Follow Maud Pie and Boulder as they uncover the mystery of Appleloosa's Gold Rush.
Maud Pie has an unstoppable passion for rocks and minerals of every sort, but no one else seems to share that same passion. Not even Boulder is as enthusiastic about them as she is.
Follow Maud Pie and her close companion Boulder as they make their first stop on their rock expedition: Appleloosa. The town is in the middle of a gold rush, but everything may not be as it seems. What mysteries will Maud and Boulder uncover?
Probably none!
It's a very boring story, so be happy that it is COMPLETED.
"All aboard! The train to Appleloosa will be departing in less than one minute!"
It had been a very eventful week for me. Visits with Pinkie Pie had always been...interesting. However, this was the first time she had almost gotten herself killed. Well, perhaps not the first time. After all, who could forget the Great Fillydelphian Chocolate Debacle? Certainly not the Fillydelphians.
I got on the train after showing my ticket and took a seat. I took out my book on the town of Appleloosa to prepare myself for the first part of the expedition. It was not going to be my first time there, but it would not hurt to refresh my memory.
“You headin' out ta the gold rush, 'dere?”
I turned to see another Earth pony sitting across from me. He was brown with an unkempt, gray-streaked mane and tail. He was strikingly old. He was also missing a couple of his teeth. “Yes,” I answered. I returned to my book, not at all interested in speaking to him.
A few minutes passed before the Earth pony spoke to me again. “This is tha' umpteenth time that this 'as 'appened,” he said. When I did not respond, he continued speaking. “But ah'm not missin' it this time! No siree, bob! I'ma git mah hands ahn dat gold an' finally make somethin' of mahself!”
“Hm,” I grunted. He looked barely strong enough to pick up a shovel, let alone dig.
“You doubtin' old Brass Tacks, little missy?” he asked me accusingly. “I'll have ya' know that ah've been at every gold rush that's eva 'appened in this country since Ponyville was founded!”
“And yet you still have not gotten any?” I pointed out.
He opened his mouth to say something, but did not. He remained quiet for the rest of the ride, mostly mumbling to himself about being rich and “know-it-all city folks”.
To tell the truth, I might have made a small error in judgment by spending so much time in Ponyville and at my parents' farm. Ponies had been swarming to Appleloosa during this time, all wanting to get piece of the motherlode. I did not care too much to be honest. I do not have much use for riches or money. All I cared about were the rocks themselves. But I suppose it was worth it to spend time with my sister and her friends.
I removed Boulder from my pocket and looked at him. “What do you think about this?” I asked him. He had been my friend since I was a filly on my parents' rock farm. He had yet to steer me wrong. I nodded. “I think so too,” I responded.
Brass Tacks looked over at me with a raised eyebrow. He scooted away from me to the edge of his seat closest to the window. That was the response I usually got when I spoke with Boulder. I have yet to understand why.
I had only been to Appleloosa once or twice in my life. Those few times I had managed to find some interesting specimens: some malachite, jade, amethyst and a three pound diamond. It was thirty-two karats. It was a bit sweeter than I was used to, but it was still pretty tasty.
As the old man had stated, this was not the first gold rush that this town had experienced, though the first had been far before his time...I think. It was about fifty years ago when a vein had been found in what is now the Apple Orchards. Back then, the buffalo were still using it as their Stampeding Grounds. The ponies had negotiated with the buffalo, who agreed to let the ponies find their gold on the condition that they left as soon as their business was done.
And that is where the story got strange. There was no record of any gold ever being found. The ponies left soon after and the matter was never brought up again. I wondered if this would end up the same way? I will admit that my curiosity got the best of me here. I was more interested in figuring out what happened with the gold. I could care less about what happened to the ponies that were in charge of the operation.
Was the gold rush a hoax? It looked like it might be, but I trusted Boulder's judgment. He was usually correct about these things. After all, I learned a lot of what I still know about rocks from him. It was so weird that he did not share the same passion about rocks that I did.
Boulder was so weird.
Either way there were a lot of questions to be answered, and I intended to find them.
“We have arrived at Appleloosa!” the conductor announced. “Please make sure that you have all of your belongings with you before exiting the train. As always, have a wonderful day!”
I gathered my saddlebags and placed Boulder into my pocket before getting off of the train. The sun had begun to set by the time we all arrived, casting a dim, golden light on the town. Not much had changed since the last time I traveled here. These old, country settings rarely did in my experiences. Even the people were pretty much the same.
