Chapters Chapter 1 The Mountainside
Chapter 1 The Mountainside (Michael)
Michael’s curly auburn mane flopped in front of his face. The light wind pushed it out of his eyes. His brown eyes scanned the landscape. It was depressing.
He stood on a rock overlooking a once beautiful land. Fields of wheat were scattered across along with small farm houses and barns. Two very small, dull colored and cracked roads were constructed throughout the grouping of farms. Michael shook his head and turned away from the ugly sight. His right eye caught something.
“Damn.” Michael breathed. His right lens of his glasses was broken. “When did that happen?” He wondered. There were so many times he could have broken the fragile glass, he lost count. He trotted off the rock, the slow clops echoing in the valley. Michael could picture a scolding from Ryan for not being more cautious. Michael rolled his eyes at his imaginary friend.
As Michael traveled along the mountain side he came across a river. The water was most likely tainted and not worth the trouble, but Michael trotted over to it anyway.
His mind was right, it was tainted, but Michael could get a look at himself. Boy had he changed. His hair was longer and tougher to deal with; faint facial hair was making its way onto his once smooth face. His eyes were still brown but had seen many gruesome things over the past few…how long ago was it? Six-no, seven months? That sounded about right. His orange coat was matted with blood and sweat in certain places. His wings were bigger and he hadn’t preened them in a long time. When you lived in an apocalyptic world not many people cared about appearance. He was taller and more mature, too.
The orange Pegasus opened his blood covered wings. He stuck out his tongue in disgust. Michael dropped a hoof in the bronze colored water and cleaned out his wings. Maroon colored water ended up as the result. He straightened out his feathers and gently flapped his wings. When was the last time he used them? It seemed like forever.
Michael took flight but almost immediately fell back down. The wind factor plus the fact he hadn’t flown in ages, he barely stayed in flight. He shook his head and slowly touched back down. He folded his wings back in. “Forget it.” He said with a sigh. Michael turned around and walked away from the river.
“Nnnrgghh…” a loud groaning sounding to the far right of Michael. His head whipped to that side, an intimidating growl emitting from his throat. A pale gray mare was limping over to him. Her back left leg looked broken, bent at an angle it definitely shouldn’t have been. Bits of flesh were ripped from her coat, revealing the bright white color of bone. A knife was impaled into her right eye. Blood dripped from the still flesh wound. Michael assumed somepony had wounded her and used that as their escape. That or they thought they could get away…
“You here to make my life more difficult?” He asked her. He didn’t expect an answer. “Like it isn’t hard enough.” Michael scoffed. He reached into his saddle back and grabbed a knife. Even after he had finally grabbed the small lethal object, the mindless pony was still a good four feet away.
The grass underneath her hooves bent back as her hoof made contact with it. She was blind in one eye, severely wounded in her leg, and several bite marks lined her neck, yet she still persisted, not giving up. Michael waited for her to approach him, not wanted to rush in and accidently get bitten. He was sure he wouldn’t have been if he did go out with his plan but one thing Michael learned throughout his new life was that you never went in without caution. You always doubted yourself before making a dumb move.
The gray mare opened her mouth and Michael swore her bottom jaw would fall off right away at any contact. Her teeth were gross and rotting. “It is definitely cringe-worthy.” Michael smiled, the handle of the knife still clenched within his teeth, remembered what Ray would have said. What he would have said back when life was simple. What he would have said back when they hadn’t had to survive on their own, trying to get away from zombies.
When she leapt towards his neck, Michael slammed his hooves on her shoulders, pushing her down. The pony tried to get back up but was stopped when Michael slammed the blade into the neck of the zombie. The red liquid gushed out from the puncture wound. She squealed but the squealing soon became gurgling as blood and saliva filled her throat. Under any other circumstance, Michael would have considered murder despicable and wrong and so many other things. But this creature in front of him wasn’t a person. It didn’t have a mind or soul or will, it just killed.
Michael grabbed the end of the knife and yanked, pulling it free of the skin. The gurgling and squealing ended and her body stopped squirming. It fell limp. Michael slid the bloodied knife back into his saddle bag and backed away from the body. Before walking away, Michael opened his mouth and spit at her and walked off.
………
The Pegasus stoked the small campfire, causing orange sparks to shoot out. He lay down on the ground, admiring the flame. The orange and red swirled together, putting on a show for him. The sparks popped and sizzled, reminding Michael of some type of weird music. His face and chest were heating up and Michael had to blink to regain focus. He backed farther away from the fire. He had gotten enough heat for now.
Michael looked around him. Trees were dotted everywhere. They were dense in population and when they grouped together they looked like a wall. The forest was dead silent until a crow cawed in a tree above him. Michael’s head flew up to where the crow was at. The black bird stared back at him. After a good minute stare, the black bird flapped its wings and flew away. “I’m all alone,” Michael huffed. “Once again.” This brought back painful memories.
[Flashback]
BANG! BANG! The door shook with each violent blow. “We have to get out of here!” Jack yelled.
[End of Flashback]
Michael flinched at the painful memory. “Forget, Michael. Just forget.” He encouraged himself. “But I can’t!” He snapped back at himself. The Pegasus shook his head. “Don’t let it get to you, Michael. Don’t want to become a Crazie.” He said.
Michael rolled on his side and used his free wing as a blanket. “Maybe someday I can afford a nice quilt from Baltimare. Some prismatic … color … some type … of comfy-,” Michael, against his will, blacked out.
………
Michael jumped up. “Shit! Damn it! I fell asleep!” Michael hissed at himself. He glanced around him. No zombies, no people, no Crazies, no nothing. The fire had gone out, too, and was just ash. Michael guessed it was probably seven in the morning as a light fog was floating just above the ground.
The orange Pegasus raised a hoof to his neck. No bite mark, which was good. But there was blood. “What the hell?!” He breathed. “The fuck caused this?”
Michael walked over to a puddle and looked at himself. A red mark was across his neck and was still fresh. Michael leaned in to get a better look. A large “4” was printed on his neck. “W-what?” Michael stammered. “Four? What does that mean?”
