Bloodshot

Chapters

Perfection
Illusion
Diagnosis
Contagion
Defiance
Enlightenment

Perfection

How does one define perfection? Can it be represented by a physical object, or is it constricted to merely an abstract concept? Is it something one feels, or is it something one observes? Is it common, is it a miracle, or is it impossible? Is it an illusion?

No, no, it couldn’t be an illusion. It was always taught that nopony was perfect, nor could they ever strive to be. However, perfection definitely still existed. Moments could be perfect. Places could be perfect. Heck, even something as crazy as a mathematical formula could be perfect.

If perfection was an illusion, then Fluttershy would’ve been in complete disorder right about then. Regardless of the possibilities, the Element of Kindness truly felt perfection.

On any other day, if one had walked up to her and asked her how she was doing, she would’ve probably lowered her head and muttered that she was fine. On her good days, she might’ve shrugged her shoulders and said, “Pretty good.”

Today, though, was different for the timid mare. Today was special. Today was exceptional. Today was a day of celebration. Today…was perfect.

Happy thoughts like these danced around in Fluttershy’s head as she pranced through Ponyville on her way to her cottage. Quiet little notes floated out of her mouth as she sang a soft tune to herself amidst her jubilance. Her saddlebags bounced up and down as they hitched the ride on her hips through the busy town. This sort of ecstatic bliss was quite an unusual occurrence for her, which caused the ponies on the streets to turn in her direction.

“Is that…Fluttershy?”

“Is she alright?”

“Did Twilight mess up a spell or something?”

“Looks like somepony finally caught some of the Pinkie Pie fever.”

“I don’t think the Butterfly Migration’s today or anything…”

Murmurs like these filled the air around the gleeful pegasus. None of them managed to penetrate her eardrums, though. The joyful soul was drowning out the sound with her own singing.

But where was all this joy coming from? After all, the Element of Kindness was never one to show excitement in public. Her happiness came from the happiness of her animal friends, far away from the bustling activity of downtown Ponyville. Extra special ecstatic emotions never came like this without a good reason.

…

On her way toward the Everfree Forest, Fluttershy galloped past Twilight Sparkle’s crystal castle. Seeing a hint of yellow out the window, the alicorn hurried down the stairs to greet her friend at the door.

“Hey, Fluttershy!” She called.

Fluttershy paused her quaint little tune to glance at her lavender friend. “Oh, hello, Twilight!”

“Would you like to visit? It’s been quite a while!” Twilight called.

Fluttershy grinned. “My, that would be lovely!”

Without a care in the world, Fluttershy turned around, and trotted in the direction of her best friend’s not-so-humble abode. Her smile remained on her face.

Twilight couldn’t help but to notice this with a chuckle. “Gee, Flutters, I’ve never seen you in such a good mood!”

Fluttershy sighed. “There are things in this world that can make even a little old pegasus like me happy.”

“Well that’s great to hear! By the way, you might want to be careful when stepping inside. I have Rainbow Dash over as well, and she’s trying to break that ball-bouncing record again.” Twilight explained.

Fluttershy giggled.

…

Rainbow Dash heard a mess of hoofsteps from the foyer as she continued to bounce her ball on her head. All of her focus was on her counting, so she hadn’t a guess on who the visitor was.

“Two-hundred sixty-three, two-hundred sixty-four, two-hundred sixty-five…”

“Hi, Dashie!” Fluttershy squealed.

Rainbow Dash gasped at the sudden noise, but managed to keep her counting steady. The ball swayed a little bit out of place, but was quickly realigned when Rainbow Dash’s signature reflexes came into play.

“Oh, hey, Fluttershy! Try to be careful next time!” She warned.

“Ooh yeah; my bad.” Fluttershy responded with another giggle.

“What’ve you been up to lately?” The ball-bouncing pegasus asked.

“Oh, just returning from a little trip. Heading on my way home. Enjoying the nice weather. It’s so beautiful outside.” Fluttershy mused.

“It’s cool that you’re acting so positive today! I usually have to strain to get you to talk. Say, um…what number am I on again?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“You just passed three-hundred ten.” Twilight answered.

…

Fluttershy smiled again. “You’re really good at that, Rainbow Dash. I enjoy watching you do it.”

Rainbow Dash laughed a little. “Man, Fluttershy, what’s got you so bright and vibrant today?”

Fluttershy blushed a little. “Do you really want to know?”

Rainbow Dash and Twilight both nodded simultaneously. “Sure, why not?”

Fluttershy smiled at the ground for a few seconds before answering. “I got a date!”

…

The two listeners froze in place. Rainbow Dash’s mouth opened wide. Her ball hit her head one last time before falling to the ground, shattering her record attempt once again. Twilight sat down on the bottom step of the staircase, looking up at Fluttershy like she had five hooves.

Rainbow Dash stuttered. “…A what?”

“A date! He’s really nice, too. I feel so special when I’m around him!” Fluttershy added.

More silence ensued. Fluttershy was the only one in the room with a smile on her face. Twilight and Rainbow Dash both sat still in shock, allowing an awkward atmosphere to hang in the room. It took quite some time for them to pick up on the…perfection that Fluttershy was feeling.

When Twilight and Rainbow Dash finally came around, they wasted no time in congratulating their eager friend.

“Well, that’s just wonderful, Fluttershy! I…had no idea you had it in you!” Twilight complimented.

Rainbow Dash ignored the fact that her ball was lying on the ground with all of her hopes of breaking the record. She turned to her butter-yellow friend, and smiled as well.

“Yeah, Flutters, I didn’t know you could pull it off! So, who’s the lucky stallion?”

…

Fluttershy blushed madly at this sort of question. Her perfection did not fade the tiniest bit, however, regardless of the embarrassment of telling her friends.

“His name’s Silver Spirit. He’s one of the chief caretakers at the Ponyville Petting Zoo.” The love-struck mare answered with a sigh.

Rainbow Dash’s smile vanished. “You know…I probably should’ve expected an answer like that.”

Twilight still held on to her smile, however. “That sounds very nice! Did he ask you out just earlier today?”

Fluttershy fiddled with her front hooves. “Um…no. I asked him out.”

Twilight and Rainbow Dash gasped in amazement. Both of their smiles were back and wider than ever at this point.

“Way to go, Flutters! Glad you finally worked up some courage!” Rainbow Dash beamed. She walked over to where Fluttershy was standing on the foyer, and gave her a playful slap on the shoulder.

“That’s phenomenal, Fluttershy! What made you decide to approach him first?” Twilight asked curiously.

“Well, I saw the way he helped ponies out with feeding the animals and getting around the zoo. He really shares a love for animals! I didn’t know of any other pony before him who had a passion for critters.” She paused for a moment, and looked up toward the ceiling as if she were daydreaming. “…He’s so handsome, too. I used to pay to go back into the petting zoo just so I could look at him.”

…

“Aww, that’s so cute! I never would’ve guessed that you were into somepony!” Twilight cooed.

Rainbow Dash started laughing spontaneously. “You actually paid just to go look at a stallion? You really are in looovvvee, aren’t you?”

Fluttershy’s face only continued to get redder. She looked back down at the ground, and kicked her hoof softly in front of her.

Twilight glared at Rainbow Dash. “Hey, don’t make fun of her like that. One of these days, you’ll meet your Special Somepony, and you’ll be drooling over him just like any other pony would.”

“Yeah, you’re right about that. My Special Somepony is going to be so hot that everypony will be straining to get a look at him.” Rainbow Dash bragged in response.

“Well, this isn’t about you, is it? Let’s be supportive at all times.” Twilight chided.

…

Rainbow Dash just shrugged, and looked back at Fluttershy, who was still studying the ground. Twilight tapped her with her hoof to snap her out of her daze.

“So do you know any of the details? Are you seeing a movie, or having dinner together, or visiting the park, or…”

“We’re having dinner tomorrow night at the Riviera in Canterlot. He suggested it after I spoke to him.” Fluttershy interrupted.

“The Riviera? Isn’t that place, like…extremely expensive?” Rainbow Dash asked with awe.

“Oh my, it’s very expensive indeed. But Silver Spirit said that he would sometimes wait tables there, so we get to eat at a discount.” Fluttershy explained. When saying Silver Spirit’s name, her voice seemed to trail off for a short second.

“Wow, that’s wonderful! I sure hope you guys have great time together.” Twilight congratulated.

“Yeah, but don’t get carried away or anything. We don’t have a lot of money to support you if things get out of hoof.” Rainbow Dash added with a smirk.

Twilight nudged her. “Rainbow Dash, pipe down! Fluttershy has a lot more self-control than that.”

“Yeah, but she gives in to suggestion a little too easily. Too much wine on either side, and we have a serious problem on our hooves. Or two. Or maybe even three, if she’s lucky.” Rainbow Dash countered.

“Rainbow, what a thing to say!” Twilight scolded.

…

As Twilight and Rainbow Dash began to argue, Fluttershy stepped backwards slowly and awkwardly. Thinking about the possibility of Rainbow Dash’s words made the poor mare blush out of control.

