"I've never been in this kind of situation before!" Altaïr grumbled as he pulled the cowl tighter over his head. It had been storming ever since they've woken up. Ezio wasn't really used to rain either but enjoyed the feeling as he pulled down his hood and started running in puddles, getting his white robes stained with mud and dirt. Desmond and Connor have been used to rain and storms so it didn't affect them like Altaïr and Ezio. They started a hike through the jungle, trying to find the beach for the past two and a half hours. They had encountered snakes and worms coming out of the ground. It didn't frighten them but not everyone was convinced as Ezio squealed at the sight of a garter snake that slithered innocently on a branch and hissed at the trespassers. Ezio pointed as he jumped back against Connor.
"What is that thing?!"
"Cool your jets; it's just a garter snake. They aren't poisonous at all; they make good pets if you have a garden that gets pestered by rodents." Desmond replied, recalling his mother tell him that when he first found a garter snake in one of the barns back on the Farm.
Ezio watched in stunned horror as the snake slithered up the white sweatshirt taking residence alongside Desmond's warm neck. The cold scales made the younger Assassin shiver momentarily but it passed as he grew used to the presence. The green and black snake stayed there for most of the trip as the warm water soaked everyone to the bone. Altaïr wasn't the happiest for this was something he didn't want to have happen right now. He wanted his desert climate back where it rarely ever rained or was cloudy rather it'd be sunny and hot. He'd do anything to get the climate back but for the moment he couldn't.
Connor muddled in his thoughts as well. He was used to cold rain but this rain was really warm and it made him sweat but he didn't voice his opinions loudly like Ezio who still nervously giggled as he trudged alongside Desmond talking about snakes. The mud was getting thicker and thicker which was something Connor could handle but the others were having problems as they took larger steps, trying to keep moving forwards. He heard snatches of Altaïr's cursing along with Ezio's exclamation to the deep mud and Desmond's laughter echoing throughout the area. Connor shook his head in annoyance. He didn't know how long they were going to be here but he hoped that someday soon they'll be back where they belong.
The mud surrounded everybody's ankles, soon making everybody take longer and bigger steps to try and evade the mud.
"This is ridiculous!" Altaïr hissed as he walked with the sticky mud blowing air bubbles in the air making noises as though he was farting. Ezio and Desmond would've laughed but hearing the venom in the Syrian's voice got them to be silent as everybody including Connor struggled to get out of this one area of the bog.
"Do you guys have mud where you come from?" Ezio asked, watching as Desmond put some distance away from the group, surpassing Altaïr at the moment. He called back, walking some more, "I did until I ran away to-" He dropped with a yell as his legs was literally sucked down by the mud, leaving his torso exposed. The Assassin's ran over to Desmond and kept two feet away in case the sinking mud was bigger than they thought. The garter snake was roused and looking to see the ground so close, slithered across the mud, disappearing under a tree.
"Somebody please pull me out!"
"We will just hang on tight!" Ezio called looking in the forest for any type of rope they could use.
Altaïr would've joined Ezio but Connor put a hand on his shoulder and produced the rope dart. The Syrian pointed to it as Connor threw the dart part into the trunk, tugging it firmly as the rope grew taught. He laid the rope on the ground with a hand under it as Desmond tried to jump up and grab the loose rope. After awhile, he finally grabbed the rope and Connor lifted the rope upwards, making Desmond hang and swing across as though he was on monkey bars.
"Where'd you get that?"
"Achilles, my mentor, gave it to me as one part of my training." Connor replied as Desmond finally reached the other two men, his clothes caked in mud. He shivered extensively and Connor walked closer to the younger Assassin, feeling his nerves get rattled as well.
He had heard about the symptoms of the seizure and witnessed it a couple times while Desmond was unconscious. They all had to be on their toes about this seizure problem. Connor looked around, transforming his eyes into Eagle Vision, trying to find a suitable place to stay or any clues to maybe game for dinner tonight. In the distance was a thunderclap that made the ground vibrated really hard and the echoes of the clap wobbled the ground as though it was an earthquake. Desmond fell but Altaïr and Connor stood fast, completely unaffected by the sudden movement. Altaïr looked down upon Desmond (who looked up at him, his eyes hollow.) With a growl ripping through his throat, Altaïr grabbed Desmond's arm roughly and yanked him upwards getting the young man onto his feet.
"Thanks Altaïr." Desmond breathlessly uttered, feeling his lungs lose oxygen. He bent over and wheezed, the storm masking the sound as a lightning and a crash of thunder erupted through the pitch black sky again.
