I don't own anything from the Assassin's Creed franchise. All Credits to Ubisoft and any others.

Hi hi hi hi. Okay, first off, I'd like to apologize for last chapter. I understand that it is a retelling Ezio's life before he was an assassin but I just wanted to point out that I did that because I didn't want to jump right into the plot necessarily. Even though we all know Ezio's character, I still felt it necessary to build him up and get to know him on a personal level from character to reader. I know it was a lot but that's the type of the story this is. It's going to follow Ezio's life from the game, with a few adjusted parts and events of my own.

Anyways, enough talking. Please enjoy this chapter and don't forget to review (pwease). ^_^ I love feedback and ways to improve my writing.

Chapter Four: The Lost

I was never one to cry…but I felt tears streak my cheeks.

"Promise me, Trinity!"

"I promise, father," I choked out through my unshed tears.

We both knew what this meant…but I didn't want to accept it. This wasn't supposed to happen…not like this. I could see that there were tears brimming his eyes too…because he knew what was to come for him.

"Go, Trinity!" he said, pushing me into the secret passageway that led to outside the house. There were voices shouting from down the hall, voices that made me go cold. They were trying to break down the door and push aside our blockade.

"Father, please!" I begged him, pulling on his hand towards me. As quickly as could without seeming angry, he shoved me away. I knew he wouldn't come with me; he was trying to buy me time.

The secret door slid to a close and the last thing I saw of my father was fending off eight or so guards. By their clothes, I knew they were not Venetian guards…so they must actually be mercenaries or the like to someone who paid them. I could here the shouting through the wall. I attempted to pry it open from this side and in the dark…but it was hopeless. There was no way to open it from the inside.

There was ringing of metal and shouts, and I continued to listen. There was an enormous crash, one that I knew that someone was disarmed.

"Take him outside with the others," a voice said. There was movement in the room, and then it went quiet.

After a moment, I forced myself to move forward, lighting a torch to see in the dark passageway.

I don't know what happened...

It was late at night when my father shook me awake and forced me to get dressed into my assassin robes and gave me a sword. I was confused at the time, but I knew something was very wrong. Downstairs, there was a lot of shouting and I could distinctly here my brothers in the din.

When we exited my room, we met a few guards. It was clear that they only wanted to capture us, not kill us, but my father would not have it. We fended off a good amount of guards as he dragged me to his office, the one with the secret passage. We quickly barricaded the door with his desk and chair.

"Father, what's happening?" I had asked urgently to him. "Why are the guards…?"

My father kissed me on the forehead before I could continue, his blue eyes dark with sorrow.

He told me there wasn't much time…and he wanted me to get to Giovanni Auditore in Firenze as fast I could to warn him of an coming conspiracy, one that would lead to the Auditore family's death. I didn't understand what my father was saying but he shoved an envelope into my hands.

"They know I know," he had whispered urgently. "You must save them, Trinity."

I kept inquiring about what he was talking about but he said no more of the topic as he pushed more furniture against the door.

"I love you, my sweet daughter," he told me, cupping my face with hands. "Finish my quest. Find the Apple for the Templars do."

"No, father…." I didn't want him to give up on me, on himself. "Come with me!"

He shook his head quickly as the beating on the door began to intensify. My father then slid the secret door open for me.

"You must find it!" he said, handing me an unlit torch. I refused to move. "Trinity! You must do this for me! Promise me!"

…Once I made it out of the passageway, I dropped the torch into the Venezia waters. The exit had led me to the top of the roof of our palazzo, out of a secret exit. The moon was shining brightly down on Venezia, so it would give me enough light to see. I heard a man shouting in the courtyard and I couldn't help but go into a crouch and peek over.

My whole family…they were on their knees before dozens of guards, all at sword point. There was also a man…he was heavier set, even from this distance. He wore dark brown robes and his hood was up, shadowing his face. The way he was speaking…he was clearly from some other country. He wore clothes of nobility and high rank, despite the almost ragged cloak he had.

"Where is she, dammit!" he demanded to my father, frustrated.

No one answered him and he immediately punched my father in the face. Rage boiled inside of me but I remained hidden.

"Che va in culo a sua madre!" hissed one of my brothers. (Motherfucker)

My father, slowly looked back up at the man again, unfazed.

"Tell me where that wretch is!" he ordered my family. Again, no one made to speak, though I'm sure my little sisters were crying.

