The evening began to fall upon the city as the group settled into a hotel near the city's boarder. After a quick dinner in the restaurant located within the hotel, everyone headed to their rooms for the evening, but Hawk joined Eluveitie and Vera in their room as Vera wished to speak to the two of them in private. She drew the curtains, then walked over to the chair and seated herself.

"What do you wish to speak to us about?" Hawk asked her as he seated himself on the bed closest to the chair.

"I think you know what." Vera replied as she looked at the two of them, "My session tomorrow. I'm worried that Kida might 'slip' about certain things."

"You mean the side of you that they don't know about?" Eluveitie questioned, even though he already knew the answer to it.

Vera nodded, "Plus, I'm worried about that gem. If it does have any kind of power and she uses it, then what are they going to think?"

"You might have to tell them at some point."

"I would rather not and you both know my reasoning for it. If it were possible, I'd allow the two of you to run the session, but it appears that's not going to be possible, for neither of us know how to run the thing."

"I tried to learn…that didn't end too well."

"I'm always in it, never behind it." Hawk replied.

"And, that's why we need Lucy and Rebecca to run it because they know how the thing works." Vera sat farther back into the chair and sighed a little, "At this point, I'm willing to let anyone call me a witch as I'm sure the gem has some kind of 'witch craft' behind it. Or, simply put, magic."

"I would say, just let things play out as is. If they do question it later on, then just tell them you have magical abilities."

"I would hold off on that part until we have the gem in our possession and know what it can do." Eluveitie put in.

"What I don't get is why the thing is meant to kill the supernatural when your ancestor was a supernatural creature herself."

"Either does or it does. It could be a trap." Vera mused, "I mean, think about it; people don't like us, and for good reason, so if the Templars believe that an item has the power to kill Assassins that are assumed to have supernatural powers, then they'll use it to their advantage. But, if it doesn't kill the supernatural, but humans instead, then the Templars have just walked right into our little trap. But, as it stands, I'm not going to touch that thing without gloves on, just to be safe."

"So, if your ancestor does show her true side, are you just going to tell them?"

"May as well. If she doesn't and just shows the magic behind the gem, then I'll just say witch…even though I'll be biting my tongue the whole time, but it's better than saying that I'm a vampire. So, whatever happens, just play along with it, alright?" Once she got a nod of approval from the both of them, she sat up, "Very well. We'll end on that note. Hawk, you are dismissed. If they ask what we've been talking about, just say we've been going over that map of the tunnel system under the city, though, I'm pretty sure it won't be hard for us to find the right entrance into the cathedral. I want to try and keep a low profile for as long as possible."

"Of course." Hawk rose to his feet, "Have a good evening."

"Same to you." Vera watched as Eluveitie lead Hawk to the door. Once Hawk had left, she saw Eluveitie spin on his heels to face her. She knew what was coming next, "I made the call. Don't put the blame on Hawk."

"You all should have drove together." Eluveitie walked towards her.

"And, having one of us get shot? It wasn't worth it. Plus, we didn't know we were being followed. I was the one who caught the vehicle first. I think it's safe to say that it was a wise choice for us to drive separate."

"What if they would have shot you? You're already injured. You could have been hurt worse."

"I understand your concern about my health, but I was able to take care of the first vehicle. Under my instruction, Desmond managed to eliminate the second."

"What if they would have gotten ahold of you, should they have succeeded of getting you off the bike?"

"They would have been dead before they got their hands on me."

"They would have known you were injured."

"How?" Vera pushed herself out of the chair and walked up to Eluveitie. She placed her hand on his cheek, "I understand that you're worried about my safety and the fact that I've already taken a hit, but I can defend myself and you know that. We are trained to be taught and to fight through anything, even if that means we're wounded."

"I know. I just worry about you. If anything should happen to you…"

"When that day comes, I look forward to seeing you destroy the ones who harmed me." She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, "But, that day will have to wait, as I've already eliminated the Templar who shot me." She removed her hand, then walked over to the bathroom. She stepped inside and removed her shirt. She began to unwrap the bandage.

Eluveitie turned his head and looked over at the light coming from the bathroom. He slowly walked over to it, "And, when will that day come?"

"Probably not anytime soon, as I don't plan to get captured." Once the bandage had been removed, she looked down at the spot where she had been shot, which was right on the center gem of the Evenstar. It had been stitched up, thought not the best, but enough for it to heal.

