Darkness Fell. . . (REMASTERED)

Chapters

2. Hide and Seek (Now with music!)
3. The End?
1. Lives Cut Short
4. Escape
5. Seeing Double
6. An Uneasy Alliance
7. The Magician's Secret
8. The Void

2. Hide and Seek (Now with music!)

"H͇̋e̼͠ll̪̚o, ̦̕s-̗͑s̬̕-̜́s-ś̳t̨̉u̝͋d̮̐e̜͑nt̙̑s!" Cherilee said.

Bon Bon and Trixie were silent for a moment, statue still with the horror that filled their bodies at the realization that they'd been found. They each breathlessly took in the sight of their former teacher. Like every other corrupted, Cherilee lacked pupils, her eyes simply blank white voids. Despite this, her eyes were still wide and crazed, matching the equally unsetttling smile that graced her face, one so wide and crazy it looked like it would split her face. The corruption dripped like rain where her hair protruded off her head, gracefully falling drop by drop onto the floor below her. She held her arms wide, ready to strike, each of the fingers on her hands elongated and misshapen into sharp claws. Her clothes were in surprising good condition, making everything else about her all the more horrifiying. She stood there in the hallway staring back at the two survivors, her back arched and legs bent into a running stance. Despite this, she didn't charge them, not yet.

"Ạ͞-a-aw̤͛ẃ͈, ̡̐w̧͛hat'̀ͅs ̻̓t̮̅he ̫̊ma̺͌tt̯̑eṙ̟, ̛̟af̗͆rä̹i͚̊d ̘͛o̻̊f̮̂ ̨̽yo͟͡ur͎̚ ̡̛f̫͆à͍vö̫r̭̈ỉ̜t̲̔e tè͇ǎ̭ch̻̊er͓̎??̧̒" Cherilee spoke again. Her voice was low and distorted, syllables and letter pronunciations randomly draw out or mispronounced, her jaw and head glitching too as she spoke.

Cherilee laughed again, seemingly in glee at the opportunity presented to her to show her students the joy of giving the darkness your mind.

"Te̬͛l̨̓l͔͠ ̲̿you ͟͡wh̯͋a̯̒t̘̍,͕͝ sin̪͒ce y̺͑o̪̕ụ͠ t̙̂w̢͗o ä̙́re ̤̄sọ̆m̫͗e of͖̍ ̮̅m̡͋ý̯ ̘̓f̝̃av̠̇ǫ͂r̳̋itḛ͒ ̟͞st̩̑ud͈̐en̩͋ts,̱̈ I̫̕'l̲͋l give y͙̆ou ả͖ t̖̒e͍̓n̗̈-͎̄s͎͋e̞̊c̜̓o̝͠nd̜͝ ̉͜he̤̾ad s͇̐tar͕̽t!" She said. She didn't wait for a response from the survivors, instead jumping right into her countdown.

"Ten!" She said, her voice losing its distinct imperfections and distortions for the briefest of moments.

"N̗̍Î͖̦͗NĒ͉̩͝" She followed. Not only did the corrupted tone of her voice return, but it was then somehow even more deep and distorted, accented by a dark malice and intent to kill straight out of hell.

Bon Bon and Trixie didn't waste another moment staring in horror at their former teacher, turning tail and sprinting back down the hallway towards the stairwell as fast as they could, the sound of their rapid footsteps drowning out the sound of Cherilee's countdown.

Without saying a word to each other as they ran to not waste their breath, they quickly descended the stairwell down a flight, exploding into the hallway of the floor below and booking it for the electrical room. They had to get the lights on. With Cherilee undoubtedly right on their heels, continuing to have to rely on their flashlights to see would be an immediate death sentence, making them stand out like sore thumbs against the otherwise pitch-black.

They made it to the electrical room, Bon Bon rapidly flinging the keys out and jamming each one haphazardly into the lock to figure out which was the right one, all while Trixie in a panic tried to figure out how much time they had left in Cherilee's countdown.

"Three...

Two...

One."

With a relieved gasp, Bon Bon found the right key, turning the lock before throwing the door open and going in, shutting it behind them as quickly and quietly as possible.

The two turned their flashlights to the panels now in front of them.

"Which one of these controls the lights?!" Trixie said in a panic.

"Uh..." Bon Bon said, quickly surveying everything in front of them. Without a word she quickly went for and switched a few seemingly random levers, buttons, and switches, before turning her gaze to one particularly large lever.

“How did you know how to do that?” Trixie questioned.

"I took an electronics class last semester.” She replied in a rush. “Okay, here's the plan. When I count to three, I'm going to throw this lever, and when I do, you book it out of here as fast as you can towards the ground floor. I'll be right behind you."

Trixie nodded.

"Three.

Two."

"Oñ̪e.̫̄" A voice said from directly above them.

Not wasting another moment, Bon Bon threw the switch before booking it back into the hallway along with Trixie, not even taking the time to be horrified at what had just happened. The two made it to the stairwell, starting their marathon towards the ground floor, and subsequently their escape.

Neither of them kept track of what floor they were on, simply rushing down to the ground floor as fast as their legs could carry them, going two sometimes three steps at a time, a feat that at any other time would have been nigh impossible, but with the adrenaline coursing through their veins as they ran it became almost second nature in the name of survival.

Just as it felt like they were almost to the ground floor, a door leading to the floor they were currently in caved in, the corrupted visage of Silver Spoon bursting forth with an inhuman snarl.

Bon Bon screamed. “Go back! Go back!” she cried, scrambling back up the steps with Trixie following suit. Not too long after they were forced to turn back, the sound of Cherilee rushing towards them from above cut through the air. The two of them stopped, taking a moment to quickly think before running for the closest door to keep from being surrounded.

There wasn’t enough time for Bon Bon or Trixie to close, much less lock the door they’d just come from, forced to run aimlessly into the floor they’d wound up on. Trixie reached into her jean pocket again, withdrawing another smoke bomb and hurling it towards the doorway, covering their escape just enough for their persuers to lose track of them.

It was now that they realized Bon Bon’s efforts in the electrical room had been successful, the lights above them flickering on and off in rapid succession, one moment the floor lit up and the next immersed back into darkness, over and over again. It wasn’t much, but it was enough that they no longer had to rely on their flashlights, making it much easier to hide.

It didn’t take them long to figure out that they were on one of the main office floors, much of it just endless cubicles filled with the standard work desk, office chair, and a work computer or laptop. In this particular scenario, these workspaces formed one giant maze, allowing Bon Bon and Trixie to start playing the world’s deadliest game of hide and seek with at least two corrupted persuers.

It didn’t take long for the two to find hiding spots, both of them settling for two normal looking cubicles on opposite ends of a central walkway, hiding under the workdesks where they could maintain a line of sight with each other.

That was where they chose to stay, scared to make even breathing noises for fear of somehow being heard, each of them putting their hands over their mouths to muffle the sound of their rapid breathing.

Although they could defend themselves if it came down to it, Bon Bon realized Trixie was right in her hesitation at the prospect of using the handgun. While neither of them doubted that the nine-millimeter rounds chambered in it could kill or at the very least incapacitate the things enough for them to get away, if the sound was loud enough, it would be like waving a giant dinner bell for every one of the things within a miles’ radius.

What felt like an eternity passed, neither of them daring to move from their respective hiding spots, the occasional crash of a falling object or sounds of feet and hands on the floor signifying that they were looking for them, or at least stalking the floor. Bon Bon heard something from up above. While there wasn’t much either of them could see from their hiding spots, there was enough of a view to see parts of the ceiling, and in Bon Bon’s case, the windows facing the outside on the far end of the room. It was there that she heard and then saw Silver Spoon crawling along the walls, ceiling, and then windows like a spider, leaving dark splotches of corruption everywhere she went. It was a harrowing sight, especially when not even two days before she remembered walking past her and Diamond Tiara in the halls, a memory that in any other context would have been meaningless.

Bon Bon’s gaze went back to Trixie just in time for her to see her eyes widen at something she couldn’t see. Trixie made a quick terrified glance over to her before seeming to take in a deep breath and hold it. Bon Bon did the same despite not being able to see what Trixie was.

A few seconds later, she got her answer. A pair of light blue legs became visible, the rest of whoever was walking past obscured due to the nature of their hiding spots. All that was visible besides this person’s legs was the drops of corruption splashing like rain onto the floor under them. A haunting realization dawned on the two: There were three of them. Neither Cherilee nor Silver Spoon had that color, meaning that there were now even more to worry about.

Thankfully, the two remained unfound, time slowly crawling by during what felt like an eternity of being unable to move. They did their best to ignore the growing discomfort in their muscles accompanied by frequent cramping and claustrophobia.

“I̫̾ ̢́k-̜̾k̝͠-kno̞͗w ͎͠y̛̱ǫ̐u͔̎'r̙̔e ̞͛in ̼͐h̯̐è̱ṛ̌e̺̍!” Cherilee’s voice said from somewhere across the room. “T͚̾ḫ͆e̗̅re̐͜'̳́s̜͆ ̘̔ǹ̼owhḙ͠ŗ́e ͙̕el̫̂s̺̿e ̦̈́you ̘̿co̡͐uld̼͌ ̻̿h̤͡ave ̰̃g̦̾o̻͗ne!” she said, followed by a quick, demented giggle.

Aside from the fear-inducing sound of Cherilee knowing that they were there, a new question arose in Bon Bon’s mind: Why was Cherilee the only one who spoke? What made her so special that she could form coherent sentences but Silver Spoon and the other one couldn’t?

Her train of thought was cut off by the sound of wood breaking somewhere off to her right, followed by more and more objects breaking as the corrupted now resorted to destroying the room until they were found. Bon Bon looked over to Trixie, who seemed to have the same realization as their eyes met. Not even daring to whisper despite the loud sounds of objects breaking, they both signalled to each other that on another count of three they’d make another break for the stairwell.

Trixie held up three fingers, lowering them one at a time for the countdown.

”One.

Two.

Three.”

They both exploded from their hiding spots, taking a moment to find the open door to the stairwell and making a break for it. Unfortunately for them, Silver Spoon caught up to them before they could get up to speed. Silver Spoon struck first, pouncing towards Trixie and successfully striking her in the arm, causing her to fall into a nearby filing cabinet with a loud CRASH. Bon Bon didn’t waste any time, quickly drawing the handgun and firing two shots, both aimed at Silver Spoons upper body. The sound was deafening, but thankfully the bullets hit their mark. The first bullet hit its target in the head, followed by a second in the arm she was using to overpower Trixie. She flopped over, seemingly dead, allowing Trixie to get up and start running again, now bleeding from her arm and forehead which now bore large gashes.

“THERE ̮̕YO͖͌U ̨̈A̺̿R̤̓E̘͘!” They heard Cherilee cry out in bloodlust. She two charged them, leaping into the air for an attack just as Bon Bon once again aimed the gun. Two more shots pierced the air, followed by Cherilee overshooting her target and crashing into a nearby cubicle.

“Come on!” Bon Bon cried out, grabbing Trixies arm and pulling her along towards the stairwell, unknowingly getting some of her blood on her.

Once again they started hurtling down the stairwell, the sound of the unknown third corrupted that had been in the room with them following them becoming louder by the second.

