7: The Solar Family
Twilight hummed to herself as she trotted away from Ponyville's local postal office. Her saddlebags bulged with books of varying sizes, ranging from small journals to entire textbooks. After everything that happened with Rainbow last night, she took it upon herself to delve a bit deeper into the subject matter. In order to help her, she looked to the Canterlot archives. If there was ever a book written, no matter how obscure, then the archives in Canterlot certainly had at least one copy of it. They certainly didn't disappoint this time, that was for sure.
Including the one she found in the castle library, Twilight managed to get a hold of five books. Three of them were part of an extended look into the history of Equestria's most vile criminals and tyrants. If what she read about the Assassins was true, then perhaps they had some involvement in the more 'sudden' deaths of certain criminals throughout history. A bit of cross-referencing would do the trick.
As for the last book, it was a published version of a very old and long journal of an alleged Assassin, complete with theories, opinions, and other such notes. It would certainly prove to be extra food for thought once Twilight began making her own notes. Maybe she'd even discover a few things in this journal that she wouldn't in a regular textbook. All the more reason for her to get started as soon as possible.
However, as she continued down the road back to Ponyville, she came across a peculiar sight. Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie were all huddled underneath Rainbow's house while Fluttershy slowly floated down towards them. None of them looked at ease. In fact, all of them wore worried frowns, even Pinkie.
"Well, what'd ya find?" Applejack asked.
Fluttershy came to a soft landing in front of her friends. "I looked all around, but I don't think she's here either."
The farm pony stamped an angry hoof on the ground. "Well, shoot! If she ain't here, and she ain't at none o' her other usual spots, then where the hay could she be?"
Pinkie shot a foreleg up into the air like a giddy schoolfilly. "Oh, oh, oh! Maybe she's in the tree next to Sugarcube Corner!"
"We already checked that tree," Rarity said.
"Oh. Maybe she's in the tree next to the Carousel Boutique?"
"Already checked."
"Maybe it's the one—"
"Checked."
"What about the—"
"For cryin' out loud, Pinkie! We've already looked all over Ponyville. Ah don' even think she's here at all."
"Who isn't here?"
The four mares turned around to see Twilight walking up to them. "Rainbow Dash," Applejack answered. "We haven't seen her blue behind all day."
"Not that I'm complaining about the added peace, but not at least hearing Rainbow's loud mouth for hours is a bit odd. Do you know where she might be, Twilight?"
A frown came to Twilight’s face. So, it seemed like none of them knew where she was, either. All things considered, her concern for the pegasus wasn’t waning. Still, she had a few theories in mind. "Maybe she's just out of town and just forgot to tell us.”
Applejack just barely refrained herself from bringing a hoof up to her face. "Twi, this is the same Rainbow who'll get us all together to watch a new stunt she came up with. Ah know she can get her priorities more twisted than a tied up sidewinder, but Ah don't think she'd just up an' forget somethin' like that."
That was another good point, Twilight had to admit that much. "Maybe she's with the princess." What she thought was a low mutter was more than loud enough for her friends to hear her.
Her friends shot up as if they'd been electrocuted. "What?"
Twilight immediately shoved a hoof into her mouth. Too little, too late, unfortunately.
The questions came pouring in. "Why in Equestria would Princess Celestia see Rainbow and not the rest of us?"
"She ain't in any kinda trouble is she?"
"What did she do?"
"Girls, girls, please. Rainbow isn't in any sort of trouble. I hope."
"Wait, and how do you know that? Twi, are you hidin' somethin' from us?"
Twilight took a nervous step back. "Um, w-well, I—"
"Twilight, please. We're your friends. You don't have to hide anything from us."
This was far from the ideal situation Twilight had envisioned. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. For a split-second, she considered lying to her friends, but she just couldn't. But at the same time, she didn't know how they'd react if she told them anything. But still…
Rainbow was going to hate her so much for this.
----
The day of the king's assassination had finally arrived. There were certain missions where Shadow had absolutely no room for error. This was one of them. If anything, anything, went wrong, it could affect Equestria on a scale that she didn't even want to imagine. The thought alone kept her up at night during her stay at the inn. It was also that same thought that forced her out of bed the next morning.
The castle was about an hour's walk away from the inn she stayed at. Forty-five minutes is she went at a trot. Thirty if she galloped. Well, she'd have a better advantage if she arrived as early as possible, so it became clear how she was going to get there. She hit the streets of Canterlot at a full gallop, rushing past any bystanders in her way. Her tired body wanted to refuse going any further, but she wouldn't let it. She couldn't let fatigue get in her way, not today. She needed to keep going.