“Welcome to AAAAAAAPALOOSA!!” The enthusiastic yellow pony known as Braeburn came galloping out to greet the new arrivals. I had met him the last time I came here, but we were just coming of age back then. His enthusiasm had not wavered since then.
He was addressing the entire group that had gotten off of the train. “How're all y'all doin'!?”
No one responded, including myself.
That did little to dampen his spirits. “Great!” he exclaimed. “I bet all y'all are here for the motherlode, right?”
A few of them nodded in agreement. I was surprised that so few of them did, but I guess I should not have been. Braeburn's enthusiasm made a lot of ponies want to not speak in the hopes that he would be quiet.
It did not work, though. In fact, Braeburn got even more chipper. “Well that is just too bad! Site's closed for the evenin' by order of Sheriff Grimes! The site's in the orchard which is a lil' ways away from town. It's too dangerous to be that far away from town when it starts gittin' dark.” He stopped and looked around to make sure that no one except the crowd in front of him was around to hear. He leaned in and started whispering. “We have ourselves a lil' timberwolf problem in these parts. They like to hang out in the orchard at night.”
The crowd dispersed at this news, looking disappointed. Once everyone was out of the way, Braeburn locked eyes with me.
Oh no.
He galloped over to me and put me in an uncomfortable headlock and started roughing up my mane as if I were a child. “Well, if ain't Stone Cold Maudy!” he greeted with unbridled joy. He released me from the headlock. “What brings ya ta-" He reared up on his hind legs. "AAAAAAAPALOOOSA?”
I shook my head vigorously to straighten my mane back out. “Rocks,” I answered.
Braeburn punched himself in the head. “Well, of course! Silly me, ah almost forgot who I was talkin' to! I shoulda guessed you would come for the rush, too!” He grabbed me by the hoof and started pulling me.
I raised an eyebrow. “What now?”
“I want you to meet the sheriff!” Braeburn announced, dragging me along. “Well...he ain't exactly the sheriff - he's just the 'actin' sheriff' while Silverstar's away on business, but he is a cousin 'uh mine!”
I did not feel like meeting any new ponies, but seeing as how I was being dragged along a dirt road on my chin, I did not have much of a choice.
We burst into a small office-like building with a bunch of posters on the wall. Braeburn dropped me on the ground unceremoniously. I was covered in sand. Even though I liked the feeling of it, I did not enjoy being dragged and dropped. There was a light green Earth pony standing behind the desk shuffling some papers around. He was wearing a cowboy hat like most of the people in this town and had a blonde mane. Come to think of it, Applejack was also blonde and so is Braeburn. I guess was an Apple Family trait.
“Evenin' cuz!” Braeburn greeted with a wave.
“Braeburn, I told you it's sheriff in public,” he warned. He looked up. When he did, I noticed that he had some curious discolouration on the right side of his face. Where his normal skin tone was closer to light green, the discolouration was reddish. He smiled at me. He removed his hat and came out from behind the desk and took my hoof in his. “My my...who is this lovely little thing?”
“I am-” I started to say.
“This here's Maud Pie!” Braeburn interrupted. “She's a good friend 'ah mine from a while back!”
“No, we are-”
“Well, isn't that nice,” the sheriff interrupted. He kissed my hoof. “My name's Sheriff Grimes, but you may call me Grimey if you please. What brings you to our lovely town?”
I took my hoof away. “I'm here-”
“She's here for the gold!” Braeburn answered for me. “Stone Cold Maudy here's a rock enthusiast!”
“A geologist, eh?” Grimes responded. He did not look like he believed me or Braeburn. “A pretty little thing like you?” He chuckled. “Sorry about this, but the site's closed for the night. It'll be open again tomorrow though, so you can come around then. For now, how about we put you up in a room at the inn 'til then?”
I looked at Braeburn. He did not look like he was going to interrupt me again. “Okay,” I answered.
“Great,” Grimes said, going back behind the desk. He scribbled something on a piece of paper and gave it to me. It was a voucher with his signature on it. “Take that to the inn. It'll get you a free room.” He brushed his mane in a cocky fashion. “One of the perks of being the sheriff.”
I placed the voucher in my saddlebag. “Thanks.”
“Don't mention it, Miss Maud,” Grimes said, chuckling. “Braeburn, why don't you escort our new guest to the inn?”
“That won't be-”
“Of course!” Braeburn cut me off. He pulled me next to him. “Let's go, Stone Cold! The inn ain't that far away! See ya later, c - er, Sheriff!”
