Venice. Beautiful and alive, the streets filled with people, the buildings towering magnificently over their heads. Flowing canals, a clear sky, warm colors, gorgeously carved statues and balconies. All of it was still there in the twenty first century. But so much more stunning in it' peak, it was utterly breathtaking. Before the buildings starting chipping, when the fresh pink marble of the palaces still bathed the streets with a warm glow, before it was rocked by earthquakes and the possibility of sinking on it moorings. Elegant gondolas traveled the labyrinth of canals. People were not wearing jeans and shirts of my time, but finely woven clothes of silk and velvet, decorated with lace and golden stitches. The sounds, were, of course like any other city I'd been to so far; the merchants calling, the heralds announcing someone's execution or a new law put in place, couples fighting, sailors swearing. But it did not lessen my excitement.
Standing by the dock, and my jaw was all but falling off at the shock of simply taking it all in. After the dirty backstreets of New York, Italy continued to amaze me with its beauty and its unique architecture. I barely noticed that Ezio came to stand beside me, leaving Leonardo's side for a moment.
"Magnifico, isn't it?"
"Oh, definitely," I agreed with a delighted sigh. I heard him chuckle.
"Sadly, the underbelly of Venezia is just like any other-" I cut him off.
"Don't you ruin this for me, Auditore. For now, I'm just happy with the knowledge that there was beauty in the world, at one point or another."
"As you wish," he smiled at me warmly, and gestured to Leonardo, who was in the process of making sure everything was in order. I mentally went over my things too, out of habit. I also decided to screw secrecy. Glancing around to ensure no one was paying attention, I tucked one of my guns into the back of my trousers, securing it against my skin using a loop on my swordbelt that'd normally secure a second, full-size dagger. While I never had a swordbelt, it was still in easy reach, like it was before when I went on Larry's jobs. And that'd saved my life more than a few times. Thankfully, my cape concealed it at my back. I wasn't going to risk going without my weapon of choice anymore. It seemed that things had gotten a whole lot more dangerous as of late than when we were in Tuscany. The enemy was getting craftier, bolder, and deadlier. Not to mention they were fully aware of us now. A few knives, no matter how truly aimed, were not going to take down big things that came at you, like those Brute guards or the rabid puppies.
Speaking of which...
"Well-" Leonardo began saying as he straightened out, but he was interrupted by a man making his way towards us.
"Maesto da'Vinci?"
"Yes, that's me," Leo blinked a few times.
"Welcome to Venezia! My name is Alvise da Vilandino. I am obliged to escort you to your new workshop, and give you a short introduction to our city!" the new arrival explained enthusiastically. He was a man in about his thirties, with dark, close-cropped hair, a neatly trimmed goatee and a tanned, olive complexion. Somewhat attractive and dressed in commoner's clothing, he seemed eager to get started on the tour. "If you will just follow me, I will show you the wonders of Venezia!" As he gestured at us to follow him with a flourish, a few men came up to pick up Leonardo's baggage. I glanced at Ezio, pursing my lips and widening my eyes in a stunned grimace. Alvise was like a tour guide on speed. Ezio snorted and grinned back.
"At least he likes his job," he shrugged, lowering his voice to a whisper, and I snickered. "Come, let's follow them."
"Not like we have any better place to be at the moment," I shrugged, and walked beside him, looking around curiously. "Hm. So I guess there are things that look better in the future."
"What do you mean?" Ezio asked, glancing up at the bridge we just passed by.
"This is the Rialto Bridge, yes? We talked about it in class at one point."
"And you actually listened?"
I rolled my eyes. "Mechanic and design class are different than history."
"You've studied those things?" Leonardo asked, looking back at us. I was surprised he heard the quiet conversation.
"Uh... yes, I did. In school. I sort of had to," I shrugged noncommittally. "I hated history, but I like mechanical classes. It actually came in useful." I hoped he would go back to the sight seeing, and abandon the conversation. Luckily, Alvise, the tour guide leading us, chose this moment to start speaking again.
"You won't find bigger markets than in Venezia!" he crowed with enthusiasm, "Anything you need - silks, spices, you can find it here!" I barely paid attention to him, though I turned around to see what the growing commotion was about. It appeared that it wasn't some strange parade, but a group of the city guards with spears walking through the market. People stopped their routines to watch as they squared in on the owner of a small fish stall. The poor man seemed to know what was coming, like this was a regular occurrence here.
