Assassin's Creed: Harmonyby OverkillKnightChaptersSequence 1Sequence 1 pt. IISequence 2 (Revised)Sequence 1Sequence 1 My vision was blurred as sunlight had spilled into them, which yanked a groan from within my throat. I got up rubbing my hoof through my dark red and black mane as it fell over my shoulders. I seriously might need a manecut soon. I scratched my eyes, and cleared the blurriness so I could make out the time. The silver wall clock that hung above my dresser mirror read nine-fifteen. Another day, another sore body for me. I hopped out of bed and trotted over to the mirror that sat above my dresser. My hooves made a soft clip clop along the oak wood floor. I looked over my form in the cracked mirror. My dark grey fur needed some brushing, as well as my dark red mane, and the feathers on my wings. My eyes shone blood red alongside the morning sun. I looked at my flank and sighed. It was void of a cutie mark, which is rare among grown stallions my age. It was just my luck to be one of the few stallions to never earn a cutie mark. Maybe I was just a mistake. Maybe I don’t have any purpose in this world. My luck wasn’t really all that fortunate to begin with anyway. My parents were murdered during my foalhood and I was placed into custody of my kind aunt, Rain Light, who did her best to console me of my troubles. My friends abandoned me when word of my mark less flank spread throughout my school. I was labeled a freak, the only stallion in Cloudsdale High who didn’t have a cutie mark. "Ha-ha, look at Icarus Swift! That freak is still a fucking blank flank. What a fucking loser."Their stinging words rung through my head like bells during Hearths Warming Eve. Being a blank flank wasn’t the only thing that made high school like hell. Every now and then, whenever I would blink, my eyes would do this thing where some ponies would start to glow red. It scared me at first, but learned to control it, turn it on and off, as I got older. Apparently, when somepony glows red, it means they are hostile. This kept auntie and I safe. If I saw someone, or something, glow red, I would take certain precautions to avoid them. After I finished high school with top marks, thank Celestia, my aunt and I relocated to Ponyville, a small and placid place of very few problems. The only real serious problems the town ever faced were the Discord incident and the Nightmare Moon returning, but those problems were solved permanently thanks to the Elements of Harmony. The residents were kind and say that they accept anyone into their friendly town, regardless if one bore a cutie mark. There words were convincing enough, but even if said words were genuine, I still receive very awkward stares from young foals and teens. This made me feel uncomfortable. I looked over to my right, the cracked picture frame containing the picture of my parents and I during the Summer Sun Celebration. The photo was taken the day my parents were murdered. The wide smiles the three of us wore were infectious. I was but a young foal at the time, and my blank flank was often shrugged off. I looked at my mom, her beautiful blue eyes were kind, and would cause almost any stallion to swoon over her. Her fur was white, and with a sky blue mane that fell over her shoulders like a waterfall. My gaze shifted over to my father. Normally he would have an air of seriousness about him, but in this photo, he was happy as can be. The details that didn’t match his sky high demeanor were the bags under his bright red eyes. His fur was midnight blue, with a silver mane that was gelled back. He never spoke much about his occupation, but he would have quiet conversations about it with my mom. “I’m sorry I’m always home late, but the creed needs me back.” My father would say pleadingly to my mother. “I thought you left them behind,” she argued, “you have a son to take care of, and you’re out doing crazy things with those, Assassins.” “I’m doing this to protect our son. Those Templars need to be stopped if the world is ever going to be a safer place for him.” My mother just shook her head in disappointment. She pushed passed him and noticed me standing at the doorway of their bedroom. Her eyes were filled such warmth and kindness. “Come now Swift,” she said with a smile, “I’ll take you back to bed.” I frowned and placed the photo back down and picked up my old hair brush. I proceeded to brush out the uneven parts of my fur and mane. When that was settled, I put the brush down and proceeded out of my bedroom and into the hallway. The floorboards of the house creaked, threatening to give out under my frame. I really need to get this place renovated. Someday, I might just smash through the floor of my bedroom and land square into the kitchen. I treaded carefully to the stairs down the hall which led to the living room. Upon entering the living room I spot the calendar hanging on the wall, left of the sofa. It read November 22, 2013. I sighed with relief. Today is a day off for me which meant no work. Normally auntie would give me chores to do, but she’s out of town in Cloudsdale for business reasons, something about the Rainbow Factory having a few financial problems. I broke my attention from the calendar, and trotted over to the kitchen. It was in no better condition than the house all together. The wood dining table seemed to be breaking apart and decaying. The floor, just like throughout the house was on the verge of collapsing under somepony. The only things within the kitchen that were in a non-horrid state were the sink and fridge. I trotted to fridge and opened it examining its contents. Milk and eggs, which was it. I groaned. I wasn’t necessarily in the mood to be going outside, then again I never really am. I picked up the sack of bits that sat on the coffee table in front of the sofa, retrieved my black, hooded jacket that sat on the coat rack, and trotted out the door and locked it behind me. As usual, the market place of Ponyville was teeming with activity and movement. The bright smiling faces of families and couples littered the environment. It made me grimace as memories of my foalhood invaded my mind. I shook the thoughts out, pulled the hood of my jacket over my head, and proceeded into the market square. I needed to get apples. A nearby stand had just what I need. The label over top of the stand itself read Sweet Apple Acres. I moved towards it and hoped I can get the apples without the stand running out of stock like the time with the cider. As I treaded closer, the pony at the stand came into view. She was a pretty cute mare, orange coat with a blonde mane tied in a ponytail accompanied with a cowboy hat. Freckles dotted her cheeks and her gorgeous emerald green eyes shone brightly as she waved at passers. Those eyes soon turned to me the closer I got. I pulled the hood tighter over my head, making sure it shadowed my face. I approached the counter and placed the sack of bits down onto it. “Ten red delicious apples please,” I said to her, avoiding eye contact. “You got it partner.” She said her southern, country accent cutting through the bustling crowed of ponies within the square. She proceeded to fill a bag with the red fruit, but stopped in the middle to look at me quizzically. “Haven’t seen anypony like ya’ll around the parts. Are ya new to Ponyville?” “No,” I said. “How long have ya been a resident in Ponyville?” she continued. “A while, actually. I moved here just after high school.” “Well, it’s a shame we haven’t met before. My names Applejack.” she finished filling the bag, plopped it onto the counter, and extended a hoof for a hoofshake. “It’s a pleasure,” I said, giving her hoof a friendly brohoof instead of a hoof shake like expected. I was just about to pick up the sack of fruit, but was stopped by Applejack. “I never really caught your name.” she said, curiosity filling her eyes. “Icarus Swift,” I said. With that, I spread my wings and flew over to the Everfree Forest. Might as well relax a little. The Everfree Forest, to others, was a scary, desolate forest crawling with unspeakably horrid creatures. To me, the forest was somewhat of a sanctuary, a place where I go when I’m not at home reading or doing chores for Auntie Rain. I flew around a bit looking for my secret spot I found when I got lost once. It’s a place no one else knows about. I bet even Celestia doesn’t know about this place and once word of my sanctuary got out, they would level the entire forest just to find it. I chuckled at the idea. Even if they did level the forest and found it, the sanctuary wouldn’t be as enjoyable without the dark and gloomy forestry to accompany it. Finally, something caught my eye, a clearing within the forest that sat near a large waterfall. I flew down and into the clearing. This was it, my sanctuary. A small clear river ran through it, shimmering in the sunlight, the source of water being, of course the waterfall itself. As the massive amounts of water fell into the waiting river, water splashed into air causing a slight mist. Sunlight passed through the mist creating a magnificent rainbow. I trotted over to a large rock nearby and set down the sack of apples. I then sat down and leaned against the rock. The sound of the waterfall and nearby birds filled the air. It was bliss, peaceful; something my life hasn’t been in a while. I shut my eyes. The smell of the misty air only added onto the extreme bliss. Slumber was just about overtaking my body when a loud sound assaulted my ears. A scream not too far from my position rang and echoed throughout the forest followed by an earth shattering roar. I quickly got up to my hooves and flew up into the sky to get a better