After that silent moment, Dante spat at the man's feet and began to scream a string of profanity at him. Without hesitation, the man ran my eldest brother through with his sword. I had to cover my mouth to keep from screaming.

My mother and sisters now wailed uncontrollably. My mother attempted to hold Dante but the man shouted at her not to move or he'd kill my sisters.

He paced in front of my father. "Where is she hiding, Giuliano?" he growled…but my father was mute. "I will have you all killed if you do not speak!"

I knew my sisters wouldn't know…and my father would never speak, despite the rest of his family and his life on the line. Valente would die for me…I know he would. My mother? If she did know, she wouldn't say anything…

They were entrusting me with a great mission, one I cannot fail.

With no one saying anything…the man was fed up. "Kill the rest."

My mother pleaded with him, to spare my sisters…but in unison, the guards all ran their swords through my family, killing them al. They all slumped to the floor beside Dante…and blood began to pool around them.

My heart couldn't possibly shatter anymore than it had and I couldn't move. Even I could defeat all those guards single-handedly, I couldn't find myself to move.

"I will ask you one more time, Giuliano…" said the hooded man. My father, whose face I could not see, didn't reply immediately. Did he really think my father would say anything now? He had nothing else he had to live for?

There was a gust of wind that picked up and it caused the man in brown's hood to blow back. Immediately, through my tears, I committed this face to memory.

…so I would always remember the face of the person who murdered my family.

"Promise me…" my father said quietly, barely loud enough to hear.

"What?" snapped the man, confused.

My father lifted his head higher. "Promise me."

It was clear that the man was growing enraged at what my father was saying…as if he was mocking him…but I knew that my father was speaking to me.

"I've had enough your nonsense!" shouted the man in brown robes, and he quickly stabbed my father through the heart.

Trinity gasped as she sat up in her bed, wrenching out her dagger from under her pillow. She was breathing heavily, as if she had been running for miles. She looked around, no one in the bedroom.

It was sunrise…and she didn't get much sleep.

She lowered her dagger and stared at the sheets. A small tear fell across her cheek, dropping her eyes.

"I promise, father…" she whispered to the silence.

Trinity inhaled deeply after a few minutes had passed, refocusing herself as she got out of bed to get dressed.

She hadn't been able to sleep really since nearly three days ago. Three days ago…she had a hard time getting out of Venezia. She was the most wanted person in the city but getting past the guards hadn't been the tricky part…

It was trying to get onto a boat to Forlí without getting caught. Trinity had to wait for a suitable ship for a little over half a day, causing her to lose precious time but she managed to sneak onto a trading ship making a stop in Venice before going on its way.

The boat trip took about a day's time, and as much as she wanted to sleep on the boat, she found herself afraid to…not wanting to dream of her family's deaths like she just had.

Once it passed Forlí, she had leapt off the boat and into the water, since the boat was not stopping at the port. Trinity was able to get a horse and ride her way through the mountains, into Tuscany, and to the Auditore Villa, which took another half day.

Trinity demanded an immediate meeting with Mario Auditore, despite it being late into the night. She received his audience without delay and quickly explained what had transpired in Venezia. Mario understood and offered her a fresh horse, rest, and food. Originally, she had declined the food and rest…but before she could finish telling Mario that she would return, hopefully with the rest of the Auditore family safely, she passed out from exhaustion on her horse, having not slept or eaten for some time.

Trinity presently strapped her belt on, the one that held her sword, her two daggers, and a pouch for her throwing knives, and inhaled deeply once more. She turned to look at the window again, gauging the time.

She hoped Mario wasn't up yet, though somehow, she figured he would be. Trinity was happy that she had met him years ago…otherwise, she would have passed out on the side of the road with no means of safety.

Because her father had been in regular contact with Giovanni, as friends and assassin confidents, he naturally was on good terms with Giovanni's older brother, Mario. The elder Auditore was more brash and loud but that was understandable…since he held company with mercenaries, thieves, and courtesans more often than the soft-spoken banker.

Whenever the Aldinucci family would visit Firenze, they always stopped to visit Mario at the Auditore Villa in Monterriggioni.

Speaking of Monterriggioni, it was in a state of dire disrepair. Shops were closed, the streets were disgusting, and even the actual villa wasn't kept up like it use to be when she was younger. Trinity guessed it was because Mario, sole ruler of the Monterriggioni, was spending more time tending to war…as well as the Brotherhood.

Trinity exited her room and made her way quickly through the villa.

