Chapter 1: Welcome to Ponyville

Endless grass and dirt stretched for miles in every direction as I found myself stumbling around in a thick haze. My wings were broken, one fractured, and one snapped in half. My hooves were torn open and bloody. I looked at my normally dark deep red skin, which was now purple from bruises. There was blood stains and scars all going across my flank and my back. I was running on sheer adrenaline. I was panting heavily wherever I was going.
I just knew I had to keep going, never look back, never turn back.
My vision started to fade ... More ... More... Then gone.

I heard unfamiliar voices from all around me. I was conscious, but barely. I couldn't open my eyes, or move anything, nor could I feel my body. I layed there unable to move.
"Ah sure hope he's fine."
"He's gonna be fine... I hope."
The voices drained out, and I fell asleep...
I awoke to the sound of their voices. I was unable to tell how much time had lapsed, so I stayed completely still some more. As I grew bored, I soon found I could move the tips of my wings and my hooves.
At that moment, I was able to comprehend the voices I've been hearing.
"What d'ya think, doc?"
"He's going to be just fine."
I continued to lie there still... My mind daydreamed a minute, then blacked out into another much needed sleep.
I soon found myself able to think again. This time I could actually move my sore body. I decided to open my eyes for the first time in who knows how long. What I saw when I opened my eyes, was a big blur of colors. I managed to sit up too, but my muscles screamed at me that I was still hopelessly sore.
"Howdy, partner." I heard a voice say.
"Um... Hi there...” a quiet familiar voice said. These voices were the ones I had heard before when I was laying down. I was encouraged to try to speak. But first I tried to say something, anything.
"Ughh...” At least I knew my voice worked. A third voice, a nurse, I'm assuming, said, "What are you doing up? You still need plenty of rest!" she said with her cheery voice. And I felt hooves gently push me back into a laying down position. I just relaxed my body wondering who these people are, where I am, and how did I end up here?
I woke up. This time I felt normal, brand new, in fact. I could see clearly and move my muscles freely. I opened my eyes to see an orange pony with a yellow mane and a hat, and a yellow pegasus, like me, but this one was yellow with a pink mane and tail. I couldn't see her face, because her hair was covering it.
"Howdy again. Ah found you sleepin' in my Sweet Apple Acres, and Ah couldn't wake ya up, so Ah got help."
"Um, hello there." the yellow pegasus said. "I'm... Fluttershy, and this is my friend Apple Jack."
"Ah'm mighty pleased to meet you, partner."
I just sat there, taking it all in trying to say something, but I didn't know what to say, so many questions. What do I say first? I started, "Hello Fluttershy. Hello Apple Jack. I'm Vivace Volante. W...-where am I?"
Fluttershy spoke. "You're in the hospital of course."
"Don't y'all know Ponyville had a hospital?"
That there answered that question. I somehow had passed out in Sweet Apple Acres, and someone found me, Apple Jack, I think it was, got help, and I ended up here.
I had another question though. How much time had gone by? A day? Two days? "Um, how long has it been since I... I um...”
"Since you came here?" Fluttershy answered, "Two weeks today."
So that was it, two whole weeks of my life gone by just like that. Whether I liked it or not, I was here in Ponyville, wherever this place is.
"Sorry y'all, but since you're all better, Ah gotta git back to my apple bucking. See y'all." She left the room, and I tried to strike up a conversation with Fluttershy.
"What's there to do in Ponyville?" I asked.
"Well... Uh, my friend, Pinkie Pie, is throwing a family party sometime soon. Bring your family and just party, as she says. Are you going to go?"
"Well I probably would, if I had a family."
"Um, what?"
"- I uh... mean here! If I had a family here!" Nice save. I tried my best to hide my emotions from showing.
"Hm... If you want to, that is... If you don't want to go, I can just tell Pinkie... But um... I think you should go when you're better ... I mean if you want."
"Flutterhshy, of course I'll go."
"Oh, you will? That's great!"
Even though she sounded excited, it still sounded almost like a whisper. I felt much better, but I felt like I still needed sleep. This time, I fell asleep with something to look forward to.

Chapter 2: Know Your Surroundings

Chapter 2

“Um... Good morning Vivace,” a gentle voice said as a gentle hoof nudged me.

I yawned and said, “Good morning Fluttershy.” I awoke inside Fluttershy’s cottage and have been helping her take care of her animals for the past week since I was in the hospital.

