• Published 22nd Jul 2016
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Cursed Crusader - Caffeinated Pony



One Nightmare Night the Cutie Mark Crusaders take an unfortunate turn into the Everfree Forest, and Sweetie Belle is afflicted with a a terrible curse.

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Nightshade

The faint sounds of whispers woke me. For a moment I sat still in bed, feeling like something was wrong. Something was missing. It felt like an eternity before it came to me. My heart wasn't beating. My body didn't move at all while I sat still. My lungs weren't pulling in air, and I didn't hear or feel my own pulse. I sat up, my eyes wide at my realization. I got up, walking to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, I saw my enormous eyes were completely transformed. My sclera were the color of coal, and my fangs stopped just short of my lower gums. I blinked, pondering my appearance. I truly looked unnatural now, just like that stallion had. I drew in a breath, the air tasting vividly of my own scent. Well, not quite. It smelled much more like my old self. Back when my heart would beat, and I would actually use this bathroom.

Just as that occurred to me, I realized I hadn't actually done… anything in the last three days. I hadn't set hoof in the bathroom to do anything besides look at myself. I hadn't even bathed. I hadn't eaten anything besides blood. I felt great, though. I went over to the shower, turning it on and letting my hoof touch the water. I retracted it immediately, as it was still ice cold. After a moment I stepped out onto the tiles, letting the water run over me. For a moment I felt mystified by the sensation of the water on my back. Then, I noticed that I could see something unusual. I could look at every single drop of water as it bounced off of me, trace it down to the bottom of the shower where it would hit the tiles and travel to the drain. I could do that with every single drop I could, focusing on it and watching it leap from my fur to land at my hooves.

The details my eyes could pick up on now were amazing. I could exhale and see my breath in the hot shower, the vapor condensing when it met the heated air. I could make out the individual whisps of steam rising up from the shower floor, and I could watch a stray droplet of water erupt from the showerhead, track its arc and watch it land on the glass wall of the shower. I reached out a hoof and caught a drop that had sprayed out of the nozzle at an odd angle, balancing it on the tip of my hoof before standing on it again. I decided I could wash while I was in there, and made quick work of my mane. The smell of the shampoo was overwhelming though, and I only used half as much as I normally did because of that. I washed my fur in the same way, trying to find whatever soap reaked the least.

Once I was done I stepped out of the shower and dried myself, looking around. I wondered the time, and walked over to my windows. Looking at the curtains, I couldn't see any light filtering throught what area wasn't covered. I cautiously parted the curtains with a hoof, then breathed a sigh of relief. The moon was glittering beautifully over Ponyville, basking it in the beautiful silver light my eyes seemed to adore. I thought to myself about what I could do… Rarity would get upset if I left the house without her permission. However, she was asleep upstairs. I had the rather rebellious thought of just going somewhere without telling her. She would be upset if she figured it out… but I was more than capable of handling myself.

I walked from my room, heading downstairs and to the front door. I didn't think about how I was sneaking out, or how upset Rarity would be if she found out that I'd headed off into the night on my own. My mind was too busy mulling over where I could go, and what I could do. I had all night to be anywhere and do just about whatever I wanted. After a while my mind fastened on one place in particular, and I opened the front door to my home. I shut it behind me and began to walk a familiar path, one that led out of Ponyville.

It took me a while, but soon the lights of the town were behind me. The Everfree Forest seemed to breathe as I walked down the path to Fluttershy's cottage. A cool breeze filtered through the treeline and washed over me while I walked. I didn't shiver, though. For some reason I didn't feel any need to react to the cold. However the curse kept me alive, it didn't need to compensate for the temperature. I walked without a shred of fear down the path that had scared me just a few days ago. I could see into the dark, and know what nocturnal creatures lurked there. I was one of them, now.

After a while I saw the lights of Fluttershy's cabin in the distance, and picked up my pace. Soon I had arrived at her door, and I knocked softly. I had a rather bothersome revelation while I was standing there and waiting for her to answer. The lights were on in the living room. I could see that through the curtains. The moment that she answered the door I'd be blinded. On top of that, she probably didn't know about my condition yet. Seeing me might scare the shy pegasus. I turned around, shutting my eyes. I sat down and used my front hooves to cover my eyelids, bracing for the light burn I would feel. A moment later I heard the door open and I bit lightly at the inside of my cheek. A confused Fluttershy spoke, looking down at me.

