//------------------------------// // 3-The Stories and Tales // Story: The Orphan // by Dramatic Stories //------------------------------// The Stories and Tales One Week Later... I walked into the shop that I had quickly become familiar with to see Holora waiting there for me. "Right on time."He says. He closes the store, and we walk downstairs into the basement. As we walked down the stairs, I broke the silence. "So...what is it the Assassin's do anyways?"I asked. "That's what todays lesson is about..."He responded. "Shall we begin?" "Sure. Ready when you are."I said. "Okay...you might want to get comfortable."That immediately told me to find a seat quickly. "Our order has been around for generations. Many ponies who are Assassins had someone in their family who were previously an Assassin."I nodded once. "What we fight for, is very simple. We fight for freedom...true freedom." "But...we have freedom...don't we?"I asked. "Yes..."He turned to his desk, which had a tarp covering the wall behind it. He grabbed it with his teeth, and pulled the fabric away. On the wall, six pictures with names written below them were aligned in a pyramid like shape. "We do have freedom...but there are others out there who wish to take it away from us."He pointed at the pictures. "Why? I don't see any reason in that."I observed the faces of the ponies on the wall. I easily recognized the leader as Queen Chrysalis. Another had an "X" written across it. The name read, "Sombra". "Exactly. There is no reason. They claim they are fighting for freedom and piece...but what they really desire is order, and control. They call themselves The Templars. We are their greatest enemy...but they are not our enemies, only our greatest threat." "Why are they enemies with us...but we're not enemies with them...I'm confused."I scratched my mane. "Look at it this way. We seek piece and equality for all. If there is piece, there are no enemies...so why make some on the way there? We don't attack a group of Templars on sight, unless we have a reason too. If they attack us first, then we'll fight them. If they are threatening to cause chaos, we will fight them." "I get it...Only fight when you need to."I said. "You're learning quickly...You think a lot like your father."I blushed a little at the comment. "Moving on...The Templars have been around for many years, dating back to the early days of Celestia and Luna, back before Nightmare Moon. The one thing they seek to gain total control, is this."Holora held up a picture of a glowing golden orb. "What is it?"I asked, looking curiously at the picture. "It's a piece of Eden. A piece of ancient technology created by the first civilization. It's unbelievable power can drive even the most generous ponies mad, that will stop at nothing to obtain its power. We protect this, and keep it from anyone's hooves. The Templars could crack the Earth if they wanted to if they ever got a hold of this." "Why would this even be created?"I asked. "That I'm afraid, I cannot answer. All I know is, is that it is our duty to protect it, and those who are at risk. These days, there are very few Templars left, and even fewer Assassin's." "So is that why you want to train me?"I asked. "Yes, that and you were born into the brotherhood."Holora reminded me yet again. I mouthed "Oh", and continued to listen. "The Assassin's have nearly become extinct through the last two centuries. Many branches of the brotherhood vanished from existence." "Why, how did it happen so quickly?"I asked. "Many reasons. We were outnumbered from the beginning. Plus, not all the Assassins we trusted were actually Assassins...there have been countless times of betrayal, which has led to many deaths. About seventy five years ago, a templar commander framed an Assassin for murdering innocent civilians. So now the public had turned against us." "What about these days?" "These days...people even hardly know we exist. They just live by and watch the days go by uninterrupted. Lately I've been asking myself about the return of the Templar knights. I'd lie awake all night, thinking of the possibilities."Holora finished. I sat still unable to think of what to say. I was literally out of things to say. "To summarize it all up, The greatest threat to us, is the Templars, who fight to gain order and control. Over the years, they've killed hundreds of us, but we've killed thousands of them. Over the course of a thousand years, we've almost vanished from existence. That is why you are the only one who can restore order. I have faith in you Scootaloo...truly, I do..." I somehow endured a change of heart that day...I went from being this little daredevil of a foal, to a maturing filly. Every time I walk out of his shop, my perspective of the world changes, and my heart grows more attached to The Brotherhood. The next day, we had started the physical training, which was by far, the hardest part of all the training. Muscle building, vision, balance. All sorts of training. We would go into the Everfree Forest, and he would make me climb trees, and jump from branch to branch. He had spoken to Zecora about setting up some dummies, which he would have me fight. It seemed a bit all too excessive to me, but I knew it had to be done. Days of training turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months, and eventually, an entire year had past. By then I had grown quite a lot. My training easily paid off, as my skill and ability increased. It wasn't long before Holora sent me on my first mission...