Universe 25197

“How strong is that pony? We can barely hold her!” One of the bodyguards exclaimed while the rope between his teeth threatened to rip them out of his mouth. That was due to Applejack, still struggling to free herself from the binds she was trapped in.

Multiple bodyguards pulled on her four limbs with ropes tied on each of them. Her legs were all being pulled apart as if they wanted to stretch her to death. While that was painful to her, the worst was the rope around her neck, barely allowing any oxygen to pass through her throat. The pony choking her could likely kill her by pulling harder; however, he didn’t. She guessed it was because Jackie hadn’t ordered her death yet. Despite that, Applejack still fought back with the little strength she had left.

“Boss! What are your orders!” One of the many bodyguards present asked Jackie.

Indeed, even if Applejack took out the ponies holding her, many more were around her, all working for Jackie. It was like a whole platoon! Maybe instead of pulling on every leg, she should try to free one foreleg first. It would make freeing the other limbs easier. Unfortunately, Applejack could barely think; her breath was scarce, and her neck was somehow not broken yet.

“Isn’t it obvious?! Keep holding her like that!” Jackie loudly ordered, her voice slightly cracking. She could hardly keep her composure, which didn’t go unnoticed by the ponies protecting her.

“Uhm, are you alright, Boss?” One inquired while Jackie swiftly turned away, sniffling as she wiped the traces of her tears.

“Of course, I am!” The business mare retorted angrily. She breathed in and out, seemingly keeping her temper in check before her gaze landed on Applejack again. Jackie grinned excitedly, showing a toothy and crazed smile. “Your existence is offensive to me… I should have done this from the start,” She said, looking around until she noted the presence of a hammer nearby. It had been on top of one of the crates they destroyed in their battle. “Don’t let her move, alright?” She ordered her bodyguards and picked the hammer up with her teeth. “I’m going to bash her skull in, and after that… I’ll use her body parts to feed my dogs!” Jackie barked, and while the ponies under her command followed her orders, most of them couldn’t help exchanging looks. They had never seen her behaving so unhinged before. “Ready to die, filth?”

“Ah know ya… want me to beg for ma life… Dream on. Ah ain’t begging to the likes of ya!” Applejack managed to declare despite the rope strangling her.

“It’s too late to learn the importance of pride, Sugar. No matter! I’ll make sure you scream loud and clear for me when I blow your brains out!” Jackie raised her hammer as high as she could, ready to bring it down with full force. She could have asked one of her men to do it, and they likely would have used even more strength than her, but she wanted to do the deed herself.

Applejack didn’t close her eyes, stubbornly staring down at her counterpart and refusing to bend. If she was going to die like this, then she would meet that fate head-on! However, just as Jackie began bringing the hammer down, the front wall of the warehouse suddenly exploded, throwing most of them off their hooves. Jackie yelped as she collided with a nearby crate.

The blast threw the bodyguards of Applejack as the mare skidded across the floor, though this small bit of pain was nothing but a relief. She could finally move her limbs! Without wasting any more time, she untied the rope around her neck and took in a deep breath the moment it was freed. Oh, she had missed the sweet taste of oxygen!

“What was that?!” A bodyguard questioned between coughs, placing a hoof over his snout to avoid inhaling the smoke.

“All of you are under arrest!” A familiar voice exclaimed. Applejack widened her eyes in recognition and relief. Oh, she couldn’t be any more grateful for their timing! When the smoke cleared, it revealed not only Princess Luna and the royal guards but also her friends! Along with Lyra… “Come quietly, and no harm will come to you,” Princess Luna instructed, her horn glowing.

“I-It’s the princesses!”

“W-What? Why? Why are you here?!” Jackie’s reaction was the total opposite of Applejack’s, her eyes wide with fear and fury. Just as she was about to kill the one who offended her, they had to show up out of nowhere! “This is my private property! You’re trespassing! Whatever your reason is, I’ll sue you if you don’t…” She began threatening them, only for Twilight to smirk.

“We’re here because a friend asked us for our help,” The lavender alicorn simply replied as someone else walked up by her side.

“Applebloom!” Applejack shouted in surprise. Why was she there? After the lies, she told everyone, her sister should have given up on her already!

“Applewho?” Jackie cocked an eyebrow. The mare shook her head, dispelling her confusion to glance at her bodyguards, who seemed frozen in fear. “What are you all waiting for? Attack them already! T-This is just self-defense!” She sputtered nervously.

