Author's Note
This is my first Adventure MLP series and it was inspired by a very old poem that had always moved me. This is how it goes...
“Though we are not now that strength that in old days would move Earth and Heaven, that which we are, we are. One equal temper of heroic hearts made weak by time and fate, but strong in will. To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.” – Alfred Lord Tennyson
Chapter 1 - Hope
-The New Guardains of Equestria-
It’s was another normal day in Ponyville until the unexpected happened.
“RUN FOR YOU LIVES CERBERUS IS LOOSE AGAIN! AAHHHH!!!” The little Ponies scattered all over the place as the mighty dark three headed dog kicks and bites into their homes.
“Isn’t there any Pony that can save us?” A scared little filly said as she covered her head with her hooves in fear.
“I will!”
Off the side of the village appeared an Equestrian solider in full shining armor. A large Earth Pony stallion with a red colored coat of fur and a thick brown colored mane, with an half eaten apple cutie mark on his flank appears from over the horizon.
“Who are you?” A mare asked.
“The name is Appleseed, Equestrian Royal Guard.” Appleseed said as he flings his spear at the beast striking it in the shoulder.
With a snarl of pain and rage Cerberus spins around and roars as he charges towards earth pony. Appleseed smiles as he also makes a hard gallop toward the giant dog beast. Just seconds before Cerberus was able to bite Appleseed’s head off he makes a mighty leap into the air and jumps right over Cerberus and onto his back. Then giving Cerberus a hard buck to the back of one of his heads he sends the mighty beast to tumble into a near by river.
“Seems that pup’s all washed up!” Appleseed said sounding quite cocky as the other Ponies all laughed.
Just as the Ponies start to celebrate Appleseed’s victory Cerberus leaps out of the water and lands in the middle of a circle of ponies causing them all to fall to the ground as Cerberus shacks the ground with his landing. Before Appleseed can get his bearings Cerberus takes him by his tail and tosses him into a large pile of boulders. He lands hard into the boulders making all the mares and colts think he’s dead.
“Oh Celestia help us! Who will save us now, all is lost!” A random Pony cries out.
As Cerberus goes back to wrecking more homes many of the ponies try to remove the rubble from where Appleseed fell but they are unable to move the heavy bolders. As the Ponies try to dig him out they hear the rubble being shoved away from the inside of the pile as Appleseed emerges from it shacking off the dust on himself much to the shock of all the Ponies watching he had not a single mark on him nor was his armor even damaged. Appleseed looks over at Cerberus and glares.
“I am ending this now you beast!”
Appleseed takes hold of another spear holding it in his mouth as he rushes at full speed towards Cerberus. Appleseed leaps from a large rock and jumps high into the air taking the spear out of his mouth placing it into his hooves and screams.
“BACK TO TARTARUS WITH YOU DEMON!!”
Appleseed lands onto Cerberus’s back and rams the spear through the back of one of Cerberus’s heads. Cerberus lets out a loud cry of pain as he falls to the ground dead to the cheers of all the Ponies in town.
“Three cheers for Appleseed, the hero of Ponyville! Appleseed! Appleseed! Appleseed….”
Quickly however the crowds started to vanish as Appleseed’s armor also disappeared like mist as Appleseed opened his eyes from this dream world and comes back into reality.
“APPLESEED! APPLESEED GET YOUR LAZY FLANK OUT OF BED OR I WILL BUCK YOU OUT OF IT MYSELF!” Shouted Appleseed’s aunt Gingersnaps, a brown colored older mare with a greyish yellow mane, as she gives the still groggy stallion a harsh look.
“Come along now you need to get up and help with the plowing in the fields. Then I need you to take the first season’s supply of apple cider into the towns open market with me for sale.”
Gingersnaps said as she leaves Appleseed to crawl of out bed as he shacks his tiredness off as he looks over at the old and fading poster he had in his room of the former Equestrian Royal Guards and thinks of his dream again with a sigh before he gets his plow neck brace on then heads out to do his daily field work with the rest of his relatives.
As Appleseed goes about his daily chores of plowing the family fields he thinks back to his dream once again and of his desire to become some thing more than a simple farm pony like all the rest of his family have been for generations before him.
It used to be not so uncommon for a strong male of his age to want to join the military for chance at adventure and a better life beyond the farm. However those days where now only the stuff of distant dreams.
