Detour

by Jetset0099

Table Talk

Lyra and Bon Bon were sitting out front at the local café having one of their regular debates.

"I'm telling you Bon Bon, have you ever used conditioner BEFORE you use shampoo? It works wonders!"

"It's called conditioner for a reason Lyra. Is supposed to condition your hair AFTER you use sham-"
She was stopped at the sight of a large black carriage rolling down the street. It was already attracting quite a lot of attention as it passed the restaurant they were at.

Up in the cab, Applejack was starting to become uneasy.

"This thing sure is attractin' a lot of attention."
Jake observed the curious bystanders.

"Yeah you're right. How far until I turn, this is getting uncomfortable."

"Ah hear ya, I don't like ponies starin' at me like this."

"No I mean the seat. The seat's hurting my back. I guess it's not designed for a pony. Damn you Dodge."
He laughed to himself. Applejack looked at him with an amused face.

"Well 'course it's uncomfortable. Look how yer sittin. Why don't you sit like me? It's much more comfortable."

"I would, but I have to reach the pedals to make this thing stop and go."
She looked at the floor where the pedals were being pressed down by his hooves. Then she noticed something.

"You know what ah just realized Jake?"

"What?"

"You don't have a cutie mark."
She gestured to the three apples as her insignia.

"Yeah I was going to ask why everypony had a tattoo on their flank."

"It ain't no tattoo Jake. Ponies magically get one when they discover their special talent. It's a permanent display of ones true self."

"Well considering I'm new here I guess it's only normal for me not to have one. I hope it's not weird that I don't."

"Nah you should be fine considerin' the circumstances. Oh, turn here."
He complied and turned the vehicle left and headed down a dirt road out of town. They rode for a minute before the path started running parallel to a white fence. On the other side were rows and rows of apple trees.

"Wow, you got yourself a nice farm here."

"Thanks. It's been in our family since they migrated here many years ago. They were the reason Ponyville was created in the first place."

"That's impressive. Should I turn in here?"
He pointed to a white gate that was open. A wooden arch was above the entrance that read "Sweet Apple Acres."

Jake turned in and rolled up to the farmhouse. He stopped in front of the porch and shut the engine off. Applejack opened her door and was about to step down when she turned back to face him.

"Look, mah brother is real nice, an' I'm sure you'll have no trouble whatsoever. Mah little sister Applebloom on the other hand, can be quite roudy an' loud. But she's sweet an' just needs some time for you to get used ta her."
She stepped down and shut the door. Jake did the same, and waited for her to come around to his side.

Applejack motioned for him to follow her into the house. He stepped up onto the porch and held the door open for her. She walked in before him and yelled upstairs.

"Mac! We got company, come on down here!"

"Eeyup!"
After a couple seconds, a large red earth pony appeared at the top of the staircase and made his way down to greet him. He had a bandage wrapped around his front left leg. Jake was nervous at first. He stuck out a hoof for him to shake.

"Um...hi. My name is Jake Weston. I'm the pony who kinda smashed your barn and injured you."
Mac shook his hoof.

"Let me start by saying I'm so sorry about all the trouble I caused here. My airplane was going down and I couldn't climb anymore. Fortunately I only took out a small portion of the barn. If your still mad at me I understand."
Big Mac laughed in a deep baritone.

"It's quite alright Mister Weston. Ah got over it a while ago. Applejack explained ta me what ya said when she first met ya, and ah believe y'all. Accidents happen. But yer right. At least you only took out a small part o' the barn."
Jake was relieved to hear that he forgave him for destroying their property.

"Well that's nice to hear. Thank you for taking me in as well. I intend to repay you by repairing the damage and then some."
Big Mac nodded and looked over his shoulder and out the window to the truck sitting out front.

"Now what in tarnation is that thing sittin' out there?"
Jake motioned for him to come outside with him. The red pony followed him out the door, his sister right behind him, to see the vehicle. His jaw dropped.

"What does it do? It looks like some kinda fancy carriage."
The three ponies were startled when a pony popped out from the bed of the truck and waved.

"Hey sis! This thing is so cool! Where'd you get it mister?"
Jake looked confused. Applejack spoke up.

"That's mah sister Applebloom ah told ya about earlier. Applebloom get down from there before you hurt yerself!"

The filly jumped over the side and landed on the dirt. Mac walked around to the front of it. Jake followed and began explaining it to him.

"This is called a Dodge thirty-five hundred. But where I'm from, we just call it a truck for short. It uses a substance called diesel fuel to power its engine, which is right here up front."
Mac looked at it with curiosity.

"So why did y'all bring it 'round these parts?"
Applejack walked over to them, Applebloom in tow.

"He says that it's gonna help get the work done faster an' more efficiently. Apparently is was 'born' for farm work."
Big Mac looked skeptical.

"So what yer saying Mister Weston, is that this thing can work an' haul more than we can?"

