“Pinkie, how much farther?”

“Not much longer.” Aaron had lost track of how many times he had heard the pink mare say that to him. They had trekked through the thick fog in search of the mental representation of Applejack in hopes of aiding her. It was not the original plan but like all things, plans change.

It was simple; enter the mind of Applejack and see if the connection could work as a form of communication. Now… now he was experiencing the nightmares that had been plaguing the orange earth pony for so long. However, figuring out how to fix this issue was the bigger issue. In the meantime, he kept his search for Applejack at top priority.

“Well, let us hope we find her soon. I do not wish to linger here longer than I have to.” That was something Aaron could agree with wholeheartedly. He had been through quite enough in AJ’s mind as it is. Any more of the horrors and he was afraid he’d suffer a heart attack before the sun rises.

Aaron’s nerves were on high alert, his eyes would dart about in search for danger. He couldn’t see much through the fog engulfed forest but that wouldn’t stop him. Nightmare would watch the fidgety human with a concerned look. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, making him jump. “Calm yourself, this fog will play with your senses.” Aaron took her words into consideration, only to look out into the milky whiteness to see a silhouette of an unknown entity glide through the distance. He would write it off as an illusion, the only issue was that Nightmare caught a glimpse of the creature as well.

Nightmare was not as adept in walking through the dreams of others as she was before she became nightmare moon, but she knew a threat when she saw one and whatever it was that ran through the fog just now felt like a threat.

Nightmare kept Aaron close, starting to grow a little paranoid herself. She knew better than to let her guard down in the mind of another pony. Anything was possible and the imagination could be a wonderful tool, or a machine to generate terrible sights. Sights Aaron had already experience firsthand.

“Nightmare, just out of curiosity, but if you by chance die in someone else’s dream, do you die for real?” Nightmare looked to Aaron as if he had turned into a strange creature himself.

“Of course not? Where would you get such a ludicrous idea?!”

“Freddy Krueger.”

“What- I… No, you can’t die in a dream. You’ll merely wake up in a cold sweat.”

“You’re sure?”

“Believe me, if such an ability existed, I would have used it on my husband years ago.” Aaron took her words to heart, crossing off a few other questions he had for her. “Do you have any other questions?”

“None that would be appropriate for the moment.” Aaron said under his breath. Things went silent once more as Aaron tensed up seeing the shadow in the distance yet again. He would hold onto Nightmare like a frightened child would with its mother. “Pinkie, please tell me that we’re almost there.” There was no response. “Pinkie? Pinkie?!” Nightmare and Aaron looked out in front of them and saw that their guide through the fog had vanished.

Nightmare was starting to get worried, a feeling she hated. Nightmare and Aaron brought their walking to a stop. “Pinkie!” Nightmare called out in a booming voice, hearing her voice echo through the fog. Still no response from their guide. “Be on your guard.” Nightmare warned, continuing on the path.

Aaron could hear a rustling in the trees. Looking ahead of him, he could see a branch start to move. Several lean tendrils began to extend outward, reaching for Nightmare Moon. She was unaware of what was happening; thus prompting Aaron to act.

The tendrils arched back and lashed out like a whip. A sharp crack was heard as Aaron tackled her out of the way and onto the ground. “What is the meaning of this!” She shouted, turning to push Aaron off.

Yet as she prepared to give him a hearty shove, she could see the trees starting to move and crack the whip like branches that had swirled around one another to create terrifying appendages. “Aaron, run! Run!” Aaron and Nightmare got to their feet as fast as they could, running for their lives as it seemed every tree in the forest wanted a piece of them. With each step they took they took, at least three cracks of the branches could be heard.

One of them got a good hit on Aaron, striking him square in the back as a jolt of pain went through him. The pain would slow him down, but he forced himself to keep running. He could feel more and more branches striking his body, the pain feeling as real as if someone were to actually strike him with a whip or something like it. The constant stinging would eat away at him.

