"First of all, I want you to answer the question that has been annoying me the most," Celestia spoke, raising her hoof in front of Applejack. "How could you exist with your friends when Supermare was putting out the fire since, you know, you are Supermare?!"
"I knew that would be your first question," Applejack chuckled. "It's simple; I'm friends with a Changeling. His name is Kevin. He works with me in the farm from time to time, and he agreed to disguise as me to cover my absence when I'm wearing the cape."
"Your story is already interesting," Celestia said sarcastically, scratching the back of her head. "I hope it doesn't get too interesting to the point where my story becomes boring in comparison."
Applejack laughed. "I barely started."
"Well then, go on. Tell me everything."
"Okay. But first, keep in mind that there are things I still don't know."
Celestia nodded. " I understand that ."
"Well, it all started about two months ago…"
...
Applejack faced the tree with her rear one more time and kicked it, getting rewarded with a few more apples.
"Phew!" She wiped the sweat off her forehead. "That's about it for now." She proceeded to carry the basket that had been under the tree. "Let's have some lunch. We've been working all morning"
"Eeyup!" Big Mac agreed, carrying his own basket.
As Applejack trotted inside the barn, her right foreleg broke through one of the wood bars of the floor and sank beneath it, causing some apples to fall out of her basket.
"What in tarnation?!" Applejack pulled her foreleg out and placed the basket aside. "Wait a second…" She leaned forward and took a look through the small hole she had made in the floor. "There's a chamber there? Ah always felt there was nothin' under this spot whenever I trotted on it, but I never thought it could be a chamber. Do ya know anythin' about it, Big Mac?"
"Umm, Nope!" Big Mac stuttered, his ears folded back.
Big Mac's reaction annoyed Applejack. She took another look through the hole and made glimpse of something big. She then proceeded to remove the wooden bars from the floor.
"Applejack, what are ya doin'?!" Big Mac exclaimed.
"Ya can say I'm explorin'." Applejack brought a shovel and removed a couple more wooden bars. After some effort she had a gaping hole leading to the small hollow . Below there was a short ladder leading to a large object that was covered with a black blanket.
"Applejack…"
"I'm goin' there!" Applejack silenced her brother. She trotted down the stairs and stood in front of the blanketed item. Hesitantly, she placed her foreleg on it, and when nothing happened, she removed the blanket with a swift motion . Applejack found herself staring at a big, metallic, teardrop-shaped object. It was bizarre and foreign. On it's wider end the front had opened like a blossoming petal.
"What the hay is this thing?" Applejack turned to her brother. "Big Mac!"
Big Mac just took a step back, saying nothing in response.
Applejack frowned. "Ya know something, and yer gonna tell me NOW…" Still facing her brother, she placed her foreleg on a spot on the object, and it glowed. A small, blue-glowing tube stuck out, making some weird noise. It then hit Applejack on the side with what appeared to be a small magic blast, knocking her to the ground.
"Applejack!" Big Mac hurried towards his sister, but he stopped when she stood up and raised her foreleg.
"Ah'm fine! Believe it or not, that thing didn't hurt me." Applejack rubbed her side. "It wasn't any more painful than a push." She returned to glaring at her brother. "Ya still don't wanna tell me anythin'?"
Big Mac stared at the ground in response.
Applejack's glare intensified. "Fine!" She trotted past Big Mac, kicking the shovel aside as she passed by it, then quickly trotted out of the barn. "If you won't tell me, I'll find somepomy who will!"
On the lunch that day, Applejack, Big Mac, Granny Smith and Apple Bloom sat down around the table, all the while Applejack exchanging looks with her brother.
"Granny, ah wanna ask ya somethin'," Applejack said, wiping soap off her mouth. "What is it with that chamber under the barn?"
Granny almost choked on her food upon hearing the question, but she managed to answer. "Wha...what chamber, Applejack?"
Applejack raised both her eyebrows and chuckled. "Okay, lemme rephrase muh question: What do ya know about the huge piece of metal that lies under our barn?"
Granny Smith and Big Mac froze in their seats, not saying anything in response.
"Granny, what is Applejack talkin' about?" Apple Bloom asked, confusion clouding her face .
