Note ~ Oh my gosh! Giant chapter of DOOOOOOOOOOOMMMM! You can blame the Appleseed soundtrack for the craziness of this here yearbook meeting of words, my friends. I have it in my mind to commit myself to the nearest asylum for producing such things, but then I wouldn't be able to eat as many Oreos. And that would truly be a shame.

I'm not going to respond to your reviews one by one this time around because my response applies to all. First of all, THANK YOU so much for taking the time to review! Secondly, I sincerely hope I can remedy all of the confusion, but I feel as though I am utterly lacking in the 'fix everyone's confusion' department. If you wish to pelt me with something, I will accept anything but spiked pythons. And THIRDLY, there are TWO sets of behind the scenes groups speaking in italics. One is directly corresponding with Altair. The second, with Sarah. This chapter should help with distinguishing between the two. Also, 'Dunney' is pronounced 'Doo-nee' and 'Faruq' is spoken as 'Faw-rook'.

Thanks again for reading! If you didn't get the muffin I sent to you before, it should be arriving from the sky soon enough. :)

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

~Four days earlier~

"All for the sake of science, eh?"

Rorrick grinned mischievously at his red-headed partner. "Don't worry, Dunney. We'll have her back home before we're done. It's not like we're going to kill her or anything."

Dunney sighed as he lay her scantily-clothed frame upon the 'Animus' they had created. It had cost them a year of research and failed attempts to even begin their emergence on the right track. And now that they were here, they had been forced to risk everything. Two previously revered scientists on the run with their precious prototype, constantly trying to convince themselves that they were doing the right thing, that this machine would change the world.

But even with their heavily-cultured minds, the two men could not hope to comprehend what they were getting themselves into. They were criminals now, and both knew that there was no turning back. And now, they were being hunted by a force that neither had known even existed.

So they were fugitives running from an invisible hand…and from their own consciousnesses. And as of a few days ago, they were kidnappers. Rorrick had suggested a 'randomly selected' test subject based on a series of prerequisites, though that was hardly what it turned out to be. The subject had to be young and healthy as a start. He had to be exceptionally familiar with the game, and most importantly, he had to be someone who would not be missed.

It was by sheer chance that they had found Sarah, quietly poised at her console while the rest of her family slept. She had been on the edge of consciousness when they found her, and barely had a chance to scream as she was stripped from the face of everything she had once known. She was 'randomly selected' to aid them, taken from her life so the two men could test their prized prototype.

Dunney stared down at her, pressed limply against the latches of their metal contraption. For the briefest of moments, he felt a heart-wrenching urge to take her home and forget about the whole thing. But all thoughts of backing down were eradicated when he felt Rorrick's reassuring hand on his shoulder. They did not have the time for soul-searching. They had already made their decision.

"We can't stay in this warehouse for more than a month, so we better get this started while we still can," he heard Rorrick say, his voice charred with concern.

Dunney cleared his throat. "I'm still developing an implant to reverse brain deterioration and automatically pull her from the machine is she is killed in there."

"Get it done. That implant will save her life if our systems go haywire."

"Or if we get hacked."

"That shouldn't happen. We've got control of all cells. The only thing we have to worry about is this group who's following us and Sarah's brain rejecting the implant."

Dunney nodded quickly and proceeded to close the clasps of Sarah's restraints, twisting her arms upwards for injections and leveling her skull to prevent fluid disruption. They could not let anything go wrong.

"Right then," Rorrick whispered. "Let's change the world, Dunney."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Hah! Firewalls down. We've got him, whoever he is."

"Good. Time to see what these people are up to."

"Wait."

"What? What's wrong?"

"Rorrick, this man's brain is under tremendous stress."

"That's to be expected-"

"No, not like this. According to these readings, Altair was being transported."

"What? That's impossible! We have control of-"

"No we don't. They do."

"Who is 'they'?"

"I don't know, but whoever they are, they've managed to commandeer the majority of our artificials and functionality codes."

"Well, we have the brain behind Altair now, correct? Alter the system. Send another virus!"

"It's not that simple! If we collapse their system, we lose the whole thing!"

"I don't care, just do it!"

"Listen to yourself! Sarah will die, along with the man to whom this brain belongs! We are not murderers, Rorrick!"

"Well we have to do something, Dunney!"

"…I have an idea."

"Yes?"