Over 180 years ago all of Equestria was consumed in a great war with the Changelings that lasted for over 30 years. An uncountable number of Ponies lost their lives in the near endless conflict. Many lands where devistated and lost to time. As a further consequence of that war all the Alicorns where killed, but in the end the Ponies were the victors, but many still wonder at what cost?
If things were not bad enough already the other races finding out the Alicorns were no more dissolved all treaties and promises made with the now weaken Ponies and nearly all of them made a play for power to take what lands they could for their own desires. The Griffons, once a weaken race themselves swept in and like a dark plague took over more than 70% of the lands once under the rule of the ponies fast becoming the dominate force in Equestria.
Now 150 years after the Griffons take over of the lands they rule over all those under them with an iron tailon. By their laws of the land, all Unicorns, Pegasus, and Earth Pony were to follow the rule and law of the Mighty Griffon Empire and serve them as their subjects.
“Appleseed stop your day dreaming over there and take off that plow for a second I need you over here for a moment.”
Aunt Gingersnaps said as she waves him over to next field. Appleseed takes a deep sigh then takes off his plow hooks from his neck brace and follows his aunt over to see what she needed.
“So what’s the trouble over here Aunty?” Appleseed looks as Gingersnaps points to a top of a small boulder that was blocking her own plow.
“I hit this while tilling my part of the field can you be a dear and take care of it. Don’t worry Appleseed I looked around and no one’s watching us.” What no other Pony but Appleseed’s aunt Gingersnaps knew was that Appleseed was far different from any other Earth Pony.
“All right Aunty back away.”
Appleseed raises his hoof into the air then brings it down onto the top of the boulder and slams his hoof right into it as if it was just a freshly baked pie. He then yanks his hoof up as the ground around them shacks a little as the boulder that was about 3 times their own size was yanked out of the ground leaving a large hole in its wake.
“Golly I guess that boulder was larger than I expected. Take that over behind the barn and we can have you shatter it after we get back from selling our cider at the market.” Gingersnaps said taking another look around to make sure the coast was still clear.
“Sure thing Aunty.” Appleseed said as he now with both hooves carried the huge boulder out of sight as if it was just a shack of flower and places it behind the barn.
It was the time of the day when the sun reached its highest point the sky when Appleseed and Gingersnaps made their trip into Ponyvilles open market. Ponyville itself has not changed so much in the last 180 years.
The schoolhouse was still there for the little fillies and foals to learn. However the education was taught by Griffons now and very little beyond how to best serve the interests and desires of the Griffon Empire was taught to them.
What use to be Sugar Cube Corner was now a bar frequented by Griffon military men then any Ponies these days. It’s easy to say nothing sweets has come out of there in a very long time.
Ponyville town hall was made into the main office for the Griffon Governor and his staff who would be finding the best way to get more gold and other resources out of these already over taxed and hard working Ponies.
Other locations like Fluttershy’s cottage and Rarity’s Shop were wipped out in the war all that remained of those places was just shattered buildings that over time have slowly faded into the landscape.
“Alright here we are let’s get set up.”
Gingersnaps said as she took out her folded up banner that proclaimed, ~Fresh Apple Cider Sold Here~, but before she could set them up her cider stand the old green pony was tapped behind her shoulder by an old looking male Griffon along with two guards next to him wearing heavy looking golden armor.
“Miss Gingersnaps. I am sorry ma’am but I am afraid you and your nephew will not be able to set up your cart here today, nor any other day in the foreseeable future.” The Griffon said smugly adjusting his golden glasses as he looks over his scroll he was holding.
“What?! But that can’t be I paid for this lot over a month ago and have been putting produce out here each weekend since then.” Gingersnaps said as she snaps back at the old Griffon.
“I am sorry miss Gingersnaps but you have not been made aware of the incress in the price of these lots it’s now an extra ten bits for each weekend and that means you own us 20 bits plus delinquent fee’s for not paying those incresses that comes to 60 bits.”
Gingersnaps were taken a back by this. “But I can’t afford that. We are barely making enough to live during the winter season with all the extra taxes you Griffons place upon us.”
The old Griffon glares at her before forcefully shoving her onto her own cart knocking over and breaking some of the Cider jugs on the ground. “Then I can see to it that you and your nephew make up those lost bits by ether working you both in the mines over the winter season or having us finally takes position of your farm!”