“B-But…” A bodyguard stammered, unsure of how to act. Sure, Jackie was paying them, but these were princesses and heroes of Equestria they were up against!

“Surprise attack!” Lyra suddenly jumped into the fray, kicking the stallion who had just spoken, in the neck.

“Gah!” He gasped as he was slammed into one of his colleagues.

That hit alone was enough to spur the rest of the bodyguards to fight, charging at the heroes of Equestria and the princesses. Luna lit her horn, blasting various bodyguards away and trapping some of the others in magical binds. Her royal guards met the opposing side with full force, pegasi against pegasi, unicorns against unicorns, and earth pony against earth pony. Not only did the royal guards have the numerical advantage, but they were also more experienced and proficient in combat than mere security. With the addition of the element bearers, Jackie could only watch with shaking legs as her men were beaten down and thrown around like bugs. Pinkie Pie bounced from crate to crate, jumping on the head of every bodyguard she laid her eyes on like she was in some kind of video game.

Fluttershy would cower in fear, only to suddenly go out of control with a flurry of surprise attacks when the stallions approached her. Lyra would pounce on a random enemy, attacking him like a rabid dog while he screamed and flew all over the place.

Even Applejack was back on her hooves, fighting alongside them, kicking away any bodyguard daring to come too close to her.

“Damn it! What are you idiots doing?!” Jackie screamed, nervously stepping back as her eyes drifted all around the room, only witnessing defeat everywhere she looked. “This isn’t… This shouldn’t be happening! Do ya have any idea who I am?!” She opened her mouth to scream again, only for Rainbow Dash to suddenly rush forward and kick upward. The business mare could only widen her eyes as she was kicked in the chin, more teeth and blood spurting out of her mouth. “Dabu!” She yelped as she was thrown across the room, and slammed into a wooden crate head first. “G… Gaaah!” She held her face while kicking her legs in the air. “They’re… They’re still hitting me! They keep hitting me! My face! H-How dare you hurt my face!” She seemingly convulsed in pain, still pathetically kicking around.

“Yeah, yeah, keep crying, you big baby. I barely touched you,” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.

Jackie’s little tantrum ended abruptly when she was surrounded by a magical bind, forcing her to hover straight over the floor, her limbs stuck to her body to prevent her from escaping. Most of her bodyguards were in the same situation, and the ones to blame were none other than Princess Luna and Twilight, as seen by their lit horns.

“Y-You’ll pay for this… Guh…” Jackie sputtered painfully.

Applejack turned to look at her counterpart’s state, hoping she was hurt a lot by what she had done. The farm pony was glad to see that was the case. Jackie’s face was swollen and riddled with bruises, her snout visibly broken and bleeding.

“Well, now that’s over,” Princess Luna calmly stated before turning to Twilight. “Twilight, if you may?”

“Of course!” The lavender alicorn nodded with a smile as she flew up to Applejack, closely followed by Applebloom, who ran after her. “You’re the Applejack we came here to rescue, right?” Twilight asked, to which Applejack weakly nodded. It was weird to see one of her best friends talk to her as if they were strangers, and… Well, in this case, they were. “I believe you were looking for this,” The princess said, lighting her horn and summoning the familiar stone that threw her into this world.

“Yes! That’s it!” Applejack exclaimed just as her counterpart widened her eyes.

“What? How did you find this?!” Jackie questioned furiously.

Princess Luna kept an impassive expression, and instead of answering verbally, she simply lit her horn, using her magic to throw something on the floor… Or rather someone. It was Jackie’s assistant, Happy Feather! The pegasus was tied up in the same way as the others, though he didn’t have any visible injuries.

“Feather! You dirty traitor! You sold me out?!” Jackie growled, making the pegasus whimper fearfully.

“I-I had three princesses staring me down! Give me a break! What was I supposed to do?!” Happy Feather defended himself while glancing nervously in Luna’s direction.

“Who cares about them?! I could buy their whole castle if I wanted to!” Jackie shouted, struggling against the bindings she was trapped in.

“This is getting quite sad,” Luna sighed, shaking her head. “Guards, take them all away,” She ordered. The royal guards nodded wordlessly as they began carrying the prisoners away, much to Jackie’s displeasure.