"Get me access to her implant. We can use it to warp her consciousness and lull her to a static state. From there, we can begin to terminate the systems one by one, quarantining only essential cells."

"And what of Altair?"

"Im releasing his brain. If they're smart, they'll disconnect him from whatever he's hooked up to before blackout."

"But do you realize what this means? We lose it all! All of our research, gone!"

"It's better than the alternative! I will not be responsible for either of their deaths! This project is just not worth the risks, Rorrick…I'm sorry. When it finally goes quiet, we're pulling her out and taking her home first chance we get."

"But we can't just turn ourselves in! We'll never see the light of day again!"

"Then we run, but only after we destroy this thing. It's caused nothing but grief. Prep her for deactivation. I'm beginning the quarantine now."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"We finally made it…"

I peered around Faruq's shoulder and was greeted by a sight bearing the weight of intense recognition. Masyaf's massive beamed gates stood widely in the rocky sand, sending a ripple of electricity along my flesh. The last time I was here was the first time I had seen Altair, and now I would most likely never see him again. It was within the Assassin fortress' walls that Malik resided, diligently guarding the Piece of Eden.

Suddenly, I felt a knot release itself from my throat. Malik. He was the only other person who knew about my…situation. I had all but forgotten him in the turmoil of trying to return home. I felt my fingers clinch in anticipation. But there was also something else, something long buried and shrouded by tears and tension. My heart was coloring with hope, though I was not completely sure why. It just felt so impossibly warm to know that I was not as alone as I had assumed.

"Faruq," I nearly shouted, nudging him slightly with my forearm.

"What is it, Shabah?"

"I need to see Malik!"

Faruq seemed surprised by my sudden vigor, and responded by coaxing the horse into a slightly more progressive gait. "How do you know Malik?" he asked, a disturbing fog of suspicion present in his tone.

It had slipped my mind that Faruq believed mine and Altair's meeting to have occurred outside Masyaf's walls. Altair had told him that he simply happened upon me and took it upon himself to aid me in my journey home, a destination that Faruq had no real grasp of.

I raked my brain for an excuse, some understandable explanation. "Umm…Altair told me about him." Wow. Was that the best I could do? I clamped my eyes shut and waited for Faruq's immanent reprisal.

But it never came. He simply nodded and reached to slide his helmet above his head, which was no doubt sodden with sweat. He tucked the metal headpiece beneath his left arm and exhaled deeply as we neared Masyaf's guarded entrance.

When we finally reached it, Faruq brought the steed to an instant halt as we were confronted by a rather confused Assassin.

"I-Is that you, Faruq?" the young Arabic questioned, his features turned in frustration. "Why do you wear-"

"It is a long story," Faruq answered, fairly annoyed. "I do not have time for this confrontation, Brother. I must speak with Malik immediately."

The novice nodded slowly, his reactions significantly delayed as his gaze jolted between Faruq and I. "I will tend to your animal, then," he finally blurted out. "The Grand Master is in his library."

"Thank you, Brother." Faruq said shortly, his feet already planted in the sand.

I stared down at him for half a second before closing my eyes and tumbling off of the horse. Almost instantly, our young Assassin greeter had the horse by the reins and was leading it away from us. I felt an heavy gauntlet grip my arm and nearly fell face-first into the Earth as Faruq yanked me into an urgent sprint.

I struggled to keep up with him as we pushed past civilians and Assassins alike, desperate to reach the fortress at the top of the small cliffside. Hours of horseback riding had left my legs considerably numb, but adrenaline still managed to fuel my muscles as we moved. Faruq's pace surprised me. It was like he had suddenly come to some critical conclusion and was responding to it passionately. It was possible he was just concerned for Altair's life, but it still seemed rather strange.

Before I noticed we had even spanned any distance at all, we were at the stronghold's oppressive iron drop-gate. We slowed to a tense jog as Faruq led me up the twisted stone steps that surrounded the training circle. I took the opportunity to soak in the sight of fresh Assassins sparring or stretching. It all looked so foreign to me now, like I had never seen any of it before in my entire life.

"Just a little further," I heard Faruq mutter as we crossed the fortress' threshold and entered the base of the library. It was a hefty room cloaked in subtle incense and musty parchment, with a handful of elder Assassins sifting through it's many shelves. And directly across from us breathed the gateway to Masyaf's poorly-tended palm garden.

