Nothing. We've spent what feels like the entire day searching the entire P.C.H. and we don't have a single thing to show for it. Fidus mentioned that they stripped this place clean of supplies, but they were too thorough. Even the filing cabinets have been torn of metals. After clearing the hundredth floor, we decided to call it for the day and started to leave.

Twilight and I did some calculations during lunch... or dinner; it's hard to tell in the dark. Ruby Canyon in right under the Crystal Empire. About a four day trip by train. Shouldn't be too strenuous for me. I've noticed the lines on my hands slowly growing. When I first saw them, it was just the archaic circle on my palm. Now my fingers, as well as the back of my hands have the lines. I haven't notified anyone of this yet.

We leave the city after an hour break. Not much was said, though I'd like to know why the mercs are giving Twilight the cold shoulder. Must of been something she said about their fallen comrade.

We reach the surface in the middle of the night. It's pitch black out here, the only light coming from the star studded sky and the full moon. Seeing that put me at ease, which I needed. Bringing us to the surface put my lines just below the joint in my wrist. Again, I don't tell anyone.

We trudge through the muddy desert on our way to Appleloosa. After about twenty minutes of walking we all can feel it starting to weigh us down... except for those of us with wings. Cheating, I call cheating. Bastards. Well.... at least Storm is carrying Twilight. And Dash carrying Applejack. Twilight is levitating Rarity and... and... mother fuckers! I'm the only one not being carried! Assholes!

After a long, and somewhat bitter walk, we finally make it to Appleloosa as the sun begins to rise. The roads here have dried off enough fairly well here. Enough to have everyone walk alongside me.... still assholes. We stop by one of the stalls as they're still getting ready for the day to buy supplies. At the same time, a few others go to go buy our tickets at the station. Hopefully we can get–

"Well howdy there partner!" I turn around to see some guy standing beside Applejack. He's fairly tall with a light yellow coat and messy orange hair. He wears a stetson hat, similar to Applejack’s, and a vest. He seems to carry himself a upbeat demeanor, even if his faces says he's worried.. "Mah names Braeburn! I'ma cousin of Applejack’s here!"

"Oh... hi. I'm Miles Eremita. Applejack is a good friend of mine..."

"So ah heard." He cuts me off as he steps closer to me. "Ah understand that yer taking her ta some dangerous places. Ah can't stop her from following you, ya probably understand that." I nod, Applejack is Applejack, "but can ah ask ya ta keep an eye her. Like, an xtra eye. Ah'd hate ta hear anything bad happening ta mah kin."

"I understand. Don't worry, I will do everything within my power to keep her safe. You have my word." He visibly relaxes at this and steps back, glancing to Applejack as he does so.

"Ah told ya he'd say that cousin," Applejack tells him, as she nudges his shoulders.

"Ah jus wanted ta meet the fella. Nuthin wrong with that," he defends. "Ah also wanted ta thank ya fer yer service at our vendors cart. Mighty kind of ya," he says as he steps closer to me.

"Oh, no problem." I say.

"Real kind." He says as he leans up a bit.

"Uh... no..." He raises his eyebrows a couple of times, trying to give me a hint. "I have to pay, don't I." He nods with a large massive smile. "*sigh* alright..... here you go." I say as I toss him a credit.

"Much obliged." He says as he pockets the coin.

"..."

"Well... it was nice..."

"Change?" I ask, getting a surprised look from him.

"Uh..."

"That was a platinum credit. I doubt they bought that much in supplies."

"Well... ah'd need ta go ta the bank..."

"Don't worry about it. Next time the Spartans come by though, you owe us some Apples," I tell him, getting a sigh in relief.

"Ah think we can work with that. Y'all have a nice day here in Appleloosa," he says, before leaving.

"Consider yerself lucky ah convinced him not ta give ya a tour of the town." Applejack says as she follows me to the train station. "We would have been here all day."

"Yeah... what did I just pay for by the way?" I ask her, getting a chuckle as an answer. I don't like where this is going.

Cider; lots and lots and even more cider. After getting a cart to ourselves, we filled another one with cider barrels. There were some food and other things bought, but... cider. Needless to say, this put a smile on everyones face, especially Rainbow. She took an entire barrel for herself, not that it mattered. There were so many, but.... still. The drink is pleasant enough, goes down smooth and leaves an apple aftertaste that I rather enjoy. I have a feeling the trip will go by fast.

"LAST STOP, CRYSTAL EMPIRE!" The conductor yells at our cart, waking all of us. It's been a pleasant trip. Scenic views, good friends, what ended up being hard cider... yeah. I get to my feet and stumble over all of the sleeping bodies to get to the door. Sure enough, we're in the Crystal Empire.

"Guys.... GUYS!" I yell, getting everyone to start to wake. "Come on, we need to get moving."

CRASH

Twilight and Storm come crashing out of the bathroom, both out of their armor. Twilight shakily gets to her hooves and takes a look around, slowly starting to blush.

"You alright there?" I ask her.

"Uh... yeah... I think we drank a little too much," she says, as she levitates an unconscious Storm along with her.

"Yeah.... where's Dash?" As if on queue, Dash comes falling through the cart door, a couple of emptied barrels falling over her.

"He*HIC* reporting.... for.... duty.... PFFFTT, duty." She giggles as she tries to get to her hooves.

"Alright... everyone out front... I'll fix this," I say as I feel a slight throbbing begin to take place in my head. We had WAY too much cider... is there even any left. I don't really care right now. I just want this head ache to go a....

"MILES!" Shining yells, making us all wince in pain. "We're glad...."

"SHHH!" I shush him as everyone steps out of the cart and lines up. I take a deep breath before thinking back to that spell Inficiunt forced me to learn. I slap my palms to the ground and send a wave off white energy all around myself. Everyone takes a deep breath in and lets out a long sigh of relief. Cleansing. Best. Spell. Ever.... how did I forget this one? There have been several times I could have used this... fuck it.