vantage point and, to my horror, saw the cause of the massive roar. A red dragon was towering over the massive trees. It was at least as tall as a three story building, not as big, but pretty big. I jetted as fast as I could toward the dragon. I perched myself onto a nearby cloud and examined the situation. A mare seemed to have been cornered by this dragon. I couldn’t make out any specific details about the mare, but from my vantage point all I could see was that she wore strange clothing. It looked like some sort of white uniform with a hood that covered her eyes from my view. The dragon roared again. I covered my ears to prevent the loud noise from doing any damage to my head. I looked down at the mare and back at the dragon and sighed. I’m going to have to be a hero, huh? I stood up on my hooves. I had to have a plan before I jump right into it. I could attack the dragon and buy the mare some time to escape, but that would leave me vulnerable to the dragon’s wrath. I also have the option to just fly in and take the mare back to Ponyville, but I’m sure the dragon wouldn’t have any problem chasing us all the way to town where there are other ponies for him to lay waste to. The dragon let out another roar. I had to come to a resolve and fast. My mind worked, raced and played out scenarios which all end badly for either me or the mare. I sighed, arched my back and flew at a great speed. My wings flapped furiously making me fly faster and faster. Finally, I was close enough and reared back my right, front hoof to deliver a massive punch to the side of the dragons face. It stumbled backwards, and fell to the ground. A groan emanated from its motionless form. Knocked out in one punch, huh? I didn’t know I was that strong. Maybe my flight speed had something to do with it? No pony could take down a dragon in one punch. First time in a long time that luck was in my favor. I put those thoughts to the back of my head and faced the mare who was staring at the dragon. Her aquamarine eyes were wide with surprise. She tried to speak, but all that came out was unintelligible gibberish. “Hey,” I spoke. She quickly faced me, the wideness of her eyes still there. “You okay?” “You… you just-” before she could finish her statement, the sound of howling filled the air. Timberwolves. I turned around, hoping that I was wrong. Those hopes were soon crushed as I came face to face with a horde of timberwolves, snarling and bearing their sharp wooden teeth. Their bodies were made entirely out of wood. Their glowing green eyes shone with malice and hunger. They were probably attracted by the dragons sudden down fall. I turned to the fear stricken mare. The color seemed to have been drained from her face. Her long, light pink mane was disheveled and covered with twigs. On her back were a pair of wings, which gave me an idea. “Hey, you.” I said, keeping my gaze towards the timberwolves. “Y…yes?” her voice seemed strained and toned to a whisper, but somehow I managed to understand her. “Fly out of this place and don’t turn back.” “B… but.” “Don’t turn back! Just GO!” She made a quiet ‘eep’ sound at the sudden change of volume in my voice. Not long after, I heard the sound of flapping wings take off. I sighed with relief. Now that she’s gone, I don’t have to hold back. The first wolf leaped at me, its jaws aimed at my left side. I side stepped out of the way just in time. It fell to the ground next to me with a thud. I lifted my front hooves over the wolves head only to deliver a solid stomp onto it, bits of wood that once made up its head scattering everywhere. My ear perked at a peculiar sound. I turned around to see a wolf already in midair ready to bite down on me. I was too slow. I had already begun to jump to the side, but it was quick and sunk its teeth into my right wing. “Ahh, shit,” I hissed in pain. I lifted my right, back hoof and managed to pry the wolf off. I then tackled it to the ground, taking hold of its neck, and breaking it. The body fell limp. I needed a solid count of how many hostiles are within the vicinity. I closed my eyes and opened them again to see the wolves now glowing red. I counted a total of twelve of them, minus the ones I killed. I blinked, deactivating my special vision, everything going back to their proper color. Twelve total wolves. “Alright,” I said, getting into a battle ready position, “I can take them.” I limped out of the Everfree Forest. Cuts on my face, bruises and bite marks on my hooves and sides, a broken wing, and a torn favorite jacket. Those wolves put up a good fight, but I could still take them. The last six of them retreated after I killed several of their comrades. I sustained quite a few injuries, but nothing serious. I seriously need a drink though. I adjusted the sack of apples slung over my shoulder. Steadily, I limped over to a bar in Ponyville called Nightfall. The interior was dimly lit and near to empty. There were at least three stallions and four mares I’ve counted in the bar so far. This place was a somewhat slow business. I took a seat at one of the bar stools. The smell of alcohol and vomit wafted through the air. It made me sick. It reminded me of the fact that despite our world having a very pure outer look, if you come to truly live in it, you’ll see the filth, rot, and evil that occupy its lands. I doubt I’m any different. It took me a while to notice that the bartender was patiently waiting to take my order. She was a unicorn with a light green coat and yellow mane. Her hazel eyes fixed on me. “What will you be having, sir?” she asked. “Surprise me,” I said, pulling my hood over my head, shadowing my face from view. She nodded. Using her horn, she levitated a large, unopened bottle from under the counter. She popped off the cork, and just as she was going to pour it into a glass, I stopped her. “I’ll take the whole bottle.” I said retrieving the sack of bits from a jacket pocket, and taking half of them from the sack and placing them on the counter. “Are you sure,” she said concern I her eyes as she took the bits, “that’s some pretty strong stuff.” “Yeah, I’m pretty sure.” She just shrugs her shoulders, levitates a wet rag to her hooves, and proceeds to wipe off the counter. I put the bottle to my lips and tilted it so that the contents flowed smoothly into my mouth. It was somewhat strong, and bitter. Removed the bottle from my lips and gave a sigh. I doubt my parents would approve of me drinking, if they were alive that is. I looked behind me, expecting my parents to be there to scold me. Nothing. I turned back. Of course there’s nothing there, what was I expecting? I took another swig of my drink. It seemed to numb my suffering somewhat, but it never was truly the answer. I stole a glance at the bartender who I caught staring at me. She quickly averted her gaze, a small red tint seeming to have formed onto her cheeks. I looked back at my drink. I thought about the night my parents were killed. My mind was filled with so much anger and sadness at the time. I actually swore vengeance . I failed to notice the bartender staring at me. "Are you okay?" she asked, "you seemed to be staring daggers at the bottle in your hooves. I was afraid you might throw it at the wall." "It's alright," I said, " I was just thinking." She shrugged her shoulders she went back to her post. I looked bartender over. She didn’t seem busy and he’s pretty cute now that I think about it. She had a fit figure. Her curves were just in the right spots. Her hips swayed slightly as she walked. It almost seemed intentional. This made me wonder, is she single? I took another, extra-long gulp of my drink. Why don't we find out. “Hey, bartender,” I said to her waving my hoof at her. She jumps a little at my voice and reluctantly makes her way over to me. “Yes?” her cute hazel eyes seemed to sparkle in the dim light of the bar. “You don’t seem to be busy. How’s about you and me share this drink? My name is Icarus Swift by the way.” “I’m Olive Martini, and sure, I can drink.” She brought out two glasses and I gladly filled them. She quickly downed the contents of her cup. I was quick to refill her cup. "So," I spoke first, "have you got a special somepony?" Author's Note Please leave a comment. I would like some feedback on how I did so far for the first chapter. If it's a little mediocre, I promise that future chapters will be a lot better. Thanks for reading. Brohoof /) Sequence 1 pt. IIWe stumbled out of the bar. I volunteered to walk Olive home in her intoxicated state. This mare was quite the lightweight. Five cups of this stuff and down she went. Along the way to her home I told her of the recent events that had occurred to me. "No way," Olive said, astonished, "a dragon? In one punch? No fucking way." "Believe what you want, it happened." I said, stoically "You can even ask the mare I saved." "Oh yeah? And who exactly was this mare." I opened my mouth, but shut it as soon as realization came to me that I hadn't even asked that one mare's name. I scratched my chin with a hoof. "Well her coat was butter yellow and-" "Let me guess, light pink mane, pegasus?" she interrupted. "Uhh... yeah? How did you know?" "Her name's Fluttershy, she's one of the local veterinarians and one of the Elements of Harmony." At this point my eyes were wide with surprise. "Element of Harmony, huh?" I said fascinated. We continued walking silence. The sun was just at the horizon and the skies had begun their shift into a darker shade of blue. The town had nearly emptied. The market had died down, everything was exceptionally quieter than it was this morning. A little too quiet. I held my hoof in front of Olive to stop her from going any