Blooming Talent 2: The Apple Falls Far

The hustle and bustle of busy work filled the area around where Apple Bloom and Goten rested inside the huge tent. The sun had sank considerably, but there was still plenty of the suns hot rays baking the seemingly endless sands of the desert.

Inside the tent, the southern anthro lay on the crude bed covered by cow hide blankets. She had noticed her pain had decreased slightly and the vile vein tree that covered her arm was no longer reaching her neck; it had receded. She wasn't quite sure how or why, and neither was her half-saiyan husband. Did it have something to do with the dogs that had brought them here? They had mentioned she was looking better when she initially met them. Maybe they knew what it was.

"..The Legacy Killer can't be contracted unless its hereditary..."

No; they DID know what it was, and therefore must have treated her with something.

"Goten..." She hoarsly croaked.

"AB," he exclaimed standing up quickly, and reaching for a canteen from a table. "Hold on a sec."

He brought the container to Apple Bloom's lips and tilted it slightly. The cold water instantly soothed the anthro's dry throat and she took several gulps before motioning that she was OK. Goten put the canteen back where it had originally been, and turned his attention back to his wife, looking her over for something.

She gently grasped his hand as she sat up ever so slowly. "Now, now, romeo, I'm OK...you don't have to treat me like a child."

"I know." Goten said, taking her hand into his. "I just want to make sure you're OK for my sake."

They laughed a little at each other.

"What? You gonna be lost without me?" She teased.

"Me and Carrot would both be lost without you, dear."

They both were silent for a moment at the mention of their son. Apple Bloom's eyes were downcast as she recalled random memories of holding her son in her arms or playing with him in the yard. She silently vowed that those would not be the last memories she and her son would make together.

The train of thought was stopped as they heard movement from the tent entrance. The couple looked over to see the smiling face of the male canine from earlier. Goten had told her his name was Ahkma.

He approached as if greeting an old friend. "I see you are feeling better, child. I hope you are in a better mood as well?"

She blushed a little remembering that she had tossed him for quite a loop on her first sighting of him. He noticed her embarrassment, and placed a big, furry paw on her shoulder.

"Worry not, dear." He said, beaming and chuckling. "Its not the first time I've been roughed up, and it certainly won't be the last."

"Still," She said. "I apologize..."

"No need." Ahkma responded just as warmly. "You were in rough shape. Its not every day someone survives an encounter with a sand leviathan."

"Sand leviathan?"

"That big monster we defeated out in the dunes." Goten reminded her. "Turns out its a pretty common predator around here."

"Well I wouldn't say common, but seeing one wouldn't be unusual either." Ahkma chortled.

Apple Bloom couldn't help but smile at how cheerful Ahkma was, even after what shed done when shed met him. He seemed to be someone they could trust. She also found it a little funny how his growls still made their way into his speech.

"I'm sure you're wondering just where you are, though, aren't you?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

This was true; she realized she hasn't even given that much thought beyond who and why. Shed neglected the where.

"You two are in my village on the far outskirts of the Saddle Arabian empire, near the base of an ancient rock formation from which we mine." Ahkma informed.

Apple Bloom's eyes widened at the mention of the Saddle Arabian empire. They were on the outskirts already? How long had she been out for? Days? Weeks?

She shook her head, deciding to find out later. Right now she was more concerned about how 'out' the outskirts were.

"Forgive my bluntless, mister Ahkma, but...you said we were on the outskirts of the Saddle Arabian Empires."

He nodded in affirmation.

"Exactly how far out is the imperial city?" She asked.

Ahkma seemed curious, and yet understanding of something. "Why would you wish to know something like that, child?"

"You see sir," Goten spoke. "our son was taken from us..."

"You think someone from the imperial city did this?"

"We know, actually. It was flat out told to us that he was Emperor Midas."

Ahkma's face became one of shock at the mention of the emperor's name. He'd always suspected, but he never thought Midas would--

"We are headed to where ever he is so that we can return our son home." Apple Bloom finished.

The canine male put a hand to his chin in deep thought. There was a moment of silence before he spoke again.

"Do you know why he took your son? Any hint at all?"

"They told us it was part of a political deal made at the most recent summit." Goten said, gritting his teeth at the memory of Piccolo delivering that message to him. "Some sort of...nuclear detergent or whatever against us.."

"And you are from Equestria then? Your wife's pony half is evidence to that."

"That's right." Apple Bloom confirmed.

Another bout of silence as Ahkma rubbed his chin. "Please let me shed some light on Emporer Midas, my friends."

The couple focused intensely on Ahkma as he sat down with the motion of a man who had a long story to tell.

"Emperor Midas is the seventy-sixth descendant of the royal family of Saddle Arabia, and his genetics and heritage are one in the same with his ancestors..."

***

Back during the last great war, Equestria and its allies made plans for a final assault on the last hostile country left in the conflict; Saddle Arabia. The emperor at that time was a military genius, and wouldn't be taken as easily as his defeated allies had been. Most of his side of the war has been held together by his empire alone. The battles involving Saddle Arabia more often than not ended with the Emperor's victory.

