Rush

"Damn, this still hurts!" complained the human as he was walking through the Everfree forest at a slow pace.

Earlier when he rushed to the screams, he encountered the timberwolves (wolves made out of wood) cornering a yellow-coated filly with a red hair and tail. The poor pony looked scared and was desperately calling for help. Not wanting to see the filly die, the human shot four of the timberwolves to get their attention. While he kept the timberwolves at bay, he yelled at the filly to run back home, which thankfully she did. He was able to easily kill the timberwolves by shooting at them in their heads. Unfortunately the last one got to him because he ran out of ammo, allowing the timberwolf to pounce on him and bite his left forearm. If it wasn't for the metal bracer, the human would have lost his arm and could have bled to death. Still the sharp wooden animal somehow manage to penetrate the bracer and sink its teeth into the skin. The human reacted quickly by pulling his glock out of his jacket and fired five shots at the wooden predator's neck.

When the battle was over, the human took off the bracer and had to treat his arm with the first-aid, which he always brought with him in his rucksack. The animal's teeth thankfully did not go in deep, but he was still bleeding nonetheless. He cleaned the blood away with water and cloth, put some alcohol on the wound to kill the infection, and then wrapped his forearm with bandages and white wraps. It would have to do for now because he needed to keep moving.

Right now the human was holding his left arm, wanting to keep it elevated. He put his first aid and his broken bracer in his rucksack and holstered his reloaded M4 over his shoulder.

"I need to be careful next time. That encounter could have been worse," the human muttered. "Then again, a life was at stake and I couldn't hesitate."

He knew that the filly was a sentient being and that it was a 'she', on account of its earlier cry for help. While his rescue effort caused damage to his arm and he would have to take it easy for awhile, at least he can sleep well knowing that a family is going to be happy that their child is back home safe. That alone gives him inner peace despite his circumstances. He smiled at the thought.

As he was moving through the trees, he spotted a wooden fence stretching long to his right and left, as far as he can see in either direction. Behind the fence were rows and rows of apple trees. He could smell the fresh scent coming out of those red-looking fruits.

"If there is a wooden fence here, then someone must live here," The human said, as he jumped to the other side of the fence and started looking for the owner. The apples looked tempting to eat and he was very hungry after the hard day he was having, especially those long walks through the woods and his fight with the timberwolves. But he's not a thief. He's a firm believer in private property rights and would never venture to take someone else's possession without asking their permission first. "Jeez, this property is huge!” The human said in admiration of the size of the property. "The owner of this place is very blessed indeed."

While the human was walking through the acres, he contemplated on his plan of action in Ponyville. He is first going to look for someone who would be willing to hire him. While others see 'jobs' as a necessity to survive, which is true if one is honest with themselves, he just enjoys the concept of earning his pay. He despises those people back on earth who wanted to get stuff for free, not caring how much 'free stuff' costs for those who would have to pay for them. When one contrasts between getting money for free and earning it through your labor and skills, the latter leaves you with a sense of accomplishment, which is always a good feeling.

If he's fortunate to have a job in Ponyville, he's hoping he can save up in order to buy his own land, where he could build a house for himself. It may take a long time, but he's hoping Ponyville will offer him an opportunity to develop a place he can call his own. For now, he's content with living in the forest and surviving out there. He's been doing it for a year and he's still walking tall. There's probably more on the list for him to do in Ponyville, but for now having a job and owning a land are his main priorities. Nothing else can be accomplished until he fulfills those two goals.

During his walk, he spotted a red barn with a wooden cart next to it. Finally! I hope someone's nearby. He walked in the barn's direction. As he was getting close, he felt his rucksack getting heavier, probably because of the pint of blood he lost. Wanting to lighten his load and not scare off his potential employer, he took off his rucksack, his sword and his M4 and put it up in a tree within the branches, making a mental note on where he can find it. He continued with his glock pistol still holstered in his jacket.

