The Skirmish at Ponyville
By A. Kane
Chapter One: The Skirmish
The stars shined magnificently throughout the lands of Equestria. Stargazer, Princess Luna’s appointed astronomer, studied the moon. The former Nightmare Moon assigned the black, purple-tinted pony this job the day Princess Luna was re-inducted back into leading the kingdom.
“No… No! NO!!!” exclaimed Stargazer. The pony observed dark entrails surrounding the moon forming into clutters before descending into the craters, rendering the formed objects invisible. “I must tell the princess!” Stargazer runs through the balcony of Canterlot Castle, tiptoeing past Princess Celestia’s window and dashes straight through the hallway, barging into Princess Luna’s quarters. “MY LADY!”
“We know,” replied Nightmare, Princess Luna’s head general. The black pony’s red mane grayed out from the situation.
“I’ve felt my flow of energy redirect itself to the moon. My corrupted self is forming an army,” stated Princess Luna.
“We need to prepare a defense. Ponyville is closest to the moon this time of the year,” said Stargazer.
“We’ve received reports of Nightmare Moons terrorizing the town. They’re already here,” replied Nightmare. “However, they only attack during the night. Come Celestia’s sun, they’re all gone. My lady, how long do we have to keep this secret from your sister?”
“No more. We shall issue out a decree tomorrow. It’s only a matter of time before they are able to fight in the sun. Send a courier to inform Miss Sparkle. We need the Elements of Harmony to ward them off,” ordered the dark blue princess.
“Acknowledged, your majesty. But what of Ponyville? How do we deal with the security on our settlement?” asked Stargazer.
“At the rate they’re going, Ponyville is lost…” replied the Princess.
In the Everfree forest six tents circle around a campfire. Pinkie Pie tells a scary story to her friends, excluding Rainbow Dash, who said she had to use the wilderness.
“Every two hundred years, the perfect thunderstorm takes the lives of campers in the Everfree forest. Nobody knows why or even how the Pegasus ponies make…” Twilight Sparkle paid more attention to her magic books, but kept an open ear to Pinkie’s story, only to chuckle behind her hoof every now and then. Applejack fell asleep, her western hat blocking her face from the rest. Rarity and Fluttershy huddled next to each other, afraid of the scary story applying to their situation. “… and the time has come for another… PERFECT STORM!”
Pinkie yelled the last two words out. At that, Rainbow Dash sonic blasted across the sky and into the ground, landing with a force of colorful energy. Fluttershy and Rarity immediately reacted to the yell and prank, Applejack jumped from her unconscious state, but Twilight kept her eyes on her books.
“Nice try, Pinkie, Rainbow, but I think I’ve figured out your pranks by now,” giggled Twilight.
“Ah, shoot! Twi? Will you just give in to the pranks so they can stop trying?!” exclaimed Applejack.
“Absolutely, Twilight! These pranks are going to drive me to the insanity! And I have an order to fill by next month! Anymore pranking will get my nerves up. And when my nerves are up, I can’t work!” added Rarity.
“Is it over?” asked Fluttershy.
“Wait! What’s that?” asked Twilight, pointing to the ground where Rainbow Dash has landed on. The ground has a perfect circle mark with a whitish glow with marring of different colors swirling around. The group cautiously huddled around the mark. Soon, the colors of the mark dissipated, and the whitish glow slowly followed suit. A face appeared! The ponies didn’t recognize the face or its species; they slowly backed away. Soon, several more faces appeared, and then their bodies. They were human. They were dressed in all-black clothing and gear. They possess weapons and equipment none of the ponies have ever seen before.
A cough was heard. It didn’t come from the ponies. They looked at the strange beings on the ground, twelve of them. All of a sudden, the leader of the humans barked,
“Get up! We’re ambushed! Cover your sectors!”
In unison, the humans, eight men and four women, assembled in strict precision and took up their arms and positioned themselves, directing each other to cover all angles of possible attack. The ponies stood confused.
Minutes have gone by.
“Sir! No threats. Just some horses,” reported 2nd Lieutenant Kane.
“Horses!” cried Rarity. At that, the humans pointed their weapons at the source of the voice.