Fluttershy seemed less shy than she did at the hospital; I guess she’s becoming more comfortable with me around.

“Um, would you like breakfast? I could make you something if it isn’t too complicated, if you want. Oh, I almost forgot, Apple Jack just left us some apples from her orchard, if you want.”

“You don’t have to make me anything Fluttershy; I’ll just have some of the apples Apple Jack gave us.”

“Um, here you are.”

“You were going to show me around to new places today weren’t you? Like Sugar Cube Corner?”

I bit into a juicy apple, and looked up to see Fluttershy’s expression on her face.
“Oh! Eep! I forgot! I’m soo sorry Vivace, but I’m simply too busy to do anything today. Sorry.”

“No worries Fluttershy, I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

“Oh, I sure hope so, the last time”- she started to ramble on, but I walked out the door onto the dirt path leading towards the road.

I walked down the road towards the Sugar Cube Corner. There weren’t a lot of ponies out, but it was pretty early in the morning. I was just thinking about this new life I was going to have here in Ponyville, when I heard a scream! I instinctively ran towards the scream and I turn a corner, and looked up to see an orange Pegasus filly hanging off of a roof of a tall building!
Uh-oh! I could see her slipping; she couldn’t hold on much longer! I sprinted as I would’ve flown, but my wings have never worked since I was a child. It didn’t matter, I was a fast sprinter.
The filly lost her grip and started plummeting towards the ground. My hooves suffered greatly, but that didn’t stop me from saving the filly. The young orange Pegasus plunged downward into my back and my belly flew onto the ground.
… … …
After a minute of recovery and when we both got to our feet, I said, “Hello there, I’m Vivace Volante.”
“My name’s Scootaloo! The Cutie Mark Crusaders and I were trying to get our building-climbing cutie marks. And I’m kinda sorry I nearly flattened you...” I looked up to where Scootaloo had fallen from, and I saw two more heads pop up over the roof top.
“… Right… well, I’m glad to see you’re safe, Scootaloo. Next time try to be more careful.”
“We promise, Mr. Volante.”
I carried on to meet some more of Fluttershy’s and Apple Jack’s friends at Sugar Cube Corner. As I was getting nearer, I was noticing all these shops. They had a shop for everything! I stopped when I came up to the building that was made up of desserts, and entered Sugar Cube Corner.
“Hi Vivace!” came a loud high pitched voice. Since you’re new in town, I absolutely most definitely had to throw you a welcome party!
My eyes widened, as I looked to see a pink pony, a cake, and lots of balloons and confetti. “You threw this party for me??”
“Yup! And the name’s Pinkie Pie if you were wondering!” In every word she spoke, she was so cheery and sincere; there was no being down with this pony around. “Now let’s boogie Pinkie Style!” The music got turned up, and everypony started doing some crazy dance.
I walked over to the cake that looked so delicious, but I was stopped by a purple pony, who said, “Hi I’m Twilight Sparkle, and you’re Vivace Volante I take it? So… Eheheh… What brings you to Ponyville? Royal business from Canterlot?
“Actually, Twilight, I am here to start a new life.” This brought up new emotions that I had forgotten until now.
“Oh I see, well I’m glad you picked Ponyville!”
“Yeah… Me too… eheheh.”
Well that was about as much of Pinkie’s party that I could handle, so I left. Not sure of where to go next, I wandered down a trail which I thought was a shortcut to Fluttershy’s. I followed a dirt path which looked somewhat familiar, but as I looked, I realized the trees were getting thicker and thicker. I tried to turn around to back the way I came, but when I looked behind me, there wasn’t a trail!
I admitted to myself I was lost. There was nothing I could do except keep walking. The forest had to end somewhere, right? I kept reassuring myself that Fluttershy’s cottage is just on the other side of the forest.
The forest was misty and foggy, and a little gloomy. The sky above was nonexistent; there were only the tops of trees and shadows. With every growing minute, my walking pace quickened. My heart beat rose, and I was starting to panic.
By the time I was sprinting, I noticed a clearing! When I reached it, it was nothing more than a small area where trees hadn’t grown yet. I was still lost in the forest. But then I saw something that changed everything…

Chapter 3: Formal Greetings

Chapter 3

Deep in the Everfree Forest, with my heart racing, I had seen something that changed my entire adventure in the forest.

