[The next morning]
Dennis and Winnie were awake before too long. Michael and James were already awake and ready to carry out the mission.
"Ah, you two are finally awake. It's time to carry out our mission." James said. The two nodded and got their gear ready.
"Oh, before I forget; Winnie, you're going to need this." James said walking over to her and putting a hidden blade bracer on her left arm.
"What's this?" She asked looking at the bracer.
"It's a hidden blade. For stealth attacks." He replied.
"Can't I just use my claws?" She asked. James shook his head.
"That'll draw too much to yourself." He said. Winnie nodded.
"Good point. So, how does it work?" She asked.
"Simple; just flick your wrist to activate the blade." He replied. James demonstrated this by activating the hidden blade on his left arm. Winnie did the same and looked at it in amazement.
"I've never seen anything like it." She said. She relaxed her paw and the blade retracted.
"Now, enough with all that, let's get started." Michael said. The three quietly agreed and left Monteriggioni.
[Several hours later]
The Assassins arrived in Rome and headed for Abstergo Industries. They arrived not too long after and went to the same hill they observed the building. James activated his Eagle Vision and scanned the surrounding area.
"Okay, I see a lone Abstergo guard near a haystack. Michael, you can get your uniform from him. Dennis, you go with him." The two nodded, sneaked over to the haystack, and hid in it. Michael killed the guard and put his uniform on. He left the haystack when it was safe and pulled Dennis out of it.
"I found an Assassin!" Michael announced to the other guards.
"Good, bring him in." One of the guards replied. Michael did as he was told and brought Dennis in as a hostage.
"Excellent, everything's going according to plan." James said. Winnie looked at him.
"I hope Dennis will be okay." She said. James gave her an annoyed look.
"Seriously Winnie? You need to focus. Don't let your personal feelings complicate the mission." James said. Winnie realized he was right and she started focusing again.
[Meanwhile]
Michael and Dennis headed deeper into Abstergo Industries, accompanied by two Abstergo agents. They eventually reached a holding cell.
"Throw him in there." One of the agents said and Michael obeyed. Just before throwing Dennis into the cell, Michael dropped the diversion and stabbed one of the agents with his hidden blades. Before the other agent could react, Dennis stabbed him with his hidden blade and they threw the agents bodies in the cell.
"Okay, now we just have to find the Piece of Eden." Michael said. Dennis nodded.
"Any idea where it would be?" He asked.
"The research wing." Michael replied. "Now turn around." Dennis obeyed and pretended to be a hostage again. They started making their way to the research wing with the aid of more agents. They eventually made it to a room where some Abstergo scientist's were studying the Piece of Eden.
"Be ready for anything." Michael whispered. Dennis nodded in response. Michael then shoved Dennis in front of him.
"I've found another test subject." Michael told the scientists and they looked at him.
"Take him to the Animus." One of the scientists said. One of the guards was about to grab Dennis but before he did so, Dennis quickly grabbed a smoke bomb and threw it at the ground. The two quickly eliminated the scientists and the guards and grabbed the Piece of Eden before the smoke dissipated. They made their way back to the entrance they came in, where they were stopped by two more guards.
"Why is the Assassin still alive?" One of them asked in a suspicious tone.
"Good question; here's my answer." Michael said stabbing the two guards with his hidden blades.
"The Piece of Eden has been stolen! Find the Assassins who stole it!" A voice called over the intercom.
"I think it's best we leave." Michael said with Dennis nodding. The two went outside and were confronted by numerous Abstergo guards.
"Give it up! We have you surrounded!" One of them said. Dennis quickly grabbed another smoke bomb and threw it at the guards and they made their escape while the guards were stunned.
"After them! Don't let them get away!" Another guard cried once the smoke disappeared. At this, James and Winnie sprang out of their hiding spot and confronted the guards.
"Going somewhere?" He asked.
"Kill the Assassins!" One of the guards screamed. James withdrew the Sword of Eden and swung it at the guards. The energy blast killed them and another wave of guards appeared. James swung the sword again and killed the guards with another energy blast while Winnie killed the guards that confronted her with her sword. Before too long, they were surrounded.
"We have you now!" James looked around.
"Not if I can help it." He said. He grabbed a smoke bomb and threw it at the ground. The two Assassins then made their escape. The Abstergo guards searched around the area endlessly before giving up entirely.
