The rhythmic clatter of rails was enough to bring a feeling of adventure to the hearts of even the most jaded pony. It was a sound that promised new experiences and new adventures, and it was the perfect sound for the three young stowaways aboard the box car. As the burrowed out from under the hay piles, the Cutie Mark Crusaders grinned like fiends at their own cleverness.
Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle had all hopped aboard the train when it slowed down outside Ponyville that evening. Sure, their parents would be worried, and they would all probably be in serious trouble when the got back home, but the quest for a cutie mark was more important than getting grounded. True to their creed, they would test their talents everywhere and the fastest way for three young fillies to get there was on the back of a box car.
“This is going to be the best adventure ever!” said Sweetie Belle. “If we make it all the way to Appleloosa, we’ll get our cutie marks for sure!”
“And once we get there,” said Applebloom, “we can do work for Cousin Braeburn to get some money.”
“Why don’t we just hitch a ride again?” asked Scootaloo.
“Because we can’t go doin’ the same thing twice,” said Applebloom. “Test our talents everywhere! Rememeber?” She put an arm around Scootaloo, and waved out to the passing world. “Jus’ think, we got the whole of Equestria to test our talents in now that we’re ridin’ the rails. What if that’s what we’re made for? A life of adventure?”
“Well, I certainly hope that’s not the case, girls.”
With a shriek, the fillies bolted back into the pies of hay and peered out at the new voice. It was a old mule, grey with a black mane and eyes that sparkled like amethysts. The mule shook her head and chuckled at the girls.
“You can come out, girls,” she said. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Who... who are you?” asked Sweetie Belle.
“The name is Rails,” she said, extending a hoof. “I’ve been riding these tracks since before your parents were born, I’m sure.”
“But you’re old!” said Applebloom. Scootaloo elbowed her friend and Appleblolom shoved her back. The two fillies started pummeling each other as Sweetie Belle and Rails watched.
“Do they do this often?” asked Rails.
“All the time,” said Sweetie Belle. She glanced over at Rail to see that no cutie mark adorned her flank. Rail looked back to her flank as well and smiled.
“You’re wondering where my cutie mark is, I’m guessing?” asked Rails.
“Kinda,” said Sweetie Belle.
“I never got one,” replied Rails.
The girls stopped fighting the moment they heard that and backed into the corner.
“You... mean...” sputtered Scootaloo. “It’s possible to be a blank flank forever?”
“That can’t be true!” cried Applebloom. “We need to keep testin’ our talents! What are we doin’ right now? Quick, think of somethin’ to try!”
The Cutie Mark Crusaders frantically dashed around box car, throwing hay bails, counting boards, and doing whatever else seemed to present itself. As the panic about never getting their cutie marks hit a fever pitch, Rails cleared her throat and gestured for the girls to sit down.
“Mules don’t get cutie marks,” said Rails. “I’ve been a lot of places, and I’ve never seen a pony my age with a blank flank. So if I were you girls, I wouldn’t worry. I’m sure that you’ll find out what your supposed to be doing with your lives eventually.”
The Cutie Mark Crusaders exchanged looks of confusion for a moment before turning around in a secret conference. Scootaloo kept looking over her shoulder at Rails, who only stood there with the patience of the ancients. The girls truned back around with a nod.
“So, if you ain’t got a cutie mark,” asked Applebloom, “then how do you know what your supposed to be doin’?”
“I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing right at this very moment,” said Rails. “I travel all over Equestria, looking for work wherever I can find it. I’ve been riding the rails for so long that I’m not sure what life off them would be like.”
“But how can you be sure?” asked Sweetie Belle. “My sister says that when you find your special talent, you get your cutie mark.”
“And if you don’t have one, then how are you supposed to know that what your doing is the right thing?” asked Scootaloo.
Rail put a hoof to her chin to consider. A moment later, she nodded her head and gestured out to the passing wilderness.
“There’s a whole world out there, right?” she asked. “Now imagine if you lived your whole life not knowing that world was out there. Imagine not seeing the shores of Manehatten or the deserts of Appleloosa...”
“But we haven’t seen any of those,” said Sweetie Belle.
“Of course you haven’t,” said Rails. “You’re young yet, but you’re so head strong about getting your cutie marks that you’ve forgotten the rest of the world is out there. You’re so obsessed with a little picture on your flank that you’re missing the big picture of the world.” The trio turned to each other, then back to Rails. The three shrugged in unison. The old mule only sighed and pointed out of the open box car.
“What do you see, children?” asked Rails. “What’s out there in the dark?”
It was night outside as the world rolled past. The Everfree Forest spun by in front of them, the trees whipping by like a painted sheet pulled across a stage. The clatter of train, and the whipping of the wind were all the girls could hear. The fillies stared out into night and shook their heads.
“It’s just a bunch of trees,” said Applebloom.
“It’s too dark to see anything,” said Sweetie Belle.
“What are we looking at?” asked Scootaloo.
“Well, you just failed at getting your rail riding cutie marks,” said Rails. “Close your eyes and listen instead.”
