Inside Her World
Part 4
"Are you kidding me? This is not real!"
"As you can see, I am before you."
"How do I put an end to this?"
ᴥ ᴥ ᴥ
The night sky slowly changed its shade becoming brighter; the light pushed the darkness down into horizon and greeted the birds' excited singing. The city started a new page; people already up and rushing around to get to the right place in time. The morning started very unkindly for the residents of the Crowine's house. Ezio Auditore shamelessly entered the bedroom waking up the two lovers instantly. He smirked at Leona that nervously pulled the covers over herself desperately trying to hide her nude body that was endlessly caressed by the Templar all night. The Italian made his way over to the bathroom door and received a dirty look from Haytham that pulled the blushing girl closer to his direction away from the assassin.
"Good morning," he said with his velvet accent and smiled brightly at the two shocked individuals. "I am going to take a shower, if you don't mind." He looked at Leona that quickly nodded.
"Just go, and hurry, I am next one to visit the shower cabin." Auditore nodded his head at the girl and vanished in the bathing room before she could ask him about his knowledge of the modern technology. The sounds of water turning on answered Crowine's question without any doubt; the Italian assassin must have already gotten some experience about her world from Chelsea.
"Chelsea!" Leona suddenly exclaimed startling Kenway that was resting right next to her. The man arched his eyebrow remembering the odd hyper girl he met at the café with a man that was supposedly a good second half for Leona. He touched the girl's shoulder as if asking her to explain her sudden hail. Crowine reached over to the bedside cabinet and grabbed her phone that was sitting lonely on its charger. She quickly sent a small text to her friend asking about Ezio being in her house; she then put the phone down on her pillow and looked at Kenway with a small smile.
"Chelsea is the one who showed Ezio around when he suddenly appeared in her house, I have to know other details." She said quickly glancing at the phone that lit up and buzzed silently. She picked it up and frowned as she read the text from her friend. She then typed something back and placed the phone back on the pillow with a complicated expression on her face.
"Is there something wrong?" Haytham asked tilting his head forward in order to bring himself closer to the girl. Leona's face reddened a little as she awkwardly pulled the cover up and wrapped it around her chest.
"Well, it seems like she forgot about it." She whispered looking over to the closed bathrooms doors thinking about the possibility of Auditore somehow erasing the girl's memory. She then looked back at Kenway willing to continue her explanation, yet she could tell by the Templar's eyes that he understood her thought completely. The Grand Master held his hand up and stroked Leona's cheek with his soft palm before tenderly grasping her chin and pulling the girl into a kiss. Crowine widened her eyes a little, but then wrapped her arms around Haytham's neck kissing him back.
"Am I interrupting something?" A voice was herd behind the couple and both unwillingly pulled away from the kiss to look at the culprit. da Firenze was standing with a towel wrapped around his hips and arms crossed on his bare muscular chest. His hair, wet and spread over his shoulders, indicate that the assassin was done with the shower very fast. Leona gulped looking over Ezio motionless; Auditore caught her gaze and smiled wide with a wink. The girl looked down feeling embarrassed and after hesitation asked the Italian to leave and put some clothes on. She heard a dull growl form Kenway behind her; the man seemed to be a little jealous of Leona being seduced by the assassin.
"Alright, alright, I will do as you desire, beautiful." Ezio laughed and exited the bedroom satisfied with Leona's scarlet face and Haytham's evil stare. The girl slowly stood up from the bed letting the blanket slide off her body. Haytham could not help himself but to stare at Crowine's bare back and hips. His gaze drifted from his lady's tender shoulders down to her shapely legs.
"Haytham…" The man blinked at looked up at Leona that called him by his name. The girl turned her head slightly to the right and gazed at the Templar with a slight blush. "Stop staring." She whispered before vanishing into the bathroom and tightly closing the door behind her. Kenway heard a quite clicking of the lock and understood that the road to the bathroom was closed for him until Leona was finished.
The man sighed heavily and slowly stood up from the bed searching for some jeans and a shirt he could wear in order to rest from the uniform. He looked at the clock that was sitting on the wall; it was too early to get up, so the Templar decided to blame Auditore for interrupting his divine sleep. Haytham finally pulled his outfit on; it included an indigo shirt with a high collar and dark jeans. He looked in the mirror fixing his hair and tying them with the red ribbon he found randomly lying on the floor near a wooden cabinet. Kenway then picked up the pieces of his uniform and tidily put them on one of the cabinets on the side of the bed he claimed to sleep on.