"Well I'm not saying that you ponies aren't efficient or anything. You probably are all very hard workers. But all I'm saying is that this truck can do it without the stress and labor required if you did it all by hoof, and you can just call me Jake by the way."
The red farm pony eyed the truck front to back, then he came to a decision.

"Alright, I'm gonna give y'all a chance with this thing. We start tomorrow mornin'. We're gonna go into town an' gather all the lumber needed to repair the barn. We'll haul it all in the back here."
He gestured to the bed of the pickup. Jake agreed.

"Alright then, can't wait to get started."
Applejack addressed the two.

"Well lets all go in an' get some grub. Ahm starvin'."

The four ponies made there way into the house, where Granny Smith was finishing up cooking dinner and putting out on the table. Applebloom introduced them.

"Granny we have company! This is Jake. He's...uh...what do you do?"

"I'm a pilot."

"Yeah that's it! He's a pilot...what exactly does a pilot do?"
Applejack interrupted.

"I'll explain everythin' to ya later Applebloom. Now go an' wash up for dinner."
Her little sister obeyed and scampered out of the kitchen and down the hall. Applejack turned back to her grandmother.

"Anyways, Jakes gonna be stayin' with us for a while until the barn is fixed an' he gets his airplane unstuck from that field out west o' town."
The elderly pony went up to him and shook his hoof.

"It's nice ta' meet ya sonny. It'll be nice havin' another hand 'round here while ol' Mac's leg is wrapped up. Make yerself at home while yer here."
She turned around and finished preparing the meal, which consisted of vegetable soup and apple fritters.

Everyone sat down at the table and began passing food around. Jake was seated between Macintosh and Applejack, who was sitting at the head. She passed him a bowl of soup.

"Dig in, this is an' old family recipe that my great grandma used to make."
He sipped the hot soup cautiously, his face lit up.

"Wow, this is really good. Much better than anything I've tasted back home."
Mac eyed him curiously.

"Where exactly are y'all from partner. Applejack told me you weren't from Equestria, but she didn't gimme any details."
Jake put down his spoon and cleared his throat.

"Well, I'm from a place called Earth, which is a different universe basically. It might even be just another planet lightyears away from here, and I just traveled a long distance. I never gave it much thought. All I know is that I woke up in the cockpit flying towards here. I was transformed into one of you guys. I never was a pony, I was a species known as a human. So anyhow, I ran out of fuel, and made an emergency landing in the field Applejack described. I'm originally from a country on Earth called The United States of America. I lived in a city called Saleen in a state named Michigan. It was a nice city, much bigger than Ponyville, but I still liked it. I went to school at a place called North Slate University about an hour north of where I lived. That's where I studied to become a pilot. After four years, I graduated and went to work for American Flightline. They get contracted to fly odd jobs around the country. My job, when I was transported here, was to fly two automobiles, one of which is the truck out front, to a city called Las Vegas for its two thousand thirteen Auto Show. I guess I didn't make it as you can see, and now I'm in a totally different world."
The red pony looked confused.

"An' your not scared or nothin' 'bout transforming into a pony an' bein' in a different place like this?"

"Well, I was at first, but I got used to it. I was going to crash and burn if I didn't land immediately. So extensively panicking wasn't an option. I guess I just got over it. But enough about me. What about you guys?"
He started eating his soup again as Macintosh spoke.

"Well lets see, there ain't to much ta say really. Our great grandparents started this here farm, an' kept it runnin' through Granny's generation b'fore mah parents took over. Sadly they passed on a while back, an' left the farm ta me an' Applejack."

Jake stopped eating for a second.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's alright, we've gotten through it. Anyways, now Applejack runs the farm, an' I do a lot of the work an' accounting."
Applejack laughed.

"Ya wouldn't think of Big Mac as bein' the brainy type would ya?"

"Very funny sis. Then there's Applebloom here, she gets into all sorts of trouble tryin' ta find her special talent and get her cutie mark with her two friends. No luck so far huh sis?"
Applebloom sighed and twirled her spoon in her soup, staring down into it.

"Nope. Ah haven't had any luck yet."
She perked back up and smiled.

"But tomorrow me and the gang are gonna try gettin' our cutie marks in music!"
Macintosh grinned.

"Well good luck with that then. So yeah Jake, this is our family. We ain't rich, but we ain't poor. Everything's fine the way it is, an' we're grateful for it."
The pilot looked around at the family who was nodding in approval. A sudden pang of envy came over him, and went away as quickly as it had came.

"Huh...well it's nice to see a family so together like you guys are."
He finished his soup and put down his spoon.

"Do you mind if I turn in early? I've had a long day and I want to be rested for all the work we're gonna be doing tomorrow."
Macintosh got up from the table and took both of their dishes to the sink. He came back to Jake, who had also gotten up from the table.

