Shatter

by XerX


Chapter 1

It was dark and early in the morning, three in the morning to be exact. I shuffled around on my bed, trying to get comfortable and fall back to sleep. It had been hard to get sleep for a while now, with the incident that happened a while ago. Yes, the incident, the disease that spread and took hold of most of the occupants of Ponyville. Four months ago, sometime in the spring season, a rare and deathly disease broke out deep in the Everfree Forest, or so they say. The virus that took hold of the body and the bearer would act all crazy, their eyes gone dark, darker than a room with no light source, and no windows or exits. I wasn't completely sure. It spread quite fast and all access to and from Ponyville was cut off. A magical barrier had been set, most likely from the Princess herself, leaving all those who were trapped inside, left to die.

It was at around the same time that Spike disappeared. He went to go help Rarity with her work one day. He hadn’t come back later that night. I asked Rarity and she said he hadn't even showed up. I started to worry, looking for him in places he could be. I searched for almost two months, even after the outbreak. That’s when I figured it was hopeless, that my number one assistant was gone.

During the outbreak, I locked myself inside the library, boarding up all my doors and windows, except for one, on the top floor in my bedroom. That was the only window I kept un-boarded. It kept me sane, reminding me that there is still an outside world, but it also reminds me of how awful everything is now, how just stepping outside spelled death.

One thing that really bothers me is that one of the two Princesses has confined all of us to our gruesome death, with a magical barrier, but if one has done such a task, the other should be aware of it being executed. Sometimes I wonder if they even care anymore. I wonder if they plan to have the residence of Ponyville killed off and hope that the virus would die along with us...But that would be would be wrong, right? The Princesses themselves wouldn't do something so cruel, would they? Especially not Celestia. So...why have they not come to save us?

I sigh and go downstairs to my cellar. I flick on the oil lamp, hovering it near me so I can see. The small concrete room slowly starts to fill with a dim light. I walk over to a desk with papers thrown all over it. I look at the closest one and scan it. I have read all of the notes over 1000 times, notes I have written myself. Most of them are survival notes, explaining on how to conserve water, food and heat; the three essential needs to live. Others explain on how to defend yourself from getting sick, because at times like these...you have to be very aware of your health. I look over to a picture of me and my friends and I wonder if they are all still alive. Staring at the photo, I exhale loudly and slump to the floor, staring up at the ceiling. “Life is such a fragile thing, and it can be taken away so easily. Sometimes I lie on the floor or on my bed and wonder; is it all really worth it? Is living in this never ending nightmare worth living for? How would I be able to know if any of my friends are still alive, sitting in their homes, protecting themselves and the ones they love?”

I clasp my hooves around the frame of my friends and hold them close to me, weeping quietly in my dim basement wishing they were there with me. In heart, I bet they were. Time passes quickly, and I don’t know how long I have been lying on the cold cement floor for, but I felt extremely hungry and tired. Flopping over, I drag myself upstairs and move into the kitchen. Looking at my supplies, I knew they wouldn't last longer than a week, and I had to conserve as much food as possible. I grab a couple of crackers, and nibble on them slowly, tasting every bite that I make. My stomach says it wants more, but I knew in my mind that I cannot eat more, unless I plan on leaving anytime soon.

I shuffle around my library quietly, looking through the shelves that once held books, which were now scattered all over the building. I find a book that keeps me in good spirits, one of the Daring Do books. I pick up the book with my magic, blowing on the cover to remove heavy dust, and I flip open the front cover to the first page. I find my pillow which I kept in a small corner beside a candle and lay myself down onto it, reading through the novel steadily as I do so. This is basically my routine every day, or at least I try to make it my routine. During one evening when I was reading, one of the viral broke through one of my barricaded windows, and was clawing at the ledge trying to get in. I started throwing books at it like mad, trying to push it out. My attempts were futile, so I ran to the kitchen and grabbed the closest thing I could find. I large butchers knife. Panic struck me as the viral was halfway inside, when I threw the knife with my magic at it. It struck right in the middle of the forehead, the thing dropping instantly and becoming lifeless. I pushed it out as best as I could without freaking out and re-boarded up my window. I felt sick after, the image of me striking it in the head replaying in my mind. I cried and stayed upstairs for most of the remaining week.

I finished the book within 15 minutes, tossed it aside and headed upstairs. I looked at myself in the mirror in my room, bags under my eyes, my mane a complete mess. I crawled into bed, and cried the rest of the night.


Morning light broke through my window, shining onto my face. I groaned and turned away from the sunlight slowly, still exhausted from being awake during the early hours. I decided it was time to get up anyways, dragging myself out of bed and trudging to the one unboarded window in my home. I rested my front legs on the sill and looked outside. The sky was somewhat clear, except for the large magic barrier over the whole town.