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Growing The Future
“Granny? I don’t feel so good.”
Granny Smith forced herself to smile as she looked down at her youngest granddaughter. She brushed her hoof through the filly’s crimson mane and did her best to ignore the heat radiating off her skin, or the paleness of her coat.
“There there honey child. Don’t you worry none. Everything is going to be just fine.”
The area around the hospital bed was crowded. Big Mac took up quite a bit of space all by himself. Add in four of the element bearers and the rest of the CMC, and there was hardly an inch of free space around the sickly Apple. The hospital room was large, but everypony was squeezed up around the bedside. As if being closer to their friend would give her the strength to fight off her illness.
The only two ponies missing were Applejack and Princess Twilight Sparkle, who had remained in the hallway to talk to the doctors.
Granny’ ears weren’t sharp enough to hear what they were saying on the other side of the door, but she knew the gist of it.
Wisp-Shimmer Syndrome. A nasty case of it. Their treatments weren’t having enough of an effect. They were doing everything they possibly could, but their prognosis was grim. Unless something changed soon, her fever would grow worse and worse, and she'd sleep longer and longer until...
Granny ran her hoof through her granddaughter’s mane one more time, watching the filly’s eyes slowly close as sleep took her once more. Then she stood up resolutely, and nodded to her grandson.
“Big Mac, come along. We’ve got work to do.”
“Granny?” Big Mac looked up and tilted his head in confusion. But the elderly mare was already walking out the door into the hallway.
Twilight Sparkle was a mess. There were bags under her eyes, misplaced feathers in her wings, and bits of her mane seemed to be making a bid to escape her head. The reasons for her current state of distress were obvious: The filly in the hospital room next door, and one of best friend's standing right in front of her.
“… got to be something you can do Twilight! Some magical cure or some such!” Applejack pleaded, her stetson gripped tightly in her forehooves.
“I wish their was, Applejack, but if there is, I don’t know of it!” Twilight rubbed her face tiredly. “I’ve been through my entire library, every medical journal I could find, and even sent a letter to Celestia and Luna...”
Twilight trailed off as Granny smith and Big Mac entered the hallway. Both mares did their best to hide just how distraught they were in the face of the Apple family matron, with little success.
Not that it mattered, since the elderly Apple paid neither of them any attention. She just waited for the door to close behind her before speaking.
“Big Mac, go bring the cart around while I check Applebloom out. Applejack and I are going to be taking a little trip.”
All three ponies stared at Granny Smith in surprise. But only Big Mac's also held a hint of understanding. Understanding, and fear.
“Granny...” His voice, already heavy with fear and worry for his sister, seemed to grow even more laden. “You don’t mean to...”
“I mean to do what I mean to do.” Granny glared at her grandson for a moment, before allowing the stern look to to soften. “It’s about time AJ met Uncle Flower.”
“But….”
“No buts young stallion! We're wasting perfectly good daylight, and I ain't keen on asking Celestia for more!” Granny scolded. Big mac gave her one last worried look, before nodding slowly.
“Eeyup.”
And with that he turned around and plodded towards the hospital entrance. And left an opening for the two mares to let their feelings be known.
“Granny, you can't be serious about yanking Applebloom out of the hospital when she's so sick!” Applejack began.
“I agree Miss Smith! Her condition will only worsen without treatment and...” Twilight began, only to be interrupted.
“Now listen here you two. I know you mean well, but Granny knows a thing or two about caring for sick foals. These here fancy schmancy doctors have done their best. Now it's time for a little Apple family magic.” She gave a little laugh as she headed for the front desk.
Applejack and Twilight shared a look, then hurried after her.
“If you're going to take Applebloom out of the hospital, at least let me go with you!” Twilight insisted. “I may not be a doctor, but I have done extensive research on medical techniques! At the very least I know the proper spells to evaluate her condition!”
Granny Smith paused, then looked back at the Princess, looking her up and down as she thought.
“Well now… I suppose you are more or less an honorary Apple. What with all the time's you've helped save Sweet Apple Acres and all of Equestria and whatnot.” She rubbed her chin in thought before finally nodding.
“All right. You can come along with Applejack and me. But I'll be needing your word to keep what you learn a secret. This ain't just Apple Family business. It's bigger than that, and it's not something to spread around.”
Twilight took a brief moment to consider before nodding.
“You have my word, Granny Smith.”
“All right then Princess. Best get moving. We've got a long way to go!”
Twilight sighed worriedly as her horn glowed with a medical spell. Poor Applebloom as spending most of her time asleep, the rise and fall of her chest growing more and more labored despite the alicorn’s best efforts.
The travel wasn’t doing the child any good either. Twilight’s wings fluttered reflexively to help her maintain her balance in the back of the rolling cart. Applejack was doing her best to keep the ride smooth and level, but the path that Granny Smith had directed them down was not what she would call well traveled.
In truth, they’d spent the better part of a day traveling off the main roads, circling the edge of the Everfree. Twilight had no clue where the Apple matriarch was leading them. But for Applebloom’s sake, she hoped she knew what she was doing.
“Are we almost there?” She asked, looking towards the cart’s other occupant, areclining Granny Smith. “Applebloom’s condition is getting worse...”
“don’t you fret none. We’re just about there. Uncle Flower will have the little one fixed up in a jiffy, just you wait and see.” A worn green hoof gently stroked the sleeping filly’s mane.
“There’s a path into the forest along here somewhere Applejack. Keep your eyes open for it, it’s easy to miss!”
“Sure thing granny!” If the effort of hauling a cart and two passengers along was taxing AJ, her voice didn’t show it. Instead it was filled with concern and fear. Every time Applebloom whimpered or groaned in her sleep, Applejack’s steady gait would hitch.
Hopping off the cart, Twilight sped up to walk beside her friend.
“Are you sure this is a good idea Applejack?” Twilight lowered her voice to a near whisper. “I mean, taking Applebloom out of the hospital at a time like this, and traveling into the middle of nowhere...”
“Granny knows what she’s doing Twilight. She ain’t never steered us wrong before.”
Twilight just raised an eyebrow. “I seem to recall Pinkie mentioning a road trip to check the Apple Family Tree… And a certain cave?”
“Ah, well, that was just a little mistake.” Applejack flushed in embarrassment. “T’werent nothing serious. Granny wouldn’t steer us wrong on something important like this.” Applejack nodded firmly.
“I don’t doubt you, Applejack. But this is a stressful situation, and she is getting up there in the years...” She trailed off worriedly, looking back at the cart and its occupants.
“You got a point there sugarcube, but this is...” Applejack paused, her pace slowing. “We’re here.” She raised a hoof to point at the narrow, winding path to their left.
“Bout time! Hurry it up child! Applebloom ain’t getting any healthier! Least not yet!”
“But Granny Smith… Is it really a good idea to travel into the Everfree?” Twilight glanced into the forest beside them. Applejack on the other hand, had already started down the path, the cart in tow.
“Heading into the Everfree? Naw, that’s just plain foolish.” She smirked down at the alicorn. “Which makes me wonder bout all them trips you girls take into that place.” Twilight had the good sense to duck her head in embarrassment while Granny chuckled.
“But this here aint the Everfree. Least not yet. You go in a ways, and you’ll hit it sure as sunrise. But out here it’s just regular old forest. It’s safe as houses.” She took a moment to consider her statement. “Well, safe as houses outside Ponyville at any rate.”
Now that Granny had mentioned it, Twilight realized that the forest had lacked the… ominous ambiance of the Everfree. And had done so for quite a while. Still, reputation alone was enough to keep a sensible pony wary…
The trip continued in silence for a few minutes, each pony lost in their own thoughts as the cart rolled beneath the dense forest canopy. The path was narrow and winding, and it was impossible to see what lay around the next bend. Twilight was beginning to wonder just how far in it was before the Everfree actually started when the forest abruptly ended.
The rough, random tree trunks and dense foliage came to a stop, replaced instead by what must have been several acres of apple trees, all neatly lined up. The rough, winding road was suddenly a straight clear path between healthy fruit trees. It was like a miniature slice of Sweet Apple Acres in the middle of the forest.
Their final destination was also clear, as the path led straight to a large complex of buildings in the distance. A small central building, surrounded by a myriad of large glass structures. Greenhouses, if Twilight didn’t miss her guess.
“Land sakes… what’s all this doing out here in the middle of the forest?” Applejack muttered, stealing the words right out of Twilight’s head.
“You’ll find out soon enough, girls.” Granny said ominously. “Now quit dithering and get a move on!”
It only took a few more minutes to reach the front doors of the… house? Esate? Complex? Twilight wasn’t certain what to call it. Granny Smith seemed to have no such questions or concerns. As soon as the cart came to as stop, she hopped down with a spryness that belied her age.
“Bout time we got here. Applejack, take your sister and follow me.” With a creaking but hurried gait, she walked up to the front doors and pushed them open like she owned the place.
“Ah, Granny? Ain’t it a bit rude to just barge inta somepony’s home?” Applejack questioned.
“Nonsense! I ain’t got no time to waste for that old fogey to get his lazy bones to the door! You all just follow along now, and leave the talking to me when we get there.”
Twilight and Applejack shared a look, wondering just how ancient a pony had to be for Granny smith to consider them an 'old fogey'. But they wasted no time following her instructions, with Twilight carefully levitating the bundled up Applebloom onto Applejack’s back.
The little filly barely stirred at the motion.
Granny Smith forced her tired old bones to move at a steady clip as she walked down the main hallway. She wasn’t in the mood to waste any more time, and she knew the youngsters would have no problem catching up to her. She paid little attention to the various doors she passed. She knew where each one led, and she knew exactly where she was going. She could have made the trip blindfolded, with all the times she’d walked these floors.
Reaching her destination, she pulled open one of the doors and stepped through into what was clearly a large and well used laboratory.
There were several benchtops, each covered with glassware, beakers, and other apparatus. (Which, contrary to literary tropes, were not bubbling or letting off noxious fumes.) There were free standing blackboards, covered with notes and equations. Several bookshelves of hoof bound journals and research notes stood against one of the walls. And, of course, there were the flowers.
There were weedy looking flowers growing in small clay pots. Flowers growing inside bell jars. Flowers growing under small magical lamps. Flowers with electrodes sticking into their soil, and some with wires clipped to their petals. There was every possible combination of the above, and more, scattered across the lab benches and work areas. The vast majority were of the same strange, weedy, wilted looking plant. And not a one of them were in bloom.
Granny ignored all of this, her eyes focused on the room's sole occupant.
He was a healthy looking Earth pony stallion, perhaps thirty or forty years old. Light blue fur covered his form, while a mop of black hair composed his mane. His cutey mark was on full display, consisting of a bright yellow lily in bloom, with glowing lines of energy emenating from it.
“Hey there Old Stallion! Whassamater, you forgetting your manners in your old age? It's rude to leave guests waiting about!” She called out with a grin.
The unfortunate stallion jumped in surprise before spinning around, a potted plant in his forehooves.
“Grands? What're you doing here?” He gasped, eyes shifting between the new arrivals.