Auditore walked into the bedroom again looking very careless in his clothing. A widely unbuttoned white shirt which displayed the Italian's bare chest; brown pants and high brown boots specified their coming from were from the assassin's uniform. Ezio glanced at Haytham and chuckled smiling wide; the scar on the right side of his mouth shrunk a little as the corners of the man's lips moved up.
"I see you had time to really blend into this wild society." He said crossing his hands and fixing his gaze on the odd hat he saw Kenway wear yesterday. The Templar snatched the hat off the cabinet and held it up in front of the Italian with a smirk.
"You want to try it on?" He asked narrowing his eyes at da Firenze as he hesitated to answer. The assassin shook his head and took a step back smiling again.
"I will refrain from such temptation." He said gazing over to the bathroom door as the running water sound suddenly stopped. The door slowly opened and Leona came out wrapped in the towel. She noticed the two men staring at her; one was smiling wide, the other, calmly observing. Crowine growled and yelled at the two to get out before she sends the Ten Plagues upon them. Ezio chuckled and grabbed Kenway by his elbow rushing out of the door and dodging a pillow that was thrown in his direction.
"Idiots!" She growled shutting the door in front of their noses. Auditore started laughing after he let go of the shocked Haytham. The Grand Master frowned and knocked on the door demanding for it to be open at this instant. "I am getting dressed!" The girl said loudly for the two men to hear through the walls.
"Leona, let me in. It's not like I have not seen anything." Kenway pressed his ear against the door as if listening to the sounds. His words triggered Ezio's laughter to become hysterical; the Italian was nearly rolling on the floor and choking from the amusement. The bedroom became silent as if Leona suddenly vanished from the world. Haytham became worried and pulled back from the door holding his hand up to knock again. The door suddenly opened and a slap landed across Kenway's face making his left cheek turn red instantly. The Templar gasped and took several steps back staring at the Goddess of Wrath standing in the door already dressed.
"You are a vile wretch!" Leona exclaimed coming up to the man whose eyes widened at the sudden "compliment." Auditore forced himself to stop laughing, but by his watery eyes everyone could tell that it was really hard to hold it in. "You think that after having two passionate nights with me, everything is suddenly peaceful and you can do whatever you want with me?" Leona continued to rage like a storm in the middle of a bright day; Haytham blinked with a confused look on his face. He opened his mouth to say something, even ready to apologize before Crowine, but the girl did not let him to even take a breath.
"You are still a Templar that tried to kill me; I do not fully trust you." She said making her way around the man and coming over to Auditore whose cheeks were pouted from holding back an explosion of laughter. The Italian straightened up as he saw Leona walking toward him; he put on a serious but tender look and smiled a little at the girl. Haytham's jaw dropped and he spread his hands to the sides in shock. He did not expect such a turn on this fine morning, especially from Crowine; yet he respected her choice of still being a little hostile to him due to his foolish mistake.
"My greatest apologizes, Miss Crowine." Kenway said bowing his head suddenly at the girl. Leona nodded her head with a victorious grin, she felt very pleased that the Grand Master decided to dearly ask for forgiveness again in this manner before a simple girl like her.
"What a gentleman." She rolled her eyes and turned away looking at Ezio. The girl caught the assassin's attention immediately and blushed as Ezio, tilting his head to the side, smiled at her widely. "If you do not mind, I would like to go out and have breakfast." She said softly, feeling a sudden sharp glare on her back from Haytham. "I do not feel like cooking today." She said turning around and meeting her eyes with Kenway's; the girl gulped but tried to hide her worry. "Are you going to join us, Haytham?" She asked the Templar.
"No," he suddenly replied which surprised both of the assassins. "I am not hungry; besides, I found an antique shop not far from here while walking around yesterday." He said locking his hands behind his back and slowly turning to face the entrance door. "I thought of selling my pistol and a sword since I do not need them in this world. Having my own money in a pocket would be very pleasing." Kenway glanced at Leona and Ezio that narrowed their eyes at him almost at the same time.
"Alright, just make sure to get home without any trouble." Leona said slowly making her way toward the Templar and handing him a spare key she got out of the cabinet in the hallway. Haytham accepted the key happily and nodded his head.
"I promise to behave." He said with a smirk and glared at Auditore. "Make sure she is protected." Kenway said and the assassin arched his eyebrow.
"Interesting, from whom am I going to expect danger?" Leona said asking the same question da Firenze longed to ask. The Templar shook his head and gave Leona a quick but a tight hug. He passed a serious look over to Auditore silently telling him something.
