“If there's anything I've learnt through all this it’s this: Life can unfair, it can be downright cruel when it wants to, and it is most definitely hard. Despite all that you keep getting back up, even if it keeps knocking you back down and if you do you keep moving forward.” - Mark Geary

I would describe myself as more or less a run of the mill 25 year old guy; I'm 5 ft. 10 inches tall, and have a slender build, fair skin complexion, dusty blonde hair and greyish blue eyes. I've heard on the news that people have been waking up as some sort of pastel coloured equines that look like they are from some sort of cartoon, meh doesn't concern me one bit a person is a person human or not.

You see shit like this has been happening all around the world for a few months now, a few more found each day causing accidents in traffic, some even been driven insane by the change and some peoples treatment of the unfortunate is just right down sick, especially in some of more superstitious communities.

I can't say I can agree with such treatment, I never have done but hey what can I do? I’m just one guy at the end of the day. I do my part to help people out when I can, a little good deed here and there can mean a lot in this small mining town I live in.

Now normally I wouldn't bore people with such mundane details such as this, but given my situation it is kind of relevant. I think maybe its best I start from the beginning...

It was a typical Friday at work, long, tiring and a little boring due to some strange rule about the end of the working week. Serve customers, clean up, and taking in deliveries, it was dull yes but it paid very well and the staff was very friendly. Still though even though I enjoyed the job I would often take freelance art commissions to help build up my portfolio and gain the necessary experience as an artist, something which I spent the last two years working towards after I left university.

The end of the shift came at last and I left exhausted and admittedly I had been having a headache all damned day. Not your usual headache mind you, it felt like a small bump on my forehead I figured I must of bumped my head in my sleep this morning.

I headed home to a small two story semidetached house; it was best described as an organised mess. It's not like I don't tidy up but I work 40 hours a week, so I keep things at least presentable and I value my free time a little too much. Anyhow I made a simple supper and watched the TV for an hour or so.

The news was on with reports on some unidentifiable object orbiting the moon in a dormant state, the news reader mentioned some sort of pulse that hit the planet just the other week and this object has been silent ever since. The pulse it gave off caused brown outs worldwide in some of the larger cities, causing a great deal of panic, countless causalities and sadly some fatalities. In short for a brief moment the entire economy went to hell, but what I could do about it I'm not Superman after all.

For the last six months that moon has been visible in the sky, just floating there in plain view for everyone to see. It was even visible in the middle of the day, it was a beautiful sight to behold especially in the night sky. Something felt off about it though I couldn’t quite place what though, and to be honest I never really paid it any mind.

Scientists and the military have been working countless hours to find out what exactly that pulse did; now I don't have much interest in the news, due to being nothing but bad news majority of the time.

Here though it got interesting and you didn't have to be genius to figure this out, people had been getting sick lately you could call it paranoia which at the time that's all I thought it was. I was paying more attention to the possibility of extra-terrestrial life. Being the sci-fi nut I actually was, I was ecstatic of the possibility of alien life.

“Ha-ha! I knew it! There was no chance of us being alone in this universe.” I grinned and laughed at new possibilities that meant, but before long I began coughing. I cleared my throat for the twentieth time today, “God, what's up with my voice today? The last time I sounded like this was when I was a teenager.” I turned off the TV and got up stretching as I did so, my entire body just felt stiff today, I swore I heard some parts of my body crack as I stretched.

“A shower should do me some good.” I said to myself in a scratchy sounding voice. I would often talk to myself out of habit; it was just something I did out of habit as a kid.

The bathroom was just what you expect it to be: A bath/shower combo, sink and a toilet. It was decorated to give it a watery feel, which I thought was appropriate. There was even a full body mirror upon the wall.

I ran a hot shower, which it did ease the stiffness that seemed to be causing my muscles some discomfort. Now I'm not particularly an observant person when my mind is elsewhere not to mention that damned headache kept me from concentrating, but I didn't notice a strange mark on both thighs.

I got out of the shower and went to change; as I did I noticed the mark in the mirror. I turned to get a better view of it, a single black cog or was it a gear? With a blue heart and gold cross engraved upon it. I could have sworn my hips were a bit wider too.

“What. The. Fuck?” I mouthed, I'm pretty sure I'd remember getting a tattoo. I ran a hand over the one on my right side and it felt like plush fur? Shaking my head in disbelief I continued getting changed and went back downstairs. Now normally my routine for an evening would be to spend a few hours gaming online or on my PS3, Fallout New Vegas being a particular favourite at the moment, but given my headache I decided to watch some TV instead.

A few hours passed by as I watched Bottom, Mock the Week and a couple of episodes of South Park. As I was lying on the sofa I couldn't seem to get comfortable and my headache seemed to be getting worse now. Good lord it felt like it was being pulled by some unknown invisible force, after a short while it felt like my ears was getting pulled to...It wasn't painful surprisingly just really, really uncomfortable.

