884316
*Steel looks sharply at the apparent leader, Gray Shark, as he commands his stallions to lower their weapons. Steel, for his part, slightly lowers his own blades, but not completely*

"You still didn't answer my question. Who are you?"

884333 "Who are you?"

Gray Shark tips his cowboy hat marked with a skull with his left golden hoof. He eyed Steel with a welcoming crimson eye as his left eye was covered with an eye patch."Name's Gray Shark. This here is Black Arc, Crimson Mist, and our other associates."

Black Arc waved shyly while Crimson Mist scoffed and brought the other three stallions with him into a corner. "We are a small, nomadic group of survivors from various parts of Equestria. I'm from Canterlot while these boys are all from Manehatten. We met together in the forest when there were more of us. However, as the times grow more dire...some of our group members didn't make it."

"Got eaten alive by them goddamn ghouls!" Crimson Mist called.

"We've been moving from city to city trying to find shelter. Perhaps we may just have found it right here."

884362
*Steel now looks more calmly at the group, even going to so far as to sheathe his wing-blades*

"Name's Steel Wing. I'm from Stalliongrad, myself. Although, I don't know about this place being shelter. Didn't you see the roaming hordes outside?"

884385 Gray Shark quickly folds his jacket and places it on a nearby table. Black Arc cautiously picks up his crossbow and places it with the jacket. "That's what I was afraid of. Those boys, they're restless." Gray pointed at Crimson and the three other stallions. "We've lost so many and searched for so long...it's coming to a point where we'll settle for almost anything really."

Gray Pulls a chair and sits slowly, making sure the thing wouldn't break under him. "The world really has gone to shit and there's not a damn thing we can do about it."

Taken aback by the sudden enterance of the stallions, Miracle just sat there, quietly, listening to the banter between them after wiping the few remaining tears from her face.

884397
*Steel takes a seat on his haunches where he stands, not wanting to get too close to these stallions*

"Well, me and my traveling partner were heading to... Where were we goin' again, Subs?" *Steel addressed his question to 883647*

884397>>884401>>884405>>883647

Rumors eyes snap open when she hears group of voices talking. She sits up. Her eyes are blood shot from too little sleep. She looks at all the ponies in front of her and growls to them. "What did I say about waking me up?" She says and growls again. With one swift motion she graps black ball from her bag. "If Some one doesn't give a good reason to waking me up, I will burn this whole fucking house down with you all inside of it." She finishes with her eyes flaming.

"We headin' north." Subs replied to Steel. Knowing that the question's answer would have been directed at the newcomers, Subs turned to face Gray Shark. "I already been south, and dere aint nothin' dere. Just bodies. I heard a rumor about a camp way up in da crystal empire, and I met Steel here on da way." he said motioning his head in acknowledgement of Steel. He'd heard the sound of Rumors voice, audibly irritated. She said she was going to burn the house down if there wasn't a good reason for her being woken up. "We got ouwaselves some newcomas here. Dey look like the da Brass n' powda type to me." he said running his eyes up and down Black Arc.
884405

885523>>884710>>884401>>884405

"You see, boys, this bitch is crazy," Crimson Mist whispered to his three other comrades. "That's why we gotta go with my plan. We have to."

"Something wrong, Crimson?" Gray called back.

"Nah, man. Just a little shaken after what she just tried to do."

"So I see." Gray turned to Rumor and put up his golden hoof reassuringly. "Hey, you must've been asleep when this all went down. I promise you, we mean no harm."

885523>>885640
Rumor Looked at Subs and put the ball away. "Fine I give them chance." Then she turned to look at the leader of the group. "I forgive you but, if that one calls me bitch again I will stuff one of my fire bombs down his throath and watch him burn." She said and pointed at Crimson Mist.

885688

"I'll make sure he keeps his mouth shut from now on, right Crimson?"

"She heard me?" Crimson whispered to his comrades. He turned to Gray from across the room and shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Won't happen again, Gray."

"Good. Now then, thank you for that, Miss-sorry, I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Gray Shark, at your service." Gray performed a small bow, holding his hat.

