The soft ticking of the clock caused little Blossom to stir in her sleep. She squirmed slightly before resting her neck on the soft pillow that the couch had provided. The filly had been waiting for her dad to get home so she could surprise him. But minutes turned into hours and soon enough it was almost midnight when Blossom had fallen asleep. She didn’t like it when her dad worked too hard, sometimes she feared for his health.

Sighing with content, Blossom continued to rest before something even louder than the clock rolled in.

A few clings from the keys and the locks of the door activating finally caused the filly to wake up. Her large, gray eyes fluttered open when she saw her dad walk in through the door. It was still night from the chirps of the crickets and the cool breeze flowing inside. Little Blossom’s ear twitched when she heard her dad muttering to himself.

“I can’t lose this job,” Rag Tag muttered to himself as he slowly paced in front of the now closed door. “How can they do this to me? I’ll talk to Rusty in the morning about this, that’s for sure.”

It had been a tough day at work for Rag Tag. He worked in construction for Ponyville, he and his little brother, so it was sad to say that they were close to getting laid off if their next building wasn’t completed by the end of the week. How could they do this to him? The building would take about three more weeks to complete. Rag Tag was always a hard worker, he tried to provide for his daughter the best he could. But he couldn’t do enough to give her everything that she needed.

If only his wife was still here…

Rag Tag slowly made his way to the table. On it was a small box of matches and a candle. Placing his hoof on the small table next to the couch where his daughter began to awaken, Rag Tag pulled out a match and stroked it on the side of the box, igniting the flame. He reached over and lit the candle, filling the dark house with life.

Little Blossom yawned and smiled at her dad, gently rubbing her eye to get the sleepiness out.

“Hey,” Blossom said sweetly.

“Scoot,” Rag Tag simply muttered, settling himself where his daughter was just resting.

Blossom took this time to observe her dad. His pale, light green coat was covered in dust and dirt, obviously from the dirt fields he worked in all day. His ratty brown mane was in a mess as if a family of squirrels had squirmed in there when he wasn’t looking. He had a small, brown beard growing that stopped at the end of his jawbone. His cutie mark, which represented a hammer and nail in an “x” formation was barely visible from all the dirt on him. He definitely had been working hard today, the bags under his eyes told the tale.

After a few seconds had gone by, Rag Tag sighed peacefully. He was really not in the mood to talk right now. He laid his head back on the couch and rubbed his eyes. Today had to be by far the worst in several. It was probably the worst day of his life, no…definitely not the worst...but still a bad one.

“Fun day at work, huh?”

Rag Tag simply moaned, continuing to rub his eyes. “What are you still doing up?” He groaned, “It’s late.”

The filly nearly sprang off the couch. “Oh crud!” she yelped, receiving a stern glare from her father. He had told her countless times to not use bad language in this household. It must’ve been something really important or really dumb. “What time is it?” Blossom asked as she looked back at the clock attached to the wall behind her.

He shook his head slightly, his eyes still closed. “It’s way past your bedtime.”

Blossom smiled deviously. The clock only read 11:50 PM. She wasn’t the smartest filly in school but she also wasn’t stupid. She knew time, she knew her math, and she could even recite all the main cities in Equestria by heart! That was pretty good for a twelve year old. Still, it was past her bedtime and getting dad angry, especially in the mood he’s in right now wouldn’t be smart. But there was still time left!

She looked back at her dad, a victorious smile adorning her face. Rag Tag caught her in the far sight of his left eye. He had seen that face several times before. Oh no…

“But it’s still today,” she said matter-of-factly.

Before he could answer her, Blossom had already got off the couch and went under the coffee table to fetch something. Rag Tag groaned, “Honey, please not right now. I do not have the energy for this.”

Knowing Blossom she probably wanted to play a board game or have a late night game of cards. Rag Tag always tried his best to spend quality time with her, but with his job interfering and his own problems to worry about he was still amazed he had kept a roof over their heads for this long.

A slight weight of guilt washed over his aching heart. Blossom didn’t have that many friends at school and he knew that she always wanted to have some fun just to fill that little hole in her chest. She needed a father who would always be there for her…she needed a mother who would always lo-

“Here.”

Rag Tag finally looked straight at his daughter. She sat right next to him on the couch, an excited look clearly visible on her face. In her hooves was a gray-colored box. Rag Tag looked from the box to his daughter. Her blond mane wasn’t very long, only reaching slightly past her ears. Her white coat remained clean despite his filthy one. Her gray eyes darted from his gaze to the box and back again.

“What’s this?” Rag Tag asked as he slowly snatched the box away and out of her grasp. He looked it over with his right hoof, just a regular little box. It didn’t look anything like a game she so eagerly wanted to play.

“Your birthday,” she answered.

Rag Tag stared stupidly at the box for a few seconds before giving a slight grin. He had completely forgotten about his birthday…but somehow…his little Blossom remembered.

He lifted up the lid and stared at his present.

The ticking of the clock was the only noise heard throughout the house.

Rag Tag lifted up the lid fully and stared at it.

“You kept complaining about your broken watch… So I figured, you know,” Blossom said as she sat there next to her father, her eyes watching carefully as he removed the brand new watch and placed it around his left hoof. “You like it?”

Rag Tag was at a loss for words at the moment. All he could really do was stare at his brand new watch his daughter had gave him for his birthday present. Finally, he found the power to speak.