The number appeared to be printed with some type of machine. Michael ran his hoof over the wound, this time with pressure. “Yowch!” He howled. Michael used his other front hoof to gather waterand lightly brushed the wet hoof over his scab. “FUCK!” Michael hissed.
The pain was searing, like someone was pouring gallons of peroxide onto it. “Gah! I’m done!” Michael stopped trying to heal himself. “I don’t know what caused this but I sure as hell am going to find out!”
Author's Note
I was just anxious and really wanted to post this. I know there are probably a couple of grammar mistakes or things I should have re-written but my editer hadn't responded yet and I got (like I said) anxious. Thanks! See ya next chapter hopefully!
Chapter 2 The City (Geoff)
“At the gates! Ring the bell!” Geoff hollered. His head dropped down to his satchel as he undid the buckle. Geoff’s teeth grasped a spiked baton. He trotted forward on the cobble streets, wielding his weapon. The other civilians cowered inside the building. The city gates were being pounded on, almost ready to five in.
“Ring the damn bell!” Geoff growled. “What’s the problem?”
The gates rocked with loud ‘thumps’. Zombies were starting to get in. “Ugh…god dammit. You want something done ya gotta do it yourself.” He sighed. Geoff opened his wings, prepared to take flight.
The dark blue Pegasus flapped his wings and rose above the street. “RODNEY! GETCHER’ LAZY ASS OVER HERE AND HELP ME!” Geoff growled loudly. A red Pegasus came madly flapping over to Geoff. He had a spiky gray mane and tail and violet eyes. A pickaxe was strapped to his hind quarters where a cutiemark depicting an art pallet and a brush was shown.
He was scraped and bruised but in better shape than Geoff. Though a pretty nasty chunk of his front fore hoof was missing. “Yes Commander Ramsey?” Rodney asked. His voice was scratchy and weak. “The fuck you been? Been calling you for a damn while.” Geoff warned. “S-sorry, sir. Marie and Sten needed help with-,” “Screw it with excuses.” Geoff commanded. Rodney gulped and nodded. “Y-yes, sir.” Geoff raised a hoof at his pickaxe. “Grab it. Ye’ll need it.” The blue Pegasus flew over to where the horde was gathering.
Rodney and Geoff cleared out the horde, glad to see there weren’t many. Both landed back down on the road when Sabbath arrived. “Ah…glad to see you finally joined us.” Geoff said. Sabbath grinned. It was an eerie sight. Most of his teeth had fallen out even before the incident and were replaced with gold ones. He had an emo style hair cut where the top was a gray and the deeper roots were black. He was an earth pony with money and a beer bottle as a cutiemark. Tattoos covered his forelegs consisting of snakes, skulls, drinks, and other explicit content. A large gash was tearing through his back left leg. He had no eyes, only scares. He relied mainly on smell but had good hearing, too.
In his previous life, Sabbath was a pimp. Geoff usually avoided Sabbath, he was his best fighter, but he certainly wasn’t a good pony. Sabbath had lived in Manehattan. His night club was popular in the neighborhood, earning him large amounts of dough.
Sabbath didn’t socialize much. He rarely talked and if he did, it was only a short conversation with Hans, his bodyguard. Hans was a heavy built unicorn stallion with blonde hair and a telescope for a cutiemark. Geoff didn’t know much of Hans’ story besides that he was German, had worked for Sabbath at the club, and was gay. Sabbath often gave Hans a hard time for being a homosexual but never harmed him physically.
“Let’s head up further north. See if they did any damage.” Geoff suggested. Sabbath and Rodney followed Geoff over to the gate. “The gate’s demolished.” Rodney said. Geoff nodded while Sabbath remained silent as usual.
The metal was bent forward, facing Geoff and the others. The wood was broken in half or pierced with knives. Dents were also covering the metal plating and the barbed wire was strung from a downed telephone pole, mocking them.
“How the hell did the pull that off?” Geoff wondered aloud. Sabbath’s ears perked up. He heard a faint zap. “Electric fence.” Sabbath spoke, startling Rodney. Geoff looked at him confused. “W-wh-,” “The electric fence. It’s off.” He raised a green hoof at the sparking wire. It had been cut.
“Oh shit! Rodney! Inform Jay and Sten. Get them over here.” Rodney nodded and galloped off. “Sabbath, get Hans. We might need brute force.” Sabbath turned and trotted over to Hans. Geoff explored the fence’s perimeter looking for anything else.
A zombie was at one of the gates. “Fuck! One already got in!” He cursed himself. Geoff pulled out his baton and slowly approached the zombie. He poked it with the baton’s black front. No noise erupted. It didn’t move. ‘Dead? Huh?’
Geoff got a closer look at the zombie. It was a young Pegasus filly with a blonde mane and a light purple coat. She hadn’t developed a cutiemark yet. She reminded Geoff of his young daughter. Her and his wife, Griffon, had been instructed to go to a safety camp in France. There wasn’t enough room for everyone but Geoff had paid a lot of bits to make sure they’d be safe.
“Oh Millie.” Geoff said, missing his daughter. Geoff was about to turn away when something caught his eye. A fairly large puncture wound. “She wasn’t stabbed but if she…oh my god.” Geoff’s eyes widened. A rustle came from the bushes on the other side of the fence. Before Geoff could react, a stallion jumped out from the brush. Several others followed. Mares and stallions wearing vests, satchels, and bandanas. All but one were unicorn. The one Pegasus carried a heavy shotgun and wore a badge.
“BANDITS!” Geoff dove for cover. He ended up sliding up behind the metal gate. Bullets shot out from the weaponry, completely shattering the wood like it was glass. Loud thumps came from the gate where the bullets hadn’t been able to pass through.
Geoff could hardly control his breathing. Every minutes, endless bullets were wasted on the fence. There were persistent. Determined to see Geoff dead.
‘Fuck off!’ he thought. ‘They won’t get me.’ Geoff glanced through the wires. “Any second now, Rodney will-,” Geoff felt a crippling pain in his right side. The blue Pegasus looked down. “Aaah…” he whispered. A red splotch was forming.