Soon, she finally saw the castle's gates come into view. Much to her body's relief, she slowed to a walk as she approached it. Surprisingly enough, there was already a small group of ponies gathered in the courtyard, eager to hear the king's speech. There weren't too many, so Shadow was able to easily make her way to the front. Now in position, all she needed to do was wait. The sun was still rising over the horizon. Shadow must've had a few more hours before the speech actually started. Perhaps she would meditate in the meantime. That was exactly what she did.
Before she knew it, hours had gone by. The city bells rang, breaking her from her concentration, and signaling the king’s entrance. The castle’s front entrance slowly slid open, revealing a group of four regal ponies. One of them, a dark blue unicorn, was clearly King Neptune. A golden, jewel-encrusted crown adorned his head, leaving room for his horn, while extravagant, blue robes covered his body.
However, what really caught Shadow's eye was the shining, golden staff strapped to his back. She didn't know what it was, but something about it kept her eyes glue to it, as if it put her in some kind of trance. It was...hypnotic. Wait, what was she doing? She needed to stay focused! Shadow violently shook her head, and even slapped herself a few times to get the feeling out. Once she was back in her right of mind, she focused on the family, keeping her eyes away from that staff.
The mare next to the king, an amber pegasus dressed in similarly royal attire, must’ve been the queen.
On either side of them were two teenage fillies. One was a white unicorn with a flowing blue-green mane. The other was a dark purple pegasus with a blue mane. Their cutie marks, much like their parents’, were concealed by their frilly dresses.
The four ponies left the castle, flanked on both sides by the royal guard, ponies adorned in white and gold armor. Amongst them was Buckeye.
Shadow wanted to rush in and finish him off right there, but she would've had trouble getting on the king's good side after needlessly murdering one of his guards. No, she needed to wait for one of the guards to attack first. It was a risk, but one that she had to take.
As the family continued towards the crowd, Shadow finally spotted something suspicious. One of the guards lagged behind until he was behind them. There, he slowly unsheathed a small dagger hidden in his armor. This was Shadow's chance. She needed to act now! Setting his sights on the king, the guard charged.
As soon as he did, Shadow darted forward as well. "Look out, Your Highness!"
Neptune barely had time to turn around as the guard lunged for his neck. At the very same moment, Shadow leapt towards the guard, pouncing onto him at the last second. The four ponies, along with the on-looking crowd, watched in stunned silence as Shadow dug her hidden blade into the attacking guard’s throat.
“What is the meaning of this?” Neptune demanded.
Shadow immediately stood back up, staying on her guard. “You and your family aren’t safe here. You need to leave right--”
A beam of energy suddenly hit Shadow square in her side. A stinging pain shot throughout her entire body as she flew across the floor, skidding to a stop. The attack left her vision blurry and her body in incredible pain. Every time she tried to move, another sting shot throughout her body, putting her right back on the ground. All she could do was watch as Neptune defended himself from multiple guards with the only thing he had: his golden staff.
As for the other three, they were quickly surrounded by the other guards as the king defended himself. Unlike him, none of them had anything to defend themselves with, save for one. Just as the guards began to close in on the trio, the white unicorn cast a protective barrier over the three.
The guards slashed at the barrier several times, only to have their daggers bounce off. However, with each slash, the unicorn found it harder and harder to maintain her shield. It was only a matter of time before she couldn’t hold it any longer. Just as she was about to lose it, she released all the magic she could muster into one, powerful shockwave, sending the guards flying back.
Meanwhile, Neptune was still defending himself against the group of attacking guards. There were simply too many for him to handle by himself. One guard landed a swipe across his flank. The pain forced Neptune to drop his staff, leaving him completely defenseless. Another guard stabbed him in the gut, forcing him to the ground.
As he lay there, bleeding onto the floor, the guards backed away, allowing Buckeye to approach him.
“What are you doing?” Neptune demanded between coughs.
“Something I should’ve done a long time ago. Now die, you worthless dog!” He took out a dagger, preparing to finish the king off.
Shadow had no other choice. She needed to do something, and couldn’t allow something as simple as pain stop her. Going against every screaming protest in her body, Shadow lurched forward, fighting through the unbearable agony as she galloped past the guards and towards Buckeye.
Just as the pegasus brought his dagger down, Shadow interrupted him with a hard tackle. The impact sent him to the ground, dropping his dagger in the process.
Shadow quickly looked behind her. “Your Highness, are you alright?
It took some effort, but Neptune managed to get back up. “I’ll live.” He looked back at his wife and daughter, who were all staring back with distraught eyes. “I need to protect my family.”
Shadow nodded. “Of course. You go. I can handle this.” Neptune took up his staff again before darting back to his family, bringing some of Buckeye’s guards with him.
Buckeye eventually got back on his feet, meeting Shadow’s glare with angry, crazed eyes. “You? You’re still alive?”
Shadow didn’t waste any words on him. She simply drew her dagger, intent on finishing what she started back in Manehattan.