I retrieved my arm from Faruq's grip and stared with dulled fear at the chiseled doorway. It was behind that portal that Altair had confronted Al Mualim, and it was behind that portal now that I would confront Malik.

Faruq let out an exasperated breath as he watched me make a straight path for the garden. "The novice said Malik was in the library," he protested.

I pointed directly ahead of me and continued walking. It was almost as though I knew what I was doing, which was severely uncommon and unheard of, yet on I walked with little regard for Faruq's presence. All my brain would focus on was Malik.

Faruq followed my direction to the tensed back of a figure in the immediate center of the garden. Malik's robes fell loosely over his pursed shoulders as he stood still as death against the delicate breeze. It rustled his hair and sent pixie blossoms through his fingers, but he never exhibited any movement of his own.

By this point, I had decided that something was wrong. This entire situation seemed off. Faruq paused at the edge of the doorway and watched as I continued through the meager grass towards Malik. When I was close enough to touch him, I stopped, feeling an incredibly uneasiness grip the air.

I cleared my throat softly. "M-Malik," I began. "I-"

Before I could continue, he whirled around and met my searching gaze. My heartbeat fluttered a little at his sudden movement and I was utterly startled by the endlessness of his harsh irises staring into me.

"Malik," I tried again when he did not say anything. "Altair's been taken by Templars and-"

"And that is not why you are really here," he finished for me, his voice leaden with something not far from fury.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Oh my God. I don't believe this. We've got him back."

"They must be doing some-"

"Shit! They're doing something, all right. Look here. All minor cells are being reformatted. They're quarantining Sarah's location."

"That must mean they plan on pulling her out sooner than we expected. Most likely a reaction to having access to Altair's neural sequences."

"So you're saying they know what we've been up to and they're trying to flush us out?"

"Precisely. This is not good. Have you locked in on Altair's brain? We need to complete that transport before we run out of time."

"I've got him, but he's under too much stress. We have to wait at least a few minutes."

"We don't have a few minutes!"

"We just might, actually. His consciousness was in dead space before they got a hold of him. That area should be one of the last to be reached by their blackout."

"That still barely leaves us with enough time to reinitiate the neural transport. You'll have to work fast."

"I can do it."

"In the meantime, we're counting on Malik to keep Sarah busy."

"His program is flawless. By the end of their conversation, she should have a better idea of what we're up to."

"I hope you're right."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

A careful smirk found its way upon Malik's lips as he observed my incredulous expression. "Hold out your hand, Shabah. I want to show you something."

I hesitated. What on Earth was going on here? Why was Malik acting like nothing was wrong? Did he not care that Altair had been captured? It seemed as though we were living in an entirely different dimension, what with the way the breeze attempted to carry my thoughts away towards the cliffs and lift my heavy heart. It was not supposed to be this calm. Malik was supposed to scream and flail his arms and command troops to rescue Altair or kill me on the spot for causing so much trouble. But no. He just stood there, telling me to hold out my hand like he was going to give me a flower.

"What is wrong with you?" I nearly shouted. "Did you not hear me? Altair has been-"

Malik's brows crashed together and his mouth bent into a furious frown. "I heard you, Shabah. But I don't think you heard me. Hold out your hand. We don't have time for you to start defending a shield."

"Defending a shield? What do you mean?"

"Do not worry about Altair. Just hold out your hand and listen to me."

"But I-" I cut myself off, deciding against a time-wasting argument. Maybe he would snap out of this if I just complied, so I held out my hand and watched the master Assassin intently as he reached into his breast pouch. From it he presented an unimpressive silver sphere with geometric etchings and an unearthly glint. I gasped, recognizing it as the Piece of Eden, so renowned for its illusions and godly powers.

"Malik!" I stammered. What was wrong with him? "What are you doing?"

He did not answer. Instead, he dropped the small orb right into the palm of my upturned hand. I flinched and tried to pull my arm back, but he held it fast and locked his fingers around my wrist.

"Now we will be needing your device as well. Hold it directly parallel to the Piece of Eden and the rest will happen on its own."

With this, he released my wrist and took a notable step back. I fumbled with his suggestion in my mind. What the heck was he planning? I had been convinced that I was loosing my mind a day ago, but now I was leaning more towards Malik being the insane one.

