Episode 1 Chapter 1: A New Day...

Clementine sat quietly in her treehouse, listening closely for Sandra to tell her it was okay. She had been sitting there for a while, while the neverending silence frightened her more and more. In her hands, she clasped her walkie-talkie, hoping to hear her caretaker's voice any minute. As the sun sank, Clementine heard a terrifying noise coming straight from her house. An agonizing scream. She jumped, dropping her walkie-talkie, but hastily picked it back up and pushed the talk switch.

"Sandra?! SANDRA?! Are you there?!" She let pressure off of the button, and anxiously waited for a reply. Tears began to form when there wasn't one. "Sandra please! Pick up!" Clementine waited again, but only heard another scream from the house, even louder than the last. "SANDRAAAA!"

Celestia awoke in a fit of sweat, and panic. The child's cries from the dream still rang in her ears. This had been the fourth night in a row that something so disturbing had rattled her sleep. At first, she wanted to believe it was just some kind of reoccuring nightmare, but the more she denied it, the more she knew that it was nothing less than a vision of humanity's struggle. Her knowledge of humans was as vast as any sentient being. As the sovereign of the sun, it was her duty to make note of all creatures that existed under her star. Of course she would never meddle in the lives of those that existed outside of her kingdom, since she had Equestria to lead. Still the visions frightened her, as it would anyone, and now that she was certain of the significance of these omens, she wouldn't hesistate to consult her sister in the morning.

"The human race? Aren't they the ones settling the whole dispute with the...oh what was it...the Romans?" Luna pondered.

"No, sister, times have changed very much for humanity since you have last seen them. Their culture and technology has arisen more than you would probably believe, but that is not why I am discussing them with you." Luna took notice of her elder sister's serious tone.

"Tia, what is wrong?" Celestia looked over the balcony to see the sun now fully cresting the horizon.

"You know the dreams that I have been having."

"Yes, but you told me not to worry about that." Luna answered. Celestia looked woefully at her sibling.

"I fear that these are not mere dreams; but instead ominous visions of something happening, or something to come." Celestia wasn't for sure, but her suspicions had been rising with each reoccuring dream. Luna moved closer.

"You fear that the human race is in danger?" She asked, worried. Celestia nodded grimly. "Even if they are, how does this affect us, or Equestria?" The sun goddess had wondered this herself. She couldn't fully justify why she felt this way.

"It may not affect us at all. It may very well be the universe informing me of the human's possible extinction." She then stood, and cringed at other possibilities. "Or it may be a warning, something telling me that our subjects are in danger. The visions are short and vague, but i still can't help but wonder what this means for Equestria." Luna stood to comfort her. In the past, she had seen her sister distraught with worry for her subjects before, and always did her best to console her.

"Don't worry yourself like this. Whatever reason that you are seeing these things does not exactly point to a similar fate for us."

"But I can't take that chance!" Celestia was letting her anxiety get the better of her. Luna put her hoof on her sister's shoulder.

"I understand your concern. Do whatever you feel is necessary to protect everypony. I shall support you no matter what." The elder Alicorn smiled at her sister's reassurance.

"Thank you, Luna. I will make sure that none of this gets out of hoof."

Lee sulked quietly in the back seat of the cruiser. The iron of the handcuffs were still cold to his skin. He was on his way out of Atlanta, and straight to the nearest correctional facility. His sentence had not been light; life in prison. 'Doesn't get any worse than that.' He thought to himself. As the cruiser drifted onto the highway, Lee took time to think of his family. His brother B. His mother and father in Macon. All of them at his parent's drugstore. Then his thoughts drifted to his wife, as Lee felt a mixture of sadness, anger, and betrayal wash over him. Lee had no problem with his life the way it was, and couldn't help but feel cheated for what was happening to him.

Not a single word had been spoken since the drive began, but as Lee made eye contact with the officer via the rear view mirror, he could almost feel a snide remark coming on.

"Well, I reckon you didn't do it then." The cop bothered to strike up a conversation, and did it by taking a jab at Lee's current state. Lee was instantly irritated. The officer was an older fella with a southern undertone, but Lee sighed, and replied.

"Why do you say say that?" He responded, barely interested. The officer smiled.

"You know I've driven a bunch of fellas down to this here prison. Lord knows how many. Usually it's 'bout now I get the I didn't do it." For a second, he almost sounded sincere in his inquiry. Lee thought about whatever dignity he had as a criminal.

