Discordant Disaster

It is now two days since Luna and Celestia were infected. Already, everything on the planet’s surface is accelerating toward the equator due to inertia, causing widespread earthquakes, tsunamis, and changes in the atmosphere. The moon is also having gravitational effects as well, further exacerbating the chaos. Tides in Equestria became larger, leading to larger tsunamis, and without any exposure to sunlight, the average temperature in Ponyville has dropped from a high of 72° Fahrenheit to 58° within the past couple of days. On top of this, the Lunar Disease is spreading beyond Canterlot despite the country’s efforts to contain the city. Celestia herself would hope dearly that her faithful student, her friends, and the other residents there would be okay. But an increase in Lunar Disease cases is inevitable.

On the dark quiet streets of Ponyville, a stallion stumbles to the Golden Oak Library, letting out tired groans as if he hasn’t slept in weeks. He trots to the door and twists the handle, expecting it to open, but it didn’t. He started banging on the door, letting out a frustrated growl. A few others that are in a similar state hear the loud thumping on the door and walks closer to it out of curiosity, all the while letting out tired groans of their own. They too start banging on the doors, growing impatient.

In the library, Twilight was woken up from her regularly scheduled slumber to the ruckus downstairs. With a frustrated groan, she groggily got out of bed and put on her glasses, her eyes barely open, but open enough to see what’s in front of her. She thought against turning on any lights, preferring instead to be shuffling around in the dark and let her eyes adjust to the environment.

By the time she got downstairs, she can see somewhat clearer with the moonlight from outside peeking through the windows, providing dim, but bearable light for her. She did not like unwanted guests at this hour, even if it’s one of her friends stopping by. She sighed, wondering why she’s even bothering to open the door for what sounded like three ponies, who are all continuously banging on the door. Twilight guessed that they must be desperate ponies who either want a place to stay because their houses have been raided and destroyed, or they’re robbers themselves, who think they’ll get a warm welcome from the very pony they’re trying to rob. But even then, Twilight doesn’t have anything particularly valuable, unless they’re here to steal food and water, because why else would somepony go knocking on a library door at five in the morning? In any case, she’ll have her magic ready for what’s coming.

“Alright, alright. I’m coming.” She got out as she trotted to the door, making sure not to bump into anything on the way and potentially hurt herself. She hoped the residents heard that.

Her horn glows dimly as she was preparing to open the door with her magic and also unleash a deadly blast of concussive magic at whoever’s ready to pounce once she opened it. With her magic, she twists the knob, and pulled open the door. A stallion fell forward from the otherside of the doorframe with a thud. He got up with a growl as he glared at Twilight, who brightened her horn to see the face of the intruder. To her surprise and horror, the stallion is in the same state as Luna was last time she found her: black eyes with white pupils and eye sockets surrounded by matching darkness. But there’s also a dark liquid that seems to drip from the pony’s mouth. She didn’t have time to figure it out what it was.

At the sight of the stallion, Twilight backed away in fear and looked at the two other mares that accompanied him. The light illuminating from her horn wasn’t bright enough to allow her to clearly see if they’re infected, too, but if the black eyes and glowing pupils are any indication, Twilight’s suspicions were confirmed.

“I’m sorry, guys.” Twilight said quickly before shooting a laser from her horn at the stallion and at the two mares as they were about to run towards her. As the magic in her horn dissipated, she looked at the bloody mess from the casualties with disgust and discomfort. Their once glowing white pupils are gone. She never believed that she would kill another pony before. She’s fought changelings before, sure, but even then, none of them were ever killed, at least not in the manner she has just killed these three zombies.

“Okay, okay… I’ll just clean this up later… No, clean this up now, and then go to bed…” Twilight’s voice cracked as she muttered to herself reassuringly while scraping her front hoof on the floorboard. But before she could get started on tidying up, she heard a loud crash nearby as an infected pegasus breaks through her window. She yelped in fear and looked to where that crash came from.

One of the windows that sat right above the bookshelves is broken, allowing the pegasus to peek his head, front hooves, and upper torso through. He notices Twilight and struggles to crawl through the window with an enraged growl. He doesn’t seem to care if the glass shards still on the window frame are cutting into him. Once his entire body is through the window, he fell onto the floor. Before he can even get up, Twilight blasted his head with a beam of magic, reducing it to nothing more than a bloody mess. Pieces of his skull and brain matter were launched in all directions, and even some blood got on Twilight. She hoped to Celestia that it won’t infect her. She quickly tried wiping it off her with her hoof and was surprised she was able to maintain her composure to hide her state of panic.

