So, here's the next chapter for all of you. I realize that 'poisoning the snake' isn't an appropriate title— I know some of you are going to skip this, read the title, and rant "Hey! Ezio doesn't get the poison blade until later!". So I'm warning you all before hand, this chapter has absolutely no use of poison in it— it's sort of a...I don't know, metaphor, since most snakes are poisonous it would be ironic and iconic to kill one with it's own poison. Besides, Mario calls Vieri a snake and I just thought it sounded catchy. And Poisoning something usually means you're killing it, so...
Done ranting now...like a boss... :3

Thanks for the reviews!:

SporkedGamer: Aw, double checking? You know how I am! :3 Besides, all your talk about your story ending soon got me all flustered...(I think that's what I want to say...)

Acro111:Aw, thanks for all the reviews! I was so lost on the whole year skips in the game. X( It confuses me greatly...

Nightshade07:I'm afraid I can't answer your first question properly without giving anything away. :3 Sorry. Ezio is a jerk, just dropping Narina...

lighttan117:Haha It's only Ezio's character to be a mega man-whore...I'm sure he has his reasons. Maybe I'll make up a sob story for him later on...

pinkrollingstone: Hee, here's my next chapter and most of your questions will be answered within it!

Napanapa: Thanks for the reviews and the support! :3

SafetyPinStitches: Well, technically, she does run off before Ezio does...but not in such an extreme case... Yes...she sort of did a leap of faith... :3 But yeah. I guess 'Narina' is easier for me to type than 'Nerina' is...my bad. Federico story is still slowly coming along— I'll try to make it a top priority so it gets done! :3

Hedwig the MillenniumOwl: Thank you so much for all the tips and such a productive review! It really means so much to me!

Satsuriku-sama:haha I know, I know— I'm planning on trying to get some romance between the two in the next chapter, although not a whole lot...it's still too early for me. X3

Kagekitsonegal:Thanks! :3 And revenge time is taken in this chapter.

shinigami66: Thanks for the review! I so want the book- but I live in a place where the closest book store is two in a half hours away. And I don't have my own car yet so... I hope to get it someday.

whatisupmysky: Thanks so much! :3 I wish I could speak Italian too...Thanks for the rate thing- I don't think I've ever gotten one of those. :3 I'll try to fix up my spelling. I'm just lazy. XD

R'tas Vardan': Thank you for the review! I will start to put a translation next to the words, then. :3 I don't use Italian as much in further chapters— I somehow forget to put in some Italian... at least not as frequently. :3

And now... my poor attempt at writing an action scene. There's a reason I write romantic stories. X3

Everyone with a friendly face

seems to hide some secret inside.

-'Caged' by Within Temptation

Chapter 9: Poisoning the Snake

We left for San Gimignano as soon as Mario equipped me with the proper equipment— A sword strapped to my hip, some throwing knifes attached to my belt, and a small dagger against the sturdy boots that Mario gave to me. Although he was concerned for my safety, he didn't strap a chest guard or spaulders onto me. I had trained without them, and he thought that it would be best if I fought more comfortably tonight.

I didn't have a clue what I was suppose to do when we got there, but I figured that Mario would devise a plan later. When Mario and I walked out of the villa and down the stairs into the small town, I silently looked back over my shoulder.

I saw Ezio's silhouette upon the Villa's roof, his uncovered face turned up towards the sky, the fading sun light peeping over the mountains glinting off of his dark hair and white clothing.

And I had once hoped... I thought sadly, and then turned to follow Mario through the town. Outside the town gate, there were several men waiting for Mario and I, handing over the reigns of some horses. In a rush, one of them shoved me the reigns of a chestnut horse, patting me on the shoulder and wishing me good luck.

Frozen, I waited until Mario looked down at me from upon his horse.

"What is the matter, Narina?" he asked with worry.

"I, uh..." I started slowly. "I don't think I know how to ride a horse..."

Mario smiled and shook his head. "It's simple, really. Just jump on and use the reigns to control the horse's direction. And just use your heels to make it go faster, eh?"

I sighed, and turned back to the horse. "Easier said than done," I muttered, reaching up to grab the saddle horn, placing my left foot into the stirrup. Since I had spent the last two years climbing buildings, my upper body strength was up to top shape, and I hoisted myself up with ease onto the saddle, swinging my right leg across the back of the horse to place in the other stirrup. I adjusted myself gingerly, holding back the whimpers of uneasiness as the horse shifted on it hoofs. Mario simply watched in amusement, merely holding back the chuckles only to not make me feel bad.