885640>>885523
*Steel looks back and forth among the ponies around him, and slowly trots backwards until he's a whisper's distance from Subs*

"What do you think? About these guys?" *He asks the red stallion* "Should we let 'em come with us up north?"

886670 Gray Shark watched Steel move to his companion and turned to Black Arc himself.

"Black Arc..."

"Yes?" Black Arc said sheepishly.

"Make sure to keep an eye on Crimson." Gray Shark looked at Steel whispering to Subs then to Crimson whispering to his companions. "You know what I mean..."

"Of course..."

Gray Shark waited patiently for any response as Black Arc also took a seat next to his comrade.

Miracle sat up, gathered her belongings, and took a look out the window. She almost screamed again at what she saw. "Well, if we're going north, we better go soon." she announced, never taking her eyes off the oncoming herd of Trotters.

Steel pulled close to Subs and whispered to him the question of whether or not to trust these newcomers to come north with them. Subs found it unfair to pass judgement either way at this point, but the decision had to be made. From what he could tell at least two of the military-like ponies were reasonable, but the rest seemed like rowdy loose cannons. They couldn't be trusted in the group. But at the same time, if they turned them away they would undoubtedly try to kill them...unless Subs killed them first. His decision was made. They'd dispatch the rowdy ones, and see how the reasonable ones react. "Steelie I don't trust these fellas. They loose cannons, ya know?' he whispered back to Steel. He magicked up his crossbow and drew it closer, his voice growing quieter and much more serious. "We's gotta get rid of dem." he said, his eyes shooting over to the group to figure out which one he'd kill first. The one they called Crimson seemed especially threatening in Subs' eyes.
886670

888517>>888506>>886670>>885688

Crimson Mist's eyes grew wide as Subs grabbed his crossbow and eyed him suspiciously. "Holy shit! Boys, time for the plan!" Crimson and his three other associates grabbed their crossbows and started aiming down on the other group.

"Hey, what the hall is going on. Plan?" Gray Shark said grabbing his jacket and swinging it on. Black Arc followed and picked up his dark crossbow and aimed at Crimson's group. "You wanna go down like this?" He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small pellet.

"I ain't afraid of your tricks or your pally friends over their. I ain't going down without a fight!" Crimson said aiming his crossbow at particularly Subs.

"Alright, let's just calm down. Let's just put down our weapons and talk this out-"

"Naw man, I'm done. You really gonna kill me in cold blood, after what we've been through?"

"A few months doesn't mean we're friends for life. I do recall you throwing one of those things at me once, calling it bullshit. Well, looks like we're in real bullshit now."

"You make your move and we'll make ours. Someone's dying today and it ain't me."

Gray looked at the Subs who was now murderously glaring at Crimson and nodded. "It's six on four, give it up."

"Screw you." Crimson shot a bolt at Gray Shark and ducked behind the counter to reload. Gray Shark's golden hoof buzzed and a silver blade extended out. He pulled it up just in time to deflect the projectile. "Aw goddammit! You idiots, fire. Fire!"

888611>>888517>>888506>>885688
*Steel raises his brow and looks at Subs questionably* "You sure that's a good idea—"

"Holy shit! Boys, time for the plan!"

"What?" *Steel looks just in time to see Crimson and some of his cohorts aiming their crossbows at him and Subs. Instinctually, his wings flare out, along with his wing-blades* "Shit, Subs! Get out of the way!" *Steel grabs Subs and vaults him over a different counter in the bakery, out of the range of those maniacs' crossbows*

"You two! Get out of the way!" *He called to Rumor and Miracle* "Subs, you wait here for a sec."

*He then gallops, low to the ground, into the kitchen and immediately starts searching for some kind of sharp object to throw. He opens one drawer after another until finally finding a rather large butcher knife, a bit rusted, but still sharp and pointy. He crawls back to Subs and holds up the knife*

"Think you can send this thing into that guy Crimson's head?"

Miracle stopped focusing on the approaching herd of Trotters and followed Steel's order. "Hope you know what you're doing." Miracle whispered, taking cover behind a table. She pulled out her hatchet for protection just inn case.