further. "What's wrong," Olive asked, concern filling her eyes. "Go on home without me," I said, "I'll stop by the bar again tomorrow." "But..." she tried to say something but stopped, nodded and proceeded on her way as soon a put my hoof back down. As soon as she was out of sight I blinked and activated my vision. As I thought, on the rooftops, there were glowing figures, but they weren't glowing red like the rest of the hostiles I've faced, they were blue. I blinked off my vision, dropped the sack of apples, and high tailed it the opposite direction that Olive went. As expected, they pursued me. Their hoof steps apparent as they ran and leaped from rooftop to rooftop. I made a sharp turn into a dark alley, hopping over a fence that would have been a dead end to the inexperienced. I would have flown, but my wing was out of commission for a while. Of course, despite my detour, my pursuers were still on my tail. I looked ahead to see a lit house with an opened window. I increased in speed. Once I was within close enough vicinity, I leaped through the window, passed a screaming mare, and through the second window conveniently placed right across from the window I entered into. Ahead of me was a wooden fence. Again, I leaped over it, but in midair, I was tackled to the ground by a stallion in a white hood, irritating my broken wing. I struggled against his grip, but it was fruitless. This guy had fucking body builder strength. Before I could react, his hoof met my face and just like that, all consciousness left my needing grasp. My eyes slowly fluttered open. A headache assaulted my brain with tremendous force. I sat from bed examining surroundings. The room was huge and the wall paper was white. The bed seemed to be made for a king. The mattress was huge, and with an elegant frame to match. A dresser sat across from the bed and right next to it, a wardrobe. I looked beside the bed I currently sat on. A night stand stood and on it was a lamp and a glass of water. I quickly grabbed the water and downed the contents. I set the glass down and got out of the bed. I was expecting pain to shoot through my broken wing, but nothing came. I looked and saw that somepony had taken the time to mend it, seeing the bandages wrapped carefully around the feathery appendage. Some freaky shit happened. I was chased be ponies in hoods, then knocked out by one. It wasn't really a walk in the park getting punched in the face then waking up. it just doesn't make the headache in the morning any less painful. I wonder what those ponies wanted with a deadbeat like me. Were they thieves? Apparently not, the money in my jacket pocket was still present. Then what the hell did they want from me? I slowly trotted to a door which lead to a hallway. Down the hallway were stairs and I took them down only to be stopped half way as soon as I heard voices. "Are you sure it's him?" one of the voices said, obviously male, "I mean, he doesn't look like much." "I'm positive, Shining," this voice was soft and female, almost timid, "he saved me from the dragon, and fought off a pack of fourteen timber wolves." "Fluttershy," another female voice began to speak, "if he is who we think he is, then this could change things for the creed." "I'm just worried if he's alright," the soft voice said, "I managed to fix his wing, but I don't know if it'll hold." Fluttershy? Creed? What where they talking about? Do I owe these guys something? I need answers. I continued to trot down the stairs, pulling the hood of my jacket over my head to shadow my face from view. As soon as I reached the ground floor, a living room came into view. All of the furniture looked extremely expensive. A fire roared in a fire place, lighting up the place dimly. Around the fireplace sat three ponies. One was a unicorn stallion with a white coat and a long mane colored with two shades of blue, and shield surrounded by stars for a cutie mark. Next to him, at his right, sat a pink, alicorn mare with a mane of two shades of purple, and yellow. Her cutie mark was a crystal heart surrounded by gold. To the left of the stallion was a familiar mare. She must've been the Fluttershy pony Olive talked about. They continued to talk as I crept around in the shadows, careful to avoid the light of the fire. They all faced towards each other which might make it hard to be stealthy. The space behind the stallion seemed to be least lit up. Slowly, I made my way behind the stallion and raised a hoof to bring down onto his skull. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." a male voice nearly made me jump if it weren't for the blade that was positioned under my throat. All eyes soon looked my way. "Damn it," I muttered under my breath. "Well, well," the white stallion spoke up, "good morning sleeping beauty." I shot a glare towards him which he took notice of and raised his hooves in defense. "Whoa, no need for the death glare," he said, "look we got off at the wrong hoof. My name is Shining Armor." Shining Armor motioned over to the pink alicorn. "This is my wife, Princess mi Amore Cadenza." "You can just call me Cadence." the pink one said. "And I believe you've already met Ms. Fluttershy." Hiding behind Cadence, was said mare. She must be the quiet type. I almost forgot that she was in the room. "Stand down, Flash Sentry." Shining Armor said to the stallion holding the blade to my neck, "He's no threat." The blade was removed from my neck as the stallion holding the blade took his place next Shining Armor. His coat was orange and he had a spiked, blue mane. On his front hooves where strange devices that faced inward toward his underside. Like they were meant to be hidden from view. I relaxed a little bit as soon as the blade was away from my neck area. "Alright," I said still holding my gaze towards the group of ponies in front of me, "I'm going to ask a few questions and you have to answer me as honestly." Shining Armor nodded, a smile adorning his face, trying his best to look trustworthy. To be honest, I don't trust any of them as far as I can throw them. "Where the hell am I?" I asked. "You're in a private mansion that is headquarters to the Assassin's Creed." Shining Armor said. "Why?" "We have been told of your skills in combat by a certain agent of ours," he gave a glance toward Fluttershy, "and we believe you have what it takes to be a part of the creed." "What makes you think I want to join you little organization?" I scoffed. This is crazy, these ponies are crazy. I'm no more special than a rock at the side of the dirt road. "Maybe this might convince you," Flash Sentry spoke up. He walked up the stairs I came from, then came back down, but this time with a picture frame in his teeth. He set it down in front of me and I picked it up with my hoof. It was a photo of my father with some other stallions sharing a drink at a bar. Their mugs were raised and huge smiles were plastered on their faces. What really caught my attention were the uniforms they wore. they had a somewhat different design, but were mostly long, white combat suit with a hood. My father's, though, was black a little bit of red at the rim of his hood, and a strange, silver insignia sat at the center of where two straps of red fabric crossed at his chest. The insignia looked like an upside down 'V', but the two ends that were supposed to face upward, had curves protruding from them, pointing towards each other. "Your father was one of our best operatives, Icarus." Shining Armor said, "He was one of the organization's fine leaders. His courage and knowledge was unsurmounted, which lead the creed through the toughest spots." I looked back at the photo and saw something off. I something white flashed at one of the torn corers of the photo. I quickly opened the back of the picture frame and removed the photo. Taped to the back of it was a note that was neatly folded. I removed the note from the photo, unfolded it, and read carefully. It read: Dear Icarus Swift, If you are reading this, then it means that my time on this land is up. You are probably aware, already, of this secret I've been keeping from you, and if not, then I am an Assassin for the Assassin's Creed. It is not a profession I enjoyed, nor is it one I can just ignore. Just know that I kept this secret from you to protect you. Now that you know, I wish for you to join the Creed. You will do the Creed some good. Training for you is unnecessary, for your skills come naturally. I'm proud of you, my son, and please, do the Creed good. Nothing is true, everything is permitted Your father always, Silver Swift My eyes read over the note again. Sadness welled up inside my chest, but I forced in back down. I folded the note and placed it and the photo into my jacket pocket. I looked back up at Shining Armor and the others. They stared at me expectantly. "You don't have to join us if you don't want to." Cadence stepped forward, putting a hoof on my shoulder, "Being a member of the Creed is a heavy burden to bear." "My father's last wish was for me to be a part of this Creed," I said, shrugging off her hoof, "and I will follow through with his request." I walked straight up to Shining Armor and looked him dead in the eye. "I will join your Creed... for my father." They all nodded in agreement. I have a feeling this is not going to be easy. Author's Note I forgot to mention that this is the first story of five that will all lead to an Avenger-like sixth story. The protagonists of each story will come together into one huge story. Give me some feedback on whether this is a good idea or not. Brohoof to you all! /) Sequence 2 (Revised)Sequence 2 My father's old uniform fitted me perfectly. It