(13) The Infection
At three o’clock in the morning, one would expect the Library at the Crystal Castle to be devoid of ponies and creatures, but there was a lone candle lit at the corner table, supported by a window that poured moonlight onto the pages upon pages of information. Princess Twilight Sparkle, was thoroughly and utterly exhausted.
The purple Alicorn hadn’t had rest in at least three days. She yawned. Her eyes were heavy as she looked at the paper before her. ‘It’s not like I’ve never done a 72-hour study session before!’ She chastised herself, ‘Why am I so tired?’
Twilight turned another page with her magic. She looked at every word, trying to find any trace of humans or humanity or the Foundation. ‘How could these things have existed for so long without us-’ She stopped herself, ‘Celestia… she could’ve…’ Her mind jumped again, ‘Then Sombra… he lost everything, somepony must know something or must’ve written it down!’
She huffed and closed her eyes for a moment as she reached the last page, having discovered nothing. Again. Like a machine, she magically reached out for the next historical record, fairy tale, or short story. Only, she felt nothing. She opened one eye and looked at the now non-existent stack of books. ‘I already went through all of them!?’ Twilight brought her head down to rest on the table, “Maybe I should call it a night?” She thought out loud.
“Maybe you should Twi?”
The Princess’s head shot up and twirled to where the voice came from. “Hey Shiny.” She said back, “I’m kinda tired.”
“Yeah you could say that,” He said. Her brother moved next to her, “I haven’t seen you leave that seat in five days.”
“Five?” Twilight asked, “I could’ve sworn it was three.” She joked, “I think… I’m done Shiny.”
“Well, that’s good I-”
She cut her brother off, “No, I mean…” She sighed, “I’ve gone through every book in the library, there’s not a single mention of them.” She hung her head, “I… don’t know… there’s always something…” She attempted to finish the sentence “There’s always a trail…” She said.
“Twilight…” He sat next to her on the bench, “It’s not your fault.”
‘But it is,’ She corrected. She hadn’t thought about the thing that talked to her in her mind in a while, the human that talked to her in her mind. ‘Why didn’t I listen… I could’ve done something.’ She could see it again now, the human was wearing a black suit with a fedora. It had a suitcase and...
Her mind was suddenly gripped by the conversation with the creature in her mind, ‘Twilight’s horn grew brighter, “You will not threaten them!” She bellowed.’ She sighed, “I was… warned… before hoof,” Twilight muttered. She didn’t look up to Shining’s face, she could already see the wide-eyed stallion in her mind. “I thought... It was just anxiety or some weird… thing.”
She thought back again, ‘“Should I be afraid of this 106?” Twilight asked, “What can it do?” She probed. “Oh Princess, you don’t have to be afraid of it, but the birthday girl should be.”’ She opened her mouth, but her brother cut her off.
“Twily,” he said. She finally looked up at her brother, “You’re crying.”
Her hoof raced up to the other side, ‘I am!?’ She thought.
Her brother’s forehoof reached up and wiped away some tears. “It’s not your fault. There’s no way you could’ve known that thing… would’ve attacked.” He comforted. She felt his hooves wrap around her, “Trust me, if you had said that something like this was going to happen, I would’ve told you to go to a therapist.” Shining joked.
“B-but-”
“No buts Twilight,” He cut her off, “It’s fine, nopony is mad at you.” He ushered her up, “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”
As she finally stood up, she could feel all the cramps and cricks that had formed in her legs and hooves throughout her days in the library. “You have been eating, right?” Shining Armor asked her.
She nodded as she nearly fell over onto her brother. “Yeah, here and there,” She answered with a slurred speech, only just now realizing how tired she was,” She yawned, “Luna and Celestia have been checking on me.”
Twilight felt Shining Armor’s magic around her and in an instant, she recognized the familiar aroma of her bedroom. Shining Armor practically levitated her onto the bed and laid the covers over her, “I’ll see you tomorrow Twilight.”
Twilight woke up in a field, refreshed and renewed. She looked at the blue sky dotted with white clouds. The Princess closed her eyes and took it all in. The sun felt great on her fur, she could hear the breeze rustle a nearby tree, she breathed in and out in a well-deserved sigh, and the air was… murky? She opened her eyes.
