Plague Ponies - In the Orchard
CONTENT WARNING: violence, blood
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Summary:
While Twilight goes to speak with Granny Smith, Pinkie Pie stays behind with Applejack to help out with apple bucking! With Big Mac not feeling at his best, Applejack sure is glad for the Pinkie and her unorthodox apple bucking strategy, although it seems a little dangerous to keep at it while Pinkie’s Pinkie sense keeps going off.
Lucky for them, they don’t have to wait much longer for the doozy! It’s arrived in the form of Nurse Sweetheart, and although she’s here to check up on Big Mac, she seems unwell herself. Applejack recognizes the symptoms of rabies due to some firsthoof experience, and sends Pinkie away to grab back up.
When Pinkie arrives with reinforcements in the form of Big Mac, it seems that they disagree with Applejack’s method of trying to handle things…no time for them to talk it out, however, as Nurse Sweetheart gets away in the confusion, running off in the direction of the barn.
Transcript below:
Applejack: I really appreciate your help, Pinkie! I can’t say I’ve ever seen anypony buck like you.
Pinkie Pie jumps from one apple tree to another, shaking each one and dropping the apples in the waiting buckets below.
Pinkie Pie: Hehehe! We should harvest apples together every year!
Applejack: I’d love to see you teach Big Mac your way of doing things!
Pinkie Pie: It’s too bad he’s sick (frowny face)
Applejack: We told him to take it easy, but you know how he is.
Pinkie Pie: He is your brother! Hard-headedness must be an Apple trait!
Applejack: Hey now—
Pinkie Pie: WaAAaAH
Pinkie Pie shakes uncontrollably, her Pinkie sense going wild.
Applejack: Pinkie?! Maybe we should head inside…I don’t think this is safe.
Pinkie Pie: Good idea…huh? Applejack, did you call a nurse for Big Mac?
Applejack: Huh? We did, but she’s s’posed to come tomorrow—
Applejack is interrupted as Pinkie grabs her with her tail and YOINKs Applejack up into a tree.
Applejack: I thought we agreed to get out of the tree?
Pinkie Pie: Shh! Agreement changed!
Applejack: What—
Pinkie Pie: Look down!!!
Applejack: Is it the doozy?
Pinkie Pie: Yes! Now hush!
Applejack and Pinkie Pie watch from above as a lilac pony wanders towards them through the orchard.
Applejack (whispering): Pinkie, that’s Nurse Sweetheart. Where’s the doozy?
Pinkie Pie (whispering): I—I don’t know, something just doesn’t feel right!
Applejack (whispering): If the doozy’s so close, shouldn’t we warn her?
Pinkie Pie: What if I said I think…she is the doozy?!
Nurse Sweetheart quietly mumbles to herself, repeating, “hello?” “hello?”.
Applejack: What? Is the doozy her mixing up the day of the appointment? They must have just mixed things up at the hospital. They’ve been busy—
Pinkie Pie: SHHH!! She’ll hear you!
Nurse Sweetheart: Hello, I’m nurse Sweetheart. It’s time for your check-up
Nurse Sweetheart continues to repeat herself over and over, the order of her words jumbling together and over one another.
Applejack: Pinkie…
Pinkie Pie: Yeah?
Applejack: Go get Big Mac.
Pinkie Pie: But—
Applejack: I’ll stay right here, just go. Tell him it’s rabies. He’ll know it’s an emergency.
Pinkie Pie: I’m on it. Don’t move. Sit tight! We’ll be back before you can say aAAAA!!!
Applejack: Don’t worry, Pinkie.
Applejack speaks quietly, mostly to herself, remembering something.
Applejack: I’m not going anywhere.
As Pinkie bounces away from tree to tree to get Big Mac, Applejack continues to look down at nurse Sweetheart. Not having received a response, the nurse has returned to repeating “hello” to herself again.
Still receiving no answer, nurse Sweetheart grows more agitated.
Nurse Sweetheart: Hello? You called me. I can help. Hello? Let me help you, please, let me…please, you need to let me…help…please…
Applejack continues to watch with unfocused eyes. The pony she’s seeing isn’t nurse sweetheart. All she can see is a pale yellow mare with orange curls.
???: Help
???: It hurts
???: Applejack?
