The Last of Equestria: New Beginnings

“Alrighty, that’s going to be… two-thousand-six-hundred-and-forty-three bits, please.”

The cashier smiles politely as she patiently awaits our payment. Apple pulls out the bag filled with our entire life savings and every extra bit we could scrounge up. Star and I agreed earlier to let Apple hold onto and be in charge of our money. He counts the bits in groups of ten and uses his light green-colored magic to give them to the cashier, who counts it again to ensure we’re paying her correctly. Although she smiles and appears happy, I’m sure the cashier is dying on the inside and secretly annoyed by our very large order. Between the three of us adults, we have six shopping carts filled to the brim- top to bottom- with everything Apple and Star wrote on our supply list and only one cart half full of stuff but mostly filled with children.

Apple and Star each had two shopping carts while I towed around three, as my kiddies and nephew got tired of walking around so much. The cart they’re riding in just has their new toys inside of it. I look over at the children and watch them interact. Larkspur and Little Dipper- who is only a year older than my son- are discussing which of the Power Ponies is the coolest while Ivory quietly admires one of her new dolls. I’m still questioning if I’m doing the right thing by following along with my siblings, but ‘better safe than sorry’ is a saying for a reason I suppose. I sigh softly and look over at Apple, who is still dishing out bits to the poor cashier.

“Here, let me help you,” I say as I use my magic to take the money from Apple.

I divide the bag in half and give part of it to Apple Cake. I take my half and count out a hundred at a time before giving it to the cashier to move things along smoother and quicker. Between me and Apple, we’re able to pay for it a little bit faster. Perhaps I should have been in charge of at least giving out the payment. Apple counts things out so much slower than me and I'm usually also more accurate. I’m glad it’s a little slow this morning in the grocery store, otherwise the semi-long line behind us would be even longer. It takes the two of us roughly three minutes to fork over the total amount to the cashier, who thanks us for shopping at the store and prints out our not-so-literally mile-long receipt.

I take the receipt, fold it up neatly and then shove it into a random grocery bag. We thank the cashier for her patience and for her help, then quickly leave the store. Once outside, we approach the large wagons Apple had purchased and work on packing them neatly with our supplies. Apple climbs into the wagon with our gardening supplies while Star works on filling the second wagon.

“I’m pretty sure she thought we were insane,” I say as I lift groceries up to Apple.

“Let ‘er think it. It doesn't matter,” Apple says with a shrug “jokes on her. We’ll be safe and sound when it all comes crashing down.”

“If it does,” I mumble with a small roll of my eyes.

“Right,” Apple says, paying me hardly any mind.

“Honey, come help me instead of Apple,” Star says as she unloads a legful of groceries “unlike the two of you, I don’t didn't get the luxury of having magic sticks built into my skull.”

“Hm? Yeah, why am I helping you, anyways? You can handle this on your own,” I say to Apple with a mild look of bewilderment.

“Hey, don’t look at me like that. You started helping me unprompted,” Apple said with a bewildered look of his own “don’t blame your subtle, subconscious racism on me.”

“What’s racism?” Larkspur questions.

I jump ever so slightly at his sudden inclusion into the conversation. He had been in the basket of one of the carts just moments ago and somehow he’s now standing right next to me.

“Erm, well, it’s… when… you treat a… certain type of somepony differently from others. Like, uh, make fun of them, be mean and hateful… stuff like that,” I say, somewhat struggling to explain this topic to a four year old.

“Larky, sweetheart, uh… How did you get out the cart? You didn’t jump down on your own, did you?” I quickly ask to change the subject.

“He wanted to get down, so I let him out,” Ivory chimes in from behind us, still in the car with her cousin.

“Oh, okay. Just wanted to be sure, darlin’. Mommy doesn’t want you getting hurt,” I say as I bend down and kiss his head.

“I’m a tough cookie, mama. Nothin’ can hurt me! I’m gonna grow up big and strong and be a… firefighter,” Larkspur says with a big grin.

