Undead Equestria

KA-BOOM! My ears rang from the massive explosion from something outside. That was the third time this month something outside had exploded so loudly. I don't like how loud they are, but it's the only interesting thing that goes on outside that I can hear, as the room I'm in is soundproofed. I've been here almost my whole life, going through an everyday routine: I wake up, have ponies in suits that keep their faces and bodies covered give me a few tests, eat, play with my long-withered toys, read the same books over again, then those ponies come back, inject something into me, and take a blood sample a few moments later. At least they only take a small tubes worth each time, barely the size of my smallest feathers. At first the injections hurt, but it stopped hurting after my first week in here. My front legs are dotted under my pink coat due to years of needles being injected into my body. I’ve completely lost feeling in those areas. I'm sick of needles, but every time I complain, they say, "It's to save Equestria." What's left of Equestria to save if they've been doing this for years?

I get off of my bed, stretch my legs and wings, and walk over to the door. It's magically locked, but there’s a small window near the top that I can look out of if I stand on my hind legs. I rise up on two legs, and look out the window. I see the usual two guards on both sides, dressed in heavy-looking black suits with masks that have strange tubes where their muzzles are, and a blank wall in front of the window, nothing else. I wish somepony would paint it; it looks so bland. Sometimes, one of the guards notices me and gives a small smile (I think… It’s hard to tell with those masks on) and a waves. I usually smile back and give a wave.

My life has been like this for so long that I don’t think I could do anything else even if I wanted. Except, for one whole day a month, my parents visit me, and it's the day I look forward to the most. We talk, eat cake and tea, and mommy and I fly around the room playing tag. It’s thankfully big enough for that. Daddy would play too, but he doesn't have wings so it isn't fair to him. That one special day a month is what I look forward to the most. And it's tomorrow!

I just hope that, maybe, mommy and daddy will let me walk around the castle this time, even for a little while. Tomorrow is my birthday after all, so it might happen. To fly around the wide open sky, smell fresh air, maybe even walk on a cloud. Mommy says that anypony worth their wings enjoys playing with clouds. I want to be worth my wings, to be more than a lab rat. At least for a day.

KA-BOOOOOOOOOM! I awoke in pain. I wasn't in bed anymore and the room was full of dust. As my vision cleared, I found myself under my bed. It was thrown to the other side of the room and was upside down. What was that!? I thought, very afraid. What's going on? Where are the guard ponies? I peeked out from under the bed and I nearly pissed myself. A large hole was above the corner where my bed was. I saw black clouds and lots of smoke. I looked over to the door and it was gone. It must of blasted off somehow. The crystal shards covered the floor like confetti. Razor-sharp confetti.

I began pondering. Do I stay here and hope that the guards or daddy find me, or do I leave? If I leave, whatever's going on outside might hurt me, plus, I haven’t been outside this room since I was a foal, but something is telling me not to stay here… Slowly, I creep out from under my thrown bed and eventually crawl out completely. I sneak to the doorway, carefully stepping over the broken shards of crystal on the floor. I look outside and the blank wall that always sat outside my window now has a splash of red as if somepony spit red paint at the wall.

I look to the sides and the guards are nowhere to be seen, save for one of the tubes that is usually on their masks. I don't think that red's paint then. The realization that what now colors the wall might be blood causes my feathers to stand up on end. As I walk through the doorway, total terror takes over as I look at the hall. I haven't stepped hoof outside that room in... ever. KA-BOOOM!!! Another massive explosion goes off and, in a panic, I take off running down one of the ways the hall goes. After what felt like hours, but was actually a few minutes running in fear, I see a door. Above it is labeled "Guard Lockers." "Maybe there's somepony in here that can help me." I say to myself.

When I go inside, I don't see anypony in here, but almost all of the lockers are open. Dirty towels litter the floor and a faint odor fills the air. I took a look inside the lockers and I found helmets, weapons, mainly daggers, and other extra items that the guards who own these lockers left behind. In one of the lockers I found a small black metal thing. It's got a bite grip and some kinda small lever next to it. There were two thin metal strips next to it and they were filled with some kinda smaller metal beans. I took all three just in case. I wasn’t  sure why, but something was telling me to keep them. I also took a helmet, even though it’s too big on me. Even with the chin strap tightened all the way, it still feels loose on my head. Well, it was made for a stallion.

I left the locker rooms and continued walking. I heard some banging, like small explosions, up ahead and felt a need to be cautious. When the banging stopped it was quickly replaced with loud trotting and yelling. Guards! Feeling the spread of relief, I began trotting towards them.

"Hurry men! We need to meet up with the prince and..." The one who was yelling stopped in his tracks when he saw me. “You? How'd you get out, princess?!"

