Author's Note

I've decided putting "ah" instead of "I" for Applejack. This is because of her accent. I know it seems random that I'm doing this now of all times, and I know I could have done this much sooner, but I now want to make it seem a little more genuine this time. I'm pretty sure Apple Bloom will get similar treatment, considering her very thick accent.
What do you guys think? Should I do this with their characters, or should I not? If you like/dislike the decision, let me know.

12. Applejack II

Applejack

"Are we there yet?" Rainbow Dash had said.

"We're close. Don't worry." Jolly Blade reassured her.

Jolly and Blackblade led the way through the Everfree Forest. Not exactly her and Rainbow's favorite location. The other day, Rainbow Dash had rescued Scootaloo from a fire. Sadly, she wasn't able to save her parents. Normally Rainbow Dash tends to bottle up her emotions, but this was different. Dash had told her the fire was caused by a sabrathanian. When Rainbow was hospitalized from exhaustion and minor burns and cuts, she boldly said to Jolly that she would join the organization. Twilight was not pleased by this, since they are allied with the kaerndallens.

Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie were on the organization's side. She could have sworn she heard her sister, Babs, and their friends were on their side too; but she wouldn't have thought they'd understand. There had been a long argument that day, but Twilight had to come to an agreement at some point. Jolly Blade had been absent during this argument.

"I don't like this at all," Twilight had told them, "But I think that we should know more about this organization. Even though they claim Luna's in charge of it."

"Ah'm not fond of this neither, Twilight," Applejack had said as amiably as possible, "So, what should we do?"

"I propose somepony would have to investigate, and see what they're headquarters for themselves. It would seem simple enough considering they want us to be their allies."

"Or we could just, oh I don't know, join them?!" Rainbow Dash had argued.

"Rainbow Dash! We don't even know if we can trust them!" Twilight had said angrily, "Now before this gets out of control, I have an idea: Applejack, I want you to go to Jolly and ask him if you may see their base of operations."

"Um... sure Twi." She was not fond of the idea but had to suck it up regardless.

"And Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah?" Rainbow Dash was still on edge from her experience.

"It is best that Applejack didn't go alone. I want you to accompany her on this task, got it?"

"No problem!"

She would much rather prefer they all went. Rainbow Dash had told her about what happened in Ronia; the Emperor, Lord Seris, and even that spy for their empire. She told her that when they returned, Celestia was upset about the kaerndallens being in Equestria. Because of it, she commanded her soldiers to fight against them. Applejack did not like what she heard.

They've been walking for quite some time. Seeing nothing but trees and lots of other plants. Until they eventually came upon a large boulder in front of a small cliff. By then, Applejack was without a doubt confused.

"We're here." Jolly Blade told them.

"Uhhh... Where?" Rainbow Dash asked, puzzled. "All I see is a boulder."

"Exactly!" Blackblade said confidently.

"So your hideout... is behind this boulder?" Applejack figured out.

"*shushing* Not so loud!" Blackblade whispered, "We cant have everypony know about it. It would lead to disastrous consequences. Should a nefarious threat find out the location of our headquarters, it would put all of us in grave danger."

"Everypony, be quiet for a moment." Jolly told them sternly as he went in front of the large hunk of stone.

She then saw him raise his hoof, and tapped the stone in random places. Rainbow Dash was looking at him as if he was crazy. Applejack was less than sure of what to make of this. When he finished... tapping the stone, he stepped back a little as if to wait for something. Blackblade didn't seem fazed by this, which worried her a bit.

*Stone grinding*

When the boulder moved off to one side, it revealed a dark tunnel. She had seen many wonders, yet it didn't seem as surprising to her. The Everfree Forest was full of many unknown wonders, which not many ponies have dared discovered (as far as she knows, at least). Their headquarters had to be deep within this this tunnel entrance. She has no knowledge of how many members are affiliated with this organization.

"Let's go." Said Jolly in his gruff voice.

Without another word, they followed him into the dark tunnel. Jolly of coarse went in first, then Blackblade, Rainbow Dash, and finally herself. Once inside, it had gotten darker than she had expected; to the point where she couldn't see what's in front of her, complete darkness, surrounding them.

