Level 4 Compromises

At this point, Twilight Sparkle had already begun deep research into smallpox. Of course, it didn't come as a surprise to her when she found that it traveled via the air, because, like most viruses, it had chosen the deadliest path possible. She hadn't thought much about it. It traveled by air, so what? So did the common cold, and there was no reason this was any different.

It wasn't until Celestia was notified about Creston's conditions that smallpox was being taken seriously.

"Sheriff, you've called me before! What do you need now? We've got a surplus of food if you need- Wait...what are you talking about? What's happened over there?" The following half-hour chat resulted in an immediate confrontation with the nation's top biologist. "Twilight, go back to Creston. Things have gone south, and fast." She made a mental facehoof at the pun she just made (the Griffon Nation was to the south of Equestria). Twilight immediately packed her equipment and booked it to Creston, where she found quite easily the most heart-wrenching scene possible.

The town was in pretty good condition. Contrary to how most abandoned towns are framed, the houses and streets were not ravaged. It looked like an ordinary town. It was just, well, empty. But it was full at the same time. In her bio suit, Twilight was lucky enough to not smell the overwhelming stench of death and decay as she approached. Her stomach grew sick. While none of these griffons were her friends, she felt extremely sorrowful for them. In their own company, they never knew how fast it'd go. The disease spread fast, and- Oh, no. Twilight's heart stopped, chills going up and down her spine. There was no way the last griffons saw what was happening around them and stayed. They must have left, meaning that...Twilight's eyes widened. The entire griffon population was at stake.

"No..no no no no no!" she murmured, but she already knew it was over. For every griffon with the disease, at least 5 more would get infected in a day. AT LEAST. Despite her sorrow, Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. Equestria was usually off limits to griffons, and they only meddled in our business when it came to a national threat. This was a sad day, for sure, but in that moment, Twilight felt truly grateful that her nation had been spared.

Gilda had shut herself up at home, crying relentlessly for hours on end. Tissues lay everywhere, and her eyes were red from her sobbing. It was understandable. Her mother's final words to her were sorrowful, sincere, and full of warning. Gilda could only imagine what terrible fate had befallen her parents. She didn't know what had happened to them or why it had. Her thoughts were dark and regretful. Why hadn't I helped before?! I should have talked to them more! Gilda sank into depression and she grew only angrier with herself. And to top it all off, she thought, I have a headache.

Twilight began experimenting with smallpox. She knew what it was now, and she had found what it could do. Now it was all about the vaccine. But she needed to know if there was a vaccine. According to the history she researched, there was not. What was done, however, was take cowpox, a pox that effects cows mercilessly but is harmless to humans, and inject it into the bloodstream, so the immune system begins to put up defenses against pox. It's not a solution, but something to quarantine an area with. Perhaps, she thought, it wouldn't be necessary. If ponies simply keep out of the Griffon Nation, then it wouldn't spread. However, that didn't stop griffons from flying out. However, nothing lived in the town. Anything that had survived smallpox had died of thirst soon after, because almost everything around it was dead.

In the following days, Twilight issued quarantines under the watch of Princess Celestia. Equestria was told the virus was non-lethal to ponies, but in case it was, it was lowering the risk. Of course, no pony knew if that was true or not, not even Twilight. It'd be a matter of time, and however many idiots decided to cross into Equestria.

Gilda had finally decided to go out, despite the bad headache. Groceries, entertainment, or just local news, she had to do something. But she was the vent for smallpox in Ponyville, where smallpox's impact in Equestria started. Every cough or sneeze could hold up to billions of virus particles. Like a great steel mill, she threw the virus everywhere, but she coughed up  a pollution much worse than smoke.

Twilight soon discovered, however, there was no cowpox. It existed back on Earth, but on their planet, cowpox wasn't around. There was no real way to contain the virus. Even if quarantined, it would fester in the griffon's land until weather and time took their tolls, and the containment was breached. Now, it was only a matter of protecting Equestria.

Many ponies began moving into Canterlot, and because they moved early, they were not infected with smallpox. This would eventually lead to a "final stand" against smallpox. They were all afraid that any cities near the Griffon Nation would become victims of the new virus. However, the clueless ones, who made up more than half of the population, remained as happy as they had always been, while the smallpox predator hunted, its steely eyes looking, searching for a new target. Prey would be found. And it would be found fast.