"Uh..."

"Hello there Shining." I say as I turn to greet him. "Oh... no," I say as I see him, as well as four other guards, walk up to me. All of the guards wear bright shining armor with large metallic lances hitched to their sides. The steel has a blue hue to it and is accented with darker metals.

"But..."

"I said no."

"We can..."

"No."

"What if..."

"No."

"Miles."

"No."

"Don't let us go."

"No."

"We don't want to go."

"Too bad."

"Please don't..."

"It's too late."

"Well, if you insist." He says as he walks over to Twilight and Storm to greet them.

".... HEY!" I yell as put one and one together. I turn to go tell him he's not coming, when some guy gets in my way. He has charcoal black legs that fade into a light grey for his head. His hair, though charred at the ends, is a bright, fiery orange. His mark is a red stick that's split in half by an explosion. "... Oh sweet Barbra..."

"Who?"

"You're the new explosives expert, aren't you?" I ask him, as he sets his bag on the ground.

"YUP! Name’s Fire Burst! How'd you know I was the new explosives expert?"

".... Call it a lucky guess." I say as our bags begin to be unloaded. "So... did you hear what happened to the other guy?"

"Yeah, I read the letter. Sad really. Don't worry though, I'm pretty good on my hooves..."

"The other guy was a pegasus." I deadpan.

"Yeah... well... trust me, I'll be okay. Especially with all of these Crystal Empire guards assisting us!" he says as he motions to the guards.

"They aren't..."

"Miles! Thanks for letting my brother come along! It's really means a lot to me," Twilight says, with a big smile, as she walks up to me with Shining and Storm.

"..."

"..."

"... *sigh* yeah. No problem. The more the merrier," I say flatly as Shining gives me a smug look. "Lets just get our stuff and get moving." They chuckle to themselves as we begin to grab our gear.

Once we have all of our gear on, we leave the train station. There was exactly one barrel left.... we gave it to the conductors. I had never walked through the Crystal Empire before, my last visit was air born. Most of the homes are carved into pure, thick crystals. Something I don't truly get, but don't question. The ponies here seem to shine differently. I can't quite place my finger on it, but there's something different about them. They seem happy enough. Children run through the streets merrily as adults walk around. Smiles are everywhere. Music is playing somewhere. Happiness has taken root here.

We head away from the train station. According to Shining, Cadence waiting for us at the palace. Something has come up and she wishes to speak to us after our travels. I take another look at the map and pinpoint our destination, just below the palace... actually, directly underneath it. I don't know how it happened, but Ruby Canyon is directly underneath the Crystal Empire.

We make it about two kilometers out of the city before I start sending us through the ground. The ground here is a lot tougher than elsewhere, but moves all the same in the end. For the first time ever, I kind of hope there isn't anyone down there. Showing up with this many armed ponies.... would not end well.

After an hour of working we finally hit the dome of the city. I work a tunnel to the side and make our way along the side until we find the bulkhead. We pause at the door to read what's been written.

"What does it say?" Fluttershy asks nervously.

"Don't open, dead inside." I tell everyone.

"Well.... do we go in or do we leave?" Shining asks.

"We can't just leave, we don't know where we're going next. We're going in." Taking a deep breath, I pull out the Dominus Clavis and slam it against the gate. The energy shoots out and begins to work the gate open. Everyone pulls their weapons out, and readies themselves as the gate reaches the top.

Silence.

We share a moment of silence as we gape at the city before us. The buildings near us fit the destruction as the others. Bullet holes, blown out walls, scorch marks. But the P.C.H.... it's a solid piece of blue crystal. The crystals have grown to the top of the dome and have become one solid spire of light blue crystal. The spire shines brightly, sending a light blue hue over the entire city.

"Well.... now we know how the Crystal Empire came to be," Fayte says nonchalantly, as the mercs begin to move inside. I shake my head and follow suit, still gaping up at the colossus spire of crystal. The main bulkhead begins to shut as we all step inside, sealing us within.

"How could that have formed though? Why would the humans have made that?" Shining asks as we march down the empty street.

"I don't think it was made when the humans were here. It looks more like navitas petram," I say as I stare up at the ceiling. The crystal has grown out from the spire along the rows of lights.

"What that?" Fluttershy asks curiously.

"Well, magical energy that isn't properly spent needs to go somewhere. When enough of it is left around, it forms navitas petram. They work similar to gems and crystals, but have twice the magical output and are extremely brittle."

"It reminds me of the Crystal Heart." Shinning says absent-mindedly, keeping his eyes fixed on the buildings and alleyways. "I wonder if the two are connected somehow."

"Why does it shine like that?" Fayte asks as he trots to a nearby window to peer inside.

"Well.... if I didn't know any better, I'd say it's somehow connected to the power grid. That, along with the lighting spells, must be what's making it glow like that."

"Oh.... don't the lights turn off?" Fluttershy asks.

CRASH

We all freeze and look to the right, the sound of glass shattering catching our attention. We can hear deep heaving breaths coming from within the building, just outside of the light. We all glance to one another before I step forward, pulling my rifle out to see what's....

CLUNK

In the span of a second the lights go out. I look back to the spire to see a low glow emanate from its center.

"Whraah..." Whatever is inside the building, it's coming towards us. We all step back as we hear it stumble over the broken window and shuffle towards us. I raise my rifle and use my palm to point a light towards the figure. A little girl raises her arms to shield the light.

"*gasp* it's a foal." Fluttershy says as she runs towards her.

"Fluttershy wait..."

"Excuse me, little girl..."

"No, Shy wait...."

"It's alright Miles," She says as she steps directly in front of her, "she's...."

"RAAAAH!" The girl lunges forward and grabs Fluttershys' face. Acting completely on instinct, I take aim and send a round through her skull, spraying brain matter everywhere as the enchantment makes her head explode. Everything falls quiet as Fluttershy sits there, dazed by what happened. She looks down to her hooves and begins to frantically begins to wipe the gore from her face.