"We warned you to stay home!" one of the men boomed.
"I paid my rent! I have every right to sell here!" he tried to reason loudly and somewhat pathetically as the guards stopped in front of him.
"Emilio thinks differently!" With that, they began hitting the fish on the table and sweeping it all off onto the ground. The man stared in horror as his merchandise was ruined. I frowned as I watched, unsure whether to interfere or not. No one else seemed to even attempt to.
"Maybe we should continue the tour... elsewhere," our tour guide asked, eager to continue moving. Leonardo gulped, and nodded, visibly frightened.
"Emilio?" I whispered to Ezio, who'd also taken in the scene as we continued moving, "Is that-"
"Yes," he nodded, and I looked back again as the merchant, nearly in tears, walked away from his ruined stall.
"Should I follow them?"
"No, I think-" We stopped once more, interrupted by the tour guide. His chatter was getting a little annoying now, and I suddenly couldn't wait to get away from him. But this time, we didn't stop to hear about the absolute superiority that Venice had over the rest of the world. Mostly, it was because Leonardo suddenly spotted something. He moved towards a small shop, where a little wooden figurine I've seen artists use for reference stood. Picking it up gently, as if afraid to break it, he smiled with glee.
"Isn't it amazing?!" He wore a look of childish excitement of his face as he showed it to us, and I almost cooed. Luckily, I had some dignity left, so I just settled for a smile. "Could you get it for me? I... sort of left my money in my bags," he asked Ezio with embarrassment. Crossing his arms and shaking his head, Ezio couldn't hold back a smile himself as he then reached for his pouch of florins. But before he could reply, a band of thieves stormed by, knocking a few people off their feet in the process, and swiping off seemingly random merchandise from the stalls. The four of us, along with the rest of the street stared after them in bewilderment.
Suddenly, someone crashed into Ezio, making his stumble a few steps. "Hey! Watch it, you jerk!" The thief paused for a second, and looked over his shoulder, with a flip of black hair. I noted with surprise that it was actually a woman. Glaring at him and giving him a speedy, if predatory once-over, she opened her mouth as if about to reply. However, she seemed to suddenly decide it just wasn't worth it, and continued running, vanishing from sight. The assassin looked down to his pouch, seeing that it almost came off. The woman attempted to rob him, but he was most likely taught by the chase after the Fox, making sure his money was more secure.
I wasn't sure where the thieves were rushing off to so fast. Or why they were moving in such a pack, out in the open. Meanwhile, Ezio paid for the small figurines, handing two to Leonardo, who sighed in content, and we continued the tour.
"And here, is the Palazzo della Seta! Normally, I'd suggest we'd take a closer look, but since Emilio Barbarigo took up power...well..." Alvise made a vague gesture towards it. The building was square, like most of the palazzos I've seen so far, outlined with a metal fence and a thin canal. It looked like a fort more than a palace, though, with the grim looking guards patrolling around it, by roof and on the ground. The merchant who we just saw getting screwed over by a few guards stomped up to the front doors. From here, we could hear his trembling, high pitched voice.
"My stall was destroyed and merchandise ruined! I demand compensation!"
I hit my forehead with my palm, and muttered quietly, "Like that ever works."
"Well, you won't find any here," a guard spat. None of the guards at the doors were impressed one bit. Seemed like I was right, and this wasn't a very rare occasion.
"This is outrageous! I will report you to the Council!"
"Much good that will do you!" Now they were getting angry. "You're under arrest for disrupting commence!"
"What?!" the businessman squeaked as they grasped his elbows. "You just made that up! There's no such law!"
"There is now!" I winced as one of the more heavily armored guards shoved him in the stomach with his spear so hard it caused him to double over. However, he still demanded compensation as they dragged him away.
"When will they learn?" I asked rhetorically. Everyone present looked at me strangely. Leo's eyes were wide with shock and he quickly turned away. "Well, what? I still can't believe there are people stupid enough to think they'll get fair treatment from people with any sort of power! It's not like anything will change because of a few complaints."
"So what do you suggest, just sitting down with your hands folded as your money is being taken away from you?" Ezio argued as we began walking again.
"You obviously don't know how the streets work, because that's exactly what you do if you want to at least keep your life. There's no fair judgment in this world, and a few words is definitely not going to change that."
