Chapter 16-The Monster Within

The Monster Within:

No matter how bad her day was, no matter how horrible things would get Applejack was a mare of simple pleasures and preferences. And despite how badly the day had gone for her the fact that she could eat a quiet healthy dinner with her family filled her with the kind of subtle joy that could never be replaced. So it was that the entire Apple family (Sans Granny smith who had left the day before to visit Appaloosa for their national pie baking contest) sat down at the end of a very long day for supper. Indeed a slice of Apple crumble pie was almost enough for Applejack to put the day’s events behind her.

“So” Big Mac asks “How was yer trip?”

Almost enough

Sighing heavily the downtrodden mare turns to face her brother. “Give me a break Big Mac, like ah said before; I aint talkin bout it.”

“Are you sure?” Applebloom asks “Ah just ask cause ya seem kind of down.”

“Yep, now finish yer pie.” Applejack plainly states as she shovels another mouthful of comfort food into her mouth.

Dinner at the Apple family household had never been very loud. Despite the rambunctious nature of the Apples, dinner was a sacred time for them to come together as a family and love on each other. It was time to let everypony know what was going on the farm and what was happening in each other’s respective lives.

However the silence filling the dining area was anything but reverent this night, as the second eldest Apple struggled to push aside her own feelings on Twilight and the Holy Corpse. What happened to Twilight was kept a secret from almost every pony in town for a reason, It could ruin her good name and inadvertently reveal things about the Holy Corpse, and so Applejack too was sworn to the same silence as the guards ponies. Applejack still hoped that things would end up working out as they had always had however in her heart she still doubted that things be so easily resolved given how much hot water Twilight was in. And what about Celestia? How was she supposed to tell her sister what the ruler of their nation, a pony who could do no wrong was using magic to hurt others?

Applejack sighed deeply. It was nights like this one, nights when she didn’t know what to do, that she missed her parents the most. Though she liked to play the part of the dependable and strong hearted mare that her friends expected her to be, there were days like today when she would visit her parent’s graves to try vainly to feel like they were still a prevalent part of her life, like they were still a part of her life supporting her in her darkest moments. However she couldn’t let her brother and sister on to what was going on with Twilight, as far as they knew Twilight was still in her library snuggled up in her blanket safe and sound. So once again Applejack found herself pushing the truth further down inside her as she tried to keep her family content and happy.

However despite her lack of words or rather because of it the two other Apples knew that something was very much up with their sister. Applejack was good at keeping secrets, however when It came to hiding her own feelings on the matter she could be red like a book. Both the Apples knew that something was eating Applejack, however without Applejacks’ desire to come clean there was no way to get the Orange farm mare to fess up. Thus the three Apples sat in relative silence around each other Big Mac seeking to alleviate his sister’s sour mood and Applebloom seeking to take advantage of it.

“So…..” Applebloom picks at her food as she tries to phrase her question carefully. “Me and the other crusaders did as ya asked and we were REAL good while you were gone.”

“That’s good bloom!” Applejack smiles sincerely glad that her sister stayed out of trouble for once while she was gone.

“And since I was so good, that means me and the girls can have a……..” The yellow filly asks with pleading eyes as she attempts to lead her sister on.

However in Applejack’s mood she has absolutely no idea what her little sister is aiming for and so attempts her first frantic guess. “Um, an ice-cream?”

“Nope!”

“Um, a new bed?”

“That'd be nice but nope!”

“A new colt friend?”

“APPLEJACK!” the filly yelps causing the mare in question to snicker. “Ya didn’t forget now did ya?”

“Of course not Applebloom, I didn’t forget whatever it was that you wanted me to remember.” The mare states with the absolute worst poker face in the world.

The filly’s eyes fill with sparkles as she looks over at her sister “Does that mean me and mah crusader friends can have our sleepover?! Cause we sorta already planned it out…..” The filly whispers under her breath. “O Please Please PLEASE say yes!” the youngest apple filly asks as she levels category five pleading eyes against her unsuspecting sister.

Applejack groans as her sister’s aim suddenly comes apparent, recalling that she did promise her sister a sleepover if she behaved. Normally she would have kept track of something so important but with Granny out of the house and all that was happening it completely slipped her mind.  “Sure why not? As long as Rarity’s looking after yawl ya can’t get inta too much trouble.” Applejack picks up her plate placing it in the sink as she rubs her sore forearm. “As fer me ah think things will be getting back ta normal round here.”

The first word from Applejack all night that belies her true mood leaves her two siblings wondering what she is talking about. “Applejack? What da ya mean by that?” Big mac asks with no small amount of confusion in his voice.

Applejack looks at her brother with equal mixtures of sorrow and happiness “Ah mean that ah think ah’ll be able to work full time on the farm again. That on account that ah think that our little group is done and gone.”

Now they’re worried. ‘It’s no wonder that Applejack’s so down in the dumps’ both siblings think to themselves as if with one thought ‘she must be fighting with her friends!’

“Now sis.” Big Mac states calmly and surely. “You know that I’d be the first ta appreciate the extra help and havin you around again. But there’s really no reason ta give up on yer friends. With what yer bringing in from working with Twilight and the fact that yawl get along so well ya’d be a right fool for givin up on them.” Big mac places his plate in the sink from the table “Besides yawl are getting along so well with yer friends it’s be a shame ta give up now.”

“Big Mac is right Applejack!” Applebloom wines, her mood a complete contrast to Big Mac’s demeanor. “Ya can’t just give up on ya friends so easily. The Applejack that I know wouldn’t give up without a fight! She wouldn’t……”

“What do you know?!” Applejack snaps at the filly causing her to flinch in her chair. “Ya seem ta think that fighting is all yer sis is good for, well let me set ya straight Applebloom. Ya can’t fight everythin, and there comes a time when all things have ta come to an end, and when that time comes ya just have to accept it instead of complaining like a baby.” The orange farmer straightens her hat on her head as she prepares to walk out the room without another word, leaving her family stunned.

However once again Applejack’s conscience gets the better of her as she turns to face her family. “Look Bloom ah’m mighty sorry bout snapin like that. It just this is somthin that can’t be handled by just swingin hooves, it’s far deeper than that. And well…..” The mare struggles with her next words as she rubs her sore arm again. “….well there's just no easy answer fer it.”

“But Applejack….” The filly brushes her teary eyes away “You’re still friends with Rarity and Twilight and everypony else right?” Applejack stops rubbing her arm as she looks down at her hooves. “Ah mean, even if ya fight with each other yer still good friends right? Yawl just need ta get together and work it out!”

Applejack looks back at her sister’s confident expression as she thinks to herself. Could it really be that easy? If they all get together, Princess Celestia, and Princess Luna and Twilight and the rest, could they find a way to make this work out? Applejack’s new hope is cut off by another painful throb from her arm bringing her out of her thoughts and back to her troubles in the present.

“Applejack?” the filly asks.

“Maybe Applebloom, Maybe.” Applejack says longingly “Ah’ve had a long day ah’m hittin the hay now.” And with those cryptic last words the mare trots up the stairs leaving the two members of her family who are worried about her completely in the dark about the situation that she has embroiled herself in.

Trotting down the hall with the same measured steps Applejack tries to maintain her mental balance as her mind goes through option after option to get her friends back together. Idea after idea on how she can bridge the gap between her friends caused by all this craziness courses through her head as she scratches her forearm viciously. However just as before an idea pops into her head thoughts are cut off by a sharp painful throb coming from her arm. This time the pain is sharp enough to cause the mare to wince as she looks at the red sore area of flesh that is causing her this much trouble.

“Must have been some bug bite.” The mare remarks to herself as she scans the hall for the bathroom. Finding the familiar room the mare trots into the enclosed and small enclosure, locking the door behind her as she takes a closer look at the large wart on her hoof. Pulling on the faucet the mare sends a cascade of warm water across the wound as she thoroughly cleans it out, washing her own face in the process. Looking from the tired eyed mare in the mirror to the wart on her hoof the mare reaches a quick and logical decision. Reaching under the sink cabinet the mare pulls out a long thin pointed sewing needle as she carefully places the tip of the point on her sore boil. The mare takes a deep breath as she prepares herself for the pain.

“No problem Jackie, just got to pop this sucker and bandage it up. It’s just like pulling off a band aid.” Applejack closes her eyes as she takes a deep breath “It’ll be easy.”

“I doubt that!” a grating and nasally voice responds.

Applejack’s eyes widen in shock as she searches the small room for the sound of the voice that just assaulted her hearing. “Who’s there! This had better not be another one of those Strange stone Hallucinations. Cause ah’ve had enough of those!”

The mare looks around the room in a frenzy pulling back the shower curtain, looking out the window and even checking under the sink. Finally content that she is alone the mare breathes a sigh of relief “Whew it must have just been mah imagination. See Jackie it was nothing.”

“Who you calling nothing you backwater country hick! I’m super impressive!”

The hairs on applejack’s neck stand on end as she locates the sound of the voice. Suppressing her rising fear the mare looks down at her hoof to see a large razor toothed maw on her sore hoof. Like a blackened blister with teeth the infection on Applejack’s arm has evolved into a monstrosity with a grinning smile.

“Hiya Toots!”

Reacting accordingly the mare fumbles back on herself as she screams out in terror. “W-W-What is it? What the buck!? How did this happen?”

“How rude!” the maw spits out “I’m not an ‘it’ you idiot, in case you didn’t know! Though I suppose with your level of education that’s the best greeting you can come up with.”

Applejack simmers with anger as the offending boil clears it's throat. “Well since you’re so slow on the uptake then I’ll tell you WHO I am! I’m a stand called, THE MONSTER WITHIN! And I just so happen to be occupying this spot on your hoof, ah may be small now but I’m mighty impressive. And let me tell you, gal my users got big plans for you!”

Applejack’s thoughts run at a mile a minute as she instantly recognizes the fact that this little mouth on her is very big trouble. Thinking fast the mare clears her throat as she addresses the offending boil. “So yer a stand hunh? And I take it cause you’re so talkative yer one of those automatic types hunh?”

“Well the southern bell got one right! Impressive. Well since you’re right I won’t deny it, yeah I attack automatically that means that even if you somehow attacked me, which would crush your own foot in the process, the big man wouldn’t get hurt at all!”