“Honey, this is…” He brought his ear close to it for a split-second. He reared his head back and began tapping the glass on it.

“What?” Blossom asked, clear worry escaping her voice.

Rag Tag continued to stare at it, his face broken. “It’s nice but I-I think it’s stuck. It’s not-“

Blossom was quick to react. “What? No, no, no, no,” she yelped and darted over to the watch. She grabbed her dad’s hoof and stared into it. Nothing was wrong. Just a little prank. She glared at her father but couldn’t help a tiny grin. “Oh, ha, ha.”

As she laid back on the other side of the couch, Rag Tag was still busy grinning like a mad-pony, both from his little joke and his new watch. This brought a good question to mind…

“Where did you get the money for this?” He asked, still observing his present.

“Magic,” Blossom stated simply, receiving a few chuckles from her dad. “I sell hardcore magic.”

Now most parents would flip out from an outburst like this from their kids, but Rag Tag knew his daughter. He knew she was a good filly and would never do anything like that. So he decided to play along.

“Oh, good,” Rag Tag muttered as he reached for the newspaper lain across the table in front of him. “You can start helping out with the mortgage then.”

Blossom simply scoffed before laying her head back on the pillow. “Yeah, you wish.”

Blossom didn’t stay awake that long. It was only about another hour before she was fast asleep. Noticing her continued silence, Rag Tag lowered the newspaper from his nose and gazed longingly at his daughter.

Sighing quietly, Rag Tag got up off the couch and slowly picked up the filly in his hooves. With a quick and yet gentle maneuver, Blossom was lying on her father’s back, still sound asleep. Rag Tag smiled softly when he felt his daughter’s chin lay peacefully on his shoulder, her soft breaths tickling his chin.

He slowly walked forward and out of the living room. There he made a right and slowly went up the stairs, little Blossom still asleep on his back. Soon enough, the duo had arrived to her room. It wasn’t much. A small bed, little table on the side with a candle and a box of matches. Window on the far end of the room, the full moon giving a soft glow throughout the darkness.

Lowering his neck, Rag Tag lifted up his one hoof and gently lifted his daughter off his back and slowly onto her bed. She never woke up. A small lock of her hair remained on her eyelid. Rag Tag lifted up his hoof and placed the lock behind her ear to join the rest of her mane.

Rag Tag stared at her for some time. She was no doubt his greatest accomplishment. Just watching his own daughter, his own flesh and blood sleep in front of him, her tiny chest rising and falling in unison to his own breaths, made his heart swell up. Maybe he did do one good thing on this planet after all.

“Goodnight, baby girl.”

Tink…

Tink…

Blossom slowly opened her tired eyes. She got up and finally noticed she was in her own bed and not on the couch. ‘Dad…’ Blossom thought. She looked around the room noticing nothing was amiss. But what had made that noise?

Tink…

This time she swiveled her head completely around. That’s where the noise was coming from…her window. Stretching her limbs, Blossom got out of bed and slowly made her way to the window. Once she got right in front of it, a pebble flew right up and hit the glass, causing the noise she had heard earlier.

She undid the latches and lifted the window up. The filly was instantly hit with a cool night breeze, causing her mane to fly past her ears. Squinting, Blossom looked downwards to where she was met with a very familiar face…

“Uncle Rusty?” Blossom questioned with a raised eyebrow. “What are you doing here?”

Her dad’s brother, or better known as her uncle, Rusty stood at the very bottom of her house. He looked terrible, even worse than her dad did when he came home. His long, brown mane was even worse than her dad’s too. His light red coat was scratched and dirty. Sweat dripped from his forehead all the way down to his small beard. He was obviously running…but for what reason?

His eyes grew larger when he spotted the filly looking down at him. “Blossom, honey, I need you to get your daddy right now,” he stated in an urgent tone.

She seemed worried for a brief moment before asking, “Uncle Rusty, what’s wrong?”

He shook his head. “I need to talk to your dad now. There’s some-!”

His right ear twitched. Rusty spun his head around in shock. Blossom followed his gaze but saw nothing in the tree lines, only darkness. Something had obviously startled him.

“Oh, shit!” Rusty screamed, darting away from the house and into the never-ending darkness.

Blossom followed him until he became one with the forest. “Uncle Rusty?! Where are you going?!” she screamed. A look of worry crossed her face. She had to get her dad. Looking away and closing the window, Blossom never even noticed the dark figure crossing right through her backyard.

“What was that all about?” Blossom questioned as she made her way over to her door. She rubbed the sleepiness from her eye with a free hoof as she gently turned the knob and entered the dark hallway.

“Dad?” Blossom quietly yelled. No answer. She continued down the hallway, looks of fear slowly passing her face. She had once been afraid of these hallways when she was really young, but her dad taught her that fear is only in the mind. Ever since then she always tried to block out all thoughts of fear…and it worked!

He may never be around that often, he may hate the kind of music she was into, and he may even hate all the comics and stories she read because he thought they were either too violent or too sappy. But overall he would still turn out to be the best dad every year…and she loved him.

Blossom made a right to where she entered a new portion of the hallway. The stairs that led downstairs remained on the left side of the wall, a light emanated from below, and her dad’s room stayed on the right side of the hallway at the very end, a candlelight pouring through the tiny crack in his door.