"I am just worried about you." He whispered in her ear seeing Ezio hurriedly put his hidden blades on and cover them with the sleeves of his shirt. Haytham smiled at him as if thanking the assassin for understanding the hint he had sent him. Da Firenze nodded his head with a grim expression and went over to the couple. Kenway finally let go off Crowine and smiled before saying a soft goodbye and leaving the house.
"He is not himself…" Leona whispered glancing over to Ezio that put his hands on her shoulders and gave them a tight squeeze. Auditore leaned over and pressed his cheek against the girl's. Crowine blushed and smiled a bit feeling grateful for the support Auditore silently provided pushing away her unnecessary anxiety.
"I am here to protect you, Signorina." He said with a soft smile and turned the girl around to face him. "We have to discuss some things that the Templar is needless to know." He said and received a nod from Leona.
"Then let's go," She said setting herself free from the Italian's hands and walking over to the exit after she put her shoes on. Auditore followed the girl close behind waiting for her to grab her keys and lead him to her car. "I am driving." She said already knowing that Ezio would not argue with her statement.
In a couple of minutes, Crowine started the car seeing the assassin put the seatbelt on as if he used to be in the car all the time. Choosing to save all the questions troubling het for later, Leona drove out of the parking lot and down the road toward a good restaurant she used to love going to for breakfast. Ezio silently stared out of the window, he seemed to not care much about the surroundings, and his thoughts were obviously busy with something else. That troubled Crowine, but she bit her tongue each time the temptation to start interrogating grew stronger.
ᴥ ᴥ ᴥ
"Master Kenway!" Annette called out the man who was slowly walking through the crowds. Haytham mentally cursed and turned at the corner stopping at the open space under the shadows of the tall trees. He was not pleased with the appearance the girl would see him within seconds, but tried to ignore her wide eyes as she entered his gloomy bubble. "Oh my…" She whispered looking over the Templar with a chuckle. "I see you are trying to blend it with our crowds, Grand Master."
"As you observe before you, it is true." He said rolling his eyes and remembering Ezio saying the same thing to him in the morning. He caught Annette's curious gaze and leaned over on the tree crossing his hands on his chest. "Any news?" He asked directly going into the subject that interested him the most.
"Yes, but they are not as good as you expect them to be, Master Kenway…" Annette lowered her head with shame dancing on her face. The man was silent waiting for the girl to continue. "I send one of our best spies to follow Altio and his men; everything went perfect until they reached the rooftops." She said slowly bringing her gaze up at Haytham. "He got detected and decided to chase them down and kill Altio, with no leader they are weak." Kenway nodded and tilted his head to the side.
"And what happened after he decided to do something so heroic?" He asked already knowing the answer. Annette looked down again and shook her head at the Templar.
"We found his dead body near the door of my apartment with a note in his hand." She put her hand in her pocket and got out a crumbled piece of paper covered in droplets of blood. Haytham accepted the note and opened it slowly as if there was something ready to jump out and attack him.
"Dear Templars,
This is a soft warning from our fair Brotherhood. We do not want to break the law and have blood on our hands; so either surrender leaving your evil plans in dust, or your dead friend will start a chain of murders. Today we found someone who will lead us to the right way along with Altio. This is our last notice.
-Brotherhood"
Haytham tore the note with a growl and threw it in the trashcan nearby. Annette gulped watching her leader's face expression change from cool to rage. He cursed himself for not being able to go and find the bastards himself.
"They found a second leader huh? It feels like the world wants the Templars and the Assassins to be equal in everything." He said looking up at the dark green leafs of the tree. "It's got to be Ezio, who else would lead those rats?" Kenway thought to himself and nodded his head. First, he has to sell a part of his inventory before finding Auditore and forcing him to answer his questions.
"Grand Master…" Annette's quiet voice appeared right near Haytham making him lower his head. His eyebrows arched in surprise when he found the girl standing very close to him, her head resting on his chest. "What do you want me to order next?" She whispered drawing something on the man's shoulder with her slender finger. Kenway grimaced not approving such closeness with his follower; he suddenly felt guilty even letting her continue snuggling over to his body, so he lightly pulled the girl away of him. "Thankfully Leona is not here…" The thought suddenly popped in his mind as he held Annette's soft shoulders in his strong hands. "Why am I thinking of her at this moment? Can I possibly feel so guilty from letting my supporter get close with me because I gave my affection to another woman?" He frowned forcing Annette to fall into worry. Kenway was too silent at the moment, but she did not dear to interrupt him, she just watched his face expressions change one after another.
