A.N. - Ever, while playing as Altair, start an assassination for one of the informants and GET INTERUPTED by an idiotic guard? Was playing the first AC, and this KEPT HAPPENING, when a guard yelled something to me while I was fighting a horde of his comrades…thus this plot bunny came to me.

Angel of Death

Several of the fools were already at my feet, writhing in pain as death came to them from my sword, but several were still standing. One of them, the one that started this massacre, was still standing shakily on his two feet and looking around the street in hopes of finding more of his stupid friends nearby. Another one of them leapt at me in a feeble attempt to try and win a blow but I swept around him and cut the tendons of his legs before harshly plunging my blade into his stomach. He gurgled on his blood beneath me, but I had already refocused my golden gaze on the others still around me: two were still cowering at my latest display on the art of killing while the other, a higher rank by his armor, began to scream taunts to me in his native language.

He died next. His arms raised in fury and insults rolling of his tongue, he was completely unprepared for my lunge as my blade gored the flesh that was his throat with the rest mist spraying about my white clothing and coating the ground quickly. His final yell, however, caught the attention of ANOTHER group of guards that had been directed by the townsfolk…can't kill them though. The two guards from earlier seemed to gain confidence as six more men came sprinting towards me, one of them even had the audacity to smirk when one of the sprinting guards called out to me,

"There's nowhere for you to run!" …I almost laughed, but instead decided to answer him, my tone cold and my gaze bloodthirsty at the fools who ruined my recon. I turned to the guard who was still smirking and flashed him a small one myself,

"But I don't want to run." His smirk had vanished but I let mine remain as I took one heavy step towards him and impaled my blade into his sternum; feeling the bone snap in two and the organs hidden underneath give way to the metal until its point was petruding from his back. His face a picture of shock and pain as blood poured from his new wound and mouth, his dark eyes found mine under the hood and I let my lips twitch a bit higher into a knowing smile before spinning to face the others and letting his body fall to the ground. "And?"

A larger man than I lunged forward and clashed his blade against mine before jumping back and trying again. He failed, expected, and then tried to grab me to toss into who knows what, fool. Batting his hand away and swinging my fist to his face, I quickly slid my sword into its sheath and leapt upon him with my hidden blade plunging through the back of his neck to kill him quickly. I let the smaller blade retract and decided to use my knife for an…extra challenge…if these guards could even present that to me. Another leapt again, less afraid by the appearance of my knife, and he fell quickly as I easily sidestepped and slit his throat without much thought before throwing a smaller knife into the throat of one of the guards who still waited near the back of the others.

Two of the youngest were looking terrified and sickened at the quickly increasing number of their comrades and some of their higher ranking officers that were painting the ground red. When they looked to me again, in their eyes was that look that I see every time I go on one of my killing sprees; the one that screams: this man is a demon.

Their eyes widened even more, hadn't thought it possible, when I turned towards them covered in bright red blood and they both took a step back as the other two, who still didn't seem to understand that their getting in my way was the reason they were going to die, decided to keep trying. The first jumped towards me only to fall into my grip as I plunged the dagger into his chest a few times before letting him drop. The second swiped his sword towards my chest but I merely ducked before stabbing through his boot to garner his attention and drag it straight up to cut through his throat vertically.

Now down to only two guards left, I glanced over only to see them preparing to run away, one faster than the other was spared the fate of a throwing blade causing his death like his slower comrade, but the faster didn't escape me. Years of training has proved that feat virtually impossible for anyone but Malik and even for him it is difficult; I followed the terrified idiot at a full sprint before leaping up and plunging my blade into his neck.

The bloodshed now over and most of my irritation forgotten, I quickly scaled the building and dropped into the shade of one of the roof gardens so any guards who found the bodies would have no one to trail and hunt down. The sun was getting low as I debated trying the informant again or heading back to rest at the bureau. Malik would be annoyed with my presence and I knew better than to try and apologize to him right now…it was still too soon and I didn't deserve his forgiveness, but whether the guards were still looking for me or not in the next few hours wouldn't matter: I was covered with sticky, smelly blood. That alone would make them suspicious and hiding with the scholars would be impossible once they, too, retired for the night.

Slipping out of the garden and making my way back to the bureau was easy, entering and having Malik greet me would be interesting and the rest of this mission…we'll see.

"Ah the fallen eagle has returned."

"Safety and peace Malik."

"Your being here gives me-" he stopped when he turned and studied my appearance, "What did you do?"

"…"I had no answer that he already didn't know, Malik was my friend and brother…was. He sighed and the fire in his eyes dimmed a bit, I took that as my move to leave and get cleaned up, but his voice stopped me halfway through the door,

"Is any of that blood yours?" it was soft, an attempt at nonchalance or monotone, but there was…concern behind it. I was wary, I have come to distrust my brothers since my fall and all they could do was throw insults. I expected it from Malik and tolerated it if he ever made as if to strike me, only from him though*. He saw my unease and wariness even with the hood up and shielding my golden gaze, and pulled out a few clothes,

"Wash up a bit and come see me, I highly doubt it, but if your even remotely hurt and trying to hide it Al Mualim will have my hide." He had hesitated there…as if the part about our master was not really supposed to be there…as though he added it just to keep an appearance. I did not push for more; I would never push him again,

"Thank you Malik."

A.N. - well…that was fun. Painted Altair a LITTLE dark there but…I like it X3 and I just HAD to add a small snippet with dear Malik in there! I love those two! (BROTHERLY relationship) I'm not really for slash or yaoi or all that.