He didn't reply, though he looked cross now. Leonardo looked between us, probably feeling out of place. As we finally arrived to our destination, we kept to the stony silence between us. The building was not very impressive, though big and deep red, with only a few windows.
"Here we are! We spared no expense in it's design! You will see, that it is perfect!" The tour guide spoke as if nothing just happened, with the same enthusiasm as when he met us at the docks. "Like you never left Firenze! Now, good luck, and I hope you enjoy Venezia, as much as she enjoys having you!" he bowed with his hand outstretched. I snickered quietly as Leonardo patted him on the shoulder, moving past. I wondered how long it took the man to come up with these speeches, and how many people actually tipped him.
"Well, this is it. Would you like to come inside?" Leo asked, turning to us. I glanced at Ezio, who shook his head.
"No, we should go. See if I can get an audience with Emilio."
"Well, if you ever want to visit, or you find another codex page, don't hesitate to come in!" Leo replied with a bright smile, spreading his arms with an invitation for a hug, which Ezio took. Then Leo looked at me with uncertainty, and I made the decision for him, giving him a friendly hug.
"Well, I won't blame you if you want to stick around, with your hands folded while I deal with Emilio," Ezio grumbled with irritation as Leonardo moved inside the workshop, looking around curiously. I looked at the assassin sharply.
"I didn't mean I won't be helping you. I mean that if you truly want to change something, talking is not the way. Listen, Ezio, do you really expect me to have a positive view on politics after the dump I've lived in?" I asked him skeptically.
He sighed, and his icy voice melted. "I suppose you're right, though. Especially when it comes to corrupt governments and Templar conspiracies."
"After this," I suddenly grinned widely, and looked up at the sun, which began setting an hour ago, "I'm taking you out drinking. God knows I need it. And you probably do too, considering you haven't been drunk properly for at least two months now."
"Oh, good Lord, I don't think Venice is ready for this," he gestured at the both of us. I laughed, and felt the strangest urge to hug him. Those damn Italians, what have they done to my beautiful mind...
"But while we're still on this job, can you please enlighten me on how you're planning to get into a heavily guarded palace?" I asked as we began walking again.
"Uh..." he rubbed the back on his neck under the hood, and I narrowed my eyes suspiciously.
"Please tell me you have a plan."
"We haven't even seen the building properly yet, and you're the one who can pick locks here," he said evasively.
"Well, I guess climbing should do the trick. And I don't think the windows are enforced here, so it would be relatively easy to shatter one," I shrugged. The palace was not very far from the workshop, and we stopped right around the corner of one of the passage. "But then you'll be going around blind, since the building is pretty large."
"If I can reach the roof top, I can climb down to the courtyard," he suggested. "From there..."
"It's back to the window shattering and door kicking. We don't know where Emilio is going to be. And there has to be at least two dozen guards in there. Then there are the patrols on the ground…"
"How about we focus on the guards out here for now?" he asked with a slight smile. Thoughtfully, I walked past the bridge leading to the palazzo. After a few moments, Ezio followed.
"There's four at each entrance and at least two squads patrolling," I reported, after running the calculation in my brain. "The chances of even making two steps inside without having a spike shoved up your ass is about five point six percent."
"How the hell-"
"Lot's of practice," I explained. "You ever try breaking into a bank, blind? See how fast you learn to count the guards and calculate chances of success. Besides, I like math."
"You broke into a bank?!"
"And you haven't?" I countered, though I knew it was not the same thing. He robbed a small bank that consisted of only one big office, two chests, and four distracted guards outside. I assisted a major robbery in New York, with three security guards and five cameras. "Larry wanted the job done, and I wasn't exactly in a position to argue at the time. Now, suppose we can get you through the guards," I quickly changed the subject, "Then what?
He looked around the corner again, "I can climb that wall over there fairly easily - wait, no... The ledges are too high, I'd never make that jump. We'll have to find another-" he froze, and we watched, stunned, as a familiar stampede of thieves came running. We rushed after them, stopping to watch with confusion.
"They get more and more bold," I muttered to myself as I watched the dirty thieves crash into the guards, taking their money in the process, and continuing to run. The guard stood still for a moment, as shocked as we were.