Grimes waved but then threw a wink at me. “See ya tomorrow, Miss Maud!”
Distracted, I did not notice the loose floorboard in my path. I tripped suddenly, but quickly regained my balance.
“Whoops!” Braeburn tried to keep me steady as we exited. “Careful there! I thought we fixed that danged thing, but I guess it didn't take.” He led me back outside towards the inn. I could see it from this distance, seeing as how Appleloosa was not that large of a town.
We walked for a few meters before Braeburn nudged me. “Soo...?”
“What?” I asked. I was disappointed that the silence had ended.
“Whaddaya think?”
“About what?”
Braeburn laughed and knocked me into the ground with a smack. “My cousin, silly! He's taken quite a fancy to ya'!”
“Really?” I honestly had not noticed.
“So...?” Braeburn asked again. “Whaddaya think a' him?”
“I do not have any opinion about him,” I answered. "I just met him."
Braeburn waited for me to say something else for quite a while. We reached the Inn before he said anything else. He punched me in the shoulder again. “You're such a cut up, Stone Cold! Haha!” He sighed. “Well, here's the Inn! It also has a bar, if you're interested. See ya!”
I waited for him to walk away before heaving a deep sigh. That pony was nearly as hyperactive as my sister. I love her, but I only have room in my life for one Pinkie Pie.
I entered the Inn to find quite the rowdy scene. Everypony there was drinking like there was no tomorrow. Ponies were talking loudly, laughing and playing card games. It was a typical bar scene.
I approached the counter where the bar keep was cleaning a glass. He was a unicorn with a bronze coloured mane. His coat was light gray and he was wearing a vest. Up until now, I did not think anyone but Earth ponies lived in Appleloosa.
He noticed me and smiled. His accent suggested that he was not from here. “'Ello there, mate! What can I get for ya?”
I took out the voucher and placed it on the counter. The barkeeper brightened up. “Oh, a friend of the sheriff, eh? Well, you can stay as long as ya like, lil' sheila!” He took the voucher and placed it behind the counter. He came back up with a key that had a number “4” on it. “Your room'll be upstairs, second on the right!”
I took the key and placed it in my bag. “Thanks.”
He started cleaning the glass again. “Can I get anythin' else for ya?”
“Water, please,” I answered.
“Water?” the barkeeper repeated.
“With a rock,” I added.
He looked confused now. “A rock? Ya mean, ice right?”
I shook my head. “Feldspar would be nice. Though granite would also work if you don't have that.”
“Uhhh...”
“And a hayburger as well.”
“Ummm...is that all?” the barkeeper asked.
I removed Boulder from my pocket to ask him. “Is that it?” I asked him. I waited for a bit for him to answer. I looked back at the barkeeper and nodded. “Yes, that will be all.”
The barkeeper raised an eyebrow but went about preparing my order. He came back to the counter with a tray that had a glass of water, a hayburger and a piece of quartz. He scratched the back of his head. “I...uh...didn't have any feldspar or granite back here. I found this, though.”
I shrugged and dropped the rock into the water. “This will be okay. Thank you.” I dropped three bits on the counter. “Will this cover it?”
“Umm...sure,” the barkeeper stammered, taking the bits. “Enjoy your meal.”
I took the tray and went to find an empty table. I was still within earshot when I heard the barkeeper whisper, “She's got a few 'roos loose...”
I found an empty table and sat down. I took Boulder out and placed him next to the hayburger so that he could have a bite. I started munching on the quartz. It was a little salty, but it complemented the water.
A large, muscular Earth pony walked by my table and bumped into it, knocking my glass of water over. He turned back to me with a vicious expression. At least, I think it was meant to be vicious; it was hard to tell when it was dampened with alcohol.
“Hey!” he yelled. His words were even more slurred. “Wash wer yer goin, missy!”
I was still chewing my rock as I looked up at him. I did not say anything.
That made him even angrier. He got right in my face, allowing me to get a whiff of all the cider he had been drinking. “You gots sumthin' ta say fer yershelf!?”
I finished chewing and swallowed the rock. “No,” I answered. I did not feel like dealing with him, so I picked up Boulder and placed him in my pocket. He would have to eat later. I got up and started walking towards the stairs.
“Hey!” the drunk pony yelled out, grabbing me by the shoulder. “I ain't finished wif you yet!” He lifted his hoof, pulling it back to punch me.
