The Trotting Dead: Equestrian Apocalypse

2
Ponyville

Ponyville. Sigma was kind enough to inform Wake of their location, as though she was supposed to have any idea as to where Ponyville was. Upon observing the town, Wake was able to see that few of the buildings in the small city were even partially intact. Even the small apartment building they had been in was half rubble. They had skirted the building staying in the shadows, until Sigma deemed the coast was clear. Wake was less than uninspired to follow Sigma into this rubble pile of a town, but she supposed she had no choice if she wanted to regain her lost memories.

Being outside was a near new experience to Wake and she nearly smiled at the new feelings. The openness of it all, the faint sounds of chirping birds, and the fresh air that pushed her sweaty mane off her neck. Ponyville looked as though it used to be a homey little town that now was a rotting pile of ash, rock, and dirt. Any remnants of buildings still standing were covered in graffiti, crude messages, and what looked like blood splatters. The sight made Wake’s stomach lurch, and she stopped. ‘What could’ve possible happened to this town that reduced it to nothing?’ Wake thought sadly. Sigma noticed Wake had stopped moving and caught the look of despair in her eye. He felt pity for the mare wash over him. She had no idea what was going on with the world, what they had been living in for years.

“Come on Wake, I don’t have time to explain all this right now,” Sigma said, urging the mare ahead. She allowed him to push her forward, her hesitant steps finally starting again as she walked with her head down. Sigma sighed and walked ahead; leading them down a side street he knew to be unoccupied. They trotted in silence until they turned onto a dark, narrow alleyway. Sigma kept ahead, Wake a few lengths behind, until she tripped and hit the ground with a muffled cry. Sigma turned, ready to scold her for not watching her already unsteady hooves, until he saw she had tripped over a trash heap in the narrow alley.

“You alright?” Sigma asked worriedly. Wake pushed herself to her hooves before yelping when she put pressure on her right hind leg. “You twisted your pastern,” Sigma sighed, looking at the rapidly swelling part of her lower leg.

“I’m fine let’s-“
“Run!” Sigma yelled, pushing Wake forward harshly. She turned back to yell at him, when her harsh words died on her tongue. The trash heap she had tripped on had moved. Sigma backed them away slowly as the trash fell away to reveal a filly. Wake took a sharp intake of breath at the small pony. She was lean, almost skeletal, her once purple coat now pale and ashen, her blue mane partially ripped out, and her eyes were shallow and sunken, barely allowing Wake to tell she had blue irises. What had truly scared Wake were the facts that the filly had a jagged gap in her skull, almost as though a horn was once there, and her face was half gone, the flesh ripped away to show the raw bloody gums and the glimmer of broken braces on her yellow rotting teeth.

“W-what is that thing?!” Wake choked out just as Sigma pushed her back as the filly moved towards them.

“A trotter, now move!” Sigma yelled spurring both of them to finally sprint down the alley. Wake heard the filly give an animalistic screech before the sound of her jolting hoofsteps echoed in pursuit of them. Sigma ran full speed, Wake at his heels when the alley let out onto a main road.

“Left!” Sigma yelled, quickly taking off down the main road, leaving Wake to sprint after him, her injured hoof sending jolts of protest up her leg. Up ahead Sigma looked frantically for the right turn, before quickly turning down a smaller side road. Wake barely made the turn before smashing into Sigma’s flanks.

“Why’d you stop!” Wake yelled frantically, earning a hoof to her snout. The glare she was going to send Sigma withered quickly as horrification took over her face. Just ahead, blocking their way was a hoard of those things. Putrid, rotting carcasses of ponies stumbling around began to turn towards the live meat they smelled. Wake felt bile in her throat, but before she could even think of vomiting she was being heaved around back the way they had come. More growls and cries filled the air as the pack of trotters began the pursuit of their new prey.

“Where to now?!” Wake yelled frantically, trying to keep up with Sigma’s breakneck speed.

“There’s a river not far, we can cross it, they can’t, it’s our only way out,” Sigma yelled back. The two sprinted for their lives, skirting rubble piles, half standing buildings, and lone trotters before they reached the outskirts of Ponyville. There was a cottage up ahead that seemed intact besides the large, gnarled roots that grew over every surface of the small building.

“Can we hole up there?” Wake pleaded as her hoof began to send daggers of pain up her leg with any minute movement.

“No, too risky! It’s small enclosed, they break through, and we’re sitting ducks,” Sigma threw over his shoulder. “Besides, rivers up ahead, not too far now.” Wake’s body was pushing itself to the furthest extent to keep up with Sigma, her legs were aching, and her lungs were on fire as she couldn’t keep her breath. She began to fall behind as she saw Sigma make it to the river and dive in. Wake prepared to follow suit when a hoof attached itself to her fetlock, swiftly pulling her to the ground inches from the river. She quickly rolled over as a trotter dove for her, but she was unable to go far from the first trotters vice grip on her. She felt herself being tugged back and looked at the ponies dead, sunken eyes as it reached for her.

“SIGMA!” Wake screamed in terror as her hooves clawed at the dirt. BOOM, a sound like an explosion rang through the air as cold, putrid smelling liquid coated Wake. The head of the trotter that gripped Wake now had half a head as pieces of it landed everywhere. Wake screamed again as its blood ran down her face, she quickly managed to push herself into the river just as more trotters appeared.

In the river Wake pushed herself to the surface to take in air, before being pulled under by the current. She fought to swim, her body screaming for rest, and finally her lungs gave out as she hit the bottom of the river. Blackness seeped into her vision and she was vaguely aware of a tan blur swimming past her, before she was being tugged to the surface once more. She immediately tried to gasp for air and ended up choking on water as it entered her mouth. Wake was yanked up onto the river bank still choking for air as the tan blur pulled itself up on the bank. It was a mare, with a distinct cutiemark of three white sugar cubes. Wake caught this and smiled before passing out in exhaustion.

“Sigma get ‘er back to camp an’ then ya can tell me just where the hell ya been!” the mare growled at Sigma as she shook water from her coat, picked up her dropped rifle, and walked back into the brush from where she’d come.

“Anything you say Sugarcube,” Sigma stared at the retreating mare in awe before throwing Wake onto his back and dragging her back to camp.

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