Finally, I was sturdy enough upon the saddle, and Mario nodded to me when he saw that I was ready. With a few deep breath and a few nervous kicks, I was soon following after Mario on a galloping horse. I found that it was much easier to stay in the saddle when I used my thighs to grip onto my seat. Much to my pleasure, riding a horse was much easier than I had anticipated.

Soon after we left Monteriggioni, a group of Mario's men met up with us, and we continued on our way towards San Gimignano. I had gotten a few looks from some of the mercenaries, like they were shocked a woman was coming on the mission, but a few had seen my progress back at the Villa, and they gave me glances of respect.

It maybe took about two hours and a half to get to San Gimignano, so it was dark when we got there, the moon peeping through the clouds in the sky. Mario stopped the party on the outskirts of the city near the eastern gate. I didn't realize how weak my legs felt from the long horse ride until I hopped down from the saddle. My legs very nearly dropped out from under me, and I was lucky to have one of Mario's mercenaries nearby for I made a quick grab at his sleeve to steady my balance.

"This is it, men," Mario started as I quietly apologized to the mercenary. "Tonight is the night where we will stop and end this man and his reign of terror. Let us all move swiftly and may our blades strike true. Some of us may fall tonight and some of us will wish it would have never happened. But know, i miei amici (my friends), that we do it for the greater good." The men all crowded around Mario nodded and murmured in agreement. It was sad to watch them all turn to their neighbor, wishing them good luck and even saying their goodbyes, like they knew that they were going to die.

That must have been what it took to be a true fighter, to be an Assassin.

Maybe I was going to die tonight, and although I knew it was for a greater cause, was it okay for me to feel scared? To feel regret? I was sharply reminded that I had never gotten to say goodbye to Federico, Petruccio, or Giovanni all those years ago. And did I really want to leave without saying goodbye to Ezio? Just because he could leave me without a farewell didn't mean that I was cold enough to disregard his existence.

"Narina." Mario's voice suddenly cut me off, and I shook out of my thoughts and looked up at him.

"Yes?"

"Since you specialize in climbing, I want you to scale the wall and get into the city." He pointed in the general area of the gate. "Once you're inside, I want you to go open the gate to let my men and I in. After that, we search out for Vieri. Understand?"

I nodded. "Si."

Mario reached out and placed his hand on my shoulder, staring at me with his knowing eyes. "If it comes to it, do not think twice to kill anyone in order to defend yourself."

Hesitation slowed my second nod, but I knew that it was true. I understood that if my life was on the line, that I would have to defend it and maybe even kill. They deserve to die, I thought to myself, but still felt a little hesitant, like it wasn't my place to say such things.

"Okay, now go— we'll try and make a distraction for you at the gate so not many guards will be in your way."

"Alright."

I gave Mario a long look, reaching up to grab his shoulder like he always did with me. Biting my lip, I gave him a nod, trying to tell him with my eyes 'good luck and goodbye', for I couldn't find the words to speak aloud. Before we all headed out, Mario and I glanced back over our shoulders, just to see if Ezio was here...

But no figure was on the road, even as far as the flat road allowed us to see. Mario sighed deeply, and gave the word to start the attack. I waited until Mario turned to me as his mercenaries all started to run towards the gates. He gave me a quick wink before turning and running with his men.

I swallowed back my fear, and watched for the men to start attacking the guards by the gate before I began to run towards the wall surrounding the town. I found a part of the wall that had started to fall apart, leaving a big gap for me to pull myself up and into the town. Taking a deep breath before making a running start towards the wall, I skillfully shifted my weight about me so that it was easier to climb— Ezio taught me that this was how he carried me around everywhere. I closed my eyes against the image of the bright sunny day with Ezio offering me his helping hands to teach me how to climb a building.

"Just forget him," I muttered to myself as I pull myself up the wall, reaching for the edge of the broken wall. "If he can do it, so can't you. You've always been better than him. At everything!"With the little pep talk to myself, I was all pumped up by the time I was through the gap in the wall and dropping down into the city's streets.

I glanced around, checking to see if the coast was clear before I made my way towards the gates entrance. Before I broke from the shadows of the buildings, I stopped and assessed the amount of guards that were on the inside of the gate. There were at least half a dozen men, and I wasn't about to take them all on. I needed a distraction— the fighting outside of the gate wasn't exactly holding the attention of the guards on the inside, and that created a problem for everything.

After looking at all my options, which all finished with dead ends, I took a hold of my bravery and sucked in a deep breath. For the Auditore name, I can't stop now! I took a hold of my sword handle, knowing somewhere in the back of my mind that this gate was only going to open by my hand...or Ezio's. I paused for a moment, considering the thought that Ezio was supposed to be here for this, not I. I had been right every time before about these weird feelings of mine, but why were they suddenly wrong?

