They Wait in the Dark

by AvalonAva

A Few Days Prior

They Wait in the Dark

Chapter 1

A Few Days Prior

The sun was shining brightly. No clouds were in the sky, leaving a flawless blue space. This would perfect day to be outside. It was fairly cool, a light breeze gracing the area of Ponyville. The occupants could be seen, many moving with a happy demeanor. Little colts and fillies ran amok, playing with their friends. The older ponies, if not attending to business matters, enjoyed the mild weather. Some were on park benches, reading books, others nestled on blankets, indulging in picnics.

Not only did the ponies enjoy the pleasant day, but the animals as well. Birds flew through the park, singing beautiful melodies and swansongs. Rabbits bounded around, searching for tasty things to munch on. The day was seemingly perfect, like so many days before in Equestria.

If only things were as they seemed.

XXXX

Near the outer borders of the town, a house stood, alone. It had a menacing look, even if the sun shined merrily on the structure. It was painted black and a shade of dark grey, and every window had shutters closed tightly. The gloomy house was the home of one of Canterlot’s best scientists, Professor Sanative Averys, a red unicorn with golden mane. Averys was there to conduct medical experiments to find cures for the incurable. Of course, science has its risks. She was a brilliant scientist and doctor, but even the brilliant require some help.

Averys had an assistant. A young mare by the name Carrie Hadfield, who was a white earth pony with dirt brown mane helped and assisted with her studies and patients, even if she was ignorant to the Professor's true intentions.. One of her jobs was escorting patients to and from the Professor’s house. One particular patient was a rare medical case, which truly intrigued the Professor.

XXXX

“How do you feel Mr. Neighless?” The Professor said. She was speaking to a large green colt, which, at first glance, looked as if he was starving himself. He pushed some of his black hair out of his face, and sighed.

“Still the same. I haven’t had an appetite in two weeks. It’s awful having to feed through this nutrient tube.” He said, his tone severely depressing. The sound of his voice would wilt even the proudest sunflower in broad daylight. The mare smiled.

"Good, because I think I have a breakthrough." The mare left the colt's side and fetched a syringe from a cabinet. She smiled in glee. "This serum, if it should work, will restore your appetite." She made some double checks, making sure everything was in order. They both sat in silence for a few moments.

“Well? Are you going to give it to me?” The colt asked, seeming anxious. Averys nodded.

“I will, but it’s highly risky using non-approved medicine. Especially one that hasn’t been tested first.” At the words the colt stomped a hoof.

“I don’t care about the risks! If it’ll help, I WANT IT!” He demanded, looking almost psychotic. The Professor shrugged.

“Ok, but forcing me to do this means you understand and accept any side effects. Understand?” The colt nodded anxiously. Aveys sighed. “Let’s get this over with.” Drawing up a cotton swab with her magic, she soaked it in rubbing alcohol. “Just let me clean the injection site. She rubbed the upper part of his left forearm, decontaminating it. She then readied the syringe.

“Alright, I’m applying it now.” As soon as she sated it, she put the needle past his fur and rested the tip on his flesh. Piercing the skin, the tip of the needle entered his body. She pressed down on the leaver, releasing the experimental liquid into him. She took it back out, and quickly applied a bandage to it. “The bandage isn't all that necessary, but it’ll help keep it from getting infected.” Averys turned around and put the needle in the proper disposal bin.

"Carrie!" She shouted. "Where is that girl?" From the next room a voice resonated, reverberating off the walls.

"I'm here! Sorry Professor!" The assistant shouted, bursting into the Medical room. The mare began to fix her mane, which was wild. Averys rolled her eyes.

"Could you please escort Mr. Neighless back to his house? And did you fal asleep again?" She demanded.

"I'm sorry Professor! You had me working until dawn! I'm your assistant, not your apprentice." Carrie walked to the colt, ofering her arm. "Shall we leave sir?" He smiled feebly, and stood up, taking her arm.

"Thank you miss. You always lift my spirits." He said, and Carrie giggled.

"Aright, let's go sir." The young mare and the patient exited the Medical room, leaving the Professor alone. she clapped her hooves together.

