Here is the (real) final part! Sorry that it's so short, but this is more of the wrap up/epilogue than anything else. Lol. Thank you all so much for the support! It really means a lot 3
Listening to: 10 Years (Full Album) by The Autumn Effect
Warning: brief unreality and brief memory loss
"We have to get you to a doctor," Kadar says, not bothering to conceal how frightened he is.
Ezio shakes his head. He places his right palm firmly on the ground and attempts to get back onto his feet, but quickly finds himself struggling. "We have to go after him."
"But, you are injured—"
"I will see a doctor after we catch de Sable. We cannot afford to allow him to escape. Now, help me up."
Kadar hesitates for a moment before helping Ezio to his feet. They struggle to and up the stairs, Ezio having to hunch over so his guts do not spill out while Kadar half carries, half drags him. Somehow, they make it outside and find Altair and Malik hurrying towards them while Amira and Ada are giving chase to the fleeing de Sable.
"What happened?" Altair demands.
"I am fine," Ezio says dismissively, despite his current state.
"He saved my life," Kadar says.
"He did?" Malik questions, sounding surprised.
Kadar nods. "Yes, brother, and he is heavily injured because of it.
"I will tend to Ezio. You and Malik provide assistance to Amira and Ada," Altair orders.
"Altair—" Malik protests.
"Really, I am fine," Ezio says as he pushes away from Kadar. He would have ended up face first on the ground if not for Altair's reflexes. He finds himself in Altair's arms, being cradled against a firm and warm chest and Ezio wishes that he would have been able to experience being in Altair's arms sooner and on a more pleasant occasion.
"You are not fine, stop saying that," Altair gently scolds before turning to Malik and Kadar. "Go now."
Malik looks as though he wants to argue, but instead shakes his head and drags his brother away.
When they are gone, Altair moves, carefully propping Ezio against the side of the building he and Kadar exited before helping him slide to the ground. Ezio leans heavily and gratefully against the wall, closing his eyes and listening to Altair settle down in front of him before a firm and steady pressure is applied to his abdomen.
"Do not even think about dying on me," Altair warns.
Ezio coughs and cringes at the burst of pain that flairs in his gut. "I would not dream of it," he says. He opens his eyes and scans Altair's face, noting the unconcealed worried etched into his expression. His golden eyes are fixed on Ezio's stomach as he tries to stop the bleeding, his hands and sleeves completely soaked with blood. Ezio's situation is dire, but all he can think about is how beautiful Altair looks and it is a shame that he is only able to appreciate it fully now.
"You are a fool," Altair says affectionately and it takes a moment for Ezio to realize that he has spoken aloud.
"Si . . . but it is true," Ezio says, almost struggling for the words. He can feel himself growing weaker with each passing minute. Despite Altair's best attempt, the bleeding will not stop and Ezio knows that he is going to die. He is going to die in a different time, in front of man whom he has only read about, while his family forever wonders what could have become of him. His slowly coming to accept this as his fate . . . but looking at Altair now as he tries to save his life, Ezio knows that there is one final thing that he has to do.
Ezio shifts so he can sit up more, the movement causing Altair to scowl.
"Stop moving; you will only make it worse," he scolds.
". . . Altair."
When Altair looks up, Ezio uses the last bit of his strength to lean forward and kiss him. Altair responds almost immediately and their lips move softly together until Altair opens his mouth wider. Ezio sighs and wishes that he could reach out and pull him closer, but he is having trouble moving his arms. Pushing aside his frustration and worry, he continues kissing Altair, completely overwhelmed by the fact that this is actually happening.
The need for air arises sooner than Ezio would have liked and reluctantly pulls away, unable to stop the dopey grin from forming on his face. "Sorry. I just had to do that before I . . . you know."
Altair's soft expression quickly changes to a scowl. "Do not be daft. I will not allow for you to die," he says. He goes silent, pressing even harder against Ezio's stomach before a contemplative look crosses his features. ". . . How long?"
Ezio's grin widens. "Since the moment I first saw you."
Altair snorts. "Be serious."
"I am," Ezio says. He is not lying. His feelings for Altair have grown over the past few days, but he very well knows that he cannot tell Altair that his infatuation began on a cold Monteriggioni night when he could not sleep so he read Altair's words until he could no longer see, falling deeper and more in love with him after every sentence.
In love.
Mio Dio, he is in love.
A small, joyful laugh escapes Ezio's lips, which causes Altair furrow his brow in curiosity. Ezio opens his mouth to tell Altair that he is in love with him, but he is cut off by an otherworldly voice, one that causes him to go pale and feel a sinking sensation in his chest.
