They eventually settle on an Abstergo facility on the East coast, which means several days' worth of road tripping before they actually get there. Desmond doesn't mind it. He sort of really likes traveling cross country with Aguilar, talking to someone that isn't going to underestimate him. Aguilar actually talked to him like he was a real person, like he was an Assassin. They talked for hours, mostly about their plans for infiltrating Abstergo. Sometimes about other stuff. But Desmond didn't want to dwell on the Farm, and Aguilar seemed to be hiding some unhappy parts of his own past.
The only, minor, drawback is that every time Aguilar says Ezio instead of Desmond, it makes Desmond feel a little bit more like a liar. Ezio himself—who won't show up as long as Aguilar is awake or around—thinks it's hilarious. A couple of nights, when Aguilar fell asleep before Desmond, Ezio has showed up just to prowl around and comment on how similar he looks to Aguilar.
Desmond isn't entirely sure how the others feel. Altair, Connor, and Haytham are much more reserved than Ezio is, and even after all this time, it's hard for Desmond to get a read on them if they don't want him to. Hopefully they won't disapprove too badly.
"We shouldn't stay in direct contact while we're in there," Aguilar tells Desmond when they get close.
"Why not?" Desmond asks. He can't help feeling a little bit anxious—he's far away from home, and there's no one here he knows except for Aguilar. There's always the chance he'll see Altair, Ezio, Haytham, or Connor more often when Aguilar isn't here. But—
"It might draw suspicion," Aguilar says. "This way, even if one of us messes up, the other one can get away safely.
"But what if something comes up?" Desmond asks. "What if one of us finds something and we need to get word to the other? Or what if something bad happens, and we need to warn—"
"We'll set something up," Aguilar interrupts. His mouth twitches up into a smile. "Don't worry so much. We're good enough to do this. We're going to prove everyone wrong, and we're going to do some good."
He has this way of talking—calm, totally in control—that reminds Desmond of the real Aguilar. It makes him feel more comfortable with all this, and almost against his better judgment, he relaxes. "Alright," he says. "Then we'll do this, I guess."
Aguilar sighs. "Yea," he says, with sarcasm so thick Desmond could probably cut it with a knife. "I guess we'll go infiltrate the Templars, figure out what they're up to, and then kick some ass."
For a second there's silence, and then Aguilar's eyes dart sideways to meet Desmond's, and they both grin. Desmond reaches forward and punches the radio on. The car fills up with music and noise, and in seconds they're both talking excitedly again, making plans and figuring things out.
-/-
Cal and Ezio separate about three miles out from the city. Cal keeps the car because he can drive, and Ezio—looking suddenly younger and smaller than he has so far—sets off for the city on his own.
"You're really going to let him go in alone?" Arno asks, appearing at Cal's side almost as soon as Ezio is out of sight.
"That's the plan," Cal says. He glances sideways at Arno. "We talked about it. And I'll keep an eye on him, I'm not just—"
"Not going to let him walk into the Templars alone?" Arno asks softly.
"He can handle this," Cal says. "He can. I have faith in him."
"You barely know him," Arno says. "You only just met."
"And I trust him," Cal says.
"Cal—"
"Arno." He turns his eyes back to the road. "He's an Assassin. He's a good guy. And I trust him."
Arno considers him for a long minute, then nods. "Well," he says. "I guess it's up to you and him, and neither of you has a problem with it." He sighs, and props his elbow up on the car's window ledge. "You'll be okay, won't you?"
"Me?" Cal says. "Yea, I'll be fine."
"You're walking into the fire right with him," Arno says. "Are you sure you're ready for this?"
Cal hadn't doubted until he heard that, but now—
He picked a quiet spot and pulled the car over to the side of the road. "Do you think I'm ready?" he asks. If Arno doesn't think he can do this—if Arno or Aguilar doesn't think he can do this, either of them—then Cal will go find Ezio and pull him out of there right now, they'll turn around and just leave. If Cal doesn't have their confidence, he doesn't have anything.
"I want to know what you think," Arno says. "Cal. Do you think you're ready?"
Cal fights down his sudden nerves, looks at Arno, and thinks about his answer, thinks hard. He understands that they're diving into something dangerous. But he also understands that he's been training for this for years. "Yes," he says. "I think I'm ready."
"Then so do I," Arno says. "And so does Aguilar."
Something in Cal's stomach shifts. "About Aguilar," he says quietly. "I saw him a few days ago, and he mentioned… it sounds like he's having some issues."
Arno visibly hesitates. "It's nothing new," he says quietly. "You have to understand, when we're not with you, here, talking to you, we're sort of… within you."
"Within—what does that mean?"