His hooves gripped the wounded side. “Fuckers shot me. Damn.” Geoff tried to find the bullet. He’d need to get it out for it to start healing.
Geoff felt something solid in his skin. A warm, bloodied, lead piece. He opened his teeth and bit down on the top of the bullet. His teeth felt tingly from the metal.
Geoff pulled it out and spat it on the asphalt. The road to recovery would be long and painful…
………
‘Daddy?’ a squeaky girlish voice called.
“Geoff.” A soothing woman’s voice cooed.
“Daddy! Where are you daddy?”
“Why’d you leave us dear? The sanctuary is hell.” Griffon’s voice teased.
“You’re too late Geoff. You failed us.”
“Why’d you do this to me, Daddy?”
Geoff leapt up from his cot. He was still in the infirmary at the base. A large roll of medical tape was on the floor. Bloody rags were in the sink. ‘Not a very comforting sight.’ He thought. His bullet wound was bandaged. It felt a little better.
Geoff lifted a hoof to his head. His body was in a cold sweat and his head was aching. “Stupid nightmare!” Geoff cussed.
He felt a new pain but this time in his neck. “Huh?” The blue Pegasus ran hoof around his neck. He winced. Geoff lifted himself off the cot and limped to a mirror. The number ‘1’ was printed on his neck. “What the fuck? Who did this?"
Author's Note
Well its finally here. The problem, as I mentioned in my blog post and the comments, I was lazy. Got it posted, though. Currently have about 1/5 of the third chapter done which is about Jack and Ryan. Its called "A Dead End". Hope the people who are following this story, which aren't many, are excited for another chapter. Thanks
Chapter 3 A Dead End (Jack and Ryan)
The sun was beginning to set. The road was cracked and falling apart. Bodies littered the asphalt, baking from the still risen sun. It was unbearably hot. And the smell of the burning bodies that were already decaying made Jack want to puke. “Gah…it’s nasty.” He groaned. Jack received a slight nod from his partner in crime.
Ryan was quiet. More quiet than usual. “You okay?” Jack asked. He normally didn’t bother asking that, he knew Ryan wasn’t. He had lost something so dear to him. Something would always bug his mind, wretch his heart, and sicken his stomach.
It may have been a month ago. A good amount of time in this new world. A good amount of time to show you survived. But it had been a month. A month since he lost his daughter.
[Flashback]
“Ah! Daddy!”
THUD!
[End of Flashback]
Just the thought brought a tear to Ryan’s eyes. His head lowered somberly. ‘Never should have mentioned that.’ Jack thought. “Hey. It’s alright…” Jack lied. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t have any children. “Sorry I brought that up, Ryan.” The green unicorn apologized. “N-no, it-it’s fine.” Ryan shook his head. He lifted it and used his foreleg to wipe away the tears.
“I know you’re taking it tough, it’s a hurtful experience, but we need to keep going. Think positive. Think like…uh…” Jack racked his brain for optimistic people. “Uh…” Ryan answered for him. “Like Ray?” He said with a sniffle. Jack nodded. “Yeah…like Ray.” Jack smiled. Ryan did, too.
And for once, in a long while, they felt a little, tiny, small drop of hope.
………
Jack opened his eyes. He felt like they were going to collapse on him. “Up. Get up, Jack.” He told himself. The unicorn gave himself a violent shake and rose to his hooves. He let out a fairly long yawn. Jack looked around him.
The fire was out. It remained as twigs and ashes. ‘Good.’ He thought. ‘Won’t draw any attention.’ Jack looked for Ryan. But he couldn’t find him. The blue earth pony was nowhere to be found. Jack was going to shout for him but quickly changed his mind. ‘That’d be a stupid idea. Why don’t you run around and ask for trouble?’
He had to squint, he couldn’t find his glasses. He patted his hoof around where he slept. “Now where did I-,” Jack heard a quiet crack under his hoof. “Yup. Those are my glasses.” Jack levitated the glasses to his face and placed them on his snout. A large crack was in the left frame. “Fuck.” He said quietly. “That’ll make it more difficult.”
Jack searched for Ryan. Who knew how long he had been up? If he had tried to run away, he could be miles from where Jack was. ‘Stop it Jack.’ He told himself. ‘This is Ryan. He wouldn’t just abandon you.’ He assured himself.
“Ryan?” Jack called. He made sure to be quiet. He didn’t need a horde chasing him down. “Hey? Ryan? You out here?” Jack’s eyes surveyed the landscape. He would be around here somewhere. He just knew it.
But the land remained still. Quiet. Creepy. Jack didn’t like it. It send a shiver up his spine. He felt like he was being watched. His head whipped behind him. It was very dark and Jack couldn’t see well but he swore he spotted a silhouette of a pony. They looked to be thirty feet from him. ‘Stop it Jack. You’re just paranoid. It’s playing tricks on your mind.’
But no matter what he told himself, Jack couldn’t shake the feeling he was being stalked. ‘Find Ryan. That’s all that is important.’ The green stallion trotted away from all of their supplies and went further out. “Why did I do that? If there really was someone out there they can take all of our stuff. Dammit Jack.” He cursed himself.
His grumbling stopped when he heard a light whimper. Where was it coming from? A very quiet sob was coming from a pony. Jack blinked several times and let his eyes adjust. ‘What the hell? Who is crying?’ Jack poked around. As Jack lightly walked forward, the crying got slightly louder and distinct. It sounded like a young colt.
He spotted a lump. The lump would slowly rise and fall with each whimper. Jack, very cautiously, poked the pony. The crying immediately ceased as Jack did so. A light hazel eye revealed itself. The pupils shrunk down to a tiny size at the sight of the green stallion. Both remained quiet. “Hey,” Jack said calmly. The colt was still frozen in position. “Hey, I’m not going to hurt you.” He reassured.
