Celestine's POV
The next morning, I must have slept in because I noticed that the sunlight was so broad and then I instantly jumped out of bed. I didn't need to see anyone—be it Octavien, Siegfried, Felix or Arno—but I do miss my cousin Juliette and her brothers. It's been a while now and I haven't heard from any of them.
If given the time, then maybe I could just play swords with them because those young men are still boys whenever they get a hold of their toys.
Just when I was about to exit the mansion, I saw Arno leaning over that old coach parked in the outer vestibule of the house when I exited through the east door of the first floor—where the stage and dining tables are.
He was staring down at his pocketwatch and when I knew that he's preoccupied with the trinket, I decided to continue walking and just ignore him. Even if the both of us knew what happened last night at the hidden tunnel, I still wanted to make it look like it was nothing to me even though it does meant something significant for me.
Perhaps he still belongs to Elise so I have no right—it's a principle I follow.
I made it through the arch and then decided to go to my cousin's house at the district of Ventre de Paris. I ran and ran as I was getting far away enough from the mansion's radius, scaling a wall of a house and made my way on the rooftops instead.
I like being on rooftops, it makes me feel free and away from all the shite of the world—the shite that we Assassins needed to eradicate if we want to liberate France from Templar tyranny and believe me, it's not that easy.
Leaping from roof to roof, I love the smell of the morning wind slapping me in the face. Feeling the wind blowing my hair and my coat away, it's a definition of freedom.
It's still a little bit far yet. Amazingly, my uncle—my cousins' father—managed to become an incognito Assassin especially when Templars are on the hunt for us even though we're on the hunt for them too. Free-running in the streets as I descend when I knew that I'm gradually losing roof to jump on, I jumped over crates and tables, fences and railings and kind of startled the citizens especially the women.
I was already close to the district of Ventre de Paris until I skidded my boots roughly on the concrete as I spotted two extremists robbing a citizen of money. Jaysus, haven't I seen enough of this?
I really hate those extremists anyways. Drawing out my two Hidden Blades, I steadily closed myself in towards them and without them having the slightest idea that there was a predator behind them—they knew it the moment they felt two blades plunge into each of the back of their windpipes. Their throats spurted out blood both front and back but mostly the front. They gagged some more when I pushed them down to the ground to nudge off my blades from their flesh.
"M-merci…" the victim whimpered.
"Di rien." I replied.
He ran away to safety while I had the cadavers to myself to loot, from their trousers' pockets and their dress coats' pockets, basically every single pocket I know they have in their clothes I looted them here and there until I noticed that a threesome of extremists stopped in their pace, pointed a finger at me and found me suspicious.
Merde!
But I still won't go without a fight. I fear that my blades and sword would wear out and dull for not being used to slice off Templar flesh.
Before they could even register what's coming to them, my blades—still drawn out—plunged into the faces of the brute and the other extremist swordsman. Leaving the other swordsman alive—he's quite scrawny if you'd look at him.
Quite impressive, though. He still managed to get his sword and try and scare me out of this when he showed his intimidating side.
I've seen scrawnier men than you, yet you have my pity.
Clashing with each other's steel, I staggered him and finished him by sticking the edge of my sword to his neck and plunge it in deeper as I kneecap him.
Blood splattered onto my clothes but I didn't care, I continued to loot their bodies until more and more groups of extremists come after me.
Brilliant.
They were closing me into a circle, making me the center of the eye and I looked around thinking which one should I kill first—the lancers, the brutes, the bombers or the swordsmen who are equipped with a pistol?
Just before they could even charge, one lancer screamed and fell dead to the ground and startled the others—they all thought it was me as they looked with shock and annoyance.
That shot was a Phantom Blade... But where did it come from?
And then the Phantom Blades came in succession as they took out enough brutes and lancers and left a few bombers and then I threw in a smoke bomb and thick clouds begin to emit on us.
Arno's POV
When she found me leaning on that used coach in the outer foyer of the mansion coming from the east door, she just ignored me and went on and then went on with her running wherever she's going.
I saw where she went and I have her trace as I concentrate.
She literally had no idea that I was following her. Wait, did she know that I was following her? Or was she ignoring me? Or was she so occupied with her errand or perhaps her free-running on the rooftops?
Nevermind, I'm still going after her.
She's heading for Ventre de Paris, what is she going to do there?
