Cesare came forward and got the first blow in, his right fist swinging furiously at Ezio's head. The assassin was a fraction too late in ducking under the punch and as Cesare's knuckles brushed his temple, he staggered backwards. This gave Cesare a cause to cry out in triumph.
"Fortuna will not fail me! I will kill you. I will kill everyone who stands in my way. The throne is mine."
"It was yours, Cesare. Wanting something does not give you the right to take it, nor does it give you the right to call something yours."
The Templar loosed his blade in response to Ezio recovering his composure and drawing his own sword. Both men circled on the parapet, engrossed in the headlong spate of swordplay until Ezio's sword bounced away and the only way to hold position was using the bracer to deflect the harsh blows.
"I will lead mankind into a new world. A place long rid of your antiquated systems, rules and hierarchies."
"And bring tyranny along with it? It sounds like there is a lack of attention to detail."
"Do not mock me, old man. I know what I want and unfortunately, you will not live long enough to see me acquire it."
"Cesare, you are walking on the path of self-destruction. You will continue to make irreparable mistakes which will inevitably lead to your downfall."
"I do not make mistakes, old man! I am Cesare Borgia! And I will be the future King of Italia!"
Striking an unexpected and cowardly blow, Cesare fuelled his anger on slashing his sword recklessly. Ezio was quick enough to parry and catching Cesare off-balance, he snatched the young man's wrist. The sword was sent clattering to the flagstones below.
Ezio slashed at his wrists, cutting into the tendons so deep that it hung limply. The unimaginable pain left Cesare in a distorted grimace.
"You are finished, Cesare. Requiescat in pace."
A sense of satisfaction tensed Ezio's muscles noticing that his opponent was standing inches away from edge.
"You cannot kill me. No man can murder me!"
"Then I will leave you in the hands of Fate," replied Ezio, seizing his enemy and throwing him off the battlements.
Cesare Borgia descended onto the cobblestones a hundred feet below. Ezio did not look down as it would cause his consciousness to topple remembering the way he had looked down at Mario's head staring back at him with empty eyes those many months ago. Instead, he exhaled deeply, embracing the relief which shook him from head to toe; the strenuous fight against the Borgia was over.
He returned to the hideout later that night, almost collapsing from exhaustion at the door way. Chiara was kneeled on the floor, praying. Her silhouette in the soft candlelight made her look a fallen angel. He chuckled with glee at her reaction; her eyes growing wide with worry, her eyebrows furrowing at the bruises on his face, her warm hands bringing the rush of blood to his cheeks and finally her soft lips on his, eradicating all the questions lingering on his mind.
"It is done. Cesare is dead and the weight from my heart has gone."
"That is great news, Ezio. I am delighted," she replied, biting her lip.
The assassin had lived long enough to be able to smell the fear and disappointment in people; Chiara had failed to look deadpan.
"Your face tells me otherwise. Are you not pleased with the outcome? The fight is over, Chiara. The feared reign of the Borgia has died along with the men of that family. I can…we can live in peace now. We can move to Milan or Florence like we had discussed. Or even Venezia. I promise you, it is breath-taking during Carnevale and…"
Ezio stopped babbling mid-sentence. Chiara's teeth dug into her lips even deeper in an attempt to hold back tears.
"You are not happy. Tell me what is troubling you."
Chiara's doe eyes clenched shut, squeezing out tears as she kissed Ezio and pulled him closer by his collar. The kiss was forcefully sweet except when salt-water crept inside their mouths.
"I do not have time for sentiments, sister."
The same voice which had begged Ezio to help on a small rock back in Forli so many years ago came from behind him; the same one which had whispered sweet, sensual nothings in his ear during their nights together and betrayed his love out of politics and greed.
"Caterina, just…just give me one more minute," begged Chiara, keeping her forehead pressed against Ezio's. She breathed in his scent; a mixture of sweat, blood and allure, fearing it would be the last time she would be able to do so.
Protectively, Ezio grabbed Chiara's wrist, pulling her behind him.
"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded angrily. How dare she even think about stepping foot on assassin soil with her dirty lies?
"I am here to take Chiara back home to Milan. Away from all of this," replied Caterina, her renowned scorn untainted by the situation she would find herself in. Frankly, she had not changed at all in the company of the Borgia and looked as bewitching as ever.
"Stronzate (bullshit)! She is not going anywhere, especially with you."
"I have plenty of good reasons to explain myself. Firstly, you have killed Cesare. I had predicted you would do so today and now he is out of the equation; that bastardo deserved it and I have you to thank for his death."