I chuckle softly and ruffle his mane. I pick him up and then place him on my back before going over to my younger sister and helping her pack the wagon. It takes a good while to get everything packed inside, but once we finish, Apple securely ties thick tarps snugly over the wagons. I pass out our lightly packed bags we had left lying under one of the wagons and then use my magic to return all of the carts into the grocery store's cart corral. After we do a quick head count, we make our way to Star and Apple's house to pick up Pudgy and his pet carrier. With her little chihuahua in tow, we proceed to the train station.

The platform is busy, but not more than usual for a Thursday morning. A lot of Ponyville residents travel to places like Canterlot, Manehattan and Baltimare for work. It’s one of the bigger towns around, I suppose, but tiny in comparison to the big cities. I’m not sure if I could’ve ever worked outside of Ponyville. I think the long distance from my children would break my heart. I guess I was fortunate to have a job as a window clerk for the Ponyville Post Office… until today, that is. Part of me somehow feels like a failure, being unemployed and single like this. I’m not alone, though, I have my family. That’s what’s important… that’s what counts the most. Family.

Apple parts ways from our little group to purchase our train tickets. The rest of us hang out near the edge of the platform away from the buzzing crowd. A chill runs down my spine as I watch everypony go about their day- boarding and behaving all excited- like nothing is wrong in the world. In some ways, I’m sure that’s the truth. Nothing has happened… yet. Will it? Do any of them know what’s been happening? Is even a single one of these ponies worried, if even in the slightest? Are they like me? Believe it to be all bark and no bite? Things aren’t exactly spiraling out of control, the world hasn’t been plunged to chaos and ripped apart by the blood-thirsty maws of the undead. How long until it isn’t? I shudder slightly. Is that really a question I want an answer to?

Ugh. I feel like an outsider of some kind, like I’m keeping some sort of big secret, keeping them out of the know and leaving them to their demise. How many of them would even listen if I said anything? How many of them would believe it? And how many would do the same as us if only they knew? On the other side of things, how many of them would laugh or scoff? How many would label us ‘conspiracy freaks’ and shun us? I don’t like this feeling growing inside my gut. It’s like that same feeling you’d get back in school when you auditioned for some kind of important role, group or team and you nervously awaited your results. Do I really not believe the world is going to end? That we aren’t ‘moments away’ from a zombie apocalypse destroying us, our lives and our homes? Or… Do I just not want it to be true?

“I’m sick of your shit! How’d you even get this job, Brittle? Lazy, good-for-nothing, piece of-” The sound of bickering draws me from my thoughts and catches my attention.

“Keep yer voice down! I’m not lyin’, ya bastard! Ya want the train to crash or something?!” I turn my head and see two railroad employees bickering a good distance from the ticket booth nearby.

One is an older earth pony stallion and the other is a much younger earth pony mare. They’re both pretty far away from the ticket booth, but just close enough that I’m within earshot of them. I’m not sure what roles they play in running the train, but I’m guessing by her comment alone that the mare- at least- helps drive the train. They both must be engineers. I don’t really know much about trains, though, aside from what was covered in that little train book of Larkspur’s.

“Ah ain’t lyin’! Ah feel sicker than a dog and too weak to whip a gnat!” The mare snaps.

“That right? Then why’d you show up today?” The stallion questions angrily.

“Asshat! That’s ‘cuz ah felt fine earlier! Now ah feel like I’m gonna spill muh guts ev’rywhere!” The mare answers in a hiss “must’ve caught whatever that shit is muh brother’s got. Visited his sorry ass in the hospital. Has whatever that new shit goin’ ‘round is and hacked his spittle all over muh damn face. There was blood in it, Porter! Blood! An' it got in muh mouth some!”

“Tch! A likely story! Get your ass on that train! We don’t have the time to argue anymore!” The stallion hisses back “nor do we have time for you to craft up half-assed excuses to get out of work!”

“Oh fer fuck’s sake, ya ornery bastard!” The mare growls in defeat.