889814>>889648>>888517>>885688

Crimson's group blasted the other group with a volley of arrows as each pony took cover.

"God damn, Gray, this is what happens! And Arc, thought we were bros!" Crimson shouted.

"Not anymore is seems!" Black Arc shouted back from behind cover.

"Arc, you know what to do, right? What you have to do."

"Yes."

Gray peered over his tabletop and analyzed the situation. "Think you can send this thing into that guy Crimson's head?" Growls were heard from outside as trotters moved in on the building.

"You two deal with Crimson, I may have to deal with the outside."

"We can hear you, you know," one of the stallions said. "You break cover and we-" A trotter managed to sneak up and sunk its teeth into the neck of one of the shooters.

"Holy shit, no-" another stallion was dispatched as Black Arc shot one of the distracted stallions clean in the head.

"Fuck!" Crimson said pushing his now dead companion away. More trotters flooded in and Crimson's two pony group focused their attention on the incoming trotters.

"I'll get outside, finish those guys off. Don't hesitate." Gray stabbed a trotter clean in the face, pushing it out the window. He jumped out and faced the incoming horde. "Oh boy."

Miracle let out a yelp as a Trotter climbe through a broken window in front of her. She quickly dispatched it with her hatchet. As she saw another rotted hoof beginning to clutch the window opening, she prepared to chop its head off as well. But something was different. This Trotter seemed familiar to her. Almost too familiar."Oh no..Please, no..." she whimpered as her fears were realized. The Trotter standing before her was an orange pegasus, it's black and red mane nearly all fallen out, a wing missing, and multiple bite marks across its body. This is what had become of Daylight. Her only brother. "D-Daylight...Im so sorry..." she cried as she swiftly put her younger brother out of his misery, tears streaming down her face.

889648>>890007>>890694
Rumor looked at the chaos that had unfolded before her. She jumped to her Bag and grabbed mask inside of it. She turned to look behind her and saw one trotter walking towards her. Her Crossbow wasn't loaded so she grabbed one arrow in her hoof and stabbed the trotter with it. In her haste she hadn't looked what arrow she took. The trotter exploded and Rumor flew away from it, hitting the corner behind her. "F-fuck." Was all she could say. Luckily her Crossbow was near and she could try to support others.

All at once Subs was swept off his feet by Steel and brought behind cover as the group of rowdy ponies opened fire on Subs and his companions. "Steelie you gotta stop doin' dat!" he said over the gunfire. He knew he'd just had his life saved, but he hated that feeling in his stomach whenever Steel picked him up. Once they were back on solid ground, Steel handed Subs a knife and asked if he could send it into Crimson's skull. Subs had no doubt in his skill, only his chance of peeking up over their cover and not getting shot. With anticipation and rage in his face, a dark smile crept across his face. Killing the trotters was easy...but killing ponies was fun. While living in Manehattan Subs had done a lot of unsavory crimes to get enough money to skate by, and murder was by no means off limits. He'd grown accustomed to it after a certain point and treated it as a game to maintain his sanity. "Not a problem Steelie." he said. With a single fluid motion, Subs emerged up over their cover, sought out Crimson, straightened the floating blade radiating with a luminescent purple, and cast it forward with tremendous velocity towards Crimson's head. Not at all doubting of his marksmanship, he ducked back down behind the cover and pulled his crossbow to him. There was already a bolt loaded, so he was ready to go when Steel was.
889648

891651>>891018>>890694>>889648

Crimson cursed with a smile as the flying blade pierced him straight in the eye. He fell with a thud and his last remaining partner screamed before trying to flee. In his attempt, Black Arc shot him in the leg and watched as the trotters piled on top of the stallion. With the other group eliminated, all that remained were multiple undead hoarding into the building.

"You take care of the trash yet?" Gray called stabbing a trotter and throwing another into a cluster.

"Crimson's group is dead. All we have lest are the biters!" Black Arc called.

"Agh, shit." Gray swiped a scalp clean off and dashed to the side. "We might have to bail soon."