The colt eyed him down. “I’m not a zombie. I’m not a bandit. I’m not a Crazie.” Jack gave him the most reassuring smile he could muster. The colt’s lip quivered. A few tears cascaded down his cheek. Jack lifted up a hoof to wipe the tears away but the young pony pulled back. “I’m just looking for my friend.”
He didn’t respond. “Alright. I’ll leave you be.” Jack began to walk away. “Wait!” A little scratchy voice called. Jack looked behind him. The colt was standing. Jack could get a better view of the boy. His legs were fairly long and gangly, he reached Jack’s shoulder. His mane was a light green with a few black lowlights. His eyes and his coat were brown. He was a Pegasus.
His wings were fairly large for his size and covered almost his entire flank. The feathers were splayed out and jagged, not belonging where they should have. A few bruises and scrapes ran about his body but there were no large wounds.
Jack helped the shivering colt up. “You alright?” He asked. The colt nodded. “You sure?” The colt didn’t respond at first. He glanced up at Jack and shook his head. “What happened?” Jack light nuzzled his neck. The young Pegasus flinched at the contact. Jack pulled away.
The colt sniffled. “M-My…my,” he lightly whimpered “z-z-zomb-bie…k-killed my…my g-grandma.” He cried into Jack’s shoulder. The stallion’s eyes went wide in surprise. Just a few minutes ago the colt wanted no part of Jack.
“Hey,” Jack draped a leg around his neck. “It’s okay. If it makes you feel any better, we’re all going through a tough time.” The colt looked up. “W-why would t-that make me…me feel better?” Jack shrugged. “I actually don’t know why. Just something people say.” “Used to say.” The sadden colt corrected.
Jack kneeled next to him. “Y-know, I think you should cut it out with the negativity. I wasn’t very optimistic before either. But that’s because my friend Ray and my friend Gavin were. But we got separated. And it’s my job to be positive.” Jack rose to his hooves. “Okay?” The tall colt nodded.
“C’mon, I’m sure Ryan’s around here somewhere.” The two walked in silence down the road. “What’s your name?” Jack asked. “I’m Grayson. Yours?” Gray asked. “Jack.” Jack held out a hoof. They shook.
“What’s your friend like?” Grayson asked.
Jack was hesitant to respond. Ryan, in his current state, was depressed, lonely, and scared. But that wasn’t the Ryan that Jack used to know, wasn’t the Ryan he knew before the incident.
“He’s…well he…he’s not doing well. Something terrible happened and he’s having a hard time coping with it. He used to be funny, happy, and really smart. Well, he still is smart now but he just isn’t the same nowadays.” Jack said.
Grayson looked around. “Where is he? Where’d he go?” He asked. “I have no clue. His stuff is still at the camp so he couldn’t have left completely, not that Ryan would do that anyway.”
Before Grayson could say anything, Jack put a hoof up against his mouth. “Whdut dhis dfur?” Gray asked. “Shh…we’re being followed.” Jack could sense it. The fur on the back of his neck was standing on end. Jack cautiously turned his head around.
A black figure was standing a good fifteen feet behind them. It was too dark to identify anything about the creature. Its silhouette was eerily still and quiet. The three stood in silence staring at each other for minutes.
Without warning, the creature charged Jack and took him down. “Get the fu-,” the creature silenced Jack and slammed his head on the asphalt. Jack’s vision was obscured. He’d black out any second. The only his was the figure approaching Grayson. “Grayson! Run!” But it came out as a whisper before he passed out.
………
Crickets.
Breathing.
Jack opened his eyes. “Huh?!” He flung forward from his position. The sun was coming up, its red form across the horizon. He was still on the road, his head banged up, dried blood surrounding him. “Oh god…how long was I out?” Jack asked himself. “About two hours.”
Jack jerked his head to the left. It was Ryan! “Ryan!” He cheered. Ryan smiled. Jack’s vision still wasn’t the best but he spotted something on his friend’s neck. Jack raised a hoof and pointed. “What is that?” His voice was hoarse.
“It’s the number 6.” Ryan walked forward to show Jack. He was right. A dark splotch formed the number 6. “You have one two.” Ryan gestured to his neck. Jack looked down. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a 3. “W-what? Why?” He looked up at Ryan, expecting answers. “I don’t know. I went out to walk around for a bit, a guy knocked me out, and I woke up with this.”
“Wait. Where’s Grayson!?” He asked.
“A little colt. I had found him on the road. A black figure knocked me out, too.” Jack huffed. “Fucker must have nabbed him.”
“Well whoever he is, I don’t think we have much of a chance of finding him. We better get going. It’s not safe here anymore.”
Ryan was right. They needed to keep moving. They needed to find more about the numbers. And there was no going back.
Author's Note
I didn't know Ryan's daughter's name. They never say it like they do with Millie's. So that's who I'm talking about when I mention Claire.
Chapter 4 The Subway (Ray and Gavin)
Stale chips. Who would think that they’d taste so heavenly? Ray looked down at the bag. It was a cheap product, wasn’t a big brand name, but it still tasted good. They were a little spicy though. ‘Well, it’s what you get for finding the spiced barbeque type, Ray.’ He told himself. Ray got up from his seat and ate the last chip. He observed his surroundings.
The tunnel was dark, it’s only light source was a flickering overhead lamp. It was a creepy kind of dark. Like an ‘I’m going to murder you in this subway’ kind of dark. It reminded Ray of a scene from “American WerePony in London”.
“Gavin?” He asked. Ray tried not to raise his voice. He didn’t need any unwanted attention.
“Yeah X-Ray?” He heard his friend’s voice not too far away. “Where are you at?” He asked.
“I’m in the clothing store looking for stuff.”
Ray began walking to the store Gavin was in. The tile floor was cold and unwelcoming, just like the rest of the subway. An overturned bench was flopped a few feet away from Ray. A few damaged and looted vending machines along with crumpled food and napkins as well. There weren’t any trains on the tracks but Ray knew that they would be one further down the tunnel.
Finally the red unicorn reached the store Gavin was in. He stopped in front of it to access the damage taken.
