Chapters Prolouge: A Dire Situation.
Pain. That's all that ran through Twilights covered head as she was dragged to Celestia knows where. She couldn't see who had her by the forelegs, but she guessed that they were earth ponies by the strength. They weren't going to let her go anytime soon, that's for sure since she was a princess. And having a princess as a prisoner would be very profitable. After a while of being dragged through what felt like, dirt, mud, and possibly some questionable at best substances, she felt herself coming to a stop. Twilight lifted her head and tried to see through the burlap covering her head, but all she got was a jumble of random shapes and splotches of color. But as luck would have it, the bag was lifted, only for Twilight to want it over her face again.
Her friends, all of them, were either a mangled mess or simply bound and gagged. Twilight looked to see what damage had been done to her friends. Rainbow Dash had both of her wings broken, blood dripping from one of them. Her muzzle was nearly soaked in her own blood coming from a cut below her left eye. Applejack was suffering from multiple gashes on her legs, the ones that had dragged her there seemed to only lightly treat her, only to make sure she was kept alive. Fluttershy and Rarity were simply bound and gagged, Fluttershys faint but muffled cries could be heard as she held one of her broken wings, the bone jutting through the skin. Pinkie Pie had a sort of choker around her neck, keeping her immobilized as she tired to stop the bleeding from her wounds. Rarity and Twilight had a similar collar on, but it was somehow keeping there magic suppressed. She could all but wonder how this all happened.
Twilight and her friends entered the Hayseed swamp, completely devoted to the task at hand.
"Remind me again why we're in this disgusting swamp Twilight?" Rarity asked as she made sure to get nothing on her pristine coat. "I mean, not to be rude or anything, but couldn't Princess Celestia send us somewhere cleaner to deal with a problem."
Twilight just shook her head at her refined to a fault from her distaste of anything considered uncouth.
"Like I said Rarity, Princess Celestia said that there was a threat to Equestria that needed to be resolved."
"But couldn't she have sent the royal guards or the wonderbolts. This threat might not be very nice." Fluttershy sadi, worry evident in her voice.
"Don't worry Flutters. As long as you got me here, we're sure to kick some flank." Rainbow Dash excitedly said as she sped around the group. "We are the elements of harmony, and we've, like, totally beat bigger and meaner things than what we're dealing with. Like those changelings, or Discord."
Fluttershy warily smiled as she trotted closer to Applejack. "Don't worry, Sugarcube. Ah bet all we have ta' do is take care of this fancy shmancy threat is really nothing." The orange mare reassured.
"And besides, after we're done with all of this, we can have a WE SAVED EQUESTRIA FROM A THREAT AGAIN PARTY!" Pinkie exclaimed as confetti sprayed out from nowhere.
Twilight was a little confused for a few moments before shrugging it off and deciding it was Pinkie Pie was just being Pinkie Pie. After a while of walking, the six mares came to what appeared to be an old dilapidated camp site.
"Alright girls, start looking around. I have a feeling that we're not alone here."
As each of the girls looked into each of the tents, Twilight couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. Even though she tried to shake off the feeling at first, it just kept persisting and nagging her to be cautious. She hadn't realized how cautious she should have been until she heard Fluttershys muffled scream through the tent she was in. Twilight ran out of the tent to help her friend, only to see that the camp had been a trap.
All around Twilight and her friends, she could see steel armored ponies brawling it out with them. Before she could react, Twilight was rushed by three of the attackers, quickly being tackled by them. She tried getting up, using her magic, or even flying. After a few minutes of struggling, she felt a sharp pain in her shoulder, and then the entire world seemed to start slipping away. The last thing Twilight could see was her friends huddling together.
And now Twilight and her friends were here. She tried lifting her wings, only to feel pain shoot up from her back. She looked over to who she thought was her captor. She couldn't see what the stallion looked like, but she recognized what kind of armor he was wearing.
"I see your a follower of Sombra, aren't you." Twilight spat at her captor.
The aforementioned stallion was wearing an obsidian black version of Sombras armor, complete with a silver face mask in the shape of a Wendigos head. He turned to face twilight with a malevolent smugness in his red eyes.
"I see you know of us, miss Sparkle. Unfortunately you won't get to divulge any of this anytime soon." The stallion said as he got to eye level with Twilight.
"What do you plan to do? Ransom us? Sell us? or are you going to turn us against each other." Twilight stared daggers at her captor, making sure he didn't leave her sight.
"You think at such a small scale, Miss Sparkle." He chuckled. "All I need to do is a simple. Little. Thing." He nodded to the guards, causing all of them to bring up the six mares and put swords at their throats. "In order to cripple a nation, you must take away their hope and faith in their leaders. And what better way to do that than kill not just it's most loved heroes, but also royalty." He laughed darkly at his own proclamation. "I hope you six lovely mares enjoy the sight of the sky, for this is the last that you'll see of it."
Twilight felt utterly defeated. Tears ran down her cheeks as the thought of those she loved would react to her death. How would Spike live on? What would her parents do? How will her brother take it? Twilight could only do the one thing that she could control now. She looked up to the sky.
To her, it was the bluest, and breathtaking pastel of the day she had ever seen. I guess this is it then? she thought. She could even see a small brown dot soaring high above her, letting out the familiar screech of a falcon. At least one of us gets to see tomorrow.
As the tiny dot disappeared, a small black dot appeared high above the clouds, and it was growing. Time seemed to slow down as Twilight stared at the black dot, trying to figure out what it was. When the dot had gotten to the size of the bird, five more dots appeared. When she was able to see what the dot was, it had already impacted the ground underneath it, causing everyone to lose their balance. Unfortunately, this cause the sword underneath Twilights chin to slid across her barrel, almost instantly killing her as the fresh wound gushed blood.
All that could Twilight see was a blurry world with almost no sound. She felt her body slump to the ground as what appeared to be white shapes sprang from the trees. She could hear the ensuing battle, white figures coming in fast and quickly dispatching the guards. Some of the guards had started dueling with the white figures, timing their strikes. But in the middle of it all, Twilight could only focus on two ponies.
One was her former captor, while the other seemed to be a black coated pegasus mare wearing a cloak of the same color. Her mane and tail seemed to be a deep lavender, while her flank had a symbol unfamiliar to Twilight. The last thing Twilight could see before slipping into darkness was the hooded mare driving some sort of blade into the stallions neck.
Author's Note
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"Get me........and another pegasus. We need.............the bleeding. Untie..............they'll need...........for the wings......"
"Who in the hay are you? And.................Twilight?!"
"P-p-please help her."
"Don't worry......................okay now, on three."
"Dammit! She's going into shock. Where's................."
"One, Two, Three!"
Twilight woke with a sharp gasp of air, and then regretted it once she noticed the soreness and pain on the inside of her throat. She looked around for something, anything that would quench the burning pain in her throat. She finally found a small glass of water on a nearby nightstand and immediately used her magic to grab it, only for her to spit it back up after taking a large gulp. Deducing that she was probably dehydrated, Twilight decided to take a look at where she was as she took small, careful sips. From what Twilight could see, she was in a small, one person room complete with a nightstand, bookshelf, and bed.
Twilight continued to gradually take larger sips of her glass until she heard her door opening. Twilight tried to prepare her magic for anything that might happen, but only got a few sparks out of her horn. When the door finally revealed its opener, Twilight was both confused and curious at the same time.
The pony that had opened the door was wearing a white, hooded cloak that concealed almost everything. Covering a little bit above the ends of the ponies forelegs, to where their tail began, completely concealing their cutie mark. From what little Twilight could see from under the ponies hood, this was probably a stallion around the same age as Twilight.
"I see that you are awake. Please, follow me." The stallion gestured with his head to the nightstand. "And don't try to talk. Your neck is still healing from your wound."
When Twilight heard this. her hoof immediately started trailing down her barrel, feeling the multiple bandages wrapped around it. She then decided to open the nightstand, revealing a necklace with the same symbol that was on the pegasus mares flank from earlier. But on closer inspection, she noticed multiple scratchings and symbols in it. Realizing what the symbols meant, Twilight quickly put on the necklace to test out her assumption.
"Hello? Can you hear me?" Twilight more or less thought as the necklace voiced it.
"Ah, I see you know about speech enchantments." The stallion said, a little impressed by the lavender mare in front of him.
