//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8 
// Story: Brotherhood of the Moon 
// by ZakTH 
//------------------------------//


Brotherhood of the Moon
Chapter 8


The glowing city of Canterlot had always been a symbol of pony intelligence. Most animals of Equestria retained their feral nature. Even among those that were intelligent, most were still very tribal, such as diamond dogs and zebras. But ponies were more advanced; they progressed into the realms of architecture and art. The last few years of the Olden Equestria age were ones of a renaissance, a blooming of intellectual superiority among ponies. Canterlot displayed this perfectly; built in the center of the Everfree forest, it shut out the fierce wilderness and instead built a shining utopia of knowledge and power, the forces of science and magic combining to create the most stunning city ever built. 

Firefly found herself once again staring down the huge metal gates that kept the outside out and the inside in. This time, there was no Twilight Twinkle to help her into the capitol, and she still had no travel papers to gain legal entry into the city. Without a visible entry, Firefly decided to move around the outer wall, see if there was a crack or hole that she could crawl through.

After some time, she found that one of the towers had a perfect setup to climb. The top walls had been corroded away, but a choice few brick stood whole among the rest of the wall. They looked like perfect hoof holds. Some conveniently placed wooden posts stuck out from the wall further down, and at the very bottom, an covered applecart was positioned in such a way that it was almost begging to be used as a ramp. "Alright." Firefly said with a deep breath. She pulled her hood over her face. "Here we go." Firefly made a dash for the applecart. 

Being a pegasus, Firefly felt quite at home in the air. Even though her wings failed her, she jumped off the cart and soared gracefully over to the wooden post as if she had the wingspan of a griffin. Her hooves grasped onto the front of a wooden post, and she climbed up. She the leaped to another post, and climbed onto it as well. Using what little space she had, Firefly used the post to run up the wall, the momentum carrying her just high enough to reach one of the bricks. She hung there for a moment, catching her breath. She then swung her hoof around and grabbed another brick, and then another, beginning her slow climb to the top.

With her white hood, Firefly seemed to blend in with the tower. Her bright pink fur and cool blue mane hid under her white clothes. She slowly moved from brick to brick, making sure each was strong before she hung on it. A fall from this height would kill anypony, especially if that pony was a flightless pegasus. She dared not look down. A slow and steady climb was her only way of reaching the top, so she was careful not to rush it. Despite its danger though, it was a relatively easy climb. 

Her right hoof clung to the top of the tower. She moved her other hoof up to grasp it too. All she needed do was pull herself up and she was over the wall. A sudden voice made her stop in her tracks though, and almost made her lose her grip as well. 
"Anythin?" said a deep voice from above her.
"What do you think?" replied a cranky voice also above her.
"I's jus askin is all!" said the first voice in a heavy accent.
"What the hay would there be to see? Nothing ever happens up here!" The angry guard moved to the edge and leaned over the side. Firefly saw he had a grey coat with a white mane styled as most Royal Guards did. She couldn't climb up if guards were there, but how to get rid of them? There was only one way. 
"Maybe if ya shut yer mouth for a few bucking minutes, we'd get some peace and qui-EGH" the guard squelched. Firefly had brought her hidden blade up into his neck, just like in training, and pulled him over the side. His limp body fell to the ground with a large dust cloud. Firefly climbed up quickly to find the other guard still with his back turned.
"Wot was dat mate? Didn't quite gett'cha." he said turning to see Firefly in place of his friend. Her eyes were hidden under her hood, and her blade was still exposed and stained in blood. His eyes widened in shock. He opened his mouth to shout, but Firefly pounced and silenced him before he could cry out. Though no longer verbally outraged at this careless theft of pony life, Dash could not help but mentally cringe at the feeling of blood spilling over her hoof. It would take a while before she could do this with no reaction. 

Retracting her blade, Firefly took note of her situation. She killed two guards; one fell to the ground, the other was still here. She probably had about 30 minutes to make it down to ground level inconspicuously, before the next guard shift came up to relieve these two. Just to be safe, she dumped the other guard’s body over the side. Just as she returned to the tower top to think of a way down, she heard a pony yell.
"Wha? Assassin!" shouted a rookie down below the tower, on the main wall. He had spotted her from below, and was now running away frantically.
"Merde!" Firefly cursed. She jumped off the side of the tower and rolled onto the top of the wall. It hurt her back, but she was generally alright. Still, she was now a good 7 feet away from the rookie. She galloped with all her might, but could not catch up. 