"Ziio…" The Templar lowered his head and shook it violently trying to beat those thoughts out of his head.
"Grand Master?" The girl repeated touching Haytham's cheek with her soft trembling hand. The man jerked his head away from her hand and looked straight into her eyes; the girl gulped and bit her lip nervously.
"I need you to find as many Templars around here as possible, if not all of them, meet me at the Millennium Park at midnight three weeks from now." He said with a serious tone. "Until then the Assassin's will think you agreed to their warning and vanished, but what they do not know, is that we are building an army in the meantime." A wild but sincere smile crept on Annette's lips as she suddenly grasped Kenway into a tight hug.
"Oh Master Kenway, you are a miracle! I am so happy that you are here with us!" She exclaimed nearly kissing the man, but holding it back knowing that it was highly inappropriate. The Templar sighed and hugged his admirer petting her back a little.
"Now go, and do not get caught with any suspicious activity. Bring all of the followers to the park. If there is a failure in that, I will have to eliminate all of you as if you are just a distraction from my real goal." He said with a mysterious smile that burned into Annette's mind forever; ownership and power brightly exposed on his smirk forced the girl to pull away and nod.
"Yes sir!" She said and looked around before quickly leaving the Grand Master alone. The Templar frowned and shook his head at the girl's silhouette that was far away from him now.
` "I will have to do it anyways." He said turning around and walking toward the shop tightly grasping the cloth where he held his sword and a pistol.
ᴥ ᴥ ᴥ
"What do you mean you are closed today?" Leona frowned at the tall man dressed all in black looking down on her as if she was an annoying cockroach.
"We are reconstructing our restaurant to make it better." He said with a cold tone gazing over to Ezio that was standing beside the girl with his hands crossed. Auditore seemed to not care of what the man was telling the girl; the assassin looked around the streets full of people, sometimes he gazed up at the buildings' rooftops trying to find something there.
"Well fuck you!" Leona's sudden exclamation interrupted da Firenze and he glanced surprisingly at the raging girl that was now walking toward her car shaking the keys in her hand. He gazed at the man, but he was gone now inside of the restaurant and talking to someone he knew.
"Merda!" Crowine said in Italian as she sat in the car on the passenger seat. Playing the second game of Assassin's Creed series,really decorated her cursing dictionary. Auditore arched his eyebrow and walked over to Crowine with a puzzled expression.
"Do not worry, we can have another place to sit a talk, and eat of course." He crouched on his haunches and put his hands on top of Leona's. The girl looked up at him with sadness filling her beautiful blue eyes. Not taking his gaze away from her, Ezio leaned over and kissed the girl's cheek softly. Crowine's eyes widened making Ezio smile wide.
"I am sorry…" She suddenly said and received squeeze on her hands from Auditore. "I wanted to show you that place, and Haytham as well, but everything went to shit." She said sighing heavily. Ezio shook his head reassuring that it was not a big deal and that there were plenty of places to go and have breakfast in the city.
"I guess you are right…" Leona whispered looking into Ezio's amber-colored eyes. Suddenly a white feather softly landed on their hands that were locked together. Leona tilted her head to the side and slowly took the feather into her hand that was free from Ezio's grasp within seconds. "Well, this is unusual." She said looking over the pure white plume. Auditore frowned and quickly stood up almost hitting the edge of the car's ceiling with his head.
"Leona, I know a place where we can fulfill the things we planned for today." He said with his eyes fixed on the feather. The sign has been given, which meant they had to go immediately. "Lock the car and follow me." He said walking around the vehicle and waiting for the confused girl to finally join. "Please, hurry." He tried to sound soft, but nervousness was filling him up.
"Of-of course…" She said bringing herself up from the soft seat and closing the door locking the car instantly. She hid the keys in her pocket and followed the Italian who promptly walked off.
"I hope Haytham taught you how to climb." He suddenly said coming over to the edge of the building and looking up. The construction was not tall; it was the backside of a big shopping mall. He scanned the smooth wall finding some ledges and balconies. The girl shook her head and bit her lips trying to hide the fear of having to climb the building Ezio was observing so attentively.
"N-no, he only taught me how to fight…" She whispered feeling her legs start to shake a little. The assassin looked over to her and grinned.
"Then, this is a great opportunity for you to learn." He said unexpectedly for Leona jumping on the wall and grabbing one of the tubes that were safely fixed to the wall. Ezio began climbing up and ignoring the people around him starting to complain. He was used to it from the very beginning back at home. Oh, how he wanted to be back there again; see his mother and Claudia open their hands and invite him into a tight hug.
