The Blessing: A Second Chance

by BronyMarine1

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Adventure, Alternate Universe, Romance
Length: 24682

A Marine finds himself in Equestria after his helicopter crashes. What will he do?

What happens when your life is ripped from you? When the act of existing ceases to have meaning? What happens when your entire reality is turned on it's head?
What happens when you're given a second chance?
Follow the story of Gunnery Sergeant John Makins and learn of his scarred past. See what he does with his second chance in:
The Blessing.

NOTE: This is my first time posting anything I've written, but don't hold back. Tell me what you think. Seriously, leave a comment so I can tell whether I'm doing something wrong, or if I'm hitting the wrong audience group.

MLP:FiM is the property of Lauren Faust and Hasbro Studios. The characters in this writing, save for John Makins, belong to them. Relations to events or characters in this writing are purely coincidental, and do not reflect the views or opinions of Hasbro Studios or Lauren Faust.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-11-15 21:27:26 UTC

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter1: Departure

The Blessing

A Second Chance

By:

Bronymarine1

Chapter 1: Departure

Wind whistled through the open bay of the UH-1Y Venom helicopter.  A group of twelve, two gunners and ten marines sat in silence as the helicopter moved through the sky.  The cramped crew bay was silent save for the chop-chop-chop of the rotors overhead.  The only movement was that of the pilots as they checked their gauges and made sure that the Venom kept aloft.  Of the group of ten marines in the cramped crew bay only one had any experience.  His name was John, and he was a Master Gunnery Sergeant.  As he looked about the crew bay at the marines huddled together a thought went through his head.

‘They’re so young.’

He guessed that the eldest of them was only 19 years old.  Many of them still looked like goofy teenagers even while in full battle dress.  For many, the only thing that looked menacing was the M16 rifle strapped across their chest.  But they had all passed a test that few could, the process of becoming a United States Marine.  Through sweat and blood they had earned that title and all the respect that came with it.

After looking into their faces for a moment, John looked down at his own equipment.  He carried a much older rifle than these kids did.  The old-fashioned wood and steel M14 rifle that sat in his lap looked at odds compared to the black plastic and aluminum M16.  In fact, the rifle that John carried was an antique compared to the retro rifles the young devil-dogs carried, and the old ugly was showing her age.

But looks could be deceiving.  John had served as a designated marksman and sniper for his entire 20-year career and the old rifle had served him well for the past 16 of those years.  Unlike the M16, the much more powerful M14 could knock any enemy flat on his ass with even just a glancing hit.  It was too bad for the enemy that John never glanced.  His years of experience and training had made sure that every shot that he took would hit dead center.

Every.  Single.  Time.

A civilian had once asked him if he had ever taken someone’s life.  And he remembered his response vividly.

“I don’t know if I ever killed anyone.  But I’ve fired often, and I’ve seldom missed.”

A buzz in his headphones snapped him out of his memories.

“One minute to drop zone.” Reported one of the pilots.

Every marine in the bay, including John, ran through the same process of cycling weapons and checking that all their gear was secured to their person.  John had gone through this process hundreds of times in his service.  Removing the magazine from his rifle, he checked to make sure it was full.  After confirming this fact he banged the back of the mag against the side of his helmet.  Reinserting the mag into the rifle, he racked the action to chamber a round.  He then flicked the safety back and forth with his index finger before shouldering the weapon and looking through his scope. These motions took him maybe ten seconds to complete.  After he was satisfied, he sat still and smiled at what he saw inside of the 6X scopes lens cap, the cloud with a rainbow colored lightning bolt that his daughters had put there.  The sticker was faded with age but he refused to remove it not only because he liked the character it symbolized, but also because it was one of the last things his daughters had done, before…

He felt the deck of the Venom start to level out.  They were over the drop zone now.  John suppressed his memories as the four young marines in charge of the ropes tossed them over the sides and prepared to fast-rope their way down to the ground.  It was as the young marines took hold of the ropes that the flash caught John’s eye.

“RPG! RPG!!!” He yelled.

But it was too late.  John watched in slow motion as the explosive flew into the tail section of the Venom and detonated.  The sound of an explosion mixed with shearing metal and cockpit sirens rang in his ears, and his stomach started to churn as he felt the helicopter go into an uncontrolled spin.  Several of the Marines were thrown out of the bay to the ground forty feet below.  They wouldn’t survive.

All John could do was hold onto his harness and look out the bay to the rapidly moving world.

‘I’m sorry girls…. but daddy isn’t coming home this time.’

That was the last thought in this world that ran through Master Gunnery Sergeant John Makins mind as the helo crashed into the ground and erupted into a ball of flame.

And then, there was thunder…

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter2: Arrival

The Blessing: A Second Chance

Chapter 2: Arrival

Thud

Rustle

Thump, Thump, Thumpthumpthump.

That was the noise that had echoed through the orchard at Sweet Apple Acres for the better part of the morning.  Every so often there would be a break in the noise as the young orange farm pony removed her favorite Stetson and wiped the sweat from her brow with her foreleg.

“Phew,” she breathed, “This is one of the warmest summer days that ah can remember.”

Replacing her favorite hat, she moved onto the last tree in the line.  This also happened to be the last tree of the day for Applejack.  Taking up her stance she balanced on her front legs as she raised her rear legs and delivered a swift and powerful kick to the trunk of the apple tree.

Thud

Rustle

“WHOAH!”

THUD

Instead of the apples that the farm pony expected, a very surprised cyan pegasus with a rainbow colored mane hit the ground.

“Rainbow Dash, how many times do I have ta tell ya to stay outta mah trees?”, The apple farmer asked as she eyed her friend who currently had her muzzle firmly planted in the ground.

The only thing that Applejack could grasp from the muffled reply was that it was incredibly hard to understand a pony when their mouth was not only full of dirt, but in it.  After a few seconds of struggling Rainbow Dash managed to remove her face from the ground.  And after some spitting and sputtering she managed to get most of the dirt out of her mouth.

“Well, would it kill you to look up before you buck sometimes?” she finally replied with an annoyed tone.

“Well, if ya went to bed at a decent hour, maybe ya wouldn’t need ta take so many naps in mah trees.”  Applejack countered.

The two friends stood, eyes narrowed defiantly at each other.  Rainbow Dash sat staring at her friends emerald green eyes while her own put on a display of annoyance.  Applejack mirrored the facial expression as she stared into the magenta eyes of her friend.  They both stood there for a few seconds, neither willing to let down her façade of annoyance.

‘Oh Nelly,’ thought Applejack, ‘If ah keep staring at the dirt on her muzzle, I think I’m gonna bust out laughing.’

‘Real smooth there Rainbow-crash’ Rainbow Dash scolded herself internally, ‘ And here you are, supposedly the greatest flier in all Equestria, and you face-plant right into the ground.  But the look on Applejack’s face when I started to fall was priceless.’

The two friends had their thoughts at about the same time, and both tried desperately to suppress a giggle.  They both failed in the end as a snicker slipped from both of their mouths and the duo fell to the ground laughing.  After a few moments the two were forced to stop after their sides began to ache.  As the two rose from the ground, still giggling, Applejack was the first to speak.

“Well RD, while you’re here, how’s about y’all help me with putting these apples in the cellar?”

Rainbow Dash looked to her friend, and then to the carts of apples, and then to the sky.  She considered telling her friend that she had other things to do, but her conscious started to nag at her.

‘I can’t just leave a friend hanging.  Not to mention that AJ has helped me out a lot lately…’

Rainbow Dash looked at the apples, and then at her friend again.

“Well….” She started, but the hopeful look on her friend’s face ended that option.

“Sure, why not.  I’ve got nothing better to do anyway.” She finally relented.

“Thanks Rainbow,” Applejack said with a smile. “It really means a lot.”

“Don’t mention it, just as long as I get the first mug of cider.”

Applejack giggled at the audacity of her friend’s demand.

“Sure Rainbow, Ah promise.”

Later on, the two finally managed to get all the days apples into the cellar below the barn.

“Thanks again Rainbow Dash.”  Said Applejack, “You really saved me some time and energy by helping me with those carts, now I can get around to some other stuff that needs doin’.”

“No problem AJ,” Rainbow Dash said as she unhitched herself from the cart, “just as long as you remember our deal, I can’t ever get enough of that cider.”

Applejack was about to reply when something like a thunderclap cut her off.

The two friends looked to the sky where the sound originated, and were shocked to see a huge metal boat falling from the sky.  It was spinning uncontrollably and spewing smoke from one end.

Applejack watched in horror as the contraption crashed into her orchard and knocked down several of her beloved apple trees.  When she saw the smoke start to rise from the treetops she felt a tremor of fear run down her spine.

“FIRE, FIRE!!!” She screamed.  A vision of her family’s entire livelihood of apple trees going up in flames fueled her fear.

The two friends took off in a mad dash towards the crash site….

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter5: Company

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 5: Company

Applejack paced back and forth in the waiting room in the Ponyville General Hospital.  They hadn’t been able to fetch a doctor.  It had taken both Rainbow and Applejack to get the being out of the metal… thing, and by the time they got him to the house, he had started to cough up blood.  Granny Smith had done her best to fix what she could, but most of his injuries were internal or underneath his armor.

The journey to the hospital hadn’t been any easier.  It took Rainbow, Applejack, and Big Mac to get the creature into one of the apple carts.  It wasn’t that he was heavy, but they didn’t want to bend him too much.  It was as the apple cart stopped in front of the hospital that Applejack saw the creature’s breathing stop.  And from there the hospital staff had gone into a frenzy.

It had been several hours since the trio of ponies had brought the creature to the hospital.  The staff had immediately taken him into one of the operating rooms, and they hadn’t really answered any of Applejack’s questions.  Big Mac and Rainbow Dash had left an hour ago, and Applejack had stayed behind in case there were any developments.  She was beginning to fear the worst when a unicorn dressed in bloody operating scrubs walked through the double doors.  He had a tired but pleased smile on his face.

“Miss Applejack?”  He asked as he came near.

“Yes?”

“I’m pleased to tell you that the operation was a success.  We were able to revive the creature and stabilize his major injuries.”

Applejack gave a sigh of relief.  She didn’t know this creature at all, but she didn’t want him to die either.  There was something about what she saw in his eyes that intrigued Applejack, and she wanted to find out what it was.

“So, can I go back and see him?  Will he be awake soon?” she asked hopefully.

The doctor shook his head.

“I’m sorry Miss Applejack, but the creature has gone into a coma.  I’m afraid he won’t be awake for several days.”

Applejack was uneasy with the word “coma”.  Sensing this, the doctor continued.

“Don’t worry, the coma appears to be from from the concussion that he sustained, but it's minor.  There shouldn’t be any major damage to his brain and, as I said before, he should be awake in a few days.”

The information seemed to have the desired effect, as Applejack seemed to cheer up a bit.

“If you want, you can go back and see him.  He won’t respond, but at least you can keep him company.”

Applejack nodded and the doctor led her through the double doors into the recovery ward.  Applejack peered into a few rooms as she walked by.  Most of the patients were reading or sleeping.  A few were talking to each other.  Apart from a few casts or bandages, many of the ponies looked fine.

When they reached the creatures room, Applejack almost gasped.

The creature was covered in bandages, one around his head and several large ones around his chest.  He had a cast on his left arm and one on his right leg.  Many of the patients that Applejack had seen on her way to this room had an IV in them, but none of them had had so many bags connected to it.

Applejack stalled in the doorway as she stared at this creature’s condition.  The doctor turned just as Applejack began to speak.

“What in the hay was wrong with him?”

The doctor’s horn glowed as he pulled up two chairs with his magic.  He gestured Applejack to take one of the seats as he took the other.  When they were both settled, he ran down the list of injuries.

“This creature is suffering from eight broken and three cracked ribs.  His left radius and ulna have been broken.  His right femur has been fractured.  And his right shoulder was dislocated.”

Applejack cringed as she thought of what that must have felt like.  She was about to ask a question about whether or not the creature was on pain medications when the doctor continued.

“Also, we had to repair a tear in his right femoral artery and his spleen has been removed.  The coughing up of blood that you mentioned to us was caused by a punctured lung, which we have patched.  Those injuries are where the major blood-loss came from.  I couldn’t give this creature any transfusions because it would have probably killed him due to the fact that we don't have any blood from his species.  So I had to do something a little risky, but not unwarranted given the situation.”

“What did you do?” Applejack asked.

“All unicorn doctors are taught a technique in med-school about how to replenish a creatures blood when there isn’t any suitable blood available.  During the operation, I placed my horn above the creature’s heart and began to replicate his blood inside it using additive magic.  I had to be careful so as not to increase his blood pressure to dangerous levels in the heart.  However, as you can see, the procedure was a success.”

Applejack looked at the creature on the bed again.  His breathing seemed to be more normal now.  It didn’t look like it was strained or as pained as the last time she saw him.

“How long until he’s back to normal, whatever that is?” asked AJ.

“I can’t be sure,” replied the doctor, “but if I was forced to guess, I’d say that his skeletal injuries will be healed in about eight to twelve weeks save for his ribs, those are going to take a while.  But as for the other injuries, I really have no clue.  I don’t have any idea whether or not He'll be able to heal quickly.  All I can do now is simply monitor his status and make sure he doesn't have any complications.”

Applejack simply nodded at this and looked about the room.  As she did this, her eyes settled upon a corner where the creature’s belongings were.  She shuddered as she saw his clothes and armor, both were splattered with blood.  His belt with its many pouches was also in this corner, as well as a pack, his helmet,  and the wood and metal stick that Applejack had seen before.

“All I have to do now is check a few things off on his medical chart, and then I have to go check up on my other patients.”

Applejack just nodded as she moved her seat to the creature’s bedside.

“Also, I’ve admitted this creature into the hospitals logs with the name that was on his armor, John Makins.”

A few minutes later, the doctor made his final scribbles on the clipboard and left the room.  Applejack and the creature were left in quiet.  After a few minutes of the awkward atmosphere, Applejack broke the silence.

“So…” she started, “Your name is John.  Nice ta meet ya, my names Applejack.”

The Blessig: A Second Chance Chapter6: Last Ties

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 6: Last Ties

The Captain stood in silence with the rest of the funeral goers.

A coffin with an American flag draped over it was being carried by six marines to its final resting-place.  As the coffin passed by the Captain he saluted.  He had to clench his jaw to keep the tears from falling down his face.  It wouldn’t have mattered, anyway, because it was raining.

He wasn’t crying for just any marine, although it still made him emotional every time one of their boys was lost, he was crying for his friend.

John Makins.

The Captain had discovered the fate of his friend when he looked at the roster of the downed helicopter.  He had dropped the clipboard in disbelief, but now he had come to terms with what had happened.