The rookie ran around the outer wall, shouting and yelling. Instantly, every guard in the area looked over at Firefly. She became the central focus of every hostile pony she could see. Needless to say, things did not look good for her. She turned and ran in the opposite direction. Some of the guards there had spotted her, but less did than on the other side, where the rookie had made sure all were alert. She raced away from her crime, pushing some guards down along the way and constantly dodging crossbow bolts and arrows. The walls were quite high, and she didn't want to jump down onto the roofs and possibly get hurt, plus attract all the guards there. Still, running along the wall was getting her nowhere fast, she needed to escape. A hay bale would be good, or a cart full of flowers, but she saw neither. What she did see however, was two guards draw their swords ahead of her. Three followed behind her and also drew their weapons. Firefly was suddenly surrounded, and had nowhere left to run. Only one thing left to do.

She didn't dare waste time drawing her own sword; instead she extended her hidden blade and got into a defensive position. The guards snickered and circled around her, like wolves about to rush their prey. One was chuckling to himself.
"hehehe..." he snickered. "That little knife against out swords? Ya must have some sort of death wish, don't ya boy."
"Shut up." Firefly said quickly, not wavering in her stance.
"Well give me wings and call me Celestia!" the unicorn said. "She's a mare! How sad, this battle will be shorter than most..." he paused for effect before lunging. "But so much more satisfying!" Firefly expertly brought her blade up to parry the strike, and then kicked the guard down with her back hooves. A guard behind her took a stab, but Firefly turned and diverted the blade's tip, before stabbing the pony in the chest. Without giving either a chance, she turned and plunged her blade into another guard's back, and another's neck. The last two guards left, the one she'd kicked and the last remaining one, decided to attack at the same time. Firefly had no trouble sidestepping one swipe, and then grabbing the guard's hoof and using his sword to defend against the other. She then brought his hoof further back and impaled the guard with his own weapon. Using the dying pony as a base, she jumped up, surprising the last guard, and stabbed her blade right into his forehead.

Wasting no time in pulling it out and galloping away, Firefly seemed to actually lose the guards behind her. Their shouts of halt and threats had ceased when the five now dead ponies attacked her. Still, she didn't leave anything to chance, and scrambled to find a way down. As luck would have it, a ladder was stationed nearby, and she quickly descended onto the city rooftops. She moved to the edge of the building, balancing herself on an eagle's perch. Now with a more open area and less of a guard presence, Firefly caught her breath and looked around Canterlot. It was a marvelous city, full of sights and sounds. Everything looked very high-class, even the city's outer slums. She could see a very large part of the city from her location; it was if she was a bird in the sky, looking down as she wished. Dash felt a hint of sorrow in the flightless pegasus’ mind. 

Small white words suddenly appeared in the bottom left corner of Firefly and Dash's field of view. "Synchronizing..." It read.
"What the hay?" Dash asked. 
"The Animus is using your current viewpoint to update Canterlot's map and floor plan. It will help me label locations in the city so you can begin memory sequences. In fact, if you could do this from other viewpoints around the city, it would help me a lot."
"Map Synchronized" appeared in the center of her view.  With that, it seemed she was done there. When Firefly turned to get off however, a flock of pigeons flew up to the rooftop and settled on an edge. Firefly turned back and looked down. As she suspected, the birds liked to perch near hay, so that their nesting material was not too far away. In the street below, a convenient hay cart stood unattended and full. Firefly smiled at her good luck. With a graceful leap, she dived into the hay and became one with the populace of Canterlot.



Mane Street was a big road, spanning the distance from Canterlot's entrance, right up to the front steps of the Royal Castle. While in the poorer section of the city, the street became a huge outdoor market. Various vendors yelled out everywhere, claiming to have the best prices and highest quality goods. Meanwhile, a bustling crowd was constantly shifting, trying to buy from the vendors or just pushing to get where they needed to be. It was the perfect hiding place for a white hooded mare just trying to blend in. It was also great for an assassin trying to gather information. Even if she did not intentionally eavesdrop, Firefly could hear many conversations about her target.
"...I heard he keeps the tax money in his private safe, and always leaves a little behind 'by accident' when taking it out for distribution." She heard a group of gossiping mares say.
"Such a shame out city must be run by men like him, he is no leader." said a different mare.
"Well I think he's very charming" another said. "The public speakings he makes are so amazing!" she said dreamily.
"You just like his face, his policies are dreadful." the first mare said.
"Like it or not, he and his family control all of Canterlot." the second replied. 

