T1:uwah, i wasn't expecting such nice/quick feed back haha thanks for the favs/alerts guys and a special thanks to the reviewers: Ayer Gootarest and Maverick Hunter Phoenix

ALSO. Maverick, yeaaaah, i totally missed that, for some reason I started using Niles and forgooootttttt...

The kid's name is Ace Fran Miles, Fran is his middle name! He uses that name in public though

Assassins Creed

Learn By Sight 2: Without an Ace

Desmond made sure Ace was asleep before turning out of the bed and setting his feet on the floor. He held his face. He really screwed up this time didn't he? He was so careful--but they got caught from one fingerprint.

He never should have gotten that motorcycle.

He gritted his teeth together. There wasn't anything he could do but look for an escape… He put a hand on Ace's forehead. He'd be lucky if he could convince them they weren't related.

Desmond woke up to a nudge at his side. It wasn't an obvious nudge though, it was very weak, and he probably wouldn't have noticed it if it hadn't happened another time. He opened his eyes to Ace's face. The kid was turned into the bed and he was looking behind Desmond with one eye.

He was hiding..?

Desmond turned around and grimaced. There Vidic was, standing beside the bed. He found Ace's hand and gave it a squeeze. Ace squeezed back and pretended to be asleep.

"Gotta say that's a little creepy, Doc…wakin' up to you standin' over me." He sat up. "You been watching me sleep?"

"We're always watching you!" the man said, his eyes wandering to Ace, which Desmond unhappily noticed. "Now get up, we've got a lot of work to do!"

"Ohh…I wonder who I get to kill today," Desmond said with a sort of sneer in order to get the man's attention off his brother. He succeeded.

Vidic's eyes fell on Desmond.

"Don't be so cavalier!" he opened his arms, "Your ancestors almost had the right idea, Mr. Miles. If the deaths of a few people…evil people, no less…could save the lives of thousands more, well…" he looked at Desmond, "it seems a small sacrifice."

The bartender's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean 'almost'?"

"They didn't go far enough!" Vidic happily supplied, "To do use a rather tired analogy, corruption is no different than cancer. Cut out the tumors, but fail to treat the source and…well you're buying time at best. There's no true change to be had, without comprehensive, systemic intervention."

Desmond unconsciously squeezed Ace's hand, "Chemo for the masses."

"Education…re-education, to be more precise," the Abstergo man corrected, "But it's not easy. And it doesn't always work…"

"Let me guess…" Desmond shrugged off his anxiousness to give off a more cool and composed appearance, quite the opposite how he was feeling, "You've got a better solution. What is it then?"

The man laughed, "Not THAT would be telling!"

He turned and left the room.

Desmond stood and followed the man out of the quarters. He cast one last look towards the room. Even through the closed door he could tell his brother's eyes were open and their eyes would have locked if there was no door.

He had to get his brother out.

Ace uncrossed his legs again. He was so bored… He'd been in the room for hours. Someone already came in with breakfast and lunch. He wasn't planning to eat anything they had, but his stomach didn't want to agree with that plan.

So he ate the food…poisoned or not.

It wasn't…bad, but it would have been nicer to eat without a person watching him eat.

At least he was alone now…and terribly bored. He looked at the keypad by the door. He had gone to the door earlier. Apparently they locked it, or at least they locked it when it was just Ace in the room.

He fidgeted on the bed and played with the folds of the bed covers. He glanced at the keypad again. He knew the pass code by now. The only question was whether or not to open it. He chewed on his lower lip. Desmond still wasn't back. That gave him all the reason to open the door and search for him. Though he had a feeling his brother wasn't too far off.
He stopped chewing his lip and took in a deep breath.

Now or never.

She restlessly tapped her foot against the tile floor. They should take Desmond out of the Animus. He'd been in it for hours and they had seen firsthand the problems of overexposure with their previous Animus user.

"Warren," she started, "I really think-"

She was going to tell them to take Desmond out of the Animus again when something caught both of their attentions. The door to the subject quarters slid open with a muted hiss. And there, standing at about half the height of the door was the meek looking Miles boy. He had opened the door on his own.

Lucy and Vidic stood from their seats.

His eyes landed on Desmond and all his childlike meekness vanished. He bolted from the door and reached the Animus in seconds flat, way before either adult could reach or stop him.

He wrapped his smaller arms around the unconscious man and shook him.

"Des! Des! Are you okay?"

Lucy tentatively reached out a hand to grab him. The boy noticed and viciously smacked her hand away and glared at her.

"What are you doing?" he screeched his voice drastically breaking onto a higher pitch, "What's wrong with him?"

Lucy took a step backwards. She'd be lying if she denied the crushing feeling on her entire being.

"Hey, kid," Vidic walked over to Lucy's side, "That's some important equipment that you're on. Get off."

"Give Des back," he growled.

"Fran," Lucy started with the boy's name, or at least what she thought was his name, "I promise you Desmond is okay."

"DON'T LIE TO ME 'CAUSE IM A KID!" he screamed and swung his arms out.

"Hey don't-!" "That's dangerou-!"

