The Infected World

Nopony knows how it started. Some say that the first one was a pony royal who lived near Canterlot and just went insane. Others say that the original was a mailmare in Ponyville but the one thing most agree is that once it started, there was nothing that could stop it. One by one, ponies fell to what became known as the carrion plague due to the creatures that were attacking corpses. It didn’t matter how how much you tried to protect yourself from it, one bite or even a single scratch that breaks your skin causes you to die and come back as one of those… monsters. But somehow, I’ve survived this living Tatarus. Ever since this outbreak started three years ago. And now, I’d like to tell you my story.

It begins about three years after the initial beginning of the outbreak and me, I was walking the streets of a ruined town called ‘Ponyville’. As it was well known for being home to several of our greatest heroes at one point I felt a little disheartened when I saw how desolate and decaying it looked. The weirdest thing though was the giant tree in the center of town. Sorry. Where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Iron Heart. I am a seventeen year old Pegasus stallion. My fur is tinted iron while my mane and tail is long, spiky and colored oil black. My eyes or… eye is a light blue, almost white in fact. My cutie mark is a heart being covered by an iron shell. I used to live in Canterlot but soon left it for it became a large hunting ground for the infected. I was among the few that managed to escape the first wave of infected the moment they entered the city but not without a heavy price. Many of my friends became either food for the infected or they were merely assimilated into the horde of monsters. This was also around the time I lost my eye during an escape….. Sorry. I just start rambling when I think about the past and I get trapped thinking of it.

Anyway, I walked through the streets of Ponyville and saw the carnage this town went through. Half or fully eaten corpses littered the streets, buildings were barred up or were set in flames, and wrecked carriages covered the roads. But those weren’t why I came here. In a world like this, scavenging is how you survive. So usually I saw an opened door on every few buildings but didn’t want to risk an infected ripping out my throat. I then noticed a building that seemed to be made out of cookies and knew that was where I had to start. So as I approached the building, I drew out my firepony’s axe that I found before I left Canterlot. I gently pushed open the door so that I wouldn’t make any noise that would startle any nearby infected and walked in to check the place out. So far it was nothing more than a deli place that seemed to be loaded with every form of sugary sweet food you could think of… and they were years old. I mean white mold covered them like a pastry infection, the smell of rotten frosting and cream fillings floated through the air from these foods, and they looked like they were hard as rocks. I was hungry but I wasn’t insane enough to eat those.

I feel sorry for whoever owned this place. I bet they had a load of customers before everything went to Tartarus. I thought as I looked around the place. I was about to move… before I heard the sound of flesh being eaten. I carefully turned around and I saw… one of them. It was a yellow stallion and he seemed to be eating the corpse of a light blue mare with pinkish hair. As I observed the infected and the corpse, I sighed in sadness at what I saw. On the corpse’s and the infected’s ring finger, there were golden bands with a diamonds in the center.  I sighed as I hefted the heavy ax over my head and swung it down on the undead monster’s head, killing it instantly. I then sent a silent prayer to Celestia that she watch over his and the mare’s soul. As I pulled my axe from the creature’s skull, it fell next to the corpse, laying its arm across her open chest.

True love lasts forever. Even during an apocalypse. I thought as I sheathed my axe. Acting quick, I went into the kitchen area of the shop and looked around for any food. I opened the doors to the cabinets, opened the oven, even searched the refrigerator. But yet, no food in sight anywhere in this damned place! I would settle for the flesh of the infected if it didn’t mean sudden death when devoured.

When I looked through the window of the building, I then saw a farm out in the distance and it appeared to be whole and healthy. Not a single bad fruit on it’s trees but of course this could be a hallucination as many others had suffered the same things from lack of food and water that they even…. ate other ponies. I shuddered but decided the risk was worth it.

I then headed out of the bakery and towards the farm which stood out from this whole place. But as I headed there, I wondered if there’s any survivors at the farm. I remember a few weeks ago, a kind elderly mare allowed me to stay with her if I kept the infected off of her property. So hopefully, there’s somepony here that will help me. As I neared the entrance of the farm, I saw a rusty metallic sign that hung by a rusty chain.