“Sweetie Belle…? Is that you? It's past midnight, what are you doing here?” She questioned, probably looking at my back.

“Well… I sort of took a walk. You were the first pony to pop into my head, so I came here.” I explained, my voice a bit strained despite my best effort. “I'll tell you about how I got here in a second, but can you do me a favor?”

“Of course, anything! Um… what is it, though?”

“I need you to turn out all the lights in the living room.”

I could practically feel the confusion emenating from the pegasus, but she turned around and did as I asked. While she did that I used my hooves to brush my mane down over my eyes, only satisfied once I couldn't see what was in front of me. She finished turning off the last light, hitting her hoof on the edge of her couch as her eyes struggled to adjust. I turned around, keeping my head down as I walked inside.

“Sweetie this is a little… odd.” She muttered, watching me shut the door behind me.

I walked over to her couch, looking at her in what was, to her, nearly complete darkness. “Do you have a nightlight, or something like that? It needs to be dim...”

“Yes… I kept one from when I was a filly.” She said, a bit embarrassed to admit that. “I'll go get it.”

I silently thanked her for being this understanding. I had picked her for a good reason. Anypony else would be picking me apart with questions or scolding me for being out at night. Fluttershy wasn't the kind of mare to do that, though… she knew I wouldn't just leave her without any answers. I watched her rather clumsily walk to her kitchen, turn on an overhead light and begin to search. I shut my eyes, looking away while she did that. After a few minutes she walked out again, her hooves making telltale scuffs on the carpet. I heard her return to her kitchen, then shut off the light. I opened my eyes, blinking at the small amount of brightness still in the room. The nightlight wasn't the best solution… but it at least it didn't hurt or blind me. She walked over, taking a seat on the couch next to me.

“Sweetie… I'm a bit worried. What's going on? It's so dark out, how did you get all the way across Ponyville and down the path to get here? Does Rarity know you're here? Why didn't you talk to her, instead?”

I let out a sigh, shrugging at her last question. “She's kind of… hard to talk to right now. It's complicated.”

“So, she doesn't know you're here?” Fluttershy asked, sounding extremely concerned.

“No… she doesn't. I know, I should have asked her first.” I looked at my hooves.

“You should always at least tell somepony where you're going… but I suppose you're here now. What brought you out at such a strange hour?”

I mentally prepared myself for what I was about to say, digging my hooves into the couch cushions beneath me. “There was an accident, three days ago. I was walking back from your cottage on Nightmare Night with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. The battery in our flashlight ran out, and we got lost. We met a strange stallion, and he told us how to get back to the path… but he did something awful to me after that.”

“Oh my goodness… Sweetie, what happened? Whatever it is, I'm so sorry that I caused it.” She apologized blindly.

“It's okay Fluttershy. None of it was even your fault. It was ours, for being unprepared. It was way too late to come out here, anyways.”

“Still, I feel sort of responsible… what did the stallion do to you?” The kindly pegasus asked.

“He bit me.” I said, deciding to put it as simply as I could.

She put a hoof over her mouth, her eyes wide. “Wh-why? That's awful… are you okay? Did it hurt?”

I nodded, holding up my front left leg for her to see. I still wasn't looking directly at her, instead looking through my mane so she wouldn't see my eyes. From what I could see of her, the hoof that she had held to her mouth dropped like it was made of stone when she saw the bite.

“Sweetie Belle… it looks like you were bitten by a snake. You said you were bitten by a stallion. That doesn't make any sense. And three days ago? The bite looks like it happened a week ago, at least. Are you telling me the truth?”

“I'm kind of… leaving out a detail.” I muttered, trying to put it off for as long as I could.

“You can tell me anything.” Fluttershy said.

I used a hoof to push my mane back out of my face, blinking up at her. She jumped back, flinching away from me like I'd just threatened to hit her. I gave a nervous smile, letting her see my teeth. The pegasus sidled away from me, wincing when she saw my incisors for the first time.

“What on earth happened to you Sweetie Belle? Your eyes… they're so dark. Your pupils look like they belong on a snake right now.”

“Twilight came by yesterday, to tell me that the stallion that bit me was a vampire. A real one, that drinks blood and burns in sunlight. He's uh… gone now. After he bit me, Apple Bloom got him with her scythe. I sort of feel bad… but I guess it had to be done.”

Fluttershy looked both afraid of me and fascinated, her eyes seeming to be stuck inspecting mine. “You're… a vampire, now? A vampony?”

