Chapter One: Outbreak

Dear Twilight,

As promised, here is the letter. I made it to Shire City safe and sound. Now please stop worrying about me. As a true lady, I can surely handle myself.

Be sure to thank Fluttershy for undertaking the kind act of looking after Sweetie and Opalescence for me while I’m gone. I have already thanked her many times, but I want her to know how grateful I am.

I would also like to once again thank you for lending me your copy of The Colt in Crimson. I still cannot believe how I lost my own copy! Perhaps Sweetie misplaced it? Either way, I will make sure to repay your generosity once I come back home. Maybe we can have some tea, and discuss the adventures of Shadow Spade together?

That would be so very delightful, darling.

Sincerely, your best friend, Rarity.

On the train, Rarity excitedly hummed to herself as she scanned her freshly-written letter. After being certain of no spelling or grammatical errors, she opened an envelope, slid the letter inside, and sealed it shut. The final touch was writing Twilight’s address on the envelope. She then dropped the letter into her saddlebags.

Today was the day when she would once again expand her business. This time, she would be opening up another boutique (Rarity For You!) in the lowly town of Shire City. The building she was interested in was personally offered to her by a Daisy Floreo, who stated, by letter, that the building would be in good condition and offered to take only 2,000 bits for the property. A cheap offer that both baffled and intrigued Rarity.

Though she was excited, she also was not sure how well her store would be received. Shire City was a place of sin; it infamously has the highest crime rate of any city in Equestria. It was also the only city to allow the legal selling and use of firearms, which were mentioned in many of the reported crimes in Shire City.

Though a lady such as Rarity should not have to buy a can of pepper spray in order to feel safe and protected, she decided that it would be a wise choice. After her encounter with the wretched Blueblood nearly six years ago, she understood that not all stallions are fit to be gentlecolts - not that she assumed all stallions were bad; she just wasn’t willing to gamble on a mysterious knight in shining armor to save her from a criminal.

She would just have to make sure not to confuse it with her hair spray if that moment were to arise.

Finally, the lights of Shire City could be seen glowing through the train window. The train was speeding along a long bridge, which was one of the only two bridges that connected to the city. Similarly to Manehattan, it was located on a small island only connected by bridges. The other bridge was for walking and coaches.

Gray clouds hovered over the city, which was a clear sign of a long rainstorm that would haunt the night. Rarity had expected this, however, as she remembered headlines on the Equestrian Daily addressing the draught of Shire City. Today was the day when the pegasi would address that issue.

The thought of a rainstorm did excite Rarity, as she had fillyhood memories of reading books such as the Shadow Spade series as raindrops would practically bang against her bedroom window. A memory she surely would get to relive again.

In preparation, she had brought a dazzling purple umbrella, with single stripes of white on each side. Rarity adored how well it fit her! The umbrella even had a sharp, silver-colored metallic tip. Admittedly, someone could poke their eye out with such a beautiful decoration. But Rarity believed she was delicate enough to not do something so foolish.

After twenty minutes went by, the train stopped and its doors opened. Rarity pulled her umbrella from her saddlebags, stood up from her seat, and walked out of the train. She walked onto a dry platform, thanks to its roofing. Only a few other ponies came out of the bridge and even fewer went in. After a few more minutes, the train started moving, and just like the ponies that had just come off of it, it quickly disappeared behind some buildings.

Rarity took a glance at the transit map placed under the platform. This station was placed near the middle of the city. She looked around beyond the platform and saw a soul-drained city. Despite being embraced by darkness, the little bits of buildings she saw emitted by the street lamps reeked of age and neglect. The colors were either faded gray or red, the stone and bricks were chipped and cracked. The only sight of color came from the bright neon lights that almost sparkled from the rain.

The streets and sidewalks were populated by ponies (and other equines) but they were not packed - like how Manehattan was from the times Rarity visited that city. Most of the ponies did not even look alive. They looked like they were just living, but as corpses with fur just as faded as the buildings. She knew this city would smell terrible if it wasn’t for the fresh rain.

Under a few of the street lamps, she saw trash that littered the sidewalks and streets. Such as cans, paper bags (assumingly some with cider bottles in them), and other things Rarity was too far away to see.

The sight had saddened her. But that only made her more determined to set up a store in this city. Maybe such a small thing would brighten everyone up, to see more beautiful dresses and suits.

Her new shop would be around the corner. She would take a determined walk with her fabulous umbrella, opened and hanging over her head.

Two Days Ago

“I still don’t understand why you’re not taking us along with you, Rarity,” Twilight said, almost sounding betrayed. “Shire City has the highest crime rate in all of Equestria! I heard that ponies even go missing there!”

Rarity looked at her friend reassuringly, even though it was that very sentence that had enforced her decision on buying a can of pepper spray, and said, “Darling, I’m sure those are just rumors! Besides, I have been looking for a location to set up another shop, and from reading Miss Floreo’s offer, it sounds just like the perfect place!”

Twilight studied her friend. “But why aren’t you taking us with you?”

Rarity opened her mouth, but nothing came out for a second. Why wasn’t she taking any of her best friends with her? Were they all busy? Clearly not. At least, not busy enough for any of them to tell her, ‘Sorry, no, I can’t. My schedule is completely filled out for the next month. Good luck on getting that shop, Rares!’

No. Her friends were not like that. Because they were her friends.

Was it that she did not want to be a burden? No. While Rarity did hate the thought of taking up somepony else’s valuable time, it did not overtake her feeling of need from her friends. She did want them to come with her, she really did!

However, this trip to Shire City… It felt off. As if something was going to occur, something possibly bad. Whatever that something was, it did not bring any comfort to Rarity. As silly as it may sound, it was just a gut feeling. An instinct.

