Ark: Friendship is Survival

by Pomp-Neigh

Chapter 87 - Twilight's Endeavor

-Redwood Biome: Granny Pithecus’ Farm-

The sun’s afternoon rays melded into the transparent walls of the greenhouse as Twilight glides a forehoof across several bearing bushels while passing by their appropriate crop plot, each varying in size but rectangular in shape.

Hunger-inducing potatoes, carrots, corn, lemons, and various berries were evidence of Granny Pithecus’ capabilities as a farmer. And that wasn’t even including the creatures who sang her praises whenever Twilight was able to interact with them.

Droplets of water fell from the leaves as an irrigation system of stone pipes was built along the housing’s ceiling, a tap present at each of its four corners with one in the middle.

Twilight conjures a wooden cup from her inventory and positions it under the central tap before slowly turning the metal knob clockwise and allowing a steady flow of water to pour freely. Once her cup is full, she turns off the water flow before looking into her watery reflection and becoming lost in thoughts.

The alicorn has been helping Granny Pithecus on the farm to show appreciation for all that she has done for her. Without the elderly ape’s advice, Twilight probably wouldn’t have gotten this far with the Tribe of Maimuta.

Seeking out the tribe has cost her, sure. But if she could just show Grok how useful she and her friends could be, and if all goes according to plan…they’d have powerful allies and access to a potentially near-limitless supply of resources.

Taking all of that into consideration, they could efficiently retrieve this Ark’s artifacts, challenge its guardians, and get one step closer to saving Earth. In doing so, they could also give Equus a proper future that didn’t involve being forced to ‘play their parts.’

The excitement almost got the better of her, but she composed herself. Foal steps, Twilight.

She chugs down her drink and exhales loudly before smacking her lips together.

Foal steps, indeed. Thus the subject of youth brings the equine to her current endeavor: teaching.

……….

Twilight soon exits the greenhouse and gently closes its doors behind her. “Yo, Mejoberry!” The voice of Granny Pithecus called out, the alicorn turning to her direction as the ape was in the process of collecting phiomia manure or, in Rainbow Dash terms, poop.

Sorry, Rainbow.

“How’s dem crops look’n?!” Granny asked while storing the phiomia droppings in a compost bin.

“Everything looks fine, ma’am,” Twilight answers on approach. “Crops are fertilized, irrigation systems are flowing flawlessly, and the greenhouse effects are at peak performance.”

Greenhouse effect… It sounded impossible when she was first introduced to the idea of a building somehow influencing the growth of plant life. That is until she realized the hypocrisy: earth ponies are basically the living versions of that same concept.

Sweet Celestia, why have they never considered inventing such things back home?! It was so obvious! The scientific side of her screamed out disappointment.

Granny Pithecus chuckles after staring at the lavender mare before her. “What’s wrong, Granny?” Twilight asked.

“Sho-hoot, ah was just think’n—ah never pegged ya fer the farm’n type, yet here ya are.” Granny closes the compost bin and wipes her hands together. “Then again, ya did spen’ a lot of time with that farm mare, Rockarrot.”

Twilight snickered with a hoof covering her muzzle. “R-Rockarrot?”

“Oh, yeah! Ah’ve got a berry and veggy fer all of yas. Mostly berries, though.” She raises a finger for each name, “Azulberry fer Rainbow Crap, Amarberry fer Fluttercry, Rockarrot for Applecrack, and Stimberry for that drama queen equus with the horn.”

Twilight giggles at the aliases. “Wh-what about Pinkie and Spike?” She managed. “And HLN-A?”

“That flyin’ rex feller dun earned mah respect, what with putt’n up quite a fight with Edgie Mcgee. Demon King, as y’all calls ‘em. So he gets to be called Spike. Dun and dun.”

A sense of pride overcomes the alicorn, and while she would always hate to see Spike thrust into such a situation, her little dragon brother was growing up. “I suppose that’s fair.”

“Ah nev’r really came up with a name fer that little robit gal,” Granny said while calling forth a chair from her inventory and taking a seat. “Not one that sticks, at least. As fer the pink one, she just popped into view and tol’ me, ‘Name me Veggie Cake.’” Her impression of Pinkie Pie was almost spot on, Twilight mused.

“So, uh, I did… That one is ‘bout as unpredictable as a shitting pteranodon. You never know when she’s gonna fall on ya.”

They chuckled in unison. “Anyway, are ya ready fer today?” Granny asked.

“Oh, certainly!” Twilight shouts in excitement. “I’ve already come up with a sufficient schedule. First, we’ll spend ten minutes discussing the warring pony tribes, then an extensive explanation of- MMPH!”

“Ok, ok, ah get it,” Granny interjects, wrapping a hand around Twilight’s muzzle and preventing the coming lecture, followed by the equine giving her a deadpan stare. “A simple yes er no works for me, Mejo. Ah don’ need you goin’ Gideon the Equus on me, ya hear?”

Twilight nods her head with a muffled agreement. Granny releases her grasp, and the purple mare scrunches her features while cross-eyed before righting herself. She then clears her throat with recollected composure.

“In any case, yes. I’m ready for this. Not to boast or anything, but I’m no stranger to teaching a classroom. I did run an entire school, as you know.”

Granny grinned, “Right, ‘fore you dumped it all on this Starlight Shitter gal, yeah?”

“Starlight Glimmer, Granny. Glimmer.”

“Oh! Ah get it, now. How could ah’ve been so foolish?”

Twilight sighs in relief. “That’s good to-”

“Starlight shits crystals! See? I technically got it right. Right?”

“Wha- no! You—I—that—UGH!”

