Chapter 3
Two days had passed since any real action happened. Vinyl kept Sweetie Belle as occupied as she could, while Octavia and Quills went out to gather supplies. Octavia had kept her word and taught Quill everything she knew about guns, which wasn't a lot. How to load it, how to cock it, how to aim, and how to fire. Taught him about the safety too. Good lord, he half wanted to break the safety in the on positions just so it wouldn't go off again, but Octavia told him that it will one day save his life.
The small mismatched group had grown rather comfortable with each other and were able to share the room that they did rather well. Octavia and Vinyl had surprised Quill and Sweetie by reorganizing the room so that there were two beds in it, allowing them all to sleep on a bed. Vinyl and Octavia shared a bed, and Sweetie Belle clung to Quill like a lost kitten, but no one cared. Everyone had their problems, and it was never brought up as a negative. All in all, Quill could see them sticking it out till the end and after. Till then though, they had to come up with a plan.
"Look, we have to wait. The pigs in gold collapsed anyway down the mountain, and going out during any time of day is a huge danger! We have it good in here, and we should stay until shit outside gets sorted. Nothing comes in here" Vinyl said, quoting the same argument she had every time they had this discussion.
Octavia just placed a hand on her face lightly in annoyance. "Vinyl, please realize that chances are no one is going to come here, and we are going to have to move eventually. It's not like before where we had a Market down the street from us and we could toss a merchant a few bits for fresh food and water. We are relying on what we find and the fact is, the supplies in this area are running thin, and it is dangerous to venture too far from here lest we get separated! We need to move to another part of the city, maybe find a nobles house close to the palace where they are bound to have preserved food to last more than enough time. Vinyl I am not disagreeing with you on the waiting, I am just saying we need to find somewhere else we can wait. We are running out of time here, and you know it" She finished, crossing her arms.
Vinyl rolled her eyes and looked at Quill. "Well? Come on you have been silent this whole time! Every time we have this argument you say nothing! I want to hear what you have to say boyo, cause silence is getting aggravating" She snapped at him.
Quill sighed. There was a reason he didn't join in the argument. Nothing would change, and he would just throw in a totally different opinion than them and they would still be no where. Well, if she wanted his opinion! "Look, On the part with Octavia, I agree. If you haven't Noticed Vinyl, we are actually running out of food, despite mine and Octavia's supply runs. We are hitting the bottom of the barrel in this part of the city, and it's too dangerous for the two of us to go further. We wouldn't be able to get to any fresh grounds, do a good sweep, and get back before daylight." He said making Vinyl wince a little. Then he turned to Octavia. "Your wrong too though. Noble houses are the first place any other survivors would go, which means that chances are they have been stripped of food. Plus, the likelihood of a nobles house having anything canned or preserved is very unlikely. Nobles have the money that they can just buy fresh food when they want it no matter what it is, so why would they want to keep preserved items" He went, causing Octavia to lower her ears.
Quill sighed "And on the final part your both wrong. I don't know if you guys have noticed, but we have no contact with the outside world. We haven't seen anyone try to save us yet, and it's been weeks. If they haven't come yet, they aren't going to. If they do come, then well, we may as well do something productive while we wait. This city is old, REALLY old so there has to be a way out of here that the royal guard didn't think of" He said simply.
Vinyl went to say something but Octavia cut her off. "Quills right Vinyl. We are kidding ourselves thinking that anyone is coming to help us. Canterlot is a lost City, and those who are still alive are just acceptable losses to the remaining nobles. We have to find our way out of here." She said looking at the eccentric mare.
Vinyl just nodded "Yea... Your right. So what's the plan?" She asked, looking back at Quill.
Quill shrugged "Well, me and Octavia have figured that Night time is the safest time to be out still, but that is changing every day. More and more of those Glows are coming out each night so our time to move is slim really. They can't seem to hear much, but they can sure see well enough. Almost got caught when one saw the barrel of the shotgun poking out from behind a way, and suddenly there were a few on us. Thankfully, Octavia had planned for it and we had an escape" He said smiling at Octavia.
