Ombra della Lama

by Vedavyasa

Scoperta, Part One

It was not long before I began attending school, perhaps two weeks at most. It would not have taken even that long but for the fact that nopony knew my birthday. My parents had either not bothered to register my birth or my birth name had been forgotten, as there was no birth certificate to examine. In the end, it was decided that the date I came to Canterlot would be new birthday. Due to my relatively high intelligence, I was placed with students a year older than myself. It was a shock, to say the least. My life at the palace for the time preceding this had been one of absolute comfort and luxury. I had no responsibilities or concerns beyond my own enjoyment, and being young as I was I quickly grew complacent.

My first day ripped that brief joy away from me. I was the smallest in the class, which is all the excuse that colts need to justify ostracizing and abusing you. It was only a matter of days before I began teaching myself to fight. Cleansing Step, bless his memory, did not approve. We often argued about the appropriateness of me watching the Royal Guard train. I refused to be swayed however. I had been raised in a home where such things were commonplace, and I was determined to prove myself. I am still unsure whether I was proving anything to anypony but myself.

But, such introspective thoughts are best left to die alone. Within two months, I was expelled from the school I had been enrolled in for nearly crippling a fellow student. Amusingly enough, he had never bothered me personally. I took issue with his treatment of his younger brother, and the altercation culminated in two broken legs. I felt the same satisfaction I had when I had killed the colt in Cloudsdale when I saw him on the ground, unable to stand. I believe that this was the first time I realised that I truly enjoyed the violence. It was all I knew.

Princess Celestia, however, was furious with me. She spent nearly an hour trying to convince me that what I had done was wrong, but I could not see it. I had defended a foal from an aggressor, and the means did not matter as much as the results. Recognising the futility of arguing beyond that point, Princess Celestia decided to allow me to leave schooling behind on the condition that I still train to do something with my life. I believe her greatest mistake was allowing me to decide what exactly that was to be. To her dismay, I continued to watch the Royal Guard train and I even began to sneak in to their barracks to talk to the soldiers.

The soldiers, for their part, enjoyed my company and often hid me when Cleansing Step came to find me. I believe they recognised a kindred spirit in me, one who was born to defend those he loves and that which he believes in. We did have our differences however. In order to be accepted in to the Royal Guard, a pony must firmly believe that violence is the final option to resolve a conflict. I had a very different opinion. I see violence as a useful tool, able to cut the heart out of an issue before it even truly comes in to being.

The Guards laughed at my ideas, thinking them the ramblings of a mislead foal. Others listened however, and eventually I was found. An old pegasus stallion came to me one day and offered to train me in arts that fit both my somewhat cynical world view and my cold temperament. I brought this stallion to Princess Celestia, and though she seemed reluctant she allowed me to go under his tutelage. A small plot of land was set aside for him to train me inside the walls of the palace, and that was when I learned what I was to become.

He explained to me that he was the last of an old guild, the guild of the Assassins. He regaled me with grand tales of the deeds this guild had done in the past, how the greatest of empires feared the white feather that was their sign. The mightiest of kings trembled at the threat of them, and any who they marked was sure to die. I was fascinated; here was a stallion who not only understood my view of the world but encouraged me to develop it further! I threw the entirety of my being in to the studies he set out for me. As he taught me the art of both the written and spoken word, he taught me the value of serenity. As he taught me the science of mathematics, he taught me the importance of logic. As he taught to me the art of music, he taught me the benefits of both harmony and discord. As he taught me of philosophy, he taught me the necessity of seeing with my third eye.

I did not know I had the talent, but he saw it in me. If I focused, I could ascertain the exact nature of a creature’s intentions towards me. Whether they were a threat, an ally, or even my target he taught me how to feel them. He claimed that this was the lost sense of “knowledge”, though I am unsure how truthful he was with me. He claimed that this was not magic, which was my original belief, but instead an inborn gift. I trained this sense beyond all others upon his insistence, though I did not understand why at the time.

Alongside such scholarly pursuits, I was trained by several pegasi Guards in flight and bare hoof combat. I excelled in these physical disciplines, especially combat. By the time I was a half grown colt, only twelve years old by my reckoning, I was fully capable of sparring with multiple Royal Guards and holding my own. Occasionally, I even won outright. This was when I was formally inducted in to the guild as a novice. I was marked as an Assassin with the scar on my lip, delivered by a heated iron sword. This also marked the beginning of the more dangerous side of my training.