“Daddy?” Blossom said a little louder this time. Still no answer.

With no choice whatsoever, little Blossom slowly trotted over to her dad’s room and pushed open the door with her snout. “You in here?” she asked.

The room was empty. His bed was a tangled mess and a newspaper along with a lit candle remained on the small table by his bedside. Blossom slowly made her way to the bed and picked up the newspaper. Her dad seemed to be really interested in what he was reading when he got home…time to do some sleuthing.

It read:

She put down the newspaper, a creepy chill running up her spine. Ponyville Hospital wasn’t that far away from where they lived. She spun her head around and towards the window at the far end of her dad’s room.

“Where the heck are you?” Blossom muttered as she slowly approached the window.

Ponyville remained peaceful and quiet during these late hours. Small lanterns hung from the tiny houses leading up to the Town Hall in the center of Ponyville. Blossom smiled a little. She had quite a big house, bigger than her friends’ houses that was for sure. Her dad’s job probably paid more than the others.

Suddenly a small light caught her eye in the center of town. Blossom squinted and got even closer to the window. She saw a fire and several ponies running in panic. The fire quickly spread and soon enough…Blossom realized it was Ponyville Hospital that was on fire! Screaming erupted from the small town.

“Uh…what was that?” Blossom questioned.

A massive explosion caught her attention quickly.

The filly screamed and backpedalled away from the window as fast as her hooves could carry her. Her rump hit the bed, instantly stopping Blossom from moving back anymore. All she could do was stare as the column of fire and smoke erupted from what remained of Ponyville Hospital.

“Oh Celestia,” she muttered, her entire body shaking like a leaf when more screams came from outside. “Dad?” she yelled this time, in hopes of him hearing. He still didn’t respond.

This time she had to act. Now terrified, Blossom scrambled out of her father’s room and back into the dark hallway. Her gray eyes landed on the stairs leading down. “Dad?!” Blossom yelled even louder down the stairs. Nothing.

Dogs barking and ponies screaming could still be heard outside. Blossom quickly scampered down the stairs and finally arrived to the main floor. “What is goin’ on?” she asked herself.

Candles were lit across the room. The couch, coffee table, dinner table and chairs all remained where they were. But before she could continue on, a new sound came from outside, one that was neither barking nor screaming.

Blossom turned her head back and gazed out the window that stayed in the front of her house. There, in the night sky, she could see carriages being pulled by several tough-looking Pegasi in golden armor. Inside each carriage were even more ponies encased in golden armor, all of them holding spears, swords, and crossbows. Together, all four carriages sped past her house and towards Ponyville…out of sight.

Gulping in fear, Blossom stared out the window. “Celestia’s Royal Guard?” she questioned. “What are they doin’ here?”

Her questions remained unanswered. Blossom slowly backed away from the window and continued on throughout her house in search for her missing dad. She looked over to the clock which read 2:15 AM. After she had passed the dinner table, the dogs barking suddenly stopped. Only sounds of yelping and whimpering came from outside.

Blossom gasped and faced the screen door that led to her backyard. They didn’t have a dog, but the neighbors did, and whatever commotion was going on certainly wouldn’t cause the dogs to stop barking right now. Something weird was going on. Not only that but…

…the tire swing connected to the tree was swinging back and forth.

The filly, her heart pounding harder than ever, quickly trotted over to her dad’s study room. She pushed open the glass doors and entered…the same time her dad did.

Rag Tag had entered his own study through the other screen door that led outside. Blossom sighed with relief, smiling happily at her dad. “There you are,” she breathed.

Her dad quickly looked over to her and back to the door. “Blossom,” he said in a panicked tone. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Blossom said as she approached her worried dad. He was looking through the shelves of his desk until he pulled out a rectangular box, opening it up and pulling something out. It was only until now did Blossom realize what he was covered in… Blood.

“Has anypony come in here?” Rag Tag quickly asked, placing something inside whatever he was holding, making a short clicking sound.

Blossom shook her head, her eyes landing on the door her dad had just come through. “No. Who would come in here?” she asked.

Noticing her curious eyes, he pointed towards the door and shouted, “Don’t go near the doors. Just…just stand back there…” He brought his gaze back to whatever he was holding, sweat now dripping furiously down his neck.

“Dad, you’re kinda freaking me out,” she muttered fearfully. “What’s going on?”

Rag Tag continued to work on the device in his hooves. He never removed his gaze from it and answered her. “It’s the Planters,” he recalled the events of what had happened while he was outside. “Somethin’ ain’t right with ‘em. I think they’re sick.”

Blossom gulped yet again. “What kinda sick?” she asked.

Her answer came from a loud bang that echoed throughout the room.

She spun around quickly. Her eyes grew wide and her gasped joined in unison to her dad’s. Carrot Planter had literally smacked his own face against the glass door! But that’s not what scared little Blossom. The events that transpired next almost caused her to have a heart attack.

Rag Tag backed away from the window, finally revealing to Blossom what he was holding. It was a hoof-held crossbow, one arrow sticking out from the end. Rag Tag held up his right hoof which held the small crossbow, his left hoof being planted firmly on the ground. He pointed the crossbow at the glass door that Carrot Planter continued to smack against.

“Carrot,” Rag Tag screamed.

“Dad?” Blossom fearfully said in almost a whisper.

