Chapter 22: Altair

"Come on, we have to go." I yelled into the depths of the suite I shared with everyone else. You would think staying with four other trained assassins, they would move with a bit more haste, but you would be wrong. Ezio was a perfectionist. He had to have everything in order before he stepped one foot out the door. Desmond was lucky to have his head screwed on straight, and Jenna. We would not even go there. Alanna was missing in action. I had received a text from her phone a few hours ago, but it made no sense. She had never sent a text to me.

I was a little worried. It was not like her to just... no, I am going to finish that. She did have the habit of just taking off. But for her to send a text saying she would just meet us there was a bit odd. She was only carrying her hidden blades and a few knives. No gun. That was not like her.

Finally Ezio, Desmond, and Jenna walk out with Mike following them. "Oh no, the kid stays." I tightened the gun holster on my shoulder. I did not care much for guns, but they did come in handy.

"Told you kid." Ezio threw the duffel onto the table. He zipped the black bag up and looked over at me. "So, any new word from Alanna?"

"No." I grabbed the lightweight black jacket and put it on. The three of them looked at me. They thought I was insane for wearing a jacket, but I was accustomed to wearing layers in the desert. They were not.

Jenna checked her blade and nodded. "She is a big girl. She can handle herself. Quit worrying like a mother."

I glared at the blond. She just looked back at me, then back at her blade. Mike watched the both of us. "Jenna, I thought you said I was coming."

I turned to the boy. He stepped back from his cousin. "And I said you are not. I am leading this team, and you are not a trained assassin. We can not have a novice going into this fight."

Jenna's head shot up. Her blue eyes were ablaze. "And who died and made you king? I am the senior member of the guild right now."

"And I am the oldest with more kills under my belt than you will ever have in your short lifetime. Actually, I had more kills when I was your age than you will ever have. Do you want to go by the book or do you want experience leading this?" I went toe to toe with her. If she knew anything, I would not back down.

Ezio stepped up to us. "You two need to knock it off. I am going to side with Altair on this one. We both have more experience leading others than you do, Jen. I am sorry, but it is true. I would rather have him in charge. He has been on missions that I have never been on. It is just common sense."

She turned to him. "Fine, but do not think I will forget this, Ezio."

I just rolled my eyes and zipped the jacket up. It concealed my weaponry from curious eyes. "Let's move out."

I headed for the door, but before I could grab the doorknob, there was a knock. I looked back at the others. They just shook their heads. My hand went towards the grip of the Colt under the jacket. The knock came again.

I opened the door to see a man standing there. "I was told to deliver this letter to a Mr. Turner." He held out the envelope. I took it and he turned to leave.

"Who is this from?" I asked, looking down at the letter.

The man turned and looked back at me. "Don't know. I work at the front desk. A man came in and said it was urgent that you get that letter, so I brought it up. Good day." He walked back towards the elevators.

I walked back in and shut the door. Desmond looked at me. "Who was that?"

"He works at the front desk. Someone told him to drop this off to me." I began to open the letter. Once I had the damn thing open, I began to read. It was from one of the bail bondsmen here in Vegas. Wow, news travels fast when I am in town. They had a job for me if I was interested. I just shook my head. If I could clear this mess up today, I might take it. To relieve some stress.

Ezio slung the bag over his shoulder. "So, who is it from?"

"One of the bail bondsmen here in town. They want me to take a job. I worked for him before. Good guy. Pays good too." I laid it on the table. "Maybe later. Right now, we have to get to the Hard Rock before Sebastian thinks we are not going to show."
"We still have a hour before the meeting. Why do you want to get there so early?" Jenna slipped her gun into the holster in the small of her back.

I rolled my eyes at the girl. And she called herself an assassin. Desmond, who was one step above her in my book, answered her question. "He wants to scout the area. Check for exit points and hidden men. I am right, aren't I?" He turned his dark brown eyes on me.

Looking at him sometimes reminded me of a puppy. He was always trying to get a praise from me. Sighing, I nodded and gave the boy what he wanted. A smirk formed on his lips at the female.

She huffed and walked towards the door, mumbling something about the three of us sharing the same brain. I chuckled a bit. Women were always amusing when they were pissed off, and a man answers their questions.

