"Whoa....." both of us were amazed at the farm field of fresh juicy apples hanging on the trees, bathing in Celestia's warm sun. Surely I saw apple trees in pictures and trips, but this is taken beauty to the next level.
"Yep, this orchard is a beauty to see." Applejack commented as we follow her to one of the trees with a bucket laid on the ground.
"All right, we better get you two heads up on what you need to do." she then explained a few simple things when we get the apples : find the ones that are 'ripe' to put in the basket and the one that's 'rotten' thrown away. She show the example of the apples as the ripe were shiny as the rotten being sucked or spoiled.
We both nodded as she watches us while we begin doing our job. For me, I told them to at least do magic. I never learn how to use my magic from my horn though. In Legends of Equestria, the rules for the magic requires us for us to concentrate our mind through the linkage of the VR Gear. I point my horn and concentrate on it as hard as I can go. I can feel my horn is surging with a magical aura but only one apple drop down from my magic.
I groaned in disappointment. I never knew how magic can be that difficult using my mind like that as Applejack came to me "You okay, sugarcube?"
"To be honest, I......" how can I say this? That I'm an alicorn that having struggle with basic magic that unicorns and alicorns know to do in a jiffy?
Being strained on whenever telling the truth or not, I just whispered quietly that even quieter than Fluttershy's
"I can't do magic........."
"What?"
"I can't do magic....."
"Say that again?" Applejack trying to hear my whispered as I take a deep breath.
"I. Can't. Do. Magic."
After a few hours of attention and silence from them, Applejack was surprise at me. "Wait, you mean you can't do magic?"
I nodded as I hung my head in shame.
"But why?"
I can't speak of my reason as I look away in shame.
"Um, Applejack, can you excuse for a second? Just want to talk with my friend." Golden decide to break the tension as he pulled me away from her.
"Gun- I mean, Shining Hazel, why can't you use your magic?" he asked.
"I don't know....." I whispered, "I tried to concentrate using my mind but it seems that my mind isn't strong to use it."
Golden tapping his hoof on his chin then got an idea as he walks to the farm pony.
"Well, Applejack, you see, Shining Hazel is having magical problems that his magic doesn't work," Golden explained.
"Oh, in that case, you and Shining Hazel can do the old fashion way. Applebucking!" Applejack said as walks towards one of the trees.
"All right, now here's how it's done." She explain to as to firmly pant our front hooves for preparation, align our self, position our hind legs properly, and buck it. We both nodded as we follow her instruction as our first try wasn't good, but the second or third time, the trees shook violently and apples coming down on the buckets.
"Whoo-whee! Now that's how it's done!" Applejack said. "Keep up and y'all be certificated for apple bucker in no time!"
We both nodded as we continue our work as our apple bucking skills increases greatly with each buck.
Meanwhile on the other side, a group of ponies walking towards Sweet Apple Acres. One have a snow white elegant coat with purple mane, a magenta pony with a fluffy mane that reassemble a cotton candy bouncing, a cyan pegasus with a messy rainbow mane, a light yellow pegasus pony with a soft long pink mane, a pale, light grayish heliotrope unicorn with a curly mane, and finally, a lavender alicorn with a dark purple mane with light pink and purple streaks.
Once they reach the front door, the lavender alicorn knocks on the door as Big Mac appears in the front.
"Hello, Princess Twilight. Glad to see you and the others," he said.
"Good to see you again, Big Mac. Is Applejack here?" she asked. "We're supposed to help her with preparing for Applebucking Season."
He nodded as he trotted with the group following him to the backyard as Applejack watching us bucking more apples from tree to tree.
"Applejack!" a tomboyish voice was heard as she turned and saw her friends coming.
"Howdy, gals!" Applejack all of them "It's good to see you again."
"Same here, Applejack." the lavender alicorn said, "We came here to help you with the Applebucking Season that's coming."
"Thanks, girls, I could need some help along with two new ponies," Applejack said.
"Two new ponies?" the pink pony piped up her ear at that word.
Applejack nodded "Yeah, apparently two new ponies found a flyer for a new job and they came here in a jiffy."
She point as the girls saw me and Golden working on the rest of the apple trees bucking in great strength.
"Whoa, looks like they able to get half of them done." the pink pony amazed eyeing on the red pegasus. The lavender alicorn spot the other one as she was surprised at the appearance of an alicorn prince.
"An alicorn prince?!"
"What?" the light grey heliotrope unicorn asked in confusion.