"Not from me."

"'Cause guys in your position already said it enough?" The lawman smirked. Lee rolled his eyes. Chatter and static began to build on the communicator.

"We got what looks like a...10-91..."

"I followed your case a bit, you bein' a Macon boy an' all." The officer talked over it.

"You're from Macon then?" Now Lee was intrigued.

"Yep. Came up to Atlanta to be a city cop in the seventies. Always wanted to work a murder case, like that senatorial mess you got yourself mixed up in...with all due respect. It's a real shame." As the officer said so, Lee took notice of a speeding cruiser blazing down the opposite end of the highway; sirens blaring. He then turned his attention back to the cop, still telling his life story. "Hell, the family used to be regulars up at your folks drug store right in downtown. Still there?" Lee smiled as he was reminded of his family there.

"Sure is."

"Good." More chatter could be heard over the radio.

"Be advised, uh..." Again, the officer interrupted.

"I got a nephew up at UGA. You teach there long?" Maybe now the sarcastic cop was actually trying at a friendly discussion. Lee was glad to be on a topic he enjoyed.

"Going on my sixth year."

"You meet your wife in Athens?" Instantly, Lee felt sorrow, and slight agitation at the officer. He looked out the window, and didn't answer. "You wanna know how I see it?" As Lee thought of what to say, several more cruisers sped toward the city, accompanied by some armored S.W.A.T cars. Lee didn't think much of them, and just shrugged.

"I got much choice?"

"Sure don't." As the officer was about to continue, he caught Lee's gaze through the mirror, and paused momentarily. "Regardless, could be you just married the wrong woman." Lee could feel anger building up from the cop being continuously insensitive toward his situation, treating it like an everyday matter. Maybe the cop saw it that way, but Lee never thought he would be in this position. He was ready to snap back, but went with his better judgement, and held his toungue. The radio fed more information.

"Riot in progress. All officers are available for incoming 217's. Rolling calls and dispatches to all locations." As the radio hushed, a chopper boomed overhead toward Atlanta, and Lee couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

"Any of that seem important to you?" Lee stated nodding at the radio.

"All of it, but that box never shuts up. Sit in this seat and pay too much attention and you'll drive yourself crazy." The old timer grinned. The officer kept the conversation going with a little story.

"I'm drivin' this man once, he was the worst one. Wouldn't stop goin' on about how he didn't do it. He was an older fella. Big soft eyes behind a pair of smart folk glasses, and he's just wailin' back there, says it wasn't him. Cryin' and snottin' all over, right where you're sittin'." Lee felt a little disgusted as he glanced at the seat. The chatter on the radio persisted, as the officer shut it off so he could continue the story without interruption. "Then before long, he starts kickin' the back of the seat like a fussy baby on an airplane. I tell'em he's gotta stop, that that's government property, and I'll be forced to zap him otherwise. So he stops, and havin' exhausted all of his options, he starts cryin' out for his mama. 'Mama, it's all a big mistake! It wasn't me!'" Lee couldn't help but feel slightly amused by the officer's mocking impersonation.

The officer paused, and Lee felt inclined to ask.

"So did he do it?" The officer frowned, remembering the outcome of that trial.

"They caught the fucker red handed! Stabbin' his wife, cuttin' her up as the boys came through the door! He sits in my car screamin' bloody murder that it wasn't him! I think he actually believed it himself." Lee felt both pity, and discomfort for whoever the officer was talking about, and gave thanks that HE wasn't like that. "It just goes to show, people will up and go mad when they believe their life is over." Lee took a moment to wonder if his life was truly over or not, but quickly dismissed the dreadful thought. The officer decided to continue with another story, and took the time to look back at Lee.

"Oh, I got another good one for ya..." Lee squinted at the road ahead. A small figure was crossing it. "...This one's a little bit less depressing, and a bit more hilarious...." Lee began to panic as he made out a person on the highway. They were closing in fast. "...If I do say so..." Lee blurted the first thing that came to mind.

"IN THE ROAD!" But before the cop could react, a sick thud could be heard as the metal struck the pedestrian, followed by the screeching of the wheels as the officer struggled to get the cruiser under control. He jerked the wheel right, but couldn't get the vehicle to straighten out. The cruiser had too much momentum behind it as it smashed through the roadside guard, and tumbled downhill from the highway. The officer flailed about as his safety belt kept him in place. Every loose object in the car bounced around as gravity shifted in every direction. Lee was unfortunate to have no belt on, and was helplessly flung around in the back, while the cruiser continued to roll. Eventually, the metal deathtrap came to a halt. Lee faded in and out of consciousness, and faintly heard the sounds of a struggle. Screams, and gunshots made up most of the noise, while blurry figures sluggishly made their way down the hill towards the wreckage.

