Awakening

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Where Did Everypony Go?
Based of http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FvXznPl1J8 "September" by The Living Tombstone
Fanfiction Written By: Dracoliat

I can't remember,
What happened in september

Awakening

Dear Diary,

It's been a few days since the sun stopped going up and down. I miss the sunset, and the gorgeous colors that went with it. Now the sun just sits there, giving off a meager, gray light, all day, all night. I still haven't the slightest clue what happened to everypony, but today I found a dead filly. She was laying there on the streets, completely still and cold. Her eyes seemed to stare into the sky, her skin stretched unnaturally tight over her face. Her image haunts me, even when I close my eyes. This is the third body I've found since the beginning of the month, and I'm starting to run out of food. I might have to swallow my pride and go in somepony's house to see if there's any food. I just hope nopony else will miss it; September 5th.
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Dear Diary,

The water around here is disgusting, I'm traveling along some river right now and it has soot floating at the top. The water is unbelievably cold, but, luckily, not cold enough to freeze. On another note, I found some food in a large house in the last town. I couldn't sleep last night, I don't know why. No hints as of yet as to what happened to everypony. But I found more bodies, I went into the big house and there were ten skeletons laying together. There was literally nothing left on them except for ash and bones, luckily they had some food in protected metal can things. I should probably start keeping inventory, I'll start that now.
2X asparagus bushels.
1X pound of hay
3X roses
1X small bottle of water.

Future Reference: The water is much cleaner near the bottom, apparently, soot floats. So if you sink the bottle near the bottom you'll get much cleaner water. September 9th (I think)
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Dear Diary,

I've lost track of the date, since the sun doesn't go up or down anymore, there's no indicator of time. From now on I'm going to use my diary entries to keep track of time. I still can't seem to sleep, but I'm starting to get used to it. The river I'm travelling along is just leading me nowhere, but when I set up camp I could see the faintest lights ahead of me. Maybe not everypony is dead after all. I've stopped paying attention to the bodies, I have to, or I'll lose my mind. I stopped counting how many dead I saw after about a hundred or so, but I still can't get that image of the dead filly from my head. I have a single bushel of asparagus left, so I'll have to go and get some more soon. I hope to be able to reach the lights ahead before I have to setup camp again. As a final note, I'm getting really lonely, I'd even settle for a bunny for a companion.
Journal Entry #1
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Dear Diary,

I arrived at the lights a few days ago, it turns out it was just another village on fire. On the bright side I managed to scavenge some food from the community storehouse. I also found a map in somepony's house along with a few pencils. I have a rough estimation of where I am and my next target is a city apparently called Canterlot. It was marked with a big star which said capital, so if anypony knows what's going on, they'll be there. My insomnia is getting better, or at least not really affecting me anymore. I spend about 3/4 of my time, or what I think is 3/4's, walking. The rest I sit and lay staring at the rolling gray plains above. Also it seems colder than before, I'm probably getting a fever so I had to start a fire. This was way harder than it sounds, since most of the stuff was burnt, but I found a tree and some matches. I had to strip the bark from the tree, and light it. The one good thing about this world is that, since the ground is already burned, every fire will burn itself out eventually.
Journal Entry #2
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Dear Diary,

I'm on my may to Canterlot, however it turns out it's not me that's warmer. The sun seems to be dying, each day it gets the tiniest bit darker and colder than before. Yesterday it rained, it felt amazing, all the soot that had gathered on me was washed away and I managed to fill all of my bottles. Now, that I think of it why am I writing this? Nopony will probably ever read it, and it won't help anypony. Why am I still alive anyways, everypony else is dead, I don't think there's anything I can do about it. But I have to keep moving, maybe something in Canterlot can tell me what happened.
Journal Entry #5 ( I forgot the first two journal entries)
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Dear Diary,