My eyes widened and I slowly crept forward to see a blue Pegasus. She was lying on the forest floor, when I looked at her to see that she was looking back at me. She got up slowly, and I walked up to her.

I continued to walk towards her, noticing her intricate rainbow tail and mane. We stared at each other a minute, and I placed a hoof up on her cheek, and she held it there.

“Who are you?” I asked her.

She stood in silence with a smile on her face. Holding this position, we just stood there staring at each other in wonder.

She then let out a shriek of pain that was unbearable, and tumbled over.
“No!” This couldn’t be happening. “No!!!”

Then her body clenched up and her eyes glowed gold. I panicked and started to shake her body violently and started shouting at her. “Wake up!”… I got no response from her body that was being consumed by something that used to haunt me long ago.
“I won’t leave you!” I started to tear up at the fact that somepony was about to die right in front of me, and I was the only one who could stop it. There was no way I was going to let somepony die on my account. A tear dripped down off my face and onto hers. All motion seemed to stop when this happened. Something must have prevented the force from taking over her body.

However, her body was completely relaxed; it looked almost like a corpse. I felt her heart and it was still beating just to be sure. She was just unconscious, and I placed a hoof over her and went to sleep as well.

I awoke to see the face I had rescued yesterday. She was watching me, waiting for me to awaken. Neither of us had moved since we got up, so my hoof was still over her body. We smiled at each other, when I looked up to see we were still in the Everfree Forest. I was starting to not mind being here. But who was this Pegasus?

I finally got to hear this pegasus’s voice. “Thanks for finding me yesterday”, she told me, “ I would have died if you hadn’t found me.” Just then, she kissed me on the lips, but pulled back almost instantaneously. “Um… I shouldn’t have...” Then she looked away.

I stared in wonder and half in amazement too. Then, my heart stopped when I looked, to see my only hope taking off and flying away infuriated me so while leaving me stranded in the Everfree Forest.

She had just ditched me here to be left on my own. I had no idea where Ponyville was, and I was apparently headed there on my own now.

“Stupid Pegasus!!!” I screamed in my rage. “I hate you!” I slammed my hooves into any nearby tree I could find. Then slowly, tears started to trickle down my face.

I said softly to myself, “Please come back…” I looked to the spot in the sky, where I had last seen her, with tears flowing still, and I saw nothing.

Nonetheless, I knew I had to carry on for my safety and survival. All this time I was walking, the only thing I could think of was the beautiful Pegasus I had met. I still didn’t even know her name.

I walked on and on, through the nightmarish forest. I wondered about all sorts of things now. Is Fluttershy worried about me? Does all of Ponyville even know I’m missing? I continued to ponder on such things, but then I remembered something that had completely slipped my mind: I still need food and water. I didn’t realize it, but I was desperate for water, and I was starving.

I stopped moving and listened closely, but didn’t hear anything that sounded like moving water. I was hoping for a stream. Hopefully there is a river or a stream, or an anything somewhere in the Everfree Forest.

Another while later, I stopped and listened and looked for water again, and found nothing again, but what I did see made me completely forget about food and water.

There was my Pegasus again, sleeping on the forest floor.

I smiled in self-accomplishment. I stood there a minute trying to decide what to do, but after arguing with myself that I should just leave her, I decided to curl up next to her and sleep as well.

Next morning, as I awoke, I looked next to me to see the still sleeping Pegasus. Something must have really exhausted her out recently.

By now, I had decided I would just walk away and try to survive on my own, but as I started off, I heard a soft voice behind me. “Don’t go…”

I stopped immediately. I turned around, and stared again in wonder. I walked up to her, and asked, “Who are you?”

“Shut up.”

“Wha-?” She then pressed her lips onto mine again, and again I got a sick feeling like she was going to fly again, and this time probably forever, but she stayed with me this time.

She gave me a wink and started walking forward. “My name’s Rainbow Dash.”

Chapter 4: The New Family

Chapter 4

Deep in the heart of the Everfree Forest, with Rainbow Dash leading the way, we found our way back to Ponyville. Thankfully, she had wings that worked.

“Hey, look at that!” Rainbow Dash announced. When we got back, everypony was headed for Sugarcube Corner. Today must be the day that Pinkie Pie was throwing her family party that I was informed about when I was in Ponyville’s hospital.

