Chapter 14

Alcina was already beginning to regret her decision to spare her guide. He was a terrible performer, constantly twitching and gulping in anxiety, his expression straining. His sweaty hand held her right arm as he led his "prisoner" from the sewers of the dungeon. The terrible odors finally began to fade away the higher up they traveled. Flight after flight of stairs spiraled upward until at last they reached the giant barred door. He fumbled with the giant handle and heaved it open, delivering a rush of clean air into her lungs. She took in a much needed deep breath as she squinted from the sudden blinding light. At last she was free of the darkness.

"This way" he pulled nervously, leading her down the lavishly adorned hallway. The inside of the forte was completely unexpected compared to the dark, militant, structure that loomed before her when aboard the vessel. The wooden floors were dressed in long elegant rugs, resembling the grand hall of a castle as mounted, glowing ,torches lined the painted walls. The patriach was a man with expensive taste. She grinded her teeth at the thought of the pompous wolf hiding in his guarded tower, gloating over his precious commodities as his puppet soldiers slayed her innocent family. His fate was drawing closer with each step she took in his direction. The sweaty grip tightened on her arm, pulling her from her thoughts. A small troop of guards approached up ahead. They were spotted... his twitchy fingers squeezed into her bicep as the small huddle began to clank in their direction. He anxiously shifted his weight from foot to foot, avoiding eye contact with his fellow guards as well as Alcina's reminding glare.

"Un momento soldato! Where are you taking this prigioniera?" a large brute raised a hand in authority.

He frantically gulped at the question, searching for words, "The Patriarch wishes to - errr - uhhh - speak with the young lady - ehem- si, that is all."

Alcina's teeth clenched silently, this fool was going to get her killed.

The commander's face contorted in confusion, "Uhh... what was that soldier?" The guide could feel Alcina's eyes shooting daggers into him in as he swore he could hear her threats snarling in his head.

"The Patriarch. She's going to the Patriarch," his matter-of-fact tone even convinced himself as he pressed onward pulling his captive along. The other guards did not protest, only muttered among themselves and continued on their way. The guilty pair both exhaled a sigh of relief, that had been close... far too close or Alcina's liking.

The warm halls of the forte began to thaw her freezing body; the dampness of her legs and feet were no longer unbearable. Her eyes skanned over enormous paintings of scenes of war and hanging commemorative swords and weaponry. "The bastardo thinks himself a king..." she grimaced mentally. Perhaps the entire identity of the "forte" was in fact a rouse, disguising it's purpose as a Templar stronghold. She was behind enemy lines far more than she had anticipated. Unarmed and in plain sight... she was flirting with death. If her guard so much as broke character, the entire fortress would be alarmed and she would be done for, only this time she wouldn't be thrown into a prison cell... but slaughtered. She eyed her guide once more, sizing up her level of risk; judging from his composure, the odds were not in her favor.

"How much further?" she whispered.

A large bead of sweat flowed from his brow down to his neck, "His quarters are located on the far Eastern wing." She noticed how he had not answered her question directly. Stealing a quick glance out the window, she noted the large moon filling the bay with glorious light as the stars shimmered across the water. But... something was off...

"You said the Eastern wing?"

"Si... si signora... the Eastern wing..."

The daggers in her eyes brutally stabbed his anxious features. "Why then, maestro, are you leading us West?" His body became rigid as his fingers suddenly tightened around her arm again. A burst of chaos began to echo through the halls from behind them. A sudden chill shuddered through her body as she felt her plan begin to unravel.

"There! There they are!" the dead body in the dungeon had clearly been discovered. Hell had boiled to it's brim and was about to break loose... she was out of time.

"Forgive me signora! I could not do it! I have a family!" the coward shoved himself away and fled down the hall.

