//------------------------------//
// Chapter 17: Breeze 
// Story: A Long Way to Fall 
// by Cinders of War 
//------------------------------//

Trueshot had explained the happenings to the Mentor and Star Lance, all the while looking down, remembering Ice Flake. They had accomplished in taking down another high profile target, but in the process, lost one of their better Assassins.

“Ice Flake will forever be remembered,” Star Lance eulogized. “She has done a great deed for her people.”

He kept talking, but Frigid Night had stopped listening, instead, thinking about life. How easy it was to lose it, just like that. One slip up anywhere and it was all over for you. He thought back to Ash Wood, and how if it had not been for High Noon, it might well have been his neck on the line instead. It spoke volumes, when this new guy was willing to risk his own life to save that of someone who had almost killed him before.

Mirror Match stood by him, comforting him as much as she could, reminding him that Assassins come and go and there was no stopping it. It was a dangerous line of work after all. Death was expected. 

High Noon stood to one of the corners, doing his best to look strong. Was it all his fault? Perhaps if he had warned them about how crafty Ash was, Ice Flake would still be alive. He mentally beat himself down, but bounced back up. The Assassins were going to induct him into their Brotherhood. Now it was his turn to do what he knew was right. He would go up against the Templars for everyone who had fallen to them.

As the ceremony ended, High Noon found Frigid’s hand on his shoulder. The Assassin pulled him aside as the rest of those present filed out. "Hey, High Noon. Sorry I ever doubted you and stuff. And sorry for that wound on your leg. You still keeping the bandages to remember?"

High Noon looked down at his bandaged leg and put his hat back on. "I did have it as a reminder that I would make you pay one day. Now... I keep it as a reminder that I once played for the wrong team, and that was one of the costs."

"Well..." Frigid continued, still pondering on the events before. "Thanks for that save. I wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for you." He raised a hand. "Welcome to the Brotherhood, High Noon."






“Well, sorry to hear you Assassins had lost one,” Twilight Sparkle said. “But you’ve got High Noon. From what I’ve heard, he did a bunch of good things, right? Sadly, I haven’t had the chance to meet him in Equestria yet. I wonder if he never left Appleloosa.”

“Perhaps he’s still a deputy sheriff there or something,” Morning Blade suggested. “That’s what he was before he left Appleloosa for Manehattan so many years ago and that’s what he was when he returned to Appleloosa again.”

“Yeah. It’s a shame he was scared off and back into this line of work,” Twilight Sparkle sighed and flipped through her notes unconsciously. “Perhaps he’ll still be alive today.”

“Maybe… But, I guess, maybe things won’t be the way there are now if not for High Noon. He was a great contribution to us all. I just wish we could’ve had both. The others all deserve to still be around today.” Morning smiled faintly, then flipped her page. “Well, I’m missing some information again, so we’ll be skipping forward in time.”

“That’s fine.” Twilight spun her pen, then clicked the tip. “I can’t expect you to have everything down if you weren’t there. Anything you have before you joined them is already a bonus. Gathering all this information must’ve been tough work.”

“It was,” Morning chuckled. “But I think it was well worth it. I can remember them through all this.”

“That’s nice, Morning. A good way to look at all this.”

“Sure is… Now, let’s continue on, then.”






Three years later

Talon checked the crates of armaments that he was about to send to the chairman. After the death of yet another of his family members, Mahogany Wood had wanted to beef up the Templar weaponry, requesting Talon to smuggle in bigger guns, like the launchers and heavy machine guns from the army base.

"Bullseye!" he said to his lieutenant. "Tell your men to pick up the pace. You know we can't be here long. Someone might see us."

"Yes sir," the brown haired man nodded. He turned back to his men and gave them more orders, speeding them up.

Talon's men put their backs into it, bagging the weapons in crates as fast as they could go. Every few months, the Templar agent had made sure to sneak some weapons out for the chairman to use against the Assassins. Every little bit counted, but after the death of Ash, Mahogany had asked for bigger guns. Firearms that were harder to smuggle out. Talon had to go through a month of papers just to get clearance to be in the weapons bay, even with his rank, and to bring the weapons out was way above his clearance, so he had to make sure no one saw him.

The major grunted at the thought of getting caught. Not only would he lose his rank and status, but they would likely charge him as well. The cells were not a place he would like to be in.

"Move it, move it," he barked at his men.

"Major Talon? What are you doing?"

Talon's skin instantly pricked on hearing the new voice. He turned around to see the Commanding Officer of the base stroll in. He wore the usual green army uniform, but had two stars on his shirt.