Nightmare was not spared this fate. She flinched and hissed as she felt the trees strike her. She had a much higher resistance to pain than Aaron did but it was still painful none the less. Things only got worse for them as the two found that the last step they took was down a hill. Nightmare and Aaron would tumble down, rolling into bushes and anything else in their path.

Aaron stopped rolling first, only to have Nightmare land on top of him with a loud “oof”, knocking the wind out of both of them. Groaning in pain, Aaron pushed Nightmare off of him in order to get up and look around. “Sweet salty Christ, what the hell was that about?!”

“I presume,” Nightmare began, cracking her back. “Applejack’s natural mental defenses. I was wondering when we’d run into them, I just wasn’t aware of what they would take form in.”

“Well, did it really have to turn into an onslaught of vicious beatings? Seriously, I feel like these are going to leave marks in my real body.”

“Trust me, there are a lot worse forms they could have taken. Yet I can tell you that this is not over. You think that was bad, I can guarantee you that things will get worse from here.” Aaron groaned, rubbing the sore spots on his body to sooth the pain. “So… where do we go now? We lost our guide through this place.” Nightmare paused as she surveyed the area.

Beside the steep hill, their environment was more or less the same. More fog and more thick trees. “Well, from the look of things, we don’t have much of a grounding of where we are. As such, I think we should just keep walking until we stumble upon something that could be of use to us.”

Aaron would look to Nightmare with a blank look, patiently waiting for more until he realized that there wasn’t anything else. “Th-… that’s it?”

“Did I allude to there being more?”

“No, but I was hoping to do something else other than just wander around.”

“Do you have any other ideas?” He wanted to respond to her but they were both silenced by the sound of someone strumming an acoustic guitar. Sitting in the low branch of a tree was a stranger they knew for a fact wasn’t there before. Aaron and Nightmare looked to him cautiously, not wishing to fall for some trap.

Aaron and Nightmare approached with caution, seeing the pony was a lime green stallion with a gold mane. He had a scruffy look to him, complemented by a small gold stubble. He wore what looked to be tattered jeans and a vest, strumming away at his guitar. Aaron stepped forward, clearing his throat. “Um… excu-“

“Ya’ll lost?” The stallion said.

“What?”

“Lost. Are ya lost?” He looked up at them with a pair of emerald eyes.

“Actually, we are.” Nightmare said, stepping forward. “We are actually in search of Applejack. Tis most important that we find her.”

“Applejack? Applejack, Applejack.” The green stallion began to think for a moment and shrug. “Sorry, ain’t seen ‘er.” Aaron looked to the stranger with a cocked brow, looking him over. That’s when he saw something familiar.

“Then why do you have Applejack’s Stetson?” The stallion’s strumming came to a stop, putting his guitar down to reveal a brown hat resting on his chest, one all too similar to Applejack’s.

“Who are ya’ll?” The stallion asked, sitting up to give them his full attention.

“My name’s Aaron, I’m a friend of Applejack. This is Nightmare Moon. Our original guide… disappeared. I’m not all that sure where she went.”

“Pleasure t’meet ya. Ya’ll can call me Sour Apple” The stallion looked the two over. “So, what do you want with Applejack anyway?”

“Originally it was to make sure that we can communicate through our dreams. Now, that’s kind of changed. We’re here to help her with the nightmares, cause the shit I’ve seen… its fucked up. I don’t want to leave Applejack to suffer every night. So please, I ask you again, do you know where we can find Applejack?” The stallion came forward and began to look Aaron over, lifting his arms, prodding his chest and face.

“Hm. Yur quite the strange one.”

“Um… thank… you?” The stallion took a step back, thinking to himself for a moment.

“Hm… okay then.”

“O-Okay what?”

“I’ll tell ya where you can find Applejack.”

“You’re serious?!”

“Of course. On one condition.”

“Fuck.”

“Language!” Aaron went silent, flustering. “Anyway, I’ll take you, and only you to Applejack. I feel like I can trust ya with that. As for your… friend, I don’t know.” Nightmare didn’t show much approval of the stallions catch.