“Well now, I'm here to introduce some of the family to ya. Girls, this here is Flower Power. Flower Power, these are...” That was as far as Granny got before Twilight Sparkle finally recognized the faintly glowing flower held in the stallion's hooves.
And then things went down hill.
“Murder Bloom!” Twilight gasped, her pupils shrinking to pinpricks as she took a step back from the strange stallion.
It had taken her far too long to recognize the exotic and dangerous plant. In truth it was surprising she recognized it at all, given it's rarity. Not to mention its banned status. I point of fact, that was where she remembered reading about it: an entry on the list Dark substances.
“I prefer the old designation, Life Blossom, myself.” Flower Power replied dryly.
To the side, Granny Smith just shook her head and smirked, apparently amused at the direction of the conversation.
“What the hay is this Murder-Life-Bulb thing?” Applejack narrowed her eyes, looking from her very perturbed friend to the harmless looking plant in the stallion's hooves.
“It’s an evil plant! It can cure lots of illnesses, but the only way to grow it is by...” she swallowed nervously, her wings twitching at her sides. “By murdering ponies.” she whispered. “It was banned centuries ago… For good reason!”
Applejack gasped in surprise, taking a small step back herself. “Granny’d never truck with something like that! Would ya granny?” She asked. All the same, she gentle removed the bundled up Applebloom from her back, carefully placing her sleeping sister on the floor.
It wouldn't do to put her baby sister in danger if a fight broke out.
The fact that Granny failed to agree with her did not escape AJ's notice. Instead she just sat on the sidelines and watched the fireworks, a grin on her face.
“Ugh.” Flower Power rolled his eyes and turned to glare at the elderly mare. “This is exactly why I've kept my research secret for so long! What were you thinking bringing this lot here? Your granddaughter I can understand, but an alicorn princess? You’ve killed us all!”
“Oh, just relax, all of ya’s!” Granny finally interjected, rolling her eyes at all the drama.
“Relax? Relax??” Twilight’s mane was beginning to become disheveled as she pointed a hoof at Flower Power. “How can we relax around a pony that grows Murder Bloom”
“Life Blossom!” Flower shot back
“Granny, why’d ya bring us all here?” Applejack swallowed worriedly. “You know I’d do anything for little Bloom, but… Killin ponies?” She shook her head.
“Oh no!” Twilight gasped, her mind running wild. “Is Granny really part of some evil cult, and lured us here to sacrifice us to grow more Murder Bloom?”
“Life Blossom!” Came the stallion's angry reply, overwhelmed as it was by Granny's response.
“Twilight Sparkle!” Granny growled. “There ain't gonna be any murdering of anypony round here!”
For her Part, Applejack just sat in place besides Applebloom, her head moving back and forth to follow the conversation. Forced to choose between one of her best friends, the smartest pony she knew, and a princess of Equestria, and her grandmother, the Element of Honesty wisely decided to sit this one out.
“But, then, why….” She glanced between Flower Power, the plant in his hooves, and finally, the sleeping, sickly Applebloom. “You're not going to just let.. Just let Applebloom… expire… to grow more Murder Bloom, are you?” Her mane was growing more and more frazzled as her thought followed darker and darker paths.
“Life Bloss… You know what, forget it, you ignorant little foal!!” Flower Power had clearly had enough, his tail lashing angrily behind him as he stomped towards Twilight. “I would never harm a foal, and I'm disgusted that you'd even suggest such a thing of me! It’s bad enough that your presence here is going to ruin decades of research and kill dozens of ponies! I’ll not stand here and listen to you spew rank stupidity as well!”
Twilight found herself muzzle to muzzle with the angry earth pony… And backed away instinctively despite herself.
“H… Hey! I am not ignorant!” She shot back angrily. “And I’M not the one murdering ponies to grow Murder Bulb!”
“LIFE BLOSSUM!” Flower Power roared, his voice growing louder and louder. “And I save ponies, I don’t murder them you brainless trog!”
“It’s because of ponies like YOU that I’ve had to conduct my research in secret for all centuries! Do you have any idea how much further along I could be, if I’d had more help? How many lives I could have saved!” The anger suddenly seemed to leave him. His ears and tail drooped, as he seemed to deflate.
Twilight blinked in surprise, mouthing the word ‘Centuries’ to herself as her eyes grew wider and wider.
“And now you’re here.” He slumped. “I’m going to have to abandon this place, and start over elsewhere. Assuming I can even salvage anything before the guards get here...”
He turned to face Granny Smith. “Why? Why would you betray me like this Grands?”
Granny sighed. “I ain’t betrayed nopony, Flower. I...”
“Granny? AJ? Mac?” The low sickly voice immediately grabbed Granny's full attention, and she hurried over to her granddaughter.
“We're right here, Applebloom.” Applejack replied softly.
“I’m here child. I’m right here.”
“How’re you feeling Bloom?”
“N… Not so good, sis.” Hew voice was low and weak, the young filly lacking the energy to even open her eyes.
“Don’t you fret, child. Granny is going to fix everything, okay?”
“Okay granny.”
Granny smith turned to face Flower Power. “I need you to save her.”
He grimaced. “Grands… You know the rules. I don’t have enough flowers to make an extra dose...”
“I know. Give her mine.”
His grimace grew. “Grands… At your age, in your condition… I’m not sure how much longer you’ll last if you skip a treatment.”
“I know.” Her reply was perfectly calm as she looked her friend in the eye. “It’s my choice.”
“Grands...” After a few moments he averted his eyes, looking down at the floor.
“There there Flower. You’ve known this was coming for ages.” She laid a hoof on Flower Power's foreleg. “If my little Jonah and his wife hadn’t had their accident, I’d have passed this job onto them years ago. I’m too old and worn out to keep up my end of the deal anyway, and you know it.”
The Stallion closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then sighed.
“You're sure?”
“I'm sure.”
“All right then.” He gave her a sad nod, then stepped back. “I finished brewing your dose two weeks ago. Give me a moment to get it.”
And with that, he stepped out of the lab, leaving behind four mares; one sick, one elderly, and two stunned and confused.
Applejack, not having been on the receiving end of the stallion's ire, recovered first.
“What in tarnation is going on here Granny?” AJ demanded. “And what's this here treatment you two are talking about?”
“For land’s sake, Applejack, didn’t you ever wonder how it is I’ve lived this long?” Granny gave her granddaughter a toothless grin. “I was around when Ponyville was founded, for Celestia’s sake!”
“Well...”Aj paused, trailing off. “We all just sorta assumed it was good blood, good food, and a healthy lifestyle. That, and that you were just too tough and ornery to die.” She admitted.
“Darn tootin!” Granny cackled and grinned. “But only half true. The rest is Flower’s concoctions.”
“But, how is that possible?” Twilight reentered the conversation, shaking her head to clear it. “I know Murder Bloom can heal injuries and cure illnesses, but that doesn't explain how anypony could live to be...”
“Three hundred and fifty six.” Granny laughed at the dumbfounded look on the girl's faces. “That's Flower Power's age, mind you, not mine. I'm a mite bit younger, but you should both know better than to ask a mare her age!” She gave a short cackle and winked.
“As for how… Well, Life Blossom does a good job of repairing damage to a pony's body, be it injury or disease. And what's old age but the accumulation of damage?”
Twilight just stared at the smug looking Granny, completely stunned by the revelation. Applejack, on the other hand, had a few more pressing questions.
“Well, if that's true, then how come you're looking so, well, old Granny?” Applejack tilted her ehad curiously. “I mean, that there fella looks a third your age, but you're saying he's well past three centuries… And what about Auntie Applesauce and Auntie Apple Rose? They're almost as old as you!”
“Same answer to both questions, child.” Granny grinned. “I suppose I'd look as good as Flower if I took all the doses he gave me. But I realized long ago that living a long life ain't worth much if you don't get to spend it with family and friends.”
“So you've been sharing your treatment with Auntie Applesauce and Auntie Apple Rose? They know about all this?”
“Gosh no!” Granny laughed loudly. “I've just been spiking their tea whenever they come to visit! Silly girls still think eatin apples three meals a day is what keeps the reaper away!” Applejack just stared in shock as the elderly mare laughed herself silly.
“Of course, they're not the only one's I've been sharing with.” Granny continued once her laufghter subsided. “You remember when you're cousin Apple Seedling came down with Hoof Rot? Or when little Apple Knots had that lung infection?”
“Of course I do! I was more than a mite worried that Seed might lose that hoof! And the doctor's said Knot's recovery was… a miracle...” AJ trailed off, staring at her grandmother. Granny just smiled and nodded.
“Well.. Well be that as it may…” Twilight's wings fluttered nervously. “Saving ponies is a noble goal, but not at the expense of murdering other ponies!”
“Land sakes Twilight, you got wax in your ears?” Granny asked incredulously. “There ain't nopony killing anypony here...” She cut herself off at the sound of a door opening, as Flower Power reentered the lab. Upon his back rested a silver platter with a bowl of sliced apples, and a small flask filled with a glowing golden elixer.
He paid no mind to Twilight, ignoring her presense completely, though he gave Applejack a slight nod. In truth he only had eyes for Granny, as he set the platter down beside her and sit down to look her in the eyes.
“Are you sure about this Grands?” He asked the question, but the defeated tone of voice made it clear he already knew the answer.
Granny just gave him a warm smile. “Sure as shooting, old man.”
“Very well.” He nodded, then focused his attention on Applebloom.
With surprising delicacy he stroked her cheek.
“Little one… Little one… I need you to wake up. Just for a moment. Can you do that for me?” He asked softly, coaxing the youngster to awakeness.
“Huh? Who.. who're you?” Applebloom muttered, her eyes barely opening.
“I'm your uncle flower. And I'm going to make everything all better, alright? I just need you to be a big, strong girl for me, and drink this all down, okay?”
“Granny? AJ?” She asked softly.
“We're right here, Bloom. You just go head and do as you uncle asks, okay?” Granny continued to stroke her mane, smiling down at her.
“K.” The word seemed to take most of the filly's energy, but she still managed to open her mouth.
Into which Flower carefully poured the elixer, gently rubbing her throat to encourage her to swallow. In a matter of moments, the flask was empty, and Flower stood with a sigh.
“That should do it.” He gestures at the bowl of sliced apples. “The elixer will cure her condition, but her body will still need food to repair itself. She'll also need a lot of rest. I expect she'll become semi-conscious several times over the next few hours. Do your best to get her to eat when she's partially awake. Understood?”
“Yessir!” Applejack nodded, blinking away the tears in her eyes as she hugged her baby sister. Already her fever had broken, and her breathing sounded less troubled.
“Good. Now, if you'll excuse me.” He shot a glare at Twilight. “I have matters to attend to.” And with that he hurried out the door once again.
Granny just smiled sadly at his retreating back, the smile becoming more genuine as she looked down at her granddaughters. Applejack was staring at her sleeping sister with intense focus, an apple slice in hoof, just waiting for her to show signs of consciousness.