“That horse didn’t just talk, did it?” asked Sergeant Ryans.
“Of course we talk! And we’re not horses. We are ponies. What world did you come from?” asked Rarity.
“Is there a difference with horses and ponies?” pondered Sergeant Kuznetsova.
“Oh, why you…” enraged Rarity before being interrupted by the human leader.
“Enough! Forgive my soldier’s attitudes. It would appear that you six are indigenous to this world. We somehow ended up here. Forgive us for mistaking your customs and norms. Right now, we just exfiled a battle in a vehicle before a blinding light got our eyes. I suppose that after that, we ended up here in, um, what’s this world called?” asked Captain Kane.
“It’s called Equestria. Where did you come from?” asked the curious Twilight.
“We’re from a world called Earth. We’re known as humans. We need to rest up. Do you know any facilities that’ll bring us some food and water?” asked Captain Kane.
“Finally! Some food and water!” exclaimed Corporal Gustav.
“Hush, Roger. I’m sorry. Some of my troops are a little new to their respects. I usually have to speak for them. Will you provide us the resources to freshen up, Miss…”
“Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle. We’ll be happy to accommodate your group, Mr…”
“Kane. But call me David,” said the Captain. “We should get going now. Casey, take my hand.”
The ponies immediately packed up their tents and led the human soldiers to the nearby town of Ponyville in the middle of the night.
David Kane’s soldiers consisted of himself as leader, Casey Kane, his wife, as second-in-command and medic, 2nd Lieutenant Michael Stone as platoon leader and rifleman, Staff Sergeant Vera Hamilton as squad leader and gunner, Sergeant Hope Kuznetsova as a sniper and tech-expert, Sergeant Josh Ryans as designated marksman, Corporal Roger Gustav as rifleman, Staff Sergeant Tak Suun as squad leader and designated marksman, Sergeant Isaac Steinberg as gunner, Sergeant Bo Withers as rifleman, Corporal Harris Williams as medic, and Private First Class Ray Burns as sniper. Each soldier chose to have idle conversation with each pony to know more about the area and to build a sense of trust amongst them. The married couple, David and Casey Kane, inquired mostly on Twilight for information on their worlds, especially on breaks.
“Equestria seems like a nice place to live,” said David. “Maybe you can bury me here instead of the troubles of our world. Always war and conflict and stuff… So tiring and mad-driven.”
“Equestria is usually peaceful. There’s hardly any type of discord that drives us into chaos,” said Twilight.
“I’m sorry for calling you ponies horses,” apologized Casey. “I can’t tell the difference back home on Earth and I ride them all the time.”
“Why would you ride a pony? Humans seem to be heavy enough,” responded Twilight.
“A long time ago, when battles and travels were not as advanced as you think it is, humans would ride horses to get from one place to another,” said David.
“Interesting. We ponies, as the dominant species, hardly have any reason to carry another being on our backs,” said the purple unicorn.
“Well, at our home, ponies don’t even talk. Only humans can. I don’t know why in this world the ponies are able to, but I guess it’s the rules of that universe… or something. I don’t know,” said Casey.
“Don’t hurt your brain, honey.” David laughs. “Twilight, after we get our supplies, we need to find a way back to our home world. Seeing how we came here by magic, I suppose there’s magic in this realm, am I correct?”
“Any unicorn can conduct magic. It just takes a lot of practice and studying. I know two ponies that probably can send your group home,” answered Twilight.
“I wonder who that’ll be,” replied Gustav.
“Roger, your manners,” countered Casey.
“They are our princesses that govern the land. Princess Celestia is the ruler of the daytime and Princess Luna is the ruler of the night. Wait, huh? What’s that in Ponyville, girls?” A shadowy mist descended upon the town. Identical copies of Nightmare Moon wreak havoc upon the awakened citizens. “Girls, we got to save our hometown. Let’s go!” Twilight and her pony friends rush down the hill to their town.
“HEY! We can help!” exclaimed Suun.
“You can’t. It’s magic plaguing this town. I don’t think humans can do anything against magic based on what you guys told us,” replied Twilight. “Stay safe!” The humans watched as the six ponies raced to their home town.