“Sorry, but Nightmare is my only real protection here. I don’t know who you are and for all I know you could be a trap. I’d feel a lot more comfortable if she were to stay at my side.” The stallion sighed to himself.

“Fine, but I will be keeping my eye on ya both. Try anythin’ funny, and I’ll be kickin’ yur flanks tah the barn n’ back.” Aaron gulped, not wanting to aggravate the pony. “As for you ma’am, keep yur hands to yourself.”

“Only if I have to.” The stallion gave a snort as he motioned for them to follow, Aaron and nightmare keeping up with him through the fog. The two kept their wits about them, not fully trusting this stallion. Whoever he was, they were sure to keep a close eye on him, not wanting to fall into a trap.

“Nightmare, is this guy gonna… turn on us or into one of those things?”

“I know not. If he does, we run. Or fight if we have to.”

“Ya know, it’s not polite to talk about ponies behind their back.” Sour Apple said in a stoic manner, making Aaron blush.

“Sorry, can’t really be all too careful.”

“Ya can be careful if ya want, doesn’t mean ya can be rude.” Aaron would remain silent as he followed the green pony. It was all he could find to occupy his time as they continued their walk once more. Still, he could feel something wrong in the air, the sensation that they were being watched from afar.

~~~~~

Sour Apple wasn’t a talkative guide. The three would walk through the forest in utter silence, creating an uneasy air about the new group. The green stallion was all business, almost making Aaron wish that they had the uncertain Pinkie Pie back to help them. At least she was pleasant, Sour Apple made Nightmare and Aaron uncomfortable. Though, if there was one thing they liked better about this pony, it was that he managed to ward off the mental defenses Nightmare had warned them about.

Aaron and Nightmare would watch as trees parted ways for him, bottomless pits suddenly produced bridges from roots, and Aaron could have sworn he saw wolves made from wood hiding in the fog. After the beating he had gotten from the trees, he was starting to become thankful they ran into the stallion. “Are we getting close?”

“Jus’ hold yur britches. We ain’t too far now.” His words would soon prove to be true. Their walk soon came to an end as they found something other than a tree for a change. The three came to a clearing and in the middle was a rundown little tree house. They could all hear the soft whimper of someone crying inside. Though, that wasn’t all they found.

“Hey guys!” They turned to see a familiar pink mare run up to them, utterly shocked to see that she actually made it at all. “I’m so glad you guys are okay. I was worried that you would have gotten lost.” She turned to Sour Apple and smiled. “Hi Uncle Apple.” Pinkie waved at him, soon bringing the stallion in for a hug.

“Howdy, Pinkie. Could ya sit me down please.” Pinkie did as she was asked, Sour Apple soon patting himself down as he turned to Aaron. “Applejack is in there. Don’ try anythin’ funny.”

“I don’t plan on it. All I want to do is talk.” As he walked, Sour Apple stepped in front of Nightmare, obstructing her path.

“Only Aaron goes in, I may have let ya come with, but this is as far as you go.”

“Surely you jest?”

“It’s okay Nightmare. I’ll be fine, just wait out here and hopefully I can fix this.”

“I wish you luck, just be careful.” Aaron nodded to her and made his way for the decaying treehouse. The sound of the crying slowly grew louder and louder as he approached the steps leading to the door. The wood was old and the paint faded, once having been some shade of pink, now most of it had given way to the bare wood.

The hinges would creek loudly as he pushed the door open, soon breaking off and landing on the floor, bringing the crying down to a soft whimper. “Applejack?” Aaron called out, hunching over. The treehouse was obviously built for little kids. The small table and chairs in the middle of the room made that apparent. “Applejack, is that you?”

He could see a small figure hiding behind the table, huddled down behind the chair. “Applejack, it’s me; Aaron.” A small head peaked out from the chair, only to gasp and hide once more.

“G-Go away.” That wasn’t Applejack, the voice was much higher than what he remembered, and sounding far too young. Yet he felt something was amiss.

“Not until I find Applejack.”

“Why do you care.”

“I care because she’s my friend, because I need her help and so I can help her.”