I sighed and grabbed him by the hoof. I stopped it from moving completely. The drunkard looked confused. “What the-” I took a more firm grip on his hoof and flipped him over my body and into the table, breaking it into pieces. He just lied there, groaning in pain.
All the chatter in the room stopped. Everyone, including the barkeeper, was staring at me. I looked up. “What?”
Then, someone in the room started cheering. After that, everyone joined in. Pretty soon the entire room was filled with loud cheering and applause. The barkeeper came out from behind the counter. “That was bloody amazin', lil' sheila!” he yelled.
I shrugged. “If you say so.”
“Where'd you get strength like that!?” he asked.
I looked up at him. “It is a Pie thing. You would not understand.”
The sun came warm and soft through my window. It must have been early in the morning. I did not understand how I could have slept so late.
I quickly got out of bed and washed myself in the bathroom. I changed into another frock and took my saddlebag with my supplies downstairs. A couple of ponies were in the dining room eating breakfast, though not nearly as many as were there last night. The unicorn bartender was behind the counter as well, wiping away at a glass. If I did not know any better, I would say that it was the exact same glass that he was cleaning last night.
He noticed me as I walked by, brightening up immediately. “G'day, lil' sheila!” he called out to me. “Hold on for a sec there.” He ducked behind the counter and shuffled some stuff around. He came back up with a piece of plagioclase feldspar.
My favorite.
“I went out back and found this lil' beaut for ya,” he said, floating the rock over to me. “On the house! Consider it a thank you from yours truly. That bloke you took out has been a heap a' trouble lately. Thank Celestia you came along to shut him up.”
I took the feldspar and started to munch on it. It was relatively chewy and sour, which was just how liked it. “Thanks,” I said after swallowing. “That was kind of you.”
“Think nuttin' of it, lil' sheila!” the bartender said. “Have fun at the mine!” He went back to washing his perpetually dirty glass. I walked outside of the inn.
The orchard was a little ways away from the town. I had thought about it before, but it really was interesting how this town had not changed much at all since I had come here last. It made me a little nostalgic.
The orchard had not changed much either. It was still quite large, which was necessary to support an entire town with both food and money. There were signs directing tourists and hopefuls to the gold mine, which a couple of ponies were following. There was a small commotion ahead. I must have been getting close.
Once I arrived at the site, there was a large crowd already there. I did not expect so many ponies to be here this early. However, they did all look...upset? Angry? I have a hard time processing emotions, so it was difficult to tell.
At the very least, they did not look happy.
Sheriff Grimes was standing on top of a particularly large tri-coloured sandstone. He looked...distressed, for some reason. “I'm sorry, everyone! These things happen!”
A red pegasus flew above the crowd so that she could be heard more easily. “Are you kiddin' me? Yo, this is messed up!”
“Yeah, what she said!” another pony spoke up.
“What kinda bull are you tryna' pull heya!?” somepony else said.
“I understand that you all are upset,” Grimes said, holding up his hooves defensively. “An investigation is currently underway. For now, I need all of you to leave this area until we can get this situation figured out.”
There was a lot of grumbling from the crowd, but eventually everyone left except for Grimes. Now that all of the ponies were gone, I was able to get a better look at the surroundings. There was a giant hole in the ground leading down into a tunnel. I could tell that this was part of the orchard since several apple trees surrounded it and this space looked as if it had been cleared out. There was a rope preventing, or discouraging, access to the tunnel.
“Stone Cold Maudy! I didn't see ya there!”
I sighed heavily as Braeburn came out of the hole. He was covered in sediment. “Hello,” I greeted.
Grimes noticed me as well and jumped off of the sandstone rock that doubled as his podium. He was half-smiling. “Hey there, Miss Maud,” he greeted.
“What is going on?” I asked.
Braeburn shook his head. “You won't believe it, Maudy! Somethin' terrible and strange has 'appened!”
He paused and looked me in the eyes, like he was waiting for me to respond to the statement. When I did not, he continued. “There's been a cave-in!”
A cave-in? At first glance the tunnel did not look like it had caved in. “May I see it?” I asked. If there was anyone around here that knew something about this subject, it was me.
Grimes stepped in front of me, shaking his head. “Sorry, Miss Maud. It's much too dangerous. Who knows if the rest of the tunnel will hold up while you're down there?”
“I am not planning on traversing that far into the tunnel,” I explained. I stepped to the side, but Grimes blocked my way again. “I only wish to see the state of the cave.”