Lee blacked out soon after, and dreamt about his old, normal, now very far away life.

"Thanks again for helpin' out with the barn, guys." AJ set down three mugs of cider for her, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash. All three of them had been working together to clean, maintain, and renovate the old structure.

"It was no trouble, Applejack. I'm all caught up on my studies...for now. So, I made the time to help out."

"Yeah, and this cider was well worth it too!" Dash then proceeded to chug the foamy beverage.

"Well I'm mighty grateful. So what do y'all wanna do now?" Twilight's ears perked up in excitement.

"Ooh, I almost forgot! Remember I said I had something to show you guys back at the treehouse after we were done here?" The earth pony, and pegasus nodded. "Well, it's a neat little project I've been working on for quite some time, and I want you girls to see it!" The other two traded glances.

"Is it that same doo hicky you were telling us about a few weeks ago?" Dash asked. Twilight grinned.

"Yeah, it's an invention that allows unicorns to harness their magic into stages they could not physically accomplish on their own." Twilight gave the short description, but Applejack scratched her head in confusion.

"Meaning?"

"With enough concentration, I can use it to practice basic spells and advance them enough to unimaginable feats. Like teleporting instantly from Ponyville to Canterlot, or levitating objects from hundreds of yards away!" Twilight was met with mixed reactions.

"Well, I must say I'm impressed. I can't imagine how useful that would be." AJ was happy for her.

"I guess that's cool, but you know what would be better?" Rainbow didn't wait for a reply. "An invention that would help me with my training routine, and maybe even impress the Wonderbolts!" Rainbow Dash didn't mind getting lost in her daydreams.

"Oh, landsakes. Do you never stop goin' on about joinin' those guys." AJ jabbed. Twilight was still ecstatic either way.

"Oh, I can't wait! It's not quite finished, but I still want you guys to come see it!" The ponies looked at each other and shrugged.

"We'd love to see it Twi."

"Meh, I ain't got nothing better to do." Dash shrugged. Twilight hopped in the air.

"Great! Let's go!" The purple pony galloped happily towards the library with her friends in tow. Twilight was hoping to run into her other friends on the way there, but as they neared the treehouse, it was only Applejack, and Rainbow Dash who would be there to see it. "Hey, Spike." Twilight greeted as she walked towards the basement door.

"Howdy, Spike."

"Hey there, Spike."

"Oh, hi guys." Spike replied as he finished shelving a book on the history of Nightmare Night. "Hey, Twilight, the Princess sent you a letter while you were out. "Spike went to retrieve the parchment, but stopped as Twilight spoke.

"Okay, but I'll read it as soon as I come back up. I want to show my friends what I've been working on!" She squeaked giddy with excitement. Spike went back to his daily chores.

"Alright. Oh! By the way, I figured out what I want to be for Nightmare Night this year!" He beamed.

"And what's that?" Twilight stopped at the door leading downstairs.

"Instead of a dragon, this year I'm gonna be...a ZOMBIE dragon!" Twilight gave a wry smile.

"That sounds fun, but Nightmare Night is only a few months away, you might want to get started on that costume." Spike gave a goofy grin.

"I bet Rarity will help me with it." He cooed.

"Alright, well we'll be in the basement if you need anything." Twilight then beckoned for her friends to follow. She could barely contain her excitement. "Ooooh, this is so cool!" Dash snickered at Twilight's eagerness.

"Eggheads." She said under her breath. At the very bottom lay a hulking machine, even larger than the one Twilight had used to study Pinkie's Pinkie sense with. Applejacks mouth fell open.

"There's so much stuff down here, and ah thought the barn was crowded."

"Yeah, come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen your basement, Twilight." Rainbow added. Twilight stopped at the front of the contraption and held her posture proudly.

"Here it is!" The ponies studied it thoroughly, and questioningly. "I can't tell you how long it took to gather the parts needed to make this, and don't even get me started on the blueprints, and schematics." Applejack looked at the chamber at the front of the machine.

"What's this little space here fer?" Twilight looked to see where Applejack was talking about, and bounded over to the chamber.