“You think this is over?! Wait until my lawyers hear about this! I’ll milk you dry! Leave you bitless!” Jackie threatened, still unable to do anything to free herself as she was taken away along with her bodyguards and assistant.

“Well, I suppose I should help them with that… Also, check if there’s anything illegal here,” Twilight uttered before looking at Applejack again. “I’m sure you can’t waste too much time, so… I’ll leave this to you,” The alicorn stated, letting the stone out of her magical grab. It hovered silently in front of the farm pony, waiting to be held or activated as Twilight nodded and walked away.

“I…” Applejack raised a hoof to keep the alicorn from leaving immediately, only to pause. Her eyes scanned the rest of the room. Her friends’ counterparts either helped the guards take Jackie’s men away or looked into the crates filling this room. None of them even glanced her way… Right… She wasn’t their friend here. However, that didn’t mean she had no one else to talk to before leaving, so she let the stone hover in place… And turned to look at Applebloom. It seemed the little filly hadn’t only come with reinforcements. “You… You’re here too,” The cow mare whispered as Granny Smith and Big Mac joined her little sister.

“Of course. We wanted to say goodbye,” Big Mac was the first to talk, making Applejack wince.

“Ah’m sorry… Ah lied to ya,” She lowered her head. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know if she could say anything at all. They had every right to hate her after this whole ordeal. Instead of a harsh reprimand, she was met with a comforting touch upon her shoulder. She hesitantly looked up to see it was Granny Smith. “Granny…”

“Yer already forgiven,” The old mare softly said, a weak smile across her lips.

“That easily?” Applejack arched an eyebrow in surprise.

“Ya may have come on the farm with selfish intentions, but the effort ya put in was real, and Ah could see that. Ya truly cared about us, didn’t ya?” Granny Smith asked as the farm pony immediately perked up.

“Of course, Ah cared! No matter the universe, Ah always care about mah family! Ah would never wish to hurt them!” She quickly assured them.

“That’s already more than what we can say for our real Applejack,” Big Mac mumbled, gesturing to Jackie with his chin. The business mare was still screaming and arguing with Princess Luna, threatening her over and over with pointless threats. “Ah never thought she’d turn out like this,” He sighed dejectedly.

Applejack’s gaze returned to Granny Smith, remembering how her grandmother’s counterpart greeted her and how happy she was that her granddaughter came back after all these years.

“Ah tried to make her change her mind. Ah really did, but she truly didn’t care, Granny. Ah’m sorry,” Applejack apologized again. The old mare watched her real granddaughter from afar. Jackie hadn’t even stolen a single glance in their direction. Applejack wasn’t surprised. She doubted there was any room for decency in that cold heart of hers.

“Ya shouldn’t apologize for somepony else’s actions, dear,” Granny sighed, shaking her head. “Don’t worry, she’ll get a stern lecture from me. The least she deserves,”

“Eyup,” Big Mac affirmed. His eyes wandered all over her body as if appraising her. “Ah guess Ah know why ya were so good at the farm for a pony who hadn’t worked there in years,” He concluded. Indeed, now that they had seen Applejack and Jackie in the same room, the differences in their physiques couldn’t be any clearer. Applejack’s legs were much more fit in comparison.

“Y-Yeah… That’s the difference between us, she stayed in Manehattan, but Ah didn’t,” Applejack revealed.

“Then Ah suppose my initial assessment wasn’t wrong,” Granny Smith softly smiled. “If yer parents are in any way like the ones here, then Ah have no doubt they are proud of the pony you’ve become,”

“Granny Smith…” Applejack whispered, teary-eyed. Even after everything, even though she wasn’t her real granddaughter… Granny Smith was willing to say those words to her? Sometimes, she felt like she really didn’t deserve the family she had.

“Ya made us feel like a whole family for a week, and ya showed me the great mare ya could have become. Always remain true to yerself, and fight for what ya believe is right, as long as ya do that, then yer exactly the pony yer parents wished you to become,” Granny Smith placed her hooves on Applejack’s shoulders. “You’ll always be welcome here, just… Don’t pretend to be somepony else, next time, alright? Ya can always ask for help directly,”

“Eyup,” Big Mac nodded. “Ah’d love to have a contest of strength with ya, one day,” He grinned.

Applejack wiped away small tears, fondly smiling. They were an amazing family, no matter the universe. However, there was still something missing. She wasn’t the only one to know something quite important.

