The Trotting Dead: VG

Just a quick note, I've taken the time to go back, and read through the first two chapters to fix any dialogue confusion, or mistakes that I made. For those that pointed this out, thank you for letting me know, and I hope the revision is much more appealing.

E 1 Ch 3: Rock and a Hard Place

-Edited by Solar_Flicker

Lee took in his surroundings. The farm was much more surreal in the daytime. With nothing to do, Lee figured it would be best to check in with everyone, and maybe get to know them better, even the ponies. He scoped out Kenny and Twilight by the truck, and made his way over.

"And this part right here is the carburetor. It's job is to blend air and fuel in what's called the internal combustion engine." Twilight listened with undivided attention.

"If only I had a quill and parchment." She stomped in frustration.

"Hey there, Kenny. Uh, Twilight." Lee walked next to the open hood.

"Hi, Lee." Twilight replied. Lee watched as Kenny fiddled with the vehicle.

"Need any help?"

"Naw, I got it." Kenny shook his head in response and glanced at Lee. "Do you need any help?"

"What do you mean?" Lee raised a brow.

"I mean in taking care of that little girl. You know what you're doing? You got kids of your own?" Kenny probed.

"Nah, nah. No...no kids." Lee frowned. The thought of having kids made him think back to his wife, and the life they could've had.

"Don't feel bad. If Pinkie is capable of taking care of two little foals, then I'm sure Clementine there is in good hands." Twilight added.

"I can't say I know what you mean, but, thanks." Lee wasn't sure if that was an insult or a compliment. He studied the observative unicorn. "So, Twilight." She turned to face him "I uh...can't say we get a lot of talking animals around here. Where exactly are you and your friends from?"

"You know, it's kind of demeaning to be known as just a "talking animal." Twilight scowled; tired of everyone assuming her and her friends were mutes.

"Oh, uh...sorry." Lee quickly realized his mistake. Twilight let it go just as fast.

"Don't worry about it. To answer your question, my friends and I are from Equestria."

"Can't say I've heard of it."

"Not surprising. Our presence here is a complete mistake, and for now were just waiting here until we can find a way home." She concluded. Kenny poked his head out from under the hood to speak.

"Yeah, she was telling me and my family about that place all night. Apparantly some mighty pony princess runs things there. They've got a bunch of mythical creatures that run around too." He motioned for Lee to lean in closer. "Sounds like something straight out of a five-year-old's head if you ask me." He whispered.

"I heard that!" Twilight gave them a dirty look.

"Hey, Lee. Could you hand me that open end there?" Kenny pointed at the toolbox near Lee. Lee bent to pick up the tool, but pulled his hand back as the wrench began to levitate.

"What the hell?!"

"Here, allow me." Twilight grinned. Kenny watched as the wrench floated softly into his his palm, and gave a befuddled look at Twilight. "What? It's just a levitation spell." She stated confused by their amazement. Kenny looked at Lee, then back at the unicorn, still wearing the same look. He shook his head, and gave a nervous laugh.

"Well, shit. Ain't that nifty." He rotated the bewitched tool a few times, and went back to work. Almost everything Twilight did or said seemed to produce more questions than answers.

"So that levitation stuff. Can they do it too?" Lee pointed his thumb behind him, indicating Twilight's friends. The mare shook her head.

"No. Only unicorns can perform magic." A blunt enough answer, but Lee figured there wasn't much more to it.

"Oh. So what else can you do?" He crossed his arms, and Twilight smiled at him.

"Lots of stuff. teleport, alter physical form, grow facial hair, etcetera." She rotated her hoof. 'Facial hair?!' Lee thought to himself. 'What would horses...' He cleared his head of the strange notion, and thought it better to just take her word for it.

"...I see." He brought his attention back Kenny.

"So, Kenny, what's your family's plan?"