"A really simple enchantment,actually. It's mostly used for those with a jugular wound and mutes." Twilights ears drooped a little as she mentally sighed. "Are my friends alright? I know I have this around my neck." She pointed to her bandages. "Which means that my friends are probably even worse."
"I doubt that." The stallion said as he and Twilight walked out of the room.
"What makes you say that?" Twilight idly said as she examined the hallway they were in. It really wasn't extravagant, but had had archways every few yards that was both simple, but eloquent.
"Trust me, they're-"
"TWILIGHT!" Said lavender mare was then immediately tackled by a pink blur, causing both to fall to the floor. When Twilight was finally able to level out her vision, she was met by a slightly bandaged Pinkie Pie squeezing her like a vice."Oh Twilight! We were all so very worried when we saw you. They wouldn't tell us anything or where we were,all they said was to wait and-" A lavender hoof quickly silenced the energetic mare, albeit mostly just muffling her.
"Pinkie Pie. Slow. Down." Twilight calmly said.
Pinkie nodded her head vigorously as Twilight removed her hoof. "Sorry Twilight. It's just that a couple minutes ago I felt a new combo coming on!"
"Combo?" The stallion confusedly asked.
"Don't question it. You'll probably go insane if you try to understand it. I almost did." Twilight said to the stallion before turning her head back to Pinkie Pie. "As you were saying Pinkie?"
"Right. What happened was is that my mane stood on end, my left eye twitched, and I felt a tingly sensation in my spine. I didn't know what it meant but now I do. It means that one of my friends just got better and that means we can have a TWILIGHTS ALL BETTER AFTER BEING IN A SHOCK INDUCED COMA FOR THREE DAYS PARTY!" Pinkie exclaimed as confetti blew sprayed into the air.
"I was in a coma for three days!"
"How did you do that!" The stallion asked, a little bit on the creeped out side.
"Don't question it. Oh yeah and Pinkie." Pinkie stopped her hooping around in mid hop as she looked at Twilight slowly getting up. "Where are the others?"
"Oh that's easy! Take a right at the end of this hallway and there should be a lounge room on your left." Pinkie said as she resumed her hopping.
Twilight did what Pinkie told her as she left said mare with a very confused stallion, and eventually found herself in a medium sized lounge room. The lounge room had a couple of sofas, some bookshelves, a large coffee table, and a fireplace. What she also saw were her other four friends chatting away, completely oblivious to Twilight.
But now Twilight could see how bad they were. Both Rainbowdash and Fluttershy had their wings in cast , while Applejack had bandages wrapped around her hind legs. Only Rarity had a few bandages at best, Twilight could barely see any since they blended in with Raritys coat. After taking in her friends for a bit while rubbing the wing casts she didn't notice she had, Twilight made a polite but loud cough to get their attention.
They all simultaniously turned their head, and what followed was a couple minutes of awkward silence and then a torrent of questions. Most of them ranging from 'Are you all right' and 'thank Celestia your up' and ectcetera. Eventually after a few minutes of questions and a newly blooming headache, Twilight had had enough.
"Be QUIET!" And at that, everyone one in the room fell silent, staring at Twilight. "I'm sorry girls, but we can catch up later, right now I would like to know where we are first."
"I can probably explain that, Miss Sparkle." Twilight set her gaze on one of the couches around the coffee table. On it was the same black pegasus mare from before, although her hood was down, revealing a short cut mane that resembled a certain orange pegasus fillies. "But before we start, my name is Shade. Lunar Shade."
As she sat down across from Lunar Shade, Twilight noticed That she had her left foreleg bandaged and seemed to be lighter shade of black than from before. Lunar Shade noticed this and decided to put the Alicorn at ease.
"Don't worry," She said, idly rubbing her bandaged foreleg. "I'm fine. All I need is a few more hours of rest and I'm good."
"Not if a' have anythin' ta' say about that." Applejack said, sitting next to Twilight on the sofa. "You've already dun so much fer us. We can at least help ya recover."
"Um, excuse me, but recover from what?" Twilight asked, not wanting to be excluded from the conversation. "And I still want to know where we are."
"I'm getting to that, but to answer your first question." Lunar Shade pointed to Twilights barrel and then to Applejack. "You were both suffering from blood loss, and were going into shock while Applejack was starting to lose consciousness."
"We were all so scared that we might lose you two." Fluttershy said in her whisper like tone as she sniffled a little. "I didn't know what to do, I-I wasn't able to help."
"It's alright Fluttershy. It must've been pretty scary seeing me losing blood, but That's in the past."
"Speaking about the past." Lunar Shade said as she removed her bandages, revealing a small puncture wound. "We thought there might've been some blood loss with you and your friends, but we hadn't taken into account which blood types you were." She rubbed her wound, wincing a little as a small jolt of pain shot up her leg. "You're lucky I have universal blood ,or you and your friend might not be here. I'd say you both lost a few pints together."
"A few pints?!" Twilight shouted, causing the rooms occupants to wince a bit at the use of a toned down Canterlot voice. "You would be dead after that. Gone. Pushing up daisies. How are you still alive?"
"When it comes to death, I'm really hard to kill." Lunar Shade said as she got up and walked over to the door, swaying a little on her hooves as he did so. "And if you mares want to know about this place, follow me."
The five mares followed Night Shade out into the hall, a little curious as to where she was taking them. They passed corridor after corridor until they came upon a large pair of old, wooden doors that had the same symbol that adorned Lunar Shades flank.
"Okay, does anypony else see that symbol everywhere?" Twilight asked nopony in particular, although eliciting a few mumbled yeses from her friends and a light chuckle from Lunar Shade.
"Good then." Lunar Shade said as she pushed open the doors, light suddenly blinding them for a few seconds. "Because this represents our Order. The Order of Assassins."
The sight that met the five mares were met with was both bewildering yet somewhat calming. Dozens of white cloaked ponies were in a courtyard below them sparing with each other while a few of these figures walked up and down the two stone stairs that led from where they stood. Encircling the courtyard was a large, stone wall with a spire every couple hundred feet.
"For centuries, the Order of Assassins has trained here generation after generation, following the three tenants of our Order." Lunar Shade said as she and the five mares walked down the steps, greeting the occasional pony. "These tenants are what every assassin follows. Our first Tenant says to Stay your blade from the flesh of the innocent, for our targets are those that are corrupt and wish to inspire fear and hopelessness into the common people." She looked around the courtyard for a few moments before spotting what she was looking for. Guiding the group following her, she led them to a rather large and beautiful garden that had a wide variety of plants and fauna, making it seem like a small forest. "Our second tenant says that we must hide in plain sight, for we must appear like phantoms, materializing from nowhere and then disappearing into the crowd like we were never there."
Lunar Shade walked a little bit into the small forest, beckoning the other mares to follow her. After diverging onto a small path, the small group came upon a group of statues, each one having the same hooded cloak, but in different positions.
"Then there is our third tenant, the most sacred of them all." Lunar Shade sat in front of the closest statue depicting a pegasus stallion rearing up to take flight. "Never betray the brotherhood. for the actions of an assassin should never compromise it, whether they be captured, killed, or tortured."
Lunar Shade picked a tiny, black feather from her wings and gently placed it at the foot of the statue, muttering something under her breath before turning to face the group.
"Any more questions?" And to that, multiple hooves rose. "No, I can't tell you where you are." And then swiftly fell down, except for a lavender one. "Yes, miss Sparkle?"
"Why do you follow these tenants? Killing somepony is wrong, and why not let the justice system take care of those that are corrupt.? Wouldn't that make more sense?"
Lunar Shade snorted a little. "Your right, actually."
"I knew it! I thou-"
"Right about killing ponies, yes."
At this, Twilight deflated a little. "Huh?"
"Well, to be honest, killing anypony is wrong, but that is one of the three great ironies of the Assassin Order."
"ughhh, enough with the talking already! We've been doing nothing but talk for most of the day. Can we go do something, I don't know, cool for a change?" Rainbow Dash said, boredom having long rooted itself into her.
"Rainbow! There are too many questions still left unanswered right now, you can rest later." Twilight said before turning back to Lunar Shade. "So, you were saying about the three ironies?" Twilight had the same insatiable hunger in her eyes that she had every time she saw a new book, ready to soak up any and all information.
"I think your friend is right, it has been a bit of a walk, so I think a break is a good idea right now." Lunar Shade got up and proceeded down the small path again which led deeper into the garden and eventually into a small, resting area. "And besides, I think I've already said too much."
