Chapter Ten

I traverse infinite seas of fog, looking for the way that will bring me home. For three years, I have wandered these surreal spaces, with little to no break in the scenery.

So when I encounter another person, it comes as a bit of a shock.

His skin is a sunbaked tan, with numerous scars latticing across his exposed arms. Hair as dark as my own fames his face, yet not so much to obscure any part of it. Intense eyes made of liquid gold observe me coolly, and I have to resist the urge to squirm under that gaze.

His mouth moves as if to say something, yet no sound comes out.

Something tugs at the edge of my awareness…

…

Raven blinked slowly, trying to adjust her eyes to the muted light streaming through the window of her little inn room. Already, the details of her weird dream eluded her, but that was natural. Ever since…then, she's been having dreams like that. Maybe she was losing it, which was entirely possible, even probable, all things considered. Hell, if she could ever get back home to tell this story, they'd stick her in an asylum.

Sighing, the vigilante pushed herself out of bed, still wincing slightly when she put her whole weight on her injured leg. It was healing fairly well, all things considered, but she only had enough knowledge of first aid to patch up wounds, not take the edge off of the pain.

She brushed a few strands of ebony hair out of her face before looking for her cloak.

Let's see…there was that brawl last night and then I came up here, and I put it…a ha!

Smiling in triumph, she fastened the garment over herself and pulled up the hood before grabbing her modest traveling pack and making to leave the stuffy tavern.

…

Altair jolted awake. The sun glaring through the large glass window above told him that he had overslept. Cursing himself, he hastily pushed himself out of bed, pulling on an undershirt and some boots. He would to ride hard today to make up for the time he had lost to sleep.

As he went through the motions of strapping on his armor and some concealed weapons, his strange dream played through his mind again. A woman, looking to be of European descent, was standing before him, long black hair cascading freely around her strong, if slim, figure. Two jades that seemed to glow with their own light peered at him curiously. He attempted to ask who she was…yet no sound came from his lips. It was…disquieting.

Finally tying his red sash around his waist, he grabbed a bag and began traversing the winding streets of Masyaf, making his way to the stables.

As he approached the large wooden gates that were made to keep out intruders, the assassin found his mind wander to Raven. This was becoming a steady recurrence, yet by now, he was not annoyed by it. When he had realized that the first time, it shocked even him.

Yet why should the woman be a concern? She was surely different, though even then he should have given her no more thought than any contact that he utilized to get him closer to his target. But there was something…intriguing about her, he supposed. A mystery to be solved…a puzzle to be deciphered, and one that he wished to solve, versus feeling the need—and dread—to discover.

Her statement…or 'joke', as she had called it, helped put most of the pieces together of the mystery regarding his assignments. These men were all connected by some common thread; he was certain about that, now. All he needed to do was find that thread.

It appeared as though he had a long journey to Damascus ahead of him.

…

Raven looked up at the sky as the late twilight began to fade, setting a sharp chill in the air. Damn it, she thought, looks like I won't get to Damascus until tomorrow. The vigilante looked for a place to set up camp when she suddenly smelled something being blazed over a fire. The aroma reminded her that she hadn't eaten anything all day.

Curious, she followed the source of the smell before coming up on a fire and small campsite. Sitting in front of the fire was—

"You have got to be kidding me," she muttered. What, were they just going to take turns stumbling on each other's campsites or something?

Altair, who had obviously heard her, turned around and regarded her coolly. She was sure that if his face wasn't obscured by the shadows of his hood, he would have an eyebrow raised in mild amusement. All the woman got, however, was a blank demeanor…as always.

"Alright, this is ridiculous. Now, you're just following me," she groused.

"If anyone is following anyone, it would be you following me, not the other way around," he replied. Maybe Raven was losing it, because she swear she saw his lips twitch in mild amusement.

"Whatever you say, Assassin," Raven said, rolling her eyes, even if he couldn't see it beneath her own hood.

"Are you simply going to stand there with flippant remarks at your disposal, or did you have something else on your mind?" he drawled, proceeding to check whatever amazing smelling thing was spitted over that fire.

She smirked. "Oh, Altair, I had no idea that you were interested," was her response. She delighted in the fact that he slightly tensed up at the implications of the statement before shrugging it off.

"The former, then, it would seem," he remarked dryly.