John was gone.

The Captain supposed it was a sort of twisted blessing in disguise.  John had been existing in a living hell ever since…

The Captain didn’t need to finish the thought.  He simply looked at the three gravestones beside John’s.  Peggy, Sherryl, and Katelynn Makins.  John’s wife and two daughters.

John had always told him that he always held on to the thought of coming home to his babies.  Even after their deaths in the fire, he had wanted nothing more than to come home and visit their graves.  This little plot of ground, and the three stone slabs, were all he had left in this world.

Now, he was going to join them.  Maybe in death, his soul would finally find peace.

The chaplain began to give the usual speech, but the Captain didn’t hear him.  The only noises that really got through his grief were the gunshots of the 21-gun salute.  The honor guard commander, a young Sergeant, came forward and presented John’s flag to the Captain.

Usually, the flag of a fallen Marine was given to the soldier’s wife.  In the event that the Marine was unmarried or in the case of John, a widower, the flag was given to the next of kin.

The young sergeant handed the flag toward the Captain and he accepted it.

“I am truly sorry for your loss, sir.” The sergeant spoke reverently.

The sergeant took a step back and saluted.  The Captain nodded and the sergeant turned away.  As the honor guard marched off, Captain Todd Makins took a step forward and watched as his brother’s casket was lowered into the ground.

“Good-bye, brother.  Say hello to the girls for me.”

Captain Makins turned and began walking through the rain back to his car.

He had to find the men who killed his brother, and bring them to justice…

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 7: Trust

It had been five days since Applejack had brought John to the hospital.  Every day she had gotten through her chores and headed to the hospital to visit him.  She didn’t know him, but with the amount of time she had spent talking to him, she suspected that he knew her pretty well by now.  Today she walked through the door to his room to find the doctor standing beside his bed.  She looked over to John and saw that his casts were gone, as well as the bandages around his chest.  As she entered the doctor turned around and smiled.

“Good afternoon, Miss Applejack” he said cheerfully.

“Afternoon, doc.  What’s up with John, where are his bandages?”

“I made a breakthrough today,” He said excitedly, “I was able to attune my magic to repair his skeletal injuries fully.  I also believe that I was able to repair his other internal injuries.  With luck, when he wakes up he should be able to get back on his feet.”

Applejack smiled at the thought of this creature being back to normal when he woke up.  Maybe he would be able to answer some of her questions.  The doctor was about to start speaking again when the beeping from the heart-rate monitor began to speed up.

“Well, that’s odd.  The painkillers we have him on should keep that from happen…”

The doctor was cut off as John’s eyes shot open and a scream erupted from his mouth.  John shot up in his bed and he looked wildly around the room.

“I can’t see, where am I?” he shouted with a panicked tone.

He began to tear at the IV in his arm.  Applejack flinched as he yanked it out and a small trickle of blood began to move down toward his hand.

“Mr. Makins,” the doctor began with a calm tone, “you are in the hospital, you were brought here after the incident, do you remember?”

“I remember the helicopter crash yes, but where is this hospital?”

“In Ponyville, Mr. Makins”

Makins visibly tensed.  His head shook wildly for a moment and he squinted.  His eyes settled on the corner where his equipment was.

In a sudden burst of extreme speed and strength, John lunged at the corner and tried to go for the wood and metal stick. He landed on his belly and his hand closed before he could grab it.  It slid across the floor out of his reach.  He swore and both the doctor and Applejack flinched at the word.  Instead of going after the stick, however, John tore at one of the pouches on his belt.  He withdrew a metal L-shaped object and moved part of it with a metallic Ka-Chank.  Rolling onto his back, he then proceeded to point it at the doctor.

“Stay the Hell away from me Hadgi, tell me where I really am!”  He shouted menacingly.  He was still squinting as if his vision was still impaired.

Applejack was beginning to fear where this situation was going.  She didn’t know what had happened to escalate John’s reactions.  He seemed very dangerous, and she didn’t like the look of the object he had in his hands.

The doctor began to take a step forward.  John’s vision may have been impaired, but his hearing was just fine.  As the doctor’s hoof hit the ground with a clop, John raised his arms and a ball of fire and an explosion erupted from the end of the L-shaped object.  Both the doctor and Applejack jumped back from the deafening noise, and Applejack looked up at the ceiling where John had pointed the object.  She was frightened when she saw a rather large hole had appeared in one of the ceiling tiles.

“I said stay back, unless you want a hole in you six inches wide!”  John shouted again.  He was still squinting and shaking his head.

“John,” Applejack spoke.  John seemed to relax a bit at the sound of her voice, but then he tensed again.

“John, what the doctor just told ya is the truth.  Do you remember me?” she tried to speak soothingly.

“I… I don’t…” he was struggling to recall. “I remember your voice… you spoke my name… I remember your eyes… I passed out after that, I guess, and I remember hearing snippets of your voice while I was out… but wha…”

His hands had started to lower while he was speaking, but they snapped back up when he cut himself off.

“Where is this hospital really located, if it even is a hospital?” he demanded again.

“John,” Applejack spoke calmly, “you said you remembered my eyes, right?”

John nodded, but kept the object leveled at the doctor.

“Here’s how were gonna settle this then.  I’m guessin’ that you can’t see very well right now, judging by how y’all keep squinting like that, right?”

Again, John nodded.

“I’m gonna step towards you.  Don’t hurt me, I’m just trying to show you that y’all got nothing to fear from all this.”

The doctor shot Applejack a panicked look.

“Miss, you can’t go toward him, he’ll kill you!” he warned.

“No he won’t, will you John?” she asked confidently.

John hesitated for a moment.  Applejack was fearful that the doctor might be right, but then John bent his arms at the elbows and pointed the object back at the ceiling.

“Okay, but don’t try anything funny.” He warned.

Applejack took a slow step toward John, making sure that he could hear her approach.  He was squinting and blinking furiously to try and clear his vision.  She took a few more steps and then stopped.  She was staring into his eyes again.

Again the pair shared a moment.  This time, Applejack saw fear and confusion in his eyes.  She again tried to convey the same thought, but this time she spoke it.

“It’s gonna be alright, sugarcube.”

John’s eyes went wide, and his body went slack.

“Applejack?” he asked in disbelief.

She let out a sigh of relief and nodded.  His arms lowered to his lap, and he looked down at his hands.  He moved his thumb to a part of the object and he eased it forward with a click.  He then put the object back in the pouch on his belt.

“So you do remember me talking to you while you were unconscious?” she asked.

She was surprised when John shook his head.

“It’s a very long story.” He said.

“Well, if you’re willing to tell it, I’m willing to listen.”

The doctor was staring in disbelief that Applejack was having a conversation with the creature that had just tried to kill him not but a minute earlier.  He wasn’t angry, just shocked.  The hospital security ponies showed up at the door a few seconds later with their batons at the ready.  The doctor shook himself out of his petrified state enough to address them.

“It’s fine,” he said shakily, “we just had a bit of a misunderstanding, you can go back to your duties.”

The guards stared skeptically at him for a moment, but they put their batons away and left as they were told.  The doctor adjusted his spectacles and cleared his throat before he spoke.

“I’m sorry Mr. Makins, I hate to interrupt, but seeing as how you’re up and around now I’m going to go ahead and discharge you from the hospitals care.  It’s nothing personal, but judging from what just happened, I believe you’re able to take care of yourself.” He said the last bit with a nervous chuckle.

John looked at the doctor and nodded.

“Thank you, doctor.  I’m sorry for what just happened.  You have to understand that I’ve been for a bit of a ride and I’m trying to wrap my head around this whole situation.  So please forgive me for threatening you, I really didn’t know you were telling the truth.”

The doctor nodded nervously toward John and gave him a shaky smile.

“No need to apologize, I should have thought this through a bit better.  I knew that I hadn’t ever seen a creature such as you before and I should have planned out a better explanation.  In any case, the situation is behind us now so there is no need to bring it up again.”

The doctor turned his attention toward Applejack.

“I’ll go retrieve the necessary forms that you both will need to sign for him to leave the hospital, and after that you both can leave.”

The last statement came out a bit more harshly than the doctor intended, but John and Applejack both chalked it up to be nerves.  As the doctor left the room, John looked back at the orange pony.  He still didn’t want to believe that this was happening, but the reality of the situation was beginning to dawn on him much like the time he had first heard the news of what had happened to his…

He slammed a mental bulkhead down upon that memory before it could hurt him.  He didn’t want to recall what had happened yet, he wasn’t ready.

Instead, he returned his attention to the very real pony that was sitting in front of him.  He didn’t know what to do, he still didn’t believe that this was really happening.  But, he was going to react the way he always did when he didn’t know what was going on.  He’d wing it.

  He suddenly realized that he wasn’t wearing anything but the hospital gown that he had woken up in and he was immediately embarrassed.  He cleared his throat before he spoke again.

“Umm, Miss Applejack…” he started.

“Please, I’ve gotten enough of that ‘miss’ nonsense from the doctor.  It’s either Applejack or AJ.”

“Okay, Applejack,” he corrected, “Could you give me a moment to get dressed, I feel kind of naked right now.” He said with a blush.

“Oh, umm… sure, heh-heh.  Uh, sorry.” She stammered.

Applejack left the room and slid the curtain closed behind her.  John got to his feet with effort and began to dress.  He noted the blood on his clothing and armor with unease, but proceeded to put them back onto his body regardless.  He would simply have to wash it off when he got the chance.  While he was strapping his armor back on, he noticed what appeared to be knife marks on the sides.  Perhaps the hospital staff had tried to cut the armor off to operate?  They hadn’t gotten very far with that approach, and John was glad of it.

He put his pistol-belt back on and slid his arms through the suspender straps.  He sat down and put his boots back on.  He stood up again and placed his pack and helmet on the bed.  Then he turned around and walked to retrieve his rifle from where it had stopped sliding.  He bent over and picked it up, noting a few new scratches in the stock.  He placed the rifle on the bed beside his pack and helmet.

He was opening up his pack as Applejack peered around the corner.  While John was on the bed, she hadn’t realized just how tall he was.  Now, with his clothing and armor back on, he looked very bulky.  She was wondering what he was doing in his pack when he pulled out a black case.  With a click, the case opened and he pulled out a pair of glasses.

“So that’s why you couldn’t see us at first.” She thought aloud.

John jumped when she spoke.  After regaining his composure, he placed the glasses on his face and turned toward her.

“I guess my other pair fell off in the crash.  I suppose it’s okay though, these look a whole lot better.”

Applejack took a few steps forward and looked up into his face.

“What are you John?” she asked.

“I’m a human.” He stated, “More specifically, I’m a human soldier.  A Marine”

Applejack detected a hint of pride in his last statement.  She eyed him up and down, trying to see if he was some kind of threat to herself and her friends.  Or Equestria, more importantly.  But no matter how much she tried to envision it, she couldn’t see John as a monster.  He didn’t look evil, maybe a little intimidating in his armor, but not evil.  If anything he looked…

Weary.

Not just in a physical sense, there was an air about him that made it seem almost as if he was tired of life.  But the fire that Applejack saw deep in his eyes countered that air almost tenfold.  The look in his face was hardened, but compassionate.  He still seemed a bit confused by all that was around him, but that looked like it was starting to become an afterthought.

He also looked like a hard worker.  His posture was rigid, almost like a slab of stone.  While he was out Applejack had noted that he looked pretty strong, and a thought popped into her head.

“John?” she asked.

“Yes ma’am?” he replied.

“I told ya it’s just Applejack, no miss’s or ma’ams.” She said irritably.

“Yes Applejack?” he tried again.

Applejack nodded at the correction before continuing.

“I realize that you’re still a bit confused by all of this, and I hate to bring this up and pile up more on your list of problems, but I have a bit of a bone to pick with you.” She said sternly.

John looked surprised at this, but instead of protesting, he pulled up a chair and sat down to listen to Applejack’s explanation.

“When your contraption crashed,”

“The helicopter?” John inserted.

“Yeah, that whirlamejigger.  Anyways, when it crashed into the orchard, it knocked down quite a few of mah trees.  I know it wasn’t your fault, but I was wonderin’ if you would be kind enough to help us repair the damage that the incident caused?”

John blinked a few times, and then laughed.  He wasn’t laughing at her proposal.  In fact, he thought it was more than fair.  He was laughing because he thought that she was going to lecture him about pointing a gun at her and the doctor.  After a few seconds, he noticed that Applejack was staring at him with a mean look in her eyes.

“Well, it was jest a suggestion.  I don’t expect ya to help me just because I saved yer life.” Applejack said angrily.

“Wha?  Oh, nononono.  I’m sorry, I wasn’t laughing at that.” John said defensively.

“Well then, what were ya laughin’ about?” she said, still staring at him angrily.

“I thought you were mad at me for nearly shooting the doctor.  It just caught me off guard when you asked me for help instead of scolding me.”

Applejack’s head jerked back.  She thought about that for a moment before she started to chuckle.

“Well, I suppose that is kinda funny.” She said with a grin.

“And also, thank you.  You know, for saving my life.”

Applejack blushed a little before continuing.

“Don’t mention it.  Ain’t nopony gonna say that Applejack didn’t help someone in need.” She said with her head held high.

“And I’d be more than happy to take you up on helping with the repairs.” He added.

“Glad to hear it.  When the Doc comes back with the papers and we get through all that mess, we’ll head to Sweet Apple Acres and get you settled in.  You’re gonna need a place to stay while you’re here, why not in the place where you’re gonna be workin’.” She said with a smile.

John’s face seemed to light up.

“Hey, I’ll bet that my comrades will be willing to help to.  We’ll have the mess cleaned up in no time.” He said hopefully.

Applejack’s smile disappeared, as did John’s.

“I was afraid of that.  How many?” he asked sadly.

“Seven.  We buried them a few days ago. I’m sorry.”

John shook his head.

“That’s my first job when we get there.” He said.

“What?”

“I’m going to pay my respects.  Marines take care of their own.”

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 8: Reality?

As the two walked out of the hospital, John slung his rifle over his shoulder.  Applejack took a different route to the farm, one that didn’t go through Ponyville.  She didn’t think that he needed the awkward stares of the townsponies as they tried to figure out what he was or what he was doing here.  He didn’t say much on the walk to Sweet Apple Acres, but Applejack thought he was just sad over the death of his comrades.  That was part of the problem, but the reality was that John was having a mental argument with himself.

‘What are you doing?  You know it isn’t real.’

‘How can you be sure?  It seems pretty real to me’

‘Come on, look around you.  A child’s TV show come to life?’

‘Maybe I’m in a coma and this is what my mind is projecting?’