"You have served your purpose."
The same golden light Ezio saw with Leonardo appears from nothing and surrounds him in its ethereal glow.
"What is going on? What did that voice mean—what purpose?" Altair asks confused.
When Ezio opens his mouth to explain, nothing comes out. He can feel the light pulling at him, consuming him within its fiery glow. He tries to fight it, but he is far too weak from blood loos and his efforts are in vain.
The last thing Ezio sees, before everything goes black, is Altair's heartbroken expression.
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Ezio slowly opens his eyes, finding himself laying on a soft and comfortable surface with four blurry silhouettes hovering above him. He blinks and eventually clears his vision before being able to identify the figures as Uncle Mario, Leonardo, Bartolomeo, and Niccolo.
"Mio Dio . . . Ezio, you are alive," Uncle Mario says, sounding as though he is about to cry.
Ezio furrows his brow in confusion and looks around. He is currently in one of the rooms above Leonardo's workshop under a pile of blankets that are causing him to sweat. He does not know why he is here or when he fell asleep. The last thing he remembers is bringing The Apple of Eden to Leonardo. He knew he should have waited for his allies, but he was curious about the artifact and knew Leonardo would be as well.
"How long have I been out?" Ezio asks, noting how silent everyone goes after he speaks. He glances at each of his companions before settling on Leonardo, who is shuffling nervously on his right. "Leonardo . . ."
Leonardo flinches and Ezio hates that he has to call him out, but he knows that Leonardo is the only person in the room who will be completely honestly with him.
"You may not remember," Leonardo begins. "But, you brought an artifact to my workshop, touched it, and were absorbed into it—there was no trace of you left in this world. It not a matter of how long you have been out. Rather, you have been missing for the past two weeks. The same light that took you only returned today and brought you with it. You have been unconscious for the past six hours. We all . . . we thought you were . . ."
Ezio's eyes widen at this information. Two weeks? Where could he have possibly been for that amount of time? He shifts so he can push himself into a sitting position, only to feel a searing pain shoot through his abdomen and left shoulder with the movement. He hisses, gritting his teeth together as he flops back down on the bed and tries not to writhe in pain. He wonders what could have possibly happened to him that is causing him such agony, and of course this is the moment when everything comes rushing back. Memories of his ordeal with Juno and the time he spent with the Masyaf assassins—with Altair—flood to the forefront of his mind, causing him to nearly choke on the longing, guilt, and regret that consumes him.
"Ezio, what is wrong? Are you alright?" Uncle Mario asks frantically.
Niccolo rolls his eyes. "Of course he is not alright, Mario. He has obviously gone through a great ordeal and us crowding him is not helping his condition. Let us leave Ezio alone to recover. I am sure that he will explain everything once he has improved."
Ezio has never been more grateful for Niccolo's presence before. He slowly regaining control over himself as he watches Niccolo singlehandedly usher everyone out, practically dragging Uncle Mario away from his bedside. Once Leonardo, Bartolomeo, and Uncle Mario have been forced out of the room, Niccolo nods to Ezio before closing the door behind him with an air of finality.
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It takes longer than he would have liked for the pain to finally subside, but he feels complete and utter relief for the numbed state that he is left with. He has been unable to focus on anything aside from the pain for the past few hours and is glad that he feels as though he can breathe again. Ezio slowly moves his right arm, reaching for his pain pill bottle that is always on his nightstand, and accidentally knocks his trinkets and books over in the process. He sighs heavily and throws the covers off before carefully climbing out of bed and sliding onto the floor.
As he is cleaning up, he notices several pages sticking out of The Codex, ones that he does not ever recall seeing before. Upon further inspection, he realizes that they were knocked loose from a secret compartment in the back of the book that he has never detected before (and Ezio is surprised that he did not, considering he has read the entire book from cover to cover). He moves into a proper sitting position and pulls The Codex into his lap. He organizes the pages into numerical order before beginning to read:
1.
Malik told me that journaling is an excellent outlet that will "help me cope" with my loss since I refuse to speak to anyone. It seems like a pointless task, but if keeping this journal stops Malik from pestering me, then I shall do my best to continue. No amount of writing, however, will bring Ezio back to me or rid me of this hopelessness.