“Ah see.” The mare quickly realizes “And since ya can’t move of yer own accord, that means ya can’t attack. So all ah have ta do is put up with ya until I can beat the stuffing out of whoever is controlling you. That bout right?”

“Hey do you think I’m some helpless dope?  Normally I would have killed ya impressively! But the boss has a thing fer pretty mares like youse!” The evil maw grins. “So I’m gonna take over yer body and lead you right ta the main man himself, right after I use it to whack the other two dopes in this barn!”

In her rage the mare punches the offending maw with her stand causing both of them to wince in pain. “Ya seem ta have pretty good vision fer a mouth so why don’t ya go ahead an read mah lips. OVER MAH DEAD BODY. Now why doncha give up ya little guy an take me to yer user so ah can slap em silly?”

The maw grins at Applejack’s threats as it’s cheeks bulge “All right youse gal, prepare ta get yerself defeated by mah impressive skills!” with a shower of bile the stand spews forth a small projectile hitting the mare square in the shoulder.

Applejack winces as she reaches over to her opposite shoulder, and with precision pulls out the very needle she planned to pop the bloated sucker of a boil with. “That’s it? A needle? Yawl are gonna have to do better than that!”

However Applejack’s optimism and cocky bluffs quickly give way as her shoulder where the needle tit throbs painfully. Suddenly before her very eyes a large black maw pops out of her shoulder it’s sharpened teeth ready to bite.

“You dope don’t you get it? I’m a body type stand that infects others! Whatever part of a pony I touch I gain control over and every bite or wound I make creates another of me! I’m a stand that you catch, a living disease!” Applejack watches in fear as her own arm begins to move of her own accord. The mare tries to send her own commands to make her arm obey her yet every movement she makes seems to be overpowered by the offending blob. “And not that I’ve got some real control here, it’s feeding time!”

Applejack’s own arm moves towards the mare aiming for her neck and forcing her to dodge her own swinging arm. Falling to the ground Applejack holds back the savage attack of the stand gripping the inside of her own arm with all her strength to prevent the maw from drawing closer to her. With her great strength she manages to push the gnashing teeth away from her body however with every second the teeth grow close and closer to her main body as her strength begins to give out.

“Impressive aint it!” the mouth comments as it draws ever closer to the mare’s mouth “I can keep at this all day since there aint no limit to mah endurance! But as satisfying as it would be to keep at this till you croak I have a better way to end this little stalemate!” the maw extends its teeth in a grotesque way. “BIG MAC, COME QUICK I NEED HELP!” the maw cries out in a facsimile of the farmer’s voice. “See I can mimic my voice, Impressive hunh? Now your big brother’s gonna come investigate and when he opens the door I’ll give him a little kiss and he’ll be mine!”

The room goes silent as Applejack hopes that her brother doesn’t fail for such a ruse, praying that her own strength holds out as the maw draws closer to her body. However once again her fears go unanswered “Applejack?” a concerned voice calls up from downstairs. “Is that you? What’s wrong?” every step that echoes through the barn a death toll for Applejack and her family.

Releasing that she has little time the mare thinks fast of a way to take advantage of the relentless stand. “Big Mac! Don’t come in it’s a Trap!” Applejack yells as she struggles to push the advancing arm off to the side.

“Applejack?!” the hoof steps grow louder as the stallion picks up the pace. The door handle rattles as Applejack puts more of her strength to pushing the maw away from her.

“BIG MAC HELP ME PLEASE!” the maw cries out again in an attempt to lure the stallion in for the kill. However in the stand’s attempt to call out Applejack seizes her chance. Flipping over her body the mare moves the infected arm around her hind hooves pinning the snapping muzzle against the floor. With all its strength the mouth flails as it attempts to escape Applejack’s joint lock.

“Whew.” The mare breathes out in relief “That’ll hold ya piece of…” Yet in a moment of pure irony Applejack is cut off as the door is bucked clean off its hinges the force of the impact knocking the mare into the bathtub as the maw escapes from its bind. The shower-curtain falls around the dazed mare tangling her even further in her trap as the maw wraps itself beneath the cover of the plastic sheet its mouth licking its twisted lips as it prepares to savor its bound prey.

Pulling the now broken door out of the bathroom the stallion Big Mac looks around the room for any sign of danger as the light above him flickers on and off before sputtering out, no doubt a side effect from him pounding the door in. The heavy breathing stallion looks over the partially destroyed room looking for any sign of his sister straining his ears the stallion hears a sloppy mouthy sound and focusing his senses he notices the twisted shower curtain writing around in the bathtub.

Big Mac Rolls his eyes as he watches the figure flailing about and moaning in pain in an attempt to free itself from its captivity. “Not again.” The stallion sighs as he approaches the bundle “Now is, how the heck did ya get yerself tangled up in the shower curtain this time?” the stallion asks as he moves over to the cloaked flailing figure.

With simple predictable movements the stallion bares his teeth and begins to tear the offending pile of plastic from his sister’s body. “Ah hope yer happy Applejack. Ya made me buck down a perfectly good door and ruined our shower curtain! An to top it off ya made me think that somthin was really..…”

A hoof extends from the dark attacking the stallion’s muscled neck taking the Big Mac completely by surprise.  Big Mac yelps in equal measures surprise and fear at the fact that his sister’s hoof just bit him as he recoils away from the curtain. “S-Sis what was… YARGH!” the stallion leaps up as another bite from the orange blackened hoof snaps at him like a snake, he side of his neck and his own hoof throbbing in pain from the deep bite.

Big mac looks at the blacked maw attached to the orange limb that seems to somehow be attached to his sister as his mind ceases to function from fear. The mouth smiles as the shower-curtain is ripped to pieces by its sharp teeth. “Now then that wasn’t so bad was it?” The maw says causing all color to flush from Big Mac’s face. “Now how about you come over here and I’ll fill your thick pelt with my lovely kisses now?”

 The stallion flails back against the horrible sight as his hoof and neck throbs again the stallion looking just in time to see a similar black maw come into being on his own hoof its teeth grinning maniacally at the terrified stallion.

“IIIIIMMMMMPPPPPPPRRRRREEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSIIIIIIIIIIVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!” the maw screams as the black maw closes around his own flank. Foregoing any notion of courage, the stallion screams in terror as a dark and monstrous figure rises from the bathtub its multiple grins reflecting off the moonlight that streams through the window behind the abomination. Unable to cope with levels of fear and pain he is no doubt not used to the stallion mercifully passed out as the dark figure draws ever closer to his unconscious body.

………….

CRASH!

The yellow farm filly flinches as ceases packing the remainder of her bag, the silence coming from upstairs beginning to get to her. Big mac said that he would escort her to the Crusader’s sleepover when he said he had heard something from upstairs and went to check up on Applejack.

“BIG MACINTOSH! Hurry up up there!” the filly cries out knowing her brother hates being called by his full name “What’s takin ya so long? Ya promised ta take me ta mah sleepover, what’s the hold up?!” the filly waits and listens for the sound of her brother’s voice however the filly is surprised and frustrated to hear no response from upstairs.

“Applejack must really be upset if Big Mac is ignoring me….” The filly whispers to herself, her voice trailing off as she looks up the dark flight of stairs.

True she really wanted to go to that sleepover the rest of the crusaders had planned. However the more concerned part of her didn’t want to leave her sister alone like this, especially if her sister or even worse Big Mac was breaking things around the house again. The filly shudders as she tries to suppress the memories of the last time Big Mac brought a date over. They were lucky that time, only half their house was set on fire, luckily insurance paid for it, but she still lost some pretty prime stuff. Looking back and forth between her bag and the stairs the filly mentally debates her course of action, wait for her sister to calm down or go up or go up to try and comfort her herself. The filly looks back and forth for a full minute before finally consigning herself to helping her sister. With a careful hoof the filly begins to climb the stairs up to the second floor the hallway darkening with every step as the filly trots into the darkness above.

Reaching the top of the stairs the filly looks down the hall with apprehensive caution at the quiet that greets her. She expected loud noises, shouting, not library level quiet, and the fact that the hall lights seem to be out only makes her more cautions. The hairs on the filly’s neck stand on end as a door creaks eerily, blown by the open window at the end of the hall. The only source of constant light, the only source that allows her to see by, is the thin silhouette of the full moon outside, the moonbeams cascading through the window. Applebloom’s hooves shiver fear as she begins to walk down the hall with shifty eyes, surprised both by the fact that her own house could become the backdrop to a scary movie in under a minute and by the apparent absence of her siblings.

“O-Okay Applejack ya got me.” The filly admits as she looks back and forth between the darkened hallways. “Ah’m scared now, J-Joke’s over.” However despite the filly’s admission of her own fear her brother and sister are still nowhere to be found the shrouded hallway. The filly is about to bolt back down the stairs with all her strength, when the echo of gentle crying reaches her ears, the sound freezing her in her tracks.  Putting aside her desire to bolt out of her own house the filly gulps and perks her ears, swiveling her head in the direction the soft sound is coming from. The filly looks upon the door to her own room as she begins to clearly hear a sound whispering from the half open door to her abode.

“Applejack?” the filly asks as she trots over to the door of her own room the sounds growing louder with every step “Applejack is that you? What the hay are ya doin in mah room?”

“Don’t…..” Applejack’s voice struggles to utter “Don’t come up Applebloom….. run away….”

Applebloom chuckles a bit as she realizes the extent to which her own frady cat suspicions have gotten the better of her. Her sis is probably just crying a bit and accidently walked into her room by mistake. The fact that her sister wanted to be alone only makes the absence of lights and the absence of her brother even more appealing as the filly’s nerves calm down.

With trademark ignorance the filly rolls her eyes as she approaches the sound of her sister’s voice coming from her room. “Now sis ah know that confronting yer problems aint easy an all that, but if ya can’t just cry fer ever! Especially not in mah room! Now yer comin out of there even if ya don’t like it. After all it’s not like it’s……” The filly presses open the cracked door to her sister’s room as she trots in blindly “…the end of the world?”

The filly’s mouth hangs open as her rump falls to the floor at the sight before her. A slight gust of wind blows in from the open window, the slight breeze carrying the stench of decay towards the filly’s sensitive nostrils. The window curtain drifts lazily distorting the narrow beam of moonlight that refracts through the broken glass into several dancing streams.

