Horns, Hooves, and Fur

by Deyeaz

XXVIII - Resurrection

XXVIII - Resurrection

Equestria

Night had fallen. Every pony had been prepared to retire for the night. The cicadas and crickets chirped, singing their lunar songs to the inhabitants of Ponyville. Praxis stepped into Sweet Apple Acres after talking with Jace and Vinyl about what happened in Tartarus. Flabbergasted and angry that Praxis couldn’t be a Reaper due to his Black Magic plague, Jace soon became a bit ecstatic when Praxis told him about the magical sands in his pocket.

“Perfect! That means we can wish Insanity gone!” Jace had said.

“Not exactly. There’s something I have to do, first,” Praxis had reasoned. “Besides, we can take on Insanity ourselves: we’re THAT good.”

Jace was rather angry that Praxis refused to wish for Insanity’s extinction, yet seemed to understand when the satyr told him what he wanted to do.

Now that Praxis was on the porch of the Apple family’s house. He gulped, the saliva having difficulty getting swallowed. He rapped on the door a few times, stepped back a foot, and knelt down to lose the intimidating appearance.

The door of the house opened to reveal the pale green form of Granny Smith, who looked into the eyes of the weresatyr for a few seconds. Unlike the others, who would instantly judge him on his appearance, she smiled at Praxis. She and him had gotten acquainted when he had been working at the farm, and she knew about his Black Magic ailment.

“Well, howdy, sonny,” she said with a genuine smile.

“Hello, Granny Smith,” he greeted. “Is Applejack available at the moment?”

“O’ course, Mr. Moradov.”

“Please, call me Praxis.” He gave her a small, sympathetic smile.

“Alrighty, sonny,” Granny Smith chuckled. She turned around and called into the house, “Applejack! Git down ‘ere! Ya have a visitor!”

“Who is it?” A voice called from inside the house on the upper level.

“It’s Praxis, sugarcube!”

“Comin’, Granny!” Praxis heard the sound of hooves landing on wood, and Applejack came into view. “Well, howdy, Praxis!” she greeted. “Ah like the hair!”

“Heh. Thanks, Applejack” Praxis grabbed and lifted a few strands of his shoulder-length, now-white hair, then let them fall, all the while a bit self-conscious as he blushed slightly. “Say, ya wanna go on a walk with me for a little bit?”

“Alrighty, then.” She stepped out the door and Praxis stood back to his full height. They vacated the farm and went outwards towards the town.

“Say, why aren’t you working today?” Praxis asked.

“Today’s a Sunday, sugarcube,” she explained. “Th’ ponies on Sweet Apple Acres don’ work on Sundays.”

“Oh yeah....” Praxis rummaged through the pocket of his tunic until he pulled out the small vial of magical sands. “Applejack, you know what this is, right?”

“It’s sand, Praxis,” she deadpanned.

“Not just any sand, Applejack. Notice how it glows.” Applejack examined the sands more and saw that they were indeed glowing.

“H... how’s that even possible?” She asked, incredulous at the discovery.

“These sands are magical sands gathered from the blood-ocean beaches of Tartarus.” Her jaw dropped at the mention of the Realm of Damnation. “With these sands, you can make anything you wish for to come true, but you can only wish for one thing.”

“Why’re ya tellin’ me this, sugarcube?” She asked.

“Because I want to give this to you.” He leaned forward and began whispering in her ear what she could wish for. She gasped at the words, before a large smile started to spread across her face, tears of joy getting ready to leak from her eyes. She tackled Praxis in a massive hug.

“Thank ya so much, Praxis.” She pulled away a few inches and planted a kiss on each of his cheeks. The weresatyr’s cheeks burned violently from the adoration.

“Think nothin’ of it,” he requested, grinning and scratching the back of his head. “Erm... want me to come with you?”

“O’ course, sugarcube!”

“Alrighty, then, get on my back.”

“Uh... why?” Applejack raised an eyebrow.

“We’ll get there faster.”

“Ohh.” She hopped on Praxis’s back. The satyr stood back up and left the town of Ponyville for his treehouse. The air resistance caused by his rapid running almost blew away Applejack’s Stetson.

