☣☣☣Alex☣☣☣

I blindly charged to the station as fast as I could and I was nearly three blocks away when I heard the screams. I slid to a halt on top of one of the rooftops close to the station. I looked to the streets and saw ponies running from the station in blind panic and from out of the station walkers (zombies) charged out in a massive horde. Even the pegasi weren't spared since some of the walkers were also flyers and managed to catch a few, chewing on them as they fell back to the ground.

Police ponies were bravely trying to rescue the civilians and fend off the infected. No matter how badly they failed at it, they didn't have any guns after all.

"I guess I don't really need my infected vision now. But I'll turn it on anyway, I need to see if there are any carriers within the civilians." I said to myself.

I closed my eyes for a bit until they snapped open, glowing a tad orange. My vision changed immediately, the landscape and regular ponies turned red and every infected turned a bright orange. I looked back down to the street and activated whipfist in both arms. I needed to get the carriers first then deal with the walkers.

Finding one my right whipfist went out and snared the mare, consuming her when she got back to me. My left went out at the same time when I found another and consumed him. This went for only about a minute, thankfully there weren't a whole lot of them. Changing my right arm to the blade and my left to my magic arm I charged up a jump and leapt to where the pony police and walkers were fighting.

I landed with a crash that knocked every walker and pony alike away from me. The police were wary of me, I assume they saw me pick off civilians and my entrance didn't earn any bonus points from them. Ignoring them I quickly swung my blade out at one of the walkers, consuming it at the same time. I figured the less infected flesh out and about the less chance a pony will get infected by moving it.

When the infected walker died all of the others charged at me in a mob. I rolled my eyes and swung at them again, this time my blade cut through six at the same time. This didn't deter them and I soon found myself constantly swinging, slicing, and consuming my way towards the station. Occasionally I would use my magic to grab ahold of one or a few and crush them with it or push them away with what was basically a Jedi force push.

In my frenzy I barely even noticed that the police were all dead or running. Jumping up into the air with a backflip my blade arm became a whipfist and I swung it into the huge wave of infected. Dozens of walkers were killed and I couldn't help a smile that cracked on my face.

"Achievement unlocked."

I continued to sweep the streets, so to say, of the infected. That is until something crashed in the middle of the walkers. The infected parted and a primal roar came from the new arrival. It was a huge pony looking hunter. Which shouldn't be possible without the help from Greene or the Supreme hunter. It was also only the second day, they didn't come until the third, I think. This had me a bit worried and I cursed myself for tempting Murphy.

The hunter was easily five times the size of a normal pony. There was no fur, only pinkish-orange flesh, the eyes weren't large anymore they were instead tiny. And its mouth was huge and full of razor sharp teeth. It leapt at me with he intent to crush me like the Hulk. Instead of letting that happen I dodged backwards and formed my blade on my right hand as I backflipped and slid for a few feet. Its hooves slammed into the ground where I was with a mighty crash.

Not giving the chance for the hunter to recover I began my counter attack. I used my magic to slam its head on the ground and disorient it while I used my blade to sever one of its arms off. Its screamed in pain as it clutched its arm with its other bulky hoof, flipping onto its back in the process. Showing no mercy I used my magic again to fling it in the air and when it came falling back down I skewered it in the heart with my blade, consuming it all the while.

"That was a lot easier than in the games." I muttered but passed it off as the fact that I am not using any sort of silly game mechanics like health and targeting. I looked at the entrance to Quill Station when something caught my eye. It was another hunter but this one looked different. It noticed me looking and turned to head back inside that station. I sprinted after it, subconsciously knowing what it really was, but I was in mild denial at this point.

I burst through the doors to the subway station and ran down the stairs, casually swatting away the mindless infected that got in my way. Eventually I got to the tracks and looked down both ends trying to see if I could find the strange hunter again. No such luck with either infected vision or thermal. I groaned as I clutched my head.

In a fit of anger, after figuring out that there is a Supreme hunter controlling everything, I roared, ripped a bench from its bolted position in the tiles and flung it as hard as I could at the nearest infected. That walker had a bench through its head and was pinned to the wall. Breathing heavily I slowly calmed down enough to form my whipfists and methodically killed the last of the infected down here.

Of course two more hunters had to make an appearance. They each ran at me from one of the tunnel exits and leapt. I dive rolled behind them and using both of my whipfists I grabbed the closest one by the legs and swung around in a circle. When the hunter was in the correct spot I let go and it smashed into the other as that one charged at me again, sending them both crashing into the wall. My arms swirled around with tendrils and started to grow increasingly heavy until my hammerfists fully formed. Slamming them dramatically on the ground yielded decent craters.

