Hey guys! I know I left everyone in the dark and I know I'm late, but school has started and I have one hell of a hectic schedule. This is where all the shit goes down and all the hell breaks loose. Hold on tight folks, its gonna be a hell of a ride!

~Dora~

Chapter 23

Argument and Capture

*Altaïr felt Alera grab his arm and the grip on his hand tightened. He turned back around to her and was shocked at what he found. Alera was pale as a ghost and her hand was trembling and slightly sweaty. Her blue eyes were a pale blue like ice and they had fear and shock in them. Her lips had turned slightly white around the edges as well. He saw her chest rising and falling at a quick pace and her eyes never met his, they just kept straight, staring down whatever it was that had her on edge.

"Alera?" Altaïr put his hand on her cheek. She was cold and her eyes still refused to meet his. "Alera. Alera, look at me. What's wrong?" he whispered softly to her. She still refused to look at him, but instead, she raised a shaking hand and pointed towards what she was looking at. Altaïr followed her finger and saw it. There were two high guards dressed exactly how she had described the one that had killed her father. They had the black robes and the dark silver armor. Veils were over their faces and heads. He turned back to Alera and saw that she had changed again. Her color had slightly come back and her eyes had the fire of battle in them… And the glint of revenge. Her eyes still never met his. He wasn't even sure if she knew he was there…

"Shink."

"Oh shit." Thought Altaïr. Alera had her hidden blade out in an open crowd, and what's worse is that she started to advance on the guards. Altaïr stepped in front of her. He cupped her cheeks gently and made her look at him.

"Alera. Look at me. Look me in the eyes." He softly commanded. Her eyes slowly met his and her expression changed and she was no longer tense.*

I blinked a few times. All I saw was him. All I saw were his green eyes. I felt his thumb rub my cheek.

"Altaïr… what… what happened?" I asked, totally confused. One minute I was conscious and the next minute…Flashback… now I'm back.

"Alera… I think you had an anxiety attack and went into a deep flashback… Your eyes were glazed over and… it was like you were lost to me…" I blinked again and looked down at my hidden blade… Oh shit! My hidden blade is out! I quickly popped my wrist and the hidden blade withdrew. I shook my head… A flashback? Had it really been that in depth? Suddenly my head started to pound. I closed my eyes tight and rubbed the bridge of my nose.

"Ugh… I need to sit down for a minute…" Altaïr took my hand.

"Come on then… You can sit down and I'll go pick pocket those high guards." I snapped to attention.

"High guards! Where? Lemme at 'em!" I spotted them talking on the other side of the souk and started to walk towards them. Altaïr grabbed my hand and lead me to a bench in the shade.

"Sit. And don't move." He ordered. I crossed my legs and my arms and huffed.

"Why?"

"Because you're going to get yourself exposed, and possibly killed. Stay here and relax. I'll go check out the guards." I leaned back on the wall and rolled my eyes.

"Fine." He nodded and walked off towards the guards. He stuck to the shadows and slowly advanced on them. The guards parted ways. I focused on one of them. He had a letter tucked into his belt. I saw him walk down the street, turn a corner and disappear. Altaïr went right behind him. I sighed and leaned back up against the wall. I heard the call of an eagle. I looked up to find Alario circling over me. I didn't want him to fly down and cause a scene and I think he knows better anyways…

"Stop! Come back here you filthy thief!" I heard somebody yell. I looked in the direction of the voice and I saw people quickly jumping out of the way and moving. Suddenly a little boy, who looked to be no more than ten, entered the souk running at full speed. He had a half of a loaf of bread under his arm and a shiny red apple in his hand.

"Wow, nice steal." I said out loud. Impressive… I saw about three guards following the boy. Their swords were drawn. People were running over each other just to get out of the way of the guards. Suddenly the boy stopped and looked around. Something was wrong… I sprung up on my feet and quickly made my way to the boy.

"Naji!" someone screamed. A crowd started to gather around the boy and the guards. The boy's head shot over to his left and I looked in that direction too. There was a guard that had come from the other side of the souk…and he had a knife up to a girl's throat. The girl looked to be about ten as well. Her brown hair was messy and she was wearing a white stained shirt and some ripped brown pants.

"Kara! No!" the little boy yelled. That's it… time to intervene… I quickly pushed my way through the crowd and stood on the edge. The three guards that were chasing the boy had stopped about ten feet away from him. The other guard still had his sword to the little girls neck. She was crying and the boy looked like he was about to try to fight… Not a good idea. I made my way around the edge of the crowd and stopped to where I was on the left side of the boy… and right beside the guard who had the little girl… Ideas started to fit together and plans were being formed. "Save the girl first then save the boy and then get them both to safety… Got it."

