Pain
A/N: Hope it hasnt been too long guys! Your reviews however have been of much comfort, glad to know there are a few of you out there with the guts to tell me what you think, I bow respectfully to you all. Enjoy!
"Looks like were here," Annalise commented as she turned slightly to look at Monica who in turn refused to even acknowledge her, it fact it seemed like she was on the verge of breaking down. Annalise sighed as she looked forward, she could make out the shapes of buildings in the distance.
They approached a city, a fortress looming over it onto of a mountain overlooking a river down below; they had finally arrived at Masyaf. Malik rode ahead, Annalise with Monica behind him, Altair trailing at the back.
They raced through the streets of the city just beyond the assassin's home, thankfully it was late and there were no people out to raise suspicion. As they neared the gates to the assassins home the two guards guarding the gates took out their swords and glared at Annalise and Monica. Annalise glared back, Monica however chose to simply look down ignoring them.
"What is the meaning of this Malik?" one of the guards asked as he pointed his sword at Annalise who in turn looked at the ex-assassin who seemed like he just wanted to get through to help Ezio.
"He is wounded for crying out loud why you must ask such questions of me now!" Malik snarled back as the guard stood his ground refusing to let the two girls in, after all the creed was a secret, having two women stroll in would probably cause an uproar.
"You may be of higher rank than me Malik, but you will have to take it up with the Grand Master," the other guard told him as Altair rode up as well and stopped next to Annalise while gripping his reins tightly.
"You are to stand down novice," Altair told him in a monotone voice as the two guards cowered before the famous Altair, surprised to see their Grand Master back so quickly.
"But master, they are women!" the other commented as Altair's head snapped over to them, a glare fixed on them both as they twitched slightly, if there was something every assassin in the creed knew, it was to never agitate or doubt their master.
"Silence! Do not question me, now stand down and let us through…that's and order!" he growled as the soldier nodded and proceeded to raising the gates as the three horses made their way inside.
The courtyard was empty, the training grounds deserted as they all dismounted, Altair jogging over and carrying Ezio over his shoulder as the younger assassin groaned in pain.
"I will show you to your rooms, novice, take him up to my quarters," Malik told them addressing the pair of girls and then Altair as the Arab nodded and went in a different location.
Malik led them through countless corridors; huge wooden doors fully closed sleeping assassins behind them as they rushed past the first few and stopped at the end of the hall.
"You will be staying here, at least until tomorrow once this whole thing is taken care of, I must leave you now, if you need anything our rooms are at the top floor of the hideout, you should have no trouble finding them," he told them as he bowed slightly before leaving them standing outside of the room confused slightly as they looked at each other and entered the room.
Their jaws opened in amazement, the room was absolutely stunning, two enormous beds were pushed up against the walls, a purple tint decorated everything, a huge mirror was also up against a wall with a sea of pillows up against a corner of the room.
"Talk about filthy rich," Annalise told her friend as Monica looked around and walked over to the bed, her hand brushing slightly over the covers as she allowed herself to fall back against it. Annalise could tell her friend was in no mood to talk much less laugh as she sighed to herself and sat on the other bed.
She literally jumped when she heard her friend start to sing once more, except this time she knew what she was singing; it sent chills up her spine as Monica continued to sing the melody that was stuck in her head.
The song Pandora sang from God of War. Annalise quickly found herself drifting off to sleep to the melody she laughed slightly to herself, that's what Monica had been striving for the whole time. She wanted to help her get to sleep, the Italian still on her mind as she finally gave in and allowed sleep to take her as Monica sighed and sat up on the bad.
"Angel of music why this torment? Why do you curse mercy?" she sang quietly thinking of a certain golden eyed assassin while looking out of the window which was open up to the full moon as she thought of Altair, the man was much like the Phantom of the Opera in her mind, he was a monster. Despite all of that he had another side to him, one that he did not show and refused to do so.