Pinkie Pie and Big Mac are jumping from tree to tree to get back to Applejack’s location.
Pinkie Pie: You’re really good at this, Big Mac! On any other day, this would be so fun!
Big Mac: Yup…
Pinkie Pie: We might even make it back before anything happens!
Big Mac: Uh…nope.
Applejack is on the ground with nurse Sweetheart, attempting to lasso her.
Pinkie Pie and Big Mac: Applejack!!!
Big Mac: Run, Applejack!
Applejack: Wait—
Big Mac barrels towards nurse Sweetheart and kicks her in the face, breaking her jaw and knocking her away.
Applejack: STOP!
Pinkie Pie holds Applejack back, preventing her from interfering with Big Mac.
Pinkie Pie: Applejack, stop!
Applejack ignores Pinkie Pie, her eyes on Big Mac.
Applejack: Don’t do this again…
Big Mac: Don’t—AUGH
Nurse Sweetheart has gotten back up and stabbed her upper jaw into Big Mac’s leg.
Applejack: How…she should be out cold!
Big Mac: Don’t let her get away!
Nurse Sweetheart’s eyes focus for a moment, and she looks afraid. She tries to speak, she can’t form words with her broken jaw. Confused and agitated, she breaks into a run.
Nurse Sweetheart: Urkh…hrgk..
Applejack: Big Mac, your leg—
Big Mac: She’s getting away.
Pinkie Pie: Twilight! We have to warn Twilight and Applebloom!
Applejack: Big Macintosh, stop right there!
Big Mac promptly goes after nurse Sweetheart.
Big Mac: Nope.
End of transcript.
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In the wake of FCG' fate I've been thinking about death in ttrpgs, and how it kind of exists on three levels:
There’s the gameplay level, where it only makes sense for a combat-heavy, pc-based game to have a tool for resurrection because the characters are going to die a lot and players get attached to them and their plotlines.
Then there’s the narrative level, where you sort of need permanent death on occasion so as not to lose all tension and realism. On this level, sometimes the player will let their character remain dead because they find it more interesting despite there being options of resurrection, or maybe the dice simply won’t allow the resurrection to succeed.
Then, of course, there’s the in-universe level, which is the one that really twists my mind. This is a world where actual resurrection of the actual dead is entirely obtainable, often without any ill effects (I mean, they'll be traumatized, but unless you ask a necromancer to do the resurrection they won’t come back as a zombie or vampire or otherwise wrong). It’s so normal that many adventurers will have gone through it multiple times. Like, imagine actually living in a world where all that keeps you from getting a missing loved one back is the funds to buy a diamond and hire a cleric. As viewers we felt that of course Pike should bring Laudna, a complete stranger, back when asked, but how often does she get this question? How many parents have come and begged her to return their child to them? How many lovers lost but still within reach? When and how does she decide who she saves and who she doesn’t?
From this perspective, I feel like every other adventurer should have the motive/backstory of 'I lost a loved one and am working to obtain the level of power/wealth to get them back'. But of course this is a game, and resurrection is just a game mechanic meant to be practically useful.
Anyway. A story-based actual play kind of has to find a way to balance these three levels. From a narrative perspective letting FCG remain dead makes sense, respects their sacrifice, and ends their arc on a highlight. From a gameplay level it is possible to bring them back but a lot more complicated than a simple revivify. But on an in-universe level, when do you decide if you should let someone remain dead or not? Is the party selfish if they don’t choose to pursue his resurrection the way they did for Laudna? Do they even know, as characters, that it’s technically possible to save someone who's been blown to smithereens? Back in campaign 2, the moment the m9 gained access to higher level resurrection they went to get Molly back (and only failed because his body had been taken back by Lucien). At the end of c1, half the party were in denial about Vax and still looking for ways to save him, because they had always been able to before (and had the game continued longer it wouldn’t have surprised me had they found a way). Deanna was brought back decades after her death (and was kind of fucked up because of it). Bringing someone back could be saving them, showing them just how loved and appreciated they are. Or it could be saving you, forcing someone back from rest and peace into a world that's kept moving without them because you can’t handle the guilt of knowing you let them stay gone when you didn’t have to. How do you know? How would you ever know?
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