He stopped climbing for a second and looked at the horizon that was hidden behind the tall buildings. Family, his brothers and his father, the hollow space in his chest ached sometimes when he came back to those memories. He could not save them, protect them in time; all the lies he believed, and all the betrayal he did not see blinded by lust and childish dreams. Ezio looked down at the shocked Leona and smiled with some sorrow on his face. He tried to cheer up and waved his hand at the girl.
"You awakened you Eagle Vision, you can use it now with no force to put on, it is all in your blood, assassin!" He yelled down for her to hear; after a second the girl came up close to a wall.
"If I fall there will be no desynchronization, no second chances…" Leona whispered to herself. She closes her eyes and imagines herself in her own assassin robes that a Mentor would have suggested for her after she surpassed the "Novice" rank. She felt itching on her wrists as if they were missing an important piece, the hidden blades. Leona unwillingly touched the hood of her jacket and pulled it up over her head; if she looked up at that moment, she could have seen a bright smile on Ezio's lips.
"She is a true Assassin, not a drop of a Templar." Ezio told himself and called for her to hurry as he saw another feather float softly down near him. "He is waiting for us." Auditore thought and continued to bravely climb up the building.
"Y-yes, Mentor…" She suddenly whispered closing her mouth with her hand. Did she really just call Ezio her Mentor? She blushed embarrassingly and gave the wall a quick glance. "You live only once, try to remember that Leona, and grasp this shit with your life." She said running up the wall, forcing new gasps from the surrounding her people, and grabbing tightly the same tube Ezio held on to moments ago with a loud gasp.
"Oh mamma mia…" She whispered and began to climb up without daring to look down. "This better be worth it…" She told herself biting her lip and grabbing on the ledges. She slipped couple of times almost sending herself down to the concrete. She even called Rebecca and Shaun out of shock, as if the girl was in the Animus, and the computer nerd could have just turn it off and send her to the great plains of nothing.
"I honestly need some sarcasm from Shaun right now…" She whispered to herself finally realizing how close she was to the top. She held her hand up and grabbed the edge of the roof pulling her heavy body up.
"Having trouble?" Ezio watched the girl slowly climb on the top cursing everything she saw before her, including the Italian assassin himself. He smirked and shook his head coming over to the girl that froze in place looking at what distance she had traveled upward.
"Oh…my…God…" She whispered staring into the abyss of tall buildings around her. She had no doubt that if she looked down before she reached the top, she would have been flying down like a rock. "I feel like I reached heaven, literally…" She said feeling the assassin pick her up.
"Do not exaggerate." Ezio held Leona with his arms in a hug; the girl hid her face in his chest feeling dizzy from the height. "This is not even a half of what I have climbed in order to get a better view of cities." He said stroking the girl's hair and chuckling when she growled another insult to him in his native language. "Alright, let's go." He said gesturing toward a door on the roof that always leads to stairs.
"Couldn't we just use the inside of the mall to get to a needed floor?" Leona exclaimed following the assassin after she pulled away from him.
"It is more fun this way, plus you need practice." He said sliding his hidden blade into the lock and opening the door with no problem. Ezio stood aside letting the girl go in first.
"What a damn gentleman." She hissed and walked into the staircase. "What floor?" She asked going down and looking around; it was dark in this part of the building, only a few dull lamps lit up the stairs.
"Third, I believe." Auditore closed the door behind and followed Leona to the wanted floor. It took a moment before they left the darkness and walked into the bright and noisy shopping center. No one seemed to care about two individuals walking out from the stair case; it was pleasing for both, since the police man, that walked here and there, did not suspect anything.
"Now what?" She asked unwillingly gazing at the shop mirrors and searching for something catchy.
"We need a store called Victoria's Secret." The assassin turned to Leona with a lost look on his face. The girl's eyes widened and a wide smile crept on her lips, a loud bright laughter followed.
"Are you serious?" She said laughing harder when Ezio arched his eyebrow looking very perplexed. "Alright, alright, just follow me." She smirked and grabbed Auditore's hand; the Italian, unruffled but tender, walked beside the girl looking at the stores around them. He did not know what made Crowine laugh so much when he named the store, but promised himself to find out immediately once they reached their destination.
"We are here." Leona's voice snatched the assassin from deep thoughts. Ezio turned his head and saw a big room before him filled with lingerie. His eyes widened making Leona laugh again.
"Is this the right shop?" He asked slowly turning his head side to side and then glancing at the girl. Leona nodded and grinned at the shocked Auditore.