“We’re not supposed to do nothing, are we, boss?” asked Michael.
“No. We’re going to back them up. Snipers, displace to a nearby advantage point. Get full view on the streets. Everyone else, break into squads and don’t let anyone know we’re here. Suppressors on!”
The entire human squad installed silencers onto their weapons. They broke into two and headed off into the two opposite ends of the town from the hills overlooking Ponyville. The snipers climbed a nearby tree that gave them full view of the area.
Meanwhile, the six ponies tried their best to fend off the Nightmare Moon invasion. Most of them were subdued and captured by the Nightmare Moon figures. Twilight and Applejack are all who stand left against them.
“Give it up,” said the voices in unison. ‘You’re friends are ours, you’re town is ours, and soon, all of Equestria will be ours!”
Suddenly, a figure disappeared. Soon, many more started to disappear. All captured ponies became uncaught from the mist and soon, they all saw the humans, shooting their weapons, their bullets disrupting the flow of magic concentration and causing the mist to scatter. All seemed clear. Two figures eluded being shot and grabbed Twilight and Fluttershy by the neck, holding them as protection against their new threat. The two hostages saw from the corner of their eyes two flashes in the middle of the dark horizon and just like that, the two figures were gone.
The town ponies stared at the regrouping humans. They were unsure as to whether to be grateful for them or to fear them. Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack, however, quickly circled the humans and sang victory songs for them.
“Totally doubted you guys. We’re sorry,” said Twilight.
“You guys kicked total butt!” cried Rainbow Dash.
“That was really, really, really fast on how you defeated these thingys!” added Pinkie Pie.
“Can we get some food now?” asked Gustav, only to be chastised by his commanding officers.
“My ladies! Ponyville still remains under our control!” exclaimed Nightmare.
“I’ve noticed the star patterns. They’re off. Something must’ve happened,” added Stargazer.
“I’ve received news that there are a species of ‘humans’ that have warded off the attack. They are currently on their way here by escort of my student Twilight,” said Princess Celestia.
“We must hurry. The Elements of Harmony must be applied on my corruption to rid this chaos forever!” cried Princess Luna.
“They’re here. Prepare the throne room,” ordered Princess Celestia.
Twilight and her friends guided her human friends into the throne room. Two chairs are in place for this special decision for both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.
“Princesses Celestia and Luna, I present to you the leader of the human group, David Kane. He is a wise man and has shown courage and support for us at Ponyville,” said Twilight, bowing down with her friends to their leaders.
Princess Celestia starts, “David Kane, your group and your services for the defenses of Ponyville will not go unheard of. But we have a serious situation on hand. Princess Luna, my sister, has a corrupted side, and it is slowly fighting its way back here on Equestria. Twilight, we need the Elements of Harmony to be performed for an hour on Princess Luna. It is the only way to purify her complete control of magic. In the meanwhile…”
“My ladies! Ponyville is under attack!” stated a royal sentry who barged in from the outside.
“We know what we have to do. Squad, regroup! We’re going back in. Ponies, do whatever it is you need to do to get these forces out. Last night was nothing. A full army we cannot best, but we can hold,” stated David. As they left, General Nightmare quickly caught up to them.
“My army is under your command. I trust you with them. Now go!” exclaimed the general.
“Much appreciated! Everybody! Straight to Ponyville!” cried Casey.
Meanwhile, the six ponies were outfitted with the Elements of Harmony and started applying the magic to purify Princess Luna.
“How many of these things are there?!” cried Ryans
“Doesn’t matter! We’re dealing with all of them!” responded Withers. The humans and Luna’s army ran straight into the chaos ensued within Ponyville. The Nightmare Moons conjured up a storm that struck lighting and their horns rayed dark matter onto the incoming forces. Princess Luna’s army countered with force fields and streamed a lighter-colored version of the dark matter back. The humans were caught in the mess in between.
“Hey! Turn that force field down! I’m wasting ammo!” cried Williams. As soon as the force field wore down, Williams ran towards the Sugarcube Corner’s wall for his preferable cover.
“Holy fudge, that was close! Everybody spread out! It decreases our chances of being struck!” cried Stone. Nobody heeded his word, and many more injured fell to the ground.