But it wasn't just his tactical genius that was formidable; his technology was and still is leaps ahead of the rest of the world, and his ruthlessness in dealing with the enemy was feared by all. His armies took no prisoners, and he gave no mercy. He gave no retreat.

When the time came to end the war, Princess Celestia herself led the armies as Supreme Commander in Cheif of the allied forces just for this one final battle. The fighting went on for days and nights, and slowly but surely, under Celestia's command, the allies were making their way into the imperial city. The Emperor, as you can imagine, was less than pleased.

Discarding tradition, he placed himself on the battlefield and fought the invadfingforces with his men; a noble act, I'll give him that. But when he came face-to-face with the Princess, it started going downhill.

He fought hard, and even managed to seriously injure one of Celestia's wings, but in the end, he was no match for the goddess of the sun.

She struck the emperor down, and seemed to have just ended the war. But it doesn't end there.

The emperor had a son, of course, and before the battle had sealed him away to protect him from harm. Celestia found him, and slaughtered the guards keep in watch. As is evident by Midas' existence today, she did not kill the colt; she did something much worse.

In some twisted form of lookin out for the future, Princess Celestia cast a terrible curse upon the young new Emperor. This curse was a slow moving, cancer-like debilhitater which acted like a disease that would attack the heart. She did this so that instead of war to expand the Saddle Arabian empire, the ruler would be spending his life trying to find a wife to birth the next emperor before the current would perish.

That wouldn't have been such a bad thing, except that it was found that the curse was hereditary; passed on to the children of he current emperor. As the generations of the royal family continued, the life spans became shorter and shorter until one day, under the rule of Midas' grandfather, a new hope came to them.

A multicolored bolt of lightning struck down in the rockier regions of the desert near Saddle Arabia's outskirts, and the emperor sent troops to discover what had happened. What they found was that the stone now contained a new type of mineral; one unseen by any before.

Being a technology and science driven state when not at war, the Saddle Arabian scientists immediately went to work on finding ways to use this new mineral. Eventually they found a very important use.

In a liquified state, the strange mineral actually contained magical medical properties so powerful that they were able to synthesis it into what they hoped would be a cure for the royal family's curse. It worked, but only to an extent.

The mineral was more like a suppressor than a cure for he mystical plague that burdened the royal bloodline. It could slow the disease severally, but could not get rid of it.

After Midas' grandfather passed from the disease, his son, Midas' father, had his strategists think of some way they could overcome is. They figured that they may find a new Saddle Arabian bloodline to take the royal line's place, but the emperor knew that the royal line produced the strongest warriors in the country, and anything less wouldn't do.

By the time Midas came to power, all hope seemed to be lost. He had one daughter not too many years ago, and his wife passed before they could conceive a son from some other illness. Just as he touht his empire was doomed, he remembered...he remembered the saiyans.

***

"He'd heard of your exploits in Equestria during the Sapphic incident." Ahkma continued. "He must have also figured out about your son. He needs a strong new bloodline to take the throne of Saddle Arabia, and eventually take revenge upon the Equestrians for their curse upon his family. That is why he really took your son, child...he wants to turn him into a weapon of vengeance...not a deferent against violence."

Apple Bloom and Goten looked at each other worriedly.

"So you're saying that Midas manipulated Princess Luna into giving him our son just so he can mold him into a monster to take his kingdom over after he wipes all of us out? " Apple Bloom exclaimed, just to be sure.

"It is so." Ahkma confirmed. "The royal family have a deep seated hatred of Equestrians ever since the day of he final battle. Now that he has a young child with a strong bloodline like yours, he can finally both save his country and destroy yours with one pawn."

Apple Bloom was shaking in her skin; her little boy...nothing more than a war machine about to be feuled by vengeance not his own.

"That bastard..." She shakily breathed.

Goten too was finding it hard to remain calm now. This news was disturbing, and proved that Midas wasn't strong enough to wage war on Equestria aftrall. It had all been an empty threat to obtain the power to make good on it later.

Ahkma sighed and pulled a vial out of his leather vest. The glowing blue glass tube caught the couples' attention briefly, and sparked their curiosity.

"What's that?" Goten asked.

"This is the miracle mineral that suppresses the Legacy Killer; the curse on the royal family." Ahkma explained. "This is the Legacy Suppressor. "

"Is that what you gave me to make me feel a little better?" Apple Bloom questioned.

Ahkma nodded. "And if you wish to stay out of pain for now, I have to inject you again right now. Otherwise, it will start spreading again."

Apple Bloom nodded and watched as the dog walked over and stuck the needle into her flesh at her outer shoulder. He injected the glowing blue liquid into her, and instantly, her pain started to go away even more. The vile vein tree receded further down her arm, and she regained a little more control over it.

"Thank you." She told him, moving her hand around experimentally. "You must be taking a risk giving this to me if the Emperor has people looking for it too."

"It is a risk alright...but not because of anyone that might come take it.."

She looked over at him with a bit of a confused look.

"Its a risk because...because me and my clansmen are the ones who mine it for Emperor Midas ourselves.."