//------------------------------// // Blossoming forth //REVISED// // Story: The Infection // by Misslordoffluffyclouds //------------------------------// By some miracle, Fluttershy awoke again. Not any better, of course. But she was awake. Lifting her head, her immediete attention was brought to the large, round lump of flesh that she called her stomach. It only seemed to have degraded more, the cut looked septic and the fur appeared rotten, poking out around the wound like sickly grass. Her skin felt like it was prickling, a thick, clammy sweat having broken out over her skin again. She gaped at her body helplessly. She attempted to stand, a valiant effort that only ended in her rolling back onto the floor and groaning lowly from the pain it had caused. The prickling feeling intensified, like thousands of tiny needles poking up from underneath her skin. It wasn't the worst agony she had ever felt, but it was definitely uncomfortable when added to the other unpleasant things she was experiencing. A peculiar sight occurred to her only once she focused a little more. She seemed to be turning a shade of blue. She blinked her tear-stained eyes hard, holding them shut for good measure before opening them again. She was not seeing things, she really was changing colours. Thick clumps of soft, buttercream shaded coat fell off around her, littering the floor like candy. She lifted a single, blue hoof, the last little piece of yellow fur falling away as she did so. The new hair was bristly and slick, the wetness coating them glimmering in the light that washed in from the open window. A horrific stench burned at Fluttershy's nostrils, and each subsequent cough sparkled a jolt of agony that tore around her weak form. She opened her mouth to yell for Angel. She could send him to get help, surely her friends would know what to do. Twilight was a genius, she'd have some way of curing her! Her words erupted into a sharp scream as the pain suddenly concentrated in her back. It felt pressurized, disgusting and wrong. She felt something pop and crackle within her body itself, bones shifting and alterations being made to her structure. She wrenched out another shriek as her shoulderblades bulged outward from her skin, stretching the skin taut and tearing them down the middle with a wet squealch as two large, black fleshy appendages burst free from her back like blossoming flowers, with clear rolled up flaps clinging tight to their surface. When they unfurled, bug like wings became apparent, thin spiderwebs that looked like veins slinking across their face. They were gigantic, bigger than her body. Fluttershy could only writhe and pound at the floor in pain as this transformation took place. Her ribcage felt tight, so tight, like someone was slowly compressing it. She could barely breathe, each breath came in a short, shaky gasp. This hyperventialtion had began to cause her to grow dizzy and nauseous, as her vision spun and bluured. The room almost seemed unfamiliar, just a mess of moving colours and shapes. Whatever had been in that apple had obviously been displeased and had started to make itself apparent. She gagged, vomitting. Of course, most of it ended up splattering onto herself. She couldn't think straight enough to try and aim it away. Pain was starting to concentrate to more areas now. Her face, head and rump in particular, as well as a growing sensation in her sides that felt like an intense squeezing. What felt like two spears bursting forth from her brain revealed themselves to be a thick pair of black antennae. Her chest exploded into a splatter of gore and limbs, and her backside moulded and crunched as an insectoid abdomen shook its way free and pulsed in the cold air, still wet from the flesh it had burst forth from. Fluttershy's eyes popped, causing her vision to flicker as thick bumps grew over her twitching eyeballs. Organs shifted, and the crescendo of cracks she could hear assured her that her bones were doing the same. She had to catch somepony's attention, it was the only way to save herself. If she still could save herself... She took in a breath, opening her mouth and preparing to scream, desperate for someone to come and save her. It never came out. Fluttershy gurgled, choking on what had been her own attempt at screaming as she felt something force its way from her mouth, sticky black tendrils sprawling out and reaching for the light as mandibles ripped their way free from the sides of their mouth. Rivulets of blood tinkled onto the floor like tiny red teardrops as Fluttershy was twisted and mangled to make way for her new form. A large, thin black leg burst from her side, followed by five more, each one folded and trembling like a newborn hatchling in the cold air. She felt her consciousness slip, welcoming the blackness beginning to take over and closing her eyes against the onslaught of pain as her mind slipped away. Angel Bunny felt himself stir awake, ears twitching irritably. What was with Fluttershy recently? She had dashed upstairs without so much as a word and had neglected to tuck him in that night. Now, she was screaming for no particular reason. Unless she was in danger. The thought put concern in the little bunny's brain as he hopped to his feet, quickly running to where the scream had come from, which he quickly deduced was the bedroom. He bolted inside with reckless abandon, prepared to help his friend when he screeched to a halt, his breath leaving him as he fell silent. A groetesque caricature of Fluttershy stood in her place, elevated high above him with black legs that hadn't been there before. She moved down to his height slowly, seeming to take in his form with many blinking eyes. Angel Bunny squealed, bursting away from the bedroom and whatever that thing was and rushing off, leaping out from an open window and disappearing down the path towards Ponyville as fast as his tiny legs could possibly carry him.