I slowly withdrew my hidden blade. I saw the boy's eyes roam the crowd for a way out. He looked to the left of him and then his eyes stopped on me… His eyes widened a bit and I put my fingers to my lips as a gesture for him to be quiet and don't scream. I knew he couldn't see my eyes because of my hood… but I couldn't help but wonder if he knew what I was. I saw a tear roll down his face and his lips moved…

"Help me." he mouthed.

"Thief!" said a guard. The boy snapped his attention back to the guards. "I will have your hand for that! And the life of your little girl friend as well!" The guards started to advance on the boy and a scream erupted from the little girl. I looked over towards the guard who had her and he was pressing his sword harder to her throat… I smirked to myself and felt my blood lusting demon break free… Time to dive into the wonderful sensation known as bloodthirstiness.

I ran up behind the guard that had the girl. I grabbed his hand that had the sword in it and twisted it backwards. He dropped the sword and the little girl ran to the little boy's side. The guard screamed in agony, which caught the attention of the other guards.

"Time for you to be silent." I said and delved my hidden blade deep into the nape of his neck. Everyone around me screamed in horror. Blood poured out of his wound and I dropped him to the ground.

"Assassin!" somebody yelled. Another wave of screams erupted from the crowd and all hell broke loose. People were running back and forth and trying to put as much distance between the scene and themselves as they could. I withdrew my hidden blade and pulled out my sword. I ran over to the boy and the girl who were now backed up against a wall. I quickly jumped in front of them and pointed my sword at the three guards.

"Assassin!" yelled one of the guards.

"Yes? What of it?" I asked with a smile. As if on cue, about three more guards ran up along side these… Oh shit.

"You will die along with these filthy street rats!" said another.

"But not before we have a little fun with the lady Assassin and the little girl." Said the one up front. He gave a wicked smile. Suddenly, out of nowhere, something dropped down beside me. I looked over and saw Altaïr, looking as tense and badass as ever. I couldn't help but smile. He drew his sword, flipped it around in his hand and then aimed it at the guards.

"You'll have to get through me first." He growled. That's it! That does it! I am officially turned on!… As totally fucking turned on as I am right now, I had to push it all aside and focus on the fight… Why does he have to turn me on so much?… I shook my head and looked forward at the guards who started to advance on us… There is no word out there to express how damn fine he is… I rushed forward and brought my sword down on the neck of the guard closest to me. It came in contact and he fell dead to the ground… I glanced at Altaïr beside me and I saw his muscles roll and tense…If only I could see those muscles when they're bare and have no veil to cover them… The sword just missed me by an inch as I came back into reality. The guard swung again and I blocked and kicked him in the stomach and then sliced him open. Blood stained the ground and slung off my sword.

"So much for not moving and getting exposed!" I heard Altaïr comment beside me. He punched his guard in the face; roundhouse kicked him in the gut and then sliced his stomach open in a near perfect straight line. Altaïr looked at me.

"What can I say?… Actually I have nothing to say to that…" I admitted. Another guard came running fast up to me. I ducked down and pushed him up and over me. He flipped over onto the ground and I stabbed him in the heart. I pulled my sword out and looked at Altaïr.

"Do you get some kind of high or thrill from life threatening experiences?" he asked with a smirk. I shrugged.

"What can I say? I'm an adrenaline junkie, and a blood thirsty assassin." I winked at him and ran passed him and stabbed an up-coming guard in the gut. He slid off my sword… I realized the souk was nearly deserted now…

"So I leave you alone for a few minutes and you just," he shrugged. "I don't know… Decided to start a fight?" I sheathed my sword.

"No…" I gently put my hands on either side of his head and turned it. "That was the reason for my fight." I turned him towards the two kids that were still frozen against the wall. "I think it's a pretty damn good reason too." I let Altaïr go and he exchanged a glance with me. We then both looked back at the kids. I started to walk over to them but they started to inch towards the alley.

I stopped and they stopped. They were both shaking with fear and their eyes were glazed over with tears. The little girl had the apple in one hand and the little boy's hand in the other. The boy took a step forward and pulled the girl behind him. He still had the bread tucked under his arm. Altaïr walked up beside me.

"D-Don't come any closer!" said the little boy. Altaïr and I exchanged another look. "Please…We're just hungry and we need some food. P-please don't kill us… A-and if you h-have to kill somebody… Please kill me and spare her…"

"Naji, no!" the little girl pleaded and she gripped the boy closer. I knelt down on one knee.

"No! No. Take it easy. It's all right. Nobody is going to kill anybody. We aren't here to hurt you." I said gently. The boy looked at me.

