//------------------------------// // Feeling the Madness // Story: A Dark Infection // by DawnedDusk //------------------------------// “NO!” Luna screamed. The blue alicorn was in a state of shock. Midnight was prancing around and flapping her wings in a state of madness, “I did it! I've won! Nothing can stop me! You're nothing Luna! All will worship me! I am god!” Luna pulled herself from off the ground and began to gather magic in her horn to use the teleportation spell. Once done, she used the spell to retreat from the monster. She arrived in her room which was perfect. If she were to appear in the throne room, the guards would notice her 'infection' and suspicion would arise. The mare raced over to her nightstand and began to search through the drawers. She had to find something to hid the infection on her leg. “Where is it?” she kept repeating. Finally, she had found it. The item was a small roll of gauge bandage. She levitated the roll with her magic and stared down at her leg. The black hue was spreading slowly. “I still have time,” she told herself, “I have time.” If the infection kept spreading at this rate, she'd probably would have fifteen or thirty days to find a cure since apparently her remedy didn't work. The mare began to wrap the bandage around her leg until she had covered it completely. After, she placed what was left of the roll into a saddle bag. She'd put other items in the bag as well such as food and her dark cloak. She placed the bag on her haunches before approaching her desk to write a few letters and use a simple spell to send them. The letters were to leaders of a few kingdoms. Luna knew that she couldn't do this journey alone. Finding a cure wouldn't be that easy, it never is. Luna trotted out of the door and headed towards Prince Blueblood's room. Without knocking, she barged in. “Luna, what are you doing in here?” he questioned confusingly, “You can't just-” He stopped and eyed her bandaged leg. His surprised look turned into a light focused rage. “What happened?” “No time to explain,” she trotted closer to him before finishing, “I need you to look after the kingdom for a little while. I have to go do something important. I know this is a lot to process right now, but I need you do this for me, okay?” The blue haired mare pranced over to a pair of double doors in the prince's room that led to his balcony. “Wait, what?” he asked. Blueblood followed her, wanting an explanation for her getaway. “Where are you going? What's wrong with your leg?” he kept questioning. The queen ignored him and stretched out her wings to take off. Before she could, Blueblood had wrapped his hoof around one of her legs this leaving her hovering in a air a bit awkwardly. His blue eyes stared at her solemnly. He demanded an explanation. Luna looked down, she didn't want to tell him. “Just trust me, okay?” she asked pleadingly. The stallion waited a couple moments to think before letting her go. Luna nodded a thank you before she flew off. Blueblood glanced in a few different directions, “Wait! Where should I tell them you've gone?” “Just think of something!” she called in reply before flying faster towards her destination, The Crystal Empire. The wind and snow were raging hard as she approached the hidden empire. It sat in the middle of the arctic and was guarded by it's cold. The mare's cloak was waving harshly in the wind. It made her vision of the fortress disappear and re-appear. She approached the barrier and stared at it closely. She was hoping the infection of the darkness couldn't stop her from getting through. She hesitated before stepping through. She was able to, but not without experiencing excruciating pain. It felt as if she were being squished between two heavy walls. Once through the barrier, she coughed up small pools of blood and threw up a small distance away from where she entered. Luna felt a bit dizzy but better then when she entered. She was arriving close to the center of the town, where the castle was located. At the entrance stood two guards, hopefully Princess Cadence had gotten her message and told them she was coming. She took a deep breath before approaching them. “Halt,” one of them ordered, “State your name and business.” Luna paused for a moment. She was worried if any of the empire's civilians saw her enter news would spread of her arrival. She looked to the floor, “I'm hear to see Princess Cadence.” “Your name,” the other asked. The mare frowned and removed the hood quickly before putting it back on. “The Queen,” she heard one of them say. Luna made a slight shush noise towards him. “Yes, I am sorry. Go right on in,” the guard said with the bow of his head. Luna trotted into the palace and made her way to the throne room. A couple of servants around the castle stared at her, but she ignored. Once reaching the doors that lead to it, she paused. She began to wonder whether asking her and Shining Armor for help was a good idea. She thought the same thing about it other rulers she asked. She gulped and shook her head to clear her thoughts. She pushed the door open and walked in. Princess Cadence and Shining Armor were ordering around a couple guards. Near the door, there were three saddle bags. This confirmed to her that they were coming with, but she didn't know who the third bag belonged to. “Luna,” she heard the pink haired mare call. The mare removed the hood and galloped toward the pair. “Thank you for-” she stopped and took notice to the mare's slightly swollen belly. She was at lost for words. Princess Cadence looked at the queen in confusion. It took her a few moments to figure out what the blue alicorn was staring at. “Oh,” the pink pony said as she glanced towards Luna and her own belly. Shining Armor stood next to her with a hardened expression. He's allowing her to go? Luna thought confusingly. “I can't possibly allow you to come with me in that condition,” the blue mare stated, “Especially while I'm like this.” Luna stared down at her infection. It had spread farther up her leg and was starting to appear in her chest. “I've already tried to stop her,” Shining Armor said harshly. He probably was arguing about it with her not to long ago. Luna could see that he was still a bit tense. Princess Cadence smirked slightly, “I lost Twilight. I'm not going to loose you. Don't worry about it, but I'll tell you that I'm bringing one of my guards with me along with Shining Armor. Who know when you could.. you know.” Luna nodding her head in understanding. The princess glanced towards the door, wishing to have a move on. “Flash,” Shining Armor called, “Time to get a move on.” A guard with orange fur and a blue mane nodded his head, “Yes, Sir.” The three gathered their saddle bags and followed Luna to the exit. Exiting the kingdom, Luna stared at the sky. Her heart stopped as she saw a image flash in her mind. The sky was dark with a red moon. She saw thousands of bodies lie as far as her eyes could see. They were in mangled conditions. There were a few ponies standing near the bodies, but she couldn't make out who they were. She could have saw more, but the picture flashed and vanished in a matter of seconds and it was all she could make out. Was this their future, or the madness beginning to take effect? She wished she knew, but for now she would have to endure the hell her mind was becoming.