Whatever that something was, it did not feel good. And as selfish as Rarity may seem, she did not want any of her friends to be involved with it. Despite that, she figured it was kind of silly. Really, what is the worst that could happen? Ultimately, she brushed it off as a case of the Sunday scaries.

She still did not want her friends to come. Just in case.

Something then came out of her mouth, “Twilight, darling- I really just don’t want to come off as a burden! Summer has almost reached its end and I know you have the next semester of the Friendship School to prepare! And I would much rather have my friends stay here as I visit Shire City. How dangerous could it possibly be to just open a shop?”

Twilight stared at her friend for a moment “I suppose you’re right. You are just going to Shire City to expand your business.” She paused for a second, then gave a defeated smile. “Just send me a letter as soon as you get there, okay? So I know that you are safe?”

“I will, darling. I absolutely promise.”

“Pinkie Promise me.”

“Oh dear, how does that go again?...

“Cross my heart (cross my heart),

“Hope to fly (hope to fly),

“Stick a cupcake in my eye (stick a cupcake in my eye).”

Even around the corner, the sidewalks and streets were not populated. In fact, the street where Rarity’s new shop would be only had two coaches on the streets, and maybe five-or-six ponies on the sidewalks. Normally, Rarity would consider this bad for business, but everypony is probably staying inside due to the rain. Plus, the price for this building was a great deal.

The sidewalks and streets were just as full of garbage as well. One of the cans had the logo of the Sunshine Corporation on it. Quite the irony.

Her building was just in sight. It separated itself from the other buildings with alleyways. Rarity was just walking past one of the alleyways. That was when she heard a deep cough emitting from the darkness.

Surprised, Rarity turned towards the darkness and shined her horn. “W-who’s there?!” But all she saw was a pony, laying against the wall. Specifically, it was a stallion who looked to be in his mid-thirties. Maybe older. His fur was light-brown and his eyes were fogged. He barely had a mane or tail. His right hoof appeared to have a few small scars, which appeared to be tiny bite marks.

Rarity had felt ashamed of herself for feeling fear against such an ill-fated pony. She instantly stepped into the alleyway. “Excuse me, sir? Are you okay?” She had already known the answer, but she wasn’t sure what else to say.

The stallion looked at her (or in the direction of her voice, since Rarity assumed that he was blind due to his eyes) and weakly said, “Yes. Please, l-leave me alone.”

Rarity shook her head. “Darling, please. Let me help you. I’m about to own this building here. Let me take you inside until I can get you help.”

“No, I… I’m sick. Don’t want to get you sick. Go away.”

“... Please?” Rarity had used her guilt-trip voice, one she had developed surely from her own sister.

The stallion sighed. “O-okay. I’ll rest in your building for a bit.” He stood up, slightly shaking. “Lead the way.”

“Trust me, darling! This will do a number for your health!”

Rarity walked out of the alleyway, with the stallion following. She made sure he found his way before proceeding. In front of the shop, there was a single pony waiting. A young mare pegasus, with a coat of bright yellow, and silver curly hair. She wore saddlebags that covered the upper half of her white flower cutie mark.

“Excuse me, darling! Would you happen to be Daisy Floreo?” Rarity would ask, almost shouting from the entrance of the alleyway.

The pegasus hadn’t replied immediately, as she stared at the brown pony behind Rarity. She locked her eyes for a bit, then nodded and replied, “Yeah.”

“Oh, thank goodness! Please, let us go inside! This poor dear must be absolutely freezing!” Rarity had exclaimed, pointing her hoof at the homeless stallion.

Daisy looked at the brown pony again, and opened her mouth, but then instantly closed it and sighed. “Okay, let’s make this quick then.” She headed to the building’s glass door and unlocked it with a key. The front of the shop had a huge window, which would be perfect for displaying Rarity’s work. The building itself was the same old depressing gray color, but she saw it as an issue that can be fixed quite easily through her lady’s touch.

She observed the buildings around her shop. The structure to the right (which happened to be the side Rarity came from) did not appear to be of any significance. Perhaps it was some sort of a complex. The left one appeared to mirror her potential shop, in-which it had a front with giant windows and a glass door. It was taller and slightly wider. She couldn’t tell if it was occupied, however, since there were no lights emitting from the windows.

After Daisy opened the door, she walked in, and turned on the light. Closing her umbrella, Rarity followed. The stallion was the last to enter, who stumbled his way in.

The building was surprisingly clean and well-kept. At least when compared to the state of the store in Manehattan when Rarity bought it. There was even a ceiling fan that held the light. Otherwise, the building was empty, ready to be filled with furniture. There were two doors: one to the left side of the room, and one in the back. They were made out of wood and metal respectively. The back one had a glowing green exit sign over it.

The stallion quietly walked towards the left side of the shop and laid against the wall. Daisy eyed him, with a growing frown on her face.

Rarity moved around the open room, judging the spotless white walls. She would absolutely have to recolor the walls, as pure white was just too one-note for her tastes. Maybe it just needed some baby blue or even cyan? However, she absolutely adored the mahogany plank floor that shined beautifully under the ceiling light. It looked freshly installed. Afterward, she went to the wooden door and opened it.

Darkness.

But there was a light switch next to the door, which ignited a dim light mounted to the ceiling. No fan this time. This room was smaller, but it shared the same aesthetics as the main room: white walls, lemon smell, and gorgeous mahogany floor. She closed the door.

“Oh, this looks absolutely delightful!” Rarity commented as she walked back to Daisy. “I must say, whoever you hired did a splendid job at cleaning this place!”

Daisy gave a few small nods. “Yeah, you can thank Lavender for that. Even though she hates being one, she is a really good janitor.” After Rarity cocked her head and raised an eyebrow, Daisy added, “My sister.”

