Chapter 9: Uncles, Sages.
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-New York, Present Day-
"Hey Joshua?" Ororo called as she examined herself in the mirror of the man's apartment–currently naked. "I think I've gotten a little bigger." She continued as she measured herself with a measuring tape.
First her bust, then her stomach, then her waist, then both her thighs, and then finally her ass. All of which had managed to grow by a considerable margin.
"Is that gonna be a problem?" The man called as he looked over his painting supplies to make sure nothing was out of order.
"Well, my bust has grown from ninety centimeters to ninety-two centimeters." The woman told him as she cupped her breasts with her hands, causing her nipples to wag as the two beautiful orbs bounced around.
"Getting your bra on could be a problem. Am I wrong?" The man asked.
"Possibly, I've officially entered EE territory." She nodded, hands drifting to her hips. "And my waist has gone from fifty nine centimeters to sixty three. Still nice and tight, but definitely bigger." She continued, pinching her love handled hips a bit.
"Sounds like I have more of them to hold." Joshua remarked with an audible smirk, causing her to giggle a bit.
"Oh hush." She grinned before looking at her ass. "And as for my ass, it's also gotten bigger. From eighty two to ninety two centimeters." She continued.
"A big butt, perfect for childbearing." Her boyfriend smirked as he continued preparing his canvas.
"After we deal with Juno." The woman told him. She was more than eager to have kids with Joshua, but not while that Precursor was out and about.
"I know. Don't worry." He replied as he finished setting up his canvas and a stool that was set up a reasonable distance from the patio door to give the painting more atmosphere. "Everything's set up out here. "You ready?" He asked.
Ororo sat down in a chair and sexilly crossed her legs, pushing her buxom chest out so that he could marvel at her dark chocolate colored beauty.
"Go ahead." She told him.
Joshua did so and began carefully painting every detail he spotted on her, immortalizing her beauty in paint form right down to her sexy smirk. Then he began painting the background of the city outside their apartment, giving it the atmosphere it needed. This whole process took up to four hours, and Joshua was very impressed with his girlfriend's ability to sit still for so long.
"Okay, I'm done. Come on over and have a look." The man beckoned, covered in paint as the ebony skinned beauty came over to him and looked at the painting. Needless to say, she loved the way it turned out.
"Perfect." She grinned as she took the picture and set it near a sun cast so it could dry properly. "I think that earns you a reward." She continued as she grabbed Joshua by the shirt collar and led him into the bedroom, and shut the door. Locking it behind them.
Well, they'd been looking at each other while naked for four hours. What else were they gonna do?
(Later)
-American Brotherhood Sanctuary-
"Ya know, it's crazy that Desmond was never able to find out about the Sages while he looked through the memories of Altair, Ezio and Connor." Calvin noted as he flipped through a few manuscripts on said subject codified by Ah Tibai, Edward and Connor Kenway. "Wonder why that is?" He wondered.
"Maybe they weren't in the right place at the right time." Mael remarked.
"That's certainly a possibility. Plus, according to what I read up on, I don't think a Sage would've been born in Connor's lifetime." Joshua commented. "At least, from what I think, anyway." He added.
"Or probably did, but in a different country." Sarah added as she finished the calibration. "So, you guys ready to go down genetic memory lane again?" She questioned.
"Yep. Let's see what we got now." Joshua nodded before he sat in the Animus and everything went white for him.
Animus Active
Current Synchronization Rate: 25%
Searching for relevant memories…
Memories found: Sequence 8
Memory 1: Uncles, Sages.
Synchronization in progress, please stand by…
-Oklahoma, Mohawk Settlement. 1859-
"Everything set, Shin?" Raven called as she, Jaren and the Gunslinger got their horses ready to leave.
"Yeah. Liberty and Fenrir are ready for travel." The gunslinger nodded. This got a happy cheep from the eaglet in his satchel and a bark of affirmative from the pup that was sitting beside him, his tail wagging.
"Good to hear. Let's get saddled up and move out." Jaren nodded as he got on his horse.
With that, they were off, riding to their destination not far from the Reservation, the Prairie grasses blowing in the wind as they rode along. Fenrir ran alongside them while Liberty took cover in Shin's satchel.
"So Raven." Shin said after they slowed down a bit. "I heard that your grandfather had a homestead in Massachusetts, one he inherited from his mentor." He added.
"Yeah. That's right. One that was used as an HQ during the American Revolution, but I never went there." She nodded.
"Do you guys still use it?" The boy questioned as they continued riding, Jaren looking at them and wondering where his pupil was going with this.
"Not really. Do you have something planned?" The tribal girl asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, before me and Jaren took this mission, I had been talking to a few of my bunkmates at the Sanctuary about starting a couple new beuros." The gunslinger explained. "One was going to be in my old hometown when we got it rebuilt, and the second was gonna be in Massachusetts to stick close to Washington." He added. "And after reading about the Davenport homestead in my spare time… it seemed like prime real-estate."