Part of me does wonder why I am so distraught over Ezio's disappearance. It is unlike me to be so deeply concerned with another person. I have not been this way since Abbas's reaction to learning the truth about his father. I swore afterwards, that I would keep my manners, but that I would never allow anyone in. However, with Ezio . . . I felt as though we had this connection, one that appeared to withstand time itself. It is as if we were always supposed meet each other; even if we both had to leave this world in order to do so. I had only known him for a few days, yet I was beginning to develop feelings for him—feelings that were more than platonic and that I had only ever experienced before with Adha.
I believe it to be love.
I was . . . I am in love. I am in love with a man whom I know I will never see again . . .
8.
Adha is dead.
I was unable to reach her in time. I found her cold and broken body, her eyes still wide with terror. She was dumped alongside a riverbank as though she was nothing—something less than human. Her captors did not even give her last rites. They just left her to rot.
I held her lifeless body, giving her the final respect that she deserved and felt myself being consumed by an unquenchable rage. Too much has been ripped away from me and I will not allow this to go unpunished. I was not given the opportunity to seek revenge on whoever stole Ezio, but I can destroy the ones who had dared to take Adha as well . . .
17.
I have taken on more assignments, barely allowing myself rest in between. If I am active and focused on a mission, then I am unable to allow myself to wallow and be consumed by grief.
Malik says that I am becoming too arrogant and too bold. He says that I need to open myself up to my peers and vocalize what is bothering me instead of closing myself off on the now rare occasions when I am in Masyaf. I do not understand why he is so bothered. As long as I continue returning successful and unharmed, I see no cause for anyone's concern . . .
29.
I received an anonymous letter that was delivered to Al Mualim this morning. It was not addressed to me, but once Al Mualim read it, he knew whom its true recipient was.
The letter was written by one of Adha's captors and details her final days. It states that Lord Basilisk's men had sold her to Robert de Sable for a hefty sum. I am lead to assume that de Sable used Adha to his content before having her killed and disposed of.
I set the letter on fire as soon as I finished reading so that I would never have to view such words again. I will make it my life's mission to eradicate Robert de Sable and everything he holds dear. He was present when the people that I love were permanently taken from me, and even though I do not have proof that he was the reason behind Ezio's disappearance, as far as I am concerned, he is.
In my travels, I have heard rumors of a mysterious artifact located in Solomon's Temple. It is said to have been around since the ancient times before and holds mystical powers. I do not care about the artifact, but I do care about the interest that de Sable has shown in it. If I can get to his artifact, I can enact the beginnings of my revenge against him.
Malik, Kadar, and myself will be departing for Solomon's Temple at nightfall in the hopes that we can retrieve this artifact first. I only hope that I will be able to view the look on de Sable's face when he discovers that his sought after treasure is missing.
Ezio stares blankly at the parchments. He is shaking, unable to believe what he has just read. Altair . . . Altair felt the same and Ezio never got the chance to tell him. Altair lived and died without ever knowing that Ezio had loved him too.
He forces himself to take a calming breath before rereading the pages. He had always wondered why Altair never spoke much of the year eleven-ninety in The Codex and now he knows why. Both Ezio and Adha, two very different people whom Altair had grew to love, were removed from his life without any explanation and Ezio wishes he could go back. He wants to tell Altair that it was De Sable and Juno, two forces that interfered with three lives that should have been left in peace.
Because of Juno, Altair started losing his humanity, de Sable eradicated what was left with Adha's death, and now Ezio is going to be forever left wondering what could have happened if he and Altair (or even Altair and Adha) were allowed to be together. Could the events of Solomon's Temple gone differently had Altair not lost himself?
Ezio feels heartbroken and nauseated. He carefully sets aside the loose pages and The Codex before rising to his feet in a daze. He locates his pain pill bottle and takes a few, swallowing them dry.
Deciding that he should go for a walk to clear his head, Ezio walks over to his window and opens it, deciding to take a different route so he will not have to deal with his concerned family and allies at this particular moment. Hopping out of the window, he carefully lands on the ground and pulls his hood down over his eyes as he blends into the crowded streets of Venice, feeling a noticeable and sizeable emptiness throughout his entire being.
He sighs heavily and looks up, freezing in place as he sees familiar white robes navigating through the crowd in front of him. His breath escapes him as he becomes overwhelmed by the plethora of emotion that surge through him. He takes a heavy step forward, then another, then another, until he is running down the street, expertly maneuvering through the crowd and being mindful of his injuries as he tries to catch up to the figure that remains just out of reach. He watches the figure duck into a nearby alleyway and he follows him, shoving through the people at this point and not caring about their reactions to his rudeness.
"Altair!"
Ezio finally breaks through the crowd, his heart breaking even further as he stands in the mouth of the alleyway, viewing nothing but open air.