“Miss Floreo, if you don’t mind me wondering, what was this building used for exactly?”

Daisy again nodded. “This building used to be our mom’s flower shop. Unfortunately, she… Passed away.” Daisy closed her eyes, and let out a grim sigh. She looked back at Rarity. “I have been running it since then. At least, until a few weeks ago. We both found the work to be unappealing, so my sister and I are looking into moving out of the city.”

Rarity's eyes widened. She was shocked that they would even consider selling the store, especially at such a low price!

“And you’re selling this only for two-thousand bits?!”

“Yes,” Daisy responded instantly. This time, her eyes were widened by Rarity’s outburst.

Rarity pondered for a moment. Two-thousand bits. That was generous, even by her own standards! Daisy and her sister were also moving out of the city, which will likely cost them quite a fair bit. Rarity just couldn’t accept this. “Okay, darling, it’s a deal. I will purchase this property. BUT!” Daisy’s ears perked up. “But only if you let me give you at least three-thousand bits.”

Daisy’s eyes widened. “Th-three-thousand? No, Miss Rarity, I can-”

Neither mare noticed that the brown stallion stood up.

“Hush now!” Rarity put her forehoof to Daisy’s mouth. “I insist. You are moving out of this city, so you will need as many bits as you can possibly get, and my, I can only imagine how attached you must be to this place!”

The stallion looked at the mares. His fogged eyes locked onto them, followed by saliva drooling out of his mouth. Daily’s eyes shifted from Rarity to the ground. “Y-yeah, but-”

“No buts! Take it, or leave it!”

A haunting groan filled the room. A sound that sent chills through each mare’s spine.

Rarity saw a glimpse of him with her left eye. She saw a husk of a pony, one whose coat color had completely died. She saw his eyes. They were still foggy, but now completely lifeless. She probably would’ve had a heart attack if they were looking at her, but they weren’t. Those eyes were locked onto Daisy Floreo.

The monster lunged onto Daisy, pinning her to the ground and biting into her shoulder. It easily ripped out a chunk of her flesh. Blood spilled onto the floor.

Daisy screamed, but all Rarity could hear was silence. She stared, unsure if what she was seeing was even real. The monster chewed Daisy’s flesh, and as Rarity froze, it was the only thing she could hear. The mechanical sounds of its jaws chewing, the rich squish that came from each bite. Then the gulp that swallowed pegasus flesh, and she even heard the blood dripping from its mouth. The monster looked back down at Daisy, and suddenly Rarity could hear the scream.

The monster had opened its mouth again, but the side of its head would be bashed by Rarity’s umbrella. It was powerful enough to knock the monster off of Daisy, but it did no visible damage.

It didn’t take long for the monster to get back to its hooves. But instead of Daisy, its eyes were locked onto Rarity. And she saw no soul within those eyes. There was only a monster inhabiting the stallion’s body, and it was a monster that was hungry.

It stumbled closer and closer to Rarity, and all she could do was slowly back away. It groaned, moving its jaw up and down. Ready for another bite. She kept walking and walking until-

Thud.

She felt her flank touch the wall. The monster got closer and closer. When it was close enough, Rarity whacked the right side of its face, hitting it with the umbrella’s metallic tip. Its head whirled to the left, with its right eye now hanging out of its socket, with blood dripping out. It turned its head back towards Rarity and locked its left eye onto her.

She felt tears forming in her own eyes.

As a last attempt, she aimed her umbrella and stabbed the monster in the chest. But it barely recoiled. She held the umbrella against her own chest as the monster pinned her against the wall. Blood jetted out of its mouth and nose each time it tried to bite, with droplets of crimson landing on her face and chest. She closed her eyes and turned her head away. She couldn’t look anymore.

She heard it continue groaning and biting, its teeth were clacking. She heard some kind of a… Jingle? No- jingles. Perhaps her mind was trying to imagine a perfect day at her boutique- the one in Ponyville, where she would wake up and say good morning to Sweetie Belle. Her perfect day would be a slow day, as she would hum to herself happily as she made exquisite dresses. Then her eyes would light up when the bell above her door jingles. She would excitedly head towards the door and hear the trots of a new customer. She would hear their trotsteps echo throughout the boutique, and then she would greet them-

BANG!

Thud.

A sudden light burned away her memory. Rarity opened her eyes and saw that the monster had fallen to the ground. Blood spread across the floor, from the new hole in the side of its head. Its loose eye stared at Rarity. The umbrella was still stuck to its chest. Daisy was standing to the left of Rarity, with a contraption in her mouth. One that appeared to be black. It had some sort of a barrel, which smoke emitted from.

Daisy looked at Rarity but then aimed at the stallion. More light ignited from the contraption.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

click click click…

click.

Daisy dropped her device and fell to the ground, with tears in her eyes.

Rarity joined her.

The jaws of her scissors snapped, tearing apart the beautiful fabrics of her in-progress dress. It was hard for her to see from tear-stained eyes, but that barely hindered her, as the art of the dress had been embedded into her for quite some time.

The dress itself was a planned combination of red and black. Something with class and authority. She only cut the red fabric, as it would be good for blending it with the…

Rarity took a glance at Daisy, who had laid on the ground with her wounded shoulder, trying to keep it aimed upward. Her wound was deep, and much of her blood was all over the floor. Rarity could even see a gap in her shoulder from certain angles. It was a sight that could flip anypony’s stomach. She had to look back at the dress.

She finished her work. After placing the sliced incomplete dress onto the floor, (and sliding her scissors back into her bags,) she took the long sliced-off red fabric and walked over to Daisy. “Here, darling - allow me to cover that up.” She hovered the fabric towards the pegasus’ wounded shoulder. Daisy nodded, trying her best to aim her side towards Rarity.