"Impressive forethought." Raven nodded, Jaren doing the same. "But you do realize it's not as easy as it sounds, right?" She asked.
"How so?" The half Chinese and Japanese lad questioned. "I got the cowardenants, I have the manpower, and once I get permission from Mentor Bowery, it should be easy for me to source the materials to rebuild and repair everything." He continued. "So why would it not be easy?" He questioned.
"The challenge lies in the probability of some idiot stealing your resources, and there's also the probability of spies in your workforce." Jaren stated, having seen those problems before at various points.
"I think I have a few ways to deal with those." Shin told his teacher. "Any other concerns?" He asked.
"Yeah, what if the Templars already set up shop in both the Davenport homestead and Pallamon's wreckage?" Raven pointed out. "What then?" She asked.
"Find the weak points in their fortifications, target them, and then drive them out." Shin replied, listing off a three step plan.
"Okay, but how would you even keep up with the two anyway? I mean, South Dakota and Massachusetts aren't exactly a quick jog away from each other." Jaren stated. "If you try to split between them, you'll stretch yourself thin."
"I know, so I'm gonna put someone in charge of one while I manage the other." The young gunslinger stated. "That should help keep me from running myself ragged." He added.
"You had a lot of time to think this out." Raven commented, noting that Shin's plan was rather detailed.
"Hey, when you have a grudge against the Templars, you tend to come up with detailed ways to fight them." Shin shrugged.
What followed this part of the conversation was a moment of silence peppered with some intermittent small talk as the ride continued for several more hours, before Jaren decided to bring up another topic as they dismounted to let their horses drink and rest at a stream.
"So Raven, did your tribe have any luck finding the Precursor site rumored to be tied to one of the Mayan apples?" The Marshall asked, filling his canteen up from the stream as Fenrir drank his fill next to him.
"Some, but not much. It's somewhere in the southeast, in Georgia, but nothing solid." The woman replied. "But, unfortunately, it seems like this particular site can only be accessed by a Sage." She added bitterly.
This got Shin's attention, who was letting Liberty bathe and drink while he filled his own canteen. "Sage? What's a Sage?" He asked.
"They're basically reincarnations of Precursors who found a way to continue living after their civilization's downfall." Jaren explained. "The means for such a thing has long since been lost to time." He added.
"And we don't know where to find one, so we're out of luck." Raven finished with a sigh. "Or, not one that hasn't become an issue, that is." She added.
"What's that supposed to mean?" The gunslinger questioned as Jaren stood up, dusting himself off.
"A story for another day. Now come on, we'll want to get some more ground covered before the sun sets." The man said as he got his things ready and hopped in his saddle.
The trio mounted up and rode off again, Fenrir keeping pace the whole way.
(Later)
As night fell, the trio finally decided to call it quits and pitch camp by a nearby rock ledge. Jaren was busy setting up camp, Shin was chopping and gathering firewood with his tomahawk, and Raven was busy trying to start a fire.
"Come, come on…!" She muttered before, lo and behold, a fire was finally started. "Finally." She sighed in satisfaction.
"Ya know, you could have accelerated that with some pine sap chunks." Shin stated as he took a handful of the stuff in question and tossed it in the Fire, causing it to grow slightly.
"That's true, but it also puts tar in the Fire, which causes black smoke. And black smoke is like a signal for everything from bears to Templars saying "come get me"." The native girl retorted.
"... Fuck." Shin cursed before looking at the sky, the moon being covered by clouds. "Well, at least it's night and the moon isn't shining light on us." He added hopefully.
"Probably for the best." Raven nodded.
There was a bit of silence as the group enjoyed the warmth of the fire, the three of them glancing around every now and then to make sure no bears or cryptids were lurking close by. As they got comfortable, Shin decided to bring something up.
"I just realized that I still don't have anything good for close quarters." He noted, recalling the weapons he had at his disposal. "So far I got my guns, Hidden Blades, throwing knives, rifle, and Tomahawk." He listed. "Not many options for when I'm out of ammo or can't use stealth." He added.
"Ah crap, you're right." Jaren tsked. "We'll fix that when we reach the fort." He told his deputy.
"Hey, don't disrespect the tomahawk, it's plenty good for melee combat." Raven retorted. "And as for more options, I can show you a couple different tools you could use once we get to the fort if you want." She added.
"Let's discuss that when we get there. Right now, I think it's time for us to eat." The younger gunslinger said as he dug into his bag and pulled out some food.
The food in question was some cured meats, dried peppers, vegetables (onions, bell peppers, carrots, celery, and also some sun dried tomatoes) and canned beans. As well as two packages of white flour hardtack.
"What are you gonna do with all that?" The native girl questioned, noting how most of the ingredients all needed to be hydrated and cooked down to even be considered remotely edible.
"I'm gonna make sure all of us have a good meal before we even reach Fort Silis." Shin told her as he pulled out a pot.