Within two minutes, Mario appeared in front of her. If she hadn't been accustomed to his grayed out eye, one he was partially blind in due to battle, she would have found his appearance unnerving.

He smiled warmly at her. "You cannot go until you had something to eat," he said firmly. Trinity opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off. "No, do not argue with me."

She exhaled heavily, knowing it was not her place to deny him, merely because he was her elder.

"Sí," she sighed. "But something light only, Mario. I must get to Giovanni."

He understood the compromise and brought her to the dining room. He had his servant run to the kitchen and within a few minutes, the servant was back with a platter of bread and cheeses, as well as some wine.

"Light enough for you?" he teased gently. Trinity smiled only slightly at him at sat down in the chair that Mario had pulled out for her.

"Grazie, Mario," she said, picking up a slice of bread. "Your generosity was not necessary."

"Of course it is, Trinity," he replied, also picking off the plate. "You are part of the Order; that guarantees my hospitality."

They were silent while they ate. Until she started to eat, she had not realized quite how starved she had been, as she finished the majority of the plate herself. Mario found it amusing but said nothing of it as she stood to a stand.

"I must be going," she said. "I am losing valuable time."

"Of course," said Mario. "Come, let us fetch a horse."

They made their way out the stables that were outside the city at a strong pace. Trinity remained silent, her mind on other things. Mario, though worried for the teenaged girl, did not press her of it, knowing full well she was still trying to cope with the loss of her family. In a way, it saddened him, because someone as young as her, one who has seen sixteen springs, should never have had to watch her family be killed in front of her.

Mario went up to the stable boy and said a few words while Trinity stood behind. After a moment, the stable boy brought out a chestnut mare to her.

"She is not very hardy," said the young boy, "but she is very swift."

Trinity felt a smile tug at the corner of her lips and he blushed, running back to his master. She quickly mounted and reined the horse around in the direction of Florence. She was about to kick the sides of the mare gently to get her into a trot but Mario touched her leg.

"Giuliano would not want you to mourn his death like this," he said, with the softest expression his intimidating face could muster. "He saved you to finish what he started. Your family fought and died for that purpose…do not let your sorrow pull you under and plague your mind with guilt over their deaths."

Trinity successfully beat back her tears, though they stung her eyes painfully.

"Grazie…" she replied sincerely. "I shall return with Giovanni and his family."

Mario nodded before he slapped the hindquarters of the mare to get her to a run. He watched as her figured disappeared out of sight before turning his gaze to the risen sun.

"Buona fortuna." (Good luck.)

Trinity slipped off the back of her horse as it continued to run just as she reached the gate into Florence. A man, probably a worker of the stable outside the gate, grabbed the reins of her horse and Trinity absently handed him a few florins to keep her horse stabled.

It had been two years since she last was in Florence. She had learned a lot in the past two years, a lot about the Order and about her father and Giovanni Auditore's search for the Apple of Eden. She hoped that by now, the Auditore boys were informed of their father's true occupation so she would not be expected to hide it from them.

Trinity pulled up the hood of her white robes to shadow her face as she entered the bustling city. The ride from Monterriggioni took a little over half a day's ride. It was probably a few hours past noon now but the sun still was relatively warm.

She had no time to navigate her way through the streets full of civilians so she immediately started climbing the nearest building. Like Venezia, the city dwellers were amazed by her display of skills as she easily scaled the windows and ledges before she pulled herself onto the roof.

There were no guards on the roofs of Florence, unlike Venezia. She found that strange but she ran quickly, glancing at the streets she passed to see if she recognized anything. At regular intervals, there would be a street too wide to leap onto the next roof, but there were strong, steel cables that connected each building that she could run across.

Sometimes, she would catch the eye of children, and they would find her displays of athleticism almost god-like.

Trinity found that endearing but did not dwell on it.

She found the familiar palazzo of the Auditores, having gone deep into the city to find it, after about ten minutes. If she had taken the streets, it would have taken her much longer to get here.

Trinity noticed four guards standing in front of the gate to the palazzo. This confused her, seeing that she didn't the Auditores were wealthy enough to have personal guards.

Once at street level, she approached them.

"I wish to speak to Giovanni Auditore," she said formally to them. She was surprised when they all laughed at this.

She narrowed her eyes. "What is so amusing?" she demanded.

"The Auditores are standing trial as we speak, girl," said one closest to her. "Though they are likely to be hanged."