Very few letters remained spelling: OE S PP REL. From the letters remained and the ones on the floor, Ray knew it spelled JOE’S APPAREL. The floor was carpeted an unattractive blue and the walls were a disgusting yellow. Shelves once stocked with shirts and caps and hoodies were picked clean.
“Come on in. I found some stuff.” He heard Gavin said. Ray entered, trying to look for his friend. A blue head popped up from behind the counter. Gavin was grinning.
His mane was a dirty blonde and his eyes were the purest green. Side burns ran down by his ears. He wore a dangling necklace of a creeper’s face. Michael had given it to him. Gavin didn’t like to hear the others’ names, especially Michael. The blue earth pony was missing his boi bad and everyday he felt like he was going to refuse to go further. He still kept a positive act up, though.
“Hey Vav, watcha’ find?” He asked. Gavin stuck his tongue out in a goofy fashion and went below the counter. Ray tilted his head in confusion. Gavin popped back up with a baseball cap. “What is it?” He asked. Gavin dropped the cap on the counter and gestured for Ray to come closer.
Ray trotted up to it and got a closer look. Ray smiled. It was a New York Mets cap. It was mainly black but the visor was a navy blue. NY was sketched on the front. It was blue with a white and orange outline.
Gavin knew Ray’s life in New York had been tough but sometimes it was good to be proud of where you’re from. The unicorn gave him a smile and levitated the cap. He placed it on his head. “Thanks Gavin. I needed that.”
Gavin smiled and nodded. “You’re welcome. Now,” Gavin spun around and stood next to a boarded door. Ray quirked an eyebrow. “We need to get this door down.” Gavin tried to balance himself on his bottom hooves. He ended up unbalanced and landed flat on his rump. “You alright?” Ray asked, not bothering to hide his laugh.
“Yeah, I guess I am.” Gavin rubbed the back of his neck. He got to his hooves and beckoned for Ray to help him. Ray leapt over the counter and examined the door. “The hinges look rusted.” The door was-or used to be-a strong iron door that locked for anyone besides employees. The ‘Employees Only’ writing was scratched out but Ray could tell it was there.
The hinges were rusted and Ray couldn’t believe how the door had stayed that way for so long. “How about before we try to balance ourselves out, we hold on to the door?” Ray suggested with a smile. Gavin lightly blushed and placed his fore hooves on the metal.
Ray did the same and moved his left fore hoof to the top of the door. He squeezed it in between the wall and the door and said, “Alright, pull.” Gavin looked confused. “Pull? Shouldn’t we push?” He asked. Ray moved his head to point to the other corner. “Wedge your hoof between door and the wall. Then pull.” Gavin nodded and did as told.
“One.”
“Two.”
“Three!”
The two stallions were sent on their backs as the door came down. Dust flew out at them as a dark hallway was revealed. Ray got to his hooves and peeked inside. Gavin joined him. “Come on. Be careful, something might be in here.” Ray said. He grabbed his baseball bat from his pack. Gavin grabbed a wrench that was strapped to his side.
Both cautiously walked inside the room. Ray took a sniff of the room. It wasn’t putrid but it certainly didn’t smell like a Yankee Candle. “Smells like stale coffee and cigarettes.” Gavin observed. The red unicorn nodded.
On the left wall was a line of TVs. Most were broken, things smashed into them or wires yanked from their sockets. Ray counted five TVs still working. Though two of them had static inferences and were gray and black. The other three, however, were black and white security cameras placed somewhere in the subway. Ray held his bat close and walked close to the system.
A limp body was sprawled on the red swivel chairs. Gavin poked it with his wrench. “Dobkiss, stop poking it.” Ray chuckled. Gavin looked up confused. “What? I’m not-,” “Shh!” Ray shushed him. “There’s activity in Railway Five.” He raised a red hoof to point at the track. “Are those…zombies?” Gavin asked. Ray nodded.
Dozens of zombies were barreling down the track, running each other over and hitting each other. “It looks like they’re Black Friday shopping.” Ray said, getting a chuckle out of Gavin. “What Railway are we on?”
Ray studied the map. “Here. Railway Three.” “Oh bullocks, that’s close.” Gavin stated. Ray nodded. “Any trains down here? You spot any?” Gavin shook his head. “Crap. We don’t have time to go exploring. Grab a flashlight and follow me.”
Squish.
Squelch.
Splash!
Squish.
Squelch.
Splash!
The mud was gross and smelled disgusting under their hooves. “How would’ve it gotten wet? It obviously doesn’t rain underground.” Gavin wondered. “It’s damp.” Ray responded. “I know that but it’s soaked! Flooded, even.” Ray shrugged. “Maybe a leak in the sewers.” He responded calmly. Gavin gagged. “Toss! You’re telling me I’ve been waltzing in poo and piss this entire time?” Gavin asked, disgusted. “Probably.” Ray grinned.
“Any subs yet?” Gavin looked under his hooves. “None.” The New Yorker responded. The hat was still on his head. “Though I’d like one. Pretty hungry.” Ray’s stomach growled. “What? Oh never mind. I meant-,” “I know you meant a train. But here, a sub’s a sandwich. Not a locomotive.”
Gavin shrugged. “Michael used to call them hoagies.” Ray nodded. “New Jersey thing.” Gavin trotted next to Ray. “Have you ever been?” The unicorn looked to Gavin. “To New Jersey? Nah. Well I’ve been to Morey’s Pier. God. I wonder what that looks like now.” Ray said.
“I wonder what Cambridge looks like. Or Trottingham. Or Hampshire for that matter. I’d love to see EuroDisney.” Ray chucked. “EuroDisney sucks!” “Does not!” Gavin defended. “Does it have Animal Kingdom? Epcot? Disney World’s the best.” Silence followed.
“Remember when we went to Six Flags?” Gavin asked. “Yeah it was a ‘Great Adventure’.” He mocked. “Yeah…Michael took me on Kingda Ka.” Gavin shuddered. “Really high up…but nothing’s a challenge for Team Nice Dyna-,” “Shh! I hear them!” Ray put his hoof in Gavin’s mouth. The blue pony batted it away.