"This is where the unicorn stands when they want to cast a basic spell. With the right calibrations, the spell's power should be increased significantly."

"You don't say." Rainbow rubbed her chin. "How about a demonstration?" Twilight's smile faded.

"Oh, well...I don't know. I mean, I'd like to, but it's kind of risky." She replied half-heartedly. Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"C'mon, you brought us all the way here, I'm already use to you doing amazing tricks with that horn of yours. Let's see how awesome they are with this...thing." Rainbow's passive attitude was now wanting to see what the contraption could do, but still, Twilight was reluctant.

"It's okay, sugarcube. You don't have to if you don't want to." AJ didn't want Twilight to feel pressured, but her words had sort of the opposite effect, like a reverse-reverse psychology. Now Twilight felt compelled to try.

"...Well...I guess I could give it a quick test run...to make sure it works properly up to this point." She caved. Rainbow did a backflip.

"Alright, let's see it in action!"

"Okay. Just give me a minute to calibrate it correctly. We don't want the spell output to be too powerful." As Twilight set the knobs, and dials to their appropriate positions, AJ and Rainbow Dash waited anxiously to be the first ones to see it work it's magic. "Alright...and...got it!" The machine hummed to life. Twilight then stepped into the chamber. A few sparks danced around on the inside. "Sooo, what kind of spell should I do?" Rainbow Dash thought for a second.

"Remember how you said you could teleport from here to Canterlot?" She asked. Twilight smiled.

"Yeah, but that's after long periods of practice. I doubt I could do that on my first try." Twilight wasn't too confident in such a large jump. However, Dash still pushed on.

"Just try. I want to fly as fast as I can to Canterlot after you teleport, and see if you actually did it!" Twilight rolled her eyes, willing to humor her friend.

"Okay, but prepare to be dissapointed." Twilight slowly channeled her magic, while the machine hummed louder; picking up the magic reading. Several sparks connected from the walls of the chamber to the tip of Twilight's horn. As every second went by, the machine buzzed louder, and louder. Applejack took a few cautious steps back.

"Whoa, nelly. Hold onto yer hats!" AJ took her own advice, and clasped her headwear. The sparks were now larger, and more frequent. Rainbow Dash was ready to take off as soon as the machine did it's job.

'Focus...Just a simple teleportation spell...' Twilight thought to herself. Once the noise had seemed to reach it's max volume, the machine jolted and engulfed most of the room in magic energy. Not even Rainbow had time to react as nearly the entire basement lit up like a giant firework. The deafening sounds continued for a few more seconds before it ceased immediately; leaving no trace that anything had even happened, other than the absense of three ponies. The door to the basement creaked open.

"Twilight? Is everything okay down there? There's an awful lot of noise going on........Twilight?"

Groggy, confused, and disoriented, Lee finally awoke. He was laying on his back, staring at the roof of the car. He moved to make the feeling in his limbs return, and then noticed the cuffs still on his wrists. His mouth felt dry.

"...ah...thirsty..." Suddenly, a seering pain shot through his lower body. "OW, Fuck! My leg!" He looked to see a deep gash in his right upper leg, bleeding rather profusely. Lee looked behind him, and noticed he was laying against the left hand back seat door of the car. Upon further inspection, he spotted the officer out of the shattered window, lying motionless on the ground.

"Hey! Hey officer! Are you alright?! I'm still cuffed back here!" As Lee might have expected, there was no response, yet he tried again, hoping to have someone come to his aid. "OFFICER! That doesn't look good. He wasn't ejected from the car..." He noticed the blood trail behind the cop, indicating that he could have been dragged. Lee turned his head back to the front, and looked at the opposite back seat door. "Looks like I'm getting out of here on my own." Lee readied himself, and kicked the window with as much strength as he could. A few cracks showed, encouraging him to continue. With a few more kicks, the window finally gave, allowing Lee to drag himself out.

Lee slid down the outside of the door, thanks to the car being off-balance. He found it extremely hard to stand because of his injury. His leg wouldn't support his weight, and he was forced to hobble his way around the car to get to the wounded lawman. After he was on steady ground, Lee noticed the officer's gun near the car, as well as a single shell. He didn't pay them much mind since his thoughts were focused on getting those chafing cuffs off. He limped slowly towards the policeman.

