Chapter Twenty-Nine:

Flavia's Regret

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"Madre says that I can, as long as I agree with your terms," Marcello said as he crossed his arms.

"And you decided to tell me at the crack of dawn?" I groaned, tossing a pillow over my head.

Marcello crossed the room in only a few strides and grabbed the pillow. "I figured we could get started immediately."

"Not before the sun comes up!"

Marcello blinked. "Why not?"

"Because you need to sleep and recover yet. Antonio kicked your ass yesterday."

"All the more reason for me to be ready and up right now."

I groaned, but got out of bed. Marcello seemed pleased with himself. I decided to show him what happened when you annoyed an Assassin. Worse, a female Assassin.

I put on some simple clothing (just like from yesterday) and went downstairs. A piece of bread ended up as my breakfast as I went outside to find Marcello. He had set up what looked like coarse imitations of training dummies.

"Like them?" he asked, a grin plastered on his face.

To answer, I grabbed four throwing knives from my right shoulder and flung them expertly at the same time into each of the dummy's faces. All of them fell and hit the ground in unison.

"If they can't take that, then they won't take a sword," I told Marcello, whose (I was pleased to see) jaw had dropped. I finished eating and then tossed Marcello my sword. "First, lets see what you can do."

I drew my shortblade as Marcello examined the sword. When he seemed to come to a decision, he held the blade out in front of him. His balance was off, and the way he gripped the blade was off.

Like Darim, I noted.

Marcello charged forward, thrusting the blade forward. With my bracers, I deflected his blow, twisted my body, and pressed the tip of my shortblade to his throat. I wasn't even facing him. At the skill he was now, he would never have become an Assassin when I was a child.

"If I move two fingers, I could cut your throat," I told him.

Marcello gulped. "You have an advantage. Those bracers…"

I stepped away from Marcello and removed my bracers, and the hidden blades connected to them. Marcello raised his eyebrows, so I removed the rest of my weapons (crossbow, throwing knives, pouches, etc.) and stood ready in front of him.

Marcello came at me again. This time, I didn't play with him. I slammed the blade away with my weapon, skirted forward, and pressed the shortblade's tip where his heart was.

"You're still a child," I muttered. "Well, looks like that toy sword did nothing for you."

"What?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. Give me the sword."

Marcello handed me my sword and looked longingly at it. I could tell he liked weapons, but he wasn't sure of how to use them.

"We'll start with a few simple exercises," I told him. "Have you ever seen your father fight?"

Marcello blinked. "My padre? No, he wasn't a fighter. Why would you ask that?"

"All men fight the same," I told Marcello, ignoring his question. "They make a fist and they swing. It is much more complex than that though; you need to look past a simple fist. Like a weapon, its an extension of yourself. Instead of fighting blindly, you need to plan."

I proceeded to show Marcello a few techniques when we were interrupted by Flavia. She walked into the courtyard and saw Marcello and I, and paused.

"A new girlfriend?" Flavia asked her brother.

"No!" Marcello and I cried at the same time.

Flavia giggled. She had her mother's face, but her father's brown hair and chocolate eyes. And, like Sofia, she seemed wiser than she looked.

"Well, Marcello, would you mind coming with me to Firenze? Madre just got in a new shipment of books, and I'm to retrieve them." Flavia was still giggling slightly. It was hard to believe that she was technically my age.

Marcello looked at me. "But I'm—!"

"Marcello and I will come with you," I told Flavia. "I've been meaning to get some things in town myself."

Marcello seemed to be pouting. "I guess you probably aren't that skilled, after-all."

Flavia approached me and extended her hand. "I don't think we've met quite yet. I'm Flavia Auditore."

"Sofia d'Alviano," I replied, taking her hand.

"Ah, so you are our guest? I keep forgetting."

"Think nothing of it. It was short notice."

Flavia smiled and led Marcello (who was frowning at me) and I to a carriage. Of course, after I put all my weapons back in their respective places. Flavia eyed me while we were riding to Firenze, but it didn't seem hostile. More like curious.

"Have you visited Firenze often?" she asked finally.

"I am acquainted."

"How so? Do you have any family here?"

I smiled. "You could say that."

Flavia continued to question me casually, and I continued to dance around the true answer, as usual. Finally, it seemed like I had won, and Flavia gave up, but she had another question for me.

"Where did you come from?"

"My madre."

Marcello laughed. Flavia didn't.

"I mean where are you from?"

"Far away."

Flavia frowned. "You are not very good at answering simple questions."

"It's a gift." I grinned as Flavia's frown deepened. "I was born in Damascus."

