An Elegy of Enlightenment

by Algoortheviking

Chapter five: Zombie

Tossing and turning under the sheets, I opened my eyes to see sunlight filling the room. Spectra was still asleep in her bed. How could she do it, these mattresses were so uncomfortable, not like the one back at my house. Getting out of bed quietly, I made my way to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, I saw that my mane was in a mess. Still half asleep, I figured I might as well take a shower and freshen up before Spectra wakes up and demands to leave.

Finishing up with my shower and brushing my teeth, I noticed Spectra was still asleep. Taking advantage of the situation, I made my way down stairs to the guild hall before she could wake up. Upon reaching the lower level, I noticed that it was much different than last night, everything was calm, there were plenty of ponies here but they were sitting around chatting. Some were over by a big bulletin board in the middle of the room, while others either ate breakfast or were preparing to set out.

I headed up to the bulletin board to get a better look. It was covered by papers, all job request that ranged in types of task as well as rewards offered. A large bulky Stallion in plate armor and wielding a great sword pulled a page of the board and proceeded towards the door. I glanced around at a few of the different request.

Lost cat, grey tabby, his name is chuckles. Please return to the florist shop if found. Reward 20 bits.

Looking for an adventurer to deliver a letter to San Filliaro, see contractor for details. Reward is negotiable.

A Dangerous dragon is roaming the Everfree forest of Equestria. Need a party of capable warriors willing to travel to Equestria and take on the beast. Reward one million bits.

Need potion ingredients, seeking somepony willing to collect forty night drop flowers from the Great Sequoia Forest. Reward 500 bits.

“See any that strike your fancy?” said a voice behind me. I turned to look and it was the two stallions that were talking to Platina last night.

“So let me get this straight, you guys take on these request and get paid for it?” I asked as I took a seat at their table. One of them was an earth pony wearing a mantle, a shoulder pad on his left side, and had a battle axe. The other was a unicorn wearing a cloak; he had three weird looking staffs for casting magic.

“More or less; that how we make our living, taking on job request that others won’t.” The earth pony said as he took a drink from his tankard. “You should think about joining the guild yourself. It’s an interesting life style and pays well, assuming you got the skill and the balls to tackle the good jobs.”

“Not to mention you meet a lot of unique and friendly individuals. All you need is a little drive and determination. Just grab yourself a weapon and sign up, hell you don’t even need to be a fighter,” The unicorn guy said smiling with his arms crossed on the table. “Look at Platina, she uses support magic and avoids actual combat whenever possible.”

“You guys actually think I’d be good at this sort of thing?” I asked, intrigued at the thought of it.

“Hell yeah; you have spunk, I can tell just by the tone of your voice. It’s one thing all adventures have; eagerness to see the world, take life by the horns and just roll with it.” The unicorn said as he glanced at a lot of the other members around the hall.

“Hey, speaking of which, where is Platina?” I asked since I didn’t see her in the guild hall with the others.

“She’s probably still resting. She was working late last night,” the unicorn said turning his attention back to me.

There was suddenly a loud ruckus coming from the stairs. “Autumn, where are you!” Spectra yelled as she slid down the stairs. She was looking all around the room frighteningly until she noticed me at the table. The panic on her face immediately turned to anger as she walked up. “What do you think you’re doing? Do you know how worried I was?” She yelled at me, gritting her teeth.

“Uh, sorry, I just didn’t want to wake you,” I responded calmly as she scowled down at me, her eyes read pissed off. This was starting to get a bit embarrassing as some of the others in the room started looking over.

“Look, pegasi have been disappearing in this town and I wake up and don’t see you anywhere. I assumed the worst!” With that last shout, she backed off and calmed herself down. “Go grab your things; it’s time to head out.” Spectra headed back towards the stairs. Spectra seemed so nice and cool when I first met her, now she's just a royal pain in the plot. However not wanting to stir her up any more I just followed her back to the room.

“Hey, tell Platina goodbye for me if I don’t get to see her,” I shouted back to the two stallions.

“Yeah don’t worry, we’ll let her know.”

---

It was a bit overcast as we exited the guild hall and made our way through the town center. The town was just as lively as the moment we arrived. I could smell freshly baked bread at the stalls along with other fine pastries. There was a chill in the morning air as a light breeze blew by. Spectra was shopping for food and supplies when suddenly there was a large commotion at the north gate. Naturally curious, we went to go investigate as well. An orange stallion was being drug through the streets, he was hurt badly, bleeding all over like something mauled him.

“What happened?” a mare cried out.

“It was him!” the wounded stallion said. “He thought I was her, that pegasus from yesterday!”