891651>>891746
Rumor watched as the group that had attacked and the rest of the trotters were killed. "Damn we made much noise. This place is going to be full of trotters." She tought. She stood up from the corner and winced little. She walked to her bag and threw it on her back. She looked at Subs. "Where are you going to go?" Rumor asked. "This place is going to be full of Flyers and trotters so we need to leave." She said in hurry.

892412>>891746>>891651>>890694
*Steel managed to glance over the countertop and see that the knife had made its way into Crimson's eye*

"Bullseye! Literally..." *Steel's attention was then caught by the oncoming horde of trotters outside and breaking through the front portion of the bakery*

"Shit!" *Steel looked around frantically, and spotted, past the kitchen door, a backdoor that would hopefully offer salvation*

"Subs! Miracle! Rumor! Gray! Black Arc! Get to the kitchen, there's a backdoor there!" *Steel brought Subs up to his hooves and they started galloping towards the backdoor* "Hurry!"

Miracle just sat there, staring at the dead carcass that was once her only sibling, her hatchet sunken into his head. She turned to Steel ordering the group that survived the shoot out with that crazy pony, Crimson. She looked back at her dead brother, then to a duo of Trotters, trying to wedge themselves through a window at the same time. As much as she wanted to buck it and run, she couldn't leave her brother, living or not, leaving only one option. She slung her pack over her back, followed by Daylight's body over her saddlebag, then running out the back door.

893091>>892889>>892412

"Subs! Miracle! Rumor! Gray! Black Arc! Get to the kitchen, there's a backdoor there!"

Gray Shark instantly hopped back into the building and met up with Black Arc. "Looks like we're getting out of here. C'mon." He ran ahead as Black Arc followed behind. The door was close up, but Gray stopped and turned drastically to Black Arc. "Watch out!"

Black Arc did not respond fast enough as a trotter slashed at his arm with its exposed bone arm. Gray Shark yelled and quickly slashed at the trotter's face. He grabbed the stunned stallion and continued through the door. Crying in pain, Gray helped Black Arc stroll behind the escaping group.

893651
*Steel and Subs are already out the door when Gray Shark and Black Arc come out, and he sees what happens to Black Arc*

"Shit, is he bit?!"

893091>>893651>>893687
Rumor runs in the kitchen and out of the backdoor.

"Shit is he bit?" Rumor hears steel wing saying. "What who got bit?" She asks fast.

893904>>893687>>893091

"Shit is he bit?"

"It's a scratch."

"What's a scratch to somebody?" Black Arc said with panic.

"I don't know-"

"Gah-what's a scratch?"

"I don't know!" Gray kept pulling Black, but the stallion resisted. "What the hell are you doing, boy?"

"If I'm scratched and infected..."

"Don't give me that crap, c'mon!" Gray grabbed Arc forcefully and sped away with the group.

893925
"We'll help him later! Run!" Miracle said as she ran past. The remaining Trotters began staggering out the back door after them.

((Auto me as neccesary. I'll try and post tomorrow but I lost my computer so there isn't much I can do atm.))

893904>>893925>>899450>>900513
*The oncoming horde of trotters is enough to make Steel deal with the injured Black Arc later, and run away now*

"We'll deal with Black later, now just GALLOP!" *Steel and Subs begin to gallop as fast as they can with the rest of the group away from the swarm overtaking the old bakery. They make their way eastwards, and after a good bit of galloping, find their way to a bridge heading towards Canterlot. Seeing as how they outran the trotters, and since Steel doesn't hear any flyers overhead ready to swoop down on them, they take a breather and gather themselves*

"Is everypony... *pant* all right?"

((Story time, bear with me))

Luna's ears twitched, her horn aglow in midnight-blue magic. She was using a sensory-amplification spell to magically enhance her hearing, and she was currently listening to a disturbance in Ponyville. The small town was seemingly a bustling hornet’s nest of activity lately, with all sorts of strange sounds reaching her ears. She couldn't make out any details - even with the spell, Ponyville was quite a distance away - but a disturbance usually meant survivors. Whether they were ponies fighting themselves or ponies fighting the undead, she was unable to help so she turned her attention back to the city.