My hooves are killing me, I was walking along the road, but there was a small hole I didn't notice. My front left hoof went in unexpectedly, and bent. I can't walk because of the pain right now, so I decided to set up camp. My food is getting alarmingly low, and it looks like I'm only half way to Canterlot. My saddle bag is beginning to fall apart, so I need to find a way to fix it soon, or find another way to carry everything. The rain from a few days ago was a double bladed sword. It made the roads all wet, and since this is a small dirt road, at some parts, I've had to trudge through the mud. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, except I can't afford to use any water to clean up. Even if I could, the sun wouldn't dry me, and my bark ran out a while ago. The only thing ahead or behind me is road, the river diverged from the path earlier today, I tried climbing to a hill and finding it, but I can't. I have to get to a source of water soon or risk going thirsty.
Journal Entry #6
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Dear Diary,

My food is out and my hoof is badly swollen, it hurts whenever I put weight on it so I have to hobble along on three hooves. I'm almost to Canterlot, my water is very low and I've resorted to drinking my own urine before drinking some more water. The dirt around me is starting to develop a thin layer of frost on it, which is good for me. As soon as the frost gets thick enough I might be able to get some water from it. The closer I get to Canterlot, the better I feel, I'm going to walk longer tomorrow. Also I'm saying tomorrow, but that word doesn't really have any meaning to me anymore. It's just whenever I get to restless to lay down anymore. I stopped earlier today to drink a bit of water, but when I looked at my hoof it shocked me. Hard callouses covered it and a few chunks of my hair was falling out of it.
Journal Entry #7
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Dear Diary

I'm so close to Canterlot, I can see it on the horizon, I'll arrive before I next set camp. By the way, right now my water is completely empty, as is my food supplies. But I've already gone too long without food, so I plan on eating some of the soot covering the ground. There must be something good in it, and the frost will give me some water. There is one bright side to this shortage, I don't need to use the restroom anymore. My mouth is so dry, it feels like my tongue is taking up all of it. There are storm clouds gathering above, I really hope it's going to rain soon.
Journal entry #8
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Dear Diary

I've finally gotten to Canterlot and will explore tomorrow, but today I feast. I found a huge amount of food in a big stone guardhouse near the wall. There's bread and cheese, butter and toast, even some water. This water has a really weird smell and taste to it, but at least it helps. I'm going to make this place my house for the time being. My hopes are high for this place because I saw a light in the upper city. However the temperature has gotten so cold I need to have a blanket around me. I also ditched my old saddlebags in favor of this strong new one. I almost feel like I'm at home, eating dinner at a table, except my only guests are skeletons. Something weird happened before they died however, they're all in unnatural positions. Like they were panicking, whatever caused this has an insane power. I just hope it's still not around.
Journal entry #9
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Dear Diary

Something bad was in that water, I have a terrible headache and have been feeling dizzy all day today. I went down to the river to get some better water only to find it frozen. Luckily I could smash through the ice with a hoof, my injured hoof is also doing better. I finally managed to get some sleep yesterday. My stomach was more full, and it was dark, which scares me. If it keeps getting colder and darker, I'll die eventually. But I found plenty of blankets and some lanterns in my new home. My hoof is still drying off from when it reached into the river with the bottle, it's starting to get kind of blue. So I'm going to start a small fire to warm up, my food is in plentiful stock, but I should still ration myself. No more over indulgence like last time, it also turns out that when you don't eat something for a long time, and then you eat a lot fast, you'll puke it back up. Good to know, so I didn't get much from the meal yesterday, except of course this headache. I threw out the tainted water from the guardhouse.
Journal entry #10
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Dear diary

Today I went to where I saw the lights a few days ago. The lights were all off and broken, they already had dust on them, so I doubt it was recent. Something was off, there was no furniture there or anything to show anypony had ever lived there. I went back to my house disappointed until I saw somepony looking straight at me from the street. It was a unicorn, it's fur was black with soot, and it's mane was black too. I ran after it, but I couldn't find it anywhere. At least I know somepony else is alive, or I'm just going crazy. I guess I'll have to search elsewhere for clues as to what happened, but before I go I'll visit the castle.
Journal entry #11
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Dear diary