His hand hit against the Animus' glass visor and everything flashed. The lights of the room flickered on and off until everything shut down.

"Th-the power!" Lucy stammered.

Vidic cursed and angrily pulled out his cell phone, "Give me power now! What's going on?"

The lights suddenly flickered back on.

And Vidic found himself harshly meeting the ground with Desmond Miles leaning over him angrily. He had fistfuls of the scientist's lab coat in his clenched hands.

"WHERE'S ACE? WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM? WHY WAS HE THERE?"

"What are you talking about? He's right-" Lucy stopped short when she saw that 'Ace' was nowhere to be seen. He had disappeared.

Lucy panicked. People don't just randomly disappear. It just wasn't possible. The time was too short for him to go anywhere unnoticed in a room he'd never seen before!

-Wait. What had Desmond said? The boy was in the Animus?

Vidic licked his lips, "And what, pray tell, are you going to do about it, Mr. Niles?"

Desmond's eyes narrowed sharply.

Lucy's attention darted to the two.

"Vidic what are you-."

"Be quiet now, Miss Stillman," Vidic snapped and turned back to Desmond. "Now you be a good patient and you can have your bother back when this is all over."

"Why is he involved?"

"Well that's for us to know, and you to not."

Desmond gritted his teeth together. He doubted Abstergo would let him and his brother go, but he didn't have any other open options. He released the man's collar and moved onto the cold tile.

Vidic stood up from beside him and fixed his coat.

"Lucy," he called and the two left the kidnapped man on his own matters.

Desmond lied down onto the bed feeling horribly exhausted. He felt sick and miserable. He lost Ace, his little free man. Why was he in the Animus? The damn Abstergo must have been planning to use Ace from the beginning.

He cursed and rubbed his eyes. How could he have been sleepy at all? His brother was missing! It must have been the Animus…it took…a lot out of him…

Reluctantly he let sleep wash over him.

"Des! Des! DES!" Desmond groaned. Who was shouting into his ear…? Someone…

His eyes shot open and he stat up quickly, butting heads with the unfortunate person near him.

"Ace-!" he cursed and rubbed his forehead. A dull throbbing centered on under his hand.

"'z that you?"

He was answered as someone wrapped his arms around him.

"Des, you're awake!"

Ace.

Desmond pulled the kid off of him and looked him over. He turned him around once then back again. No damage. He settled his arms on the boy's shoulders and slumped forward with a sigh.

"Thank god, you're safe."
Ace nodded his head shyly.

"I had help too…"

Desmond looked up, "Help?

"Yeah," he raised his arm across his abdomen and pointed behind him, "He helped me. I thought he was you…He wouldn't give me his name though."

Desmond's eyes widened.

"Altair?" he gasped. Why was he meeting his ancestor in person? Were they in Israel or whatever eastern country he was from? They were on top of some ancient home, that much

Desmond knew for certain, though he had no idea why they were there or how they even got there.

The assassin's eyes narrowed. He swiftly walked over and before either brother could react the man's hidden blade was pressed against Desmond's throat.

The bartender cursed under his breath.

"How do you know that name?" Altair snapped, "You're a templar."

"W-what? Whoa, whoa, whoa, you got it all wrong!" Desmond raised his hands in defense, "Why would I be a templar?"

"Hey! Quit it!" Ace exclaimed and grabbed onto Altair's arm. "He's my brother!"

"Then you must be the same," Altair glared and threw the younger Miles off of him.

"ACE!" Desmond yelled and stumbled to his feet. He ran over to the edge of the building and caught Ace by his jacket before it was too late. Ace had gotten knocked out from hitting the ledge with his head and was now hanging dangerously by his hoodie. Desmond gritted his teeth together and tried to get a better grip of his brother's jacket. He managed to get a better hold but he heard something that stopped his blood cold. Ace's front zipper was opening and if that opened all the way, the boy would slip right out.

A blade touched the side of his neck. He was really starting to hate his ancestor.

"I swear I'm not a Templar!," he bit out, "Just, please, help! He's my little brother!"

"Your words hold no bearing."

"You're heartless," Desmond hissed.

ZIIIIIIP.

The zipper slid free. Ace was only barely in the jacket, his arms twisted slightly behind him.

Desmond turned to his ancestor once more, his face set in a grimace and desperation in his eyes. Before Desmond could say anything, the assassin had jumped over the building, jumping off of crates till he reached the ground, all in silence. He stopped directly beneath Desmond and just in time. Ace slipped out of the white jacket and landed in Altair's arms.

The relief that the 21st century Miles felt couldn't be put into words. He fell backwards and leaned on his arms. He numbly noticed his legs were numb. Guess he was really nervous.

He thought he had a legitimate reason to be.

He woke up with a start. It was all a dream? He patted down his chest and touched his cheek to make sure he was really there and not a sleep. He ripped the covers off.

No Ace.

He groaned and caught his head with his hands.

He was still at Abstergo and he still didn't have his little brother.

No Ace…

I don't really have an update schedule... but i'll update when i can! R&R please~