"You little shits!!!" they finally began yelling, and abandoning their posts, ran after them, waving their fists in the air. Right on cue, the moment the guards looked the other way, another thief ran past us, but instead of going after her friends, she headed for the wall, jumping up and catching the window ledge, climbing up. That's when arrows appeared from the roofs, clanking against the wall under her.
"Archers on the roof and unreachable windows. Four percent chance of success," I changed my analysis quickly as she got to the top of the climb. There was no way up - neither me not Ezio would ever be able to reach that high. But the female thief surprised us - she pushed off the frame, reaching out as she jumped, and after a few moments in the air, she got a hold of the frame, pulling herself up. "Okay, four point five percent." I said, shocked. Ezio shushed me, watching her intently.
That's when her luck ran out though, as an arrow buried itself in her thigh. There was a muffled grunt, her blood splattering against the pristine white tile of the building as her fingers slipped from the edge, and she fell to the ground. She somehow managed to get up without falling back down, and I noticed the guards that were coming back, looking very, very angry. She seemed to realized that too, and tried to run the way she came from, in our direction.
"Hey, I remember you!" Ezio caught her by her arm as she almost fell in her step, while I pulled out my weapons. Seemed like we were not getting away without a fight - the guards were speedily closing in, murderous intent written all over their faces.
"I need…your help!" she gasped out.
"You never did apologize for knocking me over!"
"Ezio, is this really the time?!" I asked, somewhat irritated. She looked badly hurt, it was a wonder she was still able to walk.
"We need to go!" she seemed to agree with me, nearly yelling the words in desperation.
"Alright, but where?"
She glanced around, and huffed, "Water!"
"That doesn't exactly narrow it down..." My poor nerves did not hold out any longer - my hand flashed to my back, and with a loud gunshot, one of the guards advancing on us fell down with a bullet in between the eyes. Thankfully, that gave the rest of the group pause.
"Just follow me!"
"Move! Now!" I rushed them, my free hand going to one of my throwing knives, which ended another life as Ezio pulled the woman away. I retreated with them, carefully making sure no one was following.
Considering the arrow in her leg, the woman ran fast, and fought hard to get away from the guards, who seemed to know her face, waiting for any sign of her on every corner. They attacked on sight, and Ezio and I barely warded them away from her. She clutched her thigh, and let out small, cursing hisses of pain with each step, but carried on. She was certainly determined, I could give her that. Seemed like I wasn't the only one who used the threat of loss of freedom as motivation.
"Where the hell are we going?" I finally asked after five minutes, and she glanced at me, as if unsure how to respond. And then, she suddenly slowed down, gasping in pain. Letting out a string of some the dirtiest curse words I'd heard in a while, she crumpled to the ground. I caught her right before she hit the cobblestones, softening her landing slightly. "Ezio!" He turned back around, and without pause, picked her up.
"We just have to get... to the canal there..." she finally said, and we moved towards the barely visible waterway she pointed out. As she said that, another group of guards recognized her, or maybe us. But I made sure they never made it to us. Various bands of thieves appeared as well, in groups of three to five. At first, I wasn't sure what they were up to. But seeing them shout and distract the guards before engaging them in sword and hand-to-hand combat, I wasn't going to argue with them. They gave us the cover we needed to continue with little interruption.
"You never did tell me your name," Ezio suddenly said, his voice pleasant and lilting with frivolous intent, and I nearly huffed in disapproval. I'm here too, you know.
"Rosa," the woman said shortly, still cringing in his arms from the pain. Or maybe his supposed charm, I wasn't sure.
"An honor to meet you, Rosa. I am Ezio," he smoothly replied with a smirk. I felt the urge to bash my head against the nearest wall. Was now really the time for a pleasant conversation. "And this is Eden Cleare."
"I know," she surprised me. How the hell does everyone know us? We weren't even in Venice longer than two hours! What, was there a huge neon sign somewhere in the sky announcing our arrival that only everyone else but us could see?! But now wasn't the time for questions- she groaned again. If we could just find a place where there were no guards and some hot water, I could probably pull the arrow out. It couldn't be harder than pulling out bullets.
We paused by the canal, looking around for whatever it was she needed to go to. I took a wild guess that it wasn't the drunk passed out around the corner, and it probably wasn't the merchant cowering behind his stand, frightened by the commotion, like every other citizen in hearing range. That only left the young male thief, who was standing beside a gondola.
"Ugo!" Rosa called when he was in sight. He recognized her, rushing forward, though paused when he realized that he has never seen us before.