Rag Tag took a protective stance in front of his daughter. “Honey, c’mere, c’mere,” he muttered while Blossom held onto his hind leg for protection. “It’s okay.” Rag Tag took one last look at the door.

“Carrot!”

The door shattered in seconds, Carrot Planter erupting inside.

“Carrot, just stay back,” Rag Tag screamed, pointing the crossbow right at his neighbor. “Carrot, I am warning you!”

Blossom took this moment to take a quick look. Hiding behind her father, Blossom gasped when she got a good look at Carrot Planter. Blood was dripping dangerously from his mouth, his teeth painted dark red. His eyes were teary and red, a mixture of blood and tears raining down. Blood covered his once tan coat and hooves, his orange and puffy mane now deflated and wet. But that wasn’t what frightened Blossom the most…what scared her is what he did and how he acted.

Carrot lunged for them, an animalistic roar erupting from his blood-dripping mouth. This didn’t remind Blossom of the loving neighbor they have lived next to for seven years, this didn’t remind her of the kind pony who always dropped by every Sunday and delivered a bundle of carrots to them. Oh no…this reminded her of a beast…a beast that needed food. And he was fast. Really fast.

Her dad was faster.

“Don’t!”

Aiming quickly, Rag Tag let loose the arrow. It impacted Carrot’s scull so fast that it went straight through and stuck against the back of his head. The earth pony tumbled to the ground, even more blood coming out of his head.

“Oh my goddess…” Blossom cried, still holding onto her dad’s hind leg for dear life.

“Go…go,” Rag Tag ordered and backed away from his private study. He could feel Blossom’s tears hitting his back leg. He could also feel her trembling and whimpering. He pulled her off of him and set her down right in front so he could look into her eyes.

Tears were already falling down her cheeks. She sniffled and managed to say, “You…you killed him.”

“Blossom…” Rag Tag was saying.

“I saw him this mornin’,” she interrupted, still pretty shaken up.

He hated to see her like this. He always hated it to see her cry. He was suddenly back to where his wife was still with him, Blossom crying with a scraped foreleg. Rag Tag remembered laying a bandage on it and kissing her foreleg. Blossom smiled.

But now wasn’t the time. His daughter needed him and he had to act fast.

“Listen to me,” he said sternly and looked her in the eyes, “there is something bad going on. We have got to get outta here. Do you understand me?”

Blossom took a few seconds to answer. She sniffled and nodded her head.

“Yeah.”

Three loud knocks at the door caused Rag Tag to turn around quickly. A reflection of his little brother appeared on the other side of the window. He looked back at Blossom and pulled her along by the hoof. “Rusty. C’mon,” he stated.

“Okay.”

Rag Tag pushed open the door and pulled himself and his daughter outside. It was still very dark out, but for some reason there were several lights in town. They were met with Uncle Rusty backing off and shaking his head in disapproval.

“Where the hell have you been?” he asked, following them into the dirt road. “You have any idea what’s goin’ on out there?”

Rag Tag tugged his daughter closer to him, letting his younger brother take the other side so they both would be able to protect Blossom…just in case. “I got some notion,” he growled, walking even faster down the dirt road that led into Ponyville.

Rusty looked down at his older brother and gasped, “Holy shit. You got blood all over you!”

“Stay close, baby,” Rag Tag muttered, pulling his daughter in closer. “It ain’t mine. Let’s just get outta here.”

Blossom remained silent between the two earth ponies. They easily towered over her, her head only being able to reach her dad’s and uncle’s necks. She kept her head low and tried her best to move forward with her dad constantly tugging and gripping her hoof. They talked amongst themselves while Blossom listened in.

“They’re saying that half the ponies in this town have lost their minds,” Rusty told his older brother as they walked a little faster.

“Can we just please move faster?” Rag Tag asked, his eyes darting and observing his surroundings.

Rusty shook his head, continuing on, “Some sort of parasite or somethin’.” When his brother didn’t answer him, Rusty stared him down and asked, “You gonna tell me what happened?”

Rag Tag snorted. “Later.”

Noticing the obvious sign, Rusty looked down to his right and forced a helpful smile. “Hey, Blossom,” he began. “How you holdin’ up, honey?”

Blossom barely looked up at him.

“I’m fine,” she muttered with barely any emotion.

Rusty looked back to his older brother then back to the long dirt road ahead of them. The wooden buildings that Ponyville was known for quickly came into view. Hopefully they would be able to make it out before…

Once they had entered the town, Blossom looked around and noticed several families scurrying about their homes and businesses. Bags were filled in the street with more and more ponies packing up and loading the bags into many carriages. It was as if the entire town was being evacuated.

“Entire town’s being evacuated,” Rusty said, breaking the silence. “The newly appointed Mayor, you heard of her?” When Rag Tag didn’t answer, he continued, “Well, Mayor Mare wouldn’t shut up about the whole ordeal going on near Ponyville Hospital, now she’s being all hush-hush about it.”

“Did she say where to go?” Rag Tag finally asked.

Rusty thought for a second before answering, “She said, uh…the Royal Guard just blocked off the entire town and all ponies evacuating have to arrive near the bridge so we can make it to Canterlot.”

“That means we need to get the hell out,” Rag Tag stated, pointing over to his right. “We need to go right, down the path it’ll lead straight to the bridge that goes into the Everfree Forest. Hopefully that’ll be where the Royal Guard is.”

