P23:4

by Hero541

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Tragedy
Length: 5676

10 years after the outbreak of a virus that caused the dead to rise again and attack the living, Twilight Sparkle's journal is discovered. It tells all about her life during the outbreak, and what she had to do to survive in a world of the dead.

Nopony saw it coming, but when it arrived, it was too late to stop it. The dead own Equestria now, and every day is a fight for survival. Twilight Sparkle was there in the early days of the outbreak, and witnessed firsthoof all the horror and destruction that was caused by the living dead. This is her journal, telling all about her experiences when it all began, and the tough decisions she had to make in order to stay alive.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-04-16 18:13:16 UTC

Prologue: To Whom it May Concern

P23:4

By Hero541

Prologue: To Whom it May Concern

Ten years. It's been ten years since it all began. Since I lost most of my friends and what little family I still possessed. They spread so fast that by the time we all knew what was happening, it was too late to stop them. They reproduced faster than we could ever hope to take them out, and most of us simply accepted that our time would come soon, and we would join their evil ranks. I'll never forget the day it all started, when this fear and panic began to spread and the dead took over Equestria.

It was slow at first. We had heard some news about ponies going crazy and trying to kill their families and friends, but we just passed it off as some sort of rumor. No pony with half a brain, no matter how crazy they were, would even dream about brutally murdering another. It wasn't until we began to hear about them trying to eat those they killed that we became worried. Not too long after it began to escalate, my parents began to panic themselves, and considered moving us out of town, as far away from civilization as we could get.

However, we never had the chance to leave. In only a matter of weeks, the dead began to show up here, most of them fairly fresh, ready to bite others and spread their evil plague. Most ponies didn't know how to spot the dead, and it wasn't until they were bitten that they understood it all. By that time, it was already too late, and they soon joined the legions of the undead. Luckily, my parents caught on quickly, and made their way to the nearest shelter they could, Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack and her family gladly accepted those who were looking to stay safe from the hordes, managing to take in Rarity, Sweetie Belle, Fluttershy, and Pipsqueak and his mother, Rose Blossom.

We were safe from the dead most of the time out there, only occasionally seeing one in the field, which Big Mac and Applejack would quickly dispose of. However, things in Ponyville were a living nightmare. We dreaded ever having to go on supply runs into town, and more than once we had an extremely close call with one of the undead. Pip almost got his leg bitten off by one when we went to Sugarcube Corner to grab some more food. Rarity was able to think quickly and used her magic to jam a knife in its head, which then revealed to us that the monster was actually Mr. Cake, who had obviously been trapped in the confectionery once he was turned.

If things in Ponyville were bad, though, things in Canterlot were worse. Almost the entire city had fallen victim to the dead. Even Princess Celestia, one of the most powerful ponies in the world, was ripped apart by the dead and eaten. Nopony knows what happened to Princess Luna though, and a few have reported seeing an undead alicorn with a gray coat and moon-shaped cutie mark around. Canterlot castle itself had been abandoned as well, having been overrun by the dead. Almost everywhere in Equestria, the living dead had taken over, even Cloudsdale, which was extremely odd, considering undead pegasi weren't really able to fly. All over Equestria, the dead ruled, and they still do today.

Like I said before, it's been ten years since it all started, and there are only a few of us left here on the farm. Granny Smith died long ago, an extremely hard loss to take for us all. Big Mac was bitten by one of the dead, but we managed to save him by cutting off his leg. He and Applejack are still around, but they are too broken mentally to really be what they were before. My parents passed away long ago as well, which just made already shattered world I live in even worse to have to bear. Rose Blossom and Pip were devoured by the hordes on a supply run about a year ago, and Sweetie Belle died from complications of giving birth to her and Pip's foal, a little filly I named Dash, after Rainbow Dash herself.