I watch as the older stallion practically drags her away and onto the train. I… I didn’t hear that right, did I? Our train is going to be driven by somepony with that ‘zombie creating’ sickness? Apple returns almost as quickly as he had left. I swear… it felt like an eternity had passed. In any case… fuck. It’s too late to suggest avoiding the train and going a different route. Maybe it’s not, but… Apple and Star wouldn’t listen even if I did suggest it. Then again, maybe they would. I mentally slap myself and sigh internally. I think the fear and paranoia from this infection going around is starting to get to me or something. Doesn’t help any that we’re uprooting our lives to go hide in an isolated part of the mountains either.

God… I make it sound like I've had no choice in the matter of uprooting and moving. I've had a choice this whole time and I still have the option to change my mind if I wanted. There wouldn't be much of a point to back out now, especially when my children already have these expectations of moving elsewhere. Not only that, but I've quit my job, sold a lot of my belongings and informed my friends of our moving. I think my biggest issue is that I'm overthinking every bit of this because I'm simply just not well informed. Sure, my siblings have filled in more than a few blanks, but I've done nothing to inform myself and find information out on my own. Every bit of what I've heard and what I know is from others. How much of a failure of a mother does that make me, if at all? Or as a pony in general? Only time will tell if I'll end up regretting these decisions or not. Hopefully I won't.

"Honey? Are you coming or what?" Apple questions, pulling me from my thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sorry. Was thinking a little too hard," I answer with an embarrassed chuckle.

Apple lightly shakes his head and he stifles a chuckle of his own. Normally I'm the level headed one, all calm and collected with my ducks- and thoughts- in a row. Maybe it's just the hormones messing with my head. I sigh quietly and help my siblings load our wagons into the luggage car of the train. Once the wagons are nice and snug in the leftmost corner of the luggage car, we make our way to our seats a couple of cars down. Ivory, Larkspur and myself sit down together on one set of bench seats while Apple, Little Dipper, Star and Pudgy sit across from us on the other. I trade spots with Larkspur and sit by the window rather than the middle.

Larkspur and Ivory start a game of I Spy with Little Dipper while Apple and Star talk quietly to one another about our plans once we arrive at our grandparents' cottage. I lean my head against the cool glass of the window and close my eyes. All this overthinking has given me a dull headache. It's a nearly an hour's trip from here to the Smokey Mountain station, if my memory serves correctly. I have more than enough time to sleep it off.

***

I’m yanked from my dreams as I’m nearly thrown off my seat. I’m caught by a familiar green glow and placed on my hooves. I rub the sleep from my eyes as I look between my children, my siblings and my nephew. The children seem confused while my siblings appear worried. I sit back down and cover my mouth with a hoof to stifle a yawn that manages to escape.

“What happened? Everypony okay?” I question as I raise a brow in confusion.

“I don’t know. The train jerked to the right all of a sudden,” Star answers “well, our right but your left. I thought we were going to derail for a second.”

Apple opens his mouth to speak, but faint screams interrupt whatever it was he was going to say. I’m not entirely sure, but it sounds like they might’ve come from a car or two ahead of ours. We give each other looks of concern before looking at the door at the front of the car. A small crowd gathers by the door, each pony craning their necks to peer through the small rectangular window in an attempt to see the spectacle occurring in the next car over. Apple gets up, instructs us to stay in our seats and promptly joins the crowd. Time seems to slow to a crawl as we await his return.

Apple swiftly returns to us with fear plastered on his face. He glances at the children and tries to recompose himself. A calmer look appears on his face, but his eyes are still full of terror.

“Get up and grab the kids. We’re ditching this train,” Apple instructs as he drops his voice to nearly a whisper.

“What?! But the train is still moving!” Star objects, matching his volume.

“Tell us what’s going on first before we do anything!” I quietly exclaim.

The train jerks again, sending some passengers out of their seats and some of those standing stumbling forward. Members of the crowd by the door fall into one another. I catch Larkspur and Ivory as they’re thrown from their seat and hold them tight. I nearly fall over myself, but am lucky to keep my balance. Before everypony has a chance to fully recover, the train jerks a third time in the opposite direction. At this point, the entire train is violently shaking and just by glancing out the window, it would seem it’s speeding up as well. Apple’s magic surrounds us as he attempts to keep us steady.