Rarity wrapped the fabric around Daisy’s shoulder and torso, trying to be delicate, yet effective in her technique. She couldn’t help but notice Daisy flinching as the fabric caressed the bite wound. Rarity was no expert in medical treatment, but she was able to do a better job than most other ponies, so she liked to think.

“Thank you.”

Rarity had felt her heart drop. It was her who offered that stallion help. She brought him in, just for him to assault Daisy. Every time she closed her eyes, she could still see his own. She could still hear his groans echo within her mind, the clacking of his teeth chomping.

“I…” Her throat shook. “I-I’m so-”

THUD!

Both mares immediately turned towards the front window and saw a group of ponies pressing their faces against the glass, with those same eyes. Those Celesia-forbidden eyes, and the cursed muffled groans.

They were just as colorless as the stallion and they looked just as hungry.

Neither had the energy to scream. They frantically looked at each other, and then at the backdoor. Daisy, with Rarity’s aid, got up to her hooves and they both went for the exit.

The ponies continued to beat on the glass, with each strike getting louder and louder.

The window was going to break.

Rarity opened the door with her magic. It led into the alleyway, the very same one where she found that stallion. When she poked her head out, she felt the monsoon rain over her head. There was a single light above the door, but all around her was darkness.

Luckily, Rarity had a light spell memorized thanks to her gem-searching experience. She shined her light and saw three pathways. Left, right, and forward, forming a sort of T section.

However, her hope for escape quickly died as she heard and saw more stumbling faded ponies coming from each pathway.

Rarity pushed Daisy back and slammed the door. She frantically looked back at the pegasus. “We cannot go that way - darling, they’re everywhere!” She shrieked.

Daisy’s eyes shrunk and looked towards the side door. She glanced at the front windows, and then back at the dead stallion who still had the umbrella impaled into his chest. She looked back at Rarity and shouted, “Quickly! Get that umbrella and follow me!”

Rarity’s eyes had widened. “Ex-excuse me? Why!?” But there would be no answer, at least for now. Daisy ran to the door and looked back at Rarity..

“Trust me!” She persisted.

Rarity glanced at the windows. But it wasn’t only the sight of the bloodthirsty ponies that motivated her; it would also be the loud bangs now coming from the exit door.

She quickly galloped to the stallion’s corpse and stared down. She tried to only look at the umbrella, a once fabulous relic now covered with red stains of death. She gripped the handle with her magic and started pulling.

Glass shattered.

Rarity looked up and saw that one of the large windows had finally given in. One pony was halfway through, with cuts all over her body. There was blood and shattered glass all over the front half of the building now.

The other ponies had started piling through the shattered window. They were all shoving each other inside, mares and stallions, all that were visible happened to be earth ponies.

Rarity gave a powerful tug to the umbrella and it slid out. She turned away from the groaning ponies and ran towards Daisy, who held the wooden door open. As she galloped, the backdoor slammed open and ponies from the back alleyway started to pour in.

After entering the sideroom, Daisy closed the door and locked it with a bolt lock Rarity had failed to notice until now.

It didn’t comfort her in the slightest.

Daisy walked towards the other side of the room and started tapping the plank floor with her left foreleg.

“Darling, this door is not going to hold! If they are capable of demolishing that metal door, then surely, they’ll just as easily shred through this one!”

As if on queue, the wooden door started banging and shaking!

Rarity felt her heart race as she took steps backward away from the door. The sounds were perfectly clear this time. She could hear each piece of abuse given to the wooden door. She could see it shake violently with each strike. At any second, she expected it to fling open.

“Ms. Floreo-”

“Here! Rarity, come here!” Daisy shouted. She was tapping repeatedly on the floor, near one of the far corners of the room.

With haste, Rarity ran to her.

“Use that umbrella to wedge these planks off!” Daisy pointed at the floor while taking a glimpse at the door. “Hurry!”

Without question, Rarity took the umbrella and jabbed it into the floor. She got the silver tip under a plank and pushed on the umbrella. The plank lifted, revealing something metal underneath.

“Good! Now another one.” Daisy said. “That should be enough for both of us to fit!”

The other plank was easier to remove, as Rarity just needed to jab it with her umbrella’s bloodied tip until it broke in half. After lifting the broken pieces of the second plank, she understood. Under the floor laid a hatch.

“Quick! Open it!”

Rarity did as commanded. There was only darkness below. She hopped down, followed by Daisy. As the hatch shut, they both heard a loud snap and thud emit from above. They were safe. For now.

Chapter Two: Desperate Times

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The darkness ran away from Rarity’s light spell, revealing a short tunnel with walls made of chipped concrete. At the end was a wooden wall. This passage was demolished years ago with equipment.

Rarity took a glance at Daisy, who nudged her in response. “Come on, we need to go.” Rarity complied like a lady and started crawling with Daisy close behind. That was until they were forced into stopping due to the obstacle.

“But dear, this is a dead end-”

“Buck it.”

“Pardon?” Rarity looked back at Daisy.

“Buck it.” She repeated. “It leads into the building next door.”

Rarity wanted more elaboration, but she gave in; after shifting her body backward to aim her hindlegs, she gave a few bucks. It only took four to shatter the barricaded surface. She shifted herself forward again and took a survey into the void ahead.

It was a cellar with a pathetic maze of shelves that all contained a variety of bottled alcohol. There seemed to be all sorts: beer, rum, gin, and Rarity’s personal favorite, wine (though she did not drink all too often, since it does affect a lady’s work routine). The hole she looked from was slightly elevated from the ground, but it wasn’t enough to scare her from falling.

She hopped down and landed gracefully on all her hooves. Daisy followed, but she staggered upon landing, making a pained moan.