"There was an explosion! Part of the wall and the door was missing. I just had the feeling I shouldn't have stayed there." I reply.

"Hop Dart, you're with me. We’re taking Princess Flurry Heart to Princess Cadence. The rest of you meet up with the prince and inform him on this development. GO!" With that, the other guards ran to meet up with daddy. I noticed that some of them had weird looking metal things like the one I took, but some were larger are looked scarier. I followed the guard, Key Type, apparently, and Hop Dart to my parents bedroom, where my mother was.

It has been years since I've run down these halls. I just wish I wasn't running for my life, so this could actually be enjoyable. I guess I got my wish, sorta.

Eventually, we came to a room that was fortified with barricades and magic walls. Two guards let me through and my mother and I made eye contact. She was shocked, yet happy. "F-Flurry?!" My mother said.

"Mommy!" I yelled, throwing myself at her. I was met with a tight hug. "What's going on?" I asked as I took in her hug. I was happy to have found her.

"I'm so glad you're safe, but what are you doing here? How'd you get out of the Isolation Chamber?"

"There was an explosion and when I woke up, I hurt all over, a hole was in the wall, and the door was gone. I didn't feel safe there so I left."

"You were brave to do so. Those creatures have finally entered the castle perimeter. They're flooding in like ants to sugar. With all of them coming in so fast we couldn’t fix the wall." My mother said, letting go of me and looking through a large saddle bag.

Invasion Protection protocols. Said a voice. From where though?

"What?"

"What is is sweetie?" My mother asked, looking up from her bag.

"I... I thought I heard something."

"You must be traumatized." Mommy replied.

KA-BOOM!! Another loud explosion happened. This time, I felt the castle shake. "Sweetie, stay here. I need to find your father and help get the remaining citizens to safety. Be brave." My mother gave me a kiss on my forehead. Her horn lit up in a blue aura of magic and then she vanished in a flash of light.

Activate the Empire's defenses.

"What?" I say out loud. Okay, I know I heard somepony that time!

You won't find me and you won't live long unless you turn the Empire's defenses on.

"Who is that?" I say in a worried panic.

In time, just head to the throne room. Now!

I was scared now, more so than ever in my life. How do I get there? I think furiously. There are guards everywhere outside! And I’m hearing voices!

Go to the bed and use your magic to pull the crystal out of the torch decoration on the wall, the one on the right side of the bed.

I walked over my parents’ bed, now beginning to think myself insane for following the orders of the voice in my head. I levitate the crystal out of the torch decoration. I had one of these in the chamber that was my whole world until a few moments ago. It looked no different, glowing a bright fiery orange. “Now what?” I call out to the voice.

Break it.

Using my magic, I threw the crystal at the ground. Why I’m still listening to this voice is lost to me. But then, there was suddenly a bright flash of light that blinded my my eyes. I rubbed my eyes and once I could see I saw that I was in the throne room. Blood was spread out on the floor in pools. One puddle touched my hoof and I jumped back in terror. It was still warm. Then I heard what sounded like slurping and crunching. I looked at the corner of the throne room and I saw a pony feasting on the corpse of another pony. Blood stained his once sunflower yellow coat, his teeth, despite being normal pony teeth, tore a large chunk out of the dead pony he was devouring and he swallowed it whole. I gagged, spitting up a small bit of my dinner from last night (I didn't get the chance to eat breakfast yet). The pony eating the corpse looked over at me. His eyes were completely white. I flinched in terror, expecting him to jump at me. However, his ears twitched a bit, like he was trying to hear me and after giving a faint growling moan for a few minutes, he returned to his meal as if nothing had happened.

Quickly! Take the gun you took from the locker room and point it at its head. The voice said, sounding concerned.

“The what?” I said.

That black metal thing!

“You're a voice in my head.” I tell the voice. “How do you know what it's called?”

Let's just say that I have more free-roaming abilities at night and I learned a thing or two. Now point it at its head and pull that small trigger under between the grip and barrel.

“But, it's a pony! I can't-”

Do ponies devour one another?

“No! But…”

The reason you were in that room is because you are immune to becoming *that*. Those injections they gave you is the thing that makes ponies into those... Undead. Once your body subdued it, they took out some blood to try to make a cure from it.

"I know that!" I put my hoof up to my mouth. The pony eating the corpse, or Undead, as the voice called it, looked directly at me, growled, then charged. I took to the air. It circled the ground where I was, as if, it didn’t see me fly up. Is it blind?

Yes, they can't feel either, they rely on hearing to navigate, their growling is like a bat's echolocation. Only less effective, you were just far enough away. Until you yelled. Your wings give you an advantage, at least, against those that can't fly.

