A rising sun over the once beautiful farm. Chilled from the night, now warming from the suns rays. As the light brightened, dead acres of apple trees and orchards could now be easily seen. No birds were chirping, no animals could be heard at all. In the distance, nothing could be heard from the once busy and peaceful town of Pony Ville. Even from the farms distance, falling ash, smoke, and the now dying fires could still be seem. The farm itself was no different. The only building that was still standing was the farm house. The barn, chicken coop, and other farm related buildings have been reduced to ash and rubble. The farm house was only barely standing. There were holes in the roof, all the windows boarded, and the houses usual red paint coating had turned brown.
Soon the sun rose high enough for the dark night to truly be declared over. Once that time came, a wicked laugh could be heard from within the distance. Same time, same voice, everyday. Laughter, coming from a location no one knows of. Laughter, ringing in the ears of every living being in the country. Laughter, mocking those who have survived the night.
Laughter, to those who are still alive.
From within the barn house, a sleeping mare had awoken to the sound of laughter. She rubbed her eyes and groaned as the laugh rung in her ears for several minutes. Once it had stopped, she looked to the clock on her bedside table and saw that it was eight o clock. She lifts herself from her bed, places a brown torn Stetson on her head, then walks to the door. As she does so, so turns and takes a quick look at a metal panel attached to her wall. The panel had "Traps" written in red paint above it. On the panel were five glowing red lights. All of the lights were on. She nods approvingly, then walks down stairs.
Once down stairs she notices that something is off. The smell of fresh food being cooked was not present. She looks into the kitchen and finds it empty. Cursing, the mare turns to the stairs and yells her sisters name. When no response came, she yelled again and again. The mare cursed on the third shout and ran back up the stairs, into her sisters room.
She broke the door open, approached her sisters bed, and aggressively rips off the blankets and sheets. Only to find the bed unoccupied. As she looked around the room, confused, she notices that the room does not appear the way it had currently the night before. The closet was empty, several items are missing, and the once boarded window now had a large hole broken into it. She runs to the hole and looks outside. She saw that several layers of blankets had been tied together, tied to the bed, and from there extended out the hole in the window. This made a safe rope ladder (or blanket ladder) for any one to climb down from the second floor. She also saw three sets of hoof step, running off into the distance.
Cursing and punching another hole into the wall. The mare bolted down the stairs and was about to burst through the front door, until something stopped her. A letter was taped to the front door, with a picture stapled to it. She snatched the letter off the door and started reading.
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Dear Applejack.
If you are reading this then you have ~~probably~~ discovered that I have ran away. You are furious and about to run out the door after me. Please, calm down and ~~listen~~ read what I have to say. I've been keeping this to myself for a long time, because I was scared. Every time I spoke out to you, you would become angry and aggressive. I stayed silent, in fear that you would hurt me more then you already have. I now see that this was wrong. I know life has been difficult for you, it has been difficult for everypony. Everypony is suffering after what Pinkie did. Although I don't know why she did it, I do know that what she did has hurt every one. Every one is hurting, so I felt that the way you were treating me is wrong. Yes you lost all your friends, yes all of the elements are dead, yes Big Mac, Granny Smith, and a bunch of our family is dead. Well guess what, its not just you! I lost Babs, I lost Twist, and I never thought that I would miss Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon bulling me. But I do! I miss them so much! The only ones I haven't lost is Sweetie and Scoots, and their suffering just as much as you and I. Scoots never had a family, so she felt that Rainbow Dash was the closest thing she had to a sister. When Rainbow Dash died, she ran away, or tried to that is. She didn't make it very far before those things that Pinkies controlling got to her, and she didn't make it through. Luckily, a friendly changling saved her life by putting her in a cocoon for a while. Not sure how that saved her life, but it did. Although she did change once she was out. Nothing to drastic, its mostly just her appearance. That and she can only eat love now. And Sweetie Bell didn't take her sister dying to well either. She went crazy, and tried to avenge her sister. I don't know what she did, and she won't tell Scoots or I, but she regrets doing it. She went missing for almost a year. When she returned her body was made of metal, and her voice sounded all funny. She looks like one of those robots from those comics Big Mac liked to read. She can't eat normal food either, and she can't go near