"What will you do, Thomas?"
The question was simple enough, but remained unanswered. Altair did not ask again and the words lingered like stagnant air. The knight said nothing, instead focusing intently on the ground. The assassin put his hand on the other's shoulder but Thomas slipped away, cringing at the touch.
"Thomas…" he whispered. He said the name with a sigh. Altair turned, stepping toward the door. "I cannot stay here," he called over his shoulder as he unbolted the door. "There are duties that I must attend to." Altair opened the door and warm desert sunlight wafted through the room.
"I will return." Those were his parting words as he slid through the archway. The door was pulled shut behind him. Thomas, with his back still facing the door, knelt down and picked up his helm. The Templar insignia was imprinted in the metal and he ran his fingers over the smooth metal.
"What will I do…" Thomas murmured to himself. With sudden resolve, Thomas shoved the helm over his head. Quickly, he clapped on his armor and threw open the bolted door. The sun glinted over the crested metal, jumping across the chain links of his armor.
"I am of the Knights Templar," he said loudly, His voice was clear and proud and resounded in the morning light. "I am the arm of the righteous, the weapon of the just. Barnes… he is not himself. I must know why." He began walking quickly toward the city center, looking to the crowded market for information.
Altair dropped quietly into the Assassin's Bureau. The young and smiling Kadar met him and clapped him on the back.
"Well met, Altair!" the young assassin said jovially, "I hope you're doing well." Altair ignored the comment and looked around the room.
"Where is Malik?" he asked severely. Kadar laughed and answered him with a kiss. Altair pushed the young man away.
"Kadar, stop this," he said firmly.
"But why? Brother isn't here…" Kadar mumbled, "and he won't be here for awhile yet."
"I value… Malik as a brother… and a friend," Altair said, his words punctuated by Kadar's kisses, "Does it not disturb you?"
"Altair, out time is short…" Kadar whispered, pulling his shirt off, "let us hurry…" Altair shed his coat and ran his hands across Kadar's chest, scraping his teeth along the younger man's collarbone.
"Perhaps we should not waste our breath," Kadar moaned, "on this useless banter." His fingers fumbled with Altair's belt, but he stopped abruptly, pulling away.
"Malik…" he whispered, tugging on his shirt. Altair retrieved his white coat, smoothing out the wrinkles. He had just finished with the last clasp when Malik dropped into the room. Kadar greeted him warmly.
"Brother, how good to see you safe!" he said, embracing him. "You are earlier than I expected." Malik shrugged.
"The mission was simpler than I expected," he said. He nodded at Altair, and the gesture was returned.
"What is our task, Malik?" Altair asked. Malik retrieved a scroll from his belt and unfurled it.
"According to this," Malik said, running his finger along the paper, "our target is not a mark, but an item." Malik tossed the scroll to Altair. His dark eyes scanned the paper and the assassin sucked in a breath
"What is it?" Kadar asked, and the two older men exchanged glances. Malik sighed.
"We are to retrieve something…" he started, but Altair interrupted angrily.
"He should not be here!" he growled, pointing at Kadar, "He is too young!"
"Be mindful of your feelings, Altair," Malik said softly, "Al-Mualim believes this to be an excellent opportunity. And besides, you are not much older than him." Kadar put a hand on Altair's shoulder.
"Don't worry about me," Kadar assured him, "I am not a child, as you should well know." Malik raised an eyebrow at this comment, but said nothing. "And my brother is here as well. Between the two of you, I should be more than safe." Their eyes met for a moment and Malik turned away, coughing.
"Er..." Malik mumbled, "If that's settled, we should be leaving soon." He left the room, fumbling with the scroll. Kadar lowered Altair's hood and bit his ear.
"He's gone now…" he whispered, "Let's have some fun." Altair smiled, his hands framing Kadar's face. The younger man led Altair to the counter and lay down, pulling the assassin on top of him.
"Kadar, this is…" he murmured, pulling his clothes off, "Oh, Kadar…"
"I know…" Kadar returned in a low voice. Their lips met first, then their skin, and Kadar trembled as Altair began. Kadar gripped Altair tightly, biting his neck and his chin. They shook and groaned together, pressing their hardened bodies together desperately.