"Get back on down to Lauderdale and let this mess get sorted out. Government will start handing out shots and the national guard will do it's thing. On the odd chance things got too bad, we could hop on my boat, I guess." Both Lee and Twilight were intrigued.

"You've got a boat?" Lee asked.

"I'm a commercial fisherman, catching mackeral, dolphin, whatever's biting and paying. Katjaa wouldn't be wild about it, but the boat's not that bad."

"Can you tell me more about your government?" Twilight's eyes twinkled, she was beyond eager to learn.

"If it's okay with you, missy, I'd rather just worry about this truck for now." She frowned from the denial of knowledge.

"I could give you some insight. I use to be a history teacher up at UGA." Lee happily offered.

"Really?! Okay, I'm listening." Twilight jumped up gleefully. Kenny sighed as Lee began his lecture.

Meanwhile, Applejack and Shawn were dead set on getting the fence built. Duck was helping in his own special way by sitting on the tractor, and pretending to drive it.

"So, Shawn. Kenny over there kind of gave us an idea of what y'all have been dealin' with the past couple a' days. You really think this fence will hold'em off?"

"Well, it's most of what I could scrounge up from our lumber supply. After some extra fortifying, we'll have this place locked down." He replied, glad to finally be making the farm safer.

"By the way Kenny described'em, if I didn't know any better, y'all sound like yer dealin' with zombies." Applejack took the hammer with her mouth, but was still able to talk coherently. "Where I come from, that kind of stuff is just make believe. I guess things are a whole lot different here."

"Y'know, I actually don't think that's too far from home. But, it used to be that these kind of things were make believe to us as well." AJ looked at him perplexed.

"Well then, how did it get to be the opposite of that?" AJ looked at him perplexed.

"I wouldn't be able to tell you." Shawn stated simply. "I'm just doing what any sensable person would do. Be cautious, be smart, and be there for others." AJ admired the farmer's selfnessness.

"Still...Zombie humans, Ah can't hardly imagine." Her attention zoned away from the fence as she imagined Shawn as a zombie. She scared herself, and immediately dropped the thought. "But just last night, Kenny was talkin' about some military force comin' to take care of this mess. Is something like that really gonna happen?" She asked. Shawn looked at her again, his expression not showing much hope for any kind of military rescue mission at this point.

"You don't understand how bad it is, Applejack. You only got here last night. I...I saw a guy in Atlanta kill a kid. A boy. Just shot him right in the face." Applejack's complexion lost color. While she wasn't familiar with guns, the word 'kill' was what she understood. She was ready to start on another set of nails, but stopped.

"Just...up and killed him?" She asked, not sure if she was going to like the answer.

"Yeah." Shawn grimaced.

"But why? Was the boy...one of those things?"

"I don't know. He was either attacking the guy, or asking for help. He didn't even hesitate. He just turned, put the barrel of the gun right between the kid's eyes and pulled the trigger." Shawn's own words made him sick, as the sight was burned into his brain. "You don't see things like that. It's not like in the movies." He concluded. AJ put her hammer down, and wiped the water from her eyes. Pity, and remorse enveloped her, but what was worse was that with all that Shawn had revealed, she couldn't keep from picturing Ponyville in the same kind of horror. She forced herself to think of something else before she went too far into her troubled thoughts, and imagination. Wishing she could have done more to help, she walked over to Shawn, frowning.

"I'm uh...sorry that something like this could happen to y'all. Trully, I am."

"Well, don't be. You've been a great help with this fence. And don't worry. I'm sure you, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash we'll find your way home before things have a chance to get out of hand." Shawn didn't care to see her upset, and fixed it by changing his mood.

"Thank ya kindly, Shawn." AJ smiled, thankful for his friendliness.

"Alright you two, enough chit chat!" Duck barked with a playfully authoritive tone.

"...And that's basically how the U.S. government works." Lee finished up, proud of his degree on the subject.

"Fascinating." Twilight let herself stare into space, while she did her best to mentally record every detail that was given to her. When Lee figured he'd lost her, he brought his attention to Kenny.