"Ah...ah have no idea, Apple Bloom," Granny answered, her ears folded back.
"Yes ya do!" Applejack exclaimed, slamming her forelegs on the table and almost causing it to break in half. "You and Big Mac know somethin' and ya don't wanna tell me!"
"Applejack, calm down." Granny frowned.
"I'm the Element of Honesty. Ya really think I can't tell when yer lyin'? But ya know what? It's fine!" Applejack stepped down from her seat. "Ya can't hide it forever! There's probably an otherworldly thing in our barn that tried to hurt me today and ya still don't wanna talk?! I won't calm down until I find out what ya two are hidin' from me!" She dropped the spoon she had been holding and trotted up to her room. The spoon had been crumbled as if it was a piece of paper.
That night, Applejack couldn't sleep. She kept hearing the Cutie Mark Crusaders playing and shouting. Were they playing in the kitchen? She moved her hooves off her ears and trotted downstairs.
"Apple Bloom! Could ya please tone it down? Or, ya know, play somewhere else?" Applejack pleaded.
"Ah...Apple Bloom isn't here, Applejack," Granny Smith answered from the kitchin.
Applejack raised an eyebrow, rubbing her head as the loud noise intensified. "What do ya mean?"
"She's in the club house with her friends."
"Well, they're being too loud! I can't sleep."
Granny raised an eyebrow and stared at Applejack for a moment. "Ah can't hear anythin'. But I'm just an old pony. Big Mac, can ya hear anythin'?"
"Nope!" Big Mac replied.
"That's impossible…" Applejack held her head between her forelegs in pain.
"Are ya okay, Applejack?" Granny asked in concern.
"I…" Applejack looked up, and for a moment, she thought she was staring at a skeleton of a pony. But when she rubbed her eyes, she found herself staring at Granny Smith again.
"What? Answer me."
"I...I think I need help." Applejack trotted towards the door with shaky steps.
"Wait, where are ya goin'?"
"The hospital, of course." She opened the door and stepped outside, and it was like she opened the door to some huge party, as more and more noises rushed to her ears.
"Do ya need Big Mac to go with ya?"
"Nah, ah'll be fine." Applejack did her best to stay balanced and galloped as fast as she could in the direction of the hospital.
Thunderlane was lying on his stomach on a cloud when he noticed a mare trotting as if she was drunk. He left his cloud and flew down until he could recognize the mare as Applejack. He quickly glided down and landed beside her.
"Uh, Applejack? Are you okay?" Thunderlane asked, taking a step towards the farmer.
"I'm…" Applejack turned around to see who was talking to here, and saw a skeleton standing there instead. Everything around her looked weird and colorless. She fell to the ground and crawled back in panic.
"Whoa! Calm down. What's the matter?" Thunderlane trotted forward to cover the distance Applejack had created between them.
Applejack closed her eyes and shook her head, and when she opened her eyes again, she saw Thunderlane looking at her with both concern and confusion.
"I...need to go to the hospital," Applejack replied.
"Why?"
"My head hurts...I'm hearing noises...I'm seeing things. I think I'm going insane!"
Thunderlane scratched his neck. "I think you just drank too much cider." He received a frown for his statement.
"Ah didn't drink a single drop of cider today!"
"Alright alright! I'll take you to the hospital." Thunderlane placed his forelegs on Applejack's shoulders. "But to ease your pain, I'll use a technique that Doctor Whooves taught me to use to help me stay focused because I had drunk too much that day. I don't know if he was joking, but it actually worked."
"For the last time…"
"I know! You didn't drink anything, but it may just work."
Applejack sighed. "Fine. What is it?"
"Close your eyes and take a deep breath."
Applejack obliged.
"Good. Now, to ignore the noises, focus on something else. Like...my voice. I'll keep talking on our way to the hospital so you'll be able to focus on it." Thunderlane placed Applejack on his back and took off. "Ready to hear the story of my life?"
"Better than hearin' those noises," Applejack chuckled.
"Just remember to keep your eyes closed. Not only to keep you calm, but to prevent you from feeling the high altitude, too!"
"I'm not afraid of heights!"
With that, Thunderlane proceeded to telling happy and funny stories from his childhood as he flew to the hospital. Applejack didn't know how long was the way, but it felt short thanks to Thunderlane.