 However dominating her physical senses and mental attention is a figure that could have only come out of a nightmare. Rising from her prone position on the floor her back turned to the filly, sits her sister Applejack her hat absent and coat covered in dark splotches darker than the pitch tar. Like a drunken pony her sister staggers, her face a mask of pain and fear small rivers of tears dripping down her muzzle. Yet what is stunning the filly to utter breathlessness is the fact that the dozens of splotches that cover her sister’s body, from her back to her hooves, and even a large mark on her cheek are grinning at her. The splotches are grinning at her, with sharpened teeth that put a manticore’s maw to shame each tooth catching the moonlight from behind her sister like a sharpened blade on a cool winter’s night. Each tooth gnashing at the filly in preparation for the meal they are about to eat. Each one, each tooth and mouth hungering for her tan flesh.

“A-A-Applebloom…” The orange mare struggles as tears of pain flow down her face “R-Run away!”

“NO APPLEBLOOM!” the maws speak simultaneously “Stay here! We’ll have so much fun at OUR sleepover you’ll forget about your little friends!”

Reaching a nope factor of a billion in less than a second the filly slides back on her rump as the creature that calls itself her sister lurches forward with the coordination of a corpse it’s jaws snapping in anticipation of devouring the little filly. The stunned and terrified filly lies on her rump as the form of her sister lurches at her it’s mouth’s open to bite.

“SPROUT!” the filly manifests her stand just in time as the creatures’ iron jaw closes around her neck. In less than a second the force of the bite is returned on the jaw itself shattering its teeth in an instant as the figure falls backwards both from the pain and the impact of its returned blow. The multiple jaws screaming in both rage and pain as Applejack flails about on the floor. Rising shakily to her hooves the filly gasps for a breath that she didn’t know that she had forgotten.

“A-Applejack, W-W-What’s goin on? I-I don’t like this anymore…..” The filly states as her legs quake threatening to give out from underneath her.

“A-A-A-Ap-p-p-pueblo-o-o-om.” Applejack struggles against the pain that courses through her entire body as she attempts to resist the muzzles on her body.

“S-Sis? Is…..” The filly gulps “Is that you Sis? Is it…. Is it really you?”

“RRRRRRRR AAAAAAAAAAA!” the entire body in front of her leaps towards the filly who barely sidesteps in time as the bulk of her sister’s body punches through the wooden floor the boards shattering from the force of her blow.

“A-Applebloom.” The mare sweats feverishly as her limbs begin to quake from an unknown strain. “It’s a stand attack. If ya get bit by these mouths ya catch……. A plague.” Applejack pulls her body out of the broken floor planks as she struggles to resist the stand’s might. “Ya gotta run, get Twilight, she’s at the police center. H-Hurry it takes all my strength to slow this monstrosity do-own.” The mare croaks as her body is dragged closer to her little sister against her own will.

“But…” The filly swallows her fear as she takes a step towards her sister. Her ragged breath echoing through the hall as she tries to suppress her rising fear. “But I can’t leave you here!”

Applejack’s arm extends like a coiled snake as the maw tries to take a bite of the filly. “YA aint goin anywhere ya little minx!” The jaw screams “I may have had use fer that big lummox of yer brother but I don’t need a little filly like youse.”

The stand smiles as its mouth grins at a figure behind her. “Beside I’ve gotta kill you impressively fer breaking my wonderful teeth like that.”

The filly freezes as she hears a loud heavy set of hoof steps behind her. Against her better judgment the filly turns around to see her brother, her big Brother who was always there for her who had vowed to always protect her covered in dozens of the same grinning mouths. “B-Big Mac?” the filly whispers. With the suddenness of an earthquake his large powerful hoof falls on the filly pressing her into the wooden floor with a thud as the boards crack beneath her from the blow.

The filly struggles to get to her hooves from the force of the impact as another blow from the stallion sends her skidding across the floor. Rising to her hooves just in time to avoid a chomp from maws on her sister the filly looks back and forth between her two affected siblings as the filly recognizes with horror that she is trapped in the center of the hallway with each sibling cutting off her escape. Either way out of the hall is blocked by the rapidly advancing monstrosities that were once her sister and brother as the filly is forced between a rock and a hard place.

“He He HE! There’s no way out little filly!” all the mouths speak at once “Your brother to yer back and yer sister to your front! There’s nowhere to escape.” The mouths state as they lick their lips in anticipation of the kill.

The filly looks between her brother and her sister as she is metaphorically and mentally backed into a corner. In such a situation any normal filly would be bawling their eyes out begging for what little mercy an inhuman monster could offer before being torn to shreds. However Applebloom was no normal filly, and she was no coward, and so she did something completely unexpected; Something that baffled both her siblings and the stand alike.

She sighed.

Not the kind of sigh of deep longing and regret but rather one of annoyance and mild frustration. It was the kind of sigh a pony might have if they their ice-cream cone fell in the dirt. Or the kind of sigh one would give if they lost a very memorable game that would be rubbed in their face. But it was most certainly not the kind of sound one would expect of a cornered filly about to die.

“Ta tell ya the truth ah didn’t want ta have ta use this right off tha bat but…..Ah think ah’ve absorbed enough force from Big Mac anyways.” The filly primes her arm as a stand appears behind her its’ shape not the static plant that Applejack had seen before but an entirely shiny new stand. Its piston arms and ribbon red mane flowing as if it was caught in a windstorm as the needle gauge on its chest hovers in the red.

“Applebloom?” Applejack asks “Is that….. yer stand?”

The filly looks up for a moment locking eyes with her elder sister “Hold on Applejack.” The filly looks down at the floor as if concentrating as her stand primes its hoof.

“VIBRATIONS!” With all her force the filly slams her hoof into the ground beneath her the force of her blow dissipating into the ground with a dull rumble.

The hallway goes quiet as the rumble dies down as the blow from Applebloom’s stand becomes a distant memory. Originally mystified by her stand’s sudden appearance the mouths begin grinning again advancing on the filly. “What was that? That wasn’t impressive in the least? That was just…”

Before the offending maws can speak another word the floorboards beneath them give out from underneath them with a loud crashing snap. Or rather it would be more proper to say the floor exploded beneath them with the force of stick of dynamite. Either way as the ground gives way underneath the two infected ponies they fall with a loud resounding crash that causes the little filly to wince from the incredibly loud noise. Applebloom looks down at the two figures beneath her, both her brother and her sister wriggling in pain underneath the multiple layers of broken rubble and living room furniture as they attempt to free themselves out from under the mess. Finally raising their hosts up to their hooves the mouths echo out whiny cries. “Alright that’s it ya little minx! I’m gonna kill you so impressively that…”

The ground snaps beneath the two ponies once again with the force of a stick of dynamite as the stand cries out in defeat “NOT AGain…………. ugh!” Applebloom winces both from the loud thud of two ponies falling another story and also from the thought of the grounding she is going to get from both her siblings when this is all over for destroying their house.

However the filly realizes that she can’t stop now, she has to stick to her plan. Reacting quickly Applebloom leaps over the crevices in the floor she just created and over to the window. Stealing her nerves the filly closes her eyes and jumps through the open window out into the cool night air using her stand’s power just in time to absorb the force of her fall. Breathing a sigh of relief that that worked the filly turns to face her true destination, the fortified cellar door behind her. With speed that would surprise even her, the filly grabs the large heavy plank that is used to secure the cellar door and with expert aim fastens the door shut just in time as a loud heavy thump echoes from the other side of the door.

 “Ya see that!” the filly shouts from the other side of the door confident that she is safe. “That’s the combined strength of mah sister mah brother combined with mah own strength! Ah stored it with mah stand and sent it through the house to attack the weakest beams all at once! That’s why the floor collapsed twice!”

The front door echoes from the impacts as Applebloom smiles with glee. “He don’t yawl even try it. That there’s an Apple Family Cider Cellar. That there door is made of the hardest apple trees reinforced with iron plates all ta keep out any who’d try an steal from us! There aint no way yer getting out of that easy!”

A large red hoof rips clean through the door as the metal bends from the impact of the blow. Applebloom’s eyes widen and her mouth gapes as she realizes that she has greatly underestimated her sibling’s physical strength. “…...I’m gonna go get Twilight now.” The filly states as she runs off as the door’s latches beginning to break and give under the monstrous strength of her two siblings’ assault.

……………

Putting her years of running away from trouble at her disposal the filly pumps her legs towards town as she quickly begins to put the barn behind her in the distance each hoof step a step towards safety and help. Despite her size the filly makes great time as she puts more and more distance between her two siblings and her as she barrels down the beaten path leading out of Sweet Apple Aches. Yet despite her speed the filly quickly runs out of breath and begins to slow down. Her lungs and body tired from the multiple surges of adrenaline, the doses of fear as well as her strained physical exertion forcing the filly to come to a stop a mile or so down the path from her house. Knowing time is of the essence but unable to continue for another step the filly stops and takes deep breaths filling her aching muscles with liters of precious oxygen.

Every breath she takes fills the filly with more hope and more energy as she reflects on the slim odds that she had to beat in order to escape from the stand attack that had already consumed her two siblings. Looking behind her the filly sees the edge of the barn off in the distance as the filly takes comfort in the fact that she has at least made good time so far. Her breath returning the filly prepares to make another desperate sprint, this time hopping to get at least to the front gate of Sweet Apple Acers when a mysterious voice calls out to her from the shadows.

“Hey kid.” a shady voice asks from the darkness asks causing the filly to skid to a halt. “Where you think yer goin?”

The filly stops in her tracks at the sound of another voice as her senses struggle to locate the pony that would be crazy to be out here at this time of night. “Who’s there?” Applebloom shouts “Show yerself! AH don’t have time ta play games! Ah have ta get to town so if ya don’t come out…….”

“Whoa Whoa little firecracker. Ah’m over here.” A stallion-esque shape waves from the darkness the faint light of his burning cigarette the only sign other than his faint outline that any pony is there. “Ah was just out fer a walk when I heard ya barreling down the path.”

“A walk?” the filly asks skeptically. “You were out for a walk? On our property? At night?”

“Yeah a walk, that’s right.” The stallion states as though it’s the most natural thing in the world. “So yer goin to town? Shame it’s so dark.” The stallion like figure smiles menacingly as the red light from his cigarette lights up his face and his piercing eyes. “Why don’t I help ya find yer way? Weze can go together, like mates.”

