//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3. The Order 
// Story: Return Of The Dark Lord 
// by UmbraKnight 
//------------------------------//

The chariot dropped me off in the jungle next to the mountain to avoid any suspicions. That meant I had to trot through the jungle a few miles to get there, 3 miles through a dense hot jungle. I tried to stay in the shade where the sun wouldn't be so bad but the humidity didn't help, its like I was going swimming. Mosquito's were buzzing around me like crazy I thought they were going to suck me dry! I was almost to my destination I saw something behind a tree, I trotted to get a better view and say that it was a pony. "Hello?" I called but got no response. I trotted towards him to get a better look. "Hey are you alri-" I stopped looking in awe at him. An arrow hit him in the head and pinned him against a tree. The body looked fresh so what ever did that is still close by. "Buck" I said while backing away from the body. Something stirred in the bushes near me and I quickly turned getting ready  for a fight.

My heart started to beat faster as the adrenaline started to pump through my body. "Come on plot hole, make my day." I muttered to myself waiting for what ever it was to emerge. Something was coming out, the brush was shaking it must be something big. In a normal paced movement an armadillo emerged from the bushes. "That's it?" I said getting out of my stance. The armadillo looked up at me. "Got to admit you had me going there for a minute." I said to the armadillo. A loud yell came from behind me, I turned around to find a unicorn charging at me using his magic to float a rifle with a bayonet at the end of it. I ducked the gun and donkey kicked him in the face, he fell and dropped the gun but quickly got up. I rushed over to the gun but he teleported to it first, grabbing the gun I pushed the barrel away from me as he fired off two shots. I punched him once in the face then used the butt of the rifle to bash him in the gut. His magic over powered me and he slashed my right front leg, I didn't notice it I just focused on getting the gun away from him. He got more frantic as if he wanted to bite me but that caused him to weaken his magical grip on the gun so I grabbed it. Using the bayonet  I slashed him across the neck and he screamed in pain grabbing his neck, it wasn't a deep cut. I quickly threw down the gun and grabbed his head slamming if face down on the ground, with one last punch I shattered his skull having blood and brain matter splatter on the ground.

I stood up looking around and panting, I made sure there was no pony else coming at me. A very painful burning sensation radiated from where I was bleeding from, it didn't look bad just severed the capillaries. I wrapped some gauze around it and continued on cautiously where there was one there is bound to be more. Tired I finally reached it the home of the Arch Blades the oldest order of assassins. It was basically like a hidden village between the mountain and the jungle, it wasn't guarded because if you sneak into a village full of assassins then either you're really good or you're really bucked. Two ponies in hooded robes approached me.
"Halt! State your name and business for being here or we will be authorized to kill you." The one on the left said.
"Whoa its me Umbra remember." I replied.
"Oh my mistake. Sorry we have had to up security recently."
"Why?"
"Vamponies have been attacking us."
"Vamponies? What are they doing here?"
"We do not know, but by all means come right in Umbra." He said as they stepped aside to let me through.

Vamponies, maybe the one who attacked me was a Vampony. I trotted over to a small shack and opened the door. "Lex you here?" I said. In the middle of the room sat a large zebra, his coat was mainly black with white stripes. He had his hair in a traditional Ibexian ponytail with two gold wraps holding the sides of his hair. His cutie mark was an ancient zebra symbol for an assassin and his tail was shadow like tendrils he, uses zebra magic to create it. He was in the middle of meditating but still took the time to open his eyes at me.
"Umbra, I was not expecting you." Lex said calmly with some surprise in his voice.
"Lex it's been a while." I say happily. "What's been going on?" 
"Same old, same old. What brings you here?"
"Oh well you know."
"We have to save Equestria don't we?"
"Pretty much"

Lex sighed and got up. Lex was my mentor here he treats me like a brother more than a student but he taught me everything I know about kicking plot. He looked at my leg and quickly used his tendrils to remove the gauze and put a paper seal on it. The seal glowed green and the wound healed itself and didn't leave a scar. I thanked him and we headed out the door. Before we left he asked the guards if they would be ok and they said they would be fine without him.  
"So who we gotta go get?" Lex asked me as we trotted out of the village into the jungle.
"The others." I replied.
Lex sighed. "Its gunna be a long trip"