//------------------------------//
// I 
// Story: Brotherhood of Harmony 
// by Sicarex 
//------------------------------//

	I stood there among the crowd. Hundreds of ponies of the Crystal Empire had congregated here in front of a parapet with several prisoners due for hanging at sundown. To King Sombra, they were traitors, but to the Assassin Order, they were heroes. They gave us vital information when we needed it, and now paid for it with their lives.

As the a member of the Crystal bureau, it was my duty to capitalize on this as an opportunity. After all, it wasn’t every day Captain Consector put himself out in the open. Thus, I stood here, alone, in a mass of helpless citizens of the Crystal Empire, ready to pounce.

“These ponies,” Consector began, “are traitors to the Crystal Empire and our beloved King. Their crimes are as follows…”

As the he read off the list, I surreptitiously pushed my way towards the front. I drowned out all distractions and obstacles until it was just him in my sights. I quickly formulated a plan.

A few soldiers strode the roofs encircling the center, scanning the area for suspicious activity, but I knew they didn't see me. Assassin robes were magically designed make the wearer semi-invisible: any onlooker would be subconsciously inclined to disregard the wearer, despite the rather conspicuous white clothing. Such a disguise worked very well in crowds, as any observers, be it a public speaker or guard in a watchtower, typically would not focus on a single pony.

The captain didn’t notice me either as he stood in plain view on top of the raised platform in the town center. I positioned myself so I was about five paces from the parapet’s wooden steps and the sun was at my back; it would give me another slight advantage.

“… and treason. For these crimes against the Empire, they are hereby sentenced to public death.”

My mission, however, was not to save the prisoners. My primary objective was to eliminate Captain Consector -- Sombra’s local lieutenant -- by whatever means necessary. He had been prying into Assassin affairs as of late and had significantly weakened our holdings in his district. In fact, the captives due for execution were taken in a raid on a safehouse less than a week ago. Clearly, if the Brotherhood was to further its plans to destroy King Sombra and his regime, the Captain had to be removed… permanently.

I felt bad for letting our informants die, but they knew the risks and were among the minority of Crystal ponies who dared defy their king. Besides, the best way to get close to Consector was to make him feel safe. Allowing the hanging to proceed unhindered would give him a sense of security, albeit a false one.

A guard pulled a lever and the floor underneath the prisoners gave way. As their nooses snapped taught, I saw Captain Consector relax his tensed stance. Now was my chance.

I darted forward right as the guards turned to leave. I was at the steps before they noticed me and reacted accordingly. One guard swung his spear at me. I easily ducked under his clumsy attack and drove a dagger into his unprotected neck. Another guard rushed to intercept me. He was still a full six paces away when I expertly hurled a throwing knife into his eye.

There were more guards surrounding the parapet, but they were too far to interfere. Captain Consector glared at me with both brutal conviction and utter fear. He had drawn his sword – not that it would help him – and stood in a defensive stance about twelve paces away. Taking the initiative, I used the now one-eyed soldier – who was on the ground writhing in pain – as a launching pad. I spread my wings instinctively to control my descent and disorient my target, who, given by his squinting, was partially blinded by the setting sun.

I executed it perfectly. My silhouetted figure was hard for the Captain to focus on. My flaring wings further disrupted his concentration. I ejected the hidden blade on my left hoof, he didn’t notice. After all, how could he? Looking into his eyes, I could tell he was terrified.

His death was assured.

I batted his sword away from my path and proceeded to drive my bladed hoof into his throat.

My senses went into overdrive and time seemed to slow down as I stood over the deceased captain, closing his eyes with a hoof, wiping a feather in his blood, and reciting the traditional Assassin death oration. His death would be a significant victory for the Brotherhood. With him gone, Sombra would have no experienced officers to replace him and would either assign an inadequate captain or expand his district to the jurisdiction of another officer. Either way, his hold on the area was weakened and Assassin activity could persist relatively unimpeded.

It was with this thought running through my mind that I hardly dodged an incoming javelin.

“Assassin!” I heard a guard shout, as if it wasn’t already obvious.

I had lost the element of surprise; it was time to make my escape.

Multiple units were rapidly converging on my vicinity. They pushed and shoved their way through the throngs of alarmed and confused Crystal ponies fleeing in every direction. Using my wings to give myself initial propulsion, I dashed past them and out of the town square before they could so much as turn around.

I had eliminated the Captain and completed my mission, now I had only to leave the city and return to the bureau. The loss of their commanding officer combined with the mass panic of local civilians and the onset of night should throw the local guard into chaos and cover my escape. Still, I could not simply fly away: they would be expecting that. Instead, I hid in a large cart of hay that somepony happened to be pulling through the area. It was uncomfortable, but I remained in the cart until the driver left the city.

I took one last look behind me and smiled at what I saw. Despite the sun having set hours earlier, it shone like a beacon in the darkened landscape. Torches and bonfires illuminated the streets in an emergency measure by the guard to find me. Thousands of ponies were being kept awake so the troops could search every nook and cranny of the area in a vain attempt to locate one Assassin. Was I really that dangerous? I chuckled as I considered the thought and made my way to the southwest.

If this was the damage one of us could cause, then the entire Brotherhood could take down an empire.