water (she says the water makes her feel funny). Then there's me, and you know EXACTLY what happened to me. Which brings me to the point on why I am telling you about Sweetie, Scoots and I. All of us, not just you, but all of us are survivors. We were all there when Pinkie attacked everypony with that dark smoky stuff. We all had to watch as ponies left and right were torn to shreds. We all ran in panic to escape. We all survived. And we all changed after it was over. All of us changed after Pinkie attacked us. WE WERE ALL SCARRED!!! NOT JUST YOU!!! ALL OF US!!! We all made it out of Pony Ville. Not just you! Sweetie, Scoots, and I made it out of there alive just as much as you did. So why? Why is it that even though we feel just as much pain as you do, why did you have to go and do that to me? Why did you hit me when I talked back? Why did you hurt me when I didn't do my chores or woke up early enough to make breakfast? Why did you have to go and kill me? Why Applejack? Why did you kill me? I just don't understand. Scootaloo died, Sweetie probably died (we honestly don't know), and now I've died. Now we all have to live the rest of our lives knowing how it feels to die. Worst of all is how I felt when my own sister killed me. So why Applejack? Why is it that after everything We've gone through, you still feel that its okay to hurt me, just because your suffering? Scoots, Sweetie and I are suffering even worse then you are, and none of us would ever lay a hoof on you. So why did you do it? I think I know the answer. I'm assuming you heard her this morning? Every morning when all of the darkness from the night is gone, revealing a new day, she laughs. Its not in your head, everypony can hear her. Pinkie Pie, laughing at us, at the survivors. Laughing because she knows that daytime won't last forever, and when night comes, her fun can start again. That's what everypony thinks, but is that really the reason she laughs? Same time everyday, why? Why does she laugh at that time everyday?
Her laugh scares everypony, making them feel that the end is soon to come. But not you Applejack, you don't feel fear, do you? You don't feel anything, except guilt. Every time you hear that laugh you are reminded of your failure. You were one of the Elements of Harmony, but its your element that makes you feel worse. You are the Element of Honesty, you can detect when anypony is lying from a mile away. So how did you not detect when Pinkie was lying about the missing ponies. When Rainbow Dash went missing, and you asked Pinkie where she had gone, how come you couldn't tell that Pinkie was lying? That's the thing though, isn't it? You did notice that she was lying. You saw it, didn't you? Pinkie was lying and you know it. But she was your friend, and you couldn't bear the undeniable truth that Pinkie was the one behind all of those ponies missing. So you chose to take her word for it. You chose to believe in Pinkie even though she was lying. And when Pinkie killed everypony, you felt that it was all your fault. And I'm going to be honest, it was. All of this Is your fault. If only you had stopped Pinkie from the moment you saw she was lying, maybe everypony would still be alive. And this is how you feel. You aren't suffering because of the loss of so many, and the pain you have had to endure. You are suffering because you know that this is all your fault. And when you hear Pinkie laugh in the morning, you are reminded of your failure, how you are the one who caused all this. And if you ask me, I think that this is the real reason why Pinkie laughs. She's laughing because she knew that you knew she was lying. And she laughs, because you could have stopped her, and you didn't. She knows that you chose to let her live, and she also knows that your still alive. When you hear her laugh, you take that as a reminder of your failure, well that's exactly what she's doing. When she laughs, she specifically does it just so she can remind you of your failure.
I could be wrong, but this is just why I think Pinkie laughs in the morning. But Applejack, I think that this is why you hurt me. You hurt me because you couldn't except your failure. That everyponies blood is on your hoofs. That's why you hurt me, because you couldn't except reality for the way you made it.
I was too afraid to speak out to you because you would hurt me. But I now see that this is equally my fault as it is your fault. I should have spoken to you about this from the moment you started cursing at me. I could have stopped you or at least tried to stop you from progressing to the point of actually hurting me. If it didn't work, I could have ran away sooner, with Sweetie and Scoots. Maybe then they wouldn't be the way they are now. If only we had all ran away sooner. But I didn't do that. I chose to stay silent, I chose to let you continue hurting me. And now I realize that I shouldn't have done that. I've made the exact same mistake that you made. I let it happen, and now everything's gone bad.
Now the crusaders and I are stuck like this, scarred from everything that has happened. And although we still have each other, we'll never be the same as we used to be. As for you sister, you are far from ever being yourself ever again. You yourself are also scarred. All four of us have marks that will never go away. Permanent marks.