"Who are you?" he snarled, brandishing his sword at us.
"Rosa has been wounded!" Ezio said as if it explained everything, while I licked my lips nervously, looking around.
"Give her here, I'll take her the rest of the way into the boat," he said, immediately sheathing his weapon and taking her from the assassin, even as he cringed slightly at her weight.
"There are archers all along the canal!" I hurried to tell them, before they rushed to leave shore.
The thief cursed under his breath, taking Rosa to the boat. Ezio turned to me, "How many?"
"I see three on both sides, maybe a few on the roofs."
"Just go, I'll take care of them!" Ezio said reassuringly, and ran down the banks, towards the city guards.
"And what do I do?" I yelled after him, because it was obvious that I couldn't follow them. The boat was not meant for more than three people, and aside from Rosa and Ugo, there was already a bloody mess that I guessed was their "co-worker". No way in hell could I follow Ezio on the sides of the building. Climbing is one thing, jumping from ledge to ledge like a monkey on crack was different. And beyond my capabilities, at least for now.
"Go to Antonio," Ugo instructed, "Tell him we're coming."
"And where would that be?"
"To the northwest, as far as you can go! Just tell them Ugo sent you ahead."
How readily they trusted me. Or maybe they just trusted Ezio. Either way, I nodded, and took off in the opposite direction from where Ezio and the boat was heading. People finally began gathering again, and worried and irritated whispers were growing loud. Guards were still searching, but even if they knew of me, I easily blended with the crowd, making my way to northwest as fast as I could.
Damn thieves. Damn Ezio. I couldn't believe that this was only way I could help out. Delivering a message to some Antonio guy in the middle of a thieves guild while they're trying to just get away with their lives, that just wasn't my style. But there was no other choice, only to hope they could get to their safe house before an arrow came flying out of nowhere to finish off the job.
As far as I could go... Okay, I thought this was as far as I could go; I could hear waves on the other side of the buildings now. The houses had definitely changed - there were no bright colors here, everything looking gray and shabby. I guessed this was the poor district of the city, a perfect, if somewhat obvious place for a criminal hideout.
"Are you lost?" I crossed my arms, tensing slightly as three men appeared almost out of nowhere, surrounding me. All had knives in their hands, all looked grim. "You're trespassing."
"Put those away before you hurt somebody," I snapped impatiently. "I'm here to talk to Antonio. Ugo and Rosa sent me." The reaction to the names was immediate - they relaxed, though didn't let their weapons go, and their distrust did not evaporate. "Boys, I have eight throwing knives, and I can kill all of you before you ever realize what's going on. But you're still alive, so just tell me where Antonio is."
"Follow me," one of them said hoarsely after a short pause, waving his arm. Seemed like they wanted news more than the death of a trespasser.
As we walked, I could feel eyes on us. I was used to that, though. I'd been in rebel hide outs before, criminals in warehouses, gang bases. All of them had the feeling that you were constantly being watched. It always made you stiffen uncomfortably, and be careful with your movements and actions. My guide led me to a concealed courtyard, formed by houses that were turned towards each other, which would be very hard to find if you didn't know where the passages were. He knocked on one of the doors shortly, and soon, it opened.
"Lance?" The man inside was hunched over a sort of model of the district, turning his head up before we walked in. Antonio looked like an almost stereotypical Italian, with black hair and a mustache. He was dressed in black, middle class clothing, a gold earring in his ear lobe. The office itself was decorated richly with carpets and paintings, and book cases stretching out against the walls. He shifted his eyes at me, and furrowed his eyebrows. "Who is this?"
"She just ran in. Claims Ugo sent her," the thief huffed.
"Have they succeeded?" Antonio asked me quickly, and I crossed my arms again.
"Do you really think they would have sent someone ahead if that was the case?" I asked, and there was a silence. Then he slammed his fist onto the table.
"Cazzo! Are they alive, at least?" he asked desperately, and I nodded.
"Alive and on their way, Ezio is with them. Rosa has an arrow in her leg, though."
"And has anyone else shown up?" he asked Lance, who shook his head. "Then tell me, how do you fit into this?" Antonio looked at me again. I shrugged.
"Someone has to deliver the news. I'm with Ezio."
"There were rumors of a woman traveling with him. Eden, I presume?" At my nod, he walked past me, gesturing for me to follow him out the door.