Twilight, on the other hand, was looking between the increasingly healthy looking Applebloom and the door Flower Power had exited through, a puzzled look on her face.
Granny cleared her throat.
“As I was saying before, Princess: There ain't nopony gettin killed round here.”
“But… Murder Bloom… I read about it. The only way to get it to mature.. Is to kill a pony around it...”
Granny just shook her head.
“Books don't know everything child. Not even Princesses know everything.” She grinned as Twilight flushed in embarrassment. “Whatever you read, I doubt it's more than half the story, if that.”
Twilight tilted her head in curiosity. “Then what is the full story then?” Granny just laughed at the question.
“The whole story'd likely take longer than I've got on this here earth to tell. But I can give you the short version, if it'll help.”
Twilight nodded vigorously.
“Allright then. It's like this. Ponies have known Life Blossom could cure their ills for ages. But nopony really knew where it came from, or how to make it bloom. Least not till three or four hundred years ago. That's when folks realized that on top of being tought to grow, it only bloomed if somepony died nearby.”
“But, I thought you said nopony was being killed!”
“Patience, princess, patience! I ain't hardly even started yet!” Twilight frowned but quieted down once more. “Now, as I was saying, nopony knew that till the late 600's, when Yellow Fever ran rampant. There were plenty of ponies dying back then, and dying all over the place. Which is when some clever ponies realized what it takes to make Life blossom bloom...”
“I remember reading about yellow fever epedemic. It was a really bad time. The Princess did everything she could, but even with the best minds of the day working on it, it took years to find a cure.”
“Yep. Bad days, those were. Or so I heard. I ain't that old! Anyways, folks knew Life Blossom could cure 'em, and times were desperate. There were a lotta ponies experimenting with it. And not all of them were what you'd call 'ethical' about it.” She shook her head sadly. “That's when ponies started calling it Murder Bloom. And why researching it was banned.”
“But not everypony was so unscrupulous. There were a hooffull doing good, moral research. Them ponies discovered that while it took the death of a sentient to activate the plant…. If you had a live, blooming flower already, you could use it to activate another plant with the life force of lesser critters.”
“Lesser critters?” Twilight raised a disbelieving eyebrow, but Granny just grinned in return.
“Parasprites.” Granny smirked. “Though Flower says he started with fruit flies. Apparently parasprites work better. Some of the other got better results with rabbits and the like, but Flower refused to user vertebrates. Said it was a line he didn't want to cross.”
She sighed and frowned.
“Of course, you need an activated Life Blossom to activate more of 'em. And growing 'em ain't easy. They're very particular. And one by one, all them other ponies failed and died off. They lost their crops, or had an accident, or were discovered.” She shook her head sadly.
“So Flower Power is...”
“The last one left? Yep. And his crop is likely the only batch of Life Blossom left in Equestria. As peaceful like as things have been, there ain't likely to be many wild batches of blooming Life Blossom in the wild. Not that that's a bad thing, mind ya...”
Twilight Glanced at the door once again, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by Granny Smith.
“If you want to know more, you'll need to ask the old man yourself.” She smiled slightly. “I need to stay here and keep an eye on Appelbloom. But I know where Flower's bedroom is, and I can give ya directions, if you're keen on it...”
Twilight moved slowly and carefully as she followed Granny’s directions. Sure. The house looked harmless, but it was still the abode of a mad scientist. One that was growing Murder Bloom of all things! Sure, Granny Smith vouchded for him, but still! Celestia had banned research into the plant herself, and for good reason!
Regardless, she should try to give him the benefit of the doubt. Even if he was clearly a mad scientist.
Coming up to the door that Granny had described, she knocked lightly on the wooden portal.
“Um, Mister Flower Power? I’d like to discuss your work a bit more...” she spoke quietly. When no response was received, she pushed lightly on the door, which swung open quietly.
Twilight wasn’t sure what she expected to find in a mad scientists inner sanctum. Bookshelves filled with menacing tomes bound in leather and written in blood perhaps? Arrays of strange sigils and glyphs that seemed to move on their own? Tables covered in glass jars filled with preserved organs perhaps?
She hadn’t really expected to find a simple, spartan room. Just a bed and a nightstand. Oh, there was a single bookshelf, but the books were most certainly not bound in leather. And half the spaces were filled with knick knacks. A pegasus feather. A shiny rock on a piece of string. And old, worn horn ring. A smattering of old, faded photos of unknown ponies.
And she definitely didn’t expect to find the mad scientist himself, sitting in front of his bed, his face hidden behind his forelegs as his body shook with silent sobs.
“Mister Flower Power” Twilight called out delicacy.
The silent sobbing stopped as the pony in question lowly sat upright. He didn’t turn to face the alicorn immediately, instead scrubbing his foreleg across his face to dry his eyes
“What do you want?” Flower asked darkly, clearly struggling to convert his sadness to anger.
“Ah, well, I.. That is...” This conversation was not proceeding in the fashion Twilight had expected.
“What’s the matter? Didn’t expect to find the ’evil pony murderer’ crying into his cups?” He growled.
“Well, no… not really.” Twilight’s ears flattened against her head as the answer escaped her muzzle all on its own. The stallion spun around to face her, the angry expression on his face overshadowing the tear tracts in his fur.
“Well, let's see hw well you handle it when you have to watch a friend die! A friend you've known for over two centuries! A friend you watched from up from fillyhood!” He growled, his eyes filled with fire and anger and a deep, abiding sadness.
Twilight grimaced and looked away from the stallion. And in turing her head, found herself staring at her wings. She swallowed a lump in her throat and pushed thoughts of her own friends into the back of her mind once more.
“It's.. It's not that bad. I'm sure Granny can make it another few years if she takes care of herself.”
Flower Power just snorted in response.
“Another few years. You speak as if that's a long time. It isn't. Besides, she doesn't have a few more years. There won't be another dose for her next year. Or for many years to come. Thanks to you.” His words dripped with such scorn that Twilight flinched.
“What do you mean? And how is it my fault?”
“Don't be coy, princess. As soon as you lot leave, you'll be running straight to Celestia, and in a day or two this place will be swarmed with guards and I'll be arrested. For dealing in 'dark, banned substances.'” He snorted, making air quotes before turning away from her to begin removing books from the bookshelf, carefuly stacking them on his bed.
“But I’m sure if you just explained to Princess Celestia...” Twilight began.
“My crop requires constant care and attention.” Flower didn't even let her finish speaking before interrupting her. “I’d spend months or years in a cell before I ever got to see the Princess. And that assumes she even listens to or believes me.” The pile of books grew slowly and methodically.
“Well, I’m sure I could talk to her and...”
“Not that it would matter.” Flower continued, speaking right over the alicorn. “Because the wealthy and connected would descend upon this place like locus, and consume everything that I've worked so hard to build.”
“That's.. that's ridiculous! I'm sure that wouldn't happen!”
“I've seen it happen Princess!” He practically spit out her title. “I wasn't the only pony working with Life blossom you know! I was there! I saw what happened to the others!”
“But… I'm sure we could protect your work. Set up guards, patrols...”
“Oh, don't be so naive Princess!” Flower rolled his eyes as he turned to face her once more. “Do you think those guards don't have families? That they don't have friends? That they don't know somepony, somewhere who they desperately want to save?”
“Well, I suppose...” Twilight once again found herself on on the back hoof as Flower Power stepped into her personal space.
“You've got one of my last friends sitting a few rooms away.” He gestured with his hoof. “She's been letting herself die by inches, sharing her good health with her family. She brought her grandaughter here for help, knowing that it will cost her her own life! And yet there she sits, with a smile on her face!”
The stallion’s ears drooped as the fire seemed to leave him. He stared at the wall, as if he could see through it to his friend.
“Grands is one of a kind, but she's not unique in the lengths she'll go to to protect her family. If ponies are willing to die to save the one's they love, do you really think the threat of a little jail time will dissuade the guards?”
Twilight had no answer to that.
“And if not the guards, it will be the nobles. They've got the bits and the influence to throw around. They'll look upon my work and all they'll see is a chance to save a loved one. Oh, they'll all have good, noble reasons. A sick filly. An injured husband. A pregnant wife struggling with a fatal disease. Who could say no to that?” The stallion continued to stare into the middle distance. “And one by one they'll be used up. The seeds of the future, devoured by the well meaning in the present. “
“And what future are you trying to create?” She asked softly.
“My future?” His voice was soft and distant, his eyes unfocused as the her ignored the world around him to focus on the world that could be.
“In my future, foals dance and play in fields of Life Blossom. Nopony worries if they trample and crush some, because it's as common as grass. And those foals will grow up knowing their sires and their grand sires and their great grand sires… Family twenty generations deep. And for the first time ever, ponies will no longer fear Death's scythe. It will be Death itself that trembles in fear for its own ending.”
With a trembling foreleg, Flower Power wiped the latest tears from his eyes.
“Someday. Someday.” He muttered, visible taking hold of himself. “But not today. And not for a long time, now.”
Twilight couldn't speak. She could only watch as Flower Power returned to stacking his journals, a lump in her throat. It took her a few moments to compose herself, before she could speak again.
“Surely it won't be that long.” She whispered nervously.
Flower's derisive snort did little to reassure her.
“I've been working with Life Blossom for centuries now. Growing it. Testing it. Experimenting on it. Learning what soil conditions it likes. Figuring out how to use one plant to activate another. Figuring out how to use Parasprites to feed it the life energy it requires. Do you have any idea how many parasprites it takes? Too few and the plant starves and goes dormant before blooming. Too many and it tries to grow too fast and dies. Too much sun and it shrivels. Too little and it wilts. Dozens, hundreds of variables!” He huffed angrily.
“Three centuries I've been working, and do you know how big my annual crop is?”
“N.. No?”
“Twelve plants. Twelve, healthy, usable plants. Per year. On average.” He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. “And half of those need to be used as seedlings for the next crop. I need to be able to grow thousands. I need to breed more robust strains. I need to find a way to feed them life force directly, without the messy intermediary of parasprites. And now.. Now I need to start over, from scratch. From the one or two plants that are far enough long that they might survive a trip.”
Flower Power closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. It was clear he was struggling not to break into tears again.
“I won't tell anyone.” The words were barely a whisper.
“What? What did you say?” Flower opened his eyes to stare at her.
“I said...” Twilight took a deep breath. “I said.. I won't tell anyone. I promise.” Her voice was stronger this time, more confident. And if it wavered slightly, the look of determination on her face did no such thing.
“It.. It doesn't matter. I can't trust you. I can't trust anypony. The secret is too big. Somepony always caves to temptation or desperation...”
“You trusted Granny Smith.” She reminded him. “And as for the temptation of immortality, well...” Twilight smiled slightly and unfolded her wings as a reminder.
“And besides, I already promised Granny I'd keep whatever she showed me a secret.” She smiled nervously. “And I can hardly break a promise to her. I am an honorary Apple after all...”
Flower Power stared at her for a few good, long minutes, as Twilight became more and more twitchy and uncomfortable. Finally he sat down sigh a sigh, seeming to deflate.