"Please…" Kadar begged, "more… ah…" Altair, still inside of Kadar, wrapped his hands around the younger assassin's shaft, eliciting sharp cries of pleasure. They finished together, wet and tired and happy. With no small amount of effort, Altair removed himself from Kadar, pressing kisses into his body as he went.
"It's too bad we don't have more time…" Kadar said suggestively. Altair smiled, kissing him again.
"Not now. When we return, we shall have all the time in the world." Abruptly, Malik's indignant voice, echoing from another room, pierced the air.
"I'm still here! You couldn't have waited until tomorrow?!" Altair laughed quietly.
"I guess he knows now," he said softly.
"I've known since the beginning! Do you no nothing of subtlety or discretion!?" Malik shouted furiously. Kadar ran his hands over Altair chest and kissed him hungrily.
"I can STILL hear you!" Malik shouted angrily.
Thomas stood in the middle of the market, scanning the citizens carefully. He still bore the colors and crests of the Knights Templar, and the townspeople seemed to naturally avoid him. I need to find Barnes, Thomas thought, but discreetly. He noticed two Knights huddled together, exchanging hushed words and throwing nervous glances at the people around them. They wore the insignias of officers, and Thomas decided that they might know something.
A subtle approach may warrant more information, Thomas thought to himself. He sat down on a bench between two people and leaned forward, listening intently.
"Did you hear about Lieutenant Barnes? Rumor has it that he took quite a beating," the first Knight whispered.
"I heard it was one of the assassins. He had the nerve to sneak right into our base!" the second whispered back. "But that's not all. One of the men who saw the fight claims that the assassin had help from a Templar!"
"A traitor?" the first Knight hissed, "And have we caught him yet?" The second Knight shook his head.
"Barnes, who was the center of all this, said that he doesn't recognize the Templar who aided the assassin!" he exclaimed.
"So Barnes is either telling the truth, or he's a traitor too!" the first Knight asserted. He hasn't said anything? Thomas thought to himself. But that doesn't make any sense. Altair humiliated him! Barnes… what are you doing?
"What of the murderer? What do we know of him?" the first Knight asked.
"Naught but a name: Altair. Common enough, and according to Barnes, the assassin was hooded." The second Knight looked around suspiciously, "But I hear they have a plan in store for him. The officers got a hold of a letter, and if it can be believed, three assassins are planning to loot Solomon's Temple!" The first Knight gasped, but let the second continue, "But they've laid a pretty trap for those assassins, and I'd bet anything that Barnes will be there for a bit of revenge!" Thomas rose suddenly, leaving the soldiers to their gossip.
How much worth should I invest in the chatter of an idle soldier? Thomas asked himself silently. But in spite of his doubts, the Knight turned toward the Solomon Temple, brow furrowed with worry. His footsteps were uncertain at first, but as he neared the holy shrine, instinct forced him into a sprint.
Three men stood in a crowded passage, hoods pulled low over serious expressions. A body was sprawled on the ground between them, his life ended by Altair's blade.
"Why did you do that?" Malik whispered through clenched teeth. "He posed no threat! Perhaps you have forgotten the Creed?" Altair kicked at the body.
"Do not harm the innocent? He was associated with the Knights Templar – isn't that enough?" Altair looked away as he said this, suddenly thinking of Thomas.
"This is not our way!" Malik protested.
"My way is better," Altair cut him short," Nothing is real. Everything is permitted." Kadar looked from one man to the other, and then to the vacant eyes that stared up at him. He didn't say anything, but gazed at Altair with baleful eyes.
"There is much to be done," Altair murmured, looking away.
Further down the passage, past the winding rock beneath Solomon's Temple, Robert de Sable grinned.
"Here they come…" he whispered and someone behind him laughed.
"Oh yes, here they come," Barnes repeated. His face was shadowed and ugly, more from his expression than from his scar. His fingers traced the wound, hating every scab, every blemish that was streaked across his face. The sound of footsteps filled the cave and Barnes broke into a twisted smile. He wrapped his fingers around his sword and licked his lips in anticipation. Three Knights circled near Barnes, but he lifted a hand.