Buckeye soon calmed down, replacing his snarl with a smirk. “No matter. You won’t be able to stop the inevitable. The Solar family dies today!” More of his guards surrounded Shadow. “Kill her! Kill all of them!”
Shadow darted towards the guards as soon as they made a move. In a blur of blood and steel, she took down all of them in an instant. However, she wasn’t finished yet. The king and his family were still under attack.
Neptune had a protective barrier over himself and his family, maintaining it far better than his daughter did. But this meant that they had no way of actually getting rid of the guards. Shadow could easily remedy that.
She quickly darted in to intervene, finishing off the guards before they could bring any harm to the family. That only left Buckeye.
The pegasus stared at the scene before him in seething anger. “You will not get in the way of our plan!” He flared his wings as he prepared to fly away. Shadow wasn’t going to let him get away again, not after this. In the blink of an eye, she sent a throwing knife flying right towards one of his wings.
A blood-curdling scream left Buckeye’s muzzle as the knife tore clean through his left wing, rendering it virtually useless. No longer able to fly away, he was left vulnerable to Shadow. She darted towards him, prepared to finish him off.
However, she was forced to stop when an arrow embedded itself in the ground directly in front of her. Looking up, she saw several archers posted at various points along the castle. They must’ve belonged to Buckeye as well, because they also shot arrows at the family, who was barely able to dodge them.
Shadow couldn’t afford to waste time on Buckeye; she needed to put the family’s safety before anything else. If that meant letting Buckeye live a little longer, than that was going to be the case.
“We need to leave this place.” Shadow ordered.
“But what’s--?”
“Now!”
“We should do what she says.” Neptune announced. That was all the others needed in order to fall in tow.
Shadow led the four ponies through the scattering crowd, arrows still raining down on them. If it weren’t for the shield Neptune cast over the group, they may never have made it. Once they were outside the castle walls, they all galloped further into the city, finally out of danger’s reach. For the moment, at least.
----
“…so because Shadow Streak is Rainbow’s ancestor, Celestia wants to use these special candles to search her memories to find the location of the Apple before someone else does. So, uh, any questions?”
None of her friends asked any questions after Twilight’s half-hour long onslaught of information, but that didn’t mean they weren’t overwhelmingly confused. The baffled looks on their faces said that much. All this talk of Assassins and memories and Pieces of Equestria was a tad too much for the four mares to take. Twilight hardly understood things herself, so she could only imagine how lost her friends were.
Applejack, her brain apparently done fizzing, finally gained enough senses to at least try and make sense of what her bookworm friend just said. “Well, Ah can’t rightly say that Ah like these Assassin fellas, but Ah ain’t that surprised by ‘em either.”
“Wait. What do you mean?”
“Ah might not look it, but Ah did go to school for a while. Didn’t finish, though; farm got in the way, but Ah did learn a thing or two. Wasn’t too keen on them fancy mathematics, but Ah did take a likin’ to history.”
Rarity tried and failed to stifle a small chuckle, one that Applejack was quick to catch.
In a flash, Applejack was right up in Rarity’s face. “And what’s so funny, Miss Fancy?”
Even with the farm pony staring daggers into Rarity’s eyes, Rarity struggled to maintain a straight face. “Oh, nothing, dearie. I’m just picturing you in one of those little graduation gowns, and you look absolutely ridic—I mean, adorable.” That little fumble in her sentence earned her a harrowing glare from the farm pony. Whether it was out of fear, common sense, or both, Rarity promptly dropped the subject. “But please, do continue.”
“Gladly.” Applejack cleared her throat as she looked back at Twilight. “Anyway, Ah learned all about the kinda place Equestria was back then. Ya had Buffalo Bill, Griffis Khan, Billy the Goat, an’ a bunch o’ other fellas that made it a bad place to live, even after the princesses started rulin’ over it. These Assassins o’ yours don’t sound any different than them.”
“Yeah!” Pinkie chimed in, suddenly appearing right next to Applejack. “These meanies sound like a bunch of party-poopers.”
“But that’s where you’re wrong,” Twilight said, getting even more confused looks from her friends.
“How? These guys killed other ponies, didn’t they? What makes ‘em so special?”
“Because unlike the ones you just named, Applejack, the Assassins weren’t killing others for power. They were killing others in order to maintain peace.” More clueless looks from her friends just made the unicorn sigh. “Here, let me show you something.” With a quick flick of magic, she opened her saddlebags and brought out all of her books.
“You an’ them books, Twi, Ah swear,” Applejack said with a playful little smile.
“You’re still surprised?” Twilight asked, returning that playful smirk. Ignoring the roll of Applejack’s eyes at that particular point, Twilight opened all of her books to specific pages before laying them out in front of her friends.
“Um, what should we be looking at, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, trying to draw some sort of connection between the pages before her. Each history book was on a section that described the final years and subsequent deaths of some of Equestria’s worst.