We began venturing far from Canterlot for months at a time. We would never cross the borders of any settlement, instead living in the forests and plains. We carried all we needed to survive on our backs, simple tents and the white robe that I still wear today. He taught me how to defend myself from the animals of the Everfree, and how to find food and water in the barren mountains that surround Canterlot. Occasionally, we even left Equestria. He brought me to the great halls of the northern ponies, a proud race of earth pony warriors. He showed me the vast savannas that lay far across the ocean, in lands most ponies never hear tell of. He taught me to survive in these conditions as well, how to find shelter and heat in the freezing tundra or stay hidden in the open grasslands of Punda Millia.

Upon returning from one of these adventures, I found Princess Celestia waiting for me in my room. She had grown worried of me, fearful that I would be torn from my loyalty to her. We talked long that night, of my dreams and of my skills. I assured her that no matter how strongly I loved my travels, my home was forever in Equestria. I had not forgotten that it was by her grace that I had this life to enjoy. I made a vow to her then that when my training was complete, I would serve her. This seemed only to her increase her worry, but she accepted. She mandated, however, that the final year of my training was to be held inside the palace grounds.

In retrospect, I understand her worries. I was fifteen then, and by that age nearly all ponies had received their cutie marks. I had not. This lack had never caused me much worry, no pony who recognised the mark of the Assassins dared to call attention to it. Those who did not know me for who I was were of no concern to me.

The final year of my training was in many ways the most difficult. I began training with weapons. I learned to cast a knife with near perfect accuracy, how to fight with a sword, and most importantly the working of the Assassins true weapon; the hidden blade. The hidden blade is a fearsome weapon, without being highly visible or flamboyantly designed. The very simplicity of the weapon is why it is so feared by those who know of it. A short blade of strong steel, connected to the left foreleg by an enchanted mechanism that responds to its wielders will. When not needed, the blade is locked and bound to my leg, invisible to anypony who is not already aware of it. When in use, the blade is held firm and extends five and a half inches from the hoof.

This weapon is what relieved the Princesses worry. Within weeks of receiving my own, my cutie mark appeared. A simple symbol, but one that speaks more powerfully than the greatest of essays.

This symbol marked me permanently as an Assassin, from this point on I could be nothing else.

Comments

[Br2nd66]

me sensing pony altiar I know his full name

Altiar iben la-ahad

[Vedavyasa]

838827

Nope. Ombra della Lama is his name.

He just hasn't earned it yet.

[ImChangingmynameforreaso]

Huh. I like your narrative style. It contains the perfect balance of vagueness, and descriptiveness, and I look forward to seeing where this goes from here.

One thing however, that confused me, was why receiving the hidden blade would relieve the princess' worries. Would this not just enhance them?

[Vedavyasa]

838854

Thanks much! Pretty much exactly what I was aiming for with this.

Edit.

Le oops. Missed your question the first time.

The Princess isn't worried about his choices for his life (if she was, she would never have allowed him to train now would she?), but instead because he hadn't yet found his true calling. A cutie mark (in my headcanon anyway) literally defines what a pony does. If the cutie mark says he's a blacksmith, then by jesus he's gonna be a blacksmith. He's spent years training to be an assassin, and yet the cutie mark evaded him. He was following a path with no guarantee it would be right for him.

[Pr1nce55 Lun4]

I love Assassin's Creed and I love My Little Pony:Friendship is Magic. This is a really good way to mash them together. I have a question. What is the "time?" Is it before the first episode or after the second season? If there isn't a time that's fine.

[Vedavyasa]

838872
The story starts somewhere between thirty and forty years before season one.

[Mr Foster]

Sweet Celestia.

The grammar is FLAWLESS! The spelling is FLAWLESS! The awesomeness is FLAWLESS!

This is truly a great crossover. Keep up the good work!

Just one question, why is Twilight a main character if this takes place around 30-40 years before season one? Do I sense a plot twist?

iambrony.steeph.tp-radio.de/mlp/gif/133588115197s.gif?1336215221 -Storm

[FireFlash13231]

hm...not bad. Have my like.

[Vedavyasa]

838981

Feel free to pm me any guesses. If you get it right, you get a cookie!

839285

[alphanator]

838827 Not trying to be annoying or anything, but his name is spelt as: Altaïr Ibn-la Ahad.