"These things can fly!?" I looked down, remembering what the voice said, and the Undead was now directly under me, jumping and biting at the air. I was too high up for it.

Some used to be Pegasus, now all of what these things once were, who they were, is just a shell.

"Who are you? What are you?"

If I told you that you might not trust me.

"And saying that will?"

Either shoot it or I will.

"How can you shoot it? You're just a voice."

I am much more than that. My horn lit up, but it felt wrong. It hurt, like somepony else's horn was shoved into my horn. I looked at the aura and it was a shade of blue rather than its usual pink. The gun levitated up from my pocket and pointed down at the Undead below me. I am a weapon. A loud bang went off, and one of the small metal beans came out of the side of the gun. The Undead below me fell to the ground almost instantaneously and landed in a puddle of blood. It twitched for a minute, but soon went limp. It was dead.

I didn’t actually think that would work!

"What are you!?"

Ponies knew me as- My body was suddenly enveloped in the blue aura as I was thrown onto my mother's throne. Sombra. The aura still around me, my hooves were moved like puppet arms to tap the armrests of the throne twice, then four times, then they slammed on them, shattering the crystal that was once their. It didn't even hurt, it actually reminded me of a bubble bath with how it felt. Where the arm rests once were, two buttons now sat. Still being used like a puppet, the aura made me press both buttons and the crystals in the throne room glowed a bright red and started flashing.

"Sombra, what did you do!? Wait... the Sombra!?"

Your parents never did tell you what became of me. Then again they didn't know about this "connection" you and I have. The whole castle shook, the sound of slamming could be heard from every window and doorway. And I'm sorry in advance. I didn't have a chance to reply, the sound of wind, faster than a tornado or any winter storm blew outside. It felt like the castle was going to fly away, or tip over. Then, as fast as it started, it stopped.

"What did you do?" I ask, frightened. I have Sombra in my head, he puppet mastered me! And caused something bad sounding to happen! Maybe THIS is the real reason I was locked up.

Last resort. Anypony outside the throne room has been frozen in magical ice. I designed it myself to take advantage of the magical weather outside the empire's border.

"My Parents!!" I started running towards the castle entrance. I made a splash through the blood of the Undead Sombra used me to kill, but I barely realized it at the time, I only knew because I felt the blood splash into my coat and sink onto my skin.

I'm sorry.

I was relying solely on memory to guide me to the front entrance; Sombra went silent. When I finally reached the door, it was covered in frost. I pushed against the door, but it didn't budge. I used my magic to help push it. After what felt like hours of pushing it finally budged, and I was met with the coldest chill I've ever known possible. I kept at it, until the door was open enough that I could squeeze through. Outside was much colder than the small breeze that was coming through the open door. My eyes widened as I was met with a literal frozen hell surrounding me.

Thousands of those Undead, frozen. Solders, frozen. One soldier was frozen with an Undead ready to bite at his neck, the creature's teeth less than an inch from his flesh. He had tears frozen down his face as he knew his fate was sealed. The further I wandered the more sick I felt, as most soldiers weren't as lucky as that one solder. Many of them were frozen as they died. Undeads were frozen with their teeth ripping into many of the guards flesh. Even the blood splatter was frozen in midair. Everything was like a twisted sculpture garden. "Are they all..."

No, the freeze doesn't kill them, it actually uses the cold from outside the Empire, amplifies it, then runs a special spell that freezes time around them. Nothing here will rot, or die. And don't worry about accidentally shattering somepony. The ice is so hard and cold that not even the sun at point-blank range could melt it.

"Then how do we get them out? My parents were out here!"

Only one pony can undo this, but she's... no longer among us. Sombra's voice sounded sad. Was she someone he cared about? She was my only friend, part of why I am the way I am now.

"Tell me everything." I say while looking through frozen battle, trying to find my parents. I wanted so bad to run back into the castle, but I had to find my parents.

Long before you were born, Events happened at this empire that made me realize I can choose my destiny, my friend, Hope, made me realize that. I knew repairing the damage I'd done would lead to my death, and I embraced it without any regrets.

While Sombra told his story, I moved between frozen soldiers and Undead. Some of the Undeads limbs were missing. I looked around and dug into the deeper patches of snow around me and found a severed hoof. I almost did run back into the castle. I forced myself to swallow my fear and move on.

Hope saved me yet again and I was... cured, in a sense. We went looking for pieces of the princess before your mother. Before the empire was banished. We were making good progress, until something wrong started happening with Hope and I. Death's a bitch.

"What's that mean?" I ask, walking over what I'm guessing were Undead killed before the freeze. The frozen pools of blood and holes in the heads give that away.