Eluveitie stepped inside and looked down at the wound. Slowly, he walked up to her and placed his hand upon the wound. He stared at it for several moments before glancing up at their reflections in the mirror.

Vera watched him, then looked in the mirror as well. She turned slightly and looked up at him, "It'll heal with time. Too bad this one can't heal as quick as the one on my neck." She reached up and removed her earring, then placed it on the vanity, "Even in this form, I don't think it'll heal quickly."

Eluveitie watched, but kept his hand on the wound as if he was trying to keep it from bleeding. He placed his free arm around her and pulled her close to him.

Vera rested her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat. She bit her lip to try and keep herself from wanting to bite him as she could hear his heart speed up every so often. Within moments, she moved her head away and looked up to see the chain to the Evenstar around his neck, the Evenstar itself was tucked into his shirt. She reached up and removed the Evenstar from inside his shirt and held it in the palm of her hand. She looked at it for several moments before closing her hand into a fist.

"Eluveitie…what do I look like right now?" She asked him.

Eluveitie looked down at her for a moment before replying, "Like an elf, but with red eyes and fangs."

Vera nodded her head slightly, "That's all I wanted to know." She reached over with her free hand and put her earring back on. She looked in the mirror and watched as she transformed back into her human self. She let go of the Evenstar, then backed away from him slightly, "Just wish I could see myself."

"You look beautiful in both forms. You do not need to see your other side. If someone says otherwise, then they're a Templar and should be dealt with as such."

Vera smiled lightly, "Of course." She removed his hand from the wound, "If you'll excuse me, I'd like to get changed."

"Need help wrapping up that wound?"

"No, I can handle it. But, the tattoo is going to need a serious touch up once this is healed."

"Mind if I tag along when that happens?"

"You are more than welcome to. Now, out." Vera pushed him slightly out of the bathroom, then closed the door.

"Hey! That's not cool."

"Too bad for you." Vera giggled slightly.

Eluveitie stared at the door for several moments before heading back into the main section of the room. He prepared himself for that evening's rest. He was already fast asleep by the time Vera had exited the bathroom.

Vera walked over to him, then leaned down and kissed him on the cheek before walking over to the sliding glass door that lead to a balcony outside. She stepped out and looked out at the city that lay before her. She leaned over the balcony and looked up to see how far up the roof was. She balanced herself on the railing, then gripped the wall and began to ascend upwards. Upon reaching the roof, she took in the rest of the sites that she couldn't see from the balcony. In the distance, she could see the top of the cathedral looming above the buildings. A light from one of the rooms at the top was on. She studied it for awhile until it went out. She glanced up at the sky to see the position of the moon before looking back at the cathedral. She nodded her head slightly making note of the time for that would be when it would be safe to enter.

"Tomorrow night, all hell's gonna break loss if we're not careful." She whispered, "But, doesn't all hell break loss when we Assassins are around?" A slight grin came to her face as she raised her hand and allowed the blade to exit the bracer, "To those who may fall in the dead of night, rest in peace."

Vera made herself comfortable in the armchair within the room Lucy and Rebecca had been sharing. Upon her head were several wiers that would transport her mind to the past and put her in Kida's body as she traveled through Italy. She rested her head back against the chair as she sighed a little, "Now comes the fun part."

"Are you going to be alright in that chair?" Lucy asked her as Rebecca stood by a computer that would monitor her brain activity during the session, "We can lay you do if you wish."

"I'll be alright." Vera replied as she turned her head slightly to look at Rebecca, "I'm ready when you are."

"Where would you like to go?" Rebecca asked as she looked back at Vera.

Vera bit her lip as she closed her eyes, "I'm not sure when Kida when to Italy…I know, very helpful, right? Shows how much my family had told me about our heritage." She went silent for several moments before saying, "Start in 1510. If not, then keep changing up years until we get there."

"And, how are we suppose to know if she's there or not?" Desmond asked as he stood next to Rebecca to see what it was like being on the other side of the animus.

"If I'm looking down upon the city as if I were God, then we know that we're not in the right time period. If I appear in her body, then we've got it right." Vera relaxed her head up against the chair, "Alright, Rebecca, I'm ready."

"Of course." Rebecca typed in the computer, then spoke, "Rome, Italy, 1510." Upon pushing a button, they were able to see where Vera's mind had went, which was right in the body of a beautiful Celtic woman who had just entered the city on a beautiful white horse.