"What!" she exclaimed. "Why? Where are they?"

The guard scoffed. "For treason," he spat at her. "In Piazza della Signoria."

Trinity immediately turned on her heel and sprinted down the street. She shoved past civilians who were in her way, knocking down a few women and a man in the process. She had no idea where Piazza della Signoria was but she figured it would be easy to find since it was holding trial to the Auditores. Many civilians would be there.

I am too late…she thought desperately. If only I had not…

She sprinted up a pile of crates that were stacked against a building and made her way up the roofs again. From here, she would able to see where the people have gathered for the trial.

Trinity, while holding onto the building, looked around her, making sure she had good footing on the wall.

She found the town square easily and quickly made her way towards it.

As she approached the high roofs surrounding the plaza, she noticed guards were standing watch.

"Merda (shit)," she hissed.

There was a lot of noise coming from the gathered civilians surrounding the gallows as she snuck up on one of the guards. She pulled out her dagger and drove it into his back twice before bringing him to the ground.

Trinity made sure there weren't any guards close enough to notice her, though they were focused on the trial, and she pushed the now dead archer into the street behind instead into the plaza for people to notice.

She returned her attention to the trial. There were far too many guards around the gallows for her to take on single-handedly. Trinity could see three figures standing at the gallows, nooses around their necks and their hands tied behind their backs.

It was Giovanni and two his sons. From the looks of it, Ezio was not down there and she vaguely wondered why he had not been captured. There was the executioner standing at the gallows, as well a man with a hat and blue robes that Trinity assumed was the Gonfaloniere of Florence.

Trinity could see no possible means to get to the gallows and cut them down without anyone noticing.

"Giovanni Auditore!" shouted the overseer of the trial over the noise of the people. "You and your accomplices stand accused of the crime of treason! Do you have any evidence to count of this crime?"

"Yes!" spat Giovanni angrily. "The documents that were delivered to you last night!"

"I'm afraid I know nothing of these documents," said the Gonfaloniere.

"He's lying!" said a voice in the back of the crowd, close to where Trinity was standing. His voice went unnoticed, however, since no one paid attention to him. She squinted, noticing a hooded figure in white pushing his way through the crowd toward the scaffold.

The overseer paused, waiting for anyone to step forth, though it was clear he expected nothing. "In the absence of any compelling evidence to the contrary," he said, his voice ringing over the crowd's cheers, "I am bound to pronounce you guilty."

Trinity's mind raced. She didn't know what to do or how she would be able to stop this from happening.

"You and your collaborators are sentenced to death!" declared the overseer.

"No!" Trinity exclaimed desperately. Because of her cry, other archers, who had been so intent on the trial, noticed her standing on the roof near them.

Immediately, two of them converged onto her.

She dodged a sword quickly, shoving the archer off the roof to his death and turned quickly to the other archer while she heard Giovanni shouting from the gallows.

"You are a traitor, Uberto! And you are one of them!" he bellowed. "You may take our lives this day, but we will have yours in return. I swear it!"

Trinity ducked from a swing of the guard's sword and spun around, whipping out her dagger and slicing at his throat. He gasped, clutching his neck, before he fell off the roof.

She snapped her head around just as the executioner pulled the lever to drop the wood out from the Auditores' feet.

She was too late.

"FATHER!" screamed a voice, coming the figure that was in white in the crowd, dashing toward the gallows.

"Ezio…?" she whispered to herself.

"There!" shouted the man in blue, pointing at the man. "Grab the boy! He is one of them."

The crowd backed off around him and guards, some with a full set of armor surrounded the man in white. Trinity could not let him die and leapt off the building into a bale of hay below. Quickly, she climbed out and dashed towards the fray.

"I'll kill you for what you've done!" shouted Ezio, two guards having caught hold of him by his arms. He easily pushed them off him and drew his sword.

"Guards!" yelled the Gonfaloniere. "Arrest him!"

Ezio stood ready to take on one of the guards with a large battleaxe.

Trinity sprinted up from behind, the path having been cleared by the watching civilians. The two guards Ezio had freed himself from were standing behind Ezio, waiting for the brute guard to attack. She threw two throwing knives, both landing squarely in the necks of her targets, trying to get to Ezio as quick as she could.

"Uccidetelo (kill him)," the overseer ordered.

The brute guard swung his axe, easily disarming Ezio, and because of the momentum, was on the verge swinging again.