"Do not think for one second that I did this for you. My feelings for you disappeared the day your ugly side was revealed. Do not revel in your beauty, Caterina. It will be your downfall and soon all of Italia will mock you, not Lucrezia. I did this for retribution…for Chiara's happiness."
"Even so," sneered the redhead, feeling a slight pang of jealousy at the affection Ezio should have been showing her, not her sister, "It has given me the freedom to go back to my children. Grazie mille, Ezio."
Ezio looked irritable, too exhausting to even glare.
"Secondly, you are weakened from the fight. I say you have no more strength left in you to refuse me or even fight back. I have guards in the back rooms on their toes, just waiting to kill the 'almighty' assassin. Do not appease them, Ezio."
"And thirdly?"
"Chiara has agreed to come with me herself."
The assassin dropped Chiara's hand as if it was burning coal and whirled around to face her, "Is this true?"
The young woman replayed her sister's demands in her mind, before Ezio had arrived. Caterina had burst through the door with eight guards and each of them stationed themselves in a room before her sister even had a chance to assess the situation. In a panic, she engaged in a fight with the guard standing next to Caterina, successfully defeating him with her dagger. He was concealed under the darkness in the far side of the room. Caterina did not fight and merely want to talk. Then, she made demands with utmost aggression and blackmailed Chiara into agreeing to go with her. It was a clichéd situation - if Chiara did not go back to their parents house in Milan, she would make the guards kill Ezio. Of course, on any given day of the week, Ezio would be able to kill a whole legion of guards blindfolded with his hands tied behind his back but Caterina had timed this perfectly. She had chosen the time when he would be at his weakest but happiest. All he needed now was rest. Wounds were evident on one of his leg and his shoulder.
Hardening her heart, she lied, "Yes. It is true. I want to go back to Milan…but not with you. With Caterina."
"I do not understand."
"I cannot live like this! Every moment with you is a living nightmare. Everywhere I turn, there are eyes on us. There are guards examining haystacks constantly."
Chiara knew her reasons to leave sounded stupid and petty but she was not a compulsive liar; lying to Ezio was one of the hardest things she had ever done.
"But that will change now, mi amore. The Borgia are gone. They will have no legacy - nothing good to remember them by except their wickedness. The Papacy will elect a new Pope soon and maybe even the leaders of the other cities can come together to save Rome from being burnt to ashes. There is nothing more to fear."
Chiara fought her mentality to keep it all together and concoct further excuses.
"You are an Assassin. You have enemies lurking in the shadows somewhere. You have defeated just one of many."
"I assure you, any other enemy is the least of my worries and can be taken care of swiftly."
He was just as stubborn as I am, thought Chiara. She smiled solemnly.
"It is not enough for me, Ezio. You cannot give me what I want. I despise the life you lead and your past. It is too much for someone like me to ignore on a daily basis."
"I had always imagined you as a woman of simplicity, Chiara. Nothing disconcerts you except the feelings of others. What about my feelings? And your own feelings? I am in love with you. That should be enough for you to leave this behind and start anew with me."
"But it is not," lied Chiara, "And I cannot bear to see you be so heroic - for this country and for something as trivial as love."
"I shall have to prove it to you then. Bring on the guards hiding like cowards in the rooms. I can fight them all for you. Only then will you be sensible and open your eyes."
"There is no need for that," replied Chiara backing away from Ezio's pleading gaze towards Caterina.
"But I love you, damn it! You cannot leave like this. Such a rash decision is uncalled for!"
It felt like someone was twisting a knife in her gut, "Arrividerci, Ezio."
Caterina yelled for the guards to come out, a smirk plastered on her face as she jeered, "See how much valuable time and energy you can save without involving a sword and a fist?"
"Please stay," he begged, ignoring the relentless, clammy hands locked around his arms pulling him away from Chiara. She didn't even bother turning her head one last time for fear that she would cling to him for dear life, crying, kissing and suffocating him. The cathartic sensation they were so accustomed to feeling had been torn from them the minute Chiara stepped outside the hideout and neither of them could foresee whether it would ever return.
The end.
Does it feel like an ending? I think so. I know it seems like a slightly rushed ending; apologies. It's 25 chapters, what else do you want? I'm kidding.
I have a feeling I have the patience for one more chapter - maybe an epilogue of how they're both doing after the separation? Let me know if convenient. If inconvenient, I will end up doing it any way since I haven't concluded Federico's involvement in all of this! (Sherlock fans will get that reference) Review, please and I hope you enjoyed reading this!