I shrugged my shoulders, looking to the side. Vampony sounded a bit silly for what it actually was… vampire was a better term. From what I gathered from Twilight, it was also the proper one. Not only that, but what if something else was infected with a vampirism? It wouldn't be a vampony. You'd have to call it a vamcow or something dumb like that, to insist on sticking the name of whatever it was at the end. I kept these nitpicking thoughts to myself though, nodding.

“Yes, I'm a vampire now. I wasn't sure until yesterday though.” I did my best to look her in the eyes, though she seemed to be skittish about direct eye contact.

“So you drink… blood?” She asked, seeming a bit faint at the thought.

“Yes. I already had some, yesterday.”

She covered her mouth to shield me from the sight of her gagging. I looked at my hooves, feeling a bit worse for that reaction. It didn't help my self-image to think that what I actually liked now was so repulsive that it would make her ill. I decided to change the subject… I didn't want to relive any more of the past weekend than I already had.

“Anyways… I didn't want to talk to Rarity because she's having a hard time right now, and she's in bed. You were the only pony I knew that I could come to this late.”

“What did you want to talk about, then? I mean… I don't know what I can do, but I'll do my best to make you feel better.”

I settled down on the couch, getting ready to be there for a while. “Well, I wanted to talk about something other than this, uh... condition. I guess that's the word.”

“Okay. Can I ask you one thing first?” She questioned, mirroring me and getting comfortable.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Who did you… you know, drink from? Did they know?”

“Well, she's who I wanted to talk to you about. I drank Apple Bloom's blood, yesterday. She gave me permission”

Fluttershy looked like she might actually faint, pursing her lips tightly. “I s-see… okay… what about Apple Bloom?”

“Ever since I became what I am now, she just seems more… attractive. She doesn't look the same to me anymore, and I don't know why.”

The shy pegasus looked thrown for a loop by my words. “Sweetie Belle, you already know how romance and things work… Rarity said that she'd told you that stuff a year ago.”

“I know all that stuff, I don't need to talk about it. I wanted you to give me advice on what to do. She seems pretty okay when I do things like kiss her on the cheek and stuff. I just don't know how to come out and say I'm serious about it. I think that she feels like I'm just… being playful or something.” I confessed, looking down at my hooves.

“You mean you want it to be… you know, romantic? Like in Rarity's novels?” She asked.

I shrugged again, unsure. “I just want her to look at us like we're actually together, not just friends or something like that. I don't want us to be too romantic yet, but she needs to know that I do things like that because I really… love her.”

Fluttershy gave me an odd look when I ended my sentence. “Love? That's a very strong word Sweetie Belle… are you really sure?”

“I don't know Fluttershy. When she was there, helping me get through the first night, it made me feel like she'd always be there for me. I always wanted to be there for her, too. What really made me sure was… and promise not to be too grossed out, please? It was when she let me drink her blood. I know, that sounds so wrong. You probably think I'm some kind of freak...”

I seemed to be pushing a bit too far outside of the mare's comfort zone, as she was staring at me like I had just expressed immense joy at burning household pets with lighters. I gave her a nervous reconsiliatory smile, not knowing what else to do or say. I was being perfectly honest. However the honesty was causing her to look at me with ever-increasing worry.

“Sweetie… I'm really sorry but nothing about what you just said sounded like you were in your right mind.”

“I know, but that's the truth. The way she trusted me, and the sensation of it...” I shivered, the memory still fresh in my mind. “We felt so close, and the way she treated me while I was drinking was amazing. She didn't act like it was awful or disgusting, and it made me feel so much better.”

“I really don't know what to say to that.” Fluttershy replied, trying to fully wrap her head around what I was saying.

I could feel frustration welling up inside me the more I talked to her about this. I couldn't expect her to understand, but I'd thought she would at least try. Maybe she was just overwhelmed with what I was telling her, and she needed time to absorb all the things I'd just said? I had heard that was necessary when breaking tragic or outlandish news to somepony. What I'd told her so far fit into both of those categories.

“Well… I guess you could ask me some things now. I said a lot.”

“Alright. First, are you okay? I'm sorry, but you really don't seem well. At all.” She said, her eyes glancing to the side, then back at me.

“… what do you mean, Fluttershy?” I said, a bit hurt by her words.