Octavia blushed and continued "Look, we have fifteen scatter shells left, and a box of shells I can't identify, so I have been hesitant to let Quill put into the gun. Till we have a chance to safely test it, I don't think they are possible rounds we can use, so we have to make due with what we have. However, I did put one in the weird shell compartment I found in the stock of the gun. Didn't know they had that" She said shrugging.
Quill nodded "Alright, we leave tonight. Gather anything left in the house that may be useful, and get a little rest in. We will leave once the moon is in the sky" He said. Guess he was the leader now, but he didn't mind. They trusted him to lead, so that's what he was going to do. He was worried about Sweetie Belle though. She hadn't said much in the last few days, or eaten much for that matter. He decided he would go talk to her.
Quill found Sweetie Bell where he usually found her. The house had roof access, and she would sit in the middle of it where she couldn't be seen from the streets to look at the sky. Made her feel better, so as long as it didn't put her in any danger he didn't have a quarrel with it. He sat down next to the small girl and gave her a small smile.
"We miss you down there you know..." He started, not knowing how to continue actually.
Sweetie Belle didn't give him a chance to continue though. "I'm sorry... I just want to think" She said, still looking up at the sky.
Quill nodded, looking at the roof. "You know... My brother died when I was younger. Bone Cancer. Nothing the doctors we could afford could do for him, but despite the fact that he knew he was dying he always had a smile on his face. He always put me ahead of himself in everything that he did" He started. Sweetie Belle looked at him, but didn't say anything so he continued. "He always told, I swear to Celestia and Luna themselves, if what happens to me ruins your life I will personally come back from the dead and kill you" Quill said chuckling. "Every time I was sad he would say it. Every time I saw the pain in his eyes... He once told me what it was like. He said it was as if his bones had turned into glass rose stems with razor sharp thistles had replaced his bones. He would get up and try and get something for himself but soon the pain he felt made it so even the slightest movement or touch hurt him. By the gods when he was 20, he looked like an old man!" He said laughing, but tears were rolling down his cheeks.
"But still he did everything to keep me safe... Make me feel better. He endured pain that I couldn't even imagine day to day, and there was nothing I could do. We made a plea to Celestia to help us, but all she could offer us was a bed in a hostle. He was too far gone for even the best medical or magical help that was around and I lost it. I lost it like you wouldn't believe. One day I walked into his room, crying like a newborn and he didn't even think. He pulled himself out of that bed and ran over to hug me faster than I had ever seen him move in his life. I wanted to die Sweetie Belle. I wanted nothing more than to take a long walk off a short Pegasi dock, but seeing him move the way he did to comfort me... Knowing the pain he went though just to do that one simple thing" Quill continued, sniffling a little. 'It made me realize that he didn't care the pain he went though. It didn't matter if Tirek himself was between me and him. He would do anything to keep me safe and alive. Oh he got scolded by the nurses for it big time though. Bone growths had literally tore him apart from the inside and he looked like he was born black and blue. He still smiled at me though, and told me that everything was alright. That if anything, he knew that when he died, I would be able to live on and make something of my life. Didn't matter what I did, I got to do it and I got to experience it" He said look at Sweetie Belle.
"When I met you? When you told me what your sister had told you to do? I remembered how your sister died. I remembered everything that happened, and I know I will never forget it because now I know why I did it. She wanted to give you a chance... And she saw only one way to do it. Let me tell you Sweetie Belle... The memory of what happened will tear me up in my sleep for the rest of my life, but it gives me comfort to know why she did it. There was no way she could have defended you, and there was no way you guys would have been able to outrun them. I hardly made it away from one, let alone three." Quill said, looking at the small girl. "Your sister, in her final moments reminded me of my brother. The sheer amount of audacity plus the big middle finger she gave the gods when they came for you. She gave herself up so that you both wouldn't die, and Celestia did she put up a fight" He said, lying a little. All the greatest legends were fluffed on a bit after all.