“Um…guys?” She whispered.

The two arguers continued their babbling, drowning out her words completely. Fluttershy tried to speak a number of times, but failed to be heard during each one. Eventually, she decided that leaving them alone would be the best option.

“Well, I’m just going to go, you two. I have to make sure everything’s in order for tomorrow night! Silver Spirit will be meeting me at my cottage, so I don’t want anything to be out of place. See you later!” She announced.

Barely hearing the embarrassed pegasus, Twilight and Rainbow Dash turned to see her walk out the door. Rainbow Dash slugged Twilight in the shoulder.

“Nice, egghead. You made her leave.”

Illusion

Is a crumpled up piece of paper considered trash? What about a stray rubber band? Surely a used pantyhose sock wouldn’t be seen as garbage, right? Well…perhaps it depends on the mind of the observer.

Various mundane objects such as these peppered Fluttershy’s home when she arrived there later that evening. Worry often plagued her mind when she thought about them, considering the possibility that Silver Spirit will think of her as a slob. But…those items were not exactly trash.

Trash is an easy explanation. Trash can be defined as an object or idea of unimportance that is no longer of any use to its owner. Said object or idea is often scrapped, or thrown away so that its owner may not be inconvenienced by its presence.

That is exactly why the clutter scattered around Fluttershy’s house wasn’t trash. They were items that still held importance to her. Or, rather, for her animals. Many of the small critters living in her cottage got substantial use out of the stray objects that Fluttershy left behind for them. For instance, her bunny friends liked to chew on crumpled up bits of paper to wear in their teeth when food was not readily accessible. Most of her mice, along with some of her birds, got use out of pantyhose socks by storing bits of food or by crawling inside to sleep more comfortably. And, quite comically, her otters and squirrels got endless hours of fun out of a simple rubber band when other toy items were being used.

…

So…did she really need to throw these items away? Silver Spirit wouldn’t mind, would he? It’s not like he’ll walk inside, see a cluttered mess, and immediately walk back out, right? That’d be ridiculous!

…It could happen, though. And that’s why Fluttershy could currently be seen in her cottage, bending over to pick up the designated items for removal. She had already decided against classifying the items as trash, though, so she wasn’t actually throwing them away. If Silver Spirit didn’t know the items were in her cottage, why should she be required to dispose of them completely? She could merely…stuff them under her bed or something.

When some of her critter friends saw her walking up the stairs with their favorite items on her back, they began to follow her in confusion. Once Fluttershy heard scurrying behind her, she turned around to look at her furry companions.

“Oh my, I’m so sorry, my little ones. But I’m afraid Mama’s going to have to take these away for a while. Mama has a very special guest coming tomorrow, and she wants this place to look spiffy for his delight. You understand, right?”

After a few seconds of indefinite silence, and a small amount of protest, the minor group of animals gave in with a slow nod. Now clear to carry on her chore, Fluttershy continued to ascend the stairs with the items on her back.

Rainbow Dash grumbled as she tossed her ball back and forth between her hooves. Twilight stood close beside her, pacing the floor. Upstairs in the library, the two friends were surrounded by books.

“Do you really think it was necessary to drop a bomb on Fluttershy like that?” She scolded.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “C’mon, Twilight, it was a joke. No big deal.”

“You should already know that Fluttershy takes things very seriously! She could be at her cottage right now dosing up on birth control pills or something.” Twilight countered.

Rainbow Dash dropped her ball, and doubled over laughing. She gripped her abdomen, cackling like a maniac. Cracks in her voice were frequent and apparent as the forceful giggling pressed the air out of her lungs. Twilight’s face tensed up, and she stomped a hoof on the ground.

“What is wrong with you? Don’t you know the trouble you could be causing?”

Rainbow Dash relaxed herself a little bit, and wiped a tear from her eye. “Oh, Twilight…lighten up! I know she isn’t going to do anything like that. That’s absurd!”

…

Twilight shook her head, and sighed. “Rainbow Dash, I wish you would be a little more sensitive. I don’t think any of us would’ve expected a shy mare like Fluttershy to land a date, and now that she has, it isn’t right for you to be messing it up for her!”

Rainbow Dash stopped laughing completely, and sat up straight. She looked up, and gave Twilight an assuring stare.

“Okay, Twilight, listen. If you’re so sure that there’s a problem, maybe I should just show you. Let’s go visit Fluttershy, and you’ll see that there’s nothing wrong.” The pegasus suggested.

“But she was just here earlier today! It would seem obsessive to go and visit her again after she already came to see us.” Twilight responded.

…

Rainbow Dash was completely silent. She still sat on Twilight’s bed for a few seconds, staring up at Twilight. Standing up slowly, she walked over to the skeptical alicorn. An amused smirk appeared on her face.

“You worry too much.”

Then, with a flick of her tail, the athlete turned around, and walked downstairs toward the front door. Twilight stood dazed for a few moments, then began to run after her.

“Hey, wait!”

As soon as Fluttershy finished her deed, she trudged downstairs, and flopped on her couch. Celestia’s sun was beginning to set, which meant that it would be time to hit the hay soon. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.

Before she could stop herself, the anxious pegasus began to let her mind wander.

“What is Silver Spirit thinking about right now? Maybe he’s sitting on his couch right now, thinking about me just as I’m thinking about him. Or…maybe he’s cooking dinner for himself! I bet he’s a wonderful cook. We might be able to swap recipes one day.

But perhaps he’s tending for one of his pets! I’d imagine a pony like him would have lots of pets. What was his cutie mark again? A dog biscuit? It was something animal-related; I know that.

Or, at this time of evening, he could be taking a shower. Mmm…that would be nice. Showers always feel good. I bet a shower with him would be…”

…

Fluttershy suddenly snapped out of her hypnotism, blinking a few times to clear the haze. She wrinkled her nose as she felt something wet and slimy running down her chin.

Oh…it was her tongue. Well…this was embarrassing. Turns out she had less control than she thought she had.

Fluttershy began to get physically uncomfortable from thinking about Silver Spirit. While lying on the couch, she started to have a hard time maintaining a neat, non-suggestive posture. She sighed, and shuffled to stand herself up.

Perhaps if she went to actually take a shower, she could calm herself down enough to get to bed. Maybe, she could even relieve her needs from thinking about her date so much. This was…rather unlike her.

…

As she started on her way to the bathroom, the mare stopped when she heard a noise from the stairs. Her heart skipped a beat, and she turned around slowly to survey the source of the sound.

Her eyes locked onto the twisting staircase just in time to see a chipmunk scurry down with the pantyhose sock in its mouth. Fluttershy gasped, and tapped her hoof on the ground firmly.

“Mr. Whiskers! Mama thought she told you all to leave that stuff alone! She doesn’t want the house to be a mess for tomorrow’s guest!” She scolded.

The chipmunk, apparently by the name of “Mr. Whiskers”, stopped suddenly to stare at Fluttershy. Fluttershy stared back down on him with a stern look on her face. Neither one of them backed down.

“Now come on, Mr. Whiskers. You really don’t want Mama to use The Stare, do you? The Stare is only for critters who misbehave, and you’re not someone who misbehaves, are you?” Fluttershy added.

Mr. Whiskers sat down, scratched his neck with his back paw, and smiled. He looked up at Fluttershy with the sock still hanging out of his mouth.

…

“Oh, you know I didn’t want to have to do this, but you’re leaving me with no choice. I need you to give me back that sock!” Fluttershy exclaimed. She leaned forward, opened her eyes wide, and gave Mr. Whiskers the coldest Stare that she could muster.

Mr. Whiskers began to cringe under the forceful mastery of Fluttershy’s dreaded Stare. His smile faded as adrenaline began to run through his tiny, furry body.

Fluttershy showed no signs of letting up her torment. She put extra pressure into her right eye, causing it to bulge slightly out of its socket for an additionally intimidating effect. Bending her front legs, she leaned closer to allow The Stare to dig deeper into Mr. Whiskers’ conscience.

It was doing its job, too. The Stare slowly became too much for the poor little chipmunk. However, much to Fluttershy’s surprise, instead of giving in to The Stare’s paralyzing effects, Mr. Whiskers bolted away to avoid having to endure it for another second.

…

Fluttershy blinked a couple of times to allow her eyes to re-moisturize, and gasped in shock.

“Mr. Whiskers, no! I don’t want to have to try and find that sock any more than I have to!”

Fluttershy watched in horror as her rebellious chipmunk ran for the foyer, and jumped out the open window with the sock in his mouth. A small rustling noise came from outside as his paws made contact with the bushes in her garden.

Petrified, Fluttershy bolted to the front door with all of her might. She threw it open, and scanned her front yard frantically for her escaping animal friend.

How does one define panic? Well, sure, that’s another simple one. Panic is a feeling that can be described as uncontrollable fear, worry, or anxiety that often causes wildly unthinking behavior. Panic in large numbers can sometimes result in the death of someone caught under a stampede of victims. Is panic usually caused by escaping animal friends?

