Winter wrap up wasn’t really hard, but the only catch was that no unicorns or humans are Able to use magic. I grumbled at my predicament. I decided to help Applejack with plowing the fields. Twilight wasn’t making it easier on me.
“Sorry, Twilight, but you need to find your own way. I can’t help you every second of the day.” I said giving her a light kiss. “Do something to help... without magic. I can’t use mine , you can’t use yours. Understood.” She nodded discouraged.
“Okay, just be careful.” She said before I disappeared into the cold winter day.
My coat was made by Rarity for snow days. My other one was going to get in chanted so it was fire proof. She made this cloak and the underneath as well just incase. I had my pistol and blade only.
I was surprised to find over fifty ponies there. I began to push the plow with some good results. I had good progress. I went from marching to walking to running. I was close to sprinting. Even though I was running I never deviated from the strait path. When I was out of breath, I found that I had moved a lot.
“Hey, caramel. How you doing?” I asked slightly winded. He was in the snow coughing and wheezing for air.
“Screw you asshole.” He quipped. We shared a laugh at the playful insult. “Seriously, I need water.” I helped him up.
“Hey Applejack, where’s the water.” She turned to me and cupped her hands around her mouth.
“Over here. Just come over.” We make our way over slowly.
“Where’s Twilight?” I thought she would be here by now.
“Dunno, I haven’t seen her all day.” I nodded and informed her I was going to find her.
I didn’t have to look far as I found her in a snowman. I covered my mouth to stifle laughter. Spike didn’t try to hold it back. I only made it worse.
“Wow, Twilight. You take chilling out to a hole new level.” Spike got even louder as he howled in laughter.
She glared at me and I pretended to look scared. She caught on and stopped. I helped her and Pinkie out of the frozen prison. Pinkie was in charge of cutting the frozen lakes to get them to melt. We walked a bit. As we passed Rarity, she was working with... what ever that is (or was). Rarity did something as I wasn’t paying attention to her as I didn’t care as much. We passed Rainbow as she was leader of the weather patrol. Giving heat to all the crops and melting the ice. Last pony we past was Fluttershy. She was in charge of waking the animals from hibernation.
“Enjoying yourself, Twilight?” She playfully hit me in the arm. I gripped her hand as she did the same. Not soon after, caramel ran up to me.
“Hey, John. We found somepony wandering into a barn on the field. If it’s dangerous, we want you to do it because, we’ll that’s obviously.” I nodded.
I booked it to the farm. Twilight and caramel following close behind.
“You two stay by Applejack.” I commanded. They nodded as I approached the large barn. I removed my pistol from its holster. I entered the barn, gun up and ready to shoot. I found somepony in the middle of the barn. It was dark but I brushed it off. “Hey, come over here, now.” They didn’t budge. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
They get up and turn to me. My eyes widened in shock as I noticed the white skin. The blood pouring out of the mouth and eyes. And the blood soaked hands. A weeper, here. Even worse, it’s human. I aim the gun and fire. The bullet tour strate through the weepers head. It fell down with a muffled thud.
I hear more groans from the dark barn. I don’t stay to find out as I burst through the door. I turned for one second to find almost sixty weepers following me. All with cry’s of pain and rage.
With out stopping, I point my gun behind me and fire. The seven left in the gun were now inside a weeper. I look in the sky and see a barrier surrounding the town. The origin was from the town hall. I kept running and not stopping.
I ran to the middle of town to find the town hall. I felt something attach to my leg and a sharp pain shot through the limb. I glanced down as I noticed a rat hanging off my leg. They usually travel in packs so I extend my sword and stab it before using dark vision to try and find more rats. None were in the town at all.
I sighed as I made it to the town hall. With out missing a beet, I climb to the second floor. When I reach it, I don’t open it. I brake it. I slide in avoiding the glass on the ground.
I stand and vault over the railing. I found the entire town inside. I wasn’t relieved at all as I searched frantically for a certain pony.
Twilight found me and approached. She must have noticed my frantic state. “John, what’s wrong?” She asked.
“I was bitten by a rat. Not a normal rat, a Dunwall rat.” I explained panicked. She gasped as she was the only one I told that knows how the plague spreads.
“Who are you looking for? I can help.” She was just as frantic as me now.
“Apple bloom.” She gave me a confused look for a second before searching. Eventually we found her aloge with the rest of the girls. “Apple bloom!” She turned to me.
“What’s going on?” She asked scared.
“Weepers entered Ponyville. Listen, I need you to go to the library and bring back a red vile.” Applejack heard this.