From where the six mares were standing, the resting area was circular, having multiple benches and a fountain in the middle. The stone under their hooves seemed to be a mosaic with the assassin symbol inside each of the phases of the moon.
"Um, excuse me, Lunar Shade. But um...." Fluttershy mumbled to said pegasus, almost not catching what Fluttershy said from how quiet she was.
"Yes, Fluttershy?"
"Well, I was wondering, if it's okay, but, are there any animals here?" Fluttershy asked, thinking she might've askd for too much.
Lunar Shade thought it was a bit adorable to see the timid mare worrying over asking for something, even though she was a welcome guest. Sighing a little as she looked up to the sky, Lunar shade pursed her lips together and made an almost ear splitting, two tone whistle for a few seconds. Almost immediately after she stopped, she was answered by a growing brown dot in the sky, followed by the familiar screech of a falcon.
Lunar shade extended a hoof out, allowing the falcon a perch as it landed. "This little guy here is Altair Fluttershy, his flock has been in the Order for as long as I can remember." She nudged Altair a little, causing the falcon to lazily glide onto Fluttershys back. "I think you'll like him."
The group more or less sat around for a few hours, taking in the different plants, idly chatting a little about random things. But after a while, Twilight got a little impatient for her answers and decided to investigate the statues.
After finally getting away from her friends without them noticing, Twilight found her way back to the statue Lunar Shade put the feather on, looking for any inscriptions that hadn't been worn down with age. When she realized that there were no inscriptions in a readable condition, she opted to do a rubbing. Tearing off a small chunk of her bandaging and enchanting it, which caused a small headache, she pressed it against the base of the statue, almost immediately being awarded by black writing appearing on the bandage.
Twilight felt utter joy at what she had just gotten, only to be brought out of it by two approaching voices. Panicking, Twilight put the bandage into her cast before turning to address the voices. Both of them sounded very familiar, but she couldn't guess from where.
"I'm telling you Tavi, Skrillex is good but is nothing compared to excision when it comes to bass drops."
"Well I'm telling you that all dubstep sounds like noise to me."
"Hey!"
"Sometimes Vinyl, only sometimes."
Finally recognizing the voices, she was met with the sight of a white unicorn mare with a blue and neon blue mane accompanied by a gray earth pony with a well taken care of mane, both wearing the white hooded cloaks, albeit the hoods were down.
When the pair noticed the bewildered Alicorn, there conversation ceased to exist for a few minutes as an awkward silence took its place. Until finally, Vinyl broke the silence.
"Well, This is unexpected."
"What are you two doing her! This doesn't make any sense! You're a cellist...." Twilight pointed to the gray mare known as Octavia. "And your a DJ!" And then pointed to Vinyl.
"Well I'm sorry for not telling you that we're assassins!" Vinyl yelled with a little more volume than she intended. "It's kinda taboo to tell outsiders that your an assassin."
"Yeah, I know. Never compromise the brotherhood, I already heard that." Twilight smirked a little. "It's just a little surprising that you two would be here."
"Yeah I know, but-" Octavia said and paused, processing what Twilight had said. "Did you just say, Never compromise the brotherhood?"
"Yeah, why?"
In the blink of an eye, Vinyl and Octavia were standing right in front of Twilight, eyes full of fear and curiosity. "Who told you?!" They asked in unison.
"Lunar Shade, why?!" Twilight asked, a bit taken aback by their reraction.
"Oh, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad........" Octavia repeatedly said, trotting in place as her mane started to become a little disheveled.
"Octavia calm down. Don't you think it makes sense that Shade would do this." Vinyl said with a hint of worry in her voice.
"Why would it make sense if she did that? Why is this bad?" Twilight said as a growing sense of worry seeped itself into her mind.
"Because, she has a grudge to-" Octavia was interrupted by a three chime bell going off, sounding a bit foreboding on the last chime. "settle."
"What was that for?" Twilight was starting to go into full panic mode from the absence of information she was being given.
"Do not ask for whom the bell tolls...." Vinyl said as she and Octavia pulled up their hoods, and as two assassins approached them. "For the bell may toll for you."
When the two assassins approached, Octavia and Vinyl quickly made their ways back towards the direction they came. "Miss Sparkle, we need you to come with us, please." The assassin, clearly a mare from her voice, said as she and the other assassin flanked her right and left.
"Why, where are you taking me." Twilight asked out of fear.
"The elders are to judge you and your friends." The assassin on her right, clearly a stallion, said as they started to walk towards a tower with a belfry.
"Judge us for what?"
"You know our secrets, and if you're let out of hear, we need to make sure you keep them. Or you die." The assassin on her left said mercilessly.
After a small walk out of the garden and up a flight of stairs, the trio had come upon a large set of white doors, with the assassin symbol in the middle. As one of the assassins opened the doors, Twilight could hear her friends arguing with someone on the other side.
"What do you mean we can't leave? Why do we even have to see these elders of yours!" the muffled voice of Rainbow Dash said at some unknown pony.
When the doors were fully open, Twilight saw that her four friends were arguing with Lunar Shade.
"Looks like you finally arrived, Miss Sparkle." Lunar Shade said, a barely suppressed giddiness in her voice. "Oooo, I can't wait till the verdict." At this, Lunar Shade squeeled like a school filly.
"Why are you so excited?" Twilight asked, confused at why she was the only assassin that wasn't showing a grim mood.
"Because I-"
Lunar Shade was interrupted by the joyous laughter of a certain pink and bubbly mare and aging stallion walking towards them from the entrance hall.
".....And then after he drank the glass and threw the chocolate milk away, it exploded!" Pinkie exclaimed, causing the stallion to burst into another roar of laughter.
When they both finally stood in front of the five mares and three assassins, Twilight was able to see that the stallion was a dark gray with a black mane and goatee which has a few white hairs in them. His cloak was the color of wine, and his cutie mark was the assassin symbol with a phoenix in the middle of it.
"F-Freedom Seeker!" Lunar Shade stuttered as she and the other two assassins bowed out of respect.
"No need to bow to this tired old man, Shade." Freedom Seeker said with his Roaman accented voice.
"Not to be rude, but, are you from Roam Mr. Seeker?" Rarity asked.
"Ci. I'm just here to help keep the order together." freedom Seeker said with a smug grin.
Rarity gasped with an excited grin. "Pinkie, how did you meet this handsome stallion!"
Pinkie Pie just giggled at her friends question, knowing all too well that Rarity would probably ask about the fashion trends in Milan. "Oh, it's kinda funny how Freedom and I met......"
As Pinkie Pie hopped down the halls of the assassins home, she eventually found a slightly opened door that led into a large room filled with a wide assortment of cloth, supplies, books, and a king sized bed.
"Can I help you?" asked a light gray stallion from behind a desk.
"Nope! I was just admiring your room Mister!" Pinkie Pie said as she hopped around a bit more before coming to a halt in front of the stallions desk. "Hey do you like funny stories?"
"I could go for one."
"Well, this one time when my friend Twilight met our friend Zecora....."
"Ever since then, we've been roaming the halls and just laughing at each others stories." Freedom said, smiling at his new friend. He then turned to the four mares and three assassins. "Now, why are you hear, my children."
"These six have become a potential threat to the Order. They need to be dealt with properly." Lunar Shade said with a smug grin. "I think they should all be executed."
"What!?" The six mare exclaimed in unison.
"W-Why would you want us executed?" Fluttershy fearfully said as she hid behind Rainbow Dash.
"Tch, because of what you six have done." Lunar Shade spat with venom. "You took something from me, and I want what's coming to you."
"We barely even know you! You have no reason to hate us!" Rainbow Dash said as she got into Lunar Shades face. "And if you even lay a hoof on one of my friends, I'll kick your sorry flank!"
"I'd like to see you try, hot head!"
By now, Twilight and her friends were starting to argue with Lunar Shade. The only ponies that weren't arguing were the two assassins, Freedom Seekers, and Pinkie Pie.
After a couple of minutes, Freedom Seeker decided that he had waited long enough for the furious mares to calm down, he pulled out a small, wooden ball with a wick in one end. He then pulled out a small match and lit and threw the ball towards the mares, causing the mares to be shrouded in a light grey cloud of smoke.