Sure it is. Adrenaline began to pump through Fluttershy’s veins, much like it did with Mr. Whiskers when he was being administered The Stare. Her breathing sped up, and became audible in the form of shallow gasps. Her eyes were wide with worry and disposition.

…

Off in the corner of her eye, Fluttershy caught a brief glimpse of her critter companion scurrying in the direction of the Everfree Forest. Her heart skipped another beat, and she dashed off after the venturing creature.

“No, Mr. Whiskers, please! Don’t go into the Everfree Forest! It’s not safe in there!” She pleaded.

With the chipmunk far ahead of her, Fluttershy disappeared through the brush of the forest in the blink of an eye.

“Do you think we’d be disturbing her by just…barging into her house like this?” Twilight asked uncertainly.

Rainbow Dash chuckled calmly. “Relax, Twilight. This is Fluttershy we’re barging in on. Would she really mind?”

“I don’t think it’s that she won’t mind. I think her problem is minding, but not showing it. Does that make sense?”

“Not really. Hey; there’s her cottage!”

…

Rainbow Dash shifted her weight, and eagerly soared down towards their destination. Twilight sighed, and reluctantly did the same. Shortly after Rainbow Dash’s clear-cut landing, Twilight plummeted into the dirt face-first.

“You alright there, sister?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight grumbled, and spit out a mud pie. “Peachy…”

“Great! Then let’s go get a good look at our favorite pegasus! Well…besides me, of course.”

Leaving Twilight to struggle in the soil, Rainbow Dash trotted up to Fluttershy’s front door with a swing in her step. Raising a hoof carelessly, she knocked on the door with a sort-of funky rhythm.

Twilight shook herself after standing up to rid her fur of any clingy dirt particles. She trudged over to Rainbow Dash, who was tapping her hoof on the pathway aimlessly. No one was answering the door.

“Do you suppose she’s in the bathroom or something?” Twilight asked.

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Nah, that usually isn’t like her. She uses the restroom less than any other pony I’ve ever known.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “And…how do you know this?”

Rainbow Dash’s face flushed bright red. “Um…she told me.”

“Sure. That definitely sounds like something that friends would normally tell each other.”

…

Seconds eventually turned into minutes, and the front door still remained quiet. Rainbow Dash tried knocking on it again, but got no response.

“Hmm. I guess she isn’t home. Well, whatever. It doesn’t matter.” Rainbow Dash shrugged.

“Uh, yes it does! She could be anywhere by now! Quick; what’s Fluttershy’s favorite pharmacy?” Twilight demanded.

“Just be quiet, egghead! Why do I have to keep saying this? There’s nothing wrong with Fluttershy!”

“There’s no need to be so harsh, Rainbow. Remember what Fluttershy said earlier today? She was going to be at home getting things together for her date tomorrow. So how can you explain the fact that she’s not here?”

“She could’ve easily left for town to get some air freshener or something. She lives with about a hundred animals, you know.”

…

“Well…I suppose that makes sense…” Twilight muttered.

“You see? I’m always right! Now maybe we should just stay here and wait for her to get back.” Rainbow Dash suggested in response.

Twilight put a hoof on her forehead. “No; you know what? I think you made your point. This is a waste of our time. It’s getting late, and I’m getting a bit dizzy from all of this pointless chaos.”

Rainbow Dash scoffed. “I figured you’d come around sooner or later. Come on, let’s go.”

The duo spread their wings and took off into the sky, leaving the missing pegasus’s abandoned cottage behind them.

“M…Mr. Whiskers! Come back here right now! Mama’s getting very worried!” Fluttershy called.

Owls’ hoots and tree rustles crept into Fluttershy’s eardrums, causing her to flinch. She looked timidly around the forest, trying to see if anything was approaching her. Small whimpers escaped her mouth.

Tiny bits of moonlight streamed through the canopy of the forest, giving the terrified pegasus a minimal amount of light to work with. Fireflies were the only things besides the moon that were illuminating the darkness.

More tree rustles sounded behind her. Loud ones. Fluttershy turned behind her in a quick motion, shivering wildly.

“Mr. Whiskers…?”

…

Complete silence ensued. As soon as Fluttershy stuttered the name of her chipmunk, everything in the forest went quiet. The cricket sounds stopped, as well as the owl sounds. All of the light from the fireflies died out in a sudden blink. Even the tree rustling stopped, as the wind seemed to have halted completely.

“H…Hello? Is someone th…there? Have they seen my chipmunk?”

There was no response. Over a steady period of time, Fluttershy’s own nervous heartbeat became audible to her. She shifted her hooves around in the grass in a trivial attempt to create some noise.

“I need to find my chipmunk!” She wailed.

…

A large shadow breezed past her in a swift and menacing motion. Fluttershy locked up her legs, and froze in place.

“H…H…Hello…?” She squealed softly.

The bushes in front of her rustled. Slowly, the rustling got closer and closer, until it was right at the edge of the brush. Fluttershy closed her eyes, and prepared for the worst.

Suddenly, though, Mr. Whiskers himself popped through the bushes, still carrying Fluttershy’s pantyhose sock. Fluttershy peeked one of her eyes open, and gasped with delight when she saw her chipmunk.

“Mr. Whiskers!” She exclaimed.

…

“Hey!” A male voice yelled.

Fluttershy squealed loudly in surprise, breaking down on her front knees. Quivering, she looked up on the woody horizon to see a dark figure approaching her.

When the shadows subsided, a very familiar male earth pony was seen standing over Fluttershy with a bemused look on his face.

Fluttershy’s fearful face was immediately penetrated by a relieved smile. “Silver Spirit! You came for me!”

Using her hind legs, Fluttershy launched off the ground and tackled her rescuer. She wrapped her front hooves around him, and hugged him tightly.

…

Silver Spirit did not even smile. “That’s my chipmunk.”

Fluttershy’s smile disappeared. She leaned back a little bit, and stared into Silver Spirit’s eyes.

“Oh no, you have it all wrong. Mr. Whiskers is my chipmunk. See? He even has my pantyhose sock in his mouth.” She explained, smile returning to her face.

Silver Spirit did not say anything. He kept his eyes focused in Fluttershy’s face, but they were not exactly trained…on her face. His pupils were separated, almost like he was staring through her into the distance.

Fluttershy’s smile disappeared again. She ran her hoof in front of his face. “Silver…are you alright?”

…

As Fluttershy’s hoof ran over Silver Spirit’s face, his eyes suddenly disappeared altogether. Fluttershy suddenly screamed in horror, and began to squirm out of his grasp.

She fell to the ground, and tried to wriggle away from him as far as possible. She stared up disgustedly at his empty eye sockets.

“Holy Sweet Celestia!!! You’re not Silver Spirit!”

“No, I don’t think I am. Brilliant deduction there, Flutter-face.” The imposter responded. His voice was no longer disguised as Silver Spirit’s. Instead, it was a deep, ghostly-sounding echo. Multiple voices seemed to occupy the same tone, causing a wave of vocal information to flow through his tongue.

“W…What are you? A Changeling? What’ve you done with Silver Spirit?” Fluttershy stuttered.

The being shook its head. “Oh no, I’m much more powerful than a Changeling. By the time I’m done here, you’ll be wishing you bumped into a Changeling.”

Despite the immeasurable fear that Fluttershy was feeling, she did not back down. “W…Where is Silver Spirit?! Answer me!”

The being laughed, and began to approach Fluttershy slowly. “Don’t worry. Your petty little date is just fine. I bet he won’t be soon enough, though.”

Fluttershy shivered. Her teeth began to chatter. “P…please…do anything to me…… Just don’t do anything to him!”

Her pleading only caused the being to scoff. “Of course I’m not going to do anything to him. I don’t really need to do anything to…Silver Spirit. You’ll destroy him in time.”

…

Fluttershy gasped. “I’d never harm Silver Spirit! I…I love him!”

“Don’t lie to yourself, pony. You only first met him today. But it doesn’t matter. You’ll tear through him without even realizing it.”

Tears began to stream down Fluttershy’s face. “H…How do you know all this…?”

“I’m immortal. I’ve been waiting and watching your pathetic homeland since your petty Princess was just an infant. You hide nothing from me.”

Fluttershy ran out of things to say. She grabbed her chipmunk, climbed off of the ground, and began to run in a desperate attempt to escape. The being leaned its forehead downwards in the fleeing pegasus’s direction, and focused a ghostly beam of energy from its empty eyes.

The beam struck Fluttershy, and she collapsed to the ground. Her chipmunk flew out of her grasp, and slid on the ground a few feet. Frightened, the critter fled back into the bushes.

…

Fluttershy tried to get back up, but found herself too weak to do so. Her vision became extremely foggy. The injured mare groaned sickly while squirming aimlessly on the ground.

Staring up through her impaired senses, Fluttershy could barely make out the being’s figure appearing over her. It looked down at her, and smiled evilly.

“Your time is up. You will be doomed to slow and empty destruction, and your loved ones will follow. Speak the name, spread the disease. That is your fate.”