“Fine. Fine, I accept your promise. I'll trust you.” He sounded more defeated than excited however. A fact not lost on Twilight. “I'm too old and tired to start over anyway. Let the chips fall where they may.”
“Wonderful!” Twilight clapped her hooves together excitedly. “Oh, and, ah.. I'm sorry about accussing you of murder before...” She flushed in embarassment over her earlier faux pa.
Flower Power just waved his hoof dismissively. “You're forgiven.” He said tiredly.
“Wonderful! Now that we're friends… Tell me, have you considered grafting a… Life Blossom… onto an existing species of tree?”
“Yes, I tried that around a hundred and twenty years ago. I thought an old oak tree would have enough excess physical, chemical, and magical energy to support one. The plants were surprisingly compatible, but the Blossom's roots caused localized necrosis in the Oak...”
Granny sighed in relief as she rested her weary old bones in her chair in the back of the cart. Beside her, Apple bloom lay wrapped in blankets, sleeping peacefully. It would be some time before she regained her strength, but there was no doubt that it would happen. Not anymore.
“Here. Take this.”
Granny looked up to find Flower Power standing beside the cart, not meeting her eyes. In his hooves was a jar of lightly glowing powder. Granny just raised an eyebrow and stared, waiting for an explanation. A few moments of awkward silence passed before Flower spoke again.
“It’s pollen. From activated Life Blossom. This is all from less successful strains I didn’t want to crossbreed. I’ve been meaning to perform some tests to determine if it retains any of the properties of the whole flower, but I don’t have any proper test subjects. I don’t know if it will work, or what it will do, mind you. I’ll need you to keep notes on the effects for me.”
Granny just smiled, finally accepting the jar. “You were always a big ol’ softy, Flower.”
The older earth pony finally met her eyes, a smirk on his lips.
“Someone’s got to keep young fillies like yourself out of trouble. And no sharing this around like you’re want to! I need untainted experimental data!”
“Untainted? From me? You’ve gone daft in your old age!”
Flower Power narrowed his eyes and frowned at the younger mare.
“I'm still angry at you for dropping a Princess on me like that you know. You could have ruined centuries of work! You put everything at risk!”
Rather than looking contrite, Granny just smiled wider. “I did no such thing, you old fogey.”
Flower just raised an eyebrow. “And what makes you so sure of that?”
Turning her head, Granny Smith looked over at the front doors to Flower's home, where Twilight and Applejack stood fretting over several creates full of journals and research notes. Twilight was fretting over having enough reading material. Applejack was fretting over having to haul it all back to Ponyville.
“Because that mare over there is the smartest pony I ever did see. And she's immortal.” She turned to look back at Flower. “She's immortal. And her family and friends… ain't. Immortality isn't all that great if you get to pend it with the ponies ya love. And the girl's smart enough to realize that.”
Flower slowly nodded, fastidiously refusing to meet Granny's eyes.
“Besides, she's an alicorn! Part Earth Pony, part Unicorn, and part Pegasus! And weren't you the one who spent a decade whining about wanting to test unicorn magic's effect on Life Blossom? And wanting to try out them Pegasi hydroponic planting beds?”
Flower grimaced for a moment before finally smiling and nodding. “Touche. A point to the little filly.”
“More than one point, Old Stallion.” She smirked. “Like I said, that there is the smartest pony I ever did meet. And I expect she's gonna be the most motivated too.” She grinned down at her oldest living friend.
“Five bits gets you ten that with her help, it'll be my grandfillies rolling around in them field of Life Blossom you've been dreaming of.”
With one last wink, Granny Smith lay back down in the back of the cart and closed her eyes to rest. Her tired old bones needed a time out. Even as she sleep took her, her hoof stroked through the mane of her peacefully sleeping, healthy granddaughter.
She dreamed of fields of golden flowers.
Granny Smith forced herself to smile as she looked down at her youngest granddaughter. She brushed her hoof through the filly’s crimson mane and did her best to ignore the heat radiating off her skin, or the paleness of her coat.
“There there honey child. Don’t you worry none. Everything is going to be just fine.”
The area around the hospital bed was crowded. Big Mac took up quite a bit of space all by himself. Add in four of the element bearers and the rest of the CMC, and there was hardly an inch of free space around the sickly Apple. The hospital room was large, but everypony was squeezed up around the bedside. As if being closer to their friend would give her the strength to fight off her illness.
The only two ponies missing were Applejack and Princess Twilight Sparkle, who had remained in the hallway to talk to the doctors.
Granny’ ears weren’t sharp enough to hear what they were saying on the other side of the door, but she knew the gist of it.
Wisp-Shimmer Syndrome. A nasty case of it. Their treatments weren’t having enough of an effect. They were doing everything they possibly could, but their prognosis was grim. Unless something changed soon, her fever would grow worse and worse, and she'd sleep longer and longer until...
Granny ran her hoof through her granddaughter’s mane one more time, watching the filly’s eyes slowly close as sleep took her once more. Then she stood up resolutely, and nodded to her grandson.
“Big Mac, come along. We’ve got work to do.”
“Granny?” Big Mac looked up and tilted his head in confusion. But the elderly mare was already walking out the door into the hallway.
Twilight Sparkle was a mess. There were bags under her eyes, misplaced feathers in her wings, and bits of her mane seemed to be making a bid to escape her head. The reasons for her current state of distress were obvious: The filly in the hospital room next door, and one of best friend's standing right in front of her.
“… got to be something you can do Twilight! Some magical cure or some such!” Applejack pleaded, her stetson gripped tightly in her forehooves.
“I wish their was, Applejack, but if there is, I don’t know of it!” Twilight rubbed her face tiredly. “I’ve been through my entire library, every medical journal I could find, and even sent a letter to Celestia and Luna...”
Twilight trailed off as Granny smith and Big Mac entered the hallway. Both mares did their best to hide just how distraught they were in the face of the Apple family matron, with little success.
Not that it mattered, since the elderly Apple paid neither of them any attention. She just waited for the door to close behind her before speaking.
“Big Mac, go bring the cart around while I check Applebloom out. Applejack and I are going to be taking a little trip.”
All three ponies stared at Granny Smith in surprise. But only Big Mac's also held a hint of understanding. Understanding, and fear.
“Granny...” His voice, already heavy with fear and worry for his sister, seemed to grow even more laden. “You don’t mean to...”
“I mean to do what I mean to do.” Granny glared at her grandson for a moment, before allowing the stern look to to soften. “It’s about time AJ met Uncle Flower.”
“But….”
“No buts young stallion! We're wasting perfectly good daylight, and I ain't keen on asking Celestia for more!” Granny scolded. Big mac gave her one last worried look, before nodding slowly.
“Eeyup.”
And with that he turned around and plodded towards the hospital entrance. And left an opening for the two mares to let their feelings be known.
“Granny, you can't be serious about yanking Applebloom out of the hospital when she's so sick!” Applejack began.
“I agree Miss Smith! Her condition will only worsen without treatment and...” Twilight began, only to be interrupted.
“Now listen here you two. I know you mean well, but Granny knows a thing or two about caring for sick foals. These here fancy schmancy doctors have done their best. Now it's time for a little Apple family magic.” She gave a little laugh as she headed for the front desk.
Applejack and Twilight shared a look, then hurried after her.
“If you're going to take Applebloom out of the hospital, at least let me go with you!” Twilight insisted. “I may not be a doctor, but I have done extensive research on medical techniques! At the very least I know the proper spells to evaluate her condition!”
Granny Smith paused, then looked back at the Princess, looking her up and down as she thought.
“Well now… I suppose you are more or less an honorary Apple. What with all the time's you've helped save Sweet Apple Acres and all of Equestria and whatnot.” She rubbed her chin in thought before finally nodding.
“All right. You can come along with Applejack and me. But I'll be needing your word to keep what you learn a secret. This ain't just Apple Family business. It's bigger than that, and it's not something to spread around.”
Twilight took a brief moment to consider before nodding.
“You have my word, Granny Smith.”
“All right then Princess. Best get moving. We've got a long way to go!”
Twilight sighed worriedly as her horn glowed with a medical spell. Poor Applebloom as spending most of her time asleep, the rise and fall of her chest growing more and more labored despite the alicorn’s best efforts.
The travel wasn’t doing the child any good either. Twilight’s wings fluttered reflexively to help her maintain her balance in the back of the rolling cart. Applejack was doing her best to keep the ride smooth and level, but the path that Granny Smith had directed them down was not what she would call well traveled.
In truth, they’d spent the better part of a day traveling off the main roads, circling the edge of the Everfree. Twilight had no clue where the Apple matriarch was leading them. But for Applebloom’s sake, she hoped she knew what she was doing.
“Are we almost there?” She asked, looking towards the cart’s other occupant, areclining Granny Smith. “Applebloom’s condition is getting worse...”
“don’t you fret none. We’re just about there. Uncle Flower will have the little one fixed up in a jiffy, just you wait and see.” A worn green hoof gently stroked the sleeping filly’s mane.
“There’s a path into the forest along here somewhere Applejack. Keep your eyes open for it, it’s easy to miss!”
“Sure thing granny!” If the effort of hauling a cart and two passengers along was taxing AJ, her voice didn’t show it. Instead it was filled with concern and fear. Every time Applebloom whimpered or groaned in her sleep, Applejack’s steady gait would hitch.
Hopping off the cart, Twilight sped up to walk beside her friend.
“Are you sure this is a good idea Applejack?” Twilight lowered her voice to a near whisper. “I mean, taking Applebloom out of the hospital at a time like this, and traveling into the middle of nowhere...”
“Granny knows what she’s doing Twilight. She ain’t never steered us wrong before.”
Twilight just raised an eyebrow. “I seem to recall Pinkie mentioning a road trip to check the Apple Family Tree… And a certain cave?”
“Ah, well, that was just a little mistake.” Applejack flushed in embarrassment. “T’werent nothing serious. Granny wouldn’t steer us wrong on something important like this.” Applejack nodded firmly.
“I don’t doubt you, Applejack. But this is a stressful situation, and she is getting up there in the years...” She trailed off worriedly, looking back at the cart and its occupants.
“You got a point there sugarcube, but this is...” Applejack paused, her pace slowing. “We’re here.” She raised a hoof to point at the narrow, winding path to their left.
“Bout time! Hurry it up child! Applebloom ain’t getting any healthier! Least not yet!”
“But Granny Smith… Is it really a good idea to travel into the Everfree?” Twilight glanced into the forest beside them. Applejack on the other hand, had already started down the path, the cart in tow.
“Heading into the Everfree? Naw, that’s just plain foolish.” She smirked down at the alicorn. “Which makes me wonder bout all them trips you girls take into that place.” Twilight had the good sense to duck her head in embarrassment while Granny chuckled.
“But this here aint the Everfree. Least not yet. You go in a ways, and you’ll hit it sure as sunrise. But out here it’s just regular old forest. It’s safe as houses.” She took a moment to consider her statement. “Well, safe as houses outside Ponyville at any rate.”