Once the smoke had cleared and the coughing from the mares had stopped, the six mares stared at Freedom Seeker.
"You six can settle this when we get to the meeting hall, but for now, try not to kill each other on the way there." At that, Freedom turned around and beckoned the small group to follow him.
Twilight and her friends stood in between two large crowds of assassins, while in front of them on a raised pedestal sat Freedom Seeker and two mares and a stallion.
"Before we begin, let me introduce you six mares to my colleagues and close friends." Freedom said. "These two are Cherry and Apple Blossom." He pointed to the twin pegasi mares.
Cherry Blossom had a light green coat with a pink mane accented with dark red streaks that complimented her deep brown cloak. While Apple blossom had the same green coat and brown cloak, her mane was a stark white with light pink highlights. Even though they looked fairly young, there amber eyes spokes volumes of knowledge that spoke beyond their years.
"And the stallion over here is Quick Draw." Freedom Seeker said as he pointed to the unicorn
Said unicorn had a burgundy coat and black mane that went well with his pale green cloak. He looked around the same age as Freedom seeker, but his deep blue eyes made him seem like a young colt.
"Now, before we begin, I would like to know the charges be known to the accused and attending assassins." He looked towards the six mares and started reciting the one, but gravest of accusations that they had committed. "You six have been charged with compromising the brotherhood by learning the history and possible location of our home. The penalty for this is death. What do you say in your defense?"
"I would like to say that my friends and I had no intention to do any harm to any of you. We had no idea us being here could cause such danger." Twilight said apoligetically.
"I say we eliminate them from the equation." Lunar Shade said as she looked at the six mares mercilessly. "Permanently."
Multiple gasps were heard from both the crowd, the elders, and the six mares.
"Lunar Shade!....." Cherry Blossom Began as Apple Blossom finished.
"What has gotten into you?"
"They deserve it for what they did!" Lunar Shade said, flaring her wings out as she did so.
"And you had no hoof in their accusations?" Quick Draw asked, his tone making it obvious that the six mares weren't even a real concern.
"Does it even matter?!"
Freedom Seeker just shook his head at what Lunar Shade said. "Lunar Shade, I know you've been hurt, but that doesn't mean you can take vengeance. If you keep on this path, you might become corrupt like-"
"I will never become like them!" Lunar Shades wings were now in a more threatning stance as a few stray tears started to form in her eyes."They have taken too much from me, and I will make them pay!"
After hearing this, the four elders huddled together and started talking with each other. And after a few minutes of consulting, the four elders had finally come to an agreed decision.
"We have found the charges against you, as I have just been informed, the elements of harmony, to be false and void." Freedom Seeker said, which caused the six mares to cheer. "However." But those cheers quickly died down. "Lunar Shad must instead face the same penalty."
"Wait!" The four elders turned their heads to see where the sudden interruption had come from. What they were met with was both Vinyl Scratch an Octavia rushing over to Lunar Shade. "You can't do that! Shade was blinded but can repent. Isn't there another way?" Vinyl asked as Octavia tried to calm down Shade.
"She made her bed, now she has to lay in it." Quick Draw spat.
As Octavia continued to calm down Lunar Shade, she had gotten an idea she was sure would work.
"Excuse me my elders, but I have a suggestion that may work for all of us."
"And what would that be..."
"Our child?"
Octavia couldn't keep the satisfied grin from her face as she told them, which shocked both Twilight, her friends, and Lunar Shade.
Author's Note
Hope you guys like this! took me a while to do this.Just remember to like, comment, and fave!
As Twilight stared blankly at the passing countryside, she couldn't help but notice the constant tension in the train car between the assassins and her friends.
While Rarity and Octavia tried to defuse the tension by talking about music and other shared hobbies, Vinyl Scratch was loudly snoring as Rainbow Dash and Applejack glared daggers at Lunar Shade. But Vinyls snoring was interrupted by the slight but forceful nudge Lunar Shade.
"Whazza wha?" Vinyl blearily said.
"I've been meaning to ask, why did you two stand up for me?" Shade asked, a little irritated from the help from her two friends. "I would've been able to handle it."
"Why don't you make her train some new assassins?" Octavia asked the four elders.
"And how would that....."
"Pay for her crime?"
"You mean training these six new recruits wouldn't be a fitting punishment?" Octavia said with a smirk as she pointed to Twilight and her friends.
At that, Quick Draw was about to protest that that wasn't enough, but before he could Freedom Seeker interrupted him.
"Only on the condition that she be demoted to a disciple."
"That seems fair."
"Good."
"And where will she train this six...."
"If we may ask."
"Oh there's this quaint little town I know of."
"I barely know this town. And to top that, I would've taken death over training these six." Shade said as she glared black at the cyan and orange mare scowling at her.
"Don't worry about it, Shade. You'll love Ponyville once we get there." Vinyl said before the train came to a steady halt. "Which is about now."
As the nine mares got out of the train car, Vinyl and Octavia kept Shade back in order to give her a few pointers while they took off their cloaks.
"First off Shade, Ponyville can be a sweet and wonderful town, but can be a little xenophobic from time to time." Octavia said as she removed her various weapons and layers. "So until you get to know them, that means no hood."
Lunar Shade stopped for a moment from removing her gear, only to continue at a slower pace. "But I like my hood. I feel.......safer with it."
"I know you do, Shade." Vinyl cooed as she put a hoof on Lunar Shades shoulder. "But we gotta make sacrifices."
"Can I at least keep my cloak on?"
"Of course you can." Octavia said reassuringly as the three mares exited the train. "Now, I guess it's time to meet our new guild leader."
Octavia, Vinyl, and Lunar Shade saw a yellow muzzled, sky blue coated and black mane stallion talking to Twilight and her friends. When they got a better look, they saw that he had what looked like a yellow outlined phoenix on his flank.
"Oh, hello there. You must be Lunar Shade." The stallion said as he addresses the other two assassins. "My name is Keen Sense. An I guess I'll be your guild leader."
"Nice to meet you." Shade said as she hook hooves with Keen Sense. "I hope we'll be able to get along just fine."
As Lunar Shade and Keen Sense continued to talk, Octavia and Vinyl made their way over to Twilight and her friends to try to settle some issues.
"And what do you two want?" Rainbow Dash said with an accusing tone.
"Look, I know you're cross with Shade for trying to accuse you of disobeying one of our tenants."
"She coulda killed us!" Applejack shouted. "And we haven't don anythin to her."
"She just has a lot to deal with. But once you get to know her, she's pretty awesome." Vinyl said, looking over her shoulder to take a glance at Lunar Shade. "She just needs some time to simmer down."
"But if she has a problem with us, then why doesn't she just tell us what it is?" Twilight asked with a hint of confusion in his voice.
"It's up to her to tell you." Octavia said, a slight hint of concern mixed with sympathy in her voice. "She's lost some things that can't be replaced."
Even though most of Twilights friends didn't hear the concern and sympathy in Octavias voice, Pinkie Pie picked up on it. Before anyone could utter another word, Pinkie had a notepad and took Vinyls hoof before dashing off with her. And for a few silent but awkward filled moments, everyone tried to piece the past couple of seconds together.
"Um, where did she go with Vinyl." Octavia asked, a bit dumbfounded.
"It's Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie." Twilight sighed.
The rest of the day went as well as you would expect with the current tension as the elements of harmony showed Lunar Shade and Keen Sense around town. Surprisingly, they learned that Keen Sense had come from Cloudsdale initially, actually transferring into the weather team since he'd be staying there now. But Lunar Shade still seemed a bit nervous as they walked towards Twilights house, the day already having waned into early evening.
"Well everypony, I'll see you all in the morning." Twilight said as she bid farewell to her friends and guild members. But once everyone had left, the only one that remained was Lunar Shade, staring into the dimming sky. Twilight for a moment wondered if she should let this mare into her home after she had tried to kill her and her friends. 'She's lost some things that can't be replaced.' Octavias words rang in Twilights mind. "Hey Lunar Shade, do you have a place to sleep."
"Until the guild is fully set up, I'll have to look for a nice, concealed alley." Lunar Shade said idly, still staring into the night sky.
"If you want, you could stay here with me."
Lunar Shade hesitated at her response. A part of her wanted to take the offer, but another told her to not in case Twilight has some ulterior motive that could with her in a shallow grave. She was torn between what she should do, until something very old, but very precious to her brought itself to the front of her mind.