It was a lovely spring day in Rome as the city was still recovering from the reign of the Borgia family. Buildings that were once rundown where showing signs of life, merchant stands were getting more business and the people were free to roam without being bothered by Borgia soldiers, who had fled the city as soon as the Assassins took control. As everyone went about their day, a beautiful woman rode through the city in search of an inn. Everyone who saw her moved out of her way and stared at her awe. She wore a lovely Celtic dress of green and gold while a green ribbon was braided in her long black hair, which went down to her lower back. A gold chain hung from her neck, but was tucked into her dress. Her skin was slightly paler than those within the city and her eyes were a lovely icy blue color. Her horse was equally beautiful with a lovely white coat and green eyes. The citizens of the city thought that she was royalty just by the way she looked and by the look of her horse. Some of them followed after her to see where she was going, which was to The Sleeping Fox inn, but one person had been following her closely in the shadows once she had entered the city. Upon her arrival to the inn, she dismounted her horse and was about to make her way towards it until she felt something pulling on her dress. She looked down to see a small girl holding up some flower for her. She smiled lightly as she kneeled down and took them from the girl.

"Thank you." She spoke in Italian, but her accent wasn't as such. It was much different than those of the city and country were use to hearing. She laid the flowers down on the ground, then reached into a pouch, which was tied to a sash around her waist, and pulled out a ribbon. She wrapped it around the girl's head for a measurement, then took a few of the flowers and began to make them into a crown. Once she was finished, she tied the ribbon to the back of the crown, then placed it upon the girl's head.

"Thank you most kindly, madam!" The little girl said happily to her.

"Your welcome, little one." She smiled, then picked up the rest of the flowers and rose to her feet. She removed her bag from her horse, then headed into the inn where a young man was waiting to take her horse, "Please, provide great care for my horse. I'd be devastated if something happened to her."

"Yes, madam." The man bowed to her slightly before heading outside to tend to the horse.

She watched him for a second before heading over to the counter. She reached into her pouch and presented a bag of gold to the man who stood behind it, "I'd like a room, please."

The man, who appeared to be in his late fifties or early sixties, took the bag from her, "How long do you plan to stay?" He asked her.

"Perhaps a week or a little less."

"But, madam, this is too much for that long."

"Please, keep it. I'm sure your place could use it." She smiled.

The man was shocked as he looked at her, "Y-y-yes, madam. Thank you very kindly." He quickly found a key for her, then placed it on the counter, "I hope you don't mind me giving you one of the best rooms we've got."

"Any room will do, but I will accept your kindness." She bowed her head slightly before picking up the key and heading off to the stairs that would take her to the rooms on the next levels.

The man, and everyone else within, stared after her as someone entered the inn. He turned his head and greeted the person, "Good afternoon, Ezio. How goes things?"

Ezio seated himself as he pushed his hood back, "Same as always, though, it is a bit easier without the Borgia soldiers around. My body can 'retire' for a bit. Though, I'm pretty sure I'll get called for something. Being The Mentor of the Assassins does take a toll on you. Anyways, how about you, La Volpe?"

"Well, a lovely young woman just entered. Strange, really. She looks like a teenager. And, she paid a lot for just staying a week." La Volpe threw the bag over to Ezio.

Ezio caught the bag, then had a look inside, "Was she wearing a green dress?"

"I take it you've been following her around?"

"Since she entered the city. She came off a boat." Ezio closed the bag and threw it back to La Volpe, "She must have traveled far, but I haven't had a chance to speak to her yet."

"I don't think you need to worry about her. She seems like a friend. But, I do worry about her safety. Rome is still in the process of recovery. I wouldn't be surprised if someone tried to steal from her. She almost appears to be royalty."

"If that is so, then why is she traveling alone? Shouldn't she have guards with her?"

"Perhaps you'll have to follow her around, then. Be her secret bodyguard."

Ezio turned his head towards his friend, "As if I don't have enough to look after already. But, I get your point." He rose to his feet, "I'm heading off, but I would like a report on her, if possible."

"I'll have some of my guys follow after her if she leaves. You have my word." La Volpe bowed his head slightly.

"Thank you. Have a good day." With that, Ezio slipped out of the inn.

That evening, the young woman emerged from her room and kept a close eye on the hallway to make sure no one was following after her. She was clad in black, wearing a tunic, leggings and a pair of leather boots, with a cloak over her shoulders. Once all was clear, she put her hood up, then left the hall. She walked to the main level and glanced around. When she knew it was safe, she dashed for the door and exited. Double checking her surroundings, she made her way into the city with one hand on her side where a dagger was hidden in case she was attacked.