"But…You're an assassin! We've heard stories… Legends about you and how you kill people!" he said in a shaking voice.

"We kill in the name of peace." Said Altaïr softly. He knelt down beside me. "We kill to keep innocent people safe."

"Innocent people like you two." I said with a soft smile. "Those guards are terrible people... And they certainly aren't innocents… That is why I jumped in. I couldn't let you get killed. They deserved to die." The boy gave me a puzzled look.

"You…You're a woman?… But I thought all assassin's were men?" said the boy. I smiled and looked at Altaïr. He smiled back at me.

"I'm the one and only exception. I know how to fight." I said. Suddenly, fast footsteps interrupted our conversation.

"This way! They were over here!" yelled a voice. Altaïr and I shot back up and looked at each other, then we looked at the kids. They had fear in their eyes again.

"Run quickly, and remember this that I tell you: When some one is coming for you, break the line of sight and then hide. Stick to haystacks and roof gardens. This is one way that we escape. This is one way to be stealthy. Take this advice and use it well." I said to them. The boy and girl lingered for a second.

"Run!" said Altaïr. The boy looked at us.

"Thank you Assassin's. We won't forget this." The boy smiled and then took off.

"Thank you Lady Assassin. Take care of each other. I can tell you love each other very much." She giggled a bit.

"Kara!" called the boy.

"Goodbye!" she whispered one more time and vanished behind a building along behind the boy. Altaïr grabbed my hand.

"Our turn." He said. He broke out into a run and I followed him.

"Can't we take them?" I asked as he dodged through back alleys and streets. He turned so many corners that I totally lost count and gave up.

"No. There were too many coming. I heard too many footfalls. Besides, we don't need to cause another scene." He eyed me and smirked.

"Point taken. Thank you." I bit back. That earned me a laugh from him. Suddenly he wrapped an arm around my waist and we dove into a haystack. He was straddling me and lying on top of me. "What are you doing?" I hissed. He put his hand over my mouth, his eyes burning into mine.

"Shhh." He barely whispered. I kept quiet and heard footsteps.

"Where did they go?" said a guard.

"Did you see them?" said another.

"I'll go this way, you go that way. If we don't catch them in a little while then they're not worth it. I have better things to do." Said another. Their footsteps came dangerously close to us but then faded off. Altaïr and I were left alone again. His hand was still over my mouth. In an impulse I stuck my tongue out and licked his hand. He only smirked.

"Nice try Alera. But that doesn't freak me out… It might just turn me on." He leaned closer. I snatched his hand from my mouth and breathed.

"Oh give me a break. Do you know how uncomfortable it would be to do it in hay?"

"I don't think it would be that bad. You want to find out?" he said still smirking. I smirked back.

"Don't try me. I can play along too you know…" I quickly wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled him all the way down on me.

"Well you know me. I love a challenge." He said as he grabbed my hips.

"Bring it. I'll kick your ass. You won't know what hit you." I arched into him and he wrapped his arms around me and held me up to him. He pulled my hood down

"I love it when you talk like that." I closed my eyes and leaned my head back. My legs were still wrapped around his waist. Chills crept onto me as he bit and sucked at my neck. He kissed me behind my ear and bit my ear. A small moan escaped from my lips… That was when realization hit me. I quickly pulled my strength behind me and shifted gears. I rolled us around to where I was on top of him.

"We have a job to do Altaïr. You've gathered up the last information and it's getting late. We need to get back to the bureau." I said. We were both still breathing hard. I put my hand on the left side of his chest. I felt his muscles tense and his heartbeat was fast. I leaned over him and kissed him on his scar and then his neck.

"Calm your storm." I whispered in his ear. I pulled back and looked at him. His eyes searched mine and he smiled. He put one hand over my hand and the other reached up and stroked my cheek. I smiled back. There was a comfortable silence between us. It was like…we were the only ones in the world. I ran my hand down his chest and then jumped out of the hay. He followed behind me.

"Alera! For the last time! You are being unreasonable! This hunt is driving you up the wall! It's got you twisted!" yelled Altaïr. It was dusk. The sky had turned pink and orange as the sun was setting and we were fighting on the roof of the bureau. The Rafiq had asked us to leave after all hell had broke loose.

"No! You just don't understand do you? I have to do this! This is the only way I will be free! This is the only way my father will be at peace! I cannot let this go!" I yelled back. This was killing me. It was hurting me to yell at him but he just wasn't listening. He wasn't seeing what I was seeing. I looked him in the eyes. They were full of worry and anger and…sadness. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Alera, this has consumed you and… It pains me to say this… But you're on your own. I will not help you with this because you will not see that it has eaten you alive." He said quietly. Everything just stopped. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He was… leaving me. He wasn't going to help me.

