The Arcane Assassin Allegiance
I looked around to make sure nopony was watching me. If they found out what I was doing, It could be devastating to the other world I was going to visit. This human dimension seemed dangerous, but something drew me towards it. Something strong.
I Started the spell and pushed power into my horn. I had to do this quick so the royal sisters didn't find out about this 'unsupervised' trip. I saw the air in front of me shimmer, then split, as if an invisible knife had come though reality.
I watched a the portal opened up wider. It din't show anything beyond, but it did emit a sound of some kind.
I prepared the transformation spell as I took a deep breath and stepped through.
***********
I stepped onto a large stone. There was a trail of similar stones going in two directions. I looked in front of me and saw carriges going across an enormous black rock that appeared to be going in the same directions as the path I was on. But the carriges didn't have stallions pulling them. They were moving on their own.
I looked around at the inhabitants. Theywere the bipeds I had rad about. Two legs, two arms and two hands. They wer each wearing dfferent clothes and had their manes up in dfferent styles.
I looked at myself to make sure the transformation spell had worked. Fourtunately, it had. I was standing ontwo legs with my arms by my sides like everyone else.
I began walking on two legs. It was a lot simpler than I had expected. I walked down the path that I was on and over to a hotel. I pulled out some money and bought a room for one.
After getting used to my surroundings, I laid down on the bed. My six-month leson was about to begin. And if I was right, I would be returning only a few seconds after I had left due to inter-dimensional time rifts.
I heard some screaming from above me. I looked upand remembered that it was a three-story building. I waited for it to quiet down, but it didn't. I heard some smashing and smething breaking. Then something metal hit he floor. Then the door slammed.
I looked outside my door, wondering if someone would be coming dwn the stairs. I watched someone come down a flight and then stop at my floor. I paused wondering what to do.
"Wha happened?" I asked this stranger.
"I had a fight with my fiancé," he said. "She broke off the wedding. Now look at me, I'm talking to strangers."
"I think it's a good thing to talk to those who are friendly," I said. "Usually, they're willing to listen. And you can make some good friends that way."
"That actually makes a lot of sense," he said. "Who are you?"
"I'm Nocte Natus," I replied. "My friend usually call me Natus."
"Is that Latin?" he asked.
"Yes," I replied. "What's your name?"
"I'm John Stephens," he said. "I'ts nice to meet you, Natus."
"If you want," I said, "You can call me somethng that isn't so awkward for you to say."
"You seem like a Natalie to me," he said. "Is it okay if I call you Natalie?"
"It's fine with me," I said.
9 months later
"Natalie," John called from the second floor of their new house. "Where do you want the antique lamp you bought?"
"Put it somewhere in the guest room," I replied. We had just finished getting all of our boxes from out of storage or the hotel. It was a nice little two-story house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It was all we needed.
John and I had been dating for three months over the amount of time I had originally planned on being in this dimension. It as nice to have someone who loved me for me and not because I had magical powers stronger than anypony in history so far.
I couldn't leave him. It would be too hard on him. But I did have something to tell him about befre we moved any further in this relationship.
"John," I began, "Could you come downstairs for a minute?"
He walked down the stairs and looked at me with curiosity. "What is it?"
"I have something to tell you," I said. "I know I'm going to sound crazy, but believe me, it's the truth."
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"I'm talking about where I come from," I replied.
He looked at me in shock. I had never told him anything about Equestria or my previous life. It had been eating away at me for the past eight months and I needed to tell him.
"I come from a place called Equestria," I began. "Most inhabitants aren't human there. In fact, humans are thought of as mythical creatures there."
"Are you feeling alright?" he asked me. "This sounds kind of far fetched."
"Just let me finish," I said. "The common people aren't actually peple, they're ponies. There are three different kinds of pony; earth pony, unicorn, and pegasus."
He sat down and started nodding, listening intently. After pausing for a few seconds, I continued.
"I was a unicorn before I came here. I had magical powers and still do. If you think I'm crazy and want to leave, then go ahead. Just remember that I love you."