“You can’t help, no pony can.”

“I can surely try.” There was a long pause, Aaron could tell he wasn’t going to be going anytime soon and decided to take a seat.

“Is this your clubhouse?”

“I-It was.”

“Its…” He looked around and forced a smile. “Lovely.” This brought out a sigh from her.

“Please don’t lie to me. I don’t like liars.”

“Oh, uh… sorry.”

“It’s okay, I’m used to it” The young filly hid behind the table, neither of them attempting to peak around the corner. “You really need to go. If you don’t, then she’ll find you.”

“Who will find me?” Another long pause.

“I-It doesn’t matter, you have to leave.”

“Not until I find my friend.”

“You won’t, Applejack is gone. You’re wasting your time.”

“Maybe so, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop looking.”

“Why?”

“I told you. She’s my friend.”

“Even though you won’t find her, even if though your search is hopeless.”

“Of course.” A much longer silence fell on them, however, this time for a reason. Aaron could hear the young filly shuffle about and slowly rise from behind the table, coming into the faint light that seeped through the many holes and busted windows of the club house. He had his suspicions of who he was talking to, now those suspicions were confirmed.

The young filly had a bright orange coat and golden mane. Her emerald eyes were much like that of Sour Apple. The younger form of Applejack stood in a timid manner, trying not to make eye contact. “Does… she really mean that much to ya?” Aaron could only smile and nod.

“Of course. I may not have known her long, but I know that Applejack is one of my best friends.” Aaron saw the small filly smile shyly, soon coming forward and bringing Aaron in for a hug and crying into his shirt. Aaron could do nothing but let Applejack get it all out, letting the small version of his friend get what she needed out.

“I-I’m so sorry.”

“For what?”

“For putting you through this, all of this.”

“It’s okay, there’s no need to apologize.” She looked up at him, her eyes watery and shimmering as she tried to hold back more of her tears to speak.

“M-Mean it?”

“Of course. You don’t like liars, remember.” His smile soon faded, wanting to get down to business. “Applejack, who is the mare with the red bow?” He could feel Applejack seize up, slightly shaking.

“Sh-… Sh-she…”

“It’s okay, you can tell me.” She bit her lip as she backed away frightened.

“H-Her name is… Applebloom. At least… it was.”

“Why is she haunting you? Did… Tirek curse you?” She shook her head.

“No, a-at least not directly. You… You know what happened to my family? In the real world right?”

“I do. They were killed in a fire after Tirek locked them in your barn.” She nodded.

“Applebloom was my little sis. She was… my everything.” Applejack took a seat at the small table, Aaron doing the same but moving a seat aside. “After I ran into the forest to escape… I couldn’t stop crying. Applebloom was my responsibility. Everything I did, it was for her. And then… when Tirek came… I saw the pony I loved more than anything taken, all because of me.” Tears began to well up in AJ’s eyes, wiping them away in her small white shirt. “I felt like I lost everypony who ever cared about me, whoever loved me. All because of me. I did this to them and now… I am haunted every night with the sound of their screams. I was powerless to stop him, powerless to save anypony who cared about me.”

Aaron was at a loss for words, watching the little filly of his friend tell him of her true feelings. “Do you know what it’s like? To live with the guilt, knowing that you could have done something to save the one’s you loved. To hear their screams each and every night as they call out to you for help.” Aaron wanted to respond to her, he wanted to say he felt her pain, to give her someone who could understand what she was going through. But…

“I-… I’m sorry Applejack.” Aaron lowered his head, the mood growing heavy in the tree house. “I don’t. I’ve never had a family. I don’t know what it is like; to lose someone so precious to you, let alone a whole family. I’m sorry for what happened to you, truly I am. But what happened to you is something I can never understand.” He returned to making eye contact with her. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to help you through this. I may not know what I’m doing, but I want to do what I can.”

“You can’t help me, no pony can.”

“Regardless, I want to try.