"Shy, I'm sorry..."

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT!" She yells as me. "It was a little girl! She was scared and...."

"AAAAAHH!" We spin around to find Purple Edge kick and screaming as a human male bites into his neck. As he twists and turns strips of flesh pull off as blood sprays from his jugular. I aim at the man and fire a couple rounds into his back. The explosions tear his back open and forces him off of Purple Edge.

"I've got you!" Aurane yells, as he pulls his staff out and checks on Purple Edge. I run over and try to help as well, but by the time I get my hands on him, he's gone. "MILES! COME ON MILES HEAL HIM!" Aurane yells as he shakes me. I just shake my head and stand up.

"He's gone Aurane."

"No... NO!" He yells as he shakes his body. "Edge! EDGE!"

"Whra..." we all freeze as we hear the man from before begin to heave again. I point a palm towards him and nearly fall back when the top half of the corpse begins to drag itself towards Aurane, leaving a trail of black gore. He falls back and scoots away as it crawls over Purple edge and claws its way for him, snapping its jaw a couple of times in anticipation.

PEWPEWPEW

Rarity opens up with her SMG and blows away at the man.The massive rounds blow off his arms and punch holes in his chest, but his maw keeps snapping in anticipation of his meal.

SHINK

AfterTouch runs up and stabs him right through the skull, killing the monster finally. We all look to one another for an explanation, but remain silent, unsure how to process this.

"What the fucAAAAHHH!" AfterTouch yells, as Purple Edge bites onto his neck. I reel back as the two of them wrestle with one another before AfterTouch flips Purple Edge onto his back. "THAT FUCKER BIT ME!" He yells as he holds his gushing neck. Purple Edge gets up and begins to charge at me, snapping his mouth as he tries to bite me. I step back a few times before sending an explosive round through his skull, dropping him.

Again, we all fall silent... only the city doesn't. From every building and every dark crevice thousands of people begin to emerge. All of them have dried, sullen faces with blackened eyes. Every face turns toward us and snarls in anger before shuffling in our direction.

PATPATPATPAT

I open fire in all directions in an attempt to stop them from coming closer, but they keep coming. I blow off arms, legs, blow holes in their chests but.... none of that affects them. The few head shots I get are the only ones that seem to kill them.

"AIM FOR THEIR HEADS!" I yell, as I load a new clip into my gun.

"HAHAHA BRING ME GLORY CORPSE!" Beomere yells as he pushes his way into the fray, lobbing heads off as he goes..

"STICK TOGETHER!" Fayte yells, as he uses his long sword to carve a path to Beomere. I take a quick glance around and notice that we've been split into four groups. Shining and his guards are with Twilight and Storm, trying to clear a way to the bulkhead. The mercs are trying to keep up with Beomere, who seems to be trying to head into the city. The girls have created a circle and are shooting like crazy to keep the people away from themselves. Night Fury, True Will, Dust Devil and I are in our own circle fighting together.

Before I could take in any other sights, my rifle rings out as the last round blows off another head. Three more people are approaching me, leaving me no other choice. I take my trigger hand and thrust forward, sending a solid beam of white energy at the center one. It goes right through it's chest and travel to the distant wall where it explodes. The person I shot it at only paused for a second before continuing towards me.

"FUCK!" I yell as I jab the end of my barrel into his temple, crushing through the weak bone and dropping him. I pull back and bash the left one on the head with the foregrip, getting it stuck as he falls down. I try to yank it free, but the third one grabs my arm and tries to bite me, being stopped because of my armor. I whip out my revolver and bash her skull in, getting black gunk to spill over my arm as teeth and brain matter fall around my feet.

BANG BANG BANG

I fire three round at the next three approaching.... people, making their chests and heads implode and giving me some breathing room. The one that took one in the chest makes me pause though. The head is still biting... but it's not human. It's an Unfamiliar face. I can tell due to the lack of a nose and the dagger teeth.

"MILES!" Storm yells, forcing me to break my stare with the chomping head. "What do we do!?"

"We... GET TO THE ROOFS! BREAK CONTACT AND GET TO SAFETY! MOVE!" I yell as run back to the closest building. I use my magic to lift a chunk of road up, bringing me to the second story roof. I step off but nearly fall, due to the lack of a roof here. I catch myself and use my magic to recreate the roof, giving me solid ground to stand. I turn back and watch as everyone scrambles to get to my roof, some using magic to get here, others using their wings. Two of the Crystal Guards are stuck in the middle of the fight, I think they're earth ponies. Without really thinking I jump down between the two of them and join the fight.

I switch my rifle for my sword and begin to slice away at the unrelenting numbers of human and unfamiliar.... people. We begin to move towards the building with the others, the girls shooting a path before us and Fire Burst tossing explosives behind us. The two guards work together to take down their targets; one using the lance to knock the... people, down and the other destroying the heads.

We make it to the building where I use my left hand to lift us up. Mid swing, a woman grabs my arm and bites at the elements. Instead of going up, we fall back as the ground rotates ninety degrees. As we tumble into the building, the elements fall off from my arm for some unknown reason. Lucky for me, one of them stay lodge inside the womans' mouth. I try to get up, but another pair of hands grab me. I knee the head of some person as they try to tear through my armor. A couple strikes in, she falls to the ground a bloody pulp.

"AAAAHH!" I look over in time to see five people bite and tear into one of the guards. Strips of flesh come off of his neck as teeth dig into his exposed skin. Blood pools quickly around him as his ability to fight leaves him. The other guard is backing away from the carnage as more and more people crowd on top of the corpse to devour him.

"RAH!" I snap back to the opening to see a massive crowd moving towards me. I scramble back as I pull out my revolver.

BANG

One down, sixteen to go...

BANG

Two down, twenty to go...

BANG

Three down, thirty to go...

CLICK

"FUCK!" Out, and with no time to reload. I pull out my trench knife and ready myself to fight the masses.