“Then that’s where we’re headed,” Rusty muttered.

It was silent for a few seconds minus the constant screams emanating from the center of town. Luckily, the houses blocked off that area and the Royal Guard flying overhead meant safe travel from the area of Ponyville the three were in.

“Did she say how many are dead?” Blossom asked, finally getting the courage to speak up.

Rusty looked down at her and back to the road in front of him. “Probably a lot. Found this one family all mangled inside their house.”

“Rusty,” Rag Tag sternly said, giving his younger brother a wicked glare.

Rusty looked from his brother and back down to the little filly before finally getting it. He sighed and continued onward. “Right,” he muttered trying hard to catch up to Rag Tag’s fast hoofsteps. “Sorry.”

The trio continued down the dirt road. They all came across a crashed carriage that led into a small house, it along with the house being on fire. Taking a quick left, Rag Tag shook his head and muttered, “Sweet Celestia, how did this happen?”

Rusty shook his head. “They got no clue,” he stated nonchalantly. “But we ain’t the only town.”

This caught the filly’s attention.

“At first Mayor Mare said it was just Ponyville. Then she was going on about Manehatten, Cloudsdale, Fillydelphia, all the big ones,” Rusty told them. He froze his thoughts down to solid ice. His body became still as did Blossom’s and Rag Tag’s. They all turned right and faced the burning barn.

“Holy hell,” Rusty gasped. “That’s the Apple’s farm.”

Blossom now stood in the grave of what once remained as the best fruit giving plantation in all of Ponyville and possibly all of Equestria. The Apple farm was burning down. Trees that once produced the best apples were shredded to ash and dust. The main house and the barn together burned in a fiery blaze, emanating Ponyville to a blood red.

“I hope the Apples and the youngins’ made it out,” Rusty said.

Rag Tag nodded grimly. “I’m sure they did.”

As the trio continued on, Blossom finally looked up at her dad and asked, “Are we sick?”

Rag Tag was quick to answer. He stared at his daughter’s pleading face and spoke quickly, “No. No, of course not.”

“How do you know?” Blossom retorted.

Rusty intervened, “Mayor Mare said it was just ah, ponies in the hospital. We’re good.”

That got Blossom to remain quiet throughout the duration of the journey. If she could trust anypony in the world, her dad and her uncle would be the only choices. Together, all three of them had past several more families just trying to make it out of the burning town. Blossom looked up and noticed several Pegasi Royal Guards flying overhead. They had already reached the outskirts of the town, and now they stopped.

There was a massive line to the bridge that led out of Ponyville. Rusty stood on the tips of his hooves and noticed a unicorn stallion covered in golden armor was in the very front of the line, his horn was touching the necks of the next group of Ponyville civilians that tried to evacuate.

“Oh, this is bad,” Rag Tag muttered.

Rusty shook his head, stomping his hoof on the ground. “Everypony and their mother had the same damn idea.”

“Well…” Rag Tag was saying, “we could just backtrack and-“

A stallion a few rows in front of them got out of line and shouted, “Hey, what the buck, man? Let’s go!”

Nopony in line agreed with him, they were too busy screaming and making a run for it.

Out from the bundle of burning houses, an unnaturally fast stallion in a hospital gown charged and tackled the stallion that got out of line. In an instant the stallion was down and screaming. Everypony in line backed away, a lot of them even running off.

“Holy shit,” Rag Tag cursed.

Blossom could only stare at the massacre in front of her. The stallion was forced to the ground to the other and was violently bitten in the throat. Blood erupted like a broken faucet from the stallion’s neck. The creature ripped off a plentiful of skin and several arteries.

“Let’s get out of here…NOW!” Rag Tag screamed, reaching for his daughter and placing her on top of his back. Rusty took off with Rag Tag quickly behind. Blossom looked back and noticed the entire crowd of ponies just booked it out of there. The stallion in the hospital gown was chasing them!

Blossom screamed as the stallion was mere inches from her hind leg, his mouth dripping blood and saliva. Rag Tag looked back for a split second and quickly bucked his back legs. His hoof smacked neatly on the snout of the infected stallion, causing him to trip and tumble in the dirt.

Blossom placed her chin on her father’s shoulder, her forelegs latched tightly around his neck.

She closed her eyes tight and listened to them speak.

“What the buck just happened,” Rusty screamed. “Did you see that?!”

“Yes. I saw it,” Rag Tag responded.

“Damn,” Rusty cursed.

The three of them had already failed to escape where the Royal Guard had wanted them to, now they had to find their own way out. Rusty led Rag Tag left into another portion of Ponyville, this one was filled with screaming ponies.

Instantly, the three were surrounded in a sea of screaming and frightened ponyfolk. Rusty pushed some away but they just kept coming. “Come on, ponies. Move,” Rusty agitatedly shouted, pushing more and more away so they could get through.

Blossom opened her eyes for a brief moment.

“What are they runnin’ from?” she asked, still quivering in fright.

Her question remained unanswered as Rusty forced himself through the terrified crowd. Rag Tag helped as well but it was barely enough to make it. Once the three made it on the other side, they immediately noticed how deserted it was. They had arrived at a four way cut in the middle of the bundle of wooden houses. It was too quiet.

A bright light caught Blossom’s attention.

She turned her head left and instantly regretted doing that.

“Look out,” she screamed.

