Chapter 23

My mind was numb, my thoughts garbled and my body not responding to anything I wished it to do. I wanted out. I wanted free, but I could not move from the chair they had me in. I could only watch and wait and pray they would sent me free soon. The skin on my wrists were raw and burned from the electricity that had coursed through my body and used the metal handcuffs as a conductor. The chair did not not help, for it was metal as well. I wanted out. I wanted to die at that point. I would have gladly eaten that grenade and smiled as my body blew itself apart, splattering everyone around with pieces of me.

"Alanna." I heard my name called, but in my foggy mind I did not know who was saying my name.

Ever so slowly, my head rose from its resting place. I turned my weary eyes to the people in front of me. "Can you hear me?"

It was Altair. He looked at me with concern in his golden eyes. I could not answer for my throat was raw from the screams that came from it. I bobbed my head once to let him know I did hear him and I was still with them. I felt the blood slosh in my head, causing me to nearly become sick. How I wished for the sweet darkness to take over.

"Let her go, Vidic. Either by choice or by force." I heard the words in Ezio's voice, but my sight was beginning to fail. I smiled bitterly. I would not be around for the fight. I would miss it all. To much damage had been done and I was losing. It was only a matter of a few minutes before the darkness claimed me. For how long I could not say.

I heard the arguments, but could not make out the words. The darkness descended, and I felt no more.

*/*/*/*/*

My eyes fluttered open to the bright sunlight. I shaded them from the harsh light and looked around. I sat on a stone bench, with the scent of jasmine floating on the breeze. The cloth on my body was rough, but familiar. I looked down to see a see of white and red wrapped around me. My old robes. The ones I had grown to dislike white with.

The bench, with further observation, was the one I sat on when in the gardens at Masyaf. My mind was moving, trying to figure out how I was here and not in the conference room with everyone else.

"You have retreated back into your mind. Where you feel safe."

I turned my upper body and stared at the person that had appeared behind me. Malik smiled at me. His dark hair hung over his forehead, almost to his dark eyes. As always, his black Dai robes were neat and pristine. "Malik? How.. How?"

"How am I here? This is your mind, Alanna. I am here because you wish me to be, not by some other means." He pointed to the spot next to me. "May I sit down with you?"

I moved over a bit. "By all means."

He sat next to me, the empty sleeve touching my right shoulder. "It has been awhile since you have called upon a friend. We have not talked in many years."

I looked out at the horizon. "Since the night before I was turned."

I heard him chuckle. "You have done well for a street rat. A fine home, fine transportation, and good friends. I see you have even got to Altair finally."

I knew he was just a figment of my mind, but it was comforting to have him sit next to me again. I had just wished it was real. "I have missed our conversations. It always made me feel better to know I had a friend in those dark times."

"Those conversation are always there. You have made new allies and friends. There are more dark times to come, Alanna." He bumped me with his shoulder, causing me to smile. He always did that when I was getting too glum.

I smiled and turned to look at him. He was the same now as he was when we last talked. It was the way I remembered him. "What do I do now? I can not help fight them. I am strapped to a chair."

He looked at me with those dark eyes. "You are the assassin. You should know how to get out of that mess. If you hurry and wake up, I am sure you will be able to help them. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for."

I sighed and hung my head. I had never believed in myself. It was always he that gave me the strength to keep going on in my training and in my life. I wanted to stay here and talk with him for all eternity, but I knew he would not allow that. "Thank you, Malik."

Standing, I looked back over the mountains. Acre lay a few days ride from here. This was where I always watched my home, but today it was where I would leave that part behind me.

"Alanna, I will always be here to help you. You know that. Just like it was back then." He reached up with his hand and took mine.

I turned my gray eyes onto his face, remembering ever detail. "Thank you, my most cherished friend. I wish we could have had more time together in life. To see what would have come of us."

"You can not think of what was, but what will be. You and I were not destined for each other and in your heart you know this. There is only one thing you need to do, and that is to wake up." He squeezed my hand and released me.

I nodded and walked towards the fortress. I had to make it to the jump platforms. It was the one way I knew to wake from a dream. Jump from a high place and you always awoke before you hit the bottom. Making my way through the empty halls and down the stairs. I walked past the sparring ring. Many memories came rushing back. I missed those days and wished that I had never left them so far behind. I had become an assassin in these walls. I had found a friendship that lasted through time and found other sides of me that I did not know were there.

