FYI: While I cannot lay claim to Altair or any of the other characters in AC, Nadirah is my OC. So don't go looking for her in the game...you won't find her =P
Trust No One
The midday sun, shielded by neither wind nor cloud, mercilessly smoldered the parched earth below. Even within the city walls of Jerusalem, maintained and inhabited by thousands upon thousands of people, horse troughs and wells dried within the hour. Pools of dust took flight around the treading feet of the people, covering the land in a fine film of powdered earth. For most of the day, shadows took refuge in the undiscovered corners of the world until evening.
Save one.
The woman glanced away from the small market stand, catching one of the rarest sights in the world; a white shadow, invisible to the crowd as it walked among them. A single unwilling blink, and the shadow disappeared.
The woman spun on her heel, abruptly abandoning the marketplace with a swift, purposeful gait. Her silken veil fluttered as she walked, disguising her exceptional beauty as a homely reflection of the dusty city and its dull inhabitants. Her long, dark dress was uncomfortable in the heat, but allowed her to remain as subtle as she pleased.
She finally came to the bustling market square of the noble district, with tall palm trees and a magnificent fountain glimmering in the center. Standing beneath the shadow of one of the trees was a man cloaked in grey, only his eyes and hands exposed to the sandy air. The woman watched him from the other side of the plaza, and when convinced he was only surveying the world as a statue, she casually approached him.
"Nadirah," the man hardly moved. "It is good to see you again. I trust you have been well?"
"Well enough, Ka'im." She hesitated, glancing once more around the market square.
The man, Ka'im, followed her green eyes as she looked past him.. "You look…troubled. Is something wrong?"
Nadirah's voice was hard and unquestioning, a pretense she used when speaking with members of the creed. "Altaïr is in the city."
Ka'im's chocolate eyes widened slightly at the mention of the name. "I suppose it could be possible. The man is made of smoke."
"Possible? I saw him."
"Then he is becoming careless in his ways," Ka'im gave the slightest of winks.
Nadirah's expression of stone did not falter. "What is he here for?"
"Ah, but the question should be 'who.'" She rolled her eyes, ready to seek out another more cooperative member of the creed to get her answers. "I don't know, to be honest," Ka'im told her simply, sensing her patience was growing short. "Rumor has it Al Mualim has given him great tasks to complete; a chance to redeem himself among the Brotherhood."
Nadirah nearly snorted. "The man should be given no such chances."
"Since when has he fallen out of favor with you?
With her cunning green eyes, it was the clear that the beautiful woman was calculating something within her thoughts.
"You do not fear him?" she asked quietly. "The man sees no one as either friend or foe, and holds all of our lives in his hands. And you want to patronize him?"
Ka'im cleared his throat, his eyebrows furrowing into view as he frowned. "Such things are forbidden by the creed."
Nadirah almost laughed at the man. "Since when have you ever known words to stop him?"
Ka'im, now exposed by the shifting sun, stepped back into the shadow of the palm tree, never taking his eyes off the woman before him. "You should see him again. I think you will find he is not the merciless killer you believe him to be."
The first toll of the city's alarm bells made Nadirah grin beneath her veil. Somewhere in Jerusalem, a soul had been claimed.
"But a killer nonetheless," she said indifferently and turned away, watching as the people of the square began to panic and guards rushed through the narrow stone streets, swords drawn.
High above, the bell towers rang deep into the night.
A/N: An older story, but still entertains me to read it from time to time. Assassin's Creed fans will enjoy, I'm sure ^_^