“Allow me to explain.” Twilight brought all of their attention to the specific parts within history books’ pages. “You see, with all of the havoc and despair some of these criminals were causing, it was only a matter of time before someone—or somepony—did something to stop them.”
“You mean the Assassins?” Rarity asked. Twilight quietly nodded her head. “But, Twilight, what makes you think they had anything to do with it?”
“Well, I don’t have much to go on, but there is an interesting connection between them all. You see, all them were in relatively good health, so no one ever expected their deaths to be so sudden. But here’s the interesting part. Not only were their deaths sudden and unexpected, but each and every one of them seemed to have died from a single, clean stab to a vital area, such as the neck, brain, or heart.”
The thought of another living being dying that way—the thought of a living being dying at all—made Fluttershy shudder. Rarity placed a reassuring hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder, something the timid pegasus was quick to accept.
“Now, just take a look at this.” Twilight brought their attention towards the book on the Assassins. “The Assassins are described of having the same methods of attack. Single, clean stabs to vital areas of the body.”
Her four friends kept their eyes glued to the book before them. They looked back up at Twilight, then back at the book. Then up at Twilight again. Then back down at the book again. “So, uh, you’re sayin’ that these Assassins are responsible for takin’ these guys out?”
“I know it’s not a lot to go on,” Twilight sheepishly admitted, scratching the back of her head, “but it does make sense when you think about it, doesn’t it?”
“About as much sense as ponies killing others can make, I suppose,” Rarity answered. “But that still leaves one thing. What about these ‘Pieces of Equestria’ you mentioned?”
“Oh, right. Heh, heh. Well, I don’t really know much about them myself, actually. All I know is that they’re incredibly powerful items, and that Rainbow is needed to find the Apple, but this is all just going off of what Celestia told me.”
Applejack just huffed in response. “Ah can’t say that I’m comfortable with Rainbow bein’ used like this, but if it’s Celestia, Ah guess Ah can’t worry too much about. Still, Ah don't know about this whole 'memory searchin'' thing. Just makes her sound like a tool."
“I have to agree with Applejack. Even if she is doing this willingly, it just seems like she’s being used.”
“Yeah! And that’s not fun at all!”
“Um. I agree.”
“Girls, girls, please. I know things aren’t looking very good right now, but remember, Equestria is on the line, and Rainbow’s doing all she can to help. Besides, if it’s Princess Celestia, what’s the worst that could happen? Rainbow will be back soon, and I promise that she’ll be just fine.”
All of her friends awkwardly shuffled their hooves on the ground. Twilight, admittedly, had a good point. But even with Rainbow in Celestia’s care, that didn’t help lighten their worry and concern for the pegasus. In fact, Twilight would be lying if she said that she wasn’t worried herself. But like she said, if Celestia was watching over Rainbow, nothing bad could happen, right? As all of her friends dispersed to continue about their day in the hopes that Rainbow would return soon, Twilight could only hope so.
----
Shadow led the family back to the inn. Thankfully, she still had the room for another day, making it the most viable place to lie low, even if for only a few hours. Once everypony was inside, Shadow close and locked the doors behind them. By this point, the pain in her side had become more irritating than painful. She was able to move more freely again.
The queen, along with her daughters rested on the bed as they tried to regain their nerves. Neptune simply stood next to them. His robes were dirty and red with blood where he was cut. The fatigue on his face was clearly visible. It was a miracle that he was able to run as fast as he did.
Shadow walked up to the four. “Okay, we should be safe for now.”
As the queen comforted her children, Neptune had his mind on other matters. “Buckeye, that traitor.” he spat. “I’ll have his head for this!”
Shadow’s ears perked up. “Wait, you know Buckeye?”
“He was the captain of my royal guard, and one of my closest associates.” That would explain how he was able to replace the king’s guards with his own. “Now, it seems like keeping him so close was a mistake.” Shadow nodded in agreement.
“But I don’t understand. Why would Buckeye, or anyone, want us killed?” the queen asked, still comforting the two fillies.
“Perhaps they don’t agree with the way things are operated.” Shadow offered.
“Well, there are certainly better ways to ask for a change.” Neptune huffed. “A well-written letter, perhaps? Jumping straight to assassination just seems desperate.” Shadow had to admit, she respected the king’s seemingly light-hearted nature to the situation. But she couldn’t allow him to ignore the gravity of the situation.
“Desperate perhaps, but still lethal nonetheless. Until I’ve dealt with this threat, none of you are safe, especially here. In fact, I think it’d be best if we left the city until this is resolved.”
Neptune looked at her with suspicious eyes. “You seem to have quite the plan laid out. You certainly aren’t some random stranger. In fact, I’d say you aren’t even from this city. Just who are you?” The king’s deductive skills were certainly something to praise.
