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// How it started 
// Story: Zombie Power Ponies 
// by Grenazers 
//------------------------------//

My name is Sand Castle and I was the masked vigilante known as Mistress Mare-Velous.

However, I haven’t been going by that name in a very long time. Not since that terrible day.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself here. Let me start at the beginning.

Let me tell you how our world ended.

ZOMBIE POWER PONIES

It all started one summer day in the large city of Maretropolis. The sky was cleared, the sun was shining and a bunch of criminals just robbed a bank.

The three robbers were about to make a clean getaway, but unfortunately for them we happen to be in the area. Zapp and I were on patrol together when we heard the alarm. We chased the robbers down and apprehended them.

We stayed with the robbers for a while, until the police arrive and collect them. After taking them away, one of the police officer came up to the two of us and informed us about the situation at a museum.

Apparently, Mane-iac and her League of Villainy are hold up at the National History Museum. They have locked the place down and have taken the staff hostage. 

Once the officer was finished, we both immediately headed straight for the museum.

When we got there the whole building was surrounded by cops. One of them, a sergeant, approached us and explained the current situation. It’s been nearly an hour and so far the villains inside had not made any demands aside from a warming about harming the hostages. In fact he pointed out how silent they went since it all started.

As strange as it was, it still doesn’t change the fact that there were hostages in there and we needed to save them.

Luckily for us, the police sergeant informed us about the old underground passage underneath the museum. Zapp and I both agreed that this was good idea and went with it.

Thinking back we should’ve called and waited for backup, but we were overconfident back then. I mean like, we defeated these villains a dozen times now. We thought we could handle it.

At that moment I couldn’t have been more wrong.

We used the underground tunnel and found our way into the museum’s basement. Once inside we trotted up the stairs and quietly entered the museum. Our main objective was to find and rescue the hostages. After that we’ll deal with the villains.

As we trotted through the national history museum, we notice how eerily silent and empty it was. We expected to encounter somepony on patrol, but so far we encountered none. 

I remembered Zapp commenting about it and suggest that maybe they all escaped somewhere after they shut the place down. I considered it, but I reminded her that we can’t be sure until we search the whole building.

Sometime later we eventually found a room with a very disturbing scene.

It was like something out of a horror movie. There was blood everywhere, on the floors, walls and even on some of items in the room. There were also dozens of pieces of bones scattered across the scene, adding more creepiness to the already disturbing scene before us.

It only got worse from there when we quickly found remnants of the museum staff among the mess, concluding that they were all brutally killed.

Now we knew that the villains were bad ponies, but they were never killers, especially not at this kind of level. The very thought of them actually committing this horrible act worried us greatly.

It was also at this time when we found another disturbing piece. A severed rotted head that had its face stomped in. We found it in front of an antique mirror and aside from how disgusting it was there was also something strange about the head.

The head was not a pony, nor was it any other species we recognized. This rotting head was something entirely different, something alien.

I was so deep into thought about this subject that I failed to hear the sound of somepony’s hoofsteps approaching. Luckily, Zapp heard notice it and quickly alerted me of it. We both went into our combat stances and waited for the pony to reveal themselves.

Emerging out of the darkness the pony was revealed to be our arch-nemesis, Mane-Iac.

However, there was something wrong with her. There was blood over her mouth and in her mane as well. Her eyes were blank white, devoid of her usual green and red eyes. 

Upon a closer look she had one nasty looking bite mark on her snout.

The Mane-Iac creepily smiled at us and told us how happy she was that we came. Said that she and her friends ran out of ponies to eat, but now that we were here they can continue their feast. 

Suddenly emerging out from the darkness behind her, several other ponies appeared. They were the rest of the League of Villainy and just like Mane-Iac, they too look horrible.

There was blood all over them and their eyes were a complete white blank.

Then without warning they all attacked.

Zapp and I managed to hold out on our own against these guys, but no matter how hard we knocked them down they won’t simply stay down.

Then I heard scream coming from behind. I quickly turned around and saw Zapp being bitten by Pharaoh Phetlock. The stallion sunk his bloodied teeth deep into her right arm.

Zapp punched the stallion, but in that second High Heel snuck up from behind and took a bite on her shoulder.

Soon all the villains converge on her, surrounding her and sinking their rotting, disgusting teeth into her.

I tried to go save her, but I was then grabbed my Mane-Iac and was force to watch my friend being eaten alive.

Mane-Iac was just about to bite me, until a sword came swinging down and severing her head from her neck.

Realizing that I was rescued, I looked up to see who my rescuer was. To my surprise, it was the infamous thief, Shadowmane. 

She then proceeds to pull me away from the area, much to my protest. I told her that I needed to save my friend, but she coldly informs me that my friend is already dead.

Once we were safe and away from them, Shadowmane then explained to me what transpired here before we arrived.

Turns out Mane-Iac had come up with another evil scheme to destroy Power Ponies and it involved going to the National History Museum. The item they’re looking for is some kind of pre-equestrian artifact, a mirror. The same mirror Zapp and I came across earlier.

Apparently this wasn’t any ordinary mirror; it was actually a gateway to other worlds.

Mane-Iac believed that she could find something that can defeat us in one these other worlds, so she convince everypony and they all head of to the museum.

After they locked the building down and tied up all the staff, the League of Villainy stood before the ancient mirror and waited for Mane-Iac to activate the artifact.

Mane-Iac then said some magical words and the gems embedded on the mirror started to glow.

Shadowmane was the closes to the mirror when it shot out a small, weak blast wave that strucked her. At that moment her head was flooded with images and knowledge of this other world. What she saw in this world horrified her.

