The Days After

by NerfedFalcon

Blazing Frontier

Despite three hundred years of advancement, Appleloosa was still considered a frontier town. The Buffalo officially owned almost all the land south of the town, and though the railway continued on, it wasn’t until it reached Saddle Arabia that it stopped again. Most trains didn’t actually go through that far, turning around at Appleloosa. Its population had the most Earth Ponies by percentage of any town or city in Equestria, and most of them had at least some relation to the ever-illustrious Apple family who founded the town in the first place.

What was interesting was the two girls who came into town from the desert, claiming they were both Apples despite being human. Applejack, the older, and Apple Bloom, the younger, were both somewhat delirious from the desert sun when they were found, claiming they were once ponies. It was assumed they were just rambling, but they stuck to the story even after they’d recovered.

The patriarch of the local branch, Golden Delicious, wanted to send them on, but no Apple would ever close their doors on a stranger, especially not if that stranger believed as they did in an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay. Despite her bipedal build, Applejack could kick a tree as hard as anypony else on the ranch, and Apple Bloom was a great climber to prune the trees or get tougher apples down. Though it took a while to earn the trust of the rest of the town, they were treated as part of the family now.

Applejack was standing behind the barn at a target range she’d set up in her spare time. The two strange crossbows she’d woken up with took a lot of work to maintain and use accurately, and though the family didn’t really approve of the weapons, they allowed her to practice with them. Apple Bloom had tried to use the range with her two hand axes, but she wasn’t strong enough to get them as far as the targets yet.

Squinting slightly, she aimed with her right hand at the farthest target to the left, holding it steady with her left arm. The targets were each about forty yards away, six of them in an uneven line. Applejack just stared at the farthest on the left before firing. As she pulled her left arm down to grab another bolt, she switched her aim to the next target over, firing again as soon as she could. Down slightly to hit the third, and up again for the fourth, higher for the fifth and back to the middle for the sixth target. Without missing a beat, she switched her arms over and started back the other way with her left hand.

In all of about twenty seconds, she’d fired twelve bolts. Smiling to herself at the speed, she looked over the targets, but only five of the bolts had hit anything, and the only bullseye was her first shot. “How’d you do, sis?” Apple Bloom said, having come to investigate when she heard the bows firing.

“Not great,” Applejack replied. “Looks like Ah’m going too fast to aim properly.”

“Why d’you keep doing this? It’s not like there’s much you’re gonna need to shoot at around here.”

“Besides all them varmints tryin’ to break into our ranch? Coyotes, jackrabbits, all them, might as well help keep ‘em out if I can.” She walked up to the targets, collecting the arrows she could find. She’d need to make a few more later. When she’d reached her sister again, she thought of another reason. “Besides, Ah don’t know why I woke up with these, but I’m not gonna waste a gift like that. Don’t ya feel the same way?”

“Ah guess,” Apple Bloom replied, hefting her axes one after another. “Don’t know why you got a gift that you could use, but Ah didn’t, though.”

“All it takes is practice, y’know. Ya just gotta keep training.” Apple Bloom quickly pulled her right arm back and threw the axe in that hand at the largest target, the fourth from the left. It landed in the dirt not even halfway there. “And ya don’t gotta train at the hardest level. An arrow can go a lot further than an axe. Ah’ll set up some closer points for ya, maybe.”

Apple Bloom nodded quickly and ran to retrieve her axe, but stopped suddenly when she saw somepony approaching. Except it wasn’t really ‘somepony’. It was a buffalo.

He cleared his throat loudly, and the two humans turned to face him. “What can I do ya for?” Applejack asked, not feeling nearly as cheerful as she sounded. The Buffalo tribe were an enigma to her. She’d seen them on their annual stampede once, and nearly all of them had looked at her. She had no idea what they’d been thinking, and the few she’d talked to since were no more comprehensible.

“I am an envoy of Chief Stern Mountain,” the buffalo said. “He has requested the presence of you and your sister.” He didn’t say any more, and Applejack wondered if he was going to charge them if they said no. She didn’t want to have to use her crossbows on anyone like that.

Apple Bloom walked up to him fearlessly. “Sure, we’ll come. Right, sis?” She reached out with a hand to touch his face, but he stepped back.