Within a few minutes, the two had reached the edge of the Everfree Forest. Applejack had been blown away by the large Macintosh tree next to the yew treehouse. “It’s... it’s beautiful. Did’ja do that yerself?”

“Yep,” Praxis answered. “So... are you ready?”

“Eeyup.” Applejack looked like tears were about to leak from her eyes again. Praxis undid the stopper of the vial and poured the contents into his palm. The sands burned slightly, as if they radiated heat and light.

‘I wish for Big Macintosh to be resurrected... I wish for Big Macintosh to be resurrected... I wish for Big Macintosh to be resurrected...’

At the third thought, Praxis threw the magic sands into the air. They floated around their heads at a lazy speed, like they had been caught in a small, weak wind. They finally came to rest at Big Macintosh’s grave. The sands sunk into the ground, their glow vanishing with them.

Af first, nothing happened.

Then...

“Hey, Praxis, do ya feel that?” Applejack asked a few moments later.

“No... wait, yeah.” Praxis shuffled his hooves and felt there to be a sort of... vibrating under them, and the source... was the grave itself. The vibrating grew stronger. “Yeah, I feel it!”

The ground around Big Macintosh’s grave began to shift and move. A large hoof, red and dirty, shot out from the grave. Applejack screamed before jumping into Praxis’s arms and wrapping her forelegs around his neck, shaking. Another hoof shot out from the grave, the two front hooves planting themselves firm on the ground. Applejack shrieked when the head and torso of Big Macintosh came out.

“Ahh! Zompony!” She yelled.

“Zompony?!” Praxis told her. “Get off me, woman. I’m trying to run away!” The two shook violently as the figure rose up from the grave. The figure shook all the dirt from his body.

“Howdy, y’all.” Standing before Applejack and Praxis was a fully-fledged, resurrected Big Macintosh.

“B-B-Bi-Bi-Big M-M-M-Macintosh?!” Applejack exclaimed before she promptly fainted in Praxis’s arms.

“Um... what just happened?” Praxis asked as he held the fainted apple-bucker in a fireman’s hold.

“Beats me,” Macintosh said. He rolled his joints until each one popped. “Good golly. It’s been so long. Ah wanna thank you, Praxis, fer everything ya done...”

“Say, Big Mac?”

“Eeyup?”

“What’s it like to die?”

The stallion saw a small sign of fear in the weresatyr’s tone, like his life was on a thin line as well. Big Mac took a pause and put a hoof to his chin, trying to find the right words to say. “Hmm... it’s easier than sleepin’. And it’s painless.” He smiled when Praxis’s apprehension melted away. “Why d’ya ask?”

“Erm... just wanted to know is all.”

Big Macintosh narrowed his eyes, trying to find a fib in Praxis’s words. “Alrighty, then. Let’s jest get home.”

“Need a lift?” Praxis held Applejack’s fainted body in front of him as he crouched low.

"Eeyup." As Big Mac was getting onto Praxis’ back, a shadowy figure was spotted in the trees. It stood at least six feet tall and had red glowing eyes. Praxis saw this, and stared at it precariously. The shadow moved slightly forward, as if bowing and then moved behind a tree, not appearing from the other side. Praxis, who had been staring at that spot for some time, grimaced in pain from the weight he was now bearing. Once he stood up, He flexed his legs and vacated the forest as fast as his burdens would allow. While it wasn’t as fast as he would like, it would do: the wind still stung his eyes a bit.

They had reached Sweet Apple Acres, undetected by the sparse ponies that roamed the streets. Praxis pulled into the barn and set Big Macintosh down. “I’m gonna go and put AJ to bed and tell Granny and Applebloom that she just fell asleep from our jog. In the meantime, please wait here while I tell them I have a surprise for them.”

“Eeyup,” Mac said stoically with a laugh. Praxis smiled and carried AJ out of the barn and into the house. Once he tells Granny Smith and Applebloom that Applejack had only fallen asleep from a tiring jog the two had, Praxis takes the out-cold cowpony to her room. He put her under the blanket of her comfortable mattress and left the room as quietly as he could.

“She’s gon’ be fine, rahght, Praxis?” Applebloom asked when he made his down the stairs. Praxis nodded.