"Look!" she points to the alicorn prince as half of their reaction vary from surprise, shocked, and even amazed.
"Oh, you mean Shining Hazel?" Applejack said as the girls glance at her.
"You know that handsome prince?!" the snow-white unicorn asked.
"Well, sort of. He only said that he's born that way and doesn't know for sure that's he's into royalty." Applejack explained.
"But the strangest thing is that he can't do magic."
That caught their attention to them as the lavender alicorn asked in confusion "How come?"
"Golden said that he's having magical problems. Don't know why, though, but that fellow might not know much of magic."
The lavender alicorn turned to the grey alicorn, bucking the apple tree and caught the apples on the bucket.
"Applejack, do you think we can...?" she asked her as she nodded understand her.
"Hey, guys, can you come here for a second?" the farm pony called them.
While we finished half of the tree, we heard Applejack calling us as we set the bucket down and trotted to her but our surprise is the appearance of the Mane 7! From left to right, the party pink pony, Pinkie Pie, the shy and timid, Fluttershy, the fashiontisa, Rarity, the daredevil and fastest pony, Rainbow Dash, and finally, the Princess of Friendship, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Along with her is the unicorn who was reformed from her revenge and became her student , Starlight Glimmer.
"Guys, I would like to meet m'ah friends, Rainbow Dash......"
"Hey" the cyan pegasus wave
"Rarity...."
"Nice to meet you two darlings." the snow-white unicorn whipped her mane.
"Fluttershy...."
"Hello..." she whispered which we barely hear from her.
"and....."
She appeared in a pink blur in front of us and gave a big grin "Hi, there, I'm Pinkie Pie! It's nice to meet you two! Oh this is so awesome seeing more new ponies coming out of nowhere in Ponyville! I'd never seen a alicorn prince before but this is the first time to see it with my own eyes! I thought that alicorns were only princess! *gasp* So it's possible that maybe a stallion will become an alicorn?! Oh that would be amazing! But anycase," she turned to Golden who was awestruck at her "it's nice to meet you! If any case, I better planned on setting up a huge 'Welcome to Ponyville!' Party!"
Both of us were uncertain at her rapid speaking but as we going to speak, a pink aura surrounded her as Twilight interjected her "Pinkie, c'mon don't make them uncomfortable." she turned to us with a cute smile.
"Sorry, Pinkie can sometimes be.........odd."
"It's all right," I said as Golden nodded.
"If any case, my name is Twilight Sparkle and this is my student, Starlight Glimmer." she points to her which she waves nervously.
"Nice to meet you all," I said with a smile as Golden adopted the same. "My name is Shining Hazel and this is my best friend, Golden Flare."
"So Shining Hazel, where are you and Golden from?" Rainbow asked.
"Well, someplace far away from Equestria." I said, don't want them to know of us being from Earth which would raise consequence if that happen to the NPC's knowledge of the virtual world and the real world like. Lucky the girls nodded at this.
"So Shining Hazel, Applejack said that you having trouble with magic is that true?" Fluttershy asked.
I look down sadly and nodded "Yeah....."
I look like an idiot for not learning the simplest spell that unicorns and alicorns should learn it easily. I felt like a laughing stock around the girls......
"But darling, how can you not learn some of the basic magic spells?" Rarity asked.
"To be honest, I tried to use my magic but.........I just don't know what went wrong with it." I said.
Golden came to me and place his hoof on my shoulder, worried for me.
Then Starlight got an idea "Maybe you can come with us so we help relearn your magic."
I raise my head in confusion and asked: "Are you sure?"
Both of them nodded as I gave a small smile. I never knew how those NPC characters are much like their canon counterparts; they did a great job programming for this game.
"Thank you Starlight and Princess Twilight Sparkle."
"Just Twilight is fine, Shining Hazel." Both of us nodded with our smiles forming on our face.
After finishing our shift in our first job with the girls helping us, Applejack offer us to join her and her friends and family for dinner. Normally it's night time in Equestria and we had to go so we can log out and get us ready to sleep, but in other hoof, we can't just ignore their offer.
We got to the kitchen glancing around the design as it reminds much of the western stuff that Golden and I learned from history class not to mention that we like the feel of being in the western.
As we helping Applejack with the meals and set them on the table, all of us sat down on the chair along with some introduction to Applejack's little sister Applebloom and a senior mare, Granny Smith as both sat down too with Big Mac sat down next to us.