"They are mine." His voice was sharp and focused. The patter of footsteps grew louder until a single, hooded figure burst from a passage behind them.
"What…?" Barnes growled, spinning around. Robert de Sable lifted an eyebrow in what seemed like mild interest. Thomas was doubled over, hands on his knees, trying to cough out a sentence.
"Lieu… Lieutenant Barnes…" he wheezed. Barnes frowned, curling a lip in disgust.
"I didn't expect to see you here, traitor." The last word was punctuated with something far more dangerous than simple hate. It hinted at betrayal and broken trust.
"Assassins are coming," Thomas warned, "I am here to stop this violence. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt." Barnes laughed, and there was something cruel and angry in the cry.
"Too late, you are," he whispered through clenched teeth, "You will pay. " Thomas didn't know what to say.
"Are you serious?" he managed not to shout, "What have I done to you? After all that you have done, you still have the audacity to blame me?" Something far away glinted, and Robert de Sable shifted under his coat. Thomas dared not look away from Lyle Barnes, the man that he loved, the man that he wanted to save.
"You will suffer… you will all suffer!" Lyle screamed, and he charged with his sword clenched in both hands. Thomas cringed, but did not otherwise retreat.
"Lyle," he breathed as his lover approached. Somewhere up above, three men emerged from a passage and noticed the conflict below. Altair was struck with abrupt recognition.
"Thomas…" The name barely left his tongue.
"Eden…" Robert de Sable closed his eyes and smiled. Someone from the platform above bellowed something, something that was too loud and too angry to understand.
It was sudden, the death of Lieutenant Lyle Barnes. Three swift knives caught him in the back and the knight faltered in mid step. Thomas's eyes shot upward for the smallest of moments, before he devoted his attention to the man dying before him. Thomas cradled Lyle in his arms, scarlet and crimson streaks staining his white tabard. Their sight met, if only for a moment, and Thomas saw fire and anguish and confusion. But then Lyle changed, and his eyes cleared, and the familiar blue replaced the red. A final breath left him, quiet and still, and Thomas soon realized that he held a corpse in his grasp. Robert de Sable stepped toward Thomas and lifted him by the throat.
"You are a nuisance, Knight," he said, smiling as the color left Thomas's face. "Now, be gone." Altair, abandoning his oath, his Creed, leaped down, landing squarely on Robert. The Templar, swinging a massive fist, sent Altair spiraling into a wall.
"Altair!" Kadar cried out. He rushed toward Robert with a drawn blade.
"No, Kadar! Get away!" Malik called, but he was too late. Robert de Sable disarmed the young assassin with a well-aimed punch and beheaded the man with his own sword. The screams that filled the cave were terrible. Robert de Sable trilled with delight. Malik roared with anguish. Malik sprinted toward the man with nothing but his hands.
"I'll kill you!" he howled, "I'll kill you!" The sword came down again and Malik screeched, holding his stump of an arm. There was so much blood on the floor, so much blood, so much blood. Thomas couldn't stand it, watching these people die and scream in front of him. His vision was fuzzy from being strangled and he struggled to stand. Altair picked Thomas off of the ground and tried to run. Robert de Sable picked the two up and threw them into a pile of scaffolding. Fortunately, there was a corridor behind the scaffolds, and the wood and marble collapsed, effectively protecting them form the hulking Templar's fury.
They ran. Thomas mentioned Malik, but Altair hushed him, assuring that the assassin could handle himself. Thomas was doubtful, as the image of Kadar's dark, empty eyes falling to the ground was still vivid.
"Come. We must go," was all Altair said. So they went.
A/N: Alright, I know that Thomas's character changed dramatically, but I was sick of him being so… wimpy. And I know that the ending was lame, but I wanted to move on. And for all of the people out there who haven't played the game, this isn't how the scene actually played out. The "Eden" thing was a reference to "The pieces of Eden" which is a big plot device in the game. Basically, it creates illusions on a grand scale, and that's what happened to dear Lyle (but Tommy and Altair don't know that quite yet). And perhaps there will be some sex in the next chapter. That might work out. Oh, and by the way, I am a boy. So ha. (Granted, I am gay, but still. I fooled some of you!)