"So, Kenny, how's your son doing?" Lee hadn't taken much time to get to know Kenny's family, and Kenny appreciated his interest.

"Good, I think. Katjaa's got a sister up in Memphis; we were coming back from visiting her. We were in a gas station and some guy grabbed my boy." Kenny poked his head out from under the hood. "I thought he was kidnapping him. I was on the fucker in about two seconds and... Christ. Just lucky I was there."

"Was it one of the...what did you call them...walkers?" Twilight, already out of her trance, put a hoof to her mouth, worried for Duck's well being.

"Yeah, but like I said...thank God I was there." Kenny cringed at the memory.

"I'm so sorry. You talked a lot about what kind of monsters they were last night, but I had no idea things were that bad." Twilight felt about the same pity that AJ had.

"Don't fret. You and your friends there only got here yesterday. Just be thankful you haven't even seen one of those things." Kenny continued his story. "We saw a lot of bodies before we stumbled upon Hershel's. But we're a tough family. Ain't nothing gonna faze us." Both Lee and Twilight admired Kenny's determination. Lee turned his head when he heard Clem, Kat, and Dash laughing together on the porch. The uplifting sight and sound was enough to make him smile.

"I'll catch you guys later." Lee waved to the pair and they waved back as Kenny moved on to the next piece of machinery, the unicorn watched silently. Lee stopped midway, and remembered one more thing that he wanted to ask. "Hey, Twilight?"

"Yeah?"

"How did all of you end up here anyway?"

"Uh, well...it's kind of embarassing...actually..." A mild blush showed on Twilight's cheeks as she tried to hide her humiliation. Lee cocked his head, still waiting for an answer. Twilight smiled sheepishly. "Um...maybe ask Rainbow or Applejack. They'll tell you." He was even more curious to find out now as he shrugged and turned to leave. Lee spotted Shawn and who he assumed to be Applejack, working on the fence, as he made his way over to the porch. The trio turned their heads as he approached. "Hey there, girls. You three actually look relaxed." He joked.

"What's there to be stressed about? It's a peaceful day, and when Twilight's done messing around with Kenny, she's gonna start working on a way to get us home." Rainbow stated as she rested her head on her hooves.

"I think we're doing just fine. Clementine was just telling us about first grade." Katjaa added. Lee was happy to get to know Clementine.

"Oh, uh, how is that?" He asked. Clementine shrugged.

"It's easy." She said matter-of-factly.

"Well, yeah." He replied with a grin, remembering the simple arithmetics of grade school.

"Oh, and Rainbow Dash was telling us about the time she performed the sonic rainboom!" Clem giggled.

"The sonic...rain...boom?" Lee, of course, had to ask.

"Yeah, it's like an explosion, and a shockwave, and a rainbow put together!" Clem did her best to mimick Dash's description, even using her hands to dramatize an explosion. The pegasus was amused by Clementine's fan-girl behavior.

"You know something, kid. I like you." Dash ruffled Clem's hat, and Clem smiled as she re-adjusted it.

"Well, um, I gotta say Clementine, that's pretty cool." Lee added. "Sooo, you're all doing good?"

"Anyway, it's almost as if we didn't see people eating each other for the past three days. It's peaceful here, no?" Katjaa spoke. She was glad to have her family safe after spending so much time on the road. Lee looked at Rainbow Dash. Her bright cyan coat, and loud rainbow mane mesmerized him.

"Hey, buddy, take a picture." Dash scowled helping Lee to snap out of it.

"Oh, uh...heh. Sorry about that." Despite the now awkward atmosphere, Lee struck up a topic with her.

"So, Rainbow. Clem here seems to really like you." Dash smiled at the young girl.

"What can I say, she knows cool when she sees it." She boasted.