The two hunters picked themselves back up and shook off the debris gathered on them. This time I charged at them with a hammertoss and each hunter threw a punch while I matched each hoof with a punch from my hammerfists. When the punches connected the hunter's hooves caved in to the elbows and they were sent flying away once more. Changing my left arm to magic form I levitated both to me, and when they got closer a few tendrils pierced each one and they got consumed.

Sighing, I shook my head and headed back out to the city.

When I got out I noticed that the infected were thinned out enough that I could probably leave the rest to the pony police. I reactivated my infected vision and sprinted off to see if I could find any carriers amongst the populace. Abandoning all stealth and property damage minimizing, I roof hopped and ran across building walls as I scanned the ponies below. They were still running around in a panic, getting in each others way. Of course me occasionally picking out ponies in a seemingly random, to them, pattern wasn't helping. Not seeing any more with my limited range I remembered I had wings now and flew off.

It was barely six o'clock, time flies when you're killing zombies, and I was already mentally tired. I was certain that Quill Station was just one of many staging points the Supreme Hunter was using to spread the virus from. The subway system connects all of Manehatten together and who knows how many infected it has down in the tunnels. I gritted my teeth in frustration, a simple infection was bad enough but adding this to the mix wasn't fair for the city.

Realizing that I would have to give up the 11 o'clock date with the Princesses I decided to crash their museum showing. This required immediate attention, not some history lesson. Plus I am only one man, even with my newfound superpowers even I can't be everywhere at once and protect everypony.

☣☣☣

My flight to the museum was repeated accosted by several infected pegasi. Naturally I wiped them out quickly but each time it slowed me down a bit. I was worried about the shear number of infected pegasi roaming the skies. The Supreme Hunter was likely using them to further the spread of the virus from the stations. The attacks slowed down and eventually stopped when I got closer to the museum, the ponies were panicking down below in the streets.

It seems that word is spreading of the zombies attacking and killing other ponies. There were royal guards trying to direct the ponies and keep them from stampeding themselves but it was a slow effort. Ignoring the commotion I continued my trek to the museum's entrance, the guards gathering around while forming a spear wall when they noticed my approach.

My wings receded into my body while I was still a few feet in the air and I fell down, cracking the ground at the foot of the steps. I calmly walked up the flight to the spear wall and when I was just barely out of range I suddenly jump up over them and jog into the museum. The guards scrambled to get back in front of me but it was too late as the Princesses already saw me.

Honestly, they looked like complete shit. Luna looked a bit depressed and Celestia's eyes looked red and puffy, she was likely crying not too long ago. Understandable, since their subjects are being massacred all around them.

"Hello Princesses. It seems that things moved a bit faster than I expected it would. Pity that, I wanted you two to have one more normal and fun day with a pleasant late night date before this hell started." I stated calmly.

Luna looked just a little pissed, "How can you speak so calmly and talk about 'fun' and 'normal days' and 'dates' at a time like this?! Our subjects are dying left and right!" She snorted a bit of hot air after that mini rage.

"Luna please calm down. Getting mad because he is speaking calmly isn't going to help." Celestia reasoned with her sister. Luna reluctantly calmed down, but still giving me a bit of a glare.

I cleared my throat. "Yes, anyway. My original plan was to tell you everything you needed to know tonight but since things have... escalated. I need to tell you now." I walked towards the Princesses until we were only a few feet away from each other. "What is going on in the city is the result of a virus. A bioweapon that goes by the name of Blacklight."

"A bioweapon?! Which country would dare commit such an atrocity?!" Shouted Luna. I only shook my head at her.

"Not a country no. And please hear me out when I tell you this next bit." I paused. "I was the one that released-"

That was as far as I got before a golden beam struck me in the chest, actually going through me and leaving a decent sized hole. The pure force behind it sent me flying to the wall. Celestia was breathing heavily, her horn smoking from the magic that was released. Her eyes were filled with a rage that lesser beings would have cowered from. When I didn't move she seemed to calm down a bit and turned back to her sister who was staring at her in astonishment.

"It's rude to interrupt people, especially when they say to hear them out first." Celestia froze with wide eyes as she turned back to look at me. I was already back up, the wound already closed and I looked none the worse for wear.

"Wh-What are you?" Celestia said.

"In due time, now may I explain things now?" She gave the subtlest of nods. "Good! Now as I was saying... I was the one who released this virus technically."

Eyebrows were raised.

"It was completely accidental I assure you. This is not something I would wish on any species but it has happened nonetheless. To put a long story short I bought a vial of, what I assumed to be, red colored water from a shady merchant. I was dressed as a character from a game and he was intimately familiar with the virus, he helped create it and was the one to break the vial in a station in the game. As it turned out it I bought a vial of the actual virus from the merchant and by some power he sent me off to Equestria, the vial flying out of my hand sometime during my fall into Quill Station. It likely broke on impact and had every pony in the station at the time exposed to the virus."

