The Trotting Dead: Unquiet Equestria

The Trotting Dead: Unquiet Equestria

As written by Joseph Raszagal
Book One – Finding Friendship
Chapter Three – Reunited

“There's no tour plan, no reunion, no new album... Nothing.”

~ ~ ~

“Will you guide me now, for I can't see
A reason for this suffering and this long misery
What if every living soul could be upright and strong?
Well then I do imagine...
There will be! - Sorrow!
Yeah, there will be! - Sorrow!
And there will be! - Sorrow no more!”

• “Sorrow” by Bad Religion

~ ~ ~

“Do y'all hear that?” questioned Applejack as she trotted along the outskirts of camp to peer over the edge of the hill.

Levitating a large hunting rifle to her side, Rarity took position next to the apple farmer and replied, “Hear what, darling?”

Taking a moment to steady the gun with her magic, the white unicorn narrowed her eyes and looked down the scope, quickly finding both questions answered in the worst possible ways.

“Oh dear,” she muttered quietly, her pale face bleaching even further.

“Ah don't much like the sound of that, Rare,” Applejack commented, unholstering a pistol with her mouth and tracking her aim down the hill as a precaution.

Far in the distance, magnified by the powerful series of lenses, Rarity carefully tracked a stallion carrying another pony as they fled in full galloping sprint from the largest hoard of trotters she had ever laid eyes on.

Stumbling back a few feet out of shock, the fashionista shook her head to regain herself and promptly shouted, “Everypony to your posts! We have two refugees incoming! And they've brought company!”

~ ~ ~

Thundering his hooves along the ground with all of his might, Shining Armor reached the hill and lost none of his steam in climbing up it, adrenaline coursing through him like a bolt of lightning as he dug into the loose soil and propelled himself ever onward. The mass of undead ponies following him fared far worse, the 45 degree angle and unstable terrain slowing their advance to a crawl.

Risking a look back behind them, Twilight saw the stroke of luck and shouted, “Shining, the incline is slowing them down! We can make it!”

“You're damn right we can!” he hollered back, gritting his teeth hard enough to make his gums bleed.

~ ~ ~

Far above the two fleeing ponies, at the top of the hill, a line of defense had been formed. Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and several others all stood with their weapons at the ready.

“Everypony, take aim!” commanded the fashionista, hefting her rifle. “Kill as many as you can, but be sure to keep clear from~

Trailing off as her scope zeroed-in again on the stallion and the mare on his back, Rarity's eyes widened in recognition and disbelief.

“Twilight!” she yelled, eliciting a series of shocked gasps from those around her. “Twilight and her brother!”

“That changes everything,” Rainbow Dash muttered around the revolver in her mouth.

Immediately, the defensive line opened fire, picking off the ten trotters nearest to the escaping pair. Spurts of blood and brain matter erupted from each skull as the charging monsters slumped forward onto their faces and fell.

“Shining, they're shooting at us!” Twilight screamed, closing her eyes and tightening her grip as the sound of bullets whizzing past them echoed in her ears.

Snorting, the sprinting stallion replied, “I don't think so, Twiley! There has to be a dozen of them up there! If they were trying to hit us, we'd be dead by now!”

True enough, the purple unicorn glanced to the side in time to see an undead pony's head burst as thee shots passed violently through it.

“Twilight!” shouted a pink speck from somewhere far above them. “Can your brother perform his shield spell?!”

Squinting as she fought to identify the owner of the voice, Twilight nonetheless questioned, “Shining, do you think you can bring up your shield?”

“They need to stop shooting!” he rasped, his chest burning under the stress of his charge. “The shots will bounce back on them!”

Turning her attention towards the steadily growing pink blob in the distance, the lavender unicorn yelled at the top of her lungs, “Did you hear that?! You have to stop shooting! The shots will ricochet back on you!”

A clamber from the top of the hill responded, followed seconds later by a sudden ceasefire. A dome of blue energy slowly began forming behind them.

“I don't know how long I'll be able to maintain this!” he shouted as he neared the defensive line. “I spent three days awake while trying to get into Ponyville, so I may not be able to hold out for much longer! Make sure they're as ready as they can be in the event that it falls!”

With that said, Shining stayed his course, thundering up the crest of the slope and leaping through a steadily closing gap in the shield he'd formed. Landing in a tired heap on the other side, the stallion grinned as he let loose one last pulse of magic, solidifying the dome permanently for the next eight hours. His task completed, he then closed his eyes and allowed unconsciousness to consume him.