‘Allright then John, let’s test this little theory of mine.  If this is a projection of my subconscious, then that pony in front of me will have to answer any question I ask it with an answer I thought she would say.  So go ahead, ask her a question.’

“Hey Applejack?”

Applejack turned her head.

“Yeah, John?”

“I know this is gonna sound stupid, but I have a question that I need you to answer for me.” He said almost apologetically.

“It’s not stupid, I’ll bet ya’, so go ahead and ask.” She encouraged.

John closed his eyes and took a breath.  When he opened his eyes, he looked back at her.

“Is this real?  Like, really real?”

Applejack cocked her head to the side a bit when she replied.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean all of this.” John gestured with his arm to the landscape. “Is this all real?”

Applejack looked John in the eye before she answered.  She was trying to see what he was thinking, but all she got back was confusion and skepticism.

“John,” she said comfortingly, “I know that you’re probably not from this world, and I know this is all kinda’ confusing, but I can assure you that this is all very real.”

‘Damn, that wasn’t the answer I was thinking at all.’ John thought to himself.

Unfortunately, his face reflected his inner doubts.  Applejack saw this and started thinking herself.

‘How can ah prove to him that this is real?’

‘You could kick him, they always say you can’t feel pain in a dream.’

‘No, that’s a bad idea.  Ah don’t even know the fella’, I can’t just kick him.’

‘Well, you’re gonna have ta think of something.’

‘Well, seeing is believing, right?  The only problem is, he can see me but he still feels that I’m not real.’

‘Wait a second, that’s it!’

Applejack stopped in the road and John did the same.

“John, give me your helmet.” She said.

John looked a bit puzzled at this request, but did as he was told.  He unclipped his helmet from his belt and handed it to Applejack.  She sat down and took it in one hoof, while the other removed her favorite Stetson and handed it to John.

“Now, put this on.” She told him.

He still looked puzzled, but again did as he was told.  While he was putting the hat on, Applejack put his helmet over her head.  It felt kind of strange, and heavy, but it wasn’t uncomftorable.  When the two were finished making adjustments, they looked at one another.  John started to chuckle a bit when he saw how AJ looked with a helmet on.  Applejack giggled a bit herself when she noticed how ridiculous her hat looked alongside all of John’s other equipment.  After a few seconds, Applejack made her point.

“Now, does that hat feel ‘fake’?” she asked with a grin.

John shook his head.  Applejack took off the helmet.

“Put your hand on my head”

John placed his hand behind her head on her mane.

“Do I feel fake.” She asked quietly.

John ran his fingers through her mane before answering.

“No. No, you don’t” he said, his doubts finally disappearing.

“Exactly.” she started, “I’m not fake, John, this is all real.”

John nodded his head, but then looked uneasy.

“Then, what happened to my world?” he asked with concern.

“I don’t know John, we’ll just have to figure that out later.  For now, we need to take everything one step at a time.”

John nodded and then smiled.  She had built his confidence up a bit.

“And the first step,” she continued, “Is getting you settled in.”

“Allright then.” John said and stood up.

As the two started walking back to the farm, Applejack realized something.

“Hey, John?”

“Yeah AJ?”

Applejack gave John a playful kick in his shin.

“Ouch!  Hey, what was that for?” he laughed.

“Gimme back my hat.”

Authors note

Okay, I know that this isn't a well known fic, but for those of you readers out there that have been keeping up with it, I would like to apologize for the HUGE delay in getting out an update. I have suffered from the worst writers block, and I'm just now starting to come out of it. However, I will have an update out to this fic within the next three days.

Thank you for your patience. As I said, this is not a very well known (or liked) fic, but for those of you readers out there, thank you.

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 10: Settling In

(the previous day)

Applejack watched as John tended to the graves of the fallen. She and her brother had already buried the dead humans from the crash, but John had set makeshift markers at the head of each grave, and now he was digging up just enough to find a necklace that was around each Marines neck. When he had found each one, he recited something under his breath and laid the tags over the grave markers. The importance of the necklaces was still a mystery to her though.

“What exactly are those things your diggin' up?”

John finished filling the last hole and looked at her. He reached underneath his shirt and pulled out his own.

“Let me show you.”

She moved closer to see exactly what these things were.

“There's writing on it?”, she asked as he displayed his own necklace to her.

“Yes, they're called dog-tags. It's a way of identifying us after we have died.”

She looked up at his face with a sad expression after he had said that. She didn't like to think about death much, not after what had happened to her parents. She especially didn't like how casually he had said that statement. It was as if he expected death to happen to him.

“Does it really happen that often?” she asked.

His face had softened at this.

“I'm afraid so.”, he looked slightly past her, as if thinking about how to continue.

“But, I've never been afraid of dying. I've been sad when I've thought about those that I may leave behind, afraid of not being able to see them again, but death itself doesn't scare me. I know it will happen to me sooner or later. But, when my meter is up, I plan to make sure that I spend my last moments well, fighting for something that means something. Years from now, I want someone to look at these tags and remember my name. I want someone to say 'He gave every last effort, he made that final push. He gave that last full measure of devotion.' I don't plan to waste my life, but when I finally face Death, I will face him with peace in my heart and fire in my eyes.”

She bacame rooted to the spot, she hung onto his every last word. He spoke like a poet, a poet whose meter was already running low. He looked down and gestured with the dog-tags.

“These aren't just pieces of metal that identify us once we're gone, they're our legacy.”

He looked back at her, certainty and fire replacing the pain and sadness in his eyes.

“These tags are the things we leave behind to say 'This is me, this is what I did, this is what I stand for, I will NOT be forgotten.'”

He looked over to the fresh graves. Each one had a simple cross made of branches at their head. Their tags had been draped over them. The fire in his eyes dulled, the pain started to show through again.

“I will not forget these boys, any of them. I suppose that because of this, I am their legacy. Their deeds are seared into my memory, and I will make sure that the world does not forget them.”

She simply stood by and stared at him. She hardly knew this being at all, yet he was able to spark something inside her. She couldn't quite put her hoof on it, but it was powerful. She decided to think on it later.

After tending to the dead, the two headed inside. Applejack showed John to the guest room that he would be staying in. He thanked her and she left him be. She soon heard the sound of the guest room's shower starting up. After a few minutes, the sound of water had stopped and John had made his way down the stairs minus his armor and boots. He was now wearing a green short sleeved shirt instead of the multicolored jacket.

After a quick bite to eat, Applejack could hold her curiosity at bay no more.

“So, you said that you had a story to share with me?”

John finished the piece of pie that she had prepared for him.

“I did indeed, didn't I?”

Applejack nodded in agreement, leaning in closer due to the anticipation of a tale. Noticing this, her new guest chuckled.

“Alright then. But first, I need coffee. This may take awhile.”

After pouring his coffee and taking a sip, John began to tell his tale.

(sometime later)

“So, Ya'll are telling me that we're just a bunch of made up characters on a...” she struggled with the last bit.

“A childrens TV show.”

She didn't really know what to say. She wasn't particularly surprised, but the fact that she existed, and at the same time didn't, in their world sent her head spinning. It didn't particularly matter. But she did have one thing that was pressing on her mind.

“Wait a sec, if it's a childrens show, then how did you come to liking it?”

John looked up from his mug and smiled.

“Well,” he started, “In my world, there is a group of people who call themselves Bronies.”

“Bronies, what in the hay is that supposed to mean?”

John chuckled a bit.

“Bronies, or Brony when you're talking about one person, is a shorter way of saying bro who likes ponies. Most of us are guys who like the show, despite the fact that it's for kids.”

“Well, if y’all ain’t kids, then how old are ya?”

John rubbed the back of his neck and frowned as he spoke.

“We're usually ages sixteen through forty.”

She gave him an odd look and he continued.

“I know it's odd, but it's a good show.”

Applejack was about to say something when a thought hit her.

“Well, I suppose it is odd. But it ain’t any odder than Big Mac being attached to the flank with that doll of his, Mr. Smarty pants was it?” She shrugged.

John started laughing just as she realized that she had thought out-loud. Slightly embarrassed, she raised a hoof to pull her hat over her eyes only to realize that she had set it on the table. Noticing this, John stopped laughing and cleared his throat.

“Well, I suppose if you put it that way it ain’t so bad.”

They both held a straight face for about three seconds before they both started to laugh. As they started to regain their composure, another thought hit Applejack.

“Wait, if the show is for kids, then how did you get into it?” she asked.

“I watched it with my daughters.” John said as he raised his mug up to take another sip.

Applejack's mind exploded.

“Wait, you have a family? You have daughters? We have to get you back!” She was in a panic for John. If he had a family, she had to help him get back to them.

John froze. He slowly brought the mug down and placed it back on the table. He screwed his eyes shut for a moment, and when he opened them, they glistened with tears.

At first, AJ thought he was just missing his family. She thought he was just scared at the prospect of never seeing them again. But when his eyes opened and she saw the pain, saw the sadness, she knew it was something much deeper.

Sorrow.

Before she could form the words in her mind to say any thing, John spoke up.

“It's late, I'm gonna go to bed. Early start tomorrow, right?”he asked sadly.

John slowly got up and walked up the stairs to the bedrooms. Applejack heard the door close, and her head sagged.

'What did I say? Did I offend him? What did I do wrong?'

As she was pondering these thoughts, Granny Smith came down the stairs.

“My, my. I don't believe I've ever seen a creature with quite so much despair bottled up inside him in all my years.” she said to no one in particular.

Applejack looked at her grandmother.

“Granny, what do you mean by that?”

The old Apple looked at her granddaughter and frowned.

“Some people you can jest feel the anger and pain comin' off of, like steam off a freshly baked apple pie.”

She looked back up the stairs before continuing.

“That one though, it's like he's burning. The feelings comin' off o' him are so thick, it's like smoke. I dunno what happened to him, but it musta' been terrible.”

Finished saying her bit, Granny Smith walked into the living room. Applejack didn't even notice the sound of her granny's rocker creaking, she was so lost in thought.

'Could it be?'

That was the only thought in her head as she looked up the stairs, her heart pouring out to the creature in her house that was in so much pain, and desperately hoping that she was wrong.

The next morning found Applejack up early. But instead of the usual restfulness that she felt in the mornings, her head was buzzing from fatigue.

She had worried through the night about John. She wanted to know what had happened to him that caused him so much pain, she HAD to know. But if what she thought was right, and she was desperately hoping that she was wrong, then she couldn't revisit those memories upon this human.

She lay under the covers wondering about this. Grumbling, she finally rolled off of the bed and prepared for the days work. After brushing her teeth and putting her hair bands in, she grabbed her stetson and walked out her bedroom door. Once outside, she placed her hat on her head and quietly closed the door. Turning around, her eyes caught sight of the guest room. It was closed, and Applejack had to restrain herself from going over and peeking in on John.

'Whoa there girl, this human don't even know you. Plus, John's a soldier. He can take care of himself.'

'That won't help a thing, an' you know it. He's not fightin' any of his countries enemies, he's fighting himself.'

Her brutally honest side hit her before she could even take a breath. With this new found truth, she carefully crossed the hallway to the guest room. She put her ear to the door, listening for any signs of activity. When she heard nothing, she turned the knob and gently pushed the door open.

John was nowhere to be found. His items and possessions were all neatly stacked against the wall, and the bed was perfectly made. Applejack was starting to worry until she saw that his boots were gone.

'Maybe he went for a walk?'

She left the room as she found it. Closing the door, she made her way downstairs and out of the house. Stepping out onto the porch, she took a deep breath of the crisp early morning air. Satisfied, she made her way to the next row of trees to be harvested for the day. Yesterday, Big Mac had set out the carts and baskets that she would need to collect the apples in. This meant that she could get straight to work.

As she trotted towards the cart, movement caught her eye. She slowed down to a cautious walk as she neared. She rounded the carts edge to see John. She was a bit surprised at what state he was in, though.

He was doing push ups, but he was using the cart and two of the baskets as props. He had his feet on the cart, and his right and left hands each had a basket underneath them. She watched, fascinated, as his chest went well below his hands and back up. He did this over and over again, like a machine. Suddenly, he came to a stop and placed his feet back on the ground. He took a few steps forward before jumping up and grabbing one of the branches of a nearby tree. Again, Applejack stood rooted to the spot as she watched John lift his body up and down, over and over again. She counted to twenty before John came back down to the ground again. His shirt was soaked through with sweat, yet he looked as though he was getting ready for yet another exercise.

“I'm about to go for a run, would you like to join?” he asked with his back turned.

Applejack yelped and fell over when John spoke. She didn't think that he knew she was there. When she managed to get back on her hooves, John was turned toward her and smiling.

“H-how in the hay did...”she stammered.

“The crickets stopped chirping, so I looked underneath myself while I was doing pushups. I saw four orange legs from under the cart, so I figured it was you and kept on going.”

She was amazed at how aware of his surroundings he was. She wondered how he learned to do that.

“Also, you started to count out loud while I was doing pull ups.” he said with a chuckle.

She felt a little embarrassed, it seemed to her that she said a lot of things out loud when she was around him. Why didn't her mind work right when she was around him?

“So, about that run?” he asked.

“Sure, I'll run with ya, jest as long as it doesn't take too long, I gotta start work soon.”

“Okay, how long does it take you to run a mile?”

Applejack thought for a moment.

“Bout' four minutes.”

John rubbed the back of his neck.

“Okay then. Well, it's gonna be a run for me, and maybe a light trot for you.”

Applejack looked puzzled.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, humans aren't made for speed.” he pointed at his legs, “We're built for endurance. Your faster than me 'cause you have four legs to my two. It takes me about seven and a half minutes to run a mile, and I'm in shape.”

Applejack chuckled a bit.

“Sure, I'll go for a 'walk' with you.” she teased.

John just shook his head and began to jog. Applejack kept up at a slight trot and looked up at him.

“Don't ya need to stretch or somethin', I'd hate for you to pull a muscle on this 'walk'.” she poked again, chuckling.

John smirked.

“S'okay, I've already ran six miles.”

Applejack stopped chuckling at her jokes after she heard this. Ponyville was only three miles from her farm, John had run there and back again twice.

'How long has he been up?' she thought.

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter11: Surprise Visit

The run had been enjoyable. Applejack had been impressed by John's endurance. He had kept a slow, but steady pace the whole way through. It wasn't often that she was able to just take a light trot with company. Even though the exercise had been quiet, save for the clopping of hooves and the thud of heavy footfalls, it was far from unproductive. AJ had taken this time to think.

'I wonder how I should ask him?'

'Maybe ah shouldn't, maybe I should let him tell me.'