A very loud, disconcerting ‘boom’ comes from the front of the train. The entire train lurches to the left and then comes entirely off the trails. Looking out the window, the train is barreling away from the tracks and downhill towards what looks like a very rocky river. Everypony struggles to stay upright, including us despite Apple using his magic. The train lurches again and more violently than before, then completely turns on its side. Stray overhead luggage falls all around and one suitcase in particular strikes Apple in the head, causing him to break his magical hold on us.

I hold onto my children as tightly as I can as I’m sent flying to the side of the train now scraping along the ground. As I fall, I curl into a ball around my children in an attempt to shield them from harm. I land on my back with a painful thud, several small shards of glass slicing open my skin. The train hits something and starts rolling down the hill. I scream as we’re thrown about once more. My skull cracks against the top of one of the seats with a sickening thud. Pain immediately swells up and radiates from the point of impact and before I can do a thing, the world goes black.

“-ney! Honey, get up! Now! Honey…!”

I groan loudly in pain as I slowly come to. Pain fiercely grips my entire body, but more so my head and my back than anything. Ugh… What happened? I feel like I’ve been hit by a train. A… train…? I gasp loudly and shoot upright as everything comes flooding back to me. Oh god! My babies! Larkspur, Ivory! My little one, yet to be born! I grab my stomach as panic grips my heart like a vice. The world around me blurs until I feel a sharp kick coming from within, almost as if my baby understood the situation and knew to let me know they were okay. The world continues to blur and spin as I quickly jump to my hooves, then nearly fall back over. Somepony catches me and another hugs my leg tightly.

“Careful, auntie!” Little Dipper’s voice calls out.

“Calm down, Honey, calm down. Ivory and Larkspur are alive,” Apple’s voice says in a reassuring tone.

The world calms down and slows to a stop as I regain my senses. I flop onto my haunches and hug Dippy tightly.

“I’m okay, Dippy. I’m… ugh… my head is killing me,” I grab my head as I groan again.

“Mommy!” Ivory calls out, her voice filled with pain.

I immediately jump back up and gently set my nephew aside before rushing over to my daughter. Star Dust has her wings wrapped around Larkspur and Ivory, who look up at me with sorrowful faces. A flood of tears runs down their cheeks as I assess their more physical wounds. Both of them are covered in small scrapes, scratches and bruises. Ivory is gingerly holding onto her right foreleg and trembling terribly. Tears immediately well up and spill down my cheeks as I grab up Larkspur and hold him tight.

“I think Ivory’s leg might be broken,” Star says, her voice wavering.

“Come here, baby,” I say as I pick Ivory up with my magic and bring her over to me.

I hold my children gingerly yet snugly against my chest. I kiss the top of their heads and whisper reassuring words.

“Mama! Pudgy won’t wake up!” Larkspur sobs into my chest.

I look up at Star, who chokes back a sob as she nods her head somberly. She looks over her shoulder and gestures towards the train with a wing. I follow where she gestures and my heart sinks into my stomach. A wave of nausea washes over me as I quickly look away. Fucking hell… Poor Pudgy. His dog crate is smashed open beside the train, his tiny, tan body is unnaturally twisted and I’m pretty sure that goopy looking puddle nearby was part of his brain.

“Don’t look, baby. Don’t look at Pudgy,” I say, my voice cracking and a sob of my own threatening to escape.

What the fuck?! Why is this happening to us?! This… this isn’t how this was supposed to go! We… We were supposed to get to the cabin all safe and sound, without any troubles whatsoever and then we were supposed to hide out there for Celestia knows how long until I was proven correct- that the world wasn't going to end! The world isn't supposed to end! This can NOT be real!! This can’t be real! This can’t be real! This… This can’t…

“Get up! Get up!” Apple instructs as he gallops over with Little Dipper on his back.