He could have just allowed the captain to escape with his life after a little beating, perhaps something more but what he had done was inhuman, Monica felt her thoughts come to a complete stop. Why had he gone to extremes to make him pay? It's not like they had scarred her of Annalise mentally forever…why not have mercy on the poor man?
What Monica did not know was that Altair had a whole other method of thinking, while she tried to show compassion and mercy he showed resentment and rage. While she tried to sometimes forget he held grudges, while she chose to walk out in the open he took to the shadows.
They were complete opposites, while she was an 'Angel of Music' as he had put it once; he on the other hand was a fallen angel, one whose wings were broken beyond repair. One who wanted help desperately deep within but refused to ask for it, in turn he embraced the darker side of himself.
She was light and he was darkness. Something like that would surely cause chaos should they come across each other, should they become something more than just acquaintances. She frowned; they were much too different for what she was thinking, much too different.
She sighed once more and looked out of the window one last time hoping this was all just a nightmare, one that she would be awakening from soon.
She went back to her bed and sat down once more putting her head in her hands as she pulled slightly at the black hair that cascaded down as she looked up once more at the moon, a single silver tear running down her cheek as she thought once more of Altair for some odd reason she found it impossible to get him out of her head, this was going to be a long night.
Stiglitz meowing loudly as he jumped on to the bed and curled up next to her rubbing his whiskers on her cheek as he brushed away the tear with his fur, she tried to smile at him as she pulled him closer and fell into a restless sleep filled with nightmares of things long since passed.
The assassins on the other had were currently up in Malik's room struggling with Ezio as the Italian awoke suddenly as wave after wave of pain flooded through him. He tried to get away only to be brought back down by Altair who held his shoulders while the Italian growled in pain as Malik poked and worked on the wound.
"Is it serious?" Altair asked as he held Ezio down while Malik worked desperately, managing to get the bleeding to a stop as the ex-assassin smiled despite himself and looked down at the horrified Italian who kept throwing him worried glances.
"You're not going to have to cut it right?" the younger assassins out of the three asked as Altair's eyes flickered over to Malik's onyx ones that held amusement in them as they both looked down at Ezio who looked up at them in horror.
"I'm sorry Ezio, but we cannot do anything, you've lost too much blood," Malik told him as Ezio's mouth dropped open in pure genuine horror. Altair playing along and nodding his head in seriousness when Ezio turned to look at him.
"Do not be so concerned amico mio, you cannot lose an arm like that!" Malik told him once Ezio started to get pale, Altair also allowing a slightly smirk crack at the end of his lips as Ezio looked at both of them in shock. The Italian found it odd to hear his language slip out of an Arabs tongue and yet Malik made it sound flawlessly.
"That was not amusing old man," the Italian snapped before Malik tightened the bandages making the young Italian hiss in pain as Altair continued to hold him down when he tried to bolt and run out of the room.
"Are they ok?" Ezio asked as he turned to look at Altair, a shadow falling across his mentor's expression as Ezio flinched slightly, he could tell he had hit a sensitive chord, but which one.
"They are fine," Malik told him once Altair faltered as the Italian nodded and stayed still allowing him to work as he finally finished and nodded satisfied with his work. Ezio sat up with a groan of pain as he held his shoulder while wincing.
"You should not agitate it unless you want it to start bleeding once more, then we will have a problem," Malik told him turning and washing the blood off of his hands on a nearby bowl of water he had Altair bring up, "no contracts for you…at least for a while," he told the Italian as he immediately opened his mouth to protest.
"No contracts, that is final Ezio," Altair told him once the Italian turned to look at him hopefully, all hopes of being able to assassinate being brought down once he hear that, "I shall find someone else to fill in your place for the time being," the Arab added as Ezio pouted.
Just because he wasn't going to work didn't mean he was supposed to be nice and enjoy it, in fact he was planning on annoying Altair and Malik until they allowed him to carry out assassinations once more.
He got up from the table and gently put one of his shirts back on, not bothering to put the multiple shirts that followed, he wasn't in the mood nor did he want to look fancy when he was in pain. He started to walk out of the room as Altair turned to look at him and rose an eyebrow in questioning.