No point in trying to lie to him. “I’ve been assigned to protect you from whatever dangers may arise from this scheme. If all goes right, you may even meet the one who gave me the assignment.”
Neptune shot a quick smile at her. “Well, then. I suppose we’re in your debt. However, if you’re our guardian, then surely we should know your name.”
"With all due respect, Your Highness, I think that proper introductions will have to wait. For every second we spend chatting, Buckeye grows further and further out of our reach. I need to take him out now."
The queen nodded in agreement. “Yes. He must pay for what he’s done. But how will you find him? Canterlot is a very large city.”
"I have my ways." Shadow turned towards the door to leave, but was stopped when she was assaulted by unbearable pain. With the adrenaline gone from her veins, the pain that she ignored back at the courtyard came crashing back in full force. It was so overwhelming that it forced her onto her knees as she held back pained screams. It felt as if a jagged sword was rammed into her abdomen and twisted around in the wound. She couldn't move like this.
"What's wrong?" Neptune asked. He walked up to the fallen mare as his family stayed behind.
Shadow, as stubborn as ever, tried to get back up. "I'm...fine." she strained out. She didn't get very far off the ground before another sting of pain sent her back to down.
The white unicorn couldn't watch Shadow suffer anymore. She hopped down from the bed and walked up to her. "Let me try and help."
"Now, now. I know you're eager to try healing magic, but this is a little out of your league. Who knows what could happen if you make a mistake."
The white filly stamped a hoof in frustration. "But I've been practicing a lot. I'm really good at it. Let me show you."
"I honestly don't think that's--."
"Just let her." Shadow cut in,long through with trying to get back up. "If it will help me catch Buckeye, I'm willing to try it."
Neptune was reluctant, but taking one look at his daughter's pleading eyes eventually proved too much for him. With a nod of his head, he backed away from Shadow, allowing the unicorn to work her magic.
First, she took a close look to see where the source of pain came from. Upon finding it, she gasped in shock. There was a large, bloody scorch mark right where the energy bolt struck Shadow's body. It left a circular, scorched hole in her robes, as well as bloody, burnt skin. From the look of it, it probably did some internal damage as well. It looked bad, but the unicorn felt that she could handle it.
As she closed her eyes to concentrate, a warm, orange glow enveloped her horn. Slowly, she brought her horn down to Shadow's wound. The injured mare tensed up, expecting some searing pain as the magic mended her wound. However, as the spell had its effect, Shadow didn't feel pain. In fact, it felt soothing, like a gentle massage. She felt her skin morph back into its original state. Her damaged organs and bones were healed as well. This was actually working!
Soon, the unicorn stopped the spell, sensing that all of Shadow's injuries were gone. "How do you feel?"
Shadow managed to get back on her feet. The pain wasn't gone entirely, but was far more bearable than it was before. That little filly was impressive. "I feel...better. Thank you."
The filly beamed at her father with a look of pure pride. "See? I told you I could do it."
Neptune grinned at her enthusiasm. "That you did. Truly impressive, I must say." He put his attention back on Shadow. "So, you feel ready now?"
She nodded. "Yes. Once I return, we can focus on leaving the city. Until then, you all stay here." Once the family showed their understanding, Shadow left the room. Buckeye's end was finally coming near.
----
Shadow kept a low profile as she returned to the castle. Staying hidden amongst the various ponies walking past it, she was able to observe it from a distance. The castle was relatively clear of any guards, though archers, most likely Buckeye’s, still patrolled the perimeter. Not that it mattered; she didn’t need to get very close to the castle to find what she was looking for.
She brought her eyes down to the courtyard entrance. More specifically, the ground near the courtyard entrance. She slowly scanned her eyes across the ground. If Buckeye was as wounded as she remembered, then there should’ve been…
“Found it.”
Shadow spotted a blood trail leading away from the castle and into the city. She knew that it wasn’t Neptune’s as it didn’t follow the same path as he did. No, this was definitely Buckeye’s blood. Since Shadow rendered one of his wings useless, he had to leave the castle on foot, dripping blood from his injured wing wherever he went. Now all Shadow needed to do was follow the trail to whatever hole he crawled into.
----
It didn't take very long for Shadow to find what she was looking for. After following the blood trail for only a few minutes, she eventually found herself in another plaza. Even though it was crammed with ponies, Shadow had no issues finding her target.
The blood trail led directly to a doctor's stand. And lo and behold, Buckeye was there, getting his injured wing stitched up.
He repeatedly tapped an impatient hoof as the doctor used his magic to slowly close the wound. "Can we hurry this along?"
"Patience, sir." the doctor calmly responded. "And...there." With a final snip of his scissors, he completely stitched Buckeye's wing. As the pegasus gave it a few test flaps, he winced at a small sting of pain. "I recommend giving that wing a few days to recover. You wouldn't want to undo those stitches."
