Zzombieponiezz!?

"Wake-up Fluttershy" The waking world blurred into the meek Pegasus eyes as the cool morning air blew the grass which clinged to her tear soaked eyes away. Twilight Sparkle smiled as Fluttershy appeared to be much less downtrodden than the night before.

"Twilight, you look awful." Fluttershy said wiping the residue from her eyes. Twilight gave an optimistic chuckle. "I've been up for a while. You holding up okay?" There was awkward silence as Pinkie and Rarity watched. "I'm.. I'm fine." Fluttershy softly said with slight tearing up. Twilight wrapped her hooves around her gently. "Sorry about Angel. If there was another way..." she said trying to comfort her emotionally distraught friend. "Oh, I know. I should just.. Accept facts and move on." Twilight nodded affirmatively. "That would be the most reasonable thing to do" she said with a smile on her face.

"Um Twilight deary, where did all the food go?" Rarity piped up, interupting their touching moment. Twilight looked back with a stern look. "It went nowhere but our mouths. I told yesterday that those raisins were all we got till we got till we got to Applejacks. All the other food was grain-based. This didn't happen till the grain came in from Appaloosa. I'm not gonna take any chances with the food we eat." Pinkie bounced towards Twilight "Oh Twilight you joker you. Bet that saddlebag is full off taffy, and popcorn, and taffy flavoured popcorn and popcorn with taffy inside, ooh! And chocolate covered peach tarts with popcorn-flavoured taffy centres? Or maybe.." "NO!" Twilight shouted. "Just bandages, antiseptic, an emergency flare gun, bottled water and some quills with paper." Rarity looked appalled. "This is a 30 mile trot, and you're telling me you don't have any..." Fluttershy finally got a word in edgewise "Girls.. Don't fight." Twilight blew a gasket and screamed. "STOP IT ALL OF YOU!!"

The camp grew silent. "You have a problem walking 30 miles hungry. Stay here. I'm doing the best for my friends. Rainbow Dash chose to stay and help survivors. Spike is staying with his dragon friends in the mountains. They made their choice. You stood by me and what I see as the most reasonable way to handle this. Fluttershy! You are the only one here on my good side! You've stood by me, even after Angels death. Even after those monsters ravaged your animals and you wanted them to take you. I stood by you and you stood by me! And that! Is why! We'll survive! Pinkie Pie!" Pinkie looked back with a smile. "Ponies are dying and you're acting like this is all a game! There's a time for humour but your childish nonsense will get use killed!" Pinkie's smile quickly turned to a frown. "Rarity! Do you honestly expect comfortable living in all this!? If you want gourmet cuisine and a warm made to lay on, go back to Ponyville! Just don't expect me to come to your aid when your beauty sleep is disturbed by those monsters bursting into your boutique! I have the knowhow to keep us all alive but I need you guys to work with me! Beggars can't be choosers. You either put your fate in my hooves, or you risk your lives carving your own path!"

By the end of her long tirade Twilight Sparkles friends were speechless. Twilight was drenched with sweat, exhausted from her rant. The insomnia was killing her. Her friends looked legitimately sorry for their selfishness, with the exception of Fluttershy who felt sorry simply because she felt obligated to be.

"Darling.. Get my shoulders. We'll take turns carrying you to Sweet Apple Acres. You need rest." Rarity said with the deepest voice of concern. "No!" Twilight snapped back "I need to make sure everything-" Rarity gained a smug look. "I need you to stop being so selfish if you want us to survive." The ivory pony said mimicking Twilight's little spiel. The purple mare hung her head and submitted. "You're right."

Pinkie brushed up against Twilights side. "We'll take super good care of you. I'll even hum you the lullabies I sing the cakes babies." Twi sighed with appreciation. "I'd like that."

Meanwhile.. In the Ponyville town hall.

Crowds of ponies murmur in a large dark meeting room. The windows and doors have been nailed shut and very limited candle light illuminates the cold safe house.
The mayor stands at the podium. No microphone in place. She gently taps her hoof on the podiums wooden surface, hoping the crowd would pay attention to her. They do.

"Fillies and gentlecolts." She said with an uncharacteristically subdued volume. "I know for many of you, this doesn't seem real. I'm sure many of you just want to wake up in your beds and be relieved that this was all just a bad dream. I would like to believe this as well. If this is a dream, that somehow we all are sharing, I'd pray to Celestial that we'd all wake up right now. But the longer this lasts, the less it seems likely to be true." "So what are we gonna do!?" Shouted a panicked elderly stallion with a goatee and flimsy green hat." The mayor gently tapped her hoof on the podium again to keep order. "We need to keep our voices down, Mr. Greensleeves. Once these.. Aberrations.. Once they see one living pony, the hive is stirred. We have our best scientists on this. They have only retained two key senses. Hearing and sight. They can not taste or smell." "So why are they eating us!?" Another pony barked. The mayor tapped again. "Please hush everypony. All we have to go on is their metabolism. That's our only lead. We've received a letter from the princess. I need us to all stay calm while I read this. Make to much noise, and we'll have a problem on our hooves. Thank you."

The mayor pulled a small scroll out of the drawer compartment in her podium.

"Dear citizens of Ponyville. For a thousand years you have been my subjects, ever loyal and unwavering. I am well aware what is happening in your town, but I'm afraid my power to fight it is limited. The plague that has taken over your home is known as the necrine. Believed to be as old as the very soil itself. The tiniest of life, small creatures buried deep within Equestrias crust. There is a species of grain weavil, who's eggs and larva are carrying the necrine bug.

Ponyville, you are not alone. Both Cloudsdale and Canterlot have smaller regions afflicted by the plague. My sister and I are working on a solution but this disease predates ponies themselves. Before ponies this was taking the earliest dragons, the fish in the rivers, everything. We don't know what killed it for so long but the last necrine plague was over twenty-four million years ago. Since then only old mares tales spoke of pony corpses walking among the living.

Our hooves are tied. If you are here to hear these words I have written, you have passed the test I ordered the mayor to give all survivors. Your blood is clean. You are in the safest place I can place you given the circumstance..."

Carrot Cake stood up while his wife tried to keep the babies calm. "Given the circumstance? Some of use have foals here. If only parts of Canterlot are infected I say we belong there." Cup Cake pulled her husband down with one hoof. "Shush dear we should trust our Princess Judgement."

The mayor resumed reading the princess letter.

"While my royal guard keeps Canterlot under control, I have issued a strike force from Cloudsdale to aggressively terminate the presence of the infected. Rest assured. They are not your loved ones. They are a perfect machine designed for endurance and survival across all life. These creatures only exist to find prey, then consume it. Survive an attack, and you are one with their swarm. Quiet seclusion is your only hope while I find a solution. Be brave and stay strong. We will live to see another day. With the sincerest love, Princess Celestial."