[Meanwhile]
Back at Monteriggioni, the four Assassins were resting after their successful mission. They were preparing to return to Transylvania the next morning.
"Man, I can't wait to go home." Dennis said with the other three agreeing. James then yawned.
"Well, I think it's time we turn in for the night." James said. The three agreed and went to sleep. Little did they know, Warren Vidic, one of the highest ranking members of the Templars, had secretly hacked into one of their computers and knew where they were hiding.
"Kidnap the vampire boy. We'll use him as a test subject and get the Piece of Eden back in the process." Vidic told the commander of the team he was sending to Monteriggioni.
"Yes sir." The commander replied. The team left Rome and traveled to Monteriggioni. They went into the Villa Auditore sanctuary and grabbed Dennis while he was sleeping.
"What the…" Dennis said for the few minutes he was awake. One of the Templars put him into a chokehold and knocked him out. They dragged Dennis out of the sanctuary and brought him back to Abstergo Industries in Rome.
[The next morning]
Winnie woke up and immediately noticed Dennis was not next to her. She sprang up and quickly walked over to James bed and woke him up. He yawned and looked at her.
"What's wrong Winnie?" He asked noticing she had a worried look on her face.
"Dennis is missing!" She said frantically. As soon as James heard that, he sprang up.
"Maybe he just went for a nightly walk in the town?" James suggested. He immediately knew this wasn't what happened, as Dennis would have come back. Winnie shook her head.
"No, he wouldn't go anywhere without telling me." She replied. James nodded and went to wake up Michael. He sat up and looked at James.
"Dennis is missing!" James said. Michael sprang up.
"Shit! Does our Mentor know about this?" He asked. James shook his head.
"I'm doing it now." He replied. James walked over to one of the tables and turned on a laptop. He used it to contact William.
"Ah, James. Any updates on that mission?" He asked.
"I'll explain later Mentor, right now we have bigger problems. Dennis is missing." James replied. William let out a frustrated groan.
"Damn it! Is Winnie okay?" He asked. James nodded.
"I'm fine Mentor." Winnie replied. William let out a relieved sigh.
"What could have happened to Dennis, Mentor?" James asked.
"The Templars most likely kidnapped him." He replied.
"But how? They don't even know we're here in Monteriggioni. I made sure to burn all traces to us." James said.
"The Templars have connections everywhere, they're always finding us it seems. Alright, what you three need to is…" The computer screen frizzled and William's transmission was cut off.
"Uh, come again Mentor? We didn't get that." James said. The transmission came back after a few seconds, but William wasn't the one on the screen; it was Warren Vidic.
"Hello Mr. Braun." Vidic greeted. James and Michael both gave each other a shocked look.
"I thought we made our computers unhackable?" James asked.
"Don't be absurd Mr. Braun. I can bypass any security measures." Vidic said. "In any case, I have a proposition for you."
"What's that?" James asked in a slightly angry tone.
"Return the Piece of Eden you stole from us, and we'll let your vampire Assassin go." He said. He then showed footage of Dennis. He was strapped in a chair near Vidic and the other Templars were beating him senselessly. The three gasped in horror. Winnie was outraged.
"I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" Winnie screamed. James looked at her.
"Winnie calm down." He said. He then turned his attention back to Vidic.
"Fine, We'll give you the P.O.E." James said.
"Tick-tock, Mr. Braun; I'll be waiting." Vidic said before cutting off the transmission.
"I'm gonna kill that man if it's the last thing I do!" Winnie screamed again. James looked at her again.
"Winnie please calm down! We'll get Dennis back." He said.
"Don't tell me to calm down, they're hurting my zing! I'll kill them!" She said. At this, James walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders.
"Winnie please, let's take a walk around Monteriggioni. That'll help us clear our minds." He said. Winnie calmed down a slight bit.
"Fine." She replied. The two pulled their hoods up on their robes and left the sanctuary. Michael contacted William again.
"Michael, what happened? The transmission got cut off." He asked.
"It was Vidic Mentor. He apparently knows we're here in Monteriggioni." Michael replied.
"I'm not surprised. Vidic is one of the smartest people to ever work for Abstergo." He paused for a second. "What about Dennis?"
"Abstergo kidnapped him. Vidic told us to bring the P.O.E back to them and they would let him go." Michael replied.
"Shit."
"What do we do Mentor?" Michael asked.
"Do what Vidic says. Dennis's safety is more important than the Piece of Eden." William replied.