Buckeye just rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes. If you insist." Just as he turned to walk away, he stopped dead in his tracks. Standing not even fifty meters away from him was his white-hooded assailant. He felt his blood go cold as the two just stood there, staring at each other. Without warning, Buckeye bolted in the other direction with Shadow chasing right behind,
The two galloped through the city, shoving aside any civilians in their way. Buckeye cut through alleys, barreled through large crowds, but nothing helped him lose Shadow. Several times during the chase, he even knocked over stacks of crates and boxes in an attempt to slow her down. She just leapt over all of them, not missing a beat.
Soon, he shouted "Assassin!" as the two ran through another plaza, attracting the attention of the city guards. Soon enough, Shadow was being tailed by a small battalion of guards. If Buckeye thought that she was going to stop and fight them, he was sorely mistaken. Her eyes were set on him and only him.
Just as she was starting to catch up to Buckeye, he made a sudden turn into one of Canterlot's larger inns. Upon entering the main lounge, she saw her target darting up the stairs to the upper floor. Ignoring the shocked faces of the ponies around her, Shadow followed Buckeye upstairs, the city guards not far behind.
They ran up to the very top floor, where Buckeye charged through a door and into the adjacent hallway. As Shadow hurried towards the door, the pegasus bucked it shut. A sharp pain shot through her muzzle as the door slammed into her face. She didn't have much time to cope with the pain; the guards were charging up the stairs. With little time to spare, she turned around and bucked the door open, knocking off its hinges.
When she looked down the hall, she caught a glimpse of Buckeye leaping through a window all the way on the opposite side. Shadow galloped down the hall, wasting no time in leaping out the window after the pegasus.
She practically flew over the ground below before landing on the flat rooftop of another building. Buckeye was right in her sights. She wasn't going to let him get away this time. The two galloped across the roof as they approached another gap. Buckeye leapt to the next rooftop, using his wings to help him glide across despite the stinging pain. Shadow leapt right after him, effortlessly making the jump.
As she continued to chase the pegasus, it became obvious that he wasn't used to exerting himself this much. No matter how hard he tried, he began to slow down, as Shadow began to speed up. She soon grew so close that she could feel his flailing tail brush against her chest. She was right on top of him. This was her chance!
Shadow leapt at the fleeing pegasus, hidden blade ready to strike. She dug it into his abdomen, forcing him to the ground. Buckeye cried in pain as he skidded across the ground with Shadow right on top of him. The two came to a stop right at the rooftop's edge. The chase was over. Shadow finally got him.
She slowly removed her blade from Buckeye's body. "You knew you couldn't run forever."
Buckeye coughed as he clung to what life he had left. "Damned Assassin. You just couldn't leave well enough alone, could you?"
"You honestly expected me to stand idly by while you murdered the king and his family? If anything, you should've expected resistance."
Buckeye let out a weak, wheezing chuckle. "Resistance or not, you won't be able to stop this. All of your effort will prove pointless in the end. The king will die, and a new light shall dawn over all of Equestria."
"What makes you so eager to kill the king? What is your reason?"
"Neptune is weak and foolish. He will run Equestria into the ground, undoing all of the work those before him did to make it great." Buckeye coughed again, this time more violently as specks of blood flew from his mouth. His end was nearing. "He possesses the tool required to prevent that, but what does he do with it instead? He uses it to bash his enemies across the head."
"Wait. You mean the staff. Why? What can the staff do?"
Buckeye simply chuckled yet again. "Now where would the fun be in telling you everything? Not like it matters. I have friends in high places. They will ensure this work is done."
"Then they will fall as well. No one can escape death's embrace. As long as I breath, so shall the king and his family. As for you, it's time you rest." Shadow plunged her blade deep into Buckeye's neck. His entire body went stiff as he tried in vain to cling to whatever life he had left. His eyes, wide with shock, rolled to the back of his head before his entire body went limp. He was finally dead. However, Shadow wasn't finished just yet.
Reaching into her robes, she took out the feather she received in Manehattan. With one, smooth swipe, she brought the white feather across the seeping wound on Buckeye's neck, staining it a deep crimson. She then placed the red feather neatly back in her robes. However, even though Buckeye was dead, the king still wasn't safe, She still had those other ponies to worry about, and had little to go on. Except for one thing.
"Halt!"
Shadow slowly turned away from Buckeye's corpse. A group of guards had made their way up to the rooftop, forming a wall in front of the mare. As they closed in, she backed towards the roof's edge, stopping when one of her back legs nearly slipped off. She couldn't just leap off the building, not without breaking a leg or three. However, when she took a quick glance at the ground regardless, she got an idea.
She looked back at the guards, a smirk plastered on her face. As they continued to close in, she took one, final step back, sending her right off the rooftop. The guards, absolutely shocked, ran up to the ledge, peering down to the ground below. Shadow was nowhere in sight.