Lee smirked. 'Not very big on modesty, is she?' He examined the blue feathers that rested on her flank, making sure not to gawk this time. "So, your a pegasus, huh?" He wasn't too big on mythology or it's many creatures and hybrids, and wanted to make sure he knew what he was looking at. Dash gave him a funny look.

"Gee, what gave it away?" She said with playfull sarcasm, while flapping her wings.

"Yeah, and she's the fastest flier where she's from!" Clementine added.

"She's been entertaining us with all kinds of stories." Katjaa chimed in. "Her and her friends go on quite the few adventures where their from."

"Wanna listen to a few?" Rainbow offered, trying to enhance her crowd.

"Uh...Maybe some other time." It's not that Lee wasn't interested, he just had other things to worry about for now.

"Your loss." Dash shrugged, and went back to talking with Clem.

"So, Katjaa, what do you do when...corpses aren't walking around?" Lee poked fun at recent events to try and lighten the mood.

"I'm a veterinarian back in Fort Lauderdale. Like Hershal, here, except more with dogs and cats and not horses."

"Hey, yeah, how come you guys don't have just regular doctors for horses and ponies? What's the deal with that?!" She huffed, demanding a response. Lee and Kat traded glances, and tried to make up an excuse.

"Oh, wellll...uh you see, we uh...used to have regular doctors for horses but um...with all that's been going on the past few days...we just don't have as many doctors available to us, so...vets are the best we have. Yeah." Lee was lucky Rainbow didn't possess Applejack's BS indicator, or else his fib would have never floated.

"Uh huh..." Dash wasn't totally convinced, but didn't chase the issue any further.

"Nice cover." Katjaa whispered.

"So, what is it that you do, Lee?" Katjaa asked, getting back on track.

"I used to teach up at the University of Georgia."

"We have to hope that we can go back to our jobs soon, Lee. Back to normal. it can't stay like this." Kat's optimism was refreshing to Lee, but he did notice that she had missed a certain aspect of his.

"No, I used to. I was let go a little while back." Lee didn't care much for the memories, but saw no point in hiding anything more than that.

"That's too bad. Well, I hear people always clamor back to college after a big disaster. People don't want to die ignorant, I guess." Lee appreciated her understanding.

"Do ponies have jobs?" Clementine asked Rainbow, since they were on the subject.

"Oh, yeah. There's vendors, doctors, royal guards. Applejack runs an apple orchard, and Twilight's the local librarian." Lee looked back at Twilight wowwing Kenny with more telekinesis demonstrations.

"Heh, no wonder she's got such a knack for learning." Lee commented.

"What about you Rainbow Dash? What do you do?" Clem grinned, anxious to hear what a pegasus could do for a living. Rainbow tilted her head making a 'meh' kind of face.

"I'm on the weather patrol team. It's not really all that exciting." There wasn't much enthusiasm in her answer.

"Weather patrol?" Lee echoed. "Like...news anchors, and weather reporters?" Dash raised a brow.

"What? News anchors? On weather patrol, we schedule things like rainstorms, or snow fall when the seasons come around. Stuff like that."

"Wait, you mean...you control the weather?" Kat asked, and Rainbow nodded blankly. Katjaa and Lee traded looks once again, until they just let it slide off as normal. At least normal where the ponies came from.

"That neat! How do you make it snow?" Clem was loving everything about these other worldly equins.

"Trust me, kid, the job itself is pretty boring, you don't want to know all of the details, and science behind it." Dash chuckled. With another formality out of the way, Lee was interested in hearing Katjaa's version of making it to Hershel's.

"How did you handle getting through the city?" His tone carried worry and wonder, as he tried to imagine such a densely populated area being hit with something this infectious.

"Kenny just...drove. We passed so many people that needed help." Katjaa let her eyes rest on the ground, while she pictured every soul she had seen taken away during their escape. "And...we just...passed people, over some. Just...just." She almost sounded like she might tear up.

"It's okay. It's fine, you don' have to say anymore." Lee started to regret asking about it.