“You’ll only be wasting your time.”

“Maybe I will be, maybe you’re beyond help. Life is full of maybes, AJ. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth trying.” He held his hand out to her. “I really want to try; you mean a lot to me. You, Twilight. You girls are the first real friends I’ve ever had, the only people to ever give me a chance. I want to make it up to you. So… will you at least give me a chance to help you.”

Applejack looked to Aaron’s hand, debating with herself whether to give him a chance. She could feel a plethora of emotions swirling around her. They had known each other for little over a week and he was already willing to put his time, and possibly his sanity for her. Coming to a decision, Applejack slowly extended her own hand and took his.

“I… I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try.” Aaron smiled warmly at her, bringing the young filly in for a soft hug.

“I promise to do what I can, Applejack.” She didn’t respond, but as she looked over Aaron’s shoulder, she seizes up, shaking softly. Aaron noticed immediately, only to find Applejack pry herself out of Aaron’s arms and back up in terror. “AJ?”

“Are you guys alright?” Aaron could hear Pinkie’s voice but he kept his eyes on Applejack.

“Yeah, we’re fine.” Though, from the look on Applejack’s face, she seemed to be suffering a panic attack of some kind. “It’s okay, it’s just Pinkie.”

“Aaron, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Pinkie. Whatever you did I’m sure its fine.”

“Aaron, I’m sorry.”

“Um… yeah. I know, it’s okay.”

“Aaron, I’m sorry.”

“Okay, Pinkie, you’re starting to-“ he felt a bony hand grab his shoulder, forcing him to turn around and face the opposite direction; right into the face what was once Pinkie Pie

“Aaron, I’m sorry!” This wasn’t Pinkie, she had become like the others. The sunken in black eyes, the hole for a mouth that would leak the black ooze. Now he was staring right into that void. Terror filled the human as he struggled to free him from its grasp, yet to no avail.

This seemed like where things would come to a stop if it weren’t for a wooden chair that had come out of the side of his vision and shatter upon contact with Pinkie’s head. “Leave him alone!”

“Aaaaaaapplejaaaaack.” Pinkie would groan, stumbling forward to take the superior prize. Aaron was on the ground and took hold of Pinkie’s hoof, bringing her down to the ground. Aaron took action and pinned her to the ground.

“Applejack, run!” She took his words to heart and bolted for the door, only to be cornered by the filly with the red bow. “Oh god dammit!” Applejack began to back up, a look of absolute terror in her eyes as she saw the milky white eyes of the image of her younger sister. Its jaw bone unhinged to let out a ghastly wail, deafening the two and giving the terrifying visage of Pinkie Pie the chance to escape.

Applejack was cornered with two beasts that wore the faces of her family. They crept up slowly to Applejack, their hands stretched out to claim their prize and to add her to their ranks. Not having any of that, Aaron got up and picked up Applejack, crashing through the weak wood and stumbling down to the ground where Sour and Nightmare began to run to meet them.

Aaron had cushioned their fall to the ground, protecting Applejack. “Owwww… Applejack, you okay?” She was trembling horribly, clenching onto Aaron’s shirt. Luckily, he saw no sign of her looking like Pinkie or Applebloom.

“What happened?” Nightmare asked, soon seeing the two ponies standing in the new hole. “What!?”

“Yeah, turns out Pinkie was turned or… one of them from the start? Not all that sure myself. Luckily, Applejack is safe.” He showed Sour and Nightmare the cowering filly in his arms. Applejack looked up to see the stallion, her mood changing immediately.

“Pa!” She shouted, running to his arms instead of Aaron’s.

“Hey, sugar cube.” The two shared a moment together, only for Nightmare to come to Aaron, helping him up.

“Thanks.”

“T’was nothing. I’ll need you standing to face this foe if Applejack is to be free from her nightmares.” Aaron turned to the creatures in the hole. They were just standing there, staring them down, say for Applebloom. Unlike Pinkie, Aaron could see Applebloom shaking softly, almost vibrating that gave her a soft fuzziness. Nightmare couldn’t put her finger on it, but she felt the need to run. Aaron and Sour Apple could feel it as well. “We gotta get goin'." Sour Apple said.