"But father, why do we have to share our home?" A small ebony pegasus filly asked a large pegasus stallion.
His dark red coat and deep lavender mane resembled the evening, while his flank had a five pointed star on it.
"Like I said, it's the right thing to do."
"But why? Can't they find another ponies home?"
"Sometimes Lunar Shade, there is only a few that could help, and fewer than that that choose to help. Allowing our new friends into our home doesn't just show them that we're able to help, but it also shows yourself that anypony can be a future friend. Even if they're your enemy."
Snapping out of her blank stare, Lunar Shade turned to Twilight with a hesitant smile.
"I guess I could stay with you."
Twilight smiled warmly at Lunar Shade, beckoning her to join her inside the library. Although Lunar Shade had seen her share of strange things in Equestria and other countries, she still couldn't hold back a curious smile as she gazed at the tree library Twilight called home.
"I've got some spare blankets and pillows for when somepony comes over, but not an extra bed. sorry."
"It's alright, I'm just grateful I have a roof over my head." Lunar Shade said as she settled herself on one of Twilights couches. "But I still thank you for what you are doing." She said as a few pillows and some blankets levitated towards her.
"Goodnight Lunar Shade."
"Goodnight Miss Sparkle."
Twilight moved up to her room to find a lightly snoring, and completely exhausted looking, baby dragon on Twilights bed. She smiled at the sight, gently putting him under her covers with her as she drifted off into sleep.
While downstairs, Lunar Shade shifted a little to get a bit more comfortable as she pulled out some sort of pendant. It was a small sliver of a cloudy diamond, normally not worth much, but this one had a slight greenish blue tint. The tint would remind anyone about the night sky. Lunar Shade just pressed it against her cheek as she closed her eyes.
"Goodnight Father."
As she drifted into a dreamless sleep, she felt a sense of calm overcome her, before finally descending into darkness.
In a deep forest was hidden a small, but insignificant looking, camp that was deathly quiet. Not a sound could be heard from the tents that surrounded the campfire, only the occasional chirp of a cricket or croak of a frog could be heard. Although suddenly the camps established silence was interrupted by a faint rustling from inside one of the tents. At first, it was barely a shuffle, but then turned into a loud rustling.
When the tent finally opened, it revealed a black pegasus mare wearing a hastily put on white cloak. She looked barely old enough to be considered a mare, and walked with a sort of childish pride. As silently as she could, the young mare walked away from her camp and towards the forest. After a couple minutes of walking, the mare finally stopped, and after a few minutes of searching, found a comfortable spot under a nearby tree. While the mare enjoyed the peaceful silence of the forest as she looked up into the night sky.
As her gaze finally settled onto the moon, she gave the silhouette on its surface a warm but sad smile.
"I'ts been a while hasn't it." The young mare said to the heavenly body. "I'm sorry we haven't talked for so long. It's just that my training has been taking a lot of my energy, so I haven't been able to sneak out much. But it has been fun though." Her smile faded into a neutral frown. "I saw you again tonight." Her eyes started to tear up a little as she recalled her dream. "You, me, and Dad were home. Enjoying another summer night." The mare chuckled a little. "I remember how Dad would stoke the fireplace on nights like that. You always told him that it was too warm during the Summer to light a fire, but he would just say he felt a nip in the air. I even remember how you always called me your shadow." The young pegasus yawned before slowing getting up. "Sorry, but I've got to go. Sleep's calling my name."
As she started walking back to her campsite, the mare could smell wood and canvas burning. She quickened her pace, causing her walk to turn into a trot as her worried mind turned fearful. When she started getting close to the camp, she could see orange and red illuminating the forest. But when she finally broke into the clearing, her fears were fully realized. Her entire camp had been engulfed in a hellish fire. Each tent emitting the smell of burnt flesh. She even saw a couple of her friends bodies lying still on the ground, lifeless and broken.
She heard some shuffling behind her, and before she knew it, she flicked her forelock, the blade on her foreleg sliding out of its sheathe. Before the mare knew it, she had spun around and drove her blade into the pony behind her. But her eyes had grown wide at realization, only for her to let out a deafening scream as she had added one more to the death toll.
Lunar Shade jerked forward, panting heavily from the memory. She was slightly sweating from what she had re-experienced, but was able to calm herself down. When she had finally put herself into a calm state, Lunar Shade realized that someone was whistling a catchy and lively tune from the kitchen. She slowly made her way towards the kitchen, noticing that the pony whistling the tune was about as old as a colt. But when she made her way to the kitchen, she was a bit surprised to find a baby purple dragon making breakfast. She was even more surprised to see said dragon wearing a frilly pink apron while doing so.
Her silent stare lasted a few more moments until the dragon finally noticed her curious stare. Turning his head, he expected his closest friend walking in with her nose in a book, but was shocked to find a black pegasus staring at him. But what she said next just confused and terrified him.
"mel'nakit, ghergo darastrix." Shade said with a warm smile.
To anyone that observed this, the situation would seem a little awkward for the pony and dragon. While the black mare had a soft, but waning, smile, the dragon seemed as though he would bolt for the nearest door at any moment. But the situation had immediately disappeared when a certain lavender Alicorn walked into the kitchen.
The dragons eyes grew as wide as plates when he saw the Alicorn, bolting towards her at an amazing speed. "Twilight!" The dragon shouted as he wrapped said mare in a hug, only to feel both fabric and the usual warmth of the lavender mare. "What happened to you?!"
Twilight looked down at her assistant with a caring smile. "I'll tell you later Spike, but first, I want you to meet somepony." She gestured towards Lunar Shade with a welcoming hoof. "Spike, this is Lunar Shade. She'll be staying with us until she can find her own place to live. And Lunar Shade, this is Spike. My number one assistant and closest friend." Twilight said as she ruffled the green frills on Spikes heads.
"Oh, okay. Sup then." Spike said, meeting Lunar Shades outstretched hoof with a closed fist. "As long as you don't sneak up on me like you did, we're cool."
Lunar Shade nodded in agreement with the young dragon as she took a seat at the table, but was slightly spooked by a deep growl from her stomach. This caused a light chuckle to emanate from Twilight.
"I guess I haven't eaten since we left." Shade said with a sheepish smile.
"I guess we could all get something to eat."
"But Twilight, I could just make you something." Spike suggested, more for him wanting to cook for Twilight than for anything else.
"It's alright Spike, it's my treat." Twilight said, her horn glowing a deep purple. "I'll be back in a flash" And with a literal flash, the lavender mare was gone.
Left with nothing to do, Spike decided to strike up a conversation with Lunar Shade.
"Soooo, how did you meet Twilight?" Spike asked.
"After she was done with her mission, she tripped and fell on a nearby branch, cutting herself. Luckily I was passing by and was able to give her some medical aid. I observed her for three days before deeming she was fit enough to return home But when I heard her stories of Ponyville, I thought it might be a good idea to open an apothecary shop here." Lunar Shade lied, cooly reciting the alias she had imagined.
"Cool. But I was wondering..." Spike said, his expression becoming very curious. "What did you say to me?"
"You don't know draconic?" Shade asked, a little confused why Spike didn't know his own language.
"What's that?" He asked innocently.
"It's the native language of all dragons." Shade sighed. "All dragons know it."
"All dragons?"
"All dragons. I've never met a dragon that doesn't know it."
Spike furrowed his brow as he thought about her answer. Since he was raised by ponies, he didn't know a lot about dragon culture. But after the dragon migration, he wanted to know all about it, but he didn't want Twilight to know. He knew she would start getting worried that he might repeat what happened at the migration, so he kept his studies a secret. But most bools he found about dragons said they were hostile and dangerous, but surely that wasn't the case. He wanted to know more, and the answer to his questions was sitting right across from him. All he needed to do was ask.
"Do you think, I don't know, teach me draconic?" Spike asked, hoping she would say yes.
The only answer he got was Lunar Shade knitting her brow in concentration, but eventually spoke. "I could, but I must warn you, draconic is a difficult language to learn. I've met ponies that have payed for failing to learn draconic. They are never in a 'pleasant' state." Shade said. "Are you sure you want to learn this language?"
"I want to learn not just about dragons, but myself." Spike replied honestly. "I want to learn about what kind of dragon I am, and what my culture is like. Books by ponies don't tell me that. And Twilight wouldn't even let me out of her sight if I tried to travel to where other dragons are. I've kept my curiosity a secret, but I want to learn. Will you teach me?"