“We’re not going to make it to the ground floor in time!” Bon Bon heard Trixie exclaim from behind her, the sound of her voice beginning to get drowned out by the sound of their persuer getting ever closer. Bon Bon gritted her teeth upon realizing she was right. They were so close, but they wouldn’t make it to the ground floor before being caught, not with Trixie being slowed down by the blood she was losing from her cuts. For the briefest of moments, she considered leaving Trixie behind to give herself a better chance to escape, before just as quickly shoving the thought from her mind and hating herself for even allowing such a thought to exist. Not seeing any other options, she instead directed herself and Trixie through the nearest door on the right, intending to play another game of hide and seek while they weighed their options.

The gun Bon Bon had was still an option, but like Trixie had tried to point out earlier, the sound was likely to attract more of them to the building if it hadn’t already. If it already had, then Bon Bon was leading herself and Trixie to their deaths by trying to hide again, but those first shots had been fired on a much higher floor, so hopefully the distance plus the thickness of the walls and windows meant the shots hadn’t been heard for very far outside of the building. She looked out a window she and Trixie passed while running through the floor they were on, determining they had to be on the third or second floor. If she used the gun again on their last persuer, it would almost certainly be heard, so unfortunately that wasn’t an option anymore.

The floor they currently found themselves on wasn’t very well suited for hiding, mostly consisting of long, winding hallways with nothing to hide behind, and only the occasional small room with one door each, so getting caught in one meant there would be nowhere to escape.

Not wanting to risk hiding in one of the small rooms, the two instead opted to run as deep into the maze of hallways as they could, moving as silently as they could while listening intently for anything besides their own footsteps.

After moving what they thought would be ample distance away from the stairwell, Bon Bon turned back towards Trixie to more closely analyze the extent of her wounds. In the flickering light of the lights dotting the hallway, she realized that they had unintentionally left a small blood trail behind them. Neither of them were sure how smart the things actually were, if they’d actually be able to pick up on such a thing, but they weren’t willing to risk it.

“We need to get that bleeding stopped!” Bon Bon said to Trixie.

“You think?” Trixie replied, hanging her head down to keep blood from getting in her eyes and gripping a hand around the wound on her right arm.

“Uh-” Bon Bon said, looking around before heading into a nearby room to search for something. She emerged about a minute later, now gripping a pair of scissors in one hand. “Hand me your jacket.”

Trixie did as she was told, taking her jacket off, wincing in pain as she had to slide one of the sleeves over her bleeding arm. Bon Bon got to work, cutting off the left sleeve and the lower portion. She fashioned the cut up pieces into makeshift gauze pads, first positioning one over the cut on Trixie’s arm and then taking the sleeve and wrapping it tightly around, repeating the process using other pieces for the wound on her head.

“It’s not much, but that should be enough to stop the bleeding.” She said, stepping back to admire her impromtu bandages.

“Thanks.” Trixie replied with a weak smile.

“We need to get moving again.” Bon Bon said. “I don’t know how smart those things are, but I don’t want to take the chance with the bloodtrail you just left behind.” Trixie turned her head in the opposite direction in response, quickly realizing what her friend meant.

“Oh.” She stated flatly.

As though on que, the lights suddenly flickered rapidly, before turning off, immersing the two in near-total blackness again. This was quickly followed by the sound of rushing foot and hand steps above them, approaching fast.

“You don’t think-” Trixie started.

“We need to move, now.” Bon Bon said again. If that thing was smart enough to go back and sabotage the lights before coming after them, then it definitely knew how to find them using Trixie’s bloodtrail.

The two of them quietly took off down the halls again, aimlessly just trying to lose themselves in the maze of hallways in an attempt to stay hidden. As they ran, they noticed more of the corruption starting to cover the floor, seemingly materializing out of thin air. The more they moved, taking rights and lefts at random, the more of it they saw, visible in the near pitch black only because of the way it glitched into multicolored pixels, along with the low, distorted hiss it emmited as they ran past particularly large puddles of it. It was as if the corruption itself knew where they were now, covering more and more of the floor to limit where they could go, before eventually consuming the entire floor.

While moving along a particularly long hallway, an abnormally large glob of corruption could be seen at the very end. Nothing particularly stood out about it initially, but as they moved closer to the point where the hallway split towards the left and right, a loud hiss suddenly eminated from it, followed by a bright red glow to one side, and finally a large, distorted arm shooting out. The two stopped in their tracks as what remained of Cherilee slowly but surely made itself known. Her face materialized first after her arm, the left half of it completely drenched in corruption, with only small hints of blood-soaked skin visible in patches. The right side of her face, while not as covered, wasn’t in much better shape. A small bullethole could be made out below her visible eye, which now glowed a bright red from the center.

“YOU Ḏ͝I̖͆DN̢̆'͢͠T T̤̉H̢̋Ȉ͉N̡͝K͇̐ ̺̄YÓ͉U̱͘ ̫͋C͈͒OU͙̾LD̹͘ G̬̉ET ̲̉RÏ̫D͙̅ OF̹̑ ̟͑M̮͑E TH͉͐AT EAS̝̄IL̼̎Y,͓̓ ̹̾Ď͍Ȋ͍D̼̉ Y̡͒OU?” She said, her other arm now shooting out from the surrounding corruption and grabbing the nearby wall, allowing Cherilee to start pulling herself free from it. Her voice was barely recognizable, now much more distorted and deep sounding, reflecting the nearly destroyed condition of her body that was now trying to reach the two survivors.

The two froze in horror in the pitch black of the hallway, turning around to run back only for a long gray arm to shoot out of another puddle on the floor at the opposite end, its hand landing on the floor beside it, the being it belonged to trying to pull itself out of the corruption it was materializing from just like Cherilee.

Without any other options, they ran back in Cherilee’s direction, randonly choosing a direction and running down it before Cherilee could fully emerge. What they didn’t realize, however, was that they both mistakenly ran in opposite directions in their haste, forever separating themselves from the other’s company-

They were now alone.

Author's Note

Probably should have already had this in the fic before posting, but oh well.

As part of this remaster, I've decided to experiment with adding background music as a way of adding another layer of depth to the story, this chapter where Trixie and Bon Bon are trying to escape from Cherilee and Silver Spoon being the first example.

If you appreciate the idea of me adding more background music to future chapters, do let me know in the comments, I could really use the feedback.

3. The End?

Bon Bon ran, and ran, and ran, realizing all too late that she’d lost both herself and Trixie. She felt something grab her left leg, looking down just in time to see a small, thin tendril of corruption wrap itself around. She screamed, frantically pulling her leg away and freeing herself, only to fall backwards and land on her back in even more corruption. She scrambled to her feet, not caring about the fact she was now covered in it, just choosing a direction and running in it. It wasn’t long before she started feeling its effects, bolts of lightning arcing up and down her spine, followed by the building around her starting to blur and spin, like she’d just gotten off an intense amusement park ride.

“Join us, Bon Bon.” The voice of Silver Spoon said.

“It feels great!” Cherilee’s voice said. “Join the DARKNESS.”

More and more voices started to fill her head, some familiar, some not. They all had one thing in common however, and that was their constant praise of the darkness, all of them begging her to join them. She’d be eternally happy they said, freed from her mortal shackles and able to live in paradise.

”That doesn’t sound too bad.” Bon Bon thought to herself, feeling her consciousness slip away from her as it felt like she was being ripped out of her own body, the voices telling her to join them forming a haunting lullaby. Unable to carry on any longer, Bon Bon collapsed, her body slowly melting into oblivion in the corruption covered floor below her.

Bon Bon collapsed, her body falling towards the floor below her. But something caught her, someone.

“Woah there!” A voice called out, followed by a light blue arm catching Bon Bon before she hit the floor, the textbooks she’d been carrying spilling out of her arms onto the floor below.

“H- huh?” Bon Bon said, before bringing her head up to see her savior. “Lyra?” She questioned with tired eyes.

“Of course it’s me silly!” Her friend reassured her. “Are you okay? You look like you just passed out on me!” She said, slowly raising her to her feet.

Bon Bon blinked a few times once she had her footing again, feeling like someone has just hit her with a semi-truck. “Y-yeah, I’m fine. Where are we?” She asked.

“What do you mean where are we?” Lyra asked back. “We’re at school, dummy!” She exclaimed. “Did you sleep at all last night? I mean, I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t, I was up late too studying for todays midterms!”

“Midterms?” Bon Bon asked again, before the realization dawned on her along with the ringing of the late bell. “Midterms!” She exclaimed. “We gotta go! Just help me get my books!”

The End???

1. Lives Cut Short

"COME ON, FASTER!" Flash called out to the four following behind him. He spared a quick glance behind him, ensuring that his friends weren't being left behind as they ran, barely outrunning the disfigured remnants of their classmates following closely behind them. He looked back ahead, searching for someplace they could hide. The group was tiring quickly from so much running, and if they didn't shake their pursuers soon they'd be done for.

"Look! Over there!" He heard Bon Bon yell, he looked behind himself again to see her pointing a finger towards a towering office building quickly coming into view. Strangely enough, it was relatively free of the black, glitch-like substance that had started this nightmare that the group found themselves in, but that made it all the more appealing as an escape route.

Using up the last of his energy, Flash managed to force his burning legs to move quicker in order to get there first. The quicker he got there, the quicker he could hold the door open for his friends and close it before those things followed them inside.

Flash made it to the door, throwing it open and getting himself inside before risking a look back at his fellow survivors. Trixie made it inside first, followed quickly by Wallflower and Bon Bon. Sweet Leaf brought up the rear after them, just barely keeping pace enough to avoid being grabbed by the corrupted visage of Cherilee.

Flash slammed the door shut as soon as they had all made it inside, throwing himself against the door as their disfigured classmates attempted to follow them in. The door bent inward under the pressure, threatening to give way at any moment.

"Little help here?!" Flash called as he struggled with the door.

"Here!" Wallflower said from behind him, running up with a chair. She bent down under Flash, propping the chair under the doorknob as a makeshift barricade. The two stepped back, watching cautiously as the door held, but just barely.

Their relief was short-lived, however, as only a moment later the sound of glass shattering echoed throughout the room, followed by a malformed, corruption-covered limb forcing its way in through a window.

"Quick! Upstairs!" Trixie yelled from behind them. Flash looked back to see where she was referring to. They were currently in the reception area of the building, chairs and paintings dotted all along the walls with a receptionist's desk at the very back center of the room. At either end of the reception desk the room faded into two long hallways, with signs posted beside each one indicating where they lead. Flash noticed the word Stairs on the sign for the left hallway, and without wasting another moment, took off in that direction, his friends following close behind.

The sound of more glass shattering pierced the air, followed by the horrifying sound of one of the things climbing inside, the crunch of broken glass under malformed hands and feet echoing throughout the room. Trixie turned back around, reaching into the right pocket of her jeans and pulling something out. She raised her hand high in the air, before throwing the object down, resulting in a large cloud of smoke appearing to cover their escape.

They made it to the door leading to the stairwell, getting inside and closing the door behind them. As Flash was locking the door behind them, he saw Silver Spoon emerge from Trixie's smoke screen through the window. Like everyone else who had been corrupted, her eyes no longer had pupils, now just blank white voids. She was crawling around on all fours, making inhuman noises all the while the corruption dripped off of her everywhere possible, like she'd just gotten caught in a rainstorm without an umbrella. She noticed Flash, lunging at the door like a cat trying to catch a mouse, crashing into it and falling backwards. Flash took this as his que to leave, taking off back up the stairs behind his friends.