Applejack wasn’t certain, but she couldn’t simply deny her sister after she’d stepped up so quickly. She wanted a moment to tell the others where she was going. The buffalo scout came with her, perhaps to ensure that she didn’t run off. “Hey, Goldie!” she called into the house. “This buffalo wants ta take me an’ Bloom to the Chief! I might not be back for dinner!”

“Buffalo, ya say?” Golden Delicious called back. “Well, not much ta be done ‘bout it. Better go with ‘em. I’ll get Fuji to keep the ranch in order ‘til you two are home safe!”

“Much obliged!”

“There, it is done. The Chief should not be kept waiting.” The buffalo shoved her from behind with his forehead, catching her by surprise. “Let’s go.”

“Alright, alright, keep yer hooves on, I’m goin’.”
~
Chief Stern Mountain was the biggest buffalo they’d ever seen, standing taller than Applejack herself at the arch of his back. He didn’t say anything when they came into the camp, and continued not to say anything until after they’d all eaten. The two humans hadn’t been able to eat much of the grass, but it was enough to be polite.

After the sun had set, the chief walked into his tent, and the scout from before beckoned them to follow. He spent a long time simply staring at them, and Applejack started sweating under the brown Stetson hat that Carson, a griffon, had bought as a joke and given her when he left. “I have heard much about you, Applejack,” he said at last. “It is said that one with your name once helped to make peace between the ponies of Appleloosa, and the Buffalo tribe. I do not wish for that peace to be broken by one with the same name.”

“Beggin’ yer pardon?” Applejack tilted her head slightly, moving an arm to keep her Stetson from falling off.

“Your presence here is... unnatural to us,” he replied. “We are uncomfortable with your presence, and we would much prefer you found someplace else to live. We have lived here far longer, after all, and it is our right as the owners of this land to...”

“That's a lie, and you know it,” she cut in. “You don’t got a right to anything. What happens on the Apple family farm is our affair, and...”

“Sis?” Apple Bloom’s quiet voice nonetheless silenced her sister. She pointed to the chief, who was snorting in anger, clearly about to charge. “Ya don’t need to go making these buffalo angry. We’re in enough trouble already.” She tugged on Applejack’s hand, trying to take her outside. “We need some time ta talk ta the family ‘bout it. Apples are all ‘bout family, so we can’t just up ‘n leave ‘em. Can ya at least give us that much?”

The chief simply stared for a while, unblinking, snorting twice, before finally his gaze relented. “Very well,” he said, turning away. “Inform your family, say your goodbyes and begone. I, Chief Stern Mountain, promise you at least safety until first light, when my scouts shall return you to the farm. Now begone from my presence.”

Applejack felt her sister tug on her jacket, and pushed open the flap of the tent. Suddenly, she felt a shove from her sister pushing her to the side, and the tent was ripped off its ropes by a charging buffalo. Apple Bloom herself was tossed aside, but only glanced off the attacker’s head. The chief took the charge head-on, being pushed back a ways before he managed to steady himself.

The camp was in an uproar, stampeding around. The safest place that Applejack could see, once she’d picked herself up, was next to the chief and the belligerent buffalo. His coat was a strange red colour, and he was shouting incoherently. While he was deadlocked with the chief, though, he couldn’t stampede into her or Apple Bloom.

All of a sudden, Stern Mountain was tossed back, and it looked like he would get trampled when an axe flew into the red buffalo’s side. Apple Bloom’s right arm was extended, her left still holding the other axe. The buffalo turned around, and in his eyes, Applejack saw nothing but madness. He snorted and charged them down, and Apple Bloom was frozen in place this time.

Rather than push her sister, Applejack stood her ground, aiming her right-hand crossbow, steadied by her left. One shot, and the charging buffalo was struck in the eye. He turned over and continued sliding, and Applejack dropped both bows and shoved Apple Bloom out of the way. Like her sister, she was struck a glancing blow, but she was mostly fine when she stood up.

The red buffalo pulled himself up, screaming with rage. Most of the other buffalo had stopped running around, but they could do nothing to attack. There was nothing that could stop him from charging except to charge him first, and that was what Applejack did, throwing herself around his neck like a rodeo pony would do with a bull.

Apple Bloom switched her second axe into her stronger right hand and was about to throw when she felt her overalls being bitten. Stern Mountain had stepped up behind her, putting her down out of his way before he charged. Applejack saw it before the buffalo she was riding did, and threw herself to the ground, grunting at the impact. The buffalo wasn’t so lucky, and the chief’s forehead shoved the arrow further into his eye. He fell to the ground again, and didn’t get up.