Flavia blinked. "Sul serio?"

"Si. But I lived the majority of my life in Masyaf, Syria. After a while, I started travelling the world."

Flavia considered this. "Do you miss it?"

"I make some time every few years to see it."

"What about your parents?"

"I am on my own."

The carriage came to a halt, so I opened the door and helped Flavia out. Marcello exited through the other side of the carriage, probably so he could try to escape and find Antonio. I knew it was on his mind.

"Marcello, come here," I called casually.

He came around the carriage with his hands in his pockets. "Si?"

"Stay with your sister." He took his sister's arm carefully. "Good. Now, Flavia, where to?"

Flavia pointed. "Madre said that the man with her boxes would be waiting near the old Auditore manor."

"In the centre of town?" Marcello asked.

"Si," Flavia replied. "Madre usually meets him there."

Marcello frowned. "Why by those old ruins? It's destroyed. Why not just a bookshop?"

"I do not know."

I frowned. After Lorenzo de' Medici died, the new Duke of Florence decided that the Auditore manor was not worth the upkeep, so he had it destroyed. Unfortunately, Ezio got to see that for himself when chasing after Savanrola.

It wasn't a long walk to the ruins. Flavia and Marcello seemed to know their way well-enough. Together, they reminded me of Ezio and Claudia.

When we got to the Auditore manor (or what was left of it), Flavia started to look for Sofia's contact.

"He said he'd be here by this time…" Flavia said as she scanned the passing crowds. "Ah! Look, there!"

A man with three boxes was waiting patiently by a stall. He was wearing a wide-brimmed hat and dark clothes, and other than that I couldn't get a good description on him, but something in the back of my mind was worrying.

Flavia dragged her brother over to the man. I followed closely, intent on making sure Marcello didn't run-off.

"There you are!" Flavia exclaimed to the man. "I was beginning to think you'd left."

He smiled. He was an older man, probably in his mid-thirties, with a thin moustache above his lip.

"Actually, I am not here for books this time," the man said. "I am here for something else."

Flavia motioned to the boxes. "But the books—."

The man kicked over the boxes. They were empty. I went rigid as I realized that this was definitely not the man we wanted to meet with.

"Ready to die, Assassini?" the man asked, his hand moving to a sword on his hip.

I shoved Marcello and Flavia away. "Run! Uscire di qui!"

Marcello was the slowest to react. Flavia dragged him a few metres before he had registered the sword on the man's hip. I drew my own blade and followed, but I heard a familiar whistling through the air. I turned and sliced three times, deflecting all three throwing knives.

"The Auditore still have friends?" The man laughed. The crowds around us were running in all directions in utter chaos. "I didn't think it possible."

"When someone has friends, they tend to stick by them to the end," I told him. "Do you really have to ask?"

The man rushed forward and sliced. I parried and ducked, and then stabbed my blade through his thigh. He cried out in pain, but brought his sword around and cut my side. I released my sword and rolled away, ignoring the burning pain in my side. As I got to my feet, I grabbed onto one of his throwing knives and tossed it at him. It embedded itself into his shoulder as I ran.

I held my side and ran to where I remembered the carriage being. It was just leaving at full speed, but I managed to jump onto some boxes and land on the roof of the carriage.

After twenty minutes we arrived at the Auditore Villa. I clambered off of the roof and followed Flavia and Marcello inside, both surprised that I was even there.

"How'd you get here so quickly?" Marcello exclaimed.

"I ran. What do you think? I jumped on the roof!"

"Sofia!" Flavia exclaimed. "You're wounded!"

"I'll be fine. Just get inside the house!" I ordered.

Flavia shook her head. "No. You're coming with me. I need to patch you up, and then you need to answer a few questions for me."

"No. I have to check the perimeter—."

Sofia came to the door, her eyes worried. "I saw you at the window. What has happened?"

"We went to meet the man who had the delivery of books for you," Flavia explained before I could say a word. "He attacked us. Sofia made us run, and she was wounded."

Sofia looked at the wound on my side. "May I?"

I reluctantly let her take a good look at it. Unfortunately, she had to tear some of my shirt in order to see properly. Sofia made me go inside the house, along with Marcello and Flavia. Sofia, at least, knew that I would heal in about a day because of the Apple. Marcello and Flavia did not.

"Here, I will wrap some bandages around it at least to stop the bleeding," Sofia said.

"B-But madre—!"

Flavia was cut-off by Marcello. "Come on, even I've read a dottore's book before!" he exclaimed. "That will take stitches! Not a bandage! It will get infected!"