"I want to go home tomorrow." Kat continued. "But even then I can't take away the things we...the things Duck...went through." Rainbow leaned in.

"But, you guys will be okay. After spending an evening with you, knowing what you all went through, I'd say you guys are doing alright for yourselves, and things will just...turn out okay. They have to." Dash didn't know the half of what Kat and her family had seen, other than what they had told her last night, but didn't see any harm in trying to reassure her anyway she could.

"Thank you, Rainbow. That's sweet." Katjaa smiled her thanks. She sighed, and looked back at Lee. "Don't you want to go back to the moment before you knew about all of this?" She pondered, hoping someone would share her feelings. Lee did his best to archive every good moment that he ever had before any of this. Every 'I love you' from his wife. Every friend he knew as a kid, as well as an adult. His family in the small town of Macon. All good things.

"Anybody in their right mind would. Families and BBQ's and beers with good friends." He could only think of the most generic examples, but they all still outshined what was happening now.

"All of those things." Katjaa added.

"Those are the things we live for, right? With those gone, what's the point?" Lee concluded.

"What about your family, Rainbow?" Clem once again bounced the topic onto Dash.

"Oh, well, I haven't seen my parents in quite some time ever since I got my own place in Cloudsdale. I still keep in touch, but I usually invest my time hanging out with my friends."

"Don't you miss them?" Lee pressed.

"Of course I do. Wouldn't you miss your parents?" Rainbow sounded slightly angered.

"I still do, and I didn't mean anything by what I said. I was just curious." Lee gave her a stern look.

"I know you didn't." Dash softened her gaze. Lee realized he had yet to talk to Shawn since last night. He figured he'd still be working on that fence.

"Well, It was nice meeting you Kat, Dash." Lee nodded to them. "I'm gonna go find Shawn."

"Say hi to AJ for me." Dash stated as he walked off. Lee rounded the corner of the house to find Shawn along with an orange pony sporting a ten gallon. He noticed she bore no wings, but wasn't sure if she was a unicorn thanks to her headwear. Lee walked closer and noticed Duck sitting atop the tractor, dry steering like a pro.

"How you doing, Duck?" Lee asked as he passed by.

"Good! I'm gonna drive the tractor!" He spoke with all the avidity in the world. "I'm the foreman! Lift with your back, Shawn!" Lee moved around to examine the progress of the fence.

"Um...you guys need any help?"

"Nah, me and AJ got it." Shawn responded. Upon hearing a new voice, Applejack ceased her work, and turned around to meet and greet. She met Lee's eyes, and held out her hoof.

"Well, howdy, partner!" Upon hearing a new voice, Applejack ceased her work, and turned around to meet and greet. She met Lee's eyes, and held out her hoof. "Name's Applejack. What's yers?"

"I'm Lee, nice to meet you, Applejack." Lee was more than happy to meet another friendly face.

"Likewise."

"I won't take too much of your time, just thought I'd get to know everyone better." Lee explained.

"Well, that's mighty neighborly of ya, Lee. Um...what would ya like to know?"

"Uh, well, I've already met your friends, and it seems you guys are either a pegasus or a unicorn. You hiding anything under there?" Lee pointed at her headwear.

"No horn here, pal. Just your usual hard-workin' earth pony." AJ smirked as she removed it. Lee found it ironic that of the three different ponies, the only one that couldn't use magic or fly, was the one who seemed to be helping out the most.

"So, no magic or nothing?" He asked. AJ shook her head in response.

"But don't worry, I'm just as capable of helpin y'all regardless." She turned back for a second to admire her end of the fence.

"Rainbow Dash told me you owned an apple orchard. Being a farmer of sorts must be why you're so handy." Lee also guessed that was where the accent was coming from.

"Yep. Grew up there with mah brother and granny. Ah also got a lil sis waitin' for me back home. You got any siblings of yer own?" She asked.