The group made it up a few flights of stairs, entering the first door they found once they thought they'd gotten far enough away. They now found themselves in the middle of a long hallway, on either side various doors leading to sections filled with office cubicles, breakrooms, etc, slumped up against either side trying to catch their breaths. None of them spoke for a while, their bodies utterly spent after the near-constant running they'd been doing since this all began.

The corruption, as they had come to call it, appeared seemingly out of nowhere, taking Canterlot City completely by surprise. Most hadn't had time to react in the slightest before it claimed them, stripping them of any individuality they might have had and reducing them to little more than mindless, glitchy versions of their former selves, hellbent on further spreading it as much as possible. In mere hours, the city had become utterly devoid of life, filled only with those abominations, and leaving what few survivors there were stranded with no way of escaping. This was the situation that Flash, Wallflower, Trixie, Sweet Leaf, and Bon Bon found themselves in, trapped inside a towering office building with no way out, the streets below swarming with their former classmates and teachers.

Flash heard something across the hall. Raising his head, he spotted Sweet Leaf, crying with her head between her legs, Bon Bon trying to nonverbally comfort her by stroking her hair.

"I- I don't get it." Sweet Leaf said between sobs. "W-what's going on?"

"I don't know." Wallflower said. "I don't think any of us do."

The remaining members of the group shook their heads solemnly.

Flash took a deep breath before standing back up. "We don't have time to waste sitting around doing nothing. We need to start brainstorming if we want to keep surviving." He said, feigning confidence. In truth, he was just as terrified as the rest of them, but for the sake of survival, he wanted to be strong. Too many times now he'd see Sunset and her friends taking down magical threats without issue, the entire school viewing them almost as superheroes. Well, they were superheroes, technically, but that was besides the point. He'd always wanted to be able to take part in their adventures and experience that feeling of being looked up to, but never had the chance. That is, until now.

His facade, to his surprise, worked, the others slowly but surely picking themselves up as well.

"Flash is right." Bon Bon stated. "We've got to think of some kind of gameplan if we're to make ot out of this alive."

"But how?" Wallflower asked, walking towards the left end of the hallway and looking out of a wall-sized window. "We've got to be like, five or six stories high, and those things are still down there on the lower floors." She paused for a second. "We're trapped."

"Does anyone have a phone? Maybe we can call for help." Flash said.

"Call who?" replied Trixie with a sharp tone.

"I dunno! The cops? Sunset and her friends?"

Trixie joined Wallflower at the window, gazing solemly at the ruins of Canterlot city, the buildings covered in corruption, flaming wreckages of cars and buildings scattered about the landscape, and groups of the affected stalking the streets below.

"I don't think even they can save the day this time." Trixie finally said in a dejected tone.

"Well we have to try. Does anyone have a working phone?" Flash asked the group.

"Nope." Trixie said.

"Yeah but it's dead." said Wallflower.

"Mine too." Bon Bon replied.

"Same." Sweet Leaf followed.'

"I don't have one either." Flash said. "We need to find a way to charge a phone. I know calling for help is a long shot, but it's the only way we have at getting out of here safely."

"I agree with Flash." Bon Bon said. "We need to get this place powered up. What if one of those things somehow manages to sneak inside? We won't be able to see it until it's too late if none of the lights are on."

Flash's eyes opened wide at the realization that she was right. All they had for a light source was the full moon in the sky, and that was limited to rooms with windows that faced it. If one of them got in, they'd have no way of seeing it.

"Bon Bon makes a good point, we need to get the power back on."

"But how?" Trixie asked. "The power for the whole city is out!"

"There has to be a backup generator of some kind somewhere, it's our only chance."

"But how are we supposed to find one? We don't even know if this building has one, and if it does, this place is massive, it would take ages to search everywhere! Plus, if it's on the lower floors..." She trailed off.

Before anyone could respond, a scream cut through the air, coming from Sweet Leaf. "Trixie! Your jacket!"

Trixie was caught off guard for a second, before looking down and spotting a dark splotch of corruption on her jacket, glitching and misfiring against the dark blue of her jacket. She screamed too, before ripping the jacket off as quickly as she could. The jacket came to rest on the floor between the feet of the four survivors, Trixie now leaned up against a wall hyperventilating.

"Trixie! Are you okay?!" Flash asked in a panic. Trixie shot him a quick glance, before moving her gaze down to her body, quickly scanning her front half before pushing herself off the wall and spinning around to give everyone a chance to look her over. Thankfully, none of it had gotten on her.

"Holy shit." Wallflower said after a few seconds of silence. "That was close."

"Well, now we know that whatever that stuff is can only hurt you if it gets on your skin." Bon Bon said. "We shouldn't underestimate how important what just happened was."

The groups eyes went back down to Trixie's jacket laying on the floor. As if on que, something started moving under it, and a few seconds later the blob of corruption made its way out, coming to a stop a few inches onto the floor. It continued glitching and pixelating for a few seconds, then simply fading out of existence into the flooe below.

"I think your jacket should be good now Trixie." Wallflower said uneasily amidst the dumbfounded gazes of everyone at what had just happened.

Trixie made a small "Uh huh" noise while staring slack jawed at the floor.

Flash cleared his throat. "We need to stay focused on getting the power on."

"And how do you suppose we do that without it taking the entire night?" Bon Bon questioned.

"We split up."

"Split up? Are you insane?" Trixie replied in a harsh whisper.

"Well how else can we search this place without it taking the whole night? The quicker we get this power situation over with the better, and..." He drifted off. "Besides, even as a group, I don't think we'd stand a chance against one of those things in a fight. If we split up, and one group gets attacked, it would give the other a chance to get away."

"...Wow." Trixie replied again.

Instead of verbally replying, Sweet Leaf and Bon Bon shot Flash the worst "are you serious?" look he'd ever seen.

"As much as I hate to admit it, he's right." Wallflower said breaking the tension. "We aren't the Rainbooms, we don't have super-strength, super-speed, telekinesis or diamond shields to protect us if one of those things catches us, if we stay as one big group it'd just mean we all die at once, instead of what he's proposing giving at least some of us a chance if worst comes to worst. You all know that deep down, you just don't want to admit it."

Bon Bon sighed. "Fine, how do you want to split up?" She said, still giving Flash a dirty look.

"Found anything yet?" Trixie asked in a low whisper, just loud enough to be heard by Bon Bon on the other side of the large room of office cubbicles they were searching.

"Hang on..." came Bon Bon's reply. "Bingo!" She said, in a much louder voice.

"Shush!" Trixie whispered back in a rush.

"Sorry! I found a pair of Flashlight's!"

"Wait, really?"

"Yeah, meet me in the center of the room!"

Trixie turned away from the large set of office cabinets she was searching in one of the cubicles up against the wall, grabbing her jacket which was hanging from it while doing so. She was still hesitant about putting it back on, but at the same time, without it all she had as "protection" from that stuff if it got on her was her undershirt, which only covered her midsection and not her arms.

In the end, they had decided to split into one group of three and one group of two, Trixie and Bon Bon being the latter, assigned to the upper floors of the building, while the other three had gone down to the more dangerous lower floors. The full moon fortunately lit most of the rooms they searched, but the inner hallways and breakrooms remained too dark and inaccessible for the two. Until now, that is.

Trixie met Bon Bon in the middle of the room, next to the massive window that spanned the entire outer wall, the moonlight shining in casting long shadows of the two reaching into the darkness beyond. Lo and behold, Bon Bon had in fact found flashlights, one for each of them. They each took one, before using their new tools to go deeper into the floor they were in.

Bon Bon gasped. "Look!" she said, grabbing Trixie's shoulder and moving her to look in the direction she was facing. There, at the other end of the hallway they had just turned onto, lay a door with a sign that said Electrical plastered on the wall next to it. Bon Bon's flashlight focused on the sign. Without another word, the two ran over to it, eagerly grabbing the door handle and turning it-

but nothing happened.

"What are you waiting for? Open the door already!" Trixie whispered from behind Bon Bon, the former standing guard while the latter tried and failed at the door.

"I can't! It's locked!"

"What do you mean it's locked?!"

"I mean we need a key!" Bon Bon said, focusing her flashlight on the doorknob, where a distinct keyhole could be made out.

"You gotta be kidding me." Trixie said upon turning around and seeing said keyhole.

"W-whatever, just help me find the key!" said Bon Bon, tunring away from the door and starting to head down another hallway.

"Wait!" Trixie said abruptly. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Shh! Just be quiet for a second!"

Bon Bon listened, and the two remained quiet for a moment.

"You don't think..." Bon Bon said in a terrified tone.

Screams, very distinct now in the dead silence that had taken over while neither of them were speaking, echoing up from the lower floors, exactly where Flash, Wallflower and Sweet Leaf had gone.

"What do we do!" Trixie whispered in a panic.

"We have to go help them!" Bon Bon replied, turning and starting to run in the direction of the stairwell.

"What?! No!" Trixie said, grabbing Bon Bon by the shoulder and pulling her back. Bon Bon whirled back around angrily to face Trixie.

"Are you seriously suggesting that we leave our friends to die?"

"Are you seriously suggesting that we charge into one of those things without a weapon? Didn't you hear Flash? This is exactly why we split up!"

"Do you really care that little about our classmates?!"

"You know it's not like that!"

Bon Bon glared back at Trixie, before turning once again to go help their friends, whose screams could still be faintly heard above their arguing.

"Wait!" Trixie said, grabbing Bon Bon by the back of her shirt this time. "Please don't leave me! You're only going to get yourself killed, and then I'll be here all alone!"

Bon Bon tore her shirt away from Trixie with an angry scowl, stomping off while feeling nothing but contempt for her classmate who was all too willing to abandon her fellow survivors, and who only wanted Bon Bon around for her own security. Before she could get even a few steps away, however, Bon Bon was once again held back by Trixie, who now had a vice-grip around the wrist of her right arm.

"Wha- Trixie! Let go!!!" Bon Bon yelled in frustration.

Before either of them could do anything else, a loud CRASH could be heard from the floor below them, followed by the familiar static nonsense that emanated from those affected by the corruption.

The tension that had filled the air around the two survivors vanished in an instant, replaced once again with dread as they realized their fighting had alerted whatever one of those things had just gotten the other three.

"What do we do?!?!" Trixie whisper-shouted.

"Uh-" Bon Bon started. "Upstairs!" she said, looking up and realizing there were more floors above them. Without another word, to keep their noise level at a minimum, they quickly yet quietly made their way to the stairwell and then up one flight, the carpets running up the centers of each hallway aiding their escape by muffling the sound of their footsteps.

"Where are we now?" Trixie whispered, switching her flashlight back on and moving it around the hallways they were in while Bon Bon quietly shut and locked the stairway door behind them. She then turned her flashlight on and read the sign posted to the right side of the door.

"This is the break room floor." She responded.

"Okay, now what?" Trixie asked.

"We need to find some kind of weapon."

"What kind of weapons are we going to find in an office building?"

"Well, unless you have any better ideas, I'd suggest we start searching." Bon Bon finished, turning and starting to head down the right hallway. Trixie stood still for a monent, mouth agape as she tried and failed to form a rebuttal to Bon Bon's statement, before finally following her.