“Ah will not have my sister out there.” Applejack yelled. It gained the attention of everypony in the the building.
“Applejack if she doesn’t go, I will die.” I glared at her. A collective gasp echoed throughout the room. “I was bitten by a Dunwall rat. That’s how people become a weeper. I trust Apple bloom here because she knows parkour.” I re loaded my pistol and handed it to her. “My life and all of Equestrias, are in your hands. Make those lessons useful.”
We make our way to the second floor and I hand her my gun. She told me she couldn’t take a life. I needed to reassure her.
“They’re in constant pain. You’ll actually be doing them a favor. Plus, it’s just in case. Sneak past them. They can’t see you.” She nodded and Apple bloom sneaks past the crowd. Last I see, is her climbing up a building before I lose sight. I know the mask has a telescope built in, but I never used it.
I lean on the railing, overseeing the towns residents. I felt my body weaken as my hand slips. I plummet towards the ground after I toppled over the railing. I was caught in a magical field and propped up on a wall.
“John! What happened?!” A scared voice asked.
“Stage one, weakening.” I stated simply.
“We need to get his mind off the bit. His body will work faster if he doesn’t worry.” A timid voice said. “Before you came here, what did you want to do?” It was frantic, but easy to make out.
“Lord Protecter of the empress of Gristol. My home nation.” More questions popped up as my thoughts drifted to Apple bloom.
(Apple bloom’s POV)
Ah made my way to the rooftops to avoid the streets so none of them weepers can attack me. The library wasn’t that far, at the most, thirty meters.
“John, please be okay.” I whispered to myself. Ah was at the library and now ah need to find what he’s looking for.
(My POV)
I coughed into my and as the plague only got worse. My coughs were now accompanied by an insane amount of blood. I felt something well up in my eyes and when I blinked, blood was present. I was now fearful as I just hit stage two.
“Stage two: rapped bleeding from eyes and mouth.” I said simply. “I’m one stage away. The next stage has no return.” I was quiet the entire time when I said that. It was a whisper. My coughing got louder, and Louder, and LOUDER. Blood soaked the floor beneath me. Then the sis affects of stage two. Blindness and pain.
No pony seemed to mind the coughing as I’m pretty sure it’s normal with all diseases. Not to mention Twilight explained that it is only transferred by bits from the Dunwall rats.
Twilight was in the middle of explaining the rat plague and it’s history as most ponies were actually curious. She was cut off by my screams of pain. When ponies asked what’s wrong was when I explained with, ‘stage three’. My screams of pain turned into pleas the kill me as the pain was unbearable.
I dopped over into the puddle of my own blood. More blood poured out of my blinded eyes as I cried. Even more blood spilled from my mouth as my screams and pleas grew.
I heard the sound of a message sent to mom, but I wasn’t sure. I heard the rush of feet and my sleeve roll up. A needle went straight into my arm. The pain subsided but the blindness stayed.
One thing that could stay for the rest of my life is the blindness. The longest it lingered was a week so if it was permeant, then it would last more than a week.
To my relief, my vision cleared in a few minutes. I saw worried faces and scared ponies around me. In front of me was Apple Bloom holding my pistol to me. I knew she wanted to give it back so I slowly took it back. Twilight was to my right, clinging to it like it was going to disappear... again. I smiled reassuringly to put them at ease.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine. We’ll all be.” I said with a raged voice. I stood up and used blink to make it to the second floor.
“John! Where are you going!?” Twilight yelled. She was a little angry but also fearful.
“I’m going to make a diversion so you can exit. Get parchment and contact the princess to wait for me to be at the edge of the barrier.” I didn’t call her mom because I, for one, don’t want to be royalty and have people suck up to me.
Ignoring her protests and the pain still flaring in my body, I jump out the window and use wend blast to launch more than half away.
As I fell, I used wind blast to crush some of them. To my relief eighteen were killed but thirty four still remained. I smiled at the death count as it was eighteen less to deal with.
It quickly fell as I realized that I left my pistol with Apple bloom. I mentally cursed at my stupidity, but realized that I could still be a distraction.
I extended my blade swiftly to kill the first few. I stabbed one in the neck as I pulled out my crossbow to shoot an incendiary bolt to burn the next two. Unfortunately, I missed, but the bolt hit a large crowd of them, kill thirteen in the posses. I dropped my crossbow to use bend time before the other two weepers got to me.
All time slowed as the ability activated in less than a second, literally. I cut the two weepers’ throats open. I grabbed my crossbow from its mid air prison.
I placed it in its holster as I counted the kills from thirty four. I brought the count to fifteen. I found that I had nineteen left. I’m going to be honest, that bolt was a lucky shot.