“Fuck...I must be coming down with the bug that's been going around lately.” I muttered with increasingly higher and softer pitched tone. I do recall someone calling in sick at work the previous day with said bug, which worried me slightly.

The pulling feeling stopped after a few moments, which I began to feel a slight tingly sensation in my left hand. I barely managed to ignore it, at least until my skin began itching.

“Oh come on!” I cursed attempting to stop the itch by scratching. I got up frustrated but I immediately lost my balance, cursing under my breath I tried getting up again using the sofa to support myself. I winced in pain I heard a sickening cracking noise coming from my legs. I looked directly into the living room mirror and saw my ears now stood on top of my head covered in a light blue plush like fur and some sort of horn on my forehead. I immediately fell back down onto the floor in shock.

“What the fuck is happening to me?!” I cried absolutely frightened, my voice becoming higher pitched as I spoke. I could feel my heart racing I placed my hand over my heart in an effort to calm down, but I couldn't feel my fingers. Why couldn't I feel my fingers?!

I put my hand in front of me and watched in complete horror as my fingers slowly merged together in to one and my fingernails enveloping my now merged fingers becoming some sort of hoof? I felt the change happen to my other hand and both feet, it felt interesting to say the least, surprisingly the change wasn't painful, extremely uncomfortable yes but not painful. That itchy feeling returned like it was possessed starting from my hooves and crawling all over my body, soon covering my body with that same plush like light blue fur. I was sweating like crazy from the ordeal

I was praying to every deity I knew about hoping this wouldn't kill me, with my heart condition one heart attack or stroke and it's a definite game over for me.

It was over soon enough and I picked myself up off the floor, steadying myself and panting heavily as I tried to get my breath back. Looking at the mirror I looked like some sort of human-equine cross? Carefully I made my way up stairs and as soon as I entered my bedroom I collapsed on the bed in a fit of a pain coming from between my legs.

“SWEET MOTHER OF ALL THAT IS HOLY!!!” I screamed in my increasingly feminine sounding voice. After a few moments of that unbearable pain, I heard a rip and tearing noise coming from my rear feeling it getting wider. I looked behind me and found a tail swishing about erratically as it grew longer. I could feel my hair get longer as well as my tail grew, along with that pulling feeling along my jawline and nose.

My vision blurred from tears as the pain filled every fibre of my being, and my voice was sore from the indistinguishable cries of pain from my transformation. It was hell enduring all that and it left fatigued and exhausted from that horrible experience. What was left of my strength I had left me and I passed out on the bed from the pain and sheer agony I had just endured.

I stirred several hours later, the early morning light shining upon my face and several birds happily chirping and singing, the damned things might have well have been a siren for all I care.

“Oh fuck me that was a terrible nightmare.” I squeaked, still groggy I got up and noticed the clock, 6:40 am, I got up and well “GAH!!” I found myself on my back on the floor as I fell off the bed, “Okay since when has my bed been that big?” I asked myself in my now feminine voice, “And since when did I sound like that!”

I tried standing upright and found myself face first upon the floor, “Okay now let’s try this again.” This time I managed to steady myself on all fours, “Ha-Hah!” I cried in triumph. I froze when I looked down, “Oh no....nonononono!” I panicked, it wasn't a nightmare.
I needed to find a mirror.

“Okay calm down Geary, just take your time.” I tried to calm myself. I tried walking on my new legs on step at a time, tripping a few times and a lot of cursing later I made my way to the bathroom.

The size of everything was a little alarming, and confirmed I had lost quite a bit of height, thankfully I had large full body mirror in the bathroom. What I saw horrified me.

I was now small light blue unicorn, with a dusty blonde mane, tail and expressive bright blue eyes. My black t-shirt hung off me loosely and my shorts were lying on the floor in tatters.

“What on earth has happened to me?” I spoke in my now soft feminine voice, I turned around curious and lifted my tail up, a moment passed and I checked again. I blushed red as I finally confirmed what I feared.

“Great! Just great! Not only am I no longer human but I’m no longer a guy either...” To say I was upset at the change would be an understatement. I felt my ears lower and tail curl round defensively in response to my emotions.

“W-why me...? What did I do to deserve this...?” I asked myself, as I walked back to my bedroom.

My thoughts turned to my situation, countless questions flooded my mind. What would my family think? My friends? How would I work and live like this? I'm a fucking pony now! I felt absolutely furious. Everything I have ever worked for, my education, my ambitions and even my god damned fucking gender...gone all of it! Gone!

I was shaking, cursing everything possibly responsible for my change. Eventually I did the one thing I haven't done since I was kid...I just broke down and cried.

“T-this...It's just too much.” I sobbed, how would you feel if everything you ever lived for was now meaningless? So you really can't blame me breaking down like that. After a few moments of crying I calmed myself down.