Even though she is not the brightest of ponies, the very stench of hard booze and smoke tells her that this pony isn’t to be trusted in the slightest. “Look ah don’t know what yer doin here, but ah’m not supposed ta talk to strangers.” The filly turns back on the path out of Sweet Apple Acres eager to put the suspicious stallion behind her and continue on her mission to save her sister.  “And I happen to be in a hurry so….”

“Heh!” the voice from the shadow snickers “that’s yer excuse? What do ya do everythin as yer told? What are you some kind of square?”

Her patience having reached its limit from the last comment the filly puts on her most serious tone to address the grating voice. “Look mister.” The filly turns to address the voice with her most accusatory tone “Ah don’t know what ya are doin here, but if ya need ta leave mah sister an brother are possessed! Ya gotta get out of here now an make fer town.”

The filly turns back to the path “Oh an to top it off even if mah sis wasn’t possessed she’d kick yer flank just fer trespassing so ah’d make like a tree and leave.”

The filly prepares to bolt back down the path only to be stopped once again by the silver tongued stallion’s voice. “It’s a pity…” The stallion in the dark takes another long puff of his cigarette, as if completely uncaring of the filly’s warnings. “If yer sister could mover her stand then she might be able ta keep herself from killin yoze. It’s too bad that mah The Monster Within, stops all their host’s movements, even stands can’t move when their owners are immobilized.”

The filly immediately turns to the voice in the shadows realizing immediately that this is no ordinary stallion. “Who are you? An did ya say that….”

“Yeah that stand that’s controlin yer sis is mine.” the stand user asks as he steps out of the shadows. The stallion’s dark brown jacket contrasts with his light brown coat, but matches perfectly with his dark brown greased mane. His Cutie mark, that of three dark blue horseshoes barely shows up in against the dark backdrop he surrounds himself in as he remains partially obscured by the shadows. Brushing his greasy mane out of his face with a free hoof the stallion straightens his jacket’s dark red tie as he takes another long drag from his cigarette.

“Youse see” the stallion resumes his beady blue eyes dancing in the moonlight “Ah realize that it’s a shame that ize have ta be the one ta finish off a little filly but ….” The stallion spits out his cigarette to his side “Ize can’t have ponies like youze soundin the alarm till Weze are good an ready see? So ah’m gonna have ta ask youze to listen ta yer betters get youze’s but kicked.”

The stallion attentions are divided as the sound of two ponies approach their ragged breaths echoing through the night. Looking over to the side of the path he sees the two apple siblings infected with his stand standing off to the side. The stallion grins as he greets the new arrivals. “And I see that my stand has been effective. Good job The Monster Within.”

“I TRY BOSS!” the mouths speak in unison.

“An ya got me a real southern bell this time now you two do me a favor an…....”

WHACK

His attention distracted by the appearance of the two new arrivals the stallion doesn’t notice as the little filly’s stand delivers a sound uppercut right in the stallion’s most sensitive area. The stallion suppresses a loud yelp of pain as he falls to his knees. “Wha……..“ The stallion gasps in pain as a tear streams out of his eye. “What was that fer ya minx?! Don’t ya know that below the belt’s off limits?!” the stallion groans as he rises painfully to his hooves barely able to stand from the intense pain coursing through his lower half.

“You kidnap mah family an try ta kill me, an you talk about playin fair?!” the filly yells “Now let mah siblings go an get outta mah way or I’ll wreck yer face next!”

The stallion takes on look at the filly all the malice in his eyes being conveyed in a single hateful gaze as the stallion gestures to the two ponies infected with his stand. “Kill her.”

With dramatic lurching movements the two ponies leap at the filly, their hungry mouths wide open letting feral slobber drip over their coats.  Yet this time Applebloom is not the same frightened filly running away from a nightmare.

If Apples were known for anything beside their love for their namesake, it was their righteous anger and fierce rage at those that would hurt their family. Before the horrific nature of the stand and the terror of it taking over her family had overwhelmed her senses and smothered her will to fight back. However by this point Applebloom’s rage had boiled over, meeting the stallion who had hurt her sister and brother so much had awakened a great beast in the filly, a beast that craved to beat the offending stallion to a bloody pulp. Her rage suppresses the little filly’s fear as she leaps forward towards her advancing siblings her stand at the ready as her stand levels a swinging left elbow at her brother Big Mac.

“VIBRATIONS!” the filly shouts as her stand power activates. The force of the stallion’s advance is absorbed into the stand’s pistoned arm and instantly returned in the stallion’s face. Applebloom recoils from the impact as her blow sends Big Mac head over hooves in the air only to land a half second later flat on his flank. “Sorry Big Mac,.” Applebloom apologizes to her unconscious brother “but if yer knocked out ya can’t hurt yer sis anymore.”

“OH reallllyyyyyyy?” Big Mac’s body flinches and recoils as his muscles spasm. Applebloom watches in fearful eyes as the battered bloody face of her brother’s picks itself up from the ground. The body’s vacant and empty eyes belaying the body’s unconscious state. “Are you Ssssssuuuuuurrrreeeee about that?” the mouths utter as her brother’s unconscious from picks itself off the ground. “Well then it’s a good thing that I still have an impressive possession of big Brother Mackie’s body then!”

Big mac’s mawed mouth on his torso leaps at the frightened filly who only dodges it’s sharpened teeth by a hair as the unconscious body rolls over in the dirt. “Big Mac?” the filly gasps for breath as she dodges another attack from her sister “N-No! it can’t be?”

“Impressive isn’t it?” the brown coated stallion watching off to the side states “My stand has the power to take control youse movin bodies an control them like puppets. So to put it in words a minx like youse will understand, my stand lasts until death! So if ya want to save yer family….” The stallion laughs “…You’ll have ta KILL them! An call it a hunch but ize don’t think a filly like youze has the guts!!”

The filly falls to her haunches before her circling siblings as the horrible idea of having to murder her only family enters her mind “K-Kill mah family……N-N-No…. Th-This can’t be happening!!”

Leaping at the stunned filly her own sister knocks the wind out of her as Applebloom skids on the round, dust covering her back as she slowly rises to her hooves. The stallion laughs evilly at the young crusader’s pathetic state. “Well then minx that’s a cryin shame, cause that means yer the one whose gonna end up on the choppin block.”

The stallion spits off the side as he advances on the frightened filly “Now da ya see the impressive power of mah stand? It can take over the ones most precious to youze an turn them against youze! And if ya can’t kill em, Then they’ll be added ta mah collection for the rest of eternity! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

As the stallion’s snide and mocking laughter echoes through the clearing his celebration of his imminent victory crushing the will of the filly to resist, her sister Applejack her body not her own looks upon her sister with a hopeless expression. Powerless to move an inch without resisting with all her might and unable to even manifest her stand, Applejack stews in her own powerless as she is forced to be the instrument of her own family’s downfall. Applejack bemoans her own fate as her will to resist like her sister finds itself crushed to pieces when faced with a cruel and merciless reality, that seems Tartarus bent on destroying her.

 ‘why….” The farm mare thinks to herself as she gazes on her sister ‘why does this keep happenen ta me?! What did ah do ta deserve this? I couldn’t’ save mah parents, ah couldn’t save Twi, and now ah can’t even save mah sis when she’s right in front of me! How could ah just let this happen…..’ the orange mare sobs to herself as she is forced to corner her own sister ‘this has ta be a mistake…. It wasn’t supposed ta be mah parents… it wasn’t supposed ta be bloom…. It should have been me who was taken…. I should of died in their place.’

Applejack cries out as her heart breaks within her. ‘I guess that deep down ah always knew that ah was powerless… I guess that ah knew all along that one day fate would catch up ta me…..”

‘THAT IS ENOUGH APPLEJACK!’ A strong authoritative voice echoes through Applejacks’ mind.

The orange farm mare gulps as her body moves off its own accord again as its razor jaws snap inches from her sister’s face. “Fluttershy?” the half delirious mare asks.

‘Now you quiet down and listen here! The Applejack that I know is always trying to help others even at her own expense. She is brave and always comes through when ponies really need her. I…… I always admired that Applejack….’

‘Fluttershy….’ The orange mare thinks to herself  ‘what da you know about me….. ah can't’ even save mah sister… I’m just weak….’

‘But I’ve realized something Applejack and you need to realize it too…….Sometimes If you want to help others, you have to depend on them. You have to be willing to let others do what you can’t do and just do what you can. So please Applejack, don’t say that you’re weak, you’re not weak, just let the others do what they can…..and do what you can in turn.’

Applejack’s mind snaps out of her stupor ‘is it really that easy…. Is that all ah need ta do ta beat fate? Just do what ah can?’ the orange mare’s previously stunned mind working overtime as she takes in her surroundings once more. ‘is there really somthin that ah can do?!’

“Enough toyin around.” The stallion grins as he gestures to the tow Apple siblings who flank Applebloom “Youze have been a troublesome filly, but let’s see how youze handle a two on one attack! Get er boys!”

Both the Apple siblings leap at the filly as Applebloom curls into a ball prepared to defend with her stand as her siblings raise their hooves to flatten her with their combined strength.

“Applebloom!” Applejack shouts in midair. “DUCK!!”

Reacting reflexively to her sister’s command, the yellow filly ducks low as the two ponies leaping through the air end up on a collision course with each other. And so with all the form and grace of a tap dancing elephant Applejack and an unconscious Big Macintosh crash into each other with tremendous force, falling to the ground in a tangle as they try to free themselves from the mess that they have gotten into. The two ponies lay flat on the ground with Applejack lying on her brother’s back as the brown maned stallion face hoofs at the stupidity of his own stand.

“Urgh you idiots! Get up off yer bums and attack again.” The stallion taps his hoof impatiently as the two forms writhe on the ground. “Well what are you waitin for? A compliment? Get up already!”

The two bodies flail and struggle as the mouths grin sheepishly. “Uh boss? We can’t.”

“What?” the stallion asks “So are youze sayin that yer disobeyin yer boss?”

“NO! or course not boss! We respect you way too much ta do that (and you also determine whether we live or die so that’s a plus in favor of obeying you).” The stand’s multiple mouths laugh nervously “It’s just that we literally can’t move.”

