A/N: I do not own Assassin's Creed or the Legend of Zelda

"W-what?"

"He's your ancestor, Desmond. And it seems like he's trying to communicate with us," Rebecca explained. "I think he knows something."

"Rebecca," Desmond said, "Ezio is our main priority, right now. We can't just drop everything we're doing to go on some wild goose chase with a random ancestor of mine."

"I guess you're right... Alright, hop back into the Animus and let's get you back to Ezio." Desmond obliged and sat back down in the animus. Rebecca hooked him up, and in an instant, he was back fighting Cesare.

Cesare swung his sword at Ezio, but he dodged and countered with his own blade. Cesare dropped his sword, and that's when Ezio leapt forward and assassinated him with his Hidden Blade. The world seemed to slow down as Cesare's blood spilled onto the ground. And everything went white.

"The throne was mine!"

"Wanting something does not make it your right."

"What do you know?!"

"That a true leader empowers the people he leads."

"I will lead mankind into a new world!"

"Che nessuno ricordi il tuo nome. Requiescat in Pace."

(Translation: May no one remember your name. Rest in Peace)

"You cannot kill me! No man can murder me!

"Then I leave you in the hands of fate!"

At that moment, the animus glitched up. Instead of white clothes, his clothes were now green. His beard disappeared and his hair was blonde instead of it's usual brown. As quickly as it appeared, it disappeared and went back to it's original color scheme. Then a voice spoke.

To anyone who can hear this, I am glad that you have found my data fragment.

...at least, I hope that's what it's called. My time here in the future is very... very limited... so I haven't been able to memorize all of this stuff...

What I can tell you, though, is this... you are a descendant from my bloodline...

You may not know it, but you possess a great power that will be the key to a better future...

Whether you choose to use it or not... is your decision...

On the outside, the animus' monitors were flashing. Nobody could understand what was happening. The voice spoke to Desmond again.

If you heed my words, then come find me. The rest of my memories will be locked into this data fragment, only opened by the one named Ezio Auditore.

Good luck, to you... the one named Desmond.

The voice disappeared and the animus crashed. Desmond was immediately ejected. Rebecca, Shawn and Lucy couldn't believe what happened. It was impossible. Nothing like that happened to the animus at all. At least, when it came to lost ancestors. Rebecca unhooked Desmond. He stood up and tried to recover himself.

"What happened in there," Lucy asked. Desmond held his head in his hands. "I don't know," he answered. "But whatever it was, it gave me a headache."

"This has to be some sort of virus," Rebecca theorized. "There is no way that something like a lost ancestor could cause the entire animus to shut itself down." Slowly, Desmond began to recollect his thoughts. "He...told me to meet him," he said softly. "In Rome." "Who told you," Shawn asked.

"Link," he replied. "He told me to meet him in Rome."

"That's a bad idea, Desmond," Rebecca warned. "Encountering a virus like that will fry the animus for sure."

"I don't think he's a virus. He could be a lost memory fragment. It could be like searching for Subject 16's clues."

"Desmond, listen to yourself," Shawn said, trying to talk some sense into him. "You're wanting to meet a fictional character in a real life city! Are you mad?"

"Then how do you explain that memory fragment? The one where he was sentenced to death," Desmond argued. "That kind of stuff doesn't just happen, Shawn. It was put there for a reason."

"Well," Lucy chimed in, "if Desmond thinks that it's important, then we should at least put some investigation into it."

"Fine," Shawn said. "Go ahead and break the damn thing. We just need it to save the world from utter destruction."

"Shawn, shut up. The animus is ready when you are, Desmond," Rebecca said. Desmond sat in the rebooted animus and had Rebecca hook him up. Within a matter of seconds, he was back in Rome as Ezio.

[Inside the Animus]

Ezio took a look around him. He was back in Rome, on the rooftop above the Assassin's Hideout. In the distance, he saw a beam of light shining down on a building. Ezio leapt off the Assassin's Hideout and into the water below. He climbed out and ran towards the building. He wasn't sure why, but there was a nagging feeling is his head that made him feel like he had to go there for some reason. After about an hour of running and getting into street fights with the guards, he finally made it to the place where he was going, only to find that the building was surrounded by dozens of guards. Ezio scaled the wall and dropped down. The guards didn't seem to notice him.

In the middle of the area, sat a man clad entirely in green. He was wearing a green hood, a shield was leaning up against the bench and his sword was in a sheath on his back. He was sitting silently, not saying a word. Ezio approached the man and tapped him on the shoulder. The man didn't move a muscle. He walked around the front of the man only to see that his eyes weren't even open. He attempted to pull the man's hood back to get a better look at him, but something caught his eye. He had a chain on his foot. Ezio used his hidden blade in an attempt to unlock the chain. At that time, a guard turned around and spotted him.

"There he is! Stop him!"

Fifty guards showed up and surrounded the assassin and the man in green. The leader of the guards stepped forward. "Why are you freeing this prisoner?! He is nothing but a menace! He's laid waste to more than fifty of our men, and yet you attempt to free him?!" Ezio's eyes widened. "I did not know. Forgive me, Signore." The captain drew his sword and pointed it towards Ezio. "You are his accomplice! Kill the assassin! Kill him!"

All the guards charged forward and attacked the assassin. Ezio drew his blade in defense but was tackled by one of the guards who held a blade to his throat. Ezio gazed up at the man in green. The man's eyes opened wide. He grabbed his sword, unsheathed it and decapitated the guard holding Ezio down. The man helped Ezio up. "Grab your blade. This is gonna be a bloody fight." Ezio did as he was told and grabbed his sword.