Setting up a spit, the boy hung the cast iron pot over the fire and filled it with water. He put in the vegetables, peppers, and meats first to cook them down, along with some lard, salt, and a few other seasonings like minced garlic, paprika, curry powder and cumin, before letting it all stew.
After the ingredients had hydrated and gotten to know each other, Shin then started to add in the beans, and crumbled up bits of the hard tack that he chopped and ground up with his tomahawk and a rock to act as a thickener.
About half an hour later, the stew was done.
"Alright, here it is. Nine Hells Fire stew made with cured beef, deer, and rabbit, with Sichuan and other peppers straight from China." The gunslinger said proudly. "My recipe." He added. Raven tried some of it and actually moaned in delight as her tastebuds sang in joy in response to the flavor.
"Oh my goodness, this is delicious~!" She moaned joyfully as she kept eating.
"I dunno, the hardtack makes it have the mouth feel of a chunky chilly. Like the hellfire stew we had during the Comanche raids. Not exactly a very appetizing experience." Jaren said, right before the spices hit him. "Nevermind!" He yelped as he downed a bit of water to ease the burning sensation. "It's exactly like that Hellfire stew!" He coughed. "Oh God it's bad!"
"What'd you expect, prime sirloin, eggs and potatoes with gravy?" Shin stated plainly to his mentor as he ate his portion without the slightest bit of distaste. "We're roughing it out here, so we gotta eat whatever we can get. While also making it palatable." He added.
"I'm right there with you." Raven nodded. She understood what Shin was saying since her tribe worked like that almost all the time.
"Then you'll be right at home when war rations are all you got." Jaren mused as they continued to eat their dinner. Shin made sure to feed Liberty and Fenrir their food as well so they wouldn't feel left out.
When they were done (and Jaren felt like he'd set his mouth ablaze), the fire died down and the group decided to go to sleep for the night.
(The next day)
Luckily for the trio, they were about a day away from the fort in terms of travel. But due to few issues showing themselves on the way, they soon reached the fort without incident.
Fort Silis was built in the general shape of a square with the barracks on one side,stables near the entrance and the mess hall on the opposite side of the barracks. Opposite of the entrance was the administration building.
On either side of the fort was a field for growing grain and other essentials, which was being tended to by some native women. And on the other side was a medium-sized native settlement composed of TPs. Carts drawn by horses and oxen entered and left the area in lines as well.
As the three reached the gates of the fort, the two soldiers guarding the gates from a pair of towers raised some objections to their presence there.
"Halt! State your business!" One of them called. Shin couldn't stop his eyes from rolling while Raven blew her hair out of her face, arms folded and foot tapping impatiently in her sterup.
"My name is Jaren Ward, US Marshall." Jaren stated as he dismounted and held up his badge. "And the two with me are my deputy Shin Malphur and our navigation and tracking expert, Raven Kenway." He added, gesturing to the two behind him, still on their horses.
"Oh, right! We received a notice that you'd be coming here. Go on in." The other guard realized before giving them the go ahead to enter. The group left their horses in the stable before they all went to the main building to talk to the one in charge.
The inside of the fort wasn't all that grand when compared to the main courtyard of the capital. It was mainly an open empty square space inside the log walls that only had the aforementioned buildings, a scout tower with a lie tent, and a place for the blacksmith to work.
After a short walk, they arrived at the command office and entered, seeing the man in charge working at his desk.
The man in question was a rather young and upstart Sergeant Major by the name of George Washington McClintock, or GW as he preferred to be called.
GW was a man in his late twenties who was of a handsome look with brown hair that was well groomed and a squared face that had a very masculine look, sharp eyes, strong chin and all.
And to the modern day crew's surprise, he looked like a young John Wayne.
In terms of attire he had on an army uniform–specifically a cavalry one–with a revolver on his desk, holster on his belt, a saber on his hip and a hat on his desk.
The man was jotting down a few reports, and only stopped when Shin closed the door, letting him know they had come in.
"Ah. Good. Welcome to Fort Silis, you three." He said in a greeting tone.
"Thanks, GW." The Marshall nodded as he and his two companions sat down. "So, what's this whole thing about?" He questioned.
"Prisoner transfer of some tribal chiefs who committed some war crimes until we decide what to do with them." GW explained. "You're also to make sure… certain individuals don't kill them and cause an uproar." He added, referring to the Templars.
"I don't know how I should feel about the first part." Raven stated, arms folded. "You forced so many tribes off our original lands. Hunted the Buffalo to near extinction to drive us into a corner. And then put us on these reservations and say that we should like it." She continued. "And when members of those tribes make their displeasure known, you label them war criminals." She added.
"Not all of us on my side of the line enjoy this idiocy, you know." The man sighed, since he was one of those people that honestly hated what was happening. Sadly, he couldn't do anything since the masses were a demanding lot. "And you know it's mostly the Templars behind the expansion." He added.