“What?” the stallion asks “What da ya mean ya can’t move?”

The two ponies bodies flail about however it appears that both Big Macintosh and Applejack appear to be going nowhere. “We don’t know boss it’s not very impressive, but it’s like we’re stuck to the ground with glue or somthin.”

“Stuck to the ground?” the stallion taps his chin “How could ya be stuck ta the ground as if by….. OH.”

Her plan having succeeded Applejack grins on as she gives the stallion a defiant look from out of the corner of her eye. “Oh, did yawl ferget about little old me?”

The stallion looks at the prone mare as his stand tries to rip itself off of the ground “You! You did something! What did you do?”

Applejack laughs mirthfully “Oh did you ferget about mah little stand power? True ah can’t move mah stand but it’s power ta fasten thing ta the earth is workin just fine.” The mare gestures down at the stallion beneath her with what little muscles she has under her control. “An it just so happens that ah have Big Mac here and me pinned ta the ground. After all ah aint county wrastlin champ three years runnin fer nothing!”

 “Applebloom!” The orange mare shouts out to her sister behind her.

“Um yes Applejack?” the filly asks as she rises back to her hooves as she watching her sisters’ back for instruction.

“Now ah’m givin ya a order as yer big sis now so listen up and do as ah say.”

The filly recoils as if struck. “Applejack yawl really can’t expect me to run and..….”

“As yer big sis.” Applejack states with all the authority she can muster “ah’m orderin you, to flatten this huckster.”

“Ah ain’t runnin and that’s……” Applebloom blinks several times. “Uh…..Applejack are ya tellin me to….”

“That’s right Applebloom.” Applejack states with no doubt an enormous grin on her muzzle. “Ah’m COMMANDING YOU, ta beat this huckster that’s trespassing on Apple family property to within half an inch of his life. And ah expect ya to listen….. now is that understood sis?”

Half stunned by her sister’s ‘request’ the filly shakes her head before a cruel smile crosses her face. Trotting towards the rapidly backpedaling stallion the filly cracks her hooves “Well ya know me sis! Always willing ta listen to my elders! An I wouldn’t want our guest ta feel underappreciated an all, so of course ah’ll listen ta ya like any good filly should.”

The stallion having his back to an old knotted tree growls like a cornered rat his flesh rippling as he faces the filly in front of him. “So, youze want a fight now do youze….” Suddenly large sharp maws appear from his skin their rabid jaws snapping in unison. “…Well come on then all ize have ta do is get one blow in an yer mine!”

The stallion rushes the filly with his newly acquired jaws as the filly dodges out of the way of his improvised attack. The jaws though frightening before are now just an obstacle to be avoided as the filly ducks, blocks and moves into position around the stallion blocking his punches and absorbing their force. Backing off from the stallion the filly raises her hoof to the heavens as her stand’s hoof begins to quake with suppressed energy. The stallion’s eyes widen as if anticipating the blow as the filly slams her hoof into the ground with deafening force, the ground quaking beneath the filly as her vibrations travel through the earth underneath the stallion. Unable to anticipate an attack that he cannot see the stallion is unable to dodge as the ground beneath the stallion explodes in a storm of earth and dirt sending rocks flying like shrapnel at the mawed monstrosity. Applebloom stands at the ready elated that her attack struck at point blank but knowing that the enemy in front of her will not succumb so easily to one attack.

And indeed she is right as the dust settles the evil brown maned stallion trots towards the filly, his maws crushing the rocks sent at him in their teeth as he grins along with his stand. “Heh is that the best ya got minx?”

“Nah.” The filly comments offhandedly as her stand pumps its hoof for another strike “that was just ta keep ya from movin so ah could hit ya where it hurts.”

“Oh? An where would that be ya….”

WACK!

With one well-placed blow to the stallion’s now exposed private section the filly strikes true with expert precision as she stallion senses explode in agony. The stallion writhes in insuppressible pain as he clutches his now very sore family jewels. This time he is unable to stifle a very girly scream as he huffs and puffs in agony. “WHAT did ah say about hittin below the belt!!! youze should be….”

WACK!

“AAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEE!” The stallion moans as the filly strikes true again. “That’s not funny youze..…..”

WACK!

“URRRAGH!! I’m Gonna KILL YOUZE, you little…..”

WACK!

“S-S-Stop-p-p-p ya little…..”

WACK!

“AH said, STOP!” The stallion swings his hooves like a mad pony his pain turned to rage at the little filly’s defiance. Applebloom however blocks the stallion’s desperate blows with her stand recoiling slightly from Caramel’s rush as she readies her stand for another attack. Panting heavily from his exertions the veins in the stallion’s head begin to throb as he prepares to explode on the little filly, with all his rage as his weapon.

Yet as if recognizing the error of his ways the stallion calms down visibly brushing his tangled mess of a mane back to a semi neat appearance. “Nice try filly but ah can see where this is headed. Yer goadin me, tryin ta get me ta attack so ya can absorb mah attacks an send em right back at me.  Well that ship’s sailed and gone filly se ah’m way too smart ta fall fer that!”

Applebloom smirks “Funny ya weren’t smart enough ta fall fer it a minute ago!”

The stallion growls as he addresses the pipsqueak before him “Ah said I aint fallin fer that anymore ya minx. Sides I aint worried, cause yer little ‘attack’ just showed me yer weakness!”

The stallion sneers as he plots his victory “What ya think that ah wouldn’t notice? Ya seem ta take in every blow thrown at ya and dish it back at yer opponents. But those last few blows of yers barely hurt at all. So I’m thinkin that yer power gets weaker if youze don’t have any attacks to absorb. So all I have ta do is make sure ya don’t absorb my attacks an ah win!” the stallion smiles triumphantly.

Applebloom looks at the stallion with her best ‘are you kidding me’ look that she can muster. “Well then ya shouldn’t have attacked me just now cause from that last attack alone ah have enough power to knock ya clean out an save mah siblings!”

Rushing towards the stallion her hooves outstretched the filly readies her stand for her most powerful attack as Applebloom prepares to smash the gangster’s face in with one blow. “VIBRATIONS!”

With a powerful thud the blow lands on the face of her enemy, blood and bone go flying as the impact breaks the figure before her into pieces. However the sudden gruesomeness of the impact stuns the filly, she set the vibration at just enough of a level to knock the pony clean out. So why was her hoof covered in this…. Blood? The filly backs away from her opponent getting a better look at the battle field around her. The filly looks around to see the gasping stallion once again lying on his back, pushed away at the last moment by a new arrival. However the filly’s eyes remain locked on the ragged and dirt encrusted figure before her, a dark green pony with a cutie mark of an apple filled pastry drooling in front of her with a vacant lifeless stare. The figure’s torn face and skeletal appearance making it deadly apparent the figure is not alive, as the dead pony lurches towards the with with a will not its own as its eyes glow silky green.

“U-U-Uncle T-Turnover….” The filly asks with a whimper her hooves shaking at the desiccated appearance of the zombie before her. “But-But you’re not supposed to be……W-W-What’s goin on? First mah siblings get taken over by parasites an now, This?”

“Noteworthy!” the stallion in a cheap suit shouts as he rises shakily to his hooves, yelling at a figure that pops out of the darkness behind the filly. “How dare youze interfere! I just so happened ta have her right where ah wanted her! You necrophiliac!”

The figure that steps out of the darkness is of all things a Unicorn, his light blue coat embellished with a dark black outfit of what looks to be a priest’s cassock. The unicorn’s horn, nearly covered by his shaggy dark blue mane which matches the color of his musical note cutie mark, glows with an unnatural dark light that seems to crackle with dark malevolence. Tied around his neck seems to be a brass medallion of some kind of casket that accents his white priest’s collar. However it is the stallion’s deranged and luminous yellow eyes that seem to dominate the filly’s senses, as he glances over her as if she were simply not worth his time. “Well I’m sorry that you had trouble in defeating a little filly, but in case you haven’t forgotten Carmel we are all on a tight schedule tonight. And must I remind you a thousand times, I am an undertaker, not a necrophiliac, as you emphatically insist.”

The stallion steps forward as a bony figure adorned in beads and feathers materializes behind him. It’s appearance a dead ringer for a mid-sized earth pony skeleton dressed up in what appears to be yards and yards of colored string and jewelry. The Stands’ skeletal appearance rattles with every movement as its’ string covered hoof brushes against the ground.  “And while you were playing around with a little filly, I had finished with my designated task of picking up our ‘allies’ from the local cemetery with my HollyHoof Undead.”

The other stallion scoffs as Applebloom recognizes that she is surrounded by not one but two veteran stand users. “Big whoop! So you reanimate a couple dozen rotting corpses, it’s still nowhere near as impressive as my power.”

“A couple dozen?” The Unicorn levels his yellow gaze at the stallion as a deep and terrible moaning echoes through the trees. “Try a couple hundred, Caramel.”

Applebloom and Applejack’s eyes and ears flick around as more dark shapes begin to materialize from the grove around them. The rotting odor and putrid smell wafts through the cool night air, the odor of death drowning out the smell of apples that permeates the grove and replacing it with a much more powerful stench. The filly and the mare’s heads swivel around them as their breaths catch in their throats at the horrible sight before them. Yard upon yard of dead and decaying corpses some no more than skeletons trotting along as they close in from all sides like a plague of biblical proportions.

Had their night not already been filled with terror that would have killed a dragon in pure fright, the arrival of an army of Zombies might have fazed them. However the battle hardened minds of the Mare and Filly barely process the fact that the dead trotting at them were once living things, instead focusing on the survival and the arrival of a new threat.

‘dagnabit!’ the orange farm mare thinks to herself ‘now there are two of them? This is bad, Applebloom can’t take two of these guys at once! An if this guy’s power really does what ah think it does….’ Applejack raises her voice “Applebloom change of plans! Go on and git! Ya need ta get help now!”

“It’s too late for retreating.” The Unicorn states as his stand waves its bony hoof in a circle his stand mirroring his actions. In seconds both the mares find themselves encased in terrible ring of the rotting flesh the dead’s slobbering jaws, vacant eyes and horrible wailing a testament to the horror they find themselves trapped in.