However, this isn't about me. This is about Twilight Sparkle, whose journal I found in her library when we were searching it for supplies one day. The tale of everything that has happened since the dead took over is too hard for me to truly tell, and I'm feeling all the pain of these last ten years as I write this now. However, Twilight's journal tells everything one could ever want to know and more about what it was like in the early days. I'm not sure if anypony will find this letter in the future, but I hope they will, along with this journal. We're preparing to move on, to another place in Equestria where they're saying it's more safe. I leave all this here so whoever finds it in the future can know what truly went on when this all began, and can know what it's really like to be afraid of the dead.

Sincerely, Scootaloo

Part 1: Rumors

P23:4

By Hero541

Part 1: Rumors

September 15

Hey journal! It's been a long time since I've written anything down in you. Things have been kind of busy lately, and I barely have time to even think, let alone actually write anything that isn't a friendship report to the princess. Speaking of which, I got the strangest letter from her today. It said that there's been some weird things going on in Equestria, that ponies all over have begun to act kinda... off. She didn't say anything more about it though, except to tell me not to worry about it, that her guards were looking into the disturbances, and that it would all be sorted out soon enough.

Anyway, about my day. I had to go over to Rarity's so she could fix up my Gala dress (I kinda... like to wear it a lot, and I tore it a little when I was walking around in it last time). While I was there, she and I sat and had some tea, talking about all sorts of things, from a few of her customers she'd seen that day, to Spike, who was still back here sorting some new books. After I was done at Rarity's, I grabbed Spike and headed over to Sugarcube Corner to get some lunch with Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. Pinkie joined us for a little while too, and we just chatted about all kinds of things.

Though my day was great, I can't help but be a little put off by the princess's letter. I want to ask what these "disturbances" are, but she did say to not worry too much about it. Well, the princess hasn't ever steered me wrong before. Maybe I'm just over thinking things. If she says it'll be fine, then it'll be fine!

September 19

Today was rather... boring. It was pretty rainy all day, and my friends were all busy, so I just stayed here and helped sort out the last of the books. Once Spike and I were done with that, we decided to play a few board games to pass the time. He always manages to beat me at Dragons and Ladders! I don't know how he does it. Maybe he's cheating...

Anyway, I took another look at the letter the princess sent me the other day. I'm pretty good at judging the writing of a letter to see if there's anything fishy going on, so I perused it again and again to see if I could notice anything. It seemed alright, but I still find myself wondering what exactly these disturbances could be. However, the letter doesn't say anything more than to not worry about it. Then again, it may be a good idea to ask her about it a little more, just to be safe.

September 20

I'm getting a little bit worried now. I sent a letter to the princess asking about the disturbances today, but I haven't gotten a reply back yet. That's not like her. She always sends a reply back almost as soon as I send the letter off!

Perhaps she's just busy... That has to be it. I shouldn't be so worried. She did say it'd all be okay, didn't she?

Anyway, today was also pretty boring, which didn't help me to stop thinking about the letter and whatever the disturbances may be. All I did today was help sort another shipment of books from Canterlot. I didn't even get to stop and read any of them, because there were so many boxes to sort out. Living in a library is great, but having to do stuff like that all day can be pretty... dull.

Oh well. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Maybe I'll get a reply finally.

September 21

I FINALLY got a reply this morning from the princess. She said that the disturbances were, to say the least, pretty disturbing. However, she didn't say anymore on it, merely telling me that these were isolated incidents, and that there was nothing to worry about. I felt just slightly better, knowing a little bit more about it. I was fully prepared to leave it alone, having had at least something answered.

However, my curiosity was piqued a little more once I got into town today. I was with Fluttershy in the market square, helping her gather some ingredients for a recipe, when I overheard two ponies talking about some issues that were occurring in Manehatten. When I asked them about it further, they said that there had been some pretty ghastly murders there, and that the victims almost always were disemboweled or ripped apart by some sort of animal. I prompted them a little more, but they both said that there wasn't any more information than that, and that it was all hearsay anyway.

Once I got home, I grabbed a book on dangerous creatures to try and figure out what could have killed those ponies so brutally. After searching through about five different books, I narrowed it down to three different sort of creatures. I'll have to send off a letter to the princess and ask her about what it could be, and if what the two ponies said is really true.