“You're not acting like a normal pony would in this situation, Sweetie Belle. The way you just talked about drinking Apple Bloom's blood almost made me sick to my stomach. Most ponies would feel awful about doing something like that to a friend. I don't think that I would ever stop apologizing if I was in your situation. I'm sorry if this is too blunt, but… you really sounded like you enjoyed it.”

I looked her right in the eye, making sure she knew I was being serious. “Fluttershy, I did enjoy it. It was the first meal I ever had with this new, weird body and I loved every drop I got.”

The pacifistic pegasus shook her head. “Do you at least understand where I'm coming from? The way you described it makes me really afraid that something is wrong, and you should talk to somepony about it. Probably somepony like Twilight, or Rarity, who would know what to do about it. You aren't supposed to like hurting somepony else…”

“I wasn't hurting her, though… at least not a lot. She told me I could.”

“Still… that isn't very good to do to your friends Sweetie.”

I clenched my jaw so hard it felt like my teeth might break. What else was I supposed to do? I had the options of starving to death or drinking somepony's blood. There wasn't any third option, or anything that I could do to sustain myself beyond that. Unless I wanted to just give up on living, I had no other choice.

“I don't really know what else to do besides drink blood. I can't eat normal food anymore, either.”

The pegasus looked at a loss for what to say to that. She looked at me, then her hooves. I knew that she was trying to come up with some solution that didn't involve anypony getting hurt, but she knew that was impossible. The blood had to come from somewhere and I was sure that going to the hospital for some wasn't an option. Her pacifistic tendencies didn't match with what I'd become. She could suggest that I fed off of an animal or something, but that would make it worse. She thought that animals had feelings and were just as important as ponies. While she sat there thinking I stood up, stretching my legs.

“Thanks for talking to me… you didn't really help, but thanks. All you did was make me feel worse.”

She winced at my words.. “I'm sorry… I just don't want anypony to get hurt...”

I couldn't stop myself anymore, and I began to shout at her. “I don't have a choice anymore, Fluttershy! What you're saying is that I should feel bad every time that I eat from now on. I just can't do that, okay? It's part of what I am now. I can't feel guilty just for living. Especially not when it actually feels really good to me. All you did was make me feel awful!”

She looked taken aback by my outburst, growing silent. I took the oppurtunity to keep ranting, wanting to get everything off my chest.

“Everypony that's seen me since this happened has treated me like I was some kind of monster. Rarity is avoiding me because she's scared of making me feel worse, and Twilight was acting like I might jump out and bite her for no reason. I mean sure, I really needed to eat at that point… but I wasn't acting feral! The worst part is, nopony wants to make it better... I feel like I don't want to talk to anypony, anymore. Except Apple Bloom. She makes me feel better. The worst part about that is that she was the one who killed the vampire in the forest! If anypony needs somepony to make them feel better, it's her. I can't imagine doing that… but she hasn't brought it up one time to me! What if that vampire hadn't been starving? He would have eaten all of us, but she stuck her neck out and saved us. I feel bad, because maybe that stallion didn't deserve what happened, but he could have killed me.”

Fluttershy looked away, guilt on her face. “Sweetie… I'm starting to think I'm not the best pony to come to with all of this. I'm sorry for making you feel worse… but I think that you should go...”

I felt an enormous wave of guilt crash over me, realizing I was being unfair to the meek pegasus. She hadn't been of any help… but I was wrong to come there and demand it in the first place. She probably didn't want to be overwhelmed by hundreds of problems anymore, and even though she looked worried about me, I'd mostly ignored what she'd said. I turned and walked to the door, realizing that there was no point in staying after that. I came there to talk but had just ended up venting my frustration at her, something that I knew she wasn't the pony for.

“Fluttershy… I'm sorry for yelling. A lot is happening, and I don't know what to do. I feel like I can't do anything. Nopony wants to talk to me, or tell me what's going on. Not even Rarity. I haven't heard from Twilight…”

The pegasus got up, walking over to me and opening the front door. “Things will get better, once it's little more clear. I don't have any answers… but I know that Twilight will. She knows what she's doing. You just need to be patient.”

I nodded, trusting her. I hadn't know Twilight well enough to judge her character beyond the times she was around Rarity, but I knew that Fluttershy would never lie to me. The princess seemed like a good pony, even if she was kind of rude towards me the last time I'd seen her. I walked out into the night again, waving goodye. I set off back towards Ponyville just as it started to rain…


I arrived back at my home totally soaked. It had started as a light drizzle when I'd left the cottage, but had soon evolved into a total downpour. I walked into my house just as lightning flashed across the sky, blinding me for a moment. I shut the door behind me, looking around. I saw a letter, neatly placed on table near the coatrack. I picked it up, seeing the royal seal. I tore it open the moment that I knew it was from Twilight. It was addressed to Rarity, but I coveted any information about my condition more than anything else at that point.