Like every other floor, the break room floor was nearly pitch-black anywhere that didn't have a window facing the moon, the duo still reliant on their flashlights to even see each other in the oppressing darkness. They stayed close, only splitting up to search rooms on either side of whatever hallway they were on, staying as quiet as possible while also listening intently for any signs of the corrupted.

This process of searching continued for what felt like an eternity, before the silence was broken by a small scream from Trixie. Bon Bon rushed across the hallway to her companion, her flashlight nearly instantly lighting up what had made Trixie scream.

A body. Upon first glance, it was glaring obvious that the person they were looking at was dead, but for how long they couldn't tell. They were dressed in a security guard uniform, a blood splatter going up the wall where they lay slumped against the wall. Bon Bon recognized the man but couldn’t remember his name. She felt a surge of guilt at this. Likely countless times she had passed this individual in various parts of the city, but she had never bothered to learn his name. And now here that same person was, almost certainly struck down by one of the unknown number of corrupted that stalked the building. It was hard to imagine for either of the two, that he had once been an individual, with hopes, dreams, loved ones, and now here he was, no more than another nameless victim claimed by the darkness that had taken over Canterlot City.

Although still shocked at the distressing sight, Bon Bon realized soon after that this guy had exactly what they had been looking for: Weapons. Two, in fact, a handgun on one side of his holster, and a can of mace and a taser on the other. On top of that, there was also a set of keys brightly reflecting the light from their flashlights.

"The electrical room..." Bon Bon thought to herself. Without wasting another moment, she rushed over to him and starting working the items that would be helping in their own escape and survival out of his belt and holsters.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Trixie exclaimed in a loud whisper.

"Look!" Bon Bon replied, shinning her light on the items she was obtaining. "Weapons! And the keys to the electrical room!"

Trixie didn't respond, instead looking on in a mixture of shock and horror until Bon Bon tossed her the taser and mace, which she only caught by reflex, fumbling with them for a moment. Bon Bon kept the handgun and keys for herself, making her way out of the room and back towards the stairwell. Trixie followed soon after getting over the shock of what had just happened.

"Where are we going now?!" She asked.

"We're going to Electrical to finally get the power on, after that, we're getting the hell out of here. We've got everything we need to make an escape, and I don't plan on missing out on it." Bon Bon said with renewed determination in her voice, followed by her switching the safety off on the handgun.

"You don't plan on actually using that, right?" Trixie asked again with apprehension.

"Trixie, this is probably the only thing in the world that could ever bring down one of those things, of course I'm going to use it."

"But it doesn't have a silencer! What do you think's gonna happen when that thing goes off! It'll-" She said, but was cut off.

The two stopped in their tracks at the sound of disembodied laugher eminating from behind them. The two spun on a dime, shining the light of their flashlights in the direction it had come from.

"H͇̋e̼͠ll̪̚o, ̦̕s-̗͑s̬̕-̜́s-ś̳t̨̉u̝͋d̮̐e̜͑nt̙̑s!" Cherilee said.

4. Escape

Flash, Wallflower and Sweet Leaf made their way carefully through the lower floors of the office building, taking the same precautionary measures as Bon Bon and Trixie were many floors above them, tiptoeing whilst constantly swiveling their heads in every direction, peaking around every corner to every hallway. Flash led the way, with Sweet Leaf behind him and Wallflower bringing up the rear.

Then, coming from somewhere on the floor above them. Footsteps. The three stopped in their tracks, taking a moment to make sure they weren’t hearing things.

“Do you think that’s Bon Bon and Trixie?” Wallflower asked. Flash didn’t answer, instead holding up a finger to signal to them to remain quiet while he listened intently. It didn’t take him long to realise that there were multiple sets of footsteps now, along with the occasional brief hiss of static that the corruption emitted.

“I don’t think that’s them.” He replied coldly. “Quick! We gotta get somewhere there’s light!”

Without another word, the group started heading towards the outer edges of the floor, where the windows facing the full moon were to make up for the loss of light. Along the way, as they were moving through the last hallway which branched off into office spaces and cubicles, Flash spotted something on the wall ahead and to the left, reflecting the light shining in from the moon.

“Guys, look!’ He exclaimed, breaking into a quick jog to get to the object quicker. Sure enough, what he’d seen was a fire axe, hidden from his grasp by a panel of glass, with a sign above it that read BREAK GLASS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, along with a large red alarm positioned above it.

He thought to himself, wondering if he should break the glass or not. On one hand, not only would he likely injure himself in trying to break the glass, but that alarm above it would almost certainly go off, meaning that if the footsteps they’d heard above them wasn’t their friends, whatever it was would immediately know where they were. On the other hand though, this could be their saving grace if push came to shove. There was a very real chance that they’d be found anyway, and in that case having a weapon, any weapon, could mean the difference between life and death.

He looked back towards his fellow survivors, seeking either their praise or scrutination for if he should do it or not.

“I don’t think it’s worth the risk.” Sweet Leaf said, her look one of discouragement.

“I think it could be.” Wallflower said. "I think if we get out of here quick enough after triggering the alarm it’ll be a great distraction for us to get out of here. Plus we’d have a weapon.”

“Hmm. . .” Sweet Leaf pondered. “That could work, but I’m still not too keen on taking that big of a risk. What about Bon Bon and Trixie? There’s no way they’d be able to get out fast enough before this place is swarming with those things.

“Wait! The powers out! Doesn’t that mean we can do this risk-free?” Wallflower exclaimed.

“There could still be a backup somewhere." Flash replied. "So right now it comes down to a coin toss: Do we break the glass and risk an alarm going off leading to the possible deaths of two of our friends. . .” He paused for a second upon hearing more footsteps above them. “. . .Or do we go without and risk not having anything to protect ourselves. . .”

“Ah screw it.” Wallflower said after a moment. “Flash, give me your jacket.”

Flash did as he was asked, taking off his jacket and handing it to Wallflower before questioning it. “What are you-” He asked while he watched her wrap his jacket around her right hand, before punching the glass with all her might, causing it to shatter on impact.

Flash and Sweet Leaf both recoiled in fear from the noise of the shattering glass, though to their relief, the alarm above the case didn’t go off, meaning that it was only the sound of the glass that could give away their position.

That was all that was needed, however.

The sound of footsteps again cut through the air above them, along with the familiar static roar of corruption, now much more intense. Wallflower quickly grabbed the axe from its case, taking a fighting stance gripping it with both hands and facing towards the stairwell.

“LOOK OUT!” Sweet Leaf screamed, pointing a finger towards the ceiling. It was too late though, the other two survivors noticing too late the corrupted image of Snips emerging and then falling from the ceiling above them onto Wallflower. Not expecting an attack from that direction, she fell over, the axe falling off and away to the side, forcing Wallflower to now fight back with only her hands against the entity now trying to tear her apart, screaming herself in desperation.

Hearing the call for help of his friend, Flash dove for the axe where it lay on the floor, grabbing it haphazardly and just as quickly swinging it in Snips' direction in a desperate bid to save Wallflower. He succeded, the axe connecting with Snips’ right elbow just as he had that arm raised to end Wallflower. Drops of blood and corruption splattered against the wall as the axe cut through, followed by an inhuman shriek as he fell away and retreated.

Flash took a fighting stance with the axe like Wallflower had, except this time watching the ceiling just in case. He looked back towards Snips after a moment, ready to fight should he attack again. He didn’t, instead snarling at him before running behind a corner and out of sight, his dismembered arm still laying lifeless on the floor where it had been cut.

“We need to get out of here, before more of those things show up.” Flash said, gritting his teeth and looking back towards his friends. “Wallflower, you okay?” He asked.

“Y-yeah, I’m good.” She replied, Sweet Leaf still helping her get back on her feet. “Thanks for the save.”

“No problem, now come on, let’s go.” Flash said.

“W-wait!” Sweet Leaf exclaimed. “Shouldn’t we go get Trixie and Bon Bon? We have a weapon, and without Trixie we wouldn’t have made it here in the first place!” She paused for a moment to let her words sink in. “I’m not leaving without them.”

Flash thought for a moment. “You’re right.” He admitted. “We’ll go get them, then-” He was cut off by the sound of a loud BANG coming from above them, quickly followed by another. The group stood there dumbfounded for a moment, not realizing immediately what was making the sound.

“Were those gunshots?!” Wallflower exclaimed. “Where could they have found a gun?!”

Another pair of gunshots rang out from the floors above them in reply.

“We don’t have time to go get them.” Flash declared. “If those gunshots were heard outside the building this place is gonna be swarming with those things before long.” He looked back to his two friends, Sweet Leaf wearing a bitter expression and Wallflower a more solemn, accepting one. “I don’t want to leave them behind either, but I don’t think we have a choice.” He said. “Besides, they have a hell of a lot better a chance fighting their way out with a gun than we would with an axe. Now come on, last call.” He said, turning away and starting a slow jog towards the stairwell, axe still in hand. Wallflower and Sweet Leaf both shot each other looks, before hesitantly following Flash. They made it without incident out of the building and onto the road below, taking off into a full sprint out into the ruined city.

Flash spared a moment to look back at the towering office building as they ran. ”I’m sorry, I hope you make it out okay, and if you do, I hope you can find it in yourselves to forgive me.”

5. Seeing Double

Diamond Tiara made her way tentatively through the ruins of Canterlot city, constantly keeping her head on a three-sixty degree swivel to make sure there was no one else around, friendly or unfriendly. Regardless of where she looked, everywhere and everything was in the same state of decay. Flaming cars, trucks, other vehicles and buildings, broken fire hydrants still spewing water into the air, and of course, corruption, the dark puddles of static nonsense standing out even more than the brightest flames.

She spared a moment to go through the backpack she was carrying again, doing rough calculations in her head to make sure what she’d just looted from the last gas station she came across would be enough for her and the others. She rustled through the bag, her pace slowing as she did a mental count of the various bags of chips and other snacks, energy drinks, water, and other non-perishable food items. None of it could really be considered a meal, but given the situation, all that mattered was that it was edible. After a minute or so of going through the bag, she zipped it back shut, determining that what she had was enough for about two days before they’d have to search for more.

“HEY! YOU!” A voice called out from behind her. She jumped, nearly dropping the bag and consequently causing everything in it to spill out. She whirled around in a panic, quickly trying to find out if the voice that called out to her was friend or foe. The two figures she spotted directly behind her seemed to be jogging towards her, and it didn’t take long for Diamond to see that whoever these two were, they at least weren’t corrupted, their bodies and clothes completely devoid of any of the telltale signs of infection. Although it was clear now that they weren’t corrupted, that didn’t necessarily mean they were friendly either. Against her better judgement, Diamond set off into a brisk walk to meet the two. After all, if they were friendly, that would be two more to add to her small circle of survivors, and you know the saying, “strength in numbers.”

“Sunset?” Diamond said to herself upon drawing closer to them, now noticing the bright, firey hair of her classmate. She didn’t recognize the other person beside her though, this one with dark purple hair that had a single streak of light blue going through it. Regardless, seeing Sunset was the only confirmation she needed, after all, Sunset was the last person she’d expect to have any malicious intent, right?

“Sunset!” Diamond called out once they drew within earshot. “I’m so happy to see you! I knew you and your friends made it out okay!”