“Daisy, do you care to explain this?” Rarity turned to her. “Do you care to explain why there’s a tunnel under the building that I was about to buy from you? A tunnel that connects to, what I am assuming to be, another business?” She found herself in Daisy’s face.

Daisy flinched. “Is this really the best time, Miss Rar-”

“Oh, do not ‘Missy’ me Daisy! I demand to know how on Equestria did you know that hatch was there!”

“I…” Daisy tried to keep her eyes locked onto the fashionista’s own, but could not. She looked away, ashamed. After a moment, Rarity almost opened her mouth but Daisy beat her to it. “As a side business, my mom and the owner of this bar worked together. She grew hops in her shop and Jay would pay her good money.”

Rarity tilted her head and thought, That’s it? Why on earth would anypony go through the effort of digging a tunnel to hide that? She looked into Daisy’s eyes, which struggled to look back. She tried, but her eyes would examine the floor, the shelves, and almost even the ceiling. She’s lying.

“Jay?”

“Mocking Jay. She’s a griffin. Lots of them around here in Shire City.” Daisy nervously rubbed her bandaged shoulder and flinched from the touch.

Rarity decided to let it go. “Oh dear, is that hurting too bad?”

Daisy nodded, and dryly said, “Yeah. Very. It’s not just that though. It’s starting to burn. And it’s itchy. Very itchy.” She bit her lip, eyeing her shoulder.

Rarity rose a brow. “I could be wrong, but that sounds like an infection.” Daisy nodded in agreement and sighed at the thought. Rarity looked around at the cellar, examining the many bottles of liquor. “Perhaps we could take a bottle of whiskey from here and use it as a disinfectant? Or better yet, maybe we can find a medkit.” Though Rarity did not attend many bars, she found it easy to assume the idiotic nature of drunken ponies led to many accidents. “Do you happen to know if the owner is here?”

Daisy shrugged. “The bar looked closed when I walked by. No lights, nopony inside. Which is strange.”

At this time? Rarity thought then nodded her head in agreement. “Yes, it very much is.” She again scanned the shelves of liquor. “Perhaps we can take a bottle and I shall pay for it. Just on the off-chance that we can’t find a proper disinfectant.” Daisy showed no objection.

“Wait here for a moment. I won’t be too long.” Rarity left Daisy and walked through the cellar, navigating through the small labyrinth of shelves and examining many of the dust-covered bottles. She continued to see many kinds of alcohol: more wine, more rum, more gins, and brandies. This cellar was stocked with nearly everything. It didn’t take her too long to find the whiskey. She grabbed the bottle with her magic, wiped it with a cloth she had in her bag, and examined it with delight. While she was not a fan of whiskey, she did always admire its color. A mixture of brown and even orange when a light shines through.

She wondered if Applejack enjoyed whiskey. Surprisingly enough, she couldn’t recall if the farm pony was a fan or not.

She sighed. She missed her home. She missed Applejack, Twilight, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. Sweetie Belle. Her life.

To think, a few minutes ago…

No.

Rarity knew she would get out. She has to. Even to spite fate, she will make it.

She will return to Ponyville as herself. She won’t let this Shire City beat her.

She slid the whiskey into her bag and returned to Daisy. “Come on, dear. Let us see if anypony is home.”

“Let us,” Daisy said with a nod. The mares navigated through the cellar and found a set of stairs that led them out. At the top waited a lonesome door.

Opening the door led them into a dark room. It was a bar with tables and counters all topped off by stools and chairs. There were no signs of life.

They both walked into the room slowly, looking around. Every surface seemed to be made of oiled wood. In the center was a huge counter that curved in a U shape, with a cage of bottles hanging in the center. There were multiple doors in the room, all on different sides. The first two of notice were bathroom doors, labeled as male and female separately. The third door was on the same wall as the one they just came from, but it was on the other side. There was a fourth and final door, which was the entrance to the bar. Next to it was a huge window.

Rarity’s heart stopped when she saw the huge windows that peered into the outside world and hastily dimmed her spell. There was nothing in the windows, just darkness that was broken by two lit street lamps in the background.

“Hey!” Daisy whispered. “What’s wrong?”

“Windows.” Rarity replied, pointing. Daisy took a deep breath.

After a few seconds, there was nothing. Just silence.

“Jay lives here. Wasn’t there a second floor?” Daisy pointed out. She looked towards the unlabeled door on the other side. “Maybe that leads to stairs?”

Rarity nodded. Daisy and her went towards the door, both facing the darkness with their heartbeats beating at a steady rate. They saw nothing in the room, yet both expected something to come.

A muffled scream. But not from inside, but from the windows. The mares both stopped dead in their tracks and flicked their heads to the same direction.

A pony’s silhouette ran under the left street light, shortly followed by the shadows of stumbling ponies. More came from the right. There was a moment of silence until the screaming continued. It got louder and more intense as the stumbling creatures disappeared into the darkness.

But like a song, the screaming stopped.

Rarity felt a knot in her stomach. She sat down and put a hoof onto her chest. Her heart raced and she felt her eyes release tears. Her breath was shaking. She didn’t know she could do this.

She felt a hoof wrapped around her neck which nearly caused her to scream. But it was just Daisy.

“Rarity, come on. We need to go.”

Daisy was right. They needed to.

The door opened without trouble. They walked into the darkness.

The door led them to another set of stairs, though this time it was covered with tan carpet. Due to the dimming of Rarity’s light spell, they were able to see three-to-four steps ahead of them. The mares cautiously proceeded upward.

Their pacing created a rhythm of thumps, a rhythm too slow to match their hearts. The stairs almost felt endless, occasionally making creaks of age. That was until they reached the top, where the walls went from the classic oily wood to being presented with a brilliant sky blue wallpaper, which Rarity’s low light did not do justice.