I sent off my letter a few minutes ago, and got a reply pretty quickly. Looks like I'm headed to Canterlot tomorrow. I'd better pack so I can stay overnight if I need to.

Part 2: Genesis

P23:4

By Hero541

Part 2: Genesis

September 22

I spent most of the day in Canterlot today. Once I got there, I went to see the princess as fast as I could.To be honest, she was looking less... regal than she usually does. Her mane wasn't as flowy as normal, and she looked like she hadn't been sleeping well. As soon as I arrived at the castle, she took me into her throne room and we talked about the disturbances that had been occurring. I was shocked to hear that it wasn't just in Manehatten that this was all going on, but that it was all over, from Baltimare to Las Pegasus and everywhere in between.

From what she could tell, each incident was almost the same every time. The victim was always brutally mutilated, often times being completely eviscerated or torn apart. There were always bite marks on them as well, almost like something tried to eat them. When I asked what kind of animal could have done such a thing, she just sighed and teleported us both to the labs where they were performing several autopsies. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, and I vomited all over the floor once my vision became clear again.

On the table in front of me was what was once a pony, only its chest cavity was torn open, as well as its abdomen and head, and there were several organs missing. All over the two legs that remained, giant patches of flesh had been torn away, revealing bones in some spots. Even the face had giant gashes in it, each one about the same size and shape. The princess took me away from there as fast as she could, because neither one of us could stand to see such a gruesome sight anymore. Once we were back in her throne room, and I was able to calm down and stop shaking long enough to form a coherent sentence, she told me all about what the autopsies had revealed so far about each victim.

From what she and the team could gather, there wasn't any animal around that was capable of being that cruel and brutal, and that even a rather large teenage dragon, a manticore, and three griffins had been found looking almost like that body in the lab. Again, I asked her what it was that could have done this, if it wasn't any other creature. It was then that she revealed to me that the bite marks on the bodies were that of a pony. If my head was spinning before, it was going insane now. I asked her how that was even possible, how any pony could do such a horrible and gruesome thing.

She stopped answering my questions then, and simply told me to go and get some rest, saying that it was probably better that I didn't know exactly what was happening. I tried again and again to get her to talk about it further, but she just told me to go and talk to my brother, that he would have all the answers I needed. I'll have to do that, once I manage to relax a little more. I can only imagine what my dreams will be like tonight after seeing that corpse...

September 23

I went over to my parents house earlier today, because if there's one thing I needed after yesterday, it's to see them. Mom and I just sat and chatted for awhile, talking about what it was like in Ponyville, how my friends and Spike were, how Dad and Shining Armor were. I decided not to ask them if they knew anything about the disturbances and murders being committed all over. Most likely, they didn't know anything, and probably didn't want to have to be informed about this all.

After awhile, Shining Armor and Cadence came over, and the five if us all went out to lunch at a local cafe. To be honest, it was unbelievably nice to be able to relax and just spend some time with my family for the day. It's moments like these that make you truly appreciate what you have. With what I saw yesterday, I get a feeling that I may have to really relish the feeling...

Anyway, I managed to catch up with Shining before I left for home. I asked him about what had been happening, and he turned extremely stern. In his usual big brother fashion, he just told me not to worry about it, that it's better I not know everything that goes on in Equestria. However, in my usual little sister fashion, I threw a small tantrum, telling him that I have every right to know what's happening if it means there could be a threat posed to myself or my friends and family. After a few minutes of me pouting (and because he didn't want to cause a scene) he told me the truth, or at least, what he knew of it. He said that yes, the murders were confirmed to have been done by a pony, but that it wasn't ever just one at a time.

I was confused by that, so he pressed a little further, saying that it was always large groups of ponies that would be attacking one, and once they'd heard the shouts for help, they'd arrive to either find a bloody corpse, or a pony surrounded by others. He hadn't been directly involved in any confrontation with these groups of ponies, but said that a guard reported that once he tried to stop them by stabbing one in the back with his spear. The pony hardly flinched, instead turning around and  breaking the spear before attacking the guard himself. More than one of his men had been bitten by one of these crazed ponies, and a few were now ill because of it.