“Shining, you did it!” cheered Twilight as she picked herself up off of her brother, wincing as her head throbbed in protest.

Lifting a hoof to rub a spot next to her left ear, the little unicorn looked down at Shining Armor, finally noticing his unconscious state.

“Shining?” she questioned, a tinge of worry edging her voice for a brief moment before the larger unicorn's breathing caught her attention. Sure enough, his chest was rising and falling in a steady rhythm, reinforced further by the heartbeat that she could hear as she placed and ear to his white coat.

Smiling, Twilight let out a sigh of relief and closed her eyes, quietly whispering, “Thank you, big brother. You brought me back from the gates of Tartarus today. Rest easy now, it's time for your little sis to protect you.”

Sniffing back several tears, the lilac unicorn giggled and shook her head as she watched the big stallion sleep, a goofy grin stretched across his muzzle.

“Twilight!” shouted four voices simultaneously, dragging her from her reverie.

Pivoting on her rear hooves, Twilight Sparkle stood with wide eyes facing a wall of color as it descended on her, cheeks stained a darker shade of purple as yet more tears flowed freely. Being crushed under a mountain of hugs was an inevitable fate that she joyously accepted.

She'd made it back to them. Her friends, comrades, fellow Elements of harmony, and for all intents and purposes, the rest of her family.

The weight of this realization overtook her and the hugs quickly became soothing words as the ponies surrounding her collectively cradled the sobbing mare.

“Buck Celestia sideways,” she thought to herself as she let it all go, “I'm not dead.”

~ ~ ~

Two hours and three cups of tea later found Twilight Sparkle a far more composed pony. A dull headache persisted in the background of her thoughts, punctuated every so often by an unshod hoof rubbing the spot that most wearied her.

“Shining said it was right there,” she mused as she enjoyed another sip of her tea, scooting a few inches closer to the campfire roaring before her. “I guess a headache's to be expected though. If anything, I'd say that's trotting away lucky.”

Performing a quick double-take, Twilight looked back at her hoof and grimaced.

“I suppose trimming a coma patient's fetlocks isn't very high on the priority list,” she muttered absently, rolling her eyes. “I've probably looked a lot better.”

Heaving a sigh, the purple mare turned her head and scanned the camp for what must have been the hundredth time. Applejack stood conversing with an older stallion that she recognized as Ponyville's optometrist, the latter shaking his head as he began to trot back to his scouting post above a large, fully enclosed carriage. The gray stallion rolled his shoulders as he mounted the big vehicle, brushing a stray strand of alabaster mane from his face and raising a pair of binoculars to his eyes. Below him, inside the carriage, Pinkie Pie could be seen through the windows dashing back and forth, her attention split between four bubbling pots of vegetable soup. Rainbow Dash hovered a few feet above the optometrist, a second pair of binoculars hanging from a leather strap around her neck and an expression of rapt attention dominating her face. The brim of a Wonderbolts-themed hoofball cap kept the last rays of piercing sunlight out of her eyes as she scanned the horizon for any signs of danger.

Shifting her focus onto a smaller carriage, Twilight's thoughts turned to the white stallion currently dozing in it. Nurse Redheart had reacted swiftly, rallying her friends and several other members of the camp to help get him inside and into a real bed. The Pip-Buck tied around his ankle had helped in confirming that he would indeed be okay, his vitals all displayed positively in digital green. The nurse had reacted to the unicorn siblings with a look of astonishment, later confiding in private to Twilight that she had been among the hospital staff to treat her after the attack. Blushing, the lavender unicorn thanked the mare, recalling brief and blurry scenes of a questioning pair of ponies that hadn't quite made sense to her at the time.

“Such are the joys of delirium,” she chuckled, wincing as her aching head announced that such activities were forbidden.

Scooting another two inches closer to the comforting flames, Twilight closed her eyes and basked in the radiant heat.

A niggling fear had started crawling up her spine ever since she sat down for her well-deserved rest and it was beginning to best her.

Scanning the campsite again, the purple mare gulped back a knot that had formed in her throat.

She was safe for the moment, alive and well, but still her coat stood on end as though sent through with a high voltage electric current. She'd successfully returned to her friends... all but one of them.

Butter yellow and soft pink passed before her eyes as she felt them misting over once more. The subject had been avoided every time she inquired, hastily changed and even outright ignored. However, it couldn't be averted for much longer. Twilight had to know.

Where was Fluttershy?

~ ~ ~

To be continued in Chapter Four – Acclimation to a New Situation...

~ ~ ~

Author's Game:

Guess the opening quote before the song lyrics!