'Is it really that important? It's not right that I risk hurting him just for mah own curiosity.'

'It's not. So don't make matters worse. If he wants ta tell ya, he'll tell ya. But, until then, just concentrate on making him feel at home. We don't know when he'll be able to go back home. If ever.'

Satisfied with her reasoning, Applejack pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind as she started the days work. She bucked the first tree and watched as the apples fell neatly into the baskets below. She was about to set the baskets up below the next one when she realized they were already there. She turned her head in time to see John dumping the first of the full baskets into the cart.

'Well, he sure don't dilly-dally.'

The work was a nice break from his usual routine. The usual routine being a combat deployment in the middle east. He was glad to feel the cool, moist air of the countryside again, even if it wasn't part of his country. John had grown up in Kentucky, and the atmosphere he felt here wasn't that much different.

Except for the talking ponies, of course.

His head was still struggling a bit with the reality he now found himself in, but he was slowly but surely getting more comfortable with it. But there was no time for such thoughts, he had work to do.

Quietly, he placed the baskets for the next tree. Applejack was harvesting the fruit on the trees pretty quickly, but John liked the challenge. He kept up with her pretty well, actually. After a while, the motions of the work started to repeat themselves in his head.

Place, retrieve, dump, repeat.

He had to break every once in a while to move the cart up to where Applejack was. Soon enough though, the cart got full and he couldn't fill it anymore.

“Hey Applejack, this cart is full, I'm gonna go get another one. They're in the barn, right?”

AJ looked back and smiled.

“Actually, Ah think we need ta take a break. I'm startin' to get a bit winded, I've never been able to keep this pace up before 'cause I've always been working by myself. Because you've been helping me, we're actually ahead by a little bit. So, let's head up to the house and you can bring the cart back after the break is over, okay?”

“Alright then.”

John looked down at his watch, they had been at it for about three hours.

'Time flies when your having fun.' he thought to himself as he picked up the cart's handles and began walking to the house.

John actually chuckled a bit. He WAS having fun. The work was honest, hard, and methodic, but relaxing.

He must have been smiling, because Applejack noticed.

“Why you smiling so awful big?” she asked.

“Huh? Oh, I was just thinking about work.”

She gave him an amused look.

“You're smilin' about work?”

“Well, yeah. It's fun. Calming even.”

“Ahm glad that you're enjoying yourself. It's nice to have somebody to work with, it gets awfully lonely out here sometimes.”

John looked down to her.

“I thought that Big Mac helped you out?”

“He tries, but most of the time he's busy tryin' ta keep the orchard running financially. He's pretty good at math, and he has got some amazing business sense. Not to mention that he plows the fields and tries to keep the buildings upright half of the time. We really need some renovations, but despite his talents, we just don't have the money right now.”

She looked up a John.

“Sorry, I don't mean to unload all this onta ya, but it's hard sometimes. What with Ma and Pa gone for so long...”

John's face became full of concern.

“I'm sorry.”

“It's okay. They passed years ago, when Apple Bloom was just born. I try not to dwell on it, but...”

John saw her ears and tail droop, and her head began to sag a bit. But in a flash, she was back to her usual strong demeanor.

“Anyways, how's about we don't dwell on the past? Let's look to the future, like what are we gonna do during our break?”

John smiled.

“Well, I'm up for just about anything. But first, I think I'd like a drink.”

AJ smiled and cocked her head to the side.

“Are we talkin' apple juice, or hard cider?” She snickered a bit before continuing, “'Cause Ah don't think you could handle the latter.”

John's eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Why, I do believe that's a challenge Applejack.”

She raised her head and closed her eyes before smiling.

“Maybe it is, maybe it ain't. You up fer it?”

John laughed. There was a reason that no one but the newbies challenged him to a drinking contest in his old unit.

“I hate to bust your bubble, but I think I'll win that one.”

Applejack giggled and gave John another smile. He found that he rather liked that.

“Alright, we'll settle this later. For now, Ah don't think we should drink like that 'cause we got work, but we could just enjoy a friendly drink together.”

“I'd like that.” he said, returning the smile.

As the two neared the house, John saw something very out of place.

A golden chariot was the last thing he would expect to see on a farm.

“What in the hay is Celestia doin' here?”

John felt a knot in the pit of his stomach, something didn't feel right.

“Ahm gonna go see what's up, why don't you put the cart in the barn?”

John nodded and did as he was told. AJ walked in the direction of the house and John pulled the cart into the barn. When he had finished, he walked out and toward the house. Applejack was just at the door when Celestia herself opened it and walked out. John was a bit too far away to pick up the conversation, but he was able to see the reactions from the two.

Celestia was definitely on edge, judging by her stature, and Applejack looked to suddenly be uncomfortable. John was about midway between the barn and the house by this time. He was wondering what was going on when it happened.

Celestia spotted him.

She raised her hoof.

“GUARDS, SIEZE HIM!!”

“Wait, what?”

Those were the only words that he got out of his mouth before he had to dodge the first of the magical bolts that sizzled past his ear...

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 12: I'm a Marine

The first bolt missed his head by about an inch and impacted on the barn door behind him. The next two were better placed, and would have nailed him in the chest had he not thrown himself to the ground.

This almost cost him.

He had to quickly roll to avoid the next four bolts, each bolt impacted the ground to his left with a puff of dirt.

'Out in the open, can't stay here.'

His Marine training had kicked in. All of his focus was on the fight at hand. Thoughts became clipped, short, and efficient. Spend too long on one decision, and you end up dead.

He had gotten to his feet right before another trio of bolts impacted where he had just been laying.

'No cover. Run, moving target, difficult to hit'

And that's precisely what he did. Celestia's scowl soon got worse as she had to concentrate on hitting him. John's plan was working pretty well, but she eventually figured out how much she had to lead her aim. John knew this because a bolt whizzed past his chest.

'Move erratically, harder to lead.'

Another bolt whizzed past his ear.

'Two firing positions, one left, one front.'

John couldn't locate the second position, but he could see two guards waiting for the fire to pin him down.

'Close the distance, they won't shoot at their own, twenty meters.'

Moving quickly and erratically, he shifted right and charged at the guards.

They hadn't been expecting that.

When a six foot three, two-hundred pound Marine rams into you, you tend to notice. The first pegasus hit the ground and rolled several feet, and his helmet fell off of his head a few feet from John. The other recovered quickly and lunged at John, tackling him to the ground. But John had managed to get his legs under the pony. And when his back hit the ground, he rolled and pushed up with his legs. The pegasus was launched into a tree behind John, and after hitting the tree with a loud thud, fell to the ground and stayed there.

John rolled onto his feet and turned in time to see who had been shooting at him from the second position. A well built unicorn was charging towards him. John brought his right leg back, as if bracing. But when the unicorn was about to close the distance, John brought his right knee up right under the unicorns chin.

The result was spectacular.

The unicorn was flipped onto his back by the force of the blow, and while he was recovering, John picked up the first pegasi's helmet. As the unicorn got to his feet and wheeled around to face the human, John swung the helmet in a ferocious right handed arc.

CLANG!

The noise was almost comical, save for the fact that the unicorn was knocked to the ground.

The flapping of wings caused John to turn around in time to see the first pegasus, now missing his helm, flying at full speed at John. This time, John braced in earnest and readied the helmet in his hand. As soon as the pegasus came within range, John swung again and knocked the pony to the ground.

Motion in his right eye caused him to turn just as the second pegasus, the one who had been against the tree, rammed into him. John dropped his improvised weapon, and the two tumbled on the ground together.

The two separated and rolled to their feet, glaring at each other. The pegasi's face was full of anger and hate. John's was a wall of icy calm and concentration. Enraged even further by this, the pegasus turned around and tried to buck John in the chest.

Time slowed, and John reacted accordingly.

As the pair of hooves started toward him, John brought his left arm up in a deflecting swipe. The pegasus was thrown off balance, and John used this to his advantage. Using his momentum from the deflection, John took a step forward with his right leg while simultaneously bringing his right fist into the pegasus' jaw.

Another one bit the dust.

The force of the blow made the pony's eyes roll back into his head, and he fell to the ground unconscious.

John paused and breathed heavily, his heart was racing. He looked around at the two pegasi that now lay unconscious around him.

'That's two, but where's the...'

SHING!

The sound of a sword being drawn caused John to spin around. Standing in front of him was the unicorn he had brained with the helmet. A rather impressive shiner was forming around his left eye, and he looked pissed. The unicorn had the sword-point leveled at his chest. John's mind moved fast, he couldn't attack or he'd be run through for sure. But maybe...

John quickly feigned right. And the unicorn swung the sword in a downward arc.

Only to embed it in the ground when John quickly sidestepped back to the left. In a flash, John brought his right boot up high and stomped down on the blade...

A satisfying crack noise echoed through the orchard as the blade snapped in half.

'Gotcha.' John thought

A quick step forward, followed by a hard right cross, sent the unicorn sprawling onto the ground again.

John was about to tell him to stay down just as the magical bolt hit him.

A moment of agony writhed it's way through his body, and he fell to the ground numb. He couldn't move his limbs.

Celestia stepped forward and stood over him. A moment passed and her horn began to glow. John was raised from the ground. He looked like a rag doll, his limbs hanging limply at his sides unable to move. But he could still breathe, he could still see.

And he could still hear.

“It has been aeons since I banished your kind from this land. And I can see from this display that my reasons for doing so were, and still are, valid.”

John coughed out a response.

“I was, cough, only , cough, defending myself.”

She snorted.

“Claymore?”

The unicorn got to his feet shakily, and stumbled over to the princess.

“Yes, your majesty?”

“Attend to the other guards, see to it that they are ready to take flight soon. I have matters to discuss with our 'guest'.”

John couldn't help it, the comment was out of his mouth before he could help it.

“Least you have the guts to do your own dirty work.”

Celestia eyes locked onto John.

“I do not use such barbaric means. However, you will come to Canterlot with me. From there, I will make sure that you won't be a threat to my subjects.”

Celestia began to turn, but suddenly found herself face to face with Applejack. Surprised, she lost concentration on her levitation spell, and John dropped like a stone. His body hit the ground with a dull thud.

'Ow' he thought to himself.

He managed to roll his eyes just enough to see Applejack step between him and the princess. She looked mad as Hades.

“Celestia, what in the hay do you think yer doin'? Bustin' inta my house, trespassin' on mah property, and finally assaulting one of mah guest?”

Celestia stood back, her eyes wide in surprise. It looked like she wasn't used to her subjects talking back. However, she quickly regained her composure.

“Applejack, you don't know these creatures like I do. They're dangerous. They have nothing but anger and hate in their hearts. Every time I have seen them argue with another being, the result has almost always been war.”

She looked down at John.

“You simply can't trust such a violent creature.”

She looked back to Applejack.

“Which is why I'm taking this human back to Canterlot. There, I can find a way to banish him back to the pit from whence he came.”

“No,” Applejack stood her ground. “He stays here. He ain't the thing that you're tryin' to push onta him.”

Celestia looked exasperated.

“Applejack, that human is dangerous. I banished his kind from here aeons ago because of their warlike nature. They will never learn, and thus they must be purged from this land.”

“John may be a soldier, but he's far from warlike. Every time I've seen him resort to fighting, it's only been in defense of himself. And I've only seen him do that twice.”

Celestia's eyes widened in horror.

“Wait, He's a SOLDIER!?”

“Marine.” John corrected under his breath.

“Yep. He's a soldier. But despite this, he's peaceful. An' I don't believe that he means any of us harm.”

Applejack looked at the guards that were just coming around.

“In this fight, like I was tellin' ya, John only acted in defense. Yer the one who bucked first. I think that he just wants to be left in peace.”

Celestia's eyes hardened.

“Whatever he has told you of his intentions, they are all lies. His kind only wishes to destroy whatever they come across. He will tell you anythi...'

“EXCUSE ME!?” Applejack interrupted. Celestia's eyes again widened in surprise.

“This human has done nothin' but help me since I brought him here. And unlike yer depiction of him, he is kind, gentle, passionate, caring, and hardworking.”

Applejack took a few steps forward, her head lowered in anger. Celestia actually took a few steps back from the angry farm pony.

“An' let me tell ya somethin' else.” she said angrily, “I think I know a thing or two about honesty,”

She looked back at John.

“This man has been nothing but truthful.” she turned back to Celestia.

“He's an honorable human. And I'm willing to give him a fair shake.”

Celestia stared at the stubborn pony for a few seconds. Then she snorted and moved away.

“If you are so certain of the character of his heart, then I shall leave him under your care. However, let it be known that I warned you Applejack. I pray that you come to your senses, soon.”

She passed by John and looked down at him again.

“It would seem as if my subject trust you human.” he saw nothing but contempt behind her eyes.

“I only pray that she is not mistaken. Mark my words human, should you get out of line I will stomp you out of existence like the scour you are.”

With that, she walked back to the chariot. The guards had regained consciousness and were hooked up to the princesses chariot. Within a few seconds of her stepping foot onto the platform, the chariot was lost from sight over the trees.

John began to regain control of his limbs, and he forced himself into a sitting position. Applejack trotted over to him and sat down, eying him over to make sure he was alright.

John felt rotten. Not only had he managed to start a fight on her farm, he had made it to where she had to stick her neck out for him.

“I'm sorry, AJ. I didn't mean for.”

He was cut off by a hoof over his lips.

“Nothin' to it sugarcube.” She smiled at him reassuringly, “The way Ah see it, they started it, you were just defending yourself.”

Her words managed to quell the sense of unease inside him a little bit, but he still hung his head in shame.

“Just one question though.”

John looked up to her eyes, they were filled with...

Wonder?

“Where in the hay did you learn to fight like that?”

John smiled at her.

“I told you,” he started, “I'm a Marine.”

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter13: Reminiscing

It took a little while, but John finally got control of his legs again. He started to stand up with a little help from Applejack. After he was back on his feet, the two started walking back to the house.

“Well,” Applejack started, “Ah think we're done for the day.”

John looked at her, a hint of surprise in his expression.

“Are you sure?”

Applejack nodded.

“All this excitement has put us both in a foul mood. It's not good ta work when you're cross, especially when you're bucking trees.”

John looked away.

'Nice one, you caused a fight, and you have managed to set her back by a day's work.'

His face showed his thoughts and  Applejack noticed.

“Hey, stop worryin' 'bout it. When I said we were ahead, I meant it. I was already ahead by a few days work when ya got here. Please John, don't blame yourself, it really ain't yer fault.”

He looked back down at her face, and for some reason he just couldn't look away.

“Thank you, for everything that you've done for me in the past few days.”

He couldn't help it. She had done so much for him, and he didn't have anything to give her in return. Yet she kept on helping him with barely an irritated look.

