I could hear the screams before anything else. The thin wall didn't keep the noises out of my home, nor my mind. The first scream broke an eerie silence, one different to most nights. The first was followed by many of women and children alike. The house conjoined with mine was suddenly awake with fear. I'd never learned their names, but when the door was thrown open, I could hear the man's yells as he fought to defend his home and family. This brought a sudden realisation to my mind; I had no man to protect me. My mind clicked into action, as I rushed to get out of bed. The shouting next door grew louder, and I knew I didn't have long to act.
A woman's voice shrieked loudly, and her children cried out. I almost didn't have enough time to make it to the secret back door before loud footsteps trudged up the steps and threw my door down. Behind my house, I could see Masyaf; it was going up in flames. Villagers were running for the fortress further up the hill, and I cursed under my breath as I tore the bottom of my dress; I couldn't run with a skirt that long.
I could hear footsteps thumping their way upstairs, and it made me glad I'd picked the house with the less noticeable back door. Amongst the screaming was the sound of metal clashing with metal. The guards were fending off these barbarians, whoever they were. I didn't have the time to wait around and find out, and I didn't want to be next in line to suffer the same fate as my neighbours. I could see the lines of soldiers pouring through the tall wooden gates, covered in shiny armour. I couldn't see the seal clearly, but decided it would be a good time to run.
Further up the mountain, I passed Azriah's home. It looked undisturbed as of yet, but it wasn't far behind mine. Her father was packing things onto their horse, and Azriah's younger brother Fareed was climbing onto the horse. I didn't waste any time trying to help them, as much as they needed it. The screams were echoing off the tall mountains surrounding us, making it impossible to drown them out with ragged breathing.
At the gates, there were groups of foreign soldiers trying to get past the guards. I watched them as I ran into the monastery. As I was about to pass under the arch of the door, I ran straight into someone: consequently losing my balance. Large, gentle hands steadied me, and I rushed an apology to the man. I couldn't see his eyes; they were hidden under an off-white hood. He nodded to me before running to defend the gates.
I froze to watch him battle it out with three men at once. He was as graceful as Maia when she danced, only this was a more deadly dance. His sword stained red, and I turned to leave the sight of this. Inside the tall monastery was a mass of people; dazed and disoriented, or angry and fearful. A few guards standing higher than everyone else tried to keep everyone calm. Behind them was a table with men huddled around in hysterics, trying to find a solution. The master, Malik, was one of those men.
Instead of looking for friends in the crowd, I headed up the stairs toward the table. A few guards tried to stop me half way, but I pushed straight past them.
"Who are they?" I asked, but my question went unanswered. I slipped a dagger out of the closest man's belt and stabbed the maps on the table.
"Girl, you've forgotten your place. Go tend to the wounds of our brothers." Malik kept his head down.
"This is my place. Listen to me."
Malik looked at the dagger, before raising his head to look at me. I glared bluntly, and he stared back. With all eyes on me, I spoke again.
"They've come through the gates here," I gestured to the map, "and here. They're destroying the village, pillaging as they go. They've taken the Western District." They all stared; nothing but their heavy gazes that weighed me down. The same man spoke at me then; "We're aware of the situation. Now leave."
"Do you know what they want? What they're after?" I challenged him. The slightest hint of a smile crept up one side of Malik's mouth.
"Do you know, girl?" a voice from behind me asked. "Please, enlighten us with your knowledge, or say nothing and turn away from this table." The voice spat. His voice was full of venom; I didn't dare look behind me. At that, Malik spoke.
"Altaïr, care for your tongue." He looked past me, at this Altaïr who was behind me.
"She may very well know something we don't. Treat her well, or not at all." A second of silence among these men was all it took to know that Altaïr hadn't wanted to. The aching urge to turn around and look at him finally won over.
He was the man I ran into just moments ago. Only this time, his forehead was dampened with sweat and his clothes had red stains. I tried to recall his name as I bowed down to him. He put a hand on my shoulder, and knelt down to my height.
"What can you tell us, girl?" His eyes looked straight into mine, and they had the power to make me stammer.
"I.. I…" I closed my eyes and shook my head. A small snicker escaped his lips, and his arm fell off my shoulder. He walked by me, his robes just brushing my bare arms.
"She has nothing to help us." He said, almost as if he was saying I rest my case.
"I can help." I said at last, so hurt by his last statement that I silently vowed to prove him wrong. The anger swelled in the pit of my stomach.
"Oh?" He asked. It was a challenge; one I greatly welcomed. I reached for the dagger still stuck in the table, and pulled it free; eager to test my abilities I have kept hidden for a long, long time. I heard his cold, menacing laugh. In that instant, I almost wanted to ask him what was so funny about a girl who could kill him as easily as he could breathe. Or so I thought.