“Sir, I need your squad to defend our right flank! The enemy can sweep us from the side!” cried the second-in-command.
“Ma’am! We don’t see anything, we’re holding our position!” denied the pony squad leader.
“The retirement home! It’s burning down!” cried one of Princess Luna’s legionnaires.
“Tak! Isaac! Get in the retirement home and rescue any hidden survivors! Go!” ordered the captain.
It was literally mass confusion between the humans and the Princess Luna’s Royal Army. The humans did all they can in their power to maintain the balance of the fight. The Royal Army’s intentions were the same, but they were young, inexperienced, and unsure of themselves.
*radio static* “Captain! This is Hope! Ray spotted some sort of portal in the rear lines of the Nightmare Moon army. Every figure one of you guys takes down, another reappears through this portal. We’ve tried shooting at it, but nothing! We need a unicorn to take it down!”
It has been an hour since the fighting has started. The Elements of Harmony has purified Princess Luna, but the portal continues to resend fallen Nightmare Moons. Twilight and her friends venture back into Ponyville, only to meet a warzone with injured Royal Guards and some humans on the ground. The Captain spots them.
“Get over here! Now! We got a situation!” he cried. The six ponies rushed over to his side of the Carousel Boutique.
“Well at least my home hasn’t burned to smithereens!” cried Rarity.
“We can worry about that later. Listen up! My snipers have spotted a portal behind enemy lines that revives the fallen Nightmare Moons. Our best guess is that magic can only be used to take this out. No Royal Army believes us. I’m asking you guys to believe me. Are you ready to join the war?” asked the captain.
“We’ve doubted you guys before. That’s a mistake we’re not making again,” rallied Twilight. Her friends yelled their approvals as the captain’s heart warms up.
“Thank you, friends. Now here’s the plan. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, I need you to scan the battle from the skies. Take these throat communicators. Just talk into them and we’ll hear you two, as you’ll hear us. Speak loud and clear and inform us of any unnoticed enemies. Our snipers can’t see everything. We need a bird’s eye view. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, we need you to carry our ammo. Stick to cover the same way we do and don’t expose yourself at all. Twilight, Rarity, which one of you is more proficient in magic?”
“It’s Twilight. Always has been,” replied Rarity.
“I’ll teach Rarity the force field spell. That’ll keep us moving as fast as we can,” replied Twilight.
“Then, Twilight, I need you to take out the portal. You have the most dangerous job, but we’ll make sure you’ll come out of this alive. I promise,” said David.
“Let’s go!” cried Casey. The remaining humans and the six ponies raced to the portal, taking out everything in their path. The scouts informed the group of any unseen targets. Rarity synchronized the force field shield with the firing of the humans. Ammo is no longer a weight problem for the humans as they raced with their pony friends to the enemy’s vital port. However, as they raced, one by one, a human or a pony is blown into submission. Upon arriving, there were no more Nightmare Moons at the moment, but it was just David and Twilight.
“Do it. I’ll cover you,” said David. Twilight’s horn started glowing luminescent white and the portal started closing. Unaware to the two, there was a Nightmare Moon sneaking up on Twilight, preparing to charge. “Whatever happens, keep closing that portal,” he ordered.
David draws his weapon and snapped his aim onto the incoming figure. He pulls the trigger. *click* He’s out of ammo. David, out of options, runs to Twilight, jumps over her, pulls out his knife, and slices the figure on the neck. Unfortunately, the figure’s horn stabs through David’s stomach. At that, the figure disappears, David falls to the ground, and the portal is closed.
“David!” cried the unicorn.
*cough* “You know… death is inevitable… to everyone… Just bring… my men home… Case… She’s pregnant. Maybe… maybe one day… you can give pony rides for my kid…” he laughs in pain.
“David, you’ll make it! I know you will!”
“There’s no medic… they’re unconscious… They’ll wake… but I’ll be gone…” He coughs blood out of his mouth and is losing consciousness.
“David. Thank you. You sacrificed yourself for us. May the afterlife greet you well.”
“What… are friends… for?” At that, David breathes his last.