Her stomach let out an ungraceful rumble, reminding her again that she hadn't eaten, and that whatever he was cooking would probably taste good, and that she should…convince him to let her have some.

"Alright, fine. Are you dining for one tonight, or in the mood to share?" she asked, nodding towards the fire.

"Humility from Raven Anerali? I had never expected to see the day," he mocked, clearly trying to imitate her taunt from…hell…how long ago was it? A week? Two?

She once again rolled her eyes. "Don't be an ass," she remarked before promptly sitting herself down in front of his fire.

"You should be in Jerusalem still," he pointed out.

"Why?"

"Unless I am mistaken, you are still injured," he stated.

"Whatever. It doesn't even hurt anymore," she countered. That was a blatant lie of course; walking on it all day made it throb with dull pain. However, there was no point in holding her operations over a silly wound.

She was certain that he didn't believe her, but at least he didn't pursue it further. If there was one thing that she liked about the assassin is that he had a tendency to know when silence was a good thing, unlike some people she knew.

Of course, why I would like ANYTHING about the conceited ass is beyond me…she mentally noted.

"Where do you plan to go this time?" Altair suddenly asked next to her.

"Damascus. You?"

"Of course," he muttered. Raven took that as his way of saying that he was also going in that direction, and smirked again.

"At this rate, we might as well start travelling together," she mused.

"Indeed."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a time, simply watching to fire. Come to think of it, this was the first time that Raven could say that she truly felt at ease around the assassin. It was a strange sort of revelation that made her smile somewhat. It emboldened her somewhat with questions she wanted to ask him, especially after Jerusalem.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" she asked.

"You just did," he retorted.

"Ha ha, very funny," she stated sarcastically.

"Perhaps I have spent too much time around you," he stated.

Ignoring him, she took a deep breath. "I'm not trying to piss you off again, but I want a serious answer. Why did you help me back in that alleyway? You had every reason not to, yet you did anyways. Anyone else would have just left me there to fend for myself, yet you didn't. Why?"

She expected him to snap at her again, probably send her out of his campsite, yet…he didn't do either of those.

"I do not have an answer that would satisfy your curiosity," he answered earnestly.

"Try me," she countered.

"I mean that I do not know the answer myself," he amended.

"Oh."

That was new.

"I believe that means that I am allowed to ask you a question, as well," he continued.

"Ask away, just don't expect an answer," she stated. Dammit…something told her that he did that on purpose.

"You are not from the Holy Lands, are you?" he asked.

That was an easy answer. "No."

"Then where? And why are you here?" he inquired.

I guess it couldn't hurt to give him the basic truth…she mused.

Raven sighed before beginning to answer. "I'm from…somewhere that I can guarantee that you've never heard of. As for the why, I have no answer for. I woke up one day three years ago and found out that home was far away…and that there's currently no way to get back. Well, not that it had really felt like home at that point, anyways," she explained.

"And so you took up vigilantism?" he asked.

Her countenance darkened. "Even in that first day, I was pretty sure I had seen just about every atrocity that could be committed by man. Wives were abused in the streets by their spouses, starving children caught thieving were put to a sword, women were raped…the list goes on and on." She clenched her teeth at the memories, the horror and revulsion they caused subtly sending muted fury through her.

"I'm not one to sit and watch, so I started…dispatching the offenders. Some of the people I saved along the way wanted to help, and who was I to stop them? Before I knew it, I had my own underground organization that spanned across several cities. I like to think that serving my own brand of justice made a difference, though there never seems to be an end to the bastards."

She was surprised in herself for revealing that much information. She hadn't expected this to become a bear your feelings session. It's not like Altair could do anything to use the information against her, however.

All she got was a simple "I see."

This night was procuring plenty of surprises, it would seem.

…

A/n: Wow, I was on the verge of putting this story on hiatus, and then inspiration suddenly struck! Yay!

It's…uh…not a filler chapter, per se…but probably inadequate compared to the…what has it been…three or four month wait…?...l.o

So, yeah…sorry for the wait. Though, by now, if you're not used to the idea of a terribly infrequent update schedule, you probably should, I guess.

On another note, you guys are, like, awesome. 26 followers? 18 reviews? We're setting an all-time high for the amount of support I get on posts here, and…just…thanks. I am really…really…REALLY grateful that you all take the time to keep up with this. It warms my heart that people care.

So, you guys are awesome, and if you're a new reader, welcome! Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up soon, but we'll see what happens…