I just want to apologise for something here in advance – this chapter sort of struggled into life when my long term relationship fell apart. My writing here's probably distracted, nervous and most probably lacking, so I just want to apologise for any changes in quality. Don't worry about me now, I'm with someone I've wanted to be with for a very long time now, and frankly everything is very molto bene. Anyway, on with the show! :D

March 18th, 1500. Rome.

The candle light flickered in the draft floating through Machiavelli's office, and it cast shadows on the walls and on all the faces of those seated around his desk. The man himself and Ezio Auditore sat behind it. Machiavelli was as calm as a man could ever be when faced with the impossible and the unbelievable, but Ezio fidgeted subtly, restless. His fingers tapped the desk, he shifted in his chair, and he fingered the designs on his braces as though they might bring him comfort. Learning that a descendant of his – someone of his flesh and blood who he hadn't planned on creating – was in trouble in the future was something his mind refused to comprehend. It suggested that these people – Amy, Rory and the Doctor, were something he couldn't believe – they didn't even seem human to him. And despite it all, his curiosity was razor sharp. But he wasn't about to show it. So he quietly resolved to sit and to watch. Bartolomeo, La Volpe and Claudia were present too on the Assassin side of the desk, their distrust overwhelmingly evident.

On the other side sat the impossible strangers. Amy seemed better – she looked more alert and much more annoyed than ever before. Rory shifted anxiously, looking around him, and the Doctor – the Doctorsat and looked at them all, meeting all their eyes and determining just what worth they were made of.

Niccolò Machiavelli had decided before hand that he wasn't having any of it.

'As I am sure you're aware, we are faced with an impossible situation. And you yourselves seem to have encountered trouble,' Machiavelli began, realizing that no one had wanted to speak first (Except maybe perhaps the Doctor man, who wore a subtle grin and looked amused by the whole situation) 'My aim is for all present in this office to leave knowing that they have the answers they desired, and a truce. We extend our help to you, if you so require it.'

'Well, that's very kind of you,' The Doctor said, and the grin was there for a second – confident and self assured – he rubbed his hands together. 'So who's going first then, hmm? Maybe you, Machiavelli, sir – can I just say, I'm a huge fan?'

'…Fan?'

'Admirer. You look different from your portraits though…'

Machiavelli frowned. 'I haven't sat for a portrait in almost fifteen years, not since I was a small boy.'

'Oh. Uhrm. Must've been an admirer's work, then.'

'I have had admirerspaint me?'

'It's called fan art – '

'Ifwe could get back to the subject at hand?' La Volpe said suddenly, looking quite agitated.

'Ah, yes, of course!' The Doctor said. 'So, who's first?'

'I am.' Bartolomeo stabbed the table with his finger, and eyed the Doctor. 'Who are you?'

'Ah, that's actually a really complicated question and is probably best answered when the whole of time and space isn't threatening to collapse. Next?'

'Wait, time and space?' Machiavelli demanded, waving down Bartolomeo's retort. 'You are saying that your situation threatens existence as we know it?'

'If you want to summarise it, then yes, absolutely.'

'Then why should we help you, when all that we hold dear is at risk?' La Volpe demanded.

'This involves you lot as much as it does us. There's a reason why we ended up here, and its him,' The Doctor motioned to Ezio, who snapped out of trance like state he'd seemed to be in and looked up at the sound of his name. 'My TARDIS – my box, was drained of all her energy and in an automatic response, latched onto the nearest recognisable source of DNA that wasn't in the TARDIS already and landed here, in front of him. That means that the Templars are using a source of DNA not identical to Ezio's, but very close. A direct descendant.'

'When mother finds out, she'll kill you.' Claudia hissed to Ezio, who looked like he believed her utterly.

'And, using my DNA and the DNA of this descendant of Ezio's, they trapped my TARDIS in a ring of energy and attempted to drag us down into their base. But something happened with whoever the descendant is – he or she broke through of whatever was holding their mind in suspension and cancelled the energy pull. But there's a big hole in the fabric of time right now, and I don't have to tell you that that isn't good news.'

'It doesn't sound it.' Machiavelli agreed.

'And, until I can figure out what's wrong with the TARDIS, we're stuck here. Which is good news, actually, '

'Wait, TARDIS? You speak nonsense.' La Volpe said.

'TARDIS – Time And Relative Dimension In Space. As I say, it take more time than we have to explain, so just take my word for it.'

'You say time,' Machiavelli said slowly. 'Are we supposed to think…?'

'Time travel. Yes. Absolutely. We're time travellers.' The Doctor said with obvious relish before sitting back and letting a sloppy, smug grin slide over his face. Each of the Assassins considered a lot of things after hearing the Doctor say the worlds, but what was held at the forefront of their minds was the fact that a goddess had once reached out to one of their own, called out to a phantom figure and had spoken of grave times in the future.
When no one reacted to the Doctor's revelation, he scowled.

'This is all just fantasy!' La Volpe said, throwing his arms wide. 'An invention – a trick! We don't even know your names – how can we tell that you're not Borgia spies!'

'Well, I'm the Doctor, she's Amy and he's Rory,' The Doctor replied, tilting his head either side to indicate each companion in turn. 'And don't call us names, its not nice.'

'We're not spies.' Rory added.

'And how can you prove otherwise?'

'By not being spies!' Rory's voice rose, and La Volpe grinned.

'I don't believe you.' He hissed, leaning forward across the desk. Rory, never one to be called a liar, rose to his feet.

'I don't care.' He growled.

'Rory, leave it!' Amy said, and Claudia raised an eyebrow.

'A woman who cannot keep her husband under control is hardly a woman at all.' She commented.

Amy turned to meet her very slowly.

'What was that?'

'Oh, nothing. Just an observation.'

'You better shut that pretty little mouth of yours, or I'll shut it for you.'

'Ha! You really think so?'

The two arguments reached shouting point. Bartolomeo, slightly intimidated by the row Claudia and Amy were causing, jumped to La Volpe's aid and roared down Rory's shouts while Machiavelli stood and attempted to calm all of them down. There were only two people in the room who weren't making any movement at all, and both were watching each other. The Doctor had noticed long ago that Ezio had been staring at him with eyes that weren't his – he could tell – they were golden. And Ezio had noticed long ago that he couldn't determine whether or not the Doctor and his companions were friend or foe.

Ezio had long since trusted the colours he saw more than everything else in the world. Simple, normal, colours. Blue – allies. Red – enemies. Gold – importance. White – a place to hide.

But the impossible strangers were like a rainbow of intentions – flickering between all four states at rapid speed. His eyes ached to look at them all, and the fact that he was less assured of their intentions than ever before agitated him beyond belief. He grimaced as he let himself slip back into focus again, and the shouts and yells hit him like a bucket of cold water to the face. He grimaced as he squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again, he found the Doctor staring straight at him.

He'd seen.

For a moment, Ezio froze in indecision, like a cat that's been spooked by a loud noise, but then the Doctor tilted his head and eyed the door. Ezio eyed his friends and the Doctor's companions – all were absorbed in the makings of a small domestic war, and so he tipped his head in response.

Both men quietly got up and went out the nearest doors.

Next phase up tonight! Needs some tweaking first, but SOON.