The girls closed their eyes, and listened. The sounds of steel horseshoes clattering against iron rails filled their ears as the last warmth of the day blew through their manes. The scrape of wheel on steel wafted from beneath them and from far ahead, they could hear the soft chugging of the steam engine providing power to the cars.
“Now smell the air,” said Rails.
The three inhaled deeply. Notes of creosote filled their lungs, as did the hickory smoke of the engine’s furnace. The soft smell of the forest came next with the scent of summer flowers blowing past. They could even smell the fresh hay of their box car as it tempted their empty stomaches. The girls opened their eyes again and turned to Rails.
“You girls are so focused on the end that you’re not paying attention to the journey,” she said. “Mules may not get their cutie marks, but if they did, mine would be a train. Trains are all about the journey and that’s how I’ve lived my life. Sure, I could have settled down somewhere and raised some fillies of my own, but you know what? I’ve met a lot of ponies in my day who were just like me and I wouldn’t trade that for the fanciest fineries in all of Canterlot.” She walked to a pile of hay and sat down. “Now, you three should get some sleep, because in the morning, some ponies are gonna come back here looking for you.”
“How do you know that?” asked Scootaloo.
“About once a year a bunch of colts or fillies decide they’re going to skip town and leave Ponyville behind for a life of adventure,” said Rails. “You’re not the first girls I’ve met out here, and you won’t be the last.”
“But what if our cutie marks are for adventurin?” asked Applebloom. “How will we know?”
“Well, I make you a deal,” said Rails. “If you avoid the train ponies in Bridleburg, I’ll ride with you wherever you wish to go. Does that sound fair?”
It was early the next morning when the engineers discovered the three fillies asleep in the hay car. Despite their protests, the Cutie Mark Crusaders disembarked in Bridleburg with a scolding from the largest engineer pony and found themselves waiting in the rail office for someone from Ponyville to come pick them up.
“How are we supposed to get our cutie marks now if we gotta spend the whole summer in Ponyville?” asked Applebloom.
“We’ll think of something,” said Scootaloo. “Hey, what if we head south and stow away on a boat?”
“That’s a great idea!” said Sweetie Belle. “We could become pirates!” The fillies threw their hooves together in a celebratory high hoof.
“Cutie Mark Crusader Pirates, YAY!”
“My, my, aren’t you three just full of life?” asked a voice. The Cutie Mark Crusaders turned to face an elderly grey mare dressed in a pair of large glasses and a bandanna. Her cutie mark was covered by a saddle bag. “Well, I suppose it’s back to Ponyville with you three. Thank you for keeping after them, station master. I’ll make sure they know the dangers of riding the rails from now on.”
The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked to each other for a moment before following the mare out of the building. Rails took off her bandanna, and shook out her mane.
“You three couldn’t hide from a blind pony in a dark room,” said Rails.
“But we were tired!” protested Sweetie Belle. “We stayed up really late to catch the train.”
“Well, part of being a rail pony is knowing the schedule,” said Rails. “So it looks like it’s back to Ponyville for you three.”
“Awh.”
“Come now, children, it’s not that bad,” said Rails. “You’ve got a lifetime of adventure ahead of you. It’s just not out on the tracks and that’s okay. You don’t want to be out here anyway.”
“But what about all that cool stuff you’ve seen?” asked Scootaloo. “All those ponies you’ve met and places you’ve been?”
Rails just shrugged. “It’s true, I suppose. But what I didn’t tell you is how hard it is sometimes. The world isn’t always kind to rail ponies. I’ve been thrown off trains, beaten up, yelled at, fined, jailed, deported.” She shook her head. “You have to be a special kind of pony to want that life and I’m sure that you three really don’t.
“But what about our special talents?” asked Applebloom.
The four ponies walked along the train yard, looking for another train to Ponyville to hop aboard. Rails found one, and helped the girls into it before jumping on. They buried themselves again in the hay, avoiding a passing inspector by only a minute. Grunting and pulling echoed through the lot as the engineer ponies began their slow acceleration and the squeal of a steam whistle filled the morning air as the train began to move.
“Well, your just going to have to keep trying, now aren’t you?” said Rails at last. “Much like a train ride, you can’t expect to focus on the end of something and expect to get there. You’ve got to cover the miles in between first.”
“I think I get it now,” said Applebloom. “We’ve been so focused on getting our train riding cutie marks...”
“That we haven’t been enjoying the journey,” Scootaloo finished.
“Which means...” said Sweetie Belle. The three clopped their hooves in unison.
“We’ve got to pull the train to get our cutie marks!”
As the three fillies planned out how to pull a train, Rails stuck her head out of the open box car to let the wind whip through her mane. The smells of the rails brought her peace even amid the excited prancing of fillies. Perhaps they hadn’t heard a word she’d said, and sure, they were probably going to get kicked off the train again, but the enthusiasm for their goal was something that even an old mare like Rails could admire.
She found a smile creeping across her lips for the three most genuine fillies she had ever met and realized that the advice she had given them wasn’t really necessary. They were enjoying themselves more than Rails had ever seen, and they were truly reveling in the journey.