Despite the value of the conversation, one of the mares looked in Firefly's direction, and she was forced to move away to avoid suspicion. Could they have been talking about Gilded Sword? The mention of public speakings suggested so, but it could have been anypony. Another group caught her ear.
"What a joke these taxes are." a dirty looking pegasus said. "We make much less than those Unicorn foals, why should we pay more?"
"The Gold Family has to keep us down," his friend replied. "So that they stay in power. The government is killing us!"
"One of these days my friend, I won’t just sit down and take it, I'm going to do something!" he said menacingly. Firefly suddenly noticed both ponies were carrying heavy looking swords. Most likely, they weren't just regular ponies, but mercenaries trained in fighting. The angered pegasai was hushed by his friend. 
"Quiet! Don't say such foalish things in this public place. Come, lets discuss this elsewhere." the two flew off. Again, no direct reference to Gilded Sword, but they did mention a "Gold Family". Could he be a member? It seemed very likely, but still just speculation.

"Did you hear about the conflicts in the capitol? It seems that Gilded Sword and Golden Shield are in a struggle for power." Finally! A conversation she knew was about her target. It was being held by another gossip group of mares. 
"Oh, that cannot be good." the other mare replied. "Golden Shield is surely a better politician, being as talented as he is, but Gilded Sword is so much better with the people."
“Oh I know!” The first mare replied. “He is so charming, unlike my dreary husband.” She said with a hint of dissatisfaction in her voice. 
“Oh, but it must be so exciting being the wife of a politician!” the other replied. “Surely Ink Quill can’t be as boring as you make him out to be?”
“Oh but he is!” the mare whined. “Every day he comes home from his work, only to shut himself into his study up into the darkest hours of the night!” She rolled her eyes at the thought. "Ever since that dreaded government project began, it's all he's been worried with, and he won’t even tell me what it is! Can you believe it? His own wife!" Her mood took a dramatic drop. Tears began to well up in her eyes. 
"Oh, come now, don't cry!" her friend said comforting her. "Listen, you can tell me anything you want, I'll be here to...." Firefly lost interest. The conversation was obviously moving into a different topic, and she didn't want to waste any time. It was a helpful little discussion though, it seemed Gilded Sword was not alone in this business of his. She moved down the Mane Street, looking for more info. 

Meanwhile, Luna was busy searching away, trying to find information to help Dash. She found a page, and began to dictate it. "Golden Shield and Gilded Sword were members of the Gold family, a line of rich nobles in Canterlot that held a strong presence in The Flames. Golden Shield, although being socially awkward and very introspective, was much better with politics than his brother. In addition to being a good politician, he was also a remarkable strategist, and planned out many Templar raids and attacks."
"So, there’s another guy?" Dash asked. 
"There’s a lot, but yes this is one." Luna replied.
"Hmm...Maybe we should seek this guy out?" Dash asked.
"Oh no no no, too risky. We have to father more information first." Luna replied. Reluctant, but obedient, Dash continued down the road, listening for more ponies talking.

Hours passed, and Firefly found herself at the end of the road. The next section of path extended over a river and into the higher class sections of Canterlot. Firefly decided against wandering into such places without reason, as it might be easier to be sighted. By this time, the sun was now lingering over the edge of the horizon; the night had practically already taken over. It wasn't so much that Mane Street was long, but more that Firefly had had to pause every few steps to try and overhear info. Still, she found little information, and now found herself at sunset with nowhere to go.
"Well now what?" Firefly thought to herself. As if answering her question, a loud voice suddenly boomed across the plaza. 
"A message to all ministers and officials of The Royals' order, an important meeting will be held tomorrow at Saint Redhoof's basilica in the main square!" Firefly turned her head to see a brown cloaked pony on a pedestal shouting to the crowd.
"That's a Herald." Luna said. "Before newspapers and such, these ponies stood in meeting centers and shouted out any news to passing ponies." Interested, Firefly moved closer, pushing herself into the crowd that had gathered in front of the herald. He continued without notice. 
"Celestia's advisor has called the meeting of only the Solar house of officials to take place at noon. The Lunar house of officials is not expected at this gathering, and in fact is encouraged to treat the day as one of rest. All members of the Gold and Feather families are invited to spectate, but all other citizens are to be absent from this meeting as enforced by the Royal Guard. Citizens are encouraged to plan ahead, as to not have appointments in the area at the time of the meeting." It was a perfect opportunity, Firefly was looking for a chance to strike, and here it was laid out for her, all down to the exact time. Her plan had essentially been made for her; nothing could get in her way.

