Author's Note

This is my first attempt to write an MLP story in English, at least a multi-chapter one. I'm already reaching the end of it, as I had the idea to pre-write the idea for each chapter when my muse was inspired and leaking juices all over the place, which had been a great help to continue this.

English is not my first language, so this story will have mistakes. I'm searching for help on a patient Beta-reader.

I claim nothing, MLP and its characters belong to Hasbro Inc, I make no monetary profit from this work... its not that original to begin with.

Game Over - Want to play again?

Game Over

“What ta hay?”

Game Over

“What's this? A joke? What happened?” Muttered Applejack as she tried to stand on to her hooves, her legs wavering for a few seconds, before she finally stood steady in front of the giant floating letters.

“This must be a joke... isn't it? Har Har Discord, ya rat...” She cried, still angry about the Draconequus betrayal. But not mattering how she waited for the letters to disappear, they didn't, and continued titillating in front of her increasing her frustration by the minute.

“Hello? Can anypony hear me? Twilight? Girls? Big Mac?” She tried to walk away from that spot, but not mattering how much she walked, the letters followed her. “This can't be the end... there must be more than this...”

Applejack didn't knew how long she walked, but after awhile she stopped trying. Seeing that she was going nowhere, despite her attempts.

“Ah thought that Ah was a good filly, Ah did mah chores, ah loved mah family. Ah saved ta world many times. Ah resisted the temptation to buck the life out of... Him... So why?” She closed her eyes, remembering her life, the good and the bad. It was a shame that she had sacrificed herself, yeah. But she did it for a good reason, Twilight was the key, that much she understood. So giving her life in exchange of the chosen one? There wasn't even a doubt on her soul that she did the right thing.

So why was she being punished like this?

Game over

Want to retry?

Yes No

Sighing, the palomino slowly walked toward the panel that insistently tried to capture her attention. It was obvious that whatever this was, it was the only way to get out of this place.

“Ah bet that this is another trick of that rat of Discord...” Quickly pressing yes, she was suddenly surprised to see the world around her suddenly change, as an huge screen appeared in front of her, also the sudden apparition of music caught her by surprise...

“What's that?... Mah Little pony, ta game?”.

She backed off, now slightly scared as she saw her friends and herself on the screen, fragments of her life passing in front of her eyes, with excruciating detail, every moment was resumed in front of her. Building up to an hurried end that hinted of an incoming enemy. The palomino just stood there, seeing the sequence repeat itself over and over, not comprehending what was happening, when, after who knew how much, a new panel appeared in front of her. Gray in color, with her name written in apple red.

Applejack quickly tapped it, seeing to her surprise that in front of her the panel took the form of Discord.

“Ah knew that this was yar fault!” She screamed, angered that she was again on another scheme of the creature. When, to her surprise Discord looked at her emptily and said:

“This is a message for Applejack, who's sacrifice marked the beginning of the end for our world: Honey, you weren't supposed to sacrifice yourself like that. Twilight would have survived unscathed, probably shaken a little, but unscathed no less.”

Applejack looked at the creature, recognizing the voice of Rarity, despite the body.

“Horse Apples...” Muttered the Palomino, feeling mightily dumb after hearing that her sacrifice had been for nothing.

“The magic that we thought vaporized you, instead send you to another universe, where we can't reach you properly, darling. We're your friends, all of us, and none could accept it, especially Twilight.”

“Tell her about how Twilight became a Nightmare, uh, uh, uh!!!”

“Easy, Pinkie. You already did. To summarize dear. Your parting caused Twilight to change, she annihilated that foul demon. But at the prize of her own sanity, as her body wasn't supposed to deal with such an amount of magic in such an unstable form...”

Applejack gasped, not believing what she was hearing, and was about to voice her displeasure to the empty eyed Discord, when to her surprise another voice began to talk.

“Applejack, my little pony. In the end, Twilight trapped all of us in a powerful spell to protect us. A powerful prison created with a twisted mix of love and despair. It doesn't need to be said that Nightmare Twilight hasn't deemed fit to give us back our magic. Fearing that we would break free of her magical trap, which we would...”

It was unbelievable to hear Celestia of all ponies speaking against her pupil. Especially as the situation seemed quite severe on their end.