"She fought tooth and nail, but it wasn't to get away. It was to give you more time, and try to give you three less problems to worry about. I could see that she knew living wasn't an available outcome for her and in the end she accepted that. She wouldn't have been able to kill one of those things with her bare hands if she didn't" He said, getting up onto his knees. "Just remember that about her ok? Remember the good, and accept the bad for what it was and I'm sure a tough girl like you will make it through in the end" He finished, standing up and turning around.
Before he was able to get any further, he felt himself get tugged back by the waist. Sweetie Belle had wrapped her arms around his waist and was cuddling into his back!
"Please... Don't go" Sweetie Belle whispered, sobbing a little. "I don't want to be alone anymore... I've had enough time to think... I just want to try and enjoy the life rarity let me have" She choked.
Quill smiled and turned around, placing a hand on her head. "Well, if you wanna start enjoying life then why don't you start with making some friends?" He asked.
Sweetie Belle looked up at him, her face wet but with the most confused look on her face. "Aren't we friends?" She asked.
Quill couldn't help but laugh! "Well we can't really be friends if We only know each others names! I don't even know how old you are!" He chuckled, getting her to smile as well.
"I guess we can't can we?" She said, laughing a little too. "Alright! Well, I'm Sweetie Belle, and I am eighteen years old!" She smiled at him.
Quill blinked as his brain ground to a halt. "I beg your what now?" He stammered "Your eighteen? You look like your ten no offence!" He said looking her up and down.
Sweetie Belle just smiled and shook her head. "I'm a "Normal" Dwarf" She said, air quoting the word Normal. "Despite being stupidly uncommon, it's called normal. Basically I stopped growing when I was like... 12 years old and that was it. Twelve years old in body, but eighteen years of life. Me and Rarity were in Canterlot to see if I could get into the Academy after I finished highschool in ponyville, but I guess that's out of the question now:" She shrugged, sitting back down on the hoof.
Quill was still reeling in shock. That... That was a new thing to him to say the least. "Well, my name is Quill Tip, and I'm 21 years old. I worked as a secretary at a tea whole sale company and was nick named "Booker" by the staff, as that was what I usually did. Such an exciting life, I know" He chuckled at her.
Sweetie bell just sighed "I hope everything gets fixed. Then maybe me and you can get on with our lives" She said smiling at Quill
Quill nodded "Yea, that would be nice wouldn't it?" He agreed. "Anyway, we are gonna be heading out when the moons up. We should probably go get some rest he said.
Sweetie Belle just nodded "Mind if we lay down here? We won't fall and the sun feels nice" She asked, looking at him.
Quill nodded "You know what? that's the best idea I have heard all day" He said, laying down on the roof.
Sweetie Belle leaned over and laid her head on Quills chest, closing her eyes and falling asleep almost instantly. Quill just smiled and shook his head. Everyone needed some comfort every once in a while.
"Hey sleepy heads! Time to go!" An obnoxious voice said, waking quill from his slumber. He saw that Sweetie Belle had all but curled up against him and honestly he didn't wanna move. He had to though, so with a begrudging sigh he rolled over and lightly shook Sweetie Belle awake. "Come on Sweetie, it's time to wake up! We gotta get going" He said, watching the little mare stir awake.
A minute or two passed, and both Quill and Sweetie Belle were ready to leave with Octavia and Vinyl. The all left the house slowly, one at a time so that they weren't all seen. Octavia first due to her dark colors, Quill second as he had the shotgun, with vinyl and Sweetie Belle taking up the end. Vinyl had picked up Sweetie Belle for the sake of ease and in some strange sense of Maternal Care? Quill didn't know but he could see Sweeties mild aggravation at being coddled.
When they took a moment to stop and let Octavia look around he looked at Vinyl. "Put her down, she's old enough to walk on her own" He said quietly.
Vinyl just looked at him with a funny expression. "No offence to her, but she's like... Ten! I would rather her be strong for if we actually have to run" She hissed.
Quill rolled his eyes "Look, she's older than ten. It's a complicated story and not great for right now... But she is defiantly not a child" He said matter of factly. "She has graduated high school and was looking to join the Canterlot academy. That's why she is even in Canterlot in the first place. Just... Trust me ok? It will be explained later when we have some more time" He finished just as Octavia came around the corner.