“Stay quiet and stick to the shadows.” Ray whispered. “Like ninjas!” Gavin added. Ray shot him a glare. “Sorry…” The two quietly snuck around side of the tunnel. Ray motioned for them to stick to the right side. When the duo got further up, Gavin spotted a train. “Ray! Psst!” He whispered. Ray’s head swung towards him. “Look! There’s a train up there.” He gestured to a gray, yellow, and blue locomotive. “Yeah…come on. Let’s check it out.” The two trotted up to the machinery.
Ray raised a hoof to pull apart the doors but he didn’t need to pull hard. The door practically opened on its own, making Ray shrug. The unicorn leapt up onto it and motioned for Gavin to join him. The earth pony followed him on.
Inside the train, poles ran from the bottom to top for people without seats, blue seats lined the sides, and the floor was carpeted a dark blue. The room smelled like something had died or was decaying. Ray looked down at floor to see something had died. The carpet was soaking with blood. A weapon was lying next to the body.
It was a gun. A small pistol. Maybe a desert eagle. But it was a gun nonetheless. Ray levitated the gun, checking for any bullets. “It’s still loaded with a few bullets. Maybe seven or eight.” He placed a gun on a seat for Gavin to see.
The body was a young colt with a brown mane and tail. He was a dark blue unicorn. Glasses were placed on his little snout. He had a trowel and a potato as a cutie mark. “What does that mean?” Gavin gestured to his flank. “My guess, some type of farmer. Maybe a potato farmer.”
The colt looked to be a good ten years younger than Ray. “He killed himself.” Ray stated. “W-why?” Gavin asked with teary eyes. “Maybe he couldn’t take it. It’s a lot of pressure for a young colt to handle.” Gavin pointed to his right hoof. “I-I think t-that’s why.” Ray held the hoof.
A large bite mark was around his back right hoof. “He didn’t…want to turn. Poor soul.” Ray said, now feeling saddened. The young pony had a large gaping wound near his ear. Ray held out a hoof to feel around it. “What are you doing?” Gavin asked. “Looking for the bullet.” Ray looked into the wound.
“To salvage? Ray! That’s disrespectful!” Gavin snorted. Ray looked back. “Why? He’s not using it anymore.” “What if Geoff had been stabbed. Would you pull the knife from his chest to use it?” Ray shook his head. “Don’t desecrate the body. Leave the poor colt as he is.” Ray nodded and got off the body.
“We should bury him.” “In the sewers? He’ll be sleeping with the decaying fishes.” Ray said. “But it’d be proper. The poor boy could’ve gone through what we’ve gone through. Or worse!” Gavin defended. “Gavin, yeah everypony does deserve a proper burial but here’s the thing: is a proper burial really under these conditions? The colt’ll be laying in shit and rats. And we don’t have the time to lug his body around. Sorry Gavin.” Ray said.
Gavin looked at the floor dejectedly. He scanned the room. “We can at least pay him some respect.” The earth pony grabbed a leather jacket from one of the chairs. He wrapped the colt in it. Ray rolled his eyes.
“Please Ray?” He put on the best puppy eyes he could bear. Ray huffed. “Fine.” The two lifted the young Pegasus off the ground and slid him off the train. They placed him nicely on the ground, further away from the train. “Come on then, lad. Let’s go!” Ray gathered the English pony up and they got back on the train.
………
Shzick!
Szzt!
Shzick!
Szzt!
Schzick!
Sz-
They had gotten the train working and they were currently riding it who knows where. They just had to keep going. Find the others.
Ray ran his hoof around the blade. It wasn’t too sharp but it was useful. It kind of reminded Ray of a sword. Maybe not a really cool one like knights used but still a sword. The way the blade formed, it resembled a ninja’s sword. What were they called? Katanas. Yeah…that was it. Like some samurai. A Ronin. A samurai with no master.
Ray shook his head and looked up. “Do we have any books?” One hazel eye opened up. “Huh?” Ray asked again. “Any books to read? I need to pass the time.” Gavin yawned and straightened himself out. “Uh…maybe. Let me check my pack.” Gavin opened up his leather pack and searched insides. A canteen, a watch, a screwdriver…ah! “Hey what do you know I do! I think I might have found it back in the city. In Austin. When it all started.”
He handed Ray a dark covered novel entitled ‘And Then There Were Nine’. Ray raised an eyebrow at the book. “I’m assuming this isn’t a comedy?” Gavin chuckled. “Well…thanks.”
Thomas studied the country side. The mountains were graced with large evergreens and the lake glistened beautifully. The sky was blue and rarely dotted with clouds. Birds explored the beauty of it, making him jealous. Such an easy life. Why was their life so easy? Why did he have to attend ridiculous dinner parties with people he didn’t know?
“What are you thinking, brother?” Thomas looked to his right. He brother, Nikolas, was looking at him. He had emerald eyes and a freckled light brown face. A short brown man accompanied his head. Nikolas wore black thin glasses and a black tux.
Thomas was wearing a black under piece with a navy blue coat. His hair was blonde with an orange stripe through the top. His fur was a light green. “Just how I don’t want to be here. London is where I belong.” True to his word, the industrial city was Thomas’ home. He often didn’t like traveling out of his own city, even.
“Oh come on, Tom! A little adventure never hurts anybody.” Nikolas assured. “I promise you a little dinner party and then we’ll be back on the train to home. Alright?” Tom huffed but nodded.
“Who else is going to be here?” Tom still studied the mountains and the lake. “Seven others, not counting Sir Rohiender and us. I believe two are already there and four are on this train.” Nikolas took a sip of his tea. “The other?” Tom raised an eyebrow.
“Mmm…not quite sure. He’s an American, you know. The other one. Here, let me check there names.” The brown earth pony picked up a small note and scanned it over.
“Sir Gustav Herdio of Spain, Madam Alyda Mossiuelle and Sir Ugar Killivo of France, Sir Jahz Fruiz of Russia, Miss Anita Keohan of Ireland, Miss Ava Lucinuel of Italy, and Jonathan Baker of America.” He handed me the note. “Are all these ‘of’s really necessary?” I asked. He shrugged.