Although my questions were suddenly vast and wide, I shook them away with a toss of my head, and prepared myself again for the upcoming battle.

On three, I told myself. One...two... I put myself in a 'prepare to run' stance, and took another deep breath.

Before I could start counting again, the guards were running about in a panic, twisting the mechanism that lowered and opened the gate. Once the gate was opened, they all rushed through and engaged in the battle with Mario and his mercenaries.

I stood still in the shadows, frozen.

Well, that wasn't supposed to happen. But if that wasn't supposed to happened, then what was it that I had been anticipating? That Ezio had to open the gate? However, whatever the case, I was still shocked that things weren't going the way I thought they would take course...and that was bad, wasn't it?

With a quick shake of my head, I breached from the buildings shadows and ran towards the gate, drawing my sword from it's sheath to start the battle. A couple of guards from the brawl spotted me, and ran towards me, their swords above their heads in a preparation to strike. Recalling the blocking training with Ezio, I quickly raised my sword and deflected their swings, making them recoil and fall back a few feet.

I smirked at them, feeling the adrenaline pump through me. "Bring it on," I mocked, wriggling my finger at them.

One of them growled and lunged at me, swinging his sword down upon me. I dodged to the right, trying to find an opening from his swing, but the other man was already attacking me, distracting me from my opportunity to strike. They were double-teaming me, so I couldn't take the chance to attack their openings and I had to keep my defensive stance. However with one hard swing from one of the guards, my sword was sent flying over my head and I was suddenly unprotected, knocked down to one knee.

They took the chance and lifted their swords to strike their last time to finish me off. With a small grasp of knowledge of the small blade against my boot, I grabbed it quickly and stabbed at the closest man, delving the blade into his upper thigh until the small hilt stopped it and I quickly pulled it out. Blood spewed out of the gash and the man screamed loudly, gripping at his leg as if to stop the pain. Before I could even think about what I had just done, some of Mario's mercenaries attacked the other man fighting me. The guard in front of me had a sword breaching through his stomach, blood staining his clothing, pooling in a large spot. The sword was pulled out, the man fell, and Mario was standing in his place, looking down at me. He sheathed his sword quickly and reached down to help me up.

"Lei è giusto (Are you okay)?" He asked.

"Si, I'm fine," I claimed, then looked out upon the battle field, seeing not only many dead guards, but also a few from our side were lying on the ground, their faces frozen and their eyes cold, staring up into the sky forever. I swallowed back a wave of suddenly hysteria. It had been two years since I had seen death like this and it still made me feel uncomfortable. One of the familiar faces among the dead was the face of the man that I had held onto when I had nearly fell after getting off my horse.

"Andiamo,(Let's go)" Mario said, bringing me out of my clouded thoughts, and I gave him a nod, lifting my foot sideways to place the short blade back in it's sheath. We turned away from the carnage and ran into the town. It wasn't long until more guards were facing us, challenging us with their drawn swords.

Mario took a hold of my shoulder. "Narina, there isn't much time. We'll go on ahead and take care of the guards— you take to the roofs and see if you can't find Vieri, bene?"

"Bene." Without another look, I ran and pulled myself up the nearest building, placing my feet against a small ridge between the buildings upper and lower levels, gripping onto a small window sill. With a few quick pulls and heaves, I was upon the roofs, running across the darkened tiles glinting lightly in the moonlight. I tried to keep my profile low, checking to see if there were any guards on the streets below me before I would jump from one roof to another, casting a quick shadow on the lower ground. I headed towards the southern part of town, keeping my eye out for the distasteful man named Vieri. I hadn't seen him since that one day two years before, but I hadn't forgotten his face.

Near the southern gate, I saw a group of dark clothed men. I crouched down on the roof to hide myself better, although I was at a high point and the chances of them seeing me were very unlikely. I tried to calm my breathing for running about the rooftops set my lungs on fire. As I looked down upon the group of men, I recognized Vieri immediately among them, wearing the same hat that he had been years before. Another man that was familiar was one dressed in a dark robe, and I knew that hood anywhere.

Rodrigo Borgia, I thought in a sour tone, his name spilling out of the darkness in my mind. I still remembered his face behind Uberto Alberti that one night years ago and also from the execution platform as Giovanni and his sons dropped to their death. I sneered at the figure in disgust. I should have known that he was all a part of this too.

I couldn't hear all of their conversation, but I hear the words 'bring them together again' and after all nodding to each other, 'may the father of understanding guide us.' Three from the four turned around towards the gate, about to leave, when a group of guards came running up to Vieri, who had stayed behind.