Just in case.

As he got near the barn door, he saw an orange-coated pony inside, whose head reached up to his chin (he was six feet tall) and was wearing a brown stetson hat. Huh. This is new. A pony with a cowboy hat, he thought as he smirked. I wonder what I'm going to run into next. A pegasus with every color of the rainbow? Now that would be funny. He shook his head from the thought. No time to think such funny moments, now he's gotta make his first impression with the first pony he will meet.

The pony was looking at the apples in the baskets, throwing bad apples in one box and placing good ones in a barrel. "Ya git over here....ya git over there.....another rotten apple," the pony said as it was sorting through the apples.

Huh. It's a 'she' and it sounds like an American southerner. I love southerners! They are my most favorite people in America! The man smiled at the thought.

The human approached the pony's rear, who wasn't able to hear him for some reason.

"Excuse me mam," the human called.

"WHAT IN TARNATION!"

SMACK

The pony kicked her hind legs at the man's chest, sending him out of the barn and in the air. He tumbled on the ground and landed on his back. He lay there all dizzy for a few minutes. When he recovered, he sat up and looked at the orange pony who was standing five feet in front of him. She looked like she was in a fighting stance, waiting for him to make the first move. The human rubbed his chest and groaned at the pain he received, keeping his hand close to his pistol in case he needs to pull it out. He noticed that he was thirty feet away from the barn. Damn! I never thought ponies would be so tough. I won't be underestimating them again.

"What the hay are ya and what are ya doin' in mah property?" the pony demanded.

The human would have laughed at the term 'hay' if he wasn't upset. He was getting agitated and felt tempted to shoot the pony, but he calmed himself before speaking. "Mam, I'm new here. So maybe you can tell me. Is this how you say hello?" He pointed at his chest.

"Is sneaking on somepony in their property normal where where ya from?" she retorted.

The human paused for a moment. He realized his mistake earlier. So much for first impressions. "Point taken. Sorry about that."

"Ya better be. Now state yer name and business!" She demanded, still in her fighting stance.

The human wasn't liking her attitude at all. He had to use all of his energy to calm himself down. The pony made a valid point though. He would have done the same thing if the roles were reversed, especially if someone came and announced their presence from behind. In all the troubles he's experienced in this dimension, only a few were his fault. He regretted those decisions and doesn't want to make matters worse with the orange pony because of his anger issues. He stayed seated so that he wouldn't look like he was challenging the pony and took a deep breath before speaking.

"First of all, I'm very sorry for sneaking up on you and for trespassing your property. It was not my intention to scare you. I'm mean you no harm."

The pony took some time to register what the human said. She narrowed her eyes at him, like if she was reading him. She was probably having a hard time doing so because of the sunglasses he was wearing. She looked at his whole body as well, bearing the expression of both tension and curiosity. She looked back at his eyes and then slowly approached him, not changing her tense expression. The human kept his hand close to his pistol, not wanting to shoot the pony but wanting to be prepared just in case. He did not want to ruin his chance at having a peaceful life here and was hoping that the pony would not try to strike him again. When the pony got within two feet, she stopped and looked at his arms and legs. The human couldn't tell what she was thinking and didn't understand why she was interested in his limbs.

"Ah wonder..." she muttered and then looked at him in the face. The human was getting more nervous at the suspension, hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. "Next time, don't ya sneak on somepony again. Ya can get hurt ya know." She said with a smirk.

The human relaxed but kept his hand close to his weapon. The pony relaxed and approached him, slowly extending her hoof towards him. "Need a hoof there pardner?" the pony asked with a friendly smile.

The human stared at the pony, a little speechless at the friendly gesture. After a year of harsh encounters, it felt nice receiving goodwill from this pony. He gave a small smile and grasped the hoof, as the pony helped him up. The pony examined his appearance, slowly looking down and up at him. The human was guessing that she was trying to take in as much detail in his appearance as possible.