The flaming carriage had barely missed Rusty, but it had hit her dad with full force.

The first thing Rag Tag felt was the pain.

Then came the burning feeling from above and around him.

His hearing was quick to return. Moans and grunts from outside were nothing compared to the continued screams of the ponyfolk. For a moment he was thinking if he should just lie there. He was already in an intense amount of pain. There was really no need to get up.

“Daddy?”

Rag Tag found the strength to get up again.

He looked over and saw his own daughter standing over him, her eyes worried and tear-stained. A bruise was clearly seen on her cheek. Her mane was tattered and soot covered along with her once white and clean coat. She poked his shoulder again and whispered louder, “Hey…hey!”

“What?” Rag Tag groaned, looking over the surroundings around him.

The carriage was completely on top of them. However, it luckily hadn’t crushed them under its weight and remained only a few inches from touching his snout. Rag Tag looked out from under the carriage and spotted a crazed pony ripping apart another one of its victims with its bear hooves.

Screaming was all he heard.

Rag Tag looked back at his daughter. “Get back, baby,” he ordered. “Get back.”

As she did what she was told, scrunching back under the carriage, Rag Tag slowly crawled out from underneath and arrived to the outside. All around him ponies were screaming and running wildly past him in a crazy frenzy yelling words such as “Run” and “Look out”.

He should’ve listened to them.

As he finally got back up to his four hooves another one of the deranged ponies charged and tackled him. Rag Tag’s back hit the side of the carriage, his foreleg pressed hard against the neck of the attacker. It screamed and chomped at him. Rag Tag roared in anger and tried his best to push it off of him. It was getting closer to his neck!

Another roar came from the side and sooner than he could’ve guessed Rusty had smacked a brick against the face of the pony attacking his older brother. The dead attacker lay back on the dirt ground, his forehead bleeding and painting the dirt red.

Rag Tag looked at his younger brother in disbelief.

“Dad?”

Instantly, Rag Tag bent down and held out his hoof under the carriage. “I’m here, baby. I’m here,” he assured her. “Come on, gimme your hoof.”

Once he felt the touch of his daughter, Rag Tag pulled her out from underneath the carriage that had almost killed the two. But once she was out in the open, Rag Tag finally realized that the carriage had done more damage than he had thought.

Blossom was limping.

“What is it?” he asked in fear.

His daughter cringed in pain and noticed her hind leg was slightly bent in an awkward angle. She looked up at her father and whimpered, “My leg hurts.”

“How bad?”

“Pretty bad.”

He didn’t want this. Blossom can’t be hurt. This wasn’t a simple scrape on the foreleg, this was a broken leg. But no matter what…he was gonna get her out of here. No matter what…he was gonna protect her.

“We’re gonna need to run…”

Rag Tag took his worried eyes off his daughter and onto his brother. He was on the other side of the crashed carriage slowly backing off, his eyes fixated on the scene in front of him. Rag Tag knew it wouldn’t be good. They had to leave.

“Oh my goddess,” Rag Tag muttered, hearing the several screams of hunger from the crazed ponies running down the street towards them. He pulled something out from his small bag attached to his back and handed it to his brother. “You keep us safe.”

Rusty looked over the single shot crossbow and nodded.

Knowing his brother understood, Rag Tag lifted his hurting daughter onto his back. “Come on, baby,” he said, reassuring her. He could feel her forelegs squeeze his neck for safety. Confident that she wouldn’t fall off, Rag Tag began to start moving forward.

“Now hold on tight,” Rag Tag screamed as he and Rusty began to make a run for it.

“Okay!”

Together, the two brothers galloped their way down the street, following the terrified crowd of ponies through the infected town. Rusty led the way with Rag Tag struggling to catch up.

“Daddy, I’m scared,” Blossom whimpered from atop his back.

The store next to them burst open and many more infected charged them. Dodging several crazed ponies tackle a family of unicorns instead, Rag Tag and Rusty continued onwards, trying their best to ignore the screams of pain from behind them.

“Just keep your eyes closed, honey,” Rag Tag assured her and pushed forward.

As the two ran together with the crowd of terrified ponies, a carriage with nopony driving it crashed into a burning building right in front of the two brothers. The building exploded, sending waves of fire and ash across the street.

“Oh my goddess,” Rag Tag and Blossom muttered together.

“Keep running,” Rusty screamed, making a quick right down a new road.

Another burning building came into view. Rag Tag could feel his daughter quivering in fright on top of him. “Those ponies are on fire,” he had heard her whimper. It was true. Two, three, maybe four ponies came out of the building screaming in pain, their bodies engulfed in flames. They reached outwards to try and grab something, anything to try and save themselves, but it was no use.

Rag Tag’s breathing increased. “Don’t look, Blossom.”

But she couldn’t seem to look away. Blossom peeked over and saw another crazed pony ripping apart a mere child, a filly. That could’ve been one of her friends, his or her body being ripped apart like a rag doll. She cried this time, her words turned into pure sobbing. “W-why are they d-doing that?”

Rag Tag saw it too. “Just keep looking at me, baby!”

She did…and she could’ve sworn she saw tears swell up in his eyes.

Rusty was way ahead of them, though he managed to locate the two and wave them towards him. “Over there,” he shouted, “towards Golden Oaks Library!”

“We’re gonna get outta this. I promise.”