He looked at me. "You said that where you come from there are no humans, right?" he asked.
"Right," I said. "Humans are a part of mythology and theories."
"If humans are a part of mythology, then how did you know how to get here and wht to look like?" he asked.
"You missed the theories part," I said. "There was a great unicorn named Starswirl the Bearded. He came up with a theory that there are different things called dimensions that are similar to how we live but could hold any creature living like we do. When he died, his theories died with him, with the exception of a parallell dimension. I was his personal student and carried on his work after he died. I figured out the spell that breaks open the wall between worlds. I used a transformation spell that would last as long as I'm in the Human dimension."
He looked shocked. "You really do believe this, don't you?" he asked. "You really believe there are unicorns and pegasi and that you are one of them."
I looked back at him pleadingly. I had to prove to him in some way that I wasn't crazy. An idea came to me and I spoke up. "I do believe it because it's true. And I can prove it."
He looked at me in confusion. "How would you do that?"
"I said that I still have my magic, remember," I reminded him. "Let me show you that it's real."
He looked at me with amusement now on his face. "You want to do some magic?" he asked. "What are you going to do? Ask me to think of a number between one and ten?"
I closed my eyes, focussing my magic. I felt the familiar aura of magic around me strengthen and solidify. I opened my eyesand streched out my arm. Levitating people was a lot harder than I had imagined.
John called out in surprise. He was shocked that this was happening, knowing that there was no reasonable explination. "Are you doing this?"
I looked at him. "Yes," I said.
14 months later
I looked at John with comfort. He had proposed two nights ago. I had given up on going back. It was too wonderful here.
I looked around our home. All was calm. All was peaceful. All was quiet.
A little too quiet.
I got up and looked around the room. Something didn't quite feel right. Something felt odd. There was someone in the house.
"Show yourself," I said quietly as to not wake John. I Looked around and stopped at one point in the room.
I closed my eyes and focused. If I could enhance the light in that area, I could reveal the mysterious visitor.
"Don't bother with that spell," said a voice from the corner. "It will only make the discision harder."
"What descision?" I asked. "Who are you?"
"I am the leader of a group called the Allegiance," he said. "We are a secret orginazation of magical assassins who kill the monsters of this world. If you attempt to tell anyone of our existance, we will kill you."
I looked at him with an intensity that I hoped he could feel. "Now answer my first question," I demanded.
"We have been keeping humans safe for millenia. That is what drew us to you. When you first opened that portal, It posed a threat to human existance. An army could come through. And even if one didn't, if the portal had staed open, it would have begun to consume our world. The world where it was originally opened had control. Fourtunately, you closed it before it became a threat."
"That doesn't answer my question," I spat.
"You could either join us andhelp protect the human race, or you could stand by and watch," he said. "The choice is yours."
I thought about it. I could help protect my new home from creatures that shouldn't be here. I could help protect those I love.
"I'm in," I said. "On a few conditions."
"Name them."
"First, my family stays out of it," I said. "If even one monster comes here, I'm out. Second, you tell me everything I need to know about these creatures. Third and most importantly, if some sort of family crisis or building happens, I get time off."
He looked at me, walking out from the shadows. "Deal," he said. "Welcome to the Allegiance."
The Arcane Assassin Allegiance
I was running down the hall in a panic. Adrenaline coursed through my veins. The hollow screeches echoed behind me. I took a sharp left and continued my escape. If I didn’t get out of here, those things would eat me.
I burst through a door and found myself trapped. I searched the room for anything I could use as a weapon. I ran over to a table and flipped it over. Angling myself, I broke off a table leg. I then stood by the only entrance to the room and waited.
Footsteps echoed loudly in the empty halls of the warehouse. I could barely separate the footsteps from the sound of my heart pounding. But there were other strange sounds, sounds that could have been words.
The door flew open and I barely had time to swing my improvised club. It shattered over the thing’s head and a few splinters hit me. I dove over it while it was recovering and ran down the hall. It leaped at me with inhuman speed and tackled me to the ground. I screamed and thrashed in a futile attempt to throw it off of me.