"I'm just going to go out for a walk, I won't do anything stupid," he reassured the two assassins as he left and closed the door behind him leaving the pair of Arabs too look at each other in somewhat fear for the Italian. He was reckless, and they knew that by now, if he did indeed cut open his stiches it would spill disaster for him.
"On a more personal note Altair," Malik told his superior, Altair winced, Malik only used his name when he wanted to talk about something serious, "Did she see all of that back there?" Malik asked as the assassins shoulders slumped, if only for a second before he composed himself and stood straight once more.
"Yes…why do you ask this?" Altair replied as Malik resisted the urge to punch the novice before him, even after all those years the man had to learn when to strike and when to hold back.
"Do you have any idea of the trauma the poor girl must be going through novice?" Malik snapped at him as Altair held his head high, he was aware of the scarring he must have caused her by watching that but he wasn't about to go and have a breakdown over it, "I must warn you Altair, if you do not act fast she will grow to hate you more and more as every day goes by," Malik added as Altair tensed slightly and turned to look at Malik with a blank expression, his eyes giving no indication of what he was thinking either.
"If I were you novice, I would have already apologized," Malik commented as he urged the assassin out of the door and gave him a last reassuring look as he closed the door leaving Altair bewildered standing outside as he shivered slightly at the cold breeze that seemed to run through the creed.
He could make out Ezio in the distance walking in the village, Annalise by his side, so typical for the Italian. Altair on the other hand simply didn't want to see the girl he needed to desperately talk to, he just wouldn't apologize…why should he? Deep in his mind however he knew he had to do something.
He quickly gathered himself up and walked down the flight of stairs leading to the living quarters making sure he woke no one in the process as he finally came to the door where Malik had left them for the night, all he needed to do was knock. A simple movement of the hand really and yet he seemed frozen in place.
Damn it all to hell he was Altair and nothing was going to cause him to falter, nothing. He was about to kick down the door when he noticed the window was open, he poked his head in and noticed she was completely passed out on the bed.
He climbed in through the window and walked over quietly to the side of the bed she was facing. He took a second or two to look at her; she seemed paler than he recalled her being. He took a moment or two to notice she was dreaming something, and it didn't seem pleasant from where he was standing, she kept tossing and turning, Stiglitz on the pillow opposite form hers watching her with stunning emerald eyes as they quickly flickered over to Altair once he noticed the assassin standing over him.
The cat opened its mouth and let out a long dragged out meow as if wanting to tell him something as it got up and stretched before walking over to him and rubbing itself on the side of Altair's hand trying to get him to do something.
Much to Altair's shock she suddenly woke as she sat up sweating and shaking uncontrollably, Stiglitz quickly losing interest in the assassin and walking over to his owner as he climbed on to her legs and tried to comfort her as she simply started to break down still not noticing Altair standing there the whole time.
"It was just a fucking dream," she growled suddenly as Altair stepped back calling her attention as her eyes shot over to him filling with surprise and confusion as he stood there not knowing what to do. Her confusion however was quickly replaced by hate and fear as she continued to watch him, her cold eyes calculating every move he made.
"Get out," she told him in a raspy voice, her throat dry for some reason as he stood his ground, no woman was about to start to give him of all people orders.
"No," he replied simply as her fists clenched slightly as her whole body tensed. He never expected what came next, in fact he as far from prepared.
She pounced over to him as he landed heavily on the stone floor pulling her along as she sat on him tears streaming down her face as he stared blankly up at her.
"Its you who I was dreaming of! I cant get the nightmares out of my mind!" she yelled at him as tears streamed down her face and onto his black robes as he continued to look up at her, a sharp pain coming form his chest as she stared down at him in regret.
"Its all your fault," she whispered with rage as she hit him on the chest, "Its all your godamn fault!" she cried as she felt more tears coming to her, this was going to be a long night indeed.
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