Fluttershy moaned quietly. “Nooo……pleeeaaase…..”

…

The being focused another beam of energy at Fluttershy. Its eyes began to glow, and a slow stream of light flowed out of the sockets. It focused on Fluttershy’s forehead, and began to brighten exponentially. Fluttershy felt a tingling numbness fill her body.

Several minutes later, when the beam subsided, Fluttershy’s weakness was immeasurable. The being’s form suddenly changed in a quick flash, replacing Silver Spirit’s appearance. Now, to Fluttershy’s astonishment, the being looked just like her. It looked down at her, and laughed.

“Your soul is now a debt to me. You have been Bloodshot.”

Fluttershy's weakness overwhelmed her. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she blacked out.

Diagnosis

How does one define emptiness? Ooh, you caught me with that one. Emptiness can take on a number of forms. It could be described simply by calling it a lack of presence, or an absence of matter or meaning. But an explanation like that has so many meanings in itself; it’d be challenging to compress all of them into a compound sentence. Emptiness is one of those metaphorical things that can be used in a multitude of different manners to describe physical space, emotional satisfaction, or……spiritual departure.

Fluttershy jolted awake from a startling noise that attacked her eardrums. She sat up quickly, shaking her head to reorient her senses. Her vision was clogged with blurriness and confusion, as was her hearing and sensitivity. For a lengthy few seconds, nothing seemed to come together.

All the confused pegasus could see was a messy haze of colors. A splotch of yellow and pink was visible when she looked down at herself, surrounded by a smear of olive green. That must’ve been the surface that she was laying on. Out beyond the green patch, an expanse of tan sprawled out in all directions. Perhaps that was the floor.

Upon looking up, many different colors could be seen. Appearances ranging from dark browns to light grays to greens to shiny silvers danced around mysteriously in her perception.

…

Fluttershy squinted a little, and the runny water-colored picture of her vision started to become a little clearer. In fact, the chaos that she was able to see actually started to become familiar. Was her mind playing tricks on her? The more she looked, the more the vision began to resemble…

…her cottage. Fluttershy’s jaw went slack when she observed herself laying peacefully on the couch in her living room. Once everything in her perception became as sharp and as clear as normal, the mare looked slowly around the room. Bright, illuminating sunlight beamed in through the back window facing the Everfree Forest. That could only mean one thing.

It was morning. Coupled with the magnificent rays of sunlight, rampant animals could be seen scurrying around the cottage. Full of energy from a good night’s sleep, the critters were as rambunctious as ever.

This was nothing that Fluttershy wasn’t used to. She yawned softly, producing a sort of fluffy squealing sound. Rubbing her eyes, she climbed off the couch. She would have to walk off whatever weird dream that occurred the night before.

…

She stepped around the scurrying mice and slithering snakes on her floor as she trudged over to the bathroom. Flipping on the light, she leaned in front of the mirror to wash her face. Before turning on the water, however, Fluttershy got a good look at her appearance.

Her mane was an absolute pigsty. The smooth, curly curtain of pink strands that usually made up her luscious mane were now exploding outwards in directions unknown to the frazzled pegasus mare. This was not her first concern, however. Her entire face almost seemed to lack the luster that it usually contained.

Fluttershy was only in her mid-twenties. Her face made her look like she was forty. The exuberant, bright butter yellow that shined proudly on the rest of her body was not quite as evident on her face. Her cheeks had lost the slight blush that usually brought her adorable complexion together. She looked almost like a transforming zombie. Her eyes were severely bloodshot.

Bloodshot. Something about that adjective felt off to her. It held some sort of…relevance that she couldn’t explain. Never before has she woken up in the morning looking like this, so what could it mean? What if...

Nah. There was no way that last night’s frightening encounter was real. If it was, how could Fluttershy have gotten back home after the incident? The way she remembered it, the dream ended with her lying on the ground. Nothing could’ve magically teleported her back to her cottage before she woke up. Right?

…

Fluttershy was saddened to admit it, but she would probably finally have to use that facial makeup that Rarity had given her months back. After all, there was no way she was going to let Silver Spirit see her like this.

Sighing disappointedly, the mare leaned down below her sink to open the cabinet that contained the facial appliances. Searching around blindly with her hoof, she came across a moderately-sized bottle that felt familiar to her. Pulling it out hastily, she glanced at the label.

“CoverMare Facial Foundation…” Fluttershy muttered. “…I bet Silver Spirit would love this.”

The bottle of CoverMare was bound to be the stuff that Rarity had given her. After all, the general feel of the product had Rarity written all over it. Plus, Fluttershy never really had any reason to buy makeup herself. She unscrewed the cap, and dabbed a bit of it on her hoof.

…

As the scatterbrained pegasus applied the substance gently to her face, she thought to herself idly.

“When did Rarity get this stuff for me, anyways? Perhaps it was a birthday gift. Wait…maybe she got it for me to go along with my gala dress from a few years back? Hmm…that doesn’t really feel familiar to me…”

Fluttershy also couldn’t help but to marvel out how leathery her face felt. It almost worried her as she glided her hoof over the extent of her cheeks and chin. Why did she look so aged? And why was it only present in her face? The peculiarities troubled her.

The substance she was rubbing on her face sported a rather rare sheen. Upon reading the label, one could find the words, “Morning-Light Yellow,” being beamed off of the surface. Makeup had to come in a rainbow of different colors to suit the fur colors of all the ponies in Equestria. “Buying makeup would be quite expensive for Rainbow Dash…” She thought with a chuckle.

…

With a few more minutes of careful application, Fluttershy was looking like her young, vibrant self again. She smiled happily, looking in the mirror as she closed the CoverMare bottle and set it on the counter. That stuff really did work miracles.

One thing still didn’t make sense, though. Why was it necessary? Of course, it did its job well in hiding the bland monstrosities that reflected on Fluttershy’s face. But why were they there in the first place? Fluttershy had never woken up before with a face looking that fatigued.

Fluttershy thought deeply to herself about the conundrum as she turned toward the porcelain throne to her right to relieve herself. As she turned to the side in the mirror, the confused pegasus caught a glimpse of the rest of her body. She gasped in utter horror as she got a view of her reflected features.

Something was wrong. And it was time to tell Twilight Sparkle about it right away.

Honestly, though, what is the purpose of all these questions? It’s not like you’re trying to write a dictionary or anything. I don’t know why you’re coming to me for help.

Ooh, research, you say? On some kind of fatal curse of the soul? That does seem interesting. I myself have heard things of this subject, but have not taken the time to delve into its secrets. I’ve never had the chance to confront such a plague, but I have heard of its existence.

Wait…you say you’ve seen this curse? From where has it occurred? I won’t exactly be able to help you if you don’t give me any details.

…Mmhm…I see……So it’s imposed upon by a dark being of some sort? Where have you heard of this?

Witness accounts…that does indeed make sense. Well, Princess, you have my word when I say that I will study this along your side. I will do whatever it takes to suppress this disease that’s been plaguing the fine ponies of Equestria. I, Starswirl the Bearded, give you my word.

Fluttershy practically pounded the door out of its frame when she arrived at Twilight’s castle. After a few minutes of waiting anxiously, she finally got a response from the other side. When Twilight opened the door, she rubbed her eyes groggily.

“Fluttershy? What are you doing here so early? I hope you know it’s a Saturday.” She paused suddenly, and opened her eyes wider. “…You sure look exuberant.”

“Um…I had to put Rarity’s makeup on my face this morning.” Fluttershy absentmindedly replied. “But anyways, that’s not the point. I need you to see something.”

“What is it?”

Without saying another word, Fluttershy flashed her flank to the Ponyville Princess. With a quick glance, Twilight’s jaw fell slack.

“It…it………Oh, sweet Celestia…”

…

Fluttershy’s cutie mark was completely gone. Twilight stared blankly at the Element of Kindness’s outer thigh, shocked at the spectacle. Believe it or not, the fur on her flank was yellow in complete uniformity. No butterflies existed on its surface.

“But…that’s impossible! There isn’t any kind of disease or impairment that would cause one to lose their cutie mark! The only cutie-mark-related disease I’ve heard of is Cutie Pox, and that just makes you gain more cutie marks. Nothing like this has ever been seen before!” The shocked unicorn ranted.

“Wh…What do I do? A lot of weird stuff is happening to me, and Silver Spirit is coming to pick me up later today! I’m not sick or anything, am I?” Fluttershy asked anxiously.

Twilight trotted hastily into her castle, gesturing for Fluttershy to come in as well. Fluttershy entered cautiously, and shut the door behind her.

“You know, Fluttershy, I’d normally try to be consoling by saying that you’re not sick. Heck, I don’t even know if it’s a sickness that you’re dealing with. But I can say for sure that something is definitely wrong with you, and it needs to be fixed immediately.”

“Do you know what it is?”

“No, I don’t. I just said that. And when I don’t know something, it’s my duty to figure it out. This could be your life for all I know.”

Fluttershy froze for a moment. Then, with a startled squeak, she huddled down on the floor behind her hooves.