“Of course, Applebloom.” He patted her on her head, making sure not to cut her with his talons. “She’ll be alright. She’s a tough cookie, your sister is.” Applebloom smiled. “Also, I have a surprise for you and Granny Smith.”

“What is it?” The little yellow filly inquired. She gasped at a suggestion. “Is it a Cutie Mark!?”

“No, silly, it’s even BETTER than a Cutie Mark.”

“What could possibly be better than a Cutie Mark?”

“You’ll see. Granny Smith, wanna come with us?”

“Alrighty, Praxis,” the elderly green mare said. “Can you give me a lift, sonny?”

“Of course, Granny.” Praxis gently picked up Granny Smith and gave her a piggyback ride. He had to stoop incredibly low to avoid clocking her in the head with the doorframe, but it was worth it. He set out at a brisk walk towards the barn, Applebloom right by his side. Praxis nudged open the barn door to reveal....

A large haystack a few feet from the door, towering at seven feet tall and ten feet wide.

"THAT’S the surprise?” Applebloom deadpanned as Praxis set Granny Smith down on the earth. “A HAYSTACK?”

“Ah-Ah-Ahhhh~,” cooed Praxis. “It’s what IN the haystack.” He whistled sharply. “Ayo, Big Mac! You can come out now!”

Applebloom and Granny Smith did double-takes at his words before speaking in unison, “Did.. you just say--?”

“Eeyup,” a new voice rang out. Granny Smith and Applebloom turned to see Big Macintosh pop out of the haystack, one of their stalks in his mouth. He smiled at the two dumbfounded ponies. “He sure did.”

“B-B-B-Big M-M-M-M-Mac?!” The two shouted. Applebloom followed in her older sister’s stead and fainted on the spot. Granny Smith’s jaw dropped in a comical sense. Praxis stifled a fit of giggles. Mac made his way over to Granny Smith and pulled her in a hug. The elderly mare pushed her jaw back up into its place and returned the warm embrace to her resurrected Grandson. “I thought we lost ya, sugarcube,” she mumbled.

“Nnnope. ‘N Ah have Praxis t’ thank for that,” he said. Granny looked up at Praxis, and he watched a lone tear leave her right eye and travel down her cheek.

“Th... thank you, sonny. This means so much t’ me ‘n mah family.”

“Think nothing of it, Granny Smith,” Praxis told her. He shook Applebloom awake. The little filly stirred awake. She looked at the towering figure of Big Macintosh separating from Granny Smith and squealed.

“EEEEEEEEP!” She tackled Big Macintosh in a firm, powerful hug. The crimson cowpony only returned the hug, the Cutie Mark Crusader crying in his arms. “Big Macintosh! Yer OK!”

“And it’s all thanks to Praxis,” Granny Smith said. Praxis felt his pale cheeks burning from embarrassment.

“Oh, stop it, you,” he told them.

“This calls fer a celebration!” Applebloom chimed in before escaping her brother’s arms and leaving the barn without hesitation. Big Macintosh and Granny Smith laughed at the filly’s behavior before following her back into the barn. Praxis sighed, glad that the situation is over and done with.

“Excellent work, Praxis.” The weresatyr whipped around to see the form of Zeke walking towards him. “You have pushed selfishness away from yourself in using the sands to resurrect Big Macintosh.” He placed a bony hand on his shoulder and stared into his eyes, “This was your test. Congratulations, dear boy, you have joined the ranks of the Order Reapers. You are the fourth in the history of this universe. Wear that title with honor.” He turned, walking away into the shadows and disappeared as they got darker the closer to the house they got.

It was Praxis’s turn to pass out at the news.

Comments

[Orrkon]

[the other sans]

There’s something I have to due, first

1. Do.

I just knew he was gonna use the sands for that Now I just need to worry about the battle messing with my head in the chapters to come

[lolz anonymous]

those crafty bastards.

[Stormy Sunrise]

MOAR >:D FUS ROH DAH!

[Stormy Sunrise]

fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/021/0/3/manly_tears_by_dylandylan72-d4n7l51.png

[dragenfire68]

paraxis just got trolled hard.