All they saw were several ponies pulling heavy carts full of hay.
----
Hours later, Shadow finally returned to the inn, large saddlebags in tow. Neptune and his family were resting soundly on the bed. Out of all of them, Neptune was the only one who woke up. He stood out of bed as Shadow approached him.
"It's done. Buckeye is dead."
Neptune sighed. "It's such a shame that it had to come to this. So, it's safe to return to the castle then?"
Shadow shook her head. "No. Buckeye isn't the only one involved in this. There are others who wish to do you harm. Until they are eliminated as well, your lives will still be in danger."
"I see." Neptune glanced back at his sleeping family. They seemed so peaceful. So calm. Just a scant few hours ago, they were fighting for their lives against rogue guards. If he was the intended target, then why were they victims as well? What had they done to deserve such rampant animosity? Even worse, what was he supposed to do if anything happened to them? He dreaded to even consider such a thought.
"King Neptune?" Neptune looked back at the black mare. "We should leave Canterlot as quickly as possible, preferably tonight. I can take you all to a place that's far safer than here."
Neptune took a moment to weigh his options. Shadow couldn't blame him; if she were in his horseshoes, she'd be just as wary. On one end, he was attacked and nearly killed by his most trusted soldiers in some diabolical plot, and on the other, was a random, shady stranger who came right out of the blue to save him. He was skeptical of her at first, but after everything that has happened in the past few hours, it became rather clear who he was safest with.
"Very well. I suppose our lives are in your hooves then. You at least seem to know what you're doing." He noticed the saddlebags hanging at Shadow's sides. "What are in those?"
Shadow glanced back at her bags, a bit surprised. She actually forgot about them. "Oh, yes." She placed them on the ground and opened them up. One bag was full of clothes. The other held four daggers.
Neptune raised a curious eyebrow. "What are those for?"
"The clothes may not be as fanciful as the ones you're wearing now, but that's the intention. They'll help draw less attention to ourselves as we leave the city."
"And the daggers?"
"We have a long walk ahead of us, Your Highness. Anything could happen. So, we have to be prepared for anything."
Neptune let out a small chuckle. "I admire your meticulousness, but I believe there is one thing that you're forgetting."
Shadow perked up at the claim. She didn't forget anything, did she? She killed Buckeye, bought enough clothes and weapons for the four ponies, mapped out the shortest possible route out of the city, and even had few snacks packed for the long walk. Like the king just said, she was very meticulous with this. What could she have possibly forgotten?
"You never told me your name."
"Oh." Shadow did promise to go through the basic formalities after she dealt with Buckeye. No point in denying the king that much, at least. "Of course." She stuck out a hoof. "I'm Shadow Streak."
Neptune shook her hoof. As expected, he had a nice, firm grip. "It's a pleasure, Shadow Streak. As you probably know, I am King Neptune, ruler of Equestria." He motioned towards the three sleeping ponies behind him. "This, of course, is my family." He introduced them one by one. The amber pegasus was his wife, Queen Saturn. As for the two fillies, their names were easy enough to remember.
The white unicorn's name was Celestia. The purple pegasus' name was Luna.
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Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat.
Just one problem--you say the king got stabbed in the gut. Maybe ponies are different, but a human that's been stabbed in the gut doesn't get up and run over to protect his family, he screams and continues to bleed out on the floor. The chances of a stab to the gut not hitting something vital are really quite slim.
Thank you for not naming the King/Queen Uranus.
Knew the kids were Celestia and Luna the second I read their descriptions. You're doing a great job with this story and I keep wanting more. Keep it up!
Nuuuu i'm too late.. 4th...
Well i had a feeling why the two would be celestia and luna.. It was obvious.. Yet the motive of the king with the staff is yet unknown.. Will wait for later chapters for more awesomeness
O_o ending
But that should have been easy to predict....
Stupid brain
1263409 Well, true. But certain circumstances can cause the victim to 'ignore' the pain. And IF pony physiology is anything that I think it is, chances are that, depending solely on the length and width of the weapon/wound, and the location, a gut wound can be relatively minor, as most of an equines vital organs are in the chest area (ish). Then again I've never studied deeply into equine anatomy so you may wanta look at that yaself, that's just my more-or-less approximation.
Oh, and as to my first point... you'll find that in most fights such as this, and even wars, soldiers can have whole limbs blown off, then picked up by their owner and walked to the nearest medic for a stitchup without feeling it. It's the same as people occasionally breaking their leg but still walking on it to get home where they then find out what's happened. In short, this stuff happens.
1263556
Well, my point was that they don't get up because it hit something vital. Soldiers can ignore pain in open combat, sure, but he's a King; ignoring pain like that takes discipline, it isn't something you just randomly do. I highly doubt a King would have gone through that kind of mental conditioning.
