Chapter 7 - An Unexpected Visit

It had been two months since Saphira had left the creed and life had been dull. Seriously nothing had happened that remotely sparked the teenager's interest. She had been sending letters regularly to Malik and the others but the replies were getting shorter and less frequent, they were probably on missions or something.

Saphira's new home was small but cosy, filled with pillows and carpets that came in all the colours the girl could think of. The house also had a roof garden in which she spent most of her time thinking or drawing the scenery. Saphira would go out a couple times a week and collect supplies such as food and sometimes milled around stalls at the market looking at the wonders the merchants managed to procure.

On a particularly warm summers day Saphira chose to go for a walk, seeing as she had nothing else to do. She left the shady comfort of her small home to walk the stuffy streets of Jerusalem. About ten minutes into the walk Saphira got the strange sensation of being watched, but when she turned nothing was there. Saphira started to become suspicious, looking over her shoulder every couple minutes. However the feeling was still lingering, it felt like someone was burning a hole in the back of her skull.

The redhead turned a corner and found herself in a dingy ally, literally the last place she wanted to be in this situation. Saphira wasn't scared but she wasn't too comfortable about being followed with no way to defend herself, all her weapons had been left at home. By now it was obvious that the teenager was starting to panic, she was clenching her fists and almost running to the end of the ally, trying desperately to not get trapped alone in the ally.

However before she could reach the busy street in front of her a shadowy figure dropped down from the roof top and was now blocking Saphira's path. The girl turned ready to run in the opposite direction but her heart sank when she saw two more figures blocking the way back. She couldn't tell if they were Templers or thugs but what she did know is that they were bad news. They were armed to the teeth in black plate mail and swords shone at their sides.

"This is very inappropriate, you know!" Saphira said narrowing her eyes and trying to look somewhat threatening, which was difficult when your weapon less and female. The men just stood there making no advance to attack.

"Are you Saphira? Former assassin from the brotherhood of Masyaf?" The man behind her spoke in a deep gravelly voice which made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Saphira didn't like the look of these strange men and started to plan an escape because there was no way she would be able to fend off the men that had her cornered.

"Maybe...Why do you want to know?" Saphira asked, starting to get curious as to why they wanted her. It was apparent that this wasn't a random attack. The men didn't answer back and Saphira's panic was starting to mingle with fear.

Behind her Saphira herd a clatter and when she spun round she discovered the man who addressed her had collapsed. She could see a small knife glinting, stuck in the space between the man's amour and helm. The redhead whirled round one last time to face the rest of the patrol, only to find then in the same state as the dead corpse the lay behind her.

Saphira was debating whether to run or not. Surely the killer had to be friendly or else he would not have bothered to save her. However the girl stayed alert, failing to find a reason to trust the new assailant. Another figured landed softly on the dusty path and on closer inspection Saphira noticed that he was wearing assassin's robes. The redhead sighed and relaxed a bit more.

"Thanks..." Saphira said relieved, a slight smile crossed her lips. The man walked into the small slither of light that had managed to pass into this disgusting ally.

"No need to thank an old friend." The figure replied in a cheery voice and pulled down the hood that obscured his face. Saphira just gawked at the man she recognised as, the one and only, Malik Al'sayf.

"What are you doing here?!" Saphira exclaimed incredulously while running up to him and giving him the biggest hug she could manage. Malik just chuckled. Saphira suggested getting out of the ally and Malik agreed grimacing at the dead bodies.

The way back was lively to say the least. Saphira asked what had been going on in the brotherhood and Malik shared every last detail. Things seemed to be going alright for the assassins, only a few attacks to small patrols round Masyaf and Altair hadn't gotten himself kill yet. Malik also told her about all the missions he had been on since Saphira had been made redundant. Apparently he had almost died twice which earned him two very motherly rants from Saphira about safety and how not to act like Altair.

When they arrived at the house Malik started to ask about the strange people in the ally. After taking a seat at a small table Saphira explained that that was the first time she ever encountered them.

"Well then weren't Templers and I have no idea why they wanted you seeing as-"Malik started but was cut off by Saphira.

"Seeing as I'm not part of the brotherhood anymore?" the redhead asked suddenly becoming very fixated by a small crack in the wall opposite.

"Right... but think about it, you still have your skills and loads of information about the creed. Maybe that's what they wanted?" Malik suggested sitting at the other end of the table, obscuring the crack in the wall. Saphira looked up at the other teen and saw his dark hazel eyes full of concern.

"What were you doing in that ally anyway?" The girls asked curiously.

"Ah. Yeah, about that... you're not going to like this."Malik sounded upset now which made Saphira feel uneasy again. Malik told her that Al'Mulim had a change of heart and had taken some drastic measures concerning her which made anger and fear fill her heart.

Al'Mulim had ordered her execution.