/*/*/*/*/*/*/

We walked into the lobby of the hotel fifteen minutes later. It was only a few blocks from the hotel we were currently staying at. I could feel eyes on me as soon as we entered. They knew we were here. No scouting was going to get done, but I could still observe. The place was too big for his men to be everywhere.

I switched to the Eagle Vision and almost closed my eyes from the blinding light of the red everywhere. One out of every five were red. I was almost shocked. I knew this town was overrun by the bastards, but not at this magnitude.

I glanced back at Ezio and Desmond, and judging from the looks on their faces, they were looking at the same thing I was. A low whistle came from Ezio's lips. "Damn. We just walked into the hornet's nest, haven't we?" He said to me in hushed tones.

"I know. This could spell trouble for us if we are not careful. This was one time I wish Alanna had not run off. We could really use some backup that was not two children playing assassins." I watched the people walking around the lobby and walking into the casino. Some were looking at us and others were just mingling.

Desmond glared at me. "I heard what you just said."

I looked back at him, a scowl planted on my face. "And I just meant every word of it. You may be like us, Boy, but you are not us."

He only frowned in response. At least he had the common sense to keep his mouth planted shut. I lead them to the front desk. The woman there smiled at us. "Hello, welcome to the Hard Rock Casino and Hotel. How may I help you today?"

"I am here to meet a friend of mine. He was to reserve a room." I faked a smile for the woman. She was white, so no danger from her.

She looked down at her computer. "Oh, you must be Mr. Turner? Yes, he is in the banquet room. Are you having a meeting?" She looked back up at me.

"Something like that. A business deal actually. Can you direct us to the right room?" I scanned the lobby one more time. More reds were showing up and watching us. I was not liking the look of this.

"Sure." She gave me directions and we walked back through the casino, the whole time five men following us. I guess we were that bad. Well, I was and so was Ezio, but I did not know how Jenna and Desmond would fair in an all out fight. I had never seen the boy fight. Against me, Ezio, or Alanna in training, he was decent, but I did not know how his skills were in an all out fight. I already knew he could not hit the broad side of a barn with a gun. That was already proven yesterday.

"Altair, don't look now, but three more coming up on you nine." Ezio whispered to me.

I swerved my eyes and used the mirrors in the ceiling to identify the men. Sure enough, there were three more walking around, but still following us. They were keeping a low profile, but I knew what to look for.

"You know, if they send anymore, I might feel honored." I smirked.

Ezio shook his head. "You are itching for a fight with these guys aren't you?"

I nodded. "Haven't been in a good one in ages."

"We are in a casino with many innocents around. We can not unleash Armageddon in this place. That would be a bad thing. And who knows, maybe one day I might like to come back here to play." He turned at the craps table. I stayed at his side.

I groaned. "There is not much else to do here but blow money and get drunk. You can do that anywhere."

He chuckled. "So, what happened between you and Alanna? You two got drunk last night."

Turning my head to the cocky Italian, I glared. "And how do you know that?"

"I called and woke Alanna up. She was quite hung over and if she was, I know you were as well. So, do you remember any of it? You have a tendency to black out if you have had too much to drink." He gave me a sly smile. He knew something but wanted me to say it first.

"You can keep thinking things. I am not going to entertain you before we head in there." I looked straight ahead, but still watching the room. I did not like this set up. Far too many enemies in one large and overcrowded room.

I heard the man to my left sigh. "You are a kill joy. Keeping me in the dark on many things."

"Yeah so? Do I invade your personal life?" I would have smacked him if I could, but that would have drawn more attention to ourselves. Best leave the smacking for later.

A moment later, we had made it to the door to the banquet room. I breathed in and out, calming the frayed nerves I already had. Ezio was doing the same thing. WE had been through this before. It was not our first time going toe toe with this idiots and it would not be the last time. I opened then door ad walked in followed by Ezio, Jenna, and Desmond.

A man stood in the middle of the room and was flanked by three men on each side. Four more filed in behind us. I watched them all with a carefully trained eye. I was not worried about myself, Ezio, or Desmond. It was the woman with us. She was not immortal and thus could die from a bullet. These men were packing large caliber hand cannons plus full automatic machine guns.

"Welcome!" The accent was slightly Spanish. This was Sebastian. Now, the only question was, where the hell was Alanna. "I am so glad you could join us."