…

“Spike! Come down here!” Twilight yelled.

In a matter of seconds, Spike had sprinted down the stairs and into Twilight’s presence. A shot a playful salute, and put on a stern-soldier face.

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Spike, knock that off. I need your help with some important research.” Twilight ordered.

“You got it! What do you need?” He asked.

“Look at Fluttershy’s flank. We have a serious problem on our hooves.”

…

Spike glanced over at Fluttershy, who was still curled up on the ground. Leaning past her face, he got a quick view of her outer thigh.

“Holy guacamole! How did that happen? I didn’t know ponies could lose their cutie marks!”

“I obviously don’t know what happened, Spike, because if I did, I wouldn’t be asking you to help me research it! Now come on; we need to see what book has information on this predicament.”

Without another word, Spike eagerly jogged forward into the bookroom. Grabbing a stepladder, he prepared to start looking for books with possible answers to their problem. Twilight walked in slowly behind him, followed by Fluttershy.

Twilight turned to Fluttershy while Spike was browsing. “Fluttershy, what exactly happened this morning before you noticed that your cutie mark was gone?”

“Well…nothing. I just woke up after a weird dream, and my face looked like…”

“What was your dream about? It could hold some meaning!” Twilight demanded, cutting Fluttershy off.

Fluttershy jumped a little bit, startled by Twilight’s stern interruption. “I, uh…I really don’t want to remember it……”

“Don’t be like that now, Flutters. I can only help you if you give me details. I need to know everything!”

“Well, um…I was chasing my chipmunk, Mr. Whiskers, into the Everfree Forest. I think it was to get something back from him. I encountered this……creature, which struck me backwards with some sort of beam. I blacked out after that, I think…” She explained with a stutter.

“Did this creature say anything before he blasted you?” Twilight asked.

“Uh…I think so…”

“What did he say?”

“I’m not quite sure…”

“And you’re sure this was all a dream?”

…

Fluttershy looked up from the ground, and gazed uncertainly into Twilight’s eyes. Unspeaking and unmoving for a few intensive moments, she continued to battle with herself.

“N…no……not really…”

Twilight put a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder. “Fluttershy, when something like this is happening to you, always assume that weird happenings are not dreams. Understand?”

Fluttershy quivered nervously. A tear rolled down her cheek. “…Okay……”

…

Spike gave a whistle. Twilight and Fluttershy turned to look at him, and saw him waving a book around in his claw. The ladder he was perched on swayed uneasily.

“I found a book that might help us.” He announced.

“Be careful there, Spike. Don’t let that ladder tip.” Twilight warned.

Spike slid down the side of the ladder on his tail. The ladder fell idly to the side. Spike leapt up to his feet, and brushed himself off. “Relax, Twilight. I got it.”

Spike handed the book to Twilight. Twilight gripped it with her magic, and stared at the cover.

“Perplexing Pony Plagues! I don’t know why I didn’t think of this one before. This was the book where we found information on Applebloom’s Cutie Pox!”

…

Walking over to her reading podium, Twilight set the book down and flipped it open. Fluttershy and Spike followed behind her anxiously. Looking over her shoulder, they took a glance inside the book.

“Let’s see…it should be somewhere in the same section as the Cutie Pox…… After all, it’s related to the same thing.” Twilight grumbled, flipping through pages.

Spike’s eyes widened. “Wait, Twilight, stop there! I think I saw something!”

Twilight halted her frantic page-flipping, and went back a couple of pages to what Spike had seen. There, in the top-right corner of page 137, was a diagram image of a frowning pony with no cutie mark. What appeared to be a cloud of steam rose above the pony in the picture.

Fluttershy stared in confusion at the title. “Oh my…what in the name of Celestia is that?”

Twilight put a hoof on her mouth as she read the title out loud. “Hematic Spiritual Dystrophy…” She paused in shock and awe. “A strange curse or disease of the soul that causes it to degenerate or dissolve. Victims often go by the term of ‘Bloodshot’ to describe the acute effects of the plague’s progression.”

The three of them stood in utter silence as they struggled to wrap their mind around the gravity of the definition. Three-quarters of the page was still unread, but that did not currently matter. A situation more serious than any of them could’ve ever imagined was at hoof.

…

Spike glanced over at Fluttershy to see her quivering in fear. She blinked rapidly, and her wings sat half-unfolded. Frightened tears began forming at her eyelids.

“Read more, Twilight. We need to see what this is about.” Spike suggested.

Twilight reluctantly began to articulate the entire article. “Hematic Spiritual Dystrophy, or H.S.D, is a critical disease of the mind and spirit. It originated in the midst of the Pre-Classical Era, and has not been seen since. Its whereabouts are currently unknown. The famous Starswirl the Bearded took up the task of studying this plague under the direction of Princess Celestia during the time of its existence.”

Twilight momentarily stopped. Spike and Fluttershy were listening intently, and were now confused as to why she stopped. For those brief moments, the life in the entire room was halted. No one moved, breathed, or even blinked. Then, with a sunken heart, Twilight read on.

“The causes, symptoms, and cures for H.S.D are completely unknown. Bloodshot victims, statistically, have an extremely low chance of survival. Past superstitious rumors have stated that Bloodshot victims are destined to damnation upon death, but no evidence to support the claim has been uncovered. Drastic facial aging and chronic loss of the cutie mark are the only known early symptoms of the disease. Contagion is possible, but the means of doing so are unknown. H.S.D is guaranteed, with all tests performed, to only affect the three races of equines.”

…

Twilight stopped again when she reached the edge of the page. She shared a dreadful glance with Spike, who was equally as worried as she was. Luckily for him, dragons were apparently unable to be Bloodshot.

“Well, Fluttershy, you know what this means. If we don’t find some answers to this horrid…thing, it could spell disaster for all of Equestria.” Twilight announced.

She waited patiently for Fluttershy’s terrified response. Several seconds later, she did not get one.

“Um…Fluttershy? Did you hear us?” She repeated. Turning around, she took a look at the silent pegasus.

Fluttershy was not quivering anymore. Her body stood completely still, and her gaze shot forward into an indistinguishable point in space. Twilight waved her hoof in front of her friend’s face, but there was no noticeable reaction.

…

Spike put a claw on his chin. “Uh…do you suppose this means…”

Spike was cut off mid-sentence as Fluttershy suddenly exhaled sharply. Her wings flared outwards, twitched a few times, and then folded back to her sides. Shortly after, her eyes rolled back in her head to the point where only the whites were visible. Then, with an absent sigh, she fainted on the floor.

“Fluttershy!” Twilight and Spike yelled simultaneously. They got down on the ground next to her, and tried to wake her back up.

They cringed in fright as a pitch-black halo of energy began to emanate off of her blank flank. Right before their very eyes, the clean yellow fur on Fluttershy’s outer thigh was replaced by a blood-red pentagram.

Contagion

Your Highness, don’t feel guilty about any of these happenings. You know deep down that none of these conundrums were your fault. You did the right thing by coming to me for assistance. With the speed of which this plague is spreading, we both are going to need all the help that we can muster. I’m already onto a couple of clues…

The next few hours of Twilight’s day were spent frantically searching for answers about Fluttershy’s illness. Even with her castle’s expanded library, her efforts were repeatedly turning up negative. Upstairs, Spike was worriedly trying to coax Fluttershy awake on Twilight’s bed. The pentagram on her flank was emanating a very dull red glow.

“Twilight, I’m scared…” He shivered.

“Don’t be, Spike. This plague has no way of affecting you. Besides, you don’t even have a cutie mark.” Twilight replied with utmost confidence. She slammed a large, heavy book down on her reading podium, and began to skim through it.

“But…what about you? What will I do if you get the disease?” Spike countered.

“That’s nonsense, Spike. The book from earlier said that only the three main races of pony could be affected by this disease. I’m an alicorn now.” She mentioned.

“Well…do you suppose we should tell Princess Celestia about this?” Spike asked.

“As long as we keep Fluttershy quarantined here with us, everything will be under control. After all, neither of us can contract the disease. I don’t want this thing becoming a national panic.” Twilight explained.

“What…what if Fluttershy dies?”

“Don’t even say that aloud, Spike. No one is going to die here. I’d give my own life first before I let Fluttershy die from this plague.”

Spike didn’t reply after that statement. He silently turned back to Fluttershy, and continued with his attempts to snap her awake. A lot rested on the shoulders of him and Twilight. Until they could discover the plague’s mode of contagion, she could not be allowed to leave their castle.

…

Mutual silence occurred within the castle for perhaps the next twenty minutes. Twilight continued to scan through the same thick book from earlier, but was not coming to any results.

“This doesn’t make any sense! If there was an article about H.S.D in Perplexing Pony Plagues, why are there none to be found in any other medical books?” Twilight ranted.

“Well, Twilight, it said in the other book that much about the disease was unknown. Plus, aren’t most medical books about modern diseases? H.S.D’s been nonexistent since Starswirl’s time.” Spike argued.