“Huh?” Sunset said. “Am I supposed to know you?’

Diamond stopped in her tracks, her expression going from relief to confusion. Something didn’t seem right. Now that she was standing only a few feet from her, she noticed a few things about “Sunset” that didn’t seem right. For one, when did Sunset get a tattoo? The fact that she apparently had gotten one in the first place, and the fact that it was a flaming skull and crossbones seemed very out of character for her, along with the dark eyeliner and makeup that made her give off a much darker, more moody vibe, and the leather jacket that was much more reminiscent of something she would have worn in her bully days. The other girl accompanying her more or less dressed and presented herself in the same manner, adding to Diamonds unease.

“Uh, yeah?” She questioned. “I’m Diamond Tiara, don’t you remember? I know we don’t talk much at school, but I thought you at least knew my name?”

The two strangers exchanged confused glances towards each other. “Starlight, do you know this girl?” Sunset asked.

“Can’t say I do, no.” She replied.

Diamonds uneasiness increased, and the two took note of it.

“L-look, it doesn’t matter if we know each other or not, what have you got there?” Starlight said.

“U-uh, just s-supplies, yeah. For me and the other survivors.” Diamond replied with a weary tone.

“Other survivors?” Starlight asked.

“Yeah! If you come with me I’ll let you meet them and we can work together!” She took her bag out and opened it again, realizing if she added another two mouths to feed there wouldn’t be enough. “Oh, wait, there wouldn’t be enough for all of us.” She said in a regretful tone.

“O-oh. . .” Starlight said.

“How about we take that bag off your hands then? Make it easier for the both of us.” Sunset said.

“W-wait, what?” Diamond replied, before her eyes widened in shock as Sunset then tried to grab the bag from her. “H-hey! What are you doing?!” She exclaimed as she barely managed to avoid having the bag snatched from her grasp.

“Just hand over the bag, and no one gets hurt!” Sunset yelled, her hands clenched into fists.

“What!” Diamond yelled back. “Y-you’re not Sunset! Sunset would never do this! Get away from me!!!” She exclaimed before taking off into a sprint. It wasn’t long before she heard two sets of angry footsteps behind her, the fear of which motivated her to run even faster, now holding back tears. Of all the things she expected to be running from today, seemingly normal people wasn’t one of them. It was a harsh lesson that unfortunately she had to learn the hard way, that in the midst of an apocalypse like this, other survivors could easily be just as dangerous as the corrupted, motivated by an “every man for themselves” attitude when it came to resources as precious as food and water. It was important in times like this to stay close to those you can trust, and never travel alone, a mistake that was now costing Diamond dearly.

Diamond continued running for her life from her persuers, keeping a tight grip on her bag while simultaneously trying to remember where she’d come from to find the rest of her group, it was her only hope. She ran down various city blocks and alleyways, doing her best to stick to her old route and make it to the suburbs where their base was. She was chased all the while, adrenaline the only thing allowing her to keep distance between herself and them.

She did eventually see the suburban home that her and her friends were calling home base coming up in the distance, willing herself to sprint even faster despite her aching legs to get there faster.

When she got there, she wasted no time throwing the door open and slamming it shut behind her and twisting the lock. “Aria! Adagio! Sonata! Help!!!” She screamed in-between labored breaths.

“Diamond?” Adagio replied, emerging from around a corner with the other two. “What’s going on?”

“S-sunset. . . and this other girl, they jumped me! Tried to take our supplies!” Diamond replies in-between labored breaths and sobs.

Before any of them could reply, a sudden burst of angry knocks came from the front door, followed by the voice of an angry “Sunset”.

“We know you’re in there kid! There’s no where else to go!” Her voice yelled through the door.

“I’ll take care of this.” Aria growled, moving towards the front door along with Adagio and grabbing a bat laid against the wall while Sonata tried to comfort Diamond.

Aria kicked the door open from the inside, causing it to violently swing open and send “Sunset” flying back and onto the grass surrounding the front porch.

“Woah woah woah woah!” Starlight cried, getting in-between “Sunset” and a very angry Aria and Adagio. “I think this has all been a big misunderstanding.”

“What’s there to misunderstand?!” Aria yelled. “You two just tried to rob us of our supplies!”

“No no, no we di- aren’t, we- I mean I am not going to.” Starlight said.

“Oh wow, you’re really gonna turn on me now Starlight? just because we’re outnumbered?” Sunset exclaimed angrily as she picked herself up.

“Sunset! This is crazy! When you told me you wanted to survive ‘by any means necessary,’ you didn’t say that included robbing children and starting fights with everyone we come across!” Starlight replied uneasily. “Has it ever occured to you that we might be better off working together?”

“Please, we don’t need anyone else.” Sunset said. “In case you haven’t noticed, the world around us is falling apart, and it’s every man for themselves. But fine, no need to get too violent over one bag of supplies, let’s just cut our losses and go.”

Adagio scoffed. “Of all people I would have expected to abandon their moral code once the world went dark, you were one of the last I expected, Shimmer. I’m both surprised and impressed. Nice tattoo by the way.”

“Why do you people keep acting like I’m supposed to know you?!” Sunset exclaimed angrily.

Adagio’s expression became one of confusion along with Aria’s. After a few seconds, Aria’s became one of realization, and she leaned over to Adagios ear and whispered something. Adagio’s eyes widened after Aria finished whispering, along with her mouth becoming an O shape.

“Ohhh. . . Yeah that makes sense.” Adagio said after a brief pause.

“What are you too whispering about?” Sunset asked.

“N-nothing.” Adagio said, “You just uh, look like someone we know. I-it’s complicated.”

“I highly doubt anything you could say could beat a dark, glitchy corruption turning everyone into monsters in terms of ‘it’s complicated.” Sunset replied.

Aria took a deep breath. “Okay, look, I think we’ve all gotten off on the wrong foot here. Honestly, I understand wanting to just fend for yourself and those closest to you, but let’s be real here: Nobody is gonna survive very long on their own in a city crawling with those abominations. I can’t believe I’m saying this because you just tried to rob us, but; do you want to team up? We don’t even have to be friends, just promise us you’ll have our backs if worst comes to worst and we’ll do the same for you. Deal?”

Starlight’s eyes widened in surprise, and while she seemed like she wanted to take the deal on the spot, she still looked over to “Sunset” for her approval. Before she could respond though, another voice rang out from the distance.

“Hey! Guys!” The voice called out.

“Great.” Adagio said throwing her hands up and walking off to the side. “The more the merrier I guess.”

6. An Uneasy Alliance

“See anything?” Wallflower called from within the convenience store she and Sweet Leaf were currently looting.

“Nope, nothing.” Flash called back, letting his axe drop to the side as he spared a glance inside the store to look at his two friends moving in and out of the various isles grabbing whatever they could and throwing it in whatever bags they found. “How’s it coming along?”

“We’re almost done, don’t worry.” Came Sweet Leafs reply. Flash nodded his head, before going back to surveying the city around them for any signs of the infected. Even after all this time, none of them could agree on what exactly to call those that were victims of the darkness. “Infected” had a nice ring to it, but it sounded too cliche since it was a word normally associated with zombies, and while those affected did share many traits with zombies, it still didn’t quite fit since the darkness wasn’t a virus, rather a force, something that just exists like gravity. “Corrupted” seemed to be the better term, but the three used the two interchangably.

“Done!” Came Wallflowers voice from inside, followed by her and Sweet Leaf emerging from inside the store carrying draw string bags on their backs filled to the brim with whatever food and drinks would fit. As well as food items, they had also found weapons, Flash noticed, the two now carrying large knifes that still had retail tags on them.

“HEY! YOU!”

“Shh! Did you guys hear that?” Flash said.

“Hear what?” Wallflower questioned.

“Voices, from that direction.” Flash said, pointing northeast of their current postion on one of the main roads in the center of the city. “Come on, let’s go see what it was.”

“Don’t you think we should be running away from noises and not towards them?” Sweet Leaf asked. “What are the odds that what you just heard are other survivors and not just more of those things?”

“Well it’s a risk I’m willing to take.” Flash said. “Besides, we don’t even have to get close, now come on!” He said, taking off into a quiet sprint. Wallflower followed close behind, Sweet Leaf too after she let out a groan of frustration.

”W-wait, what?! What are you doing?”

“Was that. . .” Sweet Leaf asked. “. . .Diamond?”

“Yeah! I think it was!” Flash called back while turning to look down the next block they were heading down towards the commotion. “See! I told you this was worth it!” He exclaimed, causing Sweet Leaf to roll her eyes.

“Do you see them?” Wallflower asked from directly behind him.

“Yeah, I think I do.” Flash said. “Wait a second. . .” He said, trailing off.

“What is it?”

“I think there’s some kind of altercation going on- Wait! She’s being chased by someone!” Flash exclaimed.

“Is it one of those things?” Sweet Leaf asked.

“It- doesn’t seem like it? I can’t see enough from here.” He said back. “Come on, we gotta go help her!”

“I’m not sure whether it’s better or worse that Diamond wasn’t being chased by those ‘corruption’ things.” Sweet Leaf commented while peering out from behind the corner of another building she and the others were using to stay out of sight.

“Well, it makes sense if you think about it.” Wallflower replied. “Not everyone wants to be friends, that could be said even before all this started happening. Like it or not, some people are greedy and self serving, even more so when things like food and water are limited.” She said matter-of-factly.

“Yeah, but, Sunset?” Flash said in a hurt voice, coming up behind Sweet Leaf to peer over her shoulder at the confrontation currently playing out between the Dazzlings, Diamond, who he thought was Sunset, and one stranger. “I thought she changed. . .”

“Well, maybe that’s not Sunset.” Wallflower said.

“Huh?” Flash questioned.

“I don’t know! Maybe it’s some other equestrian magic thing that has something to do with this corruption stuff. Besides, last time I saw Sunset, which was very recently, she did not have a tattoo or dress like a friggin emo.”

Flash paused, pondering what she said.

“Well, why sit here speculating when we can just go ask them ourselves?” Sweef Leaf said. “They’re just people at the end of the day, right? Besides, we have better weapons than any of them, if need be.”

“-Right.” Flash said. “Well, we haven’t got anything to lose I guess.” He said while stepping outside from their hiding place and calling out to them, followed quickly by the other two.

“Welcome to the party.” Aria said upon them drawing within earshot. “I see you brought snacks.” She said, gesturing to the bags on the backs of Wallflower and Sweet Leaf.

“Well, it’s nice to see that more of you have made it this long.” Adagio said. “I was starting to think we were the only ones.”

“Yeah, we were thinking the same.” Flash said.

Adagios eyes widened suddenly. “Uh, is that blood on that axe you’re carrying?” She asked cautiously.

Flash looked down, only noticing because Adagio had pointed it out that the blade of his axe was coated in dried blood.

“Oh, uh, yeah.” Flash replied. “We haven’t exactly had it easy, to say the very least.”

“If Flash hadn’t dismembered one of those things, Wallflower wouldn’t be alive right now.” Sweef Leaf chimed in.

Wallflower nodded.

“Wow, I’m impressed.” Adagio said. “You don’t strike me as the kind of person who’d kill, even in self defense. Though I guess it doesn’t matter since it’s questionable if those things are even human anymore.”