"General Thunderbolt, " Talon started after saluting. "What can I help you with?"

"Where are these weapons going?" he questioned.

"We're delivering them to the Las Pegasus Camp, sir," Talon told the man, taking out the papers as well. "I have all the clearance here."

The general took the papers and scrolled his eyes through most of it, passing it back to the major when he finished reading them. "All seems to be in order, major. Just one problem..."

Talon didn't like the sound of that. "What's the matter?"

"When the office cleared you, they didn’t know of the information I had on you, major."

"What information?" Talon started, but stopped. Something about the general’s tone put ice in his veins.

The general pulled out a stack of papers from his shirt and waved them in Talon’s face. “I’ve been reviewing your authorizations, major. Every three months, you recorded sending out arms to various camps, all of which have not received a single firearm from you. Now why is that?”

Talon felt it now. The fear of being found out. His rank and status would mean nothing to the Commanding Officer. He’d hope it’ll never come down to this, but here he was, standing before General Thunderbolt himself. He was going to lose his power in the army. He had spent so much time, working his way up the ladder and earning his reputation, and now it was all going to disappear. 

“Must be a misunderstanding, sir,” Talon tried to give an excuse. “I’ve delivered all the firearms successfully.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that,” General Thunderbolt grunted, stashing the papers. “But the question is… where have you been bringing all the weapons?” He pulled out a pair of handcuffs from another pocket and held them up for Talon to see. “You’re under arrest, Major Talon. Come quietly and don’t put up any resistance.”

Talon stood his ground. He wasn't going to turn himself in just like that. Mahogany really wanted these guns, and he never took failure lightly. High Noon was the perfect example of what happens when you fail the chairman, though that traitor had yet to be terminated.

"So, general. You planned on arresting me all on your own?" Talon raised an eyebrow. "No guards? No escort?"

"I'm the chief here, major. Not you. My word is law here."

"Just wondering..." Talon raised his hands. In that instant, he flung them forward as fast as he could and pulled the general into a chokehold. "...If I would have to kill anyone else."

Talon didn't allow the general to say anymore, instantly breaking Thunderbolt's neck. He let the body fall to the floor, looking upon it with disgust.

Bullseye walked up to Talon and looked at the body. "Sir, what do we do now? To cover the disappearance of such a man..."

Talon grumbled. The lieutenant was right, of course. Eventually, someone was going to notice General Thunderbolt's disappearance. He had no choice. This was his last chance. "Take everything. Leave nothing. We're clearing out from this place. Permanently."

"Major?" Bullseye questioned. "What are you going to do?"

“I’m going to have to lay low for a while,” Talon told him as the rest of the men got to loading the crates onto the nearby trucks. “After a few weeks, I’ll turn in my resignation form. I’ll be long gone before anyone discovers the general, but by then, we’ll have all the weapons we need. You’ll see to it.”

“Roger that, sir!” Bullseye saluted.

Talon knew it wasn’t the best of plans, but he didn’t see his Commanding Officer catching on to what he was doing. Mahogany would just have to like it. There was nothing more Talon could do to cover everything up. At least the Templars would have the firepower and ammunition to back up for the next few years after today.



“What’s all the commotion?” Frigid Night caught Spectral Rim as a bunch of Assassins made their way down to the main lobby.

“Someone just walked into the bureau,” she explained, slipping out of his grip. “Could be trouble.”

“Who do you suppose it could be?” Mirror Match asked her partner. “Templars? Have they found us already?”

“Who knows…” Frigid pondered. He took her hand and pulled her on. “Come on. Let’s find out. If it’s trouble, we’ll be ready.”

"Come on , Friggy," Mirror assured, squeezing his hand firmly. "We're soldiers now. We can handle an intruder."

Frigid nodded. They'd come so far after all these years, and they were still alive. That meant something. They hopped down the stairs, quickly merging with the small crowds of Assassins. Taking sight of the lobby, Frigid saw that Star Lance was already there, his arms not poised for combat, but folded across his chest. In front of him, stood a young girl with blue-gray skin and blue hair with purple streaks in it, and instead of fighting, they seemed to be talking.

Some of the Assassins slowed down and headed back, but Frigid and Mirror still wanted to get to the bottom of this, so they headed down the last flight of steps and joined the Assassins in the front.

“So you want to join us?” they heard Star Lance ask. “I mean… usually people don’t walk up to us like this and ask to join.”

“I’ve had a few Assassin friends down in Hollow Shades,” she told him. Her voice was like a soft wind, gently flowing across the room. “They told me where to find this place. After running from home with my sister, I’d thought I could help you guys out.”