"There's one or two of them out there that I could see, but I want to try something. I was thinking about those shells, and I remember applejack fawning over a similar shell. Something about putting the Timberwolves in there place? Load one into the shotgun and remember it's their. The Glows are distracted so I think we have some time in which we can get by" She said, getting confused looks from the rest of the party.
Octavia facepalmed. "Look, just trust me alright? I know what I am talking about sorta ok? Just follow me" She said, starting to walk away.
Quill shrugged and soon the party was on the move again. Octavia blazed the trail with such sped and grace, it was like she was made out of water. Not only that but it made it a little difficult for the others to follow some of her paths. Quill couldn't help but give her a large amount of respect though. She managed to adapt her past skills quickly in this new world they lived in and for that he was immensely grateful. She did have a sense of mature beauty about her.
Suddenly he felt a sharp jab in his side. Looking he saw vinyl, giving him what h could only describe as a "Shit eating Grin" before she mouthed I saw that and falling back behind. Quill blushed hotly. Great! Now Vinyl would think he was going after Octavia! Weren't they together? He never actually asked... Wait, did that mean Vinyl was into that thing? Quill blushed even more at this though, and he could hear Vinyl sniggering behind him.
Quills shook his head. Serious time and here he was goofing off in his head. He collected himself, and caught up to Octavia. She was stopped? He didn't get it. "What's up?" He whispered.
Octavia just pointed at the intersection. It was empty, but something seemed off about it. "Isn't this where you said Rarity died?" She asked softly.
The realization hit Quill like a sack of bricks. The intersection was empty. "Oh dear Celestia..." He said, unslinging the shotgun and handing it to Octavia. "I'll be right back. Whatever you do, do NOT put yourselves in danger" He said before slowly creeping into the intersection. He creeped over and took a look around, spotting where rarity had been lying all those days ago. Her pool of blood had dried to the concrete, but her body was no where to be found, which concerned him.
He looked around, wondering if maybe an infected had moved her body for some reason but his time was cut short. Of in the distance he heard a blood curdling, animalistic scream, and as it lingered more and more joined in the chorus. Faint glowing specs could be seen all around the intersection and Quills blood ran cold. He was surrounded... And they were all focused on him... This wasn't good...
He heard Octavia from a distance. "Quill! Get out of there!" but Quill just slumped his shoulder and sighed. He couldn't escape this... He heard Sweetie Belle scream and his cold blood flash boiled. No. He was not going to let her watch him just submit. "Come on you assbutts! You want a fight?" He screamed. Two of the creatures came out of their hiding spots and snarled at him. He didn't know what he was doing, and honestly he didn't even know how to fight! Like hell he wasn't going to put one up though. He waved back at his party, telling them not to get involved, and to find somewhere to hide. He was gonna give them a chance to get out even if it was the last thing he did.
The showdown continued, when finally the two charged at him. It was weird, they seemed to be moving slowly. Were they getting weaker? He didn't complain though. He stepped out of the first ones way and ducked, sending the second one over his back. He stood up and looked shocked. Was fighting really that easy? He always thought you had to train for years to be any good. Smiling, he walked up to one and punched it. He felt a little pain shoot up his hand and forearm, but ignored it. It seemed the Glow ignored it to. Quills confidence drained faster than a bucket without a bottom. He was dead...
The Glow seemed to smile, which honestly wasn't the greatest thing to see before you were ripped apart by a horde of creatures. Quill accepted his fate, dropping his arms and falling to his knees. Hopefully, his friends had gotten away and wouldn't have to see this. He closed his eyes and waited, but his death never came. What did come though, was a sharp loud CRACK, followed by a wet throaty gurgle and the sound of a body hitting the floor.
The chorus of screams started again, but there was another voice this time. "Get the FUCK ON YOUR FEET!" a commanding voice screamed, followed by more of those loud cracks.