‘Am I dreaming?’ She thought, Twilight looked around at her surroundings, ‘It looks like the Baltimare countryside, but,’ She sniffed the air again, coughing and sputtering, “Why does it smell so bad?”
She turned her head. The sun was high into the sky, at least noon, if not, one in the afternoon. Twilight got up off the ground and walked up the hill she had seemingly appeared on. “Please tell me I didn’t teleport myself in my sleep again,” Twilight groaned. She reached the top of the hill and got an even better view of her surroundings.
If there even were any.
The hill itself dropped off into a deep gray pit. Twilight walked up to the edge and looked down. ‘Nothing?’ She contemplated taking off and down the hole, just to see how far it goes down. But her curiosity lost in the end. ‘No way am I that reckless.’
She turned around. The only thing of note on the hill was a wooden bench under a small tree. Twilight stared quizzically at the leaves of the tree, “I’ve never seen leaves like these ones before,” She walked up to the bench and only then realized it was too tall for her. ‘Not meant for a pony? A griffon or minotaur maybe?’
She climbed up anyway to get a better look at the tree’s fascinating leaves. “Definitely not a type of tree in Equestria,” She thought aloud.
“Of course not,” A raspy voice said to her left.
The princess tumbled off the bench and onto the green… grass. She looked again, it was all yellow and dead. There were only a few patches of green. She shook her head and looked in the direction of the voice.
“Speak of the devil,” 990 said as he offered a hand to the Princess, “And he shall appear.” She could see his face now. A short stubby nose, two small eyes, and a mouth. All under a gray suit and black fedora. Nothing like the human that they interrogated in the Crystal Empire.
She tentatively took the hand. “Hello again, Princess, how does this fine day find you?” She got up and looked at the human, “Well, I hope?”
The Princess thought for a moment, ‘My niece has been ponynapped and her life is in danger. My mentor has been keeping secrets and the world's evilest unicorn was created by the humans who ponynapped said niece,’ “Not really.”
“Ahh, well,” He shrugged, “What can you expect these days?” He scooted over on the bench. “Please, sit.”
Twilight squinted, “Why should I? You-”
“Don’t test me-” He interrupted, “My warning, fell on deaf ears, did it not?”
She clenched her teeth, “I want answers.”
He merely patted the spot on the wooden bench to his left in response. The Princess sighed in resignation, and jumped up on the bench and sat on her haunches. She looked off into the distance, then her mouth went agape. “What the…” In the distance, there was a massive city, with tall spires and even taller rectangular buildings.
“It’s a beautiful city, isn’t it?” She turned to look at his face. He kept his gaze on the horizon. “Truly a marvel of engineering all of them are. Each one, perfectly planned out, zoned to perfection.” He pointed at the metropolis in the distance, “Do you see the tall ones.”
Twilight nodded.
“They called them ‘Skyscrapers’,” He said.
‘Skyscrapers? I guess that makes sense,’ Twilight thought.
Twilight turned back to the man, “May I ask a question?”
He turned to her and waited, “What happened?” She asked, “To them? Humans.”
He sighed and got off the bench, “Magic did,” He responded. He offered his hand to the Princess, she took it, this time without much thought. The surrounding changed from a landscape of plants and life to one of gray and stone. He took his hand up and began to walk, Twilight followed.
“There were many organizations,” He said, “That tried to… harness the power magic offered.” He walked through a wooden door that opened for Twilight the second he walked through. She didn’t hesitate to follow.
She saw what looked like a group of humans, all gathered around a stage with a symbol hanging over them. She couldn’t see the man, but she continued to hear him, “Some, tried to force it on the rest of humanity at the expense of life.”
The symbol changed, “Others worshipped them.” He said, “As if they were proof of the divine.”
A door appeared in front of her. The princess walked through it, and onto the scene of a group of what looked like human soldiers, “Many, used them as weapons. In wars against other groups.”
Another door, this time her left opened up, she practically sprinted through the black void, craving answers. Twilight saw a massive chamber, hundreds upon hundreds of desks, all with a human sitting at them, “Most of the humans wanted them, wanted me, destroyed.” Twilight looked up and saw another symbol.
Another door, this time, a metal one that slid open. When she burst through the darkness, she was looking up at, she counted, thirteen darkened figures, “They, the Foundation, made it their mission, to Secure, Contain, and Protect these… anomalies, from the world and the world from them.”
