Ancient Infection

Spike entered the Apple Family's room with some carrot soup, happily handing them out. He did noticed that the Cake family, as well as Princess Cadence. None of the other ponies are willing to talk to him about it. He had a sneaking suspicion that something had happened, so he decided to confront Twilight about it, if not Pinkie. He made his way to the lab with a bowl of the soup that he made. He didn't know what to expect when he entered the lab. As soon as he entered, he heard a distorted cry of tiny voices. Like it came from a baby, and something else entirely. Something wrong, otherworldly, something evil. It had chilled the baby dragon to the bone, nearly making him want to turn and run to find Twilight if she was somewhere else. Though he knew that she was down here. She hadn't left her lab since yesterday, so he took a deep breath and looked around the corner of the door to see one of the creatures in a cage. It looked to what was baby Pound Cake, however his neck was long, jaw dropping to the floor with just the skin, teeth needle sharp, his legs were jaggedly sharp rather than of hooved. His wings were drooping and stretched out. Feathers were missing and parts of his fur and main. He snarled and cried at his capture. Twilight had gotten a tissue sample from his front foreleg. She had placed it under a microscope, studying it carefully.

"I-Is that Pound Cake?" Spike asked with a soft scared voice, wondering what happened to this foal and if his family was the same.

He watch Twilight jumped, turning around quickly, stared at him for a moment.

She hesitated, but sighed "Yes, Spike, it is."

"H-how?" he asked again, as he set the bowl of soup onto the counter next to him.

"I...I don't know, even Pinkie doesn't know how this happened. I have a sneaking suspicion that they were bitten by animals that escaped Fluttershy...or what was Fluttershy." Twilight theorized, thinking out loud, as she looked around the foal's body that can be seen.

She pointed to an area where there was a small bite.

"There, it kind of looks like a mouse bite, but I can't be sure." She stated.

"I wonder how long ago the bite was..." Spike muttered out loud.

"By the looks of it...maybe.... wait...oh no!" Twilight had suddenly remembered something, as she bolted upstairs.

She barged into the Apple Family's room, putting a bubble around Apple Bloom. The family spoke out in protest. Twilight levitated the youngest apple and looked at her bite wound, seeing black veins spreading from it.

"Twilight what are you doing to my sister?" Applejack shouted, stomping her hoof, demanding answers.

"She's been bitten, Applejack, she's infected." Twilight stated, pointing out the veins.

"N-no, she's fine! She hasn't acted like those things!" Granny Smith stated.

"I'm sorry, but I discovered that one of the Cake twins was bitten by one of the infected animals that escaped Fluttershy's Cottage! I'm sorry Applejack, but she has to be placed in quarantine." Twilight stated, carrying the bubbled filly down into the lab area, gently placing Apple Bloom into a cell.

"You...you can't do this, Twi, please, she's getting better, she won't turn." Applejack pleaded quietly to her friend.

"Applejack, I'm sorry, but I cannot risk every pony's safety. Especially after what happened to the Cakes, and..." Twilight began to explain but fell silent when she reached the second name.

The alicorn shook her head, as she continued "In any case, if memory serves correctly, Fluttershy was starting to feel better before the virus took over at some point in between then and when we found her."

Applejack's head hung low, her hat hung over her eyes, hiding them. Soft plip sounds as tears ran down the orange pony's cheeks. She let out a shaky breath. Twilight had gotten worried, as she felt the pang in her heart. She knew that Aj cries on the inside, but for her to cry on the outside, it was big. She gently placed a hoof on her country farmer friend.

"I will take care of her, and I will find a cure. When I do, she'll be the first to be cured." Twilight promised.

Applejack didn't say anything, she didn't have to. She turned and quietly made her way out of the lab, walking past Spike, who was watching the entire time. He paused for a moment, thinking if he should go and comfort Applejack, or help Twilight. That was when he noticed something pink. Pinkie was standing just down the hall, her blue eyes were shrunken, her face was in shock. Spike reached out a claw, calling her name, as she just turned and walked away. He followed her, there she sat in front of another cell. Spike heard hissing, growling, and a familiar foal cry. Pinkie gave a soft giggle.

"It's okay, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, Pumpkin, I found Pound, he's safe. Twilight will keep him safe too. She said that she'll look for a cure, so you'll get better too." Pinkie spoke to the creatures that were once the loving baker family.

The creatures growled at her, as she listened like they were actually saying something to her. Spike peeked around the corner more and saw what had become Mr. Cake. His half-eaten torso and belly were facing to the ceiling, his legs becoming long and jagged like his family's, as his body was upside down, his head was twisted around, as his maw remained in a twisted way. Instead of it opening up and down, it opened from side to side. His teeth were sharp with a jagged tongue lopping out from time to time. His long intestine hung limply outside of his body, his coagulated blood caked his body, with black goo slowly slid out from his mouth and chest. His eyes were as black as onyx, with red blood falling down his cheeks, like tears for his fallen family. Spike covered his mouth, trying to suppress his gasp of horror. He watched as Pinkie giggled unsettlingly, as her ear twitched in a familiar way. Like what happened years ago when she thought that none of her friends wanted to go to any of her parties anymore. Her body twitched, as her hair slightly deflated. Then there was another sound further down the cells. It sounded like two voices at the same time. One older, one younger. Spike had to investigate it.