“Adrenaline’s a hell of a drug.” Wallflower said with a shrug. “Moving on, what’s going on here? We heard the commotion with Diamond and that’s how we found you.”

“Well, to make a long story short.” Aria said. “These two tried to rob us of the supplies Diamond was gathering for us.” She paused. “But, I told them we’d overlook that if they agreed to work together.” She finished, casting a side eye towards the two.

“You let Diamond go out by herself? While the city is crawling with those things?” Wallflower exclaimed.

“For the record, she volunteered to do that. Right Diamond?” Aria said, turning back towards the house where Diamond and Sonata were standing in the doorway of the front entrance.

“Yeah, I did.” Diamond answered. “I uh, wanted to be useful, is all. Besides, I thought I could be sneaky and quick enough to stay out of trouble. I was right! Sort of. I mean, I managed to outrun those two!” She said, pointing towards Sunset and Starlight while giving a nervous chuckle.

“H-hey, Sunset-” Flash started. “I’ve been meaning to ask you-”

Adagio chuckled.

“What? Flash asked.

“That’s not our Sunset.” She said, continuing to chuckle with a hand placed over her mouth.

“What do you mean that’s not our. . .” Flash said, trailing off as his mind started to put two and two together.

Aria laughed. “That’s the reaction Adagio had too.”

“See? Told you Flash.” Wallflower interjected. “It’s some equestrian magic thing.”

“Can someone explain to me what the hell is going on?” Sunset exclaimed. “Is there just another me roaming around here? A doppelgangar?”

“Pretty much, yeah.” Aria said. “Though if it’s worth anything, besides sharing a name and body, you two are nothing alike. It’s a shame that this is how we had to meet, I think we could’ve gotten along if we’d met sooner.”

Sunset facepalmed. “Ugh, whatever, I have bigger things to worry about than some identity thief running around with my name. Are we working together or not?”

“Sure.” Aria said with a shrug before glancing over to the other three. “Are you guys in too? We could really use the extra supplies you’re carrying.”

“-Yeah, we’re in.” Flash said answering for them. He walked over to the fence separating the yard of the suburban home they were in front of from the road, placing himself in front of everyone in the group. “Our first order of business should be finding a better place to stay. There’s not enough room in any of the houses here, and going back into the main city will give us easier access to food, water and weapons.”

Adagio raised an eyebrow. “Who said you were the leader?”

“Uh, no one?” Flash said. “I don’t see any of you rushing to be the leader.”

“Give him a chance Adagio.” Sweet Leaf said. “If it weren’t for him the three of us wouldn’t have survived this long.”

“Okay, fine then.” Adagio said. “I’m curious though, what made you all of a sudden start playing hero? First you waltz in here with a blood stained axe and admit to dismembering one of those things, which, don’t get me wrong, is pretty hardcore; but then as soon as we all agree to work together, you make yourself the leader. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t impressed, so what made this ‘hero’ come out?”

“Oh, well, um. . .” Flash said, scratching the back of his neck. “You know Sunset and her friends, always saving the day whenever some new magical crisis comes up. . .”

Sunset raised an eyebrow.

“Not you.” Flash said hurriedly. “Anyway, I’ve just, always wanted to take part, do something to help others like she does and, feel important, have people look up to me like they do to them.” He finished, blushing slightly.

“So, you’re doing all of this badassery just to impress your ex?” Aria questioned. “Who we don’t even know is still alive or not?”

“Don’t talk like that!” Flash snapped back. “If I’ve made it this far with nothing but my wits and an axe, then I’m sure Sunset and her friends are still out there somewhere.”

“Woah, calm down. I didn’t expect you to take it so seriously.” Aria said apolegetically. “I hope they’re still alive too, because as much as I still don’t like them, they’re our best chance.”

“I’ve got it!” Sweet Leaf suddenly exclaimed from the back of the group, holding up her phone for everyone to see.

“Got what?” Wallflower asked.

“I know where we can move to.” She said in a hopeful tone. “Canterlot mall!”

“The mall? what makes you think that would be a good spot?” Adagio questioned.

“Well, think about it, all the abandoned stores there will have everything we need for the long-term. Beds, food, water, and we can use whatever we don’t need to make barricades! Plus, it’ll place us right in the center of the shopping district, so even if we can’t find everything in the mall, like say, weapons, I’m sure there’ll be other places to find them anyway.”

“I think that’s a pretty solid plan.” Wallflower stated.

“Me too, but how are we supposed to get there?” Aria asked. “Do any of you happen to know where we are right now?”

Nobody answered.

“Exactly. We’ve all been too focused on either escaping that corruption or being killed by those turned by it to keep track of where we are. All we know is that we’re in some kind of suburb on the outskirts of the city, which does next to nothing to narrow it down.”

“That’s why I held up my phone.” Sweet Leaf said after Aria finished. “I have a map downloaded on my phone. There’s no cell service, so it’s not telling me exactly where we are, but if we can find some kind of landmark then I might just be able to figure this out and get us there. It might take a while though, because we’ll have to walk the whole way.”

“You have a map of the city downloaded on your phone? Why?” Flash asked.

“Well, I’m one of the eco kids, remember? We go out into the wilderness for conservation projects pretty often, so it’d be stupid not to have a map downloaded.”

“Huh.” Flash said. “Well, I guess that settles it, we’re heading for the mall.”

7. The Magician's Secret

“Hey, guys? Random thought here.” Starlight announced to the group as they made their way down the sidewalk of a side street. It had been about an hour since they departed as a group for the mall, and while Sweet Leaf was able to eventually get a rough idea of where they were using the map, they still had no idea of knowing for sure they were moving in the right direction. It didn’t help that some street signs were rendered unreadable by the corruption, the dark, glitchy substance covering what they said. It seemed almost purposeful.

“What’s up?” Aria said in reply to Starlight.

“Do you think it might be worth it to try splitting up? I feel like we’re too exposed moving as one big group, and it might help with figuring out where exactly we are.”

“Nuh uh, nope, no way.” Wallflower said.

“We tried that once, it did not go well.” Sweet leaf followed. Flash looked down at the ground with a sorrowful look on his face.

“Why? What happened?” Starlight asked.

Flash sighed. “Well, it wasn’t always just me, Sweet Leaf and Wallflower.” He said to the group. “In the beginning, Trixie and Bon Bon were with us too. Most of what happened before it is a blur, but eventually we got trapped inside an office building and decided to split up. To make a long story short, we don’t know if they ever made it back out, and it was my idea to split up. If they died, it’s my fault.”

“. . .Damn.” Starlight said, followed by the rest of the group casting sympathetic looks in his direction.

“You couldn’t have known that those things followed us up there Flash.” Sweet Leaf said. “Try and focus on the bright side, if we hadn’t split up, then we might not have found the axe, and well, we all would have been goners. Besides, they managed to find a gun, so they could still be out there somewhere.”

“Well, do you think we made the right call?” Flash asked. “Getting out of there without going back for them?”

“. . .I don’t think there’s a good answer to that.” Wallflower said. “Yeah we might have had time to go back for them, but at the same time, those corrupted are stupidly fast, so if we did go back but couldn’t make it to the ground floor in time, we all would have died. It’s impossible to know for sure, is what I’m saying.”

Flash sighed heavily.

“-I didn’t mean for my question to hurt you, Flash.” Starlight said. “I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s fine, you didn’t know.” Flash replied. “Just- no splitting up, okay? We’re gonna face this apocalypse together.” He said with a weak smile.

“Hey! Look!” Sunset exclaimed from the back of the group. “A diner!” She pointed towards a building coming up in the top right of a four way intersection.

“That’s Sugarcube Corner.” Sweet Leaf chimed in. “I know we already have food and drinks, but there’s bound to be much better stuff in there. I say we stop for a little snack break.”

“Me too.” Flash said. “Anyone else?”

“Yes please!” Sonata and Diamond yelled in unison.

“Shh!” Aria snapped back. “We have to be quiet, remember?”

“Oop!” Sonata said. “Sorry!”

Flash carefully opened the door to Sugarcube corner, making sure the door didn’t squeak on its hinges while he opened it. There didn’t seem to be anyone in the building, but he wasn’t taking any chances. Like the office building he’d been in not too long ago, the place seemed oddly free of the corruption, and besides the lack of any electricity and the tables/chairs thrown about, everything seemed normal.

“Does anyone have a flashlight of some sort?” Flash said, bringing a hand up to his forehead and leaning inwards in an attempt to see further into the building. He failed to do so, the moonlight coming in from the windows facing outside quickly fading into total darkness.

“Yeah, I got you.” Sweet Leaf said, turning on her phone flashlight and handing it to Flash.

“Okay, everyone stay behind me.” Flash said, holding his axe in one hand and flashlight in the other. “I don’t think there’s anyone in here, but just in case-”

A loud CRASH could suddenly be heard from somewhere in the darkness, followed by what sounded like a muttered swear.

“Speak of the devil.” Aria said from behind Flash.

Flash thought for a moment on how to proceed before turning back to the group. “I need one of you to hold the flashlight for me so I can hold my axe properly. Aria, Wallflower, you two come with because you both have your own weapons.”

“I’ll hold the flashlight.” Diamond said. Flash handed it to her, waiting a moment for Aria and Wallflower to come up besides him, and together they started moving carefully into the abandoned diner, Diamond standing behind Wallflower and holding the Flashlight above her shoulder to light the way. They made their way through the main dining area without a hitch, the only sound they made the occasional creaking of wood under their feet as they moved. As they moved further inside, a faint rustling noise could be heard from the back, where the kitchen and food they had come here for laid. Flash stopped at the doorway leading there, holding a hand up to signal to the others to stop before whispering.

“Diamond, come over here.” He whispered, motioning for her. She did as she was asked, and moved up beside him. “On my mark, Diamond and I will turn the corner and see whoever’s in there, Wallflower, Aria, you’ll come in right behind. Ready?”

The other three nodded.

Flash started a countdown.

“One. . .

Two. . .

Three!”

Flash and Diamond quickly rounded the corner, the light from the flashlight illuminating a figure rummaging through the pantry at the far end of the kitchen area.

A very familiar figure.

“Trixie?” Flash said in confusion. Wallflower and Aria appeared right behind him, their faces also ones of confusion at the sight before them.

“Flash?” Trixie said, standing up from her kneeled down position going through the pantry but not turning around.

“Trixie!” Flash exclaimed. “You’re alive! I can’t believe it! How? Where’s Bon Bon?” He asked, starting to walk towards his friend.

“Stop!” Trixie exclaimed, still refusing to turn around. “Don’t come any closer!”

“W-what? Why?”

“T-this food is all Trixie’s!” She said, still facing away from them. “Go away!”

“What?” Flash said. “Come on Trixie, there’s plenty here for all of us.”

“NO!” Trixie yelled.

“Ugh, I don’t have time for this.” Aria said, moving past Flash and towards Trixie. “I’m not playing these games, magician. Come out here or-”

“I SAID LĒ͈Å̢̼͚̃̓VẺ̼̗̄.͉̞̬̏̏͛͛͜” Trixie yelled, whirling around to face Aria. Aria stopped in horror, as did Flash, Wallflower and Diamond at the sight before them. Half of Trixie’s face and right arm were coated in corruption, the pixelating mass standing out brightly in the dim light of the kitchen. Remnants of dried blood were visible too in the same areas, resulting in Trixies face being a disturbing conglomeration at corruption, dried blood, and her light blue skin. The one eye visible on her face glared daggers at Aria, the other one completely covered by the corruption.