Now that Granny had mentioned it, Twilight realized that the forest had lacked the… ominous ambiance of the Everfree. And had done so for quite a while. Still, reputation alone was enough to keep a sensible pony wary…
The trip continued in silence for a few minutes, each pony lost in their own thoughts as the cart rolled beneath the dense forest canopy. The path was narrow and winding, and it was impossible to see what lay around the next bend. Twilight was beginning to wonder just how far in it was before the Everfree actually started when the forest abruptly ended.
The rough, random tree trunks and dense foliage came to a stop, replaced instead by what must have been several acres of apple trees, all neatly lined up. The rough, winding road was suddenly a straight clear path between healthy fruit trees. It was like a miniature slice of Sweet Apple Acres in the middle of the forest.
Their final destination was also clear, as the path led straight to a large complex of buildings in the distance. A small central building, surrounded by a myriad of large glass structures. Greenhouses, if Twilight didn’t miss her guess.
“Land sakes… what’s all this doing out here in the middle of the forest?” Applejack muttered, stealing the words right out of Twilight’s head.
“You’ll find out soon enough, girls.” Granny said ominously. “Now quit dithering and get a move on!”
It only took a few more minutes to reach the front doors of the… house? Esate? Complex? Twilight wasn’t certain what to call it. Granny Smith seemed to have no such questions or concerns. As soon as the cart came to as stop, she hopped down with a spryness that belied her age.
“Bout time we got here. Applejack, take your sister and follow me.” With a creaking but hurried gait, she walked up to the front doors and pushed them open like she owned the place.
“Ah, Granny? Ain’t it a bit rude to just barge inta somepony’s home?” Applejack questioned.
“Nonsense! I ain’t got no time to waste for that old fogey to get his lazy bones to the door! You all just follow along now, and leave the talking to me when we get there.”
Twilight and Applejack shared a look, wondering just how ancient a pony had to be for Granny smith to consider them an 'old fogey'. But they wasted no time following her instructions, with Twilight carefully levitating the bundled up Applebloom onto Applejack’s back.
The little filly barely stirred at the motion.
Granny Smith forced her tired old bones to move at a steady clip as she walked down the main hallway. She wasn’t in the mood to waste any more time, and she knew the youngsters would have no problem catching up to her. She paid little attention to the various doors she passed. She knew where each one led, and she knew exactly where she was going. She could have made the trip blindfolded, with all the times she’d walked these floors.
Reaching her destination, she pulled open one of the doors and stepped through into what was clearly a large and well used laboratory.
There were several benchtops, each covered with glassware, beakers, and other apparatus. (Which, contrary to literary tropes, were not bubbling or letting off noxious fumes.) There were free standing blackboards, covered with notes and equations. Several bookshelves of hoof bound journals and research notes stood against one of the walls. And, of course, there were the flowers.
There were weedy looking flowers growing in small clay pots. Flowers growing inside bell jars. Flowers growing under small magical lamps. Flowers with electrodes sticking into their soil, and some with wires clipped to their petals. There was every possible combination of the above, and more, scattered across the lab benches and work areas. The vast majority were of the same strange, weedy, wilted looking plant. And not a one of them were in bloom.
Granny ignored all of this, her eyes focused on the room's sole occupant.
He was a healthy looking Earth pony stallion, perhaps thirty or forty years old. Light blue fur covered his form, while a mop of black hair composed his mane. His cutey mark was on full display, consisting of a bright yellow lily in bloom, with glowing lines of energy emenating from it.
“Hey there Old Stallion! Whassamater, you forgetting your manners in your old age? It's rude to leave guests waiting about!” She called out with a grin.
The unfortunate stallion jumped in surprise before spinning around, a potted plant in his forehooves.
“Grands? What're you doing here?” He gasped, eyes shifting between the new arrivals.
“Well now, I'm here to introduce some of the family to ya. Girls, this here is Flower Power. Flower Power, these are...” That was as far as Granny got before Twilight Sparkle finally recognized the faintly glowing flower held in the stallion's hooves.
And then things went down hill.
“Murder Bloom!” Twilight gasped, her pupils shrinking to pinpricks as she took a step back from the strange stallion.
It had taken her far too long to recognize the exotic and dangerous plant. In truth it was surprising she recognized it at all, given it's rarity. Not to mention its banned status. I point of fact, that was where she remembered reading about it: an entry on the list Dark substances.
“I prefer the old designation, Life Blossom, myself.” Flower Power replied dryly.
To the side, Granny Smith just shook her head and smirked, apparently amused at the direction of the conversation.
“What the hay is this Murder-Life-Bulb thing?” Applejack narrowed her eyes, looking from her very perturbed friend to the harmless looking plant in the stallion's hooves.
“It’s an evil plant! It can cure lots of illnesses, but the only way to grow it is by...” she swallowed nervously, her wings twitching at her sides. “By murdering ponies.” she whispered. “It was banned centuries ago… For good reason!”
Applejack gasped in surprise, taking a small step back herself. “Granny’d never truck with something like that! Would ya granny?” She asked. All the same, she gentle removed the bundled up Applebloom from her back, carefully placing her sleeping sister on the floor.
It wouldn't do to put her baby sister in danger if a fight broke out.
The fact that Granny failed to agree with her did not escape AJ's notice. Instead she just sat on the sidelines and watched the fireworks, a grin on her face.
“Ugh.” Flower Power rolled his eyes and turned to glare at the elderly mare. “This is exactly why I've kept my research secret for so long! What were you thinking bringing this lot here? Your granddaughter I can understand, but an alicorn princess? You’ve killed us all!”
“Oh, just relax, all of ya’s!” Granny finally interjected, rolling her eyes at all the drama.
“Relax? Relax??” Twilight’s mane was beginning to become disheveled as she pointed a hoof at Flower Power. “How can we relax around a pony that grows Murder Bloom”
“Life Blossom!” Flower shot back
“Granny, why’d ya bring us all here?” Applejack swallowed worriedly. “You know I’d do anything for little Bloom, but… Killin ponies?” She shook her head.
“Oh no!” Twilight gasped, her mind running wild. “Is Granny really part of some evil cult, and lured us here to sacrifice us to grow more Murder Bloom?”
“Life Blossom!” Came the stallion's angry reply, overwhelmed as it was by Granny's response.
“Twilight Sparkle!” Granny growled. “There ain't gonna be any murdering of anypony round here!”
For her Part, Applejack just sat in place besides Applebloom, her head moving back and forth to follow the conversation. Forced to choose between one of her best friends, the smartest pony she knew, and a princess of Equestria, and her grandmother, the Element of Honesty wisely decided to sit this one out.
“But, then, why….” She glanced between Flower Power, the plant in his hooves, and finally, the sleeping, sickly Applebloom. “You're not going to just let.. Just let Applebloom… expire… to grow more Murder Bloom, are you?” Her mane was growing more and more frazzled as her thought followed darker and darker paths.
“Life Bloss… You know what, forget it, you ignorant little foal!!” Flower Power had clearly had enough, his tail lashing angrily behind him as he stomped towards Twilight. “I would never harm a foal, and I'm disgusted that you'd even suggest such a thing of me! It’s bad enough that your presence here is going to ruin decades of research and kill dozens of ponies! I’ll not stand here and listen to you spew rank stupidity as well!”
Twilight found herself muzzle to muzzle with the angry earth pony… And backed away instinctively despite herself.
“H… Hey! I am not ignorant!” She shot back angrily. “And I’M not the one murdering ponies to grow Murder Bulb!”
“LIFE BLOSSUM!” Flower Power roared, his voice growing louder and louder. “And I save ponies, I don’t murder them you brainless trog!”
“It’s because of ponies like YOU that I’ve had to conduct my research in secret for all centuries! Do you have any idea how much further along I could be, if I’d had more help? How many lives I could have saved!” The anger suddenly seemed to leave him. His ears and tail drooped, as he seemed to deflate.
Twilight blinked in surprise, mouthing the word ‘Centuries’ to herself as her eyes grew wider and wider.
“And now you’re here.” He slumped. “I’m going to have to abandon this place, and start over elsewhere. Assuming I can even salvage anything before the guards get here...”
He turned to face Granny Smith. “Why? Why would you betray me like this Grands?”
Granny sighed. “I ain’t betrayed nopony, Flower. I...”
“Granny? AJ? Mac?” The low sickly voice immediately grabbed Granny's full attention, and she hurried over to her granddaughter.
“We're right here, Applebloom.” Applejack replied softly.
“I’m here child. I’m right here.”
“How’re you feeling Bloom?”
“N… Not so good, sis.” Hew voice was low and weak, the young filly lacking the energy to even open her eyes.
“Don’t you fret, child. Granny is going to fix everything, okay?”
“Okay granny.”
Granny smith turned to face Flower Power. “I need you to save her.”
He grimaced. “Grands… You know the rules. I don’t have enough flowers to make an extra dose...”
“I know. Give her mine.”
His grimace grew. “Grands… At your age, in your condition… I’m not sure how much longer you’ll last if you skip a treatment.”
“I know.” Her reply was perfectly calm as she looked her friend in the eye. “It’s my choice.”
“Grands...” After a few moments he averted his eyes, looking down at the floor.
“There there Flower. You’ve known this was coming for ages.” She laid a hoof on Flower Power's foreleg. “If my little Jonah and his wife hadn’t had their accident, I’d have passed this job onto them years ago. I’m too old and worn out to keep up my end of the deal anyway, and you know it.”
The Stallion closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then sighed.
“You're sure?”
“I'm sure.”
“All right then.” He gave her a sad nod, then stepped back. “I finished brewing your dose two weeks ago. Give me a moment to get it.”
And with that, he stepped out of the lab, leaving behind four mares; one sick, one elderly, and two stunned and confused.
Applejack, not having been on the receiving end of the stallion's ire, recovered first.
“What in tarnation is going on here Granny?” AJ demanded. “And what's this here treatment you two are talking about?”
“For land’s sake, Applejack, didn’t you ever wonder how it is I’ve lived this long?” Granny gave her granddaughter a toothless grin. “I was around when Ponyville was founded, for Celestia’s sake!”
“Well...”Aj paused, trailing off. “We all just sorta assumed it was good blood, good food, and a healthy lifestyle. That, and that you were just too tough and ornery to die.” She admitted.
“Darn tootin!” Granny cackled and grinned. “But only half true. The rest is Flower’s concoctions.”
“But, how is that possible?” Twilight reentered the conversation, shaking her head to clear it. “I know Murder Bloom can heal injuries and cure illnesses, but that doesn't explain how anypony could live to be...”
“Three hundred and fifty six.” Granny laughed at the dumbfounded look on the girl's faces. “That's Flower Power's age, mind you, not mine. I'm a mite bit younger, but you should both know better than to ask a mare her age!” She gave a short cackle and winked.
“As for how… Well, Life Blossom does a good job of repairing damage to a pony's body, be it injury or disease. And what's old age but the accumulation of damage?”
Twilight just stared at the smug looking Granny, completely stunned by the revelation. Applejack, on the other hand, had a few more pressing questions.