"Why are we here then?" She asked and before the Italian could answer, a slender figure of one of the girls that worked in the shop came up to them with a warm smile.
"Hello, welcome to Victoria's Secret, how can I help you?" She observed the two assassins with interest and obviously thought that they were a young couple.
"We are looking for a…fitting room." Ezio hesitated to name the specific place in the store as if he forgot some kind of instruction. The girl nodded and smiled at Auditore glowingly.
"Have you picked anything for you lady to try on?" She asked and met a puzzled look from the Italian. Leona opened her mouth to speak but was once again shut off by the girl. "Do you know the size of a bra your girlfriend wears?" She asked forcing Leona to frown and blush indifferent shades.
"We are not a coup-" Crowine protested but then caught Ezio's eyes fixed on her chest. Her face turned crimson and she quickly crossed her arms in front of her. Auditore smiled and nodded his head at the assistant. He then held his hand up and took a back lased piece of lingerie from one of the shelves. It had medium sized of cups which made Leona turn her face away from embarrassment.
"Alrighty then, if it is all," the girl started and received a nod from the assassin. "Then let's get your room ready." She smiled wide and led the two to the fitting rooms section. All of the doors appeared to be occupied but one in the very corner away from eyes. "Here you go, Miss." She said as she closed the door for the girl leaving Ezio standing close to it.
"Hey, you can let me in now." He whispered as the girl was gone; Leona opened the door without any hesitation. Ezio walked in and closed the door behind him silently; he could read discontent in her eyes. "You can ask questions the one who arranged this meeting here." Auditore sat down on a little bench near a corner and oddly knocked on the wall on his right side. He unwillingly glanced over to the bra that was carelessly thrown on the hook near a mirror.
"Trying to say something?" Playful blush still danced on Leona's cheeks; Ezio smiled at her and winked.
"Did I get the right size?" He asked watching the girl blush lowering her head.
"N-no…" She whispered not daring to look up at Ezio's languid stare.
"Smaller size then, huh?" Auditore hummed something else under his breath looking somewhat disappointed in her answer.
"Bigger." She suddenly said forcing the assassin widen his eyes and drift into a big smile. Before he could say something scratching sounds started coming from the other side of the wall; within seconds a little door slowly opened within the wall and a man in a long green cloak with a hood over his head peeked out. He saw Ezio and nodded his head saying that it was safe to come in.
Ignoring Leona's questionable look, Ezio stood up and followed the man at the same time grabbing the girl softly and pulling her after him. They walked in the dark hallway and down the steps for a while until reaching a wide lit up room. Leona narrowed her eyes not used to a bright light yet; Ezio did the same thing, but adjusted faster than the girl. As she regained her vision, Crowine looked around the room and gasped as she found herself standing alone in the middle surrounded by hooded individuals.
"What is going on here?" She whispered terrified of the cold and observing looks she got from the people around her. She saw Ezio nod his head at someone and step aside. "Ezio?" She called for Auditore, but he seemed to ignore her.
A tall man in white robes made his way through the crowd toward the girl. His amber eyes, just like da Firenze's, glowed even in the clear lighting of the room. Leona widened her eyes not believing of whose figure she saw in front of her.
"Altair…?" She tilted her head to the side trying to look under the assassin's hood. "Altair Ibn La'Ahad?" She asked again and received a short nod from the man. She looked at Ezio searching for help, but the Italian only shook his head.
"Leona Crowine," Altair took a step closer and held his hand to touch the girl's shoulder but she slapped his hand away. The people around her gasped and shook their heads at the girl; dull whispering started going around the crowd, but was hushed my Altair's hand that he held up.
"Are you kidding me? This is not real!" She claimed taking a step back away from Ibn La'Ahad, as if the Master Assassin was a terrifying ghost.
"As you can see, I am before you." Altair spoke calmly with no intention to scare Crowine away. "I appeared in your world shortly after Ezio." He said glancing over to Auditore and back to Leona. "As you may know now, the time periods have collided together and messed up the whole world. We were unwillingly thrown into each other's worlds before reaching you." He said yet Leona was silent; she could not produce a sound. Altair finally took a step closer and put his hand on the girl's soft shoulder that trembled a bit.
"The first person to appear in your house triggered a chain reaction that held us together. And now we are being sent into your world one by one. I am not the last one to appear." He said sighing and setting Leona's shoulder free from his strong grasp. "We are not supposed to know about each other, but something forced all of the knowledge of the future assassins into mind, and now I know exactly who will appear next outside you door." He said turning away and making his way toward a chair on which he shortly sat down.
