A/N: OMG it's the last chapter! I'm so excited about this chapter, and I'm happy that this story ended on a good note. It has been a long journey and I can't wait to start writing one shots, though I may attempt a Dragon Age story. Any who, I would love any lasting comments on this last chapter and the story as a whole. I really do like how Rhea turned out to be as a woman and I hope you did too. *SNIFF* bye for now.
Disclaimer: Any Characters associated with the Assassin's Creed games belong to Ubisoft, but Rhea and the Greek assassins belong to me.
Over the next few years Rhea's plate had filled with the worst amount of stress that a sane person couldn't handle. It was as if the Templars were waiting for her to take her position of the leader of Greek assassins, for it was not a week after she settled into her new office in Athens that their enemies attacked their base and forced them out of Athens and south towards the Spartan territories. Though there were many casualties, Rhea had the entire order moved to her home Island were they began to rebuild what they had lost.
It was hard, and with all of the people under her who did question her abilities to run their order. But Fadi and Apollo stayed by her side as advisors whenever she needed them; life went on and the fight against the Templar order raged on for years.
When Rhea had learned that Ezio was in Istanbul, she immediately sent request for men and women for him to send to her aid. In which he did for the money she was sending him. At first the Greeks and the Turks could look past their grudges in the past for them to work together properly, Rhea took the problem in her own hands personally and went on the missions that were considered "unsuitable" or "under" her rank to prove to her underlings that she could work with them. It took months of doing this and getting stabbed whenever her men argued on the battlefield before they got their act together. She had even lost a few assassin who were swayed by the Templar order, which whom she saw to their takedown personally as well.
Athena had forced Rhea back into her old home, claiming that she didn't want such a big house, and helped turn the giant house into the new headquarters for the order. The revenue from the missions had turned the Island into a merchant hub and help build homes for the assassins and their families. But it wasn't until the end of the Templar reign that Rhea finally found happiness.
Rhea knew of Ezio's new fascination with a woman from Venice who owned a book shop in Istanbul, and she took great joy in bugging him through her letter that this woman was going to be his path to happiness. And then Ezio sent Mahir to help her. Mahir: Rhea first thought that Ezio sent him to her as a joke and to annoy her, the man was always able to help her with whatever she needed to get down and Fadi had even joked that the man would follow her around like a lost puppy. The woman had imagined of a cartoonish Ezio laughing at her annoyance with the assassin he KEPT on sending to her "aid", before having him permanently stationed in Greece.
It took time before Rhea had warmed up to him, underneath all of his "annoying" aspects as Athena would put it. Then again they were trapped in a ruin for a week and had to travel together in the dark as they found their way out. Of course this didn't happen before Rhea had snapped and took all of her anger out on the poor man, and he took it in silence as she vented about how everything was dumped on her shoulders and no one seemed to care that she was a woman and not some hard wired machine or God. Mahir, bless his heart, took everything she threw at him as they walked further into the ruins to find the surface. When they did, three days after her spazz attack, they were laughing as if they knew each other for years.
Rhea couldn't deny that Mahir wasn't all that bad looking, being only two years older than her, his skin was only a few shades darker than hers and stood at 6'4". And boy was he built, being a son of a privateer, his arms and chest…Athena would chastise her about staring when the man decided to train shirtless and near her study window. Both women would have to duck when he'd felt their gazes on him and turn to see them, Athena's daughter Hemera would snicker at them for acting like young love sick girls. But the young apothecary couldn't deny that the man was pleasing to the eyes. He kept his dark brown hair short but sported a well trimmed beard, and his piercing amber eyes( Rhea couldn't believe such a color existed); watching him train did attract the attention of other women, assassin or not, around the ring just to watch the muscles the man had work under his skin.
It wasn't until a year after being trapped in the ruins when Mahir started to act strangely, he avoided her when things got awkward for them and he constantly took on missions to Africa. Rhea first thought nothing of it, knowing that he loved going out to sea. But when it happened more often she worried that he was avoiding her because of a night during a festival when they both were extremely drunk to the point that they nearly slept with each other. Apparently they were just beginning to undress each other when she passed out from the alcohol in her system. Fadi had never let her down after that.
During the final battle for the liberation of Athens, the citizens of the city had fought the Templar oppression when the assassins laid siege to the city's strong holds to drive the men out. Rhea fought on the front lines with her men and drove their enemies to the sea for a second part of their plan. Once on their ships and leaving to the great blue, Nicolas and other Greek pirates around the area ambushed them and performed power magazines on two of the five ships. The fight was bloody, and once Rhea slew their leader on the last ship she was drenched in the blood of the Templar men. The trip back to port was full of cheers and the breaking out of confiscated wine from below deck.