*Match lights*

She saw a small flame where she assumed Jolly Blade was. The tunnel became slightly brighter when his match lit a torch. The torch was held on a sconce, which he had removed the torch from. He held it in his mouth (because he was an earth pony, and not a unicorn) as he continued to lead them onward. She could see the other three ponies better than before; as well as their shadows along the tunnel walls.

Ah don't like the idea of spying on them. She told herself, uncomfortable, But ah suppose is right about one thing: we aren't sure if we could trust them. Ah'll just have to be careful, and Rainbow Dash too.

She swore she's been walking for about half an hour. It sure took a lot longer than she'd thought, but they must have been close to the exit by now. Rainbow Dash had gotten so bored from walking, she settled for flying instead; hovering over everypony.

"How much closer?" Said Rainbow Dash, notably bored.

"Very." Was all Jolly said.

"Oh! Just a word of warning," Blackblade advised, breaking the silence, "our friends can be a little... loud; their a rowdy bunch."

"Ah right then," Applejack shrugged off, "Ah'm used to that."

They made it to tunnel's exit and the HQ's entrance. It looked a lot like a hatch of some kind; round, huge, and metal. Jolly went over to it, but stopped midway.

"Wait..." He scanned around as if he was looking for something.

Applejack had a strange sense that something was behind her. Just as she was about move forward...

"Smokey, you're not fooling anypony!" Blackblade said irritably.

"Dang it!!!" She heard a thin voice behind her.

She then felt a quick breeze above her, as if something flew over her. Another pony came into view. It was yet, another bat pony; like Blackblade. This bat pony was also male, except he had a gray smokey coat--which is probably why that is his name--light gray mane and tail, purple eyes, and a blotchy looking cutie mark.

"How'd you know it was me?" The gray bat pony whined.

"'Cause you're supposed to be on guard duty." Jolly answered gruffly, "And it was pretty obvious that you were trying to scare us... again."

"Aw man!" The bat pony Smokey then noticed her and Rainbow Dash. "Say... who are these guys?"

"They're with us." Blackblade told him. "Friend of ours; allies."

"Cool. I take it you want in?"

"No. Really?" Jolly retorted sarcastically.

"Okay!" Smokey then gleefully opened up the hatch, turning its wheel.

"Wait a second! You know you could have just opened the door yourselves, right?" Rainbow Dash commented.

"Yeah, we could. But that's his job, not ours." Jolly added.

*Loud metal squeaking*

The enormous hatch had opened up. The hatch door had then bumped into the rocky wall around it, creating a loud *thud* sound. The bat pony flew back down and gestured for them to come in.

"Ladies first." Smokey had said, flirting with her and RD apparently.

"Oh brother," said Jolly, annoyed, "When will you ever quit?"

With that, said they were making their way into the entrance. But it seems to be that there is yet another door guarded by two sentries. Only, around this door was concrete. It must have been a building of some kind. It didn't matter as much to her; at least they made it this far.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Rainbow Dash said, very irritated. "Another door?!"

"Princess Luna wanted to make sure it would be frustrating for intruders." Blackblade explained, "Besides, we're actually here this time."

When she got closer to the door she noticed there was a peephole on it. There is a good chance that there is somepony behind it, waiting for somepony to approach. Jolly went over to the two sentries.

"Jolly," they both greeted.

The small peephole slid open, but all she could see were eyes. "Who is it?! State your business!" A deep voice demanded from behind the door; audibly male.

"You don't need to worry," He answered simply, "it's only me, Blackblade, and two guests."

"Hmm... guests you say?" The voice sounded puzzled, "Uh... who are these guests of which you speak?"

Blackblade went over next to Jolly. "Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, sir."

Something in eyes lit up in his eyes when he heard her and Rainbow's names. He closed the peephole briskly. It had been a few minutes before the door opened up. The voice came from a massive earth pony stallion. He was undeniably taller, and bulkier than she imagined; the biggest stallion she had ever witnessed. He had very deep-set eyes and large brow, scars all over his huge legs and chest, and a frightening scowl.

"The Organization welcomes you." He welcomed them with a crooked smile.

Jolly went in first, then Blackblade. As Applejack went to pass him, the stallion only looked back, and shut the door. The door led them into a long narrow corridor. There were lights posted across the walls on each side. Rainbow Dash caught up with them quickly, hovering midair next to Applejack. She noticed her expression was a little displeased.