In the hospital, the nurses gave Applejack an anasthetic after confirming that she was completely fine, but probably just suffering a bad headache. Thankfully, the medicine was slowly taking its effect, and the nurses told her that she could go home.
"Thank ya so much, Thunderlane," Applejack said, stepping out of the hospital's door. "I might have gone crazy without ya."
"It's nothing. And you can call me Thunder." Thunderlane offered his foreleg to Applejack.
"Okay then, Thunder." Applejack smiled, shaking Thunder's hoof so quickly he felt it was about to go off. "See ya around, ah hope?"
"Y-yeah, sure!" Thunder managed to answer after stopping his foreleg from shaking on it's own. "Allow me to fly you back to your home."
"Oh, ya don't have to …"
"I insist." Thunder bowed to allow Applejack to sit on his back. "What if your headache returns on your way back?"
"Well, if ya insist." Applejack hesitantly sat on Thunder's back, before he spread his wings and took off.
The next day, Applejack woke up feeling much better. The tension between her, Big Mac and Granny Smith seemed to ease a little as they ate the breakfast together. Applejack finished quickly and started towards the door.
"Applejack, are you sure you can work again?" Granny asked.
"Ah told you ah'm fine. Don't worry, if anything happens, it won't be hard to notice," Applejack answered before opening the door, only to be greeted with a black pegasus. "Thunder?"
"Ah, hi!" Thunderlane greeted.
"What are ya doin' here?"
"I...I just came to check on you, see if you're getting better. Ya know, after all that happened yesterday." Thunderlane took a step back. "Sorry if I'm bothering you by visiting this early."
"What? No, it's fine!" Applejack scratched her neck, trotting past Thunderlane. "I really appreciate your concern, but I'm feeling much better than yesterday. There's no need to worry."
"Oh, that's great!" Thunderlane grinned and followed Applejack as she took a basket and headed towards one of the apple trees. "So, I was wondering...would you…" A loud bang interrupted Thunder as Applejack bucked the apple tree.
Applejack froze in her place, seeing a look of pure shock on Thunder's face. "What...what did I do?" She slowly turned around to see the tree she had bucked flying across the acres then creating a small hole in the ground as it landed.
"I...I'm going to assume that you don't usually do that, am I right?" Thunder said, receiving no answer from Applejack.
Very soon, Big Mac, Granny Smith and Apple Bloom were standing with Thunder and Applejack after hearing the bang.
"Ya still don't wanna tell me anythin'?!" Applejack yelled in anger. "First there was that metal object that tried to hurt me, then I started to lose my mind, and now I sent a tree flying across the acres like it was nothin'!"
"Whoa, wait, what metal object?" Thunder inquired.
"Alright, I'll tell ya," Granny sighed in defeat, then raised an eyebrow at Thunder.
"Um, if you want me to go…" Thunder stepped back.
"Thunder can stay," Applejack said. "He's already seen too much to not know the rest of the story. Plus, ah'm bad at lying."
"Are ya sure?" Granny asked one more time.
"Yes!"
Granny sighed before speaking. "Ya see, yer parents were once trotting in the acres, when suddenly that metal object you found in the barn fell from the sky."
Applejack nodded, signaling Granny to continue.
"They approached that object carefully, and when yer mother touched it, it opened. Inside that object, they found...you."
Applejack widened her eyes and gaped her mouth, falling silent for a few seconds as Granny's words sank in.
"Wha...how…" Applejack finally spoke, taking a few steps back. "What the...yar joking, yar joking, right?"
Applejack was still hoping that this might be nothing but a joke, but when Granny faced the ground with a sad expression, she realized there were no jokes.
"Ya mean my parents aren't my real parents?!" Applejack said; Granny remained silent. "Ya mean in the funeral, I cried for ponies who weren't my parents?" She paused for a second to wipe her tears. "Ya mean mah real parents are probably somewhere up there looking for me in space? Ya mean I'm not even a pony?!"
"Applejack…" Granny slowly approached Applejack, but the latter quickly fell back.
"How could ya hide all of this from me?!" Applejack yelled, tears welling in her eyes.
"We were trying to protect you."