"I know." The girl nodded before looking at Shin. "Come on, I saw a blacksmith around the fort, we can see if he can upgrade your gear for you." She continued. "Besides, didn't you say you had a pair of uncles you wanted to go see?" She added.
"Right! Let's go." Shin nodded, eager to see his two remaining family members again.
Memory Synchronization Complete
Memory: A Fort and a Half.
Continue to next Memory?
[Yes/No]
[Yes]
Next Memory: Uncles, Sages.
Synchronizing…
The two walked out of the Sergeant Major's cabin to the blacksmith's work station, where a man who looked like he was of mixed heritage, was busy working on forging a simple looking knife.
"Excuse me." Shin spoke up, getting his attention.
"Oh, hey there. Need something?" The blacksmith asked.
"I was hoping you could make some improvements on some of my gear." The gunslinger Assassin stated.
"What kinda gear ya got?" The young man asked. His answer was Shin setting down his guns, knife, tomahawk and Hidden Blades on the table. "Sweet Nanna's nethers… are these what I think they are?" He questioned, picking up the wrist mounted switch blades.
"You sound familiar with them. Did you do work for people like me before?" Shin asked.
"Yeah, I did. People like you often stopped by me whenever you were at the fort." The man nodded. "In fact…" He added as he rummaged through a box. "Old records from Renaissance Italy depicted Reconstructions of the Brotherhood's original upgrades done by Leonardo Di Vinci. And I got a folder of em."
The blacksmith then stood up and moved the other weapons and set all the papers on the table. It all ranged from poisoned Blades, to something called a Hidden Gun.
"Wow. Leonardo will always be remembered for creative stuff like this." Shin whistled. "And speaking of creativity…" He trailed off as he took out the muzzle and looking glass attachments before putting them on the table. "Got these off a Templar thug's rifle. Figured I could add them to my Winchester. Think you can manage it?" He asked.
"That's right. But these upgrades'll cost you." The man stated. "I'd say… Five dollars for the scope fitting, same for any first upgrades to the other weapons, and ten dollars for any first time upgrades to your blades." He added.
"Thankfully I saved up, so I can cover this." The gunslinger nodded as he gave him the appropriate amount of money for the upgrades. "I'll take that mounting, an upgrade for my pistols, and the poison blades." He added handing over twenty dollars in total.
"Alright, these should be done in a couple of hours. Come see me then. In the meantime, see what you can do to keep yourself busy." The man told him as he got his tools ready. Shin and Raven then went off to search for the former's uncles.
"So, these uncles of yours, they married or…?" Raven questioned, which made Shin nearly choke on a launch.
"Ha! No, not like that!" He guffawed, which made Raven raise an eyebrow. "They're twins, on my mom's side." He explained. "Uncle Virgil's the more responsible out of the two, leaving Uncle Dante to pick up the slack as the…" He continued before stopping as they suddenly came to a scene of absolute mayhem.
It looked like a man with silverish hair was busy chugging down an entire tall boot shaped glass of beer while the rest of the soldiers egged him on through the manner of hoots and hollers.
"Chug chug chug chug chug chug chug chug!" The now on break soldiers yelled in rowdy unison as the man continued to down the entire drink.
"... That's not one of your uncles, is it?" Raven asked hopefully, not wanting to deal with an alcoholic.
"Yeah it is." Shin sighed. "He may have a strong liver, but I wish this wasn't what he was doing right now." He added.
As the man in question finished the giant boot glass of beer he set it down and wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his uniform before he and the rest of the men erupted into cheers.
"Alright ya wackbags, I finished the stuff! Now pay up!" The man said confidently through his own laughter.
"Still drinkin' your liver out huh, uncle Dante?" Shin called, getting the man's attention.
"Shin!" The man exclaimed as he rushed over to the boy and hugged him tightly. "Oh it's been awhile, hasn't it nipote?" He laughed.
"Yeah it has!" Shin laughed along with him as Raven stood off to the side, just watching them with a smile on her face.
"I mean, just look at how much you've grown." The man laughed, setting him down. "Last I saw you, you were only up to my stomach!" He added heartily.
Dante Diablotore was the younger brother of Shin's mother Delilah, along with his older brother (by five minutes) Virgil.
The man was around twenty six or twenty eight years of age–he always insisted the former regardless of how many years refute that–with a bare, well-toned chest and muscular physique, which was covered by a standard issue uniform. As well as a pair of Gray eyes that matched his hair.
On his back was a claymore sword, as well as a pair of Big Iron pistols on his belt as well. He also had a bandana wrapped around his right arm, red.
"So, what brings you to ol' Fort Silis? Aside from a job, that is." The man questioned, adding that last part.
"It's… about mom and dad." Shin started to say before he felt his words get hitched in his throat, like a pill that went down wrong. "Uncle, they're…" He tried to say.
"Dead." A more seriously toned voice stated, causing everyone to turn around and see another man approaching them. "We know." He added.
He had the same skin tone as Dante along with the same hair color, but his hair was slicked back like the wind had blown against it too much. He had blue eyes, stood at Dante's height and wore the standard uniform under a trenchcoat.