"This is taking a lot longer than I thought." Dash whispered into her ear.

"Just be patient, RD." She whispered back. "We're not exactly sure what we're dealing with here."

Rainbow's expression then changed to a pained look. "I didn't want to join this organization because of what happened," She explained grimly, "I want to join because of Blackblade. Don't take this the wrong way."

"Ah'm not judgin'." She said honestly. "Go on."

"It's just that-- Blackblade killed that sabrathanian with no problem. He knew somepony was in danger, and acted on it. He went into the house that was on fire, and he saved Scootaloo. I guess what i'm trying to say is: I wanna be like them, I want to save other ponies like they do. Well I've saved ponies before, but this is different."

"I see what you mean." She said, understanding.

Interestingly enough Blackblade went back over to them. "Did he give you any trouble?" he asked her.

"Huh?"

"Blunt Buster. The big guy."

"Oh!" She realized.

"He's been through a lot fights. Every scar he dons has a story." He told her. "But despite that, he's a pretty nice guy."

They eventually reached another door, Jolly had assured the both of them it was the last. Next to the door were what looked like propaganda posters, depicting a black crescent moon-like symbol. The posters also had generic taglines like: "Luna needs you!" or "Keep calm & combat the nezenites".

They sure take this pretty seriously. Applejack assumed.

*Muffled chanting*

There seems to be something going on behind that door. Whatever it was, she's not so sure if she likes it. Jolly opened the door--which wasn't guarded for some reason--and went in first. The commotion was easier to hear, now that the door opened. All she could hear were chants of: "Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!".

Apparently, it was a bar. Ponies, bat ponies, and others were pounding on tables strewn about. A brown earth pony mare was drinking something from an enormous mug, shaped like a barrel. They were cheering her on to finish a drink, so it seems. The chanting grew faster the more it seemed like she was about to drink her fill.

*Loud belching*

The cheering grew deafening. A few of them helped the brown mare up. Her mane was much lighter shade of brown, and her cutie mark was a soda bottle. She had a large smug grin across her muzzle as if she accomplished something. Everypony was laughing wildly, clanking their mugs of drink together, and sang a slurry tune.

"*Ahem* May I have everypony's attention?" Jolly announced, his voice above the ruckus.

The commotion died down as soon as he spoke. Every patron turned their attention on them. All of them distinct; even the bat ponies were distinguishable. She also realized there were a few griffons as well. But there were also other creatures she hasn't seen before. Most of them half ponies apparently. She also saw kaerndallens as well. Lord Hoafnir and his soldiers in particular.

"Thank you," he continued when everypony was silent, "Now, what is the reason for this occasion?"

"Fizzy Pop got a promotion, sir." One of them answered, "We just thought it be great to celebrate."

"Yep! *hic*," The mare hiccuped merrily, "This is the best *hic* party ever!"

"I see." By the tone of his voice he was not amused. "Now listen up! These mares, Applejack and Rainbow Dash, are our guests. Apparently, Princess Twilight wasn't so keen to trust us, so she sent two of her friends on a little espionage."

*Muttering quietly*

"Wait what?!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"How'd-"

"-Did I know?" He interrupted, "As a member of a clandestine organization I'm not blind to suspicious actions like this. Honestly, I'd rather have you, Princess Twilight, and the rest of your friends all here. Personally it would have been better had she made that decision, instead of deceit."

He's more clever than Ah thought. she thought, scared, Ah should'a known this wouldn't work!

As of now, Applejack was not sure of what to do now that their cover was quickly blown. She feared they would probably imprison her and RD. Which in turn would alert Twilight and the rest of her friends, and everything would all go downhill. Thinking about it made her stomach clench.

"Typically we would punish you in the worst of ways," He continued, "However, you are friends of Princess Twilight, and were wielders of the Elements of Harmony. And Luna would punish us greatly if we did you any harm."

"What are ya gonna do then?" She asked unsure.

"Since Twilight does not trust us and would resort to this, I couldn't think of a better punishment then to enlist the both of you anyway. No misdeed goes unpunished."

"You're gonna force us to join?!" said Rainbow, exasperated.