Ezio had been hiding upon the roof of the inn. Once he saw her movement, he followed after her over the roof tops. At one point, his foot hit a loose shingle, which slid off the roof and landed into a nearby alleyway. He quickly ducked down once he saw her turn and look around. He cursed himself, then continued to follow after her once she started moving again. An hour passed by and he grew tired of chasing after her, as she appeared to have no idea where she was going, so he jumped down and landed with such grace and ease that she wouldn't be able to pick up the sound, but he was wrong as she quickly snapped around and removed the dagger. He held up his hands slightly.

"Relax, madam. I wish you no harm." He said to her as he slowly approached her.

The woman wasn't sure if she should believe him or not as she kept the dagger pointed in front of her, "Have you been following me?" She questioned.

"Not for long." Ezio replied, "You appear to be lost. Can I, perhaps, help you?"

"I'm looking for someone." She said still keeping the dagger between the two of them, "An Assassin."

Ezio was taken aback when he heard this, "An Assassin, you say? For what reason?"

"I feel it is not safe to speak about it in public. While I understand that we might be the only two out here, I don't fully believe that everyone's retired for the evening."

Ezio thought for a moment, then said, "Follow me. I know of a safe place we can speak." He lead her to the outskirts of the city where they found an abandon building. Upon entering, he lead her through a door which took them down into an underground tunnel.

She looked around the tunnel, which was lit by torches, to see that there were staircases built into the walls leading up to the city above. It felt as if they had been walking for almost two hours when they came to the end and she followed him up the stairs and into, what appeared to be, an abandon warehouse that had been converted into some kind of headquarters. She followed him over to a large desk, then seated herself.

"Would you care for some wine?" Ezio asked as he walked over to a cabinet that held a large selection of wine.

"I don't drink, sir."

Ezio removed one of the bottles, then poured himself a glass, "How about some water?"

"I'm fine, sir, but thank you for asking."

"You are very polite."

"I try to be." She watched as he seated himself on the other side of the desk, "People who are polite tend to be more trust worthy, and I want the Assassins to know that I'm one to be trusted, and feared."

"I'll be the judge of that. Anyways, what do you seek from us?"

"Aid."

"What kind of aid?"

"My family has a medallion that keeps getting stolen from us by those of higher power; nobles and those with wealth. We are getting sick of having to hunt them down to retrieve it, and, sometimes, being wounded in the process. We seek your aid in training us, so that we have an easier time getting it back and making them pay for stealing it from us. We want them to fear us."

Ezio pondered this notion for a moment before replying, "And, what may I ask makes this medallion so special that it keeps getting taken from your family?"

"Well, from what I understand, and this might not be true, it seems to have the power…" She waited for a moment until she saw him take a drink from the glass before continuing, "…to grant immortality." She grinned slightly when she caught him spitting out his drink.

Ezio coughed a little as he tried to gather his thoughts. It took him several moments before he said, "An object that grants…eternal life?"

"I did say that might not be true."

"By God, how is that possible?!"

"Sir, please note that it might not even have that power. I know less about it than my parents do. That thing has been in our family for a very long time. Since it keeps getting taken from us, no one has had the time to study it and figure out if the notion is true or not."

"But, if it was true, how would it be possible?"

"Magic. Or, black magic, as I can't really see good magic wanting to grant someone eternal life. I mean, why would you want to live forever when you see everyone you love die before you?"

Ezio couldn't believe what he was hearing. An object that could grant someone the ability to live forever. If he had something like that, he'd gladly take it upon himself to become immortal, so he could run the Brotherhood until someone else came to power to take command of it. But, then again, he did see the down side of it all. Watching fellow friends die before his time came. He had already seen his father, brothers and uncle killed before him and he knew that he couldn't bare to see his fellow Brothers, his friends, and his sister die before him in the same manner. He sat back as he allowed his brain a moment to rid itself of the thoughts that flowed through it.

She watched him for several moments before replying, "So, will you help us?"

Ezio snapped back to reality and looked across the table at her, "What are you willing to pay for training?"

She moved her hand into her cloak, then removed a large bag and threw it over to him, "I hope that will be enough."

Ezio looked down at the bag, then picked it up and looked inside. His eyes widened at the amount of coins that were within. He slowly looked back up at her.