"Seems like soon my face will appear on posters too. Everyone seems to know about me," I sighed. "They should be here soon unless they ran into some trouble."
"Clear some space, Rosa has been injured!" He called to some of him men, who immediately began cleaning off a large table, throwing off everything. Two women laid a nearly clean mat onto the surface, and another brought some water, a large jar and bandages. Meanwhile. there was yelling somewhere behind the buildings, and I heard Ezio's voice call "Let me do it!" I instinctively let out a deep breath of relief.
"Do as he says!" That voice belonged to Rosa, which assured us that she did not bleed out. And judging by her swearing, she was just getting more and more angry. I'm sure the pain didn't help things either.
"Go find Antonio and Eden!" I almost felt flattered that I was mentioned. The next moment, Ugo ran into the circle of buildings, stumbling slightly when he saw the entire group already in session. He glanced at me, and I nodded in confirmation, and he came to stand by the table, ready. Soon, Ezio came into sight, Rosa in his arms. His breathing was slightly faster, his hair windblown and the hem of his robe soaked. There was a lot of blood on him, and it was impossible to tell if he was hurt or not, thought he walked confidently enough.
"Put her on the table!" Antonio ordered, and the assassin complied, gently laying her onto the sheet spread on the table. She groaned in pain bending her knee slightly so the arrow would not touch anything. I came closer, standing opposite of Ezio and Antonio.
"Get it out!" she ground out, clenching her teeth.
"Just let me see," Antonio gently said. "Clean entry through the thigh, that's good, we just need to-"
"Get. It. Out!" Rosa nearly screamed at him menacingly, pounding the table with emphasis on each word before she leaned back. Though she wasn't crying, she blinked back tears of pain as Antonio let out a breath, touching her face reassuringly.
"As you wish." He lifted her leg slightly, exposing the other end of the arrow. I watched the procedure carefully - it case I would ever need to repeat it. He held both points of puncture, soaking them with the balm from the jar beside him. One of the women gave Rosa a leather strap to bite on, but she stubbornly spit it out. Antonio carefully broke off the feathered part, causing her let out a small scream of pain. Then he grabbed the broken shaft at the other end, and pulled it out fast, clamping the blood spray with his hand. She screamed, clenching her teeth. "Ezio, make yourself useful! Grab a clean linen," Antonio instructed the assassin, who did as he was asked. "When I remove my hand, put it on the wound. One, two... three!" He pulled his hand away, and for a second, blood sprayed like a fountain. However, the next moment, Ezio's hand pressed the sheet into her leg, stopping the flow.
Everyone seemed to have let out a sigh of relief as Antonio wrapped a bandage around the linen tightly. "The worst is over. Get her to Bianca, so she can close the wound," he gestured to his men, and they picked up the table with Rosa on it. She seemed to have felt a bit better, because she began bellowing insults at everyone, baring her teeth and making rude gestures with her hands. Her insults made me want to clap my hands in appreciation. Colorful, and oh so creative. Antonio crossed his arms, following the group with his eyes.
"Thank you for saving her," he breathed, "If I had lost Rosa..." he shook his head, and Ezio shrugged behind him.
"What can I say? I always had a thing for damsels in distress." I suddenly wanted to hit him. With a brick. But instead, I leaned onto the wall, catching my breath, unsure whether or not to just leave.
"I've heard of your work in Florence and San Gimignano," Antonio turned to us, and Ezio showed only a small hint of surprise. The Leader of Thieves continued, "And good work, too, if a little…unrefined." He glanced at me, "I'm not sure what your role was, though, if you forgive me."
"Typical," I snorted in good humor.
"Take it as a compliment," Ezio suggested, smiling slightly, and I smirked, looking up at the sky. It was getting dark.
"Obviously, I did, or there would be a lot more screaming right about now."
"In any way," Antonio cut in again, "It's a pleasure to meet you both. When you have a moment, come see me in my office. We have things to discuss." The Leader of the Thieves Guild turned on his heel, and disappeared into the said office. I came closer to Ezio.
"Do you have anything to help Rosa?" he asked, and I pursed my lips.
"Pain killers. They won't do anything, but she'll calm down a bit," I shrugged. The drugs I had were on prescription only, but I got a bottle off one of my dealers just in case I couldn't go to the hospital on an occasion. They were sold as narcotics, because people often abused the pills. But I was a little more practical than that. "She'll be fine. It'll take her maybe two months to recover completely, at the longest."
