Part two of the last bit. Assassinate was a good word to work with, and I suppose you could say I took the easy way out, continuing with Ezio. Ta ta.
S. White
Disclaimer: I do not own Assassin's Creed.
Assassinate
Ezio Auditore prowled the party, pushing past some of the revelers who took an interest in him. He was glad of the slight muffling of the hood as music, shouts, talking, and shrieks of laughter assaulted his ears. He liked parties, generally, but this one was louder than normal, besides the fact that everywhere he turned he caught sight of a templar. Even if you couldn't recognize them, someone could guess easily, since they tended to be the people surrounded by most nearly naked courtesans. Ezio recognized a few as belonging to the Rosa in Fiore and distantly wondered how much Claudia was charging for this.
There were certainly a few templars here he would dearly love to remove. But he had to focus. They were the little fish and he was here for a shark. Finish the shark and the little fish would scatter like sparks in a breeze. Ezio made his way to a corner, gently pushing a couple in an embrace out of the way. He leaned against a broken Roman pillar and closed his eyes, drawing a steadying breath and sharpening his mind. When he opened his eyes again, focused and calm, the world had gone dark. The world was black but the people were lit up by traces of inner fire. White light blazed inside each person, tinted red where he remembered recognizing a templar or seeing a guard. Anyone who would hinder him. But his mark was not here, so he eased his concentration and blinked, and the world was back to normal.
Ezio moved on slowly and carefully, trying to make absolutely sure he wasn't noticed. Once more he stood off to the side, focused, and let the world go black. He peered through an archway where he thought he had caught a glimpse of his quarry and sure enough there was a slight glow of gold. He stayed for a second, making note of any guards or other templars nearby. Hired guards patrolled the party, although frankly most of them were paying more attention to the bare breasts on display than the guests. The other templars were probably armed but would also probably be slow on the uptake with all the wine and women around. Still, the quiet approach was usually the best, for an assassination.
Ezio blinked and the light of lives faded, replaced by the glow of the torches. He was patient, he had most of the night, after all. He had his target in sight, and even if the templar decided that, unlike some o f his friends, he might want privacy, Ezio could follow. But for now, as Ezio drifted ever closer, he seemed content to drink and flirt. Ezio left a group of people to take a drink from a table, joining another group closer to the templar. He had gained at least four metres.
His target was a big man, burly and built like a bear. He had left some of his armour on, but luckily for Ezio it was the lower half. Sweat from the heat of the night, the party, and the torches glistened on his bare chest, a drunken grin on his face. And he was leaning on an ancient pillar. Ezio could hardly have planned it better himself.
He spent twenty or so minutes drifting from conversation to conversation in an ever tightening arc. The ruins were built up behind the templar and there looked to be just enough shadow outside the circle of torchlight to conceal himself in. One of the guards was watching him with a bored expression, so he joined the nearest conversation for ten minutes, not leaving until minutes after the man lost interest. He reached the shadows and melted into them, padding along silently, even if the noise of the party was completely drowning out the sound of his movements. He was in the pool of darkness behind the pillar now, right beside his target. And there was just enough flesh visible.
His hand moved like lightning, his arm darting around the pillar, flexing, feeling the soft resistance of flesh when the blade slid from its hidden sheath, the grunt on the other side, and he was in the shadows again. But he didn't linger. Another heartbeat and he was moving quickly through the party again. He grabbed one of Claudia's girls away from a templar and she gave him a sultry smile.
"Buonasera, messer Ezio. Was the assassination successful?"
He didn't ask how she knew. "Si."
As they left the party together, shouts of horror and cries of "assassino!" rose up behind them.