FWUSH

A massive gust of wind sends all of them flying past me. I look up to see Storm dropping down to assist. Fall drops on all fours... and nearly falls over when the Elements of Harmony latch onto his foreleg.

What the buck! Why are the elements on my leg! No time to question! I need to get Miles and those guards out of here. I run in and see Miles and the other guard getting up. The last guard...

"Storm! Come on! Lets go.... oh shit." Miles yells, as the two of them run to my side. I look back to see the massive crowd moving towards us. A quick glance back into the building confirms that we're being surrounded. We need to...

"Whoa," I mutter as I feel the elements begin to throb on my leg. They feel... as if... I need.... without much thought to it, I stand and throw out my leg. The elements shoot out to my hoof and morph themselves into a sword, similar in shape to my sword. I watch for a second as the colors of the elements wash around in the sword. I can feel the energy from within it coursing through my body. I feel... like I'm at two hundred percent. Like, I can fight for days. I continue to stare at the sword until the growling snaps me back into action.

"Lets get go...."

"EERRRAAAAAAH!" I let out a powerful yell, as I swing the Elements of Harmony forward. A thick slash of white energy shoots forward... and through all of the people, exploding in the background. Not letting up, I spin back and slash with my other sword. A gigantic windstorm erupts from my blade and sends the massive crowd flying back. Those who were closer were split in half as the powerful gust tore their bodies apart. I pant a few times before the I suddenly lift up into the air. I look back to see Miles using his magic to lift the slab of concrete beneath us...

"AAHH!" The guard yells as one of the people jump at the last second and pull him off the slab. I jump into the air and fly down to see a group of fifteen people ripe him to shreds. While some pull and bite on his legs, the others tear his exposed stomach apart. Blood gushes out onto the ground as they consume his internal organs. I gag and throw up a bit into my mouth from the sight, the thick smell of his blood filling my nostrils as the pull and rip his body to bloody shreds.

"STORM!" Miles yells from up top.

"Y-yeah!" I yell back before flying up to the roof. I take a few steps before running back to the edge of the roof to vomit. Something about the sight of a ponies organs in a human's mouth.... it's not right.

"Are you alright?" Twilight asks, as she comes to my side. I heave the last of my lunch, before falling to my stomach.

"That was... what was that?" I ask as I hang my head off the edge.

"ZOMBIES!" Pinkie yells from behind. "I told you they were real Twilight!"

"But that doesn't make sense! How could the dead be alive! It's impossible!" Twilight yells back as she rubs my back. Even though I have my armor on, it's still appreciated.

"What are zombies?" Miles asks, and is ignored.

"Well, then what do you want to call them?" Pinkie asks.

"They are still people Pinkie! We can't..."

"Twilight, those aren't people. No one with a conscience would eat another living being. No one alive could take hits like they did. And nothing with a soul can be unaffected by soul based attacks. Nothing. They are not alive. Not in terms of a soul at least," Miles says slow and firmly. Twilight lets out a huff of frustration as she goes back to rubbing my back. I pull myself off the edge and turn towards everypony else... and nearly fall over as the elements leave my foreleg and latch back onto Miles.

"What was..."

BANG

BANG

I pull back the receiver and load the next round in.

BANG

Another poor soul out of misery. I load the next round in and take aim, a small child taking up my vision.

BANG

I can feel tears starting to seep through my shut eye, but load the next round regardless.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing!?" Miles yells from the side. I ignore him and take aim again. I find a woman with her stomach missing. She might have been pregnant...

BANG

"Fluttershy stop! They're starting to crowd all around us..."

BANG

"These walls can't hold out...."

BANG

"ENOUGH!" My vision goes blurry as somepony grabs my rifle and pushes it aside. I open my eye and glare up at Miles.

"We have to end their misery!" I yell as I try to yank the rifle out of his grip.

"Have you lost your mind! You can't..."

"These are your people Miles! And they're suffering! They've been suffering for three thousand years. We need to end it now! We need to let them go to rest..."

"Fluttershy, enough!" Miles yells as he pulls the rifle out of my grip.

"WHAT KIND OF MONSTER LETS THEIR OWN SUFFER LIKE THIS YOU BEAST!" I yell as I try to stand up to him, the height difference being obvious. He just shakes his head and walks away from me. I fall back on all four and look around, seeing all of the shocked faces on my friends.

"Fluttershy dear, can we have a word," Rarity says, as she walks over to me. I huff in response, but turn to face her anyway. "First off, let me clean your face... you have some... well, just hold still please." She says as she pulls out a hankie and begins to forcefully wipe my face clean. I sit and try to calm down. I don't understand why everypony is shocked by this. They're suffering and we have the means to end it. Why shouldn't we help them? This is... so... beastly! Animalistic! Sick! This is... is... is...

"This is cruel," I mutter as I see the blackening cloth move about my face.

"Yes, it is. But don't worry, I'm sure it'll wash out."

"I don't mean the blood." I tell her, getting a confused and worried look from her. "Look at all those people; Miles' people Rarity. They've been like this for thousands of years, how could we not do anything to help them?" I ask her as she finishes up cleaning my face.

"Dear, it's not that I don't want to help. It's just... now isn't the time. We can't waste any longer then needed here. We need to get our message, and leave these ghastly... things behind until another..."

"People," I correct. "These are still people. They're just... being tormented. And we need to end it..."

"Fluttershy, you're scaring me." Rarity says as she backs away from me. "Did something happen? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Rarity!" I snap as I stand and get in her face. "Why do you always try to treat me like a foal! I'm a grown mare and I can take care of myself! I. Don't. Need. You." With each word I step towards her and with each step she backs away. We stare at one another before she sniffles and walks away, mumbling something I didn't care to listen to.

"SHIT! AfterTouch, what are you doing!" Fayte yells as AfterTouch lunges at him, trying to bite him. Everypony backs away from the stallion as he walks around in a circle, trying to pick which of us to attack.