Trinity tackled Ezio to the ground to avoid the blow, rolling a few times. She swiftly stabbed her dagger deep into the brute guard's foot and pulled it out before she came to a stand.

The guard howled with pain, dropping his axe as he stumbled. At this, she saw more guards begin to converge onto her and Ezio.

"Run, idiota, run!" she shouted to Ezio, pushing him forward. He didn't hesitate and ran straight for the street in front of him.

The guards chased after them and civilians, in their shock, parted the way for her and Ezio.

"The roof, go!" ordered Trinity as she saw a few crates ahead of them. Ezio immediately climbed them and jumped onto a beam. Trinity easily tailed him, a little surprised with his free-running skills.

Ezio quickly pulled her up and they sprinted across the rooftops. They came across an archer stand on the roof, one where they would keep watch in.

"In there!" she said, pointing to it. Ezio leapt into the box, Trinity following after. She cut the ties that were holding the tan canvases up and they fell, covering them from sight.

Trinity immediately made a gesture for Ezio to be quiet before she peered through a slit between the wood and the canvas as a few guards passed by.

"Quickly!" one was shouting. "They went this way!"

Five pairs of feet ran by them as they sat motionless in their hiding spot. After a minute or so, Trinity finally exhaled heavily.

She turned to him. "Are you hurt?" she asked, noticing a healing cut across his lip that wasn't there two years ago.

"No," he replied, still recovering from the running. "Sto bene (I'm fine). What are you doing here? How did you-?"

"I will explain later," she cut him off, peering outside again. "Let's go. It's clear."

She climbed out of the stand and so did Ezio.

"Where are your mother and sister?" asked Trinity, glancing at the sun for the time of day. "Are they safe…?"

Ezio nodded. "Yes, they're with Annetta's sister."

Trinity had no idea who Annetta was but didn't say so. She realized what Ezio was wearing after a second of thinking of what their next course of action was.

He was wearing his father's old assassin robes, ones very similar to hers.

"Come, we have to get your mother and sister out of the city," said Trinity, making her way across the roof.

"Wait," said Ezio, grabbing a hold of her upper arm. "My family…. They need to be buried."

She gaped at him. "What?" she exclaimed. "We do not have the time for that."

"No," he said firmly, his light eyes darkened with pain. "It has to be done."

Trinity could see he was adamant about it and there was nothing she could say to change his mind.

Of course I'd be stuck with the irresponsible Auditore boy, she thought irritably.

"Fine," she relented. "But we have to make it quick. Your mother and sister's safety is far more important."

He said he understood…but somehow, Trinity wasn't so sure.

Darkness fell across Florence, giving Ezio and Trinity an advantage to hide from the guards. Although…with their outfits, they would still be easily recognizable.

Trinity followed Ezio to a small plaza silently.

Earlier, he had tried to inquire why she was here again…but she told him it wasn't the right time to just speak of things.

Although it was dark, the moon was shining bright enough for it to be relatively easy to move about. There were still many people out at this time, not to either of their surprise. Twice, they had to hide from passing guards, who were actively looking for the both of them.

When they were in the plaza, Trinity noticed a young woman hurrying over to them. She was dressed as Florentine nobility, her dress rather intricate in design. Trinity, having been train to always make note of detail, vital or not, realized the woman was quite pretty as she drew closer.

She had dark brown hair pulled up into a messy bun and pretty light brown eyes. Her facial features were well proportioned, with full lips, a straight nose, a good forehead to chin ratio. The young woman was short, however; she was probably about three to four inches shorter than Trinity, who was only about four inches shorter than Ezio.

The young woman embraced Ezio tightly as he buried his face into her hair. Trinity averted her eyes away, feeling awkward…and envious.

She was not envious of her, no…that wasn't even close. No, Trinity was envious that Ezio had someone to turn to in his time of sorrow, someone who could empathize with him. Trinity…she had no time to mourn, no time to truly let the pain hit her.

"Thank you for coming, Cristina," he said quietly when he pulled away. She looked up at him, touching his cheek gently. Trinity could see the sincerity in her eyes that she was truly upset for Ezio.

"Of course, of course," she replied just as softly. "Tell me, what can I do?"

"My family's bodies…" Ezio said, lowering his eyes to the ground for a moment. He collected his emotions before continuing. "I can't just leave them hanging from the gallows. I need to give their last rite, and lead them on to the next world…."

The woman, who Trinity understood her name was Cristina, nodded sadly. "All right," she replied. "Lead the way, Ezio."