“Best idea I’ve heard all day.” Aaron retorted. They slowly began to back away, not letting their eyes off of the tree house. They only got three steps back before they heard it; the blood curdling echo of a scream that seemed to reach every corner of the apple orchard and beyond. The four covered their ears, trying to drown out the horrid sound that Applebloom made.

Pinkie Pie was unphased by the sound, though they could see something happen to her body. It was slowly being phased into the young filly, making her grow. “Now would be a good time to run!” Aaron called out, the three of them turning around and running for their lives. They entered the forest once more but their vision was starting to clear as a strange wind began to pick up. A maelstrom had formed where the tree house was, forming a massive tornado of could and fog. Soon it began to pick up trees, dirt and anything else. Yet the three running for dear life seemed to be untouched.

As they ran, Aaron nearly dodged a speeding object. He could have swarm that it was Granny Smith with an expressionless look on her face. Looking ahead, he could see the rest of the apple family speeding their way and fast. “Head’s up!” Aaron called out, taking refuge behind one of the surviving trees that managed to stay rooted down, the others did the same as the small army of ponies sped past them and towards the massive twister that had grown in size and girth. “Nightmare! What the hell is going on?!”

“It seems that we have agitated the nightmare. Now that there is something to combat it, it seems to be gathering more strength to accommodate.”

“Shit! How do we fight thi- OH MY GOD!!!” Aaron braced himself as he soon found the rest of the farm rushing toward the twister, hoping that the tree could withstand the storm of broken wood, nails, and anything else contained in the barn and house. The four of them managed to wait out the onslaught, soon finding the area greatly changed around them.

What was once a vast apple orchard had been transformed into a ruined wasteland. The skies were darkened with thick storm clouds, cracking with thunder. With the winds dying down and the twister gone, the four left their hiding areas only to look upon what was left in its wake.

Towering over the land, leaving the four with gaping jaws of terror and awe, was an abomination of colossal size. Its sleek body could be seen, made up of dirt, buildings and the faces of Applejack’s loved ones. The looks of agony they held was constant, screaming silently as they looked forward into the horizon. The long, slender arms the thing had was shown to have exposed bone that seemed to be held together by winding tree roots, acting as its muscle. Then the face; the face of evil itself looking down at themselves. The beast held a horrific amalgamation of Applebloom and something else entirely. The sharp teeth made from broken planks, the long horns created by countless number of trees, and a pure white mane made from the thick fog that coated the land. Its eyes would burn like a raging inferno, casting a brilliant light upon the four survivors of its raging maelstrom.

The colossus let out a bellowing roar, shaking the ground beneath them and producing winds that actually pushed them back some. Applejack was crying into her father’s chest, wishing the creature would go away and leave them alone. Aaron and Nightmare that wasn’t going to happen. “Sweet Salty Christ… how… w-what are we supposed to do with this? How do we beat that?!”

Nightmare couldn’t respond, fixated on the visage it tried to cast. She too was terrified of the colossus they beheld. “I-… I-I don’t-… I don’t know.” Nightmare began to tremble, seeing the accumulation of the surrounding landscape. This was too much; Nightmare was starting to grow worried of their current situation. “A-Aaron!” Nightmare called out. “If you intend to help Applejack, then now is most likely the best and probably last chance you’ll have tonight. Unless you wish to return to this tomorrow.”

Aaron understood and turned to Sour Apple still holding his daughter. “Applejack.” Aaron called out. The young filly managed to pry herself out of her father’s grasp. “You need to face this. It won’t ever go away until you face this head on.”

“I can’t! I’m useless against this!” The creature let out a shriek, a menacing smile crossing its face as it loomed over them. It was feeding off of Applejack’s negative emotion. Aaron wasn’t about to let stand by and see what happened when it was full.