Right before he, his daughter, and the massive crowd of innocent ponyfolk could enter Golden Oaks Library, another flamed carriage came from absolutely nowhere and rammed the tree with full force. The library exploded just like the building had did before, flames scattering across the crowd of ponies, some of them catching on fire.

It wasn’t just the carriage.

Several more of the crazed creatures burst out from the darkness and attacked the crowd. Rag Tag and Rusty backed off quickly. Rusty looked over and shouted, “This way! Through the alley!”

With his daughter holding on tighter, Rag Tag pushed through the crowd and entered the alleyway Rusty had pointed out. He and his brother got between the two buildings easily. The hard part was making it on the other side…

When Rag Tag turned the corner, another one of the infected exited out of the darkness and bit at him. With Blossom screaming in fright, Rag Tag held out his foreleg and managed to hold off the creature for enough time so his brother could take it out.

Rusty bucked the creature off of his older brother. Once it had hit the ground it looked up one last time to see an arrow fly straight into its brain.

“He’s dead,” Rusty exclaimed. “Dammit,” he shouted, ripping out the arrow from the creature’s skull and placing it back inside the crossbow. It was the only arrow they had after all. He pushed through the alleyway with his older brother following right behind.

“We’re almost there. We’re almost there, baby.”

Rusty led the father and daughter through the dark alleyway, the only light appearing from the only opening to the outside. Rag Tag looked right quickly and noticed the steel fence with three more creatures on the other side clawing at it. A bright fire was behind them, which of course was the cause of the light.

“They’re getting’ through the fence,” Rusty screamed, doubling his speed.

They had arrived in the back alley of the tailor shop. Above the cemented fence directly in front of them several infected were already up and over. Rusty took a quick right and shouted, “Keep going! Find a way outta here!”

That’s when he spotted the open door leading into the tailor shop.

“C’mon! Let’s go,” he screamed, waiting right inside as Rag Tag burst in as well.

With his brother and niece safely inside, Rusty slammed the door as hard as he could. But the infected had already made it. Their hooves were clawing on the slight opening in the doorway. Rusty struggled to keep it closed as the infected struggled to push it open.

He looked back and yelled, “Get to the outskirts of Ponyville!”

Rag Tag couldn’t believe what he just said.

“What?” he asked in disbelief.

“Go-you got Blossom,” Rusty assured him. “I can out run ‘em!”

Blossom was tired of being quiet.

“Uncle Rusty!”

Rag Tag looked at his younger brother and at the door. He was obviously struggling against the strength of several ponies, be they infected or not. He had no choice. He had to keep moving. “I will meet you there,” Rag Tag shouted as if he knew it was going to happen.

“Hurry!”

With no choice but to keep moving, Rag Tag busted through the front door. In front of him lied a straight path to the outskirts of Ponyville, he could see the Everfree Forest not too far away. The only problem would have to be the oncoming crazed ponies from the right of him. Rag Tag galloped like he never did before, not even caring if the creatures saw him or not.

“Daddy,” Blossom began, shaking uncontrollably from both fear and the momentum her dad was running at, “we can’t leave him!”

Rag Tag ignored the stallion being ripped apart by an infected not two feet away from him. “He’s gonna be fine.”

“We’re almost there.”

Both father and daughter pushed on, Blossom hanging on for dear life as her dad sprinted out of Ponyville. He could hear them behind him, snarling, growling, and screaming. They had already made it out of the town and over the last remaining bridge onto the outskirts.

“They’re getting closer,” Blossom warned.

“…”

“……”

“Dad?”

He wasn’t listening. Rag Tag was too busy running for his daughter’s life…as well as his own.

A couple of hills remained on the outskirts of Ponyville. Behind those hills was the dreaded Everfree Forest and a clear escape. Rag Tag pushed up the tallest hill with two of the creatures right on his tail. When he had reached the top exhausted, the infected following him still gave on a dead sprint. They seemed to never get tired.

Right before Rag Tag thought he was gonna have to fight them off, a barrage of arrows flew right past him and impacted the heads of the creatures. They were down in less than a second.

Rag Tag let out the biggest sigh of his life.

A bright light came from his left. He looked that way and nuzzled his daughter’s chin with his snout. “It’s okay, baby. We’re safe,” he assured her. “We’re safe.”

Rag Tag faced the Royal Guard in front of him. “Hey,” he shouted. “We need help.”

“Stop,” the guard shouted, pointing his fully automatic crossbow at him. Rag Tag looked at the strange weapon. A large barrel hung underneath the crossbow, obviously where the arrows were held. He was wondering how that many arrows were shot at those creatures that fast.

“Please,” Rag Tag begged, yes, begged. “It’s my daughter,” he motioned his hoof to his back to show the guard the petrified filly. “I think her leg’s broken.”

The guard pointed his crossbow at the two, his horn bathing the area in a yellow glow. “Stop right there,” he screamed, fully on the urge to pull the trigger.

Rag Tag stopped in his tracks. His breathing became heavier. He looked away from the light the guard was producing from his horn. “Okay…” he began with his hoof held outwards. “We’re not sick,” he told the guard.

The guard looked skeptical for a brief moment. He never took the cross hairs away from the two. Right now in his mind he was debating whether or not to let them go. Should he believe them? The sick ones looked a lot worse than they did and they couldn’t talk either. Maybe they got bitten…but if they were smart they would’ve told him that.