Cristina glanced at Trinity, who had stood a few feet behind Ezio silently. Trinity immediately lowered her head in respect to her with a hand at her heart but said nothing, not interested in idle chitchat.

Ezio saw Cristina's confused look, especially because she noticed that both Ezio and Trinity were dressed so similarly, and clarified for her as they walked quickly. "Trinity is an old family friend."

"I see…"

He led the two woman back to Piazza della Signoria, which wasn't far from where they met Cristina.

They rounded the corner and Ezio stopped abruptly.

"What?" he gasped. "They've already been cut down!"

Cristina searched around the square. "What are we going to do?" she asked, glancing at him with concern.

Trinity squinted through the darkness, noticing a figure standing near the gallows. She didn't here was Ezio was saying but she stepped into the plaza.

"Hey," Ezio hissed, noticing Trinity leaving them, "where are you going?"

She ignored him and started to jog towards the dark figure across the way. She knew it was a guard, especially after he shouted for her to leave Piazza della Signoria.

When she ignored him, the guard ran after her, realizing it was one of the two criminals they were searching for. Trinity slowed to a stop as the guard sprinted right at her, going into a fighting stance.

The guard swung hard with his fist, but Trinity easily stepped aside and dodged it. With a twist of her body, she brought her leg around quickly, her heel nailing the guard in the head and sending him flying.

Cristina gasped at Trinity's display of defense, and Ezio was somewhat impressed.

Trinity drew her sword and approached the man on the ground, dizzy from the blow to the temple. She put the sword point at the guard's chest.

"Where are the bodies that were hanging here?" she demanded. He did not answer immediately. "Speak, before I cut out your tongue."

"They've already been taken," he said, cowering into the corner of the gallows. Ezio and Cristina ran up behind her.

"Where?" she said with a hard tone. "Tell us where they are."

"I don't know," he replied hesitantly. "I…I think they were taking them down to the river, to dump them."

"No…" said Ezio quietly.

Trinity sheathed her sword. "We must hurry."

Ezio did not reply as he was already running off across the plaza. Cristina took off after him, Trinity not much further behind. Ezio was sprinting so fast that both her and Cristina were beginning to fall behind and lose him to the crowd.

But before they completely lost sight of him, he stopped in front of a few crates, peering around them.

Trinity looked around the crates as well and saw the bodies of the Giovanni, Federico, and Petruccio laying near a wagon of hay. Near the wagon, there were four guards standing watch or awaiting orders, she didn't know.

"What are you going to do, Ezio?" asked Cristina in a whisper. Trinity couldn't help but roll her eyes, seeing that she had already asked a similar question about three minutes earlier.

He remained quiet for a moment. "…I'll have to kill them."

Cristina gasped behind Trinity. "No, don't do that!" she pleaded with him. "They did nothing wrong."

"They follow orders unquestioningly," he countered angrily. "That makes them-"

"Ezio!" she beseeched.

"Va bene," yielded Ezio. "I'll sneak behind their backs. I'll get my family, one at a time if I have to…and carry them down the river where those stairs are."

"Be careful!" Cristina said worriedly.

Trinity had just about enough of this girl. If he was going to have to sneak around them, they would just waste more time…time that Trinity wasn't willing to waste.

Ezio was busy telling Cristina to wait for him when Trinity stepped out from her cover to approach the guard.

The guards saw her almost immediately and drew their swords. The had been at the trial earlier, so they recognized her instantly. Though her hood covered the majority of her face, they saw her smirk widely.

"You are not allowed back here," said one guard.

Swiftly, she threw two of her three remaining thrown daggers, one sticking into one guard's heart that had been speaking, and the second dagger lodged in the other guard's throat. Both cried out in pain before falling to the floor.

Trinity withdrew her twin daggers, ready to fight the last two. The two guards, one with a full beard, and the other with nothing, however, were wary to immediately come after her, so there was a standoff between her and them.

"Well, I don't have all night," she said with a dark laugh. "Or are you afraid a woman will best you?"

One of the guards was enraged with her words and swung at her. She parried the blow with her daggers and the other guard took this opportunity to lunge at her. The attempt to catch her off guard was feeble as she shoved back the guard with the beard and into the wall so she could dodged the lunge.