The blood couldn’t be seen against the buffalo’s red coat, but it was pooling on the ground when Applejack dusted herself off. Though the battle had gone over them, her two crossbows were still fine. When she pulled out the axe in his side, he didn’t move at all. “What happened?” she asked.

“I do not know,” the chief replied. “When a buffalo turns red, they have been taken by madness. Killing them is the only way to end their rampages. There are many ways by which it can overcome them, and I cannot say what overcame Long River, but this has only cemented my decision. You must not stay in Appleloosa. You must leave, as soon as possible.”

This time, Applejack didn’t protest. She’d been scared out of her mind by how the buffalo had attacked her. If she’d been a pony, and didn’t have fingers, she’d probably have been thrown off and trampled sooner during her rodeo manoeuvre. She rubbed the Cutie Mark on her thigh, feeling a bruise welling up there, and nodded slowly. “First light, then?”

“No. You shall be returned home tonight. This place is not safe for you anymore.” He turned and grunted to a smaller buffalo, who nodded in return. “Stalwart Breath will lead you back. Say your goodbyes, and sleep if you can.”

As they walked through the silent desert, Applejack wondered what was happening. The Buffalo had never had a problem with her presence before. Why were they suddenly asking her to leave, and why had the red buffalo attacked them? She didn’t know for sure.

The rest of the family were already asleep when they arrived, but Applejack didn’t get any sleep that night at all.
~
Morning came, and Golden Delicious was greatly disturbed by the turn of events. He wanted to say something to Stern Mountain to change his mind, but Applejack insisted that she wanted to leave as well. “Something changed that night,” she said, “and I think it’d be best for all of us if I found someplace else to be for a while.”

Everyone paused for a while, and then Fuji spoke up. “There’s always Sweet Apple Acres in Ponyville. They’ve been there for centuries and they’re still going, but they could always use a spare hoof or two. Ponyville’s the first place the train stops after leaving Appleloosa. Train’s leaving in about an hour, so you’ve got plenty of time to pack.”

“Ah still hate to leave, a little...” Apple Bloom said, but she trailed off as she recalled last night. That was the first time she’d ever had to hurt anything else with her axes. She didn’t want to think about it, and staying in Appleloosa would only force her to keep thinking about it every time she saw the buffalo. She didn’t say any of this out loud. Applejack had been there, but nopony else needed to know about it.

The sisters packed in silence. There wasn’t much to take, besides their clothes and their weapons. There weren’t any photo albums or diaries to bring along for sentimental value, and Fuji had given Applejack enough bits to pay for whatever they needed until they got where they were going. Packing didn’t take long, and nor did walking into town. At the train station, though, as she was buying the tickets, Applejack was suddenly overcome, falling to her hands and knees.

“What’s wrong?” Apple Bloom asked. "Sleep catching up?" All she could see was Applejack moving her lips, but with no sound coming out, and her eyes had been swallowed by a purple light. She tried to touch her, but a wave of magic the same purple as her eyes threw her back, and a number of ponies turned to stare. When Applejack finally stood up, she told the pony in the ticket booth to change their reservation. “What’s that town on top of the mountain called?” she asked.

“Canterlot? Yeah, that goes straight on from Ponyville. You don’t even have to change trains, but there’s really not much up there. If you’re sure, though...” He trailed off as she placed the bits on the counter, and printed off their tickets without another word.

As they got on the train, Apple Bloom adjusted her yellow checked shirt and asked, “What was that about going to some mountain city?”

“Ah had... some kind of a vision, of a castle on a mountain. Ah don’t know why, but I feel like Ah have to go there. Ya don’t have to follow me if ya don’t wanna, but...”

“No, I’ll follow you anywhere, sis,” Apple Bloom said, placing her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “Ya don’t hafta worry ‘bout me.”

In a seat nearby, a pony with a cobalt blue coat nodded and returned to the newspaper he was reading.

Author's Note:

Three down, three to go.

What drove the buffalo crazy? I don't think I made it that hard to work out, but it'll only be a few chapters before the official reveal.

Comments

[Chrome Reader]

The story is getting higher and I loved it......keep it up

[NerfedFalcon]

4994959 Thanks for that.