//------------------------------// // Manulus and Mortem // Story: Manulus Mortem // by TwiRaptor //------------------------------// The door rattles and bangs and the sound wakes Starlight from her sleep. When did she fall asleep and how could she after Spike's story. A floor below her she can hear Spike talking, however, somepony is responding to him. Slowly and carefully Starlight moves to the exit of Spike's room to better hear what was going on. The voices are muffled, getting clearer as she reaches the bottom of the stairs. She takes a deep breath peaking around the corner to see who else was now in the castle with them. "You should have waited until morning-" Spike claws at his own arms and he paces back and fourth, with what little light that is shinning in the room. Anypony could see he wasn't looking well, not like this morning. "I can't live in this world much longer" "I can only do so much on my own, Spike" A mare whispers from the darkness, trying to be as quiet as possible. She steps into view where Starlight can now see her. The mare has a Green Fur Color and Brown Mane, the look on her face looks mostly annoyed. "Where is she? The Coma Girl you were talking about" "She is upstairs ... with, Twilight" Spike gulps, the mention of the alicorn's name brings chills down Starlight's neck. "I didn't think Twilight would make any noise tonight. I think Starlight heard it too" Spike scratches his claws together, they had Twilight ... Sick ... Dying. Locked away in a closet, this is how it seems to Starlight Glimmer. "Twilight! I am coming!!" Starlight screams and stumbles turning around to run back up the stairs. Using her magic to move something heavy in the way so that Spike and the mare couldn't catch up. "I am on my way, Twi!!" Spike and the mare break into sprint to get to the stairs, frantically they both move the heavy piece of furniture out of the way so they could climb the stairs to catch up to Starlight Glimmer. The mare is much faster than Spike, however, the door to Spike's room slams shut as Starlight quickly slams it shut and locks it behind her. Spike slams up against the door using his claws to start scratching at the weak lock to try and pry it off the door. "Starlight - Don't do this!" Spike claws frantically at the door's lock, doing everything he can to get the door open. "You are making a mistake!!" Spike backs up and begins to slam his body against the door, "Krystal!! Help me get this damn thing open" "How could you do this Spike!!?? What is wrong with you?" Starlight, confused turns to look at the door as she backs her way up to the closet door. "This is your sister and my teacher!! You locked her in a closet!!! Cause she is sick!?" "I did what I had too do and now I need you to do the same-" Spike claws at the door, the dust from the wood getting in his eyes forcing him to stop for a moment. "Open this door and let me explain" "I can't do that - You had your chance and it is over, Spike" Starlight turns away from the door and focuses on the closet door, which has stopped rattling at this point. "Twilight? It's me ... Starlight" The unicorn unlocks the closet door using her magic, pulling it open. "Starlight Please ..." Spike begs from the other side of the door, sounds from his side become louder as him and the mare move stuff around to ram the door in. Facing the corner of the opened closet, the outline of a mare huddled in the corner is clearly visible and with the little light available in the room. The fur color of Twilight Sparkle is also visible, Starlight moves a bit closer concerned that Twilight hasn't responded yet to the door opening. The alicorn remains motionless as Starlight gets closer to reach out to the motionless body of the Alicorn. Spike's door cracks as Spike and Krystal use something heavy like a ram to bust the door, with the first crack the ear of the huddled body twitches. "Twilight? Are you- " Starlight freezes once the second ram on the door knocks the lantern on it's hanger enough to show a bit more of what was inside the closet. With the third blow on the door knocking it open, the once motionless body leaps forward with speed knocking down Starlight Glimmer. Clumps of Lavender colored fur falls all over Starlight Glimmer's body and face. Spike backs away as what used to be his sister stares him down in the darkness. Krystal almost falls back down the stairs as soon as Twilight Sparkle begins aggressively sniffing around the room, permanently blinded from the effects of Manulus. "She has become a Mortem!! She survived Manulus!!" Krystal yelps and falls onto her back and tumbles down the stairwell. The sudden scream sets off the Mortem Twilight Sparkle. What used to be Twilight sparkle is now replaced with something almost unreal. The creature screams after hearing Krystal's voice, the voice of the creature only sharing a trace of resemblance to Twilight Sparkle. Her eyes