"Just leave it for now," Sofia continued, ignoring her children's outbursts. "What happened?"

"Old friends of the family," I grumbled. "Very old friends."

Sofia leaned back in her chair. "Ah… so you were right about coming here."

"Si, it seems so."

Marcello stood up fast. "You brought that man here? He could have hurt my sister! My mother! Who do you think you are, donna?"

"I am here to protect you!" I snapped, rising from my own seat. "You could at least be grateful that you were not hurt today! That man was nothing compared to what could be coming! If we're lucky, that man is dead from blood loss, and did not get to tell who he worked for that I was here!"

Marcello was at his full height. He reminded me so much of Ezio, only Marcello was trying to be a man at his age. When Ezio was Marcello's age, he was still chasing after girls rather than focusing on his studies.

"Marcello!" Sofia said his name firmly. "Sit, now. Sofia, do what you need to do."

Marcello slowly got back in his seat, glaring at me the entire time. I returned his stare. "Si, I shall."

I went up to the guest room and put on my robes. I was sword-less, as I had left my blade in the man's thigh, but at least I had most of my weapons. I escaped through the window, ignoring the pain in my side, and looked around the property quietly. It had already gone to nightfall, my best time of the day.

Over the horizon, I saw soldiers in white, with red crosses on their chests. I looked around to find any cover, but I only saw the vineyards and the Auditore Villa. I grabbed the crossbow off of my back and snuck into the vineyard. I took aim, and fired at a soldier at the back. He went down soundlessly. I did this three more times before it was noticed.

"We're under attack!" a soldier yelled. "Assassini!"

"The vineyard!" another cried. "Quickly!"

They moved into the vineyard, their spears nearly touching as they searched for me. I rolled underneath the feet of one soldier as he stepped, and found myself behind their ranks. I grabbed a soldier's leg and yanked, bringing him down. He screamed, but he was quiet as my hidden blade hit his throat.

The soldiers scrambled as they looked for me. I repeated my process in order to make it look like there were more Assassins about. Finally, a soldier spotted me. I drew my shortblade and lunged at him, sinking it deep into his chest. I grabbed his spear and fended-off the soldiers coming at me, ducking and dodging in order to avoid any more wounds.

"Help!" a soldier screamed as the spear in his hands was turned on him and plunged through his stomach.

A man on horseback was coming over the hills at an amazing speed. I decided that it was time to find better cover, so I ran into the Villa.

"Sofia," I said, panting, "do you have a cellar?"

"Si, in the kitchen," Sofia replied.

"Get inside. Stay down."

Sofia nodded curtly and ushered Flavia and Marcello ahead of her. I waited patiently in the main room for the man on horseback to enter, but I didn't bother drawing any of my weapons. I was ready to use my hidden blades, if needed.

Sofia came back into the room, followed by Flavia and Marcello. "What are you doing?" I snapped. "Get into the cellar or—!"

I stopped short. Two soldiers with spears were escorting the three Auditores into the room. That was when the man on horseback made his entrance through the front. As it turns out, he was the man from earlier today. He was limping heavily on his right leg.

"Nice to see you again," he greeted. "Perhaps, this time, we can fight properly? You know, to the death!"

I glared at him from under my hood. "Let them go."

He shook his head. "No. If you die, they die. If you win, the soldiers have orders to let the Auditore brats go."

"What about Sofia?" I asked.

"She dies. Fair, si? Either way, an Auditore will die tonight!" The man tossed me a silver blade—the very one I had stabbed him with earlier today. "Now, let's see if the Assassini are still as fearsome as they used to be!"

"Release them all!" I shouted. "I could just take everyone out!"

"I'd love to see you try."

I ran at the man and stabbed. He side-stepped and punched the wound on my side. I gasped as the pain ripped through my body, and the man used that to his advantage. Grabbing my hood, he threw me against the fireplace and slammed his sword into mine. I could feel how close the flames were as we locked our weapons together. I took a chance, activated my left hidden blade and brought my hand around. The man skipped out of the way and slammed the pommel of his sword into my side.

I cried out. The man punched my face, slamming it into the fireplace. I tasted blood and it escaped through my mouth. The man kicked my sword out of my hand and grabbed my hood with his free hand. He tore it from my face and twisted me around. I struggled, but he hit my side again. That was when I realized that he'd planned the area he wounded me in. How long had they planned the attack?