"Officer?" Still no sign of life. Lee walked until he stood over the poor bastard, and spotted the keys on the officer's belt. He took them, and attempted to free himself. However, Lee was still shaken up pretty bad, and in a moment of clumsiness, dropped the keys near the cop's mouth "Shit." He swore. Lee wasn't sure what it was, but something made him fearful to pick the keys back up. He had already assumed the officer to be dead, and didn't like the idea of getting that close to him. Lee hastily picked the keys back up, and gave it a second try.

After the cuffs were successfully removed, Lee rubbed his aching wrists in relief. Just past the focus of his own hand, Lee thought he saw movement from the lawman's hand. He then made out what he believed to be faint breathing.

"Uh...officer?" Without warning, the undead cop pounced, causing Lee to fall backwards, startled. "WHOA! HOLY SHIT!" Lee had no time to stand, and backed away as fast as he could. The officer, now turned monster, slowly crept towards Lee. "What the hell are you?!" Lee continued to back away until he hit the car. He remembered the abandoned shotgun that lay to his left. He leaned over to grab the weapon, and then looked for the shell. The walker was closing in. He spotted the shell to his right, and panicked as he attempted to load it. His fingers fumbled about, and the shell slipped from his hand. "Shit!" The walker was only a few feet away, snarling wildly. Lee grabbed the shell, and steadied himself as the single shot entered the chamber. He cocked the gun, and took aim.

"Don't make me do this!" The officer took no head to Lee's warning, and moved even closer; his eyes glazed, and lifeless. More foul wretched animal sounds escaped his mouth. In a horrifying combination of shock, fear, and panic, Lee pulled the trigger. The loud pop of the gun was coupled with the utter destruction of the officer's head. The entire area above the jaw had gone in each direction, leaving the walker to drag himself another centimeter or two, and once again, lay motionless. Lee noticed he wasn't breathing, and exhaled sporatically. He looked at the deadly tool he had just used, and shook his head in disbelief. After discarding the weapon, he stared at what was left of the lawman's face, while a steady pool of blood formed. He screwed up his face as he sniffed the air.

"Ugh...his skin's all rotton, and he smells like shit. What the hell is this?" Lee knew he was dead, but any rational thinking was anything but present at this moment. "Are you dead? HEY! ARE YOU DEAD?!" Lee didn't really expect a reply, but was still processing what had just happened. He looked away from the corpse, and spotted a figure past the trees, standing on a small hill. Excited to see someone alive, Lee tried to get thier attention. "HELP! Go get someone! There-There's been a shooting!" Lee watched as the figure slowly disappeared from view.

As Lee pondered what to do next, he heard rustling coming from the shrubs somewhere around him. He looked to his right, but saw nothing. As he looked to his left, he was mortified by what he saw. Two more walkers, making their way towards him. Adrenaline ran through Lee's body as he wasted on time in standing, making sure not to worsen his leg injury as he did so. Lee started to hobble forward, and didn't take his eyes off of the snarling creatures. Because of this, Lee tripped over the dead officer, giving the walkers time to catch up. Lee pushed himself to stand quicker this time, and paid for it as a fresh wave of pain shot through his leg. He limped hastily past the ground where the officer had originally been.

As he turned his head left, he was shocked to see even more monsters appear out of the woods, their complexion, and glazed eyes just as bad as the officers. He quickened his pace, and rounded a tree, where yet another walker sat. Both of his hands were missing, and he snarled like a rabid dog. Lee only glanced at him for a split second as he muscled his way up a small hill. As he neared the top, his leg gave out, and again he fell. The walkers were closing in behind him. Lee continued the rest of the way on his hands and knees until finally, he reached the top. A tall wooden privacy fence was yards away, and the walkers were even closer. Lee hobbled as fast as his legs would let him. If he wasted any more time, the creatures would have him before he could make it over.

He glanced back one last time, and saw more walkers then he'd care to count. At last he reached the fence, and used only his arms, and one leg to scale the boundary seconds before the walkers could get there. Lee thrusted himself over the top, and landed awkwardly on his rear. Still unconvinced that he was safe he backed up along the grass unti lhe bumped into the side of a patio. He cringed as he could hear the monsters pounding on the fence. His attention was brought to a few gunshots far off into the distance, and took it as a blessing since the walkers left him alone, and went in search for the source of the noise. Lee gave an exhausted sigh, and slowly stood. To his left was a sturdy treehouse, complimenting the rather large home next to it. He had found his way into someone's back yard.

"Hello? Anybody?"