We both escaped death in different ways. I was banished with the empire, and she was in the prison of the Umbrums. Somehow, being in that prison kept her from aging. After some time once the Umbrums were imprisoned again, we noticed the changes. Hairs turned grey, walking distances took longer. Time was catching up to us. We returned to the empire, our first home. Then, we were called to the castle, well, Hope was. I just tagged along like I used to when we were foals.

I flew upwards since searching on the ground was going nowhere. From a sky perspective, everything looked like a foals messy toys, if the toys could bleed, cry, and die.

Cadence was pregnant. I nearly dropped out of the sky when Sombra said that. Something was wrong with how the baby, you, were being handled in the womb. She barely had any strength left in her, but Hope was a stubborn mare. Despite aging to dust right in front of us, she used the last of her strength and magic to heal you and Cadence. So you could be born healthy. Heh, maybe she showed off when she did that, you being an alicorn and all. I rolled my eyes. Now is not the time for jokes. I was going to follow her soon. Before sundown that day, time caught up with me and I turned to ash. What I didn't expect was to hear crying. Not for me, but it felt like it was coming from me, only it was off. Younger. I froze in mid flight.

"What? Are you saying you're me?"

Yes and no. I died before you were born, six months away til you were supposed to pop out. In a sense, I'm your past life and you're my reincarnation. Guess Tartarus thought I was too good, but the Stars didn't think I was good enough.

"So if you're my... soul. How can I hear you? How are you even able to talk to me?"

My guess is that, even though Hope brought me back as a pony, I was still an Umbrum where it mattered, spiritually anyway. I've seen every part of your life up to the day, felt everything you felt, including your fear. Still being an Umbrum meant that I was still connected to fear. Your fear gave me strength, and I hate that. I can talk to you fine now because of it though, and when it's dark I can actually leave you and explore around wherever there is darkness. That's how I learned what you don't. I was even able to use MY magic through you, earlier.

"So... me being afraid let you do those things? Control me?"

Yes, regrettably. Consider my your body guard that, if needed, will fight through your body. I think we can both agree that we shouldn't let it come to that.

"Agreed. You're a lot nicer then the legends spoke of." I caught a good breeze under my wings which put me back at a good gliding speed to keep looking.

History seems to favor me a villain. I don't mind much, just wish they would tell the rest of my story. Guess that doesn't matter now anyway.

"Wait, if you feel everything I feel then that means..."

Yes. I felt every time you did that. It's definitely different than how stallions do it.

I wanted to drop to the ground and die. Hide somewhere, only that's a stupid idea since you can't hide from your own soul. I started feeling dirty, but not guilty... Oh STARS I'm not into that am I?!

Just promise me next time you feel an urge, do it in a dark room so I can leave. I could feel Sombra’s shiver if discomfort as he most likely recalled one of the many times I scratched my itches.

"Agreed. No more night lights." I looked down below and spotted something out of the ordinary. It looked like a dome of Undead... Could it be? I flew down towards it and my fears were realized when, between the piled Undead, I saw my mom and dad, holding each other. Frozen tears were on their faces as Undead both above and around them were frozen in a charge at them. "No."

Shining Armor must have been using his shield spell for this to happen, from how the Undead above them look it was failing when the freeze started.

"How do we get them out? I'm not leaving them there!" I tried to squeeze between the gaps of Undead, but the creatures were too close together for me to get anything more than a hoof through the spaces between them.

It's too big to levitate up, we could dig under, but I don't think we'd be able to drag them out. Maybe if your powers weren't locked up from that quack unicorn Sunburst's spell.

Right! Sunburst made a spell to keep my powers under wraps until I could control them! "Maybe he survived the freeze! We can get them out!” I say, a small amount of hope sparking to life within me.

Doubt it, but he should have the notes to the spell that your parents used on you. With some practice you should be able to undo it, even unfreeze the ponies here.

"Then I have to find his notes. Too much rides on me getting my stupidly OP alicorn powers back."

Agreed, but not without proper equipment.

"But the Undead are all frozen, right?"

Look around. Not all of the Undead around here were Crystal Ponies, some here are regular ponies, must have turned then walked here from Equestria. Relentless beasts.

"So more might come from outside the freeze spell's area of effect."

Or are already here. Lucky for you the armory here is still packed. Let's go, we have a lot to do before night falls.

"What's so bad at night?"

Other than not seeing the Undead in front of you, some change at night. Not sure how or why. Then, they hide during the day. Word of advice, don't go into the sewers.

“They hide in there?”

Yes, mostly, and you think the ones out here are bad, the ones down there range from basic intelligence to demonically horrifying.

“You’ve seen them?”

I can only leave your body at night, I’d see most of them in the streets.

I could feels Sombra's fear in his voice. It gave me a chill down my spine, worse than the cold already out here. "What kind of disease is this?"