"The serum looks promising." She began, talking to herself. "I think we may have finally cracked Mr. Neighless's case." Averys said, levitating a clip board and looking over a list. "Now...who's the next patient today?"

XXXX

The day had progressed. The glory and splendor of the beautiful morning was replaced by the swift and inevitable approach of night. The sun, hanging low in the sky, still fought to keep its rays shining over the land. Even though it was another perfect day in Ponyville, something awful happened. A terrible horror was about to be released.

Professor Averys and Miss Hatfield sat together, discussing the day. The talked about how good the weather was, wen over notes for all the patients they saw that day.

"So how do you think Mr. Neighless I coming along?" The Professor asked, sipping tea from a china cup.The younger mare yawned, flipping through papers.

"He seemed to be doing better today. I could have sworn it was him that i saw eating plate after plate of food in Sugercube Corner. I guess he likes cake." Averys laughed.

"If I hadn't ate anything solid for two weeks, I'd be tearing up cake. Although something more nutritious wouldn't hurt." The Professor said with a curt smile.

"I doubt well have any more problems with his case." Carrie said. Only casual sounds, such as the of shuffling of paper and sipping of a drink.

A loud and frantic knock at the door caused both mares to jump to their feet, startling them.

"What is that, someone slamming a cockatrice against the door?" Carrie exclaimed. She ran to the door, where the knocking continued. She skidded to a halt and opened the oak door, and in fell Mr. Neighless. Carrie caught him, and helped him to his feet.

"Mr. Neighless? We were just discussing you. What seems to be the prob-" the Professor began and then stopped dead., eyes wide. Looking at the colt, he seemed worse off than before. He didn't have the vacant and gloomy look he possessed the past two weeks,. It was instead replaced by one of pure terror. Another feature greatly disturbed Averys, shaking her foundations. Blood. He was stained with blood. Mostly it was around his muzzle, and on his forelegs. "What happened to you?" She demanded. The col groaned.

"Please, I need help! i'm in so much pain!" He shouted, barely able to stand. The Professor hesitated, and then shook her head.

"C'mon Carrie, let's get him to the Medical room. Now!" She barked the order. Struggling under the weight of the heaver pony, Carrie managed to help the distressed colt down the hall and through the Medical room doors. Averys assisted with her magic, levitating him onto a metal bed.

"Hook him up to an IV and the heart monitor. I want to see if this has anything to do with the serum." the Professor demanded, and Carrie obeyed without question. Applying and IV into the colt's right foreleg and attaching the heart monitor's sensor to him, Averys walked up to his side. His eyes were squinted, pain coursing through his body. He moaned and groaned, unable to stay completely still. Averys took ahold of the colt's right hoof.

"Tell me how you feel." She asked, beginning with the obvious question first. He opened his eyes and looked at her.

"I already told you, I'M IN PAIN!!" He shouted, and Carrie finished setting up the monitor. It clicked on, but nothing happened. Aveys didn't notice it yet, but Carrie did right away.

"Umm...Professor?" the assistant said. Averys paid no mind to her.

"What happened to you? Were you attacked?" She inquired. The colt shook his head.

"No! I..ate." He said, quietly. Averys stared at him, daring to continue her questions.

"What did you eat exactly?" She said in a stern tone. The colt in question gulped, and spoke in a shaky voice.

"Everything....anything....I couldn't stop feeding on things. Food wan't helping, so I thought that if i ate...something else...it might stop it. But it only made it worse. I was sweating so much afterwards, and then this pain!" He screamed, beginning to shake his body. Averys held his arms down, or at least tried to, and attempted to calm him down.

"You need to calm yourself Mr. Neighless!" she shouted at him. Carrie stood there, still mortified by the monitor.

"Professor?" She said in a sterner voice. Averys still ignored her, trying to keep the colt calm. Huffing, Carrie walked over to the Professor and smacked her.

"When I say, "Professor", I should get a damn response!" She yelled at Averys. The unicorn glared at the younger mare.

"Carrie, what do you want? Can't you see I'm busy?' She spat back. The earth pony, on the verge of cracking skulls, pointed at the monitor.