I could feel that more than a few eyes were no gazing upon me as more an more ponies took notice that I was standing here.

“Who did this?” Spectra spoke out as she approached the stallion.

“The zombie!” the stallion shouted. “He’s the one that has been abducting all of the pegasi!”

"Zombie? There's no such thing," Spectra stated, thought it seemed like the rest of the town disagreed.

There was a lot of commotion going on now. I could see the townsfolk glaring at us. “We warned you! You should have left when we told you so, and now it’s your fault somepony got hurt!”

"That zombie has been here for years and yet you wouldn't listen to us! We told you it was dangerous to have a pegasus here!"

“Wait, you all knew about this thing?” Spectra asked surprised by the turn of events.

“Of course we did, and you didn’t listen!” a mare yelled pointing at us.

Spectra’s surprised look morphed into pure anger, and she was pissed. “So what you’re telling me is that you knew all along and you have done NOTHING about it!”

“Hold on now, we’re just every day towns folk. We’re not fighters, we can't take on a zombie!” another member of the crowd said.

“You have the military; there is a guild hall in your town. Don’t tell me there was nothing you could have done to end all of this! You all knew what was causing these attacks and you chose to ignore it? No, it wasn’t our fault that somepony got hurt. You all brought this on yourselves! ”

“There is nothing we can do! We ward off all other pegasi that way things like this won’t happen, if you would have just left when we told you too then things would have been just fine!” that same mare from before replied.

Spectra started to chuckle maniacally. “You don’t get it do you? By choosing to live in denial to this threat, you allowed it to terrorize this town. By choosing to do nothing, you cost the lives of many who could have been spared. As long as you weren’t a pegasus you were safe; that’s the mindset you fell into and now reality is starting to sink in… Come on, Autumn, let’s go pay this zombie a visit.” Spectra turned here gaze upon the mountain path that led up the hill. She gave one last glare at the the town's crowd. "Pathetic, all of you..." and with that last comment Spectra began to canter up the road and I in turn followed closely.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? We don’t know what this thing is capable of, besides-” Spectra cut me off mid sentence.

“When I became a soldier, I swore an oath to protect the citizens of this nation no matter the cost. I’m not going to force you to come along; I know you don’t have combat experience and as a pegasus you will be the primary target. This could prove to be fatal for you and me both. But that’s your decision if you’re willing to come.”

I just stood there, not sure what was the best choice. If I leave then the attacks would stop; at least for now. But then what, could I live with myself if I didn’t do anything, letting Spectra go alone?

“Regardless, if I don’t try to stop this thing then others will suffer the same fate. And I know that no pony else here is going to do a thing about it. So as my sworn duty, I will stop this menace no matter what. I won't think any less of you regardless of your decision.” Spectra said as she began to make her way up the northern road.

“Yeah, I’m coming with you. For better or for worst,” I followed suit, no way was I going to turn my back on a friend even one as aggravating as Spectra . All the other ponies just stood there and watched. Not a single one tried to follow and help us. It disgusted me to think that they would let two outsiders handle their mess. It disgusted me that I had to hesitate about helping Spectra or not.

Making our way up hill, Spectra just turned to me and smiled. “Despite how hard I’ve been on you; you still chose to follow me knowing it was dangerous. I admire that about you, Autumn.”

“What kind of friend would I be if I let you go alone?”

She chuckled a bit. “Friend huh? I guess I should start treating you as friend as well, huh.”

“It would be a nice start,” I replied with a smile, continuing our trek up the mountain. We didn’t know what was in store for use, nor did we know what we got ourselves into or if we could even come back from this alive. What we did know was that this is the right thing to do, and I don’t regret my decision to leave home.

---

We eventually made our way to the top which was a large open plateau; it was the site of an old cemetery. There were a lot of jagged stone boulders surrounding the place, which was marked off by a collapsing cobblestone wall. To the east side of the cemetery stood a large crumbling stone watch tower that sat on the edge of the cliff. The remains of an old manor where nestled close to the tower, but not as close to the cliff. To the north of the graveyard was a large mausoleum made out of marble, granite and polished stone. There were a few trees that dotted the area, though a lot of them were dead or appeared that way. The headstones were old and spread out; a lot of them were weathered to the point of illegibility with moss growing on them. The ground was mostly dirt but there were patches of tall grass, mostly along the walls. The ground was covered by a thick mist.