I was on a rooftop as I watched over her when she was already on the ground. I saw those extremists that she killed and there were about to spot her looting the bodies, any moment their awareness would rise up and suspect her and come after her.
I watched her charge those three extremists, leaving one for the sword as she plunged her blades through the faces of the first two. Impressive.
I had a vantage point of the intersecting streets and she was at the center where all directions end up meeting and she was later cornered by almost an army of them. I knew I had to take action so I killed one with a Phantom Blade, I killed the lancer first and when they thought it was her, I loaded as much Phantom Blades as I can and then killed them in succession so that she won't wear herself out in killing at least a dozen of them.
She threw out a smoke bomb and then that was cue to get down there and kill the others. I killed the ones in the outer circle, and I heard some more agonizing screams meaning she's killing them as well. When everything felt quiet, I slowly stepped back until I reached the center of the smoke and then my back touched another and as I looked over my shoulder...
Celestine.
She was pointing her pistol in the outer circle of the smoke, waiting for it to subside.
Her eyes showed almost no emotion but I could've sworn that she curled the side of her lip upwards. We readied ourselves as we danced in circles with our weapons pointed to the enemy wherever they are.
We killed most of them already and only a few lancers and bombers were left. In my peripheral vision, and also Celestine's, there was a bomber with his sword at the ready, he's going to aim either at me or her. Although he did make one mistake...
He thought that keeping my eye on the one in front of me would distract me as he takes a flash bomb from his pocket and before he could even throw it down to trigger it, Celestine was fast enough to shoot him at the knee and following a second bullet into the head.
And that triggered the rage of the others. And so we charged when they least expected it. As I got busy killing the ones at my front, I suddenly heard my name followed by a gunshot.
She just shot one in the head, I saw the hole coming from the back of the head and then to the front, before it could even stab me with his sword. She smirked and continued fighting and shooting, and I did the same.
We sure did cause quite a stir in the street and we had to make sure that the police won't arrive in the middle of this huge skirmish.
When all of them were dead, Celestine grabbed me by the hand and we ran.
"Police are coming! There's no time to loot, Arno. Come on!"
Scampering to a nearby wall, she got on top of the roof first and she helped me by pulling me up and accidentally I landed on fours over her and it sure was awkward and at that moment, I knew we shared that glance.
She escaped the scenario by crawling to the edge of the roof and saw the police already swarming in and checking the bodies.
"Good God! What a mess!" One policeman exclaimed and I heard her giggle and crawl away from the edge and slump onto the surface in exhaustion.
She continued giggling but she was slowly bursting in laughter.
"What's so funny?"
"Their reaction, dearest Arno. Come to think of it, it's kind of unbelievable that we managed to kill all of them in a single sitting."
"Hmn..."
"Oh and by the way, grazie."
"Huh?"
"Grazie. For saving me back there when they were beginning to swarm into me in a circle. I would have been dead by now if it weren't for you."
She sits upright and basks in the afternoon sunlight and then I thought for some things while I look at her.
"You're welcome."
She smiled as a reply.
"I would never leave you alone."
She slowly opens her eyes and then looks at me with a face that I can't tell what kind of emotion is she trying to express. Her lips slightly parted maybe because of disbelief and then she turned away from me again, I noticed her cheeks were flushing in bright red and I am particularly sure that it wasn't the sunlight.
She stands up and then goes to the opposite of the roof that leads to the other street.
"Où allez-vous?"
"La maison de mes cousins." she replies as she nears to the edge.
"Posso vieni con te?"
A short quiet moment first and she glances over her shoulder, "Va bene. Vieni."
The two of us went running like the wind as we felt the tails of our coats flap in the air as we jump. We had gloves so it was no trouble for us scraping the very end of our nails—which is painful and would make you wince—as we grab onto ledges.
As I ran, I observed how Celestine jumps and makes her form in landing—she crouches and immediately darts forward and she still has the grace. She was also graceful when jump and she smoothly grabs onto ledges as she moves forward. When I got ahead of her, I watched her come towards my direction and I saw the focus in her eyes as she free-runs and then leaps across the gap and then grabs onto the gutter of the roof.
There are a few things I did notice: her hair sways finely, she had this slight smile as if the excitement and thrill of running and leaping from roof to roof was her ecstasy, her coat's tail billows dramatically in the wind as she jumps or runs and her hazel eyes shine brightly in broad daylight.
"Sbrigati, Arno!" she says while laughing as she was passing by me.