"I got a brother up in Macon. He's with my parents."

"Shawn was tellin' me how widspread this thing was. I can only hope that they're okay." AJ sympathized.

"I appreciate that, I'm sure they're doing okay, too." Lee smiled. Applejack walked past Lee, and looked around the corner of the house. She returned shortly after.

"That youngin' over there yer daughter?" She tilted her head past the house.

"No, I uh, found her alone. I'm looking after her until we find her parents."

"Do you know where they are?"

"For now, we only know they're in Savannah." He frowned. Lee turned around to examine the hefty part of the fence. "The fence is coming along great."

"Thanks to Applejack." Shawn chimed. "She's been outworking me ever since we got started on this."

"As you can hear, Shawn here is quite the flatterer." Applejack joked as she returned to her tools.

"Hey, I give credit where credit is due." Shawn laughed. Lee remembered another thing that Twilight had told him.

"Say, Applejack, I asked Twilight earlier how you all got here, but all she said was was to ask one of you."

"Oh, she's just a tad embarrassed that's all." Applejack looked at him, and rolled her eyes. "Ah don't even understand why, it was kind of all of our fault."

"Why would she be embarrassed, what happened?" Lee continued.

"Ah won't bore ya with the details. Basically she was showin' us how she could enhance her magic spells, and uh, let's just say that the teleporting demonstration was a little too...amped." AJ snickered at the mishap.

"So, you guys sure you don't need help?" Lee offered again.

"Thanks, Lee, but me and Applejack got this." Shawn declined. "Although if you see my dad, he might want some help in the barn." Lee turned to leave, but not before giving his thanks.

"Hey, Shawn, thanks again for the ride." Lee turned to leave, but not before showing his gratitude.

"No problem, Lee. Couldn't leave you behind." Shawn smiled.

"I'll see you around, Applejack." Lee waved.

"Later, Lee." She waved back. Lee took the short way back to the barn past Kenny, Kat, and everyone else. He walked in to find Hershel forking hay. Hershel caught Lee out of the corner of his eye.

"How did you get out of Atlanta?" Hershel asked as he continued his work. 'Great, more interrogating.' Lee thought.

Twilight had been listening intently since Kenny had started woring on his truck, but every now and again she would stop to ask him about materials she would need to start building a replica machine to send them home. Dissapointment and worry were starting to set in anytime Kenny had no idea about a certain material, or if he replied saying there wasn't much of a different component left to salvage. Twilight slowly began to realize that the possibility of a quick way home was becoming hazy.

"Hey, Kenny, I'll be right back. I need to go have a quick word with my friends."

"Okay, I'll be right here." He replied as he leaned in far to get to the back of the engine. Twilight trotted over near Clem, Katjaa, and Rainbow. She beckoned Dash with the nod of her head.

"Back in a sec, guys. Twilight needs something." Dash hopped down from the porch. Twilight did the same motion for AJ.

"Shawn, Twilight and Rainbow Dash need me for something." She set down the extra lumber she had been carrying.

"Alright, I'll keep going here." Applejack left to join her freinds who sat at the opposite end of the fence from Shawn. "Ahm here, what's up?" AJ asked. Twilight scratched the back of her head.

"I um, sort of have some bad news. Turns out that finding the right constituents to make a copy of my invention may be much more difficult than I anticipated." Twilight laughed nervously and scratched the back of her head. Applejack and Rainbow shared uneasy stares.

"So, what? We'll be stuck here a little while longer?" Dash asked.

"Um...Actually. We might have to put our hopes into somepony noticing that were gone, and helping us get back." Twilight twiddled her hooves.

"Horse apples!" Applejack exclaimed. "How long do ya think that'll take?"

"I...don't know..." Twilight lowered her head.

Despite being honest about how he got out of Atlanta, his family's whereabouts, as well as how he came across Clementine, there was still something about Lee that rubbed Hershel the wrong way. Hershel rested his pitchfork in the straws, and approached Lee.