'Dear Rarity

My research so far has been successful. I've managed to find a bit more on vampires and it's allowed me to figure out exactly what is going on, at least biologically. The first day of a vampire's life begins with darkening of the eyes, lengthening of teeth to be used as incisors for biting prey, and a few transformations in the stomach. The second day is when the stomach is completely responsible for all bodily functions, and has been turned into a sort of arcane engine that is fueled by blood. Through dark magic it performs a number of intricate spells on it to transform the blood directly into energy for a vampire to use. The third day is the point where things get concerning. Organs like the heart and kidneys serve very little purpose anymore, and according to the notes are simply done away with over a few hours. Absorbed by the stomach to be burnt for extra energy. The same goes for most digestive organs after the stomach, including the intestines, bladder, and more. After the third day the circulatory system is gone, and the body seems to use magic exclusively to force energy and a few necessary resources throughout the body. Despite my skepticism, the theories behind how this all works makes sense and operates at a higher degree of efficiency than normal organisms.

The fifth day is when the last of the internal changes happen. Control over the muscles become ultra-precise, eyesight is enhanced, and strength is increased. All biological growth stops at this point, and the pony will no longer grow or age. Over the next two days the afflicted pony will have every cell of them functionally replaced by a redesigned version. Once a full week has passed nothing will be left of their original body, and every part of them will function as a design of whatever mad sorcerer made this curse thousands of years ago. They retain memories, behaviour and appearances. Their personality will remain unchanged, to an extent. In order for a vampire to maintain mental and physical well being, they need to drink at least a gallon of blood every six days or risk mental deterioration.

With that out of the way, I need to address Sweetie Belle herself. I feel as if we left on bad terms the last time we talked. I didn't mean offense to her, but I knew that she hadn't eaten anything in the last two days. Vampires are known for going feral without a regular feeding schedule. I didn't know if she would be able to keep herself under control, so in her eyes I may have overreacted. Please let her know I'm sorry. However, I must urge you to be careful. If you're ever in any doubt for your safety, please use the fact that she doesn't know any advanced magic and teleport her away from you. It will buy you time to get away from her. If you feel up to it, I would ask her if she's fed off of anypony in the last two days. If not, then she is legitimately starving, and you need to help her. Let her feed off of you until you feel any discomfort save for the pain from her fangs, then immediately stop.

You will need to make her a feeding schedule. She can't feed off of the ill or those with low blood pressure. I think that those with anaemia goes without saying. Remember she only needs a gallon every six days. With this, she could easily get that done with two sessions between two ponies with no ill effects between them as long as she doesn't drink too fast. That would cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. Try to make the ponies she feeds from those she trusts, and will at least try to behave normally during that time. To her it doesn't feel strange or unnatural, and she needs to feel safe while she feeds.

Now that I understand the basics of what is going on I'm going to start looking at possible ways to reverse this process. This will take much longer than it took me to gather this information, unfortunately. Until then, try to hang on and make sure you talk to Sweetie Belle. I know you're terrified that she won't be the same, but I promise that she is.

Sincerely,

Twilight Sparkle '

I took the letter and walked to the stairs, thinking over what I'd just read. I didn't know how to feel about what Twilight had written. The physical part of my transformation was amazing. I was really surprised that much was happening inside of me. The fact that I probably didn't have a heart anymore was both puzzling, but neat in a sort of dark way. I took a deep breath, then let it out. My lungs served more as a tool to let me smell and taste more than anything else now. As I thought I climbed the steps, heading to Rarity's room. She would still want this letter. What had Twilight meant at the end of the letter, though? Was Rarity afraid that I wouldn't be the same pony I was before Nightmare Night? I slipped the letter under my big sister's door, then walked back downstairs. Passing the clock, I noticed that it was almost morning.

I felt an instinctual sense of urgency as I went to my room, shutting the door. My night was at an end, and it was time to hide myself away until the moonlight shone again.

Author's Note:

A bit of a longer chapter this time. Thanks for the comments I've been getting, they help a lot towards bettering the fic. If you'd like, please write your thoughts below! I read them all!