She turned around at where the voice was and saw her niece. Flurry, frozen with her eyes closed. There was a metallic ring around her horn and a tan band around her wings. “They fought in the shadows to keep the public from finding out about the anomalies.”
Twilight moved towards Flurry, but the surroundings disappeared and snow and white replaced it. “The final years of human civilization was marked by the failure of the SCP Foundation to protect the public. A failure to communicate with their constituents,” She heard out of the void of snow. She looked around the snowy plains and saw a concrete building.
*Pop**Pop**Pop**Pop**Pop*
*Pop**Pop*
*Pop**Pop**Pop**Pop*
‘Their weapons,’ Twilight thought, ‘They’re fighting each-’
*BOOM!*
The building exploded, knocking Twilight back in the snow. She looked up at the now burning structure. Several small machines began to leave, in a hurry from the ruins. *BOOM* *HIsssss* The Princess was sent back again by the force of the explosion. Twilight sat up, she could see what had happened. ‘Something must’ve ruptured.’ The last thing she saw was a gray mist, not smoke, dissipating into the air.
“They also didn’t listen to me.” He said, “And it resulted in a virus, one with no cure, being released into the world.”
“A virus?” Twilight asked. “With no cure?”
Twilight blinked, just for a second, and when she opened her eyes, she was on a bench. Not the same one, this one was in the giant city if Twilight guessed right. She looked around, then turned to the phantom, “Where is…”
He pointed, there. A human, impossibly grotesque, with blood dripping out of its mouth, one of its arms missing. Then another, then another. “A Zombie Plague?” Twilight asked.
“Yes,” He replied before Twilight got off the bench and got a better look at the city. There were black plastic bags on the ground, metal fences on the paved roads, and the smell of death was in the air. Twilight heard fast hoofsteps against the rocky road. ‘Somepony’s still alive.’ She turned to the noise.
“Fuck… dammit…” She breathed out.
She looked more like the humans they encountered back when all this started. She pressed a finger to her ear. “Command, this is Evans,” She gulped down, “the bomb has been set.”
Twilight could faintly hear the response. “You are cutting it close Evans, where’s your C.O?” The Human soldier took her hands off her knees and breathed.
“They’re dead,” The human’s face briefly looked to her left. Then she grabbed her arm.
“NO!” She cried. “Please God… No…” She ripped the glove off of her forearm. Twilight moved in for a closer look. A large gaping and bloody bite showed itself.
“Evans?” The human in her ear sounded concerned, “What’s your situation.”
She put her hand to her ear. “I’m dead in the water, chief.” As she replied, she stifled the sobbing.
“RAAAAAAAHHHAHHAH!”
Twilight looked down the street. A large number of zombies had seemingly picked up the noise and began to move toward her. “Make it dead and surrounded, HQ.” Evans Amended.
“I’m sorry, Samantha.”
“You guys too, tell… my daughter, you know,” She continued to stifle her sobbing. Twilight was beginning to cry and she barely knew this human, ‘This human, she has a daughter, a family, and she’s never…’ She grimaced and looked away. Twilight unconsciously thought, ‘This is nearly like my brother, Cadance and Flurry.’
“I will. Wait for a moment,” Samantha kept her hand to her earpiece. “The last set of orders for your te- you, there is a convey leaving D.C, They have the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, and the Flag from the Congress Building. They're escaping to Site through Baltimore.”
'Baltimore? That sounds like...' Before Twilight could finish the thought, Samantha reached to her face and took off the mask. A face similar to the Phantom sitting on the bench. ‘They’re masks…’ Twilight was hit.
“Understood. I’ll clear as many as I can. Over and out.” She took up their strange weapon and began to fire it. The zombies in front of them, began to fall, small puffs of blood leaving through the heads of the infected humans.
“And to stop it, they,” Twilight heard 990 say as she was teleported back to the hill where she started. He snapped his fingers, they were back on the hill, “Unleashed their most powerful weapons on themselves.”
The city was engulfed in bright light, she covered her eyes. ‘They unleashed the sun on the planet or something?’ The light gradually dimmed, until it was nearly gone. When she looked back, a giant mushroom cloud towered over the city.