"Yes Mentor." Michael said.
"Be careful, I highly doubt Vidic is going to hold up his side of the bargain. Protect the artifact if you can." William said.
"Yes Mentor. We'll contact you again when we're clear." Michael said before shutting off the laptop. A few minutes later, James and Winnie came back into the sanctuary.
"Grab the Piece of Eden, we're getting Dennis back." Michael said. James nodded and grabbed the artifact. He then started to pack up most of their things.
"What are you doing?" Winnie asked.
"We aren't coming back here. If we manage to escape from Abstergo again, this'll be the first place they'll look." James replied. Winnie nodded and helped him pack up the rest of their stuff. They made sure to destroy all traces to them before leaving the sanctuary and packing their things in their van.
"I'll drive." James said with Michael and Winnie nodding. Michael got in the passenger seat, while Winnie sat in the back. The Assassins left Monteriggioni and started their trip back to Rome. On the way, James handed Michael his cell phone.
"Text the Mentor." He said with Michael nodding. Winnie gave them a surprised look.
"Aren't the Templars going to trace that?" She asked.
"Nope. It's one edge we have over them. Our cell phones are on a private network and protected with the best security we can afford. Not even Abstergo could trace it back to us." James said. Michael then texted William letting him know they were on their way back to Rome and that they were going silent until Dennis was safe. William simply replied with "Be careful." A few hours later, they arrived at Abstergo. Michael gave James his phone back and they grabbed the Piece of Eden before going inside.
"Good, you're here. Take the elevator up to my office." Vidic said over the intercom. The three did as they were told and went to Vidic's office. There, Vidic was standing behind his desk, while an Abstergo guard was holding Dennis.
"Dennis! You're safe!" Winnie said in a relieved voice. He nodded and Vidic looked at Michael and James.
"Now; the Piece of Eden." Vidic said. James pulled it out from under his robes.
"Let Dennis go first. Then I'll give you the Piece of Eden." James said. Vidic looked at the guard that was holding Dennis and nodded. The guard let him go and he ran up to Winnie and embraced her. At this, James walked over to Vidic's desk and put the Piece of Eden on it.
"Now if you'll excuse us, we'll be leaving." James said and he walked over to the entrance of the Animus laboratory.
"Not so fast, Mr. Braun." Vidic said with more Abstergo guards coming in.
"What is this?" Vidic chuckled evilly.
"You seriously didn't think you were leaving here alive, did you?" He asked.
"You son of a bitch." James said pulling out his pistol from under his robes and attempting to shoot Vidic, but a guard disarmed him before he could take the shot.
"Put them down. I have other matters to attend to." Vidic said before leaving his office and taking the artifact with him.
"I can take you all on!" James said. He managed to take down a few guards with his hidden blades. Michael did the same with the guards who cornered him. A few guards surrounded Dennis and Winnie and they managed to put most of the guards down, but not before one of them stabbed Winnie with a knife. She fell to the floor.
"WINNIE!" James screamed running over and killing the guard who stabbed her. He crouched down over her with Dennis next to him.
"l…I don't feel too good." She said weakly.
"Winnie, please be quiet, you're gonna be okay." James said applying pressure to the wound.
"Take care of Dennis for me." She said slowly closing her eyes.
"No Winnie, please stay awake!" Dennis said frantically. She passed out a few seconds later.
"Winnie, no Winnie!" James said with teardrops forming in his eyes. Dennis started crying softly.
"They killed her. Damn it, Winnie was like a sister to me!" James said crying uncontrollably.
"We need to get out of here, or we're next!" Michael said. The two agreed and James picked up Winnie's body and carried it with him. They fought through numerous Abstergo guards and made it back to their van. James quickly put her body in the back and they got in. Before they took off, James threw a smoke bomb out the window to try and throw off the Abstergo guards that were chasing them. It worked thankfully and the Assassins managed to escape Abstergo again. Dennis looked at Winnie's lifeless body.
"I…I can't believe she's gone." He said tearfully before putting his hand on her neck. He noticed something.
"She's got a pulse! She's still alive!" He said with a sigh of relief.
"Thank god." James said. "I'm driving to the Assassins private airport. We need to get out of Italy as soon as possible." Michael and Dennis nodded and they continued on their journey to the airport.
A/N: There you have it. It'll be a little while before I post the next chapter, as I have a lot of other projects I'm working on. Until next time, take it easy.