One Year Later
“Dear Princess Celestia,
“It’s been a year since the Ponyville incident. I’m sending this letter to remind you how much I’ve learned from David and his friends. I’ve learned that in human nature, war is common, and sometimes, it’s what brings them together. We should all be like this with our conflicts with each other.
“You’re highness, I thank you again for granting David’s last wish to bring his friends home. I am still surprised, however, on the fact that Casey decided to stay here. They had a daughter, named Violet. Whether she feels compelled to visit her husband’s grave or the stress of their world was too much, I don’t know. Casey wouldn’t tell me. But I also learned that everybody has something special to bring. I believe it is not wise to judge others as incapable when you didn’t see them put to the test.
“And last, I always ponder the meaning of David’s last words: “What are friends for?” He called us his friends, and he died for me, his friend. I suppose friendship is about sacrifice for one another. That’s the way David seemed to have in his book.
“For now, princess, I have to go give a pony ride for Violet. David would’ve loved to see that.
“Your Faithful Student,
“Twilight Sparkle”
Casey's Aftermath (Spring)
Chapter 2: Casey’s Aftermath (Spring)
Day One
Casey wakes up in the Canterlot recovery wing along with the rest of her squad. She struggles herself up to find her husband, unbeknownst to her that he’s already dead. She opens each curtain, hoping to see David, only to see a sleeping squadmate or Royal Army troop. She exits the recovery wing and makes her way into the main throne room, where Princess Celestia and Twilight are conversing about the battle. Casey overhears, and she inquires about it.
“Your highness!” she exclaims, surprising the two ponies. “How many of us were killed?” The two ponies glanced at each other nervously. After a moment of silence, Celestia answers her question.
“Only one,” the princess replied.
“WHO?!” yelled Casey, causing the guards to feel uneasy. Casey knows who it is. She can see it in the way Princess Celestia and Twilight act in front of her. She just doesn’t want to believe it.
Twilight walked down the stairs and stood to go eye-level with Casey. Casey starts to snivel as the truth was about to befall on her.
“I’m sorry. It’s your husband. He sacrificed himself to help clear this land of a great evil. You should be proud of him,” replied Twilight. Casey now knows. She falls on her knees and begins to sob hysterically. Twilight places a hoof on her shoulder. Casey sees the compassion the young pony has shown her, and she proceeded to give Twilight a hug.
“I know he saved you,” Casey whispered to her ear. “You’ve already proven your worth by gaining my husband’s trust.” Twilight, surprised, slowly returns the hug. After Casey cried softly for a bit, they let go, and Casey begins her request. “Princess Celestia, I ask that my husband be cremated here in Equestria and for me to stay here in Ponyville. My squad will go home, and I ask that you permit me my husband’s bladed weapon for my self-defense. This is all that I ask as a widow as a result of this conflict.” Twilight looks at Princess Celestia, wondering what she would say to the otherworldly visitor.
“I have taken your suffering into consideration of my decision. When your squad awakes, they shall be back on Earth. I permit you to live with Twilight, and your husband shall be cremated, his ashes for you to decide where it’ll go. I trust you won’t corrupt my subject’s minds with Earth’s ideas. We would like to keep things the way they are. As for your weapon, do not use them on my subjects. I sense that you’ve been in nights where there are no safety, and I can understand that, but there is no more chances of harm here in Equestria thanks to your husband,” ordered the princess.
“Thank you, your highness,” replied Casey.
“So where do you live in?” asked Casey, who is walking back to Ponyville with Twilight.
“I live in the library. I love books, although some ponies do call me an ‘egghead’ for that,” replied Twilight.
“‘Egghead?’” asked Casey, to which Twilight sighs.
“It’s what they call ponies who read a lot. I guess I should be proud of it, but it gets really annoying.”
“You should see the names they called me when I was in high school. I was a farm girl, and I didn’t have much to support me. My only friend was David, a town folk. We took the blunt of all the insults. I don’t think I’m allowed to say those names here. Don’t want to give ponies a bad mouth.”
“Tell me more about your husband.”
“We got married after high school. We enlisted because we had no funding to support ourselves in college. He’s known to have some sort of look on his face that can tell you that he’s judging who to trust. That’s why he married me. I’m someone he can trust. And I’m sure you gained his trust, too.”