Ray yawned and closed the book. He made sure to bend the tip of the page slightly so he wouldn’t lose his page. He looked up to see Gavin sprawled out against the seats. He was sleeping soundly. Ray laughed to himself and placed the book down. The unicorn used his hoof as a pillow and closed his eyes.
“Mhmm…” Ray murmured. He felt an immense head ache. He rubbed his eyes and tried to get up. He shouldn’t have slept in that position. The book was on the floor. He must have kicked it off in his sleep. The unicorn got to his hooves and looked out. The train had stopped. Was he asleep that long? Was Gavin still asleep?
Ray turned to his right to see the blue earth pony still resting peacefully. If they hadn’t stopped it manually why wouldn’t just continue? It wasn’t on automatic. Ray felt a slight sting on his neck. He searched for his bag and picked it up. Rummaging through the front he found an old mirror he used to use.
Ray tried to get a good view of his neck and his eyes widened in surprise. The number “5” was printed. He put the mirror away and looked to Gavin. Was that a number on him, too?
He approached his friend and batted away at one of his front fore hooves. There was a number on his neck, too! It was the number “2”!
The stallion looked to his book. A small piece of paper was jutting out of the front. ‘I didn’t use a bookmark.’ Ray reminded himself. He picked up the book and pulled out the piece of paper. The manuscript was hoof written and sloppy but Ray could still read it.
“Life is a mystery. Answers must be found. Find them.” Nothing else. No hints. No clues. Ray felt like he was thrown into a mystery novel. Except in this case, there was no freaking way the butler did it…
Author's Note
So Chapter 4 is done. This chapter is really long for my standard (of ME writing). That's why it took so long to come out. Surprisingly not due to my laziness. Huh...who knew. Well I hope its worth it!
Chapter 5 Community Nine (Lindsay)
How has she made it that far? How did she survive Austin after the gates broke? How did she manage to live all on her own?
Nopony actually asks her these questions, for fear she’ll do something to you. She’s not some girly girl whose into makeup and fashion. Or, at least, not anymore. People call her The Gypsy. She never stays in one place. Two weeks ago she was in Dallas. Three weeks prior she stayed in Hoofston. Now she’s back on the road. And she doesn’t linger.
She’s in one day, out the next. No trail. Nothing to track her down.
The Gypsy sat down against the car’s rusted side. She could hear the train puffing smoke every few moments. It was weak. She was in one of the back cars. The mare rested her head against the wall, admiring a bit in her hoof. It was worth enough to buy a pint of milk in the normal world. Or the Used to Be World as she called it.
But it wasn’t anymore. If The Gypsy had known the world would be so difficult and unforgiving, she never would have complained or groaned. She wouldn’t have moaned about dumb things about fashion or about poor service or about stale food.
The violet mare sighed and tightened her black hoodie’s hood. Should she go to bed? The train wouldn’t stop. But what if the stallions who raided this train found her? She had to remind herself that she wasn’t alone and said people who were with here weren’t on her side.
“Why can’t life go back to normal? What would I have been doing now?” She wondered. It was March 11th. “Two months, one week, 41 hours.” She said to herself quietly. “So close. So close.” She closed her eyes. In two months, one week, 41 hours she would have been Mrs. Lindsay Jones.
But that was another thing that the stupid infection ruined. A peaceful life with her husband would have been nice. Maybe start a family, a son or a daughter. Lind-The Gypsy liked fantasying about her used to be life. It would have been nice.
The Gypsy shook her head. “Stop.” She berated herself. “That’s something Lindsay would do. You are NOT Lindsay anymore.” She hated telling herself this. She still wanted to be the quiet, funny, cat-loving, innocent, caring Lindsay Tuggey. But the world had made sure to eradicate anyone who wasn’t selfish or who wasn’t able to survive without killing. She wasn’t innocent anymore.
She had killed. Killed many, too. Not just zombies. The Lindsay inside her burned when she saw their faces. The scared faces of people who didn’t want to die. But the freaking monster inside her pushed the old her aside.
“Just rest. You’ll feel better later. And if they find you, so what. You’re The Gypsy. You ain’t afraid of anything.”
Chuga-chuga-chuga-chuga. Woot! Woot! Chuga-chuga-chuga-chuga. Woot! Woot! The Gyp-Lindsay smiled. Once and awhile she could overcome that stupid person in her brain. It was nice to just relax. Repeating the train’s hoots reminded her of some kids TV show.
Michael used to watch a kids TV show. Specifically My Little Pony. His favorite was Fluttershy. He had once said, “She kinda reminds me of you. You’re both quiet and sweet.” Lindsay stopped herself from crying. As Lindsay, she wasn’t a killer but the world had still taught her to be tough.
“Ouch,” Lindsay felt her wound on her neck. It was the stupid ‘7’. She had been given it a while ago. Sometime short after the accident. She had been lying out in the woods with Kerry, Chris, and Barbara. She had been marked.
Gosh…Lindsay wondered where they were now. They had gone separate ways looking for their families. Kerry had told her she could have gone with him but she denied. She would look for Michael. She knew he was alive.
Nothing hurt Mogar. Nothing killed Mogar. He was Michael ‘Rage Quit’, Mogar, Boi of Gavin’s, Jones. Also, her fiancé.
Lindsay felt a migraine and clutched her head. “No!” She shouted quietly. The Gypsy was trying to come back. She didn’t want her to, though. Lindsay gritted her teeth and banged her head against the wall. “Stop! Go away!” The pain lessened.
A good two minutes later, it went away. Lindsay shook her head and smiled. She had beaten it. She had beaten them.
[Flashback]
“Ah! Ms. Tuggey!” Lindsay opened her eyes. She was strapped to a metal table, leather buckles ruining any chances of escape. She could move her head but that was it.
The room wasn’t big. It was plain and dull with solid gray walls. The floor and the ceiling had similar designs. One iron door say lonely in the middle where two guards stood. They certainly weren’t royal guards. They were black tuxes and were equipped with some type of electrical weapon that Lindsay could only guess was a Taser.