“Well, if that's true, then how come you're looking so, well, old Granny?” Applejack tilted her ehad curiously. “I mean, that there fella looks a third your age, but you're saying he's well past three centuries… And what about Auntie Applesauce and Auntie Apple Rose? They're almost as old as you!”
“Same answer to both questions, child.” Granny grinned. “I suppose I'd look as good as Flower if I took all the doses he gave me. But I realized long ago that living a long life ain't worth much if you don't get to spend it with family and friends.”
“So you've been sharing your treatment with Auntie Applesauce and Auntie Apple Rose? They know about all this?”
“Gosh no!” Granny laughed loudly. “I've just been spiking their tea whenever they come to visit! Silly girls still think eatin apples three meals a day is what keeps the reaper away!” Applejack just stared in shock as the elderly mare laughed herself silly.
“Of course, they're not the only one's I've been sharing with.” Granny continued once her laufghter subsided. “You remember when you're cousin Apple Seedling came down with Hoof Rot? Or when little Apple Knots had that lung infection?”
“Of course I do! I was more than a mite worried that Seed might lose that hoof! And the doctor's said Knot's recovery was… a miracle...” AJ trailed off, staring at her grandmother. Granny just smiled and nodded.
“Well.. Well be that as it may…” Twilight's wings fluttered nervously. “Saving ponies is a noble goal, but not at the expense of murdering other ponies!”
“Land sakes Twilight, you got wax in your ears?” Granny asked incredulously. “There ain't nopony killing anypony here...” She cut herself off at the sound of a door opening, as Flower Power reentered the lab. Upon his back rested a silver platter with a bowl of sliced apples, and a small flask filled with a glowing golden elixer.
He paid no mind to Twilight, ignoring her presense completely, though he gave Applejack a slight nod. In truth he only had eyes for Granny, as he set the platter down beside her and sit down to look her in the eyes.
“Are you sure about this Grands?” He asked the question, but the defeated tone of voice made it clear he already knew the answer.
Granny just gave him a warm smile. “Sure as shooting, old man.”
“Very well.” He nodded, then focused his attention on Applebloom.
With surprising delicacy he stroked her cheek.
“Little one… Little one… I need you to wake up. Just for a moment. Can you do that for me?” He asked softly, coaxing the youngster to awakeness.
“Huh? Who.. who're you?” Applebloom muttered, her eyes barely opening.
“I'm your uncle flower. And I'm going to make everything all better, alright? I just need you to be a big, strong girl for me, and drink this all down, okay?”
“Granny? AJ?” She asked softly.
“We're right here, Bloom. You just go head and do as you uncle asks, okay?” Granny continued to stroke her mane, smiling down at her.
“K.” The word seemed to take most of the filly's energy, but she still managed to open her mouth.
Into which Flower carefully poured the elixer, gently rubbing her throat to encourage her to swallow. In a matter of moments, the flask was empty, and Flower stood with a sigh.
“That should do it.” He gestures at the bowl of sliced apples. “The elixer will cure her condition, but her body will still need food to repair itself. She'll also need a lot of rest. I expect she'll become semi-conscious several times over the next few hours. Do your best to get her to eat when she's partially awake. Understood?”
“Yessir!” Applejack nodded, blinking away the tears in her eyes as she hugged her baby sister. Already her fever had broken, and her breathing sounded less troubled.
“Good. Now, if you'll excuse me.” He shot a glare at Twilight. “I have matters to attend to.” And with that he hurried out the door once again.
Granny just smiled sadly at his retreating back, the smile becoming more genuine as she looked down at her granddaughters. Applejack was staring at her sleeping sister with intense focus, an apple slice in hoof, just waiting for her to show signs of consciousness.
Twilight, on the other hand, was looking between the increasingly healthy looking Applebloom and the door Flower Power had exited through, a puzzled look on her face.
Granny cleared her throat.
“As I was saying before, Princess: There ain't nopony gettin killed round here.”
“But… Murder Bloom… I read about it. The only way to get it to mature.. Is to kill a pony around it...”
Granny just shook her head.
“Books don't know everything child. Not even Princesses know everything.” She grinned as Twilight flushed in embarrassment. “Whatever you read, I doubt it's more than half the story, if that.”
Twilight tilted her head in curiosity. “Then what is the full story then?” Granny just laughed at the question.
“The whole story'd likely take longer than I've got on this here earth to tell. But I can give you the short version, if it'll help.”
Twilight nodded vigorously.
“Allright then. It's like this. Ponies have known Life Blossom could cure their ills for ages. But nopony really knew where it came from, or how to make it bloom. Least not till three or four hundred years ago. That's when folks realized that on top of being tought to grow, it only bloomed if somepony died nearby.”
“But, I thought you said nopony was being killed!”
“Patience, princess, patience! I ain't hardly even started yet!” Twilight frowned but quieted down once more. “Now, as I was saying, nopony knew that till the late 600's, when Yellow Fever ran rampant. There were plenty of ponies dying back then, and dying all over the place. Which is when some clever ponies realized what it takes to make Life blossom bloom...”
“I remember reading about yellow fever epedemic. It was a really bad time. The Princess did everything she could, but even with the best minds of the day working on it, it took years to find a cure.”
“Yep. Bad days, those were. Or so I heard. I ain't that old! Anyways, folks knew Life Blossom could cure 'em, and times were desperate. There were a lotta ponies experimenting with it. And not all of them were what you'd call 'ethical' about it.” She shook her head sadly. “That's when ponies started calling it Murder Bloom. And why researching it was banned.”
“But not everypony was so unscrupulous. There were a hooffull doing good, moral research. Them ponies discovered that while it took the death of a sentient to activate the plant…. If you had a live, blooming flower already, you could use it to activate another plant with the life force of lesser critters.”
“Lesser critters?” Twilight raised a disbelieving eyebrow, but Granny just grinned in return.
“Parasprites.” Granny smirked. “Though Flower says he started with fruit flies. Apparently parasprites work better. Some of the other got better results with rabbits and the like, but Flower refused to user vertebrates. Said it was a line he didn't want to cross.”
She sighed and frowned.
“Of course, you need an activated Life Blossom to activate more of 'em. And growing 'em ain't easy. They're very particular. And one by one, all them other ponies failed and died off. They lost their crops, or had an accident, or were discovered.” She shook her head sadly.
“So Flower Power is...”
“The last one left? Yep. And his crop is likely the only batch of Life Blossom left in Equestria. As peaceful like as things have been, there ain't likely to be many wild batches of blooming Life Blossom in the wild. Not that that's a bad thing, mind ya...”
Twilight Glanced at the door once again, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by Granny Smith.
“If you want to know more, you'll need to ask the old man yourself.” She smiled slightly. “I need to stay here and keep an eye on Appelbloom. But I know where Flower's bedroom is, and I can give ya directions, if you're keen on it...”
Twilight moved slowly and carefully as she followed Granny’s directions. Sure. The house looked harmless, but it was still the abode of a mad scientist. One that was growing Murder Bloom of all things! Sure, Granny Smith vouchded for him, but still! Celestia had banned research into the plant herself, and for good reason!
Regardless, she should try to give him the benefit of the doubt. Even if he was clearly a mad scientist.
Coming up to the door that Granny had described, she knocked lightly on the wooden portal.
“Um, Mister Flower Power? I’d like to discuss your work a bit more...” she spoke quietly. When no response was received, she pushed lightly on the door, which swung open quietly.
Twilight wasn’t sure what she expected to find in a mad scientists inner sanctum. Bookshelves filled with menacing tomes bound in leather and written in blood perhaps? Arrays of strange sigils and glyphs that seemed to move on their own? Tables covered in glass jars filled with preserved organs perhaps?
She hadn’t really expected to find a simple, spartan room. Just a bed and a nightstand. Oh, there was a single bookshelf, but the books were most certainly not bound in leather. And half the spaces were filled with knick knacks. A pegasus feather. A shiny rock on a piece of string. And old, worn horn ring. A smattering of old, faded photos of unknown ponies.
And she definitely didn’t expect to find the mad scientist himself, sitting in front of his bed, his face hidden behind his forelegs as his body shook with silent sobs.
“Mister Flower Power” Twilight called out delicacy.
The silent sobbing stopped as the pony in question lowly sat upright. He didn’t turn to face the alicorn immediately, instead scrubbing his foreleg across his face to dry his eyes
“What do you want?” Flower asked darkly, clearly struggling to convert his sadness to anger.
“Ah, well, I.. That is...” This conversation was not proceeding in the fashion Twilight had expected.
“What’s the matter? Didn’t expect to find the ’evil pony murderer’ crying into his cups?” He growled.
“Well, no… not really.” Twilight’s ears flattened against her head as the answer escaped her muzzle all on its own. The stallion spun around to face her, the angry expression on his face overshadowing the tear tracts in his fur.
“Well, let's see hw well you handle it when you have to watch a friend die! A friend you've known for over two centuries! A friend you watched from up from fillyhood!” He growled, his eyes filled with fire and anger and a deep, abiding sadness.
Twilight grimaced and looked away from the stallion. And in turing her head, found herself staring at her wings. She swallowed a lump in her throat and pushed thoughts of her own friends into the back of her mind once more.
“It's.. It's not that bad. I'm sure Granny can make it another few years if she takes care of herself.”
Flower Power just snorted in response.
“Another few years. You speak as if that's a long time. It isn't. Besides, she doesn't have a few more years. There won't be another dose for her next year. Or for many years to come. Thanks to you.” His words dripped with such scorn that Twilight flinched.
“What do you mean? And how is it my fault?”
“Don't be coy, princess. As soon as you lot leave, you'll be running straight to Celestia, and in a day or two this place will be swarmed with guards and I'll be arrested. For dealing in 'dark, banned substances.'” He snorted, making air quotes before turning away from her to begin removing books from the bookshelf, carefuly stacking them on his bed.
“But I’m sure if you just explained to Princess Celestia...” Twilight began.
“My crop requires constant care and attention.” Flower didn't even let her finish speaking before interrupting her. “I’d spend months or years in a cell before I ever got to see the Princess. And that assumes she even listens to or believes me.” The pile of books grew slowly and methodically.
“Well, I’m sure I could talk to her and...”
“Not that it would matter.” Flower continued, speaking right over the alicorn. “Because the wealthy and connected would descend upon this place like locus, and consume everything that I've worked so hard to build.”
“That's.. that's ridiculous! I'm sure that wouldn't happen!”
“I've seen it happen Princess!” He practically spit out her title. “I wasn't the only pony working with Life blossom you know! I was there! I saw what happened to the others!”
“But… I'm sure we could protect your work. Set up guards, patrols...”
“Oh, don't be so naive Princess!” Flower rolled his eyes as he turned to face her once more. “Do you think those guards don't have families? That they don't have friends? That they don't know somepony, somewhere who they desperately want to save?”
“Well, I suppose...” Twilight once again found herself on on the back hoof as Flower Power stepped into her personal space.