“You were right back in the throne room. He did save my life. So why keep your husband’s weapon? What does it do?”
“My husband has weird notions and sets of beliefs. When he was twelve, his father, who was a naval seaman, moved to Japan, a country, for stationing. There, he has taken some sword training classes. He graduated in two years. He always carried his katana to battle. He never uses it, though. But he did give me an adept level of training. The weapon was made far back in Earth’s history. This type of sword is legendary, because it was designed to slice through anything. Well, almost anything.”
“Interesting. Anyways, we’re here,” Twilight announced as they arrived at her partially damaged home late at night. “This is where you’ll be living from now on. I’ll be bunking with Spike, my baby dragon, for now. You can sleep in my bed.”
“Thank you, Twilight. I got a list of things I need to acquire for living here in Equestria. Can you help me out tomorrow finding these items?” asked Casey.
“Sure. But for now, I need some rest. Good night.”
“Good night. I’ll be back inside. Got to do something outside first.” Casey exits the library and heads toward the nearby river. On the bridge, she unpacks from her backpack a large jar. Inside was the cremated remains of David. She opens the jar. A tear forms in her eyes as she spreads the ashes over the river. Halfway through, sniffles turned in to bawling. “So long, David,” said Casey, barely legible. She kneels resigned, and she watches as the dust becomes one with the river. Minutes later, she makes her way back to the library.
Day Two
“Um, Twilight?” asked Spike, nudging the unicorn awake from her slumber.
“Spike, it’s too early! Let me rest!” replied Twilight, eyes barely open.
“I’m more rather concerned about what our roommate is doing.” The two quietly rose to Casey’s bedroom. They take a peek inside. Casey, who is wearing a black top tank, black cargo pants, and socks, is on her back on the floor, rising her top half to her bended knees and back, counting out,
“98! 99! 100!” At a hundred, she quickly rolls over and begins to push herself off the ground, restarting her count.
Twilight and Spike shoot each other a look. “Casey,” said the unicorn, “what are you doing?” Casey realized she woke them up.
“Sorry, guys. It was training to do 100 sit-ups and push-ups every morning, and David told me to keep doing them to stay ready for whatever comes my way. A katana is sort of heavy for me.”
“Sit-ups? Push-ups? What for?” asked Twilight.
“Humans utilize sit-ups usually for reducing their belly size, but I also believe that they help flex some muscles. Push-ups are for the strength of the arms. Well, since we’re up, let’s go over my list. First thing, I need clothing. I’m not going to wear my combat uniform every day because I highly doubt Equestria has a simple means of cleaning clothing.”
“Can’t you just go naked?” asked Spike.
“Humans are a little self-conscious. That could be an understatement,” replied Casey.
“Well I know the perfect pony for clothing. Let’s stop by Rarity’s place,” said Twilight.
“I’ll stay here and fix the mess you’ve made, again, Twilight,” said Spike. Casey put on her boots and followed Twilight to the Carousel Boutique. After an hour passed by, Casey seemed to have rejected most of Rarity’s designs.
“I grew up as a cowgirl,” said Casey. “All I want is something simple to cover parts of my body.”
“Simple?! Darling, for one of the few humans to ever graced their presence on this world, you are one of the beautiful ones, and you deserve something better than ‘simple’!” exclaimed Rarity.
“My final order, Rarity, stands. Something like my current pants except blue, a shorter, yellow version, a thicker, white version, something like my shirt with sleeves to my elbows that is brown, a coat similar to my shirt except olive drab, some footwear, everything symmetrical and one pieced colored. No jewels. That’s it. Please?”
“Humans have weird tastes. But if that suits you, darling, then you’ll have it. Now pose for me so that I can replicate a human mannequin.” Casey stands with her feet shoulder-width apart and positions her arms out wide.
“How long will this take?”
“Seconds. And done. Come back in about two days and I’ll have your clothing done, Mrs. Kane,” said Rarity, using a spell to conjure the mannequin.
“What’s next on the list?” asked Twilight.
“Something I thought I would never have to look for again,” said Casey. “A job. I don’t suppose American dollars would be accepted here, do you?”