His orders from his captain were clear: nopony gets out of the town, be them infected or not.

“Daddy, what about Uncle Rusty?” The filly had asked her father.

The guard watched as the father answered her in a soothing tone. “We’re gonna get you to safety and go back for him. Okay?” He saw as the filly slowly nodded.

His hoof slowly brushed over the trigger.

'Come on…do it!’

‘But…it’s just a filly!’

‘You were given orders from your superior! You WILL follow them!’

‘But…’

‘Okay…’

Rag Tag watched in horror as the guard’s face was set in stone, his hoof landing on the trigger of the crossbow.

He took a brave step forward.

“Listen, buddy,” Rag Tag told him, “we’ve just been through hell. Okay, we just need-“

The guard pointed the hairs of the crossbow right on the two.

“Oh, shit.”

The guard fired three arrows from his fully automatic crossbow on the two. Rag Tag screamed in pain as he shielded his daughter with his own body. Two blinding pains ripped through his skin and muscle and stuck there to cause even more damage. One arrow stuck into his shoulder, the other hit him in the thigh, and he didn’t know where the third arrow had hit. All he heard was his daughter screaming.

Blossom had fallen off her father’s back; the two tumbled down the hill and came crashing at the very bottom. Rag Tag moaned in pain when he came to a complete stop. He looked up to see a bright light emanating from the unicorn’s horn. The crossbow was pointed at him yet again.

Rag Tag lifted up his shaking hoof. “Please, don’t.”

The guard was about to fire again.

Until another arrow zoomed past and stuck right into the side of his head.

The guard was down instantly, dead. Rag Tag stared in awe as his younger brother arrived to the scene, his own crossbow empty. Rusty was okay. He looked over to his older brother, nodding once. But when his gaze shifted left, all Rag Tag could see in his eyes was nothing but a grim expression.

“Oh, no…” Rusty stuttered, his eyes beginning to water.

Rag Tag spun around, his own eyes watering up instantly.

“Blossom,” he cried, crawling over to his injured daughter. When he was directly over her all he could see was the single arrow lodged into her abdomen.

Her whimpering and crying had reached an all new level. Sobbing was a better word for it. She constantly struggled for air through each sob, blood dripping down her stomach. Rag Tag held back at the tears and tended to her right away.

“Okay,” he began, his own voice barely over a whisper. “Move your hooves, baby.”

Blossom let loose another painful whimper, her tiny hoof reaching up and touching her dad’s cheek.

Rag Tag couldn’t hold it in anymore and began to cry himself. “I know, baby. I know…” he told her, feeling the same exact pain she was feeling in his shoulder. She cried even harder when her dad pulled the arrow out. He pressed his hooves against the wound, trying his best to keep the blood in.

He stared at her teary eyes. “Listen to me. I know this hurts, baby. You’re going to be okay, baby. Stay with me.”

All she could do was cry harder, the pain reaching to its limit.

“Alright, I’m gonna pick you up,” Rag Tag told her and reached his hoof under her back. As he tried to lift her, Blossom screamed in pain and gripped her dad’s chest harder. “I know, baby. I know it hurts,” Rag Tag cried.

“Come on, baby, please,” Rag Tag continued on. His younger brother simply stared at the scene, his heart aching with guilt. He could’ve gotten there faster and now his brother had to pay the price.

“I know, baby. I know,” he continued to cry with his daughter still in his hooves. Rag Tag looked back at his brother for a quick second…but that’s when he heard it.

The crying stopped.

Rag Tag looked down, his lower lip already quivering.

Blossom had stopped crying. She wasn’t breathing. Her eyes remained open, glossy and lifeless like she was staring up at space, nothing in particular. Her bloody hoof was still held tightly in her dad’s. She was so fragile and innocent…and she was gone.

“Blossom…” Rag Tag whimpered.

“…Baby…”

He held his head low, his hoof still clutching his lifeless daughter’s. He closed his eyes tight and muttered, “Don’t do this to me, baby. Don’t do this to me, baby girl. Come on…”

He broke down right then and there.

“No, no…” he cried, his tears landing on his daughter’s cheek and sliding down her face. He brought her limp body up close to his chest and held her there. “Oh no, no, no… Please.”

Rag Tag slowly moved his body back and forth, cradling his daughter.

“Oh, goddess,” he stuttered through tears and whimpers. “Please, please, don’t do this. Please, Celestia…”

He pressed his cheek on his daughter’s forehead, silently crying and muttering to himself. His face was streaked in tears, his body tired and beaten, his life ruined. Rag Tag had nothing now. Everything he had worked for, everything was taken from him.

So he sat there, crying, holding his only daughter in his hooves. He would’ve rather died than have her share the same fate. He couldn’t protect her. No matter how hard he tried, no matter what he did, in the end…fate was always against him.

‘We’re gonna get outta this. I promise.’

‘We’re almost there. We’re almost there, baby.’

‘We’re almost there.’

‘It’s okay, baby. We’re safe.’

‘We’re safe.’

One broken soul, devastated by the actions done that very night, would continue to fight on even without the only thing he had left living for in this ravaged world. He would not stop. He would survive. Rag Tag was going to fight on. All was taken from him. Nothing was left for him to have. Everything he had known and lived for…was gone.

The night was quiet.

All except for the sound of a crying pony.