The Assassins of Equestria

Facing an Army

                                                                              Written by: Ballpoint

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"Damn it sister, we have to leave!" Velox kept shouting over and over again, I just stood there, my bruised, and cut face stared blankly at the garden door, listening to the heavy clink and clank of reinforced steel. I didn't care for my brothers words much, even as my superior, but soon I found a felt a harsh pull on my shoulder, bringing me out of trance. But I didn't want out, so I spun around with wood in my mouth and tempered steel to Velox's throat, him gasping sharply. I wasn't going to actually attack him, he's kin, but I needed intimidation to get him to understand.

My voice was a bit muffled with my weapon in the way but I'm pretty sure I got my point across," Velox Novo, if you don't shut up and listen for one second..." I trailed off a bit, but regained my speech," We're going to kill Malnum."

"Thats not your assignment, that was-"

"I know!" I shouted, not wanting to be reminded of her death, in addition to getting the sharpened edge of the cleaver forward, making him back peddle,"I know, but he needs to die, it doesn't matter who kills him, I, and the Brotherhood need him dead." The hoof clanking was getting closer, me getting the picture of at least twenty threats rushing through the halls of mansion.

"But-" Now my blade was only an atom's distance from his throat, it brushing against his gray hide.

"It isn't open to discussion, I'm going to stay here any way. You can run away if you see fit." I quickly withdrew the cleaver, now facing the door, widening my stance. I never tore my view off the door but I heard the shinck of a sword being drawn and my sibling taking his place beside me.

"Your reckless Celer," He remarked, me grunting in displeasure,"but I respect your reasonings. We shall fight together." I nodded in acknowledgement. Moments before most fights and battles, I tended to calm, almost abnormally, and I noticed that it seemed to demoralize my opponents, like I was some kind of machine programed to fight and kill. But now, my breath has quickened, my legs a bit usable and my mind was over analyzing everything, clear signs of anxiety. It was my brother that was causing this, because for the first time in my life we were going to fight together ( other than what happened in the hall.) I was afraid I was going to lose him, he had always been my responsibility, my little brother.

I always said I would protect him, even if it meant to defy my very beliefs.

Without any warning, the doors burst open with a legion of around fifty golden clad guards, equipped with spears, axes, swords and claymores, the wave of iron in our direction. Tactics always depended on how fast you can move, strike, block or parry attacks, and thats what it meant to be an Assassin, anticipate where your enemy will strike and parry it.

So when the tip of an iron spear threatened to impale me, I fluidly side stepped and threaded the needle, let the spear glide into the small hole in my cleaver and jerked it, effectively disarming my opponent. I fell with a clatter and he died with a sputter as a thin line of crimson appeared on his neck and then gushed as he fell, along with his spear. I continued my onslaught, ducking under swords, delivering kill blows, my robes beginning to retain the fluids of my kills.

Bucking a guard at her side, breaking her ribs and them in turn impaling her heart, I widened my stance, spread my wings and pumped them downward, launching me into the air, giving me clear view of the battlefield. There were still a sizable army in our mists, I could see the enemy begin to circle around my brother, but he held them off, either by his own blade or making his opponents drive their weapons into each other with a quick dodge.

Not a second later, I was brought back down to Equestria, plummeting the equivalent of a two story building, the harsh wind blowing back my hood as I dove, my leaf green mane blowing wildly behind and in my face. The ground began to quickly come closer and with it I gushed my wings again, cushioning my fall along with the formerly living target beneath my hooves. The battle had begun to take its direction toward Velox, the concentration of attackers heavier in his direction.

A few clever swipes and several kills later I had reached the pony perimeter along with three guards about to take a swing at me with the swords and axes. First there was a unicorn, her about to drive her levitating axe into my skull, then there was a large stallion, him charging me from my right, opposite of the unicorn, lastly was a colt who outright was charging me him void of a weapon.

So, I charged the colt first, avoiding the mares axe entirely and driving my own blade into my targets skull, him dropping to the ground, dead before he even touched it. Without looking back, I hacked, slashed and parried my way throughout the wave of opposition and was beside my kin, him withdrawing his blade from the inside of an equine. The size had gone down quite a bit but there were around twenty left and fatigue was beginning to set in as I blocked a mace blow and shoving it off, throwing its user to the ground, him being trampled by his allies.

Next was something I was never expecting. In the mists of the cutting of flesh, the breaking of bone and the cries of pain, I noticed a figure in the back entrance, a yellow maned unicorn clad in peasants attire, Malnum. Pure rage now influenced me along with its fuel, adrenaline as I flew above the fight and headed straight for the murdering monster. He apparently foresaw this and began to gallop into the building, towards the entrance.

Your not getting away.

With a sudden pump, I shot up above the building and jetted across the roof, dropping onto it and going into a full gallop. The clay tiles of the roof were a little hard to navigate but I managed until I half fell, half jumped off the edge of the building, landing on the cobbled courtyard path with a loud clank, but failed to get my target, him already on his way to the gates. Nothing stopped me from galloping full speed toward him other than the guards who blocked my path as Malnum was released of the empty streets, no pony was up at this hour.

Evading the opposition with a quick jet over them and landing a few feet behind them, I resumed my galloped toward the unicorn. He began to tire out on slow down as we ran a few yards, me only feet from him. But I began to tire faster than him and he began to gain distance.