“Dollars? Um, I guess not. We have these gold coins called bits.”
“Figures. Is there a choir for ponies around here?”
“Closest I’ve found is Fluttershy’s bird choir.”
“What about medicine practice?”
“Hospital has too many workers.”
“Farming?”
“I think Applejack might have an opening for you.”
“Applejack owns a farm?”
“An apple farm. It’s the first structure here in Ponyville. In fact, her grandmother founded Ponyville.” So the two went over to Sweet Apple Acres for Casey’s employment. On the way over, they’ve encountered Rainbow Dash resting on a cloud.
“Hey! What’s that thing you’re carrying on the side? Didn’t David have that?” asked Rainbow Dash, noticing the blade Casey keeps.
“Just carrying his tradition. It’s also my protection,” yelled back Casey.
“What does it do?”
“It cuts things.”
“Like an oversized knife?”
“Not exactly. It’s a very well-designed blade that can cut through virtually anything.”
“It’s not like you’re going to go dragon slaying, are you?”
“Like I said, it’s for protection, not offensive reasons.”
“Take care! I think I’m dozing off!”
“You’re always lazing on a cloud, Rainbow!” yelled Twilight, giggling to herself leaving Casey a little confused.. The two arrived at Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack was more than eager to take in a worker.
“Now remember, we fellas do this for our living. If you wish to make this your living, let’s go now and find a role you can play in this here farm. We’ll teach you the tricks of the trade as time goes on, but for now, we’re going to designate you a certain duty that you’ll do,” said Applejack.
“Yes, ma’am. I understand. Seeing how taking down the apples the way I’ve seen you do it isn’t what most humans would do, catching apples will be too fast for me, and I don’t want to stereotype by being in the kitchen, I’ll guess I’ll do yard work,” said Casey.
“Sounds reasonable! You’ll start tomorrow. Your first task is to fix the picket fences around the fields.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
“What’s next on your list?” asked Twilight.
“Food. I’m not going to eat grass all the time. There’s got to be some way for me to get food.”
“You can start here with this apple!” replied Applejack, to which Casey laughs heartily.
“I know that! It’s just the human taste buds can’t really eat the same thing all day. I mean, you’ve seen how Roger complained without meat.”
“Really strange how you humans eat meat.”
“Don’t dragons?” countered Casey.
“In some cases. Usually it’s frowned upon, so I guess you have to become a vegetarian,” replied Twilight.
“Wonderful. Anything sweet besides an apple?”
“We can go to the Sugar Cube Corner.” So the two headed to the Sugar Cube Corner. On the way, they’ve met up with Fluttershy after Casey overheard a choir of birds being played.
“Wait a minute… Bird’s don’t sing that orchestrated!” pointed out Casey.
“Well, um, that’s because I trained them. Eh-heh,” said Fluttershy, approaching the two from the choir.
“Hey, Fluttershy!” greeted Twilight. “Why do you have your choir here?”
“The mayor asked for music for the coat and filly fair that’s going on.”
“I kind of noticed the young ponies running about,” commented Casey.
“I was too busy trying to finish your list,” said Twilight, to which they all laugh.
“You know, Fluttershy, when I was in high school, I was in the mixed choir. I earned 4th chair.”
“Really? That’s great! All these birds have the same chair to me, though. Heheh.”
“Well, we got to go. I’m hungry.”
“See you!” As the human and the unicorn entered the Sugar Cube Corner, Pinkie Pie was inside tasting all the products.
“Hey, Pinkie! Leave some for us!” exclaimed Twilight.
“Sorry! I just broke my piggy bank and found lots and lots of bits! Cupcake eating challenge?” asked the jolly earth pony.
“Um, sure?” wondered Casey. Pinkie places a dozen cupcakes on the table.
“You! Me! First to eat as much cupcakes wins!” At the start, Pinkie took a ginormous bite on two cupcakes while Casey struggles to get the paper wrappings off her first cupcake. As soon as the cupcake was free of the wrappings, Pinkie is already on the third cupcake. After Casey has taken three bites, the last two cupcakes were gone. “You humans eat so slow! Haha.”