posted little resistance as I ran from rooftop to rooftop in Ponyville in the dead of night. I would've flown, but my wing was still not in flying condition. Besides, this felt.... natural. The wind blew against my face as I ran. My hair whipped in random directions, and the silver Assassin's insignia on my chest glimmered against the moonlight. Running along side me was Shining Armor. He donned a uniform for himself. It was white and blue with the hood pulled over his head, shadowing his face from sight. Instead of the insignia being placed on his chest, it was stitched onto the back of his uniform. At his side was a thin sword that would have been mistaken for a metal stick. A single, thick strip of fabric ran across his chest and sheathed many small knives. A belt ran across his waist. It held an assortment of little pockets for certain items. I refocused my attention to the front as our destination finally came into view. "Alright we're here," I said to Shining Armor. He and I leaped off the roof and landed right at the front door to my house. Admittedly, it felt pretty cool bounding off of that building in this uniform. Black and red were always my favorite color combo. "Meet up with us again at the mansion tomorrow afternoon," Shining Armor spoke up, "I'll give you the lowdown on everything you need to know." He turned to leave, but as soon as he did so, he turned right back. "Good to have you as a part of the Creed, your father and my father were very good friends, you know." With that he teleported onto the nearest rooftop and ran off into the night. I sighed heavily. It's been quite the eventful night. I'm just glad I made it home, shut eye is just about what I need. I placed a hoof on the door knob and turned it. Huh... I'm pretty sure I locked that door before I left this morning. I ignored it for the time being. Maybe I just forgot. I walked into the dark living room and flicked on the switch. The house was desolate and void of any life as the lights flickered on, or so I thought. "SURPRISE!" A multitude of loud cheers reverberated throughout the confines of the house. I jumped at the sudden assault to my ears. My heart threatened burst forth as I placed a hoof to my chest in hopes to calm my storm. I caught my breath and examined the cause of my near death experience. Surrounding me were different ponies, but the question is why are they here? "Hi!" pink suddenly filled my vision as well and bright blue eyes. I jerked back a bit and had full view of the pink source. She was a mare with a pink coat and mane. Her mane reminded me of cotton candy and on her flank were balloons of yellow and blue. "I'm Pinkie Pie," she continued in an impossibly fast rate, "and Welcome to Ponyville, though you've been a resident here for a quite a while already, and that really surprised me considering how whenever someone new moves in, I'm one of the first to know, I mean I know Rain Light, your aunt, but I never knew that she had her nephew with her, I probably wasn't paying attention though, because I never saw you when I threw that party for your aunt, where you sick or something that day because I know you wouldn't purposely miss a party especially thrown by me, unless you were deliberately trying to avoid going to I party I threw, because in that case shame on you , you really missed out buddy, no one has ever lived until they have experienced one of my famous parties..." The mare known as Pinkie Pie continued on with her little speed speech as I felt a light tap on my soldier. I turned to see a purple alicorn look at me with an apologetic smile. "I'm very sorry about her," she said, "she's just gets very excited whenever she gets to meet somebody new. I'm Twilight Sparkle." Twilight Sparkle held her hoof out and I respectfully shook it. "How exactly does she know where I live?" I asked. "I think I can answer that question," the farm mare from this morning, Applejack, walked up next to Twilight. "Okay," I said raising an eyebrow, "please elaborate." "Well, I may have told her about you, and she may have looked up your name in the private files in town hall." She rubbed her hoof nervously. "But, enough with the formalities, let's get this party started!" Everybody cheered as loud robotic music began to play. How in the holy hell did they even managed to fit a DJ booth into my house. I tried my best to shoo everyone away from my house, but that posted no avail. No one could hear me over that ear piercing music. I eventually gave up and walked up to my room and locked the door behind me. I removed the assassin's uniform and threw it into my closet. Damn, that music was so fucking loud. I hopped into my bed and slammed both of my pillows over my ears. The music was still present, muffled, but present. "Aww, the party scene too much for you?" I quickly shot up and looked around the room only to see Pinkie Pie standing at the far corner of the room. "The fuck?" I nearly screamed, "How the hell did you get into my room? I locked it!" "Don't worry about it," she said, "So, I heard your the newest member of the Creed. I have to say, not bad lookin'." She walked around and looked me over slowly scanning my body with her eyes. Seriously, ever heard of personal space? "Cut to the chase," I said turning to her, "what is it you want exactly?" She stopped and faced me and gave an annoyed sigh. How is she annoyed by me? She's the one that threw a party at my house without my permission. "Well, if you must know," she said, "I'm just here to give you your proper gear." From seemingly out of nowhere, she produced a medium sized wooden box and plopped it onto my bed. Carefully I opened the box . Inside were strange devices. They looked like they would wrap around your hooves, and small blades were carefully secured to them. The blade seemed to be etched with words written in ancient Equestrian. The words were just mere gibberish to the untrained eye, but to me, the words read perfectly and smoothly. 'Nothing is true, everything is permitted.' "What are they?" I asked. "They're hidden blades," she responded, "they're an assassin's most important tool in preserving this world. These particular ones once belonged to your father." She picked up one of them and secured it to my hoof. The blade was positioned under my hoof. I flicked my hoof and the blade extended. I flicked my hoof once more and the blade retracted. I carefully placed the second blade under my hoof. Honestly, they didn't look half bad on me. "Wow," Pinkie responded, "not bad, but I'd like to see your skill. I've invited all of the Ponyville residents to this party, and I mean all of them. Among them is a Templar spy. He's currently aware that there is an assassin operative within this house. I'm pretty sure that you're aware on what I want you to do." I stared at her in confusion. At first I had no idea what she was getting at, until the motioned towards the blades carefully secured to my hooves. "You want me to kill that pony?" I asked, "you're insane. I've only ever killed a pony once, and I don't plan on doing it again." "Hey, it's your call," she shrugged, "if you want to be part of this creed, you have to show me your stuff. If it helps, your target has been accused of several rape cases and got off scott free every trial. Here's a tip, use your vision. He'll be the one glowing yellow." I was about to ask her how she knew about my vision, but she left right before I could even open my mouth. She had a point. If I'm going to be an assassin, I need to know how to act like an assassin. I took a deep breath and walked back outside. Everypony was still dancing and raving to the loud music. No one seemed to be sticking out in the crowd. I blinked on my vision and scanned the area. There! I spotted him. One pony glowing yellow among the crowed. I blinked off my vision and went into action. I blended in to the crowed as I made my way toward my destined target. His mane was bright green and his coat was yellow. Around his neck was a necklace that had a red plus dangling at the end. He was checking out mares one by one, his eyes scanning over their figures, from head to flank. He didn't even make and effort to conceal it. The mare he was checking out soon took notice and walked away in disgust. I've met people like him before, total douches. I made my way behind him, extended one of my blades, and stabbed him in the abdomen. Just then something weird happened. Everything paused at that very moment. The music stopped playing and the ponies stopped dancing. It was still and silent save for me and my target. He gasped clutching the fatal wound that will soon bring about his end. A pool of red formed under him staining the floor below. I locked eyes with him. "Y... you're him!" he exclaimed as blood gushed from his mouth, "You're the son of that one assassin!" I nodded in response to this, his eyes widened as his body fell limp and lifeless. With that, I walked away . The music and movement proceeded as though nothing had happened. Seconds after, a scream reverberated through the house. Looks like somepony found the body. I couldn't help but smile as all of the patrons of the party admired my handiwork. Pinkie Pie found me and gave me a pat on the soldier. "Welcome to the Assassin's Creed." she said with a smile. I couldn't help but smile too, but not at her friendly gesture. I looked back at the crowed forming around the dead body. I gave a low chuckle as I made my way upstairs. I really need some shuteye. I made it to my room and removed my blades. I placed them carefully back into the box. Author's Note I didn't really feel comfortable about the whole last part of this chapter so I revised the entire thing. Thanks for reading! /)
