A Newly Hooded Road to Walk

The water thundered down the cliffs of the waterfall, making the evergreens more mossy than ever from the mist. The cool, damp air felt delightful against Fluttershy's face and ran through her hair. It had been a while since her last visit to the falls, and she was glad that they were seemingly untouched by the recent progression of Ponyville. Fluttershy sat on a rock at the edge of the pool below the falls, dipping her hooves into the cold water, and waiting for any sign of her informant.

That was far too close back there... Fluttershy thought, recalling her chance encounter with Rainbow Dash just a few hours ago. She was worried about the consequences of what happened, for the last thing that Fluttershy needed was the city guard having her description, or Rainbow recognizing her when the two Pegasi finally meet. I really did kick the shit out of her didn't I? This feels horrible... Fluttershy hated the emotion settling in her stomach, that of resentment. To act violently towards her childhood role model did not sit well with her, and it made her worry how her work will affect her other friends in the future as well. If Fluttershy was to stay close with them as she had in the past, it could result in the other's getting involved involuntarily or hurt. I can't let that happen to them because of my actions, and to do that I'll have to distance myself from them... Thought Fluttershy, who's heart sank at the revelation-despite its truth.

"Ahh sitting in deep thought and reflection, that is something only taught by one's soul to my recollection."

Fluttershy's ears flinched at the sudden voice behind her, and she spun around to meet the stranger. The robbed figure walked ever closer despite Fluttershy's armaments.

"Are we here perhaps for the same reason?" Inquired Fluttershy, hoping the pony in front of her was her informant.

"We are indeed, both sisters to the same creed."

Fluttershy now recognized the rhymed speech. "Zecora?"

The zebra removed her hood and nodded at the notion "Come."

...

Miles away...

Rainbow Dash awoke to a flurry of concerned voices around her. The other Wonderbolts had found her unconscious on the forest floor, and were in a heated discussion as to how she might have ended up there. Rainbow sat up to collect her thoughts as to what happened, but was instead met with frantic questioning from her peers.

"Captain are you alright?!"

"What happened to you?!"

"Why are you way over here?!"

"Did you run into a tree or something!?"

Rainbow's brow stressed as the questions grew increasingly annoying, and along with her mental fog and the recent strike to her rib cage, the blue pony snapped.

"WOULD YOU GUYS SHUT UP!" The other Wonderbolts quickly grew silent, "J-just gimme a minute would ya?"

A few pony's said a quiet apology as Rainbow Dash lay back down and rubbed her temples. After another minute or so one stallion drew the courage to ask.

"So what happened Captain?"

Rainbow Dash sighed, "As you guys were practicing I saw somepony peeking their head out of the canopy. I thought it was weird so I flew after them, but they were super fast and running through the trees."

"Running? How do you even do that?"

"I don't know exactly, but as I got closer they swung around a tree and kicked me out of the air. It knocked me out cold and now here we are."

The other Wonderbolts conversed about the unique occasion, wondering about why the pony didn't want to be followed. Rainbow decided to leave out the other details, such as the weapons and the hood, but she knew deep down that somepony had to be told.

Rainbow Dash finally stood up, "Alright Wonderbolts, practice is over so lets head back to town."

"But what about this? We're not going to tell anypony?" Asked a peer, confused as to Rainbow's intentions.

"I'll go report it to the city guard, I might not be the first pony to have met this assailant."

...

Zecora's hut...

It was needless to say that Fluttershy was nothing but shocked, but not at all surprised, that Zecora was the informant. As she had ran through the forest to the falls the notion did cross her mind, but she didn't take the assumption to heart.

They had made it to Zecora's hut and went inside. Zecora walked over to her makeshift kitchen of sorts to brew tea, and Fluttershy sat in an old rocking chair at the corner of the hut. Fluttershy laid her weapons on a stump next to her and removed her hood, relaxing into the chair.

"Long day perhaps?" Inquired Zecora, her gaze drifting back to Fluttershy as the tea had begun to brew. Fluttershy, who's eyes were closed as she leant back, simply responded with a grunt of agreement.

"Apologies for a meeting so far out. I'm most suspicious that our foes are growing ambitious."

"It's alright, if it were anypony else I'd think it were a little audacious, but I understand. I don't exactly remember you being so far out here though."

"Yes well, Ponyville has begun to swell, and of the ponies who enjoy their privacy I have no parallel."