"Look. It's not working. Either the machine is broken or the impossible is happening." Averys stared at the screen.

"It's broken. Just let me check his pulse then." she said, passing off the faulty tech with a wave. taking a wristwatch, she placed her hoof to the patient's neck and started to count the pulses between seconds. Two seconds passed...then five seconds...then ten seconds...forty-five...and then, after a full minute, she stopped. She took a step back, and stared at him.

"That's not possible." She said softly. Utilizing a stethoscope that was ever so conveniently around her neck. She put it to his chest, and listened for a heartbeat. She tried her hardest, but to no avail. The colt had no heartbeat, no pulse, yet he was before them.

"'It's not possible..." Averys repeated herself. "You don't have a heartbeat...you can't be like this...it's not possible." She stood there, mortified. She hadn't noticed that Mr. Neighless fell silent, eyes closed, twitching. "IT'S NOT POSSIBLE!" She shouted. Suddenly, the colt stopped twitching. His eyes snapped open, and he lunged at Averys. He grabbed a hold of her, and dug his teeth into her neck. She screamed. And not just in anguish. It was a bloodcurdling shriek that could shatter glass, and strike fear into Death itself.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The sound of Averys's voice petrified Carrie. The colt pulled back, and tore off a massive chunk of her neck. She fell back, and landed on the cold ground with a loud smack. Blood flowed in a puddle from the open wound. The younger mare stood there, unable to move. Averys slowly moved, and looked at Carrie with pitiful eyes.

"Run." The Professor said in a raspy voice. She coughed up blood, causing more crimson to spatter on the floor. She still did nothing but stand there. The colt began to move off the metal bed. "RUN!" She screamed at Carrie. The younger mare took a few steps back, and ran into a table. She hit it, causing medical tools to fly into the air, scattering among the floor. The colt, now on his hooves, stared at her. His eyes were no longer the blue they once were. They had become black, and bloodshot. He opened his mouth, and some excess blood from the Professor dripped from inside his maw. Carrie slowly stepped back, unable to break her stare with him. Averys coughed again, and raised her head.

"RUN ALREADY DAMN IT!!" She screamed, calling both Carrie and Mr. Neighless's attention. Finally, she turned tail and ran. She sprinted for the Medical room doorway. Once such a short distance seemed like minutes as she attempted to escape the horror. She dared not look back, for she feared she wouldn't be able to move again.

Finally reaching the metal doors, she pushed her way through, leaving them swinging be hind. Carrie stopped, and looked back.

"That won't keep him in there!" She looked around, searching for something, anything. As she glanced around, something caught her eye. "The broom!" She quickly grabbed a hold of it, and slid the handle between the two door handles. Sighing, she stepped back and sat down. She was shaky, and breathing heavily. From the other side, she heard scraping and squishing noises. Every now and then, a moan was uttered from the other side.

"I'm sorry Professor...You didn't deserve this..." Carrie said, mourning for her friend. She wept, adding her sounds to the occasional ones from the barricade Medical room.

XXXX

Carrie did not sleep. Night had passed, and a new day began, bright and sunny as the last. She sat there in silence, sleep deprived. The noise in the other room had stopped long ago, leaving a strange and eerie mood. Just as the mare was about to fall over to let sleep claim her, a loud knock came from the door. She bolted up, and looked at the front door. Silence. Then a second knock sounded. Carrie jumped to her hooves, and tentatively walked to the door. Reaching it, she slowly opened it.

"Hello?" She asked, almost in a whisper. She caught sight of three ponies in gold armor.

"Open in the name of the Princesses!' A Royal Guard, unicorn, said in a commanding voice. Gulping, she puled the door open.

"How may I be of assistance?" She asked, still a bit shaky. The Guard that spoke talked again.

"We come upon behalf of the Princesses. They have ordered to conduct an inspection to see if it would still be necessary to continue her research here in Ponyville. Let us in, miss." He ordered. Carrie looked confused.

"Expiriments? She's a medicinal doctor, she only seldom worked on anything." The guard shrugged.

"I would very much like to get this over with. Let us pass." He said again in his stern voice. A look of panic came across her face.