Climbing the old ladder, I made it to the top. The wind blew at the white fabric and whipped my braid around as well. The jump had always terrified me, but I used that to overcome the fear that held me to the spot. With my head held high, I walked out to the end and looked at the horizon. An eagle flew past on majestic wings. Altair. Even in my mind, he was here. I smiled, raised my arms, and dove.

/*/*/*/*/*/

My eyes shot open, and looked at the man next to me. "Come here." I whispered in a raspy voice that was hardly my own.

I stepped closer and I smiled. "What do you want?"

"Your life." I turned my head and bit him. He howled in pain. I clamped down harder on the soft flesh of his side. Blood filled my mouth, as my teeth tore the skin.

The disturbance was enough to startle Vidic, who shocked me once again, but this time it got his own man. I could stand the voltage, the man I had a hold of, could not. He dropped like a stone, and pulled the chair over as well, ripping half the electrodes off of me in the process. My shoulder slammed into the ground, causing some more pain. Slowly, I moved my arms down the legs of the chair until the ends of the cuffs slid off the legs.

I saw the handle of a knife sticking out of the man's boot. Grabbing it, I quickly sliced the restraints from my legs. Gun fire could be heard over my head, but I did not care. I would have blood and I would have it today. I was an assassin. A trained killer. I was kept alive to keep balance and I would see to it that it was kept.

My legs were freed and as I rolled over, the man began to come to. I smiled. My first victim. I pushed myself up onto my knees and looked down at him. I would wait until he opened his eyes before he met the blade that would take his life forever.

His eyes slowly opened and he looked at me. "See you in hell." And I laid the blade across his throat.

Blood poured from the wound, as his gaze glazed over and life drained from them. I then grabbed the gun from his hip and made it to my feet.

"Alanna!"

Turning my head, I caught sight of the person that had called my name. Desmond ran over to me. "I thought you were out for the count."

Shaking my head, I cocked the gun in my hand. "Not yet. What is going on?"

"Vidic took off when you bit that guy. He is long gone, but Altair and Ezio went after Sebastian. Jenna is guarding the door, making sure no more come through."

"What direction did the go?" If I could not have Vidic, I would have Sebastian. I hated traitors more than I hated Templars themselves. They were all bastards in my eyes. I pulled at the rest of the electrodes.

Desmond grabbed my arm. "You are in no condition to fight. Just leave it to the guys."

I fixed him with a glare to rival Altair's. The younger man released me and stepped back. "I will have that man's blood. I have taken worse and I have always kept going. Now point me in the direction they went."

"Out the back." He pointed to the door.

I nodded. "Get Jenna and get out of here. It will not be long until they send back up. Also they will be hunting for us now. Go back to the hotel, get everything and check out."

He sighed and reluctantly nodded. "Why do I feel like you are sending us away? I am just like you guys. I can hold my own."

"Desmond," I hung my head and took in a breath. How do I say this without being mean or upsetting him. "I know you have in your head that you are an assassin. I know you will be a good one someday, but for right now you are not completely trained. I do not want to have to keep looking over my shoulder to see if you have been hit or worse. Please, just get Jen and get out of here."

His eyes narrowed as he looked at me. "I have been training since I was young. I am an assassin."

I met his glare. "And when you can kill a man without flinching, then I will not bother you again. You have not taken your first life."

His face began to take on a crimson color. "I KILLED LUCY! DOES THAT COUNT?" He screamed at me.

In an even voice, almost dead sounding, I answered him. "No, it doesn't. You were not you. Would you have done it if you were in your right mind and not being controlled?" He shook his head no. "Then I rest my case."

Before he could respond, I took off in a run. Well, more like a jog. I did not have much strength left. To tell you the truth, I should have just got my ass out of there, and waited til I healed, but vengeance fueled my actions. It was not wise to go by those feelings when you were on a mission, but it was all I had to keep me going.