Celestia was much calmer now and asked, "But if every pony was exposed in the station why were you not infected as well?"

I smiled at her, "A good question! When the merchant shipped me here he turned me into the game character. Alex Mercer after releasing the virus fell down dead after being shot. His body landed in the virus and the virus consumed and became him. He was Blacklight itself, that is why I was not infected."

Luna stared at me, "So are you the virus as well?"

I paused and gave a bit of thought to that. I then shook my head, "No, I did not die when I was turned by the merchant. The original Alex lost his memories when he died, the same did not happen to me. Instead the virus is now a part of my body while I basically remain myself."

"I see. Why does the virus not do the same to the others like you?" Celestia asked.

"Honestly, I haven't a clue. Sorry. But we have wasted enough time, I need to tell you a few thing to handle this situation. You need to block all outgoing traffic from the city. Let no one leave, it could run the risk of one of the carriers of the virus leaving the city and infecting another. Put up a shield around the city as well, gotta keep the pegasi most of all out as well. Stick to ranged attacks when fighting the infected, otherwise you run the risk of your soldiers getting infected too. Use hazmat suites if you ponies have them." I paused a bit to let them take some of this in. I continued, "Usually this could be taken care of rather quickly but there is a monstrosity known as a Supreme Hunter roaming about the city. It controls the infected with a hive mind, that's why the attacks are strategical and not just a mob of infected lashing out at random. Do not let your soldiers engage it, it will rip them to shreds. Let me take care of that, I am a bit annoyed at it right now. Unless of course you feel like you could take him, just keep him out of melee range and blast him with high level magic. Don't let even a puddle of him remain, he has a massive healing factor. Do not underestimate him if you do choose to fight him."

As I was about to leave Celestia stopped me with a question. "What is a carrier and how do we find them?"

I looked back at her, "Just a pony that has the virus within them but hasn't shown any symptoms yet. The pony wouldn't show symptoms until the virus overtakes them completely. By then they will turn into the zombies you see outside and attack anything it sees. You won't be able to find them, I have infected vision so I can see who has the virus in them or not. When I see a carrier I immediately kill them."

Celestia's moth dropped in horror. "No! No don't kill my little ponies! There has to be a way to save them right? Some cure we can come up with? There has to be a better way!" She practically pleaded that last statement, her eyes started shining with fresh tears.

I shook my head sadly at her, "I'm sorry, there is no cure to my knowledge. Even if there was the virus is too fast acting. I'm sorry but once one of your little ponies is infected they are essentially dead. And a fair warning, I will kill all carriers I see. Civilians, guards, police, or even what counts as an important pony does not matter to me. I want this to spread as little as possible. I'll leave the rest of the planning to you, don't fuck up please."

I started walking away before stopping, I turned back to the Princesses and said, "I'll be bringing a filly over here by the name of Color Twist. She is the daughter of the first pony I consumed when I got to this world. She doesn't know he is dead just yet, I'd like to drop her off and leave. Tell her that her daddy is fighting the monsters outside with the guards when she wakes up. She should at least remember him as a hero."

With that I sprinted out the doors and into the city, leaping when I got to the edge of the stairs and took off on my wings.

☣☣☣Around 7ish☣☣☣

I was flying as fast as I could on my way back to the apartment so it only took about a minute at most. When I got there however...

"Color! Noo!" I shouted in dread. The entire area of the apartment complex was saturated with infected, I didn't realize the infection has spread this far yet. Forgetting all about my disguise I cannonballed my way through the wall where the apartment was. The wall gave way and chucks of brick and plaster scattered across the floor.

Nothing.

"Color?! Color answer me!" I desperately yelled as I ran to her room. I burst through her door and just stood at the entrance, staring at the city through the massive hole in the wall. Holes could be found all around the room but something on the wall to my right caught my eye. It was a message scratched onto the wall.

Tomorrow, Noon. Come prepared to fight for your 'daughter' she'll be in Trotfeller Station. Don't come before then, she'll be killed otherwise.

It took me a bit to process this new information. When I finished I grit my teeth in pure unadulterated anger. I slammed my fist into the wall and watched it buckle and crumble. I dropped to my knees when I realized what horror Color is probably going through right now. I felt something wet on my cheek and when I rubbed a hand on it I saw a tear.

Staring at the tear as it dried up all I mumbled, "Maybe I'm not a monster or a sociopath after all..."

I clenched my hand in rage.

That damn monster will pay for what he's done. For what he's taken from me.

Author's Note

Oh! And if anyone knows a good artist that would enjoy drawing a random scene or scenes that he or she likes in this story then please recommend this to him/her! I can put the relevant pictures in the chapters and on a separate blog!