Something else loomed up behind my foe. It picked up the monster on top of me and threw it across the hall like a doll. “Run,” this hulking figure said.
I rolled and came up to run. Before I could take a step, the wall to my right exploded and threw me against the opposite wall. I hit the wall hard and fell to my knees. I could hear hissing sounds that could have been a victory yell. I could feel claws rake my arms and torso.
Then my alarm clock woke up half the town.
After reacquainting my face with the floor, I pulled myself up, groaning. I walked over to the beeping clock and turned it off.
Looking around my room, I noticed some red on my bed. I glanced at myself and noticed scratches along my arms, a few of them bleeding.
I walked over to my bathroom and washed the small scratches. After getting dressed, I walked downstairs to get some breakfast, all the while wondering what my alarm was doing on during a weekend.
I put some water on the stove to boil for tea and put some bread in the toaster. I decided that I had simply forgotten to turn off my alarm. Next, I had to think of a story to tell my parents about my arms. They wouldn’t believe that it was just a very vivid dream.
Before I could think of anything, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. I grabbed a jacket and went back to making my breakfast.
“Good morning, Victor,” my stepmother said.
“Morning,” I replied, plainly.
“I wanted to talk to you about something.”
“And just what would that be?” I asked sarcastically. “You always try the same thing.”
“I just think it would help you get past this,” she said. “It’s always hard when someone loses a parent.”
“Like I haven’t heard that one before,” I replied smarmily. “Just leave me alone.”
“You shouldn’t be left alone in your condition,” she said. “It’s bad for your health.”
“It’s even worse if I talk about it,” I said.
“Talking will help heal the wounds left by death,” she said. “It helps you forget.”
That triggered something inside of me, something primal and dangerous, fueled by rage. “Did you ever think that maybe I don’t want to forget?” I asked. “Did you ever think that I want these wounds to stay fresh? That is the only memory I have of her, and I’m not going to let you take that away!” By now, I was screaming. I didn’t hold anything back. “I barely know you! You are nobody to me! Just because you married my father doesn’t make you family!”
She stared at me with her jaw hanging open slightly. She turned around and spoke softly. “I’m sorry I brought it up. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Apology not accepted,” I said, still angry. I snatched my toast and tea and stormed upstairs. I didn’t want to think about what she had brought up. It was a little too painful at the time.
I turned on the radio and brought up the internet to play a puzzle. I had to keep my mind busy. However, fate had a different way of doing that.
“This has been the sixth attack this month from the group called ‘The Allegiance’,” the reporter said over the radio. “The police have not found a connection between the victims and recommend that everyone sleep with a weapon nearby.”
I decided to look into this group some more. I did a general search and came up with a lot more than I had imagined.
The Allegiance was a group of so-called assassins that claimed to have mystical powers. They rarely left evidence, but even when they did, it wasn’t enough to follow.
None of the victims had anything in common other than being human. All of them were killed differently, some with fire, others with blades and others with bullets. I thought maybe they were just a group of crazy people, but something didn’t quite seem right.
I began to look into it a little more when I heard a quiet thud. I looked up and grabbed the knife I kept at my desk at all times. Freeing it from the sheath, I moved quietly over to the stairwell and peeked around the corner just as the door crashed in.
I could hear my stepmother scream. I saw two men come in and look around.
“Go look upstairs,” said the point man. “The boss said we’d know what we have to find.”
“He said that we’d know him when we see him,” said the man behind him. “We’re looking for a person. I say, we tranquilize everyone in this house and take all of them. Then we have no doubt we got the right one.”
I backed away from the stairwell and looked around desperately. These two had experience in categories I didn’t. Plus, they had guns. The only gun we had in the house was locked in a safe in my parent’s room.
I saw the room door open a little and my dad peek out. He looked at me and motioned at me to go back to my room. I moved back some but stayed in the hall. He rolled his eyes and crept out of the room. I saw the gun in his hand and realized why he wanted me back.