“We need to get our wagons and leave! NOW!” He quickly adds.

“We… we can’t leave him like this!” Star protests as she gestures at Pudgy.

“We’ll… we’ll come back for him, okay? The kids… Not with them here,” Apple says as he softly shakes his head.

I whimper softly as my ears flatten against my head. I’m trying to remain calm for the sake of my kids and my nephew, but every passing moment makes it harder and harder to keep my composure. My eyes wander and examine the train wreckage. Ponies litter the ground and I have no way of telling if they’re unconscious or if they’re dead. Others are helping their friends or loved ones up and a small handful are actively fleeing from the crash site. My eyes wander a little more and then… they spot something horrible. Numerous ponies are mercilessly attacking other passengers, just… just savagely ripping them apart.

“Forget the wagons! I-I think we should go!” I exclaim as I gesture towards the grisly sight.

“No! We need those to survive! Don’t waste time by arguing with me! Go, go, go!” Apple sternly orders.

Without giving either one of us a chance to debate, Apple takes off towards the remains of the luggage car. I put Ivory and Larkspur on my back before galloping after my brother with my sister and nephew in tow. When we arrive at the luggage car, Star takes my children to keep safe along with her son as Apple and I approach the wrecked car. We carefully climb through the broken windows to get inside. Several other passengers are here with the same idea and some are physically fighting each other. We make our way through the maze of broken, scattered luggage and debris, then over to our wagons. As I duck under a fallen piece of the wall and crawl under it, I hear Apple start shouting obscenities at somepony.

I emerge from under the piece of wall and watch as Apple bucks an angry stallion in the chest. The random stranger stumbles backwards and into an earth pony mare who is struggling to pull her small wagon free from the surrounding luggage. The mare pushes him off and slaps him across the face, presumably for shoving into her. This- luckily- distracts the stallion who I assume had been trying to steal our wagons. Apple grabs both wagons with his magic and asks me to hurriedly teleport us back outside. I quickly- and happily- oblige and in an instant, we’re back outside the wreckage right where we left Star and the children.

“Grab the kids and GO!!” Apple exclaims as he gallops off with the wagons in tow.

With zero hesitation, I grab my kids and put them on my back once more. Star picks up Little Dipper and places him on her own back. We take off after Apple towards the nearby woodline. As we flee the wreckage, the ground begins to rumble and shake. A loud, ear-piercing horn thunders through the sky and rattles my bones. I glance over my shoulder to see an armored, iron train racing down the track.

“Shit! It’s MEDRA!” Apple exclaims in a mixture of terror and anger.

I accidentally stumble into Star, who comes to a sudden stop. I mutter an apology before looking ahead of us and going wide-eyed with pure, utter dread. A dome of magic prevents us from fleeing any further away from the wreckage and the horrors infesting it. I look back and watch as several soldiers from the Military Epidemic and Disaster Response Agency pour out from the train the moment it screeches to a halt near where our train derailed earlier. Rapid gunfire fills the air as I watch on in horror as these soldiers mow down ponies- infected or not- near the train.

“I don’t want to fucking die! Dip-Dip is too young to die!” Star exclaims in total panic.

“Aunt Star, are we going to die?!” Ivory questions in an equal amount of panic.

Apple slaps Star across the face angrily and pulls her ear.

“Don’t ever say that, Star! Especially not in front of the kids! We are NOT going to die, you hear me?! None of us are!!” Apple exclaims angrily at Star.

“We’re going to be just fine, Ivory, okay? Don’t look at the train, just look at your brother, okay?” I say as reassuringly as I can “and Larkspur, don’t look at the train either. Just look at your sister or hide in mommy’s hair.”

The gunfire ceases almost as quickly as it began and the soldiers quickly return back to the train. Being at the edge of the barrier and far from the train seems to have protected us from being mercilessly slaughtered at the hooves of the MEDRA soldiers. With every soldier back in their armored train, it slowly begins to roll back in the direction it came from. It backs up several yards before screeching to a halt once more. Several flashes of light come from the train and are accompanied by an equal amount of ‘booms’. These booms are quickly replaced by the sounds of projectiles whistling through the air.