Appleseed couldn't take any more of this as he shoves the old Griffon away from his aunt being sure not to use too much of his amazing strength but enough so that the old Griffon landed into a tomato stand causing quite the mess.
Appleseed reaches down to make sure his aunt was unharmed. “Hey Aunty are you alright?”
The Griffon soldiers go to help the old Griffon up much to his humiliation of all the laughing Ponies around him covered in smashed tomatoes. “ARREST THAT FILTHY MUD PONY! I WANT TO SEE HIM IN CHAINS!” He screams in rage pointing right at Appleseed.
Gingersnaps reaches for her nephews head to face her. “Appleseed run! Get out of here. You can’t let them catch you and find out what you can really do. GO NOW!”
Appleseed looks over and see’s the soldiers approaching. Taking two cider jugs from the cart he tosses them at the soldiers, shattering on their helmets causing them to fly blindly into random food stands giving him the time he needed to rush out of the market place and makes a run into the town and into an empty building to hide in until the night arrived.
As the night came the town was placed into a lock down as the Griffon soldiers were going from house to house and abandon building to abandon building looking to track down Appleseed, but he knew this town well from his days as a young foal playing hide and seek in the abandoned ruins with the other young Ponies.
However it was starting to getting harder to keep hidding, but Appelseed knew there was still one place left he could hid out until the dawn would come so he headed right to the former castle of Princess Twilight Sparkle.
Appleseed pushes open the massive doors of the old castle, they make a very eerie creeking sound as they open. Even as a kid this place was to spooky for any of the foals to get to close to. To them it seemed like a haunted place and so out of place among all the wood homes and business around it. It has stood up well even after 180 year of neglect.
Appleseed takes some flint out of his traveling pouch and lights a touch and carriers it as he wonders down the massive hallways with the only sound he was hearing was his own hoofs tapping aganst the ground. After some time exploring the mostly empty rooms Appleseed comes upon a room that appeared to be some kind of large meeting hall. The room seemed to be in a state of ruin. All the chairs where smashed, what seems to use to be a large crystal table in the center was also destroyed as if it was blown apart by some large explosion.
Appleseed sighed and then said to himself. “Damn it all. Why did I have to go and shove that old bastard bird brain like that? Aunty always told me to not make a scene. Why can’t things be different? Why do we Ponies have to be treated like slaves? It just isn’t fair!” Appleseed said smashing his hoof into a wall in the room that crumbles to reveal a secret room.
As the dust cleared Appleseed wonders inside to take a look around and sees something that gets his attention right away. It was a dusty painting on the side of a crumbling part of the wall it showed six mares coming together as if to unify their powers. At first Appleseed didn’t know why this image seemed so familure then it came to him. This was the from the stories that were told to him by his aunt Gingersnaps as a bed time story of the six mares that protected Equestria from all harm. Many of their tales have been lost to time yet all who tell of them remember them as great heroes.
“I tell yeah girls if there was ever a time that Equestria needed you its right now.”
Appleseed said as he touches the image of Twilight Sparkle and then the image suddenly starts to glow. Appleseed backs away as a beam of light shots out from the image on the stone and the image of a purlpe Alicorn female appears in front of him. She looks up as if she could see Appleseed in the room and smiles at him.
“Greetings, I am Princess Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship. If you are seeing this image of me then we have failed to stop the Changeling take over of the land or I have died. If that is the case then it passes you brave Pony to seek out the Elements of Harmony that have been hidden acrossed the lands of Equestria by my trusted friends. Once you have found all 6 elements you must bring them to the chamber of Hope in the Royal Place of Canterlot and give them to ether Princess Luna or Princess Celestia. For only with the six elements and the power of an Alicorn can the chamber of Hope be opened and the great power inside can be realased to save Equestria from darkness.” The image of Twilight Sparkle then vanishes as Appleseed is left alone again with just the light of his torch and his shocked face in the room.
“My gosh! Everything Aunty told me was true. The six mares, the legend of the elements, all of its was all real.”
Just then the silence of the moment was broken by a voice from the crumbled wall opening.
“Indeed it was all true. Now that we know the elements still exist we shall be sure to keep our eyes out for them as well.”
Said the Griffon Governor of Ponyville dressed in a thick black suit with gold trimmings along with six Griffon soldiers all holding spears with gold tips on them.
“You were all following me? For how long?” Appleseed demanded to know.