Sequence 1Sequence 1 My vision was blurred as sunlight had spilled into them, which yanked a groan from within my throat. I got up rubbing my hoof through my dark red and black mane as it fell over my shoulders. I seriously might need a manecut soon. I scratched my eyes, and cleared the blurriness so I could make out the time. The silver wall clock that hung above my dresser mirror read nine-fifteen. Another day, another sore body for me. I hopped out of bed and trotted over to the mirror that sat above my dresser. My hooves made a soft clip clop along the oak wood floor. I looked over my form in the cracked mirror. My dark grey fur needed some brushing, as well as my dark red mane, and the feathers on my wings. My eyes shone blood red alongside the morning sun. I looked at my flank and sighed. It was void of a cutie mark, which is rare among grown stallions my age. It was just my luck to be one of the few stallions to never earn a cutie mark. Maybe I was just a mistake. Maybe I don’t have any purpose in this world. My luck wasn’t really all that fortunate to begin with anyway. My parents were murdered during my foalhood and I was placed into custody of my kind aunt, Rain Light, who did her best to console me of my troubles. My friends abandoned me when word of my mark less flank spread throughout my school. I was labeled a freak, the only stallion in Cloudsdale High who didn’t have a cutie mark. "Ha-ha, look at Icarus Swift! That freak is still a fucking blank flank. What a fucking loser."Their stinging words rung through my head like bells during Hearths Warming Eve. Being a blank flank wasn’t the only thing that made high school like hell. Every now and then, whenever I would blink, my eyes would do this thing where some ponies would start to glow red. It scared me at first, but learned to control it, turn it on and off, as I got older. Apparently, when somepony glows red, it means they are hostile. This kept auntie and I safe. If I saw someone, or something, glow red, I would take certain precautions to avoid them. After I finished high school with top marks, thank Celestia, my aunt and I relocated to Ponyville, a small and placid place of very few problems. The only real serious problems the town ever faced were the Discord incident and the Nightmare Moon returning, but those problems were solved permanently thanks to the Elements of Harmony. The residents were kind and say that they accept anyone into their friendly town, regardless if one bore a cutie mark. There words were convincing enough, but even if said words were genuine, I still receive very awkward stares from young foals and teens. This made me feel uncomfortable. I looked over to my right, the cracked picture frame containing the picture of my parents and I during the Summer Sun Celebration. The photo was taken the day my parents were murdered. The wide smiles the three of us wore were infectious. I was but a young foal at the time, and my blank flank was often shrugged off. I looked at my mom, her beautiful blue eyes were kind, and would cause almost any stallion to swoon over her. Her fur was white, and with a sky blue mane that fell over her shoulders like a waterfall. My gaze shifted over to my father. Normally he would have an air of seriousness about him, but in this photo, he was happy as can be. The details that didn’t match his sky high demeanor were the bags under his bright red eyes. His fur was midnight blue, with a silver mane that was gelled back. He never spoke much about his occupation, but he would have quiet conversations about it with my mom. “I’m sorry I’m always home late, but the creed needs me back.” My father would say pleadingly to my mother. “I thought you left them behind,” she argued, “you have a son to take care of, and you’re out doing crazy things with those, Assassins.” “I’m doing this to protect our son. Those Templars need to be stopped if the world is ever going to be a safer place for him.” My mother just shook her head in disappointment. She pushed passed him and noticed me standing at the doorway of their bedroom. Her eyes were filled such warmth and kindness. “Come now Swift,” she said with a smile, “I’ll take you back to bed.” I frowned and placed the photo back down and picked up my old hair brush. I proceeded to brush out the uneven parts of my fur and mane. When that was settled, I put the brush down and proceeded out of my bedroom and into the hallway. The floorboards of the house creaked, threatening to give out under my frame. I really need to get this place renovated. Someday, I might just smash through the floor of my bedroom and land square into the kitchen. I treaded carefully to the stairs down the hall which led to the living room. Upon entering the living room I spot the calendar hanging on the wall, left of the sofa. It read November 22, 2013. I sighed with relief. Today is a day off for me which meant no work. Normally auntie would give me chores to do, but she’s out of town in Cloudsdale for business reasons, something about the Rainbow Factory having a few financial problems. I broke my attention from the calendar, and trotted over to the kitchen. It was in no better condition than the house all together. The wood dining table seemed to be breaking apart and decaying. The floor, just like throughout the house was on the verge of collapsing under somepony. The only things within the kitchen that were in a non-horrid state were the sink and fridge. I trotted to fridge and opened it examining its contents. Milk and eggs, which was it. I groaned. I wasn’t necessarily in the mood to be going outside, then again I never really am. I picked up the sack of bits that sat on the coffee table in front of the sofa, retrieved my black, hooded jacket that sat on the coat rack, and trotted out the door and locked it behind me. As usual, the market place of Ponyville was teeming with activity and movement. The bright smiling faces of families and couples littered the environment. It made me grimace as memories of my foalhood invaded my mind. I shook the thoughts out, pulled the hood of my jacket over my head, and proceeded into the market square. I needed to get apples. A nearby stand had just what I need. The label over top of the stand itself read Sweet Apple Acres. I moved towards it and hoped I can get the apples without the stand running out of stock like the time with the cider. As I treaded closer, the pony at the stand came into view. She was a pretty cute mare, orange coat with a blonde mane tied in a ponytail accompanied with a cowboy hat. Freckles dotted her cheeks and her gorgeous emerald green eyes shone brightly as she waved at passers. Those eyes soon turned to me the closer I got. I pulled the hood tighter over my head, making sure it shadowed my face. I approached the counter and placed the sack of bits down onto it. “Ten red delicious apples please,” I said to her, avoiding eye contact. “You got it partner.” She said her southern, country accent cutting through the bustling crowed of ponies within the square. She proceeded to fill a bag with the red fruit, but stopped in the middle to look at me quizzically. “Haven’t seen anypony like ya’ll around the parts. Are ya new to Ponyville?” “No,” I said. “How long have ya been a resident in Ponyville?” she continued. “A while, actually. I moved here just after high school.” “Well, it’s a shame we haven’t met before. My names Applejack.” she finished filling the bag, plopped it onto the counter, and extended a hoof for a hoofshake. “It’s a pleasure,” I said, giving her hoof a friendly brohoof instead of a hoof shake like expected. I was just about to pick up the sack of fruit, but was stopped by Applejack. “I never really caught your name.” she said, curiosity filling her eyes. “Icarus Swift,” I said. With that, I spread my wings and flew over to the Everfree Forest. Might as well relax a little. The Everfree Forest, to others, was a scary, desolate forest crawling with unspeakably horrid creatures. To me, the forest was somewhat of a sanctuary, a place where I go when I’m not at home reading or doing chores for Auntie Rain. I flew around a bit looking for my secret spot I found when I got lost once. It’s a place no one else knows about. I bet even Celestia doesn’t know about this place and once word of my sanctuary got out, they would level the entire forest just to find it. I chuckled at the idea. Even if they did level the forest and found it, the sanctuary wouldn’t be as enjoyable without the dark and gloomy forestry to accompany it. Finally, something caught my eye, a clearing within the forest that sat near a large waterfall. I flew down and into the clearing. This was it, my sanctuary. A small clear river ran through it, shimmering in the sunlight, the source of water being, of course the waterfall itself. As the massive amounts of water fell into the waiting river, water splashed into air causing a slight mist. Sunlight passed through the mist creating a magnificent rainbow. I trotted over to a large rock nearby and set down the sack of apples. I then sat down and leaned against the rock. The sound of the waterfall and nearby birds filled the air. It was bliss, peaceful; something my life hasn’t been in a while. I shut my eyes. The smell of the misty air only added onto the extreme bliss. Slumber was just about overtaking my body when a loud sound assaulted my ears. A scream not too far from my position rang and echoed throughout the forest followed by an earth shattering roar. I quickly got up to my hooves and flew up into the sky to get a better vantage point and, to my horror, saw the cause of