AJ looked up at him, she smiled warmly.

“You're most welcome.”

They walked in silence like that all the way back to the house.

When the two went inside, they immediately went to the kitchen. John sighed and sat down at the table while AJ fumbled around inside one of the cabinets. After a few seconds of searching, she turned around. In her hooves were two glasses and a bottle.

“Now, how'd ya like to have some hard cider? We make it ourselves.”

John smile as she came over and placed the glasses on the table. Using her mouth, she removed the cork from the bottle and poured each of them a drink.

“Now let's see how you like these apples.” she said with a knowing grin.

John took a sip. It wasn't bad, certainly no worse than some of the engine degreasing like substances he had ingested before. AJ was nursing her own glass, and watching him out of the corner of her eye.

'Well, let's give her something to watch, then.'

In a smooth motion from years of practice, John downed the rest of the glass in a single pull. AJ's mouth fell open.

“What in tarnation, that's some of the strongest stuff in Equestria!”

John chuckled as an evil thought came to his mind.

“Wait here.”

He got up and went to his room. Sorting through his pack, he found a steel flask with the Marine Corps. Emblem on it. Walking back downstairs, he unscrewed the top and handed it to AJ.

“Be careful with this, it'll set ya on fire if you're not ready for it.”

Applejack took the flask in her hooves. She sniffed the contents, and her nose wrinkled in reply. She looked up to see John staring back at her, an amused smile forming on his lips. Quickly hiding her disgusted look, she stared back with defiant eyes before taking a pull from the flask...

And she immediately started coughing.

John laughed, hard. It was one of the funniest things he had ever seen. Applejack kept coughing for a few seconds before she could speak again.

“What, cough, in the hay, cough, is that stuff?” she struggled.

John took a moment to wipe a tear from the corner of his eye while his giggles subsided.

“That, my friend, is whiskey. Not exactly the sweetest stuff, but it's guaranteed to wake you up in the morning.”

“If it don't kill ya first, cough-cough.”

The two laughed for a solid minute. They couldn't help it, it WAS funny. AJ had always secretly prided herself on being able to hold her cider better than anyone else, and for the first time she had found someone who could, and probably would, beat her at her own game.

She suddenly realized something.

“Wait, did you call me friend?”

John stopped chuckling and smiled at her.

“Well yeah, what else would I call you?”

A pleasant silence settled on the two. They simply smiled at each other.

'God her eyes are beautiful...'

'He sure ain't a stallion, but the way he fights, the way he feels, what his eyes have burning in them. It's so, wonderful.'

Another few moments passed before the two finally realized what they were thinking. Quickly, the two averted their gazes somewhere else.

'That cider must be stronger than I thought, my head ain't working right...' John thought quickly.

'I dunno what that stuff Ah just drank was, but whoo! Sends yer mind for a tumble.' thought AJ.

An awkward moment filled the room. Both remained quiet and averted their gaze from one another. Finally, John broke the silence.

“Ahem, well, uh, how about we take this outside. I find that a drink with a friend is always much better when you can enjoy the weather.”

AJ's eyes met John's, all awkwardness had vanished.

“I'd like that.”

The next few hours were nothing but relaxing. The two sat on the front porch, sharing cider and sun. Applejack had started talking about...

Well, everything.

She had talked about the farm, about her friends, the names she had given the trees.

But most of all, she talked about her family.

“So, that's most of the family, save for a few distant relatives and such.”

John smiled, she seemed so happy when she talked about her family. The way her eyes lit up at mentioning even the most distant cousin made him feel warm.

'If only I could do the same without feeling this pain...'

As if on cue, it happened. The world slowed to a standstill and the flashbacks came...

(Three years ago)

I'm done getting the groceries, so I pack everything into the back of my truck and start heading home. I am content. My last tour in Afghanistan was over and I managed to get all of my men home safely to their families. Now I'm on my way back to my own.

I'm just passing the first of the checkpoints when the first MP car sped by, lights and sirens blazing. It was soon followed by a firetruck.

“What's going on?” I ask, a knot of worry forming in the pit of my stomach.

“Dunno,” starts the MP, “Lemme check.”

He gets on his radio, and I listen to the conversation.

“Oh, shit, hope they get out”

The knot in my stomach gets worse, something isn't right.

“What is it?”

The MP looks back at me.

“It's a fire, started on 3rd Street.”

The knot drops and is replaced by something I know well...

Fear.

“What's the address?!” I ask in a panic...

The MP looks at me odd.

“214, why?”

I don't even wait for him to get clear, I gun the engine and take off.

214, 3rd Street is my address. My babies are still inside.

I drive through the streets at 60 plus miles an hour. It only takes me a couple of minutes to get to my house.

My heart stops...

Red flames light the afternoon sky.

I slam on the breaks and stop only a few feet from the first fire engine. I scramble out of my truck and run like a madman toward the house, only to be stopped by a firefighter.

“Sir, you can't go in there, we have thi-”

“THAT'S MY HOUSE, MY FAMILIY'S STILL INSIDE!!”

“Sir, I'm sorry, but I can't allow you to-”

He doesn't finish the sentence, my fist slams into the side of his head before he can. If he thinks he's going to stop me, he's got another thing coming.

I charge the door and make my way into the house.

It's nothing but smoke and flame when I get inside.

“PEGGY? SHERRYL? KATELYNN?” I shout through the smoke.

All I get back at first is the crackling voice of the fire.

Then I hear it, faint, but there.

“John!?”

It's my wife.

“PEGGY! WHERE ARE YOU!?”

I get nothing back at first, but her voice comes through again.

“In here!”

The voices are coming from the bedroom upstairs.

I don't think, I just run.

The stairway is a mess, everything is in flames, but I don't hesitate, I just run.

Flames reach out to me, they're trying to kill me, kill my family, but it's not going to happen.

I reach the door, but I can't open it.

“Peggy! Peggy, you have to open the door”

I hear coughing from the other side.

“Daddy, daddy help!”

My blood turns to ice.

“Katelynn, I'm coming, daddy is gonna get you out.”

More coughing.

“John,” my wife starts, “John, the floor is weak, I can't get to the door”

“Peggy, stay where you are, I'm gonna-”

CRACK!

I look up in time to see a beam fall on top of me, followed by a large chunk of the ceiling. I'm pinned, I can't get up.

“NO, NO!!”

That's the only thing going through my head.

“John? John what's happening? Oh god, please say something!”

“Peggy, I can't...” I struggle to get the beam off of me, “I'm pinned, I can't get to you.”

'Oh god, this can't be happening, no...'

I don't hear anything for a bit.

“It's okay sweetheart...” my wife says. She knows. “It's okay, we'll be fine, okay?”

Tears start to cloud my eyes.

“Daddy?” this time it's Sherryl.

“Sherryl, I'm here, Daddy's coming, hold on...” I push against the beam again, my hands are being burnt, but I don't feel it. I feel something, and when I look down, I see what's pinning my leg. A piece of wood about a foot long has nailed my leg to the floor.

I struggle harder, but nothing's happening.

“Daddy, I love you.”

I start crying in pain, rage, sadness...

I'm useless. I'm two feet from the door, and I can't do anything.

“I love you too Daddy” It's Katelynn

“I love you too, girls.” I'm panting, I can't see, I can't breathe.

I keep struggling, then I hear it.

CRACK, CRACK, CRACKLE, SKREE!!

“John,? John?!” My wife's voice is cracking.

“Peggy, I'm here!”

“I love you, do you hear me? We all love you. Don't ever forget that.”

“No...”

The floor on the other side of the door collapses. My girls scream, and then they stop...

“NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”

Then, the world turns black.

Just like smoke...

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 14: Revelations

“Hey, are you alright”

Applejack's voice broke through to John, and he jumped.

“What?” he said shakily.

Applejack looked at him with a worried expression..

“I asked if you were okay, you started shaking.”

John looked down at his hands, and sure enough they were shaking uncontrollably. He took a deep breath and tried to stop the shaking, his head hung low and his heart was beating at a million miles a minute.

Applejack watched in worry as he closed his eyes and breathed deeply.

“I'm fine.” he finally said unconvincingly.

“John, if ya need to talk about something, I'll listen.” she said reassuringly.

John looked at her, pain in his eyes.

“I....” he started.

Applejack sat patiently, her face full of concern and understanding.

He looked down again, he became lost in thought.

'This may be the day that I can actually come to terms with what happened. I've never let anyone help me with it, never talked about it. Maybe she can help me with this? She's been so patient, so kind. Is it really right for me to ask her for even more help?'

As if in reply to his thoughts, he felt her hoof rest on top of his hand. He looked up to see her smiling at him. That kind, gentle, sweet smile.

“It's okay John, I'm here for ya.” she said softly.

All doubts vanished from his tortured mind.

'It's time to wake up, John. Time to let go, to let someone help you.'

“I... I los-”

“HEY SIS!!!”

John was cut off by the excited voice of Apple Bloom. Said filly came running up the porch steps and launched herself at her big sister.

She landed on Applejack with an oof.

“Apple Bloom,” started AJ, “What in the hay has gotten inta you?”

The young filly looked straight at John, and he couldn't help but start to smile.

“So this is our new guest, wow, he looks weird!”

“APPLE BLOOM!” AJ scolded.

Apple Bloom's ears flattened on top of her head, but soon pricked back up when she heard John laughing.

“Take it easy Applejack, your little sister has a point, I do look pretty out of place.”

Applejack looked at John with a mean look.

“That ain't the point, she knows better than to say things like that.”

John held his hands up in defeat.

“Okay, okay.”

AJ looked back at her sister.

“Now Apple Bloom, say yer sorry to John for bein so rude.”

Apple Bloom turned her head towards him, but she kept her eyes low.

“Ah'm mighty sorry, sir.”

John gave her a warm smile.

“It's okay sweetheart, but your sister's right. I wasn't offended, but somepony else may be. You just gotta be careful about what you say from now on, okay?”

Apple Bloom looked up, a slight smile forming on her face.

“Okay.”

“Now, if it's okay with your sister, you should go play.” John looked up at AJ for confirmation.

The orange mare had a bewildered expression on her face, but when Apple Bloom looked up at her she nodded. Apple Bloom hopped off her sister and ran out into the orchard. John closed his eyes as he sat back in his chair and sighed.

'She's a lot like, well, both of them really.'

He was suddenly aware of someone staring at him. He opened his eyes and turned his head to see AJ gaping at him in bewilderment.

“What?” he chuckled as he noted her expression.

She shook herself out of her trance.

“How'd you get to be so good with kids?” she asked.

John's smile faded as he remembered how brief those years of parenting had been.

“I had to learn quick when I had two of my own.” he said sadly.

Applejack's eyes widened.

“Wait, what d'ya mean 'had'?”

John turned his head to look her straight in the eyes. He knew something was showing, something that he had hidden for so long but had finally broke its way through.

Defeat.

Applejack saw the dull look of his eyes, the way they looked half dead, and immediately her eyes started to tear up.

“Oh John, Ah'm so,” she sniffed, “Ah'm so sorry, Ah didn't know...”

She got out of her chair and walked over to John. She stood up on her hind legs and gave him a hug. He sat for a moment, unable to do anything because of his sorrow. Finally, he wrapped his arms around her. A tear fell from his eye and landed on her mane.

Applejack pulled her head away from the crook of his neck and looked into his face.

“John, if you need to talk about it, you know I'm here right?”

John looked down to her. He nodded his head.

“Okay.” He said. “I'll tell you more later, I... I don't think I could handle it right now.”

She smiled at him reassuringly.

“Okay sugarcube, whenever you're ready.”

The two had gone back inside hours ago. John had met Apple Bloom properly, as well as Big Macintosh. They even played a quick game of cards, hitting it off pretty well despite his loosing to the stallion's superior mathematical strategy. After a while the household had said their good-nights and everyone turned in for the evening.

Everyone except Applejack.

She couldn't sleep. She had too much going through her head. John's revelation to her this afternoon had sent her mind into turmoil. As much as she tried to convince herself otherwise, she cared for him in a more than neighborly way.

'Consarn that man! What is it about him?'

She didn't know, but he had managed to plant himself in her mind in the span of just a few days. It was because of this that she had gotten up in the middle of the night to think. She had to find a way to cheer him up, she couldn't bear to keep seeing the ghost of defeat that lay behind his eyes.

So she sat on the couch in the living room trying to think of things that may make him happier.

'Ah could take him into town. He hasn't met the others. Maybe that would cheer him up.'

She was pondering this when the look he had given her popped into her mind again. His face had held the same look hers had all those years ago when her parents had died.

'I was able to let go because I finally understood it wasn't my fault. He seems so torn inside, I don't think he's ever been able to let go. He blames himself, but I don't know why.'

She looked into the fireplace, the embers of the evenings warmth were slowly fading.

'Maybe when he tells me a bit more, Ah can help him. Hopefully the trip to town will ease his mind a bit.'

Applejack yawned.

'Maybe a good nights sleep will help ease mine too.'

Too tired to go upstairs, Applejack balled herself up on the couch, and settled into a deep sleep.

Little did she know, someone was waiting for her.

As she crossed the boundary separating the waking world from the dream state, she became aware of another consciousness near her. She found herself in a dreamscape of endless void, it was dark, but she could feel something solid beneath her hooves.

“This is new.” she said aloud.

The emptiness was filled by a feminine chuckle. Applejack started looking around to try and pinpoint the source of the laugh. She couldn't.

“Who's there?”

A silhouette began to take shape out of a thick mist that had suddenly appeared.

“Fear not, dear Applejack, we mean you no harm.”

Applejack stained her eyes to try to make out who this mystery pony was. Her eyes widened once she actually saw who it was.

“Princess Luna?”

The goddess of the night smiled.

“Yes, but we beg of you to call us simply by our name, Luna.”

“Why?”

Luna's head turned to the side a bit.

“You are the element of honesty, one of the six that delivered us from our darkness, it is the least we can do to thank you.”

Applejack shook her head, that wasn't what she had asked.

“No, Ah mean why are you here?”

Luna nodded her head in understanding.

“We understand that this may be a bit strange for you, but it is our sincerest wish to try and gain your pardon for our sisters behavior earlier this day.”

Applejack's memory of the incident earlier that day hadn't faded.

“Well at least somepony knows that was wrong. What in the hay made your sister act like that in the first place?”

Luna's eyes fell.

“We are afraid that it is a bit of a tale.”

Applejack laughed.

“Luna, we're in a dream aren't we? So we got plenty of time.”

Luna looked back up at AJ.

“Fine, but we are afraid that this may start to seem like a history lecture.”

