SPQR

Chapter 7

Lyra’s apartment, Ponyville

Gaius sat on the couch trying to sort through all the memories he had just experienced during the mind meld with Chrysalis. While it was true that he had seen some of them as a sort of lucid dream while he was unconscious, he now was seeing them unravel in his mind in sporadic bursts. He hoped that this wasn’t something permanent because it was extraordinarily distracting. Fortunately for Gaius, someone was knocking at the door, allowing him to at least focus on something.

Lyra quickly opened the door and found several members of the Apple family standing outside. While she knew of Applejack and her filly relatives, she couldn’t say that she was friends with any of them. Try as she might, Lyra couldn’t hide the surprise on her face. After all, why would AJ want to visit her?

AJ smiled. “Howdy Lyra! Do ya mind if we come in for a bit?”

“Oh…yeah sure come on in. Sorry I’m not used to getting visitors, especially from the Apple family. What brings you by?”

“I’ll be honest with ya; it was all Bloom’s idea. She and her cousin wanted to visit the human so they could properly thank ‘im. Heh…they even went and baked an apple pie. As for me, I’m just along for the ride.”

“I’m sure Gaius will appreciate the pie but just be gentle around him. He’s not feeling too good right now.”

“Oh no, what’s wrong with ‘im? Is he sick or somethin’?”

“He’s experiencing some side effects from a spell. Hopefully a little rest will make them go away.”

AJ poked Lyra in the chest. “You unicorns and yer damned magic! Y’all don’t ever realize how dangerous that stuff might be to us plain folk.”

“Look…I know you deeply distrust magic but he’s ok for now. I promise that I’ll be more careful in the future. You know I wouldn’t intentionally hurt him.”

“Fine, just don’t be doin’ anythin’ rash sugarcube.”

Despite her trepidation with magic, AJ couldn’t help but chuckle as she saw her sister and Babs practically topple the poor human over with hugs. It bothered AJ that he looked like he was about to throw up, if his pale complexion was anything to go by. But he still managed to pat both of the fillies on the head despite himself. Once he gathered his bearings, the fillies presented him with a still steaming apple pie. Gaius merely stared at the pastry in confusion.

“I’m sorry but what is this?”

“It’s an apple pie silly! Babs and ah baked it ourselves with an old family recipe. C’mon go ahead and take a bite.”

“Apple pie? I can’t say I’m familiar with that particular dish. It certainly smells good.”

Babs grinned. “Nopony makes ‘em better! I’m sure you’ll like it.”

The pasty was already sliced into eight equal sections, making it easier to eat. Gaius picked up a slice, giving it an experimental nibble. It was unlike anything he had ever tasted. The crust was light and buttery, while the inside tasted of apples and a faint hint of cinnamon. How did these ponies afford such expensive spices to flavor their food? The cinnamon alone was worth its weight in gold, making it affordable to only the richest of Rome’s citizens.

Gaius eyed the rest of the pie with hungry eyes, wanting more but felt guilty for not sharing. As a soldier he often had to get by on meager portions of food. It really wasn’t a good idea to gorge one’s self before a battle or even during normal encampment routines. Such gluttony only led to severe vomiting and crippling stomach cramps. Besides, he truly enjoyed the fillies’ company and didn’t mind sharing.

AJ noticed his pensive look and frowned with concern. “What’s wrong sugarcube? Is the pie not to yer likin’?”

“Oh no…well it’s actually quite delicious. I just feel guilty having it all to myself, considering how much effort it must have taken to prepare it.”

“Effort? Ah don’t quite follow.”

“Surely such a fine pastry must have taken quite some time to prepare. Not only that, but the ingredients must have cost a small fortune! I am but a simple soldier, undeserving of such rare and expensive cuisine.”

All three of the Apples stared at each other and laughed. Babs had it the worst though, as she rolled around the floor trying not to suffocate herself. Of the three AJ regained her composure the quickest and once she did, the mare gave Gaius a reassuring pat on the arm.

“What? Did I say something wrong?”

“Nah, it ain’t that. Ya don’t have to worry about puttin’ us in the poor house, ‘cause apple pies are easy to make. In fact, we make ‘em all the time and sell ‘em for profit.”

“You mean to tell me that such delicacies are commonplace in Equestria?”

“They most certainly are…well at least the apple pies anyway. Although ah reckon you might be able to get Pinkie to make ya some more sweets, if ya asked her nice enough.”