I saw the black unicorn again, he was standing on the steps of the castle, but when I blinked he had disappeared. I'm not sure if it's a he or a she, but for simplicity, I'm calling it a he. Inside of the castle was an absolutely gruesome scene. I was wondering where everypony was in this town, they must have all been in the castle. Hundreds of skeletons were just laying there, all huddled together. Some still had skin on it, I hate to say this, but I took the bones that still had skin on it. It might save my life for later, but it may kill me as well. Farther in the castle I found a fresh corpse, or relatively speaking anyways, it's a giant unicorn pegasus creature. It's mane has several shades of gray in it, it seems the cold preserved it. I spent most of the day wandering around the castle, but nothing else of interest was found. Except for a second unicorn pegasus thing, this one had a moon on it's flank, I decided to leave the majestic creatures like that. On a more grim note, my blanket is now, not just a nice thing to have, I have to have it. I am beginning to see my breath in the air and it is still getting darker. But the moon is not rising, neither are the stars, I hope something stops this somehow. I know it's impossible, but if one can't hope, what does one have? I read that in a book from the palace library. It was one of the few books not completely burned, and that line was one out of only a handful, I was planning on scrawling them down on a piece of paper. But when I was ready, I accidentally, sneezed, the book fell apart and there were too many ashes to find the legible pieces. My food is beginning to dwindle. After I get some water, I'm planning on heading to a small town named Ponyville not too far from here. I doubt there will be anything there, but it will help me by being a waypoint to Manehatten.
Journal entry #12
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Dear diary

I don't have much to write today, I got some more water before heading off. I didn't see the black unicorn, but it's darker now. Significantly darker than any other day before, the path ahead is more difficult to see. I've resorted to having a lantern lit while I walk. I stuffed my saddlebags to capacity with food and water, but it still might not be enough. If I don't find food in Ponyville, I will be hard pressed to live. I also still need water, but luckily the sky is clearing up. I don't know why, but as the frost gets thicker, the sky gets clearer. I stopped in the middle of the road, a blanket huddled around me, and a small lantern beside me for heat. Without my lantern or blanket, I won't survive two days. I know this much, I will die eventually, it's getting darker every day and colder. I didn't even set out that long ago, yet the water is already frozen, if this keeps up, I might survive a year. Food is in plentiful supply in big cities, but bottled water, which is much more important, is in very short supply. Soon enough I won't be able to crack the ice anymore, and then I will die. I hope I can find out what happened before that.
Journal entry#13
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(Authors note: Yes, I know the formatting becomes messed up, this is intentional, do not hate because of it. Also most of the grammar mistakes are intentional due to him being in a threatening environment where he's struggling for survival, proper grammar, in a diary nopony will ever read, is the least of his worries.)

Renewal

View Online

When everything is gone,
when it’s dark and I’m alone.

Renewal

Dear diary

I’m so cold, one of my blankets got wet this morning when it began to snow. On the bright side, I managed to catch some snowflakes and by breathing into the bottle they melted. Carrying water became impractical a few days ago, when the water began to freeze. Luckily there is a layer of snow on the ground now that I can melt in the bottle above the lantern. I got as much water out from the blanket as I could, but it will probably be useless. I’ll keep it as a possible bandage for anything later. Other than that, the journey is monotonous and cold. I’ve already been traveling for about two day things, and I’m already half way to Ponyville. I should be there after two more days of travel. My food is low, like it always is, and Im alone.
Journal entry#14
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Dear diary

Ponyville is in ruins. Most of the town has been reduced to rumble. I found a tiny bit of food and immediately headed towards Manehatten. It looks like Im getting closer to whatever did this, I just hope it’s not hostile at me. I don’t know if I have enough food for the journey, I will have to hope that more is available in Manehatten, which is about ten days away. I remember hearing once that we can eat our own hair if we truly need to, but if I did that I’d freeze to death. My blankets are keeping out the cold for now, but the days are getting harsher, and a small breeze is beginning to blow constantly. It would be more accurate to call the day, nights now. If my guess is correct, and I hope it’s not, the breeze will begin to become more extreme, like everything in this world. If that’s the case I’d need to find cover and fast, all the soot on the ground could easily be picked up by a wind.
Journal entry#15
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Dear diary