"So," the pony said as she looked up at him, not looking intimidated at all. "What are ya and what's yer name?"

"I'm a human and my name is Rush."

"Rush, eh? Like ya rushing into trouble?" She smirked.

Rush shook his head and chuckled. "It's been a long time since I heard that joke." The pony laughed a little. Rush looked around and asked, "You the owner of this property?"

The pony's face brightened and she extended her hoof around in pride. "This here is Sweet Apple Acres. The pride and joy of the Apple family." She then turned to me with a warm smile. "Mah name's Applejack."

Wow! That's a lot of apple terminology there.

Rush smiled at a funny thought. "So your name's Applejack, huh? Like that famous drink. All we're missing now is a few glasses and we can drink up until there's no tomorrow." Rush finished by pretending to hold a drink in his hand.

To his surprise, Applejack laughed and then said, "Hehehehehe. Ah haven't heard anypony use mah name as a joke since Ah was a filly. Mah family use ta own that drink until we sold it off many years ago."

"Is that so?" Rush replied, finding it interesting that both dimensions have the same drink with the same name. He also noticed that instead of saying 'anybody' or 'somebody', she would say 'anypony' or 'somepony.' The Ponyville vocabulary is definitely going to take some time to get use to.

"So what brings ya here ta this parts?"

"I was wondering if you can offer me some work. I've been looking for ways to earn money. If you're worried about my lack of experience in farming, I can assure you that I'm a fast learner and will work very hard at the tasks you give me. All I ask is for a chance."

Applejack narrowed her eyes at him while she scratched her chin with her hoof. Then she put her hoof down and smiled. "We can always use some help around here." Then her smile went away. "Unfortunately, Ah won't be able ta pay ya fer the next four weeks."

"Why?" Rush asked while raising his eyebrow.

"Some of mah trees got destroyed, and we need as much bits as possible ta help us pay ta replace 'em."

Bits? Is that what they call the currency here? He was disappointed that he won't be getting money anytime soon, but he's gotta take what he can and build up from there. Plus, Sweet Apple Acres is probably the only avenue he can use to earn the trust of Ponyville.

"Can I still work here anyway? Maybe I can show you what I'm made off," Rush asked.

Applejack nodded and replied, "Absolutely. Ya can..." Her eye caught something on Rush's left hand and she was taken aback. "Hey, what happened ta yer left...er, thingamajig! Yer bleedin'!"

Rush knew exactly what she was talking about and looked at his left arm. Blood was slowly leaking out again. He folded his jacket sleeve to take a better look, wincing at the pain in the process. My bandages must have gotten loose without me noticing. Probably happened when Applejack kicked me and I landed wrong. Applejack gasped at the sight of the arm and looked at the human with concern.

"I got this scratch from the timberwolves I've encountered today. Brutal creatures if you ask me," Rush said while looking at his wound.

"Timberwolves?" Applejack asked while she narrowed her eyes at Rush. Then she gasped like if she just figured something out. "So YA WERE the one who saved Applebloom!"

"Who?" Rush asked in confusion.

"Ah'll tell ya later," Applejack replied and motioned for him to follow her. "We need ta get that...thing fixed. Come with me quick."

"Lead the way," Rush said as he followed the farm pony.

Applejack trotted and was leading Rush to a house the Apple family owns. The place looks like a red barn house with white doors and windows, and has a grayish-purple roof. There's a front porch with a roof on top.

Wow. A true farmer's house. How interesting. Rush thought.

When they were twenty feet away from the house, Applejack suddenly stopped, with Rush doing the same and was wondering what was going on. Applejack's ears perked up the same way a dog does when they pick up a sound. Applejack immediately turned around and looked up at the sky behind the human. Rush did the same and saw a rainbow blur heading towards him and-

SMACK!

He felt a pair of hooves strike him at the chest, making him tumble in reverse until his back and head hit a wall, causing him to black out.