covered by a layer of newly grown flesh, black veins spread from there down her neck and through out her changed body. The Mortem's ears are longer than a normal pony, it's entire body fur less, looking into it's mouth jagged teeth are revealed filling most of the space. The creature screams out again towards Spike and as it screams a long tongue wiggles from it's mouth like a whip ready to strike. Starlight looks up from the ground at what Twilight has become and the sight of it forces her to keep quiet. Scared to see what would happen if she was spotted. Spike freezes in place and the creature moves in closer , the tongue hanging from it's mouth swaying side to side dripping with a blood and saliva mixture. Krystal groans at the bottom of the stairwell which catches the attention of the blind creature. Spike closes his eyes knowing more than anypony what would happen, one tear drips down his face. "Twilight I am over- "Spike is stopped before he can finish as the tongue of the creature whips around his neck like a lasso. "Starlight!! Krystal!! Get out of here-" Spike feels the jagged teeth rip into his neck as the creature chomps down into him, the blood gushing down onto the floor. Starlight gets up to attempt and stop anything else from happening but the tail from the creature smacks into her knocking the unicorn backwards and tossing her through the window of Spike's room. The last sound the mare hears is the ripping of the flesh and veins as they are chewed from the small dragons body. ................................................................................................................................................................................................. "Get up Coma!! GET UP!" Krystal stands above Starlight, tugging at her hooves and frantically trying to get the mare on her hooves. "I will leave you!! COMA!" Starlight opens her eyes and she is laying outside the Castle, the sound of the creature screaming out from inside is enough to get her up on her hooves faster than Krystal could pull her up. Krystal is already moving to get away from the castle before Starlight even begins moving to follow. The creature screams louder almost as if calling for help, the faint resemblance to who it once was is chilling. The voice of Twilight Sparkle barely audible as if crying out to have her suffering be over. "What about Spike!! That thing is still- " Starlight stops when Krystal turns around with tears in her eyes. Spike clearly having a big effect on this mare. "I'm sorry ..." "Spike is dead because you can't listen!! The only thing worse than Manulus, Is Mortem!!" Krystal uses her hind hooves to kick open a door of a nearby home. "Which we have to hide from! Get inside!!" Starlight enters the building, everything inside setup as if nopony ever left, plates left out on the table waiting for a serving of food for dinner. Krystal ruins this quickly and pushes over the table and moves other items over to the door to keep anything from getting inside. Starlight gasps and dodges incoming objects that are being tossed around as Krystal frantically tries and protect herself. "More of those things are coming!! With the one at the castle screaming like that" Krystal tears up which makes it harder for her to move items. The sadness taking over causing her to be weaker than normal. "We just have to make it through the night ... Then we can get out of here" "What are those things!? What makes you think they won't stay?" Starlight gulps using her magic to help Krystal move items in front of the doorway. "How does something- " "That is a Mortem, Plan B" Krystal sniffles trying to keep herself together. "After some ponies began surviving the symptoms of Manulus. The virus would start attacking the DNA, Changing it!! They would become what you saw moments ago. Clouded, Infected, Wiling to Spread Manulus to those who don't have it already" A loud crash against the side of the building from all corners outside begin as the Mortems outside start investigating the noise of the two mares moving the furniture around. The noises of the creatures cause Starlight to cover her ears to try and ignore that it sounded like somepony faintly calling out for help while being consumed by a monsters growl. One of the windows of the house shatter and a long tongue slip inside whipping at the air and despite the glass cutting at the flesh of the tongue it doesn't leave the window. Krystal gets down on the ground crawling under a nearby table covering her ears from the voices as well. The creatures scream and slam up against the structure ripping at the wood with their jagged teeth , Starlight closes her eyes and begins to pray for her life. "Please don't let this be the end .. not before I even get to start" Starlight sniffles and the sound of the creatures becoming louder. "I am sorry Spike and I should have listened. Don't let this be how it ends"