He wasn't going to get away from me, after what he did, never. So with a quick jerk, I let my cleaver fly throughout the air and watched it descend and sink into his back causing him to tumble and the blade to dislodge itself, skidding on the ground. Coming to a quick trot, hopped over the Diversus knight, taking my cleaver in mouth on my way over him.

The stallion tried to get up an resume his run but I pinned him down with my hooves, he seemed too tired to even break my own fatigued body. I looked at the pathetic pony before me, the confident killer I saw at the party was now little more than a sniveling mess, pleading for his life.

"Malnum Sidus." I spoke coldly, lowering my head so we were eye level,"I want you to remember this face, because its the last you will ever see." After about a second of silence, I jerked the blade deep into his neck, silencing him forever.

But I didn't move, for a full minute I remained locked onto the handle of the weapon, a million things colliding in my mind at once. I had killed the beast that killed a seventeen year old mare but there was one thing I neglected to remember in the haze of my rage, I had a sibling fighting with me.

Without retrieving my own weapon and a distressed gust of my wings, I made a mad jet toward the mansion. Why was I so stupid, I beat myself, leaving him in the claws of a battle. Dear Celestia let him still be breathing.

Finally, I reached the former residence of Malnum Sidus but it was silent, either because my brother had killed of the rest of the guards or he was among the dead. I got my answer  as I flew above the garden turned war zone as dead bodies littered the once vegetative plot, blood splashed against the ground, plants and my brother, who still stood, rather unstable, shifting back and forth.

"Velox!" I flew and dropped right next to him and found his reason for his wobbly composure, his robe had an ever spreading blood stain at his side along with a tear. He looked at me meekly but collapsed, going into shock,"No don't..." I checked his pulse and exhaled, he was still alive. His injury was pretty bad, he would die of blood loss if I didn't get help. Thinking of where to take him without arousing suspicion only one place surfaced and in turn I slung him over my back, grunting on the weight and made my way out of the vacant residence.

Please Velox, don't leave me...

Error Type 127D-Memory Interrupted. Subject Recovery Immediate

                                                                                                ***

"Spells, get up!"

"She's waking up!"

"What?" I said, blinking erratically and finding myself being unstrapped from the Animus by Bran, his expression dire. I was confused, I wasn't done with the memory and felt empty, lacking,"What happened? I wasn't finished." Bran unfastened my hind leg straps and I hopped down rather confused but then the reason smacked right in the face. Spells lie on his side on the floor, unmoving. At the sight of a him in this state, I quickly walked over to Dream who was sitting next to him, shaking him violently," Is he alright?" I could see the black colt that freed me from the Animus sit beside Dream, worry in his eyes.

"I think he passed out but..." She trailed off, shaking him again,"Spells!" No response. She sighed and let him down gently, he was out cold. The unicorn got up,"Arcanic magic is powerful stuff. It wore him out until he lost consciousness. The thing that I don't understand is why he didn't tell us?" Strange, Spells was so open with most people, and we were all his friends.

I joined in on the sigh and looked back down on the sleeping equine on the hardwood floor then faced Bran," Bran can you help me get him on the my bed." I neglected to offer him the couch because apparently while I was in the Animus, a few large cardboard boxes now populated the green futon. In compliance, he helped me flip the aqua unicorn onto my back as well as his, and set out for my bedroom. The clock on my wall above my bedroom doorway read 2:55pm, bringing surprise to mind.

"Bran, I thought I was only going to be in the Animus for an hour. It been almost three." Brans eyes quickly shifted their view to the floor as we entered my bedroom, he let out a synthetic cough, clearly nervous. That was something that I was starting to get sick off, everyone seemed on edge or nervous around me, with no explanation whatsoever.

We rolled Spells onto the bed, him flopping onto his side. I faced Bran again still awaiting an answer, his composure faltered and he broke eye contact, looking at the floor.

"Uh, we uh..." It felt odd that a pony with a mechanical personality like Bran, talk with such a wavering tone.

"Well?" I pushed, making him falter further to the point where he just turned and began to walk out the room," Hey, what's wrong with-"

"Please Faith," He finally answered, his voice low and deep," stop asking questions, because I can't answer then." The way he said that made it sound like a plea and an enforcement and bringing about more unwanted mystery.

Along with mystery came some irritation,"What do you mean? I let you guys convert my living room to a damned laboratory and you can't answer my questions, what's-"

"Stop. Please, I can't tell you anything, I'm sorry." He walked out of the room before I could continue, the tone in his voice was as if he was scared, intimidated.

Remain in plain sight...

"Gah." I grunted slightly, taking a seat on the bed next to the sleeping Spells, rubbing my temples. It was that Bleeding Effect again, it could have been prevented if I had been pulled out two hours ago. I was on the brink of abandoning this endeavor completely, I was sick of the memories, sick of the mystery and sick of all this bull crap.

But then I looked back down at my lifelong friend, him breathing soundly but he looked haggard. Rings formed around his eyes and wear was apparent on his face and I felt guilty. He'd be alright, sure, but he was in my bed, worn out, because of my persistence. Im Faith 'Iron' Wings..., I recall, face hoofing almost immediately.

The Brotherhood is open to all, no matter background or intent, as long as you chose to oppose those who wish to strip freedom and harmony from whom you wish to protect...

This was too much, I was done for the day and for a minute, I just didn't care anymore. So I just lie next to Spells on the bed and fell into a deep sleep, wanting to worry about this mess some other time

.

Aid is for those who need it, not those who want it...