There was a long silence hanging between Leona and surrounding her members of the Brotherhood. She could tell that the young men and women where the modern assassins, no matter how much it did not make sense, they were alive and ready to follow the ancient leaders that long ago considered a fiction from a video game. There was another man standing near Altair and Ezio, he wore modern-like assassin apparel with a traditional sharp hood. His hands were locked behind his back as if he was the Creed version of Haytham.
"Is that really the assassin that we searched for, Mentor?" He asked Altair quietly; the assassin replied with a shirt nod and gazed over to Leona still saving silence between them. The man straightened up and slowly walked over to the girl. He held his hand up in order to shake the girl's; Leona answered his request with a short glance on his wrist noticing a hidden blade.
"My name is Altio, and these people," he motioned around him. "Are the members of the Modern Creed." His eyes were serious and showed no lies in his gaze. Yet Leona managed to smile and laugh out loud; the modern assassin leader arched his eyebrow as if being unsure about Crowine's sanity. The girl took a step back and walked around him silently making her way toward Ezio and Altair.
"How do I put an end to this?" She suddenly asked narrowing her eyes at the Master Assassin that let a little smile slip on his lips.
"You are the one indeed." He said standing up and pointing at the white wall behind them. "Use your talent and find the answer." He said watching Leona's face expression change from serious to surprise.
"You were the one in my dreams…." She whispered staring at the assassin that gave out another nod. She then fixed her eyes on the wall; Ezio and Altair already knew what was on the wall, but could she handle the mystery that was about to open before her?
Altio watched the girl with his sharp eyes, he was a little offended due to her unfriendly attitude toward his Creed. Judging by her actions, it seemed as if she and the Mentors were old friends. The man frowned and slowly walked toward his crowd that silently watched the girl with interest.
"She looks graceful and tender, but her eyes show strength and great leadership." Altio thought to himself watching the girl's every movement. He then slowly drifted into observing her as a whole. Leona was not tall; majority of the male members of the Creed could easily tilt their heads down in order to look at her if they came up close to the girl. Her long dark hair hung down her back like a cape; her eyes were now closed in concentration. "If Altair is right, she has Eagle Vision that will help her uncover some secret…" Altio realized that he has been staring at the girl too much and quickly looked away biting his lip and running his hand through his spiky golden hair.
Meanwhile, Leona stood in front of the wall with her eyes tightly shut. She silently hailed for the Eagle Vision to appear, but every time she half opened her eyes nothing was there. Altair and Ezio saw the girl's struggle and exchanged concerned looks. La'Ahad nodded at Ezio and called for Leona's attention. The girl opened her eyes again and questionably looked at the assassin.
"You are forcing something simple to appear." The Arab started and crossed his hands on his chest. "Eagle Vision is like an extra limb on your body, you just have to send a signal from the brain and activate it as if you want to move your hand." He said but only complicated the things for the girl; he sighed and looked at Auditore asking for help with his eyes.
"Imagine that the wall has a map of Templar locations, you can only see it with your Sight." Ezio said coming over to the girl and hugging her shoulders; some female growls of jealousy were heard from the crowd. "Try to find where the enemy is." He whispered in her ear so only she could hear his velvet voice. "Try to find Haytham." Ezio pulled back and smiled at the girl. Leona gulped and lifted her head up looking at the wall. She had so many questions to Altair and Ezio; she wanted to know how they knew all about it, since Ezio forgot appearing in her dreams. She wanted to ask about the strange Modern Creed that sounded absurd to her. But she knew that now she has something more important to do; all questions were put aside at once.
"Try to find Haytham?" Crowine thought with a hint of grief. Altair used to send her a colossal amount of hints about the mysterious answer in her dreams, almost driving her insane. She saw an enemy in Haytham when she first opened the Sight as her secret talent. That morning the girl was saddened and tried to hide everything from Kenway, but in the end almost died from his hand if Ezio did not save her. "I hope his is okay…" She almost said the thought out loud but bit her tongue before the words could fly off her lips.
"Miss Leona," Altio suddenly came up to Leona and put his hand on her shoulder, the girl felt a jolt through her body and turned to look into Altio's dark green eyes. She felt a slight blush come across her face when the young leader of the modern assassins smiled at her. "Please, try again; we are counting on you. I and my men were searching for you after we heard that you had finally awakened your talent. You were an idol for us and a big miracle." He nodded his head and the people around cheered Leona up a little with their nods and smiles.