Arno doesn't answer his question directly. Instead, he asks, "Where do you think Aguilar is right now?"
"I mean…" Cal is startled, he'll admit that. "I've wondered," he admits. "But I guess… I don't know."
"He's…" Arno gestures to Cal. "He's in your mind, he's looking out through your eyes, he's hearing what you hear."
Cal can't help shivering a little at that description. Arno presses on anyway, almost remorseless as he continues.
"He's not even really… Aguilar right now. He's just this kind of floating cloud, halfway between you and him."
"And you know that…" Cal hesitates. "Because that's what happens to you too, right? When you're not here? You're just… nothing? Or you're me, somehow? I don't… think I understand."
"Neither do we," Arno says quietly. "That's why we never said anything. This is our burden, not yours."
Cal looks at Arno in disbelief. "Listen," he says. "If you're sort of me, then I'm sort of you. And even if you weren't, you'd still be the closest thing I have to family. If you two have a problem, tell me. Please. We're in this together, aren't we?"
"There's nothing you can do, Cal." Arno waves a dismissive hand. "It's been a long time. We're used to it. Or I am. It worries Aguilar, like you noticed. But… we're used to it."
"But—"
"Cal." Arno reaches over, and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry so much. This is something Aguilar and I have to deal with, just like you have problems of your own that you have to deal with. So go. Think about the Templars, and about Ezio or whatever his name is."
"Fine," Cal says. He leans over to restart the car. "But we're going to talk about this later, alright?" As he turns the car out into traffic, he happens to glance back in Arno's direction. The man is already gone, and Cal is alone again. Or not alone, not really, because now he knows that they are there inside his head.
He shifts uncomfortably, and focuses on reaching Abstergo.
-/-
Desmond finds it surprisingly easy to creep his way into Abstergo's building. They're looking for part time workers, and it feels a little like selling his soul to the devil, but Desmond takes a job. Nothing special, not yet. But Desmond knows he won't be washing dishes in the employee cafeteria forever. He'll listen, and he'll keep his eyes wide open. And someday he'll learn something, or he'll make a connection, or he'll wander into the right place at the right time. Already, just from the brief interview and an hour of orientation, Desmond can see flaws, weaknesses and places he can go worming his way deeper into the building. He doesn't care what his actual job is. He cares about how easy it'll be to dive deeper into the Templars, and find some actual information.
Besides. It's only part time. That means Desmond has hours every day to wander this new city, to be somewhere other than the Farm for the first time in his life. And then there's Aguilar.
That first day, Desmond can't relax, he's stiff as a board, waiting to catch a glimpse of his friend, half terrified that they won't meet up again. They do, of course. Aguilar is watching out for him. But until the moment when Desmond—confused and worried and maybe even a little homesick—steps out of the Abstergo building, and actually sees Aguilar walk past him on the sidewalk, he isn't sure what to think.
And then he sees Aguilar, and everything is okay.
By the way his friend is walking, Desmond guesses he doesn't want to talk—after all, they aren't supposed to know each other. So Desmond follows at a distance, keeping himself casual. After about fifteen minutes of walking, he follows Aguilar into a slightly rundown apartment building. In the lobby—empty for the moment—Aguilar turns and hands him a key.
"You got us an apartment?" Desmond asks, turning the key over in his hands. "You've been… busy."
"I've done this before," Aguilar tells him. "Walked into a new town and started my life over from scratch. Figured you've never had to do that, and I should help you out." He nods at the key. "And I got us two apartments. Next to each other, but as far as anyone else knows… that has to be coincidence, okay? We have to stay strangers."
"Got it," Desmond says, pocketing the key. He's already noticed the faint number seventeen embossed on the side. It's not hard to figure out which apartment is his new home. "And Aguilar?"
"Yea?"
Desmond grins. "Thanks."
Aguilar smiles back, and for a second puts a hand on Desmond's shoulder. "Just keep doing what you're doing," he says. "Worm your way into Abstergo. Figure out what the Templars are up to."
"What about you?" Desmond asks. "You're going in too, right?"
Aguilar nods. "I'm just going to give it some time first. I don't really think anyone would be suspicious if we showed up at the same day and both started work, but it's better safe than sorry. I'll work somewhere else for a month or two, then come join you. Okay?"
Desmond nods, and smiles. "Sounds perfect," he says.
-/-
So fair warning, the next chapter is going to start introducing some new characters. OCs. At least one, maybe more.
Basically... well, Syndicate sort of hinted that Desmond has a kid out there, and I want that kid in this story! Which means his mother will have to be in it too, and... well, that means OCs. I'm sorry if that bothers anyone, but here's your warning if you want to stop reading because of that.
(Also I'm sorry for taking almost two weeks to write this...)