I looked around at the surrounding area. The mountain continued upwards on the west side but it was too steep to walk. The surrounding sides of the plateau dropped off deep into a chasm. On the other side of the chasm were large steep mountains with vertical, jagged rock faces. Mist and fog rolled off the edges, the sky was still an overcast grey. The wind howled at this altitude and the air was moist and chilly. I had chills running down my spine, part due to the climate but mostly from the eerie vibe of this place. Apparently the only place left to go from here is back down the road into town, so at least we where in the right place.

“Keep close, there’s a strong magic aura to this place,” Spectra said as she slowly made her way into the cemetery. I followed her as she led the way. Spectra was on edge, focusing on the slights movements.

“So how do we exactly find this-“gulp “zombie?”

“Let’s look around a bit first, see if we can spot anything unusual,” Spectra said as she looked around each tombstone.

“What if we try to draw him out, then we can get him in the open,” I asked trying to be helpful.

“How do you suppose we do that?” Spectra asked, still checking out the grave sites.

“HEY ZOMBIE; I got some nice, tasty, pegasus meat for ya!” I yell as my voice echoed throughout the valley. Oh God why did I even say something like that?

Spectra just stared at me. “Nice work,” she responded sarcastically with a smirk.

Suddenly I could hear the sound of dirt crumbling beneath my hooves. There was a loud burst as something rises out of the ground. It grabbed me from behind, wrapping its arms beneath my shoulders and pulled me back onto my hind legs. My saddle bag slipped off and fell to the ground.

“AUTUMN!” Spectra screamed as she spun around, horrified.

I could hear it breathing right behind my ear as its mouth drew closer, feeling its breath rushing across my face. I was paralyzed with fear as it clutched me with its cold pale blue arms.

“Well you certainly are a loud one,” it said with a rough, rasped tone of voice, snickering as it looked into my eye.

I could only see it out of my peripheral vision. He was a stallion unicorn, with a light pale blue coat and a spiky black mane. The white of his eye were stained yellow and bloodshot, his pupils were maroon and his iris dilated. He had this creepy grin on his face.

“PLEASE DON’T EAT ME! I taste terrible I swear! I’m not really that meaty any ways, all skin and bones! Besides I drink a lot of vinegar so you don’t want-” I yelled panicking.

“Huh? What are you talking about?” he asked curiously. “I’m not going to eat you, what good would that do me?” He replied with a sinister, coughing like laugh.

Spectra was standing there shocked, gritting her teeth. “So I guess you’re the zombie everypony was talking about.” He turned his attention to her.

“Ahhh” he moaned, as he stared at Spectra. “Hehe, I would say aren’t you the smart one, if only it wasn’t so damn obvious. So who are you anyway; her side-kick, a close friend or family member; her lover perhaps?”

“I don’t swing that way!” I griped, still unable to move; he may be a decaying corpse, but he had strength, a lot of it.

“A guy can dream can’t he?” He replied, still grinning creepily.

Spectra was at a loss, unable to attack as long as I was in the zombies clutches. “Why did you attack that stallion this morning?”

He just laughed. “A simple mistake, all I wanted was your beautiful, feathered, orange friend here.”

“My coat is maple!”

“Eh? What are you talking about, maple isn’t a real color.”

“Yes it is!”

“Will you two shut up!” Spectra shouted; more annoyed than scared now. We both turned our attention to her. “Why do you want her, what’s she to you?”

“Well aren’t you a nosey one. If you must know, I plan to use her in a little experiment of mine.”

“What experiment? What do you plan to do with me?” I asked, still struggling to break free.

“It is a most glorious honor for you my dear. You shall become the vessel for my dearly beloved's soul. Assuming the ritual is a success that is, hehe.” He replied, chuckling in my ear. I did not like the sound of that.

“What do you mean? What about all the other pegasi that you kidnapped? Where are they?!” Spectra inquired anxiously, she was trying to get to the truth of this mystery or buying time to create a plan.

“They were; how should I put it, incompatible? Magic is a very picky thing you know, one must be very precise.” He let out a loud cackle as he observed Spectra’s reaction. She was horrified, I didn’t quite understand what he meant but I think Spectra figured it out. It wasn’t good judging by the look on her face.

“If magic is what you’re dealing with; then use me instead, Let her go!” Spectra shouted, anger simmered in her eyes as she stood there shivering at the thought of what his experiments were.

He began to study Spectra, glaring over every inch of her body. He began to laugh creepily. “No no no, you won’t do at all. You’re too bitter in your spirit; you lack those gorgeous angel-like wings. Besides you’re far too old.”

“What? I’m only twenty-seven!” Spectra snapped, now insulted.