The guards attacked Ezio to which he countered and stabbed one of them in the gut. The man swung his sword and killed two guards in one strike. Ezio turned around and slashed another guard in the face, then put his hidden blade in another guards throat. The man decapitated a guard, then snapped another guard's neck. Ezio grabbed a mace that one of the guards dropped and bashed two more guards heads in.

A guard disarmed the green fighter and slashed his shoulder. Ezio saw this and shot the guard with his hidden gun. The man got back up, pulled out a knife and sliced another guards neck open. Ezio snapped another guards neck, then took his dual hidden blades and put them in another guards skull. The captain was getting desperate.

"Forget the assassin! Kill the prisoner!"

All the guards charged towards the man in green. Ezio made a desperate attempt to stop them, but it was no use. The man turned around and faced Ezio. "Get down," he screamed. Ezio dropped to the ground like he was ordered to. The man held his sword away from himself. The sword started glowing blue. Then red. The man swung his sword around with all his strength in a mighty spin attack.

Thirty five guards fell. And only one remained. The captain. The man drew his crossbow and put a bolt through the captain's head before he even knew what hit him.

Ezio was amazed. He stood up and walked over to the man. "That was very impressive. Who are you?"

The man didn't turn around. "You're the infamous Ezio Auditore, correct?"

"How did you know?"

The man smirked. "Word gets around the streets faster than you think."

"Well, you know my name. So, tell me yours." The man paused. He didn't say a word. He stood there, waiting for Ezio to take action. "What is your name," Ezio repeated.

"My name is Link," the man finally said.

"Link... a very strange name," Ezio criticized, "but I like it. I have not seen you around Roma. Nor have I heard any rumors about you. What brings you here?"

Link remained silent before he responded. "I'm looking for a woman named Zelda. Someone by the name of Vaati found her and took her from me." Ezio was confused. "I have not heard of anybody by that name," he admitted. "But, I will help you search for this 'Zelda' if you would like. My time in Roma is short, but I could offer you my services before I leave."

"That would be very helpful, Ezio, but I have no leads," Link said. "My mentor never taught me much about tracking down targets whenever your trail leads to dead end." Ezio focused his full attention on Link. "Mentor?" Link chuckled slightly. "I knew that would get your attention. Like you, Ezio, I am also an assassin."

"Interesting. Tell me more."

"I would, but it would be nightfall by the time I finish."

"I see... Follow me."

Ezio took off and ran towards the Assassin's Hideout with Link following behind him. After about thirty minutes of traveling, they finally made it. Inside, they were greeted by Maria and Claudia Auditore, Machiavelli, La Volpe and Bartolomeo. "Ezio," Claudia said happily as she hugged her brother. "Welcome back! Are you okay? Is Cesare dead? And who is that man behind you?"

Ezio slightly chuckled as he hushed his sister. "One question at a time, Claudia. I am fine, Cesare is dead and this is Link, a fellow assassin from..." He turned around and faced Link. "Where did you say you were from?" "Hyrule," he replied. "I have never heard of that city," Ezio said, nonchalantly. "As I was saying, he is a fellow assassin, so I expect you to treat him with the same respect as you treat me with."

Bartolomeo walked towards Link and patted him on the shoulder. "Nice to meet you, Link! I am Bartolomeo. Leader of the mercenaries here in Roma." "Nice to meet you, too," Link replied. Claudia stepped forward. "My brother said you were an assassin, like him. Is that true?" Link took off his hidden blade and showed it to Claudia. "Is this enough proof for you?" Machiavelli stepped forward and looked at the blade. "It is an old blade. By the looks of it, I'd say it has been around for a very long time. Where did you get this blade?"

"It belonged to my ancestors and has been passed down for generations," he explained. "It's an old blade, but it still works well." Machiavelli examined it a bit more. He found blood stains near the tip of the blade. "Fresh blood. Recent encounter, I suppose?" "We were ambushed by dozens of guards," Ezio chimed in. "I see... Well, this is very impressive, Link," Machiavelli admitted. "I never thought I'd get to see a hidden blade far past it's expiration date, yet still in working condition."

"That sword," Bartolomeo interrupted. "Where did you get it?" Link unsheathed his sword and handed it to Bartolomeo. It was very heavy. Just the way he liked it. "This is a fine blade, Link," Bartolomeo complimented. "And it's just the right weight! Where did you get this blade?"

"That," Link begun, "is the Master Sword. It's a blade forged by the finest steel that Hyrule has to offer. Legend has it, it was created by the Goddesses Din, Farore and Nayru to smite evil. It may only be wielded by the Hero of Time." As soon as he said that, the Master Sword started to glow brighter and brighter until it disappeared, then reappeared on Link's back. Everyone in the room was impressed. "See?"

Ezio's mother stepped forward with her own question. "Link, you said that you come from a city called Hyrule. Where is that located?" she asked. "Hyrule is not a city," Link corrected. "It's a kingdom, far away from this land." "Aaaaah, I see," Maria said. "So, what brings you to Roma, Link?"

Link hesitated yet again before he spoke. "A man named Vaati kidnapped a woman by the name of Zelda, and I'm here to get her back." The eyes of everyone in the room widened, with the exception of La Volpe, since he wasn't paying attention, and Ezio, because he already knew.

"Quick question," Machiavelli said, "but if Hyrule is a different land far, far away from here, then how exactly did you get here?" Link sighed. He knew, one way or another, that this was where the conversation was heading. "Do you want the truth?" Machiavelli nodded his head. Link sighed yet again.

"I traveled through time."

Now, everyone was confused. In fact, even La Volpe was interested now. Ezio stepped forward. "What do you mean, you traveled through time? How is that even possible?"

Link thought for a long time before he responded. "Well, I guess I'll need to start from the beginning."

Favorite, Follow and Review. Thanks for reading and tune in next time for Link's origin as an Assassin. His story will be lengthy though... so you won't see Ezio for a while.