Applejack, the reason I wrote this letter was not to make you feel bad or tell you that you are a bad pony. I'm writing you this so that I can tell you what your doing, so that you can fix it. Something that I should have done a long time ago. But its too late for me to tell you face to face, I'm just too scared. After that night you, well, "did away with me", I became too scared to so much as even think about you. But I still felt that somepony needed to tell you what your doing. So that hopefully you can change it.
I know that its too late to fix what's already happened. Everyponies gone, and that's just something we'll have to except.
But you Applejack, your still alive. Your still breathing, and eating, and sleeping, and doing all the things that every living pony can do! Your mind may be a little broken, but this is what makes you different between you and the crusaders. Your still alive! And you still have the chance to change! You don't have to change the things that are happening around you, just change who you are. I know you big sis, you would never hurt me. You would never ever let me get hurt, let alone die. You are brave, and honest, and the most strongest pony that I know (besides from Big Mac)! The way you are acting now, this isn't you big sis. You would never do any of the things that you have done. But your letting the guilt get to you. You've hidden the real you away with all of the guilt and depression. But please sis, please! Don't hide anymore. Come on out of that shell your hiding in. I know things aren't ever going to get better, buts its time to except the way things are and stop hiding! Please big sis, please stop hiding, please come back. Please?
I don't really know how you will act after reading this. You might get angry and storm out the door to find me. Or you might sit down and realize that I'm right. But before you decide, I want you to read what's left.
I know it hurts, and I really do feel your pain. But its time to except the way that things are. And that's exactly what I have done. I could have ran away a long time ago, even after you killed me. But I chose to stay longer, because I was hoping that you would stop acting the way you are. But I was wrong, you never stopped. So now I've accepted the way things are and moved on. I'm gone now, gone with the crusaders. By the time you read this letter I will either be miles away, or dead (again). I don't want you to come after me Applejack, I want you to stay at the farm. If you are going to leave, please leave and find somewhere safe, just don't come after me. I've moved on, and I want you to do the same.
Please big sis, before I go. Before I leave you forever I just want you to do me one last thing. Just one last thing, for me? Please, just please, remember who you are. You are an Apple big sis! Remember what it is to be an Apple.
You are an Apple. And Apples stick together, no matter what.
I love you Applejack, and I always will. Goodbye.
Love, Applebloom.
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Applejacks hoofs shook as she finished the letter. "H-How did she-" she stuttered, unable to finish her sentence. Tears fell from her eyes and onto the letter.
Slowly she looked to the picture that was stapled to the letter. It was a picture of Applejack, Applebloom, Big Mac, and Granny Smith. All of them were smiling and close together in front of the barn.
Applejack placed her hoof to her mouth and started crying. She fell to the ground, and didn't bother trying to get up.
She didn't know how her sister knew all that was said in the letter. She did know, however, that everything in the letter was true. She did feel guilty, she did hurt Applebloom, and she's the reason why her sister is now gone.
She laid on the floor, crying for several hours, unaware of the time that was passing.
Eventually, hours had passed, and the sun had gone down.
Not too long after that, Applejack suddenly heard an alarm go off from upstairs. Simultaneously, she heard stomping hoofs and shouts from outside.
She didn't care, she didn't care about anything.
She didn't care that one of the lights on the metal panel upstairs was blinking. She didn't care that the sound of traps could be heard setting off outside.
She didn't care that her traps were not working.
She continued to lay there, in the middle of the floor, as a horde of ponies could be heard approaching closer and closer.
From upstairs, more of the lights were blinking, until all of them were flashing rapidly. The alarm had gotten louder, and More traps could be heard setting off. Explosions, ranged weapons firing, fire igniting. All of these were set off, yet the horde did not stop. The sound continued to approach closer to the farm house.
Suddenly, the sound of hoofs banging against the wall could be heard all of the house. The ponies were trying to break in from every angle of the house. The sides, front, back, and roof.
Yet, Applejack still didn't care. She continued to lie on the ground, thinking of nothing but Applebloom. She didn't care when the banging sounds turned to crashing and breaking sounds. She didn't care when she heard ponies fall through the roof and into the second floor. She didn't care as the horde successfully broke into her home and made there way to her.
