Disclaimer: I don't own Assassin's Creed or any of its characters they belongs to Ubisoft, especially Altaïr Ibn La-Ahad, shame.

EDIT: God I suck, continuity all over the place! Hoping that I've nearly got it all now though :)

Chapter 10: Sacrifice and Discovery

Amber ran into the Rich District and ran towards her house as fast as she could. When she arrived the door was already knocked down, she ran in and to the 'Wealth Room' at the back of the house, her parents and Alyssa were already there, Alyssa looked terrified, Amber regretted scaring her sister but she addressed her parents. "Where is he?"

"Where's who?" Her father said, her mother, gasping for breath stammered, "What are you- W-What are you-?" And she almost fainted, not quite but she sat down. Amber looked away and looked round the room "The door was broken down, he must be here". Suddenly Hassan came flying through the archway and into the chair, breaking it, and Altaïr walked in through it, he saw the anger is Amber before he heard it. "It's one thing for us to fight... But to attack my family, they have nothing to do with this!" Altaïr didn't look even slightly guilty, or even feel it, being an assassin had deadened his feelings. "Well it's a weak spot of yours, Amber"

"Amber?" Her father echoed.

Altaïr knew Amber would be furious with him for revealing a secret she had managed to keep so quiet for so long, and he was right. Altaïr drew his sword this time and pointed it towards Amber, her sister screamed in terror. "Ready for round two?"

Altaïr didn't wait for an answer, he jumped towards Amber and she had to take a step back and Altaïr saw her sword out in a second and she used it to deflect his blow.

Altaïr quickly doubled back his footsteps and overpowered her when she tried to strike 'What's wrong with her?' Altaïr thought, it was true Amber wasn't as strong as before. Amber struck forward at Altaïr which caught him off guard and he felt an almost blinding pain in his side but it brought his concentration back, he retaliated and attempted a strike across Amber's throat but she seemed to sense it and dropped onto her knee, his blade striking the air just above her head. She kicked out with her foot and tripped Altaïr up, now she had the upper hand and could easily kill him, she went to strike him with her blade and he rolled away, Amber's blade missing him by half an inch... if that.

Altaïr realised he was going to need something more to defeat her, before she got back on her feet he jumped up onto the rafters (maybe they didn't have raftersthenbut oh wellthis one does Altaïr walked silently round the rafters, waiting for a chance to strike.

Amber stood up again and looked up at the rafters trying to find Altaïr, but she couldn't see him anywhere, her family watched in horror, her father threw a protesting shout at them.

Altaïr looked down and saw Amber had her back to him, he knelt down... she didn't turn round, he jumped down and his sword went into her side, she gasped in pain and swung her sword behind her, it connected with Altaïr and he backed off, without his sword. Amber took Altaïr's sword out of her side, it was a deep wound but now she had two swords. Altaïr threw a throwing dagger at her and she deflected it with his own sword. Altaïr was wondering whether or not to bail, but he needed his sword so he circled her while half drawing his dagger all he had to do was wait and she'd lose due to blood loss, she placed one sword over her head and the other in front of her, ready for his next attack, hoping it would be soon she didn't know how much longer she could fight him.

Altaïr waited patiently to strike, Amber looked tired, she stumbled slightly and he jumped forward, drawing his dagger in mid-jump. He heard another protesting scream and his blade connected with something... but it wasn't Amber.

Altaïr looked at the sight in front of him, he had killed an innocent, at his feet was Amber... no Adeela's father, there wasn't even a way of saving him, Altaïr's dagger had hit him in his heart, if he had let it connect with Amber she would dead. Amber looked down, Altaïr took her confusion as his chance, snatched his sword back and ran, but he didn't run far, he left the roof and quietly went upstairs. Amber looked over at her mother and sister, her mother was crying, Alyssa didn't seem to understand what had happened or refused to comprehend that her father had just been murdered accidentally in cold blood. Amber's mother dropped onto the couch, and Amber ordered Hassan, who had just recovered consciousness, to take Alyssa away from the house. She sat down beside her mother who managed to control herself enough to speak.

"Why... Why-Why did he c-call you...you Amber?" She stammered "Wh-Who was h-he?"

"Okay, I'll get it out all in one go" Amber sighed "Amber's my assassin name. That man was Altaïr; we have the same assassination target"

The news seemed to have shocked her mother to her core, even more but she had stopped crying. "So that's why you came back?"

Amber nodded "I'm an honorary assassin in the Masayaf Bureau; I do on-demand assassinations it's not like my main job or anything"

"But you still kill Adeela!" She held a hand to her chest to prevent herself from getting overwhelmed "How can you do it?"

"It was hard at first" Amber admitted "But now it's easy for me"

There was silence for a few minutes, "But it's worth a lot of money, and by doing this I can make sure that Alyssa won't follow my way"

Her mother nodded in understanding "I see; now I know why you were so quiet earlier, during that lecture about Jerusalem's safety... You've fought that man before"

Amber nodded "Our paths have crossed very frequently over the last few days that's for sure." Amber suddenly looked at her mother worried "I don't want Alyssa finding out about this"

"She won't, I'll think of something"

Amber looked down at her wounds and realised that they had stopped bleeding and she could hardly feel the pain anymore. She stood up, walked round, picked up her weapons and pocketed them all, then turned back to her mother.

"I have an advantage" Her mother looked at her "Altaïr follows the Creed," And she recited it "'Stay your blade from the innocent' is the first. And Altaïr has killed my father, he's broken the Creed, if I tell Al Mualim, his master, and then he'll be killed. I'm heading out to the kingdom and then onward to Masyaf. Altaïr will be dead" Then Amber looked down "But maybe I should stay, won't I be needed?"

"Adeela, or Amber I should call you, how strange that sounds," And she stood up and walked over to Amber "I can tell that you won't rest until your father is avenged, so do what you must do to settle you, then return to myself and Alyssa and leave it all behind with this Altaïr's death."

Amber smiled and nodded, what she didn't know was that Altaïr was listening and ran out of the house, preparing to head her off; out of Jerusalem she would have no outside help without revealing her assassin status. But part of him couldn't, and wouldn't, believe that she would give up being an assassin.

Amber packed everything she needed for the trip and set out, keeping low profile in Jerusalem and then headed out of the gates and got onto her horse.

AN: Okay I think this is longer in words than the others... think.

Please R&R