Luna of the Dead

She tried to be positive, to find the bright side to things, but she couldn't. She wanted to keep going, for her, but it felt impossible to find the strength. Every step she took was one more without her sister, and it broke her heart. What was the point of continuing on if her family wasn't with her? She had left everything on that apple orchard. Everypony she ever loved. For what?

"Apple Bloom." Apple Bloom hadn't realized that she fell so far back. She quickly trotted back to Spike and Luna. "Are you alright little one?

"Yeah Luna, fine..." she trailed off. "Just thinkin'."

"If there is anything we can do to help..."

"Nah, ah'm alright, really. It just hurts."

Luna knew what the filly was feeling. She herself had felt the pain of losing one's family not one week ago. The only reason she had kept going was to fulfill her sisters last request: to find Twilight Sparkle and save Equestria. That promise could not be kept, but she now had a new reason to keep going. She had to save these two; to protect them from certain death. All Apple Bloom needed was her own purpose, her own reason to live.

"Listen, over there!" Spike was pointing to a large, white building off of the street. The two ponies turned to look where he was pointing, and they heard what sounded like a door being slammed shut. "It's coming from Rarity's Boutique" he said quietly. They all quickly ran into an alleyway to avoid being noticed.

"Do ya think it could be a zombie?"

"We do not know Apple Bloom. It could have been anything: a survivor, a zombie, even a wild animal. We just don't know."

Spike crept his head around the corner, trying to see through the window of the boutique. A dark shape passed in front of it, and he jumped back to Apple Bloom and Luna.

"There is definitely something in there" he said. They all grew really still, trying to decide what to do now.

"We could go in there. Ah bet we could take it"

"No, we do not know how many are in there, and too much noise could attract a horde."

"We could try and sneak in; get the drop on whatever is in there."

"Possible, but we don't know if it'll notice us. It could get really dangerous."

"Ya could fly in and.... no, never mind. Ah forgot about yer wing."

Luna looked out towards the boutique. She made sure there weren't any zombies nearby before saying, "Alright, let us go and check it out."

They sneaked past the street and through the field leading up to the boutique. The street was littered with debris, wreckage, and bodies, but the boutique was clean, tidy, and the grass even looked mowed. Luna was puzzled, but she kept the current task on mind. The pressed up against the building, and Luna peered through the window. She didn't see anything, and moved to the front door. She put her ear to the door, but didn't hear anything but silence. With Spike and Apple Bloom close behind, and her shotgun out and loaded, she began opening the door. The door easily swung open without so much as a creak, and Luna leaned her head out. A loud *BANG* sounded, and a bullet flew into the ground just beneath Luna's head. Luna whipped her head back into cover, heart racing. She took a second to catch her breath before turning back and firing three shots into the dark building. She regained cover and reloaded just before the nearby window exploded and a bullet flew through Luna's front leg. She fell to the ground, writhing in pain, when a voice called out.

"Who the hell is out there? SHOW YOURSELVES!" Spike rushed over to Luna and grabbed a towel out of the duffel bag. Apple Bloom was pressing herself against the boutique as hard as she could when three more shots blasted through the thin wall. "GET THE HELL OUT HERE! SHOW YOURSELVES NOW!"

Spike finished wrapping the towel around the unconscious Luna's front right leg. He stood up, took a big gulp, and walked into the empty door frame with his claws in the air.

He stood there, trembling in terror, knowing that he could be killed at any moment. It seemed like an eternity that he stood there, and it only ended when a loud, fabulous voice cried out, "SPIKY!"