“OH SHIT!! RUN!!” Apple screams in terror before galloping away as fast as he can.

I look up at the sky and see that the MEDRA train has launched several bombs in an attempt to kill off every single infected that had been aboard our train. What about all of us who aren't infected? They're just gonna... murder us and turn a blind eye?! My siblings and I scatter as we seek shelter from the incoming barrage. The ground shakes and trembles with every bomb that explodes around us. Debris from the train scatters and whistles through the air. My heart pounds against my chest and in my ears as I gallop for our lives. I spot a rock nearby just big enough for my children and I to take shelter behind. Halfway to the rock, one of the bombs makes contact with the train’s engine, resulting in a much bigger explosion.

Debris from the engine flies into the air and scatters in all directions. As I start the motions of diving for the rock, shards of the engine car whizzes dangerously close past my head. Ivory lets out a scream of sheer, unadulterated terror and my back suddenly grows lighter. One of my children hits the ground with a thud as I skitter to a stop. I quickly turn and the world comes to an immediate halt. Time freezes and all I can hear is my heart threatening to burst out of my nauseated stomach. My body freezes too as my brain flat out refuses to process the scene before me. I feel Ivory climb off my back and I watch in slow motion as she limps over to her brother.

A tight pain grips my chest as my mouth goes dry, my throat squeezes shut, my body trembles uncontrollably and everywhere else goes numb. Tears blur my vision as dizziness overwhelms me. On the ground, Larkspur lies completely motionless. A twisted shard of metal pierces through one side of his skull and comes out the other. Blood oozes from the wound and quickly pools around his head. A look of sheer terror is permanently affixed to his face, his little green eyes wide open and staring past me into nothingness. I manage to take a few steps forward before my knees buckle and give out on me. I collapse to the floor as reality catches up and the world returns to its normal pace.

I sob uncontrollably as I crawl over and lift his still warm, lifeless body before tightly hugging his... his... No. No, I... I can't say, can't think it! This has to be a dream! No! No, this has to be a nightmare! Larky… My precious baby colt, my precious little flower... He… He can’t be gone! No! NO!! He was only four! FOUR!! He… Oh, Celesita, no, this isn’t how it was supposed to go! I’m the one who has to die first! They’re supposed to bury me! I… No! No, no, no, no, no! I’m not supposed to bury my children! I was supposed to grow old and wrinkled! Larkspur was supposed to… He... He wanted to be a firefighter! HE WAS SUPPOSED TO GROW UP!! Why?! Oh god, why?! Why him?! Why Larkspur?! Why couldn’t it have been me?!

I continue to sob as I squeeze his body against my own, his warm crimson blood staining my honey yellow coat. I curl into a ball as I tightly hold onto Larkspur’s body and softly rock myself. Denial and reality battle in my head as I struggle to process- much less accept- that my little Larkspur is gone forever. Ivory climbs on top of me and clings onto me as tightly as she can manage. Her pained, sorrowful sobs tear my already-shattered heart into even tinier pieces. Those pieces shred into even small slivers as I realize everything that must be going through that little head of hers. My whole world has come crashing down and… and there wasn’t a single thing I could’ve done to stop it… to save him…

“Honey? Ivory? Larkspur?” Apple’s voice calls out.

My brother appears out of nowhere and out of the corner of my eye, I watch him stop dead in his tracks as I raise my head to look at him. He stumbles forward a few steps before flopping down onto his haunches in complete disbelief.

“Holy shit…” Apple mutters to himself.

“Apple? Honey?” Star’s voice calls out.

“Over here!” Apple calls back, his gaze never straying from the grisly scene before him.

“Everypony o- fuck… Dippy, c-cover your eyes,” Star says as she catches up to us.