"Can I give you a piece of advice?"

"Sure." Lee replied.

"I don't know who you are or what you did. Let's say things don't get better back in the cities, or they get worse before they do. You're going to have to depend on the honesty of strangers if you're going to make it. And if those same people get to questioning yours, you're going to be in trouble." Hershel warned. Lee didn't let Hershels's words conflict with his conscience, seeing as how he had been truthful since he arrived at the farm. "But at least you have the common sense to listen to a man giving you advice." As Hershel finished his lecture, the sound of an engine starting up followed by painful yelling hit their ears.

"What the?!" Lee ran out of the barn.

"GO! I'll get my gun!" Hershel shouted as he ran inside the house. Lee sprinted past the porch and towards the fence where Shawn and Duck were. As he rounded the corner, he saw Twilight, Rainbow, and Applejack who also ran to investigate the noise. As they reached the fence, a duo of walkers hungrily reached toward Shawn through the unfortified parts of the fence. As desperately as Shawn struggled, he couldn't budge since Duck had accidentally started up the tractor and ran over his leg, pinning him.

Duck looked down at Shawn, unaware the accident he had just caused. Seconds later, another walker appeared from the tall grass beyond the fence. It snarled rabidly as it grabbed a hold of Duck. Both Duck and Shawn were now calling out for help, while Lee tried to decide who to save first. Clementine stood several feet from the tractor, petrified. Lee was grateful to Shawn, and pretty much owed him his life, but couldn't bring himself to let a child be taken. He ran to Duck's aid. The ponies watched as Lee grabbed onto Duck, and attempted to pry him from the walker's grasp.

"C'mon!" AJ yelled as she tended to Shawn. The farm pony held out her hooves, and Shawn squeezed them tight, terrified for his life. Applejack used every ounce of strength she had to push back with her hind legs, but to no avail.

"My leg is stuck under the tire!" He shouted.

"On it!" Dash replied as she hovered at the front of the farm vehicle. Using her wingpower, she heaved and strained at pushing the tractor off of Shawn, while AJ continued to pull. Although Dash's wings were some of the strongest in Equestria, the mass of the tractor proved too great. Twilight could do nothing but stand frozen in fear at the sight of a walker. They were just like humans, but substantially grotesque and animal-like. She caught one's gaze and backed away as she saw that a lifeless white glare was where their eyes were meant to be. Applejack noticed her hesitation.

"Twilight! C'mon, we need yer help!" She bellowed.

"Snap out of it, Twilight!" Dash added as she continued to force the tractor in vain. The unicorn shook her head, and watched as her friends struggled to help the trapped human. She let go of her fear and fascination of the primal creatures, and sprung into action. Twilight moved next to the tractor. A dancing purple aura enveloped it as Twilight struggled to move it with her magic. One of the walkers brought their attention away from Shawn to take a quick swipe at Applejack. The orange pony slipped from Shawn's grasp, and stumbled away from the attack, but she immediately got up, and dove back in to help.

About this time Kenny had arrived, and aided Lee in saving Duck. Kenny grabbed onto his son, while Lee took the opportunity to wallop the offender, making it release it's grasp.

"I got you!" Kenny held tightly onto his son, and backed away from the fence.

"Kenny! Lee! Help them!" Shawn pleaded referring to the eqiunes. Kenny looked at Shawn and then to Lee while he slowly made his way for the safety of the house. Ultimately, Kenny decided against helping Hershel's son as well, and took off, making certain his own kin was safe. With the combined efforts of Twilight, and Rainbow, Shawn was nearly free from the tractor's weight. Lee rushed over to help, but too much time had already been wasted. Just as Shawn's leg came free, the few boards that held the fence together collapsed, allowing the walkers to fall onto Shawn's lower body. Applejack had pulled Shawn a small distance, but could do no more as one of the monsters sank their teeth into Shawn's leg. The second walker went straight for Shawn's neck as he cried out in agony.