"In other news," the herald continued. "Citizens are to be on the lookout for a wanted criminal roaming the streets of Canterlot. Just this morning, a pink pegasus wearing a white hood breached our city's outer wall and murdered 7 royal guards on duty before escaping into our streets. The royal guard has warned bystanders to not approach her if she is seen, as she is likely hostile and dangerous. An artist has created this rendition to aid in her capture." the herald turned and levitated a piece of paper out of his robes and showed it off to the crowd. On the paper was the word “WANTED”, below which was a charcoal sketch of a feminine pony in a dark hood. The bangs of her mane hung below the hood and in the bottom right corner was a sketch of the Assassin insignia. 

It was essentially a perfect description of Firefly, and ponies began to take notice. Gasps and yelps escaped the surrounding ponies as onlookers to the herald connected the image on the parchment to the pony standing next to them. A space began to form around Firefly, and soon enough, he herald himself was flipping the drawing around to compare it with Firefly's face. "It’s...the assassin!" the herald yelled. "Guards! Seize her! She's right there!" He cried in horror. At that point, everypony around Firefly ran for their lives, save for three city guards that ran towards her, weapons drawn. They formed a circle with Firefly in the center and blocked her off before she could even react. In the flow of the incident, and without thinking, Firefly reached into one of her bags and pulled out one of Posey's silver spheres. With a flash and a fizz, the ground was suddenly enveloped in a thick smoke. The guards coughed and gagged, but Firefly remained generally unaffected, being in the center of the cloud. Dash closed her eyes, concentrated, and switched to Eagle Vision. As the world became a blue wire frame, the guard's bodies became prominent through the smoke, as did the buildings beyond it. Dash pushed Firefly to run off, and climbed up to a roof while the grey mist of the bomb slowly dissipated. 

She didn't make it in time to escape unseen, and although far behind her, the guards now saw her climbing up and followed suit with surprising agility. She paid no mind to their yells for her to stop, mixed among profanities regarding her birth-class and her faulty wing.
"You shadowy coward! How dare you call yourself a pony!" one of the guards shouted. "When I get my hooves on you, I'm cutting those good for nothing wings right off!" the sheer thought of such a thing made Dash cringe, Luna was right, Equestria of the past was a much more different place. 

Consumed in her thoughts, Dash was absentmindedly heading for the edge of a roof, and soon found herself flying off the edge. She less than gracefully rolled onto the ground and into another pony, cushioning her fall but knocking him down.
"Augh!" the extravagantly dressed colt exclaimed. "What is wrong with you? Have you gone mad?" Firefly didn't even stop to apologize before getting up and galloping across the square. 
"Ahhh!" she heard a shout of pain behind her. Turning, she saw that one of the guards had attempted to follow her off the roof, but did not roll when he hit the ground. He was lying on the ground shouting in pain, with what Firefly could assume was a broken leg. The other guards were taking more time in getting down, and Firefly put some distance between them. Finally turning a corner, she found herself in a small park. She was out of their sights for the moment. All she needed to do was hide, but where? No immediate hiding spots became evident, but she only had a few seconds to cover herself. Feeling she had maybe half a second left, she improvised.

"Hurry up!" one of the guards shouted. "We just had her, she can’t be that far off!” He and his ally were rushing around the corner they'd seen the assassin turn into. They could still hear cries of pain behind them, but their friend would have to wait for his medical assistance; they had a criminal to catch. They sped through the park, passing many worried looking ponies along the way. At the end of the park, they turned into another road, and ran down in pursuit of the killer.

Firefly had her head down, looking at the ground. Once she was sure the guards had left the area, she calmly got up from the park bench and walked in the opposite direction. So it seemed her plan would not be so easy after all. The meeting would be planned yes, and Firefly knew where and when it was to happen, but she would have to get past the guards, which would require stealth, speed, and agility. Luckily, those were three things she had at her disposal; it was only a matter of using them correctly. The short facade had done little to stop her cause, but reminded her that she was now in the Templar city of Canterlot; nearly every pony in this city was against her. It would be difficult moving in such an environment, but she was confident in her ability to complete her task. She knew deep inside that no matter what would happen tomorrow, she would find a way to overcome it with efficiency and stealth.

After all, she was an assassin now.