“Applejack, what happened to you and your family wasn’t your fault. You have to realize that. You faced a great injustice, but you were not the one who was the cause.” She slowly looked out from her father’s chest. “You don’t have to face this alone, but only you can face this.”

“Noooooo…” The abomination slammed its hand down upon Aaron, scooping him up from the dirt.

“Aaron!” Nightmare and Applejack would call out to their friend, being lifted up to face him on eye level, all while squeezing him. Aaron was brought up to the abomination, his fears sky rocketing as he was facing the fiery eyes it held. He could practically feel the blazing heat on his face, searing his flesh as it held in in its grasp. “There is no escape… only death.” Aaron was petrified, looking upon the colossus with nary a word to speak. “Applejack will let you die… just as she did for the rest of us. She… will… fail.”

“Y-You’re wrong.” Aaron stammered out. “Applejack won’t let any harm come to me, in here or in the real world.” That seemed to get a laugh out of the beast.

“A foolish belief. You will find only your death if you follow her.” Aaron furrowed his brow, looked the creature into the black slits it had for pupils.

“Then so be it.” The colossus would roar in rage, squeezing Aaron like a toy. He began to grow short of breath, gasping in pain with every motion of its hand. He could feel himself starting to fade and grow conscious of his own body. Aaron would scream in pain, turning his head to face Applejack on the ground.

“APPLEJACK!!!” He screamed. “Is this how you want to remember them?! Is this how you want to remember your family; This abomination?!” Applejack couldn’t look away. Every part of her told her to run, but she was compelled to face the thing. Tears swelling up in her eyes as she beheld the beast. “Remember! Remember your family for who they were! Remember your sister!” The words had gotten to the young filly. She shuttered for a moment, only to feel a soft hand take hold of her shoulder. She looked up to see a mare with a golden brown coat looking down at her. The mare’s smile seemed to calm her nerves, removing any anxiety she had. Her father soon joined her, smiling down at his daughter. She held onto their hands tight, holding onto their memory.

“He… He’s right.” Her eyes closed for a moment and once she opened them, the young filly would be gone and in her place stood the Applejack Aaron had come to know. The two ponies behind her stepped back, giving her space to do her thing. This was not how she wanted to remember her family. She had spent years wallowing in her own sadness, blaming their deaths on herself. So much so that it skewed her memory of them to the point that all that remained were the horrors that had taken their place.

Aaron let out another scream of agony, only to find the beast slowly release him and lift him up into the air. It slowly opened its mouth to show a swirling maelstrom of fire, the faces of Applejack’s family inside, screaming in agony within. Aaron wanted to hold onto the finger but he was far too weak to do so. He felt that he would be waking soon and he would have to go through this all over again. “Oi, let ‘em go!” Before the colossus could react, it soon felt a swift fist make contact with its face, sending Aaron flying into the air, only to be caught by a massive orange hand.

Following the arm with his eyes, Aaron soon found that his rescuer was none other than Applejack who had grown to the size that matched the colossal abomination. With Aaron safely in her hand, Applejack set him down carefully, she didn’t want him getting in the way of what was about to happen. Applejack cracked her knuckles, sounding like an explosion as she slowly turned back to her opponent, who was now recovering from the punch it had been dealt. “Ah’ve suffered long enough. It's time I had myself a good dream; starting with me kickin’ your ass.”

The abomination would let out a hiss. “You would hurt your family even further? You would-“ It was silenced with another powerful punch, turning its head almost all the way around.