“No, I meant the spices you use. Apples were common in my world but the cinnamon; oh no that was quite a luxury. Why one libra of it would cost nearly ten month’s labor!”

AJ cocked her brow in confusion. “What in tarnation is a libra? And where did you get the notion that spices cost so much? Ah can go right into Ponyville and get ‘em at the market.”

“It is a form of measurement in my world, equivalent to your pound. But never mind that. Are you saying that ponykind cultivates so much cinnamon that even the common folk can afford it!?”

“Uhh well…yeah ah guess. From what ah understand it ain’t real hard to grow.  In fact, mah cousins down south own a farm that has a few acres of cinnamon trees.”

“I know that my reaction must seem strange to you but cinnamon is a very expensive and difficult spice to obtain in my world. It is something that only the wealthy can afford in most cases. Despite its commonality here, I very much appreciate the pasty all of you made me. It was unlike anything I’ve ever tasted.”

“That’s good to hear and ah think you might have earned some brownie points with Bloom and Babs today. Heh…just be lucky you’re not a colt, otherwise they might’ve taken a fancy to you.”

Both of the fillies blushed heavily, rubbing their hooves together. Rather than feel awkward about the situation, Gaius found it endearing. They reminded him somewhat of his daughter. Once he finished another slice of pie, he scooped them both up in his arms and gave them a fatherly embrace.

“Thank you both. Now is there anyone else here who wants some pie?”

Chrysalis shifted her gaze over to Gaius and the two fillies. She noted with a smirk, that they were practically oozing affection towards the human. If she were in that position, they would have been sucked dry of every delicious little morsel of emotion. But she wasn’t really in a position to do so, it would reveal her secret. She decided to focus on the pie instead. While Chrysalis didn’t particularly enjoy pony cuisine, she had to admit that the pie certainly smelled good. Perhaps one slice wouldn’t hurt…

Apple Bloom scampered over to Chrysalis. “Ah don’t believe I’ve ever seen you before. Mah name’s Apple Bloom, are you new in town or somethin’?”

Oh how lovely, yet another rambunctious filly to deal with. "Yes, you could say that. I’m Lyra’s cousin, Chrysanthemum and I’m going to be staying here for a while. Call me Chrissy if you wish.”

Chrysalis was a bit annoyed when Apple Bloom didn’t immediately reply. The filly seemed to be intently staring at her flank for some reason. Didn’t her parents ever teach her that ogling another mare’s flank was rude? She certainly was old enough to know better. The changeling was about to retort, when Apple Blooms eyes sparkled with a mixture of excitement and giddiness.

“OH MAH GOSH! You don’t have your cutie mark yet do ya?”

“Ehh, well of course not. I’m just a filly, you know.”

“Babs, Sweetie and ah don’t either. Hey would you happen to wanna join our club? It’s all sorts o’ fun and we have our own clubhouse. We all help each other get our cutie marks. So what do ya say? Are ya interested?”

Chrysalis mentally sighed. “I’ve already met your friend Sweetie and she approached me with a similar offer. I suppose I’ll join, considering how bored I am right now. But before we do anything, I must have a piece of pie.”

Despite the lack of nutritional value she gained from it, Chrysalis had to admit that the pie was quite good. No wonder Gaius was so forthcoming with his compliments. Unfortunately this brought her mind to the current crisis she faced. At some point she would need emotions to feed on or else she’d face starvation. Certainly the ponies wouldn’t want to share any of theirs, not after the whole Canterlot fiasco.

After a few moments she found her thoughts gravitating towards the human and the interesting memories he had given her. Would he be willing to share some of his emotions with her? If so, then how would she go about extracting them? So far, she had detected only faint wisps of affection raiding off of him…but they were projected towards the fillies. Affection could be filling but only if it was concentrated, like when she brainwashed Shining Armor to give her what Cadence would have received.

Her other option was to make these supposed “Cutie Mark Crusaders” believe she was their friend in order to gain affection from them. While it wasn’t technically stealing, it was still deceptive and Chrysalis felt that she would not only provoke the pony’s ire but that of the human’s as well. She would have to earn their affection through genuine friendship...as much as it annoyed her. Sometimes doing the right thing was such a pain in the flank.

Babs smiled. “Don’t worry Chrissy, I think you’ll fit right in! Oh and we’ll make you a cool cape too so we can all have matching uniforms when we go crusading!”