“So in the end, we reached a compromise. Discord had been slowly recovering some of his chaotic magic with the passing of time. Enough to modify some things on your side. You're the only pony outside of Twilight control, so you would be the only one to conserve your memories intact once you choose to reset the reality. Please, I beg of you, guide Twilight better than I did. Do not let her commit the same mistake again...”

The more the palomino heard, the more she understood that her friends were waiting for her to make a decision, a really easy one if you asked her. Sure, it would be awkward at first. But that also meant that she would be back with her friends and family again. So not doubting it for even a single second, she tapped 'Yes'. And saw the empty world and the screen suddenly disappear as it reformed around her.

Congratulations, you have chosen to play again.
Choose your Name...
Choose your avatar...

“What da...”

In front of her a panel with a screen that showed the palomino a series of options about what to choose.

“Hooey, look at me! An Alicorn. Look mightily nice with wings and a horn Ah must admit.”

Alicorn: Unavailable...
Unicorn: Available...
Pegasus: Available...
Earth Pony: Available...

.

“Horse feathers... Ah knew that it was too nice to be true... why be another race, when Ah'm already happy with who Ah'm? ... it's easier this way...”

You selected: Earth Pony
Yes No

“Ah did...”

Choose your Family:

“This is going to be annoying quick”, added the mare as she was asked to make sure for even the slightest inch of information. Which took her far longer for her tastes.

You Selected: Applejack Apple
Yes No

“Of course Ah did, dang it!”

Select your race:

“What gives!!? Ah already selected. Also, ya can only be an Earth pony when you're an Apple...” The palomino immediately closed her mouth, as she saw new version of herself appear in front of her, all fully grown with an Apple motif.

Curious, she walked toward the winged Apple version of herself, and tapped it. Reading what it had to say about her.

Jacqueline Apple, Born on Fillydelphia, married to Big Macintosh... She was an active filly...

“Oh Goddess yes!... Ah always wanted to buck... err, Ah mean Nope! Nope! Nope!” The palomino quickly closed the panel, her cheeks completely rosy at what she had just read. Her breath was heavy and she was shuddering. Many of her most private and quite repressed thoughts quickly coming to the surface thanks to that.

“Horse apples! Ah thought that Ah got over it! Ah was a filly for Celestia's sake! A dumb filly that thought that she was married to her brother... and that along him she was raising their filly...” Shaking her head of her long repressed thoughts now resurfaced. She contemplated them:

“Yeah, many ponies gave us grief with that deal. But Ah can't blame them... Ah was a little possessive of him... but that was it... so no wings for me...”

Sunset Apple, Nee Leaf. Born on Ponyville, married to Big McIntosh...

“What gives! No, really, why? Its already hard to fight temptation every damn day! Ah'm not a going to sleep with mah deliciously looking bro... Damn-it!” Examining the panel and the story of the unicorn version of herself, the palomino soon realized that if she selected another race and wanted to become an Apple, she only could do that through marriage, and as she was firm to stay a mare, and wanted to live in Ponyville, Mac was quickly chosen for the spot. Curious of the results, she changed the city and race, finding that if she stayed in Manehattan, she became an Apple when her uncle of all ponies, cheated her aunt with her. “Bab's surely going to turn even worst if Ah do that...” Appleloosa? Then became the wife of Braeburn... yep.

She was doomed. But at least with him she had an second option that wasn't available, that of being his sister if she selected the Earth mare.

“Ah'm sorry, cousin. But ah don't like ya like that either, so no Appleloosa for me... even if Ah had a fantasy or two with ya and lots of ropes...”

She quickly selected her old good self, noticing to her satisfaction that she was then born an Apple. Which satisfied her needs, and put to rest her thundering heart. Though she had noticed that she could also select as an earth pony a different set of cities and towns to live by, where still available.

“Hooey, who would know? Pinkie and Ah really are cousins... Ah can also be her sis!... but, no. Sorry sweetheart, mah family needs me... and Ah love Ponyville too much. Also, I can't even select it... so that's it then...”

With a single tap on the panel, she quickly found herself as an earth mare, or more exactly an filly.

“Horse Apples! Ah'm a runt again! Nope, nope, nope! take me back, back Ah tell ya!”

Sadly, not mattering how much she tried to reverse it, she found that she couldn't do it. And that it only left her with a single choice.

“This is going ta suck... Ah know it...”