Original Link:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WJOdmjHDIhRqrTqIsv-6nlSC6CKvM8fDCqd4qP9bQLI/edit?usp=sharing

As the first beams of sunlight shined into Spring Sapling’s bedroom, the green crystal stallion was still asleep. It needed half an hour for the light to wander across his room and shine onto his face to wake him up. After a big yawn and stretch, he climbed out of his bed and walked over to a small safe. He entered his number code, inserted his key and opened it. The content was rather sparsely. A small pile of Equestrian Bits, a few gems and a silver bracelet. But of all these things, it was a book that he was aiming for. After pulling it out and locking his safe again, he placed his account book on a table.

The times surely had changed for the entirety of the Crystal Empire. Spring Sapling used to have so few workers for his crystal berry farm, he had to do most of the work himself. In return, though, he made quite a lot of money he invested in expanding his farm. Now, everything was the entire opposite. With all the refugees and the support the rebellion against Equestria’s current leader has gotten, he got a lot of workers. But in return, he barely made any profit anymore, since he had to pay them all and support the rebellion with a small portion of his financial income. Still, this was a sacrifice he was very willing to make. Money and wealth never mattered much to him. He was just glad he could offer quite a bunch of ponies a safe job and stable income. Also, while managing all these workers was quite tedious, it at least was the only thing he had to do now, along with keeping up the farm’s management.

After he was done checking the numbers and making notes, Spring Sapling went out on the field. Only few workers were here yet, but that was alright. The working hours of all fruit pickers were flexible. They could come and go whenever they wished, so long as they fulfilled their weekly minimum.

Most of his workers were following that arrangement and making the most out of it. But there was one particular mare who was always out in the fields already when he opened his door in the morning. Today as well, the first pony he saw was Applejack. It had only been a few months since she started working for him, but Sapling could already say that she was by far the best catch he made so far. Always so eager to work. Always so full of energy. It seemed like she had unlimited stamina.

As the orange mare lifted her head, she saw her boss and began to smile. Leaning her front half against a pole, she could raise her remaining left front leg and wave at him. She still seemed to be tired, though. Spring Sapling knew that she was a member of the rebellion leadership circle and their last meeting must have been pretty late. Still, this did not stop her from giving her all on the fields.

Spring Sapling couldn’t help but smile as he waved back. This was just such an impressive sight to him each and every time. She was handicapped, yet she worked harder than most healthy stallions he had employed over the years. She really seemed to enjoy her work, too.

He just couldn’t help himself. Although he had places to be and arrangements to make, Spring Sapling decided to walk over to Applejack and tell her just what he thought of her.

“Bright and early as everyday, huh Miss Applejack?” he greeted.

“Yes, sir! Ah got two full baskets of berries already and Ah took the liberty to water the bushes in the south-west. The leaves looked a bit dried up,” Applejack responded.

“Heh. You’re really the best mare in my team. You can get more done with your three legs than other ponies with four and you have a great eye when it comes to the condition of my plants,” the crystal stallion complimented.

“Aw shucks. That’s nothin’. Ah’ve been living on an apple orchard mah entire life. Ah just got the routines down, is all. It’s the lifestyle Ah’m used to,” the orange mare stated.

“Nonetheless, I am very happy to have you on board. Keep up the good work!” Spring Sapling spoke, then turned around and left.

Applejack smiled, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose. The smell of the crystal berry plantation was quite similar to that of an apple orchard. It brought happy memories of Sweet Apple Acres back to her mind. The many years she spent outdoors, bucking trees and carrying buckets. Back then as well as now, farm work sure is hard. But she wouldn’t trade this job for any other in the world. Nothing else would be able to give her so much satisfaction.

The orange mare slowly exhaled again and opened her eyes. The sun was shining down on those countless small green bushes, the colorful berries glistening in the light. It was a beautiful sight. Scenes like these made her forget the past for a moment and helped her living in the present. Even though picking berries takes more time, since you can’t just buck the bushes and cause all berries to fall in perfectly placed buckets, it also was less physically exhausting than apple bucking. In fact, the slower pace of hoof-picking the berries had something very relaxing and mesmerizing. It was stunning to Applejack how she could have forgotten this the first time she visited the Crystal Empire and helped picking berries.

This all seemed so long ago. Never would she have guessed that the empire she once helped to rescue would become her new home. She also would have never thought she would end up living in a fancy house chiseled out of a massive crystal. But here she was.

“Cuz!” a familiar voice called from behind.

Applejack could barely turn her head fast enough. Before she was able to even say a word, the orange mare got glomped, causing her to fall over.

“Whoa, Nelly! Hey, Babs. Glad to see ya too, but no reason to push me over like a sleepin’ cow,” Applejack started.

“Sorry. I’m just so glad to finally be back home and seein’ you again,” the brown teenage filly replied.

Babs Seed was gone for about two weeks. Along with a few other former police officers who fled after Blueblood came to power, she made it her task to find refugees and guide them across Equestria’s border. A very dangerous task, considering that she had to blend in large crowds consisting mostly of cultists, oppressed subjects and demons. But luckily, she still had enough connections within the enemy territory to get around unnoticed. After helping her older cousin back up, Babs Seed gained a mildly disgusted expression as the memories of the past weeks came back to her.

“Equestria sure is not what it used to be anymore. Public executions, sentries everywhere… and just walkin’ past a demon is quite nerve-racking. Can’t help but get chills everytime,” she explained.

“Ah know… Anyway, what’s new over there?” Applejack wanted to know.

“Eh… Blueblood just does whatever he wants to. Cultists openly torture subjects on the streets and whenever somepony tries to help, a demon jumps in and instantly kills the troublemaker. More and more ponies go mad due to fear…” Babs explained.