The pony speaking to her, however, was not one of the guards. It was stallion in front of her.
He was kind of lanky but had an undeniable confidence, one you wouldn’t normally see on a pony like him. His mane was a blue fancy comb over and his tail matched the design. His fur was a light gray like a rock. He had big brown eyes and a goofy grin. Though it looked devious.
He turned his head towards the guard. “Boys, you may bring Lance in.” He beckoned at the door. The two stallions nodded and opened the door. A Pegasus began to walk in. His fur was a very dark red like the color of stained blood. His hair was wild and short and messy. A lone strand of white stuck out against the sea of dark brown mane. His eyes were the purest blue and gleamed eerily.
“Ms. Tuggey, this is Lance Humpton-,” as funny as that name might have sounded, Lindsay knew by his appearance that he was no laughing matter. “-a Pegasus from Manehattan. He’s been all around the world to Canterlot to Fillydelphia to Trottingham and even Saddle Arabia!” The gray unicorn bounced. Lance eyed him down with annoyance.
“Who are you?” Lindsay asked the bouncing stallion. He stopped and faced the purple mare. “Why my dear I am Barack Obama! And Muhammad Ali! I’m also Justin Bieber and Walt Disney and Lance-,” he tried to wrap a hoof around Lance’s neck but the Pegasus quickly shook it off. “-and your best friend!”
Lindsay questioned this unicorn’s sanity. Why would he say he was all of those people if he clearly wasn’t? “What do you mean? Are you crazy?” Lindsay questioned. “Maybe. Maybe not. Quite possible. Highly illogical.” The unicorn smiled at her. “Disagree with yourself. No, nope, never. Yes indeed. You’d be surprised by how fast you can strike up a conversation with yourself.” Yup…this guy was definitely bonkers.
“Can I just know your real name? You’re driving me crazy.” Lindsay said. The stallion shrugged. “Fair enough. My name is Caine.” He said nothing else on that matter and began to circle the strapped Lindsay.
He beckoned Lance over. Now seeing his side, Lindsay could see a belt full of knives or bullets. His cutie mark looked like some type of gun, maybe a silencer. “Ms. Tuggey, I bet you’re wondering why you’re here.” Caine tapped his hooves excitedly. Lindsay huffed in response. “Oh come now, there’s no need to be so angry-,” “Angry! You’ve got me strapped to a table. Of course I want to fucking know why I’m here!” Lindsay didn’t curse often but when she did, it was because she was angry.
Caine didn’t look very please. “Settle down, Ms. Tuggey!” He composed himself and made sure to slick back his slightly ruffled mane. Lindsay remained slightly.
“Being a rampant monster or a negative Nancy is not going to help. No one wants to spend their life with someone like that.” Caine said. Lindsay raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean ‘spend the rest of their life with’? Who am I spending my life with?”
Lance remained silent the entire time. “Your alternate self, your split personality of course!”
“My split personality?”
“Indeed! See, I need to test my theory on some ponies-,”
“Sorry, what? Theory?” Lindsay was ignored.
“-and I can’t have weaklings as my test subjects-,”
“Test subjects?!” Lindsay seemed alarmed but her comment was lost in Caine’s rambling.
“-So I learned you’re strong enough to handle it. A regular pony would commit suicide on the first day.”
“SUICIDE?! What!? What do you think I am? Some…some type of-of-of test monkey? I didn’t agree to this!”
“Calm down! Simmer down! No need to panic. I said you’ll be able to handle it. You’ve handled many tough things, Ms. Tuggey.” He smiled. Lindsay didn’t like the sight of it.
[End of Flashback]
Lindsay winced. It wasn’t her most cherished moment.
But there was something Lindsay couldn’t fathom. Why was she number 7? Six before her? Did they live? What if they were worse now? Who were they? Were they people she knew? Why had-
“Stop it, bitch.” The Gypsy growled. Damn. Too late. Lindsay fell back as The Gypsy jumped forward. “Just go back to sleep. Don’t ignore me. You can’t.” The Gypsy grumbled and leaned against the train side for the hundredth time today.
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter. Blares of sirens echoed around the city. Around all of Equestria. Hooves pounding the ground, ponies running away. Ponies running to catch ponies. The dead had come. Their flesh rotting and fur matted with blood. Manes and tails tangled, eyes bloodshot, and teeth sharp. Unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies alike were mindless zombies.
An orange pegasi, Michael, ran along with the living. "Gavin! Geoff!" He yelled. "Ray! Jack!" Michael screamed at the top of his lungs. "Ryan!" He said with the last of his hope. Screaming and yelling and crying were heard but no responses to his calls. "Damn it!"
A red unicorn and green earth pony stayed close to each other. "I don't see them, Ray!" the earth pony yelled over the crowd. "Geoff! Michael!" Ray, the unicorn, called out. "Where could they be, Gavin?" Ray asked. Gavin shrugged nervously.
Ryan and Jack, a light blue earth pony and a green unicorn, looked for the others as well. "No where. Jack, I don't think we'll find them." Ryan said deflated. "Don't worry. They'll make it out and they can take care of themselves. For now, we got each other. Let's not wait around to get eaten." Jack reassured.
Dark blue hooves pounded the ground. The dark blue Pegasus the hooves belonged to looked behind him. The mob of scared people were behind him. And behind them, the army of the dead. The Pegasus had a black mane and a husky beard. Geoff was his name and he just lost his co-workers, his friend. "Pfff, come on Geoff. That sounds gay." He told himself as he rolled his eyes. But he knew he had lost them and that he wanted them back.
But the world had changed for good. And not necessarily for the better.
Author's Note
So its my first story! Its the prologue, I'm almost done Chapter 1, my proofreader (who I thank very much!) is reading over it for any mistakes. I have started the beginning of Chapter 2 which is about Geoff. Chapter 1- Michael. Chapter 3 - Jack and Ryan. And Chapter 4- X-Ray and Vav. I don't know what I'll do from there on. I'll see when the time comes.