"Wha-what? You're not going to help me? But I need you Altaïr! I need your help! I want you with me! I want you by my side." I whispered the last part… I didn't know if he heard that part or not.

"My help? You need my help with what, Alera? To chase a man from you're past? What if he's dead? What then? Your just chasing ghosts! Give up! Its over! You'll never find him!" he yelled. Each of those last few words was like a dagger to my heart. I just couldn't believe what I was hearing. I felt tears stream down my face and I quickly turned away. "Alera think of your father. He wouldn't want this! He wouldn't want to see his daughter, his pride and joy, go mad with revenge." He said quietly. Fire ran through my veins on those words. I whipped around and glared daggers at him.

"Shut up! SHUT UP! You know nothing of my father! You don't know what he wants! And you sure as hell don't know what I want! Do you know what I want Altaïr? Do you even care to know what I want? I want you! I always have!"

"I can't give you what you want, Alera!" he snapped. My breath caught in my throat and my eyes went wide. I wanted to cry… God help me I wanted to break down and cry… The lump in my throat stung. Tears streamed uncontrollably from my eyes.

*The realization of what Altaïr had just said, hit him like a blow to the gut. Alera was about to fall apart. He had spat out his words before he had let her last words register. She said she wanted… Him? She had always wanted him? He replayed what he had said and how he had said it in his mind and he regretted it, terribly. He took a step closer to her and she backed up. She closed her eyes and put a hand over her mouth. Her body started to shutter as she cried.*

"Alera no… Wait… I didn't mean it… I didn't understand until the last…" he whispered. I wasn't listening. I didn't care. It doesn't matter anymore. I could barely control myself as I cried. All I knew was that I wanted to be alone and away from him. I could feel my heart breaking at that very moment. My chest hurt as I cried. He moved closer to me and I backed up all the way until I was at the edge of the roof. "Alera please… No…" he moved faster than I could and he wrapped his arms around me. I wept into his robes… Then I pushed him back.

"You don't care about me. You never have…" I whispered.

"That's not true Alera and you know it! Please!" I heard his voice start to crack. He tried to reach for me again and I pushed him back with a harder force.

"You just told me that you couldn't give me what I want. What I want is you, Altaïr. But now that I know it was all a trick, a game… I can't believe I fell for it… I can't believe I let my walls down! I can't believe I fell in lo-" I stopped. I saw Altaïr's eyes widen. He started to walk towards me, but I turned around and jumped off the roof before he could catch me. I tucked and rolled around to the ground. Night had fallen all the way now and then moon was the only thing lighting my path. I heard something fall down and follow behind me.

"Alera wait! Please stop!" he called. I picked up into a run and weaved through the buildings until I was in the back alleys. I could still hear his footsteps behind me. Suddenly I ran into something… Or someone. I looked up.

"Ah, what do we have here? What is a lovely young thing like you doing all alone out here at night?" I stepped back and unsheathed my hidden blade.

"Listen you nasty-ass, rotten, no good bastard. I am a female assassin who just had her heart broken by a man she thought she loved. Do you really wanna fuck with me right now?" The man laughed and stepped out into the moonlight and what I saw scared the living fire out of me. It was another one. It was a high guard, dressed in the same damn everything that had killed my father.

"Oh… So you aren't just another poor woman?… We've captured the infamous Desert Rose. I'll take my chances with you sweetheart. Boys, take her to the palace. She's the perfect fiery one to break. She'll bring a high price and if we're all planning on getting lucky tonight, she'll bring a good few hours." He said with a evil laugh. I froze as I saw about five more guys come out of the shadows of the alley and they all had nasty smiles on their faces. This was what the two men were talking about earlier today. And tonight was the night of the party that Abu'l Nuquod was having.

"Alera!" I heard Altaïr's voice. I shot around and saw him running down the alley.

"Altaïr! No! Run!" I screamed. Suddenly I felt a horrible, agonizing pain in the back of my head. I screamed as it spread through my skull….

My vision was going dark around my eyes….

I felt myself sway….

I put my hand to the back of my head and saw blood. I dropped to my knees and looked up. I saw Altaïr fighting back as hard as he could, but then they knocked him out too…

I tried to call out to him but I felt numb and cold…

Then darkness took me.

Hey! I'm sorry! I know I left you hanging again! I hope you guys liked it and I'll start on the next chapter as soon as I can! Please don't be mad! -.o I'd rather not lose all of you! DX Don't be angry! I love you all!