"Didn't he just die!?" Aurane yells as he takes to the air.

"ZOMBIES! ZOOOOOOMBIES!" Pinkie Pie yells as she jumps away. I roll my eyes as nopony tries to kill him, so I step forward to do the deed.

"Cowards." I mutter as AfterTouch looks to me with those dead eyes and growls in hunger. He lunges straight for me, snapping his jaw a few times in anticipation. I grab the bottom of his jaw and pull him closer. He tries to wrestle his way to bite me, but it feels like just another animal fighting to not have a shot. With my hoof on his jaw, I grab his opposite ear and...

CRACK

... snap his neck. His body falls limp to the ground, though his jaw is still snapping at me. I reach into my bag until I pull out my metal canteen. I take it i both my hooves and bring it down, striking the back of his head. He's still snapping at me. I strike again. And again. And again. I keep smashing his head in, even as his skull caves in–even as blood and brain matter splash over my face. Even when I start striking the roof I keep striking at him until I'm completely winded. I drop the now destroyed canteen and step back, looking over the bloody, mangled corpse that was once AfterTouch. I look back to everypony and look from one scared face to the next.

"What?!" None of them move. "WHAT!?" I yell as I take a step towards them, splashing the pooling blood. I take a look down at my leg and find it covered in blood. I look over my body and find blood smeared over my wings, chest and neck as well.

"Fluttershy... are you feeling OK?" Dash asks as she steps towards me.

"I'M FINE!" I snap back at her, stomping my hoof down. "WHY DOES EVERYPONY THINK ME WEAK! I CAN..." I stop when the sound of crumbling stone fills the air.

"Next roof, now!" Miles yells as the ground begins to crack apart. I jump into the air and fly up to the next building, finding it missing a roof as well. Miles leaps up beside me and falls straight down into the next room. "FLUTTERSHY! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THERE WASN'T A ROOF!?" He yells up to me as everypony without wings flashes before me... then drops.

"Heh heh heh, having trouble down there?" I ask with a snicker as they climb off one another.

"Dude, Shy." Rainbow says as she flies up beside me. "Why are you acting this way?"

"There's nothing wrong with me! Mind your own business!" I snap before flying down to the others. I see my rifle laying off on its own, so I go and grab it.

"Shy." Miles says as he stands. I sling the rifle and take off. I'll show them I take care of myself. I'll make it to the center without them. They'll see.

I sigh as I watch Shy fly out of the room. I don't know what's gotten into that girl, but it's going to get her killed.

"Dash, Dust Devil, go after her. Try to talk some sense into her..."

"Bring me as well," Rarity demands. "I'm her closest friend, I'll have a better chance at getting her to talk." Dash flies down and lifts her up before taking off, Dust Devil Close behind her.

"Secure the room, I need to check something." I tell the others as I climb up a pile of rubble. I reach up to the edge of the wall and pull myself up, taking a seat on the edge.

"What are you looking for?" Aurane asks as he flies up beside me.

"A way out of here." I say as I glance around the city. Most, if not all, of the roofs have been destroyed. I can hear the masses of undead people shuffling around in the streets, groaning and hissing to one another. A few street lights are still in operation, showing the hordes moving towards the bulkhead. It seems as if they're all trying to move away from the center, something useful for us... at least for now.

"Is it just me, or are the zombies heading away from the center?" Aurane asks, confirming my suspicion.

"Yeah, it looks that way at least. Lets head out, we may not be able to take the roofs over, but there should be less people in the buildings... or so I hope." I say before dropping back down to the room. "Lets move out, can anyone open walls without making too much noise?" I ask.

"I can!" Fire Burst yells. "Oh wait.. no I can't."

"I'll do it." Shining says as he moves to the wall. He ignites his horn and forces a doorway into the wall. We all wait for anything to move inside, but after a few seconds of silence we head inside. I take a few steps in before motioning to everyone else to follow in. I kick a table and hear the lamp on it wobble a bit. Taking a venture, I reach to the switch and give it a try. It turns on.

The room were was made into some kind of mini fortress. Most of the furniture has been moved to the door, where it probably fortified it but now lays pushed away. Something pushed its way inside and drug something bloody back out the doorway. Cans and other random supplies litter the rest of the room. People must have tried to have survive in here...

'WHERE'S YOU SPARTAN PEN NOW, 53,593 53,594 53,595 KILLS BITCHES!'

Someone had written a little message on the wall in black gunk. I don't know whether to be impressed by that kill count, or to be annoyed by that reference to the Spartans.

"Ammo here!" Pinkie cheers as she runs back from the kitchen with a metal box. "It looks like your kind, I think." I take a look at it and nod to her. A couple of rounds of ammo, not much, but it all helps in the end. I take them and begin to load them into my empty clip as Fayte and Shining move into the hallway.

"We're clear here. Which way Miles?" Fayte asks.

"Inward. We need to make it to the center of the city, from there we can make a plan of attack to get out. It looks as if the... people, out there either afraid of the center crystal or it affects them somehow. Either way, it's safer there than here. Lets move out."

We get moving. From room to room we find different depictions of peoples attempts to survive. Blockades, a few traps, even and more messages fill the destroyed rooms of the apartment complex. 'SPARTANS AIN'T GOT CRAP ON THIS!' 'GO TO THE SOUTHERN SIDE, THERE'S A GROUP SURVIVING THERE!' 'THE SOUTHERN SIDE WAS A LIE! WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!' 'THEY'RE COMING TO GET YOU BAAA--' A few of my favorites.

We come to a large room where we find a single undead person. Before anyone could attack it, I step forward and motion to them to keep quiet. I want to study it a bit. He doesn't seem to notice us. He's just standing there, heaving quick and shallow breathes. His eyes have sunken in to the point of being completely useless, so no sight. I creep up behind a table, only a meter away from him, where he begins to look towards me, taking in deep sniffs. They can still smell then. I pick up the television remote on the table and toss it into the kitchen. He turns towards the noise and growls a bit as he shuffles towards the noise. They're completely dependent on sound and scent.