Canterlot, once a pristine, bustling metropolis, a symbol of order and strength in Equestria, had been reduced to no more than a camp of survivors and refugees. Never had it seemed so ramshackle and run-down; never had it contained so few residents; and never had it meant more to Luna than it did now. It was now the only hope of survival for the scores of creatures that called it home. They were not all ponies either.

It had been a surprise to Luna at first when a group comprising of several griffons and dragons had showed up requesting asylum, but it didn’t take her long to make the decision to let them in. She would accept anyone, pony or otherwise. They were all survivors, all facing the same nightmarish problem. The camp had been growing steadily ever since with ponies and other creatures filling the empty houses.

She had decreed that, under no circumstances whatsoever, was anyone to hurt or harm anyone else, with severe repercussions to any who did. Her strength of will to uphold the promise of said severe punishment had been put to the test when a changeling had asked for admittance.

The creature had lost contact with its hive, now presumably dead and gone, and had only wanted a place to stay, safe from the shambling horrors, just like everybody else. Luna had not deliberated long before letting it in with a warning to perhaps avoid ponies as much as possible.

It had tried, Luna knew, she performed her hearing-amplification spell every day to check on things in the city, but there was no escaping the wrath of a pony scorned. A group of ponies, who had been residents of Canterlot during the first changeling invasion, had set upon it. As weak as it was from lack of nourishment, the poor creature never stood a chance.

The offending ponies had been confined to the castle dungeons for as long as it took for the changeling victim to recover, eating nothing but the leftovers after all the food had been shared around the city. They spent two and a half months under lock and key. Nopony had went against her laws after that.

Luna sighed. Troubling times could cause anybody to act irrationally, and Luna was having trouble keeping up with it all. She had absolutely no idea how Celestia had managed to govern the entirety of Equestria for a thousand years while Luna herself was struggling to rule little more than a hundred.

Looking out at the sunset which was coloring the sky an ominous shade of red, the princess of the night sighed. It would soon be time to fully raise the moon. The first night after Luna fled the Crystal Empire, Celestia had tried to lower it herself, but Luna had used her greater connection to the nighttime celestial body to prevent its movement until the elder sister had released it completely.

Turning from the shattered remains of the stained-glass window she had been looking out, Luna turned to make her way out of the castle. She found it helped for her to walk the streets on occasion, let everyone see her with a confident face and bold step. She had to keep hopes high, or at least stop it from plummeting completely. Hope was always the factor that contributed most to survival, and there was precious little of it in Equestria at the moment.

Walking out the door, Luna had to suppress the automatic order to her guards to let them know she was going out. She had no personal guards anymore. All the ponies who would be protecting her, who were a rag-tag assortment of volunteers wearing salvaged scraps of armor from the castle armory, were keeping what little order there was in the city proper or posted at strategic position to watch for ‘trotters’, as ponies had begun calling them.

A single tear leaked out of her eye as Luna slowly made her way through the castle hallways. There were statues, tapestries, busts and all assortments of other reminders of days long gone when she would stroll these halls with Celestia. She only allowed the one tear. She could not afford to appear weak or disheartened in front of her subjects. Celestia had been the one who had told her that, no matter how you feel inside, you need to keep your face strong and serene.

More tears threatened to come, but Luna forced them back, a single thought running through her head as she made her way into the castle grounds.

What has happened to you sister?

900513 900669 899450 893925 893904
((TL:DR Luna is in Canterlot, you should totally come say hi.))
((Hi everyone! True Blood here, and I've got the pleasure of playing Luna, so feel free to make your way to canterlot whenever you want. If you don't wanna come straight away, or want to take your time getting here, I've got some more story I can develop so its okay. Sorry for the long post, but I couldn't quite find a good place to end it, I hope you bore with me.))

893925>>899450>>900513>>900669>>901011

Rumor stoped near Steel and looked at him. "Yeah i'm all right." She said and turned her head towards the trotters. "Where are you all going to go? I have been thinking of going to canterlot." She said and turned back to the group.