the massive roar. A red dragon was towering over the massive trees. It was at least as tall as a three story building, not as big, but pretty big. I jetted as fast as I could toward the dragon. I perched myself onto a nearby cloud and examined the situation. A mare seemed to have been cornered by this dragon. I couldn’t make out any specific details about the mare, but from my vantage point all I could see was that she wore strange clothing. It looked like some sort of white uniform with a hood that covered her eyes from my view. The dragon roared again. I covered my ears to prevent the loud noise from doing any damage to my head. I looked down at the mare and back at the dragon and sighed. I’m going to have to be a hero, huh? I stood up on my hooves. I had to have a plan before I jump right into it. I could attack the dragon and buy the mare some time to escape, but that would leave me vulnerable to the dragon’s wrath. I also have the option to just fly in and take the mare back to Ponyville, but I’m sure the dragon wouldn’t have any problem chasing us all the way to town where there are other ponies for him to lay waste to. The dragon let out another roar. I had to come to a resolve and fast. My mind worked, raced and played out scenarios which all end badly for either me or the mare. I sighed, arched my back and flew at a great speed. My wings flapped furiously making me fly faster and faster. Finally, I was close enough and reared back my right, front hoof to deliver a massive punch to the side of the dragons face. It stumbled backwards, and fell to the ground. A groan emanated from its motionless form. Knocked out in one punch, huh? I didn’t know I was that strong. Maybe my flight speed had something to do with it? No pony could take down a dragon in one punch. First time in a long time that luck was in my favor. I put those thoughts to the back of my head and faced the mare who was staring at the dragon. Her aquamarine eyes were wide with surprise. She tried to speak, but all that came out was unintelligible gibberish. “Hey,” I spoke. She quickly faced me, the wideness of her eyes still there. “You okay?” “You… you just-” before she could finish her statement, the sound of howling filled the air. Timberwolves. I turned around, hoping that I was wrong. Those hopes were soon crushed as I came face to face with a horde of timberwolves, snarling and bearing their sharp wooden teeth. Their bodies were made entirely out of wood. Their glowing green eyes shone with malice and hunger. They were probably attracted by the dragons sudden down fall. I turned to the fear stricken mare. The color seemed to have been drained from her face. Her long, light pink mane was disheveled and covered with twigs. On her back were a pair of wings, which gave me an idea. “Hey, you.” I said, keeping my gaze towards the timberwolves. “Y…yes?” her voice seemed strained and toned to a whisper, but somehow I managed to understand her. “Fly out of this place and don’t turn back.” “B… but.” “Don’t turn back! Just GO!” She made a quiet ‘eep’ sound at the sudden change of volume in my voice. Not long after, I heard the sound of flapping wings take off. I sighed with relief. Now that she’s gone, I don’t have to hold back. The first wolf leaped at me, its jaws aimed at my left side. I side stepped out of the way just in time. It fell to the ground next to me with a thud. I lifted my front hooves over the wolves head only to deliver a solid stomp onto it, bits of wood that once made up its head scattering everywhere. My ear perked at a peculiar sound. I turned around to see a wolf already in midair ready to bite down on me. I was too slow. I had already begun to jump to the side, but it was quick and sunk its teeth into my right wing. “Ahh, shit,” I hissed in pain. I lifted my right, back hoof and managed to pry the wolf off. I then tackled it to the ground, taking hold of its neck, and breaking it. The body fell limp. I needed a solid count of how many hostiles are within the vicinity. I closed my eyes and opened them again to see the wolves now glowing red. I counted a total of twelve of them, minus the ones I killed. I blinked, deactivating my special vision, everything going back to their proper color. Twelve total wolves. “Alright,” I said, getting into a battle ready position, “I can take them.” I limped out of the Everfree Forest. Cuts on my face, bruises and bite marks on my hooves and sides, a broken wing, and a torn favorite jacket. Those wolves put up a good fight, but I could still take them. The last six of them retreated after I killed several of their comrades. I sustained quite a few injuries, but nothing serious. I seriously need a drink though. I adjusted the sack of apples slung over my shoulder. Steadily, I limped over to a bar in Ponyville called Nightfall. The interior was dimly lit and near to empty. There were at least three stallions and four mares I’ve counted in the bar so far. This place was a somewhat slow business. I took a seat at one of the bar stools. The smell of alcohol and vomit wafted through the air. It made me sick. It reminded me of the fact that despite our world having a very pure outer look, if you come to truly live in it, you’ll see the filth, rot, and evil that occupy its lands. I doubt I’m any different. It took me a while to notice that the bartender was patiently waiting to take my order. She was a unicorn with a light green coat and yellow mane. Her hazel eyes fixed on me. “What will you be having, sir?” she asked. “Surprise me,” I said, pulling my hood over my head, shadowing my face from view. She nodded. Using her horn, she levitated a large, unopened bottle from under the counter. She popped off the cork, and just as she was going to pour it into a glass, I stopped her. “I’ll take the whole bottle.” I said retrieving the sack of bits from a jacket pocket, and taking half of them from the sack and placing them on the counter. “Are you sure,” she said concern I her eyes as she took the bits, “that’s some pretty strong stuff.” “Yeah, I’m pretty sure.” She just shrugs her shoulders, levitates a wet rag to her hooves, and proceeds to wipe off the counter. I put the bottle to my lips and tilted it so that the contents flowed smoothly into my mouth. It was somewhat strong, and bitter. Removed the bottle from my lips and gave a sigh. I doubt my parents would approve of me drinking, if they were alive that is. I looked behind me, expecting my parents to be there to scold me. Nothing. I turned back. Of course there’s nothing there, what was I expecting? I took another swig of my drink. It seemed to numb my suffering somewhat, but it never was truly the answer. I stole a glance at the bartender who I caught staring at me. She quickly averted her gaze, a small red tint seeming to have formed onto her cheeks. I looked back at my drink. I thought about the night my parents were killed. My mind was filled with so much anger and sadness at the time. I actually swore vengeance . I failed to notice the bartender staring at me. "Are you okay?" she asked, "you seemed to be staring daggers at the bottle in your hooves. I was afraid you might throw it at the wall." "It's alright," I said, " I was just thinking." She shrugged her shoulders she went back to her post. I looked bartender over. She didn’t seem busy and he’s pretty cute now that I think about it. She had a fit figure. Her curves were just in the right spots. Her hips swayed slightly as she walked. It almost seemed intentional. This made me wonder, is she single? I took another, extra-long gulp of my drink. Why don't we find out. “Hey, bartender,” I said to her waving my hoof at her. She jumps a little at my voice and reluctantly makes her way over to me. “Yes?” her cute hazel eyes seemed to sparkle in the dim light of the bar. “You don’t seem to be busy. How’s about you and me share this drink? My name is Icarus Swift by the way.” “I’m Olive Martini, and sure, I can drink.” She brought out two glasses and I gladly filled them. She quickly downed the contents of her cup. I was quick to refill her cup. "So," I spoke first, "have you got a special somepony?" Author's Note Please leave a comment. I would like some feedback on how I did so far for the first chapter. If it's a little mediocre, I promise that future chapters will be a lot better. Thanks for reading. Brohoof /)
