The Mysterious Explosion

by Askre

First published

Twilight goes to the market to buy ingredients for a salad, then something explodes.

A normal day in Ponyville, ponies go about their business, buying, selling, fillies conning ponies into buying lemonade, the usual. Twilight Sparkle heads out to the market to buy stuff for a salad and doesn't expect anything else.

Then there is an explosion.


This story is part of The Equestria Tales series.

This story is technically speaking old and only been recently spruced up a little so it fits the minimum word length for submission here on Fimfiction. It happens somewhere during season 3, so this is pre-ascension Twilight.

The Mysterious Explosion - Extended Edition.

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Twilight Sparkle entered Ponyville market intending to buy some much needed ingredients for a salad recipe she wanted to try. Rarity had given it to her yesterday during brunch and as the fashion designer had described, it was simply divine. Spike rode on her back, checklist and quill in his claws. It looked to be a busy morning as there were many ponies around either buying or selling.

Carrot Top was already with her stand up, loaded with carrots and other vegetables she grew and sold. Roseluck was busy selling a large basket of flowers to Matilda the donkey who was being very specific on what type of flowers she wanted. The pair also saw that the unicorn fillies, Dinky and Tootsie Flute had put up a lemonade stand. Tootsie stood on a box and shouted:

“Come and get the best lemonade in all of Ponyville! Come while supplies last. Only one bit a glass, two if we add extra sugar! You don’t have all day, ponies, get your lemonade here!”

“What’s the first item on the list, Spike?” the purple mare asked, chuckling a little at the opal gray filly and her sales pitch of lemonade.

“Uh let’s see.” The young dragon rolled up the scroll to check the paper. “Looks like it is turnips.”

The librarian slowed down her trot as she glanced around for the turnip stand. She spotted it and changed her direction. She smiled at the buck toothed beige colored stallion standing behind it. He smiled right back and then gave an enthusiastic wave.

“Howdy Twilight Sparkle, here for some turnips?” he asked and grinned wide.

“As a matter of fact I am, Hayseed, I’ll need…” Twilight halted and glanced at Spike.

Spike realized he hadn’t told her how many were required for the salad, he quickly opened the scroll again and read through it. He looked up and shrugged, it actually didn’t say how many. The unicorn frowned and wondered if two turnips would be too little or too many. Well she could always use the extra for later.

“I’ll have three turnips please.” She turned back to the stallion.

“Right away,” the stallion quickly fished up three turnips and put them in a paper bag for her. “Here ya go, that will be six bits.”

Twilight thanked him and paid for her purchase. She put the bag in her saddle bag and trotted away with Spike. The dragon was already investigating the scroll for their next item needed. They were interrupted when suddenly Tootsie Flute stood in front of them.

“You, you look like you definitely need lemonade,” the filly declared, pointing at Twilight who could only arch her eyebrow at that.

“Oh really, how do you figure?” the unicorn mare smiled down at the girl, at the lemonade stand Dinky gave her best business smile which was more of an overly eager grin.

“You look parched, bone-dry, thirsting, arid, sapless. Wouldn’t you just love a glass of lemonade now?” Tootsie asked and then gestured towards the stand, putting on her business smile which greatly resembled Dinky’s.

“Well I’m not particularly droughty, athirst, burning, dying for, itching for, juiceless, agog, dry as dust, hankering, avid or cotton mouthed for a drink.” Twilight giggled when Tootsie and Dinky’s jaws dropped when hearing even more definition of thirsty.

“But I suppose Spike and I could buy two glasses of lemonade,” she then continued with a wink and using her magic fished up two bits from her bag and put it on the stand.

The two fillies recovered from their surprise, squeed and poured the two their drinks in separate glasses. Twilight and Spike gulped down the lemonade and both of them had to admit it was pretty good. They thanked the fillies and continued on their way. Spike couldn’t help but chortle when hearing Tootsie stop another pony and said:

“You, you look parched, bone-dry, thirsting, arid, sapless, droughty, athirst, burning, dying for, itching for, juiceless, agog, dry as dust, hankering, avid and cotton mouthed for a drink. Wouldn’t you just love a glass of lemonade now?”

Twilight shook her head laughing, having heard the same. She glanced at the dragon on her back and was about to ask for the next item on their list when a thundering noise and a tremor going through the earth underneath her halted the unicorn.

“What was that?” she asked Spike who could only shrug in response. They both eyed up but could only see a blue sky with the occasional white tuft of clouds. From one of them Rainbow Dash peeked up, looking both surprised and annoyed.

“Hey, that can’t be a thunderstorm. It’s not scheduled for another month,” the pegasus retorted and flew up so she could get a better look.

“You see anything?” the unicorn called. There was no response just yet as Dash was still trying to determine where the sound came from, but then the blue pony gasped in shock.

“There is black smoke coming from Sweet Apple Acres,” she shouted and was off in a multicolored streak.

“Oh no, hold on Spike!” Twilight darted off herself. Spike had to cling to her neck so he wouldn’t be thrown off the galloping pony.

Fortunately, it didn’t take the her too long to arrive. The unicorn expected to see carnage before her at the apple farm. What Twilight was not expecting was seeing Rainbow Dash lying on the ground, beating it with her hooves and laughing.

“Rainbow, what’s the matter with you?” she asked with a scowl but the only answer she was given was a blue hoof pointing at something.

Twilight looked and gasped, first when seeing the smoldering ruins that had once been one of the farm’s barns. Then her attention was brought to the four shapes running in circles around it. Four black sod covered shapes, three small and one bigger.

“COME BACK HERE!” Applejack’s voice could be heard loud and clear.

“Eeeep, we’re sorry, we’re sorry, we’re sorry,” the three distinct voices of the Cutie Mark Crusaders yelped.

“Oh ya’ll be sorry a’right!” Applejack snapped. “When Ah said Ah wanted that barn down. Ah did NOT mean BLOWIN’ IT TO KINGDOM COME!”

Spike couldn’t hold it in any longer and rolled off Twilight’s back, laughing just as hard as Rainbow Dash. The unicorn eyed her assistant but then noticed that Big Mac had appeared beside her, he nodded a greeting to her.

“So, I take it that you needed this barn torn down and the girls decided to try and get a cutie mark in demolition, somehow found explosives and blew the whole thing up.” Twilight tried to guess what had happened.

“Eeeyup.” Was the simple confirmation from the red stallion that she had it right.

The end