“Hooray! I get to wear some ridiculous cape. I can hardly contain my excitement.”

Meanwhile, AJ took off her hat and began to grip its edges. It was a nervous habit she had developed when she had to ask for help or if she felt she was deceiving somepony. While it was true that she came over to help deliver the pie, she also wanted to ask Gaius for a favor. It felt wrong to her because she already owed him so much. During summer the apple trees needed to be trimmed in preparation for the fall harvest.

It was quite a daunting task for two ponies and under normal circumstances she would have asked some of her cousins to help out. Sadly most of them were busy with their own ventures at the moment, so that left her with the option of outsourcing. She noted that the human had a significant height advantage compared to ponies, which would allow him to reach branches that were higher up. Furthermore, he had hands as opposed to hooves. His increased dexterity would certainly help speed things up as well. And so with a nervous gulp she prodded the human’s shoulder with her hoof.

“Hey Gaius, ah was wonderin’ if ah might ask you somethin’.”

“Sure, what is it?”

“This ain’t real easy for me to say but…ah need some help back at the farm. Normally ah wouldn’t ask anypony but mah cousins to help, however they’re all busy right now. Granny’s too old to be of much help and Bloom doesn’t have the stamina yet. So, it’s just Mac and ah who do most of the field work. The apple trees need trimmed and ah was sorta hopin’ that you’d lend us a hand?”

“Hmm…I was never really much of a farmer but I suppose I could help. Of course, I’m going to need payment for my services.”

AJ’s ears flattened. “O-of course but I can’t really offer you too much in the way of bits right now, since it’s so early in the summer. We haven’t gotten much of our produce stock out to market yet. But ah guess ah could scrounge somethin’ up.”

Gaius chuckled. “I wasn’t talking about coin, silly mare! I’m more interested in sampling more of your fine cuisine. Tell you what, how about I come over and work today and you provide dinner. How’s that sound?”

“Oh well that sounds like a square deal to me. Ah reckon Granny wouldn’t mind cookin’ up some extra grub. Consider yourself hired!”

Apple Bloom trotted over to her sister. “Is he gonna be over for supper? Can ah invite Chrissy too? Oh and then we can all have a sleep over at the clubhouse!”

“Ah suppose that wouldn’t hurt anythin’ but y’all better not cause a ruckus with all o’ that crusader business. Otherwise, none of ya will be eatin’ supper.”

Both Babs and Bloom gave her their most innocent smiles. “Ok, we’ll be good.”

Sweet Apple Acres, Ponyville

Gaius walked through the west orchard with Applejack trotting alongside. He had to admit that he was impressed by how large the farm actually was. Even more impressive was the fact that these ponies didn’t have the natural dexterity that humans did, but they did at least have farming tools. The two fillies (plus one changeling) had decided to come along and help with what they could. Bloom and Babs were more than happy to help but Chrysalis stared blankly at all the trees, letting out a dejected sigh. Clearly she was out of her element.

Apple Bloom nudged her shoulder. “What’s wrong Chrissy?”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Ah bet ah can! Why? Don’t ya think I’m old enough or somethin’?”

“No…it isn’t that. It’s just that, I’m not really used to this whole manual labor thing.”

“You’re starting to sound like Rarity but ah guess it must be a unicorn thing. Look if ya aren’t comfortable with getting’ you’re hooves dirty, then you can just use your magic. Babs and ah don’t mind.”

“Ugghh I guess so. I can’t believe I’m being forced to do this. Such work is meant for dro—errm I mean dependable colts.”

“You ain’t bein’ forced to do anythin’ Chrissy and why would you think fillies can’t do this sort o’ thing?”

“Excuse me for having a more romantic view of the world!”

Babs stomped her hooves on the ground. “C’mon girls! There’s no reason for us to be arguing. If Chrissy doesn’t wanna do the dirty stuff, then we can do it. She can help us move the clippings basket with her magic instead.”

With a low grumble Chrysalis accepted her fate, levitating a small wicker basket as the group moved from tree to tree. Applejack had taken it upon herself to carry a small ladder so that Gaius could reach the topmost branches. Once they had completed an entire row of trees, Gaius noticed a burly, red stallion slowly make his way towards Applejack. He too was carrying a wicker basket full of clippings strapped onto his back. Upon seeing this new stallion, both Apple Bloom and AJ ran up to him and gave him affectionate nuzzles. Gaius climbed down the ladder and approached the stallion with caution.