901074
"Can some of you help me with something before we go?" Miracle asked, setting down Daylight's corpse on the ground.

901236
"Sure. What do you need?" Rumor asked and turned to look at Miracle.

901236
*Steel, after catching his breath, turned to Miracle*

"Uh... sure, what do you need?" *He cautiously stared at the corpse she just laid down*

"Somepony to help me dig my brother's grave. she answered solemnly, looking sadly at the corpse.

902108 ((Not that it's a problem, but could you remember to press the reply button please?))
*Steel, comprehension dawning in his eyes, nods his head once after a slight pause*

"Yeah, sure, no problem. I don't have a shovel, but I think we can make do." *He casts his gaze off to the eastern end of the bridge* "Would by one of those trees work?"

902387
((Yeah I have a habit of not doing that. Sorry.))

"That's perfect." she nodded.

902615
"All right, follow me." *Steel lead the way to one of the trees*

"Steel and I are heading North. Canterlot's on the way if you want us to drop you off there." said Subs. As a solemn moment drifted into Subs' path, he did his best to keep his composure. It was almost like the needle of his turntable dropping onto a track- and just like the song the two ponies gradually faded away into the black of the nearby forest. The firefight had stopped, allowing Subs to move again without fear of being shredded by bullets. Cautiously, as though there were still trigger happy earth ponies watching him, he quietly dragged over his crossbow and slung it over his back. Steel and Miracle walking towards the woods to bury Miracle's brother left Subs alone with Rumor, an awkward silence ensuing. Lighting a cigarette and exhaling the grief and stress of the prior minutes, he did his best to start a conversation with the mare. "So, I heard you having a rude awakening earlier. Bad dream or something?" he asked with a casual tone
.901074
((TrueBlood I'm cool with whatever you want to do with Luna so long as you follow the model for the storyline we already discussed.))

904619
Rumor flinched little when she heared the question. "Well kinda but, all that noise really didn't help." She said gnashing her teeth. The memory of the dream came back and she sighed gloomly. She had been dreaming about the worst day of her life. The moment when her whole destiny had changed. She shook her head.

904619
((Sure thing! That's the model I'm working off. I'll develop the rest of that story in the next couple of posts.))

902387>>902108>>905172>>905117>>904619

Gray Shark still harbored Black Arc as the group finally came to a spot. He set the stallion slowly against a tree and inspected his slashed hoof.

"It doesn't look too bad..."

"Quit BSing me, Gray. It's only a matter of time-"

"You can't say that." Gray Shark turned to his other colleagues and asked in a calm tone: "What does a scratch mean?"

Of course there was more to Rumor's bad dream, and Subs could tell. But if there was more to it and she didn't want to talk, that meant that the topic was sensitive. He'd need to find a way to evoke the truth in a non-harmful way. Trotters were dangerous, but survivors harboring emotion were far more dangerous. They could snap at any moment if they weren't honest with eachother- though Subs was a complete hipocrite of this belief, he was still an avid believer in it. "Yeah, sorry about dat'...can't stop a bunch of piece tottin' rads though ya' know?" he said to her with a half hearted laugh. He sighed to compose himself, then continued with his inadvertant investigation. "So what was the dream about anyways?"

905117

902673
Miracle picked up Daylight's body and carried it over to the nearby tree that Steel pointed out. She prodded at the ground slightly. It seemed soft enough to dig out at least a shallow grave in it. "This really means a lot to me, Steel. Thanks." she said, placing the body on the ground and started digging with her hooves.

906167
"Don't mention it. These days, a little equinity can go a long way..."

*Steel starts to dig with his forehooves alongside Miracle, and after about ten minutes, he stops, looking over how much they've dug so far*

"I think this'll work." *He looks over at the corpse, then back to Miracle* "Ready?"

906188(("equinity"...I see what u did there))

She nodded. After walking back over to Daylight, giving the cadaver one last hug, regardless of how decayed it was, she then proceeded to lay his body into the hole, as well as close his eyelids over the cold grey pupils that were once the same brown as her left eye.