"Quel bastardo inutile..." she growled under her breath as the floor began to tremble under to feet of the soldiers fast approaching. The growing sound and pulsating rumble quickened her steady heartbeat as she mentally reached within herself for whatever strength she could summon. Adrenaline raced through her system as she smiled to herself, ready for the bloody fray, mocking fate's cruel and sudden twist. The loud echoe of shouting muffled to mute in her ears as her muscles coiled and felt fluid, her senses growing sharper with each passing second. Her first target came into range, hoisting his blade above his head. Her legs sprang forward, leaping into a full fledged sprint toward her attacker. Like a wild feline she pounched, driving him to the floor, crushing his skull beneath her boots. Her legs swiped masterfully to her left sending another guards feet over his head as he crashed to the floor, winded. Her hands coiled around his startled face and with a swift movement twisted it in her grasp, breaking his neck with a loud crunch. Her assassin reflexes whispered to her to keep moving as she rolled forward, dodging a swinging blade overhead. Her swift hands disarmed another soldier, stealing his sword from his weak grasp as she wielded it into his gut. Her movements were agile and serene like a well trained dancer, each contact of her blade, clean, precise, and always lethal. A sudden jerk twisted her head backward. The commanding brute she had previously encountered grabbed a handful of her hair seeking to claim her head. With a quick slice, she took his hand instead. Bodies fell around her one by one in the height of her newfound rush, a rush that suddenly began to crash as a sharp jolt in her shoulder brought her to a knee. She had been hit. A bright red flower of blood bloomed on her shoulder. As the adrenaline began to fade, she realized she had already ripped out the arrow before she even noticed it was there. The rushing silence she recently experienced melted away as roars of reinforcements charged from the opposite end of the hall. She strained for a quick dose of strength as she heaved a dead corpse from the floor and bluntly lodged it through the nearby window. The stained glass exploded from it's frame as the jagged pieces showered to the water several stories below. The body however, did not fall quite as gracefully as it plummeted and splashed into the depths.

Several arrows began to zip by her as she stole whatever she could from her fallen foes. Five throwing knives, a sword, and a smoke bomb. "Excellent." The charging fleet began to close the distance between her and their weapons as an explosion of smoke erupted from the floor, leaving the guards choking on the fumes. She seized the moment to climb out of splintered window and cling to the nearest handhold. She reached upward in the darkness, searching for the next step on her climb, but her fingers fumbled aimlessly as the smooth surface rendered no help. Her heart suddenly sank as she realized she was stuck. Her eyes searched her surroundings for a ledge, a windowsill, a balcony... there had to be something! But there was nothing but smooth stone all around her. The noise of the guards beneath her feet began to grow louder as the smoke began to dissipate and release them from the choking haze. Her fingers ached as she clung to the only ledge in sight, praying for another step to magically present itself. The serene moon answered her prayers in the silence as a delicate beam of light illuminated a metal structure to her left. She shook her head, "An impossible jump..." She had never leapt that far in her life and wasn't even sure if the overhanging metal could support her weight. The iron grill was merely for decoration, a scaffold made for flowers and vines. A new rush trickled and coursed through her veins, the rush of sudden fear. Her mind struggled to calculate the distance, maybe she could make it, maybe that metal is stronger than it looks... pain began to explode from her shoulder as her mind began to shut down in defeat. It was too far, she would either be caught by the guards, or fall to her sudden death, she could not hold on much longer... there was nowhere else to go. At that moment she felt an overwhelming tingle grip her as her mind went suddenly blank. Was she losing too much blood? Her body felt weightless and numb, her fingers began to slip away from their grip. She sighed to herself as a soothing voice quietly whispered in her ear. The familiar voice did not speak words, and then again, it did not need to. A faint smile upturned her lips as the beautiful melody made her crave to see him, to stare into those brown eyes, to kiss him one last time they way he had kissed her the night he saved her life. He had given her new meaning, new purpose, given her something to fight for. The soothing voice ignited a strength within her; she WOULD see him again. She was an assassin, she would not quit... but more importantly, she was a Gavino. Her story would not end here.

Her heart was set ablaze with new determination. In that desperate moment her muscles released with all her strength, flying her toward the hanging iron. The water below her feet rushed and protested, waiting to swallow her. Her outstretched fingers painfully stretched in the air as she began to feel gravity's evil grip pulling her down. A silent tear of panic nearly escaped her eye as she began to sink. A loud clang freed her from her dread as her hands gripped tightly to the shaky metal. A roaring groan screeched as the iron structure slightly crippled under her weight, but thankfully did not collapse. She had made it. Just as quickly as it had appeared, the soft ray of moonlight vanished behind the clouds, concealing her in the shade of night. She looked to the sky with grateful eyes, "Grazie padre ... mi hai salvato," she whispered between gasping breathes as she blew a tender kiss to the heavens. She peered below her watching the guards gawk in all directions in search of the loose assassin. She listened carefully to their rambling and gathered that they believed her to have fallen and that they were going to regroup and search the water below for her floating body. The rest of the fortress would be on high alert so stealth would be the key.