Twilight sighed, and plopped her head down in the pages of the book. Although she didn’t want to believe it, Spike was right. Hooves-on research would’ve been necessary if they were going to cure Fluttershy.

Spike suddenly gasped. “Twilight, I think Fluttershy just moaned!”

Twilight’s head shot back up out of the book. She galloped up the stairs to where Spike was standing next to Fluttershy. The two of them looked down at their assailed pegasus friend.

Fluttershy stirred a little bit on the bed, making soft grunting noises as she stretched her muscles. Twilight and Spike stared at her intently, relieved that she was finally waking up.

…

Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes. As soon as she did, all three of them leapt backwards in shock. Fluttershy’s wings flared open.

“Were…were you guys watching me sleep?” She asked nervously.

“Fluttershy, your eyes are gray!” Spike exclaimed, ignoring her question.

Twilight nodded anxiously in agreement. Fluttershy stuttered and gasped irregularly with confusion and doubt. “Wh…what? Really?”

Twilight nodded again. “Yes, Fluttershy, your irises have lost their hue. Do you remember anything from the last few hours?”

Fluttershy took almost no effort in recalling, which meant that her memories had not been lost. “Yeah…I think. My cutie mark was gone, so I flew to your castle to see what was wrong. While I was here, you read up about something called H.S.D, but while you were reading, everything just kind of…blanked out.”

“Alright, that’s good. You still remember everything. Now, if you wish, you should probably go downstairs and get a look at yourself.” Twilight offered.

…

As soon as she was given the opportunity, Fluttershy took off from the ground, and hovered down the stairs to the bathroom where she could get a view of her face. Once she had gotten there and looked in the mirror, she was shocked.

“I…how…but…wha....?” She stammered.

“There’s still time. We could still test for answers rather than research them.” Twilight announced.

“How do we plan on doing that?” Spike asked.

“I’m not even entirely sure yet. When it comes to testing, you have to experiment with different things.” Twilight replied.

…

Suddenly, nearly cutting Twilight off, a large-sounding object slammed into the roof of the castle, causing some books to rattle on their shelves. Fluttershy jumped back in fright, almost hitting her head on the towel rack behind her.

“What the heck was that?” Spike asked.

Twilight sighed. “I think Rainbow Dash is going to be at the front door.”

Moments after Twilight’s prediction, the front door received a swift knock. Spike chuckled, impressed that Twilight had made such an accurate claim. In reality, when something crashes into the roof, it’s kind of obvious.

Twilight flew gently down to the front door, and opened it lightly. To the surprise of absolutely no one, Rainbow Dash stood on the other side. Her mane was a complete mess, and a large bump seemed visible on her forehead. She chuckled awkwardly.

“Uh, hey again, Twilight. Do have a Band-Aid I could borrow?”

“Yeah, I think they’re upstairs in the bathroom.” Twilight replied with a bemused look on her face. “Oh, and by the way, be careful please.”

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Twilight sighed. “Fluttershy’s up there.”

“Wait, what? What’d she smoke?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight suddenly looked up at Rainbow Dash with a confused glare. “What the heck are you talking about? She’s upstairs! I told you to be careful because she has a serious illness that we know nothing about!”

Rainbow Dash chuckled awkwardly again. “Heh heh…oh. That makes much more sense.”

Seemingly ignoring Twilight’s warning, Rainbow Dash took off up the stairs of the castle.

Princess, there’s a problem here. I’ve carried out the tasks that you asked me to, and I am currently at no avail. This pestilence is metastasizing at an alarming rate, and it’s not following the expected means of transfer. I’ve looked into whatever I could, and none of it is consistent. Family members and other closely-related ponies seem to be contracting this disease without ever coming in contact with their loved ones. I’m beginning to feel lucky for not being plagued myself. Do you have any changing suggestions?

Rainbow Dash appeared in the bathroom just in time for Fluttershy to turn around and notice her. Rainbow Dash stopped in place, and gasped when she caught a look at Fluttershy’s usually-vibrant face.

“…Fluttershy? What happened to you? Why are your eyes…gray?” She asked in awe.

“Um…I guess I’m…diseased or something……” She muttered.

“And are you wearing…makeup?” The athlete asked.

Fluttershy looked down at the ground in shame. She nodded her head a few times. Rainbow Dash just stared in silence at her changing friend.

Twilight trudged up the stairs. “Don’t judge her for anything. She’s very frightened right now, and so are we. None of us have any answers to what’s happening to her right now, or if it’s fatal.”

Rainbow Dash’s Band-Aid was not even on her mind right now. Who was she to request a Band-Aid when her best friend was sick out of her wildest dreams? The cyan mare stepped away from the bathroom entrance, allowing Fluttershy to exit.

…

As Fluttershy passed by Rainbow Dash, her flank became visible. Rainbow Dash gave a quick glance, and practically jumped when she saw what was there.

“Sweet Celestia, Flutters, your ass! What happened to it?!” She exclaimed.

Twilight face-hoofed. “Rainbow Dash, seriously! Try to have a little bit of decency about this!”

“I’m sorry, but this is all weirding me out! Is that a pentagram? It looks almost like it’s carved out of blood!”

Fluttershy stopped walking for a second. She was still looking at the ground, and her grayed-out eyes were closed. She nodded once to answer Rainbow Dash’s question.

…

Once the plagued pegasus did that, the whole room was plunged into silence. Fluttershy’s head continued to face the ground while her eyes stared into her eyelids. Twilight and Spike stared at Rainbow Dash, waiting for her to respond.

“……I wonder what your date would think…”

Fluttershy suddenly broke into crying. She fell to the floor, and buried her face in her hooves. Spike and Rainbow Dash stood awkwardly in their spots, while Twilight groaned.

“You need to learn a little tact, Rainbow. You can’t barge in here and say stuff that will hurt somepony’s feelings. Fluttershy’s sensitive as it is, and now she’s in a dangerous condition. You’re not being very careful, like I asked.”

“I thought you meant ‘careful’ as in not to catch her disease! I didn’t know you were telling me to stay quiet!”

“I didn’t think I had to.”

…

Rainbow Dash leaned down next to Fluttershy, and put her hoof over her ruffled mane. She gently caressed her distressed friend’s hair. Fluttershy, with Silver Spirit on her mind, continued to cry into her hooves.

“Never mind what I said, Flutters. I know we’ll find a way out of this for you. By the time your date shows up, you’ll be back to your young, beautiful self.” Rainbow Dash assured.

Fluttershy sniffled once. She turned her head, and looked up at Rainbow Dash with her gray, altered eyes. Stray tears streamed down her cheek.

She wiped her face with a stroke of her hoof. “Th…thanks, Rainbow Dash……”

…

Once Rainbow Dash’s name escaped Fluttershy’s mouth, the light around her grew dim. Her gray eyes flashed a sudden pure black, and a drop of blood fell down from her tear duct. When she spoke the name, it made a deep, echoing, ghostly sound. The other three looked at Fluttershy in horror, like she was being possessed by a demon.

Rainbow Dash’s face did not remain terrified for long, however. Once Fluttershy had finished her statement, the light around her returned to normal. Rainbow Dash’s face suddenly turned completely blank, like she was glaring off into space.

“Uh…Rainbow Dash? Are you okay?” Spike asked nervously.

Rainbow Dash did not reply. To everyone’s shock and horror, Rainbow Dash exhaled sharply, and collapsed to the floor.

…

“Aw, horseapples!” Twilight exclaimed. She lunged forward to where Rainbow Dash had fallen, and tried to shake her awake. She got nowhere.

Fluttershy, seeing what she had done, began to cry loudly once again. She turned away from the other three, and continued to bawl into her hooves with fright and guilt. Twilight and Spike did work on Rainbow Dash like they were performing CPR, but got no result.

“Spike?”

“Yes?”

“Contact Princess Celestia. This needs further attention.”

Defiance

“Rainbow Dash! Hey, Rainbow Dash! Don’t make this difficult on me!” Twilight ordered, slapping her friend in the cheek a few times. The infected pegasus just lay on the ground, cold and unmoving. Twilight knew with utmost certainty that her athletic friend wasn’t dead; she was merely unconscious. After all, if whatever just happened to her was fatal, then Fluttershy would’ve been dead a long time ago.

“D…Do you think she’s…” Spike stammered.

“Yes, Spike. She’s Bloodshot, just like the book said. She isn’t dead, though, so I don’t need anyone freaking out while we try to find a cure for this thing.” Twilight declared with a calm look on her face.

“B…but…the disease! Everyone’s starting to catch it already!” Spike retorted.

“Spike, please stop freaking out. Rainbow Dash just happened to walk within close range of Fluttershy, so she obviously caught the disease. I don’t know the specifics of its transmission, but I’m not very surprised that she got it too. All we have to do is keep them here with us, and Equestria will be fine.” Twilight explained.

“Are you sure we’re not going to catch it?” Spike asked, biting his lip.

…

Without answering his question, Twilight turned around. “Fluttershy?”

Quivering, Fluttershy looked up from her hooves. “Y…yes?”