AJ nodded, and sat on her haunches. She looked at Luna expectantly, signaling that she was ready.

“It all began long ago. Celestia and ourself had succeeded in creating our kingdom, and the world of Equestria was at peace, mostly.”

Applejack waited for Luna to continue.

“The world you know now is not that much different from the one then, save for one thing. The Humans. They had created an empire for themselves, and our two races lived in harmony with each other.”

Luna gazed up as she remembered.

“They were a wonderful people. So full of hope, of ideas, of creativity. They were magnificent to watch.”

Her face fell.

“But, like all peoples of the world, the humans had a dark side.”

She looked back at AJ, she looked like she had almost seen a ghost.

“War. It was their sickness, their bane. They constantly strived for peace, but they excelled at war. Time and time again we watched hopefully as they rose from the ashes of a conflict to rebuild, to secure a brighter future for themselves. But it was all for not. Our hopes were dashed again and again as the humans dragged themselves into war after war with one another. They couldn't stop. It was an addiction. Something inside of them yearned, pleaded, begged of them to spill blood. It did not matter the reason.”

She closed her eyes.

“Eventually, our sister could see nothing but the threat that the humans presented to our kingdom. She devised a plan to remove this threat, once and for all. We tried to reason with her, but her heart was set against the humans. She no longer saw them as beings, but as killing machines.”

Luna smiled sadly.

“But we remember them for something much different. It was inevitable that the humans would war with one another. You cannot keep such passion in check like that for long. They were driven by their emotions, their beliefs, to the point that they would kill or be killed to defend them. We have never seen such a being that can feel quite as deeply as a human. Their emotions allow them to do things that no other creature could do, save for us. They lust, they hate, they despise, but none of these emotions can stand up to what truly makes them what they are.”

She paused, a smile spread across her face as she remembered something that Applejack was not privy to.

“What is that?”

Luna opened her eyes, the smile still upon her face.

“Love.”

Applejack's mind clicked.

“Luna, did you?”

Luna nodded.

“Yes, his name was Marcus. And he was magnificent. So strong, so caring, so gentle. He was our lover, our protector, and he loved us with all his being. And we him.”

Applejack was waiting for more, but Luna had stopped talking.

“What happened?”

Luna bit her lip, and a tear streaked its way down her face.

“He, like so many others, was killed in battle.” her shoulders heaved for a bit, she was taking deep breaths to keep from crying. After a few moments, she regained control of herself.

“A group of humans started to slander our name. They called Celestia and ourself tyrants, murderers, dictators. Another group of humans stood up for us, realizing that we were allies. Marcus was the one who led that faction. He fought for our honor, but lost his life in the final months of the conflict.”

Luna took another moment to gather herself.

“Luna, Ah'm so sorry. Ah can't imagine what that feels like.” AJ consoled.

Luna looked up, tears were freely running down her cheeks.

“He was the only one that we ever loved, the only one we will ever be able to love.”

Luna kept silent for a bit longer, AJ waited.

“Our sister eventually learned of our relationship to Marcus and how it ended. While we were in our despair, she came to us and convinced us to participate in her plan. She was attempting to banish all the humans from Equestria. She said it would be a way of punishing the humans who had killed our beloved Marcus. A feat of magic so great, such an attempt had not been seen since the Elements of Harmony had been created by Celestia and ourself. In our despair, we were not making judgments as we should have. We blamed the humans for the death of our love, and so we agreed to help our sister banish them.”

Her silent tears turned to sobs.

“We were blinded by our grief. We were angry.”

Applejack looked at the distressed princess.

“Luna, ya don't have to keep going if it's gonna bring up bad memories.”

“No,” Luna straightened up, and she ceased her sobbing. “No, we must avoid mistakes in the future by acknowledging the past”

She looked at Applejack, determination showed through her pain.

“The time eventually came, and Celestia and ourself started the spell. The magic took extreme concentration, and we channeled our anger and pain into our craft. We were creating a rift, a tear in the very fabric of reality. It was our intention to send the humans to a different universe alltogether,”

Luna's eyes fell once more, and she closed them.

“And we succeeded.. Within days of our starting the spell, all of humankind was gone from Equestria, sent to a universe that they didn't belong in. A universe that wasn't theirs.”

She opened her eyes again.

“The task was far from over though. Together with our sister, we performed the arduous task of trying to mend the tear that we had created, to heal the wound that we had inflicted upon reality. We managed to do so, to a point.”

Applejack's ears perked up in surprise.

“What's that supposed ta mean?”

Luna continued.

“The amount of energy we and our sister had expended was immense, and we could never hope to gain such power ever again. To sum it up, we simply ran out of energy. We were unable to make the last few stitches in the fabric that we had torn, but we had made enough to ensure that it did not tear on it's own accord.”

A question ran across AJ's mind.

“Luna, where did all of this take place?”

Luna managed a weak chuckle.

“Well, that is how this human, John as you know him, came to be in your care. The rift was above your orchard.”

Applejack didn't know what to say. But something Luna had said didn't sound right.

“What do you mean that the rift “was” above my farm?”

Luna smiled.

“That is John's predicament. The rift has been closed forever. When he came through, the edges of the rift fell into place like a puzzle being completed. John has unintentionally made the last few stitches in the fabric. Our sister cannot banish him. He is forever to remain here, where his kind originally started.”

Applejack suddenly smiled as she felt a burden lifted off of her back. Celestia wasn't going to be able to take John away from her. But then she realized how selfish she sounded and immediately hung her head in shame for having the thought. This did not escape Luna's attention, and she chuckled.

“We see that we were not the only ones to harbor feelings for a human.”

Applejack's head snapped up and she tried to defend against the implication, but her heart wouldn't let her. She resigned herself to simply lowering her head and nodding.

“Ah don't get it Luna, I've only gotten to know this man for two days. How can he get under my skin like this?”

Luna smiled at AJ.

“Our dear Applejack, love does not recognize time as a factor. It marches to no drum. If you truly love this human, do not hide it. You will only cause yourself pain if you take that path.”

“That's the thing Luna, Ah like John, but I don't know if I love him.”

Luna looked up while she thought.

“Well, what is it that has brought this human to your attention in that way?”

Applejack didn't even have to think.

“The way he talks. He feels so strongly about life, about duty. He's passionate. He can spark something inside my heart with a glance. He makes me laugh, he makes me happy. I know that I can talk to him. He makes me feel at home.”

Applejack paused for a moment and thought about what she had said. She looked up at Luna, whose face now held a huge grin.

“Ah am in love with him.” Applejack realized aloud.

“Then do not keep those feelings hidden. Tell this human.”

“Ah don't know Luna...”

“If you are afraid of rejection, fear not. If you fear rejection, you will never accomplish anything.”

Applejack looked at Luna, John's past came to her mind.

“What about the feelings he still has for his family?”

Luna's ears perked up.

“He has a family?”

Applejack looked down.

“Well, they...” she couldn't say it

“Pray, Applejack, what is it?”

She looked up a Luna, a grim look on her face.

“They died. His daughters died.”

Luna reeled back. The two mares sat in silence for a long while.

“Then he has known a sadness that even ours cannot compare to...” Luna said quietly.

Applejack's head hung low.

“How can I tell him that Ah love him when he is still so attached to them? Ah can't compare to them, they were his daughters. His little girls.”

Again, silence loomed over the two for a long while. And again, it was Luna who broke the silence.

“This is how.” she started, “You won't try to compare to them.”

Applejack looked up at the princess, now the tears were in her eyes.

“You're right,” Luna continued, “They were his daughters. Nothing ever will be able to compare to them. He will carry their memory in his heart for the rest of his life.”

Applejack lowered her head again, she didn't know where Luna was going with this, but so far it wasn't helping her mood. However, Luna placed a hoof under her chin and lifted her face up to where she could see her eyes.

“But, you will listen, and be there for him when he needs you.”

Luna smiled.

“Sometimes, listening to the one you love can do more than words or actions ever will be able to do.”

AJ sniffed and wiped her face with her hoof. Luna looked up and closed her eyes.

“The winds of fate are telling us that you will fare well in this matter, fear not.”

Applejack glanced up at the princess before giving her a hug. Luna was taken by surprise, but returned the gesture.

“Thank you Luna.”

“You are most welcome, dear Applejack.”

Luna broke the hug and looked into Applejack's eyes.

“Our sister's dawn approaches. It is time for you to awaken from your slumber. You have a busy day ahead.”

Applejack started to feel lightheaded.

“Wake up Applejack,” the princesses voice echoed softly., “He will need you soon. Wake up...”

Applejack's eyes opened slowly. She squirmed and felt a blanket on top of her.

'Ah don't remember grabbing this...'

The last of the moon was disappearing behind the horizon. The discussion she had with Luna came to mind.

“Thank you Luna.” she said aloud.

As if in reply, the edge of the moon glimmered as it disappeared behind the horizon.

Applejack chuckled before the slight display pointed her eye to something. She hopped off of the couch and walked over to the window to get a better look.

Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the person her dream had been about.

John.

He was walking towards the orchard.

'Wake up Applejack. He will need you soon. Wake up...' the Princesses  words echoed in her head.

Picking up her stetson, she walked outside and followed her love.

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 15: Farm Frolics

John walked through the orchard, keeping his senses alert. He had a very important mission to complete...

He had to find a stream to wash his shirt in. Two days of work and sweat hadn't done anything to help with it's fragrance. He would've washed it inside, but the Apple family didn't have a washer. He also doubted that his host would have appreciated a Marine's sweaty T-shirt in her sink.

After a few moments of walking through the orchard, John stopped and closed his eyes, listening for the telltale trickle of water. He took a deep breath, and focused. The early morning sounds started to invade his mindset. The singing of the early birds, the chirping of the crickets, the rustling of the trees as a breeze blew it's way through the waking countryside. All of this was something that John hadn't been able to experience in a very long time.

It was peaceful.

He let the sounds wash over him, the early morning symphony of nature made him almost drunk with a sense of peace that he hadn't been able to enjoy since his last break from duty.

After some time admiring the music of nature, John set to work. Putting his mind in gear, he began to filter through all the sounds, looking for that one noise.

There, to his front right. It was faint, but it didn't seem to be that far off. Turning himself in the proper direction, John began walking to the prospect of smelling less like a gym locker and more like a human being. He turned his head to the right, his good ear, every once and a while to make sure he wasn't getting off course. A few minutes later, John was standing by a crystal clear stream.

'Thank goodness, maybe I can get this shirt to stop smelling like a trash can.'

John walked to the waters edge and squatted down. Taking a bar of soap from one of his cargo pockets, he dipped his shirt into the water and began to scrub. He engrossed himself in this task, focusing on getting the entire shirt soaped up and rinsed off. He was just finishing when he suddenly felt himself being watched. He had to suppress his usual fight or flight response.

'Easy there, you can probably guess who it is.'

John kept his bare back to his observer.

'Hmm, if she's close enough, I may be able to have some fun with this.'

John decided to go through with his plan. Taking a hand-full of water, he began to pour it over his back. After a few times of this, he reached both hands into the water.

And quickly flung quite a bit of it at AJ.

“AAAHHH!!” she yelled in surprise.

John began to laugh extremely hard. So hard, in fact, that he didn't see AJ come close enough to push him into the stream, but he did notice the playful shove, followed by the shockingly cold embrace of the water. Almost instinctively, when he first began to fall back he reached out to grab onto something. It was just blind luck that he grabbed Applejack's foreleg.

Gravity is a heartless mistress, and both beings fell prey to the laws of physics.

When John hit the water, all he could feel at first was the cool liquid. But as he lay in the water laughing, he began to feel a warm and fuzzy weight on his chest. When he opened his eyes, he found a pair of emerald green pools staring back at him.

The two beings sat in silence, their faces mere inches apart. John's mind began to spin.

'Well, this is an awkward position...'

He was suddenly entranced by Applejack's eyes.

'They're so beautiful...'

John took in the rest of her face. Her smile made his heart skip several beats. All he could do was lay there, under her, and smile back.

Another moment stretched out into eternity. Suddenly, AJ's smile became mischiveous.

'What do you suppose she's about to do...?' John thought worriedly.

Just as the thought popped into his mind, his suspicions were confirmed...

AJ rolled off of his chest and splashed into the stream. The resulting wave managed to soak what little cloth of his pants that had managed to stay dry. When Applejack's head resurfaced, she splashed John again using her hooves.

“Oh,” John laughed, “So that's how you want to play it, huh?”

“Well, ya'll started it!” AJ said with a smirk.

What ensued was probably the biggest splash fight in the history of Sweet Apple Acres. Both sides scored many hits, and suffered no casualties. After what seemed like hours, but was only a few minutes, the two made their way out of the stream and collapsed onto the grass, panting.

John turned his head and looked at AJ, her eyes were closed. Her chest was steadily rising and falling with each breath. The mid morning sun reflected off of her wet fur with each motion, giving her body a sheen.

She was smiling, but something about it made John feel warm inside. There was something behind it that made him start thinking.

'What are you getting yourself into here man?'

'Does it matter? I haven't been this happy in three years. It's time for me to move on. They would have wanted me to. Becky, Katelynn, Sherryl, they would have wanted me to move on ages ago. But I didn't. Instead, I have been trying for the last three years to stack the odds against myself. Hoping against hope that finally my luck would run out and I would die at the end of a foe's knife, or on the other end of an enemies rifle, or go out on a ball of fire with nothing left of me to be recovered. I've been trying to kill myself for the last three years by tempting fate, by goading my enemy. But time and time again, I've survived. I've run gauntlet after gauntlet, and all I have are the scars of those encounters.'

The more critical, skeptic part of his mind wouldn't quit.

'Do you even realize what your proposing, what your saying?'

His mental track paused in contemplation.

'I've been given a second chance. I've been spared so many times before for a reason.'

He didn't realize that he had closed his eyes while he had been thinking. When he opened them again, Applejack's greeted his. She was still smiling.

'I think I finally know what that reason is.'

John smiled back at her. Applejack's voice reached his mind.

“What were ya doin' out here in the first place?”

“Hmm?” John started, “Oh, uh, well, I was washing my shirt.”

His mind kicked itself back into gear..

“Speaking of which, I think it was knocked back into the stream.”

Getting back to his feet, John waded into the stream to search for his shirt. The current wasn't very strong, thankfully, and he found it a few yards downstream. Surprisingly, he found it with another item of clothing. Grabbing both items, a smirk crossed his face. As he returned to Applejack, he put on his best poker face. Which he soon replaced with a mock look of concern.

“Hey Applejack, where's your hat?”

Applejack looked at him. Suddenly, her eyes went wide and her hoof shot to the top of her head, feeling around for her beloved stetson which was now hidden behind John's back.