“None of that matters now. I should thank you for finding this very important message for us. The Elements of Haromy has been King Grover the seventh over whelming desire to find and posses for so long. He will shower me with gold for this information.” The Griffon Governor said with a grin.
Appleseed glares. “Why do you need them so badly? Don’t you already control enough? All you greedy birds ever care about is filling your own pockets with bits!”
“That is indeed true young Pony but with this so called great power we can finally control all of Equestrai as our great King desires. However that will not be something you will be around to see. Guards kill him!” The Griffon Governor commands as the soldiers rush at Appleseed.
Appleseed manages to dodge the first rush of the Griffon soldiers spears but it was not long until he was cut by a few of the spears as they didn’t let up attacking him, drawing blood as they sliced into him.
By now Appleseed no longer cared if they know about his specail abilities anymore as he grabs the chunk of wall with the image of the mares on it then tosses it at the soldiers knocking all of them onto the ground as well as breaks out a side of the wall to the outside of the castle and having it crumble into pieces as it hit the ground.
“How did you do that? Just what kind of Earth Pony are you?” The Griffon Governor asked as he shock in fear on the ground just barly able to avoid the hit himself.
“My name is Appleseed and I won’t let you greedy birds take anything else from us.”
With that Appleseed leaps out of the opening in the wall and slams hard onto the ground outside. Then not seeming to even have felt the hit makes a run back to his family farm.
As the dawning suns light was just starting to come out over the hills Appleseed knocks the doors of his family farm house open as he sees Gingersnaps making tea. Not seeming to be fazed at all by his sudden return unlike him who was in a panic with small streams of blood coming out of the spear wonds. “Aunty we need to go right now. We have to pack all we can and get out of her before……Hey are you even listening to me this is serious Aunty we have to leave I am sure the Griffon soldiers will be here any minute!”
Gingersnaps sip her tea than sets it down and looks up at him from her chair.
“I know they're coming. I knew this day would come when you would have to leave. I knew you were destined for great things one day Appleseed. I have something I need to give you before you go and I have something important to tell you.”
Gingersnaps said getting off her chair and then she moves a desk away from the wall and then Appleseed sees her remove a plank of wood and takes out a very old looking box. From inside the box Gingersnaps takes out a gold necklace with a orange apple looking gemstone.
“I knew the moment you came back here as you are the time had come. This has been in the care of our family since the days of the Changling war.” Gingersnaps said as she held the necklace in her hoof and handed it to Appleseed.
“What do you mean the time has come? What is that thing Aunty?” The confused colt asked taking the necklace in his own hoove.
Gingersnaps then looked Appleseed in the eyes. “Appleseed you’re a decent of one of the mares of Harmony. Your great, great, great grandmother was Applejack and she had this, the Element of Honesty. I was told by my mother and her mother before her to keep it secret and safe. You have to take it with you and leave the farm never to come back. The Griffons will be here soon to look for you and I am sure take ownership of the farm as well. We can’t allow them to have this element. Pleae protect it with your life. Its more important then you can understand.”
Appleseed could amlost feel the elements magic all over his body as he held it. As if it was almost talking to him in some way that he didn’t yet understand.
“Aunty please, I am not ready for this. I am not right for this. I am no hero I am just some dumb farm Pony!” Appleseed said feeling like a house was just dropped on top of him with all that he was just told to him.
Gingersnaps rubbed her hoof over her nervous nephews face. “Nether was Applejack when she was given the element but she managed and you will as well. Now you must go and don’t look back. I will manage here alone and buy you some time to get away. Just go and know my love will always go with you.”
Appleseed places the Element of Honesty into his’s saddle pack along with some dried food for his long trip and then he kisses and hugs Gingersnaps with tears in his eyes as he turns to look back at his aunt one last time and then heads out of the farm and towards the woods just moments before the Griffons swarm in and take Gingersnaps into custody.
The Griffon Governor looks around and growls in anger finding out he was too late to stop Appleseed from getting away.
“Damn it all he got away. Send a message to every Griffon garison I want the face of this Appleseed posted on every wanted poster every where. We will search for this Appleseed and find him no matter how long it takes.” The Griffon Governor said as he had his soldiers take Gingersnaps and have her arrested her for treason to the Empire.
Appleseed looks back at the farm one last time before rushing out of sight as he made an promise to himself. “I swear Aunty I will keep the Element of Honesty safe and I will find a way to free you. I will make all this right. I swear it.”