Twilight stopped dead in her tracks. Her breathing stopped. “Holy sweet Celestia…”

Twilight’s suddenly-shocked behavior caused Fluttershy’s anxiety to well up again. She quaked. “What? What’s wrong?”

Twilight turned back around so she was facing away from Fluttershy. The awed unicorn lowered her head solemnly. “Fluttershy, it’s your eyes. Before you go and look in the mirror, I need you to promise me something.”

Fluttershy struggled to keep herself from crying some more. As larger amounts of anxiety, confusion, and fear continued to build inside of her, her self-control was beginning to fade. “What? What’s wrong with my eyes?!”

“Fluttershy, I need you to stay calm! Now take a deep breath, and try to keep from panicking! Stress will only accelerate the progression of the disease!” Twilight demanded, turning back around quickly. Spike glanced around Twilight, and gasped when he saw Fluttershy.

…

Fluttershy put a hoof over her mouth to keep herself contained, and nodded slowly. Twilight gestured the infected pegasus toward the bathroom. Upon receiving this order, Fluttershy turned around, and walked slowly toward the latrine behind her. She stepped in front of the mirror, breathed a heavy sigh, and looked up.

The result was immediate. Fluttershy lurched backward into the wall behind her, and screamed loudly. She looked at herself as if she were staring at a snarling murderer.

“Oh…oh…oh my gosh! Twilight, wh…what is this?!” She shrieked.

Fluttershy’s eyes were a pure, vivid, jet black. No pupils, irises, or extraneous details could be seen anywhere on the surface of her corneas. She looked like someone had shoved miniature bowling balls into her eye sockets.

Twilight put a hoof to her chin. “Hmm…it seems like not even an hour ago that her irises only had gray outlines. Either this thing progresses quickly, or contagion is one of its means of progression…”

“What am I going to do?” Fluttershy bawled.

“Do us both a favor, and don’t do anything. Any slight variation in behavior beyond what we know could be enough to set it off even further. Just stay calm, and we’ll find a way through this.” Twilight ordered.

…

Once Twilight made her statement, Spike coughed. A plume of air filled up his cheeks, and he belched rather loudly. A cloud of lime fire erupted from his mouth, materializing quickly into a bundled up scroll. Without a word, he handed the scroll to Twilight.

“Ah, it’s about time that Princess Celestia decided to answer my plea.” Twilight scoffed. She gripped the scroll in both hooves, and opened it.

“My dearest student, Twilight,

If what you are telling me is true, I need you to head to Canterlot immediately. For our sake, I ask that you also bring whoever is currently infected with the plague that you speak of. Don’t bring anyone else; we need to keep the risks of a panic low. If possible, try to keep any of the assailants from speaking. From what you have told me, this disease is familiar. There is a lot to discuss.

Your long-time mentor, Princess Celestia.” She read.

…

No one said a word. Twilight stared down at the scroll thoughtfully. Spike glanced around the room nervously as if he expected a bomb to suddenly blow up.

“Well, you two, you heard what the princess said. We should get going. One of us will have to carry Rainbow Dash.” Twilight ordered.

Fluttershy glared over at Twilight with her demonic, empty eyes. “Wait…n…no! We can’t go to Canterlot now! I have a date later!”

Twilight, almost cutting Fluttershy off, exclaimed, “Fluttershy, you need to forget about him right now! Step back and look at yourself! There is a bloody pentagram on your flank, and you practically have no retinae! What do you think is going to happen as soon as you meet him?”

Fluttershy stood silent.

“I mean…don’t you think it’s for the greater good? The more ponies get it, the more ponies will continue to get it. I know you’ll agree with me when I say that the good of Equestria is more important than a single pony, right?” Twilight continued.

Fluttershy still stood silent. She closed her eyes, and looked at the floor.

“If you love him, you wouldn’t want him to die with a horrible disease. Does that make sense?” Twilight added.

Fluttershy didn’t move nor speak.

“Say something, Fluttershy! For Celestia’s sa—”

“WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?!” Fluttershy screamed, cutting Twilight off completely. Rainbow Dash suddenly jolted awake from the outburst.

…

Twilight stepped back a few paces, shocked from Fluttershy’s sudden cry. The other two witnesses stood by in utter silence. The only noise that could be heard in the room was Fluttershy’s heavy, exasperated breathing.

“Fluttershy, I—”

“You don’t know what it’s like, Twilight! All my life, I stood by in the background, observing other ponies’ lives, being there for the ones who needed it, and wishing I had it better! I love animals a lot, which is why I live off by the forest to care for them around the clock. Do you ever have any idea how lonely it gets out there?” Fluttershy ranted.

“I understand, but—”

“And I’ve always been so shy and so submissive, I just couldn’t…reach out for the help I needed. I love you guys all so much, but I sometimes feel like I just need…more, in order to not feel so alone…”

“You know it doesn’t have to be like that, Flutters. You see, we—”

“And then finally, this stallion that I’ve been swooning over for so many months starts to notice me, and it looks like I would finally get to share my life with a truly special somepony for once. But then, just like that, it’s all thrown down the drain when I contract some Celestia-forbidden disease that’s supposed to do heaven-knows-what to my entire life! Twilight, I don’t think you understand!”

“Yes I do, Fluttershy. It’s just important for now that we—”

“No, I don’t want to do anything. I’m going home now. When my date shows up to my cottage this evening, I’m going to be sure to give him the warmest welcome he’s ever seen. I don’t care if this disease kills me. If I get to die in his arms, then it would be worth it. Goodbye.” Fluttershy asserted with a final sigh.

“No, Fluttershy, wait! We can’t risk further contamination!” Twilight pleaded.

Ignoring the alicorn completely, Fluttershy strutted out the door, and closed it firmly behind her. Twilight let out a long, exasperated sigh.

…

“Do you think her behavior could be part of the disease?” Spike asked curiously. “Fluttershy never acts like that.”

“She sure is capable of it, nonetheless. You know how she acted back when that minotaur guy got a hold of her.” Rainbow Dash mentioned.

Twilight was reminded of Rainbow Dash as soon as the pegasus spoke. “Well, Rainbow Dash, now you’re the only specimen I have right now. How exactly are you feeling?”

“Me? Well, regardless of the long nap I just took, I suppose I feel……a little bit tired. Maybe I should eat something.” Rainbow Dash answered with a casual shrug.

Twilight took a conspicuous glance down at her colorful friend’s flank, and shook her head thoughtfully. Rainbow Dash quickly followed the alicorn’s gaze, and quickly saw what she was looking at.

…

Rainbow Dash’s cutie mark was gone. It, of course, didn’t pose as any sort of surprise to anyone, since the plague’s early stages were already familiar to the group. Rainbow Dash, however, was a little bit startled.

“Wait a minute…my cutie mark……Does this mean I’m Bloodshot too?” She gasped.

Twilight nodded. “You need to be able to keep your cool, though. Fluttershy is already much further into the disease than you are, and she still seems to be functioning just fine.”

“But Fluttershy’s disease developed just over the course of this morning! When she arrived at your cottage at dawn, her eyes still had their color, and her flank still didn’t have a pentagram on it! This thing moves fast, Twilight, so I think you need to think a little faster.” Rainbow Dash argued.

Twilight shot her friend a suspicious glare. “How exactly did you know about Fluttershy’s symptoms earlier this morning? You didn’t show up until she already had her pentagram.”

Rainbow Dash scoffed. “Please, Twilight, I know everything that happens in this town. That’s one of the perks of getting to fly around everywhere; you get to see everything. Pinkie Pie is pretty much the only one up in the morning as the sun is rising. When I saw Fluttershy trotting to your place at a rather high speed, it immediately seemed off to me.”

“Well…fine. I’ll give you that. My point stands, though; you need to pipe down about the disease. We’ll figure it out.” Twilight finished.

…

“Speaking of which, Twilight, don’t you think we should be following Celestia’s orders right about now? We might be wasting time.” Spike mentioned.

“Orders? What orders?” Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

“Princess Celestia sent us a letter while you were unconscious. She wants us to report to Canterlot ASAP. I think she knows something about H.S.D.” Twilight replied.

“H.S.D.? What the hay is that?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“It’s the plague. The one that you and Fluttershy have. It stands for Hematic Spiritual Dystrophy. It’s what you get when you become Bloodshot.” Spike informed.

“Wait…there’s an actual name for this thing? Isn’t there a cure, then?” Rainbow Dash asked anxiously.

“No. If there were, don’t you think we would’ve used it on you two by now? Anyways, it was a name given to the disease by Starswirl the Bearded back when this disease used to be a pandemic. Just like Cutie Pox, it disappeared mysteriously.” Twilight explained.

“Well I guess that makes sense.” Rainbow Dash shrugged, rolling her eyes.

…

“Alright, so I suppose Spike can ride on my back, and the two of us could simply fly to Canterlot. We’d certainly get there a lot faster than if we took a train. Plus, if we took any mode of public transportation, we might risk further contagion.” Twilight planned.