This was Virgil, Shin's other uncle.
Virgil's uniform was much neater than Dante's, and his patch notes him as a lieutenant first class, while Dante was a second class. And, he also had a katana on his hip, strapped horizontally on the back.
"Aw Virgil, now why'd ya do that? Now the poor kid's gonna start cryin' again." Dante chastised as he pulled his nephew close. "And if he starts crying, I'm liable to start crying!" He added, as Shin tried his best not to worry his only living relatives.
"Oh grow up." Virgil retorted with a roll of his eyes as he looked at his nephew. "But we really are aware. Word reached the fort of what happened to Pallimon about a month after it happened." He told him, recalling how devastated and furious both he and Dante were when they found out what had happened.
"And I'm guessing from the outfit you're wearing, that they at least managed to tell you about them being Assassins?" Dante questioned.
"No, I figured that out on my own." The boy said, stepping away and gesturing to Raven. "This is Ravi:nhiote. She's my senior Assassin and I's navigator. She's also an Assassin, from the Mohawk tribe." He added.
"But I usually go by Raven, Raven Kenway." The native girl explained.
"A pleasure." Virgil nodded at her while Dante smirked suddenly.
"Shin, tell me, is Raven your–?" He teased, causing him to look at him in annoyance.
"No." The gunslinger shot back as his elbow hit his uncle's stomach. 'Raven's definitely nice. But she isn't the kind of girl I like.' He thought to himself
"At any rate, I'd say you two need to get some food in your stomachs." Virgil said as he started walking out of the place. "Come." He beckoned, prompting the two teens to follow him along with Dante.
"You guys got more than Hellfire stew?" Raven questioned as her stomach garbled. "My stomach still doesn't quite agree with the one Shin made last night." She added. Sure, it tasted amazing to her initially, but her stomach was pretty upset with her for it afterwards.
"Oh yeah. In fact, I think we're gonna have turkey with some mashed potatoes and gravy tonight." Dante nodded.
"Oh fuck yes…" Raven sighed happily, much to Shin's amusement.
"You guys get that all the way out here?" Shin asked.
"Supply chain, and a few of the other soldiers go hunting and fishing from time to time." Dante nodded as they headed to the eating area.
(Later)
"Wait, so you're here for the chiefs, why?" Dante questioned as the group ate, Shin tearing at a turkey drumstick.
"According to what I'm told, they're being accused of war crimes. Speaking of, I never did ask for details on that. So what's up on that front?" The gunslinger asked.
"War crimes?" The two said, looking at each other.
"First I'm hearing about it." Dante stated.
"Unless they mean that raid that happened in the Nebraska territory last year." Virgil stated. "But that was Puma's doing, not any of the chiefs." He continued.
"Puma?" Their nephew questioned.
"He's an upstart warrior in the Comanche tribe, jockeying to supplant ol' Silver River as chief." Dante explained.
"Sounds like the government can't tell the difference, in that case." Raven noted.
"Then that needs to be addressed, and quickly." Shin nodded.
"On that, I couldn't agree more." A voice said, causing everyone to notice Jaren sitting down with a plate of food and a glass of whiskey. "Sorry about that, couldn't help but overhear." He added.
"No no, you're good." Dante told him.
"You are correct, however. This mistaken identity mishap needs to be addressed." Virgil added.
"I don't know about you guys, but I think this whole situation reeks of Templar involvement." The Marshall stated before turning to his deputy and navigator. "Think you guys can go look to see that there aren't any Templars following the convoy carrying the chiefs? They should be headed our way soon."
"Right. The blacksmith should be done upgrading my weapons by now." Shin nodded as he finished up his food and got up. Raven followed suit as the two left the mess hall and went to the blacksmith.
"Oh, hey. Finished up your weapons a short while ago." He said, gesturing to Shin's weapons. The gunslinger looked at his Winchester and spotted the scope on it, making it look like an older rendition of a sniper rifle for its time.
"Perfect." The boy nodded as he put his weapons where they should be on his person before he turned to Raven. "Come on, let's go." He added.
"Right." The native girl nodded.
(Later)
Coming up to a steep hill a little ways from the fort, the two got into position. As Shin got a sniper's nest squared away, Raven tapped him on the shoulder.
"Here." She said, handing him what looked like a flute.
"A flute?" He wondered.
"It's a blow pipe disguised as a flute." She stated as she handed him six darts. "Careful with these, they're poisons made from wolfsbane, spider lilies and cuare." She continued. "A deadly poison that kills quickly and painfully, a toxin that stimulates the amygdala to the point of rage and eventual death, and finally a knockout toxin." She added.
"Huh. Nifty." Shin muttered as he carefully put the darts in a spare pouch he had. Then he looked back through his scope. "I see the wagon with the chiefs. Nothing abnormal yet." He reported.
"So far so good." The girl whispered back. A beat passed before she spoke. "You thinking of getting the swivel blade function put into one of your blades?" She asked.