Lunar Shade smiled warmly at the young dragon. "I see you're determined about this. So, I'll teach you."
"Thank you." Spike said as a large grin split across his face. "Just don't tell Twilight."
"Tell her what?" Shade said innocently.
"Exactly."
The two unofficial friends chatted for a few more minutes before the kitchen was engulfed with a purple flash of light. When their eyes readjusted, Twilight was standing before them with a welcoming smile on her face.
"Hello there. Sorry I took so long." Twilight said as she walked towards the table. "I was able to buy some food at Sugarcube Corner, but I wasn't able to get a doggy bag. Our breakfast is waiting for us over there, so all I need to do is teleport the three of us there."
Both Lunar Shade and Spike nodded as they got out of there seats and walked over to Twilight.
"Alright, here we go." Twilight said. With another flash, the trio were gone.
The inside of Sugarcube corner was pitch black, causing Lunar Shade to tense up as her assassin instincts started to kick in. Before she could do anything, the lights were turned on and a chorus of ponies uttered a single word in a joyous cacaphony.
"SURPRISE!!!!"
Author's Note
Been a while, hasen't it. I've been a bit preoccupied but I finally found out how to start this. And your probably wondering how I know draconic. I actually found a translator online that helped me, I'll put it in the next chapter. But on another note, I personally think starting the chapter with a dream was a smart move. Tell me what you guys think. And remember, like, fave, and follow!
Lunar Shade didn't know what to feel as she stared confusingly at the myriad of ponies that had just said surprise. Should she be frustrated? Confused? Happy? If she could use any emotion to describe herself right now, it would be surprised.
As the crowd of ponies started to to mingle with themselves, a certain pink pony, and musicians walked towards the trio, smiles plastered on their faces.
"Hi Luney! How do you like the party?!" Pinkie Pie asked energetically.
"L-Luney?"
"Yes, sooner or later Pinkie Pie gives everypony their own nickname." Octavia said, casually taking a sip of her glass.
"That's......good to know." Shade said, still a little surprised from earlier.
"Well I hope you love,love, love the party! It's all for you." Pinkie gave Shade one last grin before disappearing in the crowd of ponies.
Finally taking some time to observe the environment, Lunar Shade saw that the party was tailored to her. All of the decorations were a midnight black with her cutie mark scattered around randomly on them. It was the same with the serving cups, table cloths, and punch bowl.
"Is it just me, or is all of this a bit............disturbing." Shade said, feeling a slight shiver resonate through her body.
"Yeah, it can be a little creepy on how much Pinkie knows about somepony." Vinyl said as she lifted her glasses, revealing her magenta eyes.
"Yeah, but how would she know so much about me?" Shade said, staring at Vinyl with her purplish-blue eyes.
Vinyl rubbed the back of her neck as she tried to avoid her gaze. "Yeah, well....."
As Pinkie Pie dashed off towards Sugarcube corner with Vinyl, The white mare tried, but failed to make sure she wouldn't become disoriented.
"Pinkie, where are ya taking me?!" Vinyl questioned as she was taken into the town bakery.
Pinkie Pie didn't answer, all she did was sit a dazed Vinyl Scratch down at one of the tables before darting to a nearby supply closet.
"What are you doing?" Vinyl asked, trying to focus on Pinkie even though her vision was swimming.
By the time Vinyl was able to get her bearings straight, Pinkie had emerged from the closet with black and silver cloths, paints, and plastic.
"So, what does Luney like?" Pinkie said in her usual energetic tone.
"And so you told her everything." Shade just sighed as she put a hoof to her forehead, feeling a headache coming on.
"Of course I didn't tell her everything. I only told her a few things. And even then, I kept some of it vague." Vinyl put a reassuring hoof on Shades shoulder. "All I told her was what you liked."
Lunar Shades eyes widened at what Vinyl had said, and in the blink of an eye, she darted towards the concessions table. As she gazed over the assortment of foods, both Vinyl and Octavia walked over to her, bemused smiles across their muzzles.
"Like I said, I only told her what you like." Vinyl said as she grabbed the trio plates.
"Lily cake, lotus candy, Honey sickle Surprise! The only thing that's missing is-"
"Night Shade salad!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, holding a bowl with deep purple petals in it.
"But how did you get the recipe?! It took me years to find it, let alone make it." Shade said with a slight giddiness in her voice.
"Really?! It took me less than an hour to make this. And I even added your favorite add ins." Pinkie handed over the bowl before, for some reason, her ear flopped, eye fluttered, and her knee twitched. "Twilight look out!" Which after a few seconds, a startled yelp followed. "Oh, I'm so sorry to cut this short, but another one of my friends needs me. Enjoy the party!"
"Oookay then." Shade looked at her two friends for some sort of explanation, only to be answered by two frustrated groans.
"Don't try to understand it." Octavia said with a sheepish smile. "Twilight Sparkle tried and received not just a flower pot, but an anvil and piano to the head."
"Pinkie Pie threw it at her?!"
"Actually no, it by was coincidence."
Shade was a little suspicious about it being "coincidence", but just shrugged it off and attributed her suspicion to paranoia. Sure, she was usually a very calm, collected, and straight to the point when it came to being an assassin. But she could also tell when she wasn't wanted or down right hated.
More specifically, she could feel it from the element bearers, and to her discomfort, students. It seems as though most of the element bearers have either negative or mixed feelings towards me. Lunar Shade thought as she sat down at a nearby table, idly eating her salad. The apple farmer seems to show extreme anger towards me combined with distrust. The same goes for that athletic mare, although she seems more protective with her anger and suspicion. The quiet one doesn't seem to show any anger, more like fear. I would expect her to probably tense up in any serious situation. She took another bite of her salad, but also felt the table get slightly nudged. She ignored it though, and continued her internal analysis. The fashionista shows a little malice, but that is probably overshadowed by how she might view my robes and cloak. She did seem a bit distracted when she had found out Elder Freedom Seeker said he was from Roam. The table was nudged again, a bit harder this time, but was again ignored. Then there's Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie. Pinkie acts like the kind of mare that loves everypony. Hell, she's even throwing a party for the mare that had tried to get her executed. All I can get out of her emotion wise is happiness and.....sympathy? Shade thought about it for a minute, and then just shrugged, completely oblivious to three pairs of eyes looking at her. No, it can't be sympathy. It couldn't be. Now, on to the alicorn. She seems to be a little wary of me still, but seems to be warming up to me. She's even given me a place to stay until the guild hall is created. I might not like them, but overall they seem like a loving, tight knit group. All I have to worry about is how to teach them. It won't be easy, but I'll have to g-
"Hey miss. How did ya get your cutie mark?" A fillies voice, accompanied by a familiar drawl, said, snapping Lunar Shade out of her train of thought.
When she looked down, Lunar Shade saw three little fillies. The first was a yellow coated and red maned earth pony filly with a red bow, reminding her of a certain apple farmer. The second was a unicorn with a white coat with a curly purple and lavender mane, looking almost like the spitting image of Rarity. The third one.......sent a slight chill down Shades spine. She was an orange pegasus filly with the same purple mane Shade had. for a moment, Shade could only see one thing......
"No, you can't die! You just can't!"
Lunar Shade held her fellow assassin in her hooves, oblivious to the blood staining her cloak. She couldn't believe it, she had left her camp for barely five minutes, and now she was holding her best friend, the life from her body slowly draining onto the forest floor.
"Please don't die." Lunar Shade shakily said, tears dropping onto her friends cloak.
"It's..." The assassin coughs up some blood, before continuing. "Alright. You didn't see me. I doubt I would've survived anyway." The assassin said, pointing to her broken orange wings. "It's not your fault, Shade."
"No! It's not alright. I-I thought you were one of them, and I acted on instinct. I didn't mean to kill you! Your like a sister to me!" Her tears were coming on full fledged, all her sadness and despair being poured into her crying.
"It's not your fault...." The assassins purple eyes started to glaze over as they slowly closed. " It's....not....your fault....."
"C'mon, wake up." Lunar Shade didn't want to lose her greatest friend, she just couldn't. "No, don't go to sleep. Please don't." Still no response. "N-n-no........" Shade pulled the lifeless body into a tight embrace, tears creating small pools in the blood that had already formed on the forest floor. "I don't want to be your murderer." Finally unable to hold it back, lunar Shade let out a blood curdling scream full of anger, despair, and sadness.