They were led into a hallway. It was pitch black beyond Rarity’s light, only seeing both sides of the hall. It looked as if the further they would go, the more narrow the walls would become. Both mares hesitated at first, but they proceeded, with Rarity taking the charge.

She was also the first to stop when a door came into sight on the left of the hall. With her magic, she turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. It revealed a bathroom.

Her eyes widened with relief. She nearly galloped into the room.

“Rarity!” Daisy shouted in a forced whisper. “What are you doing?”

Rarity scanned the walls and found exactly what she was looking for: a medkit. She zipped it open and found a white spray can. It had a green square on it, with a silhouette of a sun placed in the middle. A medical cross sat in the center of the sun. Under the symbol, it read:

Sunshine Corporation

FIRST + AID

Recovery Spray

There were also bandages in the medkit.

“Yes!” Rarity celebrated in a delighted whisper and looked back at Daisy. “Let’s get that wound cleaned, right now!”

Daisy’s expression softened after seeing the first aid spray. She complied.

It was a similar process as before. Except Rarity had to undo her red makeshift bandage. Trying to not keep her focus on Daisy’s wound, Rarity aimed the first aid and sprayed. She expected the gesture to be painful, but Daisy’s expression turned from pain to relief. After emptying the can (there had not been much spray left), Rarity wrapped the proper bandages around Daisy’s shoulder.

“Again, thank you,” Daisy said with a neutral yet positive expression. It came from the light in her eyes, a hope that nearly shined beyond Rarity’s spell.

“Mhmm!”

Rarity was the first out of the bathroom. She looked down the hall and when she did, a blinding light flashed on and shined into her face, nearly blinding her.

“Who are you!?” An angered feminine voice shouted from beyond the light. “What are you doing in my ho-e-use!?” Her voice cracked on house.

Before Rarity could respond, Daisy’s voice rang from the bathroom. “Jay, wait!”

As soon as Daisy stood out, the light shifted its focus from Rarity to Daisy. There was a flash, one that showed the shape of a griffin that lived beyond the light beam.

Bam!

The sound of the explosion roared through the hallway, only to escape through the bar’s doorway downstairs.

Ting.

There was a hole in Daisy’s throat. And quickly, a bloodfall rushed out. She fell to the wall, slowly sliding her body down against it as her eyes frequently shifted around.

“NO!” Rarity screamed and ran to Daisy’s side, desperately trying to apply pressure on the wound. Crimson had soaked her pale hooves.

Then the blood came from Daisy’s mouth and nose. Her left wing had opened and quickly moved up and down, creating a weak gush of wind. Daisy was falling and now she was trying to catch herself. She couldn’t die, she was Daisy Floreo, sister of Lavender Floreo, and surely, she would see Celestia’s sun one more time. With her sister in the painting, both admiring such a grossly incandescent sunrise from the top of a distant mountain. She had tried to catch a breath as if she was being dragged down into an ocean. There was only a scarlet sea flooding her throat.

But no matter how much she tried to fly, she just couldn’t catch herself.

There was no flashing of her life. The last thing Daisy Floreo saw was Rarity and her killer’s light, then Rarity watched the her light leave those eyes. She felt it leave. The only thing Daisy had left was her vessel.

“WHY!?” Rarity choked out in tears, looking at Daisy’s shooter. It was the only word that could form in her throat. If it weren’t for Rarity’s own crying, she would hear the breath of Jay shaking. If it weren’t for the blinding light, she would see that Jay was trembling.

It would be a near-solid minute before the strong sound of glass shattering snapped Jay back into reality. It came from downstairs. Without a word, she went past Rarity.

There was no glance to be had; she did not even hear the footsteps (clawsteps? pawsteps?) going away. Perhaps Jay was flying. Either way, it was all white noise.

It was all Daisy. The sight of the pegasus’s yellow coat being tainted by some crimson king. The blood had reached the floor as an expansion of such royalty’s kingdom. Rarity had never seen a pony die. She had begun to prepare for the real possibility of experiencing death (as any adult pony begins to do once they realize that there is that ticking clock of mortality and that their parent’s alarm was approaching the ringing) but never this.

Why?

The question shattered once Rarity heard more loud bangs. This time, four, followed by screams of Jay. Rarity stood up and away from Daisy, giving her a last mournful look with her tear-soaked vision, and quietly went towards the end of the hall.

Rarity heard the bartender’s shrieks die out just as she reached the window. She increased the brightness of her light spell. Beyond the glass, she saw the hint of a dark-colored railing. Upon looking just a little lower, she could see that there was a grid of similar shade.

A fire escape.

Rarity tried to open the window but it would not budge. Under the window itself was a padlock; one that would require a key.

She prepared to smash the window. But the lady stopped herself upon the realization that she heard no hoofbeats coming up. They were only below her. The monsters seemed satisfied with their Jay dinner.

It would be foolish to commit such a desperate act that could lead to serious injury. Extreme bloodless with a good chance of an infection.

Just like Daisy.

To the left of the window was another hallway. Rarity started her trot until she found another door placed into the left wall, next to a lonely nightstand placed at the end.

She investigated the table first. Its single drawer slid open. There was no key, but there was a red and black box inside. At first, she mistook it for a box of matches until she took it out with her magic and examined it.

Red Gryphon

30 PISTOL CARTRIDGES

9mm HANDGUN

HIGH VELOCITY

There was a simplistic illustration of a griffin’s head making an intense expression; a battle cry.

She opened the side of the box (which had been opened before) and found another box inside. She slid it out and found that it was not a box, but a shelf with columns and rows of empty circular holes. It wasn’t until she pulled out the entire shelf that she saw something new: four shiny capsules (made of what Rarity assumed to be brass) tried to fill the last column with one missing.