The man, so much larger than I, easily used his muscles against me and slowly moved my face closer to the flames. I activated both my hidden blades and wildly attempted to cut his arm, but I was at a bad angle. Again, the man hit my side. I screamed as the pain intensified, and the man shoved my face fully into the flames. I didn't remember the last time I'd felt such pain. My face caught fire and the flames burned viciously. After what seemed like hours, the man released the back of my head. I leapt away from the flames and beat my face until I was somewhat sure the flames were gone. About half of my face was burnt. It definitely wasn't pretty.

The man laughed at me, but it enraged me. I pulled my hood over my face and tossed three throwing knives; one at the man, and two into the skulls of the soldiers. The man barely dodged it, but that was all the time I needed. I kicked him hard in the stomach, right into the fire. It was his turn to scream. He desperately tried to escape, but I kicked his head every time he tried. He seemed to have forgotten that he had a weapon in his hand.

By the time he was dead and I had dragged his body out of the fireplace, the house was plagued by the smell of burnt flesh. My own face felt like it was still on fire. Luckily, the two soldiers were dead. No Auditores had died.

I touched the burnt side of my face gingerly and winced at the pain. I was suddenly glad that the Apple wasn't going to let me keep that scar. I found myself sitting on the floor soon, with Flavia pressing a cold wine bottle against my face.

"Mio dio…" she mumbled.

"I'll be fine," I muttered painfully. "It was nothing."

"Nothing? I saw your face get burned! I'm surprised that half your face didn't fall off!" Flavia reached for my hood.

I grabbed her hand to stop her. "I'll be fine."

Marcello came into the room after helping a distressed Sofia move the bodies. He had in his hand another wine bottle. Marcello offered it to me. "Grazie," he said, a bit hesitantly.

"Nessun problema," I told him as I took it.

A few hours later, Flavia wanted to get a dottore. Sofia agreed with me in saying we didn't need one, but Flavia remained set in her suggestion. After a while, we convinced her that waking a dottore up at this hour would only make him charge us more. Instead, she wanted to get one in the morning.

I had trudged up to my room after that, limping from the pain in my side. Carefully, I laid my weapons down beside the bed and went to sleep. When I woke up, Sofia had let me sleep in. I dressed in simple clothes and looked in the mirror. My face was almost completely healed, the only evidence that I'd been burnt on my neck. I wrapped a red sash around my neck to hide it and pulled-on an overcoat which had a hood. I needed to clean my robes.

I brought the hood over my face and went downstairs. Sofia was sweeping up the last of the ash from the floor when she saw me.

"How are you healing?" she asked, leaning on the broom.

"Well," I answered. "Not much left to heal."

She smiled. "I envy you in that. It must be nice to heal so quickly."

"Sometimes I wish I had the scars as a memory of the experience," I told her honestly. "But in this case, I'll pass."

She chuckled. "Would you like something to eat?"

Sofia and I ended up cooking together. We just had fried meat along with some bread, which was simple enough.

"Where is Marcello and Flavia?" I asked.

Sofia looked down at her plate. "Visiting their padre. I wanted to make sure you knew nothing bad had happened, so I stayed behind."

"You could have left a note," I suggested.

She shrugged. "There is so much to do yet. I did not want to leave it."

I rubbed my eyes under my hood. "Flavia didn't try to get a dottore?"

"Oh, she tried. And she kept yelling at me, saying that I didn't care about you. That I wanted infection to settle in."

"Then maybe we should tell them."

Sofia looked at me. "Sul serio? But—."

"We will not hear the end of it if they are not told. I would rather them know and not be worried than think you wanted me dead."

Closing her eyes, Sofia thought it over. "Va bene. If you wish."

"When they return, I will tell them everything. Of course, we may need some help from Ezio." Sofia bit her lip as I spoke. "They will not believe me if they do not believe their father was an Assassin."

Sofia tapped her plate. "You know, Flavia always believed that her padre was more than he said he was. She always regretted not knowing him much better."

"That was hardly her fault."

"Si, but she blames herself. When she was a child, even though they were close, Flavia didn't spend much time with him."

I leaned back in my seat. "We all have regrets. The ones she has are normal. I wished, when we left my father behind, that I wouldn't have been so serious. That I had been as carefree as I became after his death. Or, at least, I hope I looked carefree. I had many cares. Hard to hide, but I became good at it."

Sofia nodded. "I will have many regrets when I pass."

"I hope you don't. Better to finish everything now than wish you had on your deathbed."

I heard the door open in the front. Standing, Sofia and I went to greet the Auditore siblings.

"Marcello, Flavia," Sofia started. "There's something we need to speak about. It is important, so I ask that you sit."