"Helloooo? You still there?" The pegasus filly asked as she tried to wave of hoof in front of Shades face.
Snapping out of her memory quickly, she looked down at the three fillies. "I'm sorry, but what did you say?"
"We asked how you had gotten your cutie mark?" The unicorn filly asked, pointing at Lunar Shades flank.
Lunar Shade adopted a caring smile. "Well, at first I didn't even understand what it meant, but after a while, I realized it means hope, freedom, and above all else, the preservation of ones virtues." Lunar Shade said truthfully. "I got it when I was protecting a friend from a bully at school." Shade lied, although sh had actually gotten her cutie mark in a not so different situation.
"Coool." The pegasus said.
Lunar Shades smile grew a bit, but not by much. "Anyway ,I'm Lunar Shade. What are your names, little ones?"
"I'm Applebloom, Applejacks sister."
"I'm Sweetie Belle, Rarities sister."
"And I'm Scootaloo, Rainbow Dash's honorary sister."
"And together we're....." The three said in unison as they took a deep breath. "THE CUTIE MARKS CRUSADERS, YAY! "
Lunar Shade was a little taken aback by there shout, but was able to quickly get acclimated afterwords. "Well, it was nice to meet you three."
"You two Miss Shade. Bye!" They all said in unison as they trotted away.
Lunar Shade smiled caringly at the three fillies, until she saw two very angry looking mares walking towards her.
"Look, I don't know why you tried to kill us, and don't even care about you little cult, but if you even lay one hoof on Scootaloo, I will break both your wings and leave you to the Timberwolves!" Rainbow Dash said with a scowl on her face.
"The same goes fer Applebloom."
"If you weren't paying attention at Masayaf, one of the Orders tenants is to not harm the innocent." Lunar Shade said, before returning the same hate filled scowl, but it was mostly directed towards Rainbow Dash. " And I would NEVER hurt Scootaloo."
The cyan pegasus was taken a little by surprise when Shade had said that, but her scowl had never faltered. Eventually the two mares left, and the rest of the party had proceeded without incident. By the time the party ended, the sun was already setting and everypony was already going home.
Once Lunar Shade and Twilight had gotten back home and went to bed, Shade had done the same thing she had done the previous night. But instead of the gem shard, she pulled out an extremely old orange feather ,the blood stain that had once been on it adding a bit of a red tinge to the feather.
"I'm sorry, Gentle Wing." Shade said, a small tear rolling down her cheek as she drifted of into sleep. "I'm sorry."
Author's Note
Sorry this took a while, but I hope you like it.
"Ughhhh..." Lunar Shade groaned as she slowly got off of the warm, welcoming couch she had been sleeping on. Although the groaning was not out of frustration, but out of pain. More specifically, pain caused by her meal of Night Shade salad from the previous night.
"Well good morning Lunar Shade." Twilight merrily said as she walked down the stairs, but her cheerful smile quickly turned into a concerned frown when she saw Lunar Shade wince at her greeting. "What's wrong Shade, are you not feeling well?" She asked.
"Besides the after effects from my Night Shade salad, I feel just great." Shade said, wincing on the final word.
"Well I hope you feel bet-Wait WHAT?!" Twilight immediately rushed over to Shade as she used her magic to get her emergency medical kit. "Whatever you do don't panic!I'll get Doctor Stable, try not to go to sleep! Oh, why did this have to hap-" A black hoof silenced Twilight, bringing the lavender mare out of her little tangent.
"Twilight, calm down. Your giving me a bigger headache than I already have." Shade removed her hoof from Twilights mouth and brought it to her head, feeling her headache slowly turning into a migraine. "Now, before anything else happens, could I get a couple of painkillers?"
"Uh, sure. They're in the kitchen." Twilight and Shade walked into the kitchen with completely different attitudes. While Twilight was a little on edge from Shades words, said black mare was holding her head in annoyance. "H-here you go." Twilight shakily said as she levitated a bottle of aspirin and a glass of water to Shade.
Shade just lightly nodded as she took some of the aspirin, feeling the headache diminish into nothing.
"Now, you're probably wondering how I survived eating nightshade, aren't you?" Twilight just dumbly nodded at Shades question, prompting the assassin to continue. "Well for starters, I have a natural immunity to nightshade belladonna, a.k.a deadly nightshade. For most ponies, it would cause them to slip into a coma and die. But it only gives me a headache similar to a headache from a hangover." Shade said, watching as realization dawned on Twilights face, but winced from the painful squeal she let out a second later.
"I have so many questions! How did this immunity develop? Is it hereditary?! When did you first find out?! I just can't wai-" Twilight was stopped by an all too eager purple claw while the owner scrunched his brow in annoyance.
"I know you like knowledge and all Twilight, but wait until after breakfast first." Spike waerily said before turning to Lunar Shade. "Morning Shade, hope you slept well."
"I did actually, but did you?"
"Yeah." The purple dragon answered as he removed his claw from a slightly blushing lavender mares mouth. "except for when I was woken up by somepony shouting like a madmare earlier."He cast a non-chalant glance at Twilight, which she responded with a sheepish grin.
"Sorry about that. I was kinda-sorta overreacting about something"
"What was it?" Spike asked as he put on an apron and started pulling out various pots and pans for breakfast.
"She's talking about one of my more peculiar traits." Shade responded as she pulled one of the cupboards open, getting dishes and silver ware as she continued. "She had discovered not a few minutes ago an immunity I had which allows safe consumption of deadly nightshade."
"consum-what?"
"It means she can eat a very deadly plant without any or minor side effects" The lavender mare said matter-of-factly, while using her magic to arrange all of the plates,glasses, and silverware Shade was bringing out.
"Coooool." Spike cooed, absentmindingly turning on the stove as he started cooking.
Shade just smirked as she sat down, slight amusement in her eyes. "Coming from the dragon that's the little brother of a princess."
This caused a giggle to escape the cooking dragons mouth.
"Yeah, I guess so. But its still pretty cool."
The trio idly talked about all sorts of things while waiting for, and during, breakfast. Their topics ranged from the simplest of pleasures on a quiet day to the most rambunctious of things they've done. Eventually as they started eating their breakfast of toast, eggs, and hay bacon, their conversation turned to some of their most outrageous adventures, to an every day life in Ponyville.
"Wait a minute. Your telling me that you not only got chased by a hydra, but burst into flames afterwords?" Shade asked, her brow brought up in bewilderment.
"Yeah, and I still didn't discover how Pinkie sense works." Twilight said, rubbing the back of her neck as she finished her final forkful of food.
"Well, I guess I'll start dishes." A cheerful Spike declared as he got up, only to watch the dishes become surrounded by a lavender aura.
"Don't worry about it Spike, I'll do the dishes since my number one assistant made breakfast" Twilight cast a cheerful smile at her assistant, levitating and gently dropping the dishes into the nearby sink as she did so.
This small event gave Shade an idea, an idea she quickly put into motion. "Well Twilight, since you'll be busy with the dishes for a while, I guess Spike and I will go look for some books to read. Right Spike?" Shade smiled at Spike with a suggestive eyebrow.
Spike was about to protest but realized what Shade really meant. " Sure!" I know where all the best books of each section are!" He lifted himself out of his seat as Shade walked into the main part of the library with the purple dragon in tow.
"So how long will she take?" Shade asked as she cast a glance back towards the kitchen.
"We'll be fine for about twenty minutes or so. Well, If she doesn't try reading while washing." This caused both of them to giggle at the absurdity of that scenario. "So, where should we start?" Spike asked as they both sat on Shades make-shift bed.
Shade giggled at the young drakes enthusiastic expression and attitude.
"Well then, lets begin. First off there's multiple syllables you must learn, but we'll stick to the simpler ones for the most basic of replies." For about the next twenty minutes, The young dragon learned how to say a few words in his native tongue, as well as hearing the giggles from the assassin next to him. Eventually after some time, Shade began helping Spike with idle conversation, helping his pronunciation every so often.
"Coi ui vi jikael kear naeck, ui ti coi?" (It is a wonderful day today, is it not?) Spike asked, unsure if he had pronounced the sentence right.
Shades only reaction was a simple nod as she responded.