"Indeed." Fluttershy smiled at the nostalgia of their conversation, for she never thought she'd meet the old Zebra again.

"I must admit to my surprise my little mare, the new you and the old you I simply cannot compare." Zecora now brought over the herbal tea, a curious expression across her face. "And when I heard that Silvershade had taken your hand, I was certainly skeptical if you could handle the Creed's brand."

Fluttershy took a sip from her tea, and Zecora's mix woke her up rather instantly. "Silvershade made me realize that the way I was living had no meaning, other than my time with my close friends that is, so I chose to make something of my time with the living."

"For such a timid mare that's quite the revelation, it could not have been easy to make such a transformation."

Zecora's comment made Fluttershy remember the fear she felt during the early stages of her training. They were the greatest and most traumatic fears she had ever felt, and for a time one could say they had broken her. "No... no it wasn't."

Zecora realized she may have gone somewhere she shouldn't have, so she changed the subject.

"Onto the work at hand sister?" Said Zecora, urging Fluttershy to join her at her table. Fluttershy went over, and pulled out the written contracts from her satchel.

"Well," said Fluttershy as she opened the envelope, "you've been here much longer, so where should we start?"

Zecora pulled out her own documents, one of which was a sort of list. "Achilles told me quite a long time ago that you would be coming, so I have been working on an order to our culling."

The list, as Fluttershy had inferred, was a variety of names. "So what do you think?"

"Start small, then grow tall."

Fluttershy frowned at her striped comrade. Though she understood the background of Zecora's accent, her rhyming often got in the way of conversation. "You've already lost me."

"Sorry," Zecora gave a weak smile, "If we are to target the biggest rat, the lesser ones will quickly hide from the presence of us-the cat. Thus, start small and work our way up, that way the others will stay as ignorant as a pup."

"Oh, like putting out a fire from the base?"

"Indeed sister."

"So what ponies did you have in mind to start?"

Zecora pointed to two ponies of the younger caliber according to the contract form. "Them to start, their deaths will help us build an important relationship. One needed to move up our chart."

Fluttershy picked up the forms and read them carefully. "So who are they exactly?"

"Crimson Breeze, a Pegasus; and Harvus, an Earth Pony. Both stallions in Ponyville's very own branch of the Opium mob."

"The mob is here!?" Fluttershy was taken aback. Typically the Brotherhood and the mob would stay neutral for mutual benefits, but the relationship was historically unstable. The thought that such thugs were making a home in Ponyville was disturbing Fluttershy to say the least.

"Indeed they are, since the region is farmable near and far. That aside, I've created an alliance with them that we should abide. Our targets are important grunts with access to much of the mob's activities, but the mob has suspected betrayal despite their allegiances; Therefore, the Brotherhood and the Mob have a similar goal to shoot for."

Fluttershy nodded in approval. "If we're already in the alliance can I just jump into this?" Fluttershy asked, anxious to start. It had been many months since her last solo mission, and she wanted to test herself again after a spell of inactivity.

"No, this is the mob so you'll have to meet our comrades for the go. If not we'd be going after mob members, unblessed by their Don. A no-no."

"Ugh." sighed Fluttershy, for she had hoped that a mission would finally exclude social interaction. "So who do I have to meet?"

"The Don: Quagmire 'Flat Head' Holm."

...

Somewhere in Ponyville, deep in the night...

Rainbow Dash flew silently over the Ponyville streets, making her way to one in particular. Below her passed the city, all lights except the streetlights were off, and the streets were virtually empty. As Rainbow Dash hovered by she studied the street names, and hoped she was headed in the right direction.

There it is, She thought, and flew down to the street. It was as dark as it could be, but Rainbow pressed on into the black street. She was scheduled to meet somepony, but she didn't exactly know specifically where they were supposed to meet-only the street name was given to her.

Rainbow called out into the dark, "Hello? I'm here!" She was met with no response after a decent amount of waiting.

"So you are who I'm waiting for?" The deep voice came from behind Rainbow, and she jumped back in response. The dark, nearly malevolent, presence before her made her tremble, and the fact that she couldn't see the stallion did not help her discomfort.

A rare shriveling voice responded to the deep one, "I-I-I think so..."

"So give me the information you promised."

Rainbow struggled to find the words, "Y-yeah sure... I-I think I met an assassin early today, and I think I know who it is."

"...Explain."