“Just go upstairs and check,” said the first man. “I’ll look around down here. And maybe we could do something to make the woman a little more comfortable. She’s asleep, not dead. And remember, no live ammo. Only use-” He cut off his sentence.
I froze, thinking they saw me or my dad. I readied my knife in a reverse grip and moved forward. When I felt something cold rest against my back, I froze again.
“You’ve got some guts, kid,” said the man behind me. “But you should really make sure you know where all of your enemies are first.”
I stood there, trying to piece together a plan. “Did your boss tell you specifically who you’re after?” I asked.
“He said there would be something about him that stands out,” replied the man behind me. “That there would be some sort of aura around him. Kind of like what’s around-” he stopped speaking and I felt the gun shift to press closer to my back.
I took this opportunity to spin, bringing the knife up, cutting his arms. I grabbed his gun arm and twisted so he would drop it. Catching the weapon, I buried the muzzle of it into the back of his head. “Talk,” I said.
“I can’t believe he sent us after a kid,” said the man. “Look. I didn’t want to hurt you. If you keep that gun trained on me, I’m going to have to.”
I shifted the gun down and shot him in the leg. Instead of the explosion that usually comes from a gun, it barely made a noise at all. I saw a dart sticking out of the man’s leg. Shocked, I backed away some.
That’s when I heard the real gunshot. It echoed through the house and popped my ears. I staggered backward, trying to regain my footing.
I looked around the corner again and saw one man down and bleeding. The other was standing there, probably in shock. I lined up the sights and shot a dart into his back and he almost instantaneously passed out. I then took out my cell phone and called the police.
The rest of that day was questions and stories. I didn’t get to find out why they came after me until just over a week later.
I was walking down the hall at school and tripped, not noticing the foot in front of me. I stumbled for a few seconds and fell down. After getting back up, I looked back to where I had tripped. The school bully was backing away mockingly, chuckling. I gave him my best death stare and walked away.
It was then that I noticed a piece of paper sticking out of my pocket.
If you want to know about last week, come to the abandoned warehouse tonight at 11:00.
-X
I stared in disbelief at this piece of paper. Someone had put it in my pocket without me noticing. Someone knew about last week. More importantly, they had information I needed.
Without thinking, I stuffed the note back in my pocket and walked out of school. I had to get home so I could get ready for tonight. I didn’t know what was going to happen or who was going to be there.
I ran home and bolted up to my room. I started piecing together my makeshift armor and pulling out some light weapons. I put on the armor and started to tighten the straps that would hold my weapons. I then slid my weapons into place and took the last piece of my outfit.
Moving downstairs in my cloak felt different with all of the weapons on my body. I stopped in the kitchen and ate a sandwich before leaving for the long walk to the warehouse. On my way out, I grabbed a soda for refreshment once I got there.
The trip took longer than I thought since I had to stick to side routes. I got to the warehouse a little before 11:00 and found a place to hide out.
Staying in the shadows, I watched and waited for anyone to come by. I saw one man walk in, pausing to type in a code on the wall. I watched his hand but couldn’t quite make out what the code was.
I focused my thoughts. If I could center them on that pad, then I could figure out the code without trying. I found the code and calmly walked up to the door. After punching in the code, the door hissed on hydraulic locks and cracked open a bit.
This abandoned warehouse wasn’t so abandoned after all. That kind of locking mechanism needed to be constantly checked and re-pressurized. I took a step in and closed the door behind me.
“I was hoping you would join us tonight, Victor,” said someone in the room. I looked around but couldn’t see him. “That name won’t do, however. I believe you will need a new one. That is, if you are willing to join us. Otherwise, this was a waste of time for both of us and the waste of a powerful young warlock.”
I saw a figure shift in the corner and a man walks out into the light. “Now why don’t you show us that you really are Victor and drop that veil of yours?”
I looked at him in disbelief and reached for one of my weapons. When he didn’t react, I knew something was fishy. “Why do you want me here?” I asked.
“I see you haven’t moved from the door,” he said. “As to why I want you here, you are holding a solid veil without trying. You were able to stop two of three kidnappers without taking any damage. You have access to weapons and you don’t know why. You can convince people of anything you want to, including yourself. Victor, you are a natural-born warlock. You have so much untapped power.”