Nevertheless, my curiosity got the better of me and I allowed my other hand to plummet into the pocket of my robe, my fingers bumping against the cold leather of my ipod's case. I pulled it out and into view, pausing for a moment to recount Malik's instructions. Hold it parallel to the Piece of Eden. I took one incredibly long breath and outstretched my arm, exposing my device to the sunlight. Instinctively, I slammed my eyelids shut and braced myself for some kind of explosion.

"Open your eyes, Shabah," Malik ordered gently from his distance in front of me.

Reluctantly, I complied, though I regretted it as soon as I did. A fiery burst of light engulfed both of my palms and seized into a violent wall of numbers and symbols. Its force burned through my irises and I felt real flames ignite somewhere inside my abdomen, searing through to my flesh.

I cried out an indecipherable stream of pain-struck screams, but my body refused to crumple to ground like it should have. Instead, I remained standing and perfectly still, paralyzed by the white-gold glow that surrounded me. Soon, I began to realize that the fire I felt was not painful, but static and numb. The pain I felt was false, fabricated by a hyperaware reaction. No, this fire was something else.

"Perfect," Malik said calmly. "Now you need to focus, Shabah. Remember the numbers that we sent you. Recall the sequence."

Without any further suggestion, my brain immediately procured the numbers he was asking for. They had been branded into my subconscious, after all.

"2.0, 0.3, 2, 3, 000, 2.02, 0," I whispered blandly.

"Focus, Shabah."

I stared at the light before me intently, no longer aware of Malik's faded voice. All I could see was the series of lines and dots that stretched before my vision. Morse code.

. . -

- . . .

. .

. . .

. . - .

"Decode it, Shabah." I heard someone say.

My eyes seemed like they could never close again as I absorbed the symbols being shown to me. And slowly, pieces of letters began to form in my mind.

2.0 - U

0.3 - B

2 - I

3 - S

000 - O

2.02 - F

0 - T

Then, just like that, it was over. My vision collapsed into darkness and the stream of letters faded to nothing. But they did not leave my mind. Of course I knew that name. A good amount of the world's population knew that name. It did not make any sense whatsoever. Why would someone send it to me in coded Morse code? And more importantly, what did it have to do with me getting home?

And then I heard his voice, a music sweeter than any symphony. I could still see nothing, but I could tell he was moving towards me. My entire body shriveled into numbness until only my dwindled awareness remained. But that was enough.

"Alt-air…"

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Transport complete. He better move fast. The quarantine is almost in full effect."

"Come on, Altair. Get her out of there."

"Thirty-six seconds."

"Prepare for disconnection…As soon as she's out, he needs to follow."

"Thirty-four seconds."

"Alpha's converged on their position. Where's our team?"

"Dispatched and ready. All checkpoints have been cleared. When Ubisoft gets there, we'll be ready."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

First there were colors. Then, I began to focus on faint outlines, until finally I could see his face. I blinked, hardly believing that it was his muddy eyes that held me. It just didn't make sense, and it had happened far too fast for me to comprehend. All of it had. But somehow, I didn't seem to care at the moment because standing directly in front of me was the Assassin I had convinced myself I would never see again.

"Altair!" I somehow managed to choke out, desperately reaching for him. "I thought you were captured! What is going on here?"

I saw his lips move, forming a silent "I'm sorry" before I felt something I never imagined I would feel. The icy metal of his hidden blade collided with the thumping flesh of my throat, piercing through it and sending my nerves into a frenzy as blood rushed from my veins.

Before I could even begin to react, my consciousness began to crumble, along with my bleeding frame. All this time, I had been saved. Everyone had hurt for me, all in what I assumed to be a vast effort to preserve me. And now here I was, Altair's blade slowly consuming what was left of my life.

"I'm so sorry, Shabah," his voice whispered weakly. "It's not what you think."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Dunney, what's going on?"

"Security systems have been breached! They found us!"

"No! No, no, no, no, no! Damn it! Pull her out! Pull her out now!"

"I can't! The system's been locked!"

"No!"

"They're coming! Damn it, Rorrick! They have guns!"

"Wait, look! Her implant is reacting!"

"What? I don't believe this. S-She's been killed! The implant is bringing her around!"

"Oh, thank God! Hurry, wipe the data before it's too late! We need to disconnect her IV's and cancel all chemical transfers or she'll go comatose!"

"Rorrick, we can't."

"What do you mean we-Oh no."

"They're here."