“Darnit… Well, what about Rarity’s parents? Any news on them?” the orange mare wondered.

“Nope, sorry. It would be much easier to track ‘em down if they wouldn’t wander around all the time. But we’ll find ‘em eventually,” Babs replied.

“It sure would be easier if we had more brave ponies to help searchin’. Am proud of ya, Babs,” Applejack stated.

“Thanks. I can say the same thing about ya. You’ve been through way more than me and still ya keep goin’,” the teenager replied with a smile.

“Well, you and I are the last Apples alive. We gotta keep goin’. Can’t let the darn cult win now, can we?” Applejack asked with a playful determination.

“Nope! They can try whatever they want to. These two Apples here won’t be shaken down from their trees!” Babs replied.

“That’s the spirit! Now get along. Ah got some apple pie in the fridge back home waitin’ for ya,” the orange mare spoke.

“Wowza! It’s been ages since I last had one! Thanks! See ya later!” the teenage filly spoke, then quickly turned around and ran home.

Applejack smiled happily, followed by a big yawn before she returned to her work. Yes, it wasn’t over quite yet. She just had to keep the conversations she had with Derpy Hooves in mind and keep chasing her dreams. The times may be darker than ever, but it wouldn’t stop her. In fact, now was a time where hopes and dreams were worth more than ever before. It was this feeling of hope, the determination to do whatever possible to bring things to a brighter future for everypony which kept the whole rebellion going.

Two hours passed by. The orange mare just emptied her baskets again and was about to return to the bushes when she noticed Spring Sapling walking across the plantation, followed closely by a light amber stallion with brown mane and tail. His cutie mark were three blue horseshoes. Applejack had to think for a moment why this stallion looked so familiar to her. But by the time Sapling was done introducing the new stallion, she remembered. It was Caramel, an old friend from Ponyville! He and his girlfriend Sassaflash moved away years ago in search for work. Applejack had seen him in various places all over Equestria in the last years. Once, he even worked as a staff member of the yearly Equestria Rodeo Competition in Canterlot. Though they never really spent all that much time together, not even back in the happier times. She was just always way too busy with her farm work and helping her friends. But now, since the times had changed and she was so much ahead in her work already, the orange mare figured it would be fine if she took a short break and spoke to him.

“Howdy, Caramel! Haven’t seen ya in ages!” the orange mare greeted.

“Oh. Hi, Applejack. Yeah. It’s been a while,” Caramel greeted back.

“Ah’m glad to see ya made it here. What have ya been doin’ since the last time we’ve met?” Applejack wondered.

“Not that much… I spent most of the time wandering all across Equestria and looking for a job. Not that easy when you constantly forget and lose things… And then, Blueblood happened,” the light brown stallion replied in a depressed tone.

Applejack felt a bit awkward about this. She still remembered he always was a bit forgetful and even delayed Winter Wrap Up Day once because he lost a bag of grass seeds three times in a row. But she just thought it was simply bad luck that day. She had no idea it actually was such a big problem for him. Applejack felt the need to say something motivational now.

“Well… look on the bright side! Ya got a job here now and ya can help the rebellion, too!” she spoke.

Caramel did not respond. Her words did not seem to achieve what she was aiming for, since he still looked sad. Applejack then caught him sneaking a quick peek on the stump where her right front leg used to be. It was obvious right away that he seemed to be worried, but did not want to appear rude by staring at her or making a comment. So Applejack did not mind and instead smiled a bit.

“No need to feel all awkward about it, Sugarcube. It’s fine, ya can look,” the orange mare spoke.

“If it’s okay to ask… When did that happen?” Caramel asked carefully.

“A couple of years ago. It’s a bit of a longer story to tell. But to give ya the short version: Ah lost mah leg in a really bad fight that ended with all of mah best friends gettin’ permanent injuries and one of them even dead. Was quite a hard time… We all lost a lot...” Applejack explained.

Again, the stallion did not say a word and instead just stared at the ground. Applejack was about to say something to lighten the mood again, but then he finally replied.

“I’m sorry to hear that…” he spoke.

“Well, all ya can do after such things happen is to keep goin’ forward and look on the good things that are left. Ah still got most of mah friends and even made a few new ones,” Applejack explained.

Caramel still wasn’t saying much. She didn’t remember him as being so quiet and depressed. He must have been through a lot himself, she figured. Not a big surprise, considering he had been living in Equestria until just recently. With him wandering across the land in search for work, he must have seen the whole rise of the BloodClaw Cult and their takeover of Equestria first-hoof. These memories must still be very fresh and traumatizing.

“Well, how’s Sassa-” Applejack started again.

“Can we please get to work now?” Caramel interrupted instantly.

The orange mare became silent for a moment. Did she go too far there? Was he just done talking? Or worse yet, did she hit on a painful topic? It seemed like he didn’t want to talk anymore, so she figured the best thing she could do was to follow his request.

“Um… Sure. Ah guess Sapling showed you around already. Ya can help me with the baskets if ya want,” Applejack offered.

“Got my own chores… See you later,” Caramel spoke and quickly walked away.

Applejack watched him for a moment longer with a frown on her face. Scenes like these reminded her of the things happening outside of the magical blizzard protecting the empire from infiltrators. She hadn’t seen Equestria in months, so Applejack could only imagine what horrors the inhabitants must be going through every day. All the more reason for her to do her best and support the rebellion. The harder she worked on the plantation, the more money was made, which in return was spent on resources and projects for the rebellion. Determination returned to Applejack’s face as she quickly walked back to the berry bushes and started picking again, faster than before.