Sequence 1 pt. IIWe stumbled out of the bar. I volunteered to walk Olive home in her intoxicated state. This mare was quite the lightweight. Five cups of this stuff and down she went. Along the way to her home I told her of the recent events that had occurred to me. "No way," Olive said, astonished, "a dragon? In one punch? No fucking way." "Believe what you want, it happened." I said, stoically "You can even ask the mare I saved." "Oh yeah? And who exactly was this mare." I opened my mouth, but shut it as soon as realization came to me that I hadn't even asked that one mare's name. I scratched my chin with a hoof. "Well her coat was butter yellow and-" "Let me guess, light pink mane, pegasus?" she interrupted. "Uhh... yeah? How did you know?" "Her name's Fluttershy, she's one of the local veterinarians and one of the Elements of Harmony." At this point my eyes were wide with surprise. "Element of Harmony, huh?" I said fascinated. We continued walking silence. The sun was just at the horizon and the skies had begun their shift into a darker shade of blue. The town had nearly emptied. The market had died down, everything was exceptionally quieter than it was this morning. A little too quiet. I held my hoof in front of Olive to stop her from going any further. "What's wrong," Olive asked, concern filling her eyes. "Go on home without me," I said, "I'll stop by the bar again tomorrow." "But..." she tried to say something but stopped, nodded and proceeded on her way as soon a put my hoof back down. As soon as she was out of sight I blinked and activated my vision. As I thought, on the rooftops, there were glowing figures, but they weren't glowing red like the rest of the hostiles I've faced, they were blue. I blinked off my vision, dropped the sack of apples, and high tailed it the opposite direction that Olive went. As expected, they pursued me. Their hoof steps apparent as they ran and leaped from rooftop to rooftop. I made a sharp turn into a dark alley, hopping over a fence that would have been a dead end to the inexperienced. I would have flown, but my wing was out of commission for a while. Of course, despite my detour, my pursuers were still on my tail. I looked ahead to see a lit house with an opened window. I increased in speed. Once I was within close enough vicinity, I leaped through the window, passed a screaming mare, and through the second window conveniently placed right across from the window I entered into. Ahead of me was a wooden fence. Again, I leaped over it, but in midair, I was tackled to the ground by a stallion in a white hood, irritating my broken wing. I struggled against his grip, but it was fruitless. This guy had fucking body builder strength. Before I could react, his hoof met my face and just like that, all consciousness left my needing grasp. My eyes slowly fluttered open. A headache assaulted my brain with tremendous force. I sat from bed examining surroundings. The room was huge and the wall paper was white. The bed seemed to be made for a king. The mattress was huge, and with an elegant frame to match. A dresser sat across from the bed and right next to it, a wardrobe. I looked beside the bed I currently sat on. A night stand stood and on it was a lamp and a glass of water. I quickly grabbed the water and downed the contents. I set the glass down and got out of the bed. I was expecting pain to shoot through my broken wing, but nothing came. I looked and saw that somepony had taken the time to mend it, seeing the bandages wrapped carefully around the feathery appendage. Some freaky shit happened. I was chased be ponies in hoods, then knocked out by one. It wasn't really a walk in the park getting punched in the face then waking up. it just doesn't make the headache in the morning any less painful. I wonder what those ponies wanted with a deadbeat like me. Were they thieves? Apparently not, the money in my jacket pocket was still present. Then what the hell did they want from me? I slowly trotted to a door which lead to a hallway. Down the hallway were stairs and I took them down only to be stopped half way as soon as I heard voices. "Are you sure it's him?" one of the voices said, obviously male, "I mean, he doesn't look like much." "I'm positive, Shining," this voice was soft and female, almost timid, "he saved me from the dragon, and fought off a pack of fourteen timber wolves." "Fluttershy," another female voice began to speak, "if he is who we think he is, then this could change things for the creed." "I'm just worried if he's alright," the soft voice said, "I managed to fix his wing, but I don't know if it'll hold." Fluttershy? Creed? What where they talking about? Do I owe these guys something? I need answers. I continued to trot down the stairs, pulling the hood of my jacket over my head to shadow my face from view. As soon as I reached the ground floor, a living room came into view. All of the furniture looked extremely expensive. A fire roared in a fire place, lighting up the place dimly. Around the fireplace sat three ponies. One was a unicorn stallion with a white coat and a long mane colored with two shades of blue, and shield surrounded by stars for a cutie mark. Next to him, at his right, sat a pink, alicorn mare with a mane of two shades of purple, and yellow. Her cutie mark was a crystal heart surrounded by gold. To the left of the stallion was a familiar mare. She must've been the Fluttershy pony Olive talked about. They continued to talk as I crept around in the shadows, careful to avoid the light of the fire. They all faced towards each other which might make it hard to be stealthy. The space behind the stallion seemed to be least lit up. Slowly, I made my way behind the stallion and raised a hoof to bring down onto his skull. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." a male voice nearly made me jump if it weren't for the blade that was positioned under my throat. All eyes soon looked my way. "Damn it," I muttered under my breath. "Well, well," the white stallion spoke up, "good morning sleeping beauty." I shot a glare towards him which he took notice of and raised his hooves in defense. "Whoa, no need for the death glare," he said, "look we got off at the wrong hoof. My name is Shining Armor." Shining Armor motioned over to the pink alicorn. "This is my wife, Princess mi Amore Cadenza." "You can just call me Cadence." the pink one said. "And I believe you've already met Ms. Fluttershy." Hiding behind Cadence, was said mare. She must be the quiet type. I almost forgot that she was in the room. "Stand down, Flash Sentry." Shining Armor said to the stallion holding the blade to my neck, "He's no threat." The blade was removed from my neck as the stallion holding the blade took his place next Shining Armor. His coat was orange and he had a spiked, blue mane. On his front hooves where strange devices that faced inward toward his underside. Like they were meant to be hidden from view. I relaxed a little bit as soon as the blade was away from my neck area. "Alright," I said still holding my gaze towards the group of ponies in front of me, "I'm going to ask a few questions and you have to answer me as honestly." Shining Armor nodded, a smile adorning his face, trying his best to look trustworthy. To be honest, I don't trust any of them as far as I can throw them. "Where the hell am I?" I asked. "You're in a private mansion that is headquarters to the Assassin's Creed." Shining Armor said. "Why?" "We have been told of your skills in combat by a certain agent of ours," he gave a glance toward Fluttershy, "and we believe you have what it takes to be a part of the creed." "What makes you think I want to join you little organization?" I scoffed. This is crazy, these ponies are crazy. I'm no more special than a rock at the side of the dirt road. "Maybe this might convince you," Flash Sentry spoke up. He walked up the stairs I came from, then came back down, but this time with a picture frame in his teeth. He set it down in front of me and I picked it up with my hoof. It was a photo of my father with some other stallions sharing a drink at a bar. Their mugs were raised and huge smiles were plastered on their faces. What really caught my attention were the uniforms they wore. they had a somewhat different design, but were mostly long, white combat suit with a hood. My father's, though, was black a little bit of red at the rim of his hood, and a strange, silver insignia sat at the center of where two straps of red fabric crossed at his chest. The insignia looked like an upside down 'V', but the two ends that were supposed to face upward, had curves protruding from them, pointing towards each other. "Your father was one of our best operatives, Icarus." Shining Armor said, "He was one of the organization's fine leaders. His courage and knowledge was unsurmounted, which lead the creed through the toughest spots." I looked back at the photo and saw something off. I something white flashed at one of the torn corers of the photo. I quickly opened the back of the picture frame and removed the photo. Taped to the back of it was a note that was neatly folded. I removed the note from the photo, unfolded it, and read carefully. It read: Dear Icarus Swift, If you are reading this, then it means that my time on this land is up. You are probably aware, already, of this secret I've been keeping from you, and if not, then I am an Assassin for the Assassin's Creed. It is not a profession I enjoyed, nor is it one I can just ignore. Just know that I kept this secret from you to protect you. Now that you know, I wish for you to join the Creed. You will do the Creed some good. Training for you is unnecessary, for your skills come naturally. I'm proud of you, my son, and please, do the Creed good. Nothing is true, everything is permitted Your father always, Silver Swift My eyes read over the note again. Sadness welled up inside my chest, but I forced in back down. I folded the note and placed it and the photo into my jacket pocket. I looked back up at Shining Armor and the others. They stared at me expectantly. "You don't have to join us if you don't want to." Cadence stepped forward, putting a hoof on my shoulder, "Being a member of the Creed is a heavy burden to bear." "My father's last wish was for me to be a part of this Creed," I said, shrugging off her hoof, "and I will follow through with his request." I walked straight up to Shining Armor and looked him dead in the eye. "I will join your Creed... for my father." They all nodded in agreement. I have a feeling this is not going to be easy. Author's Note I forgot to mention that this is the first story of five that will all lead to an Avenger-like sixth story. The protagonists of each story will come together into one huge story. Give me some feedback on whether this is a good idea or not. Brohoof to you all! /)