“First thing,” Star Lance huffed. “How do I know we can trust you?” He turned to look for Pierce Network, spying him the crowd of Assassins. “Pierce. Collect all the information on this girl.”

Frigid was surprised when he saw High Noon walk forward, standing next to Star Lance. “She doesn’t have the background I did, Star Lance. I’m sure you can trust her more than you trust me.”

“Back, High Noon!” Star Lance barked as he turned to the cowboy. “I didn’t ask you!”

High Noon flinched and slowly eased back into the small crowd, not saying anything more. Frigid shook his head, but smiled a little. Same old High Noon. He looked like a tough guy, but he never stood his ground, especially against Star Lance.

Star Lance turned back to the girl and crossed his arms again. “Look, kid. The life of an Assassin is a hard one. Most of us don’t even live till old age. There’s no guarantee you’ll be walking out of this. Are you certain you want to be one of us?”

The girl nodded without much thought, already sure on her choice. “I’m ready for whatever you want me to do. All I ask in return is that I get paid enough to cover my living expenses, since I won’t be staying here.”

“As you wish…” Star Lance beckoned her to follow. “What’s your name?”

“Satin,” she answered. “Satin Breeze.”

“Well, Satin Breeze,” Star Lance continued, heading past Frigid and Mirror. “Not for me to decide if you can join us or not. I’ll take you to the Mentor. She’ll decide your outcome.”

“Sounds fair to me.”

The rest of the Assassins began clearing off after Star Lance headed out of sight. Some headed for the entrance, probably to make sure the girl wasn’t followed. As the crowd dissipated, only Frigid and Mirror, along with a few more Assassins lingered at the entrance, discussing the new arrival.

“Well, this is new,” Frigid turned to his partner. “I don’t believe anyone’s ever walked up to the bureau like that, asking to join.”

“Hmm?” Mirror Match seemed to snap out of a trance. “Oh. Yes, quite right.” She absent-mindedly wiped the corner of her mouth, looking thoughtfully up at the Mentor’s office.

“Something bothering you, Mirror?” Frigid asked, concern in his voice. “You been getting enough rest?”

Mirror Match waved her hand. “Oh, I’m fine. Don’t worry about it. Just… thinking.”

"You can tell me anything, Mirror," Frigid gave her a big smile. "You know that."

She put a hand to his face and returned the smile. "Oh, I know, Friggy. I trust you, but I was just wondering whether they'll accept that girl or not. No big deal."

"You think she's telling the truth?"

Mirror looked up to the office again. "I don't see why she would lie. If the Templars knew where the bureau was, they wouldn’t send just one person here."

"I guess you're right," Frigid agreed after thinking. If the Templars really knew where to find them, they would send an army over, guns blazing. "So... What now?"

"Let's say we go talk some more in my room?" Mirror Match started pulling Frigid along.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Frigid followed.



Pierce Network had dug up every scrap of information on Satin Breeze. Where she lived, when she was born, her family, life records, everything.

"Seems to be in order..." Pierce started talking to himself. "No criminal records, no affiliation with any known Templars..."

"I think she's trustworthy," High Noon said behind the hacker. He walked into the cramped room and took off his hat. "I mean, I speak from experience. You can probably trust her more than you can trust me."

"Yeah," Pierce reluctantly agreed. "Can't say you're bad company, though. I've kept an eye on you. Gotta make sure you're not in contact with the Templars. And-"

"Don't worry, Pierce," High Noon stopped him. "I would've been suspicious too if a Templar wanted to join us."

"Right. Well, just in case, I'll be keeping an eye on her." Pierce looked to his phone as it buzzed, alerting him of an incoming message. His frown deepened as he read it. "Huh... Looks like Red Card has a job for me in my hometown."

"Hometown? Where are you from again?" High Noon questioned, getting a look from Pierce. 

"Chicoltgo," Pierce replied anyway, still keeping his eyes on his phone. "Templar agent. Goes by the name of Lucky Deck. Supplies them lots of money from his casino and hotel. It's all about corruption these days. No business is perfect. I guess it's time I finish this."

Pierce got up and walked past High Noon, but the cowboy followed behind, putting his hat back on. "I'll come with you. Assassins don't usually work alone."

"Well, I do," Pierce said without turning. "This one's personal. Lucky Deck has had a grip over Chicoltgo for sometime now. Gangs, trades, even some cops are all under his supervision. I've let him wreck the place for too long."

"Still doesn't mean I can't come with you," High Noon tried to reason. 

"Fine," Pierce relented. "But don't expect me to have to wait or look after you."