SHINK

"What the fuck Fayte!" I yell at him as he yanks his sword out of his skull. "I was studying him!"

"Be a nerd later. We need to keep moving or else we'll be cornered again." He says as the rest of the group walks past me.

"You're a nerd," I mutter as I follow after them. At least we have a basic knowledge of how they observe the world... "Hey Storm, am I a nerd?"

"You're a good person and that's what matters the most." He says flatly, getting a smack from Twilight.

"You told me the same thing!" Twilight chuckles. Everyone shares a small laugh as Shining breaks down the next wall.

"End of the line." Shining says as we look out the opening. The building has come to an end with a four lane road separating us from the next set of structures, each one getting taller then the next. A single street light shows a large number of people moping about, unaware of our location.

"If you have wings head over to the next building and find a cleared out room for us to go to. Keep quiet and try to avoid getting close to any of them. We'll hold this room until you return." Aurane, Beomere and Snow Bound all take off for the building across the street. Hopefully we can get through this without anymore trouble... and with Fluttershy.

I fly up to the next building and drop down to hide in the shadows. Sure enough, Miles' little lackeys go flying past me, yelling my name. I wait for their voices to become too distant to hear before continuing on. I'll show them. I can make it to the center without their help. I don't need them, I don't need anyone! I've survived on my own before, I can do it now.

I move to the door and peer outside, pulling my rifle up as I ready myself for anything. Big Mac taught me some basic handling techniques while Miles was out, now I.... Big Mac.

...

...

I don't.... no....

I love...

He... he broke...

I don't need anypony!

I love him too much though.... I can't lose him!

"BIG MAC!" I yell as I press my back against the wall and fall to the ground, crying my heart out. I can feel something within me trying to tell me to hate him, to want to hurt him. But I can't! He's too sweet, too kind! I... I still love him, but I hate him! WHY AM I SO CONFUSED ABOUT THIS ALL OF THE SUDDEN!

"Fluttershy!" I look up to see Rainbow Dash dropping Rarity before me. She runs over to me and pulls me into a tight hug, tearing up with me.

"GO AWAY!" I yell as I try to push her away, sobbing uncontrollably. She doesn't give up, holding me tighter and refusing to let go. "I.... I hate you! You have to stay away! I'll... I'll... I'll bucking kill you! Stay away! STAY AWAY! I don't want to hurt you!" I yell and scream as I try to break free of her grasp.

"I WILL NOT LET GO UNTIL I GET MY FRIEND BACK!" Rarity yells as she shakes me a bit. "We're going to find out what's wrong and we are going to fix it! This isn't you! The real Fluttershy doesn't use vulgar language. The real Fluttershy wouldn't find herself weak. The real Fluttershy couldn't harm another pony, even with words! Give her back! Give back our friend!"

THUD

I bring my knee up and slam it into her gut, getting her to release me at least. I push her off and stand over her, pulling my rifle over her head. I lay the barrel on her forehead and pull the receiver back.

"I told you I'd kill you." I say as I push the round in.

"Please... where is the Fluttershy we love?" She asks as she stares up at me, eyes flowing with tears as I press the barrel against her more.

CLICK

"Huh?" I try to pull the trigger again, but nothing happens. I look over to the side and see her aura encircling the safety...

THWAK

THUD

I re-sling my rifle and go to help Rarity up. That was too close. I don't know what's gotten into her, but we need to get her fixed asap.

"You OK?" I ask Rarity, getting a slow nod in response. "We need to get moving."

"I've got Shy." Dust Devil says as she lifts her onto her back. "Where to?"

"We're heading to the P.C.H. We'll meet up with everypony else there. Shouldn't take long to get there, let's get going." I grab Rarity around her waist and lead the way for the P.C.H., Dust Devil following close behind.

"What do you think happened to the people here?" She asks after a short silence.

"I don't know DD." I say as I focus on our task.

"I've read some comics about zombies.... you know! Out of boredom, not like I own any!" She quickly adds, blushing madly.

"Uh-huh."

"Anyway, do you think it was..."

"Look, now is not the right time. We need to focus on the task at hoof," I tell her, getting a quick nod in response.

"... So... do you read the Trotting Dead?" I groan in annoyance and pick up speed. Comics are way too nerdy for me to read.

As we near the P.C.H, I notice the lower number of zombies below us. Any of the ones we do see are hiding in shadows, trying to keep as far away from the light as possible. With less than a mile till the crystal spire, we land. There isn't a single person here. The silence of it all making things even creepier. The light from the Spire seems to be getting brighter as we walk closer to it.

"Is it me, or are things getting... more peaceful here?" Dust Devil asks.

"Yeah... I think it has to do with the crystal spire," I say as I look over all of the surrounding buildings. The closer we get, the more they become covered in the light blue crystal. By the time we reach the spire everything around us is made of the solid blue crystal. "Well... what now?"

"GET ME AWAY, I NEED TO GET AWAY!" Fluttershy starts yelling as she begins to thrash about on Dust Devils back.We all try to hold her down, but stop when the sound of cracking crystals catches our attention.

"FINALLY, A CORRUPT ONE TO CLEANSE."

"Oh that can't be good." I mutter as the three of us turn around.

We all finally make it to the next building, taking up a corner office. At this rate we won't reach the center of the city for a few days! We need a faster mode of transportation. I look out to the city and glance all along the street until I see it. It's a simple bus, but it looks operational and only has a few people around it.

"Hey, check out the bus," I say as I point it out. "If that's in working condition, we can make it to the P.C.H. in no time."

"Do you think it's wise to though? We'll be on the same level as the... zombies." Twilight says as she looks over to the bus.

"Walking through these buildings is taking too long. If that can get us to the center faster, it'll be worth it." Shining says as he peers out with Twilight.

"I'll head down with you." Storm says.

"Us to," Beomere offers with Snow Bound.