“And in case you have failed to remember.” The Unicorn addresses Caramel, as if ignorant to the horror of the zombies moaning around him. “It was one of those ‘rotting corpses’ that protected you from an early demise. And though it would please me to no end to give you a proper funeral, our Boss has given us orders that cannot be ignored.”

Putting his two hooves together in prayer the Unicorn falls to his knees as he looks up to the stars. “We must put aside our passions and desires if we are to purify ourselves from our inner evils. For to cleanse ourselves of sinful desires is the hallmark of being able to face death without fear and thus it is the way unto the Elysium fields.”

Caramel throws his arms up in the air “And THIS is why I never work with priests!”

“I’m a Deacon……”

“Whatever!” The exasperated stallion shouts as he approaches Applebloom “Just stick to your dead bodies and leave the filly to me! I’ve got her on the ropes!”

As the stallion approaches the filly more of his twisted jaws popping out of his skin he finds himself barred from her by the arm of a skeleton corpse. Noteworthy sighs “Sadly as I stated so clearly before, we have a timetable to adhere to, and given that I anticipated for these siblings to give us trouble I have already brought a ‘pair’ with us that will insure their peaceful demise.”

The filly’s hooves shake as she turns to the Unicorn, her voice trying to retain all the courage she still has left. “B-Bring it on you, B-B-Bully I aint afraid of y-y-you….”

The malevolent priest flicks his mane back as two figures claw their way through the mass of corpses . “No little filly,.” Noteworthy states. “despite your claims you ARE very much afraid. It is regrettable that ponies these day fear death when they should embrace it.”

The stallion turns his head as he greets the new arrivals in the same way a pony might greet old friends. “However to fear death is to fear our own salvation. Do you fear going to sleep? Death is a natural part of the world, a necessary step one must take that they might purify themselves and enter the next world with a pure and noble heart.” The two ponies trot out of the shadows as the priest turns back to the filly. “After all why should one fear death when one has two such noble ponies to escort her to the hereafter?”

Applejack, her flank turned to the two approaching figures can only gauge by her sister Applebloom’s appalled and horrified appearance that whoever has just arrived is not  some pony good. “Applebloom? What is it? What’s goin on?” the elder apple asks her younger sibling.

“no…..” Applebloom recoils from the sight before her. The ponies before her barely look like the ponies that she once knew once upon a time, their torn flesh and worn stitches holding them together making them look even more terrifying as they stand a distance away from the filly.

“NO……” the filly falls to her rump as she tries to move away from the advancing figures. Their ragged torn coats and rotting appearance of the mare and the stallion before her. Their light green and bright orange coats cracked in mud.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!” Applebloom, unable to take the sight any longer curls up the fetal position covering her bawling eyes. “Take them away….. PLEASE! I-I-I-I’m sorry…. .PLEASE j-j-just go away!”

The reanimated stallion’s corpse raises his hoof over his own daughter, it's lifeless eyes gazing down at the filly as his eldest daughter begs for him to spare the figure beneath her. However the apple parents are dead and gone, no light of compassion or spark of recognition fills the figure’s vacant eyes. There is only the command of its master as the corpse swings its hoof down to crush the living beneath its hooves. The world seems to go in slow motion for Applejack as she is forced to watch as her father’s corpse prepares to crush her sister without compassion or mercy. It’s worn and bloodied hoof closing in for an otherwise fatal blow as Applejack cries out one last time for her sister the scene of utter tragedy unfolding so fast that the orange mare barely has time to react to the cruel irony of her father, an Apple killing her own flesh and blood.

And then the entire world goes white.

The field booms with the crash of thunder as both her mother’s body and her father’s disappear in a fury of white light their dried and worn earthly forms vanishing in the a pillar of light that comes from heavens. Applejack stunned by the scene unfolding before her blinks unable to understand what happened. Was it a miracle? The last wish of her parents to protect their children? An act of God?

No, it was a miracle, but not the kind of phenomenal kind that comes from beyond, but the timely arrival of a helping hoof when a pony needs it the most. Standing over her Applebloom her spear lodged in the exact spot where her parents once lay, the ground singed beneath her lance stands a light green Pegasus with a yellow flowing mane. Decked out in the full armor of the solar guard the Pegasus rises from the ground with a look of righteous fury at the foes before her gaze.

“What is this?” the Unicorn Noteworthy asks “How did…. Who are you?”

The mare flicks her cowlick out of her face as she stares down the pony in front of her helm accenting the fierce anger in her eyes. “Lightning Dust, First Lieutenant of the Solar guard currently assigned to a special task force in ponyville. I came here to observe the Stardust Crusaders for signs of being traitors. However being attacked by Melodia was the last thing that I expected to find.” The Pegasus chuckles to herself “Guess I owe guard Captain Shining those sixty bits, you guys are clean as a whistle after all.”

“The Solar Guard.” Noteworthy mouths “It looks as though our operation has been blown, and just before we could deliver the final blow.”

Lightning Dust Lieutenant of the solar guard looks to the pile of ashes where the two parents of the Apple family once stood as her eyes burn with barely suppressed fury. “HOW DARE YOU!” The solder points her spear at the priestly unicorn with levels of malice that could kill. “You scum. You dragged the corpses of these ponies from their graves to torment their children? That’s sick, even for trash from a gang like Melodia.”

The priest’s no doubt well organized and rehearsed response is cut off by the loud and tumultuous shouting of a much less intelligent adversary. “HEY watch your tongue ya minx!” Carmel shouts “Youze can talk trash about that necrophiliac all youze want But I’m a regional commander, Head of Prostitution Caramel Cider!  And I aint some common thug.” Carmel spits out in pride as he continues his rant without a thought. “An get this, weze were hoof chosen by the boss ta kill stand users! So youze better shut up!”

“……Caramel, can you ever shut that craw of yours?” the Unicorn shakes his head with pity.

“WHAT?” the brown stallion shouts “What is it now Noteworthy?”

“You just told her that we’re members of Melodia and our respective ranks.” The brown stallion flinches as Noteworthy continues “You also told her our names, and our mission, which were supposed to remain a secret.”

Caramel’s face blushes furiously as he realizes his mistake “S-So what! We’re going to kill her anyways so it doesn’t matter!” the stallion turns back to the soldier “You hear that ya minx, youze days are numbered and soon….. HEY don’t you turn your back on me! Ize am talkin ta youze you minx! Get back here an face me!”

The gaze of the solder torn from her opponent turns down to the no doubt traumatized filly as Lightning Dust places a gentle hoof on her head. The filly flinches from the touch however eventually the softness and gentle care of the Lieutenant win out as the filly looks up into her soft and caring eyes. “Don’t you worry there kid.” Lightning says with a level of compassion that one would not expect from a pony as harsh has her. “Your parents are free from that monster’s control, they can finally rest in peace. And no doubt they would be very very proud of how brave you were.”

The filly’s tears begin to cease as the Lieutenant raises her gaze to the vile brown stallion before her. “Now you just stay put and leave this to me. It’s about time somepony blew these guys away.” The mare grins cockily as she levels her spear at the stallion in the cheap pinstripe suit. “And you horseshoes are first on my list.”

The stallion fumes as a multitude of carnivorous jaws pop out all over his body. “It’s Caramel! Not horseshoes ya minx.” horseshoes shouts as he charges at the mare teeth gnashing.

With years of dedicated practice and focus the mare dodges the stallion’s flailing strike countering with a rapid assault from her spear. However the stallion before her is no slouch either and manages to dodge her rapid blows by a hair, each time deflecting her hardened spear tip with his sharpened teeth. Yet Lightning keeps up the assault delivering a flurry of blows from multiple directions as she slowly pushes the stallion back. Finally the stallion’s balance falters as Lightning dust ready for the kill charges in, only for her lance to be grabbed by the sharp teeth of Caramel’s The Monster Within. Lightning Dust frantically yanks the spear in an attempt to free her weapon, Caramel pulls back on the weapon and they both find themselves in a fierce exchange as they both wrestle for the spear in their hooves. However eventually Caramel wins the exchange with his greater strength yanking the spear out of Lightning’s grasp and sending it spiraling through the air as it falls imbedded in the ground behind the mare.

Seizing the moment as the mare recoils from having her weapon ripped from her grasp the stallion rushes in with his jaws snapping. A large sharp maw appears on the bottom of his hoof as he throws a sharp uppercut at the mare’s underside, putting all his earth pony strength behind the blow. “Got ya ya minx!” Carmel shouts as he prepares to finish her off.

However noticing the pegasus’ cocky grin, Noteworthy shouts out just as Caramel throws his punch into the mare’s unguarded sternum. “Caramel stop! Lightning’s stand power is….”

Caramel’s low connects as his stand bites deep into the pony’s unguarded barrel resounding force of the blow echoing through the clearing. Caramel satisfied with his blow smiles prematurely, confident that was a lethal bite. Yet the grin on the Lieutenant’s face dashes all of his confidence as the mare begins to glow, her body transforming into pure energy as her form crackles and sparks around the stallion’s hoof. In a time faster than the stallion can blink the mare vanishes flowing up his arm and into his body in the form of pure electrical energy. The stallion doesn’t have even time to scream as twenty thousand volts of electricity courses through the Caramel Cider frying his body in less than a millisecond as Lightning Dust reforms behind the stallion completely unharmed. Grinning confidently as the stallion falls limply to the ground the mare takes to the air landing before Noteworthy ripping her lance out of the ground in the process. Completely unharmed the mare points her lance at the Unicorn as she mentally celebrates her victory. “Riding the Lightning, a stand power that can turn its user into pure electricity, it makes me completely invincible to physical attack. But then again you seemed to already know what my power was didn’t you?”

The mare feints with her lance as the Unicorn is forced to back off. “All right then, one down! That only leaves you next, and I don’t think that you’re going to be any tougher to beat than that hack.”

The mare readies her spear to strike as the Unicorn manifests his bony stand for a fight, his body poised to defend against the sergeant’s power. The unicorn’s horn glows with a crackle of magic as he prepares for the inevitable confrontation when suddenly a look of surprise crosses his face. “Well though I would not be averse to fighting you, it appears as though your previous fight is not over yet.” The Unicorn points behind him at a sparking, smoldering figure slowly rising to his hooves.

The mare gasps as the stallion rips himself off the ground. “No way….”

Noteworthy sigs as Caramel struggles to pull himself up. “Well if anything could be said in Caramel’s defense….he IS hard to put down.”

