28 Days To Armageddon

Meanwhile, in the forests surrounding Ponyville, a creature lurked in the darkness. This beast, with a heart not made of a pony’s friendship, held captive a purple equine. She watched from within as it terrorized her beloved village, slaughtering some of her friends and destroying their homes. Her eyes filled with tears while the horrific events played out before her. The disease’s magic separated her from her own body, leaving her floating spiritually inside it. She could watch, feel, and hear everything…but she could not control it. Every single slash of a claw or scream of a friend tore her apart. She wept bitterly over the situation, raising her horn in an attempt to fight, but being pressed down at every turn.

Please, she silently prayed, save me, Celestia…or Luna…or my friends…or somepony! Please save me from this wretched darkness. Hell has pushed its evils upon somepony like me, so undeserving and innocent. I’d never raise a hoof against my companions…oh, my dear, sweet companions. How I love each of you. Rarity, for your generous spirit and bountiful beauty. Applejack, for your honesty and integrous workmanship. Rainbow Dash, for your loyal ways and ironbound heart. Pinkie Pie, for your infectious laughter and amazing smile. Fluttershy, for your kindness and quiet strength.

She stopped for a moment and thought of Mist Dawn. This pony that had claimed to be her number one fan had also led her into trouble. They should never have gone into that alley. But at the same time, Twilight couldn’t be angry with Mist. Every faculty within her detached mind shared the same thought: love. It was a tender love, one that rooted itself deep within the vibrancy that sprouted true friendship. Even through all her fanaticism, poor Mist had only wanted a friend. She’d never had one before, and she had come to Twilight begging for an opportunity. With a sick feeling, Twilight remembered how she’d considered turning the mare away.

Oh, Mist Dawn, she thought, I love you as well…and I’m so sorry that I ever thought about passing you by. I promise, if I have the fortune of surviving this, I’ll be the best friend you ever had. I swear it by Celestia’s sun and Luna’s moon, by my mother’s love and my father’s devotion. Everything will be different for you, and I’ll make sure of that. But first…I must fight this monster. My friends could be in serious danger! I must break free of this illness! I…MUST…KILL IT!

With those thoughts, Twilight’s spirit raised its horn yet again and a bright aura flashed around it. She saw small black agents of the disease begin building up to fight the threat. For a few moments, they succeeded. Their arrows of dark energy piled up on her, leaving her in great emotional pain. Every single prick was a memory of something gone wrong, or some guilt she held in her heart. From not making friends in Canterlot to her near mistake with Mist Dawn, the errors in judgment piled up. She saw her very first friend from way back in Magic Kindergarten and how she’d brushed her off in favor of books. Horrible memories of destroyed friendships and relationships put her soul through an incinerator of evil and darkness.

“STOP! PLEASE, JUST STOP!” She suddenly cried, “SHOW ME NO MORE!”

“Then, swear to be mine forever,” an evil, demonic voice hissed at her, “for I am now you. I am Lycantropy, and you cannot defeat me. Once I’m finished destroying your friends, I shall destroy you.”

Twilight huddled within herself, but then saw images of her friends looking at her. They held such a beauty and grace about them, even Pinkie Pie. She was awestruck by them all, with Princesses Celestia and Luna guarding them from above. The vision raised her to where they were, setting her on a platform with their angelic figures hovering around her. Some part of her registered that this was all a cerebral farce and that they weren’t actually there. But she also understood the severity of the message. She needed to fight back…for them.

“Alright,” she said aloud, “I will fight…and I will win.”

She suddenly blasted out of the vision and began berating the opposition with magic. Her eyes glowed bright white as she worked her way throughout her werepony body, scattering the agents of evil like grain. Each new bit of the destruction of this deathly evil brought her great pleasure. They may have been small, but they were harming her friends. Soon, everything would be back to normal. She fired volley after volley into the disease’s lackeys, killing them all and restoring her body. Feeling herself shrink, she began the somewhat subconscious process of reattaching her spirit to its vessel. She suddenly regained control of her eyes, legs, and hooves. She saw the claws retract, and her tail and mane returned to their regular, pretty state. Her mouth spread wide in a smile as she looked around and felt the cool breeze on her own body.

“I…I did it,” she said in disbelief before jumping around like a filly, “I did it! I beat it!”

“Yes, I can see that, my dear,” a rather unique voice chimed in, “I see that we no longer have to live in fear.”

“Zecora!” Twilight cried as she leapt into her zebra friend’s embrace, “I’m not a werepony anymore! I’m not that horrible, awful, terrible monster!”

“No, my Twilight, you are no longer controlled by that anger, but I’m afraid your friends might be in danger.”

“What do you mean?”

“They went to Transylmaneia to look for clues, but I think it may all have been a ruse.”

“A ruse? What do you mean by that?” Twilight asked.

Zecora looked down, then back up suddenly. “Twilight, this message is no phony, for you all have been betrayed by a certain pony.”

“I knew it!” Twilight growled, “Steel Quill must have gotten to all of them. Don’t worry, Zecora, I’m gonna head to Transylmaneia and stop her myself!”

With those words, Twilight ran off, leaving Zecora with a message unfinished. “Oh, Twilight, you did not let me complete it. I fear that your carelessness will soon leave you…defeated.”