Those blasts of magic would attract some more unwanted attention, for she heard more hoofsteps from the distance. She looked outside her still open door to see a handful of other zombies scattered across the streets of Ponyville now heading towards her house. They all saw her and immediately start galloping towards her, their suspicions confirmed. Twilight concluded that it’s no longer safe to hide in her own home. Unable to shut the door due to the now reanimated corpses being in the way and with zombies closing in on her, she decided to run right out of her library.

The nearby zombies begin their ferocious pursuit. Each of them are in a frenzy, galloping as fast as they could to reach the healthy purple unicorn, who’s trying to think of a place to teleport to. Twilight thought of Pinkie Pie, and decided that Sugarcube Corner would be her first destination. Her horn lit up and she was briefly engulfed in a pale violet light before disappearing, leaving the pursuing zombies confused and with no idea of where she went. They all slowed down to a halt and looked around. They begrudgingly concluded that their prey isn’t anywhere nearby and may not come back anytime soon.

Pinkie Pie has been taking care of Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake for four days, now, since their parents left to go get some extra food and water for the week. They’ve been absent ever since. Naturally, the twin foals are upset and miss their mom and dad as much as Pinkie does, but she was able to calm them down. Well, most of the time anyways. There had been times where she’s been alone taking care of them, so getting them to calm down wasn’t the hardest task. However, the stresses of the Cakes’ absence combined with the ongoing epidemic, running the bakery, and taking care of the two foals has been putting a lot of stress on the party pony. Her worsening eating habits and gradual weight gain certainly isn’t helping. Recently, confirmed Lunar Disease cases in Ponyville start to sprout up. At first, it was just rumors, but there’s just no hiding it, now.

It certainly didn’t make this virus any better when riots are sprouting up in the country. Everypony is rushing to stores to grab whatever necessities are left on the shelves since supply lines are also being stopped out of fear that they would further spread the virus. So, those that are unfortunate enough to not get any food or water or even have access to farms will have to resort to illegal means of getting them. That includes robbery.

This would spark fights amongst the citizens of Equestria. Those without food or water will have to steal it, and those with food and water will have to figure out ways to defend themselves without any access to weapons. It’s gotten to a point where Sugarcube Corner had to shut down not only because ingredients are running scarce, but also because ponies keep robbing them. Pinkie Pie didn’t want to shut it down, but since she also lives there and is the only one who runs the place, she had to in order to keep herself safe.

She didn’t want to leave this place. This was her real home. It’s the only place she felt safe and the only place she truly felt like she belonged in. Her parents at the Rock Farm—an impoverished place—will likely ostracize her if they even saw her. Ever since she ran away, she made a personal vow to not ever go near that damned household. She has dealt with their harsh treatment for years. She and her older sisters has scars on them that serve as a reminder of the abuse they’ve been forced to endure throughout their foalhoods.

She can’t get a clear image of what transpired that faithful night, but she’d estimate that she was 15 years old when she ran away. Her sisters wanted to go with her, but Maud and Marble didn’t get very far before they were tackled by their parents and dragged kicking and screaming back to the house. Well, Marble was screaming before she was smacked so hard in the head, she got knocked out, while Maud glared at her mother with hateful and almost murderous eyes. Limestone and Pinkie were the only ones lucky enough to get away, but had to split up to evade the local police. Their parents must’ve called a search party to find them. While Pinkie got away successfully with the little supplies she was able to bring with her and carry, she doesn’t know yet about Limestone’s whereabouts. Pinkie can only hope she’s safe wherever she is.

She was still surprised she was able to get a job at Sugarcube Corner with her decent, but not great baking skills and knowledge of recipes, which she learned from a stolen cookbook from another stallion’s home. She figured that a cookbook alone wasn’t really enough to master baking, but she managed to convince the Cakes to give her the job as well as a place to stay since she was homeless when she first arrived in Ponyville, and they were generous enough to spare a room for her.

Pinkie would be forever grateful for them for not only giving her a job, but also letting her stay in a room that was initially meant for storage. They were like the mother and father she would’ve wished for. While the Cakes saw her as a close friend who loves to throw parties, Pinkie saw them as family. So, it’s easy to see how sad she was when they left to go get some food for their foals and never returned after a few days. The worst part was that her friends can’t visit her due to the strict curfew. Even though she convinced herself that she’s a grown mare capable of running a fast-food restaurant on her own, she’ll still miss them and hope that they and their foals are doing alright.

The day after the Cakes left, while Pound and Pumpkin Cake were asleep, she took advantage of her time allowed outside to buy a journal to document her thoughts. It was her only form of company with the Cakes gone. With this, she could process her emotions a little better, reflect on her experiences, and find solace in expressing herself on paper. For a time, when she wasn’t allowed outside to see her friends or when the foals are asleep, her diary was her only companion. So, she’d write on her diary as if she were writing a letter to another entity she can fully trust.