“Ah! She’s one of them!” Diamond cried, fumbling with the flashlight as she nearly dropped it in her frightened stupor.

“W-what?” Trixie said, her voice sounding normal again. Her expression changed from one of anger and malice to fear and confusion in an instant, her one eye blinking rapidly as she seemed to come back to reality from her blind rage. “Flash?” She asked. “Is that really you?” She asked in a scared tone.

“Yes Trixie, it’s me!” Flash replied. “What’s wrong with you?!”

“I- I don’t know!” She stammered. “I- I can’t remember anything! C-can’t control. . .” She trailed off, her face suddenly undergoing a particularly aggressive glitch, causing her eye to temporarily disappear and her mouth to distort off of her face. She screamed in pain.

“W-what’s wrong with her?!” Wallflower shouted.

“I- I don’t know! But, she’s still in there somewhere! We have to help her!” Flash said. “Trixie, you have to fight it!” He shouted towards her.

“No! I-I c-c-c-can’tt. . .” Trixie stammered, her head hanging low as it continued to glitch and distort on itself. “S-stay away from me! I don’t want to hurt you!” She cried, before tunring and bolting out of the pantry and the rear entrance to the restaurant.

“Trixie! Wait!!!” Flash yelled, taking off after her.

To Flash’s surprise, Trixie moved frightening fast, easily outpacing him the first few seconds of their chase and turning randoming onto different side streets and alleyways. Flash struggled to keep up with her, his legs utterly spent from the amount of running he’d already done that night. Because Trixie was in a panic, and there was no rhyme or reason to where she ran, it didn’t take long for her to run into a dead end in an alleyway, her pressing her back to the wall as Flash turned the corner.

“Trixie! Let me help you!” He said.

“No! I don’t want to hurt you! I-I can’t control it!”

“Yes you can! I know you can! You just have to want it enough!”

Trixies face and arm continued to glitch and distort for a few seconds as she brought both of her hands to the sides of her head and screamed in a mix of pain and frustration as she tried to fight back, resist the urge to go to sleep or enter a blind rage. Flash watched her struggle helplessly for what seemed like forever, desperately wanting to help but not knowing how. Eventually, Trixie collapsed, finally coming to rest in a pitiful heap in front of the brick wall behind her. The corruption that covered her face and right arm seemed to lose some of its control though, beginning to drip off of her like water and form a small puddle surrounding her. She came to again after a few seconds, blinking as she watched Flash walk up to her, axe in hand.

“Ẅ̲ha̭̅t̺̎ ̬̀ar̰̂e͇̚ y͙̏ou ̖̈́goin̈́͟g tō̳ do? ̫͊Ki͓̕ll̤͊ me͔͠?” She finally said with a small chuckle. “I see I wouldn’t be the first, hehe.” She said, her one eye looking at the dried blood on the blade.

Flash let go of the axe, allowing it to fall away and to the side and kneeling down in front of her. “No, I’m not.” He said bluntly.

“Why?” She said angrily. “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll lose control?! That I’ll suddenly jump up and kill you?” She said in a more fearful tone.

“No, and you know why? Because I trust you.”

“You trust me?”

“Of course I do!” Flash said. “Where’s that girl who constantly says that she’s the greatest and most powerful of all?” He said in an encouraging tone. Trixie grimaced in what seemed like determination again, fighting back against the corruptions control as Flash continued to speak.

“Where’s the most talented magician in Canterlot city? Surely the greatest and most powerful of all won’t let a little corruption take her down!” He said with a warm smile. Trixie continued to struggle.

After a few more seconds, she let out a small, distorted chuckle. “You know that was all just an act, right?” She replied, looking back up to Flash to reveal that more of it had fallen off of her face, revealing the beginnings of her left eye underneath. “All that stuff about being so much better than everyone else, having such a massive ego. . . It doesn’t take a detective to figure out that was just a way of hiding my insecurities.”

“What I said still applies.” Flash said. “And even if it doesn’t, I’m still not leaving you here.” He paused. “I’m sorry, Trixie, I never should have made us split up, if I had just-”

“I-it’s okay, I know you meant well.” She said. “Are Wallflower and Sweet Leaf still alive?”

“Yes, and they want you to come back to us just as much as I do.” He said in a warm tone.

“T-they do?”

“They do.” He said, standing up and lowering a hand. “So come on, take my hand.”

Trixie blinked again, before slowly reaching her hand out and grabbing his. As he tried to help her up though, the small puddle of corruption that had gathered at her feet retaliated, a small tendril lashing out and wrapping around her midsection.

“Ah! Flash!” Trixie cried upon feeling it wrap around her.

“Don’t worry! I’ve got you!” He yelled, leaning back and using all of his might to pull her away. After a few more moments of struggle, their efforts paid off, the tendril snapping in two and falling apart, causing Trixie and Flash to fall backwards into one another. Flash pulled what was left of his strength to finish pulling the two of them to their feet, Trixie in a daze from their struggle.

“You okay?” Flash asked.

One by one, both of Trixie’s eyes opened, blinking hopefully. It didn’t take long for her to notice this, followed by a joyful sob as she embraced Flash with her now freed arms. The rest of the group arrived shortly thereafter, weapons ready expecting a fight, but instead finding Trixie and Flash still embracing each other.

“Thank you, Flash.” Trixie said finally.

“Anytime.” He replied.

“. . .Woah.” Wallflower said.

“Trixie!” Sweet Leaf shouted. “You’re free!”

“Not quite.” Aria chimed in. “it’s still on her face.”

“H-huh?” Trixie said, stepping away from Flash and rubbing a hand against her face. She paused upon bringing it away only for her hand to now be coated in a thin layer of it. She flicked her hand to the side, spraying the drops of corruption onto a nearby wall.

“I-is it bad?” Trixie asked hesitantly.

“Well, it’s a lot better than it was.” Aria said. “How do you feel?”

“I, uh, I feel pretty normal. I don’t feel like I’m constantly struggling to keep control, or, not fall asleep. . .”

“Flash, that was amazing!” Diamond shouted. “How did you do that?”

“Just uh, helping a friend in need, is all, hehe.”

“So the secret to freeing people is the power of friendship. Who would’ve thought.” Adagio stated with a slight eye roll.

“I think there’s more to it than that.” Sweet Leaf said. “Perhaps the secret to it is appealing to their humanity, reminding them of who they are and the people they care about. And maybe just sheer willpower. Right, Trixie?”

“I-I think so, yeah.” Trixie answered. “I was so scared that I would lose control and hurt you guys, then Flash cornered me with the axe and I thought he’d kill me but, instead be dropped it.” She let out a small laugh. “I was so confused I forgot why I was scared for a moment. Then he reminded me of who I was and how you guys were still alive and. . .” She trailed off. “I guess that was it. It felt like finally being able to breathe again after holding your breath your whole life.”

“Is there anything we can do about her face?” Wallflower asked.

“If I had to guess, it doesn’t seem like this corruption lets go of its hosts easily, if even after that there’s still some on her. But as long as she’s feeling well I don’t see the problem.” Sweet Leaf answered.

Trixie wrapped her left around around Flash’s shoulders, the two of them slowly limping along towards the others. “A little help here?” Flash said, struggling to hold up both of their weights.

“I gotcha.” Wallflower said, rushing up beside Trixie to let her wrap her other arm around her shoulders.

“So, Trixie.” Sweet Leaf said. “Escaping from the clutches of darkness seems pretty exhausting. What do you say we go back to Sugarcube corner, hm? And this time share the food?”

“Yeah, yeah I’d like that.” Trixie said weakly.

Author's Note

As of writing this, I don’t think I’ll be continuing this fic for much longer. Not because I’m running out of ideas or lack of motivation mind you, it’s instead because I don’t want to write myself into a corner by going too deep with this story and risk it becoming inconsistent with what I write for the companion fic to this When Darkness Falls. I think I’ve explored what will be going on after the corruption’s invasion of the EQG world enough for right now, and it’s about time I start focusing on that one again.

It shouldn’t be too long after my last update for this side story that I start uploading regularly again. Fun fact though, even before I took that several-month hiatus, I already had around 40k words worth of content ready to go, I just thought it would be better to let it accumulate for a while and do another week long daily update wave. The only thing that’s kept me from doing that already though is that said 40k words are still just worldbuilding, because as it turns out, I have too many ideas for where to take that fic for my own good, lol. That’s why I decided to write this side story in the first place, as something to hold reader interest by offering a peek into what my stories will eventually become while I worldbuild.

There’s still going to be at least one more chapter added to this fic here though. 8. The Void.

After that one’s uploaded, I’ll be doing one of two things:

Writing another side story, Simulation, where we explore what happened to Bon Bon, or-
Finish up my work on unfinished content for When Darkness Falls, and do another update wave.

Or, maybe if my schedule allows it, I’ll do both! I have had a lot of free time lately. Another fun fact: everything I’ve published within the past week was written and edited the same day it was posted. Pretty nice work pace if I do say so myself.

8. The Void

The group of survivors made their way steadily through the ruins of Canterlot city, hopefully closing in on the mall, though they still were unsure of exactly where they were. Strangely, there didn’t seem to be many people around, corrupted people, that is. Ever since discovering Trixie, and subsequently proving that those afflicted could in fact be saved, they had yet to come upon any more, which was as comforting as it was concerning. For one, it meant that after a while the group could move out in the open and not worry as much about having to fight any more of them, but at the same time, where had they gone?

“Hey, Sweet Leaf, do you have any idea how much longer until we reach the mall?” Wallflower asked, moving to the left side of her friend, who was currently looking down at her phone scrolling through her map and occasionally glancing up to search for named landmarks or street signs.

“Ummm. . .” Sweet Leaf replied, looking up from her phone towards an oncoming street sign. “Keep going in a straight line past Frederick street, then take a right at. . .” She said, to no one in particular. “We should only be a couple miles out by now.” She said in answer to Wallflower’s question.

“Hey, guys, what’s that coming up?” Flash’s voice cut through the air from his position at the front. “Straight ahead. It looks like something floating above the ground.”

“Floating?” Starlight asked, moving from her spot towards the middle of the group to where Flash was at the front, squinting her eyes to look at the object in the distance. “I can’t make it out from this distance, should we go check it out?”

“We don’t have much of a choice.” Sweet Leaf chimed in. “Whatever it is is on the route that takes us to the mall, so you better hope its friendly.”

Flash and Starlight exchanged uneasy looks, before turning their attention back to the object of their fascination that was slowly but surely growing bigger as they walked towards it.

As the object grew closer, so did the intrigue and confusion of everyone in the group as they were able to make it out more clearly. Words failed all of them as a way of describing it, as all it seemed like was a patch of static floating a few feet above the ground. The first thing their minds jumped to was corruption, but whatever this was didn’t match that description. In contrast to the dark, oil like corruption that glitched and pixelated in all different colors, this was more akin to TV static, the kind you’d see on older cable TVs whenever they’d lose signal. In addition to the rift itself, the surrounding area seemed to be affected by it, the surrounding buildings, road and sidewalk all missing chunks that were both spread out all around the rift and some nowhere to be found, as though the pieces had been sucked into it.