“Hello my name is Gaius and who might you be?”

“Name’s Mac. I’m AJ and Bloom’s brother. Are you the fella who’s supposed to be helpin’ out ‘round the orchards?”

“That is correct. Have you been working on that entire row of trees all by yourself?”

“Eeyup.”

“I can’t even imagine how tiring that must be. Back in my world such work would take the combined effort of several farmers and a few hours labor. Aren’t you exhausted?”

“Mmnope. Used to it ah guess. Ah can tell you’re a hard worker just by your muscles. Ah don’t mean any offence to ya but we earthponies are known for our stamina, so ah reckon you’d never be able to do all that on your own.”

Gaius chuckled. “None taken. Even the horses from my world had far more stamina than any man. How many more rows of trees do all of you intend to complete?”

“Hmm, I’d say about two more. It’ll probably be dinner time by then. Eeyup I’m sure of it, judgin’ by the position o’ the sun.”

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you’re going to have to put your dinner plans on hold.”

The entire group fixed their attention towards the mysterious new speaker. On top of one of the apple trees sat a rather large griffon, busy filing his claws. His feathers were snow white and his lower half was also white, but covered in leopard spots. He was clad in a black colored leather coat, complete with a multitude of pouches. While griffons weren’t unheard of in Equestria, what made this one stand out were his eyes. One of them was slate grey, while the other was completely aquamarine and lacked any kind of pupil.

AJ dug her hooves into the ground. “Who are you and what is your business here?”

“Tsk tsk, there’s no need to be rude fräulein, I’m only here on business. Aaand that business doesn’t concern the Apple family.”

“Well would ya at least tell us your name?”

The griffon bowed. “But of course! My name is Siegfried von Messerschnabel, but you pony-folk may call me Sigs.”

“It’s not like griffons come ‘round these parts often, so what brings ya here?”

“As I said earlier, I’m not interested in ponies whatsoever. I’m what you would call a soldier of fortune. I hunt things for a living. My investigation has led me to Ponyville, where I believe a changeling might be lurking about.”

“There ain’t any changelings ‘round these parts. Princess Cadence and Twi’s brother kicked ‘em all out a couple o’ years ago.”

Sigs chuckled. “So you were led to believe. Do you see this special eye that I have? I obviously wasn’t born with it, I…obtained it a few years ago. It is a changeling’s eye that allows me to see through their illusions and track them. I won’t go into the details of how it was implanted, but suffice to say it was painful.”

“Ah don’t understand…who would put you up to huntin’ those varmints down?”

“Mostly the nobles in Canterlot, but I’ve had other clients. They fear another invasion and rightly so. Those shape-shifting cockroaches can’t be trusted, especially with their queen still on the loose.”

AJ’s eyes widened in shock. “Queen Chrysalis is s-still around!?”

“Ja, I’m afraid it’s true. In fact, I believe she is near…so very near. Tell me, what do you know of that little unicorn filly over there? She just recently came into town did she not?”

“Umm, well ah guess so. You’d have to ask Gaius, since he’s been with more than ah have.”

“Gaius? Oh you must be referring to the affenmensch, with the odd armor. Since that certainly isn’t any name I’ve ever heard used around this region. He certainly is an odd looking creature but I am not here to hunt him.”

Gaius unsheathed his gladius. “You’d best choose your words carefully hybrid. I’m not some lowly creature to be trifled with.”

“A feisty one eh? I like that. Tell me affenmensch, what do you know of the unicorn?”

“She is the cousin of the mare I’m currently staying with.”

“I’d like to believe you. I really would…but this eye of mine never lies. All I see is a changeling queen, not a little black filly. I have no quarrel with you, so long as you give her to me. If you choose to protect her, then I can assure you that my talons will receive an ample amount of exercise.”

Apple Bloom nudged Gaius’s leg. “Mr. Gaius, is all of that true? Is Chrissy really a changeling?”

“She is, but now isn’t the time to discuss this. Make sure that you stay behind your brother and sister, I don’t want this griffon to harm you or Chrissy.”

“O-ok but make sure ya don’t get hurt.”

Sigs cracked his talons. “So you have chosen the hard way? Very well then. I can’t promise that your death will be quick or painless. Who knows, maybe your hide will fetch a nice price on the market.”