“Are you going to Pinkie’s family party, Vivace?” Rainbow Dash questioned.

“I’ll go if you want me to go; I really don’t have any plans.”

“I know! You can come with Scootaloo and me! First I gotta find the little filly. So what do you say, wanna come with us?”

“Well, sure! Of course I do… Did you say Scootaloo?”

“Yeah, what about it?” she inquired.

“We sorta already ran into each other.”

She gave me a puzzled look, but walked on. We walked on towards the Cutiemark Crusaders’ club house.

“Hey Scoots!” Rainbow called out from below the club house.

The orange filly from poked her head out of the window. “Yes, Rainbow?”

“All ready to go to the party? It’s gonna be so awesome!”

Almost instantly, Scootaloo appeared next to Rainbow Dash. “Ready to go!” She had on over-enthusiastic smile.

“… Right… well, let’s get going” said Rainbow Dash.

Once there, Scootaloo immediately left us for the other fillies, leaving me with Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie pranced this way, and since this was our first formal entrance back in Ponyville, she gasped, and her whole body exploded with excitement. “Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!” she screamed. “Vivace and Rainbow Dash are back!”

Fluttershy happened to be walking by and heard Pinkie, and she jolted at the sight of us standing before them at the party. “Oh my gosh! I thought you guys were gone for good when I heard rumors of you two in the Everfree forest.” She leaned in close, “Especially because of the missing people.”

Rainbow Dash and I were both startled when we heard this. “What missing people? And why are they missing?” We alternated bombarding Fluttershy with all our questions.

Fluttershy retreated back at our volley of demands, and told us, “All I know, is that ponies are mysteriously disappearing, and that people say that their eyes glow gold, and they appear to be controlled by something.”

With that in mind, I said “how do you know all this?”

She only pointed out the window and screamed, “They’re back! Oh no! What are we going to do?!”

Everypony started out in a panic. The open doors were being shut, and all the windows were being closed. And ponies were running around letting their fear take over them.

I looked out the window only to see a pony with the description Fluttershy gave me.

Pretty quickly, ponies around Ponyville were being taken under command of the unknown evil force. We started to barricade ourselves inside the Sugarcube corner, when a colt flashed his eyes gold.

Someone in the crowd of panicking ponies yelled “Tone-y! No!” Right after that, everyone started bailing out the building, including me! I had nowhere to go except for maybe Fluttershy’s cottage.

Just then, Fluttershy grabbed me, and pulled me to her cottage, and I was relieved to see Scootaloo was already there. “Do you know where Rainbow Dash is?” she called out to me.

I hadn’t the slightest idea. “I’m sorry, no I don’t.”

“Well we have to go looking for her!” Scootaloo desperately shouted.

I thought about it a second, then decided it was too dangerous.

“But this is Rainbow Dash!”

That changed my mind. “Come on” I told her as I pulled her into the ghost town. Fluttershy stayed back at her cottage, assuming she was safe there.

More and more ponies have become corrupted and taken over by something, but no one had a clue. In the distance, I could see Twilight having a hard time fending off her library, but then I saw something that caught my eye.

In the center of Ponyville, was none other than Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo screamed,” Dashy, wake up!” but it appeared to have no effect. It was physically impossible to reach her too, I decided it was better to retreat. “Come on Scootaloo, we’re leaving… I’m sorry.”

We turned around and ran and ran… Far, far away from Ponyville is where we’ll be safe…

Have to keep going, never look back, never turn back…

We came to a bridge going across a massive chasm that stretched for thousands of feet below. I figured, if we can knock the bridge down, we’ll be safe.

I ran across, and turned around to see that many of the bewitched ponies had followed…

Scootaloo, on the bridge paralyzed by fear, wouldn’t allow me to collapse the bridge over the gaping canyon. “Come on Scootaloo! Do it for your sister!”
The zombified ponies had already stepped foot on the bridge, and I was forced to begin to knock it down… even with Scootaloo halfway across.

She charged as fast as her legs could take her, but I was forced to collapse the bridge. “NO!” She screamed and begged for her life, but I could only watch as she tried and failed to survive…

A tear trickled down my left cheek as I forced myself away towards the fortress city of Canterlot.

I sprinted away as the tears started to flow…

But for now, I will live a discreet life in Canterlot….

TO BE CONTINUED…