"Altaïr. You wouldn't dare." Malik's voice warned. Altaïr was overly confident in himself; he didn't have a second thought.
"Relax, brother. She'll only have minimal cuts and bruises when I'm done with her." His bitter, cocky smile made me want to reach over and slap him. He walked around the table and seized my wrist, dragging me down the stairs to the training pit.
"You think this will be a breeze, but you are so very sadly mistaken, girl." He whispered in my ear, angrily. Above, I could see Malik watching from the balcony, concerned for me. I smiled at the thought of someone actually caring.
Just as Altaïr tried to fling me to the other side of the ring, I pulled my wrist free and kicked him behind the knees. He moved only slightly, and unsheathed his sword. An onlooker threw a sword into the ring for me, and I gladly picked it up, trying to adapt to the weight of it.
"After you, girl. Show us your great skill." He taunted. I think I'd provoked him just that little bit too much. I put the knife in a concealed pouch at my waist, and gripped the sword tight. I used the sword to quickly trim my dress further, making it easier to move quickly. I could've been wrong, but I was sure the men weren't just watching for the fighting, considering you could see my lower thigh. Altaïr didn't seem to notice.
I discarded my shoes, to feel the warm sand get between my toes. I tied my hair back with a loose thread of linen, to avoid it hindering my sight. Finally ready, I approached him, with a simple swing to his chest. He jumped back and lunged forward, bluffing a swing to my side. I half-heartedly defended the blow, which he quickly deflected, only to attempt to land a blow on my right shoulder. I strafed to the left, making his try useless. He stepped back, eying me closely while he unsheathed his short sword aswel. I took out the dagger, holding one in each hand.
My left hand wasn't as good as my right, but I was still fairly skilled in dual wielding. He came at me, and he tried blow after blow, trying to get a weak spot, but I soon realised we were going nowhere fast. As my father had once taught me, a long, long time ago, Offense is the new defence. I planned what I'd do in a matter of seconds.
He landed another blow which I calmly deflected, and used the miniscule gap to hit his chest. It hit, but not nearly hard enough to hurt him. He flicked the sword away from him. I jumped back, and carefully circled around him. He lunged for me again, I simply jumped out of the way. He attacked me with both his weapons at once, and I caught his long sword between my mine. I flicked it free from his hands, to see it go to the other end of the ring. He didn't seem the least bit interested. He produced another blade from his belt, roughly the same size as the one he already had.
He stood back against the rails and waited for me to attack him. I slowly walked backwards, away from him. He saw this and ran for me; but I used my longer sword to keep the distance. He tried to flick my sword from my hands, but I deflected the blow, giving him an opening that I could have avoided. I knew he would go for it and jumped back from his blade, only to have our longer swords resting firmly against eachother.
I put my face close to the blade, as did he.
"Don't think you'll win." He whispered, I grinned with gritted teeth.
"I should say the same." I said, flicking his sword from his hand, which left him an opening to do the same. We circled around each other, with one dagger each. I changed hands, and he occasionally tried to land a blow. He managed to land a few on me, and I him. He also managed to get a small red line drawn across my calf, but I didn't have time to see how serious it was. He stood, almost relaxed, waiting for me to attack him. Instead I backed up and crouched down, ready to move in case he tried anything. My right hand was forward, the dagger pointing toward him. My left hand was behind me, keeping me balanced when a light bulb in my head flicked on. Sand. I grabbed a handful of sand, keeping my poker face, and clenched my fist tight around it. He signalled for me to come forth, and I failed to hesitate.
He used his sword so expertly, it amazed me. I danced around with him a bit, until I finally threw the sand at his eyes. His hand flew to shield his eyes and I took the moment to push him to the floor. Sitting on his stomach, I held my dagger to his throat.
"Have I proved my worth?" I whispered, my face just inches from his. His brow furrowed, and I thought it before I reacted. I knew exactly what he would do.
He used his legs to flip me onto my back, and straddled my hips. I still held my dagger to his throat. He grinned and slowly eased closer to my face.
"Not quite yet." He whispered back. He pushed my arm with the blade away from his neck, and pulled the dagger free from my hand, tossing it to the end of the ring. He pinned my arms on either sides of my head, and I stared at him while he glared back. For a moment, I thought he was going to end me, before he re-sheathed his dagger and stood up. I sat up and traced the line on my calf. I froze at the sound of someone clapping, and the crowd followed. I looked up at the balcony; Malik was whispering in a man's ear. He smiled down at me, and I smiled half-heartedly back.