“Yeah, c-uhm, Sheriff,” Braeburn said. He grabbed me by the neck and roughed up my hair. I had just straightened it this morning. “Besides, she's spent her whole life in the rocks 'n dirt! She knows how ta' handle herself!”
Grimes expression turned stern. “I said no and that is final.”
Braeburn looked a little taken aback. He released me from the headlock and took a step backward. “Y-yes, Sheriff Grimes.”
Grimes sighed and put a hoof on his cousin's shoulder. “Listen...I just don't want anything bad happening while the mayor is away. He's depending on me to keep the town in order and everyone safe.”
“I know,” Braeburn assured. He perked up. “But if anyone can 'elp out, it's her!” He looked at me. “Right?”
I did not respond. Something did not smell right...literally. I lowered my head and sniffed the ground. “Iron...” I muttered. “...and sulfur.”
“What?” the two stallions asked. I did not think that they heard me. Now, I think I understood why Grimes was trying to keep me out of the tunnel. I decided to play this nonchalantly.
I looked at Grimes and then at Braeburn. “Nothing,” I said. I took Boulder out of my pocket. “I forgot to feed him this morning. I should head back to town.”
“Ummm...alright,” Grimes said. He looked like he was not sure what was going on. Braeburn looked ecstatic though.
“Hey there, Boulder!” Braeburn greeted, putting his face right into Boulder's. “I haven't seen ya' in ages! How's it been goin' for ya?”
I waited for Boulder's reply and nodded. “He says that he has been doing fine,” I spoke for him. It was hard for most ponies to hear what Boulder was saying. The only other pony that could ever hear him was my youngest sister, Pinkie. “He wanted me to ask you 'How's life in the fast lane?'”
Braeburn chuckled. “Ha, you should tell me, lil' man!”
“Braeburn?” Grimes pulled his cousin aside. “I need your help securing this area. We don't have time to talk to rocks.”
I nodded and placed Boulder back into my pocket. “He says that he will talk to you later. Good bye.”
Grimes removed his hat and bowed a little. “I'll see you later, Miss Maud. I apologize for the inconvenience.”
Braeburn waved. “See ya, Boulder! Catch ya' later, Stone Cold!”
I walked away from the two of them back towards the town. I hated that name, but Braeburn seemed to enjoy calling me that so I did not protest. However, something was going on here that I did not care for. There were not many rocks that I did not like, but there was certainly one that I hated more than any other. And this town was full of it.
Once I got back to the inn, I saw that there were a couple of ponies standing outside of it. One of them was the muscular pony I had flipped into the table last night. I did not have much of an interest in speaking to him, so I tried to just walk past him. Two other ponies noticed me though and were pretty quick to point me out.
One of them was an older Earth pony with a sparse gray and white mane. He was pale white in colour. He smiled at me, showing a row of stained, yellow teeth. "'Ello, there. What 'ave we 'ere?" he said with a strange accent. I had not heard it in this part of Equestria.
The other pony was far more fat than muscular. He was bronze coloured and had no mane: only a short, black tail. He chortled and flashed a toothless smile. "Dat woodent be da' mare dat piledrived ya' inna table, would it Bound?" He chortled again.
The muscular one gave the fat one a hard stare, but he did not seem to notice and just continued laughing. He sighed and looked at me. I did not smell any cider on him this time around. His eyes were a little red, though. This time around, he was not slurring his words. "You did a real number on me last night, little one," Bound said. He did not have an accent as far as I could tell.
I did not respond. I only looked at him.
When I did not speak, he looked like he wanted to fight me again. "I would like to see you try that again when I haven't had a drink or two."
"Challengin' the sweetlin' to a fight, eh Bound?" the pale white pony asked with a grin. "This is the manliest I've ever seen ya." He started a laugh that quickly turned into a racking cough.
Bound ignored him and continued talking to me. "If I were you, I wouldn't let that happen again." He leaned in close to my face and looked me right in the eye. "Understand?"
I looked at him blankly. "Let what happen again?"
That seemed to set him off. He dove for me, but his two companions held him back. "'old yer humans, mate!" the old pony advised. "This ain't a battle worth fightin'!"
The fat one nodded. "Yesh! She might go an' jush break yore spine in 'aff dis time aroun'!" He chortled again.
Bound shrugged the two ponies off of him and grunted. He galloped away from the Inn. The fat one chased after him, but it was slow going for him.