BARRELS ! I fuckin' knew it
1263633 Pewdiepie!!!!
*Gasp* Plot device!!!!
1263633 FUCKING BARRELS I HATE THEM!
1263734
You know what. You are the first person so far to point that out. I was wondering how long that was going to take. I'd take my hat off to you, but I'm not wearing one. Here, have a duck face.
I knew those two fillies were Celestia and Luna!
1263714 i think it has something to with the staff that the king has
woooaaaaaahhhh....but plot device
It was easy to predict them being Celestia and Luna. I knew it from the moment it mentioned 'four regal ponies' walking out.
i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm136/n5d25d90/The%20Condemned%20Motivators/Condemned-OhSnap.jpg
I suppose Celesta gets wings and Luna gets a horn later.
I love this story
1263586 Ah, yeah gotta point there... missed that, my bad
YES! Buckeye FINALLY died
BARRELS!! I hate barrels....
2012 would be the best year ever if Pewdiepie said he was a brony!
Didn't see that coming
Clever. Very interesting as well.
Continue this epicosity my friend.
Saw that ending coming from a mile away.
NICE!
1263409
IRL an equine being stabbed in the gut will continue to run away regardless. The difference between equines and humans is that equines will literally run themselves to death before they will stop, if you want to take down a horse, go for the legs.
1268526
Yes, but that's not a feature of their anatomy, that's simply a byproduct of their limited intelligence. Give a horse a human's intelligence and it stops running, because it realizes that continuing to run will end in its death.
What a real horse would do in this situation is immaterial, since a real horse would not ignore a gut wound to rush over and put up a magical barrier between its family and their assailants.
Whaaaaaaaaaaa
must have MOAR 
oh and love the story
I fucking knew it!
As soon as their colour schemes were described, I knew.
all the eternal wats in the world
1268641
Look, friend, the simple fact remains that it's a work of fiction. But if your still looking for an explanation, then here:
It was an improperly done shot to the gut and the knife slid out prematurely due to the king moving about so much due to his fighting his assailants. The knife did not penetrate deeply, or was instead just a cut, perhaps long but still pretty shallow.
If this explanation still displeases you, then please, think of your own. It's a land inhabited by magical pastel colored ponies, I'm willing to let a couple of small details slide.
1273893
I wasn't trying to make an argument out of it, so you needn't act like I forced some kind of confrontation down your throat. You're the one who decided to reply, and I replied back with my opinion. I'm glad you're able to let a couple of small details slide; so am I, for that matter. The fact that I can let them slide doesn't mean I can't make mention of them in the comments if I so desire, though. Your reply sounds so put-upon that I can't help but wonder why you even forced yourself to continue an argument that never existed in the first place.
1274195 I apologize for being rude. I simply felt frustrated that you presented a problem and people tried to help you solve it, but instead of collaborating with them to find a solution, you simply shot them down and contributed very little to help. I didn't mean to come off as scathing or shitty as I sounded. But, as I said, I felt that you were playing the Devil's Advocate for no good reason.
1274195
1275296
Wow, guys. This is how a conversation or an argument should oocur. Not with yelling, fighting, or cursing a each other, but by expressing your point. If someone disagrees with your opinion, then you should just explain it. This is why bronies are good people.
Oh...
...OH.
I like this.
1275333
Why would I have had to yell, scream, or cuss?
1275296
It wasn't really a problem I was looking to solve, it was just an observation on my part. I may have worded it incorrectly, as if to imply that I was looking for justification.
1275558 I understand. I just figured that after my reply it had turned into a conversation of sorts.
Epic
[img]C:\Users\Family\Pictures\Wha!.png[/img]
1264755
Would explain her love for flying.
1281282 Guess so.
1263885 DESTROY ALL THE BARRELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1263898 I was kinda thinking it went without saying that that was a reference to the trailer. I noticed it immediately, just thought everybody else did too.
The white unicorn's name was Celestia. The purple pegasus' name was Luna.
-begins slowly clapping- Well played good sir, well played.
Yeah... I figured Celly wasn't a Templar.
Hmmm... The king has the Staff of Leadership, eh? Too bad his staff can't be trusted. Also,
t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTz4n_ycJFG1lfv67_gi66uPjCVsNZZ-6tdBmq0r5WWHgMi3NJ9h4qvddcBFg
Why don't you refer to the Solar family as Alicorns. It makes it so much less confusing. By the way this is one of the best cross over fix I've read so far.
1263409 my friend got stabbed in his gut once, he cried out in pain as he ran away from the guy who did it, but he could still run. when he went to the hospital, the doctors said he had to stay there for a few days to recover. last time we ever went to that neighbourhood .
even though that was an awesome night that started with drinking, taking drugs from a dealer is NOT a good idea.