"I certainly will, Mr. Altio." She called him by his name softly and after a hesitation broke her gaze from his. The man stepped aside and returned over to Altair's side waiting for Leona to fulfill her promise.
"As if it is a limb of my body..." Crowine told herself and closed her eyes again. Sudden energy came across her body and she opened her eyes sharply looking at the wall that now glowed with blue. She smiled and nodded her head letting everyone know she finally succeeded. The assassins sighed in relief and waited for Leona to announce the vision on the wall with obvious worry.
The eerie drawings and cracks on the wall started forming into words and shapes that glowed with golden and red. The words appeared in another language, but quickly started shifting around in letters to get the right set in English. The girl watched the vision in silence, but suddenly her eyes widened as she saw the final product.
Altair nodded his head at Ezio; the Italian gulped and locked his hands in front of him, his face showed worry. Leona took a step back and suddenly cried out with terror in her voice. The assassins around her jumped in surprise and exchanged puzzled looks; Altio quickly went over to Leona unexpectedly catching her in mid-air fall. The girl was sweaty and hungrily gasping for air; the man glanced at the Mentors with ghostly fear in his eyes. The assassins only nodded their heads; Ezio seemed to be very sorry about something horrible that showed its revolting face to Crowine.
"Miss Crowine, what did you see?" He whispered trying to calm the poor girl by stroking her silky hair. Leona did not feel anything; she just kept looking on the wall, even though the Eagle Vision entered its usual sleeping mode after showing her the answer Altair wanted her to find for a while now.
"I…saw…" She whispered hot tears slowly crawling down her cheeks.
ᴥ ᴥ ᴥ
"What do you mean she disappeared!?" Annette yelled at Jackson who was stubbornly hiding his hideous face under the hood.
"We tried to find her at her house, but there was no one there. We searched half of the city, but no trace was discovered." He said gloomily watching his leader measure the room with her wide steps.
"Search harder, dammit!" She bit her lip sending curses over to Leona's address one after another. "You need to find her and make sure that little bitch does not cross the Creed's road while I gather our Templar army for the Grand Master!" She growled and hit the wall with her foot, she felt pain in her toes, but ignored them due to great inferno of anger storming inside of her.
"I will send Robert and Arial over to our other quarters near the Navy Pier." The Templar spy tried to sound as calm as possible, he was especially afraid of Annette when she was mad. The girl nodded and finally left the poor wall alone after kicking it a couple of times.
"Good, I need results by the end of tomorrow." Annette commanded with a heavy sigh, her face expression suddenly changed. "I also want you to visit our ex spy today before evening." She said smirking at Jackson. "I hope you did not forget her, after all, she left the Order two years ago." The man shook his head and drifted into a pure evil smile.
"How could I forget my favorite teacher?" He asked turning to leave the Templar quarters.
"Hey Jackson," Annette called out to the man; he stopped in the door opening, waiting for his leader to speak. "Tell Chelsea I said a big hello." Annette said to the spy before he vanished into the dull hallways of the building closing the door behind him.
ᴥ ᴥ ᴥ
"Where is she? It is already passed lunch time…" Haytham shut the entrance door of the girl's house as he came back from his long journey. He held an empty cloth in his hands that was now missing the precious weapons. Instead, he had a fair sized bag with money received from the sale. He turned on the lights and checked every room making sure that Ezio and Leona did not come back since they left to get breakfast. Kenway knew that there was something going on, but did not want to trouble himself too much. After all, he knew that Auditore will protect the girl from the Templars even thought it might cost her a couple of fleeting kisses from the assassin.
He placed the bag on the cabinet in the bedroom and sat on bed tiredly. He took off his shirt and lazily threw it on the floor forgetting about the tidy manners. He leaned on the pillow and closed his eyes with a smile. Everything was going just the way he wanted to; in three weeks he will meet Annette at the park with a good number of the Order followers. There he will finally answer her main question of why he needed her to gather such an army and bring it to the park undercover in the middle of a warm night.
"Oh you just wait." The Grand Master whispered before slowly drifting into sleep with the city sounds stroking his ears from the open bedroom window. Slight breathe swung the tree branches causing the green leafs hiss like thousands of peaceful snakes in a sacred dance. The sound of cars was soothing and distant from the house; the busy people walked back and forth with their minds filled with troubles. Birds sang here and there; some of them sat on the branches near the window dancing along with the wind. Others flew around, chasing each other in a curious game and sometimes fighting for food or attention.
The day was still serene and pleasant even though a great storm was slowly surrounding a beautiful city.
Continued in Chapter 5…