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

Alcina took her time creeping along the outside of the fortress, monitoring the guards through windows. The majority of them had begun to search the grounds below for her broken body, thinking she had fallen to her death. This was most fortunate as it left the forte itself almost completely unattended. She briskly slinked across the flat roof, traveling East. She began to approach the end of the Eastern wing, her nerves elated to the idea of the Patriarch below her feet. Their first encounter on the ship did not go as she had planned, in fact, she wasn't quite sure what her plan had been at the time. She had been far too brash, physically and mentally unprepared, this time would be different. She silently ducked out of sight from a patrolling archer on the rooftop. With a swift flick of her wrist, a throwing knife zipped through the air and punctured his throat, bringing him to his knees, then finally, face down as he gargled on the dark rooftop. Her stealthy figure crept down the side of the wall, scooting toward the open window to her right.

"Forgive me Sir, it seems the young woman has... well... escaped."

"Ahhh... of course she has."

"A few accounts claim they saw her fall into the river."

"Have you found the body?"

"No master, not yet."

"Not yet? Meaning, you do not know if she fell?" The familiar dark voice verbally abused a scout from within his office. "Where was she seen last?" Alcina waited silently below the window as the scout reached out above her, pointing in the direction she had just came.

"Just beyond the-" his report was replaced with a loud scream of shock as Alcina reached for his outstretched arm, pulling him out the window and into the water below. She briskly hoisted herself into the fire lit room, withdrawing the borrowed sword. She starred her enemy in the face, ready to run him through. Rodolfo smiled, unsurprised by her sudden appearance.

"Brava," he applauded, "It seems I underestimated you."

"Indeed..." Alcina glared at his taunting gesture. "What did you do to him?" she pointed the blade at his smug expression.

"Ahhh must we have this conversation again?" he rolled his eyes with humor.

"You poisoned his mind you serpente velenoso!"

"Signorina I really must protest! I did no such thing," his cocky smile lingered. Rodolfo casually strolled to his glowing fireplace, churning it with a large stoker. She sidestepped to next to him, pointing the blade at his face, "Put that down!" she snarled. He delicately released the stoker from his fingers and took a step backward, his charming smile aiming to soften her vigilance. "Sit!" She gestured to a lavishly decorated chair.

He laughed to himself, "Very well then. I am not looking for a fight." He did as she ordered and relaxed himself in the cushioned seat. "So, what may I do for you signora?"

"Vai a farti fottere!" she slashed the sword at the air in anger.

"Tisk tisk ragazza. Such are not the words of a young lady," he waved a finger at her cursing.

"Enough with your taunting! I want my brother!" she demanded, "Release him and I will end your life quickly."

He brought a hand to his chin as if to ponder the agreement. "If you want him, take him. He has been free to leave whenever he so wishes."

"I do not believe you..."

"Well, that is between you and him then. You see, Donato is like a son to me, and I, his father. I gave him the family he never had."

"You KILLED his family! His REAL family!" she screamed, appalled by his sickening words.

His charming face exploded in a flash, "Ask him! Ask him which he preferred! A life tormented by nightmares and visions he could not control, or a life of riches and power! A life of being my most prized lieutenant, free of the misery and working toward the good of all!" The Patriarchs' dark eyes challenged her own, his tongue stinging her like salt in an open wound.

"This 'good of all' you speak of... does it pertain to the vault."

A wicked smile crept over his handsome face, "Indeed it does."

...

Translations:

- Un momento soldato- One moment soldier

- prigioniera- prisoner

- Quel bastardo inutile- useless bastard

- Grazie padre, mi hai salvato- Thank you father, you saved me

- serpente velenoso- venomous snake

- Vai a farti fottere- Go fuck yourself