“Okay think, there must be something useful about this new body?” I said to no one in particular as I clumsily made my way out the bathroom and to the stairs, I sighed, “Oh boy this is gonna suck.” I climbed down the stairs carefully one step at a time until... “GAH!!” I shrieked as I fell down the last half of the stairs.

“...Ow!” I groaned, just typical I needed help and I knew it. I got up and shook off the fall, making my way to the living room, the TV was on the news channel, climbing onto the sofa I watched intensely for any information about my predicament.

Some help that was, all it told me that other people had been affected and changed in a similar way I had, one of the news readers had the nerve of calling us freaks. One thing that worried me greatly was the scenes of ponies like me being subject to horrific treatment. Some people were seen shocking some into submission, others tying ponies up and cracking them with a crowbar as if they were some sort of piñata, and the most distressing thing of all was several pictures of ponies with various gunshot wounds desperately trying to cling on to what little life they had left.

I thought about what this would mean for me, and I didn’t like where those thoughts had gone. I took little solace in the fact that I wasn’t the only person who had transformed like this.

The news reader continued on with the report, detailing that a few of the culprits responsible for some to the more cruel treatments were found beaten and bloody. They were screaming in agony as if they were reliving all their worst nightmares and memories all at once. One even looked completely brain dead, if his glazed over look was anything to go by.

“Has everypony gone insane?” I asked myself, did a good portion of humanity really have to such bastards about this? I jumped as the phone rang; I wanted to answer it but how could I? I didn't have hands anymore. Soon enough the answering machine took the message.

“Mark, just letting you know I'm coming round later, love Mom.” The machine spoke before ending with beep. “Oh fuck me and my life!” I cursed, why is it that whenever I find myself in an awkward situation something or someone will make it worse.

I swear someone upstairs is messing with me on purpose, and when I do get up there I am going to enjoy decking them...fuck that I'm killing them when I get up there.

Anyhow back to the situation at hand. I closed my now feminine expressive eyes deep in thought. I'm a mare now, a unicorn mare to be exact and if the news was to be believed I wasn't the only one changed like this. I took a little relief that I wasn't the only pony in this situation, despite the negative reaction of the public on the TV screen.

I got up from the sofa and took a better look at myself; I had no hands now just hooves...

”So how am I going to pick things up now? Hold them between my hooves?” I asked myself, looking back I saw my tail swishing to and fro lazily, “I could use my tail...but I don't think it'll be appropriate if I displayed myself to the world each time I wanted to pick up something. So that's out.”

So all that left was my mouth, just typical. “Okay then what else?” I continued to think for a moment. I couldn't concentrate with my stomach growling for food, sighing I made my way to the fridge.

I gave the fridge door a quick nudge to open it, and I was overwhelmed by the smell,

“Oh god was my sense of smell always this sensitive?” I took a few steps back overpowered by the new odours I smelt, whatever meat I had in there smelt awful. “Didn't I buy that meat fresh yesterday?” I wondered, looking back at it I didn't find ham appealing, but that salad on the other hand looks very yummy. I shook my head in confusion,

“Since when has a salad looked so tasty before?” I never was much of a salad person, only reason I made it was to go with the pasta I had the previous Thursday. “Meh. Foods food.” I picked up the bowl with my mouth and carried it into the living room.

Sitting down I began to eat...”Oh god it's like an orgasm in my mouth!” Now this was a surprise since when did salad taste this good. I happily chowed down on breakfast. I listened further to the news, just a few more cases of traffic accidents, and sadly further reports of abuse to those unfortunate ponies.

“Che, some people can be such a meanie pants.” I paused for a second, “Meanie pants?” Oh dear god that sounds like something kid would say. I guess I should tidy myself up a bit; I do after all still reek of sweat.

“Mm, a shower would do me wonders right now.” I made my way upstairs, placing the salad bowl in the kitchen sink as I passed; climbing up those stairs was easier than climbing down.

In my small bathroom, I turned on the water to my preferred temperature that tap had an awful metallic after taste. Now to get this shirt off, I tried pulling, biting and even attempting to rip my way through it, eventually after a lot of cursing the shirt was off although now in a lot of pieces I stepped into the shower and began to scrub my plush fur clean the best I could with these darned hooves. Unfortunately I soon found the soap, “GAH!!” I screamed as I slipped and fell onto my back.

“Ow, fuck that smarts!” I cursed, as I felt the warm water soak my plush underbelly. “O-oh! OH! OH GOD!!!” I moaned in bliss, what was causing that wonderful feeling. “T-this is new! A-ah fuck that feels good!” I looked down, the shower head had lowered a bit when I slipped, I must have kicked it without realising and now hovered by its hose over my...I blushed profusely and I tried to stand up, nearly tripping up on the soap once again. As good as that felt I’d rather not do that again…at least the falling down part anyway.