The crunching sound of bone tearing flesh made Clementine and the ponies cringe in disgust. Hershel had arrived with his gun a few seconds too late. His heart beat cold as Shawn's struggles became weaker. He raised his weapon, and fired; the blast making the ponies flinch. One of the three walkers took the first shot to the head, and fell over, dead for good. The other looked up and growled at him. Hershel scowled, and pulled the trigger again. The walker's skull and gray matter painted the solid part of the fence. The ponies thought they were going to be sick. The third walker stumbled toward the opening in the fence, but Hershel wated no time in dispatching it.

With the threat gone, Hershel set his gun down, and looked over his son's mortal wound. Shawn was still clinging on to life; his own blood, as well as the walker's, stained his clothes and face.

"I'm okay, pop...I'm okay." Shawn rasped, obviously in shock.

"I can fix you, don't worry, we'll stitch you up." Hershel tried to reassure Shawn and himself.

"It almost...almost got me, man." Shawn's delusional state was only making it harder for Hershel to cope with what was happening. "Applejack and her friends...they tried to save me." He wheezed.

"I know, son." Hershel replied tearfully.

"I..." Shawn gave his dying breath, and the yard was quiet save the still running motor of the tractor. Hershel leaned in closer, hoping to find any sign of life. He laid his head next to his son's and wept. Kenny had reluctantly returned, hoping there was something he could say or do, but his presence was beyond unwelcome at this point. The ponies wept alongside Hershel, witnessing death for the first time. Hershel sat back up, and thought about his son still being alive. His sorrow, and regret was now being replaced by anger and blame. 'He could have made it.' Hershel thought spitefully.

"Get out." He said barely above a whisper. When no one responded, Hershel stood and decided to make himself more clear. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!" His hateful tone made everyone shrink back.

"I'm sorry." Kenny muttered.

"SORRY?! Your son is alive, you don't GET to be sorry!" Hershel spat. "And YOU!" He turned on Lee. "You didn't even try to help!" Lee looked at Duck, who hid behind his father.

"I was worried about the boy." Lee explained.

"Look at him." Hershel reminded Lee of his deceased son. "You weren't worried about that." Hershel then glanced at the three ponies that stood to his right. "You three tried to help him, but these pieces of shit let him die." Hershel glared at Lee and Kenny. Twilight stepped forward, with her head hung low.

"It's my fault, not theirs. I...didn't react quick enough."

"You still did more than THESE cowards." Hershel countered. "Please, just go. Get out and never come back." Hershel turned back to his boy, and mourned. Lee walked over to Kenny, hoping the offer for a ride still stood. Kenny and Kat glanced at Clem, knowing Hershel's farm was no longer a safe haven.

"You've got that ride to Macon if you want it." Kenny stated.

"What about us?" Dash asked, as her and her friends trotted over.

"We don't have anywhere else to stay, and I don't think we'll be finding a way home if we aimlessly wander around." Twilight pointed out.

"I don't know. Duck didn't seem that important to you when he was being attacked." Kenny held no hard feelings towards the mares, but wondered if he could count on them to look out for his family.

"Ya gotta believe me, Kenny. It weren't nothing personal against Duck, we just figured Lee had everything under control. Shawn had no one to help him." AJ made her case.

"Please let them come with us." Clem added. Kenny saw the pitiful look in the ponie's eyes, as his conscience drove his decision.

"Alright, fine, let's get going. Everyone in the truck." Kenny sighed. He and Lee took the front seats, while Katjaa, Duck, and Clementine sat in the back. Twilight, Rainbow, and Applejack rested in the bed as Kenny started the engine. They pulled away from the fence, and out of the dirt drive way. The ponies glanced back at the farm, scarred by what they had witnessed during their time there. With the walker threat steadily rising, this would surely not be the last of what they all would endure.