"Count us three in as well." Shinning says as he begins to charge his horn.

"Alright, but no more then that. The rest of you stay in this room and keep quiet. Storm and Beomere will go first after my distraction. Then Shining and his guards, then I try to get there discreetly. Fire Burst, you have anything extremely loud?" I ask him, getting a wicked grin in response.

"I've got just the thing." He says as he reaches into his satchel and tosses me what looks like a ball of tape. Luckily True Will catches it with his magic before I could by instinct. That could have gone bad.

"What exactly does this do?" I ask as I look it over.

"I don't know. I kind of... just found it one day." He says with a smirk. I look over to True Will before shrugging and taking it in my hand. It begins to burn bright green, filling the room with a dark smoke. I quickly toss it the opposite direction of the bus and watch the trail of smoke go down into the crowd of zombies. The only thing we can see is the colored smoke rising from the crowd as they try to walk towards it. At least it's also drawing the attention of the zombies by the bus.

"Was the an explosive or a smoke grenade?" I ask Fire Burst as the smoke suddenly stops.

"Well.... I think..."

KA-BOOM

A massive rainbow explosion goes off in the middle of the street, sending a column of colorful smoke into the air. We all stare at it before jumping into action. Storm and Beomere launch down to the bus, killing two zombies that were lingering behind. When I hear the flash behind me I launch through the broken window and drop towards the ground. I aim myself to land a bit behind the bus. There are a about three people I'll need to deal with, but the rest should ignore me.

THUD

I crash down and immediately charge at the first person, drawing my sword into a swing that lobs the top of his head off and icing the cut. I turn to the other two and stab at the ground, sending a row of earthen swords through their legs and hips. They fall to the ground, one of them impaling their head on another sword, the other one dragging herself towards me. She rips the bottom half of her leg off in her effort. I just shake my head and stab her through the skull when she nears me, a bolt of electricity going through her body as well.

"All clear, lets check this out already!" Storm yells from the side of the bus. I nod and check my surrounding for zombies. They're all checking out the explosion, so we have some time. I run over to the door and force it open, letting the others in before stepping inside myself. The door snaps shut behind me, something that worries me a little, but we'll deal with that later.

"OK, you guys clear the bus while I try to hot wire this thing," I say as I move to the drivers seat.

"You need any help?" Storm asks as I lay on the ground, placing myself underneath the dashboard.

"No I should..."

"AAAH AHH!" We both look back as a zombie bite into one of the crystal guards' hooves. The guard jumps back and smashes in its head, but remains hysterical.

"GO HEL–"

THUD

And just like that, he dies. We all stare at his body for a bit, unsure of what just happened. It was a flesh wound, there was no way that could have killed him. Snow Bound moves over to him and lay her head on his chest.

"Yeah, he's deAAAAHH SHIT!" She yells as he suddenly grabs her and bites into her neck. She flaps her wings madly in a vain attempt to get away. The guard has a solid grip on her throat and isn't letting go. Shining finally gets over to them and hacks the guards head open, getting him to stop his assault. Snow Bound falls to the ground in tears as she tries to hold her throat shut. A spray of blood has escaped through her claws, coating a few of the windows.

"Shining," I call out, "you have to..."

"I know." He says sternly as he steps over over her. She reaches out to him and tries to gurgle a plea, but Shining ignores it and plunges his sword straight into her skull, silencing her forever. The other guard falls back and scrambles away from the mess as Shining pulls his sword free. He begins to mumble to himself as climbs up to the back of the bus. "Hey, calm down. We'll get through this," Shining tells him as he goes to comfort the panicking guard.

"Well, does it work or not?" Beomere asks as he walks over to Storm and I. I shake my head and snap back to my task at hand. I pull the panel off and look for the right wires to hot wire it.... red and blue?

No.

Red and yellow...

Nope.

Green and yellow...

VR-VR-VR-VROOM

"We're in business!" I say as take the drivers seat. "Shining, go get the others, Storm and Beomere, put the bodies where they won't be in the way." Everyone gets moving as I power up the old batteries. I take a look in the rear view mirrors and notice the hoard moving towards us, the noise of the old engine drawing them closer.

FLASH

I glance back into the bus to find everyone inside. With them on board, I put it in first and begin our drive to the center. All of the tires seem to be flat, making it difficult to get started. With a loud screeching sound we slowly pick up speed. I look back in the mirror and notice them about halfway to the bus.

Second Gear; the entire vehicle is shaking, something’s rattling in the front. I have to fight to keep it going straight, but we're moving now. Just fast enough to keep the zombies away. The screeching has toned down a bit, but it's still there, irritating the fuck out of everyone.

Third gear; the shaking seems to be getting worse, but at least we're picking up speed now. A mob of zombies is taking up the street before us, marching right in our direction. I don't plan on stopping, but yell to the others to prepare for some bumpy roads. I call Twilight over and have her hold a shield in front of the bus. I don't want to chance anything hitting the engine and causing us to suddenly stop in the middle of a hoard.

Fourth gear. We hit them–hard. The first few hit went flying in bloody messes as we just plowed through them. But, after a continuous stream, we begin to slow. The sound of bare hands beating against glass fills the bus as I constantly keep having to lower my gears. When I hear several planes of glass break, I decide enough is enough, and leave the drivers seat.

"What are you doing Miles?" Twilight asks as she moves to my side, trying to move her shield over the entire bus without trapping any of the zombies inside.

"HOLD ON TIGHT!" I yell as I flare my hands and begin to envelope the bus. I give them a few seconds before thrusting both hands forward.

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH

The bus lurches forward at a great speed as I send it flying down the street. I only intended to get us out of the hoard, but ended up using more magic than I though I did. I fall straight back and slam against the bench with the corpses. Blocks fly by in a total haze as I try to keep the bus level. As the bus bounces down the street in an erratic manner, I latch on to the metal bars of the bench and hold on for dear life.

BOOSH

Something hits the bus and causes it to sudden spin sideways...