“You see, I need somepony who is young and beautiful in both body and soul, brandishing wings that will allow them to sore the heavens! However that’s just the start, there’s so much more that needs to be right. Everything must be exact! However perfection is a cruel mistress.”

“And how do you know that Autumn meets all the requirements? If perfection is what you seek, then how can you be sure she will work in you grand scheme of things?” Spectra shouted in attempts to bargain for my release. “If she won’t work for you then there’s no need to do this to her!”

He chuckled evilly as he gazed upon me, his eyes piercing into my very soul. “Beggars can’t be chooser now can they? Your friend here is the first pegasus to stroll into town in months; can’t let an opportunity like that slip away.”

“You bastard,” I replied struggling to escape. Suddenly there was a large buildup of magic beneath me and the zombie, resonating in the ground. A burst of light that shined like the sun erupted as a large silver crystal formed right in between me and the undead stallion. It shot up out of the ground, breaking his hold on me.

“What the hell is going on?!”

“Where did that thing come from?”

“Holy shit, I’m gonna be rich!” Wait, this is my chance to get away. Kicking off of the giant crystal, I launched myself towards Spectra, hitting the ground rolling as I came to a stop. The giant metal crystal suddenly shattered, its fragments dissolving into magic mist.

“Are you guys ok?” shouted a soft, pleasing voice. Platina jumped down off of a nearby ledge and teleported strait to us. She then turned her focus onto the zombie, who was standing there glaring at us.

“What do you think you’re doing; you let my subject get away!” He snarled as he glared at Platina with those ever so creepy eyes of his.

“You’re the zombie that has been terrorizing the town of Canterburg, aren’t you? Answer me, what have you done with my sister? Where is she?!” Platina yelled; her heart filled with worry, anger, and fear.

“What, who are you talking about? I have no use for uni… oh wait, I remember you. You’re the younger sister of that pegasus from the guild aren’t you?” He started to laugh maniacally “Ah yes I remember her now, a lovely sky blue coat and wings of an angel. She did a real number on my jaw, took me weeks to heal. Well if you want to find out then come meet me in the mausoleum. Oh and do bring you friends with you. I’ll be waiting.”

He then sank back into the ground, laughing the whole time. We stood there for a moment, collecting our thoughts. I couldn’t believe what just happened. First my house is attacked by a wraith, and now I was assaulted by a zombie. I wanted an adventure but I didn’t expect any of this undead bullshit.

“Are you ok?” Spectra asked.

“I’m good now, still a little overwhelmed after all of that, though.” I turned to look at Platina, who was now tearing up. “Thanks for showing up when you did, you saved my life.”

She just looks back at me, wiping the tears from her eyes and putting on a pleasant smile. “Oh no problem it was my… no, I should have acted earlier. Instead I waited and eavesdropped in on the conversation. I prolonged your danger for my own benefits. Please forgive me. I’m sorry I didn’t act sooner.”

Spectra grinned; looking down at her while she wiped her eyes a bit more. “What you did was the smart thing to do. You didn’t rush in and blow your only opportunity. You collected what data you could and struck at the best possible moment. So don’t sell yourself short. I would have done the exact same thing.”

Spectra then gazed upon the mausoleum; a large white marble building with columns running along the front and sides. The entrance was a pair of large reinforced wooden doors, a pair of lit sconces mounted on the stone door frame. The walls were weathered and old, vines and moss clinging to the sides. We approached with caution.

“Are we sure we want to do this?” I asked nervously. Being grabbed by a zombie once was more than enough; but this place, its whole vibe was death.

“We’re getting to the bottom of this and we are going to stop that thing,” Spectra replied. She pushed on the large, uninviting door. The cast iron hinges creaked slowly as the door rotated inward, the sound of the wood resonated with the room as it slid across the floor. The door final stopped as it swung open fully as large iron knockers bounced off of the wooden boards.

The building was huge, it wasn’t really wide and spacious on the inside, but its walls were thick and the ceiling stood tall. A large brass chandelier swung slightly above the center of the room, emitting a warming yellow glow. There were three large granite sarcophaguses in the middle of the main room, equally spaced apart. In the corners of the room were some old candelabras and marble benches. A large hallway ran through the center back wall, running deeper into the mausoleum. As we proceeded through there were even more sarcophaguses embedded in the walls. The hallway was lit by wall sconces, a pair rested in between each of the tombs. At the end of the hallway was a large archway with another door. The archway itself was beautifully decorated with marble carvings.

“So, what do you think is behind there?” Platina asked as she gazed upon the door nervously.

Spectra examined the door and the engravings upon the archway. “If I had to guess; I’d say that this will lead us into the catacombs.”