Chapter 1
Applejack stretched her legs, rolling off of her couch. She was normally very specific with the length of her lunch breaks, never going over or under the time she allotted for herself. Today was different. She could hardly contain her excitement at what the end of her lunch break held. It wasn't every day that Twilight promised her a big surprise when she finished her lunch break. Twilight was always good with surprises; she'd gone as far as to research the entire Apple family history and compile it into a big family tree for her last birthday. Applejack could hardly wait to get herself outside and see what Twilight had in store for her, so much so that cutting ten minutes off of her lunch break wasn't such a big deal.
The farmer trotted excitedly outside, almost forgetting to close the door behind her. She looked eagerly around the farm, trying to catch sight of Twilight or whatever surprise she'd brought. Her eyes scanned over her land until they finally settled on Twilight, who was currently entangled in a mass of vines emanating from a gigantic plant she'd never seen before. Twilight cowered in fear as a large stinger from the flower's bulb neared her.
"Well, that's certainly a surprise," Applejack mused. She then took off as fast as she could towards the plant.
Twilight winced as the stinger got closer and closer to her, too terrified to even light her horn up. She tried to pull her neck back, but she was so encased in vines that moving proved impossible. She sobbed quietly as the stinger drew ever closer. All she wanted to do was help her marefriend.
Suddenly, the stinger vanished from her vision. Twilight felt the entire plant shake, and a few of the vines encasing her loosened. She looked down to see Applejack, who had just rammed herself into the terrible plant. The plant relinquished part of its hold on Twilight, employing those vines to attack its assailant instead. The tough earth pony deftly avoided each attempted strike, rearing back and delivering a powerful buck to its stem. The plant's tendrils loosened more, allowing Twilight to wriggle and squirm out of its grasp. She fell a good five feet before landing on Applejack's back.
"A-Applejack..." Twilight said quietly.
"What the hay is this thing, Twi?" the farmer demanded, setting Twi down a little bit away from it.
"T...Triffid," Twilight responded. She was sweating and panting, terrified from her ordeal.
"And where the hay did they come from?" Applejack asked.
Twilight said nothing. A single hoof pointed behind Applejack.
"Over there?" Applejack asked. "We ain't got any plants like that over-"
Applejack's sentence was cut off as a number of vines wrapped themselves around her. The farmer tried to yell, but a vine wrapped around her head, the thick side of it plugging her mouth up. The earth pony was lifted off her hooves, hooves which she flailed until more vines pinned them down. Applejack struggled and squirmed as she was drawn up towards the bulb of the plant, whose stinger had emerged once more. She tried powering out, but even her abnormal strength couldn't break her bindings.
The stinger was suddenly jerked away from Applejack, now surrounded in a purple aura. The vines around her were soon bathed in purple as well, and they loosened up, allowing her escape. Applejack landed on her hooves next to Twilight, looking very relieved. The two looked to each other, standing in front of the beastly plant. They gave each other a smirk and a nod, and took off in different directions.
The triffid's bulb turned in one direction, then the other, not sure which prey to go after. It finally decided to lash vines out in both directions, but the lack of concentration made its attacks ineffective and unfocused. The two mares gave each other a quick look as they turned and closed in on the triffid from either side. That look was all they needed in the way of communication. Twilight lit her horn up, forming a magical barrier in front of herself, while Applejack took a flying leap into the air. The two hit the plant with a pincer attack, staggering the beast. The triffid tried to swipe at Applejack, but she kicked off of its thick stem, catapulting herself backwards and landing next to Twilight. This final kick was enough to knock the monster over, and the two watched as it toppled to the ground.
The two mares had little time to celebrate, though, as the triffid, even in its supine position, sent vines towards them. The two both leaped backwards, avoiding the attack. AJ managed to land with one hoof on the tip of the vine, and gave Twilight a nod. Twilight returned the nod and lit her horn up, severing the vine precisely twelve feet from the tip. She tossed the severed end to AJ, who scooped both it and the vine tip up in her mouth.
By this point, the triffid was attempting to stand back up, ceasing all attacks in favor of getting into an optimal position. Applejack pulled back, opening up the loop that the vine formed. She gave Twilight a look, and Twilight acted immediately, leaping into the loop. She leaned back against the tough vine, pulling her hooves off of the ground. Applejack began spinning, the centrifugal force holding Twilight against the back of the vine. Just as the triffid managed to fully right itself, Applejack launched Twilight like a sling towards it. Twilight lit her horn up, forming a sharp magical barrier in front of herself. She hurtled towards the botanical beast, piercing through the sky like a magical javelin. She eventually found her mark, the point of her forcefield breaking through the thick stem of the beast and severing it in two. Both pieces of the monster fell limply to the ground, followed shortly after by a panting Twilight. Applejack trotted up to her side, giving the defeated plant monster a kick on her way.
"Great work, Twi," she said, giving her exhausted marefriend a pat on the back. "So was this the surprise you planned? A huge plant monster tryin' to kill us?"
"It...was supposed to be a truffle..." Twilight panted. "I wanted to surprise you...with a treat for your pigs. I must have gotten...the wrong spell." Applejack rolled her eyes and gave Twilight a kiss on the cheek.
"Maybe we should leave the farming to me, hon," Applejack said, offering her back for Twilight.
"I'll get it right next time," Twilight said, climbing onto AJ's back.
"I'm sure you will," Applejack replied, standing up and heading towards the farmhouse. She still technically owed herself ten minutes of break time. Even though Twilight hadn't given her quite the surprise she'd hoped for, she deserved a nice backrub for her troubles.