"Sadly, I have no other choice. Follow me." He walked across the bar with a grimace.

When she followed him, every patron had a displeased or furious look on their face. They eyed her and RD with discontent, making her feel terribly uncomfortable. They followed him to a door which most likely led to a backroom, which made her feel even more nervous than before. The door actually led into an immense indoor facility; hundreds of ponies scattering in multiple directions. The place was much bigger than she would ever think possible. There had been strange contraptions hung on a high ceiling, and other like it on the floor below.

He led them forward towards the traffic. Once again, all of these members were distinguishable; ponies, bat ponies, griffons, and others alike. When the members in this facility saw Jolly Blade, they had all greeted him with smiling faces.

"Jolly Blade!" A pegasus stallion greeted, "How's it goin'?"

"Hey, Jolly!" A mare greeted.

So many ponies respect him, She pondered, He must be their leader, aside from Princess Luna.

"Wait! Jolly!!!" She heard Blackblade call out as he came up to them, quick as lighting.

"What?!" Jolly snapped.

"I understand what they did was wrong, but what makes this any better?!"

"Blackblade! They were sent to spy on us! By Princess Twilight, no less! We needed her to be on our side, to help combat the nezenites should they take up arms! I've told Applejack and her friends about the kaerndallens ordeal, they said they've considered, yet this is what Twilight does to us!"

She could see his expression looked angry and pained. She knew Twilight didn't trust them, but she never wanted to do this. Even though she and Dash will be enlisted, whatever respect they might have had would vanish entirely. The feeling of guilt overwhelmed her; even Rainbow Dash looked ashamed, and it usually takes a lot for that to happen.

"I don't think it takes a vision to know the consequences of these actions, Jolly!" Blackblade defended, "This is a rash decision Jolly, and you know it!"

"What do you expect me to do?" Jolly asked, irritated.

"Please Jolly," The bat pony implored, "Reconsider! Surely there must be another way; there has to be!"

"Why? I thought you wanted them to join."

"Well... yes but, not like this!"

There was a brief pause before Jolly made a final decision. "Like I said: I have no other choice. I'll meet you in the tavern when I get done with them; Luna knows I'll need a drink after this."

She never knew how strenuous enlisting can be. Much time was spent doing rigorous tests such as: height and weight measurements, hearing and vision examinations, blood tests, muscle group and joint maneuvers, and so forth. And then there was taking an oath of enlistment, which wasn't so bad to her or RD.

"Ah, Applejack," She had recited, "Do solemnly swear that Ah will support and defend the Equestrian Universal Defense against all enemies, foreign or domestic: that Ah will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that Ah will obey orders of Princess Luna and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Equestria justice. So help me Celestia."

Rainbow Dash had done the same. Afterwords, they were told by an officer that they will start basic training within a day or so. At least it gave them some time before training hard and fast. The same officer then showed them into a room with two cots and blankets. The officer left her and RD to themselves. Not long after, the same guy came back with food for them; oatmeal, nothing special. And that was the last they saw of him for now.

"Hey AJ?" Rainbow Dash asked while getting herself tucked in, "Can I tell you something private?"

"Um..." She honestly had no idea where this is going. "...sure? Go right ahead."

"Well you see... uhhh... Have you ever had a crush on somepony?"

"Huh? Uh... not that Ah know of. Why?"

"'Cause I um... may have a um..." Her speech trailed off to where she couldn't hear her.

"Say again?"

"Well I have... a... crrr..."

"Rainbow Dash, stop mutter'n an' just tell me! Who?"

Her friend groaned for sometime until she finally said it: "Blackblade. It's Blackblade."

"The bat pony?! Really?" She was both stunned, and amused, "Why him of all ponies?"

"Because he's... uh... f-f-fast?" Rainbow Dash stuttered, half telling the truth.

"He's fast? Really?" She knew that wasn't the reason, but left it alone; as she was pretty tired and wanted sleep.

*Yawning*

Applejack laid down on the sort of comfortable cot, wrapped herself up in her blanket, and did her best to try and sleep. This may probably be the only time she'll ever sleep comfortably. Training will most likely be the hardest part. She was then reminded of her siblings, and Granny Smith. She now feared if she will ever see them--or Twilight and her friends--again.