"Maybe. It could come in handy." The gunslinger shrugged. It was then that he noticed something. "T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature a stirring except–the six armed jackasses moving in on the twelve, one, ten, eleven, two and six o'clock positions." He stated, pointing out several guys coming from various directions either on foot or by horse, and all of them had a familiar cross.
"Take them out." Raven ordered. Shin obliged and holstered his gun before taking out the blow pipe and sliding down the hill into a clump of bushes.
The Templars seemed none the wiser as they kept moving along, allowing the two to tail them.
"So, why are we trying to get these ingions killed again?" One of them, probably a rookie, questioned.
"You heard the Boss. It's to make the reservations unstable so Bowery's forced to send his Assassin buddies to keep things from falling apart." Another stated.
"Yeah, but why?" Another asked as Raven climbed up a tree and leapt to another to keep up, and Shin yeeted himself into a clump of brush across the way, causing a pause in the conversation… Before it resumed.
"You ain't paid to know why, yer paid to follow orders, shitbird!" The leader of the group snapped as they kept moving.
Deciding that now was a good time to strike, Shin fired the first two of his darts: the sleep darts, at the two lagging behind.
The two grunts slowed down before they fell to the ground, taking a short nap. The gunslinger moved on, opting to leave them to Raven to deal with.
Walking behind the rest of the guards, Shin then slid into another bush before firing a second duo of darts: Berserker Darts, at the other two grunts behind the leader.
This caused them to grab their heads before letting out cries of fury, causing the leader to look at them. Before he could even utter a word, they shot him in the head and other parts of his body… before they pointed their guns at one another and pulled their triggers, killing each other at the same time via headshot.
"... I don't know how I should react to that." Shin commented with a bewildered look on his face.
"... Did a video game gag appear before electricity was invented?" Calvin asked, just as bewildered as Shin.
"I think so." Joshua replied, sounding a bit amused since he's had this kind of scenario happen to him before, in and outside of online versus.
With the Templars dealt with, Raven and Shin regrouped as they followed the convoy back to the fort.
"So we were right, this was a Templar ploy." Raven stated.
"Better report on this immediately when we get back." Shin nodded as they traveled.
(Later)
As they finally managed to near the fort, both felt like something wasn't right.
"Hm…" Shin hummed as he narrowed his eyes before he brought out his Winchester and looked through the scope before cursing. "Fuck! Templars are at the gate! They must've taken over the place while we were out!" He hissed.
"Shit, not again!" Raven hissed. "We have to do something!" She added.
Shin wracked his head for ideas, ideally ones that didn't involve them going into the fort like a bunch of idiots. Then an idea hit him… and a grin grew on his face, which Raven noticed.
"You got an idea, don't you." She stated more than asked.
"Indeed I do." He confirmed. "We'll need to get to the wine cellar for this to work, though." He added, and the tribal woman knew where he was going with this.
"I think I can figure out a way. Anything else?" The girl asked.
"Wolfsbane, and lots of it." He told her.
Memory Synched.
Memory: Uncles, Sages
Next Memory: A Poisoned Well.
Synchronize Memory? [Yes/No]
[Yes]
Synchronizing…
-Fort Silis, 1859 night-
Shin and Raven snuck into the fort quietly after knocking out a pair of perimeter guards. They had spent most of the day scoping out the place and finding any weaknesses they could use to get inside and also planned out their attack. They intended to use Wolfsbane to poison the wine, and when the Templars drank it at their little victory feast, they would die painfully.
"Any luck?" Shin questioned.
"Not yet!" Raven called back as she kept looking. While this was going on, Joshua noticed another glyph out of the corner of his eye.
It was in the shape of a barcode, and it was on a tree.
"Hey, found another one of Desmond's messages. You guys up for giving it a look?" He asked.
"Not right this moment, but I'll log it for when this memory is finished. We can crack it then." Sarah replied as she did just that.
With that, they returned to the memory, where Raven finally managed to find an entrance.
"Here, through the irrigation tunnel." She called her partner.
"Okay, let's go." He nodded as they proceeded to wad through the tunnel and into the fort, the water being up to their waists. It was dark, but they were able to feel their way through it since it was enclosed enough to let that happen. After a bit, they came up to a small field, where they promptly hid among the crops.
From their position, they could see Templars either walking around, or sitting around laughing at how they took over the fort. Shin narrowed his eyes at their audacious attitudes but kept himself in check.
They'd all be dead soon.
Continuing on, they soon neared the back of the fort stables, where a good slip under the boarding allowed them to sneak in–where more Templars were flouncing about, with GW, Jaren, the chiefs, and Shins uncles all tied up with the rest of the soldiers and natives. Men with guns kept watch.
'Shit!' Shin cursed mentally. Raven looked around and spotted someone coming out of what she knew was the wine cellar with two bottles of said alcohol. She nudged the gunslinger, getting his attention and pointed at the doorway.