The old white pony addressed me with a smile. "Don't take it too personally, sweetlin'," he said. "Bound is a proud figh'er an' an even prouder drinker. Gettin' beat ina' fight by a mare ain't a wound he'll be like to recover from quickly." He paused and smiled even bigger. "Even if she is a Pie."
I raised an eyebrow. "You know who I am?"
"I know of ya', Maud Pie," he clarified. "I recognized ya' when ya' flipped 'im over the table. Or rather...I recognized yer' mother."
"My mother?" I repeated.
"She was a friend a' mine from years ago," he explained. "Way 'afore you or your sisters were born. Perhaps I'll tell ya' the tale one a' these days." He yawned and stretched. "For now, I think I'll 'ave a drink."
"It is 11 o'clock in the morning," I pointed out.
He smiled, flashing those yellowed teeth of his. "It's 11 at night somewhere in the world, sweetlin'."
It was getting late when Boulder woke me up from my nap. I turned over to see him lying on the nightstand where I had left him. “What is it?” I asked him. He was usually a hard sleeper. On most nights he slept like a...very tired pony.
There was a noise outside of my window, which must have been what woke Boulder up. I got up from my bed and looked outside of it. The moon was rising into the sky by this point, casting a faint glow over Appleloosa. The noises were coming from the far left. Whoever was making the noise was not the most subtle of ponies. It seemed like it was coming from...the sheriff's office.
If there was any doubt in my mind that something strange was going on in this town, those doubts were gone.
I put on another frock and placed Boulder into my pocket. I figured that I would need his help.
The bar was empty at this time of night, so I was able to leave without anyone noticing. I made my way quietly over to the Sheriff's Office. I could not tell who was inside, so I stood outside of the building on the left side. I pressed my ear to the wall. There was a definite racket coming from inside. It sounded like...someone moving rocks around. I recognized that noise.
Suddenly, the noise stopped. I heard someone walking up stairs and closing a door. I stood perfectly still as the front door opened. I realized that at an early age I had a talent for not being noticed if I did not move. Sure enough, the pony looked right in my direction and looked as if he did not notice me. He turned his head and walked away in the direction of the orchard. However, I noticed him.
It was Sheriff Grimes.
I waited for a few minutes before moving. I twisted the knob on the door, but it was locked. I sighed and braced my two front hooves on the door. I pushed the door inward and knocked it down to the floor, right off the hinges. The door hit the floor with a CRACK! I pushed the door aside and started to look around on the floor. I pressed down on the floorboards, looking for one in particular. Eventually, I found one that creaked a little which was the same one that I had tripped over the previous day. I lifted it up from the floor, causing it to make a loud, groaning noise. Below it was a panel with a string coming out of it. When I pulled on the string, a square section of the floor came up, revealing a small staircase.
I looked down into the cellar below. It smelled muddy and dank. Along with that was the iron and sulfurous scent from the mine.
Now I knew exactly what was going on.
I walked down the staircase into a small, dark tunnel. It felt damp and muddy. As much as I would have enjoyed just standing there, I had a job to do.
I kept walking forward until I came to a door. I twisted the knob, finding out that it was locked as well. I hated doing this, but I had to find out what was going on here for sure. I knocked down the door just as I had before to the other one and walked inside.
What I found was a mountain of those elusive yellow rocks. The room was filled with them. Stacks and stacks crowded almost the entire room. I picked one up and sniffed it. It was just as I feared.
And then, before I could react, I felt something hard and metallic hit me in the back of the neck. Then, everything went black.
*
My head was spinning when I woke up. My vision was a little blurry, but I could tell that I was upright against a wall. My legs were all shackled to the wall with some kind of stone bracers. I looked around, seeing that I was still in the room that I had found.
“You just had to go snooping around, didn't you?”
The voice belonged to Grimes, who emerged from the shadows. He had a bent crowbar in his mouth. “You certainly have quite the thick skull,” he commented, tossing the crowbar aside. “In more ways than one.”
I looked at him but did not respond. He continued after a few seconds of silence. “I bet you already have it figured out.”
He waited for me to respond again. When I did not, he looked a little annoyed. He kept talking anyway. He gestured to the mountain of rocks. “This is the key to my future,” he said with a triumphant smile. “All those gullible fools thought that they were mining gold for themselves, when in reality they were doing so for me!” He chuckled. “The true brilliance is that not only do I have all of the gold, but I also have their money!”
“Money?” I asked.
Grimes raised an eyebrow. “Oh that's right. I was planning on waiving the fee for you, so you must not have heard. I charged a fee to get to the mine. That's right: they paid me to work for me!” He seemed to find this greatly amusing. He laughed for a couple of seconds before wiping away a tear. “I almost can't believe how brilliant I am.”