I stared at him with a look of shock. He was saying that I had magical powers. He was asking me to join a cause of some sort. He was willing to give me answers in return. “Who are you?” I asked.
“We are the Allegiance. We have been protecting this city for eons without recognition. We kill monsters that threaten human existence.”
I stood there like a statue. I was in the heart of the Allegiance headquarters. I could stop them. I could end the killing.
You have the power, I thought. Use it. Stop these people from killing any more.
“You do need some training, though,” the man said. “You appear to lose focus when debating over choices. So are you going to join us or attempt to kill us?”
I drew the largest blade I had with me, a six-inch knife. “I think I’ll give you a choice instead,” I said, laying down the blade. “If you attack me, I will fight. If you don’t, then I walk out of here.”
I turned to walk away but saw the exit guarded. “You won’t get out of here without choosing.”
The lights dimmed and a creeping feeling came over me. Something really bad was about to happen.
“How did you get in here?” asked the man.
“I used focus to figure out the code,” I replied. “Why?”
He drew a sword along with everyone else in the room. I hadn’t noticed how many people were in there until that moment. I saw blades begin to glow with power. Someone kicked my knife toward me and I caught it. Looking around, I realized what this reminded me of.
“Vampires!” he screamed. “Everyone get to your escape locations! Meet back at location Alpha-Gamma! Protect Victor!”
I stood there, waiting to hear footsteps pound on the floor, but silence continued to rule. I looked around; focusing on what little light there was left and saw that everyone had almost completely vanished. Almost everyone, anyways.
I could see a single large figure in the room. He stood there, watching the door.
I turned and ran, hoping I could find a way out. I had to find a way out. I ran down the hall in a panic. I heard something hit the door and metal tearing. I could hear hollow screeches ring out through the warehouse.
I remembered my dream and took a right instead of a left and found myself at another fork. I took another right and almost ran straight into the door. I tried to open it, but it wouldn’t budge. I gathered up power from around me, focusing it into something solid.
I twitched a few fingers at the door and the handle twitched. I heard metal being cut and opened the door easily.
I stared at the weapons in this room. I saw the swords and knives, bows and crossbows, side-arms and rifles. I saw some wooden staves as well and angled them to barricade the door.
Searching the room for an exit, I picked up a few weapons for later use. I took a crossbow for ranged assaults and a short sword for more personal fights. After taking two cases of bolts, I moved back to the door, preparing to fight.
Knocking the staves out, I waited for the door to burst open. I waited for a good three minutes before just running out of the door. I didn’t care about stealth and ran as fast as I could for the door. I felt a tingle in the base of my neck.
Without thinking, I swung the sword in a wide arc, decapitating the vampire. I didn’t even think about how I was able to that while running for my life. I just kept on running until I came out of the hole where the door used to be.
I paused, panting. I couldn’t wait for too long. Those things would be after me as soon as they noticed I was gone. I looked across the field and began to run again.
A voice behind me made me jump. I brought the blade of my sword up to this person’s throat. I looked at him, recognizing him for the leader of the Allegiance who had been talking to me earlier.
“Run,” he said. “Go home. Meet me behind the school during your lunch in a week if you accept this offer.” “Is that what I’m going up against?” I asked.
“Those things killed one of our own,” he said. “They’ve always been trying to kill all of us. Those things killed someone that you barely know.”
I looked at him, thinking over his words. They could mean a lot of people. There weren’t many that I really knew well, though.
“Think about that,” he said, running off.
I heard a noise and spun, feeling an odd weight in my pocket. Remembering the drink, I pulled it out and threw it in the direction of the movement.
I turned and ran back to my house. I had a lot to think about and not much time left to sleep. Not that I was going to get to sleep after almost being killed by creatures that belong only in books.
Author's Note
This chapter along with the next one don't go much into Equestria. That comes in later chapters. Please no spoilers in the comments.
-fanofawesomeness