Drawing even closer, they began to also notice a rough border surrounding it, resembling cracks like glass that arced around the outside.

“Is that. . . a portal?” Aria asked, noticing the similarities in the way it looked. Now able to see it clearly, that was certainly the impression they got from it. It was as though someone had taken a hammer to reality itself and cracked it like glass, revealing the static nonsense that resulted from such a disturbance. Although portal was the first thing they thought when looking at it, what lay in front of them more closely resembled a rift of sorts.

“I’m- not sure.” Flash said, bringing a finger up to his chin in thought for a moment. “Hey, Wallflower, Trixie, Sweet Leaf, doesn’t this thing look similar to those rifts midnight sparkle opened up? At the end of the friendship games?”

“Ugh, how could I forget.” Trixie said, moving towards Flash in front of the rift. “I get what you’re saying, it does have a striking resemblance, but that’s about it. Didn’t those rifts just lead to that alternate world where we’re all ponies and such?”

“Yeah, but it’s the only thing that kind of makes sense.” Flash said, before Trixie let out a groan and brought a hand to the side of her head that was still coated in corruption. “You okay Trixie?” He asked.

“Y-yeah, I-i’m f-f-fine.” She managed to say, her voice beginning to glitch caausing her words to become extremely drawn out “I-i think this rift is m-messing with me somehow. . .” She trailed off, continuing to hold her head. To the worry of everyone around her, the corruption that still lay on the left side of her face suddenly became much more active, causing her hair and eye on that side of her face to start glitching and flashing uncontrollably, though surprisingly Trixie didn’t seem to notice this.

“Uh, Trixie? You still with us?” Wallflower asked cautiously.

“I’m fine!” Trixie blurted out before regaining her composure. “I’m fine, not gonna let this stupid sludge on my face win. Should probably get away from it though, just in case.” She said, turning away from the rift and walking in the opposite direction, still seeming unwell.

Flash watched Trixie walk off for a few seconds, followed shortly after by Sweet Leaf, presumably to make sure she was okay. He turned back towards the rift. “Anyone have any ideas what to do? I wanna say we get rid of it somehow, but. . .” He trailed off.

“I know this is gonna sound crazy, but I kinda wanna know what’s on the other side.” Sunset chimed in.

“-That’s because it is.” Adagio replied. “And how do you suppose we find out? By stepping through? Sorry, but that’s gonna be a hard pass from me.”

“How about we throw something into it?” Starlight said, appearing from behind Sunset carrying a moderately sized rock, presumably a piece of rubble from a nearby building.

“I guess it’s worth a shot.” Flash said. “Go ahead then.” He said, stepping away from the rift. Starlight walked up, proceeding to hold her arm back and then throw the rock with as much force as she was able. To the shock of everyone, the rock stopped moving almost immediately upon crossing the boundary, rotating slowly in one place as though there was no gravity, before vanishing in a small flash of light.

“Are we sure that this thing is really just static?” Sunset said. “It looks flat, but, that rock was still there, floating.”

“I don’t suppose there’s anyone willing to stick their head in and find out?” Starlight said.

“I will!” Diamond said.

“That doesn’t sit right with me.” Wallflower responded. “You’re just a child, Diamond, if anything happens. . .”

“I’ll be fine, listen.” Diamond said. “How about one of you holds my arm and I just stick half my body through, that way if anything happens you can just pull me back out.”

“I mean, as long as you’re okay with it.” Aria said. “I’ll volunteer to be your spotter.”

Diamond cautiously made her way until she was face to face with the rift, followed by Aria who quickly grasped her right arm firmly around the wrist. Diamond looked back towards Aria, who gave her a reassuring nod. After raking a deep breath, Diamond took the plunge, dipping her head and the upper half of her body through the rift. The group watched anxiously for a few seconds, waiting.

“Woah!” Diamond suddenly exclaimed.

“Do you need me to pull you out?” Aria asked.

“No, I’m good! You guys have to see this!” Diamond exclaimed.

Flash and Wallflower exchanged nervous looks. “Well, I mean, as long as Diamonds okay, then I don’t see the harm in taking a quick peek.” She said, moving towards the rift and poking her head through. Flash watched in awe as her face and then her hair seemed to melt into it, leaving only her upper body and legs visible for a few seconds until she came back out. “Woah.” She said with wide eyes.

“What?” Flash asked. “What’s on the other side?”

“I-it’s like-” Wallflower started. “it’s just more of that static, everywhere you look, until you look down that is.”

“What do you see looking down?”

“There’s all these- islands of sorts, just floating. I’m pretty sure there’s no gravity too, because as soon as I peeked my head through my hair started to float, really weird feeling. And those islands. . . they were like, chunks of cityscape. Some of them had pieces of road on them, some had houses on them, and some of the bigger ones had whole buildings!” She spread her arms out and gestured to the ruined cityscape surrounding them. “It was literally like if someone ripped buildings, houses, roads, and the ground beneath them out, and them threw them into outer space!”

“That doesn’t make any sense!” Flash said in a mixture of confusion and disbelief.

“Join the club.” Adagio chimed in, waving a hand dismissively. “It’s not like anything else has made sense recently”

“Do you wanna see it?” Wallflower asked Flash.

“No, I think I’m good, thanks.” He replied.

“Diamond, are you almost done?” Aria said with impatience.

“Sure, you can pull me out.” She responded. Aria tugged on her arm, causing the rest of Diamonds body that was inside the rift to emerge with a small pop.

Starlight spoke up. “Cool, so we’ve found a weird portal-rift thingy that leads to a void of unending static that has no gravity and floating islands with buildings on them, what are we supposed to do now?”

“Close it, maybe?” Flash replied.

“And how do you suppose we do that, Flash?” Adagio said. “Again, none of us have magic, and I feel like that’s a requirement this time around.”

“Well, we’ve made it this far without magic, haven’t we?” He said. “If we managed to save Trixie from the clutches of the corruption all on our own, then closing a tear in reality shouldn’t be that difficult. How about we just try to, uh, pull it closed? Like this.” He said, stepping back in front of the rift and grabbing one of the far edges with his hands and pulling. “Well, come on!” He said.

Reluctantly, the rest of the group followed his example, gathering around the rift and grabbing the edges wherever they could.

“Now pull!” Flash exclaimed. All at once they began pulling, at first to no avail. As time passed though, Flash noticed the area he was pulling on start to move, bending and giving in under his hands like paper. “It’s working! Just keep going!” He exclaimed. They all continued to strain as they used all their might, more sections of the rift starting to crumple under the force of the group.

“This isn’t gonna work!” Adagio said in-between labored breaths.

“Yes it will, just keep going!” Flash yelled back. After a little while longer, none of them had much strength left in them, and they had only succeded in moving the edges a few inches. Flash considered quitting, but before he could say anything, he noticed two more pairs of hands grab on on either side of him. Trixie and Sweet Leaf. Without saying a word, they quickly added their strength to the effort. A few seconds later, a loud cracking noise could be heard over the sound of their straining, and especially with Trixie’s help, Flash noticed, they suddenly started making great progress.

“Come on! Just a little more!” Wallflower cried out. With one last coordinated effort, they succeeded, the edges of the rift suddenly giving way under their combined strength and causing the rift to collapse in on itself with a loud THWOOM,
creating a shockwave that threw the group of survivors back onto the pavement of the road below. There they lay for a while, all of them too spent to say anything immediately after.

“I can’t believe that actually worked.” Aria said once she’d had time to breathe.

Wallflower began to stand back up. “Hey, Trixie, are you okay now? Y’know, now that the rift thing is gone?”

Trixie stood up beside her. “Yeah, thanks.” She said, looking down at her hands. “I actually feel better than I did before, stronger.” She said in an awe-struck voice.

“Yeah, I noticed that!” Flash exclaimed while he got to his feet. “It was only when you joined that we were actually able to close it, so maybe being partially corrupted made you stronger! Or perhaps you still having it on you meant you could interact with it in a way none of us could!”

“Ha Ha!” Trixie exclaimed, pumping her fists. “Trixie really is great and powerful now!”

“I don’t think you should be celebrating, Trixie.” Sweet Leaf said, her and the rest of the group now standing upright again. “I don’t think you still having that stuff on you is a good thing, even if it apparently makes you stronger than the rest of us. We still have no idea what the stuff even is, much less what it’s capable of!”

“I have to agree with her on that.” Adagio said. “You might be fine now Trixie, but what if something happens and you become one of them? I for one don’t like our odds if she turns and we have to fight her if she’s stronger than the rest of us.”

“So what are you suggesting then? We leave her?” Sweet Leaf said.

“I dunno! Maybe?!” Adagio said, throwing her hands up and walking away. “All I’m saying is that I think she’s dangerous and can’t be trusted, for all we know she might still be under the influence of the stuff and is just waiting for the right moment.” Trixie looked away and down towards the ground in shame and hurt.

“We’re not leaving her.” Flash said in an authoritative voice, stepping in front of her. “If she really was still one of them, she wouldn’t have helped us close the rift or walked away from it when it started messing with her, because apparently there’s some sort of connection there none of us understand yet.”

Adagio turned back around to face Flash. “Fine, I was just saying that this really doesn’t sit right with me. Can we at least all agree to keep a very close eye on her?”

“If that’ll make you more comfortable, sure.” Flash said with an eye roll. “I think you’re being too pessimistic, Adagio. Look at the positives here, Trixie might be our best shot at continuing to survive, since she has control over it to some degree. If we can find Sunset and her friends, then maybe Trixie having first-hand experience will help them understand it better and figure out a way to stop it.”

Adagio didn’t respond.

"There, then it's settled." Flash said after a brief silence. "Now, on to the mall!"

Author's Note

This is likely the final update this story will receiving, at least for a while while I switch focus to my bigger fic and other sidestory, Simulation. I’m still going to leave this story marked as incomplete though, because it’s entiely possible I might come back here, just again, not anytime soon as I write this.

This chapter is also the first one that directly links this fic to When Darkness Falls because of the use of The Void which comes directly from the storyline I have established over there, so if you haven’t read my much bigger story and would like a more complete picture of what the void is, I’d definitely suggest doing that.

Besides moving on to writing Simulation, I’m also going to be going back and updating When Darkness Falls over the next few weeks, re-editing or re-writing some parts and adding some new stuff to get it on the front page again and hopefully bring more traffic to this side story and the one coming up.

An idea I have floating around while I plan Simulation is making use of background music a little more. I’ve already experimented with it a bit on this fic by having it in the beginning of chapter 2, but moving forward I want to make it part of the story a bit more. Simulation as I’m planning it now will be a bit darker than this one was, but not quite enough to make an M rating necessary. Just as a little sneak peak, here’s the names of a few intrumentals I’m considering adding to it.

Hellhole

Umbra

Versiculus Iratus

Unknown Suffering

As I stated in the last chapter, Simulation is going to focus entirely on what happened to Bon Bon in this fic (spoiler alert, it’s a lot worse than what happened to Trixie), and will explore another of the various methods the darkness uses to subdue its victims and keep them firmly under its control, hence why the titles of these intrumentals might sound a bit dark.

Anyway, I hope all of you have enjoyed reading! And I look forward to sharing with you all what I have in store for the coming months! A little goal I have for myself is to get When Darkness Falls to the featured page at least once by the end of the year, so expect a lot of work to be done by then.