"By LYING to me?! How am I supposed to trust you now that I learned that mah whole life was one big lie?! That I'm not even a pony, but an ALIEN?!" With that, Applejack ran into the barn and down to where the big metal object rested.
"I was hoping she would never have to find out, even though I knew very well she would find out eventually," Granny sighed sadly.
"Granny, does that mean Applejack...isn't mah sister?" Apple Bloom asked with teary eyes.
"Of course she is!" Granny quickly wrapped her hooves around Apple Bloom.
"But...but…"
"Ah know what yer thinkin', but it doesn't matter. Applejack has always and will always be a part of our family, and the story ya'll just heard doesn't change nothin'."
"Um, sorry if I'm intruding, but I think somepony should go an talk to her?" Thunderlane spoke. "And since she's very furious now, I don't think she will accept talking to any of you, so...I volunteer." He finished with a sheepish grin.
"Ya think ya can do it, sonny?" Granny asked.
"Well, only one way to find out." Thunderlane faced the barn. "And surely Apple Bloom can help me. I'm sure Applejack isn't mad at her."
With that, Apple Bloom followed Thunderlane as he trotted towards the barn.
In the chamber under the barn, Applejack sat in front of the small spaceship, resting her head and forelegs on the edge of the small room that had once contained her when she was a baby.
"Applejack?" Thunder said, as he and Apple Bloom trotted down the stairs leading to the chamber.
"What if they're still out there, Thunder?" Applejack responded. "What if they're looking for me, or they think that I'm dead and are now living in grief? Or worse…" She swallowed a lump in her throat before she continued. "What if they abandoned me on purpose because they knew I had these weird abilities?" She buried her face in her hooves. "I have so many questions."
"Maybe you'll never know," Thunder replied as he approached Applejack slowly. "I mean, sure, if you could know, you would definitely want to, but does that matter? You have a family here, a family that loves you and would never abandon you. Are you really angry that you cried at ponies that weren't your parents?"
"Of course not," Applejack sighed. "Ah was just angry when ah said that. They took me in and raised me as their own daughter even though I fell from the sky and mah spaceship would've killed them had it fell in the wrong place. They were mah parents, and they were real enough fer me." Tears began to stream down her face as she finished her sentence.
"A-and ah'm still yer sister, r-right?" Apple Bloom approached Applejack, choking on her tears.
Applejack quickly lifted her head and turned around to see the little filly, who had tears glistening in her eyes.
"Oh, Apple Bloom, of course!" Applejack wrapped her forelegs tightly around Apple Bloom, making sure not to crush her with her new strength. "I'm just looking for answers, but that doesn't change anythin'. You'll always be mah little sister."
"Awesome!" Thunder interrupted them. "This is just awesome. I mean, you two...bonding together...like sisters and all...it's just beautiful!" He grinned sheepishly. "I ruined the moment, didn't I?"
"Eeyup, ya totally ruined it!" Applejack replied, driving Thunder and Apple Bloom to laughter.
"Are ya okay, Applejack?" Granny's voice called from upstairs.
Applejack sighed. "I am. But tell me, did mah parents find anythin' else in the spaceship?"
"Well, since ya asked, they found something like weird key attached to it, and found a little puppy with you."
"And where is the puppy now?"
"She's...still here."
Applejack and Apple Bloom widened their eyes and exclaimed in unison, "Winona?!"
"Eeyup!" Big Mac confirmed.
"She's aging much slower than normal dogs," Granny said. "But other than that, she's pretty much a normal pup...until one day we find her buryin' a dragon bone in the acres!"
Everyone laughed at Granny's statement.
The rest of the day flew fast, as Applejack continued to buck the trees while trying as hard as she could to not break any of them, as the tension between her, Granny and Big Mac was easing slowly.
Two days later, Applejack woke up with something else on her mind: She had to control her abilities. She didn't want to hurt anypony by accident, so she had to know her limits. She ate her breakfast quickly and headed to the acres to start exploring herself.
"Alright, it's okay to do this. The only things that could get hurt here are the trees. It's the perfect place to train," she said to herself, then stared down at her foreleg in fear. "Ya can't pretend it doesn't exist, Applejack. Ya have to deal with it."