“Oh no, It musta' fallen in the stream while we were messing around. Ya gotta help me find it!”

“Okay.”

Applejack waded back into the stream and went in the direction John had just returned from. While her back was turned, John placed the hat on his head. He grinned and followed after her.

“See any sign of it?” He asked.

“No, you?” she replied.

“Nope.” John made it a point to put a bit of something in the way he said it.

Applejack turned around. Upon seeing her favorite headgear on somebody elses dome, she gave John the most unimpressed of looks.

“Hmmm...” John placed his hands on his waist, “I wonder where in the world that sucker could have gotten off to?”

He avoided her gaze, putting on a thinking face, as if deep in thought. His eyes eventually made their way towards her, and he couldn't help but grin when he saw her expression. Taking the hat off of his head, he handed it back to her. She took it and placed it on her head, her gaze never faltering and keeping the same expression squarely on him. Eventually though, her expression cracked and an amused smile made it's way across her face.

“Why thank ya' for finding this for me.” sarcasm dripped from every part of that sentence.

“You are most welcome, my dear.” John said with as much sincerity as he could muster.

Applejack giggled a bit.

“Ya know, ya could have washed that in the house. We have sinks you know.”

“Trust me,” John snorted, “You wouldn't have wanted me to wash THAT, in one of your sinks. You'll thank me later.”

“Don't ya have anymore that you could use?”

John shook his head.

“Nope, this is my only one.”

Applejack's head cocked to the side.

“Why do you wear clothes all the time anyways? Doesn't it get hot?”

“Sometimes, but humans don't have any fur. So, we make clothing to protect us or keep us warm. I know that it may sound stupid to you, but it's a trade off. Either go around naked getting hurt, or suffer through it and avoid injuries.”

Applejack seemed to think about it for a bit, then she shrugged.

“Makes sense to me.” She said. “And if that's the case, and that's your only set of clothes, then why don't you come into town with me today? We'll take you to Raritie's and get you fitted for some more duds.”

“Oh no, I couldn't burden you like that.” John started.

“Horseapples. It ain't no burden. Plus, I can't have you walkin' around the house smelling like you've worked out all day.” She smiled at him.

John just chuckled.

“Alright, since you put it that way.”

John got up to get his shirt. He turned his back to Applejack.

“Ah thought that you said that humans didn't get cutie marks?”, applejack asked.

“They don't.” John said.

“Then what's that on your shoulder?”

John smiled. He knew what she was talking about.

“That's just my tatoo. It's not a cutie mark, but it does kind of symbolize my special talent.”

“What is it?”

He turned and smiled.

“It's an eagle, globe, and anchor. It's the Marine Corps symbol.”

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 16: Ponyville.

“Don't worry, sugarcube, if there's anypony who can set you up with a new set of duds, Rarity's the gal for it.”

John felt a pang of guilt for doubting Applejack's confidence in her friends abilities. From what he knew, Rarity was a master seamstress, and she could churn out some of the greatest pieces of attire in a day or so when the inspiration hit her. But what worried him was that pretty much all of her customers were ponies. He was afraid that his bipedal form was going to lead to complications.

That plus the fact that he knew Rarity was a bit easy to shock. Seeing a human in her shop was going to be a very delicate affair.

The mud on his boots and pants probably wasn't going to help either.

'You woulda thought that a dunk in that stream would've helped get some of that off. Oh well'

John remembered what had taken place that morning. The image of Applejack laying on the side of the stream made him smile. She was beautiful.

He glanced down to see if he could catch a glimpse of her when he noticed that she was looking up at his face.

“What?” He chuckled.

“Yer smiling again.”

“Yes, I tend to do that when I'm happy.” he said playfully.

She giggled a bit, and he felt his heart warm.

“What's makin' ya so happy then?” she asked.

John looked down at her, her ponytail bobbed up and down as she walked. His gaze wandered up until he was staring at a pair of emeralds, and his smile deepened.

“I'm happy for a lot of things.” He said. His voice carried something with it that he had neither heard nor felt in a long time.

Applejack blushed and shifted her gaze from him to something else off to the side that had captured her attention.

“What kinda things?” she persisted.

John's eyes softened.

“Well, I'm happy for- OOF!!”

John's vision skipped a few frames. One moment he was looking at AJ's face, the next he was taking in a view of the sky. That view was suddenly replaced by a face that was very familiar to him.

“HI! WHAT'S YOUR NAME? I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU BEFORE. DID YOU JUST MOVE TO PONYVILLE? ARE YOU VISITING? THIS IS SO EXCITING! SOMEONE NEW IN TOWN!!! WHAT ARE YOU, YOU LOOK SO STRANGE? WAIT! DON'T TELL ME!!! I WANT TO GUESS!!! ARE YOU A PARTY ANIMAL? *GASP* DO YOU LIKE PARTIES!?!?!? I LOVE PARTIES!!! I SHOULD TOTALLY THROW YOU A WELCOME TO PONYVILLE PARTY!!! IT'LL BE SOOO FUN! WE'LL HAVE GAMES, AND MUSIC, AND CAKE!!! OHMYGOSH! CAKE!! DO YOU-”

John's ears were mercifully spared by Applejack's hoof as she closed off Pinkie Pie's mouth.

“Hold on there a sec, Pinkie. Let John catch his breath, Ah think ya' knocked the wind outta him.”

Pinkie got off of John's chest and allowed him to take a breath.

“Well, *cough*, It's a pleasure to meet you Pinkie, My name is, *cough*, John.”

John got to his feet again.

“And, to answer a few of your questions...”

He took a deep breath.

“NO I DIDN'T JUST MOVE HERE, I KINDA' CRASHED HERE BY ACCIDENT AND I'M STAYING WITH APPLEJACK AT THE MOMENT. I'M GONNA BE HERE FOR A LONG WHILE IT SEEMS. I'M A HUMAN, AND YES I LOOK STRANGE. YES I LIKE PARTIES, AND YOU COULD KINDA CALL ME A BIT OF A PARTY ANIMAL. I'D LOVE IT IF YOU THREW ME A PARTY, BUT I DON'T REALLY KNOW ANYONE FROM HERE ACCEPT AJ. AND YES I LIKE CAKE!!!”

Pinkie and Applejack stood there looking at him. Both had an expression of shock on their face.

Pinkie turned toward AJ. Her face still held it's shocked look. Then, suddenly, she busted out with a fit of giggles.

“I like him, can we keep him?”

Applejack rolled her eyes.

“Pinkie, He's not some sorta pet. He's a guest of mine.”

Both turned when they heard John laughing.

“Don't worry Pinkie. I'm not going anywhere for the moment. I'll stay a guest at Applejack's as long as she let's me.” He looked at AJ when he said the last bit.

Applejack smiled and nodded.

“Don't worry sugarcube, you can stay with me as long as you like.”

Pinkie Pie Smiled and bounced in place.

“That's good enough for me.”

She gasped.

“INEEDTOGOGETTHATPARTYREADY!!!SEEYOUGUYSLATERBYE!”

And in a pink flash, she was gone.

John chuckled.

'Well, that was quite an introduction.'

He turned to Applejack to see her giving him an amused look.

“What?” he asked.

She chuckled and shook her head.

“So, ya speak Pinkie, do ya?”

They both laughed.

“Yeah,” John started. “It's actually something I used to do with my daughters. They liked Pinkie in the show, and they loved it when I imitated her.”

He smiled and laughed a bit.

“It's funny though, I originally acquired that skill when I trained Marines at Paris Island. The difference is, though, instead of just saying it in an excited or normal voice, I was shouting at the top of my lungs.”

Applejack looked at him quizzically.

“Why did ya do that?”

“It's a bit of a test, actually. It shows you how well a recruit will do under pressure, and how fast they can gather information when you're telling it to them. It teaches them to keep their cool.”

He chuckled a bit.

“It's also funny to see their reactions the first night of boot camp.”

Applejack rolled her eyes again.

“Ah guess it's a Marine thing then.”

John smiled at her.

“Maybe. Anyways, let's get to Rarity's before I get tackled again.”

AJ smiled.

“Allrighty then, this way.”

They arrived at Rarity's boutique with no other incidents. John looked at AJ.

“Ya' think I should take off my boots before I go in?”

Applejack looked down at his boots.

“Ummm...” she thought out loud. “Meh, sure. It wouldn't hurt to be cautious.”

John nodded and knelt down to start unlacing his boots. He got the left knot undone and started to loosen the strings. He moved over to the right when the breeze shifted. He suddenly smelled apples. He looked up to see Applejack's face very close to his.

'Wow... she's even prettier up close...'

Her eyes locked onto his. She blushed and backed away a bit.

“Sorry, Ah guess Ah got a bit too close, huh?” She said, suddenly looking rather unsure of herself.

He smiled.

“It's okay, I don't mind.” he said reassuringly.

She looked back up and smiled at him, her confidence returning. John nodded and went back to unlacing his boots.

“Ain't those uncomfortable?”

“The ones they issued me in basic were, but I've been wearing these types of boots ever since then. They haven't given me too much trouble. They're just a bit heavy, but it isn't much of a problem.”

He looked up to see her head cocked to the side.

“How heavy?”

John took his right boot off and handed it to her. She took it in her hooves and hefted it.

“How do your kind run in these?”

John laughed.

“Years of wearing them and having to run in them. Or else.”

She looked at him a bit worried.

“What do you mean, or else?”

He chuckled a bit.

“Or else the drill instructor starts yelling at you. A lot.”

They shared a laugh.

“Well then,” started AJ, “Ya ready to go in?”

John looked down at his pants. They weren't as bad as his boots, but they weren't gonna help with first impressions.

“Stop worryin' about them. They ain't that bad. It looks more like the dirt is ground into the fabric, or somethin'.”

John looked up and smiled.

“Allright then, let's do it.”

With a nod, Applejack knocked on the door. John heard a sophisticated voice come through the door.

“Come in!”

Applejack opened the door and walked into the boutique. John followed close behind. When he entered the room, the smell of fresh fabric, perfume, and a slight hint of sewing machine oil pervaded his senses. He looked around and found Rarity standing in the middle of the room. She seemed to be hard at work placing the final stitches in a dress she was making.

“I'll be right with you.”

“Don't worry bout' it Rarity, we can wait.”

Rarity's ears twitched a bit.

“Oh, Applejack. Nice to hear you darling. I'm sorry, did you say you have somepony with you?”

Applejack put her hoof behind her head.

“Well, not exactly some pony, heh.”

Rarity finished the last stitch in her dress just as AJ said that.

“I'm sorry dear, I don't understa...”

Her voice stopped dead as she turned around and saw John. She started to make an “uh, uh, uh” noise. John took this as his que to try and disarm the situation.

“Hello ma'am. My name's John. I apologize for the appearance, but there are some rather unusual circumstances for my being here.”

Rarity just stood still for a bit. She then shook her head as if clearing her mind.

“I, I'm sorry. I don't mean to be rude, but if I may. What are you?”

John smiled as reassuringly as he could.

“It's allright. I actually expected a few reactions like this. I'm a human. My kind hasn't been in this world for a while, it would appear, and I ended up here by accident.”

Rarity simply nodded. Her hoof up to her chin in contemplation.

“Well, I suppose stranger things have happened.”

John smiled.

“Yes, I suppose so. Anyways, the reason that I'm in your store now is simple. These are the only clothes that I landed with. I've been here for about three days and I'm afraid that I'm in need of some new ones. These are starting to get a bit worn out, as you can see.”

Rarity started to beam.

“Oh, lovely. I do always love a challenge. Let me see what I can do for you.”

Rarity's horn began to glow as she gathered up some of her trades tools.

“If you would be so kind as to step onto this platform, I'll just get your measurements and you can be on your way!”

John did as he was told. He stepped onto the platform and stood with his feet about shoulder width apart. He'd had this done once before, when he had his Marine Corps. dress blues fitted. Rarity's horn began to glow again as her magic's aura took hold of her measuring tape. She began to hold it up to his waist as she started up another conversation.

“I've noticed that your clothing is rather peculiar. What exactly is it?”

“It's a combat uniform. I'm a Marine, it's a type of soldier in my world.”

Rarity looked up at him wide eyed.

“My my, how long have you been a soldier?”

John thought. It was right around nineteen years. Almost twenty.

“Twenty years, just about. Almost all my life.”

Her eyes got a bit wider.

“Amazing. You'll have to forgive me. My father was in the Royal Guard for many years. We never got to go to Canterlot, but we did move around to his other duty stations quite a bit.”

John thought for a bit.

'Hmm, well, that definitely fills in the gaps'

“My father said that he really loved his years in the Guard. He also said he was glad that our country is mostly peaceful and that he didn't have to go to war. Not that he wouldn't fight for our country, it's just that he was glad he didn't have to be subjected to such madness.”

John nodded.

“Your father is a very wise man. I've been in combat, it is not something that any rational being wants to go to. It's a horrible thing. It's not glorious, it's not beautiful. It's simply doing what's right, and doing it again and again, until you either aren't alive to do it, or until the battle is over. One way or the other.”

Rarity looked up at John.

“You've been in war?”

John looked at her with grim eyes.

“Yes, I have. I've been in war for almost twenty years. Ever since I joined. None of it has been good. I've lost a lot of good friends, and I've seen many good men die.”

Rarity became quite. She kept on taking measurements, but she was very silent.

“But, I'd rather not talk about that. Let's change the subject.”

“Agreed.” Rarity started. “So, where are you staying while you are here?”

“Actually, Applejack was nice enough to let me stay on her farm.”

Rarity turned her head.

“Well, that was quite gracious of her.”

Applejack smiled.

“Well, there's another side of that story he ain't tellin' ya. Ya see Rarity, When John first got here, his er...” she said trying to think of the word.

“Helicopter.” John filled in.

“Thanks, his helicopter crashed and knocked down a few of mah trees. We're plannin' on fixin' that, but he needs some more clothes before we start. I don't want him smelling like the pig pen all day.” she joked.

“And I don't want that either. The least I can do for her kindness is not be a walking room clearer.” He joked back.

The two shared a laugh. Rarity just chuckled a bit. John realized that it wasn't her type of humor.

“Well, in any case. You have nothing to worry about. Once I'm done, you'll be quite prepared for your work. Now, do you want your new pants to have these pockets?”

John and Applejack walked out of Rarity's store.

“Goodbye for now. And don't worry, your new clothes will be smashing!” she called to them.

“Thanks again!” John called back.

“See ya later Rares!” Applejack said as she turned around.

“See, what'd I tell ya, nuthin' to worry about.”

John chuckled.

“Yes, you were right. Thank you again.”

