//------------------------------// // The Backstory // Story: Assassin’s Creed: Friendship is Magic // by MyLittleBronyDude //------------------------------// Three weeks ago, prior to Ezio’s appearance in Equestria: Rainbow Dash was approached by Twilight and asked to come to her castle. She said that she had something to show the cyan pegasus. Rainbow shrugged lightly, but eventually she agreed. After arriving at her castle, she followed Twilight inside. Rainbow was led through one of the innumerable chartreuse and gold-checkered doors of the Castle of Friendship as they navigated the identical halls. After a short walk, Rainbow noticed they were descending lower and lower. “Hey, Twi…  what gives? I had no idea that this castle had a basement to it. Or… at least anything below the main level…” Rainbow mused as Twilight wordlessly led her down the descending hallway. Eventually, they came to a separate hallway lined with torches every few feet for basic illumination. “All will be explained in time.” Twilight stated as the duo turned a corner. “I just don’t want word of this to spread around. I’m sure I can trust you to not do that, yes?” The purple alicorn asked as a simple wooden door came into view. “You should know me by now, Twi! I’m super loyal!” Rainbow shot back with a smug grin as she threw her forelegs in the air for emphasis. Twilight simply rolled her eyes with a good-natured smile. When they arrived at the door, Twilight opened it to reveal a meeting area with several chairs and a large round table. “Uh… Twi? What’s all this?” She asked as her head darted to and fro to soak in her surroundings. Twilight turned around to face Rainbow as she levitated a cloak with a hood over to her. “This is the inner sanctum of the Assassins. We work in the dark to serve the light.” As she began to chant in a low voice, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy joined Twilight on either side of her and began chanting. Rainbow, now thoroughly weirded out by all of this, asked the inevitable questions: “What the buck is going on? Why are you chanting?” She began to back out of the room, but stopped when she saw Twilight smiling at her. It was the exact same smile that she gave her just before she started this mad ritual, and it was that, above all else, that calmed her frazzled nerves. As Rainbow was puzzling through everything that had just happened, Twilight began to speak, so Rainbow instantly snapped her attention to her. “We are the Assassins, the sworn enemy of the Templars. We have been at war for centuries, ever since Celestia banished our leader, Luna, to the moon. Since then, our numbers have fallen, and we believe that it is time to appoint a new member of the Brotherhood.” Rainbow’s jaw hit the floor hard as her mind worked double time to process all of this new information, “S-so, what you’re saying is that you all want me to be… ?” Rainbow asked incredulously as Twilight nodded her approval. “Yes. We want you to become an Assassin with us, to defend Ponyville from those who would do it great harm. You would be trained in the art of the Assassin by us three, to help you become a full member of The Brotherhood.” "Training is so lame…" Rainbow mentioned at first, "... but this sounds… so awesome!" Rainbow added as she squashes her cheeks between her forehooves with an excited expression on her face. "Count me in!" She announced as Pinkie bounded forward and enveloped Rainbow in a hug. "Well then! Let's get started..." Twilight announced as she led the group down to the training area. Rainbow was truly exhausted. For the past three hours, Twilight was having her climb ropes, shimmy along narrow ledges, and running an obstacle course with a layout that looked similar to the backstreets of Ponyville; a place that Rainbow was very unfamiliar with, given how poor she was at traversing it. “Rainbow! Keep your eyes on what’s in front of you!” Twilight called out as Rainbow tripped over a cylinder that was meant to replicate an overturned garbage bin. The resulting clunk was Rainbow’s head hitting into one of the ply-board walls. She was worn out and rather irate about her situation. “Well, seeing as I’ve had no breaks for the past three hours… Maybe I could react a little quicker if I wasn’t so Luna-forsaken tired!” Rainbow snapped back as she pulled herself to her hooves. It was at this moment that the fatigue in Rainbow’s legs decided to catch up with her. Her legs gave way and sent her sprawling on the floor on her stomach. “Bucking Tartarus, Twilight! Can’t I rest for a bit? You’re running me into the ground over here!” Rainbow griped as Twilight simply sighed. “Alright, we can take a rest… it’s almost time for lunch anyway. We’ll meet back here in an hour and continue then, okay?” Twilight asked and made for the door without waiting for a response. Grumbling to herself, Rainbow was helped up by Fluttershy and Pinkie as she facehooved.  “Geez! She’s pushing me way too hard. Is she trying to kill me? I think she’s trying to kill me. Hey, do either of you think she’s trying to kill me?” Rainbow asked, only to get shrugs from the other mares in return.  “I’m sorry that I’m pushing you so hard, Rainbow. But the thing is, the Templars are planning an attack on Ponyville, aided by Rarity.” Rainbow did a massive double take. “Wait, what? I mean, I pegged her as a high society snob when I first met her, but I didn’t think that she would turn on you guys like that!” Twilight laid a comforting hoof on her shoulder and gave her a small smile. “Rainbow, this line of work is dangerous and depressing. Friends will turn to enemies, and you could get killed. But we do this because it’s the right thing to do. Sometimes doing this takes a toll on us.” Fluttershy was the first to speak up. “I used to throw up after I had to kill somepony. Every single time, I would be ridden with guilt at what I had done. Now I only kill in self-defence, and only when absolutely necessary.” Pinkie Pie gave a sad smile. “I hated having to sneak around in the shadows, making people unhappy. It went against everything that I stood for! But when Cheese Sandwich almost got killed because I foolishly attacked a Templar, I realised that sometimes, you have to go against everything you thought was right to serve a greater good.” Rainbow contemplated all of this for a minute, then gave a mute nod to signify that she understood. Then she realised something. “Wait, what about Applejack? What happened to her?” Twilight stared at the floor and shuffled her hooves, evidently trying to avoid eye contact. “As soon as we found out that Rarity joined the Templars, she disappeared. We think that she joined the-“ Rainbow cut her off by putting her hoof in Twilight’s mouth. “No. Don’t even think about finishing that sentence Twilight. Because I won’t believe you if you do.” Twilight looked up with a knowing smile on her face. “Don’t worry about it, Rainbow. All the evidence suggests that she just vanished. We don’t know what happened.” Rainbow nodded once, and left the underground facility quickly. She might have looked calm, but inside her emotions were roiling with her discovery. She would find out about Applejack, whatever it took.