It clicked instantly. Rarity had recalled reading about the firearms of Shire City. That was what contraption Daisy must’ve (still) had (has). Jay had a similar device. Which was now surrounded by stumbling monsters.

She slid the box into her saddlebags, then went for the door. It opened with a faint screech.

Jay’s room looked normal. It shared the carpet from the hallway, with a round cyan rug placed (nearly) directly in the center of the room. A few white feathers littered the floor. Right beside the door sat a shelf with miscellaneous objects such as books, a few jars, some empty bottles, and candles of different colors: crimson, baby blue, and lavender.

There were only two other pieces of furniture: a desk, which sat to the right of the room, directly under a window covered with curtains, and a narrow bed that was placed in a corner. Next to it was a pair of bifold doors.

Rarity approached the desk.

The furniture was made of a fine neutral shade of wood with a profession of oil applied. It was neatly kept, except for a few empty liquor bottles. There was a typewriter with a claw-written note in front of it. An inactive gas lantern stood humbly next to the note.

It had just occurred to Rarity that she was starting to develop a bit of a migraine from her light use. Gratefully, she switched the lantern on and instantly felt a sense of relief. As soon as the spell stopped, she swore she could feel some sort of melody.

With that, she examined the note:

Dad is still missing. Police won’t do shit. Despite him being the captain. There is something strange happening in this city.

I’ve noticed that there have been less and less customers each day. I asked Ally what’s up and he just said everyone’s been feeling sick.

I hope dad is okay.

Once I find him… for better or for worse, I’m out. I swear something is coming. Something big and not so friendly. The rats are a sign of something terrible coming.

Thankfully, I have a part of dad in my closet. Something to keep me safe.

Just gotta remember my ABCDs…

Rarity missed Sweetie Belle.

Though she had no reason to, she took the note and slipped it into her folder (which was used to store the property paperwork).

The last sentence though…

“ABCDs?” Rarity murmured. “Whatever happened to the rule of threes?”

She put some thought into it, but eventually shrugged, unaware that she even thought aloud. She looked around the room until her sight locked on the cornered bed. Grabbing the lantern’s handle with her mouth, she walked to it.

It was a mess with multiple blankets, which all hung to the side. This led her to ponder how thin the walls were because Jay must have heard Rarity and Daisy walking upstairs. Or at the very least heard them open the bathroom door.

Despite being unmade, the bed looked damn comfortable. Rarity felt tempted to just faint on it and hope in Celestia’s name that this was just some terrible nightmare she was too unfortunately creative enough to imagine. Maybe it originates from that time they pranked Rainbow Dash with those stupid cookies.

But no. She understood that this was no dream.

Because Princess Luna would have been here by now. Like how she had been with Rarity’s sister and her sister’s best friends.

For whatever reason, Rarity felt the urge to look under the bed. She set the lantern on the floor before doing so.

There was nothing remarkable. Just shame boxes; boxes full of random junk Jay didn't care enough to organize.

Except…

There was a long and pointy object colored in black (lots of shades of gray and black today, huh Rarity?) hidden between some boxes. With her magic, she levitated it out and saw that it was a knife comparable to the length of her forehoof. A dagger.

As much as she hated the idea of using it as a weapon, she slid it into her saddlebag.

With nothing else of note, she picked up the lantern and turned to the closet.

The doors folded open with ease. Rarity was almost disappointed at the lack of clothing. Especially dresses. But on the floor laid a decently large box with a brown leather covering. She reached for the handle with her magic and levitated it out. Under the handle was a combination lock of numbers. Set to 469.

Unsure of what to do, she levitated the box around to look for more details. As she did, she heard something sliding from within. With no idea of its fragility, she slowed the turning.

Then she noticed something carved into the bottom of the box.

D|A|D

DAD? She thought to herself. D-A-D.

Again, she spoke to herself, “Is it D-A-D?”

ABCDs?

What ever happened to the rule of threes?

Rarity couldn’t help but smile at the light bulb shining above her head. Clever, even if a bit simple for someone passionate about patterns such as herself.

She changed the combination to 4-1-4. It opened.

Inside was a strange device. It looked similar to Daisy’s firearm, but it was longer—nearly the size of Rarity’s entire hoof. It was made of dark metal with a wood grip under the barrel. Under it was a strap that connect from the grip to the end of its exit point. It slept on a manual.

With care, she levitated the firearm (nearly afraid it was going to explode at a wrong move) and took the manual. Something dropped on the ground which made a loud thud. Her heart stopped and she quietly rushed over to the bed to place her ear against the wall. As she eyed the window above the desk, she focused her ear.

Silence…

Nothing…

She heard her heartbeats return to a slower and steady rate.

She spent (what she guessed to be and would be right) two minutes listening. There was nothing. No sound of rushing and stumbling hoofbeats racing up the stairs and into the hallway to investigate what the hell that sound was.

She believed she would have cried if she hadn’t just eighteen minutes ago.

Taking a glance at the ground, she quickly found what had dropped as it shined from the lantern light. After walking to it, she picked up the object and examined it.

It was a police badge. It had a light gold color to it with an engraving of an alicorn hugging the central circle with its wings and its head high up. In the circle, it read:

SHIRE · POLICE · DEP

In the middle of the circle of words was glass. Rarity flipped the badge over and found a switch. She clicked it.

A light poured out. It shined the opposite of the room (the side with the door) without issue. She flicked it back off and read the text embedded in the back aloud.

“Magically powered light… Focus magic to charge… Oh!”

She gave it a try, focusing her magic on the badge light. It worked as advertised, though it resulted in her feeling a little lightheaded.