“Fair enough.” High Noon was excited. He’d spent the last five weeks in the bureau library, learning up his history. He’d been wanting to get outside and do some good since then, and it was also a good time to try that new invention of his.



“My apprentice?” Mirror Match’s face lit up instantly.

“Yes…” Star Lance scowled at her excitement. "Mentor figured it's time you got one of your own."

“Well, I gladly accept,” Mirror nodded vigorously. “I’ve always wanted to have one. I’ve wanted to know how Frigid felt when he had to train me.”

“You know… it wasn’t too difficult,” Frigid told her. “You’re a fast learner, and a good friend.”

“Frigid, you were but a small initiate when Mirror Match arrived. You barely knew your basics,” Star Lance said sternly. “Let’s see if your girlfriend here can handle an apprentice better than you.”

“Satin Breeze,” the Mentor called, stopping a possible argument from happening. The blue haired girl walked over, standing a little taller than Mirror Match. “This will be your new instructor, Mirror Match. She’ll show you the skills you’ll need to survive outside.”

“Nice to meet you,” Satin replied softly.

"Same to you," Mirror shook her hand. "I'll teach you everything I know about being an Assassin!"

"We will leave you to it." With that said, the Mentor and Star Lance headed back to the office.

“So, what are we going to do first?” Satin asked her new teacher.

Mirror turned to Frigid, looking to him for suggestions.

“I dunno,” Frigid shrugged. “On your first day, I brought you to the obstacle course. After that, I gave you a tour of the bureau.”

“Sounds good,” Mirror agreed. She looked at the novice and remembered. She didn’t know who Frigid was. “Oh, Satin. This is Frigid Night. He’s… a special person to me, and he was also my teacher when I first arrived. Now we’re the best of partners.”

Frigid blushed, but stuck out his hand. “Welcome to the Brotherhood, Satin.”

“Thanks,” she nodded and shook it. “So, we’re going straight for training?”

“Right you are.” Mirror gave her a thumbs up.

Mirror led the new novice down the halls to the obstacle course, showing her the different places on the way. Frigid hung back, watching the two. If everything continued this smoothly, Mirror shouldn’t have a tough time teaching Satin at all.

“So, I heard you’ll be living outside the bureau?” Mirror asked along the way.

“Yes,” Satin answered. “I have to look after my sister, Velvet. She’s still too young to look after herself, and… I couldn’t leave her with my parents.”

“Why is that?”

“We… we had an argument,” Satin said after a while, likely deciding what she should tell them. “I decided it was time to leave Hollow Shades, and I couldn’t leave Velvet with them, so I took her with me.”

“Sounds rough,” Frigid replied. He’s had some tough times, but not like Satin, who had family problems. “You’ll be better off here. From today, we’re your new family. We’ll watch out for you.”

“Thanks,” Satin nodded as they made their way to the obstacle course.



Mahogany Wood stared out the big, reflective window, which was almost a daily routine now. His once proud family was reduced to ashes in the recent years, his brothers and sister killed by Assassins. Even Ash, his best spy of a brother had fallen to them. The rest of them wouldn’t be safe. That’s why he had to beef up the security and firepower in the Order. Talon had arrived with crates of weapons. More than he had ever brought before, but with a cost. It seems the red-skinned man could no longer remain in the base after being caught by his Commanding Officer, so he would soon have to leave. A pity, as Mahogany had said, but there would always be other ways of acquiring resources.

Then there was the artifact. His brother, Timber, and the rest of the science team have yet to crack its inner secrets. After all this time, they were no closer to figuring out how to control it then when they first found it. Mahogany lowered his eyebrows, disgusted at the technology they had. They could use it, but not without its draining effects. The Templars knew it could be used to control minds and change ideals, but without a proper, stable way to use it, it was all but a dream to them.

“Chairman,” Crescent Wing notified. Mahogany turned around to see Quickdraw entering the room.

“Yes, what is it, Quickdraw?” Mahogany resumed his orderly stance.

“Just wanted to tell you that the soldiers have been equipped with the new rifles. That should give a bigger kick to the bee hive. And about the killers… only Wolfgang took some of the new gear. The two girls didn’t want any.”

“A bit choosy, aren’t they…” Mahogany slurred. “No matter. As long as they get the job done. Well done. You may go. Make sure our men don’t blow themselves up.”

Quickdraw nodded and headed back out, closing the door behind him. Mahogany found himself returning to the window, gazing out at the busy streets once more. Even without the artifact, the Assassins were still in for a new level of beating. That small spark was enough to give Mahogany some satisfaction.