Casey laughs. “Well I don’t really like cupcakes. I’ve been eyeing that pie over there, though.”
“Why not a pie-eating contest!”
“Considering the mess ‘we’ve’ made, I think I’m through with contests.” Casey gives Pinkie a smile.
“You can always rely on Pinkie if you ever need to cheer up,” said Twilight. “Anything else on the list?”
“I’m guessing that’s it. I just hope Rarity isn’t having a hard time with a human mannequin.”
“I’ll be heading home if you need me. I got some studies.”
“Alright. I’ll venture the town.” Casey stayed in the Sugar Cube Corner with Pinkie while Twilight heads to the library. “I’m guessing it’s an apple pie, isn’t it?” asked Casey towards Pinkie.
“Most pies are,” replied Pinkie.
“At least it’s a favorite.” Casey slowly slices a portion of the pie. As she finished putting that portion on her plate, Pinkie dives her head into the pie, finishing the entire pie in a minute. Casey laughs at her humor. “Why do you eat so much sweets?”
“It’s part of my cutie mark. I’m a party animal!”
“Cutie mark?”
“It’s a symbol thingy on our flanks that tells us what we’re really, really, really, really, ‘really’ good at. What’s your cutie mark?”
“Humans don’t have cutie marks.”
“Really?! Then how do you know what you’ll be good at in life?!”
“Simple, really. We follow our hearts. It’s so simple, however, that people overlook it.”
“Ah. Where’d I put my party cannon? We need to celebrate!”
“Celebrate what?!”
“For following your heart!”
“Ah, there it is!” Pinkie rolls her party cannon and aims it directly at the ceiling.
“Pinkie, you’re not going to destroy this building, are you?!”
“Relax!” expressed Pinkie. She pulls the string and out goes confetti and balloons.
“Nice. You better bring one of those for my birthday.”
“When’s that?”
“Exactly next week.”
“Awesome! I’ll go refill this thing.”
“Anyways, I going to go explore the town; see you, Pinkie!”
“Bye-bye!”
Day 81
“I reckon she’s adjusted well,” said Applejack, who was her friends watching Casey. Casey is on the bridge where she dropped David’s ashes, her feet dangling into the water.
“I’m glad her clothes fit. That was probably the most difficult order I’ve ever had!” exclaimed Rarity.
“Well she does look better instead of her black combat uniform. Have you noticed she’s getting fatter?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“She’s pregnant, Rainbow. David told me before he died,” replied Twilight. “She was a week pregnant before the battle.” She turns her head towards Fluttershy and said, “Fluttershy! You can help care for her baby whenever she’s not around.”
“Sure! I never knew what a human baby would look like!” exclaimed Fluttershy. “It’ll be like raising a coat or filly!”
“But you never even had a baby,” countered the blue pony. All the girls laughed.
“My tail is shaking! I think it is something to do with Casey. Should we go to her?!” exclaimed Pinkie. Before Pinkie finished, Twilight was already on her way. The rest followed suit.
Casey, her stomach slightly bigger, looked deep into the water. Tears were streaming down her face raining into the river. When she saw Twilight and her friends approaching, she quickly looked the other way and wiped her tears.
“What’s wrong, Casey?” asked Twilight, her friends gathered around her.
“I’m… I’m pregnant…” stated Casey.
“Your husband told me. I thought you knew before he died,” said Twilight. Casey shed more tears into the river.
“We’ve never kept secrets from each other. We were always in the field together. From boot camp to the Asiatic conflict, we’ve always stayed together. I guess he still wanted to be with me even if he knew I was pregnant.”
“How’d he know you are pregnant?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“His mother was a nurse. We met several times,” replied Casey.
“How long do you have to carry the baby?” asked Fluttershy.
“About nine months, give or take. Applejack, when my belly gets heavy, I don’t think I can work on your field for the time being,” said Casey.
“Understandable, Mrs. Kane. We don’t want to damage any babies in our world.”
“Thanks,” replied the human. “I need some time for myself, girls.”
“Alright. Try not to stay out too long,” said the purple unicorn. The ponies dispersed to their own separate homes. In the meanwhile, Casey resumes her personal dilemma while pouring tears.