Slowly, she pulled her foreleg back and punched the ground, creating a small crater around her.
"Sweet mother of apples!" Applejack widened her eyes. "Rainbow Dash would've loved this." She took a few steps back. "Okay, what else can I do?" She looked at her hind legs. "If these can send a tree flyin', can they also send...ME flyin'?"
Applejack stood under a tree and looked up at an apple. She prepared herself and jumped, but her jump took her several meters higher than the tree, then she fell on the ground with an audible impact, but she didn't gain any injuries.
"Whoa!" Applejack breathed quickly. "Ah felt like...ah felt like ah was flyin'!" She looked away into the horizon, shaking her head. "Ah can't believe ah'm doin' this, but ah can't stop myself!"
She galloped a few meters and jumped high, then landed on her hooves and jumped again. She kept repeating the process, each time jumping higher and creating a crater where she jumped, until she jumped and didn't land, and she kept accelerating upwards. She smiled widely, feeling the wind rush by her, but her smile quickly disappeared when she stopped accelerating began to fall.
"Um...this is baaaad!" she exclaimed, before she fell on a small hill, taking away a small chunck of it. She stood up and shooke the dirt off her mane. "Oh, what the hay am I doin'?! I should be bucking trees now!" She paused for a second. "Wait a second, with my strength, I can buck the trees ten times fater than usual. I have plenty of time. Besides…" She kneeled, and the soil particles around her began to float. "Ah can FLY back to the acres!"
With all her might she jumped, taking off to the sky. Once she was high enough and made sure she wasn't falling again, she faced the direction of the acres and flew as fast as she could.
After a bumpy fly and almost falling again, Applejack was back un the acres. She simply sat down under one of the trees, the whole joy of being able to fly suddenly gone.
"So I have these powers, so what? Ya know what this means to you, Applejack, don't ya?" Applejack said to herself. "One thing is fer sure: things won't be the same from now on."
...
"A few days later, ah discovered that ah could heat things up just by lookin' at them," Applejack continued. "And then I found out that the weird things I had seen when I had thought I was goin' crazy were actually X-ray vision. Ah can see through anythin', and anypony."
"And then the icy breath?" Celestia said.
"Yeah. It was weak at first, and then started gettin' stronger. It wasn't strong enough to put out the whole fire back in Ponyville, but it's gettin' there soon." Applejack blew on her hoof, forming a small ball of ice, then used her laser vision to draw an 'S' on it. "I then found this suit in the small spaceship. It was inside something like a drawer, separated from the room that had contained me and Winona. Obviously, I discovered that the suit was enchanted and could change mah appearance at will. But mah change in appearance is limited to that one form you saw. But I still don't know what that black key thingy that came with me ship is for."
"Interesting," Celestia said. "And so you decided to become a superhero?"
"Yes, I mean no! I mean...sorta," Applejack stuttered.
Celestia tilted her head.
"You can say that."
"Are you going to tell any of your friends?"
"No!" Applejack snapped, but lowered her tone as she continued speaking. "Sorry, but ah can't tell them! I don't want them to think of me as an alien. I'm just a pony, an earth pony for that matter, and that's what I always wanna be...in my friends' eyes, at least." She faced the ground, ears folded back.
"Applejack, they're your friends. They wouldn't change the way they look at you."
"It's easy to say that." Applejack turned her gaze away. "Please, ah don't wanna discuss it."
Celestia raised an eyebrow, then decided to change the subject. "So, want to hear my story?"
"Um, sure, why not?" Applejack slowly faced Celestia again.
"Okay, first I want to say I'm really sorry for what happened earlier today. After seeing the symbol on your chest and realizing it was from a dream I had years ago, I was so worried. Had it been another hero, I wouldn't have freaked out at all. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong moment." Celestia smiled sheepishly. "Also, my powers returning to me so suddenly was making me unfocused. I don't know if you're radiating some sort of energy or something, but it helped bringing my powers back."
"It's okay, Princess." Applejack waved her forelegs. "I'm not mad at all. I did some mistakes myself today, so let's just forget about it."
"Alright then. My story is a little simple, and it may sound like a mares tale to you, but I assure you, it's real."
Applejack nodded.