“So you were the one behind the gold disappearances?” I asked. Gold had been vanishing from Appleloosa for many years. I did not think that Grimes looked that old, but anything was possible.
Grimes shook his head, looking introspective. “Oh no. In fact, one day I found this room full of gold. It's what gave me the idea to do this when the motherlode was found. What fool would just leave behind all of this gold?”
What fool, indeed. A smirk almost broke across my face. Almost.
He walked closer to me, a certain look in his eyes. “Now the question remains: what do I do with you? I admit that I did fall for you, but I can't have you ruining my plans. Unfortunately, I have no choice but to get rid of you.”
“I am sorry,” I said. I pulled at the braces around my hind legs. I broke them with ease. Once I did, I flipped myself upward so that I was now on my stomach against the wall. “But that will not be happening.” I pulled against the braces on my front legs, shattering the stone. I fell to the ground on all fours.
Grimes eyes widened with surprise. “What!? How did you-” He growled and shook his head, trying to regain his composure. “No matter. I can finish you one way or another!” He picked up the crowbar and swung it at my head. The metal snapped in half, sending the broken part careening across the room. Grimes stared wide-eyed at the part still in his hooves. He dropped it and started backing away. “What the hay...!?”
I walked closer to him, not saying a word. He stopped backtracking and went in to punch me with his bare hooves. He came in with a wild right hook that connected directly with my jaw. I felt the bones in his right leg shatter. He collapsed to the ground, screaming in pain. “What in Celestia's name are you!?” Grimes screamed. “Are you made of rock or something!?”
“Something like that,” I answered.
He looked up at me with a mixture of confusion and pain. “But how!? My cousin punches you all the time!”
“When he does it, I move with his punches so that it does not hurt him,” I explained. “I do that because I like him.” I leaned down so that I was inches away from his face. “I do not like you.”
I swung with a punch of my own, hitting him squarely in the jaw. He went straight up into the ceiling, hitting it with a sickening crunch. “We do not need anymore ponies like you in Equestria,” I said, more to myself than to him.
I dusted myself off and walked back up through the tunnel into the Sheriff's office. A crowd had gathered outside of the door. They all looked surprised and a little scared. “What?” I asked.
One of the ponies pointed behind me. I looked to see Grimes with his head sticking out of the floor, unconscious. Maybe I had hit him a little too hard.
One pony shoved his way through the crowd. He was wearing a black hat and his coat was light tan. He had a mustache and a blue, denim vest with a gold star on it. Even with my meager understanding of emotions, I could tell that he was not happy. “What in the Sam Hill is goin' on here!?” he yelled, more to me than anyone else. He poked me in the chest with an angry hoof. “Who are ya' and what 'ave you done ta' my deputy!?”
“I am-”
Just then, Braeburn literally hopped over the crowd. “That's Maud Pie, Mayor Silverstar!” he announced for me. His eyes went to his unconscious cousin. His countenance quickly fell. “Cuz!” He quickly went to his aid. He smacked him in the face to try to wake him up. “Are you alright!?”
Grimes's eyes fluttered open for a few seconds. He muttered something about rocks and passed out again. Braeburn looked at me. “What 'appened, Maud?” He looked hurt.
I looked at Braeburn and Silverstar and then to the rest of the crowd. It was time for all of them to learn the truth. I opened the secret passageway and beckoned everyone to follow. It took them awhile, but eventually everyone came down to follow me.
Once we got to the main room, I could hear everyone's mouth drop open in surprise and shock. One pony shouted out, “The gold!!” Everyone except for Braeburn and Silverstar went straight for it.
Silverstar was more then a little starstruck. “In the name 'a the sun...” he said breathlessly. “I had no idea alla' this was down in 'dem mines!”
I shook my head. "It did not come from the mine," I said. "At least, not from the one that still exists."
Braeburn picked up one of the rocks and examined it. “How did alla' this get here, then?”
I picked up one of the rocks as well. “This was all part of a plan that was hatched by corrupt leaders of this town years ago,” I answered. I looked at Braeburn. “A plan that ended with your cousin.”
Braeburn looked confused. “Whaddaya mean?”
“This was not the first gold rush that Appleloosa has experienced,” I explained. “Since Ponyville itself was founded, it has gone through three including this one. Every time the gold mysteriously vanished, along with whoever was running the town at the time.”