Armor clanging together caught my attention as the bend time ability fell, but I never took my eyes off the weepers. My vision was filled with yellow as royal Pegasus guards pined down the weepers.
“Sorry we didn’t make it here in time, prince.” The lieutenant said. Luckily, no one was around to hear it.
“Thanks, but if you want to cure them. Don’t try. There is no cure. The most we can do... is put them out of their misery.” I said tilting my head down in sorrow. They had the same response but took out their flintlock pistols and in one collective bang, all the weepers were dead. I shook my head slowly. “Two hundred years and still no cure.” I saw them fly to the civilians as the magical dome fell.
I ran in the direction of the barn ready to start my investigation, because those weren’t ponies.
I made it to the barn where I found the door still wide open. I sighed looking back at the bodies that still litter the field behind me. With a heavy heart for all the weepers, I took a step in.
I took a look around before I used dark vision to try and find any clues. There were footsteps from all the weepers and I couldn’t find the original tracks of the summoner. I did, however, found an oval like object. I walked to the center of the room and reached for the object.
I relied back at the object in my hands. I didn’t recognize it, but when I grabbed it, I was forced into the void. The Outsider was waiting for me.
“My dear John, we’ve seen much in Dunwall, but this takes the cake. We are facing something with much hatred towards you. All I know is that we are facing a human.
I’ll do my best to help you, but I must return to earth in the next week to balance the void there. We will have no contact for a week until I’ll be able to return in a few days.” He informed. He looked genuinely saddened by the fact of going to earth.
“Why are you telling me this?” I questioned.
“Because, this could mean the whalers appearing here. An assasin group with dedication to kill you alone.” I was shocked into silence by the revelation. Who would hate me this much to try and kill me. The only one that would be pissed is the spymaster, but I killed him thirteen years ago. “You must return, John. We will speak again. By the way that’s a whale bone rune. It will make one of your abilities stronger.” With that I fell back into the mortal realm.
The walk back was slow and uneventful. It wasn’t bad because it gave me time to think. I returned to the guards which were holding back the ponies of Ponyville from getting in side.
“Let them in! There’s no danger of the rat plague anymore! Plus, we have a lead!” I yelled at the guards. I knew that they would give away the fact I’m the princess’s son.
“Yes prince!” They yelled in unison. They let their shields down and stepped aside.
“We’ll clean up the bodies, sir.” The lieutenant said as they left to do so.
Instantly Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Twilight ran up to me.
“Are you really a prince?” Rarity asked.
“Technically, if you stick to the kingdom hierarchy, I was a prince before coming here because I’m the cousin of the empress.” I responded.
“What!” They all yelled. I forgot to tell Twilight that.
“I meant to tell Twilight earlier, but forgot.” I saw Apple bloom run to me with the gun in her hand.
“Sorry, I forgot to give this back.” She said regretfully. I showed a kind smile as I took the gun back.
“Don’t worry. I forgot too.” I chuckled at the predicament we put our selves in. Se must have gotten paraded by Applejack because she still had it and I was in a highly dangerous situation which was made more dangerous because I forgot something so simple. “We’re something different aren’t we.” The nodded and chuckled, most likely the cane to the same conclusion as me, just because of a simple idiom.
It didn’t last long as three royal guards approached me. My smile fell into a serious stare. I walked to them to meet them half way. I gave it to the and explained the situation to them.
They left with out me giving the order like they usually do. It wasn’t before I was about to turn around when they bolted in the opposite direction of the castle. They didn’t use their wings which let me know it was an illusion. I used blink to get in front of them while using bend time. Time slowed as I shot two sleep bolts at them. I took the rune from them before time resumed.
They fell to the ground unconscious and in a few seconds, the real guard appeared. I said the same thing I did to the imposters before reliving them to return to their duties back at the castle.
I went back to the town hall and found everypony waiting. I clapped my hands together to get their attention.
“I don’t know about you, but I have winter to rap up.” I said allowed.
“How?” The mayor asked. “We’ll be behind by an entire day.” I looked over at Twilight with a knowing smile.
“Luckily for us, Twilight can have everything organized in a few minutes and we should be done by the end of the day.” She smiled largely as the asked Spike to gather supplies for her organization.
“I can’t believe it.” The mayor said in disbelief. “We’re early for winter to be rapped up. All thanks to you two.” Twilight blushed in embarrassment while I gave a short bow.
“Our pleasure, but you know what this calls for?” I said and immediately Pinkie popped out of nowhere.
“A Party!” She yelled as her party cannon set up an entire party. It was a blast!