There was this ever-looming sense of unease in the bakery, but with the Cakes presumably dead as far as Pinkie was concerned, she was determined to keep the children safe even though the bakery won’t be open for long. And then one night changed everything.

Pinkie woke up to Pound and Pumpkin Cake crying in their cribs along with what she assumed were the faint sounds of shuffling from downstairs. Perhaps Mr. and Mrs. Cake had finally returned. She groggily got up, her eyelids wanting to close back up. She walked up to their cribs and tried gently shushing them. She heard a shatter, which made Pinkie jump as she looked out of the open door of her bedroom, where the sound reverberated from. She slowly trotted down the hallway and then looked downstairs to see if there are any intruders.

She sees two ponies walking around the desk as if they’re tired and lost. Though, a couple stallions tried to rob them once, it was only once and after that, it never happened again. But if it happened once, it can and will happen again. But these two ponies don’t seem normal. They smell like they haven’t bathed in days, and look disheveled and dirty. Pinkie squinted her eyes for a closer look. The little light from the front porch shined through the windows, providing some visibility to the two ponies. One of them is a faded yellow and the other is a faded cyan. She hoped that they weren’t the Cakes or Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.

The two ponies hear the foals crying, and they turn towards the stairs, where Pinkie stood. They saw her and charged upstairs with an animal-like growl, which forced Pinkie to snap out of her state of disbelief and gallop back to her bedroom and lock the door. She leaned against the door as the two mysterious ponies banged on it, making the foals cry even more. She is reminded of her childhood, when she escaped her parents’ house. Unfortunately, the only phone in this bakery is downstairs on the front desk, so calling the local police isn’t an option. Pinkie had to find another way out.

Escaping Sugarcube Corner would be as scary as escaping her rock farm, but instead of running away from two ponies inside the house with her four sisters, she’ll be running away from dozens of ponies outside the house with no assistance, and her only companions will be the two foals and her diary, which won’t be as much help as she’ll have three of those to carry.

She figured jumping out the window would be the only means of escape. But how can she safely carry the foals without injuring them? She decided to go over and attempt to comfort the foals first and hopefully diffuse their distressing cries. They calmed down a little upon seeing her reassuring smile again, but still remained scared and worried when she left to her closet to find a basket and some balloons. She looked for any [iece of cloth she can find, including her bedsheets, pillowcases, wrappings and bows for presents, and many streamers. She tied them all together into one long rope and threw one end of it out of the window she had opened, and tied the other to the leg of her bed. The rope was long enough to barely touch the grass below. She dug into her closet for a basket that was thankfully large enough to fit the two foals in and her saddlebags for her diary. She carefully placed them into the basket all the while trying to calm them down and her diary into her saddlebag.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.” Pinkie assures the foals, though she was also trying to convince herself, too. “We’re just gonna go for a little walk, okay?”

She finds some tape used for presents after wrapping them up and wraps the tape around the basket and made sure to leave their heads exposed. Tape isn’t the best way to make sure they don’t fall off while on the run or while sliding down a rope with her own bedsheets, towels, and pillowcases, but it’ll do for now.

Pinkie also makes sure to get her saddlebag and tape the basket on her back, wrapping the tape around her torso. She shakes a little to test the basket’s security before heading to the open window. She hesitates until a hoof breaks through the wooden door, which makes Pinkie flinch and turn around to look. The foals whimper in fear, and Pinkie just says, “Here we go.”

She climbs down her makeshift rope down the bakery and safely lands on the cobblestone ground without causing as much of a rough ride for the foals. She sighs in relief and was about to head to Carousel Boutique when she heard growls and galloping of other ponies. She turns to where the noise was coming from and was horrified to see other ponies with black eyes and white pupils. Ten of them are rushing towards her and she doesn’t know why. Before she can turn back around and run, a magenta flash appears next to her and she hears a familiar voice.

“Pinkie, get down!” Twilight orders.

Pinkie obeys, not thinking twice. Twilight fires blasts of magic at the ten ponies, burning holes and even slicing them in half. Once the carnage is over, Pinkie gets up and turns to face Twilight, who gives her a warm hug.

“I’m so glad you’re okay!” She says thankfully. “And you brought Pound and Pumpkin Cake?”

“Mister and Misses Cake are still gone.” Pinkie replies. “I haven’t seen them in days.”

Pinkie turns to the corpses of what remains of the zombified ponies, now lying in a pool of their own blood.

“The virus didn’t just…”

“Yes. Apparently, it did come to Ponyville.” Twilight confirms, also feeling like this shouldn’t be true, but the reality is too dangerous to ignore. “We’ll have to get the others and see if they’re okay, then we’ll all have to go to Sweet Apple Acres. It’s not safe here.”