The walk to Manehatten is going terribly. The small gust has picked up to a light wind in only four days, I need to pick up my pace if I want to survive. The ashes have begun blowing onto the road, making it more slippery, that combined with the fact that falling would make all my blankets wet makes for a bad situation. That means if I fall once in this, I will, most likely, die. My lantern is starting to glow less brightly, I think it’s running out of fuel. That means soon it will be almost completely dark. I have to get to Manehatten within the next few days, or it will go out, and not even the blankets will protect me from the cold, or the wind. I don’t mind being out of food, it only makes me walk faster.
Journal entry #16
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dear diary

My lantern went out and I’ve reverted to drinking my own piss again. The only other way I can get water is eat the snow. I’m getting colder all the time, so that is a bad idea, since snow is cold. It should only take me three more days until I reach Manehatten, but I can’t survive three more days like this. My hoofs are aching and blue, and my stomach is roaring in protest. I need to keep walking, I can’t take anymore breaks until Manehatten. Either I get there in one day, or I’ll die.
Journal entry#17
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dear diary

I made it, I made it to Manehatten, I quickly found an apartment building where I scavenged it for every scrap of food I could find. But I remember last time, I only ate a single bread roll, and I’m having enough trouble keeping that down. I drank a single bottle of water, and that was trouble to, I first had to find fuel for my lantern. I’m thinking ahead now, and bringing a few bottles of fuel for it. Even though I’ve only had one piece of bread, and a tiny amount of water, I still feel like a king. But there is bad news, I looked in a mirror, and at first I thought it was the crack in it. But it turns out, my fat reserves are completely gone, I can literally see the outline of my ribs right now. I found every single blanket on the entire first floor and put them all into one nice comfortable pile on top of me. I’m finally warm, after all this time.
Journal entry#18
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dear diary

Today I went to explore the rest of Manehatten, this place is enormous. There are hundreds of buildings around here, so I figure there would be at least one survivor. I was right, there’s exactly one survivor, me. The wind seems to be picking up even more, gusts of wind are picking up the soot around here and causing a storm. It’s completely black now, I don’t think I can go out anymore. If this keeps up, the soot would kill me from the impact. In the distance I can see a giant black cloud heading towards us, so I barricaded all the doors and windows. Covered every place I could, now I can only wait and hope things get better. On the bright side, the lower amount of air coming in means that it is slowly warming up in the building. I hope I have something else to say later on.
journal entry#19
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dear diary

The tiny particles of dust, soot, and ash are assaulting every part of the building. I can’t sleep any more due to the incredibly loud noise they make. But something is different now, I could have sworn the storm was louder yesterday, and it was darker. I hope I’m right and the wind dies down and the sun comes back again. By the way, I found a clock and counted the days since I began staying here, it’s been more than 30 days since my last journal entry. No news from that entire period.
journal entry#20
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dear diary

I was right, thank goodness, it’s becoming lighter every day. The wind is slowly dying down, and soon it will be safe to go outside again. I never thought it would happen, I guess this is the new pattern. A slow decrease in temperature and then a slow increase in temperature. However, since it got so cold, I hope it doesn’t get that hot. I can only wait now, however the water is becoming easier to unfreeze, that’s good. My food is running low, despite my tiny rations, if it doesn’t clear up soon, I’ll have to go through the storm.
journal entry #21
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dear diary

I had a dream last night, and I can’t help but think it has to do with this entire chain of events. I was in a dark room, a loud humming noise was coming from down a flight of stairs. I walked down the stairs and found a thick metal door. Naturally, I opened the door and found a huge array of strange cylinder shaped objects. All having the same humming sound around them. On the far edge of the room was a blue paper, but as I tried to get closer to see what was on it, I woke up. I think I’m just being paranoid, a dream can’t cause this. My food should last for a few more days, and by then it will be safe to exit, I hope.
journal entry#22
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dear diary