Quill looked around in a confused stupor. He didn't see anyone, where was the voice coming from?
"On the roof, south east corner of the Intersection! You wanna live? Run down the street directly behind you! I'll be able to cover you but you have to move NOW!" The voice screamed again. Looking up, he saw a a person completely covered in rather intimidating clothing. He also had a gun, but it certainly wasn't the same as what Octavia had right now. It was thinner, with a long rectangle stick out the bottom. It was also, a LOT more accurate from how he watched the infected fall around him. He was shocked!
"Hey dumbass! Get those legs MOVING!" The Stallion screamed. That got quill going. He ran down the street that Octavia and them were down last he saw them. Up on the rooftops he saw the pony running, keeping up with him while still taking out several of the infected. He missed a few times, but the fact he was able to hit anything while running was a shock to Quill. He turned, following the pre-established path that they would take. He didn't care if that's not where this guy was going to take him, he had to make it back to his friends! But, the infected around him still fell, and the gunshots still followed him. Maybe he was just really lucky? Well, he hoped his streak would continue.
He ran, and ran until the street started to end. They had pulled quite a few more of the glows as they ran and Quill was starting to think that the Stallion on the roof wouldn't be able to handle them all. However, something glinted in one of the windows, and he saw a ghostly grey figure in a window with a gun... AND THEY WERE AIMING AT HIM!!!!!
Quill dove to the ground, and just as he did a huge, roaring blast shot over his head, singeing his coat. DAMN that was hot! What the hell created so much heat?! Another blast shot over his head, causing him to curl up in some attempt to protect himself from the heat. Blast after blast went over his head, coupled with the Stallions gun shots and the screams of the Glows as they fell Quill was down right terrified! He could feel blisters forming on the side of his head and his forearm from the heat, his shirt and pants protecting him from the heats somewhat more, but soon it was over.
Quill got up, and was quickly met with a hug around the waist by a very upset little mare. "I thought you were DEAD!" Sweetie Bell cried, Squeaking adorably when she said dead. Octavia and Vinyl followed, Octavia looking around to make sure there were no more glows in the area, and Vinyl had picked up a copper pipe at some point.
"Your really quite the lucky one Quill. We all thought you had died" Octavia said happily, hugging Quill as well. He smiled and picked Sweetie Belle up, not meaning to treat her like a child but she obviously didn't care.
Vinyl just looked at him for a second before rolling her eyes and smiling. "Awe come here ya big dumbass" She said, wrapping her arm around his neck and giving him a noogie. Well, everyone had their own way to express themselves. Everything seemed all fine and dandy until Octavia yelp in surprise!
"Hey what the hell?" Octavia shouted. The stallion from the roof and obviously climbed down, and snatched the shotgun from her, looking it over. The way he operated it showed quite a bit of experience, removing all of the shells from the weapons he looked at the group.
"These are restricted to military use only. Not only that, but Dragons Breath rounds are hard to get, even for military personnel so would any of you care to explain to me how you managed to get your hands on them?" He asked in a cool voice. Vinyl, obviously wasn't taking any of this guys shit, and got up in his face.
"Hey! Why the fuck don't you start by telling us who the hell you think you are!" She shouted at him. Before anyone could react, the stallion was pointing a small metal object under her chin, and by the looks of it... it was just a much smaller gun.
"I am asking the questions Civilian. The fact you own this weapon is a breach in Equestrian Military law. Please tell me how you obtained the weapon" He said, his voice just as cool as before. Everyone froze instantly with this sudden shift in power and it was clear everyone was uncomfortable. Even Vinyl was able to stay perfectly still, despite the fact that she was giving him a glare that would turn the stomach of a lesser man.
Octavia was the first to speak. "Alright... Vinyl, please come here an sit down. Everyone is on edge, and the man is asking a rather good question for our situation. For all he knows, we could be criminals or something and that just won't work. Sir... Please don't point that at her. We will cooperate, but I promise you that no one is in any danger so long as you put the gun down. Please, lets just talk this over" She said, he hands slowly going up. Quill and Sweetie Belle followed suit.