The world she saw was full of these strange, tall, bipedal beings. Aside from how weird they looked their world was similar to ours. Just like our world, they too have their own sets of heroes and villains.

However, this all changed when their world was invaded.

Their world ended by the arrival of a single being, a being with great power that is only rivaled by his greater hunger for flesh.

When the invader crashed landed in one of their cities, the local heroes were on scene to investigate the disturbance. They were then easily overpowered by the invader, getting infected in the process.

After dealing with the heroes the invader then turn his attention towards the local population and began his feeding frenzy. He was soon joined by the now turned heroes and are now joining with him on the feast.

At first the heroes and villains in that world tried to work together and contain this outbreak. However, this did not last long as one by one they became infected and joined their ranks.

In less than a year they have completely devoured all life on their world.

Once Shadowmane collected herself she noticed all the attentions were drawn to something in front of the mirror. Laying there before them all was a severed, rotted head wearing a red mask.

While disturbing as it was, it shocked everypony when it suddenly started talking. The head spoke, commenting about where he was and why there was a bunch of colorful ponies staring at him. He continued talking, introducing himself as the Merc with only a mouth.

While the rest of the villains stood there and listening to the talking head, Mane-Iac finally had enough. She interrupted the head, telling him that he was quite the disappointment. She was seeking a weapon that could defeat the heroes of this world and all she got was this useless piece of rotting garbage.

Instead of being offended, the talking head smiled. He then told her that he knows of a way she can defeat the heroes, but he’ll only whisper it to her so she’ll need to come in closer.

Shadowmane and the rest of the villains protest against this, but Mane-Iac ignored them and got closer to the rotting head.

She demanded to know what this head knows and in response he bit her on the nose.

Mane-Iac reeled back from the pain and instinctively stomp the head, crushing it in the process.

High Heel asked if she was alright, but Mane-Iac didn’t respond and continue to nurse the wound on her nose. Suddenly she turns her head towards where the hostages were and trotted up to one of them. Using her mane she picked a stallion up and before anypony could ask what she was doing; she took one big bite on the his neck and tore it out.

Everypony in the room was shocked at what they all just saw. They all just stood there and watched as Mane-Iac began devouring that pony. Once the shock wore off all the villains then rushed in, attempting to restrain her. All except for Shadowmane, who turned around and galloped away.

She knew what was coming and knew that it was too late to stop it. 

It was hard for me to believe that story at first, but after what I just saw earlier I would’ve been crazy not to believe it.

We then talked about what to do next and this was when we separated. I wanted to gather the rest of the Power Ponies and contain this thing before it spreads. Shadowmane, however told me that plan will only end in failure as the heroes from another world did the same thing and failed.

Now Shadowmane plan was something entirely different. Apparently she got her hooves on some blueprints for a freaking time machine. Her plan was for us to use this machine and go back in time and stop Mane-Iac from activating that mirror, therefor changing history.

I remember calling her whole plan crazy and ridiculous, but Shadowmane was really serious about it.

Since neither of us agreed with each other’s plan that was when we went split. She left to find materials for the time machine and I left to gather up the Power Ponies and contain this thing before it gets out hooves.

That was over a year ago and I stand in the ruin city that was Maretropolis.

At first we were able to contain them. With the combine forces of the Power Ponies and the police force, we were able to prevent the infected villains from spreading out into the city.

But then something terrible happened.

The youngest member in our team, Fili-Second, got herself bitten. Now I have no idea how the fastest mare alive got bitten by those creeps, but because now she was infected, all hopes of containing this flew out the window.

With her power she galloped all around the city, devouring and infecting any poor ponies that crossed her path.

It only got worse from there. One by one we fell, turning into ravenous flesh eaters and joining their ranks.

Soon I was the only Power Ponies left, but by that point I’ve given up the fight. The ponies we have sworn to protect have all been devoured and I was powerless to stop it. Once they picked the city clean, they all left the city and spread across the world, finding new victims to feast on.

I stayed within the ruined city of Maretropolis, scavenging for whatever supplies are left. I had no idea what was going on in the world as I’ve cut all ties to the world. But, from what I last heard things were not going well.

I continued this life for a few years or so and when suddenly all out of nowhere Shadowmane appeared before me. Like me she too also long abandoned her colorful costume, since there was no point in hiding our identities in a dead world.

We talked for a while, telling each other what we did over the past few years. I told her about our downfall and me giving up the fight after suffering so many losses.

Meanwhile, Shadowmane told me her real name: Shroud Song, and inform me that she was successful in locating the things she needed for a time machine. She now only needs one more piece to finish the machine and she needs my help to obtain it.

At first I refused, saying I’ve given up long ago. However, Shroud was rather persistent and managed to convince me otherwise. In her own words she said even if the chances of the time machine actually working is small, it’s still a much better option then just sitting around all day and moping over my past failures.

So that pretty much sums up what happened. Something came from another world, infected some ponies and devoured the rest.

Shroud and I are about to head out and retrieve the last piece for her time machine. If this works then everything will return back to the way it was and I would have not written this message.

However, if you are reading this right now, then I could only assume that we have failed. If that is the case then there is only thing I can say. 

I’m sorry.

I’m sorry we couldn’t do any better.





Sand Castle dropped the pencil on the ground and picked up the pieces of papers she written on. The mare then placed the papers on her bed, alongside some food and water.

“You’re ready to go now, Castle?” Shroud Song asked, standing by the entrance of makeshift shack house.

Taking a deep breath, Sand Castle put on her saddlebags. “Yeah let’s go.”

Once she was done both mares left the shack and headed out into the ruined city of Maretropolis.