I blew around a corner and down the hall. I had to find them, but I did not know where to head. They could have gone a few directions, and I did not want to waste time. Closing my eyes, I breathed in and exhaled. I had to calm myself, think clearly. I was a huntress, and they were my prey. I would find them and kill them.

I let my instincts move my feet. They would have headed for the outside and most likely the ally. I opened my eyes and headed for the back of the hotel. I was a few minutes behind them, and I knew I would not catch up with any of them, but I kept going. I had to keep going.

"There she is!"

I spun around to see three of the guys I used to work with, coming at me from a side hall. Rolling my eyes, I gripped the gun tighter in my hand. Great. Three against one, and I was already beat to shit. This was so not fair. "Boys, just go or I will put a bullet in your heads."

They came to a stop in front of me. "No, we want to help you." I cocked an eyebrow. "We didn't know Sebastian was in bed with Abstergo until today. He told us that you had gone rogue and was killing the Brotherhood." Tom Marks looked at me.

"Why should I believe you?" I crossed my arms over my chest, wincing at the pain in my shoulder. I really need to quit slamming it into the ground.

Jakob Bradley hung his head. "I know what you are thinking, but we are not going to betray you. There are still men under Sebastian that believe the lies. We do not want anymore of our friends killed for the cock suckers."

I sighed and rubbed my temple. Why does this always come back to me? I was not a leader, that was the guys' job. I was always a follower, and that was the way I wanted it to stay. "Alright. I will let you tag along, but if you cross me in any way, I will put a bullet in your head and dump your body in the desert for the coyotes to feast on." The three of them nodded. "Now, where did they run to?"

"Vidic took off with his posse. He is most likely on his way to the airport. Sebastian is heading to his place uptown. Then back to Los Angeles." The third guy, his name escaped me, spoke up.

"Fine, let's go." I took off down the hallway. I needed to get to a car, and get back to the hotel room. I was not about to go at this with one gun and a knife, and already injured.

They followed behind me, guns at the ready. Jakob and Tom were assassins, born into the order. The third was ex-Marine that had been drafted from the war in Afghanistan. I was there when they found him. He was a sharpshooter, and a damn good one. I was terrible with names.

Rounding the last corner, I saw a bloody hand print in the white paint of the door. Well, someone got shot or stabbed. I pushed it open to see Ezio and Altair standing there. Altair was holding his side, while Ezio had a towel wrapped around his right leg.

We were a great looking lot. The guys were bleeding from gun shot wounds and I was a crispy critter from being electrocuted. "So, how bad are the others?"

They both turned and looked at me. Ezio grinned and then grimaced. "I got at least two of them before they got me in the leg. I know I hit Vidic, but don't know where."

Altair walked over to me. He glared at the guys behind me. "Men follow you everywhere, don't they?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, something like that. Anyway, either one of you hit Sebastian?"

"I hit him in the chest. One of his men carried him out of here. Don't know if it will kill him, but it might." He kept a hold of his side.

I looked at the blood running through his fingers. His normally tan face was beginning to grow pale. "You need to sit down before you fall down. I can not carry you and I don't think Ezio can either."
He looked at me, and went to open his mouth, but before he could udder a sound, his eyes rolled up in his head. "Shit." I caught him before he hit the pavement, but in my weakened state, I went down as well.

I sat on the ground, holding him the best I could. Tom, Jakob, and Dawson, that's what his damn name was, came over. Dawson and Jakob picked up Altair off of me, while Tom helped me to my feet. "Where to?"

I looked over at Ezio again. "I have Des and Jenna heading to the hotel room to clear it out. We can not go back there with us being bloody messes."

Before Ezio cold answer me, we heard the wails of the police. "We need to get out of here, but those two took the car." He looked around.

I saw the delivery van as well. "It will have to work. Get him in it and hold on." I jogged over to it and climbed in the driver's seat. Ezio got in the passenger side, while the guys got Altair in the back. I began to pull at the wires and found the two that I needed.

"Alanna, you need to hurry." The Italian kept his eyes on the ally. "They are getting closer."

I began to tap the wires together, completely the circuit. The motor fired to life, and I threw it into gear. Pulling out of the space, I drove out onto the main road and out of the city. That was the only choice we had at the moment. We had just broken one of the tenets. Never compromise the Brotherhood, and we just broke it in a big way.