"Kii axun coi ui vi jikael kear, Spike." (Why yes it is a wonderful day, Spike.) Shade replied, a glimmer of understanding flashing in Spikes eyes. "It seems your learning faster than I did.
"Maybe in no time, I'll be even better than you!" Spike gleefully replied, both him and Shade giggling as Twilight walked in.
"What are you two giggling about?" Twilight merrily asked, wiping her hooves with a dry towel as she did so.
"We're just talking about some of our favorite books." Shade cooly replied.
Spike giggled a little. "Yeah, just some books."
Twilight just stood there, and eyebrow arched in confusion. "O kay then. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to join me in the market today Shade." The lavender mare asked as saddlebags levitated to her sides.
"I might as well get a lay of the land." Shade said as she began to get up, but stopped half way. "You go on ahead, I just need to take my cloak off."
"Alright. I'll be outside."
As Twilight walked outside, Shade hesitated on taking off her black cloak. Even though she knew it would stick out like a sore hoof in a small town, she didn't want to part with the article of clothing she's been through so much with. From her very first day of being accepted into the order all those years ago, to the spot she was standing right now. She could even still smell the pony that gave this cloak to her. Shade just closed her eyes for a few brief minutes in remembrance.
"Father..."
The smell of burnt wood and cheap wine wafted into her nose, bringing a sense of calm to her hesitant mind.
She immediately began taking all of her clothing off as Spike started reorganizing books. Starting with her hood, and ending with the light shirt touching her chest. In the end, the ebony pegasus had stripped herself of all her clothing and gear. Well, except for a piece or two.
Shade made sure to keep the tiny sliver of her emerald proudly displayed across her chest while her precious orange feather was hidden in a sea of black ones. With a final sigh of relief, she adjusted her left wing and heard metal scraping against metal, smirking as she heard her "secret weapon".
With all the preparations set, Shade gave a light huff as she stepped out into the morning sunlight.
Author's Note
Hey guys! Sorry this took so long, it's just that I had some things that needed to get done. But I hope this makes up for it!
"So Lunar Shade, what do you think of Ponyville so far?" Twilight asked the the ebony pegasus next to her.
"Hmm....." Shade pondered as they walked towards the market. "From the perspective of an assassin, the buildings don't offer any kind consistent crowding to offer get aways, the streets are too wide, and there are too many open areas."
Twilight folded her ears back at hearing this. "Why think about the environment when you can think about the ponies?" Twilight momentarily stopped talking to Shade as they approached one of the many vendors in the market.
"Miss Twilight Sparkle, it's been a while since we've seen each other." The beige earth pony said behind the counter.
"It certainly has Time Turner. I was wondering if you had that clock I asked for yet."
"Remind me again, it was the Pre-banishment clock with the Princesses, right?"
"That's the one."
"Ah yes. That'll be 150 bits."
As Twilight pulled out a rather large bit purse, Time Turner pulled a very large and ornate clock out from the back of his stall, revealing a rather elegant masterpiece of time. The sides were made out of a deep brown oak, while the glass on the front was frosted, slightly hiding the pulleys inside of the clock. Near the top of the clock, there stood two figures representing the Princesses, one looked as though she was sleeping while the other was standing proudly.
"Here you go Time Turner." Twilight said as she levitated the bag of bits towards the earth pony.
"Thank you Miss Twilight Sparkle, The clock will be delivered to your home shortly."
As the two continued onwards to the next vendor, Twilight tried to restart her conversation with Shade.
"So, Shade, why would you think about your surroundings rather than the ponies?" Twilight asked the pegasus mare, who at the moment was glancing over the various vendors and stalls.
"Hm?"
Twilight sighed as she repeated her question. "I asked why do you think about your surroundings instead of the ponies?"
After hearing Twilights question, Shade furrowed her brow as she thought of a way to phrase her answer. "It's not that I don't think about them, it's just that....:" Shade sighed before continuing. "I make sure to exclude them not on preference, but because of the life I have chosen."
"What do you even mean by that?" Twilight was puzzled by this answer, not just by how it was phrased but by what it meant.
"Say, I build a relationship with a local pony in enemy territory." Shade explained, continuing after watching Twilight nod her head as they approached a familiar apple cart. "At first, the benefits would be plentiful. A place to hide and live, a safe place to plan, and overall the happiness of having a friend. But then say our enemy found out, and the next thing you know..." She quickly extends her left wing forwards, imitating a blade slicing through something. "Only death will remain." Twilight shuddered as Shade folded her wing, the two finally reaching the apple cart.
"That sounds awful."
"What sounds awful Twi?" Twilight slightly recoiled in shock from the intrusion of her friend Applejack.
"Applejack! Don't scare me like that." Twilight told the apple farmer, which just gave her a blank expression for an answer.
"Yer standin' at ma cart, Twi." Twilight blushed slightly at the very obvious fact she had missed, causing Applejack to lightly chuckle. "Jus' like you. Focused more on a conversation than the world round' ya." Applejack then turned to the ebony mare standing right next to Twilight, her eyes narrowing as her mood turned sour while she sized up Shade. "But why with a pony like her , I don't rightly know."
Shade just put on a fake smile as she looked at the apple farmer, a trait she had learned early in her years of being an assassin. "Why Miss Applejack, I though we were friends after I saved you."
" And then ya tried to get ma friend's n' I killed!" She shouted as quietly as possible, although it still caused a few passing ponies to stare. "If we weren't supposed to be trained by you, I woulda kicked ya outa town."
" Oh, so you would expect a bunch of ponies, which have never fought before, to run out a highly agile, dangerous, and alert assassin out of town?" Shade looked at the shocked, and yet confused expression Applejack had on her face as she extend her wing, preening it. "That's what I thought." With a swift swing forward, a barely noticeable silvery shine surrounded her outermost primary, before she folded her wing back against her. "I hope you have a wonderful day, Miss Applejack."
While this was happening, Twilight just stood there with a dumbfounded expression, her competence on the situation having already faded. "W-Well I think we'll be going Applejack. Bye!" Twilight sheepishly grinned as she quickly walked away with Shade, nervously glancing at said pegasus as they walked.
"Hmph. Someponies." Applejack said as she bit into an apple, but was surprised when all she felt was air. Looking down at the fruit of her own labor, she saw that the entire top half had been severed by something very sharp, and very thin. "But.....but how?" She looked around her cart for an explanation until a scowl crossed Applejacks face, her gaze returning to the black pegasus that was walking off.
As Shade and Twilight continued on their trek through the towns market, Twilight couldn't help but feel a little bit on edge due to what had happened. She didn't even know what to say. What would I start with? Lovely weather we're having, and how's the death glares between you and two of my friends been going? Twilight thought to herself as they stopped at various vendors. But finally, Shade was the one to break the ice.
"Your friend seemed to be very aggressive towards me." The ebony assassin said as she idly gazed at the passing ponies.
" W-well what would you expect from her? Just to forgive after that little stunt at your HQ?" the lavender alicorn said, her eyes darting back and forth nervously.
"That is understandable. Hopefully the others aren't as troublesome."
"They really aren't going to be. But Fluttershy might be a bit scared of you."
Shade lightly frowned as her eyes saddened. " I am truly sorry for hurting such a gentle mare. She seems as if she couldn't even hurt a fly."
"She really couldn't. But either than her, only Pinkie Pie seems to be happy about you being here. Well, besides Rarity for obvious reasons." Twilight giggled at the thought of Rarity swooning over Shades robes.
The ebony pegasus chuckled at the mention of Rarity. "She does seem to be the type of mare that's into fashion design."
" It is her profession you know."
The two of them continued to walk and were soon heading towards Sugarcube Corner, that is until Shade heard the faintest of sounds.
"Did you hear something Twilight?"
"No, why?"
Shade swiveled her ears every way she could until her acute hearing picked up on the sound again. But the sound she heard troubled her.
"You know what? I'll explore a bit on my own Twilight. I'll see you at Sugarcube Corner later."
" Um, alright?" Twilight was a bit confused on why Shade wanted to explore the town. I could've just given her an accurate and detailed presentation of the notable places of Ponyville back at the library. She thought to herself as she entered her friends workplace. Oh well. I can just give it to her later.
Shade could now hear the sound more accurately as she neared the alley it was coming from. The very thing she wished she would never hear, but that was a foolish thought. As Shade entered the alley, she shivered as she heard the sound again.
The sound of a foal crying.