"Right."
"Do you think they can help us get into the palace?" I looked around thoughtfully, noticing that the thieves stopped watching us.
"Maybe. Or at least give us an idea."
"And are you sure we can trust them?"
"We don't have much choice. And since when are you so skeptical?" he raised an eyebrow, and I rolled my shoulders.
"I know thieves and criminals. Hell, I was and still am one. You never know just how much you can trust them. They can easily prove to be the best of friends. Or on the other hand, sell you out to the cops at first notice. And then, they could just use you for their own purposes."
"As long as Emilio dies, it won't really matter, will it?" he countered. I opened and shut my mouth in surprise.
"I hate being used," I finally said.
"Well, maybe we're meant to be used for the greater good!" he argued, and that's when I sensed something was wrong.
"That doesn't sound like you. Since when are you talking about the greater good?"
"It's the entire point of the assassin order, isn't it? To serve the greater good through sacrifice?" He began pacing and I barely turned my head to follow him as he walked back and forth. He's was strangely agitated, playing with his fingers and rolling his shoulder with pent-up energy.
"But that doesn't mean you should forget common sense. I don't see why we're even arguing right now," he paused briefly in front of me, and then sighed.
"It's been a long day."
I just realized how exhausted he looked. My own head felt like it was about to turn off by itself, too. I wanted to just get this over with now. He went to knock on Antonio's door, but before his knuckles connected with the wood, the thief called, "Come in, Ezio." He threw me a look of mild surprise, but turned the doorknob, about to walk in. I didn't move from my spot at the wall, and his surprise grew.
"The invitation was not for me, so just fill me in later. I'll go see if I can find us a place to stay."
"Alone?" he left the door for a moment, turning to me. I rolled my eyes.
"I'm a big girl. A few mean guards won't be any trouble. Relax, I thought we've been over this already."
"If you're sure. Where will I find you?"
"Follow your instincts, or your gut, or heart, or some other internal organ," I shrugged, smiling with the corner of my mouth. At his raised eyebrow, I added, "Or, just look around the market place. Either way. Oh, and yeah, and give this to Antonio." I handed over a little pill. "That's the pain killer. For Rosa."
He took it, and raised it to his eyes, examining the little tablet with furrowed eyebrow and then nodded. "Alright. See you in about an hour."
---
"Yes, this room here is free. Will you be staying for long?" The kind looking land lord asked as he showed me the door. I thought about it for a moment.
"I think so. Is that a problem?"
"No, not at all. You and your husband can stay as long as you need," he smiled, and I stared at him with shock for a moment. I didn't remember saying anything about a man. But in this era, girls probably never traveled alone.
"Husband - right. Thank you," I handed over the payment, and watched him waddle away, chewing on my lip. And then I snickered. I couldn't wait to see Ezio's face when he heard of this new development. I was about to walk into the room, when I heard small footsteps and the creaking of a door behind me. I turned around and looked down, facing the little girl of about five or six years of age looking up at me with curious blue eyes. Her hair was honey blond, her skin too light for this region.
"Hi," she smiled at me, her cheeks dimpling. I blinked in surprise at her lack of shyness, but then smiled back.
"Hello."
"Are you going to live here?" she pointed at the door I was about to go through, and I nodded.
"Yes, I guess I am. For now, anyway."
"I live here with my mommy and daddy," she said proudly, "We came from France."
"France?" I knelt down to her level, keeping a friendly smile on my face. She nodded enthusiastically. "I'm from England." Close enough, anyway.
"Really?" she asked, her big eyes widening more. She took hold of the hem of her dress, and made a slightly clumsy courtesy, "My name is Adélaïde. My mommy calls me Adél." She spoke in proper sentences, something that I figured was rare with children, especially girls. Her dress was sewn with thin, even fabric, with small ruffles rimming the edge, and she wore shoes. Her parents must have been richer and more important than commoners.
"My name is Eden," I introduced myself.
"Adel? Where are you?" a female voice called, and a few seconds later, a woman showed up in the doorway. She was an older image of her daughter, with her blond hair tied in a bun on the top of her head, but her blue eyes cold, like ice. Her hand rested on her round belly. I felt an unwelcome pang of jealousy in my chest and in my lower stomach, where the scar was, but I suppressed it easily. "I'm sorry, she got away from me. You're not bothering the lady, are you?" she asked her daughter, her voice as beautiful as she was.