Sequence 2 (Revised)Sequence 2 My father's old uniform fitted me perfectly. It posted little resistance as I ran from rooftop to rooftop in Ponyville in the dead of night. I would've flown, but my wing was still not in flying condition. Besides, this felt.... natural. The wind blew against my face as I ran. My hair whipped in random directions, and the silver Assassin's insignia on my chest glimmered against the moonlight. Running along side me was Shining Armor. He donned a uniform for himself. It was white and blue with the hood pulled over his head, shadowing his face from sight. Instead of the insignia being placed on his chest, it was stitched onto the back of his uniform. At his side was a thin sword that would have been mistaken for a metal stick. A single, thick strip of fabric ran across his chest and sheathed many small knives. A belt ran across his waist. It held an assortment of little pockets for certain items. I refocused my attention to the front as our destination finally came into view. "Alright we're here," I said to Shining Armor. He and I leaped off the roof and landed right at the front door to my house. Admittedly, it felt pretty cool bounding off of that building in this uniform. Black and red were always my favorite color combo. "Meet up with us again at the mansion tomorrow afternoon," Shining Armor spoke up, "I'll give you the lowdown on everything you need to know." He turned to leave, but as soon as he did so, he turned right back. "Good to have you as a part of the Creed, your father and my father were very good friends, you know." With that he teleported onto the nearest rooftop and ran off into the night. I sighed heavily. It's been quite the eventful night. I'm just glad I made it home, shut eye is just about what I need. I placed a hoof on the door knob and turned it. Huh... I'm pretty sure I locked that door before I left this morning. I ignored it for the time being. Maybe I just forgot. I walked into the dark living room and flicked on the switch. The house was desolate and void of any life as the lights flickered on, or so I thought. "SURPRISE!" A multitude of loud cheers reverberated throughout the confines of the house. I jumped at the sudden assault to my ears. My heart threatened burst forth as I placed a hoof to my chest in hopes to calm my storm. I caught my breath and examined the cause of my near death experience. Surrounding me were different ponies, but the question is why are they here? "Hi!" pink suddenly filled my vision as well and bright blue eyes. I jerked back a bit and had full view of the pink source. She was a mare with a pink coat and mane. Her mane reminded me of cotton candy and on her flank were balloons of yellow and blue. "I'm Pinkie Pie," she continued in an impossibly fast rate, "and Welcome to Ponyville, though you've been a resident here for a quite a while already, and that really surprised me considering how whenever someone new moves in, I'm one of the first to know, I mean I know Rain Light, your aunt, but I never knew that she had her nephew with her, I probably wasn't paying attention though, because I never saw you when I threw that party for your aunt, where you sick or something that day because I know you wouldn't purposely miss a party especially thrown by me, unless you were deliberately trying to avoid going to I party I threw, because in that case shame on you , you really missed out buddy, no one has ever lived until they have experienced one of my famous parties..." The mare known as Pinkie Pie continued on with her little speed speech as I felt a light tap on my soldier. I turned to see a purple alicorn look at me with an apologetic smile. "I'm very sorry about her," she said, "she's just gets very excited whenever she gets to meet somebody new. I'm Twilight Sparkle." Twilight Sparkle held her hoof out and I respectfully shook it. "How exactly does she know where I live?" I asked. "I think I can answer that question," the farm mare from this morning, Applejack, walked up next to Twilight. "Okay," I said raising an eyebrow, "please elaborate." "Well, I may have told her about you, and she may have looked up your name in the private files in town hall." She rubbed her hoof nervously. "But, enough with the formalities, let's get this party started!" Everybody cheered as loud robotic music began to play. How in the holy hell did they even managed to fit a DJ booth into my house. I tried my best to shoo everyone away from my house, but that posted no avail. No one could hear me over that ear piercing music. I eventually gave up and walked up to my room and locked the door behind me. I removed the assassin's uniform and threw it into my closet. Damn, that music was so fucking loud. I hopped into my bed and slammed both of my pillows over my ears. The music was still present, muffled, but present. "Aww, the party scene too much for you?" I quickly shot up and looked around the room only to see Pinkie Pie standing at the far corner of the room. "The fuck?" I nearly screamed, "How the hell did you get into my room? I locked it!" "Don't worry about it," she said, "So, I heard your the newest member of the Creed. I have to say, not bad lookin'." She walked around and looked me over slowly scanning my body with her eyes. Seriously, ever heard of personal space? "Cut to the chase," I said turning to her, "what is it you want exactly?" She stopped and faced me and gave an annoyed sigh. How is she annoyed by me? She's the one that threw a party at my house without my permission. "Well, if you must know," she said, "I'm just here to give you your proper gear." From seemingly out of nowhere, she produced a medium sized wooden box and plopped it onto my bed. Carefully I opened the box . Inside were strange devices. They looked like they would wrap around your hooves, and small blades were carefully secured to them. The blade seemed to be etched with words written in ancient Equestrian. The words were just mere gibberish to the untrained eye, but to me, the words read perfectly and smoothly. 'Nothing is true, everything is permitted.' "What are they?" I asked. "They're hidden blades," she responded, "they're an assassin's most important tool in preserving this world. These particular ones once belonged to your father." She picked up one of them and secured it to my hoof. The blade was positioned under my hoof. I flicked my hoof and the blade extended. I flicked my hoof once more and the blade retracted. I carefully placed the second blade under my hoof. Honestly, they didn't look half bad on me. "Wow," Pinkie responded, "not bad, but I'd like to see your skill. I've invited all of the Ponyville residents to this party, and I mean all of them. Among them is a Templar spy. He's currently aware that there is an assassin operative within this house. I'm pretty sure that you're aware on what I want you to do." I stared at her in confusion. At first I had no idea what she was getting at, until the motioned towards the blades carefully secured to my hooves. "You want me to kill that pony?" I asked, "you're insane. I've only ever killed a pony once, and I don't plan on doing it again." "Hey, it's your call," she shrugged, "if you want to be part of this creed, you have to show me your stuff. If it helps, your target has been accused of several rape cases and got off scott free every trial. Here's a tip, use your vision. He'll be the one glowing yellow." I was about to ask her how she knew about my vision, but she left right before I could even open my mouth. She had a point. If I'm going to be an assassin, I need to know how to act like an assassin. I took a deep breath and walked back outside. Everypony was still dancing and raving to the loud music. No one seemed to be sticking out in the crowd. I blinked on my vision and scanned the area. There! I spotted him. One pony glowing yellow among the crowed. I blinked off my vision and went into action. I blended in to the crowed as I made my way toward my destined target. His mane was bright green and his coat was yellow. Around his neck was a necklace that had a red plus dangling at the end. He was checking out mares one by one, his eyes scanning over their figures, from head to flank. He didn't even make and effort to conceal it. The mare he was checking out soon took notice and walked away in disgust. I've met people like him before, total douches. I made my way behind him, extended one of my blades, and stabbed him in the abdomen. Just then something weird happened. Everything paused at that very moment. The music stopped playing and the ponies stopped dancing. It was still and silent save for me and my target. He gasped clutching the fatal wound that will soon bring about his end. A pool of red formed under him staining the floor below. I locked eyes with him. "Y... you're him!" he exclaimed as blood gushed from his mouth, "You're the son of that one assassin!" I nodded in response to this, his eyes widened as his body fell limp and lifeless. With that, I walked away . The music and movement proceeded as though nothing had happened. Seconds after, a scream reverberated through the house. Looks like somepony found the body. I couldn't help but smile as all of the patrons of the party admired my handiwork. Pinkie Pie found me and gave me a pat on the soldier. "Welcome to the Assassin's Creed." she said with a smile. I couldn't help but smile too, but not at her friendly gesture. I looked back at the crowed forming around the dead body. I gave a low chuckle as I made my way upstairs. I really need some shuteye. I made it to my room and removed my blades. I placed them carefully back into the box. Author's Note I didn't really feel comfortable about the whole last part of this chapter so I revised the entire thing. Thanks for reading! /)