"Sounds good ta me. I'll show y'all to yer room. Follow me."
He said goodnight to the three still sitting at the table and followed Big Mac up the stairs. He led them past a couple doors, until stopping at the one at the very end to the left. He opened it and they walked in.

"Well here ya are partner. If you need anythin' don't be afraid to ask. Wake up call is at six AM sharp. Don't miss it now."
Jake walked past him into the center of the room and looked around.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be up and ready to go by then."

"Hmm, alright then. G'night to ya."

"Night."
The farmer shut the door and walked away, leaving Jake alone in his new room. The walls were a light green, and had white apple-marked borders at the top and bottom of it. The bed was a matching green with apples sewn into the center of the blanket on top. Jake chuckled.

"I guess they love their apples."
He took off his white uniform and hung it on the oak post at the foot of the bed. He climbed in and got underneath the covers. Once comfortable, the captain laid back on the pillow and stared up at the ceiling.

"Yup. This is going to be an interesting next couple of days."
He sighed and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep.

Macintosh descended the staircase and went into the living room to find the rest of his family sitting around. Granny Smith was in her easy chair, playing solitaire, and Applebloom was coloring on the floor. Applejack looked over to him from the couch as he entered.

"Hey Mac, can I see you back in the kitchen for a moment."
They both walked into the kitchen, away from the filly's earshot.

"Mac, didn't somethin' seem off about Jake right before he went ta bed?"
Mac put a hoof to his chin in thought.

"Not that ah saw. Why? You think he's trouble or somethin'?"

"No, ah think he's a good pony with good intentions. Yet ah don't think he's lettin' us all in on somethin' about him. But it's just a thought. Ah don't wanna jump to no conclusions 'bout him already. Hehe, ah just hope he's a good worker."
With that she went back into the living room to rejoin the rest of the family, leaving the red earth pony alone in the kitchen. He looked out the window and saw the truck still sitting there. It's chrome stacks reflecting a bit of Luna's moonlight.

"We'll see sis. We'll see."

Comments

[myhe01]

Sup.

[Greasebrony]

First off, great chapter. Eevrythings running along smoothly and fluently. Keep it up.

[mcb893]

2359481 You googled wrong. And it could be flying empty! It has ammo and two cars on board, so why couldn't that be unloaded and the plane be flown empty?

And the knob is a big deal because it would have been IMPOSSIBLE for Pinkie to actually activate the suppression system!

[carlpilkington]

The iPhone, introduce the iPhone

[Jetset0099]

2359677 I assure you the ammo situation will be cleared up. And the fire suppression scene was all for laughs. It's not that big of a deal.

[Jetset0099]

2359702 We're gettin there. Read on.

[mcb893]

2359823 Activating the engine fire suppression would require at least an hour or two of laborious clean out, with even the possibility of a systems failure or the engine not starting.

[Greasebrony]

2359747

Good 'ol Hap Arnold(Air Force)keeps this Brony quite busy what with fixing jet engines and what-not, not to mention there are personal aspects of my life that require much of my attention. HOWEVER, inspite of all this I promised you guys I'd keep my fic going and I wasn't lying about the ideas I have. I'm just in a bit of a bind with all the things going on right now. Rest assured I am working on the next chapter and it will be published when I know it is up to par with my standards.

[Jetset0099]

2359863 Look I mean this in the nicest way I can put this. If you want to be all technical about every single thing I write about aviation be my guest, but don't send it to me. Write your own story about that kind of stuff, I'm sure it would be good. But this is my story and my ideas. If you want to continue reading this story,great, but just be along for the ride, don't try and take the wheel. Thanks.

[Snowfyre]

so no wings hidden under his uniform?

[Jetset0099]

2359971 Nope, Captain Jake Weston is an earth pony. If that wasn't clear to anyone I apologize.

[mcb893]

2359892 Not trying to take over the wheel - that would be me telling you where to write the plot - but I apologize anyway.

I'm sorry for being a nuisance, but it's just that I'd enjoy a story so much more if it held some realism aviation wise.

It is your story, though, so I shall refrain from posting any more comments.

[Jetset0099]

2360456 It's fine. I don't care if you post comments, just don't correct me on everything I write about aviation.

[Rain_Bow_Dashie]

Great story, Love it so far... and i kinda laugh at people nit-picking over little details.... What if his fire suppression was a button and not a knob... it is called change... personalization... (as long as it does not inter fear with the operation of the device) its like putting a 8-ball shifter in you car... the Department of Motor Vehicles isn't going to declare you vehicle unsafe.

[Jetset0099]

Thanks everyone for reading! Ill have the newest chapter posted by tonight.

[Ponynator]

Has he asked the princesses if they could transform him back into a human, or why he is suddenly a pony?

[Jetset0099]

2363622 I'm going to touch on that subject in later chapters. Thanks for reading!