I caught up with her and then we finally reached Saint-Thomas-d'-Aquin district, we walked our way to her cousins' house and when she knocked on the door, I sensed something strange.
"Juliette! C'est moi Celestine."
She knocked once more and then called her cousin's name.
"Celestine... Let me take care of this." I say as I gently push her to the side, taking out my lockpicker set I inserted the two picks into the keyhole and tried my luck with it.
Chk.
When the two of us heard the latch click open, she was hesitant in opening the door so I pushed the door open and it really felt suspicious. The two of us stepped inside the mansion and then closed the door for safer measures, we stalked the first floor of the house and the place has been ransacked, no doubt.
"Good God..." she muttered in growing fright.
I investigated and then saw the cabinets displaying expensive porcelain figures broken. There were also traces of blood that were scattered in all directions, you can't even tell how many were killed or beaten or bloodied because there was so much blood that it's evident enough that it didn't belong to just one person.
Celestine's breathing slowly became labored and she's beginning to whimper, she isn't screaming because she thinks that there are extremists possibly hiding for an ambush. I looked to the living room and the center table had a peculiar clue, there was a bloody knife and there was also a beret and only brutes wear these kinds of caps.
"Arno... My other cousin's dead... Gerard is dead, they stabbed him several times, I checked him. I can't find the others, I want Juliette." she whines.
I went up to her and held her by the shoulders, "Alright, calm down. We'll find them upstairs but first I need you to focus and stay alert, alright?"
She nods and wipes off the tears from her eyes. I held her hand and both of us were quietly stalking the staircase, just when we were about to reach the top of the stairs we heard voices and one of them was whimpering girl.
"That's Juliette!" Celestine quietly exclaims.
I shushed her and then we listened.
"She's a beauty, isn't she?"
"No! Leave me alone! Insubordinate arseholes!"
"Ooh, I like her. She's a feisty one, eh?"
Based from my hearing, there are three enemies. That should be Juliette. Celestine suddenly yet quietly pushes her way through me and then appeared in the doorway, she puts her finger to her lips to signal Juliette not to give her away and then the girl who was on her knees, as I peeked a little from the door's frame, continues whining because she's so consumed with fear and trauma by now.
Celestine aimed her pistol but she's not yet shooting. What is she waiting for?!
The extremist behind Juliette pushed her down to make her stand on fours and he was lifting up her skirt, I looked at Celestine and her eyes were focused on that one behind Juliette. Just as he was about to put his cock in, Celestine already put a bullet into his eye and this alarmed the two other extremists and she used the second consecutive shot to the one next to Juliette while I took the one in front of her with a pistol as well.
"Celestine!" Juliette screeched and then threw herself into Celestine's arms.
"Arno! Gunner at the window!" Celestine suddenly screamed but I was too late to react, the sniper had already hit me in my bicep and Celestine gunned him down.
I thudded to the floor and then I'm practically writhing in agonizing pain.
"Arno!" Celestine knelt beside me and cradled my head. "You're going to be alright, just hold on! Juliette, search their pockets, there's got to be some cloth or bandage, give me two."
Juliette obediently searched the bodies and when she handed a bandage to Celestine, the first one served as a tourniquet and then she wrapped the second one around my arm. Celestine managed to move me to the wall so that I could lean and try to relax, she caressed my cheek and then Juliette approached.
"You can stay here for a while and clean his wound, Celestine. We still have medicine and supplies here."
"S'il vous plaît faire... Vous allez être bien, Arno."
I tried breathing in and out slowly just so I won't bleed out more because of panic and then Celestine frantically and impatiently waited for her cousin to fetch the medical supplies.
FRENCH:
Où allez-vous? – Where are you going?
La maison de mes cousins – my cousins' house (Wow, how complicated is French? Italian is less complex though but still, it's amazing)
C'est moi – It's me
S'il vous plaît faire – Please do
Vous allez être bien – You're going to be alright
ITALIAN:
Posso vieni con te? – Can I go with you?
Vieni – come
Sbrigati – forward
Random thought:
It's kind of remarkable that even though she's of noble blood, she still continues to fight for liberation of France—she doesn't care of her elitist status because to her she wants the division depending on a citizen's status to be at least eradicated on some districts and one way of doing that is killing Templar elites.
And I noticed as well that this chapter has more French than Italian but I'm not trying to prioritize that. I just go with my own flow.