"Ah'm so glad that you girls came here to help." Granny Smith smiled then turned to us "Especially to those two handsome fellows."
"Thank you, Mrs. Smith," I said as Golden nodded.
"Well ain't you two sweet as a honeysuckle! But there's no need to be so formal. Just called me 'Granny' like everyone else!" Granny smiled.
"Okay." I nodded at her.
With that, we wrapped our napkins as all of us begin digging in the Apple's homemade meals. Like the Nerve Gear from SAO, the transceivers sends out fake signals to the brain however, Hardware Inc enable to sends virtual data such as meals into the signals of the stomach somehow devirtualize the data and make it real for our stomach to absorb the vitamins and minerals. That's goes for the same as our 'skills' only directly to our brain. Like how the Skylanders, Disney Infinity, Lego Dimensions, and Amiibos, the VR Gear store datas of our skills and levels along with attacks not only into the helmet but also into our brain like a second memory storage. So if anything happen to the VR Gear like being broken, the transceivers from another would scan our brain and the data from our brain would send the signal back restoring the lost data.
After finishing our meal, Golden and I sighed happily at the meals with our stomach became bigger. To be honest, their meals was the best! Normally, we usually have meals that transport from the farm in Earth and get them at the food market, but to actually taste farm fresh meals, it was incredible!
"Wow, that was amazing meals! Thank you, Applejack, Granny Smith, Big Mac, and Applebloom." Golden said while rubbing his stomach.
"Aw shucks, you welcome, you two," Applebloom said.
"Ah'm glad that you two enjoying the meals." Applejack wiping her muzzle using a napkin.
Starlight glance at us "So what have you two come to Ponyville?"
"Well, we just moved here, decide to earn some money in hoping to buy a home for us," I said.
"But why?" Rainbow asked.
"Well, we'd been traveling together after I moved from my old home so a nice change to live independently with my friend," I replied as the girls nodded.
"Come to think of it, there's a lot of new ponies just came in Ponyville." Fluttershy wondered as we glance the shy pegasus.
"Now that you mention, more and more ponies kept popping up of nowhere in Ponyville." Pinkie said "My Pinkie Sense told me about more ponies are coming and boy there's a bunch of new faces that my jaw just dropped to the ground, so I did everything I could to introduce them and making plans for a humongo party bash for new ponies!"
"Won't you get tired of it Pinkie?" Golden asked as I nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, if you're going to set up a massive party in Ponyville, you're going to tired yourself out."
"Don't worry, I'll take one step at a time to make sure everything is all set." the party pony reassured them.
"Okay......" Golden looked at her worried as I can sense my friends' concern for the party pony.
"Maybe another time, Pinkie. Beside, it's getting late." Twilight monitored to the night sky as we cleaned up the table and helped her doing the dishes, all of our friends waved goodbye as they headed back to their homes, leaving me and Golden with Applejack.
"Guess we better get going, Applejack," I said.
"Don't you two have a place to sleep?" she asked as we shook our heads.
"Then how you two going to rest for the night?"
We pound of that thought as our mind scolded for forgetting about one part information about this : in Legends of Equestria, there's another features similar to how Gun Gale Online in SAO when you log out as our avatars become soul-less.
"I guess we haven't thought of it," Golden replied.
"Well, I got some spare guest rooms in the barn." she said.
"Applejack, you don't need to this-"
"I'm not going to let my friends sleep in the street, so I want to do this." She said in a firm tone which both of us were touched how we just met her and work for her. After a few thought, we smile at her offering.
"All right."
We follow her to the guest room as like other guest rooms we saw, just a queen size bed with two pillows and a blanket (with apple design on it.) After we said our goodnight to her, we laid in the bed as we glance at the night sky.
"Man, this is the best game, Golden."
"Yeah, this is the first time trying an SAO esque type game and it feels like we just stepped into another world." the blond mane and red pegasus replied.
"Those video game designer really did a good job on captured the feel of it. Almost if......."
"If what?" he furrows his eyebrows.
"I can't say for sure, but what I can say is it was more to it." I finished, glance up at the ceiling.
"Yeah, I know what you mean."
"Well, we better logged out now," I said as he nodded as a screen pop out from the swipe of our hooves.
Do you want to log out? Yes/No
We press Yes as our mind went blank and returning to Earth.
After my eyelids starting to stir, I open up and groaned as I remove my VR Gear and headed downstairs, meeting up with my parents and possibly receiving some scolding from missing dinner.