“Yer welcome. Now, let's grab a bite to eat, I'm starving!”

The two made their way to a nearby kiosk that was selling fresh fruit. Applejack bought a banana for the two of them. They walked to a nearby bench and sat while they ate.

“So,” Applejack said in between bites. “How do you like it here so far?”

“It's great.” John began. “It's peaceful, and so far everyone has been pretty nice. I was expecting everyone to lock their doors and head for the hills when they saw me, but I guess I'm not quite as scary as I thought I would be. I'm glad for that.”

AJ smiled and finished her banana. She took the peel and threw it in the trash can next to the bench. Soon after, John did the same. The two sat in silence for a bit. Watching the ponies in the town walk by as they went about their business. Some were buying produce or groceries at the market. Some were walking in or out of shops. A few were doing what John and AJ were, simply sitting on a bench and enjoying the pleasant Summer day.

John had crossed his arms and closed his eyes, and was actually starting to doze.

'I could really get used to staying here, with her. If she'd let me. But I need to find a way to make up for all the kindness she's shown me. Maybe finding a job here in town would do the trick. I could earn a few dollars, er, bits, and maybe try and pay back the clothes I'm getting.'

John nodded internally. That was a good plan. He'd have to try and do that, after he helped clean up the orchard.

“John?” AJ interrupted him from his thoughts.

“Yes?” he said as he opened his eyes and turned toward her.

She was looking down and making circles in the bench with the point of her hoof.

“Did you really mean what you said in there? Have you really been fighting for almost twenty years?”

John sighed.

“Unfortunately, yes. Save for my rotations back home, I've been fighting a lot. It hasn't been twenty straight years of war for me, and it hasn't been the same war for twenty years. But I've been in this occupation for that amount of time, and it seems to me that there's almost always been a conflict going on. Some of them were just small skirmishes, and some of the were full blown retaliations. But they've all been bad, and I don't feel like repeating any of them any time soon.”

Applejack went silent for a bit.

“Have you ever been hurt?”

“A few times. Almost eight years ago I was shot two times.”

Applejack looked at him, a bit of shock in her eyes.

“If it was anything like what you did in the hospital when you first woke up, I don't want to know what that felt like.”

John snorted.

“It's odd, it didn't really hurt that much when it actually happened. Too much adrenaline pumping, you know. But what happened was an enemy popped up from behind a mud wall about twelve yards away from my squad. I was on point at that time so I was the first to get it. His first burst fired about seven shots, and five of em' ripped into me.”

He started to point out where the bullets hit.

“The first one hit me in my right thigh, then the second one hit me in the stomach. The third and fourth one hit me in the chest, and the last one hit my left shoulder.”

Applejack's eyes went wide.

“How'd you survive that?”

“The one that hit my stomach, and the two that hit my chest were stopped by my armor. Unfortunately, they don't make armored pants or sleeves for the dang vest, so my leg and my shoulder were feeling it later.”

He thought back.

“I got to go home after that. It didn't feel good, but after a few weeks of recovery and therapy, my body was back to normal. Those areas occasionally give me trouble, like when the weather changes or something. But other than that injury, the worst I've had was when I fell off of a ladder at home and twisted my ankle.”

He looked back to see Applejack with a worried expression.

“What?”

“It sounds awful.”

“It is, that's why I planned on retiring this year. This line of work wasn't agreeing with me anymore.” he laughed.

Applejack started to join in that laugh with him. Then the two went silent again.

“In a way though, it's all ended up in a blessing.”

“How so?”

“Well, I ended up meeting you.”

Applejack smiled.

“Ah'm glad for that blessing too, then.”

The two went quiet and simply smiled. Content in each others company. After a while though, John noticed that AJ was making circles with her hoof again.

“John,” she started nervously, “There's something I've been meaning to tell ya today, but Ah just haven't found the right time.”

John smiled at her.

“What's that?”

She bit her lip and her eyes started to shift from him to something else.

“Well, I've been trying to say that I-”

She was interrupted by a loud bang and a burst of confetti.

“COME ON YOU TWO, IT'S PARTY TIME!!!” Pinkie shouted as she wheeled her party cannon past them.

The two watched the pink party pony round the corner. John turned back to AJ.

“What were you saying?” He asked.

Applejack shook her head and looked back at him.

“Nuthin', it can wait.”

She got to her hooves.

“Come on, let's not keep Pinkie waiting.” she said as she smiled and walked in the same direction as the pink mare.

“Okay.”

John got up followed Applejack.

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter3: More Questions Than Answers

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter3: More Questions Than Answers

“So, basically, you two are telling me that the helo just all-of-a-sudden disappeared when it hit the ground?”

The two Marine Corps helicopter pilots glanced at each other before returning their gaze to the captain.

“Yes, sir.  But there was also a noise.” Answered one.

“A noise?”

“Like thunder, sir.” Added the other.

The captain set the two pilots in a stare that could have withered and set fire to a grizzly bear.  After a few seconds of silent scrutinization, the officer finally sighed.

“Unfortunately, I’m forced to believe you two.  I am missing one helicopter, and reports from other Marines in the landing zone during the beginning of the operation do confirm that it was shot down.  However, despite these reports, no wreckage of the chopper was recovered.  And I find it very hard to believe that Hadgi just got a group together and walked away with a few tons of helicopter on the back of a camel.”

The captain was getting very annoyed.

“So,” he continued, “what in God’s name happened to it?”

He looked at the two pilots, not really expecting an answer but not excusing the fact that the helo could appear right behind him either.

All the while the two pilots stood nervously at attention.

With one final sigh, he stood up.

“I want your formal statements and reports by oh-seven-thirty hours tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir.” Replied the pilots.

“Dismissed.”

The two pilots took a step back and spoke in unison.

“Aye, aye, sir!”

And in the blink of an eye, the two pilots were out the door.

Despite Applejack’s fear fueled run, Rainbow Dash was the first to reach the crash.

At first, she couldn’t make out what this alien object was because of the dust and smoke.  But as that subsided, it revealed a huge metal… thing.

Applejack ran up beside Rainbow and stopped.

“Is there fire?!” she asked with a panicked tone.

Rainbow looked around, she couldn’t see any flames.  But the huge metal… thing did look like it was pretty charred.

“I don’t see any fla…”

She was cut off when she heard a groan.

At first, she thought it was Applejack’s reaction to the destruction of her apple trees.  But when she heard it again she realized it wasn’t coming from beside her, it was coming from…

The thing.

“I think there’s somepony in there!” she shouted.

In a rainbow colored flash, she was over by the wreckage.  She was struggling with a piece of metal when Applejack again came up beside her and started to push.  With a screech, the metal slid back across the body of the thing.

The two were astonished by the sight they saw.

Several creatures lay sprawled atop one another on the floor.  Many of them were obviously dead, their limbs and necks bent at odd angles.  A few looked like they were asleep, save for the terrible burns that adorned one side of their face or another.

The two friends stood in shock at what they were witnessing.  Neither had ever been exposed to so much death.  So taken aback by what they saw, they almost failed to see one of the creatures still moving.

Unlike the others, this one was still strapped in what appeared to be his seat.  He shifted, but his face made it obvious that he was in terrible pain.  His eyes were only half-open, and he was groaning in pain.  Applejack was the first to move toward him, sensing that she had to help this creature in some way.

Like the others, he was dressed in the same multi-colored garb.  Something akin to armor was strapped over his chest, and in his lap there was an odd wood and metal stick with a telescope on it.  As she moved forward, Rainbow Dash spoke in a cautious manner.

“Wait, what are you doing, you don’t know if that thing is dangerous or not.”

Applejack turned her head toward her friend, desperately trying not to look down to a body crumpled beneath her hooves.

“Well, I can’t just leave him here. He’ll die.”

She turned her head back to the creature.  His head turned, exposing the other half of his face.  There was a lot of blood oozing out from underneath his helmet, the red liquid ran down his cheek.

Moving closer still, Applejack studied him further.  In the center of his armor, there was a patch with writing on it.

“Makins, John.  O-positive.” Applejack read aloud.

The creature stirred again, and his eyes opened.  His eyes locked onto hers, and the two shared a moment.  Something was conveyed between the two beings.  His eyes held a glimmer of hardship, passion, immeasurable pain, age, and a steadfast resolve to not die.  They also held another glimmer of something…

Trust.  Pure and Unfounded.

Applejack’s eyes were locked onto his, and she tried to convey one thought.

‘It’s going to be alright.’

For a moment, Applejack thought she saw a glimmer of recognition in the creature’s eyes.

   Then the creature’s eyes closed, and he was quiet.  Applejack was frightened as she thought that he might be dead, but these fears were soon silenced as she saw the creatures chest moving.  It was labored breathing, though, and she knew that she would have to move quickly.

Applejack took a look at the restraints holding him upright.  The straps looped around his arms before attaching to the chair and they joined in the middle of his chest with a metal buckle.  Applejack leaned forward and poked the buckle with her hoof.  It separated with a metallic click and the creature slumped, his support giving a little.

Applejack looked to her friend.

“Rainbow, I need you to get in here and help me.”

Rainbow Dash walked up beside her friend, stepping carefully so as not to disturb the carpet of bodies.  She noted that AJ's drawl was starting to lessen in her speech, almost as if crisis caused her to communicate more clearly.

“What do you need me to do?” she asked shakily.  The scene inside the cramped space was starting to rattle even her cool nerves.

“Help me get him onto my back, he’s hurt real bad an’ we got to get him to the house.”

“What then?”

“While I’m getting him to the house, I want y’all to go to the hospital an’ fetch a doctor.  This creature won’t make it without one.”

Rainbow looked at the creature that was slumped in front of her.

“He might not make it with one.” She observed aloud.

“Well, sittin’ here arguing ‘bout it won’t help his condition either.  So gussy up and help me.”

Rainbow nodded and started to move the straps out from under the creature’s arms.  She hesitated as she heard him inhale sharply.

‘I’m no doctor,’ She thought to herself, ‘but I’d say that this creature has a broken arm.’

She continued her operation of removing the strap, a little more cautiously this time.  When she craned her neck across the creature’s chest to remove the other strap she noticed that his breathing was short, strained, and raspy.

“Hey, Applejack…”, she started.

“What?”

“I don’t think that you’re going to be able to carry him out on your back, I think he’s got some broken ribs.  A lot, if his breathing is anything to go by.”

“Oh horseapples…”, muttered Applejack, “Then how the hay are we supposed to get him outta here?”

Rainbow studied the equipment that adorned the creature.  She noticed a couple of straps strung over his shoulders that connected to his belt.

“We’re going to have to drag him.”

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter4: Is This Death?

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 4: Is This Death?

Authors note:  the three periods after each line represent John's thoughts being fragmented.  He's hit his head and he can't think in solid sentences.  Please forgive me for any inconvenience.  Also the periods in a line by themselves represent John blacking out.

I remember…

I remember the helicopter going down…

I remember the faces of my daughters flashing before my eyes…

I remember the flames…

The impact, my head hit something…

Thunder…

I remember thunder…

Suddenly it feels like we’re back in the air, still going down though…

Is this death?  Your memories of your last moments repeating themselves like a broken record?

Another impact…

I feel my body start to crack in several places, no pain though…

I feel the chopper hit something…

Something else…

Another…

No, not something, somethings…

The chopper has stopped moving…

I can feel pain…

It’s in my…

Everywhere…

I feel pain everywhere…

………

It’s dark…

All I can hear is my heartbeat…

Slow, struggling…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

……….

Voices…

I hear voices…

Metal is shrieking…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

My eyes feel like they’re being stabbed…

Light…

I feel sunlight on my face…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

I struggle to open my eyes, and they obey…

Mostly anyhow, they only open halfway…

I see the other marines…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

They’re all just a multicolored blob at my feet…

They’re dead… I know it…

Life robbed from them before they have even had time to sample its fruits…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

My eyes roll in their sockets without my permission…

Two more blobs… One orange… One blue…

Hadgi must have a hell of a fashion statement to make…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

One blob…

The orange one…

It’s moving towards me…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

I try to move, try to fight…

But the pain stops me…

It’s searing, blinding, electrifying…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

I’m powerless to resist it…

I relax and wait for the inevitable…

The reporting bark of a weapon…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

But none comes…

I hear a voice…

“Makins John…

Thump-thump…thump-thump

My heartbeat cuts off the rest…

I heard a woman, with a rich mid-western drawl…

She leans forward and I see her eyes…

…

My heartbeat stalls as I see them…

Big, beautiful, emerald green eyes…

I look into them and suddenly my pain is gone…

Suddenly, I know it’s going to be all right, one way or another…

Thump--thump………thump--thump

The darkness comes again and I let it take me…

I let the comforting folds of unconsciousness wrap me in their embrace…

Thump--thump…………………thump--thump

No, I was wrong…

This is death…

Thump---thump……………………………thump---thump

Not a flash…

Not a memory…

Thump----thump………………………………………thump----thump

Just…

Release…

Thump…......

The Blessing: A Second Chance Chapter 9: Celestia

There had been a disturbance, she had felt it.

It was rare that she would sense anything disrupt the harmony that surrounded Luna and herself. The flow of magic in Equestia was always in motion, sometimes forming currents and eddies around important and seemingly insignificant events. She could feel the twinge of the embodiments of the Elements of Harmony when they interacted, and the coarse touch of the wild Everfree forest thriving inside her shared kingdom. However, the disturbance she had felt six days ago was much different, an event on the scale of the return of one of her immortal enemies, or Twilight Sparkle's magical flair that first brought the gifted filly to her attention. But unlike those events, this one had the chill of the void that rests between worlds, and the feel of old magic that she wielded ages ago.

It didn't last long, maybe a few seconds, but events of this magnitude had always foreshadowed catastrophe in the past.

It had taken her those six days to identify the physical location where the disturbance occurred, she had never had to track down one of these events before, and its quickly fading effects made it that much more difficult to pin point.

The disturbance had originated in Sweet Apple Acres. Which would explain why its occurrence had gone unreported.

This couldn't be a coincidence. The event that had happened there aeons ago was one of the turning points for Equestria. The magical event that she and her sister had created there was so massive and profound that no amount of time would ever be able to heal the scars they left there. She and her sister had never told anypony what had happened there, all those aeons ago.

“Claymore.” she called to her personal guard.

A gray stallion in gold armor opened the door and stepped inside. His cutie mark was that of a long-handled broadsword. He stood to attention before replying.

“Your Highness?”

“Make preparations for my chariot to leave tomorrow.”

With a nod, Claymore stepped outside and went to carry out her orders.

Celestia stood in silent contemplation.

'They cannot be allowed back here.' she thought to herself.

She only hoped she wasn't too late.