Twilight then heard a boom in the distance. She looked left and right, there were more, in other cities. Twilight slumped down, her spirit broken. “Why are you telling me this?” She idly asked.
“Because,” He replied, “I’d hate to see the planet go down the same path again. So much death, I thought I had… helped them sufficiently, but it wasn’t enough.” He turned to her, “It’s up to you and your cabal to stop them from getting out.”
Twilight sprung out of bed, breathing in and out heavily. She could feel parts of her fur that were matted down by sweat. She continued to sit there on the bed for a few minutes as she collected her thoughts. ‘Zombie viruses, humans fighting each other for magical objects, bombs so powerful they wiped themselves out…’ She collapsed, ‘I think I need a spa day.’
Flurry felt sick, or, at least she thought she did. ‘I can’t remember a time when I was sick,’ Flurry thought, ‘Mom and Dad never mentioned that I was sick before.’ Flurry sat up on the infirmary bed, the two guards (The “Administrator” referred to them as Alpha-1-4 and Alpha-1-5) immediately snapped their necks to her. Flurry, for her part, just laid back down.
One of the doctors had peeled back the bandages that were on her right-forehoof and stuck a ‘Cotton Swab’ down the wound. “Well,” The doctor started to speak to Flurry, “The wound is healing nicely,” He put the ‘Swab’ in a machine, “The last thing we are checking for is infection.”
“Alicorns aren’t supposed to get sick,” Flurry stated, “It must be something you guys fed me if you can even call that slop food.” The two guards laughed at the statement Flurry made.
“Yes, well,” He peered at the machine, “A 39-degree fever isn’t normal for your species or ours.”
“T-thirty nine!?” Flurry sat up shocked, “That’s way colder than normal.”
“Huh?” One of the guards said, turning to Flurry “Do you guys use the… darn… what was that one sys-”
“Wait,” The doctor interrupted the guard, “What is a normal temperature for you?”
“I don’t know, ninety-nine.” Flurry offered up as she sat up further. She looked at the machine, “What is that?”
“You seriously think I can tell you that?” He laughed.
*Beep*
The doctor turned back to the machine and looked at the screen. “Well, that’s… he clicked… can’t be right?”
“What is it doc,” The guard asked.
He clicked up a few more times, and another thing popped up on the screen. “What the hell?” He said as he turned to Flurry, “That’s… interesting,” He turned to the guard, “Get me 05 9, He’ll want to see this.”
“So, you’re actually leaving for Ponyville?” Cadance asked Twilight somewhat enthusiastically.
“Well, we are at the train station” Twilight started as she looked around, “And only if I know you will all be safe here. You know, with all that’s going on…” Twilight looked sheepishly at the ground. “There’s nothing else for me to look for here anyway.”
“Well, I think it’s good for you,” Shining said, “Did you forget anything?” He asked his younger sister.
“Ha, no, I already got everything ready to go,” Twilight responded. “But, if you need me, I will catch the first train back-.”
“Yeah, don’t worry Twi, that’s the fifth time you said that.” Her brother said. Cadance walked up next to her husband, “Promise us you’ll get some rest though, you’ve been pushing yourself more than you should.”
“Yeah I will,” Twilight said sheepishly. She turned around and walked onto the train, “I love you guys!” She said.
“Yeah, we do too Twily!”
“We’ll send you some good news soon Twilight.”
Twilight turned and walked onto the train car as the door slid shut. She slumped down in her own seat. ‘At least there are no new ponies here to bother me.’ Twilight thought to herself.
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
One eye popped open.
“Princess Twilight, just wha-”
“Princess Twilight, why exactly were you here long pass-”
“Princess, can you tell us anythi-”
“Princess-”
“Princess, Rumor has it is that Flurry Heart is missing, can you-”
Twilight put her hooves to her ears and covered them then groaned, ‘This is going to be a long trip.’
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008? I presume?
10208467
Well 008 is a zombie virus so possibly.
10208467
We already know it's 008, I think you need to reread the earlier chapters
Awesome chapter dude! The information on what happened in the world answered a lot of questions I had. Xd
Hey y’all, I am just letting al my readers know I am having surgery some times in the coming week. It is not life threatening, but, Iight not be able to post for May.
But who knows? Maybe I will?
Stay Happy!