“Okay, seems easy. But…what about Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash countered.

Twilight sighed. “Forget about her for now. She seems pretty troubled. As long as she stays at home, I don’t think we’ll have to worry about contagion. Plus, if you want me to be honest, I don’t think Silver Spirit is going to stick around at Fluttershy’s cottage once he sees what she looks like. Unfortunately, this disease might ruin her chances with him before she can even spread it to him.”

Rainbow Dash clicked her tongue. “What a bummer. She’s been desperately needing it, too. With how much time she spends alone, I’m surprised she doesn’t go around spreading it to everyone she meets.”

“What the heck are you talking about? I’m talking about the disease, Rainbow Dash! She’s going to lose Silver Spirit to her condition before she even has the chance to spread the disease to him!” Twilight exclaimed in disgust.

Rainbow Dash’s face started to heat up. “Oh…I thought you were talking about her, uh…”

“Yeah, I know. Just…try to keep from talking, okay? Celestia’s orders.” Twilight grumbled.

Enlightenment

Princess, we might be facing a national crisis here. I’m running out of leads, and the majority of Canterlot’s population is becoming infected. I’m hearing things about ponies in neighboring cities catching the disease too, and the assailants appear to be related to each other around seventy-five percent of the time. I have a bit of evidence, though, and I think it might explain the mode of contagion. It just may explain the reason that this plague is spreading so fast among families…

Spike hopped down from Twilight’s back as soon as they landed on the front lawn of Canterlot Castle. Rainbow Dash landed just a moment after Twilight, and brushed off her wings. She ruffled her coat like a dog to smooth out the frizz from the wind.

“Are you sure the guards are going to allow us to intrude from above like this?” The pegasus asked skeptically.

“Of course they will, Rainbow. The Royal Guards always keep pegasi on their team so that they can catch aerial intruders red-hoofed. If the guards had any trouble with us being here, they would’ve sent pegasi up to stop us before we could even land. They know me as a princess, so that’s probably why they allowed us to pass.” Twilight explained absent-mindedly.

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Guess that makes sense. You are the egghead, after all.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, and started on her trot towards the castle. Spike and Rainbow Dash followed close behind. On their way to the front doors, Rainbow Dash earned concerned stares from passing visitors as they observed her blank flank. All the embarrassed pegasus could do was smile awkwardly at them and avoid speaking.

…

“So…we’re just going to walk in?” Spike asked.

“Of course, Spike. It’s not like we’re on a secret mission or anything. Celestia requested our presence, and now we’re just responding.” Twilight mentioned.

The three of them approached the front gates of the castle after passing through the garden. Two heavily-armed guards stood on both sides of the gate, standing rigidly without any eye movement.

“Ugh…I hate guards…” Rainbow Dash groaned, thinking back on Celestia’s visit to Sugarcube Corner.

Before Twilight could speak, the guards reacted to their arrival. Without glancing or turning their heads, they reached for the handles of the massive doors, and pulled them open for the group to enter. Twilight and Rainbow Dash blinked in fascination at the majesty of the massive marble doors as they creaked open ominously. Spike didn’t even look up.

They began to walk in slowly. Roughly a hundred meters down the stained-glass hallway was Celestia’s throne, with Princess Celestia herself sitting on it. Princess Luna sat directly by her side. The royal duo sat regally with their heads trained straight forward, right on the door that had just opened.

Twilight’s slow walk quickly turned into a sprint as soon as the Royal Sisters came into view through the open doors. Surprised, Rainbow Dash and Spike picked up the pace in order to catch up to their friend. The Princesses watched patiently as the alicorn that they had called for approached their throne at full speed.

“Princess Celestia! Please tell me you heard something about the disease! We just started studying it, and we don’t think…”

The Princess of the Sun held up her hoof calmly, cuing Twilight to relax and slow down. Twilight promptly shut her mouth, and waited anxiously for the Princess to give her royal reply.

…

“Yes, Twilight, I am well acquainted with this disease.”

Twilight’s jaw dropped to the floor. “R…Really? When? Is there anything you can tell us about it?”

Celestia shook her head. “There is not. I met with this disease centuries ago, during Starswirl the Bearded’s time. Not only did he help me study the illness, but he also wrote the entry for it in the Perplexing Pony Plagues book.”

Twilight was amazed. “We just read that entry earlier today! It didn’t really give us that much information.”

“Precisely. We were able to deduce almost nothing about the disease, except for two crucial factors.”

The room grew silent. Twilight leaned forward a bit, eager to hear what the Princess had figured out. Any bit, no matter how small, was enough to potentially help save Fluttershy’s life. They all held their breath.

“First, we discovered that the disease was not caused by a viral or bacterial pathogen. Based on evidence, we predicted it to be a hex, brought on by a supernatural creature.” Celestia informed.

A look of surprise and confusion appeared on Twilight’s face. That fact was definitely a game-changer.

…

“Also, we believed to have figured out the disease’s mode of contagion.”

Twilight’s ears shot up. “Are you serious? What is it? We need to know this!”

Celestia looked toward the ground solemnly. “…Verbally. No contact, whether it be physically, aerially, or sexually, is necessary to spread the disease. From what we found, we deduced that the disease was spread by an inflicted pony speaking the name of a pony that was not infected.”

Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Spike all gasped. Celestia closed her eyes, and nodded slowly.

“But……didn’t Rainbow Dash already say Pinkie Pie’s name a little bit earlier? Does that mean she’s infected, too?” Spike asked worriedly.

Princess Luna leaned to the side a little bit, and snuck a glance at Rainbow Dash’s flank. She shook her head. “Nay, subjects. You have nothing to fear. We assure you that contagion is only possible once an inflicted victim develops a pentagram on his or her flank. Rainbow Dash here has not developed that yet.”

A small sigh of relief ejected from the visitors’ mouths. That was surely a close call. They could all mutually agree that if Pinkie Pie caught the disease unknowingly, her blabbering mouth could infect all of Equestria in an hour.

…

Princess Celestia spoke again. “I need to know, Twilight. Have you brought along with you today everyone you know who is infected?”

Twilight’s eye twitched. She leaned to Spike. “Spike, I thought you said you told the Princess in the message that Fluttershy was infected!”

“What? I never said that! You wanted me to write that?!” Spike jeered.

Twilight cleared her throat unapprovingly. “No, Princess, I have not brought everyone along. Fluttershy has the disease, and she is back at her cottage.”

Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Oh? If you knew she was infected, why did you not bring her?”

Twilight hesitated. “Well…she was being sort of defiant, you know, and…well…she stopped listening to us. She found a date over the last couple of days, and she’s been head-over-hooves for him.”

Celestia and Luna both hummed in understanding simultaneously. Luna looked at the floor. “Indeed. Love is certainly a thing to taint a subject’s judgement.”

Rainbow Dash cut in abruptly. “So what do we do? Without knowing the mode of contagion or whatever, she could infect the whole town before we even know about it! Starting with her kooky coltfriend!”

Celestia’s tone did not even raise a smudge. “For now, I need you to remain calm, and not start a scene amongst anypony. You must stay here, in the castle, until this is all sorted out. We’ll need you to use everything in your power to find a cure. We will help you all that we can.”

“What about Fluttershy?” Twilight asked.

“As soon as we find some living quarters for you to settle into, I will travel to Ponyville myself and confront her. The sooner we inform her about the mode of contagion, the more lives we can save. We’re running on a minimum of leads, so we need to hold off the spread of the illness as long as possible.” Celestia explained.

“Well…isn’t there anything else you can tell us? We seem to have next to nothing to help us research.” Spike requested.

Celestia shrugged. “All that we can infer from what we have is that we’re dealing with a hex. And with a hex, the cure is not usually some sort of magic medicine that you drink. Some kind of ritual or exorcism is required.”

Rainbow Dash scoffed. “I bet Zecora would know something about that.” Upon speaking, she suddenly covered her mouth in fear. “Oops…”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Luna just said earlier that you need a pentagram on your flank in order to spread the disease, Dash. Plus, Zecora is a zebra. Only the three main races of pony can catch the disease.”

“Oh, right… Guess I forgot.”

…

Celestia stood up from her throne. In response, Luna stood up as well. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Spike stepped back a few paces to give their mentors’ large statures some space to stretch out.

“Alright, with this in order, I’m going to have Luna show you to a place to stay for the time being. I’m going to head to Ponyville to speak to Fluttershy.” Celestia announced.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t…”

Celestia raised her hoof again, cutting Twilight off. “Just listen to everything I told you. If you ever need information, the castle library is always to your access. I will be back once I can convince Fluttershy. A lot lives are counting on you ponies.”

Twilight, always feeling the urge to ask questions, forced herself to keep quiet. She simply nodded, which signaled to Celestia that she understood. With this, Celestia turned toward the door, and regally proceeded to march down the hall and out of the throne room. She stopped to inform the guards of her destination, and took off toward Ponyville.

The evening sun projected its radiance throughout the land from the west side of the Equestrian sky. Fluttershy’s date was going to show up to her cottage very soon.