Literally steaming from Lightning’s Lightning, the stallion rises to his hooves as he coughs up another cloud of burnt fibers “I”LL KILL THAT MINX!” the stallion rises shakily to his hooves. “I SWEAR IT ON MIZE MOTHER’S GRAVE!”

“But how?” Applebloom asks off to the sideline “That was a direct hit! There’s no way he’s still standing? What is he immortal or somthin?”

The stallion rises to his hooves as he brushes off his singed pelt. “Aze have ta admit that was, shockin. Turnin inta lightning like that, but luckily ah know how electricity works.” The stallion extends his hoof revealing his slobbering maws. “Take a looks here. See how my maws slobber?”

The lieutenant shies away from the gruesome sight. “I’m trying not to.”

“HEHE yawl should listen ta the boss!” the maw cries out “You see cause our slobber got all over boss’s coat it redirected the lightning away from his heart and lungs across his pelt. It was like a lightning rod was redirectin all that power of yours! Pretty impressive hunh?”

The stallion smirks as he brushes off the last vestiges of his damage “So lucky fer me and bad fer youze yer little bolt of lightning only singed mah skin a little the rest of yer attack was barely a Taser!”

“But it was still capable of knocking you on your rump, yet again.” Noteworthy smiles at his partner’s misfortune. “Though I suppose that is what you get for underestimating your opponent. First you fall to a filly, then a mare? What is next for the great Carmel to lose to? A rock?”

“Shut UP Noteworthy!” Caramel complains with no small amount of frustration. “Ah got this mare. So youze better not interfere or else!” The stallion grins “Sides, I’ve got an impressive plan to finish of the little minx.”

“Whatever.” Lightning remarks “Like the plan of some brain-dead mobster is a threat to me.”

The stallion raises his voice to yell at the mare in front of her, to tell her exactly how wrong she is. Yet that was exactly what Lightning was waiting for and with years of practiced precision the mare trusts her lance towards the stallion in an attempt to decapitate him with a single thrust. A fate that the stallion avoids by a hair as he manages to tilts his head to the side just in the knick of time as the thrust takes a chunk out of the stallion’s cheek drawing blood from Caramel’s big and pompous mouth. Caramel whimpers at the new addition to his face as he backs off to nurse his wound only to be hounded by the advance of Lieutenant Lightning Dust and her glistening spear.  Again Lightning’s spear blows are levied at the stallion this time her attacks are sharper and stronger the force of every blow pushing the pony back. Every blow cracks the stallion’s teeth and jaws as the force continues. Knocking the stallion off balance the mare seizes her chance as she readies her spear of the final thrust.

“Game over Caramel.” Lightning states with a tone of finality as she puts her weight behind the thrust, her wings providing a sudden and explosive burst of speed as she closes in for the kill. Yet this is exactly what Caramel was waiting for, as he reaches behind his back with a grin. At the last second the stallion throws his projectile at the mare her spear catching on the large glass bottle as it explodes in a shower of sharpened glass and noxious liquid. Averting her eyes as the glass pelts her pelt, and recoiling from the sudden shock of Caramel’s attack her blow misses completely leaving the mare wide open for a blow. Licking his lips in anticipation of the attack the stallion rushes in a large maw materializing on his hoof as he leaps into attack. Reflexively Lightning activates her stand at the moment of impact preparing to turn to lightning and shock the stallion once again. A sharp pain courses through her arm causing her to yelp in pain, however unlike before nothing happens as the mare feels deep sharp teeth dig into her flesh.

“What?” The mare gasps as she watches the liquid covering her mix with her blood and drip down across her pelt. The teeth of Caramel’s maw piercing through her skin and into her flesh as she winces in pain. “How did you….”

“It’s hard liquor ya Minx!” the stallion grins as his teeth begin to draw blood from the mare. “Se ize had a great idea, ya can’t turn ta lightning if yer body is covered in water cause that would shock ya too! That’s why I covered ya with the liquor, if yer wet ya can’t turn to lightning.”

The mare pounds the stallion’s hoof as she tries vainly to free herself from the iron grip of Caramel’s maw. “Damn! How could a loser like this discover my weakness like that so quickly? There’s no way he could find out my weakness all by himself unless…..”

“……unless of course.” The Unicorn behind her speaks up with mild, satisfied grin on his face. “We had some ‘inside information’ that just so happened to list the targets for disposal and their respective weaknesses.”

“The Traitor.” Lightning dust mouths almost silently before realizing the truly worrying part of the Unicorn’s words. “Wait, other targets? What other targets?”

“And I happened to think that a solar guard would be smarter than that.” Noteworthy looks at her with a look of pity. “Do you really think that the boss would take the time of dispatching his most senior members to a backwater town like this?” the Unicorn gestures over to the three ponies lying on the ground beside him with an obvious look of disdain on his face. “All to dispose of a stallion without a stand power, a farmer and a little filly?”

“…..It could happen….” Applebloom admits shamefully.

The stallion chuckles darkly at the mare’s antics as she tries to continually free herself from the jaws of Caramel’s attack. “No, if you haven’t deduced already, our stand powers allow us to create almost infinite numbers of shock troopers that are successful in overwhelming an enemy’s defenses with sheer numbers alone.”

“That means that our stands can create whole armies!” Caramel interrupts. “Noteworthy and his lame undead, and me and my ultra-impressive army of infected slaves that obey my every command!”

“…. As I was saying before I was so RUDELY interrupted.” Noteworthy continues, glaring at Caramel with a furious look at the world ‘rudely’. “Our mission to put it in simple terms is to attack the town, and the police headquarters to retrieve the corpse and eliminate all the stand users who might oppose us.”

“ATTACK THE TOWN?!” the filly shouts in urgency “Twilight an mah friends are there! We got to warn everypony!”

The filly’s attempts to run off are suddenly dashed as the wall of the undead closes in on her. “That is quite a shame because neither of you are going anywhere.” The Unicorn smiles as his bony stringed stand moves it’s hooves, waves and waves of undead surrounding  the mares growing even thicker by the second. Powerless to stop them more and more of the damned corpses join the ranks of Noteworthy’s army as the mares watch on in growing apprehension.

“Oh by the way Caramel.” The Unicorn states snidely “Your little plan only worked because alcohol DOESN'T conduct electricity, not because it does. It kept her from turning into electricity and flowing through you because it created a barrier through which her electricity couldn’t flow.”

“W-Whatever! It worked right? That’s all that matters.” Carmel admits. “I just brought along the bottle of hard liquor because it was part of my impressive get up!”

“Or you forgot about it and had to improvise with dousing her with the contents of your pockets. If you had brought the bottle of water like I told you, you wouldn’t have to resort to such improvised methods.”

“Shut up you necrophiliac!” The stallion raises his hoof to point at the Unicorn “I don’t see you doing anything. Sides I’ve got her right where I want her! She’s mine now!”

“I forgot again who is ‘yours’ now?” Both stallions cease their bickering as they look over with a slack jawed expression over to the light green mare standing perfectly unharmed a distance away from them. Extending her sore hoof the mare gives the two a short wave and smiles at them at them, making them feel two grade A stooges. “Because from where I’m standing. I look pretty free to me.”

Caramel momentarily struck speechless looks down at his hoof that he pointed at Noteworthy, the same hoof that was holding Lightning in the iron grip of its jaws up until a few second ago.

“Caramel you idiot!” Noteworthy face hooves as his shakes his head with a mixture of annoyance and apathy “you let her out of your grip! This is what I get for working with ponies that couldn’t graduate middle school.”

“Screw you! Middle school is hard!” Carmel shouts back as he stamps his hooves. “Sides who has use for stuff like ‘grammar’ and ‘proper speakin’ it just gets in a fella’s way! Sides you made me let go! So who's the real idiot?”

“You are you fool! You’re the one who conveniently forgot motor control AND hoof eye coordination at the same time!”

“Only cause youze distracted me!”

The Unicorn massages his temples as if the very logic coming from Carmel’s mouth is giving him a tumor. “Why did our benevolent boss ever decide to team me up with you? You can barely spell logical let alone follow a plan without your dreaded improvising.”

“WHATEVER! Did youze ferget the power of mah The Monster Within? Ah still got her look!” the stallion gestures over to the mare who is clutching her bleeding hoof and groaning as if her limb is on fire.

“What…..” The mare pants as her wound begins to fester black “What’s going… URAGH!” the mare screams as the dark festering blotch of flesh grins at her with a jaw of sharp serrated teeth.

“IMPRESIVEEEEEEEEEE.” the maw whispers as the mare’s eyes widen in fear.

“Lightning!” Applebloom shouts as she watches her hope of defeating the two stall on fade before her eyes. “Watch out! If yawl gets bit by the jaws of that thing it controls yer body! Ya can’t let it bite ya anymore.”

“You’re mentioning this now?!” the mare shouts as weaves to the left, trying to keep her own arm from biting her head off.

“How was I supposed ta know that horseshoes over there had the same effect?

“It’s Caramel ya minx!” the stallion shouts as he watches the mare try and push away her infected arm with all her might. “Whatever, ah’m in too good of a mood fer a filly like youze ta spoil it now!”

The stallion raises his hoof to his mouth as he yells at the writing mare. “Ya see that guard minx? Yer under mah control now! An as soon as yer decked out in mah impressive marks youze will belong completely ta me!”

The mare pushes back on the slobbering maw before her with all her strength as its gaping teeth snap furiously, each snap closing the distance between the mark and her. The mare looks between her and the filly to her side, taking in the worry of the little Applebloom’s face as Lightning struggles with her own personal demon. “So this mark controls me hunh?” A look of resolve crosses her face as the mare looks at the hideous snapping jaw in front of her. Reaching up with her two hind legs the mare grabs her infected arm with an armbar as her one free fore hoof reaches off towards her lance. “Then I guess I’ll just have to remove it.”

Caramel snickers “Ha well good luck with that, there’s only one way ta remove mah stands and I aint tellin youze so how there aint no way…”

SLRICCCCCKKKK!!

A sharp gristly ripping should cuts through the air like a knife as All three ponies stare at the Lieutenant Lightning Dust with an utterly stunned and sickened expression on their faces. Everypony watches the brutal sight before them each pony’s expression ranging from somewhere between amazement and disgust at the sight before them.