I found some more food and water, also I’ve decided to set out for a city named Fillydelphia in the hopes of solving this mystery. But I have come to terms, chances are, I will eventually run out of food, and will die. Even more likely than that, is I will never find out what happened to this world. I do remember one thing that might lead me to the truth. That black unicorn, but I haven’t seen it since leaving Canterlot. Maybe I’ll spot it at Fillydelphia, I hope so. Every night now I have that recurring dream, only it doesn’t seem to be a dream. It’s more of a memory, but I can’t remember anything after that until waking up in this hell hole. I leave on the 5 day journey tomorrow.
journal entry#23
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dear diary

The journey goes well except for that hoof I injured a long time ago, it’s inflamed again. I don’t know what’s wrong with it and it hurts so bad, again I have to walk on three hooves. It’s still a bit cold out, but not nearly as bad as before. That combined with a large amount of food should make this an easy trip. I never thought I could miss the color gray so much, that is until I lost all the colors. I’ve decided that after this trip, I’m going to see if I can find the place from my memory, I’m sure it’s related. The blankets that I have keep out what cold is left pretty well, my coat of hair has also grown back, which may be more of a curse than a blessing. Eventually I will have to shave myself completely to survive, not looking forward to that.
journal entry#24
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dear diary

Wow, 25 journal entries already, as I read back over them I find something strange. A lack of quality, slowly I can see myself slipping as I make more an more mistakes, I guess that’s what happens when you are alone in a wasteland. My mind seems to be slowly slipping away from me, the info I had from before all this becomes harder to call on every passing day. I wonder how long until I can’t call on any of it. I just realized a sad fact, I don’t know my own name. Something is really wrong here, even more wrong than is normal in this time. Also, it’s only one day until Phillydelphia, but I’m feeling weird.
journal entry#25
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dear diary

Fillydelphia, looks decimated, it’s almost nothing but ashes. I don’t know what happened here, but it can’t be good. I don’t dare go any closer than the very edge, there’s something in the back of my mind telling me not to go in there. I’m staying here for the night before going to another town, Appleloosa if I’m not mistaken. Recently it seems like I caught a flu from somewhere. I’m coughing and puking all over the place, luckily I still have enough food for the journey to Appleloosa. It will be close, but now that it’s warming up and becoming more light, I don’t need to eat as much to keep my temperature up.
Journal entry#26
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dear diary

I got another flashback of memory, I was in the same room as all the other times, but this time I could see somepony putting on a bulky suit. It looked really heavy on him, however he didn’t seem to care. His hoof pulled open the farthest away cylinder object and pressed a red button. The humming slowed down before stopping altogether after a few minutes. His hoof reached into the machine and took out a single, shiny, gray cylinder. Under his suit, he had a big smile on as he examined every angle of the strange object. Obviously satisfied he put it on a table, and that’s the most I can remember. Yet I know this, I’ve seen these cylinders before, somewhere other than my memories. But my main worry right now is how sick I am. I’m vomiting occasionally, I have terrible diarrhea, along with a skull splitting headache. After I got these symptoms, I decided to move a bit farther from Fillydelphia, just in case it’s the problem here. But my mind can’t stop wandering, what was that suit for, and why does it all look so familiar.
journal entry#27
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dear diary

I’m on my way to Appleoosa, it’s only a two days journey from here. I’m so glad for that, my symptoms aren’t letting up and I can’t shake the feeling it would have been much worse if I had gone into Fillydelphia. When I get to Appleloosa I plan on finding some food, hopefully, and sleeping. My food is, yet again, beginning to run low. Honestly, I have absolutely no clue why I’m headed to Appleloosa, sure I need food, but Manehatten has guaranteed food, and only a few days more. Oh well, I’m already on the way, so I should stick to my path.
journal entry#28
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dear diary

think i might have found the entrance to the place in my memories. I was on my way to appleloosa and stopped for a moment by a giant boulder, i saw a tiny red button so i pressed it. The front of it slid down revealing a metal passageway, I think I might finally be close to finding out exactly what happened to this world. Inside the metal corridor I found the suit the colt was wearing. I should probably put it on when I go in. I’m camping out here for the day, tomorrow I’m going in, I hope there’s some food in there.
note to self: Look back on this entry later for any really bad grammar mistakes.
journal entry#29

Where Did Everypony Go? (September)

by Dracoliat

Awakening

Renewal