"This is Eden," the little girl didn't seem to mind her mother's presence at all, looking up with a smile. "She lives there now!" Jenny poked a finger in the direction of my door.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," the woman nodded politely, though I noticed her eyes trace over my clothing with distaste. I forced a smile, as well, though I did not like the woman very much.
"Hello," Adel suddenly said to someone, as I felt a familiar presence behind me. I didn't hear him come up and turned my head over my shoulder slightly.
"You finished already?"
"Yes, it didn't take as long as I thought it would." He was smiling, his hood down. "And who are these charming ladies?" Adel giggled, and her mother looked over him coolly. He stepped around me, and bowing slightly, courteously kissed the woman's hand.
"Ezio Auditore, Madonna." I discreetly rolled my eyes at his introduction.
"Aurora Nevalle. A pleasure," she seemed to like him a lot more than me, not that I could blame her. I was starting to think Ezio could charm his way into anyone's heart.
"Well, it's nice meeting you, but we have some things to take care of. We're both tired," I tried to end the conversation as politely as possible. Luckily, Aurora took the hint graciously, and put her hand on her daughter's shoulder.
"Bye bye, Eden," Adel grinned at me, and they shut the door. I took hold of Ezio's elbow, and half- dragged him into the room meant for us.
"How'd you find me?"
"Intuition. And then it was only a matter of asking the land lord. Can you please explain to me why he congratulated me when I explained who I was looking for?" He was smirking lightly, and I made an innocent expression while looking around. The room was larger than the one in Florence - I expected us to stay here for a lot longer than a few days. It was well lit, the windows reaching down to the floor, and I noted the railing beyond them, forming a sort of narrow balcony. A small fireplace for cooking, a table, a few chairs, a dresser and wardrobe, and a large, clean bed occupied the room.
"Well... he may have assumed we're married. Besides, what was I supposed to tell him? That we're assassins that just arrived into Venice to hunt down Templars, and that aside from that, our relationship is strictly platonic?" I raised and eyebrow, and a strange, flicker of emotion flashed on his face. It was gone before I could identify it, though.
"I don't like sleeping on the floor, that's all," he shrugged, looking pointedly at the one bed.
"And I can sympathize with you. So I'm willing to share," I narrowed my eyes playfully, "Now talk. What's going on?"
"Not much. The thieves need some time to recover from today, and somehow, I volunteered to help out," he explained, sitting down at the small table. I fell into the chair opposite of him. "But again, it'll take a few weeks. We'll need to make new plans, get more resources. Rosa needs to recover. And Antonio also told me that he wants us to come see him later."
"Us, as in-" I frowned thoughtfully, somewhat confused.
"He wants you there, as well," he shrugged, and folded his hands on the table.
"Not that you'd be able to stop me from getting involved," I reminded him. "I don't need special invitation, I'm not letting you run off into that palace alone, relying solely on thieves."
"You really don't trust them, do you?" he frowned, looking at me curiously. I crossed my arms.
"No, I don't. But I trust you."
His light smile returned. "Don't worry. They are against Emilio. If nothing else, at least we share the same goal."
I looked outside the window. It was dark now. "Let's just get some sleep. We both need it." There were no objections.
---
That... was the dumbest idea I have ever had.
I tried to relax, lying on my side and attempting to curl up and finally go to sleep. But my body remained as stiff as a board. The room was silent except for his slow breathing, and the light creaking of the bed every time I moved, trying to get comfortable. It was no use, I kept shivering and my muscles began to hurt slightly from the tension. It wasn't the first time I fell asleep in close proximity to him, but for some reason, I felt like I was sleeping on hot coals.
I felt him shift, and his hand laid down on my waist. I tensed even more, if possible.
"Stop moving," he muttered sleepily. Out of surprise, I did. His breathing evened out again after a moment. And after a long time, with his hand warming my side, I finally relaxed and fell asleep, too.
In the morning, I woke up to find my back pressed against his chest firmly, his arm wrapped protectively around my waist. And I found myself not minding the position too much, either.
When I realized what I was thinking, I rolled my eyes into the back of my head, and groaned very quietly.
---
Translations
Magnifico – Magnificent
Cazzo! – F**k!