Because he missed the attack, most of his weight had been thrown forward so he couldn't recover quickly enough. Trinity kicked the sword out of his hand, and it clattered to the floor some feet away from him. She stabbed her dagger into the side of his neck and wrenched it out, ducking from another swing from the other guard.

"Nice try," she said with a sinister tone, landing a kick into his chest. He stumbled back and fell to the floor, where Trinity slammed both her daggers into his chest and pulled them out.

She turned to Cristina and Ezio behind her. Cristina's hands were covering her mouth in astonishment while Ezio stared at her blankly.

Trinity rolled her eyes, though not noticed by either of them. She half bowed, making a graceful gesture towards the lifeless Auditore bodies. "You may proceed," she said in dark, sarcastic tone.

Neither of them moved, and she made a noise of irritation. Trinity sheathed her daggers, after wiping them on one of the dying guards, and pulled out her thrown daggers to reuse them for later.

She went to pick up Petruccio's body, seeing that he was the only one she would be able to carry and hurried down the stairs that led to the river. At the docks, there were two small boats and oars and she placed Petruccio's body in on of them. She looked up when she saw Ezio coming down the stairs with Federico in his arms.

Seeing Federico this close…Trinity felt tears brim her eyes but she held them back, trying to push back all the memories of him, as idiotic as they were sometimes.

"Hurry, Ezio," she told him. "We do not have a lot of time."

Another two minutes passed and they were ready to go.

"Go in the other boat with Cristina," said Trinity, hoping to give them a little more time together. Besides, she didn't want to hear all the lovey-dovey talk.

Ezio gave her a grateful look and he helped Cristina into the other gondola.

They went down the river for some time, the moonlight guiding the way. Trinity could here the pair talking in the boat ahead of her and she did her best not to eavesdrop.

She let her eyes fall to the bodies she was ferrying down the river. Immediately, she began to cry silently. Heavy guilt weighed her heart…she had not been able to save Giovanni in time.

The elder Auditore had always been so kind to her. When Giovanni would come visit Venezia on business, he'd always bring her small trinkets and gifts. Giovanni was like a second father to her in some ways and she learned some of her skills from him.

But now…like her own family, he was gone…and so was Federico…and little Petruccio.

Poor Federico…he was still so young. He was supposed to have a long life ahead of him. He was supposed to join the Order…get married…lead his life.

Her thoughts were pulled away abruptly when she saw Ezio stopping his gondola beside another dock. Trinity looked up and saw the back of a large church…and behind it on the grounds were headstones for the cemetery the led all the way up to the river.

They silently set to work burying the bodies with some shovels they found leaning against the back of the church. Cristina was having a hard time digging so they let her bury Petruccio.

Ezio tried to remain as numb as he could when he put the first pile of dirt onto his father's body. He knew that Trinity and Cristina were struggling as well.

Forty minutes passed and they were finished.

"Ezio," said Trinity quietly. "We have to go…your mother and sister…"

He sighed through his nose. "Give me a moment."

Trinity glanced at Cristina, and understood. "Only a minute," she said firmly, though as sympathetic as she could sound. "We cannot afford anymore loss of time."

She moved away, making towards one of the boats.

"I'm leaving the city, Cristina," he said quietly to her. "Will you come with me?"

Trinity wasn't intentionally listening, but she turned her head abruptly toward the pair, slightly angry that he was suggesting taking her with them. Not that Trinity had any personal issue with this girl, but she would just be in the way…and useless.

Cristina began to cry as she gazed up at him. "I want to," she choked out. "But I can't. My family…I-"

She couldn't bring herself to finish. Ezio already knew that her answer would have been this and he wasn't hurt or surprised. His heart ached to know he was parting from her but there was nothing he could do.

He reached around his neck and pulled out his medallion that had his family's crest on it. With a gentle smile, he placed it around her.

"Take this," he said softly, gazing into her eyes. "So that we may always be together, my dear Cristina…"

"Ezio…" she whispered.

Trinity's eye twitched out of minor disgust and she turned away, not wanting to watch them kiss. She just didn't understand what women saw Ezio.

She stood waiting on the boat, her arms crossed as she stared up at the moon. After a moment, she heard Ezio making his way down the docks…thankfully without Cristina.

He climbed in and took the oar.

"You should have told her you loved her…" said Trinity in a low voice. Ezio did not say anything to this statement and did not meet her eyes.

Arrivederci (good-bye)…he thought sadly. This was not just a good-bye to his love…to his family…but this was also a good-bye to Florence.

It was a good-bye to his old life.