Detour

by Jetset0099

Fallen Comrades

Night settled over Ponyville, and the timberwolves howl's could be heard in the distance. Macintosh pulled off his yoke and hung it on his bedpost. Over the years, it had become worn from all the abuse it had been out through. But it never failed him despite all that.

Just as the farmer was about to fall into bed and pass out, Jake knocked on his door.

"Come in."
He creaked it open and stepped in. They both stared at each other for a moment, contemplating on what to say. The pilot spoke up first.

"Uh. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. My choice of words earlier wasn't the best."
He rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at the floor. Mac sighed and hung his head as well.

"Ahm sorry to Jake. Ah shouldn't of snapped at ya like that. Y'all had good intentions. It's jes that ah need a way ta get through this harvest. Otherwise ahm gonna go bankrupt."

"The Dodge."
The red stallion raised his head.

"The truck? Ahm not sure that could do everythin'"

"Hear me out. You gotta buck the apples. YOU can do that. Then you have to haul them. There's a big bed in the back of that thing that could do it. It's perfect."

"Ah guess that could work."

"I KNOW it could work."
Mac shook his head.

"But then there's the harvestin' of the corn. Mah harvester was burnt up."

"We'll have to do it by hoof."
The farmer let out a hearty laugh.

"Good luck. That there field is a square mile. It'd take forever ta do that."
Jake looked out the window to the corn stalks waving in the wind under the moon.

"I bet we could do it in a day."
Mac stopped his joking and looked at him with a straight face.

"Y-yer serious?"

"Unless you have a better idea, yeah I'm serious."

"Huh. Well then y'all better rest up. It's gonna be a loooong day."
They said goodnight, and Jake left the room, leaving Macintosh to think.

"That pilot don't know what he's gettin' into."
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With Jake's luck, he had to pick one of the hottest summer days to start the harvest of the corn fields. Even at six thirty in the morning, it was at least eighty degrees and rising. He and Mac stood at the edge of the field, staring into the rows upon rows of crops. The experienced farmer handed the newbie a corn knife, which looked like a scythe, but shorter and had a fatter blade on it.

"Alright, here's what ya gotta do. Jes walk up to a stalk like this."
He went over to one.

"An' swing low ta slice it off."
He swung, slicing the stalk off just two inches from the ground.

"Then leave it there. We'll pick 'em all up after we're done."
He looked around once more, then back at Jake, and nodded. They both knew what it meant, and without word began slicing away at each individual stalk.

The pilot, who had never farmed in his life, found it difficult to keep up with Mac. He would sometimes have to swing two or three times at one stalk to get it to come off right.

"This was a bad idea."
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Late noon came around, causing the sun to be directly over the field beating down on the two. Jake was drenched in sweat as they made it to the halfway mark. The harvested corn lay in heaps down the rows they had been previously standing in.

Mac stopped and looked at their progress. He turned back to the captain, who was fatigued and out of breath.

"Jes push through the tiredness Jake. It's better if we get this done now. If y'all wait 'till tomorra ta finish, yer gonna be sore as hell."
Jake leaned against his corn knife, trying to regain his breath.

"I guess...you're right."
Even Macintosh, who had years of experience under his hooves, was wiped out.

After a ten minute break, they got back to work. The pilot seemed to be getting the hang of it by now, and was locking into a rhythm. For the next four hours, they whittled away at the rest of the corn.

Finally, as the sun began to set, Mac swung at the last stalk and severed it from it's root. It fell, joining its other fallen comrades in the piles. Jake sat down in the dirt and dropped his knife.

"It's over. Thank Celestia it's over."
Mac chuckled.

"We got through the hardest part. But it ain't over yet. Get the truck an' lets pick up all this corn."
The captain looked confused.

"Now? But it's getting dark."

"That thing has headlights don't it?"
After a moment of silence, Jake reluctantly stood up and started walking to the truck's parking spot.

"...damnit."

By eleven at night, they were almost done. The Dodge sat in the middle of the field while the two piled corn into the bed. Every once in a while, Jake would have to move the truck down the field as they progressed. And occasionally, he would drive it over to the side of the house to unload it all to get it ready for husking.

By one in the morning they were done, and two tired stallions walked into the kitchen of the house. Mac opened up a bottle of whiskey and poured two glasses. They both held them up to each other.

"To a full days work."

"Eeyup."
They clanked their glasses together and downed them in one go.

"I don't think I've ever worked that hard in my life."

"This is the busiest time o' year fer us. Work is all we do. Tomorrow, we'll have to start buckin' the apples. Me an' Applejack will handle that part, but you need to use the truck to haul them to our washing bin. Fortunately, ah managed ta salvage one o' them. It'll be slower, but we'll get the job done."
Jake refilled his glass and drank from it.

"And don't worry. I'll be out of the house after the air show."

"It ain't a big deal. If y'all manage ta pull yer weight, you can stay here."
The pilot shook his head.

"As much as I appreciate that, I have to decline. I want to get my own place. I'm living the rest of my life here, so I want a place that I can call my home."

"Ah understand."
He screwed the lid back on the bottle and put it away in the cupboard. The farmer let out a long yawn, causing Jake to do the same.

"That's the signal to clean up and go to bed."

"Eeyup."

After a good shower, Jake got into bed and pulled the covers over him. The expression "asleep before your head hit the pillow" was taken literally at that moment, as the pilot drifted off while still sitting up, causing him to ungracefully flop down onto the feathery pillow.

Author's Note:

Due to the long hours at work, I haven't been able to write as much. I apologize for the delays, and ill try to continue posting more often. So don't worry, there will be more Detour soon! Thanks for reading.

Comments

[Rain_Bow_Dashie]

I am just glad to see a update... ba ba ba baaaaa!

[TangoForce141]

Yay finally update and the truck smart idea

[Lord Legion]

Hey no worries concerning update rates. Quality, not quantity.

[Jetset0099]

New chapter will be out tomorrow night! Thanks.

[rudy morgan]