"Mario Auditore has infiltrated the city, signore."

Vieri's shoulders shook as he chuckled, then he said something back to the other three men before addressing his guards. They nodded and ran off while Vieri disappeared behind a tall building, walking through the small alleyways.

I decided to trail him, waiting until the other three men were long out of the city before lowering myself down to the ground to follow him on foot. I had lost sight of him through the winding walkways, but when I did catch sight of Vieri again, he was climbing upon the city walls, heading up towards a tower reaching out into the sky.

"What the hell?" I murmured to myself, keeping hidden in the shadows. "He's practically cornering himself!" I could have followed him and killed him, but something was fishy. Why was he climbing so high in a place without an easy escape? Perhaps, judging on the way Vieri held himself, he thought himself too strong to be beaten...maybe it was to gain an advantage from being upon higher grounds. But even that had a flaw, for I'm sure Vieri knew that assassin's could climb very well.

Before I could ponder on the question much longer, Mario and his mercenaries rushed into the plaza before the tower Vieri was upon.

"Get them!" Vieri screamed loudly, and many guards appeared from the shadows and started to attack Mario and his men.

I took a deep breath when I realized that I was the only one who could stop this madness now. Mario and his men were much too busy with the guards now, and I wasn't about to go distract Mario by asking him what I should do now.

Let's finish this and go home, I thought to myself, climbing up a nearby building with the help of some sturdy crates. I had forgotten to grab my sword when I got it knocked out of my hands earlier, so the small blade was going to have to do. Taking to a full sprint, I jumped from the roof and onto the wall that surrounded the town, gripping onto the edge and quickly pulling myself up.

Vieri had seen me, and was trying to tell his guards to stop me. All of his sources, however, were busy fending off Mario and his mercenaries, giving me enough time to scale to tower Vieri was upon. I grinned as I pulled myself up with low grunts, almost wanting to chuckle. I bet he's regretting climbing up on a tower like this! I thought with glee. I was reminded of how much I didn't like Vieri, and I felt a pulse of power course through my body, branching out from the core in my stomach. I got a second wind and started to pull myself up the tower faster, looking up to see Vieri staring down over the edge at me.

To my surprise, he was smiling down at me. "Well, look what you've been up to these past two years," he commented with a sneeringly grin. "A woman giving her hand to the Assassins."

I had gotten to the top and Vieri was slowly retreating backwards as I perched myself upon the edge of the towers lip, pulling out the short blade strapped to my calf. I gave him a mocking smirk. "For you information, Vieri, I'm no Assassin...yet."

Vieri laughed, raising his arms as if to beckon a challenge. "And I'm your first kill, hm? Try it, bella singore."

I could see that he was doubting my skills, and I felt another course of energy flow through me. I hopped down from the towers lip and stood in front of Vieri menacingly. I took a mental note that there were suppose to be guards up here with him...but once again, my feelings were wrong. Pushing the thought aside, I focused on Vieri, who was staring silently at me, a mocking smile pulling his lips upwards. I crouched down lightly, giving myself a better stance before twisting the short blade in my hand to position the back of the blade against my wrist to create an easier position to place against flesh and then easier to pull quickly and slice through. His neck was my target...an easy kill.

To my surprise, Vieri didn't fight back when I jumped upon him, knocking him down onto his back. He just looked up at me with a smirk, daring me to kill him with his eyes. I pressed the blade to his neck, prepared to slice his throat and end him.

But suddenly, I couldn't move. The flows of energy flowing from inside me dispersed, and I found that I couldn't kill Vieri, no matter how much I hated him. Move! I screamed mentally at myself. Finish him! However upset in my mind, I felt my face loosen into a confused disbelief. I stared into Vieri's dark eyes, and despite how much the depths of his eyes pissed me off and made me want to make them dull and daze...

I couldn't do it. I couldn't kill him. The reason that I couldn't move and also the fact I wasn't use to seeing death, I just felt like it wasn't my job to take it all away from him.

Vieri's saw my hesitation and took the opportunity to kick me off of him, sending me flying back off of him and rolling across the hard surface of the tower,losing a hold of my short blade and hitting my head against the stone rim. I groaned and immediately lifted my hand to hold the place I had hit my head against. Vieri stood and reached for the short blade that I had dropped and walked over to me, kneeling next to me while I tried to sit up, well aware of the pounding pain in the back of my head. Before I could react to Vieri's closeness, he took a hold of the front of my tunic and pushed me back against the rim of the tower, pressing my own blade against me throat.