“…no way….” Caramel mouths as Lightning Dust finally stands up her hooves shaking from the incredible amount of pain and adrenaline that is coursing through her body.

Embedding her now bloody lance in the grass beside her the mare throws the discarded lump of black and writhing flesh on the ground with utter disdain. Her arm gushing blood the mare stares down the sickened stallion in front of her.

“S-Se-e-e I Jus-s-st removed it. How bout t-that.” Reaching onto her armor with her one good hoof the mare shakily removes a roll of emergency bandages as she patches her bleeding arm in an effort to stop the bleeding.

“N-No wound, N-N-No infection, guess your chances of C-C-Co-o-ontrolin-n-ng me just went down the drain.” Lightning tightens the now blood soaked bandage around her injured hoof as she stands lamely up picking up her lance with her free hoof and storing it against her side under her left wing.

“Impressive.” The Unicorn speaks with a level of repressed awe that can’t help but seep into his words. “She ripped off the infected flesh without even screaming. What an incredible threshold for pain.”

Applebloom can only stare on silently as the mare limps on her injured hoof towards her grinning like she just won the lottery every step of the way. “Now then.” Lightning speaks up as she grabs the filly with her one good hoof. “As much as I would love to beat the both of you completely senseless…” The mare throws the filly on her back with a flick of her wrist. “….Me and the kid here have an alarm to raise. So Later.”

Turning behind her the Pegasus mare flares her wings as she prepares for flight. “Hold on tight kid!” sensing her intentions the filly wraps her arms tightly around the mare as Lightning takes off into the dark blue sky. Her yellow and green trail leaving a line of color coursing through the sky as the mare leaves the two stallions eating her dust.

As the guard vanishes into the distance the earthbound Caramel can only watch as his prey flies further and further away from him. Originally Carmel was glad to see them go to see them flee before his power, up until the point he remembered what exactly they had done to him. The kicks on the balls, the surge of lightning, the embarrassment that he a Captain of Melodia was forced to endure at the hooves of ponies who had escaped his grasp. Caramel begins to breathe heavily as very angry thoughts course through his small head about how the two mares that inflicted such bodily harm on him, who were right in front of him managed to escape. The fact of two ponies, a filly and a mare no less,  that had injured him so badly and just escaped his grasp is all that is necessary to set off the stallion’s hair trigger as he explodes outward unrestrained anger.

“damn it, Damn It, DAMN IT!” the stallion yells as he punches the ground furiously as if the dirt beneath his hooves is the cause of his woes the ground cracking and contorting abnormally with every furious blow. “Noteworthy she’s getting away from me! Why didn’t you stop her!?”

“Didn’t you say to ‘leave the minx’ to you?” The Unicorn comments nonchalantly “You didn’t ask for help so I didn’t offer it. It is as simple as that.”

“Besides……” the Unicorn looks off as the lightning trail of the mare disappears “at the rate she is flying even my undead pegisi wouldn’t be able to catch up. And even if they could catch up to her they would be unable to beat somepony so capable.”

Watching her sister fly away to safety Applejack for the first time in what seems to her to be forever lets out a relieved chuckle. The stallion turn sharply towards the infected mare having long ago forgotten they have a captive audience. “Applebloom’s safe, thank Celestia.” Applejack breathes in relief as her unconscious brother groans underneath her, still stuck in dreamland. “Yawl might as well throw in the towel now.”

Applejack remarks off hoof as she suddenly becomes the center of attention for the two living ponies in the clearing. “Mah sis is safe and in no time at all mah friends will be here ta save me too. An when they do…. Well let’s just say yawl don’t want ta be tha ones stuck between Rainbow Dash and a one of her friends when they’re in a pinch.”

Applejack smiles confidently as the brown suited mobster grimaces from Applejack’s snide comments. “Tell you what, if you let me and mah brother go now, and take us to yer boss that’s behind this….” The mare glares at the Carmel with a malevolent look “…..we’ll consider only break in half the bones in yawl’s body instead of the whole set. How about that?”

Both of the stallion cease their normal mannerisms as they both stare at the mare with an serious expression, their faces devoid of any humor. The two partners in crime then look at each other, mirroring the other’s expression before bursting out into uproarious laughter. Both of the two villains as if reenacting a horrible cliché break out into villainous laughter together as their voices echo through the darkness. Bellowing together as if the captive mare had just told the world’s funniest joke their faces ooze with snot and tears as they roll about on the ground like a pail of hyenas.

“What, the…. Ah’m serious yawl better call it quits before mah friends get here!” the stallion continue to roar in laughter as the Applejack blushes in embarrassment, completely ignored by the two who had moments before been hanging off her every word. “What’s so gosh darn funny? Hunh?!”

As the laughter dies down the stallion wipe the tears from their eyes as their chortling dies down to a mere chuckle. “What’s so funny my dear farmer…” The Unicorn Noteworthy rises to his hooves in chuckling to himself as he trots up to the mare “….Is that your sister and the Lieutenant are NOT safe.”

Without waiting for a response the Unicorn flicks the mare in the forehead “Think for a moment Applejack, use that underused brain of yours. Caramel’s power allows him to infect any numbers of ponies that he bites.”

The Unicorn gestures to the horde of flesh around him. “And these lovely guests here, are the residents of the Apple family cemetery plot.”

“So?” Applejack resists the temptation to spit in the Unicorn’s face as she hocks a logie off to her side. “Yawl are turning mah kin and mah family against me. Yer as rotten as a moldy apple in a cellar corner, so what?”

“So my dear Applejack.” Noteworthy smiles as he gestures to the swarm around him. “If these ponies are the result of ONE of ponivile’s four graveyards….” The Unicorn points to the singed brown coated stallion who puffs up his chest “……And if Caramel can infect any number of ponies with his powers…….”

Moving close enough into the mare’s face so that she can smell his breath the Unicorn continues “……Then take a guess my dear Applejack, as to WHERE are the rest of our combined forces are right now.”

…………………

“Ah said TURN BACK!” the filly shouts as she tugs on the Pegasus’s ear her wines becoming more persistent the more distance the two fly through the sky.

Lightning dust ignores the filly for the moment, tightening her gauze as she looks behind her for trails. “Whew, at least there’s no pony following, probably that Noteworthy’s call, he knows that his undead freaks can’t keep up with my level of speed.”

“Did ya hear me Lightnin? Ah said TURN BACK!” The filly pulls on the mare’s ears even harder as she looks behind her with a worried look “Mah sister’s back there, we can’t just leave her there! We have ta save her!”

“No we can’t!” Lightning shouts over the roar of the wind “in case you didn’t notice we were outnumbered a hundred to one. If I had managed to take out that dumb one then maybe I would have stood a chance against the other guy with you and your sister helping me. But between my degree of blood loss and that guy’s toughness we would have been the ones to lose.”

The filly’s eyes water as she looks back towards her home where her sister still remains trapped by hostile powers.  “B-But Applejack…..”

“Will be fine. If they wanted to kill her right off the bat that smart one Noteworthy or something would have killed her already.” The mare looks back at the filly on her back with a stern serious look “Most likely they’ll try and use her as a shield against us, and that’s when we can save her. For now our priority lies with alerting the town for the upcoming attack.”

Averting her eyes from behind where her sister still remains trapped the filly looks forward towards the town, and her face blanches white as a sheet. Applebloom’s eyes widen at the sight before her as her mouth finally manages to materialize words. “…..Ah… ah think it’s too late fer that Ligntnin…..”

Her head still turned back towards the filly Lightning dust scoffs at the filly’s sudden lack of faith in herself. “Pessimism won’t solve anything kid! What happened to that confident filly that held off two experienced stand users all by herself? What and I don’t mean to be cocky I’m pretty fast. In fact we should be in town in less than thirty seconds, so makes you think that we’ll be too late?”

With mechanical precision the filly places her hooves around the mare’s head and turns it to face forward showing the mare exactly what she has been seeing. Lightning Dust hovers in midair as the orange light coming from the town illuminates the situation for her as clear as daylight. “Oh, that’s why….”

Hovering in hundreds of feet in midair, the two ponies get a pristine and uninterrupted view of the town of ponyville in front of them.

In other words they get an in depth view of pure Tartarus.

Fires rage through unoccupied buildings on the outskirts, doubtless an effort by the fleeing townsfolk to stem off the hordes of undead advancing slowly though the town. Already many of the houses and abodes on the outskirts of the town have been swallowed by a wave of death the sound of shattering glass and screams of fear echoing up into the stratosphere. Desperate house to house defenses are waged by those with the strength to fight as the rising hordes and even worse ponies that have been turned into infected slaves pound against the fortifications of the living with tireless strength. Those bitten by the Monster Within scream the loudest as they feel their own bodies rebel against them. Their forms contort unnaturally as the maws bite and claw at every un-blighted parts of their bodies, the ponies powerless do anything but cry in pain as they slowly lose control of themselves. Though the cacophony of the painted ponies screaming, the dead’s constant moan is perhaps the most unnerving as a haunting chorus fills the town in an almost musical way as their varying octaves create a disconcerting sound that echoes off the multitude of buildings in the town. The undead marching in rank and file as they swarm over living thing unfortunate enough to be engulfed by the rotting tide.  All an all it is a scene of hellish terror and torment, a sight that would break lesser ponies like matchsticks, and the two ponies look down at the hell before them knowing that this hellish wasteland is their destination.

“Ah think…..” Applebloom begins as she watches the unfolding horror before her “Ah think we’re gonna need backup…..”

“From the looks of it….” Lightning dust clutches her mouth half to keep herself from throwing up and half to remain as objective as possible. “…It looks like there aren’t many casualties so far. They’re probably seeking to expand their numbers with Caramel’s ability to ‘infect’ others before they move in for the kill with new numbers.”

Before such an apocalyptic sight any sane pony would gouge out their eyes and curse the very world that they were born into before rather than whether such a storm. Yet despite their fears despite their own apprehension, both ponies realize that their friends and family depend on their actions, depend on their resolve and their will to resist in the face of adversity. Lightning dust looks back at the filly who gives her a quick nod of affirmation as she hugs the Pegasus tighter for comfort. The Pegasus nods back and both mares hold their breaths as they fly down away from the safety of the clouds and into the hell before them.