SHLUNK

KER-THUD

We stare up at the spire as massive cracks break all along it. Fluttershy falls before us as she finally breaks free of our grasp, but we keep our gaze on the spire. An arm breaks free from the column, then a second one. We all shield our eyes as a shower of crystals breaks forth from the column. Shards fall all around us as we hear giant footsteps before us...

"I TOLD YOU I'D KILL YOU!" I snap my head forward to see Fluttershy aiming her rifle straight towards me. In the blink of an eye my life passes before me. Playing as a foal with my mother, getting my Cutie Mark, going to all those fashion shows as an adolescent, the day I bought my boutique, meeting all of my friends, all of our adventures together. By the next time I blink everything seems to have slowed down. I'm slowly falling to my right as I see the smoke erupt from the end of her barrel. I slowly glance to my side to see Rainbow Dash at my side, mid tackle.

BANG

THUD

A concussive force, along with the tackle, knocks the wind out of me. After a dizzying few moments I shake my head and try to get up, only to have something hot stop me. I look up and see Fluttershy pointing her weapon point blank at me.

"If I'm going to die," I say as she loads the next round in, "let it be by my best friend." I close my eyes and hold onto Dash as I...

VVVRRRRRSHINK

Dust Devil jumps over and uses her twin daggers to cut the rifle in half. Fluttershy uses what's left of the gun to try to bash in her head, but Dust just flips her over her back and tosses her aside. Her daggers are made of turquoise and sound as if they're vibrating. She gives them a twirl before...

THUD

"FOR THE INNOCENCE, WE MUST CLEANSE YOUR SOUL."

I hit the ground and try to get up to fight when a giant blue crystal being drops over me. It's form is similar to humans, only being four stories tall and having nothing for its face other than two blue fiery eyes. Its hands seem to end in sharp claws while the back of its head is covered in spikes. Its voice resonates deeply within me bringing some new found anger from within me.

"GO BUCK YOURSELF YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" I yell as it brings its face closer to me, almost pinning me on my back as I lay on the ground. I want to fight it. I want to ripe it's bucking head off and crush every little...

"LET US BEGIN."

Blue energy seeps from its head and forces its way into me. I feel every fiber in my being start to burn as something from within me begins to build up. I arch my back as I scream out in pain as the feeling of burning needles dragging through every single one of my veins. I feel a lump form in the base of my throat as I feel the need to vomit. I twist and contort as the two feelings increase in intensity. Why is this happening!? What is happening!? I... I...

"UUHG!" I lean to the side and vomit some black sludge.

"GOOD, JUST A LITTLE MORE."

"UUUUHHG!" Nearly twice as much of the black sludge comes out this times. I spit what's left out of my mouth before collapsing on the ground. "Wh.... what happened?" My head feels fuzzy and my vision is blurry. I don't know how long I laid there, but after awhile the... "Rarity?" I look over to my side and see her laying on the ground... beside chunks of my rifle. "Rarity, what happened?"

"Fluttershy!" She yells as she gets to her hooves and runs to me, tackling me in a hug. "Oh thank goodness you're back to normal!" She yells as Rainbow Dash joins our hug. Dust Devil walks over to us, eyeing something to our side. I look over and...

"Oh... my." I mutter as I look up to the giant crystal being. "Uh... I'm.... Fluttershy."

"I AM THE CRYSTAL GUARDIAN, FLUTTERSHY. KEEPER OF INNOCENCE."

"What was that!? What did you do to her?" Rainbow Dash demands. I don't quite want to make demands to a being that can step on me, but if Dash feels it's best...

"I CLEANSED HER OF THE CURSE.SHE WILL NOT LOSE HER SOUL AND TURN INTO... ONE OF THEM."

"Them?" I mutter as I try to think of what happened. We came to the Crystal Empire, Shining tricked Miles into getting him to take his group with us.... then... then... the killing started. "Rarity... I..."

"It's alright dear." She says as she holds me tightly. "You were under the effects of... the curse. Nopony blames..."

"THERE IS A VEHICLE WITH OTHER LIVING PEOPLE BEFORE US. SOME NEED ATTENTION, I'D SUGGEST HELPING THEM!"

We all look over to see a large metal carriage laying on its side with a cluster of crystals in the center of it. We all run over to it as the side door flies off. We fly up and help everypony out, several of them having bleeding wounds. When they get out, they immediately try to take cover due to the Crystal Guardian, but we assure them everything is alright. When everypony is out, I notice how small our group is now. Most of the mercs are gone, only Fire Burst, Fayte, and Aurane are left. None of Shining’s guards are alive. Luckily all of the girls are OK, for the most part.

"Fluttershy... are you... okay?" Miles asks.

"Yes. I'm sorry about earlier. I... I wasn't myself. But I'm all better now! Thanks to the Crystal Guardian fixing me." I say as I motion to him.

"Right... the... what?" He asks as he approaches him.

"I SHALL EXPLAIN AS BEST I CAN. I FORMED ABOUT TWO MILLENNIA AGO. THE CITY WAS ON THE VERGE OF TOTAL DESTRUCTION. VERY FEW HUMANS LIVED. THOSE THAT DID HAD TO TAKE A CHANCE OUT IN THE CITY FOR SUPPLIES, AND WOULD COME BACK INFECTED WITH THE CURSE. NONE WOULD COME TO ME FOR HELP, FEARING THAT I WAS THE CAUSE OF THE DARK CURSE!"

"The people that were here, did they travel here or were they here originally?" Miles asks, getting the being to shrug.

"IT IS UNKNOWN BY ME. ANY FURTHER INFORMATION WOULD BE HELD WITH THE TOWER. EVERYTHING INSIDE HAS BEEN PRESERVED. YOU ARE FREE TO SEARCH THE BUILDING ON ONE CONDITION!"

"And that would be?"

"RETURN MY HEART, SO I MAY LEAVE THIS HORRID PLACE!"

Pallet Cleanser.