"Such a shame, such a shame," Vieri mocked, looking me in the eyes. "I was hoping that it wouldn't have to come to this." He pressed the blade harder against my skin, laughing when I flinched. "No worries, though- I'll reunite you with your 'family'." I tried to regain my anger at him, but I felt suddenly drained and tired, and I closed my eyes, preparing for my death.

A moment passed before Vieri snorted under his breath, and then the blade was pulled away from my skin. I looked up in shock at him, wondering why he wasn't killing me. With a more confused look on his face than I had on my own face, he was shaking his head. "I can't believe it...we've been wrong all this time," he whispered, staring intently at me.

"What are you talking about?" I finally whispered, finding my voice. My hand had found it's way back to my skull.

Vieri's attention was suddenly focused on something else, a fearful gleam sparking in his eye. He took a step back in retreat, but before he could turn around, something flew over me, casting a dark shadow over me like the eagles did when they hovered above in the sky. In a flash of white, Vieri was down on the ground again, a man dressed in white robes on top of him, holding a blade to his throat. I stared in a daze at the man hovering over Vieri.

"What are you and your allies planning?" The man demanded in a growl, the voice making me shudder. "Is this why my father was killed!"

Vieri chuckled, and looked over at me under the man's arms. "Whatever you heard won't be a good enough answer, Ezio, and I won't give you any more of a confession."

Ezio pressed the blade into Vieri's throat,spilling the blood all over Vieri's neck that ran along the curve around to drip to the ground. Ezio took a hold of the mans collar, shaking the now dead man with vigor."Pezzo di merda!"He screamed in pure anger. "Vorrei solo che avessi sofferto di piu! Hai avuto la fin che meritavi! Spero che bru- (Piece of shit! I only wished you'd suffered more! You met the fate you deserved! I hope yo-)"

Another figure dropped into the tower, and immediately ran over to Ezio, pulling at his shoulder. "That's enough Ezio!" It was Mario. "Show some respect for the dead!"

"Respect!" Ezio spat in disgust, staring up at Mario. "Do you think he would have showed us such kindness!"

"You are not Vieri," Mario said gruffly, kneeling over near Vieri. "Do not become him." I finally stopped rubbing my head, the pain slowly subsiding and I looked at my fingers instinctively to see if there was any blood upon them. I was glad to see that they were clean. I looked back over to Mario and Ezio over the dead body, Mario using his hand to close Vieri's eyelids forever. "Che la morte ti dia la pace che cercavi (May death provide the peace you sought)," Mario said in a kind and understanding tone. "Requiescat in Pace (Rest in Peace)."

Ezio looked up from the dead body and over to me. While Mario stood and went to the edge and looked down upon all his men to announce that it was over, Ezio walked over to me, kneeling down on one knee to look me in the eyes.

"Narina," he said above the erupting cheers from the mercenaries. His brown eyes were deep with concern and a slight shade of anger. I was mesmerized momentarily by the depth his eyes spoken, and I once again felt like I was being drained. He reached out and took a hold on my shoulder as if to shake me out of my daze. "Are you okay?" he asked.

A burst of power pulsed through my veins, and my hand clenched at my side. I swung my fist at his face, contacting his jaw with my knuckles, knocking him back. I hid the pain that I had received since his jaw was a lot harder than I had anticipated, and I stood up with the wall I had been knocked against. "You jackass," I spat at him distastefully. Ezio, holding his hand to his jaw, stared up at me in sadness, apparently knowing why I was mad at him.

I walked past him, and reached for the small blade that was still in Vieri's hand which was already becoming cold and hard. My eyes kept adverted from his limp figure as I placed the blade back in its small sheath.

When I stood back up, Mario reached out for me and pulled me to his side, having me look over down the tower at all of his men. We did have casualties— the number of them was noticeably smaller, but all that were still there were smiling and celebrating, giving each other hugs and congratulations.

I smiled lightly. We had done it. We had taken a small step closer to our goal. I raised my fist up into the air with a large grin. "The snake is dead! Siamo vittoriosi!(We are victorious!)" I yelled down to the men, who all erupted in loud cheers again.

How many of you want a little bit of romance between Ezio and Narina next chapter? I DO!

Edit: Also, I'm going to put in a good word for my good friend SporkedGamer. She is writing an epic 2012 Assassin's Creed fanfic with her own OC, and although it may seem like it's just like all the other stories out there, I promise you it is not! She has put so much heart and thought into her story and it is a precious gem. I highly recommend that y'all go check it out! It's called 'Broken Savior' and it's just Epic.

Thanks again, and I love to recieve reviews! :3