“Now, there’s one pony ya haven’t talked to yet,” Granny Smith let go of her granddaughter’s counterpart, leaving room for Applebloom to step forward. The filly looked at the floor shyly, refusing to meet the older farm pony’s gaze. “We’ll leave ya to it,” Granny whispered, patting Applebloom on the head as she left with Big Mac.

“So…” Applebloom trailed off, unsure of where she was going.

“Yup… Ya must be furious, or… Or sad… Ah don’t blame ya if ya are. Ah should have never lied. Ah never wanted to hurt ya, but Ah did the exact opposite, didn’t I?” Applejack quietly apologized, looking even more ashamed than she had been in front of Granny Smith and Big Mac. “Ya don’t have to forgive me… Ah…”

“Ah don’t care!” Applebloom suddenly exclaimed, much to Applejack’s confusion.

“What?”

“Ah don’t care if ya pretended to be mah sister! Ya were still the best sister Ah could have hoped for even if ya aren’t from here! A-Ah had so much fun with ya! B-But if ya want me to forgive ya, then ya have to stay here!” The little filly demanded with a shaky voice. Her lower lip quivered as she tried holding back her tears.

“Oh, Applebloom… Ah can’t… But Ah’m happy that despite the… Lie, Ah made ya happy. Listen up, yer an amazin’ filly, and ya deserve the best sister in the world, but ya don’t need one,” Applejack ruffled her sister’s mane “Ya don’t need Jackie, and ya don’t need me,”

“B-But Ah do!” Applebloom argued vehemently.

“Ah know ya feel lonely at times, and there ain’t any miracle solution to it. Havin’ a sister sure ain’t,” Applejack chuckled softly. “Ya have Granny Smith and Big Mac. Ya have amazin’ friends. Yer already a great filly, and all ya need now is to let yerself believe that ya ain’t ever truly alone. They’ll always be there for ya, unlike… Her,” She gestured to Jackie in disgust. “Look at her, she’s got no one, despite everythin’ she had,”

“But still…” Applebloom muttered, closing her eyes. It wasn’t only about loneliness. She was happy because she had finally someone to look up to. Big Mac always seemed too different from her, and Granny Smith was never someone she aspired to be like, despite how great she believed her grandmother to be. She would watch Sweetie Belle and Rarity, along with Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash, and she’d see their bond. She wished to share something similar. To have someone to admire and to help her become who she wanted to become, even though, she didn’t know who she wanted to be anymore. “Ah don’t want to lose ya,” She looked up.

“Ya ain’t losin’ me. That week we spent together was real, and that’s somethin’ ya can always remember when ya need to. Ah’ll always be yer sister,” Applejack affirmed confidently.

“Ya mean it?” Applebloom sniffled hesitantly.

“That’s the one thing Ah’ll never lie about,” Applejack responded firmly before pulling the filly into a tight embrace.

“Alright… Then, Ah believe ya… Big sis,” Applebloom whispered in a bittersweet tone. They remained in each other’s embrace for several seconds until the younger sister finally let go, allowing Applejack to step back. “Ah guess that’s it…”

“Yup,” Applejack gently nodded as she walked up to the stone. She extended her hoof, ready to take the stone, only to pause and look back at Applebloom, Granny Smith, and Big Mac. She gave them one final smile. “Oh, and… Ah love ya,” She declared before finally touching the stone. The instant she made contact with it, a bright light burst out of it, making the stone hover up higher in the air as it spun on itself. After a couple of seconds, a portal opened behind her, immediately pulling her inside before she could say or do anything else.

Applebloom ran after her, stopping right at the entrance of the portal. The filly took in a deep breath before releasing a loud shout.

“Goodbye, big sis! Ah promise… Ah promise ah’ll make ya proud! Ah’ll never forget!” She declared, tears streaming down her cheeks as she gave her older sister a bright smile.

The last thing Applejack saw when the portal closed was her sister waving at her, looking happier than ever. The farm pony smirked.

“Ah don’t doubt that,” She whispered confidently. Finally feeling at peace, Applejack breathed in relief and allowed herself to be pulled where she needed to go: Home.

Author's Note

I haven't gotten a wink of sleep; I feel like dying
But it felt good to write this chapter despite that. The next two are Pinkie Pie and Twilight's conclusions. I'm pretty excited, especially for Twilight's part.
You can guess the order in which each mane 6 got to the stone by looking at how long it took for the stone to activate once they held it