Disclaimer: I do not own Assassin's Creed or "We Want War" or any material related to Ubisoft or These New Puritans in any way or form.
A/N: When I started this, I was almost done with AC: Brotherhood (I've finished it now and thought nothing but "OMGWTFNOOO" at the end), and after watching the trailer for the game in which Ezio and his fellow Assassins charge fearlessly into battle with Cesare and his guards, and after hearing the song "We Want War", I was inspired to write a little something for the game. This is very much my take on what should have happened in the game, although playing the whole story was nice, if a bit frustrating. :) Enjoy~
The Assassin recruits were told from the instant they became Novices that they were to be ready for battle at any time. They were instructed on the stringent care of their weapons and other tools and supplies they would need to assist their maestro should he call on them. But most of all, they were taught the Assassin's Creed.
Where other men blindly follow the truth, remember…
It was before dawn that Ghita Gargani strode into the armory, pulling on her gauntlets as her partner and long-time friend, Giovanni Guglielmi, yanked on his boots. They flashed each other a faint smile and continued to don their armor, prepared for another day in Rome should Ezio call on them. Four of their comrades had been sent on a scouting mission near the Pantheon, and it was the possibility of a high-profile assassination mission that filled them all with anticipation. Minutes later, Ghita and Giovanni were joined by another four of their friends: Ottavio Olivieri, Mino Ricoveri, Primo Penna, and Guido Tuccerini, all of whom began to put on their armor and secure their blades on their persons, talking quietly.
It was during this time, that Valeria Viozzi walked into the room, her hand on the stone doorway as she glanced in at the group assembled. They stopped adjusting their armor to look at her, and her lips twitched, betraying the slight hint of excitement. The recruits felt their bodies tense with anticipation, eager to prove their worth to the man who had saved them all from the Borgia. Their comrade did not keep them waiting.
"Alessandro received the pigeon. It is time."
Nothing is true.
The Assassins hid themselves around the Pantheon, and as Ezio walked through the crowd of Cardinals, they silently dispatched the guards who recognized the assassino. They hissed quietly at the horde of spearmen surrounding their master, nocking their arrows and holding their breath to steady their hands, waiting, and when they saw Ezio nod almost imperceptibly, they let the arrows fly, striking their targets down in a bloody circle.
Cesare, in disbelief and rage, leapt out of the carriage, calling guards to his side and drawing his blade, cursing his Auditore adversary and promising death. All of which were lies and hopes which, the Assassins knew, would not be fulfilled while they still breathed. They watched as Cesare kissed his blade in what seemed like reverence, eyeing them with murder in his eyes. Glancing to either side, they saw that they were outnumbered by the guards, but the Assassins refused to show fear.
Where other men are limited by morality and law, remember…
Cesare moved to strike, but froze as he saw bodies falling on either side of him, arrows lodged deep in their flesh. His eyes flickered to the rooftops, ready to turn his gun at whatever foolish archer had struck down his men. But it was no mere Borgia archer that had dispatched the guards; four more Assassins leapt down from the rooftops, bearing blades and axes which they fingered delicately, simply watching a now very disconcerted Cesare.
"Guards! GUARDS!"
Everything is permitted.
The efficiency of the Assassins was like clockwork; every man or woman dispatched their attackers left and right, defending one another as well as the maestro, never touching Cesare, who, as they knew, was Ezio's chosen target. Soon, the piazza in front of the Pantheon was pooled with crimson, the Cardinals and other civilians long gone, and there was nothing but bodies, an empty carriage, and Cesare, who could see his breath condense on the cold metal of Ezio's hidden blade as he lay on the bloody ground.
We work in the dark to serve the light...
"I… cannot be killed by you!" Cesare shouted, glaring defiantly at the Assassin without even a hint of fear in his eyes. Ezio merely shook his head and plunged the blade into Cesare's carotid.
"Your tyranny has gone on too long Cesare," he murmured as the man gurgled. "Your death will set Roma free. Requiescat in pace."
There was a moment of hushed silence over the piazza as the assassini murmured a respectful prayer for the dead men. Then, as one, the recruits bowed to Ezio, who nodded in return, and slipped back to Isola Tiberina through the shadows.
We are Assassins.