Let Freedom Ring

Prologue

Apples. The mushy remains of apples, along with those unharmed, were splattered and rolling all over the dirt, mixing along with blood slicking around like a rattlesnake. She knew they should of stayed waited on the train after it broke down, but she didn’t want to waste anymore time, being only 5 more miles from Appaloosa. Applejack really wished her big brother could have came with her, but he had to stay at the farm to take care of Granny Smith and Apple Bloom, of course. She stiffly turned her head to look around her, implanted on the ground. Peachy Sweet and Golden Delicious were dead, except Apple Fritter, who was whimpering as she writhed on the ground. Applejack made an effort to crawl towards her, until she felt the barrel of a rifle touch her back.

“Not a muscle, sweetheart.” warned a grave voice. She felt the dirt shift as a stallion kneeled down beside her. “Mother of Celestia, ain’t you one?”

Applejack didn’t flinch as the unseen stallion stroked his hoof from her blonde mane all the way to her cutie mark.

“Celerity!” called a more smoother voice. “Any of them still alive?”

“Yes, sire-eee.” chuckled Celerity. “Take a look at this ‘un!”

Applejack attempted again to try to get up. Without hesitation, the stallion firmly pushed her back down with the butt of the gun.

“I said stay down! Stupid bitch.” muttered Celerity.

“We-he-he-he-hell, she is quite a pretty filly.” the other pony said. “The other three dead?”

“Sure those two are, I shot them in the head.”

“Great, now that takes away 2,000 bits from what we could’a been paid...”

“Hey, that green-haired one seems live. Could definitely get a bargain from the Gristles with sugar apple over here, though.”

“‘S not only looks they look for, you know. What do you see in this one?”

“Ah know, not only that. You see those legs, she looks like she’s been buckin’ apples her whole life.”

“Implying they own an apple farm.”

“Who, the Gristles or this one?”

“The Gristles.”

“Oh - well they don’t. What I mean is, she certainly looks like a hard worker.” Celerity turned AJ on her back. She looked up to see an Earth pony and a unicorn standing over her, one wearing a slouch hat and the unicorn wearing the usual cowcolt hat, both wearing a bandana over their mouths. The sun shining bright above their heads made it impossible to identify them. “You’re a hard worker? Are ya?”

In response, she spit on his eye.

Reflexively, he smacked her on the cheek with his rifle and fell back with the force of the swing.

“SHIT!”, he got back up and pinned AJ down again with his gun. “Listen here, honey. For a while I hoped when you’d be sold like the little fucking pet you will be, you would be treated with luxury and sweetness. But just for that, I will tell you right now. You will suffer, you will be chained to a wall and be whipped until the sun sets and you will be branded with a sign over that cutie mark you have. You - will - live - in agonizing pain.”

“Calm down, Celerity.” The calm stallion sighed. “She can’t even see or hear straight right now. And c’mon, we’ve fooled around long enough standing in the middle of nowhere, chain them up and put ‘em on the wagon. We’ll need to head back home before dusk, then we’ll get to selling these ponies tomorrow.”

Celerity continued to stare into AJ’s face.

“Well,” he snickered. “You heard Legerity, time for the four of us to get movin’. And soon you’ll see your new happy home! Heh heh heh...” The stallion then began the drag Applejack by her two hind legs as Legerity did so to Apple Fritter.

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Chapter 1

Two weeks later...

Marshal Cornfield looked across the seemingly endless acres of apple trees. The thought of only two ponies bucking through each and every one of them seemed impractical. He had a pleasant time walking himself over through Ponyville, most notably being enthusiastically greeted by that pink pony who seemed as if she had a sixth sense for spotting anypony new at an instant.

“Sweet Apple Acres...” the marshal muttered through the cigarette in his mouth as he panned his head over to what looked like to be a barn.

Cornfield was on his way to knock on the door of the two-story house standing at the other side of the land until he saw a red, cumbersome-looking stallion pushing a bay of hale out the side of the barn.