"Where I'm from, that's worth more than the city of Rome. I'm sure that'll cover the training."

"I-I can't accept all of this."

"Consider it a gift, if you will, for not only the training, but for the help you will be providing for my family."

Ezio sat back as he glued his eyes to the bag. He knew all too well that he couldn't accept such a large payment, especially if this was all she had to live off of, but he did remember the payment she had provided at The Sleeping Fox. He didn't have time to catch himself as he spoke, "You must come from a royal family."

"Not quite." She replied to him, "More along the lines of wealthy, but no where near royalty. I would hope that you'll accept that."

Ezio kept his eyes locked to the bag before pushing it back to her, "You may keep it. My form of payment is as such; in exchange for the training, you and your family will become dedicated Assassins to our Brotherhood."

"Sir, we will do anything to put this all to rest, even if that means taking lives in the process."

Ezio raised his head, "Very well. You will train under me. We begin at the first light of dawn."

She nodded her head in turn, "I look forward to it and to avenge my family."

Ezio leaned forward slightly, "Tell me, what is your name?"

"Kida Dubhthach."

Ezio bowed his head to her, "Auditore, Ezio…"

Vera was awoken not long after as she stared at the wall across from her not knowing that Hawk and Eluveitie were standing on either side of her. Her heart sped up a little as she turned her head slightly and looked at Eluveitie, "Do you have that paper?"

"Why?" Eluveitie questioned her as Lucy quickly ran to her side.

"Are you alright? Your heart rate just went up." Lucy questioned.

"I need that paper." Vera sat up and removed the wires from her head, "I…I think I might be able to figure it out."

Eluveitie reached into his pocket and passed it over to her.

Upon taking it, Vera held it up to the light, then hissed lightly to herself, "I should have guessed. This is written in code. There's Italian within the Celtic. Smart move on her part."

"So…that thing doesn't really kill off the supernatural?" Desmond asked, "And, there's no knife that's apart of it?"

"Too bad my Italian sucks shit, or I'd be able to read this. I can speak it…I just have trouble reading it." She pulled out her phone, then opened up an app that would help to translate the writing. She hovered it over the front of the page, then noticed some messy and scrambled up words appearing on the screen, "Could someone give me a pen and paper, please?"

Lucy ran over to the desk within the room and grabbed a pad of paper and pen that were laying on top of it before heading back over to Vera and placing the objects in her hands.

Vera began to unscramble the words the best that she could before hovering the phone over the back of the page. She got the same results, but different words. She worked on those ones as well before adding in a small drawing at the bottom of the page. She ripped the page off the pad, then worked on the drawing a bit more while adding the writing around the outside of it. Once she was finished, she sat back and felt a pained sickness coming from deep down within herself.

"Shit…" She whispered as she stared at the page.

"What?" Eluveitie was able to pick up her word. He kneeled down and looked at the page. Within seconds, his heart rate began to pick up as he felt the same sickness within himself as well, "If I knew how to cuss in Elvish, I'd do it right about now."

"What are you two worried about?" Rebecca asked as her and Desmond joined the rest of them.

Vera turned the page to show them what she had drawn on it. It was a cross with the gem at the top of it, "This gem is meant to guard and protect whoever has it. Ezio said it's in a vault within the cathedral. From what I understand from all this messed up nonsense, the cross is hanging above the vault that holds the Treasures of Eden, probably to protect it from those who want to steal what's within. It appears that Ezio placed the cross on there and the gem was activated by Kida, sort of like magic, if you will."

"So…what does that mean…?"

"It means that this thing can go off on anyone, including myself. It might recognize my bloodline, but might not allow me to take it back. This thing can cause some serious damage, if it so wishes."

"Well, why not just leave it there?"

"Because the items aren't in the vault anymore. They've been stolen and scattered around the world. That's what we've been trying to look for." Lucy reminded Rebecca, "But, if that item is suppose to protect the vault, then how could anyone get past it?"

"My guess is someone was able to 'break' the spell, or whatever, that was put on it and resealed it after they took what they desired." Vera replied as she slipped down a little in the chair, "If that is the case, then this is going to be way more dangerous that I had originally planned it to be."

"How are you going to get it?" Desmond asked.

Vera stayed silent for a moment before saying, "…I'm just going to wear gloves, grab it off the wall and hightail it out of there. That is the plan for the time being. But, right now, we should prepare of this mission. I fear we will have a long night ahead of us."