"Three hundred years ago, I flew into a certain spot in the ocean after flyers had reported witnessing strange phenomena, including an island appearing and disappearing out of nowhere. After half an hour of searching I began to believe there was nothing, until I saw it.
"An island suddenly appeared, and I quickly flew down towards it. When my altitude was low enough, I could see what was happening there. There was an army of mares, pegasi, earth ponies and unicorns, fighting a hydra. I decided to help them, so I swooped in and hit the hydra on one of its heads. It began to attack me, and it made so much damage and almost killed some of the mares. I had no choice but to finish it. So I quickly engaged in a battle with the hydra that ended with its death.
"When I landed to take my breath, I found all of the mares bowing to me. I wondered how could they know about my status, but then one of them, their queen, came and told me about a prophecy they had. The prophecy said that one day, an alicorn would come to the island and would be able to wear the armor of the daughter of Zeus, and the first thing the alicorn would do is to slay a hydra. They said that Zeus was one of their Gods, and when I asked them about his daughter, they told me that she was just gone.
"They then took me to a room where a set of red armor rested, and there was a spell engraved into a stone in front of it. The queen told me that I had to cast the spell, and if I was indeed the alicorn from the prophecy, the armor will respond and place itself around my body. I obliged, and the armor indeed responded. I immediately felt a massive power rush through me.
"The mares told me I was their princess now, but I told them that I was the princess of Equestria and I had to leave. I asked them why wouldn't they just come with me instead of being isolated from the rest of the world. They said tha they were afraid of the evil of ponykind. I tried to tell them they were wrong, but they didn't listen. In the end, they agreed to let me return to Equestria, but I had to keep in touch and visit them every now and then."
"Um...wow!" Applejack scratched the back of her head. "And you thought my story was interesting?!"
Celestia giggled.
"What happened to the armor?"
"It's still hidden here in the castle," Celestia replied. "The power it gave me scared me, because I was still afraid back then that power might corrupt me and make my feelings control me just like my sister, especially since I wasn't...emotionally stable, back then." She turned to face the ground.
"I know what ya mean, Princess."
"As I spent years and years without using the armor, my powers faded and the armor stopped responding to the spell, but I never told my friends in Paradise Isalnd. And centuries later, I realized that I didn't need the powers to fight Nightmare Moon when she returns, because Twilight Sparkle was my student, and I knew she would be able to use the Elements of Harmony to save Luna."
"But somehow, being around me brought your powers back, right?" Applejack asked.
"Indeed. I managed to defeat you without the armor because I was having a power outburst, and you were going easy on me." Celestia smirked.
"Sure I was!" Applejack chuckled.
After a few seconds of awkward silence, Celestia spoke.
"Applejack, we have discovered a giant object under the ice in the frozen north. It's a spaceship, and it's thousands of years old. I'm holding curious explorers back from it so far. If you want, I'll keep holding them back until you explore the ship first."
"What...me?"
"Of course. It could be something from your planet, who knows? Besides, if something dangerous is inside, you can defeat it before any explorers hurt themselves."
Applejack scratched her neck. "Well, I was gonna have an important meeting with somepony, but it can wait."
"You mean, you were gonna have a date with Thunderlane?" Celestia winked.
Applejack flinched and stared at Celestia in shock. "What the...how did ya know?!"
"First, I didn't; you just told me," Celestia giggled.
"Dang it!" Applejack face hoofed.
"Second, I knew it from the way you talked when you reached the parts in your story in which Thunderlane was involved. It was so obvious!"
Applejack blushed.
"Go to your date first if you want to, I can hold ponies from the ship as long as you want."
"No, it's…" Applejack paused for a moment, then turned to face the ground, using one foreleg to scratch the other. "Y-ya know what? Yer right. I hafta go to the date now."
"Applejack, is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I'm totally fine! See yea later, Princess." With that, Applejack took off in the direction of Ponyville.
"Hmm. Why do I have a feeling she's not visiting the spaceship very soon?"
Author's note: This chapter was edited by Zoetic Zebra (from FIMfiction).
Yes, Wonder Mare/Woman's back story here is a little changed, because 1) It had to fit with MLP. 2) What's the fun if I copy the comics/movies in everything? I hope you're all okay with this change.