When the last man stepped off the gangplank, the sun was beginning to set and the locals opened their arms to their saviors. Rhea stood back to watch everyone begin a long earned party, solemnly watching married couples and lovers find each other and embrace each other. The assassin leader was preparing to head her lodging when Mahir appeared from the crowd, he had been in charge of the eastern charge; he was pushing people out of the way as he rushed to where she was standing. That had attracted some unwanted attention, and the crowd had murmured when Mahir had stopped right in front of her blood splattered form. Mahir seemed to be glaring down at her, which bothered her until he kissed her fiercely. The crowd of assassins who worked under this woman for years, knowing that even though she was a fun person was a hard ass, shut up and waited for her to slap him. Rhea in fact closed her eyes and wrapped her arms behind the man's neck and drew him down so she could kiss back, not even caring that they were both covered in blood.
Athena was the first to cheer, and the others followed as Mahir picked up Rhea and had her legs wrap around his waist as he continued to kiss her. They broke apart to have the survivors of the battle cheering for them, and laugh when Mahir slung Rhea over his shoulder and run off to Rhea's lodgings for a bath and privacy. That night was the beginning of a new and happy part of Rhea's life, soon after their night together Mahir had asked for Rhea to marry him and in a few months they had a small ceremony mixing both countries together. Rhea, still being the leader of the assassins in her area, kept the order on her island, having them to be taught how to be privateers and such as well as aiding other orders in the Mediterranean as she kept up with Ezio's exploits in the east. When word reached her about what had happened and that Ezio was banished from Constantinople, She had own of her ship pick him and the woman Sophia before the Sultan could send anybody after them. It was long awaited but Rhea was ready to see her old friend again.
Ezio and Sophia looked in awe at the Island they were approaching, a majority of the Island was still big fields of wheat and a winery, but the town was bustling with ships arriving and leaving from the port. Mahir had personally seen to the pickup of his Mentore and Sophia so they could safely reach the Island before being put on another ship to Italy. When the ship docked, the Turk told Ezio how to get to the order headquarters and left the couple to finish his duties in the port. Taking their time, since Ezio was still recovering from the injuries he had taken before leaving the east. Assassin's amongst the citizens of the Island nodded their head or bowed in respect to their Mentor before continuing what they were doing.
The trek was slow, since the two were calmly watching the wheat in the fields mimic the oceans waves as the wind blew over them, admiring the few horses scattered here and there. When they did reach the villa, Ezio recognized some of things that Rhea's letters to had described about the villa. It had a few flags on the building with the training area stretching to the western side of the building, and walking inside the building he paused at seeing the marble work that reminded him of the villa in Italy that he had lost. Seeing Rhea in the study he walked in to see her slightly hunched over some paper work with an aggravated look on her face. Hearing his armor clinking together Rhea looked up to see the couple standing at her doorway.
"Ezio, you old dog come in." Rhea said as she began shuffling papers together and into an envelope, her gaze landed on Sophia. Rhea quickly looked the red head over before returning her blue gaze to her old friend. "So this is the famous Sophia that has bewitched you with her intelligence and beauty Ezio. Yours and Claudia's letters didn't do her justice." Ezio groaned and rubbed his eyes at Rhea's joking tone, Sophia only chuckled and curtsied to Rhea.
"Ezio did speak of you too Madonna, it is a pleasure and an honor to see you." Sophia answered as Ezio got over his embarrassment.
"Please call me Rhea, Ms. Sophia it is an honor to meet the one woman to make this man happy. He has been my friend for the past twenty years and I'm more honored to meet you." Rhea smiled.
"You usually didn't say that about the other women I tended to associate myself with before Rhea that must be an awful taste in your mouth." Rhea scowled at the man as he laughed at her expression. "How are you liking your position?"
"I don't like all of the stress, but I do like being in charge of a cause that I know is right. Here, let me show you around." Rhea pushed back her chair and strained a bit as she stood up with her right hand at the small of her back to keep her balance. Ezio first noticed what Rhea was wearing, the black outer robe that he had seen in the illustrations of past assassin leaders and that fact that she was wearing a traditional Greek dressed. But what stood out to time the most was her belly, it was heavily swollen with pregnancy and it was obviously annoying the woman with her lost balance. Sophia had walked to Rhea's side to help Rhea steady herself. Even with their protests that Rhea should sit and with the protests of other assassins under Rhea, she just grabbed a staff and walked outside as if nothing was inhibiting her ability to walk. Her husband eventually joined them as they walked around the villa grounds. Stories were exchanged and laughs followed them, a calm feeling that the war with the Templars may be over for now washed over the four adults as they traveled back to the villa to get ready for dinner.
Ezio and Sophia stayed for two weeks before departing for Italy with money Rhea forced into Ezio's hands. With her child very close to being due, Rhea watched from her balcony to see Ezio and his new love travel to their native land. With one hand on her swollen belly, Rhea smiled at the good memories she had over the years, only to chuckle when her child kicked at her warm hand. Looking back to the retreating boat, her ocean colored eyes gazed into the sunset with prayers for Ezio's future along with hers.
The End
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