“You've got one of my last friends sitting a few rooms away.” He gestured with his hoof. “She's been letting herself die by inches, sharing her good health with her family. She brought her grandaughter here for help, knowing that it will cost her her own life! And yet there she sits, with a smile on her face!”
The stallion’s ears drooped as the fire seemed to leave him. He stared at the wall, as if he could see through it to his friend.
“Grands is one of a kind, but she's not unique in the lengths she'll go to to protect her family. If ponies are willing to die to save the one's they love, do you really think the threat of a little jail time will dissuade the guards?”
Twilight had no answer to that.
“And if not the guards, it will be the nobles. They've got the bits and the influence to throw around. They'll look upon my work and all they'll see is a chance to save a loved one. Oh, they'll all have good, noble reasons. A sick filly. An injured husband. A pregnant wife struggling with a fatal disease. Who could say no to that?” The stallion continued to stare into the middle distance. “And one by one they'll be used up. The seeds of the future, devoured by the well meaning in the present. “
“And what future are you trying to create?” She asked softly.
“My future?” His voice was soft and distant, his eyes unfocused as the her ignored the world around him to focus on the world that could be.
“In my future, foals dance and play in fields of Life Blossom. Nopony worries if they trample and crush some, because it's as common as grass. And those foals will grow up knowing their sires and their grand sires and their great grand sires… Family twenty generations deep. And for the first time ever, ponies will no longer fear Death's scythe. It will be Death itself that trembles in fear for its own ending.”
With a trembling foreleg, Flower Power wiped the latest tears from his eyes.
“Someday. Someday.” He muttered, visible taking hold of himself. “But not today. And not for a long time, now.”
Twilight couldn't speak. She could only watch as Flower Power returned to stacking his journals, a lump in her throat. It took her a few moments to compose herself, before she could speak again.
“Surely it won't be that long.” She whispered nervously.
Flower's derisive snort did little to reassure her.
“I've been working with Life Blossom for centuries now. Growing it. Testing it. Experimenting on it. Learning what soil conditions it likes. Figuring out how to use one plant to activate another. Figuring out how to use Parasprites to feed it the life energy it requires. Do you have any idea how many parasprites it takes? Too few and the plant starves and goes dormant before blooming. Too many and it tries to grow too fast and dies. Too much sun and it shrivels. Too little and it wilts. Dozens, hundreds of variables!” He huffed angrily.
“Three centuries I've been working, and do you know how big my annual crop is?”
“N.. No?”
“Twelve plants. Twelve, healthy, usable plants. Per year. On average.” He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. “And half of those need to be used as seedlings for the next crop. I need to be able to grow thousands. I need to breed more robust strains. I need to find a way to feed them life force directly, without the messy intermediary of parasprites. And now.. Now I need to start over, from scratch. From the one or two plants that are far enough long that they might survive a trip.”
Flower Power closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. It was clear he was struggling not to break into tears again.
“I won't tell anyone.” The words were barely a whisper.
“What? What did you say?” Flower opened his eyes to stare at her.
“I said...” Twilight took a deep breath. “I said.. I won't tell anyone. I promise.” Her voice was stronger this time, more confident. And if it wavered slightly, the look of determination on her face did no such thing.
“It.. It doesn't matter. I can't trust you. I can't trust anypony. The secret is too big. Somepony always caves to temptation or desperation...”
“You trusted Granny Smith.” She reminded him. “And as for the temptation of immortality, well...” Twilight smiled slightly and unfolded her wings as a reminder.
“And besides, I already promised Granny I'd keep whatever she showed me a secret.” She smiled nervously. “And I can hardly break a promise to her. I am an honorary Apple after all...”
Flower Power stared at her for a few good, long minutes, as Twilight became more and more twitchy and uncomfortable. Finally he sat down sigh a sigh, seeming to deflate.
“Fine. Fine, I accept your promise. I'll trust you.” He sounded more defeated than excited however. A fact not lost on Twilight. “I'm too old and tired to start over anyway. Let the chips fall where they may.”
“Wonderful!” Twilight clapped her hooves together excitedly. “Oh, and, ah.. I'm sorry about accussing you of murder before...” She flushed in embarassment over her earlier faux pa.
Flower Power just waved his hoof dismissively. “You're forgiven.” He said tiredly.
“Wonderful! Now that we're friends… Tell me, have you considered grafting a… Life Blossom… onto an existing species of tree?”
“Yes, I tried that around a hundred and twenty years ago. I thought an old oak tree would have enough excess physical, chemical, and magical energy to support one. The plants were surprisingly compatible, but the Blossom's roots caused localized necrosis in the Oak...”
Granny sighed in relief as she rested her weary old bones in her chair in the back of the cart. Beside her, Apple bloom lay wrapped in blankets, sleeping peacefully. It would be some time before she regained her strength, but there was no doubt that it would happen. Not anymore.
“Here. Take this.”
Granny looked up to find Flower Power standing beside the cart, not meeting her eyes. In his hooves was a jar of lightly glowing powder. Granny just raised an eyebrow and stared, waiting for an explanation. A few moments of awkward silence passed before Flower spoke again.
“It’s pollen. From activated Life Blossom. This is all from less successful strains I didn’t want to crossbreed. I’ve been meaning to perform some tests to determine if it retains any of the properties of the whole flower, but I don’t have any proper test subjects. I don’t know if it will work, or what it will do, mind you. I’ll need you to keep notes on the effects for me.”
Granny just smiled, finally accepting the jar. “You were always a big ol’ softy, Flower.”
The older earth pony finally met her eyes, a smirk on his lips.
“Someone’s got to keep young fillies like yourself out of trouble. And no sharing this around like you’re want to! I need untainted experimental data!”
“Untainted? From me? You’ve gone daft in your old age!”
Flower Power narrowed his eyes and frowned at the younger mare.
“I'm still angry at you for dropping a Princess on me like that you know. You could have ruined centuries of work! You put everything at risk!”
Rather than looking contrite, Granny just smiled wider. “I did no such thing, you old fogey.”
Flower just raised an eyebrow. “And what makes you so sure of that?”
Turning her head, Granny Smith looked over at the front doors to Flower's home, where Twilight and Applejack stood fretting over several creates full of journals and research notes. Twilight was fretting over having enough reading material. Applejack was fretting over having to haul it all back to Ponyville.
“Because that mare over there is the smartest pony I ever did see. And she's immortal.” She turned to look back at Flower. “She's immortal. And her family and friends… ain't. Immortality isn't all that great if you get to pend it with the ponies ya love. And the girl's smart enough to realize that.”
Flower slowly nodded, fastidiously refusing to meet Granny's eyes.
“Besides, she's an alicorn! Part Earth Pony, part Unicorn, and part Pegasus! And weren't you the one who spent a decade whining about wanting to test unicorn magic's effect on Life Blossom? And wanting to try out them Pegasi hydroponic planting beds?”
Flower grimaced for a moment before finally smiling and nodding. “Touche. A point to the little filly.”
“More than one point, Old Stallion.” She smirked. “Like I said, that there is the smartest pony I ever did meet. And I expect she's gonna be the most motivated too.” She grinned down at her oldest living friend.
“Five bits gets you ten that with her help, it'll be my grandfillies rolling around in them field of Life Blossom you've been dreaming of.”
With one last wink, Granny Smith lay back down in the back of the cart and closed her eyes to rest. Her tired old bones needed a time out. Even as she sleep took her, her hoof stroked through the mane of her peacefully sleeping, healthy granddaughter.
She dreamed of fields of golden flowers.
Beautiful
You managed to tackle immortality and loss in a believable way, while tackling all the baggage that such an issue would bring.
Great work, you.
You managed to tackle immortality and loss in a believable way, while tackling all the baggage that such an issue would bring.
Great work, you.
A little nitpick: Apple Bloom isn't one word. But I've been guilty of it myself, too, so don't feel too bad. :P
Aside from that, I think there's a pretty good central idea at play here, but I'm a little less convinced by the execution. For instance, the piece seems to set itself up as an investigation of moral grey grounds. But at least to me, there's nothing really morally questionable about what Flower Power is doing.
In fact, the only real conflict is Twilight's misunderstanding of the situation. But even this feels a bit perfunctory because it's pretty obvious to the reader that there's more to it to Flower Power's research than it initially seems, with his insistence on calling it "Life Blossom" and all. And without any real character-driven conflict, much of the story feels a bit like exposition. We learn about Flower Power's struggle for a better future, but there's not much that gives us a concrete investment in it.
Honestly, I think this story might have been a bit stronger if it was told in Flower Power's perspective. We'd be able to see the conflict a bit more clearly, and the inherent mystery of initially not knowing very much about the main character could be used to give a little drive to the expoisitiony parts.
In other words, I'd suggest refocusing the story a little. A big emotional core of this story is the relationship between Granny Smith and Flower Power, so give them a little more time together. Have us learn about their relationship from how they talk to each other, rather than mostly through their explanations of it. I think the piece would benefit a lot from readers being more sympathetic to Flower Power earlier on.
Aside from that, I think there's a pretty good central idea at play here, but I'm a little less convinced by the execution. For instance, the piece seems to set itself up as an investigation of moral grey grounds. But at least to me, there's nothing really morally questionable about what Flower Power is doing.
In fact, the only real conflict is Twilight's misunderstanding of the situation. But even this feels a bit perfunctory because it's pretty obvious to the reader that there's more to it to Flower Power's research than it initially seems, with his insistence on calling it "Life Blossom" and all. And without any real character-driven conflict, much of the story feels a bit like exposition. We learn about Flower Power's struggle for a better future, but there's not much that gives us a concrete investment in it.
Honestly, I think this story might have been a bit stronger if it was told in Flower Power's perspective. We'd be able to see the conflict a bit more clearly, and the inherent mystery of initially not knowing very much about the main character could be used to give a little drive to the expoisitiony parts.
In other words, I'd suggest refocusing the story a little. A big emotional core of this story is the relationship between Granny Smith and Flower Power, so give them a little more time together. Have us learn about their relationship from how they talk to each other, rather than mostly through their explanations of it. I think the piece would benefit a lot from readers being more sympathetic to Flower Power earlier on.
This one's:
Got me in a whole "compare/contrast" sort of a mood, so I'd like to say why I enjoyed this more than a couple other really good stories by GaPJaxie that address similar subjects: the cure for death in "Modern Medicine," and the outsider pony scientist in "A Change in Three Parts."
GaPJaxie's stories are always very thought-provoking and always very interesting, but they usually seem to be populated by cardboard cut-outs rather than characters. When Twilight Sparkle appears, for instance, she isn't the Twilight Sparkle we know from the show but is rather a straw pony spray-painted purple by the author to mouth a particular argument.
Here, though, we've got not just a Twilight Sparkle who acts in a recognizable fashion, but a nicely-rendered Applejack and Granny Smith. And the OC fits quite well into the whole Equestrian setting while also bringing in a concept the show would never address in a million years. It's got a few typos--see above for Apple Bloom--but there's some very good stuff here.