"That's where the wine is being kept." She whispered.
"Let's poison the bottles the one guy brought out. Deal with the ones around our guys first." Shin whispered back.
Raven nodded as the two got to work, dropping poison into bottles that were brought out by the Templars when their backs were turned, and killing any who saw them to hide in a haystack.
"*whistle*" Tuned Shin as a Templar passed by his hiding place, allowing him to grab and stab him when he got close, dragging him into the hay and looting him.
"Now all we have to do is sit and wait." Raven said as the two hid on the roof of the Captain building.
They watched as the Templars all poured themselves some of the poisoned wine, none of them realizing what was up. The ones watching over even took some, if only to taunt their prisoners.
Fools.
When they downed the wine, the Wolfsbane took effect only mere moments later and killed them from the inside out. One by one, they all began spitting up blood before falling to the ground, unmoving. This left several very surprised and confused prisoners alive.
Both Assassins dropped to the ground, startling the prisoners even more as they dusted themselves off.
"Everything is permitted." The gunslinger stated as Raven started cutting everyone loose. "We apologize, great chiefs. It would seem that our enemies intended to make you pay for another's crimes, and then use you as a distraction." He added.
"Yes. It would seem so." One of them, Silver River, nodded in agreement as he rubbed his wrists.
"What even happened with these Templars, anyway?" GW wondered as he looked at the bodies.
"We slipped Wolfsbane into the wine bottles they drank from. You might wanna dispose of those, by the way." Raven replied as she cut him free.
"Very sneaky, nipote. I honestly couldn't have done it better myself." Dante grinned.
"How did you guys even get captured?" Shin asked, handing his uncle his sword.
"We didn't really have a choice. They outnumbered us and took hostages, if we tried anything, they'd kill the chiefs first, then the soldiers, then us." GW stated.
"So we were doing what was logical given the circumstances." Virgil added.
"Then I guess we took the smart path if numbers were on their side." Shin noted as he gave Virgil his katana.
"Indeed." GW told him with a nod. "You managed to poison the leader of the bunch, too." He continued, pointing to said leader. "That'll make things easier for us, since they'll all be leaderless." He finished.
"Good. Let's take our fort back." Raven nodded as she cut the last chief free.
"Sounds good to me." Shin nodded as he took a piece of paper from the pocket of the leader of the group of Templars and put it in his pocket.
(Later)
Shin smiled as he fed Liberty, a couple weeks passing since the raid. "That's a good girl." He smiled as he chucked a few pieces of meat to Fenrir. "Catch boy!" He called, the dog catching and eating them.
"That's some nice pets ya got there." Dante grinned, scratching Liberty's chin.
"Thanks." The boy nodded.
.
"So, you leaving soon, nephew?" Virgil asked.
"Sadly, yes. Job's done, and I managed to spend my birthday with you two." The gunslinger replied as he kept feeding his pets. That was another thing; after the fort was taken back from the Templars, Shin celebrated his birthday with his uncles with Raven opting to join in since she wanted her friend to be happy.
"Aw man, that stinks." The claymore using man sighed in dismay.
"Well at least the trip back to DC will be less eventful than the trip here." Shin shrugged.
"What even happened on the way here for you?" Virgil asked with a raised eyebrow since his nephew didn't really say anything.
"Oh yeah, I never told you." The boy blinked before he recounted what happened in between his departure from DC and his arrival at Fort Silis. When he was done, Dante had a look of disbelief on his face while Virgil had a deadpan expression.
"Somehow, that assault by the Cormacs doesn't surprise me." He commented.
"I'm more concerned about you fighting a Wendigo! How did you even fight that thing?!" Dante asked with a gaping look on his face.
"Makeshift Silver dagger." The boy stated. Virgil nodded as he pulled something from his bag and set it on the table.
"Jaren told me that you're in need of some more melee weapons." He said, pushing the packages forward. "Here, a family heirloom from the Mongol/Samurai war that birthed the Japan Brotherhood. Should prove useful." He added.
"I should hope so." Shin chuckled as he accepted the packages.
Memory: A Poisoned Well Synched
Sequence 9 Complete.
No available Sequences at this time.
Desynchronize the user? [Yes/No]
[Yes]
Desynchronized.
"All right. Let's decode this puzzle." Joshua said. "This is puzzle number four, right?"
"Yep. Let's see what Desmond has for us this time." Sarah confirmed as she got the puzzle set up.
"First Altair, then Ezio, then Connor. And now I'm seeing this Era through Raven. I tell you, it's hard to believe that I'm still me under it all… Wonder if that's how the Sages feel? Wonder if that's how Elijah feels…" Desmond's voice said before the puzzle started.
Here, Joshua had to search through three images for Apples of Eden. The images present were as follows: The Battle of Sagamore Hill, Valley Forge, The French Theater in WWI.
Joshua searched through the first image, finding what he was looking for among the lines of the defending side.
The second was in a tent that a soldier was squatting in to get out of the cold.