Ezio all the while was again in the forest looking for some type of rope. He ran and ran, desperate to find something that could help his friend get out of the death hole. He considered Desmond a friend for he seemed like his friend, Leonardo Da Vinci, except he wasn't as smart and talented as the young genius but was close enough. He tripped over a root and slid in the mud so fast that he couldn't escape the huge hill that was extremely steep and didn't have time to scream. He flailed his limbs all around trying to stop himself which succeeded as he was able to catch a vine but it snapped him upwards into the trees, having him restrained from any sort of movement. He struggled against the bonds but it was useless and all he could do was stare down and call for help.
"Help! Is anybody here! I need help!"
The rain drenched the Italian's back more than it did before. He was so wet that his fingers were beyond pruned like when you're in the bath too long or you played in the water for a certain amount of time. His hair was blown from its ribbon, now hanging loosely, in sections, and acted like a veil, obstructing Ezio's view wherever he turned his head. The jungle staid long and silent with the exception of the occasional cry for help from the Assassin. Ezio would've slept but the lightning and thunderclap kept him awake for fear of being struck by lightning.
He groaned and couldn't do anything except wait. He didn't have to wait long though. There were sounds of feet crunching in the grass down below. Actually, he spotted a figure but he was dressed in ornate clothes, a dark blue cape flowing behind him and a hat that had three folds on the top. He wasn't alone though. The other man walking beside him was a man with black hair, ornate clothing but not as fancy, and a chilling voice that made Ezio not shout for help. They were talking about Connor and not in a very good way.
"Haytham, why do you persist in trying to convince your son that he should join us? He'll never forget Washington's order to burn the village, how I told him to tell his Elders about the choices I was presented, and how in fact that you out of everybody in the English world created him with that Mohawk woman."
"Charles, Connor is my son. I have in fact showed him the letter about Washington's attack to try to persuade him to join us. He is as stubborn as his mother, always hard to the answers always black and white but he chose the black side of things. Without the help of us Templars, humanity wouldn't get by. Order and control is all we need to keep humanity free but the Assassin's see that everybody who wasn't under a reign would be free but I see so many faults into that."
Ezio raised an eyebrow as he tried to hear more of the conversation but they have walked too far away to hear. He would've again yelled for help but for the fear of being discovered by the Templars that had just passed by. With an exasperated sigh there he hung completely useless and praying for someone to come and cut him down. Again he didn't have to wait long, just ten minutes after being stuck up in the vines and hearing the Templar conversation, there was the sound of something climbing the bark and the creaking of the branch when a weight was settled upon its wooden glory. He heard a sheen exclaim from a scabbard and the whish of the blade as it cut through the air, severing the vines in one sweep.
"HEEEEEEEY!" Ezio yelled, falling into the extremely big green bushes that waited for him below. Altaïr smirked as Ezio missed the bush by a couple feet, landing in a pile of mud. He didn't laugh or giggle like Desmond did as he clambered out the bushes, helping his companion to his feet.
Connor stayed silent but he had a smile plastered on his tanned face, his dark eyes twinkling with amusement. Ezio's cheek were painted red with blush as everybody stared at him with smiles including Altaïr, the coldest men among them but Ezio smiled as he realized that Desmond smiled, flashing his white teeth that were in a perfect row with perfect spacing. No crooked teeth or rotting teeth.
"You're smiling Desmond! Finally!" Desmond raised an eyebrow at the comment. He didn't know what the Italian was talking about and the fact that he was told nothing kind of caught him off guard. He shrugged it off and watched as Ezio's face turned from glee to realization. He turned to the perplexed native and started frantically, "I saw a man with another man talking about being your father and-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa there speedy," Desmond started putting his hands in a time out gesture (the Assassin's didn't recognize that sign but let Desmond do it anyways.) He put a hand on Ezio's shoulder and continued, "take a deep breath and tell everything from the beginning."
With a nod the man continued about the conversation at a slower pace, and then pointed into the dense bush jungle.
"They went in there. I tried to listen some more but they were out of reach."
"Good job brother," Altaïr said with full appreciation painted within his deep voice. Connor snorted and shook his head. Even his father and the enemy had to be in this world as well! He shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose, with a sigh, Connor faced his comrades. They didn't look mad or shocked rather they were used to the idea of a Templar of a father. He would've asked why they didn't mind but he must've figured they had heard of the idea somewhere else.
"We should get going," Altaïr finally spoke, looking into the jungle of bushes. "I fear we might have to find a place to dry for a day or so. Also the idea of a base is good for it may give us a protection from those sinister men."
For the whole day, everybody walked through the rainforest, their feet aching, everybody so wet that the weight felt like they had absorbed all the water in the world, hungry, and alert for the presence of the Templars. Up in the trees was a figure watching them with eyes filled with serene calmness and the figure flashed a gentle smile before disappearing in thin air, not being noticed by the Assassin's.