Darkness Fell. . . (REMASTERED)

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.”