After he told me that, he had to leave, so I couldn't ask him much more about it. I'm on my way back to town right now, and first thing tomorrow, I'm gonna go to the mayor and talk to her about this whole thing. I just hope she'll listen to me...

September 24

I can't bucking believe this! How can she be so thick! This is ridiculous...

Sorry journal. I'm just so... frustrated right now. I went to the mayor and tole her everything I'd heard about these incidents, and said that we ought to consider beefing up security around town in case something happened here. After I was done speaking, she just laughed at me! Right in my face!

She said that I was talking nonsense, that there was no way that ponies could be capable of such brutality, and that I was essentially crazy! I was so angry, I called her an ignorant old hag and stormed out of her office before I was tempted to vault over her desk and strangle her.

After that, I went to Sugarcube Corner to meet with Pinkie for lunch. As we were sitting there, I overheard a few ponies talking about the disturbances, saying that they'd now been occurring in Cloudsdale as well, and they were becoming worse and worse. I felt my heart drop into my stomach when they said that. Rainbow Dash is in Cloudsdale right now...

I don't know what's going to  happen here now. Nopony believes me, except Spike. I'm so worried for Ponyville. As far as I can see, these aren't just isolated incidents anymore, and it's only a matter of time till they start occurring here. I'm so scared...

Part 3: Panic

P23:4

By Hero541

Part 3: Panic

September 26

Rainbow came back from Cloudsdale today, which helped ease my fears a little bit. I asked her about what happened while she was there, and all she'd said was that there was nothing more than rumors floating around and that she never saw anything out of the ordinary. At first, I felt better hearing that, until I saw her right foreleg. It was bandaged up heavily and I could see a little blood oozing out of the wound below.

When I asked her about it, she said that she'd been walking around one night to take in the feeling of being back home again. While she was out, she saw somepony stumbling around and moaning a little. When she asked the mare if everything was alright, all she got was another incoherent moan before she rushed her and bit her on the leg. From there, Rainbow had just bandaged it up herself and was going to see the doctor the next day to make sure everything was alright with it.

As soon as her story was done, all I could think about was what the princess and my brother had said only a few days before, how all the victims were covered in bites and how anypony bitten by... whatever crazed pony was around would become ill very quickly. I checked Rainbow all over before we made our way back to her house. She seemed alright, though her cutie mark was slightly less vibrant that normal. She also was running a slight temperature, but she had just flown all the way back from Cloudsdale, so maybe her body was just very warm.

After we stopped by her house, she, myself, Pinkie, and Fluttershy all headed over to Sugarcube Corner for lunch. The entire time, I couldn't stop thinking about the bite on Rainbow's leg, and what that could mean. I'm very glad she's alright and that she made it home safely, but I'm so uneasy about this whole situation right now. Maybe I ought to just sleep it off for now.

September 27

I... it's... it's so horrible! And she still won’t believe me! And... and... Rainbow...

When I got up this morning, Rainbow was at my door, along with all the others. She was looking pretty sick and was running the highest temperature I'd ever seen in my life. It's a wonder she could stand considering how sick and weak she'd become in just one night back. I removed her bandage and looked at her wound to see it was heavily infected and was oozing pus and some sort of black, thick fluid.

We all told her she needed to go to the hospital, that her wound needed to be treated right away. Initially, she refused, saying that she'd be just fine without it and that all she needed was some penicillin. However, when she tried to stand up, she nearly fell over from her dizziness. We put her on Applejack's back and made our way to the hospital, none of us having a single idea for what we were about to walk into.

Almost as soon as we arrived, we heard frantic hoofsteps and loud voices calling around from all over. The entire hospital was full of ponies calling to one another, some with bites just like Rainbow's, and others were even crying a little as they sat there. A nurse greeted us once we made out way inside and asked what it was we needed. We said that Rainbow had a bite that needed to be treated, and the nurse turned whiter than I thought was possible. She asked if the bite was from a pony, to which we answered yes, and she rose from her desk to the back.