The alicorn snorts, wearing a grumpy expression as she sits on her haunches and crosses her forelimbs.

Granny chuckles as she pats Twilight’s head. “Ya know someth’n?” The equine looks up to meet the ape’s mocking face. “Yer fun to fuck with…Twilight.”

Twilight softened at that. Beneath Granny’s, uh…‘Grannyness,’ there was a kindhearted gigantopithecus. Despite easily being played by the elder, the lavender mare enjoyed her company immensely, often comparing her to a more unrestrained version of a particular old member of the Apple Family.

Twilight’s ears perked up as she heard something approaching from the direction of the forest. But she immediately regrets it as she groans irritably.

“Oh, great. It’s those two again…”

A familiar pair of megaloceros runs toward Twilight and Granny in a panic.

“Look out!” Cried Rut. “She’s after us, eh!”

“Oh, geez!” Tok shouts in horror.

They skied to a stop and fidgets in place worriedly.

“You’ve gotta help us.”

“You’ve gotta hide us, eh.”

“Oh, geez. Too late, here she comes.”

The pair runs past Twilight and Granny, hiding in the ape’s home and barn as they slam the doors shut.

The earth shakes as another entity comes rushing out of the bush, instantly shocking Twilight, Granny, and several onlookers high up on nearby tree platforms from what they saw. It was a level 116 female wooly rhino.

A wooly. Rhino.

What in Celestia’s name…

What in Grok’s name…

The rhino sniffed at the air and looked around, eyes darting in every direction while letting loose fearsome snorts. All while the lavender mare and elder ape looked on with dropped mouths.

Seemingly convinced that the deer duo had moved on, the rhino charges across the farm and into dense forestation just opposite where it had appeared from.

Rut and Tok can be seen peeking out of the window, and once the rhino had passed, they began to open the double doors slowly.

“I told you that wasn’t a doe,” Rut said.

“Well, she looked like one from behind,” Tuk argued.

Granny and Twilight shared a look, turning their gaze back to them. “What in the Dead Isle is goin’ on here?” The ape asked.

“What’s gotten into you two?” Twilight inquired as the megaloceros duo exited the home and stood before her and Granny.

“Well, it’s that time of year, eh,” Tok answered.

“Mating boosts everywhere,” Rut comments.

“Mating…what?” The alicorn inquired with a tilted head.

“Yeah, you know, like, the birds.”

“Yeah, and the, and the bees.”

“And the doedettes. Heh. If you know what I mean by doedettes,” Tok wriggled his brows suggestively.

Twilight’s ears suddenly perk up, and a smirk forms on her muzzle. “Yeah, well, don’t look now, but,” she gestures toward where the woolly rhino was last seen with a wing, “your doefriend’s coming.”

“Oh, gee!”

“Oh, no!”

The earth shakes again as the rhino comes charging out of the forest and chases the now-fleeing duo, said duo’s screams distancing with every passing moment.

“Huh…” Twilight breaks the resulting awkward silence. “That happened.”

“Looks like those two are at it again,” a feminine gruff voice said as a white equus in metal armor approached. “I’m surprised Mawlchu hasn’t gotten them yet.”

Granny gets up from her chair as Twilight walks toward the new mare. “Hello, there.” She gained the equus’ attention. “Your name was Decanus Equula, right?”

“Decanus is my rank,” Equula answered, towering over her lavender counterpart with a horn and wings. She was still getting used to that. “Equula is my name, which has been passed down in my family for generations. You can call me Journey Joy, too. If you’d like.”

“Some of us just call ‘er Jo-Jo fer short,” Granny said.

‘Jo-Jo’ chuckled. “Yes.” She shifts her form to attention, something Twilight was all too familiar with, given the guards and her own brother back home.

“Sir. Gideon Apesworth has sent me to inform you, Twilight Sparkle, that the classroom has been built and is ready for use. I’ll escort you there when your affairs are in order.”

Comments

[Charlie_K]

Those damn megaloceri brought it on themselves, trying to screw a wholly rhino like that. This is what happens when you're hornier than a cactus.

[Pomp-Neigh]

11631593
Rut and Tok: “It wasn’t our fault, eh!”

[Charlie_K]

Huh, the comment section for this chapter has been pretty much dead...

Meanwhile, will our favorite survivors learn the pain that comes from higher level blueprints? Where an ascendant saddle costs 10X the resources as a journeyman saddle, but actually has 5 percent less protection?

[Pomp-Neigh]

11633190
Absolutely.

As for the comment section, it tends to fluctuate. I’m personally someone who enjoys stories but don’t often comment.

[Charlie_K]

11633294
I wonder if the fact this is also labeled chapter 86 like the last one is playing any part in it.

[Pomp-Neigh]

11633500
Oh, god!

Thank you for pointing that out.

[Green-Venom]

11640873
Cool. Thanks for replying.

[Pomp-Neigh]

11641306
No problem!

My apologies for not responding to the other messages yet. As soon as I tried, they disappeared from my notifications, so I wasn't able to pinpoint the exact chapter. That said, there is the front page that shows your comment and what chapter it's on.

[Green-Venom]

11641345
This is so relatable. I’m still lucky to have only a handful of comments, unlike you. 😅

[Eventide100]

You must give me more Twily. SHE'S DA MAIN CHARACTER FOR A REASON!!!!
But the story is good!!!

[Pomp-Neigh]

11649218
Oh, yes!

Big things are coming to Twilight. To all the mares and Spike, for that matter. Though I can admit that the largest challenge is keeping it balanced between them all since some of them are off doing other things. Granted, it will all come together, and will have a nice payoff.