Sweet Apple Acres? I’ve heard about this place. Says that this place has the greatest apple cider in all of Equestria. I thought as I stared at the sign as it swung in the wind. It seemed like such a shame that even this place had fallen to decay. The sign swung back and forth for a bit before it finally snapped free from it’s chains and fell to the ground at my hooves. I walked forward towards what appeared to be the healthiest apple tree in the whole field. The apples were nice and plump making my mouth water. As I got closer, though, I noticed a pony was chained to the tree almost like he was a guard dog or something.

As I observed the pony, I saw that he was muscular, must’ve been from years of working on the farm. His fur was red and even stained dark red with blood. His mane and tail were orange and he was simply wearing a pair of torn blue jeans. I then noticed, clear as day, a bite mark on his arm. Slowly, I drew my axe and approached the stallion.

“Hey. Are you dead?” I joked as I slowly moved my axe towards him like an animal trainer with an alligator. But before my blade even touched his skin, the stallion came alive and released a screech I will never forget.

“YYYYEEEEEEEAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!” The sound was one of the loudest and most frightening sounds I will ever hear. It was bone chilling to say the least and soul shaking at the most. I watched as the stallion snapped his jaws at me, blood dripping from his lips with every snap.

“Celestia please find a place in your heaven for this poor soul.” I whispered as I brought up the axe but before I could bring it down, the stallion snapped from his chains. I tried to react fast enough but the stallion tackled me before I could even get another swing ready. Me and him skidded across the dirt before coming to a stop at the entrance of the farm. Using all the strength I had, I held back the stallion’s snapping head. I tried to hold him back as hard as I could and I saw his eyes. His faded, soulless eyes that shown that no pony was left in this shell that was once a living pony.

I soon felt him starting to break my axe and I knew that once it was gone my only chance at survival was gone. He was merely inches from my face when he suddenly stopped as I heard a loud ‘THUMP’ sound emanating from his head. I looked up and saw an arrow going right through his forehead and the stallion slumped to the ground dead. I rolled his now lifeless body off of me and quickly got back on my hooves. But as soon as I did, I felt an arrow press up against my back.

“Ah wouldn’t move if Ah were ya’.” I heard a southern voice growl at me. I then quickly brought my hands up.

“Look, I’m not here for trouble. I just wanted some food and then I’ll leave.” I said, hoping to fool whoever was probably about to shoot an arrow through my body.

“Now turn around nice and slow like.” The voice ordered and I did so but slowly. The origin of the voice was a yellow earth pony mare that looked around sixteen or seventeen with a red mane tied back with a red bow. She held a crossbow in her hands and a murderous glint in her eyes that told ‘I’m not afraid to kill you’.

“L-Look, I swear I am-” I tried to get out. But then the mare moved the crossbow up to my adam’s apple.

“Lookin’ fer food. Ah know. But how do Ah know Ah can trust ya’?” She asked as she pressed the crossbow a little bit closer to my throat.

“Here’s what I’m going to do. I’ll place my axe down, and you can drop the crossbow.” I suggested and got a crossbow bolt near my head as a response. I gulped as there was already another bolt in place already. The weapon was repositioned at my head once more.

“Or how about ya’ drop tha’ axe and Ah keep the crossbow?” She asked and I agreed with it. Slowly, I moved down to the ground and placed my axe on the soil next to me. I then got back up and held my hands in the air.

“Is that better?” I asked her. Luckily she moved her crossbow a little bit farther from my head.

“Better. Now, if ya’ want food, come with meh and Ah’ll set ya’ up with some nice, homemade Apple Pie.” She replied making my stomach growl. I willingly followed her as we walked towards the house in the distance but what bothered me was the undead corpses lying around with arrows placed in their heads but in very strategic positions. I knew this mare was good with a crossbow but how is she that good?