As confused as we were, we waited for her to come back, and she brought along with her a doctor. He asked the same thing as the nurse, wanting to know first what the issue was, then if the bite was from a pony. After we answered him, he took a look at Rainbow's hoof, looking almost like he was having trouble concentrating on the appendage. When I asked him why the hospital was so busy, he just gestured to Rainbow and explained that in only the last twenty four hours they had seen a huge explosion of patients, almost every one with a bite mark from a pony. Just as I was about to ask another question, a nurse rushed out from nearby and said that one of the patients was beginning to seize and his vital signs were dropping.

The doctor rushed after the nurse and I followed along, wanting to know once and for all what this was all about. Upon reaching the room, I saw a light tan pony with a blonde mane on the table. He was seizing violently, every part of his body shaking and his eyes were bloodshot beyond all belief. The doctor rushed forward to help the patient, but almost as soon as he reached him, the pony stopped convulsing and went completely still, his mouth wide open and his tongue lolling out of his mouth.

The doctor tried again and again to resuscitate the pony, only to fail cause no change in the vital's monitors. After about four minutes, he swore and kicked a nearby table in his frustration. I couldn't take my eyes off the body of the pony whose cutie mark had gone completely gray along with the rest of his body. As I looked at him, I heard a noise come from his mouth, which immediately caught the attention of the doctor who had been talking to the nurse about what they were going to tell this pony's family. He leaned forward as close as he could, putting his ear to the pony's mouth, listening intently for the sound of breathing.

Almost as soon as he'd leaned down, the pony lashed out and bit hard into the doctor's face, causing him to scream in agonizing pain. The nurse with him rushed over to get the patient off him, only to worsen the situation. When the doctor finally was able to break away from the patient, a huge chunk of his face was torn off and the pony began to eat it ravenously. All I could do was watch in horror as the pony slowly sat up and looked all around the room, moaning loudly.

His eyes were milky and held an empty stare. The cutie mark on his flank had faded to a gray patch of fur, and his coat was becoming more and more light, almost as if the blood in his body had stopped flowing. He looked around till he saw the nurse who had begun to tend to the doctor and lunged for her. She screamed loudly as his teeth sank into her shoulder and tore away a huge chunk of flesh

The nurse tried her best to fight him off, kicking and punching him, attempting to force him away from her. She never noticed that the doctor had begun to seize behind her before going limp. I threw something at the pony, managing to draw his attention from the nurse. Slowly, he began to stumble towards me, moaning the whole time. I panicked and picked up a scalpel, jamming it into his chest. I looked on in horror as the pony didn’t even flinch or scream, continuing to make its way over to me.

I turned and ran away as fast as I could, making it out just as a security guard ran up to see what had happened and what all the screaming was about. As he arrived, I looked past him and saw the doctor on the floor reach out and bite the nurse again, causing her to scream even louder as blood flowed from her neck. I never got to see what happened next as I ran back out into the lobby, tears in my eyes the whole time.

When I reached the others, I told them all that we needed to get out of here as fast as we could and get back to town to warn the mayor. They asked what had happened, but I never answered. I was still in so much shock from what I had just seen. As we made our way out, a few more security guards began to run around as more and more agonized screams could be heard from all around the hospital.

Almost as soon as we made it back to town, I told the others to head for their homes and stay inside no matter what. Pinkie took Rainbow and headed for Sugarcube Corner, since Dash wasn’t able to fly a whole lot right now. I tried to explain to the mayor what I had just seen, about the pony who had seemingly died and returned to life to attack the others in the room, and tell her that Ponyville seriously needed to be secured before things got worse. Again, all she did was laugh in my face and say I was insane and that there was no possible way that something like that could be happening, that the dead couldn’t just return to life like that.

I was so frustrated, that I just ran out and headed back here. I have an enchanted barrier up to keep us safe for now, should anything happen. Spike has all the windows boarded up and the front door barricaded as well. I’m so afraid right now, and I just pray that this is all just some sort of horrible dream I’m having right now...

...Wait a second... What's that noise? Is that... screaming?

Part 4: Outbreak

P23:4

By Hero541

Part 4: Outbreak

September 27...