“Ya ain’t mah family. You’re a bastardization of their memory.” Applejack delivered a low punch to the beast’s gut, making it wail in pain. “For three long years I suffered, three years to wallow in in my sadness. But now, I’m done bein’ sad.” She struck the beast again in the stomach, the force it exerted began to make the ground shake. “Now, take off that face!” Applejack’s hand grasped the face of the young filly, tearing it from the creature to reveal the blazing fires and the screams of her family. Applejack began to tear up, only to wipe her tears away. “I am done with you!” She drew her fist back, building up the force in her finishing blow. With a loud roar, she drove her fist into the beast’s chest with the force of a bomb. Passing through its protective layer and soon breaching the other side with its still beating heart. “I’m sorry for what happened to ya’ll, but it wasn’t my fault. But I promise, I will avenge you. I’ll avenge all of you. For now… rest.”

The abomination began to cry out, wailing in agony as its body began to decompose. Its body falling apart around Applejack’s arm, leaving no trace of itself as it fell into a pile of refuse, showing little sign of what it once was say for the two large horns made from trees. With the deed done, Applejack let out a soft breath, shrinking down to normal size.

With the fight over, Aaron ran to Applejack to make sure she was okay. She slowly turned to him with a smile on her face. She was okay, in fact she felt better than she did in a long time. Once the two were close enough, they greeted one another with a bear hug, holding onto one another tight. They didn’t say much, but they poured all they had into their hug.

Once they parted, Applejack leaned in and kissed Aaron’s cheek. “W-What was that for?”

“For everythin’, sugar cube.”

“Well… whatever that means, thank you.” His hand felt the cheek she kissed, turning a brilliant pink as he focused on it. Applejack turned her attention to Nightmare Moon, her smile fading for a more serious look. The two made eye contact, standing their ground waiting for the other to do something.

“Are ya really here to help us?” Applejack asked in a stoic manner.

“That I am.”

“So what do you want out of this?”

“For things to merely go back to the way they were.” Applejack approached Nightmare, staring her down, Nightmare doing the same. It didn’t take long for Applejack to smile.

“Well, I guess I owe ya mah thanks too.” Nightmare soon smiled, only for Applejack to lean in to Nightmare’s ear. “But I swear. If you so much as hurt that boy, one single hear; I shall make it my life’s duty to huntin’ you down and makin’ you suffer. Are we clear?”

“Crystal.”

“Glad tah hear it.” She drew back and turned away from her. Nightmare soon followed behind, shaking off Applejack’s threat. “So, I reckon it’s about time that you be on your way.”

“Yeah, I think I’ve had my fill of my own nightmare fuel for one night.”

“Same. Sorry I put you guys through so much.”

“It’s cool. The end result was totally worth it.”

“What, the whole savin’ me thing or the kiss?” Aaron began to blush again.

“N-No… I-I mean, yes th-the saving you thing.” Applejack would giggle softly to herself.

“I appreciate it, though I guess it’s time we both be wakin’ up. Ya got training in the morning and I sure don’ wanna keep you.” Aaron’s smile soon faded for a look of fear. “But, if ya do a good job, I’ll reward ya on the last day before you gotta head in to get Dash.”

“I… I would like that.” Applejack’s smile turned devious.

“Oh, trust me. Ya will.” Aaron had no idea how to take that but just shrugged it off. “Anyway, I guess I’ll be seein’ ya in the morning.”

“Likewise.” The two shared a final hug for the night as things began to grow brighter and brighter. Applejack was waking up and thus, so were her guests. The night was over and their objective complete, now there wasn’t anything stopping them from communicating with one another, and Aaron helped his friend come to terms with her inner demons.

As he awoke in his bed, Twilight still slumbering beside him, he couldn’t help but feel proud of what he did. Knowing Applejack was safe when she would sleep was something great. Still, the things he witnessed would most surely haunt him in his nightmares. Though for now, he would savor his victory and get ready for his training for the day.

Author's Notes:

Holy crap, its sooo good to post something for a change. I missed writing for this series. Now, that I'm back, I do hope ya enjoy. I've been rewriting this chapter for so long I felt like I'd never get it right. Though I know it is still going to have issues, I still hope you guys enjoy it. I'll be back later to make some more chapters.