And finally, the third showed the apple in the hands of the Germans as the allies tried to get it back. But there was something else in common.
"Hey, take a look at the people in these pictures, notice anything?" Mael remarked, highlighting the eyes of the first person in the first image, the side of the face of the soldier from the second image and the eyes and face of the third.
"They're all Sages?" Ororo gasped. Noting that two had heterochromia, and another had the same scar as another person in all three images.
"Looks like they've been present more times in history than we even noted. Different Isu groups maybe?" Joshua commented.
"Makes sense. I mean, according to Shaun, Rebecca, Colins, and William. This new guy, Basim, is a Sage of Loki, an Isu from Scandinavia." Calvin noted.
"That would explain a couple of things." The second tallest in the group nodded as he got the code. "Got what we need. Punch it in." He added, sending the code to Sarah.
Then, the next clip started playing. This time it was of what happened inside the tanks as soon as Quetzalcoatl and Quetzalpetlatl went into the Animus-like devices.
Inside the two tanks where the previous images showed silhouettes, out came two figures. Both were smaller than the Isu they once were, and both were naked. Their skin tones were different, with the male being Caucasian and the female being what would later be known as African. Upon closer inspection, they looked like…
"IS THAT ME AND ORORO?!" Joshua yelled in shock as he looked at the footage. Indeed, the two clones were practically the spitting images of himself and Ororo.
"I… I can't believe this!" Ororo gasped, just as shocked as he was.
The two clones slowly got their bearings as they looked and smiled at each other, before they embraced again, passionately.
-New York, present day-
Joshua shot up with a gasp, and without even thinking, got up from the Animus and ran out of the Sanctuary. Ororo ran right behind him, both needing to be alone.
When the man was in the woods outside, he fell to his knees as he looked up at the sunset. His mind was a hurricane of emotion right now. He thought he was just another human being, and then he finds out about him being a Sage of Quetzalcoatl while Ororo is a Sage of Quetzalpetlatl.
It all made sense now: How they clicked together so seamlessly, how easily they trusted one another… Fucking everything between them!
They were literally made for each other!
He felt hands on his shoulders, and didn't need to look back to know it was his apparent reincarnated wife.
"Was… Was it always like this? Us literally being together since…" Joshua trailed off.
"Honestly? I think it's more that the Isu made their "Sages" genetically predisposed to find the person who had the same genetic template as their original attractive, but, it was ultimately their choice to pursue that person." The woman stated as she sat down. "Sages can get taken over by an Isu, but they can also stay their own person. So I really don't think that we were forced into anything here." She continued. "It just made the choice easier." She added.
"It feels so much like reincarnation, though. Like we traveled throughout recorded history, from one life to the next, almost." Joshua sighed. "And every single time, we find each other." He added.
"Is that so bad, though?" Ororo cooed as she sat in her lover's lap, kissing him with her dark chocolate lips and letting him embrace her African goddess body.
"No… not really." The man replied, shaking his head. "But I definitely need to take some time off to come to terms with all this." He sighed as he relaxed in his lover's embrace.
Joshua Landers was far from ready to experience this kind of reveal. Now his life was changed forever in a way he didn't expect.
But honestly? With his beloved, it probably won't be so bad.
(Elsewhere)
-Abstergo Industry Labs, Living Quarters-
In a condo located in the Florida Keys (specifically Key West) a woman was currently making breakfast while humming to herself.
She had porcelain white skin, long brown hair reaching the middle of her back and equally brown eyes. She stood at a height of 6'2, had a CC-cup rack, a toned figure and a heart shaped ass.
She was dressed in a purple shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans.
"Desa! I'm home!" A … uncannily familiar yet different voice called as the automatic doors to the condo opened and closed, getting the brunette's attention.
"Welcome back!" Desa called back with a smile as the figure walked into the room. "Luca." She smiled as she set the plates of food down before sashaying over the figure in question.
It was a man the same age as her with short blonde hair and caucasian skin, blue eyes and features that made him look almost… eerily similar to what Lucy Stillman would have looked like if she were born the opposite gender.
The two smiled at each other as Desa wrapped her arms around Luca's neck and Luca wrapped around Desa's waist.
"I missed you, Mr. Miles." Desa purred, kissing her partner, a wedding ring shining on her finger.
"So did I, Mrs. Miles." Luca purred back as the two began stripping each other down.
Apparently these two were not as dead as the Brotherhood thinks.
ThermalsniperN7: … Well, looks like the Desmond x Lucy shippers have gotten their second wind. Also, DAMN! Apparently there was more to Joshua and Ororo than they themselves first thought.
Dragon Emperor0: Yep. That's definitely a big shock. And it's only the ninth chapter. We still have a bit of story to go. But, at least we got things set up.
ThermalsniperN7: That is true. Joshua has a lot to come to terms with, especially since Ororo is technically his reincarnated wife. But anyway, it's literally past 2 in the morning, and I want my sleep.