This is Spike, Journal... Twilight’s too upset to write right now, but I figured I ought to continue this time if she’s not able to. It’s hard to concentrate with all the moaning from outside, but at least most of the screaming from earlier has died down... It’d probably be better if I didn’t use the word “died”, huh?

So, anyway, right after Twi’s last entry earlier today, we started to hear screaming from outside. When we went to the door, ponies were running all around, going crazy and trying to escape from the horde of zombies that were making their way into town. A few ponies had fallen, and it was only a matter of seconds before the dead got to them and tore them apart. Everywhere we looked, zombies were chasing after ponies and biting them or ripping into them, making their blood pool on the ground along with their entrails. All we could do was watch in terror as all around us, more and more dead began to show up and devour our friends and neighbors.

A few of the dead headed for the library, and Twilight began to panic, not knowing how to kill them. This panic caused her to accidentally lower the barrier she had put up before. As quick as I could, I ran inside and grabbed a knife, giving it to Twi and telling her to hit them in the head. She shot the knife at the nearest one and broke through its skull, causing a sickening crunch and making the zombie collapse to the ground. I had a knife myself and I did the same as her, stabbing the nearest one in the head and making her collapse before she could bite me.

Together, we were able to fight off the zombies for a short time and head back inside the library. I peered out the window and saw still more all around. One had managed to tackle Carrot Top and hold her to the ground. She was fighting it with all her might, but eventually it caught her hoof in its mouth and bit down hard. She screamed in pain and three more dead got to her, each one biting down and taking a significant chunk of flesh.

In no time at all, they each had bitten so far into her stomach that they were in her abdominal cavity and began to munch on her intestines and other organs, covering themselves and the ground in her blood. By the time they were done with her, all that was left was a horribly mutilated carcass and a pool of blood. And that wasn’t the only one, as all over there were corpses and body parts of what were once ponies that had been mangled and torn apart by the zombies.

Twilight tried to pull me away from the window so the dead couldn’t see me, but I didn’t budge. It wasn’t till I saw Pinkie and Rainbow outside Sugarcube Corner, trying to fend off the dead with Mr. Cake that I moved at all. Twi had seen them too, and began to panic even more. She debated with herself for quite some time as to whether or not it would be a good idea to go out there and help them. I didn’t say anything, mostly because I still couldn’t believe what was happening around Ponyville.

Finally, she made her decision and told me to stay here and not to open the door for anything till she made her way back. I agreed and she opened up the entrance just as three more zombies made their way in. Twilight panicked and shot her knife too far, missing the zombie’s head by an inch. The dead mare was on her in a second, trying to bite her. I jumped on its back and stabbed it in the head as the other two tried to bite Twilight too.

Thankfully, she managed to throw those two off herself and get her knife from outside, turning and killing them both in a hearbeat. I knew there’d be no way she could go out there, so I called to Pinkie and Rainbow from the entryway. They both saw me and began to make their way over. Pinkie turned back to see Mr. Cake still fighting off the zombies as he headed back into Sugarcube Corner. She tried to get him to follow her into the library, but he just told her to go and that he’d be alright. She never had the chance to plead with him again as a zombie crossed in front of her and tried to bite her.

She panicked and kicked it hard in the head, making its brains fly out the back of its skull. Rainbow, as weak as she was, still managed to pull the pink pony along as more zombies began to converge at them. I watched as they made their way to us and stepped inside. As soon as they were in, I slammed the door shut and a few zombies began to pound away on the front, trying to force their way in. We heard a huge explosion from outside and I went back to the window to see Sugarcube Corner in flames. Pinkie screamed and began to sob as she watched the confectionary burn, most likely with Mr. and Mrs. Cake and the foals still inside.

Twilight had to hold her off and keep her from running back to the shop where the dead were now headed. After a few minutes of trying to get out and risk the horde, she finally collapsed and began to wail loudly. Twilight and Rainbow joined her in only a matter of time and they three are still crying right now. None of them can believe what’s going on right now, and I can’t either. But, at least we’re all safe... for now.