She shields Little Dipper from the horror in front of them with her wings. Silence- except for our sorrowful sobs- weighs heavy around us. Apple rises to his hooves and gently picks up Ivory. He pulls her into a tight hug as she buries her tear-stained face into his mane. Star passes Little Dipper to Apple and then sits directly next to me. She grabs me and struggles to pull me into her warm embrace. Star eventually succeeds and holds me as tightly as she can. She gently rocks me and strokes my mane as I bury my face into her shoulder and continue to mourn the loss of my son.

“Honey. It’s… It’s time to say goodbye. Right here is a good spot to dig him a little grave,” Star whispers softly into my ear.

“No… No…” I whimper quietly “He’s going to be okay! We… We j-just need to get him to a hospital! R-R-Right, Apple??”

“Honey… Larkspur is… H-H-He’s gone, Honey. There’s nothing we can do for him now…” Apple trails off as he approaches and strokes my cheek gently.

“No! You’re wrong! He’s still alive! He’s still breathing!” I shriek in total denial.

“Mommy! Larkspur is dead! D-E-A-D! He’s gone because I couldn’t save him!” Ivory exclaims in a mixture of anger and sorrow.

My head snaps up as I quickly look at my daughter. Her body is trembling just as uncontrollably as my own, if not more. She stares at me, almost glaring, her little eyes full of regret, anger and despair. I slowly look down at Larkspur and use my magic to close his eyes and gaping mouth. His body is much colder now and growing stiff in my grasp. The blood oozing from his wound has all but stopped. Apple shields Ivory’s eyes as I use my magic to remove the piece of metal piercing Larkspur’s skull, which cracks and scrapes against the bone sickeningly as I do so. Bits of brain matter are stuck to the offending piece of debris. I cannot stop the flow of bile that quickly ejects itself from my stomach.

I narrowly avoid vomiting on my son’s body or my sister as the puke just keeps coming. A gross mixture of vomit and blood pool on the ground nearby as I continue to puke until I’m dry heaving. I hold Larkspur’s body against my chest as Star helps me stand and step away from the puddle of bodily fluids on the ground. Star places a loving kiss on my forehead before stepping away. She and Apple switch roles. Star takes Ivory and Little Dipper while Apple trots up and hugs me tightly.

“They… They killed him. Those fuckers will pay,” I angrily whisper to Apple through gritted teeth.

“We’ll kill every last one of 'em, I promise,” Apple whispers back as he rests his chin atop my head “let’s bury Larkspur and get Ivory, Dipper and the baby to safety. Afterwards, I promise we’ll drum up a plan to get revenge someday.”

“Okay…” I whisper so quietly, I barely hear it myself.

Apple rubs gently my shoulder before letting go and walking away to fetch a shovel from the wagon. Star brings Ivory and Little Dipper over to the wagons and starts digging around in them, presumably for the first aid kit. I sit down- still holding Larkspur- and watch Star patch up Ivory, Dipper and herself the best she can. Meanwhile, Apple returns to the rock and digs a deep enough hole to bury Larkspur in. I whisper one last goodbye before handing over his body to Apple, who gently places him in the hole and whispers a prayer.

Star taps me on the shoulder and pulls me aside to address my minor wounds while Apple fills in Larky’s grave. She hugs me tightly once she finishes and gently strokes my mane once again. So many thoughts and emotions battle in my brain and in my tattered, broken heart. How could this have happened? Why did this happen? Could… Could this all have been avoided if I had spoken up after hearing that engineer complain about being sick? No matter what conclusions my brain comes to, every single one feels like it’s my fault that Larkspur is dead. It hardly even feels real. I don’t want it to be real, but… he’s gone. Forever.

Those bastards will pay for taking my son away from me. I swear they will if it’s the last thing I ever do! Larkspur might be gone, but I... I still have my precious Ivory- and her unborn sibling. As much as I want to just curl up somewhere and die, I’ve got to keep going for them. I’ve got to keep going for Larkspur. I... I know he wouldn’t want me to give up. It’s hard not to, but… I let out a shaky sigh as I place a hoof on the blood-stained charm necklace Ivory made me. As long as I have this, a piece of him will always live on.