Silverstar scratched his head and nodded. “This is true,” he agreed. “This town 'as had some purty bad luck when it comes to keepin' mayors and sheriffs...”
I gestured to the piles scattered all of the room, which were still being ravaged by the crowd. “This is where it all ended up. Every scrap that had ever been found is down here, including everything that was just found.”
“Apples alive!” Braeburn exclaimed. “And you're sayin' mah c-er, Grimes was in on this too?”
I nodded.
Silverstar shook his head. “This don't make any sense, though. Why would all the sheriffs and mayors leave and not take the gold they embezzled with 'em?”
I took a bite out of the rock just to confirm what I already knew. I spat it out immediately and tossed the rock aside. “Because it is not gold.”
Everyone in the room seemed to hear that sentence and stopped what they were doing. One pony called out, “What didya say!?”
“It is not gold,” I repeated. “That is the reason for the smell of iron and sulfur. Those the two main elements of the common rock known as pyrite.”
“Pyrite!?” Silverstar repeated. I picked up one of the rocks and took a closer look at it. Realization hit him a like a rockslide. “Fool's gold!”
I nodded. “The others discovered that their scheme had been all for naught when they found out that the rocks that they thought were gold were nothing more than pyrite. In their shame, they abandoned Appleloosa for Celestia knows where.”
“So none of this gold is real!?” Braeburn exclaimed.
I shook my head. “There was never any real gold in Appleloosa. It has all been pyrite. Nothing more than iron, sulfur and lies.”
“And Grimes was plannin' on makin' off with all the money along with what he thought was gold,” Silverstar deduced. He stamped his hoof down in anger. “That conivin' sunofa-” He stopped when he saw the look on Braeburn's face. He looked ashamed and crestfallen. Silverstar sighed and touched the yellow stallion on the shoulder. “Don't beat yerself up, son. There's no way you coulda suspected anythin'.”
“My own cousin...” Braeburn said as if not hearing anything Silverstar had said. “And an Apple, no less!” He stamped his hoof hard on the floor. “Our family is made of more honorable stuff than that!”
“There is always at least one bad apple in every basket,” I said. “But that does not mean the entire bunch is spoiled.”
Braeburn looked at me and smiled. He punched me in the shoulder again. I made sure to fall on the ground myself so that his arm would not be shattered. “Thanks, Maudy! Ya' sure do have way with words!”
*
It was morning by the time the next train arrived. It was time for Boulder and I to depart for our next destination. I had hoped to leave without anyone noticing us; I was not too fond of long goodbyes or maudlin displays of emotion. Unfortunately, when I got to the train station, there were a couple of ponies there, waiting. It was Silverstar, Braeburn, and the bartender.
“Stone Cold Maudy!” Braeburn exclaimed. “We've been waitin' for ya'!”
“What are you all doing here?” I asked.
Mayor Silverstar took a glistening necklace with a stone made of red jasper out of his pocket. “Princess Celestia gave this to me as a gift when I went to meet with her,” he explained. “I mean to give this to you.” He placed it around my neck.
“Thank you,” I said, not really knowing what it was for. “Why?”
Braeburn punched me in the shoulder again. I moved a little too late and Braeburn shook his hoof in pain. “For savin' the town! That low down cousin a' mine is in jail and we're returnin' everyone's money. We neva' would have found him out if it weren't for you!”
“And 'ere's a lil' somethin' from me, lil' sheila!” the bartender said, pulling out a small box and handing it to me. I sniffed it and almost smiled. “It's feldspar! Turns out, my storeroom is full a' the stuff! As soon as I found it, I thought about ya'! Thought you might like a lil' snack for your trip.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“By the way,” Silverstar said. “Where are you headed?”
“All aboard!” the train conductor announced. “The train will be leaving in one minute!”
I shrugged and took Boulder out of my pocket. “There are a lot of stops we have to make on our rock expedition. We are not sure what the next one will be.”
“Well, good luck to ya, lil sheila!” the bartender waved goodbye and bowed. “Thanks for helpin' out our lil' town!”
“Come back an' see us again, ya hear?” Braeburn tipped his hat to Boulder and I.
I nodded. “I will,” I answered. I walked up to the door of the train and stopped. I turned back around. “A word of advice for you guys...”
Silverstar raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”
“Your town should stick to apples,” I said. “The price of gold goes up and down every year, but ponies will always need apples. Besides-” I smiled. “-Goldaloosa would be a silly name for a town.”
