom's sheepish smile was answer enough.
Midnight Storm sighed. “I have plenty, more than I need. I can lend you some bits.”
“Really? Thanks, Miss Storm! Ah'll pay you back, Ah swear.”
“Whenever you can, and don't call me 'Miss Storm'. You can call me Midnight, you know.
Applebloom winced. “Ah'd rather not... that was his name, too.”
“Oh... then just Storm.”
Applebloom giggled, “Mah friend's datin' a colt named Storm.”
Midnight rolled her eyes. “I don't care about that one. Call me Storm.”
“Alright, Storm. Thanks.”
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
And so, Applebloom's new life began. She got a room at the local inn, and a job working with a local carpenter. It wasn't permanent, something she ensured her new employer knew beforehoof, and she was sure she would be moving on eventually. She just wasn't sure when she would leave or where she would go.
The town itself was nice, quaint little place. It was a mining town, mostly exporting copper and tin, with a bit of agriculture around the outskirts. It was even smaller than Ponyville, not even two hundred ponies calling it home. Still, it had a charm that Applebloom liked.
She wanted to go home, but her shame at what she allowed to happen was too great. She recognized that it was Nightshade that killed Midnight, but she also knew that she was the one that gave the ghost exactly what she needed to do it.
All the thinking and confusion made her head hurt, so after work, she decided she needed to wind down. Luckily, Riverton Inn had a nice little pub attached. It was there she discovered her love of banana schnapps. Sweet, but not too sweet, and at ninety-nine proof, it had quite a kick.
She was on her fourth when the door swung open and a loud obnoxious voice called out, “Hello, hello, my good ponies! Hey, barkeep, a round of your finest for me and my boys, here!”
The bartender's sudden tensing told Applebloom all she needed. These guys were going to be trouble.
And why not. Ah'm in a bar, after all. Dern cliché jerks. Any second now, this guy's gonna-
“Well, hello,” said the irritating voice right behind her.
“Figures,” she sighed.
“That it does,” the voice's owner said as he sat down next to her. He was a griffon, light orange head with a white band across his eyes and white body. All in all, he was rather handsome, especially his striking green eyes. Unfortunately, he was an ass. Probably about as smart as half a potato, to boot. “A guy as good looking as me, a chick as smokin' hot as you? It's meant to be. Come on, baby, let's go start a fire.”
Applebloom grinned evilly, “Sure, a friend of mine loves fried chicken. Then again, you seem a bit too spoiled for her taste.”
The griffin recoiled, surprised to hear a pony speak like that. Most were too timid talk crap, especially to a griffin. It brought a smile to his beak.
“Oh, I really like you. You're new around here, ain't'cha? Let's go up to your room, and I'll 'welcome' you properly.”
Applebloom turned to him and leveled a glare that would send even the toughest manticore running in fear. Sadly for him, he didn't have a manticore's survival instincts.
“Ah'd rather stick mah head in a hornet nest that let you touch me.”
“Come on, now, Ganz,” the bartender pleaded. “She's new here. I'm sure there's plenty of other mare's that would... appreciate your company.”
The griffin glared at the stallion and reached across the bar, grabbing him by his throat. “Excuse me, did I ask for your opinion?”
“Ah suggest you let him go,” Applebloom said calmly.
“Yeah? Or what?”
“You ever want to be in two places at once?”
Once again, Ganz was surprised by this pony. She was unusually aggressive. He liked it, but it also pissed him off.
“Alright, fine. I'll go,” the griffin said as he got up and backed away. “See you around, new girl.”
He and his flunkies, none of whom Applebloom even bothered to look at, shuffled out the door, radiating indignation. She knew he would probably be waiting for her outside.
“Miss, I don't think that was a good idea,” said the bartender. “They're probably waiting for you to leave.”
“Ah know.” Applebloom grinned at that. “Ah'll try not to hurt them too much.” She tossed a few bits on the counter and got to her hooves. “If you'll excuse me, Ah got some pent up aggression that needs let out.”
The redhead staggered to her hooves and out the door, her vision swimming from the strong drink. Out in the cool evening air, she took a moment to prepare a simple body seal spell Jacob taught her. Once it was ready, she began to make her way away from the inn on unsteady legs.
In truth, she had already heard the name Ganz. The day before, when Storm was showing her around town, they stopped by a bakery that was robbed by the griffin and his little gang. So when she heard the bartender say his name, she decided to teach him a little lesson.
When she reached the center of town, they made their move. She had to grin at the irony. They wanted to make it public to remind the town where they stood. Funny how that was pretty much what was going to happen.
“Hello again, Little Miss Badass,” Ganz said cheerily as he sauntered over to Applebloom, at least three times the number of flunkies that were with him before crawling out of the woodworks. “I understand you're new here, so I'm going to educate you on how things work around here.” The arrogant griffon started circling her like a vulture, feeling extra confident seeing the mare obviously intoxicated. “I'm the king of this little town, and when I want something, I get it, understand. And right now, what I want is for you to stick that little rear of yours up so I can rut you right here in front of everyone.”
Applebloom took a look around. Standing just outside the rind of thugs, several townsponies stood, looking on with fear and pity. It honestly made her rather angry. They outnumbered the thugs ten to one, yet they let them trot all over them.
It didn't matter. Ganz wasn't going to be bothering them after this.
“You want to rut me right here? Ah'm guessin' you ain't never gotten laid honestly, have you?” Applebloom asked, mock sympathy flooding her slurring voice. “Ah ain't surprised. You just ain't stallion enough to get a girl to want to touch you.” A dim flash lit up her left foreleg as her spell released, clearing all mild toxins from her body and reversing their effects.
“You think you're funny?” the griffin hissed. “You brought this on yourself!”
Ganz reared back, balling his claw into a fist. The punch was sloppy, and terribly telegraphed, but there was a significant amount of force behind it. Applebloom shifted to the side, rising into the bipedal fighting stance of the Dawn Guard. Her rear hooves slid apart, stabilizing her, as her fore hooves rose to guard her face and body.
Ganz was only momentarily distracted by the strange stance, his anger blinding him to any common sense he may have had. Instead, he threw another punch at the mare, only to have his fist deflected away by one of the mare's forelegs as her opposite hoof slammed into his shoulder with enough force to shatter the collar bone and send him flying into a group of his flunkies, knocking them down as well.
The crowd, both thug and bystander, gaped in shock and awe at the brutal display.
“New rule!” Applebloom announced. “Anyone, pony or otherwise, found trying to force anyone else to do something they don't want to do, except, o'course for the guard arrestin' somepony for breakin' the law, will answer to me! Equestria ain't got no kings. Anyone wanna dispute that, well... Come get some.”
Immediately, five of the more foolish thugs leaped at her. One, a large earth pony stallion, latched onto her back, trying to weigh her down. He might as well have been a breezie. She twisted around to face one of the closest attackers, putting the leech between her and another. A quick jab rendered the one she was facing unconscious, and the impact of the other dispatched both him and her rider. The other two attacked together, an earth pony and another griffin. Applebloom dropped back to all fours, twisted around, and gave a painful demonstration of the family trade, sending both crumpled to the ground with a broken snout and beak.
Glancing around to see if anyone else wanted hospital bills. Seeing none, she smiled in content. “Alight. Ah take it we're all in agreement on the new rules?” Every thug that could nodded their heads, or gave a quick 'yes, ma'am'.
In the crowd, a tall black mare watched with wide eyed surprise, her gaze falling to the broken pony landed nearby where her new... acquaintance bucked him to someone else's foalhood.
“Buy some apples!”