Mike
Got me in a whole "compare/contrast" sort of a mood, so I'd like to say why I enjoyed this more than a couple other really good stories by GaPJaxie that address similar subjects: the cure for death in "Modern Medicine," and the outsider pony scientist in "A Change in Three Parts."
GaPJaxie's stories are always very thought-provoking and always very interesting, but they usually seem to be populated by cardboard cut-outs rather than characters. When Twilight Sparkle appears, for instance, she isn't the Twilight Sparkle we know from the show but is rather a straw pony spray-painted purple by the author to mouth a particular argument.
Here, though, we've got not just a Twilight Sparkle who acts in a recognizable fashion, but a nicely-rendered Applejack and Granny Smith. And the OC fits quite well into the whole Equestrian setting while also bringing in a concept the show would never address in a million years. It's got a few typos--see above for Apple Bloom--but there's some very good stuff here.
Mike
A few typos and whatnot, but nothing too bad. As others have said, the characterization was solid. Overall, I quite enjoyed the story, aside from a couple nitpicks.
For one, I'm surprised they were able to take Applebloom from the hospital with as little fuss as they did. I would've expected them to have to resort to some scheme, maybe a 'we're taking her to zecora' excuse or something.
The other thing that stuck out to me was how Flower Power was able to maintain such a large, modern facility when there doesn't appear to be any others working with him. It'd be a full time job running a farm like that, let alone going out and trading for the stuff he can't buy, and conducting his research.
Aside from those niggles, I thought it worked nicely.
For one, I'm surprised they were able to take Applebloom from the hospital with as little fuss as they did. I would've expected them to have to resort to some scheme, maybe a 'we're taking her to zecora' excuse or something.
The other thing that stuck out to me was how Flower Power was able to maintain such a large, modern facility when there doesn't appear to be any others working with him. It'd be a full time job running a farm like that, let alone going out and trading for the stuff he can't buy, and conducting his research.
Aside from those niggles, I thought it worked nicely.
First of all, this story really needs a decent editing pass. I'm going to assume that this was just a product of the time limit, but all of the spelling and grammar mistakes were really distracting for me.
But even ignoring those problems, this story doesn't quite work for me. Part of it is that it was pretty obvious how this story was going to end once Twilight realized what the flowers were. We just had to wait for her to inevitably come around.
But I think most of it is that there are a few important things that just aren't explained well enough or don't make sense to me. First, it seems a bit unlikely to me that Life Blossom would have been completely and permanently banned, especially since you made it clear that ponies knew that it only needed somepony to die, and not necessarily to be murdered. You could probably fix this just by saying that most ponies at the time did think that they needed murder.
But I think the biggest issue is that you never adequately explain why Flower is even keeping Granny alive. You mention that she has a job and a deal, but you don't say what those are. Does she bring him supplies or something? It also sounds like he's doing the same for some other ponies. Do they have various deals to help him too? This is an especially big issue because Flower talks about how terrible it is for "the seeds of the future [to be] devoured by the well meaning in the present." If he's keeping her alive just because she's his friend, then he's guilty of exactly that.
I'm also a bit bugged by the fact that this story tries to comment on the problems of being immortal when your loved ones aren't, but it completely ignores the problems that come from everyone being immortal.
On the positive side, I liked the bit about the momentos that Flower has been keeping, and I do think that there is a decent story in here. It just needs some work to clean it up.
As a final note, I also can't help but imagine this as the beginning of or prequel to one of those stories where Twilight discovers something that Celestia has been hiding/repressing for centuries, and then in the end, Celestia realizes that Twilight was right all along. (I never really like those stories very much.)
But even ignoring those problems, this story doesn't quite work for me. Part of it is that it was pretty obvious how this story was going to end once Twilight realized what the flowers were. We just had to wait for her to inevitably come around.
But I think most of it is that there are a few important things that just aren't explained well enough or don't make sense to me. First, it seems a bit unlikely to me that Life Blossom would have been completely and permanently banned, especially since you made it clear that ponies knew that it only needed somepony to die, and not necessarily to be murdered. You could probably fix this just by saying that most ponies at the time did think that they needed murder.
But I think the biggest issue is that you never adequately explain why Flower is even keeping Granny alive. You mention that she has a job and a deal, but you don't say what those are. Does she bring him supplies or something? It also sounds like he's doing the same for some other ponies. Do they have various deals to help him too? This is an especially big issue because Flower talks about how terrible it is for "the seeds of the future [to be] devoured by the well meaning in the present." If he's keeping her alive just because she's his friend, then he's guilty of exactly that.
I'm also a bit bugged by the fact that this story tries to comment on the problems of being immortal when your loved ones aren't, but it completely ignores the problems that come from everyone being immortal.
On the positive side, I liked the bit about the momentos that Flower has been keeping, and I do think that there is a decent story in here. It just needs some work to clean it up.
As a final note, I also can't help but imagine this as the beginning of or prequel to one of those stories where Twilight discovers something that Celestia has been hiding/repressing for centuries, and then in the end, Celestia realizes that Twilight was right all along. (I never really like those stories very much.)
>>The_Letter_J
I think the story does. They're friends. Maybe mentor and student in the old days but it's clearly now a long standing friendship. I'm sure Granny helps him out with supplies and the like but I get the impression deep down he can't stand losing her. Selfish maybe, but hardly inexplicable.
Post-singularity problems! :P
But I think the biggest issue is that you never adequately explain why Flower is even keeping Granny alive.
I think the story does. They're friends. Maybe mentor and student in the old days but it's clearly now a long standing friendship. I'm sure Granny helps him out with supplies and the like but I get the impression deep down he can't stand losing her. Selfish maybe, but hardly inexplicable.
...it completely ignores the problems that come from everyone being immortal.
Post-singularity problems! :P
>>billymorph
That doesn't really work for me. For most of the story, he makes a point of talking about how his research is more important than anything else, and how using the plants to help people now is well-meaning, but awful. But he keeps his own friends alive because apparently it's not awful when he does it. If his research was really the most important thing, like he claims, then he would let them die so that he would have more plants to use. This could be the sort of thing that humanizes him more, but it doesn't come across that way to me.
I think it might be especially frustrating to me because the justification is almost in there. Granny Smith says they have a deal, but we get no hints as to what that deal is. If there was some explanation there, this probably wouldn't be an issue.
That doesn't really work for me. For most of the story, he makes a point of talking about how his research is more important than anything else, and how using the plants to help people now is well-meaning, but awful. But he keeps his own friends alive because apparently it's not awful when he does it. If his research was really the most important thing, like he claims, then he would let them die so that he would have more plants to use. This could be the sort of thing that humanizes him more, but it doesn't come across that way to me.
I think it might be especially frustrating to me because the justification is almost in there. Granny Smith says they have a deal, but we get no hints as to what that deal is. If there was some explanation there, this probably wouldn't be an issue.
I feel like GaPJaxie's Modern Medicine told this same story, but frankly it managed to explore the moral and ethical issues surrounding a potential cure for death better. This story leaves a lot of questions unanswered – or, rather, it doesn't bother to ask them:
- Why didn't Granny just go by herself to Flower Power, get the cure, come back to the hospital, and give it to Apple Bloom when no one was looking? She's been dosing her relative's tea with it for years, after all.
- If it's possible to grow Life Blossom without killing anyone, why hasn't anyone just told this to Celestia? Surely they could convince her to make sure the seed stock wasn't raided by nobles/guards/whomever. A thousand researchers working to breed Life Blossom could easily do better than one stallion out in the woods.
- If Life Blossom is so intent on saving the world, why is he wasting blossoms on Granny Smith?
- What happens the next time someone Twilight Sparkle loves gets sick? Do they truck back to Flower Power and ask for another dose?
Modern Medicine at least addressed the problems that came with the immortality solution. This story leaves a lot hanging.
BB notes that GaPJaxie is sometimes accused of using straw men in his stories; that his characters are more like cardboard cutouts than actual people. I've never agreed with this particular criticism, and in Modern Medicine I thought his rendition of the elder Twilight Sparkle, in particular, was deeply nuanced. The arguments the characters made might be set pieces, yes, but the characters themselves were fully realized.
And this story does have fully realized characters, too. I won't dock it for that. But in the end I'm left thinking to myself, "I've already read this story, and it was better the last time."
Edit: Coming back to this, I forgot to mention something important. While I think this story drops the ball in places, it drops the ball because it tried to do something difficult. It tackled a hard topic that's sure to get people thinking and arguing (my own post proves this). And, as I said elsewhere, I like stories that try to be ambitious. So, whatever else its failings, this story gets credit for that (and a boost on my slate).
- Why didn't Granny just go by herself to Flower Power, get the cure, come back to the hospital, and give it to Apple Bloom when no one was looking? She's been dosing her relative's tea with it for years, after all.
- If it's possible to grow Life Blossom without killing anyone, why hasn't anyone just told this to Celestia? Surely they could convince her to make sure the seed stock wasn't raided by nobles/guards/whomever. A thousand researchers working to breed Life Blossom could easily do better than one stallion out in the woods.
- If Life Blossom is so intent on saving the world, why is he wasting blossoms on Granny Smith?
- What happens the next time someone Twilight Sparkle loves gets sick? Do they truck back to Flower Power and ask for another dose?
Modern Medicine at least addressed the problems that came with the immortality solution. This story leaves a lot hanging.
BB notes that GaPJaxie is sometimes accused of using straw men in his stories; that his characters are more like cardboard cutouts than actual people. I've never agreed with this particular criticism, and in Modern Medicine I thought his rendition of the elder Twilight Sparkle, in particular, was deeply nuanced. The arguments the characters made might be set pieces, yes, but the characters themselves were fully realized.
And this story does have fully realized characters, too. I won't dock it for that. But in the end I'm left thinking to myself, "I've already read this story, and it was better the last time."
Edit: Coming back to this, I forgot to mention something important. While I think this story drops the ball in places, it drops the ball because it tried to do something difficult. It tackled a hard topic that's sure to get people thinking and arguing (my own post proves this). And, as I said elsewhere, I like stories that try to be ambitious. So, whatever else its failings, this story gets credit for that (and a boost on my slate).
Second to last to read. There's definitely a strong need for an edit pass on this. The strongest part is the end, in particular Granny's point that Twilight's going to kick this problem's ass.
Really, much of the rest of the story felt like filler to me to get to that final conflict - that once Twi realizes what's going on, she's going to fully commit.
So my advice is to take that and run with it; drive more of the conflict around her slow realization of magnitude and shift in attitude to determination to see his research completed. It'll make the stronger story, especially since so much of the beginning is just them walking and talking and getting AB somewhere - but that doesn't really contribute to the main conflict, just adds filler material.
Really, much of the rest of the story felt like filler to me to get to that final conflict - that once Twi realizes what's going on, she's going to fully commit.
So my advice is to take that and run with it; drive more of the conflict around her slow realization of magnitude and shift in attitude to determination to see his research completed. It'll make the stronger story, especially since so much of the beginning is just them walking and talking and getting AB somewhere - but that doesn't really contribute to the main conflict, just adds filler material.