I turned the water off letting out a quick bleh at the taste and got out the shower. I tried everything to get dry but sadly all it ended in was a still slightly damp and slightly fuzzier fur.

I made my way downstairs, with another resounding squeal as I fell down once again. I groaned as I got back up, but unfortunately my horn had impaled the passage way cupboard door, meaning I was stuck. I struggled to get free from the door pulling as hard as I could to get free.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!” I heard someone shriek. I sighed this really wasn't my day was it?

“A little help would be nice you know.” There was a moment of silence between us,

“Mark?” In the passage way stood a slightly short middle aged woman, with curly dusty blonde hair and a similar eye colour to mine when I was still human. The woman nodded dumbstruck and helped me out of my current predicament.

“Thanks Mom.”

Mom looked down at me in confusion; it was hard for me to tell what she was thinking. How do you explain to your own mother that you changed species and gender overnight? Setting myself upright, I gestured to go into the living room,

“I'll explain in there, you'll want a seat for this.” I explained. Mom sat down upon the sofa, confusion still etched on her face, “So in a nutshell, I was feeling ill yesterday and this morning I woke up like this.” I explained simply,

“...okay you’re unicorn mare now that I get as weird as it sounds but...”Mom hesitated,

“But what?” I asked,

“Why do you look like a My Little Pony?” I swear she looked amused after saying that.

“...”

“...”

“...I'm sorry what?” I said in disbelief, “What you mean that old cartoon from the 80's?” I asked,

“Um, yes and no I think I should you should see this.” Mom changed the channel to the Hub network. On the screen was several pastel coloured ponies which some looked similar to myself aside from being you know I'm not a cartoon character. “This is the first episode apparently.” Mom stated simply, I watched on in curiosity until the end of the second episode where they use the Elements of Harmony to turn Nightmare Moon back into Princess Luna...

I watched eagerly at midnight blue alicorn on the screen, a small smile appeared on my face, I found Luna to be absolutely adorable.

“Mark....MARK!” I let out a squeak in surprise,

“Um...yes Mom.” I answered a little timidly; Mom eyed me down with on brow raised,

“Anything catch your interest?” She asked amused.

“No, Mom. It's show for little girls, why would I enjoy it?” I lied,

“Oh no reason beside the fact you were humming along to the theme tune, and seemed very happy watching it.” I blushed a bit.

“Never mind that!” I wouldn't admit it to her, but I did kind of enjoy it. Mom looked at the state of my fuzzy plush fur and dishevelled mane and tail,

“I think we need to sort that fur and hair of yours. Come here.” Mom patted the cushion beside her; reluctantly I got up and laid down on the cushion. Mom began sorting out my fur, brushing and straightening out my plush fur, this felt really, really good. I let out a sigh of contentment as she continued brushing me; no wonder cats liked getting stroked.

“What should I do about your mane?” Mom asked,

“I want it like Luna's.” I said excitedly, Mom laughed a little.

“I thought you didn't like that little girl’s show?” She teased; oh crap did I just say that? I swear that's my worst habit, speaking without thinking...

Mom continued brushing and styling my mane, when she was done my mane although shorter was similar enough to Luna's mane style. I peered into a nearby mirror and giggled a bit when I saw my new mane style, Mom just gave me a funny look.

“What? Can't I look cute?” I giggled again, and soon stopped myself since when did I giggle at anything

“I think we need to get you to a doctor, or is it a vet in your case?” Mom joked,

“Oh ha-hah, very funny.” I dead panned, my mood worsened once again by what she meant by that harmless joke. She looked at me worryingly, “Mom have you seen the news recently, regarding how others in my situation are being treated?” I asked, Mom just nodded and hugged me. Again I felt tears forming, “Mom...I-I'm scared...”

The last thing I needed now was another emotional breakdown; I always suffered from them whenever I got significantly stressed, I did my best to keep my mother from finding out about them and only one of my friends knew I suffered from them and that I was seeing a psychologist to help me with my more personal problems.

Everyone always thought I was always in calm, collected and in control of myself. I can tell you I’m the opposite from that, you could say I hide myself behind as mask, but that’s another story altogether.

“Shush now, it'll be alright.” Mom reassured me. “I'm sure the doctor will be able to help, I'll make sure nothing happens to you.” I was crying again, I couldn't help it. Here I am frightened beyond all belief and crying like a child in front of my mother.

Mom spent the next half an hour trying to reassure me everything will be okay. I got the feeling she knew why I was so emotional at the moment, but she chose to say nothing regarding it.

Mark - after transformation.

Author's Note

I've slowly going through and rewriting the story so that the later chapters make a bit more sense. I'll be adding a suprise for each chapter as I go through each one. Enjoy

• Silent.