Prologue - The Timely Assassin

The Moon's gaze fell down upon an encampment filled to the brim with rows and rows of tents that housed the most of a bustling army. The rest of the military force, mainly comprised of clan-less whelps and inexperienced soldiers still waiting for their first battle, were forced to make due with roughly spun nests in the tree's surrounding the enclosure.

The great mass of tents lay below the foundations of an old fort, aptly named The Three Spires for three jutting towers that rose out of the structure. One of the turrets had collapsed at some point in the last two-hundred years since it was occupied, but the rest of the structure stood strong. The fort's other defining feature besides the remaining two towers was a banner raised over the fortress' entrance, a black griffon outlined against a gold backdrop. The interior had been cleaned and gutted weeks ago and made fit for habitation a fortnight later as part of a covert effort to secure a military presence in Equestria. Now that the griffons were gearing for war, it was expected that the fort would be housing more soldiers temporarily before they moved on. The stronghold's spartan interior was lit by candle light that left long shadows along the high roofs.

Sixty seconds....

A stallion moved silently along the wooden support beams suspended a few feet below the ceiling, hidden within the shadows of a corridor on the third floor of the formidable fortress, hopping gracefully from beam-to-beam. His deep blue, hooded cloak covered his mane and body, while his face was hidden beneath a beak-like piece of cloth attached to the hood.

Forty-five seconds....

The doors at the ends of the corridor opened as the guards left and prepared to change shift. Below him, two griffons that had been guarding his target left, leaving the door to the commander's quarters exposed. The replacement shift could be heard approaching, their sharp talons and hind paws clicking softly on the ground, while their plate armor clanked loudly against their feathers and flanks. Dropping down from the support beam, the stallion quickly pushed the door open and quietly slid inside before easing it shut.

Thirty seconds....

Moving silently, the stallion examined the room as he made his way to the bathroom on his right. A feather cot lay across from the door he had come through and a sword and dagger lay on a table just outside the bathroom door. The stallion picked them up and moved them quietly under the cot, just in case things get out of hoof. He walked up to the bathroom door and quietly slid it open.

Fifteen seconds....

His target was before him, General Black Beak. The old crow was notorious for his pillaging of neighboring countries and the rumors that he rapes war criminals. He wouldn't dare attack Equestria while Celestia reigned; however, now that Celestia was gone, all the griffon clans united in preparations for war. Black Beak had been chosen for his infamous reputation and was to begin leading raids as soon as the new ruler of Equestria, Nightmare Moon, was confirmed to be dead.

Ten seconds....

Black Beak was preparing to engaged in an act of sexual depravity. He turned as the door creaked open and spotted the intruder. Taking in a deep breath, he attempted to screech in order to alert the guards; however, the stallion wasn't about to let the old bird ruin his plans. He slid at remarkable speeds across the tiled bathroom floor and, with a smooth motion, brought up his two fore hooves and a pair of gleaming blades flashed as the candle light struck them. The blades plunged into the foul bird's chest, puncturing both lungs. His mouth managed only to croak out a pitiful moan before the stallion released him, and retracted his blades before he caught Black Beak in his hooves.

"Five seconds....Tick-tock..., tick-tock.... Your time is up, General Black Beak." The stallion said in a quiet voice as he lowered Black Beak to the floor and pulled his eyes shut.

Silently, the stallion approached the only other living being in the room. A young mare, barely out of foal-hood, huddled in fear in a far corner. She was trying and failing to stay away from the expanding pool of blood coming from the griffon's corpse. The stallion extended a hoof to the indigo mare and was not at all surprised when she cringed in fear at the assassin. "Tick-tock, tick-tock. We must leave. Come with me if you want to live."

The mare, still huddled in the corner, slowly took his hoof in her own and allowed him to guide her out of the bathroom. He walked back over to Black Beak's corpse and took a white feather off of the depraved griffon's head and dipped it in his blood before the he placed it in one of his pouches. He then followed the last order of business and dipped a hoof in the blood and sketched a crescent moon on the wall opposite the door. The stallion walked back into the main room and wiped the blood off on the bed. "Follow me, my dear. My name isn't Tick Tock and I promise you that I will lead you to safety."

The mare followed him to the window as he hid behind the curtains scanning the skies and wooden palisade walls for sentries. Seeing none, he slid the window open and prepared to leap. The shivering mare walked up beside the stallion and wrapped her hooves around him, assuming he had pegasus wings beneath his cloak.

He did not.

The stallion leapt into the night sky and they both plummeted. The mare realized her mistake to late and took in a deep breath, preparing to scream, but was prevented by a hoof to the mouth. They both slowed down as they neared the ground, a dark red aura surrounding them. They landed softly and, immediately after, Tick Tock trotted forward, shifting the mare onto his back. He walked into the shadow of an old oak tree, blending in seamlessly with the mare being the only indication that he was there at all.

An ashen unicorn was waiting for them. Tick Tock showed the feather to the newcomer and gave a curt nod before all three vanished into the countryside, their mission a success. They would be training their newly acquired acolyte until another mission demanded their attention came up.

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Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter, special thanks to Peppy Greyskull for giving this story a thumbs up and to Dr.Jekyll for suggesting I post the story. Oh and also special thanks to the good doctor for becoming my editor. Be sure and thank him.

Editor's Notes: Yo, I'm Dr.Jekyll and, wow, was that fun. Lotsa' work done on this one. Great prologue. Had fun editing it. Hope all of you enjoyed it. See ya' next chapter.