“Haven’t you tried calling them?” Pinkie asked, remembering that Twilight’s library has a built-in telephone.

“I would’ve done that if these ponies didn’t break in. It’s faster to just teleport to them, anyways.”

“Oki doki loki!” Pinkie gives a salute. “Let’s check Carousel Boutique, first.”

Twilight teleports herself and Pinkie to Carousel Boutique, just outside. Twilight sees some zombies bashing on the front door and Twilight didn’t hesitate to blast them all before knocking on the front door.

“Rarity!” Pinkie called. “It’s us! We have to go to Sweet Apple acres!”

“Pinkie??” Rarity yells through the door. “Is that you?”

“Yeah! I’m here with Twilight and the Cakes’ foals.”

“Okay, well… Let me just get my stuff ready.”

It didn’t take long for Rarity and Sweetie Belle to grab whatever essentials they can fit into their saddlebags. They opened the front door, ready to depart. It’s weird to Pinkie and Twilight seeing Rarity without her makeup. Sweetie Belle’s saddlebag contains a flashlight, a couple of non-perishable snacks, and her stuffed dragon. Rarity’s saddlebag contains two water bottles, a compass, and a knife.

“We’re ready.” Rarity says with determination, not seeming to care that she has no makeup. Sweetie Belle’s mane and tail are unkempt as she didn’t even have time to comb her hair, and she looked a little worried from the loud and frantic banging on the door. She’s still wondering what’s really going on, but Rarity is hesitant to give her any details beyond the effects of the virus and why she needed to shut down the boutique and rely on deliveries to keep her business going.

“Pinkie, you take Rarity and Sweetie Belle to Sweet Apple Acres.” Twilight orders the pink party pony. “If Applejack and her family are infected, then stay outside the fence if you can. I’ll teleport to Fluttershy’s cottage and see if she’s okay.”

With a salute from Pinkie and a one-second flash, Twilight teleports right outside on the front yard of Fluttershy’s cottage. She gallops to the front door and knocks three times.

“Fluttershy? You in there?” Twilight asks. A few minutes pass with no answer. Just as she was about to ask again, afraid that she’s asleep and that she’d be waking her to ultimately no emergency other than just in case there is one, she hears a tired and annoyed voice.

“Who is it?” Fluttershy replies, loud enough to be heard through the door.

“Mind coming with me? Our friends are in trouble. We could use someone with medical experience.”

“Okay, then. I’ll just get Angel and my first aid kit and I’ll be right there.”

A couple of minutes pass and the door swings open, with a mildly frustrated, but understanding Fluttershy stepping out with her own saddlebag, carrying her pet bunny, Angel, in one bag, and a first aid kit in the other.

“I’m sorry I had to wake you up this late. I’ll teleport you to Sweet Apple Acres. That’s where Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and Pinkie are headed.”

With a nod from Fluttershy, Twilight teleports her and herself right outside Sweet Apple Acres, with the farm consisting of a field of apple trees, a large barn, and a house not far from it. They both looked around and didn’t see Pinkie, Rarity, or Sweetie Belle anywhere. Assuming they’re in the house, they trot over there and Twilight knocks on the front door. After a few seconds, the door swings open to reveal Applejack wearing a cold, but still sympathetic look.

“Howdy, Twilight.” She greeted in her usual country accent. “I heard about Ponyville. I’m sorry. I appreciate you lookin’ out for the rest of our friends.”

“Are they here?” Flutteshy asked.

“Yes. Come in.”

The two mares trotted in and saw Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake wrapped in blankets and sleeping in a makeshift bed on a nearby chair. Sweetie Belle drawing pictures with Apple Bloom while Rarity and Pinkie Pie on the sofa, both with worried looks on their faces as they watched the news on the CRT TV. The male pegasus news anchor and cameramare keeps a fair distance away from the zombie-infested city of Canterlot. The news anchor tries to deliver the best description as he can to provide the most accurate updates on the extent of the virus.

Twilight and Fluttershy both looked at the TV screen, becoming as worried as the other two. Twilight goes from worried to fearful when the news reporter starts talking about an uprising in Manehattan, leading for the military to violently intervene. Twilight has never been a huge fan of Celestia’s policies, especially when she grew old enough to form her own opinions about things. There are some things that they both disagree with. But this is a very intense response to an uprising.

“Equestria doesn’t seem to be gettin’ any better.” Applejack commented. “I know how you feel about this, but the best we can do is lay low and try to survive.”

Twilight went and sat on a nearby chair to let all these sudden changes sink in. This is real. This is actually happening. Her vision is perfectly clear and she doesn’t seem to occasionally lose sight of where she’s at like in most of her dreams. She hoped it was a dream. But it isn’t. Today has been a complete and total disaster.