"No! You can't, the Professor is sick! She is unable to see anypony!' she said, attempting to make them leave.

"I'm sorry, but it's the Princesses's orders." He and the other two ponies pushed past Carrie and entered the dark house. "Where is the Professor?" He asked.

"She's in the Medical room, but like I said earlier, she's sick! You cant disturb her." She said, attempting to preventing them from progressing further inside. They came to the end of the hallway, and the lead stared at the door.

"Why is the door barred? Cur! You two, take hold of her. You will be held responsible should any harm have befallen the Professor." As he said this, Carrie got in between the Guard and the Medical room door.

"Don't open the door! You'll let them out!" She said, trying with all her might not to collapse. The unicorn glared at her.

"Move out of my way." He said, coldly. The two other Guards grabbed a hold of Carrie. The Guard removed the broomstick from the door handles and pushed his way inside. The room which was once bright and almost always the Professor's domain was now dark. The light was off, for somepony, or something, broke it. Medical tools were scattered among the floor from Carrie during her escape. Since the lighting was poor, the unicorn lit up the room. The light from his horn didn't reach far, but what he saw wasn't very far. A few feet away stood the Professor, staring at him with black and bloodshot eyes. He jumped, and regained his posture.

"Professor! You scared the life out of me. Are you alright? Did your assistant...Celestia, what happened to your neck?" He asked the Ex-Averys, who only stared back. The bite that Mr. Neighless took out of her had quickly festers and turned black. She took a step forward, and so did the Guard. "Here, let me help you. Let me just find a bandage-" He was cut short. The colt Neighless had sneaked up on him, and tackled the Guard. "Hey! It's alright! I'm here to help!" the clueless unicorn said, trying to get the colt off him. What came next stunned him. Neighless bit down on the Guard's unprotected leg, and ruptured skin.

"AHH! Get off me!! Help!!!" He shouted for the other two Guards. Out in the hallway, they let go of Carrie and rushed into the room.

"Don't go in there! It's too late for him!" She futilely screamed after them. The other two colts burst into the room, and saw Neighless ripping skin and fur from the unicorn's leg.

"Get him off me!!" He screamed at his comrades. They hastily ran to them, grabbing a hold of the raged colt. Instead of focusing on his meal, he whipped his head back, and attempted to bit the other Guards. Surprised, they let him go and hesitated. He lunged forward, and sunk his teeth into the neck of the nearest Guard. He screamed, and his shrieks soon were gargled as blood flowed into his airway. The last Guard drew up a crossbow he brought and fired it at Neighless's leg. He stumbled, and began to move towards the remaining colt.

"Stay away! I don't want to hurt you! We were trying to help!" He shouted at the ex-colt, a tear escaping from his eyes. He kept stepping back, and bumped into something. Averys. He whipped around, and then cowered in fear. "We were just trying to help..."

A horrifying scream escaped from the Medical room, but Carrie had already made it out the front door. She ran onto the wooded porch, leaped down the stairs, and tripped. She fell down the rest of the way and landed in the dirt. She got back on her hooves, and ran towards the town. She didn't look back. She dare not....

XXXX

Back at the house, the front door was left cracked. A rasping sound came from behind as it was slowly opened. It creaked the whole way, till it was completely open. What was once the kind Mr. Neighless slowly shuffled out the door, and paused on the porch. It smelled the air, and then snarled. It smelled meat. Fresh meat. Behind him, the ex-Professor made its way out the door, also pausing and smelling the air. After a moment of standing there, they began to walk down the stairs.

The true horror had begun.

Comments

[burn this cringe]

Pony zombies? Cool

[Samey90]

Cool, it reminds me a bit of HP Lovecraft's "Herbert West - Re-animator"...

[AvalonAva]

4039217 I feel like I should know that, but I don't.

[Samey90]

4042470
Here it is. Despite Lovecraft's opinion, it's still quite good.

[AvalonAva]

4043184 I actually want to read those. I find that reading fiction from different spectrums and authors helps in perfecting my own writing, sort of like learning from others.

[Fome]

Only read description. Why are there human names with no Human tag?