Unfortunately, there was no place to put it. It had a belt clip, which would not attach so easily to her fur and it would be far too clunky for her saddlebags…

IDEEAA!

She took the remaining of the unfinished dress (being made largely of black fabric now) and re-purposed it to wrap tightly around her back and chest. With this, the clip should slide over the fabric and leave the badge comfortably placed on her chest. It was a little clunky, but it worked. She found that it was easy to flick it on and off with her magic. It was perfect to save her from migraines of magic usage, even if it caused minor lightheadedness to recharge.

Back to the manual. The title read: Remingtrot 870 Shotgun. There was an illustration of the same weapon on the cover.

Rarity skimmed it and quickly understood the basics. It was a shotgun. It was a pump-action; meaning she would pump the gun and its shells would fly out, loading a live round in. In it’s underneath was where live shells would slide in. Side-by-side, she examined the gun and the manual and realized that she hadn’t noticed the safety until close inspection.

She even got the practice of reloading. When pumping the weapon, a bright red shell flew out and landed on the ground with taps. She took the shell and loaded it back into the weapon.

Good to know it was loaded.

It was a device designed to shoot scattered projectiles; a scattergun.

She hung the weapon around her chest after insuring the safety was on.

Despite all this, Rarity could not find a key. She figured that it would be on Jay’s body, if anywhere. Which just was not an option.

After turning off the lantern and with a lonely sigh, she opened the bedroom door and stepped back into the hallway.

The hall nearly looked different due to the new torch Rarity wore. It looked brighter. The shadows lingering behind the nightstand’s leg became much more visible.

She went back down the hall. As soon as she got near the window, she heard something.

Light thumps around the corner. Followed by a hollowed groan.

There was something there.

Her heart nearly stopped for the third time in a few hours. She didn’t want to do this. She couldn’t. But remembering her thoughts in the cellar, her brows furrowed with determination.

With an uneasy breath, Rarity took the shotgun and clicked its safety off. With that nightstand in mind, she had a plan.

With her forehoof, she tapped the wall and in reaction to hearing a shocked, gargled groan, Rarity backed away and readied the shotgun.

She had to do this. She could do this.

But the face she saw was familiar with right and wrong. It had those foggy eyes, those same eyes that cursed her back in the shop. But it wore her face; of light (even lighter, now) yellow coat and silver hair. Just like the once her, in her final moments, it wore a red dot with a stream of dried crimson underneath. Crimson also laid around its mouth, nearly making it resemble a clown.

What stood in that hallway was the same exact monster that attacked both Daisy and Rarity in that shop.

Except, this time, it wore Daisy’s face.

“No,” Rarity muttered. She was ready. She knew she could do it. “Stay away!”

But not this.

She backed away. Once-Daisy locked its eyes on Rarity and started flapping its wings. There was no flight, but then, like a frog, it made a leap toward her and glided through the hall with its opened wings.

The shotgun flicked, almost with a mind of its own.

BOOM!

The barrage of pallets all went into once-Daisy’s head, ripping its face off and causing most of the head to explode into bits of her skull and brain, which a large portion flew into the ceiling. A geyser of blood erupted where once-Daisy’s head used to be.

The headless body flew into Rarity, dropping her gun and knocking her back, nearly hitting the nightstand. She felt a good amount of cold scarlet rain onto her mane and face. She stood to her hooves just as quickly as she fell and shined the light on Daisy’s corpse.

It was dead. Blood poured out of its throat, with a long tongue lying to its side like a dead snake. With all the blood, which both soaked once-Daisy’s corpse and the mundane tan carpet, it felt like she was looking into a red abyss. Blood (and other things Rarity did not want to consider) fell from the ceiling and landed on Daisy’s corpse and into the new blood pool.

But she was dead. Again.

Rarity vomited onto the carpet.

Thud!

They were coming.

Rarity hastily grabbed and stored the shotgun in her saddlebags. She then levitated the nightstand and went to the window.

A crashing sound rushed from the hallway. She assumed it was the door.

With a quick and powerful throat, Rarity smashed the window and ran the table’s legs on each side and into each corner. She threw it out of the window and watched it fall down the alleyway with an inevitable smash.

She heard the thuds of hoofsteps behind her before she leaped through the window. Without looking back, she ran down the metal stairs, welcoming the rain that soaked her fur and mane. She hoped it would wash off Daisy’s blood.

Rarity hopped into the empty alleyway, looked between both directions, and choose at random to run.

Running through Shire City’s streets was an endurance test.

It had all become a blurry painting of a nightmare. Rarity remembered seeing more rotting faces and running from them. She remembered dodging pegasi that leaped after her (which were the closest to getting her). She had seen a few flaming builds which glittered in the ran.

She kept to the streets, as they were wide and open, allowing for easy avoidance of those monsters. Yet, she still felt claustrophobic by just being in this damned city.

She thought it would be over when she felt her legs and chest burning from the exercise Rainbow Dash wished she could convince Rarity to do it. But that’s when she found a beacon of hope; some sort of a tower surrounded by stone walls.

She would have to run some more to find the gate, which had more of those monsters cluttered in front of it. She took her Fledgling and fired a single round into the air; every single one of them turned their heads to her and began stumbling.

She easily maneuvered them (nearly getting snagged by another pegasus) and ran through the double-door gate. She closed it and slid the lock just as the mindless ponies began banging on it. The pegasus that had tried to get her attempted to fly into the sky but fell on its face.

Rarity turned to the building and admired its massive scale. It was much more than a tower. It was a fortress.

Above its doors read:

S.P.D.

Shire Police

With a false sense of hope, Rarity took steps toward the doors, opened them, and entered the world of survival horror.

Resident Evil: Shire City

by Crimsee

Chapter One: Outbreak

Chapter Two: Desperate Times