“Excuse me, young stallion.” he called out as he approached. “You must be Big Macintosh? Your cousin, Braeburn, told me you were the one to talk to in this part of the Apple Family.”

Big Mac gave a quick glance to Cornfield but continued with moving the hay.

“Eeyup,” He responded. The marshall then followed suit.

“He also mentioned a grandmother that you have, and t-.... one sister living here?”

“They’re at the marketplace.”

“Not a pony of much words, ain’t ya?”

“Nope.”

“... Well look, Mr. Macintosh, it’s not like I traveled across the desert so we can converse about bunnies, I know you know well the exact reason why I came here.”

Mac sighed and turned to look back at Cornfield. “We’ll talk...” He ceased aimlessly pushing the hay and trudged back to the house.

They then both walked inside the house. When inside, Mac gestured Cornfield to sit on a purple couch by the front window.

“Would you like a smoke?” offered Cornfield. As he expected, he simply said “Nope” again and shook his head.

“Anyways, um.” The marshall paused for moment to brood over what he’d say. “About your sister, the older one... we know she, along with the other Apple relatives, have been attacked, or ambushed not far away from Appleloosa by possibly a gang or whatsoever. Why they were just in the desert, I don’t exactly know. Apparently, when the train they were riding on broke down, they might have just decided to hike for it.”

Big Mac glanced back a look of grief.

“Yes.” answering his stare. “I’m not done yet, though. When site was found, there’re only two bodies dead. One, a greenish-yellow colored mare, and the other, a brown stallion. Both, Earth ponies. And well, they were - shot right in the head.”

“Peachy Sweet... and Golden Delicious.” Mac recalled with the same face.

“Those were their names, huh? In spite of that, however, of course, it could have meant your sister, Applejack and this other pony, is still alive.”

This time, a small feeling of optimism grew on Big Mac’s face.

“That, though, is part of the bad news. She is still missing. And we have an idea of what happened to her. She and the other pony may have been abducted. To be sold, as slaves, that is. A couple of infamous gangs, clans or posses have formed ever since towns like Appleloosa or Dodge Junction were established, all of them known for kidnapping random ponies. There is one group whom we’re sure is holding them captive, however, and they’re named the Gristle Brothers. Why them, through an informant, is that they buy other ponies from whoever works for them so they can get a cheap amount of bits. We know that, but we’re unaware of is where these slaves are sent.”

Cornfield held his tongue to wait for Mac to say something back, but he continued his stare.

“Well, Mr. Macintosh. It has been nice strolling in Ponyville,” he said as he stood up. “but I must head on over back to the West to abide with the-”

“I’m coming with you.” Mac interrupted.

The marshal chuckled back, for he thought he was joking.

“To stay at Appleloosa? Mr. Macintosh, please, I’ve only come here to deliver you news, for the Apple Family.”

Mac straightened up his body and marched over to Cornfield, until they both faced each other at eye level.

“I mean, to help you look for my sister.”

The smile quickly dropped down from the blue Earth pony’s face.

“Son, I admire your audacity. But you still have a grandma and a sis’ to tend to.”

“AJ has friends who can do that.”

“There’s one particular part you don’t get about this, Mr. Macintosh.” Cornfield grimaced. “When you’ll help me, you, of course, are putting your own life at risk. Imagine what would happen AJ finally fell into the safety of a group of Mild West marshals, to then find out her big brother was killed on the way?”

Without a doubt, his plea didn’t affect Mac at all, he still maintained the stare he has been keeping up for the past few minutes.

“You, also don’t understand one ‘particular’ thing, marshal... Applejack is family, my loving sister since we were foals... Not because one thing sounds too chancy, will I not leave her side... Even if we have to step hoof on every speck of dirt on the Mild West.”

Cornfield smiled back at Mac, but now with high respect. For somepony to have true determination and grit was certainly something that he hasn’t seen for a while.

“Well now. Pack your things quick, the train back to Appleloosa will be leaving in about twenty minutes.”

“What’s stopping us?”