He snapped his fingers and the men moved, and there answered my question. Alanna was tied to a chair, electrodes stuck to her temple, neck and chest. She raised her head and looked at me. She was to the point of exhaustion. They had tortured her. I clinched my fists to stop myself from hosing them all down. "Let her go."

"Alanna here has a wonderful tolerance for pain. Shocking her, beating her does no good. She is quite resilient. It is awe inspiring. I hope one day I will be as good as her. Once you hand over the Apple." I flashed a set of white teeth. "Oh, and Mr. Miles there. My partner is most interested in the things in his head."

"And who is your partner? Some sewer rat you found hiding in the underbelly of this city?" I glared at the man in front of me. I took a step forward and the men raised their guns. Smart men, but if I really wanted to, I am sure they would be dead before they got a shot off.

I heard a bag hit the ground. Ezio had dropped it from his shoulder so he could have easier access to his weapons. "If you know us as well as you think you do, you know we will not hand over Desmond to the Templars and walk out of here." The Italian let his hand pull the gun he had on him out into the open.

"Oh, I know you will not hand him over without a fight. You assassins are loyal to each other. I can respect that."

I turned my head slightly to see another man walk into the room. Desmond was in my slight line of sight and I saw him stiffen. So he did know this man. "Vidic." The name passed his lips, almost so quietly that I did not hear it.

So this was the infamous Warren Vidic. The man that first stuck Des in the Animus and tried to fry his brain. "Mr. Miles, a pleasure to see you again. I had missed you."

Desmond's eyes narrowed and his body tensed. "No you haven't. You are just pissed because I got away. If you think I am going anywhere with you again, you have lost your fucking mind."

The older man smiled. "Oh, I have ways of making you change your mind." He picked up the tazer that was sitting on the floor next to Alanna's chair.

"I will kill you as soon as I get out of this, Vidic. Do not think I am joking." She growled at him.

He just shook his head. "No, you will not." And he pulled the trigger.

A few thousand volts of electricity rushed through her body, causing her to go rigid in the chair. Once he stopped, she slumped, and her breaths came out in ragged gasps. Sebastian even turned is head from the scene. "You...are...a...dead, AH!" She cried out as he did it once more.

"Enough of that, Ms. Dowd. I know you can take much, but I do not want completely destroy everything in that head of yours." He turned to us. "Now, Mr. Miles for her. He comes with me, with the Apple and she goes free. It is that simple."

Desmond turned to me. "I will go. I can not stand by and watch him do that to her."

No, fuck this. To hell with keeping Jenna safe. I would have this man's blood on my blade or be riddled with bullets. Either way, he was going to die. "No, you will not go anywhere with them. They want knowledge on how it works. I am correct?" Vidic nodded. "Well, you are going to get that from him. You may have a machine that can watch his memories, but without someone that knows how to work it, you can not use it. It is a large golden paperweight."

Vidic looked at me. "What are you proposing?"

I smirked. "Give us Alanna and you get to leave here with your lives, or I will kill everyone of you in this room. You will not have the Apple. You will not have Desmond. You will not win this so just give up."

"Oh, and if you do not, I will just blow us all up and see who lives through it." Ezio pulled a grenade from the cargo pocket of his pants. I just looked at the Italian.

"You and explosives." I just shook my head. "Well, you heard him, and believe me, he will seriously blow us all up."

I could see the gears in the man's head moving. He was trying to get out of it, but we had him. If he did not let Alanna go, he would die and then that would mean his small part would end with a very large bang. But, he could go for broke and challenge him and see what Ezio would do. I knew he would throw the grenade, and run like hell. I have seen him do it before. He probably had a few more on him, or in the bag. It did sound kind of heavy when he let it hit the ground. C4 maybe?

"It is your call Vidic. Leave and live, keep going and die. I really don't care." Ezio pulled the pin from the grenade and threw the pin at the Templar. "Now, if you get the bright idea to shoot me, I drop this and you are dead. I think you should go with letting us leave here."

I am trying to get back into the swing of things. I have been finding little tie to write. The only time i get any extra time is on the weekends, so please be easy on me. Hopefully I will have something else up in a day or two. I know this is a cliffy, but... Sorry! Please review let me know what you think. I am going to try and bring back Rebecca and Shaun not next chapter but the following one. See everyone later!