The Stallion was motionless before holstering the weapon and turning vinyl around by the shoulder, giving her a light push away from him. This Stallion was obviously being incredibly cautious if he was treating people like this. Quill looked over the stallions outfit, but he saw no markings to identify himself. Freelance mercenary or something? It didn't matter to him, all he cared about was that his friends were safe.
"Look, it's technically mine" Quill started. "I walked into a house a few days ago, and it was all just laying under the bed in the master bedroom. I didn't know what it was, but to be fair I also didn't think that there was any reason to follow the law word for word at this point either. Octavia here was the one who showed me how to use it, her cousin Applejack owning a permit for one, signed by the princess herself. We just want to get out of here." He said looking at the guy.
The stallion scanned the four of them slowly, before slinging his own rile back over his shoulder and tossing the shotgun at Quill, which he managed to catch. "Who I am is classified. Me and my team were sent to extract a H.V.I from the Palace after the quarantine was placed in effect. I... I was separated from my group and have been trapped for the last few days trying to find survivors. Our squad leader told me of a passage in the Canterlot Basement that lead into the mountains. If the Nobles didn't think of it, which I am sure they didn't, we should be able to get out through there. Any other information I have will be issued on a Need to Know Basis. Is that understood?" He asked.
Quill had a feeling the question was rhetorical, but Vinyl obviously didn't. "No actually! How do we know outside is even ok? Won't the Military or whatever your a part of come and get you? Like, do we even have a chance?" She asked in rapid succession.
"No" The Stallion said coolly. "Canterlot was put on total lockdown when the Royal Guard cut it off from civilization. The only reason my team came is was because we had a mission to attempt to bring leadership back to the rest of Equestria in the aftermath of the princesses fall. Situation outside was stable last I had radio contact, and I don't work by chances. Hard work and perseverance is what will get us out of here. Not chance. Enough Questions. We need to find somewhere to lay low before the sun comes up. The Nocturnal Infected population was dented by that bout of chance, but we have no hope against the daylight Infected. Let move." He finished, walking into the building.
The four ponies left behind looked at each other with bewildered looks. Sweetie Belle shrugged and started following the military stallion. "Guy knows more about what's going on than we do, and is sworn to protect the citizens of Equestria. May as well go with him" She said. Quill looked at the other two, and they shrugged back at him. The turned and followed, but quill could only think of one think...
Something bad was going to happen...
Stats
Page generated in 0.025 seconds
Total duration
996 users online
283,158 hits today, 2,314,256 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Actually, it was a 2005 US Quarter (West Virginia) that made the choice. I'm curious as to what is going on outside of Canterlot right now.
Other than a few grammatical errors, it came out pretty well.
My friend this is gold, pure gold, octavia better live though as she is best earth pony second to the good doctor *HINT, HINT* anyways good story.
5017896 That moment when Derpy destroyed Planet Equin
No but seriously. Was that a Warhammer reference?
Octavia. Random choice.
5018081 Yeah i like war hammer and MLP cross overs so awesome, side from that this story is 100% EMPRAH, approved nice job.
5019046 Glad to know the "Not God" god emperor approves my story and won't send a trillion imperial guards after me. Lord knows you need that many to take a single person down XD
5019057 Hehehe tru dat, anyways i shall continue with great eagerness to read your awesome work *coughs*add METAL BAWKES, or commander boreale*cough* ah the magenta plague ya know really hurts the throat.
5019073 Ehh, too many characters are in the story as it is. I'm trying to cull some out not add more in :P
I kid, i kid, im along for da ride!. Just please dont give this story a ME3 ending.
5019107 Honestly, I'm not too sure what that means. I do think people will like it though
A confusing ending that breaks the total story build up and lore that said story establishes. Example, this whole story was pinkie having a bad dream, or just something outta the blue that makes no logical sense whatso ever.
5019127 OOOOH Oh no no no no no no. I got this ending planned down to the very crack in the road ;) Hint hint
Octavia dies. Reason: Vines would go absolutely APE-SHIT. Opens up quite a few options down the road.